514 – Succession of the King

I fall sharply, my eyes fixed on Eldia. Eldia’s wings move.

Swinging down my foreleg, I dig into his back with [Dimension Claw]… I’m not going to let him get away. I’ll end it now.

I activate [Gravity]. The black light spreading out from me amplifies Eldia’s weight, pulling him towards the ground. His huge body sinks into the ground.

As I lift my foreleg overhead, Eldia resists the gravitational force to heft his arm up.

“O, OO… OOOOO…!”

The difference in stats is plenty. Eldia is forcibly healing with [Autoregeneration] but a considerable amount of damage has accumulated. I had thought he would be unable to rise within my [Gravity], but… His toughness has exceeded my expectations.

Eldia’s fist swings down towards me in a counter, grabbing my head.
――But in reality, all he grabbed was an illusion of my head.

It’s the [Mirage] skill. [Mirage] is at its most effective in a close-combat situation like this when the target is already under a lot of pressure. I am slightly behind my illusion. Right in front of me, Eldia’s balance breaks as his claw passes through the illusion, causing him to slam down to the ground under the weight of [Gravity].

I’ve gained a huge opening. Swallowing my saliva, I close my eyes. I reach out with my foreleg to tear through his abdomen, sending him flying. Pulled by [Gravity], he thuds to the ground, his limbs splaying.

The black light of [Gravity] fades. Eldia’s body twitches and begins to rise, then collapses once more.

…I still haven’t gotten the experience acquisition notification. I check his status. He’s wounded heavily enough that he could die of blood loss any second. But, I don’t have time to wait for that. While I’m here, Lilixira and her subordinates will be headed for Aro and the others.

Besides, I don’t really understand the specifics of [Spirit Servant], but it’s possible that if I leave him, he could get withdrawn and allowed to recover. I can’t afford to waste time here. Eldia… I’ll be certain to kill you here.

Eldia’s body rises, and as if to prevent that, glowing blue chains appear all over his body. I’ve seen these chains on Beelzebub before. Back then, it was because he’d reached the range limit of [Spirit Servant], and so his movements were sealed.

It looks like something’s about to happen. As the need to immediately take him down crosses my mind, Eldia’s eyes flick towards me.

『You… You’re the twin-headed dragon from earlier, aren’t you?』

[Telepathy]. Eldia has clearly returned to his old self… Has [Spirit Servant’s] restriction of his will weakened? I find myself unable to complete the swing of my foreleg, and leave it hanging.

『…I could faintly remember. There was a gap in Saint’s chains. So I knew right away. Hmph, it seems that woman betrayed you, even though you put so much trust in her. That was why I warned you.』

Eldia snorts as he sends his thoughts at me with a light tone, acting as though it’s no big deal.

『My bad… Sorry, Eldia…』

『As things are now, what’s past is past. Besides, I’m pleased. I’m finally able to meet Demon Lord-sama’s, Noah-sama’s, successor. My five hundred years of wait weren’t in vain. Ahh, that’s right. Hh, maybe this was why I received that divine revelation.』

Eldia took part in the scramble for the divine skills five hundred years ago as the Demon Lord’s close retainer. He said that, after the battle between monsters and humans came to an end, he heard a divine revelation from the Will of the World (likely God’s Voice), and so kept living in order to serve the Demon Lord of the next era… From the current situation and his memories as a [Spirit Servant], it seems he’s worked out that I hold [Asura Realm], and so I am the Demon Lord.

『You understand now, don’t you? Humans fear any existence more powerful than themselves. Despite that, they are foolish beings that cannot be satisfied unless they are the centre of the world. Noah-sama spoke of that often, too. About how it seemed he was made to as though to continue antagonising them.』

『I…see. Maybe that’s true.』

I have no idea why Lilixira is so hellbent on coming here to kill me. All I know is that she’s being instigated by God’s Voice.

I had thought she was doing it for a completely useless reason, but she might have actually only been fearing a betrayal from my end. Of course, even supposing that was true… I have no intention of forgiving someone who forced me into a situation where my partner died, and who killed Eldia and bound his soul to use him as a disposable pawn…

『I’m probably going to disappear soon. But I don’t fear passing on. Continuing to be used by those abominable humans is what terrifies me the most… In my final moments, I have a favour to ask of you.』

『What is it? I can’t spend much time now. But if it’s something I can do…』

『Win this battle… Usurp their strength, annihilate those damned humans, and build a world for monsters. Promise me that. With that I’ll be able to peacefully pass on.』

I want to say that he’s surely mistaken. The Demon Lord Noah spoke of his reason for existence being to extend the conflict with humans, and that is probably near the truth. But, the one who made it that way… There’s no mistaking that it’s due to the actions of God’s Voice, who freely creates and alters this world and calmly causes the deaths of hundreds of thousands. They’re a demon who scatters the divine skills among humans and monsters, and induces them to fight in endless wars. An end to the fighting won’t come from destroying humans or monsters. Like the answer the Hero Miia arrived at, the answer is to kick God’s Voice out of this world.

…However, on the verge of his death, Eldia won’t be able to accept such an explanation.

『…Yeah, sure, I understand. I’ll destroy them all. As the Demon Lord.』

…So, I lie to him. Eldia sighs in relief.

『Thank you… I can now peacefully cross over to Noah-sama’s side. It’s a shame I will no longer be able to observe your efforts, my son.』

『Wha… ! W-when, how did you find out…!?』

Eldia’s lips curve into a slight smile. His eyelids close a moment later.

【14040 experience points have been acquired.】
【Due to the title skill [Walking Egg: Lv-], an additional 14040 experience points have been acquired.】
【The level of [Oneiros] has risen from 105 to 109.】

I’m notified of the experience acquisition. Eldia’s form turns into a mass of light and disappears. Since [Spirit Servant] binds a soul, it looks like it doesn’t leave behind a body.

【Title skill [Son of the Dragon King: Lv-] has transformed into [Dragon King: Lv-].】

In the end, that is all I am notified of. I feel my eyes start to sting. Water collects behind my eyes, quickly becoming tears that drip down.

…There’s no time to mourn. Now that Lilixira has gotten away, I need to quickly join up with Aro and the others.

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