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A week ago, right after returning from Alvheim, Arthur lied to Tia and Stella, claiming he felt unwell, and hurried straight to the dormitory.

Returning to the dormitory, Arthur flopped onto the bed, wanting to fall asleep but unable to do so easily due to the memories that kept resurfacing.

-···Luke! ──! I love you···! ──! I love you···!

‘Stop···! Get out of my head!!’

That voice from back then just wouldn’t fade away. I had my eyes tightly shut, so I couldn’t see the scenes playing out, but even just hearing the sound conjured up all those intimate moments in my mind.

Because of that, Arthur couldn’t get a proper night’s sleep. While someone else might be snoring away, exhausted from their escapades, he was left helplessly tossing and turning, the words ringing in his ears all day long.

So, it was early in the morning that he dragged his tired body back to the Empire······.

“Shut up!! Just shut up!!”

-Bam! Bam!

The more he tried to forget, the louder those thoughts echoed in his head, so Arthur slammed his fist on the floor. But all that resulted in was a soft thud against the bed and plush pillow beneath.

“Dammit···! Dammit···!”

Such intense trauma often resurfaces against one’s will. Arthur was exactly like that now. A single day was far too short a time to forget everything.

“Hah··· Hah···.”

After a while, when dust was floating around the room, Arthur finally paused his frantic movements. Once everything was over, a thought suddenly struck him.

‘How did it come to this?’

Why did my heroine go after that guy instead of me?

Why couldn’t I even defeat an extra, despite my efforts?

Was it all my fault?

‘No··· It’s all that bastard’s fault······.’

Always butting in wherever he went, interfering, and even taking the heroine who had done nothing. That damn gold-sun bastard. There’s no way a protagonist can lose to an extra, right?

Suddenly, Arthur’s demeanor turned fierce. His eyes, which once pleaded for forgiveness, now sparkled with a dangerous light.

‘Yeah··· what would change if that extra died?’

An extra shouldn’t exist in this story in the first place. Especially not some unheard-of scumbag named Luke.

In places he’s not aware of, countless extras are dying. Adding just one more to the tally doesn’t mean anything, right?

“I’ll make sure to repay every bit of it.”

Arthur immediately got up from his spot and headed to the desk. He opened his notebook, formulated a plan based on the information swirling in his mind, and then quickly left the dormitory.

That was the genesis of the entire incident.

*

“Why is there no reaction at all?”

“What kind of reaction are you expecting?”

“Shouldn’t you be disappointed?”

“Ahh··· so that’s what you meant.”

I was confused at first. But after contemplating what the toilet had just said, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Pfft.”

“······?”

If someone heard that, they’d think I had incredibly high hopes for it.

Having a reaction means there’s still something left to be disappointed about. That’s actually quite generous.

Just like indifference is scarier than bullying, receiving no expectations at all is scarier than distrust.

If you never believe in the first place, there’s no way to get disappointed or to react. And since I had no expectations of the toilet, I wasn’t reacting to any of its nonsense.

“Disappointment requires expectations.”

Having crapped itself during every important event and being unable to keep a main heroine from running away, what kind of expectation is there?

It seemed the toilet was a bit too detached from reality. Did it have too many expectations for itself? In reality, it was just a piece of junk.

“I never liked you from the start.”

“What a coincidence. I didn’t like you either.”

The toilet brandished a blade at me.

“Today, one extra will disappear.”

“With how you’re getting beaten, it’s impressive you still haven’t learned your lesson.”

What could be the reason it’s been taking all those hits from me? It’s obvious—it couldn’t win, so it just took them instead. But would it really win now that it’s trying to act serious?

“···Fine, I’ll admit it. I definitely couldn’t have won before.”

“And now you think you can win?”

“Ever since Alvheim, I’ve obtained every opportunity that appeared in the novel. Now you can’t defeat me.”

The toilet drew its sword. This was no ordinary long sword I had seen countless times; it was a dazzling white blade that practically blinded me.

“Seriously. What a bizarre fellow.”

If a stranger heard that, they’d probably think I was joking around. Why does it think the world revolves around it just because it’s the protagonist?

“Luna, Yui, Riche. You guys handle it.”

“We’re supposed to?”

“I’ll catch some demons and gain some skills.”

Now I was too lazy to hit the toilet. Hitting and bullying it had to be worth my time; otherwise, what’s the point of tormenting a creature that brings no satisfaction?

“Can I just kill it?”

“If it’s absolutely necessary, you can kill it, but if possible, capture it.”

Since I had allied with demons, it was only right that I faced the consequences afterward, right?

“What about the demons in the back?”

“Leave them.”

The demons in the back needed to be left alive for the portals to open. For now, I just had to handle the toilet and the demons right before me.

“Understood.”

Just as I was about to pass the toilet and head for the demons…

“Where do you think you’re going, you bastard!”

The toilet’s sword swung wide toward my face.

-Clang!

Luna swiftly blocked it. Immediately after, Yui and Riche’s magic hit the toilet. Suddenly, a wave of white light surged from its sword as it swung it out, clashing against the magic.

“Riche··· right. You were in cahoots with that thing too.”

“You should phrase that better. I’ve never been on your side.”

“···Then you’re my enemy.”

Darkness enveloped only the area where Riche and the toilet stood. It seemed to be Luna’s barrier.

“Then, I guess I’ll do my part.”

“Too bad for you. You prepared so hard for this.”

“Just because you prepared doesn’t mean it will all go as planned. Do you think everyone lives by following their plans?”

“That’s true. So, I guess that’s why I’m in this situation.”

The demon before us sank into a sense of futility. Then, perhaps realizing I was of little use, it turned back to face me.

“Right. Before that side ends, we should also finish this.”

The demons didn’t join our fight. Instead, they hastened the speed at which they were opening the portals. That was probably the rational choice.

Honestly, that worked out for me. The faster they opened the portals, the quicker I could head off to deal with the Demon God.

One of the demons raised a hand and summoned a flame. It was a magnificent purple fire. This was the final event before the episode involving the Demon God began. Thus began the Baal event.

“Did you know? Unlike you, we use magic drawn from the magic itself, not magical power.”

“Yeah. I know.”

I read that in the novel. Unlike humans, who take time to recover their magical power and suffer from exhaustion after using it, demons consume magic itself. So even if they use all their magic, they only feel fatigue—no other issues arise.

Moreover, while most demons encountered so far primarily relied on close combat, Baal’s main attacks were magical. The more magic it used, the more its magical power amplified.

For instance, using 1 point of magical power could yield a power of 5—simple yet incredibly powerful.

“Our magic is fundamentally different. It was created solely for the purpose of destruction.”

From Baal’s hand, a purple ice crystal formed. Next came purple lightning, purple water, purple electricity, purple rocks, and purple winds. Everything rising from its hand bore a violet hue.

“So don’t think that what you’ve experienced from magic before is the same.”

“Wow, talk about a lot of dialogue. Can’t you skip the monologue since you’re about to die?”

The soon-to-be dead ones sure love their long-winded speeches. If this were a game, I would have skipped right through it, and if it were a novel, I’d have dragged the text along. But since this is reality, such luxuries don’t exist.

“···Die.”

A torrent of purple fire and ice rushed toward me. Typically, fire and ice shouldn’t coexist, but the principle of its magic seemed to allow them to work in harmony.

Even if I wanted to dodge, the underground passage was too narrow, and the attacks were so expansive that I had no choice but to take the hit. Surely, nothing too serious would happen?

-KABOOOM─!

The left side was burning hot, and the right side felt icy cold—even to the point of feeling scalding. After all the attacks subsided, my left arm felt as though it had suffered a third-degree burn, while my right arm seemed frostbitten with near total numbness.

‘Impressive.’

With this level of power, could I go toe-to-toe with Lucia as well?

But if that much firepower was unleashed, the underground should have collapsed, or at least alerted those in the royal castle above. However, it seemed Baal had set barriers around to keep the underground safe.

After all, if the underground collapsed or the Empire caught on, it would disrupt its plans.

“I attacked with the intent to kill, but… what a sturdy body.”

“You’re just weak.”

Not much time passed, and the traces of the burn began to fade, while the sensation returned to my arm.

It was the blessing of Yggdrasil. That skill resembled ultra-fast regeneration. Seeing that made Baal gasp.

“···Are you really human?”

“I’d say I’m practically the model of humanity.”

That brief exchange allowed my arm to fully recover. After clenching my fist a few times, I propelled myself forward to launch the attack.

“I already know your weapon and combat style.”

Even while I charged, Baal unleashed magic upon me, likely to prevent me from closing the distance.

But… what I intended to do next was reckless. Thus, I surged forward without caring whether I got hit.

“Waaah────!!!”

“What the…?!”

Baal was thrown into confusion. It couldn’t help it. A reckless person doesn’t play by the rules.

A regular person would likely try to dodge the attack, but a reckless one would take the hits without a second thought.

To put it bluntly, even if a mind reader were to show up, they wouldn’t succeed at reading my mind. Why? Because I simply have no thoughts. The mantra of a reckless person is to just jump in and act without thinking.

“You crazy bastard…!”

-BAM!

A wall of various elements appeared before me.

Baal’s eyes darted around in speed. He was checking which hand carried my sword. But he’d never find anything. Because my hands were empty.

Baal was bewildered. He’d boasted about knowing my weapon and combat style, but I’d just thrown a curveball at him.

“Are you dumb? Do you think this is Pokémon?”

You can only use predefined skills? Do you have any idea how many skills there are in existence? Infinitely many skills.

If I poke you with my finger, that’s one skill, and if I hammer down with my fist, that’s another skill.

But here it was, like he thought he knew me completely just because he understood a few of my attacks. What a ridiculous creature.

“Do you know why I came all this way?”

“······!”

If I throw from far away, I’m sure it will get blocked. At that moment, a magical power bomb brimming with light attributes filled the space between Baal and me.

“Take this! This is the Big Bang Attack!”

Right after that, with a dazzling flash—

-KABOOM─!

A blinding white light flooded the underground passage.

*

“Cough···!”

As the light faded, darkness crept back in. The barriers I had set up around began to crumble down. Before me, Baal coughed up blood.

From the symptoms, he seemed similar to a human exposed to radiation, only worse. Humans exposed to radiation don’t literally melt in front of your eyes like Baal was.

Some might find this anticlimactic for a last event, but what can I say? Their weakness was the light attribute.

“You crazy bastard…”

“Calling me crazy when you’re in this state.”

It was clear to anyone watching: the outcome had been decided. Baal suddenly burst into laughter.

“Heh heh heh······.”

Was he going insane just before death? It was at that moment.

“I will kill all of you before I die!”

-Slice!

“Guess what? I anticipated that and cut your neck~.”

I never let my guard down to the very end. What could be said regarding the inevitable flag of a defeated villain? I’d say often it results in mutual destruction.

In other words, just as Baal attempted a self-destruct move after wringing out every ounce of energy he had, I was quicker and decapitated him, ending him instantly.

[ You have defeated the Demon Baal! You have acquired the skill Magical Power Amplification! ]

[ Level Up! Check your stats! ]

[ Level Up! Check your stats! ]

[ Level Up! Check your stats!······. ]

Magical Power Amplification? Is it referring to the one Baal used?

◈ Skill Information

Name: Magical Power Amplification

Grade: A+

Description: Allows the use of high-damage magic with minimal magical power consumption.

I don’t have magical power, do I? If I pump my stats into intelligence to increase magical power, I could use it… but then I would suffer from magical fatigue, wouldn’t I?

‘Why give me such a useless skill?’

“Tch.”

I clicked my tongue and turned to see how the toilet’s situation ended. There it was, its entire body bound with ropes made of its own blood, crawling coldly on the floor.

 

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