Lying in the sunshine in the basin was a reptilian-looking being wrapped in soot-colored scales all over its body.
　It was huge enough to look up at, moving up and down with its breathing, proving that it was not an artifact but something real and alive.

　It must have noticed the approach of Aldis and the others a long time ago.
　A mouth so big it could swallow the carriage whole opened and let out a gruff voice.

'What do you want?'

　It has a slightly open mouth lined with sharp fangs above and below.
　Two thick hind legs, a pair of bat-like wings, and sharp claws on its forefeet.
　If the legendary dragon creature existed, it must have looked like this.
　This is a genuine style that is clearly different from the dragon beasts that are the dragon shells.

''Oh, how do you do?''

I didn't want you here.

　Although Sailor smiles at you, the Demon King's words are still curt.
　It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

You're our neighbors, you don't mind showing up once in a while, do you?

What do you want to do? It's a waste of time.

You've got a lot of time on your hands right now.

　If you are a human, you might sigh and complain about it, but this time, Sailor showed a look of dismay on her face.

''Oh well.

　But it's only for a short while.
　When she regained her composure, Sailor got down to business.

'It's simple. You know that there is a village at the foot of the mountain where I keep my wards, right?

Yeah, I'm impressed that you can keep up with it, though.

I'll return the compliment in its entirety, but let's put it aside for now. The other day, for various reasons, the number of people in the village increased. The other day, for various reasons, the number of people in the village has increased significantly. I'm sure more people will be accepted into the village in the future. When that happens, we will no doubt run out of land in the current size of the village. That's why we'd like to expand the area of the ward a little bit.

　Hearing that explanation, the Demon Beast King's tone of voice changed to one that clearly contained caution.
　She glanced at Sailor and narrowed her eyes as she asked.

''Are you going to make a mistake in your promise?

No way.

　While under pressure that an ordinary person would undoubtedly run away from, Sailor, who returns it with a chuckle, is still not as unusual as Aldis and the others.

'As long as you live, this is the land of Canobis, and you will remain its rightful guardian.

Then it was a done deal.

But,

　Sailor interrupted the Demon Beast King's words and continued to speak.

''It wouldn't be against righteousness to make a new pact, would it?

　The huge eyes rolled back in surprise for a moment.
　However, it soon returned to normal, and the Demon Beast King, who narrowed his eyes again, blurted out words to Sailor in a shuddering tone.

''You have no right to make a contract with me. O Yuukyuu's servant.''

'I know that you don't have to tell me that. It's not that I don't like it, but it's not that I don't like it. I could have ignored your feelings and expanded the wards, but it's my sincerity that I'm going out of my way to make sense of it like this.

That's a very insolent thing to say.

It's mutual. You are arrogant, cowardly and merciful, the guardian of the earth and sky. If you're still proud of being an ally of the kind-hearted Demon King, you wouldn't say no to a challenge from a human who came to represent your village, would you?

　Sailor and the Demon Beast King, who had a provocative manner, exchanged glances.
　The silence continued until the Demon Beast King eventually opened his mouth.

''...... So?　Is the person you're dealing with a little boy over there?

Yeah.

How good are you?

''Suffice it to say that Renno's daughter has her eye on you, right?

Ho. That's good, then.

　Apparently the little boy was referring to himself, but other than that, Aldis wrinkled his brow and asked in neither direction, not understanding at all.

'Hey, I don't get it. What the hell are you guys talking about?

　Sailor's answer to Aldis's question was still to the point.

'It's all right. All you have to do is show him what you can do and the negotiations are over.

'What?　Was that a negotiation?

　Rona asked back, as if she hadn't thought of it, but there was no voice to answer her.

'Then kid, don't let me down, okay?　You can have the gold there with you.

　The demonic beast king who proceeded to talk to the parties involved woke himself up.
　The inexplicably disgusting words, "Come on," added to Aldis' suspicions.

''I don't understand the situation.

'Huh?　Does that count me as well?

Good luck with that.

　Towards the puzzled Ardis and Rona, Sailor took a distance from them while lightly fluttering her hand.

''Hey, hey--''

Come on, let's go!

　Aldis tried to call out to him, but the Demon Beast King didn't care to take a stand.
　Even if he didn't say a word, it was clear that the other party was in a battle stance.

''You brought me here for this?!

　Aldis is a person who has been in the midst of battle for many years.
　Not once or twice had he been involved in a killing spree without knowing why.
　He instantly decided that he should prepare for the threat rather than pursue Sailor now, and immediately put up a quintuple of magical barriers.

　The Demon Beast King howled.

　Five shimmering fireballs were born above Aldis's head and rained down without a pause.
　Each one is reminiscent of the "Purgatory Flames "Ferno Resta Ganov" chanted by the sorcerer, and when they broke through three of Ardis' barriers, they finally stopped their momentum.
　That's how you can tell that even though they look the same, they are an order of magnitude more powerful.

''Well defended. It's a good thing that this is the end of the story.

　The Demon Beast King makes his next move while twisting his mouth in happiness.
　Numerous crystal-clear spear-like objects appeared and attacked Ardis with their cutting edges pointed at him.

　In order to intercept them, Ardis summoned all the swords he could find from the "Gate".
　There are about a hundred of them.

　This is the very last minute line of defense, as if increasing the number of swords any more will only allow them to make simple movements.
　It's impossible to replicate its own skill, but it would be enough to intercept the spear-like objects coming towards it in a linear motion.
　Each of the hundred moved as if they had individual intentions, knocking down the transparent spears one after another.

''Ho, interesting!''

　You can find a lot of joy in the monster king's voice.

　Of course, Aldis doesn't just get beaten up.
　Although it is unwilling to do so, since it became a battle, it is clear that defending yourself is a bad idea.
　The flying swords that had finished intercepting them were now turned to the offensive.
　A hundred flying swords surrounded the Demon Beast King like bees swarming around an external enemy and slashed at him one after another.

''Hahaha!　You think something like this is going to work!

I'm quite aware of that.

　Even Ardis doesn't think that the Heavy Iron Flying Sword, which wasn't even effective against the Dragon Shell Beast, would be effective against the Demon Beast King.
　It was enough to distract the Demon Beast King for an instant.

　After closing the distance with a single breath, Ardis dives into the bosom of the Hexenbiest King and pulls the red demon sword from its sheath.
　The sword, with all the strength it can muster, is launched into the monster king's abdomen and it easily crushes the thick physical barrier and creates a single line of cuts.

''That sword: ......!

　Rather than having his defenses breached, the Demon Beast King was rather surprised to see the sword in Aldis' hand.

''A saving demon!　As usual, you're an afterthought!

　Spitting out some causal words, the Demon Beast King started to fight back.
　With that one, a forelimb that could cover Aldis' body was swung down.

''Fast!

　The speed of the claws approaching at an unimaginable speed from its massive body, Aldis combined the three swords of Sotensaika, Tokiharugasumi and Tsukishirofubuki to create an improvised shield.
　The three swords momentarily killed the momentum of the incoming claws as they tore through Ardis' defensive barrier.
　Aldis uses that small amount of time to jump back and strike the ice magic as a replacement.

''It won't work!''

　The magic of Ardis, who has buried many monsters, is not even a check on the Demon Beast King.
　It's a very good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

''Tch!

　Faster than he could think, Aldis used his magic to create a foothold, kicking it and changing its trajectory in the air.
　A tail wrapped in soot-colored scales passed by his eyes and nose.

''Not yet!''

　The Demon Beast King, who still hasn't rested on his offensive, creates a buzzing wind with his wings.
　A stormy wind storm hits Ardis, but it's nothing to worry about.
　The problem is that the sand created by the magic power in that wind is trying to take away Ardis's vision.

'Take away his vision--up!

　Relying on the swelling magical power, he read the intentions of the Demon Beast King.
　There was a large ball of fire floating in the sky far above, emitting a radiance stronger than the sun.

　A blue-white glow was reflected in Ardis' eyes as she looked up.
　Its color and brilliance reminded her of a certain avenging enemy.

　It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.
　He created a reinforced magic barrier in layers and pointed it at the sky just to prevent the blue flames (Seien).

　Huge, and with a vicious destructive power to match its size, the blue flame is shot down towards Ardis like an arrow.
　The pressure of the blue flame clears the vision that was previously obscured by the sand.

　At the same time, five of Ardis's barriers were shattered in an instant.
　Another one of the barriers is broken by the blue flame, which maintains its strength even though its momentum is killed.
　Aldis's barrier and the blue flames were locked in a battle, but another one shattered, unable to withstand the power of the blue flames.

　The last one is cracked.
　When it reached that point, the blue flame finally lost its power.

''Ho, it's going to block that one!　I see, it's only a matter of time before Nerinoh pays attention.

It's just a lot of stuff to do, like cover up with sand.

'A fight is only as good as your head. You can call me a coward if you want. I don't mind it at all, though.

Don't think you can keep that facade up forever.

That's the spirit!　You may come at me with all your might!

You don't have to tell me!

　This time, Ardis turned to attack.
　She poured out her magic power and condensed it to the extreme and unleashed a light magic and directed her attack like a thin spear that extended in a straight line to the Demon Beast King's legs.

　Naturally, the Demon Beast King tries to defend against it by deploying multiple magical barriers.
　However, Ardis' attack is probably more powerful than the monster king expected.
　Instead of blocking it from the front, the Monster King tried to respond by changing the angle of the barriers in the middle of the attack to avoid it.
　As a result, the Demon Beast King's consciousness was momentarily distracted.

　As if waiting for this to happen, his golden-colored partner, who had previously been absent from the scene, successfully took advantage of his opponent's blind spot and jumped out.

''Have you forgotten about me?

　Along with strong magic power, Rona releases her signature magic.
　The five or so blades shaped like a half-moon were released.

''Mm?''

　The next moment, the expression on the monster king's face, which did not lose its composure while letting out a surprising cry at the unexpected attack, disappeared.
　The half-moon shaped blade collided with the barrier that was deployed to prevent the attack, and it instantly turned into mucus, blocking the monster king's vision.