The Fake Saintess and the Elf Warrior

"Before I spoke to you, I had already set up our Demon King's army's latest barrier-generating device around us. We are now in another space where we will not be discovered by anyone outside. Even if the vegetation here is burned, it will not spread outside the barrier."

"It seems that's really the case."

Frost clearly saw that the flames beneath Naka's feet ignited the weeds. The flames spread to the surrounding trees. But at one point, the flames broke perfectly into a line, leaving the vegetation on the other side unharmed.

A battle between a master like Fros and the Demon King, if left unchecked, would inevitably be discovered, even on a hillside far from the school. That's why Naka specifically set up the barrier-generating device used by Fan's subordinate, Nubron, to assassinate Tatia before revealing herself to Fros.

"Do you know what this means, Frost? No matter what happens next, no one will save you this time."

"...I never expected to be saved by anyone. And I will never run away again."

Just as Frost had predicted, the attack had absolutely no effect on Naka. However, he wouldn't back down. He had already backed down twenty years ago. Now, his only choice was to risk his life and continue forward.

He assumed a fighting stance again, preparing to launch the next wave of attacks... but before that, he said with a hint of sarcasm.

"How strange, Demon King. With your abilities, you should have been able to withstand this attack without any defense. Why did you use defensive magic?"

It wasn't surprising that the Demon King himself was unharmed. However, Fros understood that Naka had used magic to create a protective barrier at the moment of the explosion, isolating herself from the flames. The evidence was that the saintess's robes Naka wore were also completely undamaged. No matter how strong the Demon King's defenses were, clothing was ultimately just a thin piece of cloth.

"Of course."

Naka made no attempt to hide her feelings and answered directly.

"Otherwise, my clothes will be burned. These things are very precious, and Jasmine went to great lengths to sew them up for me again and again. I don't want them to suffer any more damage."

"That's a real shame. I was hoping to see what you hid underneath your clothes after they were burned."

"Hey, can I take this as sexual harassment? You old pervert!"

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't have any wicked thoughts. I was just curious if you only have a human-like face, but your body is actually some kind of monster covered in tentacles."

"No way! Just like you humans!"

"Really? Hahaha, I'll just believe you for now."

"...You damned old man!"

What should have been a life-or-death battle suddenly took a turn halfway through, with the two engaging in a friendly, playful exchange. Both were somewhat incredulous. Twenty years ago, their battle had been nothing more than a formulaic dialogue between protagonists and antagonists. One championed justice, the other scoffed at the notion of righteousness. Now, she hadn't expected the seemingly stern man to utter such lewd jokes. He, too, hadn't expected his casual banter to elicit such a charming and amusing reaction from the Demon King. In that instant, the two combatants no longer seemed like blood feuding, irreconcilable enemies, but rather like long-lost friends.

But they all knew they'd talked too much nonsense. It was time to get back to business.

"Demon King, it's amazing you managed to withstand that attack. But if you think that was my full power, you're sorely mistaken."

"I didn't think that way at all. Show me what else you can do."

"good!"

After saying that, Fros attacked again. A thrust, even faster than the first, aimed directly at Naka's throat. But Naka simply sidestepped, easily dodging the attack.

Of course, this thrust was merely a feint. Fros's real attack was the kick he delivered immediately after Naka dodged, striking her squarely in the abdomen.

The kick from Fros, who could easily block Tatia's strongest attack with just two fingers, was naturally worlds apart from the kicking techniques of ordinary adventurers. This single kick was far more powerful than Tatia's "Elf Paradise".

But Naka remained completely still. She stood there as if nothing had happened. And the moment Frost kicked Naka, he felt as if he hadn't kicked a girl who was four or five heads shorter than him and weighed less than half his weight. If he had to describe it, he felt like he had just kicked "the whole world."

It wasn't a kick to the ground. It was something far more macroscopic, far greater, far more magnificent. He thought he was outside the world, and he kicked everything under heaven. Of course, that could only result in failure. And this also means that the gap between Frost and the Demon King can no longer be described by the gap between other things existing in the world. A world of difference? A world of difference? A world of difference? It has far exceeded these concepts.

Nevertheless, a fight was inevitable. Fros pulled his leg back and swung his sword fiercely at Naka. This time, his sword was not wreathed in flames, but in supreme-level ice magic. A massive ice pillar rose from the ground at Naka's feet.

"Wow! That's dangerous!"

Naka feigned surprise while pretending to back away. But the ice pillars, as if possessing their own will, tracked her retreat and rapidly closed in. Until Naka's back slammed into a tree, leaving her with nowhere to go, she simply waved her hand, easily shattering the ice pillars summoned by Fros.

"We succeeded!"

Since top-tier fire attacks are ineffective against Naka, top-tier ice magic will naturally have no effect either. Fros doesn't expect this attack to have any effect on Naka. He only needs it to obscure her vision, even for a moment. At that moment, he can launch his real attack.

He leaped from behind the ice pillar. His sword was intricately woven with the highest-level magic of both ice and fire attributes. He had also exhausted his strength, which was over 50,000 points, combined with the force of his fall from mid-air. The combined power condensed and slashed down towards Naka's head. Naka did not dodge, but simply extended her left palm and accurately caught the blow with her hand.

"A sword attack enchanted with two different spells simultaneously? Not bad."

Naka praised him for achieving the feat of simultaneously fusing two elemental spells, a feat even ordinary mages might struggle to accomplish. But with a mere pinch, the two spells extinguished like a small match falling into a vast river. The force of the sword itself was so great that it couldn't even cut a hair, let alone injure her. This cruel truth was conveyed to Frost the instant the sword struck.

"drink!"

Naka raised her right hand and slapped the middle-aged man, who was stunned by his missed attack. The blow sent Fros flying through the air, just like Tatia, whom she had knocked away that morning. He crashed heavily to the ground.

"Gurgle...!"

Even though Naka had tried her best to hit lightly, this palm strike still caused unexpected and enormous damage to Frost's well-trained body.

This attack had no other purpose than to defeat Fros. It wasn't about defeating him; it was simply to vent her anger for Tatsia, whom he had thrown. Even though she knew that what had happened today was Tatsia's own fault, Naka still felt a little resentful. She felt uneasy if she didn't teach Fros, who had hurt Tatsia, a lesson like this.

The powerful impact caused Frost's diaphragm to rise, compressing his heart and lungs, making it difficult for him to breathe. He gasped for air and repeatedly punched his chest until he finally recovered. Seeing that his breathing was clear again, Naka continued to beckon to him.

"Come on, let's continue. You have more than just these few moves, right? It's okay, I can wait for you to use them all."

"...No, there's no need for that."

Fros suddenly plunged his sword into the ground and closed his eyes, appearing as if he had given up. Naka asked, puzzled.

"Huh? What's wrong? Aren't you going to fight anymore?"

"No. But I think we should finish this quickly."

By now, all of Fros's prized attacks had failed to land. Naka had only retaliated with a single blow, yet Fros was already forced to spend considerable time relieving his pain. He understood that Naka's attack had no killing intent; rather, she had deliberately weakened its force to avoid killing him. The difference in strength was simply too vast. There was no longer any need to use all his skills and tactics in turn. More importantly, Fros's physique was no longer what it used to be, and he lacked the stamina for prolonged combat.

Since that's the case, he thought it better to decide the outcome with one decisive move.

"My next move is my strongest skill, the Hero Fros. If this strike succeeds, I will wash away the humiliation of twenty years ago and offer your head to His Majesty the King. If not, it only means that this is my limit. I am destined to die here. So, let me end all of this with this one blow."

"Won't you regret it if you don't fight me a little longer?"

"I told you. This strike will decide everything."

"...All right"

Naka seemed eager to continue the fight, but Frost's resolve was unwavering. She had no choice but to open her arms and await his attacks.

"Since this is your final blow, I won't dodge or parry. I'll let you have your fill. How about it?"

"What you do is your prerogative. I just need to give it my all and burn my soul."

Frost clasped his hands together, then slowly separated them. A ray of light seemed to appear in his palms.

"This skill is the highest realm that our humankind has yet to reach, a realm that my friend, the mage Kula, never mastered... Demon King, you are the most suitable candidate to be our first and last test subject."

A large amount of magic concentrated between his palms. Spots of light coalesced into a sphere of light, which continued to expand. This scene was not unfamiliar to Naka.

"A magic spell? Your friend used this on me before he died. This spell is an all-elemental spell that combines all elemental magic, isn't it? I've already seen it."

The magician Kula he mentioned used this move twenty years ago. If this is the decisive blow that Fros was talking about, then Naka just wants to advise him not to waste his energy on this useless effort.

Frost responded with a cold laugh, without stopping what he was doing.

"I know. I know that the highest-level all-attribute magic... Primordial Bomb, is completely ineffective against you. But I told you, didn't I? This move not only used all my strength... but also burned my soul!"

With the fusion of various attributes, the magic orb continued to expand. However, it contained more than just pure magic power. Frost had also incorporated his "spirit," "will," "emotions," and other abstract elements that had sustained him to this point into the magic orb. The magic orb shimmered with a light completely different from the Primordial Bomb that Kula had used twenty years ago.

However, this was not the end. The ball of magic did not strike Naka directly. Frost whirled around and threw it at his sword. In an instant, the massive ball of magic was absorbed by the sword, which emitted a dazzling seven-colored rainbow light.

"Ha...ha...I can't activate this skill without freeing both hands, which is why it took so long...I'm so sorry, Demon King. I've kept you waiting."

Having burned away all his strength and spirit, Frost was severely exhausted. When he pulled out the sword that had absorbed the magic orb, he was drenched in sweat and panting heavily. He only had the strength left to swing one last sword and to give Naka her final words.

"This move... is based on the highest-level all-attribute magic, infused with my life force, and then fused with my beloved sword... Its power is completely incomparable to the Primordial Bomb... In terms of attack power alone, there's only one time... only one time, I can unleash an attack above Lv100...!"

"Yeah"

Naka knew he wasn't bluffing. The sword emanated a power Naka had never experienced before. Even the strongest attack of the former Demon King paled in comparison. The next strike would be an attack that even the strongest person in human history—the hero Isard—might not be able to unleash. The fact that Fros, whom she had once utterly defeated, could now reach such an unprecedented level truly compelled Naka to offer him praise.

However, Naka still showed no intention of dodging the attack.

"And, it's not just this..."

Even after all this explanation, Naka remained completely at ease. But the truly terrifying aspect of this move wasn't just what Fros had described. He raised his sword, assuming a strange stance:

He gripped the sword with his right hand in a reverse grip, his left hand holding the hilt, and twisted his body dramatically backward. His lower body faced Naka, but his upper body was twisted so that his back was to her. Naka had never seen him in such a stance before.

"Hmm? What are you going to do?"

"Do you still remember, Demon King? What I said twenty years ago, before Hito teleported me away..."

"What did you say...?"

For Naka, who was busy with official duties, twenty years ago was too long ago. At the time, she didn't consider these vulnerable people worthy of attention, and she couldn't recall the content of their conversation. She didn't remember, but for Fros, his final farewell to Hito was so unforgettable. He still remembered every single word.

"As I said, I still had a 'trump card' I hadn't used back then... And for someone who has practiced swordsmanship all my life, magic is ultimately nothing but evil and heretical... Take this, Demon King. What you are about to face is a fusion of my 'soul,' 'magic power,' and 'the strongest sword technique'... the final attack symbolizing everything I possess!"

"..."

"drink!"

Everything was ready. Frost leaped off the ground and charged toward Naka.

The strongest sword technique he couldn't use back then: Absolute One-Word Slash

Hatred for the Demon King. Guilt towards his comrades, a sense of responsibility to the kingdom, and expectations for the rising stars... all of these converge into the strongest "longing."

He took over the research results of his deceased companions, improved them further, and then exhausted all of humanity's magic power to create the Primordial Bomb, humanity's most powerful all-encompassing magic.

This can be described as a three-in-one attack combining mind, body, and technique. When these three forces converge at a single point, a chemical reaction occurs, resulting in a qualitative change. Its power is not merely 1+1+1, but rather, after addition, it expands and transforms dramatically, becoming Frost's final ultimate technique...

"Die, Demon King! 'Absolute - Creation One-Word Slash'!"

A sword strike, powerful enough to cleave the entire starry sky and the universe that encompasses it, struck Naka's slender neck...

Frost had said this strike would decide everything. He was right. When that blow hit Naka, he knew everything.

He knew that he had indeed greatly underestimated this seemingly frail girl who actually possessed boundless strength.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Frost. I broke my promise."

Naka was still Naka. She stood there motionless, her face still expressionless, devoid of any emotion. But contrary to her declaration, she didn't simply ignore the attack. She ultimately decided to block it.

However, what blocked this attack was neither defensive magic nor her arm.

It was just the nail on her little finger.

"If I get hit by this move, I'll probably lose a few strands of hair. My hairstyle won't look good then, so I hope you'll understand."

It was the final, strongest attack a human could unleash, a fusion of everything about "Fros." Naka simply extended her left pinky finger to block it. This attack, imbued with the power to cleave the heavens, couldn't even leave a scratch on her fingernail.

"Haha...hahahahahahahaha!"

His lifelong pursuit was thus effortlessly thwarted by the Demon King. In the end, Frost laughed. He could do nothing more than laugh.

The light on the sword gradually dimmed as his fighting spirit faded, finally disappearing without a trace. Fros released the weapon that a warrior should never relinquish. It clattered to the ground. Fros himself collapsed to the ground. He no longer had the strength to continue fighting. He knew the battle was now completely over.

He lost. He lost completely and utterly, and he accepted it wholeheartedly. If you were to ask him if he had anything else to say, all he could offer was self-deprecating humor.

"Sigh, if it were just a few rounds, I could naturally unleash more power than I did in my youth. But time waits for no one, and my stamina is far from what it used to be... Haha. In the end, I accomplished nothing. All my efforts over the years have been in vain. Sigh, although life is often disappointing, I really am a fool who has been doing useless work all along."

This was the final battle between the Demon King and the Hero... That's what he initially thought. But as the battle progressed, he realized it was just wishful thinking on his part.

He did manage to hit Naka several times during the battle, and even managed to use a trump card he hadn't been able to use back then. However, he understood that this wasn't because he had become any stronger. From beginning to end, the initiative remained in Naka's hands.

No matter how he attacked, Naka only parried. Only that one palm strike truly harmed him. Fros knew perfectly well that Naka was merely playing along with his movements, engaging in what she considered a childish 'game,' all to allow Fros to fight with his full strength. Even though Fros felt humiliated, he had to admit it: the Demon King had shown him concern and compassion.

Just like twenty years ago, Frost suffered another crushing defeat. But his feelings now were completely different from twenty years ago. Back then, he was consumed by grief, anger, and hatred, vowing to avenge his comrades one day. Now, however, he felt a satisfaction and relief that even ten cigars couldn't provide. It was as if a huge weight had finally been lifted from his heart.

Frost had never imagined that his nearly decaying old bones could still evoke the same youthful passion and impetuousness. He desperately wanted to accept his age, to retire from the front lines, and hand over the fighting to future generations. But he discovered that deep down, he was still a fighter. This feeling of giving his all, sweating it out after twenty years, was infinitely more exhilarating than sitting at a desk processing documents. Perhaps dying on the battlefield was the perfect ending he had always dreamed of.

Having finished his self-deprecating remark, he had no more complaints, though he was already in despair. But he showed no hesitation, resolutely and decisively raising his head, awaiting the Demon King's final judgment.

"I have lost, Demon King. Come, end my life."

The victor is king, the loser is villain. This is an eternal truth. Naka, the victor, slowly approached Fros, who was resigned to death, and extended her hand.

"I will definitely kill you. But..."

However, the hand didn't unleash the magic to end Frost's life. Instead, it flicked his forehead lightly. Frost cried out in pain, "Ouch!"

"...That move you just made did find quite interesting. Before I kill you, let's have a proper chat."

The scene then shifted to the Demon King and the Hero sitting atop a cliff, gazing at the starry sky, with the Demon King strangely swinging his legs. As promised, Naka told Fros the truth without reservation: why she came to the human world, why she disguised herself as a saint, how she deceived the ability detectors, how she met Tatia, and why she came to this school. It was a very long and complex story. After listening, Fros was deeply moved.

His previous image of the Demon King was that of someone sitting cross-legged on a skull-adorned throne in his Demon King's castle, sipping red wine and issuing cruel orders to his subordinates. The Demon King he had encountered twenty years ago perfectly matched this image. But he never imagined that the Demon King was actually going through such an adventure, encountering such difficulties. The image of the Demon King that he had firmly believed in for the past twenty years completely collapsed in that instant.

Naka asked him what he thought after hearing it, and he smiled and said

"So much has happened to you... Haha, we've been trying to investigate your abilities and your whereabouts. But it seems we humans haven't even learned a tiny fraction of what you, Demon King, have to know. But Demon King, these things should be secrets you have to keep, right? You've told me everything, which means that's what it is, isn't it..."

Fros knew perfectly well the purpose of Naka's trip. He also knew what fate awaited him after learning her secret. She was so open in telling him everything for one reason: Fros would no longer have the chance to reveal the Demon King's secrets.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Frost. You are the only adventurer who has left my clutches alive. And now you are trying to train a new generation of adventurers to fight against my army. Whether it's due to past grievances or for the sake of my army's development, I have no choice but to take your life."

"I know. I was mentally prepared when I lost to you... Hmm? But something doesn't feel right, does it?"