The Demon Lord tried to meet Stroven's charge with his own, leveling his pistol toward The Star Crusher's knee—but he never got the chance. Stroven closed the distance far faster than Nullivar anticipated, seizing his wrist mid-motion. Bone and metal crumpled together as Stroven crushed the entire joint in his grip, then tore the arm clean off. Nullivar's scream tore out of him raw and ragged—cut short by Stroven's fist slamming into his abdomen so hard he felt his organs slide out of place despite the durability granted by his demon form.
"The reason you won't be able to kill me, or even win, is simple," Stroven said.
He seized Nullivar by the throat and hurled him across the crater. The Demon Lord hit the stone wall with enough force to spider-crack it on impact, vertebrae snapping like brittle twigs. Darkness flooded his body again, shadows stitching and bracing bone—but Stroven was already there, materializing above him with his fist drawn back, expression carved from murder.
"You're weak. You're feeble. You are nothing compared to him."
Panic surged through Nullivar as he threw up his remaining arm, shadows spiraling outward. He poured everything he had into the shield—every spare ounce of mana, every scrap of will—forcing the barrier to densify and harden.
"But most importantly of all," Stroven said, and unleashed his punch.
---
Dash's punch folded the demon knight in half mid-air, sending him spiraling back as his pink plate armor shattered across the front like paper. "Cheap tricks like that won't work on me!" The Wandering Calamity said with a grin, even though the technique had clearly affected him moments before.
He shot past the flailing demon knight, caught up in a heartbeat, and shouted, "Super Kick!" His heel smashed into the knight's torso, punting him downward. The impact hit the forest floor so hard the knight bounced—violently—and shot back up into Dash's waiting path.
"I'm too strong for something like that!" Dash declared as he launched after him. The demon knight had no time—no breath—even to react before Dash's fist drew back.
"Super Punch!"
The blow detonated. A beam of gold light roared past Dash's knuckles, slamming into the knight and scorching straight through his armor as the force hurled him down toward the Demon Lord's forces. They scrambled out of the drop zone—Lazgor only surviving because Valrog yanked him clear.
"What is this? You can't lose! Come on—what are we going to do if you lose?" Lazgor babbled, voice shrill.
Dash landed across from all of them, striking a pose, fist drawn back theatrically.
"And of course there's another really important reason!" he shouted.
"Super Duper Hyper Strong Punch!"
He thrust his fist forward—and a colossal golden beam, the width of a five-story building, erupted from his arm, blasting toward the demons, the Demon Lord, and the portal itself.
---
Varkhul raised his red fire katana as he stared down the woman across from him. Every instinct screamed that she outclassed him—that she lived and breathed swordsmanship at a level far beyond anything he had ever witnessed.
"I don't care what name you have," he declared, "I'm Demon Lord Varkhul, and I won't back down from any fight."
"Who are you talking to?" a voice asked behind him.
His blood froze. He turned.
Yahito stood there, golden eyes fixed on him with a quiet, almost pitying calm. She had been in front of him. He saw her there. Yet now she was at his back, as if she had never moved at all.
"Poor bastard. You think you have a chance? No, you don't."
Her rune katana dripped red. She raised it, letting a thin thread of fresh blood slide off the edge.
"I already killed you. It's just taking time for the world to understand that I've done that already."
She wiped the blade clean, slid it into its sheath, stopping just before the final click.
"After all," she murmured, a small smirk curling at the corner of her lips.
---
Aeron tilted his head at the Demon Lord's question. "What am I?" he echoed.
His right cybernetic arm hummed to life. The Arc Fusion Blade powered on—a pure beam of blue energy flaring into existence with a sharp, electric howl. Redgrave recoiled instantly, fear twisting his features as the light reflected off his eyes.
"I'm an officer of the law," Aeron said, voice level, unblinking. "An Ironguard Specialist."
He continued forward with steady, mechanical certainty. Redgrave's body locked—paralyzed, overwhelmed by a primal fear that rooted him to the ground, tightening his lungs until he could barely breathe.
Aeron raised his arm. The humming blade rang like a funeral bell.
"But I guess there is another thing people call me, another thing which is the fact that," he said, swinging the blade down.
---
As the lightning dispersed, silence fell.
The air still crackled from the aftermath, but no one moved—not after seeing what remained of the Demon Lord. Velastra stood in the center of the storm's impact, her immaculate clothing gone, most of her skin burned away. She barely remained upright. The only proof she was alive was the faint, wheezing breath clawing out of her lungs.
"I told you I would kill you, didn't I?" Darek said.
He snapped his fingers. Illusion magic shimmered, ensuring Mari and the village children saw none of this—none of what Velastra now was, nor what she was about to become.
"You put up a good fight when I wasn't using my magic," Darek continued. "When I tried to give you a painless death. Just a simple snap of the neck. But since you're so insistent on fighting… and prolonging your own suffering…"
Mana swirled around his palm as he hovered above the ground. The sphere grew—denser, brighter, hotter—until the very air vibrated.
"I'll show you why they call me The Reluctant Deity," he said. "I'll show you why."
He hurled the spell.
---
Stroven's fist tore through Nullivar's shield, shattered his forearm, and smashed into his skull. Dash's golden beam consumed every demon in its path—the demon knight, Lazgor, the rest—burning them out of existence along with the portal. Reality finally caught up to Yahito's movements; Varkhul came apart in massive, blood-heavy chunks. Redgrave's scream split the air as Aeron carved him open from shoulder to hip in a single strike of the Arc Fusion Blade. Darek's mana bomb hit Velastra; it didn't explode outward—it imploded, focusing entirely on her body until she vanished in a brilliant blue flash, leaving nothing behind.
The Star Crusher lowered his dripping fist. The Wandering Calamity grinned. The Unending Blade clicked her sword into place. The One Feared By Death powered down the Arc Fusion Blade. The Reluctant Deity glared coldly at the space where his foe had stood.
And each of them—scattered across entirely different corners of Aetheria—spoke the same words:
"I'm The Strongest."