When he came here, Ars had a momentary hesitation. Should he release the other power, which is equivalent to the curse hidden in him - originally he would have used [Violent Predator (Gla Eater)] without hesitation.

　But it was still good if he was going to go out of control. Because if I die, that's all that matters.
　However, the magic of recognition delay. The power of time stoppage that he had tried in the battle against Noir had brought a fierce pain that burned Ars's eyeballs. It was an eroding fear, an unknowable one that painted his consciousness.

　--is it better than being complained about by Loki later? No. If it wasn't the other world, I could make as many offers as I wanted.

　Right after he made a decision and tried to release his power.

"--!

　A number of spheres attacked the midpoint between Krokel and Ars with tremendous speed from above their heads. A silver light the size of a fist crossed his vision at high speed. Drilling a hole in the ground, it quickly floated in the air. Would it be such a sight if time stopped in the middle of the rain?
　The small ball, shiny enough to reflect his own face, occasionally rippled across the surface.

　And after a beat, Ars cowered his shoulders when he saw the man swinging from the sky. He said he was a man who was every bit as good.

'Sounds like you had perfect timing, Arus.
If I had been a little later, you wouldn't have been in the game.
I'm glad you didn't. I've put a lot of pressure on myself, thanks to you. It's good to know that you're in good hands. It's true that Kramer's intervention was a great signal for him to intervene, but...
'I suppose. To be honest, I wasn't expecting it.
Oh, come on, this is a great opportunity to pay you back.
You still say that?

　A request for reinforcements that I had struck in advance. The blonde young man--Jean is projected into view, and snickering Ars fixes his gaze to chase after Crockel, who has evaded, but.

''So you were able to do this. To be honest, I was surprised, and I pacified one of your bodies.

　Whether Mekphis, who was thought to be completely dead after receiving the [Black Flame Burial 《Gehenna》], was extinguished by burning up the target's magic power and was extinguished, or whether Crockel had released it, the sound of the intonation of his voice could be heard unchanged.

　Caught between them in a straight line, Ars and Jean positioned themselves with their backs to each other.

　And seeing the appearance of Mekphis who showed up, Ars changed his eyes to a sharp look.
　Instead of the young man who had just recently fought, there was an oddly aged woman dressed in a dark suit and drawing her shorty-like gloves so that they were firmly buried to her fingertips.

　She lightly untied her body and turned her wrist. Her purple-blue 《shikong》 hair was in a small bun at the back, showing a gentle habit below her shoulders. Although he was short in stature, his eyes, mouth, cheeks, and parts that make up his expression were turning his crazy face towards us.

'You need to unlock it faster,'

　He unleashed his frustration on the other side between Ars and Jean with high-pitched, soprano-toned, manly words.

'Sorry, sorry. That one's a pain in the ass if you eat it.'
We've lost a valuable dark strain to you.
I'm sorry about that.
''What I didn't expect. Well, as expected, I couldn't use the same hand twice, and if it was only one arm that could take away the controls...

　Mekphis shakes his face in a good-natured manner.
　It seems that it was his magic that turned Ars's arm against his will to himself. It's not just a matter of time before you get to the point where you'll be able to get your hands on it.


"It's a demon. Apparently, it's not just about shape-shifting.

　Analyzing, Ars understands that he is making a leap from rational thought. Nevertheless, in order to give Jean an accurate picture of the current situation, he tells him the main points as he sees them.

　However, Jean seems to have gained something closer to conviction than the information he's gained, and he self-concludes with a single word, "I see," in a voice that seems to resonate in the pit of his stomach.

'Crokel.........'

　Jean glares and hits the single wizard who is probably the main culprit.

'Ah, isn't it Jean Rumbles? I didn't expect you to come, either, as expected.
You've become quite talkative, haven't you?
Of course, I've been patient. I'm a talker by nature. But what can you say to these people who are so far gone? No, no, you're going to die a fool. They say that you can't cure a fool even if you die, you know. This world can't survive unless the trash dies quickly like the trash it is. We don't need any more beings that just create garbage.
Can you tell that to your own head of state?

　Jean says, remembering Lithia. Such an arrogant idea is hard to accept. 'No one can be perfect,' he says.

'Of course not. 'What was it?'
Is it Rafcenal?

　It was so trivial to Crockel that he could not remember it without Mekphis' advice.

'I've already got him out,' he said. He wasn't moderately bad as a pawn, though. That kind of thing sticks around, and that's why you get more garbage.'
"--!
You killed your own head of state?

　He fished his corner of the eye, unusually for Jean, and raged.

'I'm telling you so. Don't be persistent, don't worry. I don't even need Rusalka's head of state, I'll kill him properly.
'Crokel, it's going to be enough to kill you.

　It's all well and good to have some swagger, but he knows that it's not a simple matter with Jean. A single Hydrangee, he and Krokel are mages who rarely go out into the outside world. Their fighting ability is not certain. And moreover, since he is the leader of [Krama], it's not hard to imagine that he has a hidden gem.


　He and Jean have a history of fighting together in joint operations in the past, but that was only once. It's hard to judge how far the instant coordination will work. Not to mention, Ars has different abilities and there will be a lot of magic in Jean that he hasn't shown to Ars. I don't want to hide it now, but it's boring to make a mistake on this occasion.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this. It's just a matter of time before you find yourself in the same situation. It's a pretty powerful piece of manipulation magic.

　That's why Ars is covering his entire body with magic power more than necessary. Once it's applied, it takes a few seconds to undo it. Even so, it would still be possible to escape on your own if you have four limbs. In this fight, though, even that would be fatal.

'It's going to be a fuel-efficient fight. Not that it hasn't been in the past.''
There are demons like that.

　In the case of manipulative magic or magic that directly interferes with an opponent, it must exceed the interference strength of the opponent. The person who wields manipulative magic cannot be caught off guard for even a moment, otherwise his or her body will instantly stop obeying him or her. Otherwise, their bodies would instantly stop obeying them.
　I'm sure you'll be able to see that the same way you change your appearance, your magical nature will also change.

　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what to expect.


　I'm not sure how to set it up, but it's quicker than Ars can think.

I'm not going to be able to get it right.
'Well I wouldn't wish it on you.
'In return, make sure you take out Crokel. I can't stand it when Lithia-sama gets in the way. I'd like to take care of him too, but it's become a matter of my own making.
'That's too greedy. I have to get even, too, because I have to get even.

　Even after hearing that, Crockel bursts out laughing with a kooky smile.

You'll be able to find a way to make it work. The people who are killed and the people who kill end up with the same result. You kill because you don't want to be killed. One of them has the intention of killing the other, so the result will be the same. Maybe it will bite you a little.
I'll bite you to death.

　His smile deepens even more when he receives Ars's sarcastic dialogue.

'Jean, Loki should be in a battle away from you, too. I'm sorry, but when you're done, you can go over there.

　Even if they do everything they can and carry on as expected, they still don't stand a chance against Hazan in Loki. Ars himself, though, wants to join in.
　It would still be better if it was against Mekphis - now a woman - but there are many things about Krokel that are worrisome. He was even more suspicious than Mekphis, who was changing his appearance.

　Because in the invitation that called Ars, the secret about him was clearly stated in the invitation.

　Ars and Jean began to move without verbal confirmation. There is only one combination that can serve as a signal in past partnerships.

'Let me hear it from your mouth when it's all over.

　Ars understood exactly what Jean had said over his back. Yes, it was easy to imagine a situation where Beric and the others had been called to an emergency meeting. Then, no matter how much the Alpha defended him, he thought it would be time to think about how far he could keep the secret about Ars, because he thought it would be the time to go.

　Ars took Jean's nuanced words about Ars's different abilities as known to him as he was, and replied somewhat happily, "I understand.

　Immediately after that, Ars and Jean exercised their magic in unison. It was a combination of magic that stood up continuously as if they were training for a special training session.

''【Permanently Frozen Realm【Nibbleheim】''

　In an instant, the world was repainted to the world of freezing, followed by Jean's flowing magic name.

''The Magnetic Field of Crushing [Reverse Gale].''

　A crack appears in the trees all over the white silver area. Jean's AWR [Rage Ball], which was a small ball overhead, stuck together and enlarged its volume. The sphere, which seemed to reflect silver and white, was spinning divinely like an asteroid.
　What seems to be a fragment of the rage ball surrounding a circumference the size of a pinky fingernail creates an electromagnetic field.

　The sensation of having one's entire body sucked in as soon as it appeared was no illusion, and Ars immediately covered the ground with a barrier to fix his and Jean's coordinates.
　Every possible substance in the air, including dust, was being absorbed. The next visible layer of air surrounded them.

　The trees that Ars froze were sucked in as if they were being scraped off their bodies, and shards of glittering ice mixed with the surrounding air layer.

　Krokel just looked up at him, not moving slightly any further, as if he had distanced himself at one end. Mekphis is similar. He has sublimated the magic that originally only sucked. If you say so, it includes a combination with Ars's magic, and what is included is the effective use of this magic.

　Ars already saw from the fact that Mekphis, who was supposed to have cut the carotid artery, appeared to change his appearance without a care in the world, that he would miss his chance to win if he was dealing with a human.
　That's why it would be easier if he died from this.

　--It won't work out so well, I guess. Or rather, it's about time........!　It's bigger than the last one we did.

　Ars increases the strength of the feeling barrier. No, he was still uneasy, but another thin membrane covered it.
　Immediately after, the sphere that was rising stopped.

　This time it sucked in and spat out the dust that had been shredded into pieces with tremendous force.
　A bursting sound that made it seem as if it had exploded instantly sent shockwaves running through the fine gravel, popping it out like a bullet.

　The intermittent rain of gravel that wouldn't be full of holes if it were flesh and blood continued for a few seconds.

　The dust cloud curled up so irritatingly that just after the sphere spat out everything, Ars also released the barrier.

'I've got it.'
I'm on a mission.

　So they exchange, and Jean runs towards Mekphis, who was using the Rage Ball to capture him. He's alive, after all. It's strange, because it makes me happy.

　Jean ran in a straight line, lost in the dust cloud. And then--.

'We're over there.
Haha!

　Jean's palm strike, an oval-shaped rage ball is stuck on his hand with a gap. A palm strike combined with the AWR known as a firing strike 《impact》.
　A burst sound of space vibrating is sounded in the abdomen.

　As well as the power, Mekphis's slender body is blown away in a straight line, and Jean chases after it.