Nero's eyes widened in disbelief.
"It… worked?"
She couldn't help but murmur under her breath.
A darker, colder surge of mana spilled from the Word Soul Devil's body.
Not good!
Lumiere and Licht's expressions changed instantly. They shot forward, attempting to pull Asta back.
But it was already too late.
A Disintegrating Spear formed in the devil's hand. With a flick of his wrist, he drove it straight toward Asta's forehead.
"Worked? What kind of joke are you fools telling?"
Asta's pupils shrank.
He had no time to pull out the Demon-Slayer Sword—
Nor to summon the Demon-Destroyer Sword again.
Lumiere, now a streak of white light, grimaced.
Too late—
A black spatial rift opened behind Asta.
Yuuki's upper body burst from the portal first. He seized Asta by the shoulders and yanked him backward.
"Permeation Magic — Invisible Companion!"
Flash! Flash!
Both Yuuki and Asta vanished at once.
The spear pierced only empty air.
The Word Soul Devil's crimson eyes flickered. He slashed through the portal with the spear, causing the space itself to collapse under its disintegration.
"He dodged? What a troublesome magic."
Annoyance colored his voice as he spotted Yuuki and Asta reappearing at a distance.
"Heal."
He glanced at the gaping hole in his chest.
In the blink of an eye—
It was gone.
As if the previous strike had never existed.
Asta exhaled sharply, steadying himself beside Yuuki.
"That was close… I thought I was dead for sure."
Yuuki reached up and turned Asta's head back toward the battlefield.
"Now's not the time to thank me."
Yuno frowned.
"Even that didn't work?"
The Word Soul Devil threw back his head and laughed mockingly.
"Surprised? That level of attack could hit me a hundred times—it wouldn't matter!"
"And this magic?" He gestured to the black-blue gel still writhing across the ground. "No matter how many times you disperse it, it will keep increasing unless I'm defeated."
"The only exit is this top chamber. If you take your time, everyone below will be devoured."
"Isn't that amusing?"
Asta clenched his fists.
"You bastard!"
Patry gritted his teeth, frustration written across his face.
"Even the combined assault of Lord Licht and Lumiere… even Yuuki, Asta, and Yuno's coordination… It was perfect. Powerful."
"And still… we can't defeat him…"
Licht stepped forward, raising the Demon-Dweller Sword toward the devil.
"No matter what, this ends today."
"Gather the strength of all our elven brethren!"
"Erase him completely!"
He lifted the sword high above his head.
A brilliant white radiance erupted.
Across the entire Shadow Palace, every elf began glowing with white mana.
Then—
Beams of light surged in from all directions, pouring into the Demon-Destroyer Sword.
An indescribable wave of mana burst forth.
The very air grew heavy and viscous.
"That's… absurd," Yuuki muttered, eyes fixed on the blazing blade.
"Our rage—!"
Licht roared.
"Ultimate Sword Magic — Conquering Eon!"
The condensed mana discharged in a blinding torrent.
It was like a sun crashing down.
Everything in its path was obliterated.
Even the spatially reinforced walls of the Shadow Palace were torn open, exposing the gray world beyond.
Yuuki's eye twitched.
That was beyond excessive.
The combined power of the Apostles of Sephirah—
Even by late-stage standards, that was monstrous.
No wonder the devil had feared Licht.
As the light faded, silence fell.
The Word Soul Devil's form was gone.
Asta shouted excitedly, "Amazing!"
Yuno wiped sweat from his brow.
"That wasn't even the same level of magic…"
"Lord Licht!" Patry cried in exhilaration.
But Yuuki had already recovered from his own shock.
He knew.
That attack hadn't killed the devil.
Right now—
The Word Soul Devil was at his weakest.
This was the best chance to end him.
Yuuki's eyes sharpened.
He pushed both his mana and his ki perception to their limits.
There—
In the shadow of shattered debris—
A fist-sized heart floated.
"Found you."
"ASTA! YUNO!"
Yuuki roared, sweeping his hand forward. A massive spatial gate opened.
Without hesitation, Asta and Yuno dove in.
The next instant—
The three of them appeared around the floating heart.
Thump.
Thump.
The devil's heart beat audibly.
"Now!"
Yuuki ignited Salamander's flames around his fist.
"Fire Spirit Magic — Flame Fist!"
"Spirit Magic — Spirit Storm!"
Yuno unleashed a compressed blast of emerald wind.
Asta swung the Demon-Slayer Sword down toward the heart.
"Disappear."
"Disappear."
The heart twitched grotesquely.
A mouth split open upon its surface.
Yuuki and Yuno's attacks began to unravel.
Only Asta's anti-magic blade pressed on—
Then—
Another mouth formed atop the heart.
"Deviate."
Asta's arms twisted unnaturally.
The blade veered off course.
Not good!
If this strike missed, the devil would recover.
"Threads of Red Fate!"
Yuuki roared.
Mana exploded from his body.
A small red cat appeared above his head.
"Meow!"
Reality shifted.
Asta's blade corrected its trajectory.
But—
"Deviate."
"Return."
"Stop."
Again and again the mouths chanted commands.
Black mana flooded the area.
Time itself seemed frozen.
Asta strained, veins bulging.
Yuno's wind dissolved the instant it left his body.
Yuuki bore the greatest burden.
The red cat above him grew faint.
His mana drained at terrifying speed.
His face paled.
Sweat beaded on his brow.
If not for Fate Magic—
They would have been blown away long ago.
But this couldn't continue.
He would run out first.
His mana reserves were vast—
But not compared to a devil's.
Then—
Two streaks of white shot downward.
Licht and Lumiere.
"Now!"
"Disappear, devil!"
They thrust the Demon-Dweller Sword and the Sword of Light downward together.
The heart pulsed violently.
A third mouth formed.
"Vacuum Wall."
An invisible barrier manifested above the heart.
It blocked the blades—
For only a fraction of a second.
But that was enough.
"Bad—!"
Yuuki's expression changed.
They had no strength left to stop the third mouth.
"Heal."
Mana surged outward.
The devil's body began reconstructing rapidly.
Despair washed over them—
But suddenly—
Black anti-magic erupted from Asta's sword.
"AH?! What's happening?!"
Asta's restraints shattered.
The sword dragged him forward—
Uncontrolled.
Yuuki narrowed his eyes.
The devil inside Asta was responding.
THUD!
A black hand shot out—
Grabbing the anti-magic blade mid-thrust.
The Word Soul Devil's arm had regenerated first.
He seized the blade.
Metal screeched.
His head reformed next.
Crimson eyes locked onto Asta.
"Whatever devil's power you carry…"
"Remember—"
"I came first."
His body fully regenerated.
Black wings unfurled.
Thick mana engulfed him.
"Word Soul Magic — Soundwave — Magnetic Gel — Snoyn Endidgu!"
A warped incantation erupted from his mouth.
The mana blast forced everyone back.
Black portals tore open across the chamber.
Black-blue gel flooded out—
And from within it—
Massive serpent-like monstrosities emerged, maws gaping wide.
They lunged at the group.
These new constructs were faster.
More agile.
Stronger.
In moments, the tide turned.
The battlefield plunged into chaos.
The Word Soul Devil's gaze lowered.
It fixed upon Yuuki.
Cold.
Killing intent sharp.
"Most of your magic is worthless trash…"
"But some spells are… troublesome."
If not for that human—
He would never have been pushed that far.
(End of Chapter)
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