"Frey?"
"Why is she here?"
Seeing Frey, Carrion was first shocked, then puzzled, unsure why she had snuck into the Eurazania alone.
'No matter what, I'll go check it out!'
With that thought, Carrion exerted force underfoot, shattering the training arena's floor and charging toward the distant cliff.
Boom!
In mere moments, his burly figure landed like a meteor, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"You reckless brute, same as ever."
Frey waved her hand, dispersing the dust, and sized up Carrion with disappointment. "After all these years, you still haven't grown much."
"Huh?"
Carrion bristled. "Are you here to pick a fight, Frey?"
"Sorry, but if my memory's correct, you've never beaten me."
"Don't bring up the past!"
Frey's words shattered Carrion's dignified persona, and he snapped in embarrassment. "I'm terrifyingly strong now!"
"…"
Frey sighed, realizing she wasn't good at dealing with idiots.
"Listen!"
"Were you asleep earlier or something?"
"I made such a big commotion, and you didn't react at all?"
Frey was referring to the spectacle she caused to cover for Damien's awakening, challenging the Demon Lord ascension in front of countless witnesses.
Even Clayman had suspected she'd become a True Demon Lord... there was no way Carrion could be unaware.
But this guy was just that reckless, daring to provoke her!
"You…"
"Oh, right."
Frey didn't hide it, stating plainly, "I'm already a True Demon Lord."
Boom!
As her words fell, a terrifying Demon Lord aura surged from Frey, instantly enveloping Carrion.
"What is this?!"
Carrion felt his body sink, his mind reeling in a daze. "You actually succeeded?!"
Everyone had sensed Frey's Harvest Festival.
But whether she'd succeeded wasn't certain without seeing it firsthand.
Now, Carrion knew... Frey had truly become the True Demon Lord!
She was no longer a self-proclaimed Demon Lord like them.
She was a powerhouse who could stand toe-to-toe with the veteran Demon Lords.
"So what?"
Carrion forced himself to stay calm and asked, "Why are you here? What do you want?"
"Showing off like this isn't your style."
True Demon Lords were powerful, but they weren't without enemies.
On the Central World, where Ultimate Skills existed, their effects often mattered more than magicule counts.
And that underscored the importance of information.
Once an enemy knew your capabilities and trump cards, they could act against you without hesitation.
Thus, concealing one's power was key.
It kept enemies wary, preventing them from acting rashly... a tacit understanding among Demon Lords.
To put it bluntly:
An awakened being with three Seven Virtues Ultimate Skills might think themselves invincible.
Then they meet Rudra, the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.
With Lord of Justice Michael, which can control other Seven Virtues wielders, Rudra could simply activate Royal Authority, and the awakened one would bow without question. Where's the justice in that?
This showed that on the Central World, arrogance could be deadly.
"What kind of image do you have of me?"
"Image, huh…"
Carrion rubbed his chin and said bluntly, "A bit cunning, not exactly honorable, petty, an old hag who's been around for centuries but still acts like... "
"Go die!!"
Before Carrion could finish, an invisible slash enveloped him.
"Whoa!"
If Carrion hadn't dodged in time, he'd have been sliced in half like the cliff.
"…"
Even after dodging, Carrion felt a lingering fear.
The hundreds-of-meters-tall cliff was split cleanly in two from its center by an invisible blade.
No warning, no detectable magicule fluctuation.
It just fell!
Even Carrion, witnessing such a terrifying strike, was deeply shaken.
"Hey, was that really necessary?"
Cold sweat drenched Carrion's forehead. "I was just joking!!"
"Joking?"
Frey flashed a radiant smile. "Oh my, I was just joking too."
"You definitely meant to kill me!"
Honestly, Carrion still couldn't figure out the nature of Frey's attack.
Spatial magic?
An advanced sword technique?
Or a specialized slash?
'I can't tell…'
Even with five hundred years of battle experience, Carrion couldn't discern the secret behind Frey's move.
"Could this be the legendary power of an Ultimate Skill?"
"…"
Hearing Carrion's words, Frey couldn't help but roll her eyes.
What kind of nonsense? That was an Ultimate Skill?
Frey sighed again.
If she hadn't met Damien, she might've been as narrow-minded as Carrion.
"That was just my Spatial Slash, enhanced by the qualitative change in my magicules."
With a million magicules in the Demon Lord Domain, magic power already received a significant boost.
And magic or skills cast with such high-density magicules underwent a qualitative transformation, even if it was the same move.
"Not an Ultimate Skill?"
Now Carrion truly couldn't stay calm. "The gap from awakening is that huge?!"
Carrion had seen Frey's Spatial Slash before.
With his abilities, he could even block her slashes with his body.
But now…
Look at this scene.
Blocking a bullet with flesh?
You must not know how to spell "death"!
"So, can you tell me why you're here?"
Carrion actually knew Frey quite well; their relationship was complex.
Before they became Demon Lords, both were intelligent monsters living on the Eastern Plains.
Harpies and Lycanthrope had been allies since ancient times.
As the cream of their respective races, Frey and Carrion shared a bond spanning over five hundred years.
Especially after Frey became a Demon Lord, she didn't forget to give Carrion a hand.
Their relationship wasn't quite sibling-like but was closer than most.
"You sent a team to explore the Jura Forest, didn't you?"
"How did you know?"
Carrion thought his actions had been discreet.
'Unless…'
A grim possibility dawned on him... Frey had captured his subordinates and came to demand a ransom.
***
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