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"Go."
Lucian's voice was calm, almost like a death sentence being passed.
The moment his words fell, the alluring fox-like eyes of Himan flared with a savage violet glow.
"As you wish, my dearest master~"
She let out a soft, teasing laugh. That fiery, seductive body of hers didn't even bother to move forward. She simply stood there lazily and lifted her slender, pale arm as if it took no effort at all.
"Well now… I don't know where you crawled out from, but that condescending attitude of yours is really unpleasant."
Doma's fake smile began to fade, the corners of his lips stiffening. With a sharp flick of his golden folding fan, the air around him froze solid.
"Blood Demon Art: Lotus Ice!"
Countless massive ice lotuses burst from the ground, each one radiating deadly frost. They surged forward like a grinding blizzard, swallowing everything in their path as they rushed toward Himan and Lucian.
But faced with an attack that could instantly kill even Hashira-level swordsmen, Himan didn't even bother to dodge.
"That's it?"
She flicked her hand.
Boom!
The earth trembled violently as dozens of massive, dark-purple vines erupted from the frozen ground beneath Doma's feet. Thick as giant serpents, their surfaces were etched with eerie, glowing patterns.
These vines carried no flashy physical attacks. Instead, they radiated a terrifying power that made one's soul shudder—
Devouring.
The moment they made contact, Doma's indestructible ice lotuses melted away like ice dropped into acid. Not even a sound was left behind as they were completely absorbed and broken down.
"What?!"
For the first time, real shock flickered in Doma's rainbow-colored eyes.
His proud Blood Demon Art… had been eaten?
He staggered backward in panic, but it was already too late. The dark-purple vines spread across the sky, forming a massive cage that wrapped around him, binding him tightly in midair.
The devouring force surged, greedily draining his flesh and the very core of his demonic being.
"Big sis!"
Right as this one-sided slaughter unfolded, a small, agile figure burst through the forest and rushed into the clearing, panting.
She wore a butterfly-wing haori and clutched her Nichirin blade tightly. It was Shinobu Kocho, who had followed the sounds of battle at full speed to provide support.
"Shinobu…" Kanae's weak voice called out from where she lay in Lucian's arms.
"Big sis! Are you okay?!"
Shinobu rushed forward, eyes reddened with worry.
But when she saw her sister lying safely in a stranger's arms, and noticed how the fatal lung frostbite and blade wounds were rapidly healing thanks to a small, glowing green "sticker" on her neck, she froze.
"This… what kind of medicine is that? It can even restore necrotic organs instantly?!"
As an expert in pharmacology and toxicology, Shinobu stared at the simple bandage as if it were a miracle.
With Lucian's support, Kanae managed to stand. She didn't explain anything. Instead, she stared toward the battlefield with deep awe in her eyes.
Shinobu followed her gaze—
And her pupils shrank to pinpoints.
The Upper Rank Two demon who had pushed the entire Demon Slayer Corps to the brink… the one who killed without blinking…
Was now hanging in midair like a ragdoll, bound by several dark-purple vines.
His terrifying regeneration had completely failed under the devouring force. All he could do was scream in agony.
And the woman controlling those vines?
She wasn't even fully focused on the fight. Instead, she casually turned her head and started chatting, even acting coquettish toward the man holding her sister.
"Master~"
While continuing to drain Doma's essence, Himan pouted slightly in disgust.
"This guy tastes awful… though the energy in him is decent enough. Barely qualifies as an appetizer."
Shinobu and Kanae felt their hearts shake violently.
That terrifying woman who could casually crush an Upper Rank Two… was calling this man "Master"?
If even his servant was this absurdly powerful… then just how unfathomable was Lucian himself?
The two sisters exchanged a glance, both seeing the same overwhelming shock and reverence in each other's eyes.
Meanwhile, Lucian watched Doma being drained dry in midair, calmly analyzing.
"So this is Upper Rank Two… His raw destructive power is, at best, around LV.3 to LV.4. Nowhere near the LV.5 threshold set by the system."
He rubbed his chin.
He understood now.
The reason the chat group had set the mission requirement at LV.5 wasn't because Doma was that strong. It was to ensure that whoever came could achieve a zero-casualty, absolute stomp.
And judging from how the system masked his level with a "?", its classification clearly valued not just destructive power, but also one's "law-level status" and the "potential ceiling" of their world.
"AAAAAA—!!!"
Doma let out one final, desperate scream.
Himan's specialty was devouring, growing stronger by consuming her prey.
And Doma, whose body was filled with dense demonic essence, was the perfect nourishment.
Under the relentless extraction of the dark-purple vines, his body crumbled away piece by piece like weathered ash, leaving not even a trace behind.
Completely consumed.
At that exact moment, a crisp notification rang out in Lucian's mind.
[Ding! Congratulations to the host/guardian spirit for successfully killing and devouring a special demon: Upper Rank Two!]
[Detected: the "demons" of this world contain obsessions and special energy. Classified as "ghost-type" by the Guardian Spirit System!]
[Devour reward granted: Congratulations! You have obtained the special ability—Absolute Frost Control (can create extreme ice regardless of temperature and grants immunity to all ice-based negative effects)!]
[Guardian Spirit "Himan" has absorbed a large amount of essence. Strength slightly increased!]
Lucian's eyes lit up.
"I see… So even though the demons in this world are technically biological mutations, my system still categorizes them as ghost-type entities."
He felt the pure, extreme frost power flowing through his body and smiled in satisfaction.
Not only did he earn group points from this trip, he also got a top-tier ice ability for free.
Huge win.
Himan let out a satisfied little burp, then turned into a streak of violet light and returned to Lucian's spirit space to digest the energy.
…
Meanwhile, in the Myriad Worlds Chat Group—
The members were still discussing the mission.
[Ice General]: @Part-time Genius Exorcist Teacher Did he make a move yet? How strong is that Upper Rank Two? Wish someone recorded it, I'd love to see his fighting style.
[Elegant Gem Magus]: Not sure how long cross-world battles take… That thing pushed Miss Kanae to the brink. Even if he's strong, adapting to another world's rules should take time, right…?
But less than a second after Rin Tohsaka sent her message—
The chat interface suddenly exploded with dazzling golden fireworks!
[Ding! Global Announcement!]
[Emergency Mission: "The Flower Hashira's Fatal Fate" has been successfully completed!]
[Executor: Part-time Genius Exorcist Teacher (?)]
[Result: Target "Upper Rank Two: Doma" was instantly killed and devoured! Kanae Kocho has been successfully rescued. Fate has been reversed!]
[Total Time: Less than 9 minutes (including cross-world travel)]
The moment these glowing golden lines appeared—
The entire chat group fell into eerie silence.
A full minute passed before it erupted like a volcano.
[Elegant Gem Magus]: M-my god! Nine minutes?! That includes the time to open the cross-world channel, right?! So the fight itself didn't even last a minute?! What kind of dimensional-level crushing is that?!
[Magic-Collecting Elf]: Mm… instant kill… Even at her peak, Master Serie probably couldn't have done it more cleanly than that.
Meanwhile, Nao Tomori, who had been staring at the screen the whole time, was shaking with excitement.
Less than nine minutes… to cross worlds and completely rewrite someone's doomed fate.
This Lucian…
He really was an omnipotent god.
If she could just gain his protection—
Then her brother… could definitely be saved.
"....."