Infinite Dendrogram - Volume 4 - Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: The Right Arm of the Victor 
 
The Kingdom of Altar’s Knights of the Royal Guard. 
That was the name of the order closest to the royal family — the knights who served and protected them with their very lives. 
The minimum requirement to join them was to become a Paladin, a high-rank job of the knight grouping, while their leader the commander had the Superior Job known as “Celestial Knight.” This had been the case for the entirety of the order’s history. 
Being the strongest knight of his generation, the commander had been entrusted with one of the kingdom’s national treasures, a Prism Steed, and he had ridden it as he led the country’s forces into battle. 
As the strongest of knights leading the proudest order, the Kingdom of Altar’s Royal Guard had been the very symbol of their country, which was often called “the land of knights.” 
Again, “had been.” 
As things were now, the Royal Guard was generally referred to as a thing of the past. The most glorious Altarian knight order had been all but annihilated about half a year ago, Dendrogram time. 
During the so-called “First Knight-Machine War,” a certain portion of the Dryfe Imperium’s forces had killed about 60% of the Royal Guard’s members. That was bad by itself, but it was even worse when you considered the fact that, in a sense, it had been done by just a single person: Hell General, Logan Goddhart. 
He was one of Dryfe’s three — two at the time — Superiors. 
Hell General was a Superior Job that mixed frontline battle qualities with army commanding. However, its most notable trait was its focus on summoning devils at the cost of sacrifices. 
“Here and now, I consign these many lives I have at my disposal. Remove the lid of hell and gather, my forces,” he had intoned. “Call Devil Regiment.” 
During the war, the Hell General had summoned more than three thousand devils. The man-eating army had been as tough as it was ravenous, and they’d had little trouble dealing with thousands of the kingdom’s soldiers. Even the Paladin-filled Royal Guard had lost over a hundred members upon intercepting them. 
As the victims had continued to pile up, the commander of the Royal Guard — Celestial Knight, Langley Grandria — had broken through the devilish ranks all by himself and made it through to their leader and source, the Hell General. 
True, many might have argued that Langley hadn’t been alone in his charge. He was simply the only one who had survived while trying to get to Logan. 
Neither the vice commander at that time, nor the many other skilled, max-level members of the Royal Guard, had been able to survive the devilish onslaught, which had left the Celestial Knight to face the Hell General all by his lonesome. 
Their fight had been overwhelming in its intensity. 
The Celestial Knight had been considered to be one of the strongest tian vanguard fighters, and he’d proven how worthy he was of that title by fighting toe-to-toe with the Hell General, a Master bearing bonuses given by his Embryo. 
The devils at Logan’s command had tried to swarm him, but even they had been able to do little to protect their summoner. 
“I won’t let you stain the kingdom’s lands with the blood of my brethren any longer!” Langley had called. “Logan Goddhart, I shall defeat you and banish your devils!” 
“Gh! Shit...!” 
In a one-on-one battle, the Celestial Knight had been above the Hell General. Langley had seemed to have a chance to emerge victorious and make the devilish army disappear. However... 
“Umm, hello hello? Your Excellency the General? You okay? The King of Beasts already took care of the Archsage, y’know? Wait, what? You’re not done yet? Are you actually about to lose? Well, ain’t that just troubling, your excellency. (lol)” ...a voice of provocation ringing in the Hell General’s ear had changed the situation by messing with his mind. 
“DON’T MOCK ME, FRANKLIN!” Suddenly, the Hell General had yanked off one of the items he had equipped. It was a special reward he’d earned by defeating an Epic-tier UBM. “‘Here and now, I consign this unique treasure! In exchange for its limitless value, grant me a moment of power! Come from the ancient times, O endless devil!’ Call Devil Zero Exceed!” 
Thus, the Hell General had sacrificed a special reward to summon a devil with power matching a Mythical UBM. 
The addition of such a being had instantly turned the tides of battle, making it end with the death of the Celestial Knight. There had also been the destruction of his beloved Prism Steed, the kingdom’s national treasure. So the country had lost both its human and material symbols. 
Following that conclusion, the Giga Professor, Mr. Franklin, had gone for the finishing blow and used his modified monsters to attack the forces led by King Eldor Zeo Altar himself. 
In the end, the king and all his men had become sustenance for the creatures. 
Thus, the Royal Guard had lost their brethren and leader to the Hell General, and their lord to the Giga Professor. 
After the war was halted, the order had reorganized, giving their late leader’s daughter and the fifth among their ranks, Liliana Grandria, the position of vice commander. With that, she had risen to the top of the Knights of the Royal Guard. 
She had been made the vice commander rather than commander because she was the strongest among the order’s survivors, but she had yet to inherit the title of Celestial Knight. Every one of the order’s commanders for the entirety of its history had had that Superior Job, so the country believed that a Paladin who had yet to gain Celestial Knight wasn’t worthy of that title. 
Though Liliana wasn’t weak, she certainly wasn’t at the level of Superior Jobs. The combined level of everyone else in the order was significantly lower than it had been, as well. And the number of those who could use the ultimate job skill, Grand Cross, or the hidden skill, Purifying Silverlight, could be counted on one hand. Thus, the position of commander and the throne of the Celestial Knight had been rendered empty. 
The order’s failure to protect their lord had severely damaged their status in the kingdom. Countless people had looked down on them, and the surviving knights themselves had been extremely ashamed of their dishonor. Many had quit being knights, run away, or switched to other orders, reducing the size of the Royal Guard yet again. What had once been an elite army amounting to three hundred had become a group of a mere fifty. 
Still, all of those remaining had a strong will and a goal to go with it. 
Was it a craving for revenge against the Hell General and the Giga Professor? Did they wish to avenge their lord and many brethren? 
Wrong. 
That sentiment was certainly there, but it was nothing compared to what lay at the core of their beings. What they truly desired was simply “to protect them.” 
They wished to succeed where they’d once failed, to ensure the safety of the three princesses left behind by their lord and protect the people of the Kingdom of Altar. 
Bearing the many hardships, the members of the order still gave their all to their role as knights. 
 
And so, they dashed. 
Reaching and breaking the limits of their power, the order struggled against the abomination before them, the RSK. They gave their all to defeat their foe and rescue their princess, and their efforts made them shine like the protagonists of a knight epic. 
“Oh, they’re shining, all right,” I said with a grin. “Like candles in the wind.” 
Looking around, I — Giga Professor, Mr. Franklin — saw members of the Royal Guard lying on the ground beneath us. Their total number had fallen below the already-small fifty, and those of them still able to move were few and far between. Most of them had been defeated by my RSK. 
He was a custom-made modified monster, a cracked sphere of flesh supported by ten tentacles. The creature was based on Evil Offspring and Ropers, and had potential to be classified among the more powerful members of them. 
Besides the tentacles, he didn’t have any other... interesting features. It wasn’t like I couldn’t have added any, but considering his main target, doing so would’ve been pointless. 
His skillset and biological tissue were so complicated that he couldn’t have been made by the standard Monster Creation skill. I had only been able to do it because of my Superior Embryo’s ultimate skill, “Playing God — Pandemonium.” 
Though custom-made and quite complex, the RSK was a monster I’d hurriedly created during the span of last night. I hadn’t had time to test whether he could live and function properly, so the Royal Guard’s presence here was very convenient in that regard. The many dead knights lying around him made it clear that the RSK was a success. 
“All seems to be A-okay,” I said, pleased. “The attacks are on the weaker side, but that’s not unexpected.” 
The lack of damage made it entirely possible that the poor RG folk around it were simply “dying,” rather than “dead.” 
Of course, I intend to finish them off, I thought. 
The only still-moving knights were Vice Commander Liliana and Lin-whatshisface — the third among them. 
“Sir Lindos! Let’s use the stack!” she called. 
“Understood!” 
Having some sort of plan, they split up and positioned themselves at twelve o’clock and three o’clock around the RSK, clearly readying themselves for a focused attack from both of those directions. 
“Grand Cross!” they shouted, causing a sky-reaching pillar of light to burst out from below the RSK. 
Grand Cross was a Paladin’s ultimate job skill. It created a cross-shaped stream of holy light energy which seared anything in its way, making it an ability not to be underestimated. And the two knights had cast it at the exact same time, increasing its damage to a factor of two. 
Naturally, it was a formidable technique, and if the elements matched up, it could perhaps even fell a Pure-Dragon in a single hit. The RSK was actually Pure-Dragon-tier when it came to stats, so the attack could’ve been extremely dangerous to him. 
“Alas, it isn’t,” I said as I looked at the RSK, completely unhurt by the stacked Grand Cross. 
He didn’t have a single burn. The immense attack had been about as effective as a mosquito bite, if not less. 
Seemingly irritated, the RSK fought back against the two attackers by either swinging his tentacles or opening many of its cracks and firing light projectiles from them. 
“It can’t be...! How could the stack do nothing to it?!” Sir Lin-whatsisface cried. 
“Sir Lindos, not yet! It’s too early to give up!” 
“Mh...! Understood!” 
And so, the two began attacking the RSK again. 
Looks like they still intend to struggle, I thought. Don’t see why. It’s useless, after all. 
“Heh... You might’ve stood a chance if you weren’t Paladins,” I grinned. Though, if that had been the case, I would’ve had them face a different product. 
Anyway, there was no reasonable way for a Paladin — a job focused on the holy element and sword attacks — to win against the RSK. That’s how I’d designed him, after all. 
He was equipped with the physical damage-reducing Material Barrier and Holy Negation. 
In addition to those skills, he also had Fire Negation, Poison Negation, Weakness Negation, and Intoxication Negation, which were mostly just extras to the “main feature” — the one I’d prepared specifically for that guy. 
“Kheheheheheheh,” I chuckled. “Man, I hope he doesn’t take too long.” 
I didn’t know or care whether it was the hand of fate instantly making my hope a reality, but the RSK was suddenly assaulted by a grand flow of flame. The intense flamethrower was brought about by none other than Purgatorial Flames — an equipment skill from Miasmaflame Bracers, Gardranda. 
Of course, the RSK’s Fire Negation made it come out completely unscathed. 
But what mattered right now was the very usage of the Purgatorial Flames, for that meant that he had finally come. 
“He’s here... He’s here he’s here HE’S HERE!” I screamed. Though a bit later than I’d anticipated, the star of the show was finally on the scene. 
“Are you all right?!” Ray Starling asked the other two, upon joining the RG in their fight. With his silver Prism Steed, he appeared extremely prince-like, making his arrival seem reminiscent of another chapter in some knight tale. 
And holy shit, is that hilarious. 
“Ray?! Why are you here?” Liliana cried. 
What a retarded question, I thought. Through my observations, I’d noticed that he was a man acting on the most hero-like impulses. If anyone before his eyes was in peril, he’d rush to help them while completely ignoring all related limitations and risks. 
“I’m not exactly a fan of a scenario where a child gets kidnapped. It’d leave a bad taste in my mouth,” he said, proving my point. He simply hadn’t been able to stop himself from getting involved in tonight’s event. 
“...I’m also here to beat the crap out of that guy,” he added, looking at me. 
“Oh? You thought that far?” I said. “Man, that sure is something.” 
Again, I was fully aware that he disregarded his limitations and risks. But I hadn’t actually expected him to come here intending to win against me — a Superior. 
He was looking straight at me. Were his eyes full of antagonism? Hatred? Frustration? No... he was simply mad. 
“KheHAH!” Unable to hold it in, I laughed in a weird manner. 
He was completely serious. I knew very few people who were as earnest about Infinite Dendrogram as him. I could only name her — well, “him” in this world — and then there was the King of Tartarus, and of course me. As expected of a Maiden’s Master. 
...Or perhaps he was a Maiden’s Master because he was this kind of person? 
Regardless, I liked him a lot and was very pleased with his presence here. After all... Breaking him will feel so good, I thought with satisfaction. 
“Flamingo, you’re going to be getting your due for what you did today and yesterday,” Ray snarled. 
“Ahahah! Then I’m giving you yours for what you did a week ago, dog ears,” I grinned. 
Welcome, Ray Starling, I thought, smirking. The RSK, your nemesis, awaits. 
 
West of the duel city, Jeand Grasslands, Paladin, Ray Starling 
“The stage is set and the cast is here. Heheh!” For reasons unknown to me, Franklin cackled, clearly unable to contain his amusement. 
Right now, he was standing on a floating, platform-like monster surrounded by a visible barrier. Princess Elizabeth was on the ground at his feet. 
“All right, then, Ray my boy!” he said as he pointed to the night sky. “Feast your eyes on this!” 
Looking up, I saw a monster that looked like a giant eye with bat wings. 
“That’s a Broadcast Eye,” Franklin continued. “Everything it sees and hears is sent to a receiver monster that projects the data as a 3D movie.” 
So it’s basically a living camera, I thought. 
“Right as we speak, everything it sees and hears is being turned into a hologram and projected over Gideon. If everything is working as intended, whatever’s happening here should be visible to everyone in the central arena, every one of Gideon’s districts, and even the royal capital.” 
“Why is this necessary?” I asked. 
In response, Franklin grinned and raised one of the fingers on his right hand. “The first reason is to have the kingdom’s people witness the course of events here. Without a live broadcast, they wouldn’t know the process, and would just make their own assumptions about the result, which is no good to me.” He paused, and then continued. “After all, I want to break this country’s spirit.” 
The amused sneer on his face was nothing but nauseating. 
“It would all be pointless if the Altarians don’t see the people they so rely on display pathetic impotency as they fall before my creation, and don’t witness the powerlessness of the duel city. Surely you understand, right? Dying during your sleep isn’t scary, so I’m gonna open their eyes and show them the fingers digging into their necks.” 
“...Makes sense, but man, that’s a pretty messed-up mentality.” 
“Khah!” he laughed. “Well, it’s not like I’m the one who needs this... Anyway, on to the second reason.” Franklin then raised a finger on his left hand. “I want to publicly humiliate the ones who chased after me.” 
“...You what?” 
“Hahahah! Man, if things had gone according to plan, no one would’ve come here in the first place. But now we have the RG and you, and boy oh boy, are you all a nuisance! You’re delaying my darling Plan A! And since you got in my way, I decided to get rid of you all while also making you the laughingstock of the kingdom.” 
“I had a hunch, but you’re actually an asshole, aren’t you?” I said. “And what’s with the assumption that no one was gonna get in your way if you went out the western gate? Seems pretty naïve, if you ask me.” 
Not to mention that there were many who would get in his way even if his plan was a success. 
“If that signboard was anything to go by, he lets tians pass, right?” I continued. “That means that Liliana and her people would’ve been here even if I wasn’t.” 
“...Wrong,” said Franklin as his smile disappeared. “If you weren’t here, she wouldn’t have come here, either.” 
Following those words, for reasons unknown, he glared at me with some of the sharpest eyes imaginable. 
However, that expression didn’t last more than a moment, and he was soon back to his maniacal grin. “Anyway, let’s begin,” he said. “RSK... the test is over.” 
Suddenly, the monster Liliana and her knights were fighting turned to face me. 
The more I looked at the creature, the more eerie it seemed. Though its size was about the same as Gardranda’s, its appearance was completely unlike that of any monster I’d faced so far. It was a flesh-colored sphere with many cracks on it and ten thick tentacles protruding out of its body. The appendages were highly reminiscent of skin turned a dark blue due to blood loss. 
“We fought something straight out of a horror movie just yesterday,” I muttered. “And now this thing here is like a nightmare.” 
The monster was the type to make people feel uneasy and scared simply due to how hard-to-define it was. 
“Indeed,” said Nemesis. “Though I find this one far easier to handle than any undead. But Ray, you do understand, right?” 
Yeah, I thought. I know I acted all brave and all, but the situation here is pretty bad. 
“If it hadn’t been for the battle at the gate, we could’ve tried for a Counter Absorption and Vengeance is Mine combo, but now that we don’t have that luxury, we can only hope that this creature doesn’t hit as hard as Gardranda or Gouz-Maise.” 
True, I thought. After all, my preemptive Purgatorial Flames didn’t seem to work, either. 
With all the Royal Guards lying around the area, Hellish Miasma wasn’t an option. Then there was the fact that Liliana and her knights — who were surely above me in terms of pure Paladin ability — had been completely overwhelmed, meaning that my normal attacks would do little... if anything. The unfavorable situation also prevented me from using that, leaving me with nothing except for Vengeance is Mine, but... 
“Mh...” 
Can I really use it? I thought. 
“Ray?” Nemesis asked. 
Just like in my previous battles against foes far stronger than me, my intuition was trying to tell me something. 
The visual nausea the RSK made me feel was accompanied by chills that were hard to describe, similar to — but quite unlike — the ones I’d felt when fighting my worst enemy so far, Gouz-Maise. 
If that amalgam of the undead loathed all the living, then it was almost like this abomination hated only one thing... 
“Ladies and gentlemen!” Franklin raised his voice, cutting my thoughts short. He was looking directly at the Broadcast Eye and acting like he was live on TV. “This is a stream for the people of Gideon and the rest of the kingdom! Hello again or for the first time! I am Giga Professor, Mr. Franklin, and I’m here to show you the climax of my game!” 
Upon saying that, he took out a device looking much like a mobile terminal from about three decades back: a smartphone. 
“This right here is the switch that releases the monsters I’ve set up in the duel city!” 
“...Gh!” I voiced my frustration. 
“This switch has a timer function, and it’s set to launch a signal to release all the monsters after 652 seconds!” he continued. “Though, we do have some early birds thanks to a bunch of hot-blooded idiots who tried to escape the arena by attacking the barrier.” 
“Release all the monsters?! But wait, that’s...!” said Liliana with a tense expression, which made Franklin’s grin widen. 
“Oh, yeees, 500 monsters stronger than your average Demi-Dragon will be released to the city all at once. Well, they happen to be set to attack only Masters, but they’re relentless and don’t hesitate to destroy buildings, either.” 
His words and our situation here were being broadcast to everyone in Gideon. Franklin used this to heighten their fear by showing them the remaining number of seconds before the time bomb finally went off. 
“Well, as for what I’ll do with this switch... Whooosh!” he said, throwing it towards the RSK. 
The monster responded to the action by opening its fleshy sphere and taking the switch inside before closing again, which was a scene highly reminiscent of a clione feeding. 
“So yeah, there are about 600 seconds left until the signal goes out, and the only way to stop it is to kill my boy the RSK here.” Franklin fell silent for a moment before pointing to Liliana in an exaggerated manner and speaking up again. “The ones braving this fight are these noble Paladins, the vice commander and third knight of the Royal Guard — Lady Grandria and Sir Lindos!” 
After pointing to them... 
“And let’s not forget the only Master here! Another Paladin, Ray Starling!” 
...his finger was redirected at me. 
“Can the three Paladins protect the city of duels?! It all rests in their hands!” 
With excessively grandiose presentation, he was setting up the stage for the “public humiliation” he was talking about. 
“So, uh...” 
Thus came his final words. 
“Blame them when the city’s gone, okaaay?” 
Which he said with nothing but malice and glee. 
“What an incorrigible bastard!” exclaimed Nemesis. 
He sure is, but comments about him will have to wait, I thought. 
The flesh-colored orb was already making a move. The many cracks on its surface all opened up like wounds and released dazzling streams of eye-piercing light. 
Feeling as though I was barraged by countless camera flashes, I could barely keep on looking at it. 
“A blinding move?!” I exclaimed. 
“Ray! This light is followed by an attack!” Liliana warned us, but my Silver was already dashing away. 
“Kh!” Suddenly, something hit the place I was at and exploded. 
They were light projectiles the RSK fired during the blinding flashes, and their power was about three times greater than the White Lance Gems I’d used. 
However, that was the extent of it. 
I’d failed to evade one of them. The impact had been nothing impressive, while the damage had only cost me about a tenth of my HP. 
“This isn’t beyond us!” cried Nemesis. 
Indeed. We could do this, no problem. I simply had to bear its attacks, heal myself, and land a Vengeance is Mine after getting enough damage. 
From what I’d seen of the Royal Guard’s fight against it, the RSK had a constantly-active barrier against physical damage and extremely high resistances against holy attacks and fire. However, the damage from Vengeance was fixed and doubled, making it perfectly capable of taking out large portions of the thing’s HP. 
At least, that’s how it should go, I thought. But... why am I feeling so uneasy? 
“Your intuition rarely fails when we’re in a predicament,” said Nemesis. “There might be more to this abomination than meets the eye. However...” 
...Vengeance is our only option against it, so that’s what we have to go with, I agreed. 
“Oh, by the way,” said Franklin. “The barrier of this darling I’m riding right now is directly linked to the RSK, so you have to beat my boy even if you prioritize saving the princess.” 
...Even more reason to use it, then. 
“Looks like it’s do-or-die,” said Nemesis. 
“Yeah.” I nodded. “...Let’s go!” 
“Certainly!” With that settled, I made Silver gallop towards the RSK. 
Making sure not to stop for a second, I evaded — or purposely took — the light attacks while occasionally going on the offensive myself. 
All of my sword slashes were negated by the barrier on its surface, and the same went for my Purgatorial Flames. However, due to the beast being so abnormal, I didn’t stop my fruitless attacks, hoping that I could perhaps find a source of its power or something. 
Of course, I also didn’t neglect to use my healing magic or items to keep my HP up. Thanks to my 5,000+ HP, Paladin’s Aegis, my general endurance, and the RSK’s lacking offensive abilities, I was able to stack up a considerable amount of damage. It all seemed to be going very well... but my unease showed no signs of abating. 
“Wait, the accumulated damage is... what?” said Nemesis. “No, it’s pretty clear it came from the abomination, but...” 
“Nemesis?” 
“O-Oh, sorry. It’s just that... I just felt something off.” 
About the accumulated damage, right? I thought. Nemesis seemed to have an ability to “feel” the enemies that have damaged us. She’d used it during the Gouz-Maise battle, too. 
“‘Off’? In what way?” I asked. 
“The damage is clearly coming from this RSK monster, but it feels like it’s... scattered all over.” 
Scattered? 
“If I were to liken it to something from your world, I’d say that it feels as though I’m looking at an X-ray displaying the spread of cancer cells within the body.” 
“...Wait.” Doesn’t that mean that the RSK is still the thing that’s accumulating damage? 
“Yes, that’s correct...” she replied, and even though it was telepathic, I could easily tell that she felt uneasy about this unfamiliar sensation. 
“...Let’s try using it once,” I said. 
“I don’t believe we have enough damage to kill it, though.” 
“And that’s exactly why we have to try. My gut and your feeling are telling us that something’s wrong. Rather than having to deal with something unexpected when we go for the finisher, we should confirm our suspicions right now.” 
“...Very well!” 
“Silver!” I shouted as I kicked my steed’s sides and pulled his reins, making him speed towards the RSK. 
Passing the barrage of light attacks, we closed the distance between us and the abomination. Once it was within range, I swung Nemesis at one of its tentacles, fully intending to cut it off. Then we used the ace up our sleeve, our only means of fighting it. 
“Vengeance is Mine!” we shouted in unison, activating the skill that had felled many of our opponents. 
Our first foe — the Demi-Dragon Worm. 
The tri-faced beast of flame and poison — Great Miasmic Demon, Gardranda. 
The amalgam of people’s death and malice — Revenant Ox-Horse, Gouz-Maise. 
With all the powerful enemies it had helped us defeat, it was small wonder why it was our most trusted skill. 
Now, we had used it on the mysterious creature called “the RSK.” 
“How...?” Nemesis said in bewilderment, and not without reason, for Vengeance hadn’t hurt it in the least. My greatsword had simply slipped on the RSK’s surface, not destroying a single inch of it. 
The attack had rendered us defenseless, and a light projectile that came from one of the monster’s cracks landed directly on me. It took away about a third of my total HP, but I couldn’t manage to care about that. 
“Why...?” I murmured. The only thing on my mind was my skill — Vengeance is Mine. It doubled the damage I’d received from my enemies and brought it back to them, completely ignoring any defenses. 
It had worked every time I’d used it on anything that had accumulated damage on me. 
However, it’d had absolutely no effect on the RSK. 
“Ohhh maaan, what a great expression.” I heard a voice thick with intoxication. 
“Franklin!” I shouted. 
His face was still in a smile, but unlike the basic grin from before, it had become a thoroughly amused sneer. “Ahahah! You look so dumbfounded. Have no idea what’s going on, huh? ‘Why? How? Wasn’t our Vengeance absolute and unmatched, Nemmy-wemmy?!’ Lol. Must’ve been hard to be cast as Nobuta just because of your glasses, eh, Ray-boy?” 
“Wh...!” 
“Oh, now you look even more surprised. Man, I’m loving this to bits.” 
The thing he’d just referred to was something I’d only told Nemesis... and that had been after Flamingo had left us. The fact that he knew it could only mean one thing... 
“That drug you gave me had more than just the dog ear thing in it, huh?” I snapped. 
“Ohhh, yeah it did,” he answered as he reached into his pocket and took out a drug bottle filled with the exact same mixture he’d given me yesterday. “The drug I gave you was a Lesser Elixir and Animal Ear Drug cocktail...” He then opened the bottle and poured the contents into his hand. 
“...but there was more than just the drug in there,” he said as liquid flowed out of the palm, leaving behind a marble-sized object. “This little beauty is a PSS — a Peeping Spy Slime. They’re always in a liquid state, have no means of fighting, and get digested by humans in about 24 hours... But in exchange for being so powerless, for as long as they’re alive, they send me the stats, skill info, and the words of those they’ve been ingested by.” His grin widened. “Getting the person to not find it suspicious or stay online can be a bit hard, I’ll tell you that.” 
Couldn’t you have gone with something else? I thought as I put my hand on my mouth in disgust. I can’t believe I drank a damn slime! 
“I know everything at your disposal,” he continued. “Your Nemesis’s three Embryo skills, Miasmaflame Bracers, Greaves of Grudge, your real Prism Steed, your own skills — including Purifying Silverlight — and even the various tactics you used in your battle against the Lich Maise and Gouz-Maise.” 
That was everything I had. Everything I could attempt to do had been leaked to him. 
“And my boy the RSK here was made to counter everything you’ve got,” he finished proudly. 
“...As in?” 
“Vengeance is Mine doesn’t work on him, he doesn’t give any debuffs, he negates Purgatorial Flames, Hellish Miasma, Purifying Silverlight, and even Grand Cross, if you had it. Standard attacks of your level don’t hurt him, either. Against you, the RSK is completely unbeatable. After all...” 
Franklin momentarily stopped talking and flashed an almost dazzling smile before continuing. 
“He’s the Ray Starling Killer. Custom-made just to defeat you.” 
“...Made to... what?” 
It’s actually called “Ray Starling Killer”? I thought. Franklin seriously made a monster for the sole purpose of defeating me? 
“So yeah, you’re losing no matter what. My boy the RSK cost me a whole 100,000,000 lir, but hey, money spent on victory ain’t money wasted, right?” 
“Why...?” I burst out. 
Why is Franklin — a Superior — doing so much against me? Didn’t we meet just yesterday? Does it have something to do with Hugo? 
“‘Why,’ you ask? Yeah, I guess it must be strange to you. Why would a Superior like me throw such serious money to deal with such a nobody?” he said as his smile vanished. “That’s because I’ve lost against you once.” His eyes had turned scarily serious, making me feel as though they could pierce me. 
“You lost to me?” I asked. “When did that happen?” 
As my confusion reached its peak, Franklin pointed below... at Liliana, who was fighting the RSK. 
“I had a plan to assassinate Liliana Grandria, you see,” he said. “You completely destroyed it, so I decided to single you out.” 
A plan to assassinate Liliana...? Does he mean the time I...? 
“If you hadn’t gotten involved, that bear man wouldn’t have been there either, and the fifty Demi-Dragon Worms would’ve surely taken care of Liliana. You ruined my plan and made me lose, Ray Starling.” 
Bear man — my brother. 
Fifty Demi-Dragon Worms — Old Reve Orchard. 
“And then, a guy with glasses told me, ‘If you have this incense, you can go get some from the orchard outside.’” I remembered Milianne’s words from back then, and it all made sense now. 
“I can’t stomach anyone who makes me lose or yield,” Franklin continued. “Whenever someone like that appears, I set up a rematch and make sure they lose so thoroughly it’s pathetic. Then they never feel like standing in my way ever again, and you won’t be any different. Now just lose and become the laughingstock of the kingdom, will ya?” His expression and voice as he said that were thick with madness. 
Though it wasn’t like he didn’t make sense. I could understand why he resented me so much. Really well, in fact. 
“All right, I understand why you went and built an anti-me thing,” I said. 
So he was the one responsible for that situation, huh? I thought. 
“Hahahah! Good to see you get it.” 
“Oh, I do,” I assured him. “And I also get... that now I have to punch you.” 
“...What?” Franklin asked, looking visibly puzzled. 
What? Did I stutter? ’Cause I sure as hell didn’t say anything weird. 
“You know, you got a child... Milianne... involved in that incident, and when she told me about the man in glasses, a specific thought went through my mind.” I recalled exactly what I’d thought back then and put it into words. “‘I’d like to punch that idiot for sending a kid to a place this dangerous.’” 
I hadn’t known the culprit, and both Milianne and Liliana had been okay. Due to that, I’d shelved the sentiment, but I sure as hell hadn’t forgiven the bastard. 
“So yeah, now that I know that you’re the one responsible, I’m gonna settle this.” 
“Kh...” 
“I’ll say it again...” I raised my bracer-covered hand and pointed my index finger directly at him before making my proclamation. “My fist is going straight into your face. Keep it clean for me, Superior.” 
“Do your worst... newbie!” 

Following that exchange, the RSK moved to stand between me and Franklin. 
This thing was a monster a Superior had made for the sole purpose of defeating me. Thus, it made perfect sense that Liliana and her knights had had such a hard time with it. 
“It’s because they’re Paladins...” I murmured. The countermeasures made against my job were fully functional against them, as well. 
Damn shame, I thought. 
Still, if they hadn’t been Paladins, Franklin would’ve probably released some other monsters. 
He could actually do so now, if he so desired, but he didn’t, because he wanted to break my spirit by making me lose completely and create a show where those protecting the city got defeated by a single monster without anyone leaving as much as a scratch on it. 
Franklin probably would summon more monsters if we defeated the RSK. 
However, with the RSK gone, we would stop the monster release in Gideon, and the disappearance of the barrier would give us a chance to save the princess. 
“There’s no change to what we have to do, then,” I said. “We kill the Ray Starling Killer... Man, what a damn stupid name.” 
“For that, we must find out why Vengeance doesn’t work on it,” added Nemesis. 
“I think I know why.” 
“Eh?” 
“Let me just see if I’m right,” I said as pulled on Silver’s reins, making him stop. 
“Ray?!” 
I closed my right eye and made my left one open wide before placing my left hand on my face and looking at the RSK through the gap. 
The thing was still releasing flashes and light attacks through its many cracks. Naturally, looking directly at it would burn my eyes as effectively as looking at the sun through a telescope. However, I ignored the searing sensation on my left retina and strained to see into the sources of the light — the cracks. 
The brightness was literally blinding, and making anything out was a real challenge, but I kept my eye open with the intention to see what I was certain was there. 
And so... 
“Thought as much.” 
...a light projectile hit me the very moment I saw it. 
Combined with the damage from the previous attack, my HP was now below half. 
“Ray! Force Heal!” Liliana cast a healing spell on me from a short distance away. It was more powerful than the spell I had at my disposal, and it instantly got my HP up to 90%. 
“Ray... You fool! That was nothing if not suicidal!” Nemesis screamed. 
“Ray! What you did just now was far too careless!” Liliana chastised. 
Nemesis and Liliana telling me off at the same time produced a stereo-like effect. 
“Yeah, sorry about that,” I said. “It was worth it, though, ’cause I saw it.” 
Even after the effects of Liliana’s healing magic, my left eye was still somewhat damaged. However, I’d gotten something really good in exchange. 
“I saw a name in the light,” I said. 
“A name?” asked Nemesis. 
“In one of those shining cracks, I was able to make out the name display of a different monster than the RSK.” 
“Does that mean that...?” 
“Yeah,” I nodded. “The RSK isn’t alone. We’re being attacked by other monsters.” 
 
In Infinite Dendrogram, there was a monster type called “Children of the Wicked God,” which was often simplified to just “Evil Offspring.” 
Their main characteristic was that they had no designated shape. 
The same could be said for slimes, but rather than being completely amorphous, Evil Offspring grew body parts and organs as they saw fit. 
They all began life as spheres of flesh, but as they matured, they grew organs and other body parts, which differed depending on the environment they were in. For example, those that were surrounded by predators would grow many ears and eyes to help them sense danger, while those living in cliffy areas would grow many arms to help them climb. 
Even if they were driven by necessity and their methods were appropriate for human standards of practicality, their manner of being definitely wasn’t comfortable to observe. 
Combined with the fact that they had a tendency to go for easy targets and thus often took to consuming young creatures — be they animal, human, or other Evil Offspring — they had become feared to the point of acquiring that name. 
When making the RSK, Franklin had thought about basing it around the use of an Evil Offspring’s organ specialization ability. After all, the creatures weren’t limited to just ears, eyes, or limbs — they could even create organs which released damaging light projectiles. However, Franklin had decided to take it a step further by modifying it to create other monsters that could attack in its stead. 
He’d empowered the specialization function to the point where the attacking parts would count as monsters separate from the RSK, while also making sure that they would always be under the RSK’s control, rather than autonomous. 
Such ludicrous modifications were impossible for standard Monster Creation, the researcher grouping skill that allowed the person to use lots of materials to create many monsters of the same type. Though additional ingredients could give slight changes to stats or give an extra skill or two, there was little room for any big modifications. However, to Franklin, it was entirely possible thanks to his Superior Embryo’s ultimate skill, Playing God — Pandemonium. 
The result of his efforts, the RSK, was a monster that had many negation skills and generated other monsters using its Kin Creation skill while doing absolutely nothing by itself. 
Leaving the attacking to other monsters would normally have been meaningless, while its many negation skills could normally have been avoided by simply using an element that wasn’t covered by them. 
Due to that, despite being so detailed, the RSK was nothing but a standard Pure-Dragon-class monster. 
But that certainly wasn’t the case for a certain Master. 
 
“Other monsters?” Liliana spoke, clearly confused. “But when he called it, he only named the RSK.” 
“Then they were probably created inside the eyes after it was summoned,” I said. “I mean, plant-like monsters sometimes create allies, so who’s to say this one can’t?” 
On our journey to Gideon, we’d encountered several monsters that could multiply by dividing or throwing seeds. 
“What is the point of that...?” she asked. 
“Well, normally, there’d be none. The result would be the same regardless of whether the attacks came from the RSK itself or other monsters.” 
However, this method of attack made a world of difference for me and Nemesis. 
“As it says in the name, ‘Ray Starling Killer’ was made to kill me, and my and Nemesis’s trump card is Vengeance is Mine — a counterattack that returns double the damage I receive from the enemy.” 
Therefore... 
“This skill has no effect if the target doesn’t attack me. The most effective move against us is to not do anything.” 
That was the crux of it all. What damaged us were the monsters the RSK created, rather than the RSK itself, which rendered Vengeance unusable... or “useless,” rather. 
After all, no amount of multiplication could make 0 be more than 0. 
It was also fair to assume that the light show the RSK created was there to visually conceal the fact that it was a gathering of monsters. 
Anyway, I now knew the truth behind it. Vengeance could do nothing against the RSK itself, and even if I killed the attacking monsters, they would just be re-created. 
“So, are you done clarifying how screwed you are?” mocked a malicious voice. 
“Franklin...” 
“Man, you’re fast. I expected to see you panic as you tried to figure it out. Well, not that anything changes now that you know!” He formed another sneer. 
Franklin wasn’t wrong about that. My knowing how the RSK worked didn’t change anything. 
However... 
“I’m relieved that there’s a reason why my Vengeance doesn’t work,” I said. 
“...‘Relieved’?” Franklin repeated the word as his smile vanished and his brow furrowed. 
“It means that not even a Superior like you was able to create a monster that was invincible just because.” 
“Kh...” 
Superiors were the pinnacle of players. They were the strongest elite of Masters and Embryos that didn’t even amount to a hundred. And yet, not even one of them had been able to make an undefeatable being. 
“That means that there’s something I can do,” I continued. “Even if it’s nearly zero... as long as the possibility is there, I’ll never give up trying to seize it.” The words I spoke were the same ones my brother had told me... the ones I’d recalled during the Gouz-Maise battle. 
“Khah!” Franklin laughed. “Not giving up is fine and all, but you only have 270 seconds left. What can you do in just over four minutes?” 
In response, I brandished Nemesis and pointed her at the RSK before speaking up. “Kill that thing.” 
“...Hmph.” 
All right, I have four minutes, I thought. So far, neither I nor Liliana nor Sir Lindos had done anything that had an effect. 
My Vengeance and Purgatorial Flames were both useless, and since the RSK didn’t give any debuffs, using Like a Flag Flying the Reversal would be meaningless. Hellish Miasma wasn’t an option, either, since there were people lying around it. Then again, if Franklin was telling the truth, it wouldn’t have had any effect, either. 
“Mm...?” I murmured. 
“Vengeance is Mine doesn’t work on him, he doesn’t give any debuffs, he negates Purgatorial Flames, Hellish Miasma, Purifying Silverlight, and even Grand Cross, if you had it.” 
Upon recalling Franklin’s words, I realized that there were two strange things about them. First, there was the fact that he had gone out of his way to tell me what the RSK negated. 
If he’d stayed quiet, I would’ve wasted a bunch of the little time we had left just attempting those skills, and he would have derived enjoyment from watching me try and fail. 
Why did he say it and throw that scenario to the wind? I thought. Did it just slip out because he was feeling uppity... or is there some other reason? 
The second strange thing was the fact that the measures he’d named didn’t cover everything I had. 
“...Oh, yeah,” I muttered. “He did say that it was 24 hours.” 
That PSS had been alive and feeding my info to Franklin for a whole day since yesterday morning. Due to that, it wasn’t strange for him not to know it. 
Still, it’s unlikely that I can win against it with just this and... Wait, I thought. If I combine these two things... I might have a chance. 
“Ray?” asked Nemesis. 
“We have a way to turn this thing around,” I said. “And I don’t think that Franklin knows about it.” 
“...You mean that?” 
“Yeah, that,” I replied. “If we mix it with another gamble, we might be able to win against that thing. The risk is pretty great, though. If I’m wrong, what we’ll do here will be pretty suicidal.” 
“I don’t believe that any risks we take can be worse than us losing this fight.” 
“Good point. Still, there’s a problem.” 
I looked at the RSK... or, rather, at the ground around it. There were a number of incapacitated Royal Guard knights there, and I couldn’t make my move until I helped them. I was about to go and try getting them away from there... 
“You have a plan, yes?” Sir Lindos stopped fighting the RSK and asked. 
“It’s a huge gamble,” I replied. “But if it goes well, I might be able to take care of the monster release time limit.” 
“Can I help in any way?” 
His words made my eyes open wide. I’d only met him yesterday and seen him once again today, but from that alone, I figured that he didn’t have the best opinion of us Masters. 
“...I know what you want to say,” he continued. “However, my opinion means little here. What’s important right now...” 
“...are the people of Gideon and the princess?” I completed his sentence. 
“Exactly.” Sir Lindos put on a smile, to which I responded with my own. 
“Now, is there anything Lady Grandria and I can do?” he asked. 
“I would like you to move the Royal Guard near the RSK away from it,” I answered. “Do it within the next two minutes and take them at least 100 meter... I mean, ‘metels’ away.” 
The buildup would probably take two minutes. 
“Also, you need to keep the RSK in place and make sure you’re nowhere near it when I get close.” 
“That sure is a lot of orders... But very well. Did you hear him, Lady Grandria?!” 
“Yes! Leave the rescue to me!” Liliana called. 
“Then I shall keep it from moving!” 
The two split the roles and charged towards the RSK. Liliana evaded the light projectiles and saved the Royal Guard members while Sir Lindos kept the RSK in place. 
Their skill as Paladins was clearly greater than mine, and I would’ve been lying if I’d said it didn’t move me. 
“Let’s not fall behind... SILVER!” I called. 
My mount neighed. 
“Wind Hoof... activate!” 
Thus, I used one of the skills on my Prism Steed, Zephyrus Silver. 
 
West of duel city Gideon, Jeand Grasslands 
Ray’s words made Silver use a skill which distorted their appearance. 
It was caused by Wind Hoof’s compressed air barrier bending the light around them. 
“...Why now?” Franklin asked, slightly surprised and confused. It wasn’t because he was witnessing something unknown. Quite the opposite — he knew the skill well, but he didn’t see any reason to use it. “I mean, that’s a skill for mobility and defense, right?” 
Since PSS had been inside Ray when he’d acquired the Prism Steed, Franklin had received its info and knew the details of Wind Hoof. It was a compressed air barrier skill with a flying — or rather, “air-walking” — ability as a bonus. 
Wind Hoof certainly wasn’t special, either, as mount-type special equipment or monsters with similar skills weren’t all that uncommon. 
Franklin’s countermeasure to this barrier was already in place, too. After all, the many light projectiles fired by the monsters inside the RSK would have little trouble breaking through it. He would’ve added some defensive function if Wind Hoof had been an attack skill, but that just wasn’t the case. 
“There’s nothing special in the skill’s description, so nothing should happen if he uses it... right?” Franklin muttered his thoughts as he looked at Silver using Identification. However, the confirmation did little to abate his inexpressible unease. 
Franklin wasn’t actually wrong in the least. Wind Hoof was most definitely a skill for a compressed air barrier and aerial movement, and normally, it wouldn’t be anything to worry about. 
At least, as long as Ray didn’t combine it with another item. 
“Gouz-Maise!” Ray shouted, his words resounding throughout the surroundings. 
As if they heard him, his dark purple greaves groaned in a manner reminiscent of the living dead. They began to flicker. 
“Release... your MP!” 
Suddenly, the Grudge-soaked Graves emitted immense amounts of magic into the surrounding air. 
Normally, magic was colorless and permeable, but Gouz-Maise’s energy had a blood-curdling, purple hue. That was due to it being the magic stored in Greaves of Grudge through its Grudge Conversion — a skill that changed the surrounding grudge and negative emotions into the wearer’s SP or MP. 
The magic released just now was so great it could make a magic-focused high-rank job turn green with envy. In fact, it could even match the maximum magic stores of such Superior Jobs. 
“Whoa, whoa...” Franklin muttered as he backed away a bit. 
The magic was equivalent to hundreds of thousands of MP — a number most maxed-out spellcasters could only dream of. 
“So this is that skill...” 
Of course, Franklin knew of Grudge Conversion, as well. However, he didn’t see what had caused the magic stored to become that great. 
“Where did he get all this gru...? Damn it!” Realizing the cause, Franklin cut his words short and cursed. “It’s me!” 
The grudge... the negative emotions came from the game that Franklin had started. 
He’d let his player killers and modified monsters run rampant throughout the city, and livestreamed himself laughing that he would release even more. Naturally, that had caused the tens of thousands of Gideoners to feel fear, which had then been absorbed by Gouz-Maise during Ray’s ride through the city. 
Though Gouz-Maise’s nature made it so that its greatest source of energy was the grudge of the dead, the fear of the living was viable as well. Naturally, it was far weaker, but when it came from tens of thousands of people, the gathered MP could reach immense numbers. 
Did I mess up? thought Franklin. No, this phenomenon was unavoidable. Wait, the problem here is... 
During the RSK’s creation, he’d pictured scenarios in which Ray used the MP from Gouz-Maise on Purgatorial Flames, Hellish Miasma, or Reversal, but those were already taken care of. 
With those things out of the way, Franklin wanted to know the purpose behind Ray releasing all that magic power. 
The answer to his question came quickly, since the purple magic in the air was suddenly absorbed by Silver. What followed was a mighty wind, coming from every direction imaginable. 
No, “wind” wasn’t appropriate, as Silver was simply absorbing all the surrounding air, all for the purpose of unleashing the full potential of Wind Hoof — the skill using the rider’s MP to create a barrier of compressed air. 
The hundreds of thousands of MP allowed Silver to gather so much air that both he and Ray disappeared from sight. The barrier had become so dense that it no longer allowed any light to pass, leaving behind nothing but a pitch-black sphere. 
“Khah...!” 
Upon seeing it, Franklin instantly realized that, in this situation, the barrier wasn’t actually a barrier. 
“RSK! Move! Get away from there!” Franklin shouted. 
Since no light could pass through the sphere, anyone inside wouldn’t be able to see what was outside. If the RSK moved, Ray would be rendered unable to hit it. 
“I won’t allow that!” 
But the RSK’s movements were stopped by a certain Paladin — Sir Lindos. 
“Grand Cross!” he shouted, unleashing his most powerful attack. 
Just like before, the holy light did nothing to hurt the RSK, but that didn’t matter, for even if it didn’t take any damage, the pressure of the mighty skill dulled its movements. With that, the stage was set for Ray to unleash his attack. 
“Tch! Ca—!” Franklin tried to Call for new monsters that could take care of the threat. However, before he could, the pitch-black wind began speeding towards the RSK. 
Sir Lindos instantly went out of the sphere’s way and distanced himself from it. 
Upon being set free, the RSK tried to escape, but it was simply far too slow to avoid the black object heading towards it. 
The spheres clashed, but didn’t touch directly, as the RSK’s Material Barrier was protecting it. No matter how densely it compressed the air, Wind Hoof was merely a barrier and thus didn’t have much in the ways of damage. 
Upon arriving at that realization using its limited thinking capabilities, the RSK became relieved. Its creator, on the other hand, clicked his tongue in frustration. 
“Wind Hoof, cancel.” 
The voice came from inside the compressed air barrier and wasn’t heard by anyone outside, but everyone saw its effects. 
The black sphere vanished, creating a mighty explosion which tore through the Material Barrier as though it was paper and hit the RSK. 
 
Ray Starling had discovered this phenomenon by complete accident. 
It had happened on the morning of the same day, when he was testing Wind Hoof and trying to find a way to make its compressed air barrier useful. 
Even when Ray gave it all of his maximum MP, the resulting barrier couldn’t shield him from attacks by the most basic monsters in the Nex Plains, and he concluded that it was due to his MP being too low to unleash its full potential. 
Then Ray got the idea to combine the skill with his Grudge-soaked Greaves. 
Ever since he’d gotten the item, Grudge Conversion had been stocking up on a decent amount of MP — certainly greater than Ray’s own maximum, at least — and he figured that it could be used to create a powerful barrier. 
He turned out to be correct, and the resulting compressed air shield was strong enough to hold even when he got swarmed by monsters. It had the negative of rendering him incapable of seeing anything around him, but Ray figured that he could find a use for it regardless. 
With his experiment done, he decided to fight the monsters swarming him. However, when he disabled Wind Hoof, Silver’s surroundings exploded. 
Or perhaps burst was the better word for it. 
Surrounded by clouds of dust and a rain of monster guts, both Ray and Nemesis tilted their heads in confusion. 
However, there was nothing curious about this. 
Wind Hoof’s barriers were made of gathered and compressed air, which didn’t disappear after the skill was canceled. So, upon losing its “container,” the air got scattered into the surroundings, creating an explosion in the process. 
It was much like a bursting balloon, only hundreds... or thousands... of times greater. The only thing separating it from a bomb was the fact that there were no life-threatening shrapnel, but the explosive pressure was more than enough to tear a living being apart. 
Upon further thought, Ray realized that the result was nothing if not obvious. 
Fortunately, Silver himself was designed to not get caught up in the explosion, so Ray and Nemesis were completely fine. Otherwise, he’d have gotten the death penalty. 
Though impressive overall, being surrounded by falling ground and flesh was enough to make Ray and Nemesis hesitate about using this skill combo. After a bit of talk, they concluded that it was too indiscriminate and dangerous and chose to never use it again. 
Funnily enough, they ended up having to do it a second time on the same day, and with far greater MP than during the experiment. 
 
Ray himself had had no idea just how powerful Wind Hoof would become when he gave it all the hundreds of thousands of MP from his greaves... however... 
“Looks like it was enough to break through its barrier,” Ray said as he looked at the RSK, lying on the ground, its insides exposed due to having lost its upper half. 
The abomination wasn’t the only thing that had been caught up in the explosion. The surrounding ground looked as though it had been turned upside down, making the area seem more like a “wasteland” than a “grassland.” 
The damage caused was far greater than Ray had expected, and if there had been any other people nearby, the results would’ve been nothing but tragic. 
“...Yeah, this definitely wasn’t a skill I could use when the Royal Guard were lying here.” Ray worriedly looked around and saw Liliana and her knights, safe and sound. 
“Right, then...” he said as he turned to the RSK again. 
It wasn’t over yet, as the monster still hadn’t become particles of light. Ray didn’t find that surprising, since he hadn’t expected Wind Hoof’s explosion to be enough. 
“...Yeah, I figured as much,” he muttered as he noticed that the RSK began gradually regenerating. 
Just like with Gouz-Maise, his enemy from yesterday, the flesh expanded and rebuilt the parts of the body it had lost. 
With the RSK being a creature that could spawn monsters, the presence of a regenerative ability was par for the course. 
Thus, Ray made the move he had in mind. 
“...Let’s go,” he said as he made Silver dash towards the abomination. 
The RSK’s regeneration speed increased exponentially in relation to the volume it regained, and soon enough, its offensive function was back up. 
The cracks opened up again and began firing light projectiles towards Ray. 
Their amount was significantly lower than before, but the reason for that was obvious. Not only had the explosion from Wind Hoof exterminated all the attacker minions it had had in its upper part, but the RSK was too preoccupied with regeneration to dedicate any energy to their creation. 
“Break through... Silver!” 
The Prism Steed ran on the air and gracefully avoided the light projectiles as he closed in on the RSK. 
“You can make it!” Ray shouted. 
The moment he was in range, Ray jumped off Silver’s back and forced his left arm into the RSK’s last wound. Though the meaty pressure wasn’t pleasant, it wasn’t strong enough to crush his limb. 
“Gardranda!” he shouted, preparing his left bracer — the flame thrower — to fire. 
“...Ha, now that’s just pointless,” said Franklin in a mocking voice that Ray was already familiar with, much to Ray’s dismay. “Didn’t I tell you that Purgatorial Flames and Hellish Miasma don’t work?” 
The jerk was nowhere in sight, but his voice resounded throughout the surroundings. 
“That attack sure as hell surprised me, but it’s not like you can do it again, right?” 
“Yeah,” Ray replied. “It drained all the MP I had in Gouz-Maise, so it’s not an option anymore.” 
“Then you’re out of moves, huh?” Franklin sneered. 
“Nope,” Ray grinned in response. “I can still burn this thing down.” 
“...Why, though?” Franklin said. “You should know by now that Purgatorial Flames don’t work on him. I mean, you tried it yourself.” 
Franklin spoke nothing but the truth. 
“But does it negate regardless of where I fire?” Ray asked. 
“Ah...” The words made Franklin fall silent. 
“Wouldn’t the fire work if it came from inside?” Ray added. 
Ray believed it was entirely possible that the negation effect was only present on the surface. 
“Honestly, if it could really negate the fire no matter what, I don’t think you’d have told me that,” he went on. “I mean... you’re a huge asshole.” 
That was Ray’s primary reasoning. He had a feeling that Franklin wouldn’t have said that if the RSK hadn’t had some sort of weakness. 
“That’s pointle—” Franklin began. 
“Is it? I’ll see it for myself.” With those words, Ray poured all his remaining MP into his Miasmaflame Bracers. 
“Wai—!” 
“Purgatorial Flames — full power!” Thus, demonic fire began rampaging within the RSK. 
They filled its corpus, burst out of its many cracks, and even roared through the hole Ray forced his arm into. The RSK’s body, attacker minions, central nerves, Ray’s left arm — all of it got caught in the crimson blaze. 
“Well, my ‘natural enemy...’ let’s test our endurance!” Ray shouted. 
“?????...!” The RSK’s mouthless body released a silent scream as it shook its large frame and swung its tentacles to try and throw Ray off of it. 
The abnormality of the situation caused the RSK to break the rule of not attacking Ray by itself. 
But Ray was able to stay on anyway by forcing Nemesis in her sword form into one of the RSK’s eyes and holding on to her. His back got hit by the tentacles, but he had enough endurance to bear it. 
Ray’s arm burned and his torso got damaged, causing his HP to drop by the second. But he didn’t stop his flames, for he had already decided that he would continue firing until either he or the RSK died. 
Right as his limited HP and MP was about to be depleted, for reasons not even he knew... 
“GOUZ-MAISE!” Ray shouted the name of the grudge abomination that had turned into his boots, and despite him not intending it, Gouz-Maise answered. 
Ray’s flames had turned the RSK into a gathering of pain and rage — negative emotions fit for Grudge Conversion. 
Placed directly on this potent source, the boots were able to absorb the grudge with great efficiency, delivering great amounts of MP to Ray. He instantly used it to empower the flow of the fire and even heal himself. 
The greater flames increased the RSK’s pain, which, in turn, got converted into MP. It was much like a perpetual motion engine. 
However, nothing was perpetual, and something would eventually yield. 
And, sure enough, after an amount of time that would have seemed long for some and short for others, something broke. 
Surrounded by the crimson blaze, a silhouette crumbled and vanished. 
 
That night, the tians living in Gideon were overcome by fear. 
Fiendish-looking monsters were unleashed upon the city, and its streets were ravaged by the battles between Masters. 
Some shut themselves in their homes, some took shelter in designated emergency facilities, some just curled up and shook in back alleys, and some were trapped in the arena and shared their worries with others in that situation. 
Likely for the purpose of fueling their fear, a live recording was being broadcast to them through several projections in the night sky. They displayed a madman in a lab coat, a large monster, and a mere three Paladins fighting those enemies. The madman claimed that if they didn’t defeat the monster within the time limit, countless more beasts would be unleashed upon Gideon and reduce it to rubble. 
Naturally, the people’s fear escalated, and they began feeling much like criminals waiting to answer the gallows’ call. However, despite the overwhelming despair, they still held on to a bit of hope. 
After all, the three Paladins were still fighting the enormous abomination, and their struggle against the odds was more than enough for the people to not give in to despair. 
Eventually, the monster and the young man — the sole Master among the three — were both engulfed in flames. 
The fire he’d released burned not just the abomination, but himself, as well, and to add to that, the monstrosity’s large tentacles were repeatedly attacking him. Despite it all, he didn’t give up or show any signs of stopping. 
For both those involved and those watching, time seemed to be distorted, feeling long for some and short for others. 
However, such differences were inconsequential to the result — the crumbling of a large silhouette. 
Its ten tentacles fell apart as the sphere-like gathering of flesh exposed its scorched insides and slowly began turning into particles of light. As they scattered and vanished into the wind, the shape of a young man stood up in the midst of it. 
His own flames had carbonized his left hand, while the thrashing he’d received from the tentacles had taken its toll, and his equipment no longer held its original shape. And yet, his eyes were still shining with power. 
In his right hand, he held a black greatsword which he used to support his body. 
Then, he wrung out his remaining energy to raise his right arm up into the air. 
As if to tell the scared citizens of Gideon that the fear was no more, or perhaps just to assert his victory, he raised his arm, making him look much like the many arena champions the inhabitants of the duel city were so familiar with. 
A moment later, the city of Gideon was drowned in roaring cheers. 

To be continued...