Pouring all my magic into flying for over 10 minutes.
As I got closer to the area where news from the Fourth Unit had stopped, I felt the heterogeneous powers of the demons.
In this dire situation where the survivors’ magic was barely felt, I flew there as fast as I could.
As I approached the location, I began to see it with my own eyes.
It seemed there was a fierce battle taking place there.
The bodies of elves and demons were scattered, and at the center were the heterogeneous demons.
And in front of them… stood my master from 500 years ago.
My master looked like he couldn’t lift a finger, as if he had used up all his magic.
His entire body was covered in blood from the intense battle, and in front of him, a demon was about to throw a spear to finish him off.
Blood… demons… and a bloody master…
I could feel every drop of blood boiling within me as I charged towards the demon with the spear, unleashing magic.
“『Zeta (Lightning Magic)』!!!!!”
Ka-boom!!!
The thunderclap echoed as the demon aiming to throw the spear was reduced to ashes in an instant.
And the moment the remaining demons looked at me intervening between my master and myself, their gazes changed.
That alone told me everything.
These guys were not the same demons I had easily dispatched until now.
Four remaining demons charged at me with their spears and swords while five others kept their distance.
As the four demons attacked me, the rear demons began chanting high-level spells, forming a basic combat formation that had been used since my past life.
Despite their comrade’s death, their eyes didn’t flinch, proving they were well-trained demon soldiers.
If it were the old me, dealing with them would not have been easy.
Yeah, back when I hadn’t created the game.
Swish-!
“What!?”
I threw my sword at the leading demon soldier.
Caught off guard by the sudden projectile, the demon could only react by trying to deflect it.
Clang-!
That reflexive action left the demon soldier completely vulnerable.
Typically, a protagonist would just suppress an unguarded enemy, but I wasn’t that merciful.
I immediately cast “『Aker (Wind Blade Magic)』” to slice halfway through the demon soldier’s neck before lunging at the next one.
“You human!!!”
Swish!
The next demon swung his sword at me.
His sword cleanly sliced through the top of my head.
In that moment, he sensed something was wrong.
“Afterimage!?”
Using the dark elf martial art “Black Forest” illusion, I caught the demon off guard and threw him at the demon charging in with a spear.
Hey demon, mind if I borrow that spear for a sec?
Thud!
Gag!!
No matter how collected a demon might be, having their comrade impaled by their own spear seemed a bit much for them.
I couldn’t miss that golden opportunity.
I immediately unleashed the Ra Kingdom martial art “Plema.”
Bam!
“What!?”
With explosive flames generated from my feet, I charged not at the spear-wielding demon but at the mage in the back whose magic was almost complete.
Once upon a time, the Ra Kingdom suffered at the hands of the Zers Empire’s mages.
That’s why the martial art “Plema” was created, specialized for rapid attacks against rear mages.
The mage, thinking he was safe casting spells from the back, was caught off guard by my sudden charge and had his head crushed by my kick from “Plema.”
Krrrsh!!!
The sickening sound of a watermelon bursting echoed.
The remaining three mages quickly assessed the situation and tried to distance themselves from me by breaking off their incantation and employing flight magic.
What a foolish move.
This place was a forest filled with giant trees; any half-hearted attempt at floating would simply provide more stage for the beastly martial art “Blanc.”
Whoosh!-
“Aaargh!”
“You! Human!! Khack!!”
Using my magically enhanced hands and feet, I used the trees’ elasticity to leap up and snag the unseen demon mages by their necks.
Even if they weren’t fatally injured, this was enough.
Gravity would finish the job as their floating magic dissipated.
Boom! Bam!
“Anus! Sika!!”
“I’ll kill that bastard!!!”
The two remaining mage demons began to gather their magic.
Given the scale of their power, it looked like they were trying to summon a massive storm.
Probably an inevitable attack meant to finish me off.
It was a brilliant tactical decision; even if one of them fell victim to “Plema,” the other could still take me out.
Their mistake was underestimating my arsenal of combat techniques.
Swish-
“What! What is this!? ”
“Gaaah!”
From my hands, green whips formed.
The whip made of Yudra captured the demons’ ankles and pulled them into the air.
Once I bound the demons mid-air, all I had to do was let gravity do its thing.
Whoooosh-
“Aaaah!!!”
KABOOM!!
A massive explosion trembled the ground, causing a cloud of dust to rise.
The two remaining demons on the ground were in shock.
In less than a minute of perceived time, eight of their comrades had fallen.
Even elves had never encountered someone this strong before; who the hell was this human?
They were confused, unable to enter or escape the dust cloud, left spinning in place.
That moment gave Yuren more than enough time to recover from the impact and prepare his magic.
“『Aias (Ice Magic)』”
Chomp! Chomp!
Two fist-sized icicles launched from the dust, piercing the demons’ chests.
The demons, with massive holes in their chests, crumpled like puppets with cut strings.
“Phew… that was tough.”
I was sweating from the effort after pouring everything into this long-awaited battle.
I was relieved it went as planned; diving right into combat after flying is incredibly risky.
One miscalculation could have left me devoid of magic, unable to cast spells.
Their diminished magical and combat abilities, combined with my martial arts training, saved me from a closer call than I’d like.
Is it because it’s been 500 years?
Anyway, I checked to make sure no more demons were around and turned my attention back to my master.
“Master!?”
My master lay there with his eyes faintly open as if he were dead.
I rushed over and immediately channeled magic into him.
As he regained his vitality from my magic infusion, he finally recognized me.
“Who… are you…?”
“Uh, no, that’s not it. It’s me! Irene! It’s Karga!”
I pretended to be Karuga.
But my master gave me a look of confusion.
“What are you talking about? Karuga doesn’t look like this.”
“What?!?”
I hurriedly touched my face.
What the hell!?
In my rush to pour all my magic into flight, it seemed my transformation magic had worn off.
I quickly transformed again into Karuga’s face.
Silver hair turned blonde, and I took on the heroic visage of Karuga.
However, my master still eyed me skeptically.
“…It’s too late now.”
So it really was late…
Here I was, meeting my master from 500 years ago once more.
*
After restoring my master’s magic and casting a simple healing spell for first aid, he fixated his doubting gaze on me.
“Thanks. You saved my life.”
His eyes seemed to suggest a position higher than a mere ally.
He kept questioning me with skepticism.
“So I will ask again. Who are you? I don’t know any human mages skilled in battle like you.”
How the heck do I put this…
Ah! What if I claim I’m the real Karuga and have been using transformation magic since the previous Karuga?
For now, I decided to go that route.
“I’m really Karuga.”
“Stop spouting nonsense! The Karuga I met didn’t have this much magic and could only cast basic spells!”
Guess that wasn’t going to work…
As I pondered, I suddenly recalled the shadow warrior cliché.
That’s it! Karuga has a brother, and I could say I’m a shadowy existence like the shadow warrior!!
“I am the shadow of Karuga, who operates within the shadows.”
“I’ve heard that Karuga has no siblings.”
This guy will not quit with the curveballs!!
Seems like this wasn’t going through either.
From his gaze, I definitely seemed to be crossing from ally into enemy territory.
With that in mind, I had no other choice.
I decided to tell the truth.
“Ugh… to tell you the truth… I am Irene from the future, 500 years ahead, your disciple Yuren.”
No more lies, even if a time paradox erupts.
Upon hearing my words, my master’s eyes widened in surprise, filled with concern.
“Are you… perhaps insane?”
Hearing my master say I was insane made me want to die.
