Gabiru stared down at the Demon Lord—

  He made the first move—He surged forward in a burst of wind, spear glowing as he thrust straight at Kessel’s chest.

  Kessel didn’t move.His eyes simply followed the attack, watching with amused curiosity.

  "Oho? You’re fast—"

  The moment Gabiru’s spear was about to strike, Kessel’s body blurred.

  He vanished.

  Gabiru’s attack hit nothing but air.

  "BOOM!"

  A shockwave tore through the battlefield as Kessel reappeared behind Gabiru, fist raised. Gabiru barely twisted in time, bringing his spear up to block.

  Impact.

  The sheer force of Kessel’s punch sent Gabiru rocketing backward, his boots carving trenches into the stone. But before Kessel could pursue—"Hiryuu, NOW!"

  From all sides, the Flying Dragon Unit attacked at once. Fmes rained from above as dragonewts unleashed breath attacks in unison. Bdes fshed as warriors dove in from all angles. The wind howled as their combined magic twisted the battlefield into a storm of destruction.

  For a moment, Kessel was engulfed in light and fire.For a moment, there was hope.And In that moment,

  A low chuckle rumbled through the battlefield. From within the fmes, golden eyes glowed.

  "Oh… was that your strongest attack?"

  The fire and light vanished instantly.Kessel stood there, untouched, brushing ash off his shoulder.

  Gabiru’s stomach dropped.

  "Shit."

  Then Kessel moved.It was not a charge.It was not a dash.It was something impossible.

  One second he was standing there. The next—

  "Too slow."

  —He was in the middle of the Hiryuu, his hands glowing with bck fire.

  "BOOM!"

  The ground shattered.The sky cracked.

  Bodies went flying as the Hiryuu were ripped apart by a single wave of energy. Gabiru watched in horror as his warriors were flung in all directions, colliding with buildings, hitting the ground hard.

  Some didn’t get up.Some wouldn’t get up.Gabiru gritted his teeth, his grip tightening on his spear.

  "Damn it—"

  A blur.

  A fist.

  Gabiru barely ducked as Kessel’s punch nearly took his head off. A second blow came instantly, and this time, Gabiru took it full force. Pain exploded through his body as he was sent flying once more, crashing into a ruined building.

  For a moment, everything was spinning.For a moment, he thought he might pass out.

  In that moment, "Oi, Boss! Are you still alive?!"

  One of his warriors helped him up, coughing out blood. Gabiru spat dust, wiped his mouth, and cracked his neck.

  "Tch… of course I’m alive. I’m Gabiru!"

  He forced himself to stand. Then he looked toward Kessel, who was grinning, watching them struggle like a predator amused by its prey.

  "HAHAHA You’re persistent. I like that."

  Gabiru gritted his teeth.

  "Yeah? Well, you’re an absolute nightmare. I don’t like that."

  Before Gabiru could react, Kessel vanished.A flicker of bck fmes. A ripple in space.In that moment—

  A cwed hand was already swinging toward Gabiru’s back, cutting through the air like a bde, ready to split him in half.

  "BOOOOM!"

  A massive, armored fist smmed into Kessel’s face, sending out a shockwave of raw force. Kessel was actually pushed back—not far, only a few meters—but enough to halt his strike. He nded gracefully. Still standing. Not even stumbling.

  For a brief moment, silence.

  Then ughter.

  "HAHAHAHAHA… now who do we have here?"

  Kessel tilted his head, amused, brushing his jaw as if testing if it still worked.

  "Another peasant in the form of a boar… oh, this is rich."

  His golden eyes gleamed with sadistic joy.

  "Don’t make me ugh!"

  Geld rolled his massive shoulders, cracking his knuckles. His aura burned, the sheer weight of his presence grounding the battlefield. He stared directly at Kessel, unfazed.

  "Laugh all you want, but you’re not killing him today."

  His voice was low, steady.

  Unlike Gabiru, there was no showmanship. No bravado. Just pure, grounded conviction. Gabiru, still catching his breath, gnced at Geld.

  "Took you long enough!"

  Geld didn’t look at him, eyes still locked on Kessel.

  "You talk too much."

  Gabiru huffed.

  "And you hit too slow!"

  Geld let out a low chuckle.

  "I’ll be sure to hit harder next time."

  Kessel’s manic grin didn’t fade.

  "Alright… fighting boars and lizards is beneath me, but I’ll entertain you a little."

  Before either could react—He was already between them.One fraction of a second.One instant.And suddenly, Kessel stood between Gabiru and Geld, his golden eyes gleaming with sadistic amusement.

  Geld reacted first.With a roar, his massive fist swung downward, his raw strength shaking the battlefield.A direct hit.Or at least… it should have been.

  For one second, time froze.

  Geld’s fist was still mid-swing, inches from Kessel’s head. Gabiru was about to thrust his spear, his eyes locked on Kessel.

  In that moment, Kessel smiled.A simple smile, a small movement.And in that same fraction of time—

  A thin, nearly invisible line of bck fme curved through the air.

  The attack was too fast to see.Too precise to predict.Too absolute to stop.

  Geld’s body stiffened.He was still standing.Still breathing.For a moment, he thought nothing had happened.In that moment,

  "Splurt."

  The sound no warrior ever wants to hear from his own chest.A spray of crimson.

  Pain.

  The left side of his chest, from shoulder to ribs, split open. The wound had already been made. The cut was so perfect that the pain only registered after the fact.His breath hitched.His massive body fell to his knees.The ground beneath him cracked from the force of the ssh Kessel made only registering seconds ter...

  Time stopped for Geld His mind was processing as his body shut down slowly, he thought to himself

  "...what...was that?"

  Gabiru gasped, his golden eyes widening in horror.

  "Geld—!"

  Rage exploded inside him.With a furious roar, Gabiru lunged forward, spear fshing with draconic energy.His speed was insane.His strike was precise, fueled by desperation.A direct hit—Or at least, it was supposed to be.

  Kessel exhaled through his nose.Without turning, without even gncing back—his hand shot out and caught the spear mid-swing.

  The entire battlefield froze.

  Gabiru’s eyes widened. He tried to push forward, but his weapon wouldn’t budge. It was like trying to pierce a mountain.

  And then—

  Kessel turned.

  Slowly. Deliberately. That smug, predatory grin curling on his face as he looked Gabiru dead in the eyes.

  "You guys really don’t get something..."

  His voice was cold. Ft. Not even mocking—just true.And before Gabiru could react—

  CRACK.

  A fist smmed into Gabiru’s gut—once—

  THUMP. THUD. CRUNCH.

  Then again. And again. And again.Gabiru's body lifted from the ground, caught in a storm of fists, unable to breathe, unable to think.

  BAM. BAM. BAM. BAM. BAM.

  Ten hits—ten merciless strikes to the chest and stomach—driven in with inhuman speed.Fists blurred like shadows as Kessel pummeled Gabiru’s chest and gut, each blow faster than the st—brutal, perfect, merciless.Gabiru’s body left the ground, suspended mid-air from the sheer force of the hits, blood spitting from his mouth with each impact.

  Time seemed to stall for Gabiru.(Rimuru-sama… sorry. I tried to be cool this time.)

  Then—Kessel grabbed him by the throat grinning all the way. Like a child finding a new toy—And with a sudden, savage motion, he smmed Gabiru into the ground.

  CRASH!

  The impact cracked the battlefield like gss. The earth caved in, spiderweb fractures spreading out from the point of impact.

  A shockwave rippled through the ruins.Gabiru’s body twitched once. Then went still.Bones shattered. Blood pooled.A warrior reduced to a crater.

  Kessel pulled him up, still holding Gabiru's neck. then threw him away like trash with force—His body tore through the ruins of buildings, crashing through stone, and debris. By the time he stopped—he wasn’t moving.

  Kessel stood straight, rolling his shoulders almost ughing

  “You’re not even part of the story anymore.”

  He turned, casually turning his gaze to Geld, ignoring Gabiru entirely.

  "Oh well. One down."

  Then, with a twisted grin—Geld’s massive hands gripped Kessel’s wrist, his fingers digging deep into the demon’s arm. But it didn’t matter.Kessel’s grip didn’t falter.

  He lifted Geld off the ground, forcing the wounded warrior to look into his golden, inhuman eyes.

  "You see…"

  Kessel tilted his head, his grin widening.

  "This is what I live for…"

  His voice was almost… tender. The kind of fake tenderness that means something terrible is about to happen.

  Almost gentle.In that moment, His smile twisted into something monstrous.Kessel’s voice twisted into a monstrous roar:

  "TOTAL. ABSOLUTE. DESPAIR. AND DISBELIEF."

  Kessel’s grip tightened.In that moment, a simple motion of his wrist.

  Geld st thought—"(Rimuru-sama...I am sorry...)"

  CRACK.

  The sound echoed through the ruins. Geld’s body twitched violently. For a moment, his fingers clenched, as if refusing to accept what had just happened.

  In that moment, his arms went limp.His lifeless body dropped.A Fallen Warrior.A legend turned corpse.

  Kessel let him fall.He watched the body hit the ground.As he rolled his shoulders, his expression neutral, as if he had simply discarded a broken tool.

  "Two down,"

  A slight pause.

  "That was fun...i guess"

  In that moment, he turned his gaze to the battlefield once more grinning like a madman in a way.

  "MUAHAHAHAHA… So. Anybody else? Maybe I should just start killing civilians next.."

  The Unholy Round Table members were silent for a few moments—Watching as Gabiru is motionless and broken.Watching as Geld’s corpse hit the ground, discarded like trash.Watching as Kessel stood there, ughing ,massacring

  The atmosphere was thick, charged with something between amusement and intrigue.

  Chrono was idly spinning his hourgss, let out a slow, amused breath.

  "Some beings are just.....simple and predictable ."

  He flipped the hourgss, watching the sand trickle down.

  "Time always favors the faster one."

  Trickster was ughing hysterically, cpping his hands together.

  "HAHAHAHA! Oh, that boar’s face! You could SEE the moment he realized he was already dead!"

  He mockingly gripped his own throat, mimicking Geld’s st moment.

  "Total despair. Just like our dear Kessel likes it! Hah!"

  Beside him, Jeruva, the one who spoke the least among them, sighed.

  "Whatever..."

  Pirika, sipping her wine gss filled with something red, smiled elegantly.

  "Oh, but it’s beautiful, isn’t it?"

  She gestured toward the scattered debris, the twisted bodies, the bloodstained battlefield.

  "Art, really. A tragedy in motion. And Kessel?"

  Her smile widened.

  "The perfect artist of destruction."

  Heramsis, who rarely showed emotion, simply tapped his fingers against the armrest.

  "Kessel has power, I'll give him that"

  His golden eyes narrowed slightly.

  "But his personality reeks…"

  He gnced toward Draziel

  "You’re being unusually quiet, Draziel. What’s your take?"

  Draziel sighs, slouching in the chair like he’s already bored of existing. His fingers tap out a zy rhythm on the armrest, crimson eyes half-lidded.

  “The lizard? Trash."

  He scratches his chin like he's thinking real hard, but it's clear he couldn't care less.

  “The boar had some fight. Too bad Kessel folded him like undry.”

  He chuckles, dry and unamused.

  “If this is it? Man… might as well pack it up. Game’s already in the dumpster.”

  Kessel Unaware—or perhaps uncaring—of the Round Table’s discussion, stretched his arms, rolling his shoulders. Then, after a few seconds he felt something—

  A powerful force pierces through the sky—an energy unlike any the Demon Lord has sensed before.

  The Unholy Round Table, the other members lean in, intrigued.

  Trickster cackles, smming a card onto the table.

  "1000 gold says he wipes out everyone before the hour’s up!

  "Chrono smirked, adjusting his hourgss.

  “You’re on. I’ll raise the bet—since I’ve already seen this ending py out.”

  Pirika chuckles, swirling her goblet of blood.

  "I’m in too… let the game begin, boys."

  God Syer Heramsis is more focused on the battlefield then to py petty bets. Anti hero Jeruva just doesn't care in general... But Draziel?For the first time since this whole ordeal, his Crimson eyes narrow slightly. He leans forward just a bit, watching the screen closely, and then smirks.

  "Ohhh… maybe I was wrong."

  The War Room of Jura Tempest Capital was silent—

  The atmosphere in the room was suffocating.The floating projection of the battlefield showed everything in grim, excruciating detail.Both Geld and Gabiru, lifeless, his massive frame motionless on the ruined ground.Kessel, standing there, ughing. Unbothered. Unscathed.

  Rimuru gripped the armrest of his throne, his knuckles white.For the first time in a long time, he felt something he hadn't felt since his early days in this world—Pure, unfiltered rage.

  The silence in the room was deafening.In that moment, Ranga let out a low, guttural snarl, his fur bristling, cws digging into the floor.

  "Master… I will rip his throat out."

  His normally loyal and calm demeanor cracked, repced by something primal.

  Shion’s sword trembled in her grip.Her eyes, wide with shock, refused to leave the image of Geld’s corpse.In that moment,

  "I’LL KILL HIM!"

  She moved before she could even think, her entire body burning with battle lust. Souei appeared instantly, gripping her shoulder, voice deathly calm.

  "Shion."

  She didn’t care.

  "Souei, LET GO OF ME!"

  She turned furious eyes on him, her battle aura raging.

  "They're DEAD! BOTH OF THEM! AND WE’RE JUST STANDING HERE?!"

  Souei’s voice remained calm, but there was an edge to it—something colder than usual.

  "We cannot rush in recklessly. You saw what happened."

  His grip tightened slightly.

  "Geld was one of the strongest warriors in Tempest. And yet—"

  He gestured to the screen.

  “He was broken… before he could even move.”

  Shion trembled, teeth clenched, rage burning through her veins. She knew. She knew he was right.But that didn’t make this any easier to accept.

  Benimaru exhaled slowly, closing his eyes.

  "Damn it…"

  His fists were shaking.Not out of fear.But out of frustration.He opened his eyes, gring at the image of Kessel.

  "That bastard isn’t just strong. He’s beyond anything we’ve dealt with."

  His fire burned hotter, licking at his arms, but he controlled it.

  "Rimuru, we need a pn. And fast."

  Kumara, normally pyful, was completely still.Her nine tails flickered erratically, a sign of her rising rage.

  "Tch… that pig was tough."

  She gnced at Rimuru, licking her lips.

  "Rimuru-sama, let me go next. I want to see if he screams when I bite down."

  A chilling giggle broke the tension.Ultima.She was grinning, eyes filled with violent delight.

  “Ooooh, that was fun to watch!”

  She spun on her heels, her bloodlust seeping into the air.

  "Rimuru-sama, I like this one! Can I py with him next?"

  Carrera rolled her shoulders, cracking her knuckles.

  "Tch. That brute is all brawn, no css."

  She scoffed, crossing her arms.

  "If you just let me nuke the pce, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion."

  Testarossa sipped her wine, smiling.

  "Hmm… but now we know his style, don’t we?"

  She turned toward Rimuru, eyes gleaming with amusement.

  "He likes to py with his food. That means he can be distracted. Exploited."

  Her smirk widened.

  "Would you like me to break him, Rimuru-sama?"

  Rimuru hadn’t moved.

  Shuna, who had been silent the entire time, finally stepped forward.Her soft pink eyes weren’t gentle anymore.They burned.

  "Rimuru-sama."

  Her voice was steady.

  Everyone turned to her.

  "We cannot let this go unpunished."

  Her hands trembled slightly, but she took a breath, steadying herself.

  "Geld and Gabiru gave his life for this country. If we do not act now, then when?"

  She turned to Rimuru, her expression solemn.

  "Send me."

  The room tensed.

  Benimaru turned sharply.

  "Shuna, that’s—"

  "I am not weak." she cut him off.Her voice was not loud, but it silenced everyone.

  "I will not sit back and watch any longer."

  Her gaze never left Rimuru.

  "I can restrain him. I can weaken him. Let me fight."

  Rimuru's was motionless.His chest burned with rage.He wanted to destroy Kessel.To erase that smug grin from existence.But if he rushed in himself—If he lost control—Everything could be lost.

  His eyes scanned the room.His people. His family.All of them were ready to die for him.

  His body ached with the need to move. To teleport to the battlefield. To erase Kessel from existence with his own hands. But… he couldn’t. Not yet. If he lost control—if he made a mistake—it wouldn’t just be Gabiru and Geld. It would be all of them.

  He exhaled slowly.

  "Shuna, you’re not going anywhere until I say so."

  Everyone froze.

  "No one is going in without a pn."

  He stood up, his presence crashing over them like a tidal wave.

  "We’ve lost two of our own today. That’s not happening again."

  He took a breath.

  "This isn’t a war anymore."

  His voice was calm, but deadly.

  "This is extermination."

  LibraArchives