I was blown far away by wind magic and had to walk on my own feet when I returned.
　But it didn't take much time or effort.

　Apparently I wasn't as far away as I thought I was.

''Dariel-san!''

　When I returned, I was greeted by Radey and many other adventurers.
　With cheers.

"Awesome!　I knew my brother was amazing!
"He's so freaked out by all the mess he's making!　I don't want you to be enemies with me anymore!
You are the unsung hero of the ages!　I'm sorry to see you here...!
I mean, it's so strong, it's a bit of a surprise...!

　That's all.
　The reaction of the adventurers was truly joyful and excited to celebrate their victory.
　There was no other impurity in the air.

　Showered with such a welcome, I felt a strange sense of fatigue all over me.
　I wasn't physically tired.
　That giant aura sword was indeed a great move, but it was still not enough to squeeze all my energy out of me.
　He could release two or three blows now if necessary.

　But there was a sense of fatigue.
　Not my body, but my mind was fatigued.
　The reason for that........

''.........''

　Master Grandfather came in front of me.
　The truth is, it was you who intended to end your life with him.

　I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to do anything about it.

I'm sorry, Mr. Granbaza, I'm sorry........?

　I interrupted my words.
　Because I was struck.
　I'm not going to be able to get a good deal more than that.

"?
"What do you mean?

　Everyone around us is in turmoil, but I immediately raise my hand to control them.

It's okay, it's okay, don't make a fuss...!
But...?
Come on...!

　Stacking up and shushing people.

　It wasn't much of a hit, in fact, it wasn't much of a hit.
　It was weak, and I didn't even take a step back when I was hit.

''Why didn't you........let me die with you.......?''

　Granberza-sama said in a trembling voice.

''Why didn't you make me take responsibility........?　In this, I will never pay for my sins........!　Just let him go alone...!
It's all about me.

　I replied.

"I didn't want you to die.

　With those words, the taut thread of Granberza-sama's tautness was broken.
　I forcefully put my knees on the ground.

''I'm sorry........Dariel, I'm sorry......!

　With his head down and staring at the ground, Granberza-sama just repeated 'I'm sorry'.
　I also folded my knees together and wrapped my arms around the sinking Granbaza-sama with both arms.

　Arantzill-san, the previous hero, also placed his hands on my shoulders from behind.
　On the shoulder of his long-time nemesis.

''............''

　After all, to Master Grand Barza, Bashbarza was a beloved son.

　As a human resource, he was an irrepressible scum.
　His pride was so great that he believed that only he was right and denied others unconditionally.
　The tragedy of the organization is that such a person is given a position of responsibility based solely on his bloodline and ties.

　Bashburza was a tragedy in his existence, but he was still a blood son to Granburza-sama.
　He wasn't like me, who was just raised by him.

　The apology eventually turned into a sob.
　The strongest Four Heavenly Kings of all time cried.

　Losing a son is such a big deal.

　I'm sure that in the future, until I die, I will surely ask myself, ''Was it right that I didn't let Granbaza-sama die with you here? You might keep asking yourself.

''........Ah!

　It was then.
　Someone raises their voice.

''Everyone........!　The sky, look at the sky!

　Everyone looked up at that voice.
　There was a clear blue sky. It's not just a matter of time before you get to the top.

''What is that...?

　Bright red, countless particles gathered into a single point.
　The more the particles gathered, the larger they became, and eventually they formed a meaningful shape.
　The silhouette of a giant dragon.

　And after enough regeneration, it manifested........

''Flame Demon Beast Salamandra!

　The demonic beast that Bashbarza was supposed to have absorbed was revived.

　That's ridiculous, wasn't it supposed to be extinguished by my light sword?
　Together with Bashbarza who became the host.

''That's what a demonic beast is.

　Lady Glamberza bit back a sob.

'They will never die. They've lived through hundreds of years of annihilation and rebirth in that way.

　We've got to get down.
　Now that we've revived, there's a chance we'll be able to have another fight with that monster.

　But the demon beast didn't even bite us again, rather it turned on its heel and flew away into the distant sky as if it didn't even bite us in the teeth.

It's as if indifference smells from every movement...?
''I guess that's about it now that the influence from Bashbarza due to emissary magic has disappeared. I'm not sure I'm going to be the only one who can do that.

　.........
　If we were to challenge the freed Fiendish Beast to battle again, would we be able to win?

　The guy who was connected to Bashbursa also shared Bashbursa's cowardice and pride.
　It was believed that this was putting a certain limit on the natural strength of the demonic beast.

''Is this........the end?''

　The battle against the Four Heavenly Kings Bashvaza.

　It was a fruitless battle with nothing to gain.
　So even if we won, there was no sense of accomplishment, and it was as if an emptiness was blowing through my chest.

'I guess I had nothing to gain...'
I'm not so sure.

　I noticed that Mr. Alanziel was right next to me.
　I guess Granberza-sama wants to be alone for a while. Anyway, now I look around the battlefield that ended with these two.

''That was a hell of a move you pulled off at the end, wasn't it?
'Oh...'

　You mean that light sword that annihilated Bashbarza?

　The Hermes sword is filled with aura to the limit, and instead of letting it be transmitted to the weapon, the aura itself erupts like a blade.
　The visualized aura takes on the aspect of a sword of light and annihilates anything it touches.

　Anyway, it's a sword that came out almost by feeling, trying to erase the demonic beast energy compressed inside him, but I didn't expect it to take such a proper shape.

''It's not my ability. This Hermes sword did the job for its performance.
It was your skill that made it happen. As a mass of aura, it looked like a 'Splitting Sky', but to stabilize it like a sword instead of flying it like a 'Splitting Sky', your handling of the aura may now be beyond me.
No, no....

　So that's the outcome of this battle that's left.
　It's not very exciting, but it's healthier than thinking it was nothing.

　I'll take that as a gesture of goodwill from Alanziel.

I'd like to give you a name for the perfect technique you've created. As a mass of aura, it shows the face of the Splintering Sky, while also exceeding the power of my secret technique, the Great Emperor Splintering Sky...

　He pretended to think about it for a while....

''How about 'Demon Emperor Splitting Sky'?''
....

'Zekko Splitting Sky'.
　Was that new technique the only one I was able to acquire this time?

　Well, let's be satisfied with the fact that everyone was able to get through this and that was the greatest achievement.