Tap...
A single leaf fell, shattering the long-held silence.
He absolutely could not give Solitär any more time to recover her magical power!
Diego yanked out the Inverted Spear of Heaven and struck first. The Scales of Obedience hurtled straight toward Solitär in midair. Diego followed, lunging forward. His dinosaur tail tensed with muscle, squeezing Aura hard enough to draw a scream.
"Aaaaah..."
But at the same time, hundreds of flying swords attacked from every direction. The dense sword rain left no gap for evasion.
Squelch! Squelch! Squelch!
Even using Aura as a human shield, Diego—caught off guard—still took several swords, blood spurting from fresh holes.
Crack!
His dinosaur tail was severed by a single blade.
"Guah…" Diego winced in pain, halted by the sword rain.
"If I see you attempt another attack, the next thing I cut off won't be your dinosaur tail." Solitär gripped a nearby flying sword, her gaze gradually turning cold. "Answer my questions. I want to understand you."
"Hahahahahahahahahaha!!!"
Diego's grin stretched wider and wider, tearing clear to his ears as uncontrollable laughter poured out.
The sound made Solitär uncomfortable. She frowned, voice hesitant: "What are you laughing at?"
"So your magic is just unleashing ordinary flying swords with no special effects…" Diego kept laughing, one hand pushing back his bangs, the other reaching into Ugly Treasure's mouth. "Then what the hell was I, Dio, even wary of just now? To think I'd be this stupid…"
Whoosh!
Another dozens of flying swords came.
Diego's eyes sharpened. He drew Playful Cloud, charging freely through the sword rain. Wielding the three-section staff high, he smashed every incoming blade to pieces!
"If that's all you can do, then as the price for disturbing my mother's rest—prepare to meet your end!!!"
Crack!
Diego leaped into the air. His ferocious dinosaur face closed in. Jaws gaping, he bit down and shattered the flying sword in Solitär's hand!
His frenzied words pressed closer.
"You love studying humans, right?!"
"I'll carve your flesh off, lay your organs out on the ground one by one in perfect order!!"
"Watch how I dissect you!!!"
While Solitär stared in disbelief, Diego was already upon her. He swung the staff down hard in a brutal overhead strike.
Clang————!!!
The violent impact sent fallen leaves swirling wildly.
The pure physical amplifier Playful Cloud proved its worth. The red-patterned metal three-section staff smashed down, completely shattering Solitär's surrounding magical defenses. The fierce wind pressure cleaved nearby boulders in two!
Kick!
Midair, Diego gripped both ends of Playful Cloud. The three-section staff trapped the evading Solitär. With a savage grin, he drove a foot straight into her face—shattering that compassionate expression instantly!
Without giving her a moment to breathe, Diego pressed the attack. After locking her head, his two thick, log-like legs shot toward her chest again—another brutal kick landing, power surging. Blood sprayed on the spot!
"Puah…"
Solitär coughed up blood. More and more poured from her forehead.
Bam!
Diego landed with his foot planted on Solitär's face.
Clearly not satisfied, he straddled her. His crimson tongue licked the blood from his face clean. Dinosaur claws plunged into Solitär's abdomen.
But Diego's enemies were not just Solitär. A killing spell struck his body squarely, interrupting his ferocious assault.
Having escaped the dinosaur tail, Aura repaired her body and stealthily closed in from behind—halting the dissection plan!
"Archdemons have tough bodies, don't they, Aura…" Diego whipped his head around. The oppressive aura he radiated enveloped the stunned Aura. "Did you enjoy hitting me just now?!"
Squelch!!!
After fighting Tot, Diego naturally knew how resilient an archdemon's body was. His dinosaur claw changed targets, piercing straight through Aura's torso in an instant.
Before Diego could withdraw his hand, Solitär's voice rang out from behind once more.
"Humans are truly wonderful. You're so interesting—you always bring me new discoveries. We're going down together now, little brother."
Diego instinctively adjusted his stance. That tiny window Aura had bought allowed a small hand carrying a magical orb to press against his left shoulder.
Puff...
A spell that scattered magical power...
BOOM BOOM BOOM——
A blinding flash erupted. Diego's left arm—along with part of his torso—and the massive cliff face before him vanished together!
"…Impossible… I didn't… relax my guard against you at all… ah…" Diego slowly turned. Blood gushed from the wound. The light in his pupils dimmed noticeably.
He had been tricked. So this… was Solitär's true specialty… magic…
If Diego hadn't shifted his position, that strike would have obliterated the left half of his body—heart included.
"Ha… hahaha…" Solitär panted heavily. Magical particles began repairing her body. She gave a wretched laugh before speaking again. "Little brother, failure from carelessness is the fate demons should meet. A true trump card should only be played when victory is assured…"
"Ha… this battle isn't over yet. Even without your left arm, you still have fighting strength, right?"
Solitär flew to Diego's side. One hand condensed a magical orb, ready to scatter it—when...
Slap!
Still kneeling in a daze, Diego reached out with his remaining right hand. He seized Solitär's arm and hurled her away, smashing through several trees before she stopped.
"So that's how it is…" Diego's gaze was dim. His lips cracked and dry. He dinosaurized the bleeding wound to staunch it. "Let's keep fighting…"
"…Haha… ha… you're truly incredible, Diego Brando…"
Beneath the broken stump, Solitär covered her face. Laughter leaked through her fingers.
Soon, Solitär rose. Half her face and fingers were streaked with grime. Her fingertips brushed her cheek.
"Right—I can ask you one thing?"
"I know very well how powerful humans are. Wisdom, courage, resilience—you continue to evolve through your struggle against demons."
"I'm different from other demons. I don't have the arrogance to believe I won't be hunted."
"So I've decided: when that day comes, I'll cry and beg for mercy."
"If today is that day—if the one hunting me is you—please tell me exactly how you feel right now."
"I'm so sorry… I didn't mean to…"
"May I ask something too? Do all demons use the same script?" While Solitär prattled on, Diego stood up, expressionless, and left one line. "I've already heard those words from your good sister—the Saint of the End, Tot."
"Let's keep fighting…"
He moved again.
Hearing this, Solitär showed a brilliant smile. Her small tiger fangs flashed. "You really don't know when to give up…"
"Endless… it's turned into a war of attrition…" Aura's voice appeared once more.
Diego, Solitär, and Aura clashed again.
An hour passed. The two terrifying magical powers had fallen to their lowest…
The view returned to the battlefield. Aura lay collapsed to one side. One-armed Diego straddled Solitär, dinosaur claw raised high overhead.
"I told you—I'd dissect you…"
At this point, Solitär couldn't even lift a finger. For the first time in her long existence, she felt utterly spent.
"A few years ago, you never actually fled, right? You watched our every move from afar. You're truly impressive. It's the first time I've seen anyone escape Schlacht's thousand-year future foresight magic." Solitär's voice was low.
"Die…" Diego was also exhausted.
…Wait. In the distance, a massive magical reaction appeared.
He had to kill Solitär before it arrived!
No…
So fast!!!
Whoosh!!!
In an instant, a killing spell pierced straight through Diego's brain.
Squelch!!!
The next strike—a golden blade—stabbed into Diego's body, precisely piercing his heart.
Then it was yanked out.
Thud...
Blood gushed. The light faded from Diego's pupils. He toppled backward.
[I, Dio, will never abandon my hunger for victory—even if I must struggle in ugliness…]
Go on, Scary Monsters…
"You sent me a letter saying you found a way for humans and demons to coexist—what was that about?" After finishing it all, Macht of the Golden Land turned his gaze to Solitär. "Solitär, how did you and Aura both end up beaten to this state by a human?"
"Sorry—I lied. There is no such thing as human-demon coexistence." Solitär slowly closed her eyes.
Macht was puzzled and asked again: "Why lie to me?"
"No particular reason. I'm cautious by nature. I prefer tactics with higher win rates—so I called you, the strongest of the Seven Sages of Destruction." Solitär spoke once more. "As compensation, I'll tell you everything I've learned from my years studying humans."
Rustle rustle...
A swarm of little dinosaurs burst from the forest, charging toward Macht of the Golden Land.
"?" Macht looked bewildered. He tore off his cloak. All Things to Gold magic activated instantly, turning it into a golden blade. He began clearing the surrounding little dinosaurs.
(All Things to Gold magic: A 'curse' that turns everything in the world to gold. No preconditions—because it cannot be recognized as magic, it cannot be defended against or evaded.)
Thud thud thud...
"Whinny!!!"
While Macht's attention was drawn to the little dinosaurs, the Arabian purebred charged toward Diego.
Slap...
The dying Diego reached out, gripping the horse's hind leg tightly. Using it, he escaped the battlefield.
The sound of hooves faded into the distance. Solitär opened her eyes and urged: "Macht, hurry and kill him."
"No need. If he doesn't want to be eaten by demons, let him run. This is just his last gasp. His brain and heart were both pierced—that's fatal. He'll be dead in minutes." Macht's expression remained unchanged as he continued clearing the dense little dinosaurs. "I don't enjoy fighting others. Besides, you and Aura can't handle these dinosaurs anymore, can you?"
"Macht is right… If you want to continue your research, I still have his left hand here." Aura sighed, severed Solitär's abdomen, and tossed the left hand still embedded there beside her. "I'm too tired to chase a horse. Also—while I can control corpses, my obedience magic requires the soul to be placed on the Scales of Obedience for a contest of magical power. A corpse has no soul."
"True. No need to dig anymore. He's already dead…"
...
—In an unknown small grove in the Southern Nations—
Thud thud thud...
"Whinny!"
After a long gallop, the Arabian purebred finally stopped. It lowered its head and nuzzled Diego's body.
Drip… drip…
A few raindrops fell.
Pouring…
In an instant, it became a torrential downpour.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
Diego—who should have been dead—rolled over. He opened his eyes to stare at the gloomy sky. His lost left arm reappeared.
Arms spread wide, he breathed deeply.
"Mahoraga…"
Solitär had spoken correctly: a true trump card should only be played when victory is assured. By not exposing this layer during the fight, it became the decisive factor in his escape.
"I survived…"
"I almost lost my reason again…"
The rain grew heavier, pouring into Diego's mouth.
Soon, Diego's eyelids drooped. His gaze complicated, he looked at the horse before him. He stood, spread his arms, and gently embraced it.
When my nerves were destroyed, the world in my eyes had already lost all color—only black and white remained.
But at that moment, a silver figure broke into my vision…
"Silver Bullet…" Diego spoke softly, stroking the mane, a faint laugh escaping. "I'll call you Silver Bullet then—the silver bullet that risked everything to save me in my moment of crisis."
"Thank you…"
Then Diego released his hold. He grasped the silver cross at his neck and stood motionless like a statue in the pouring rain.
"Is this the price of defeat? Just one failure, and I couldn't even protect my mother's grave…"
"Heh heh heh… hahaha…"
Soon laughter rang out. Grief filled Diego's heart, yet his face twisted into a sickly, savage grin.
Crack!
A thunderbolt illuminated Diego's rain-drenched face.
"I swear—I, Dio, will never lose again! From now on, I, Dio, will only win!! I can only win!!!"
Diego roared into the storm.
Soon he calmed. He lowered his head, gazed at Ugly Treasure on his shoulder, swallowed it back into his stomach, and led Silver Bullet to a nearby cave to shelter from the rain.
After the downpour ceased, Diego emerged with Silver Bullet. He encountered a green-haired male elf.
Monk Kraft met Diego's lifeless gaze. A sense of crisis surged within him. He assumed a fighting stance.
What followed was two full years of relentless combat—Diego's martial training in a certain sense.
Lesson 5: The cost of failure is exorbitantly high. Only victory is worth ceaseless pursuit.
So I—will never lose!