The overlapping wails of his clansmen seemed to resound once more in Vetto's ears.
"Vermin! Vermin! The ones who should despair are you filthy humans!!"
Vetto let out a sky-shaking roar. The third eye on his forehead was wide open, bulging, its edges leaking strange, purple-tinted mana.
With his mana continuously being devoured by the Gluttony Wolves—and the curse that dulled his five senses piling higher and higher—Vetto understood all too clearly: if this continued, defeat was inevitable.
He could lose.
But he could never lose to humans.
BOOM!
Terrifying dark-red mana erupted from Vetto once more, blasting apart the Gluttony Wolves gnawing at him yet again.
"I will never lose to you!!"
Enduring several ferocious blows from Yuuki head-on, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, Vetto's feral eyes flashed. He thrust out both arms and forcibly seized Yuuki's arms.
"Hmph!"
Sensing Vetto's intent, Yuuki snorted coldly. The Mana Skin flowing over his arms changed abruptly—ice spikes surged upward, reinforced by mineral magic to form armored bracers as he tried to wrench himself free.
And that wasn't all.
Yuuki stamped hard on the sea's surface, leapt upward, and explosive flame-aspected mana burst from his soles. He drove a vicious kick straight into Vetto's chest.
BOOOOM!
A towering wave of seawater swallowed both of them.
Soaked through, Yuuki no longer cared—but his pupils suddenly constricted.
That barrage of powerful attacks hadn't shaken Vetto off at all.
Even with both hands pierced through by ice spikes, blood pouring freely, Vetto still clung to Yuuki's arms with unyielding force.
"This bastard…"
Yuuki's expression changed. He already knew what Vetto intended to do.
Under the influence of the Ash Gray Curse, Vetto's five senses had deteriorated severely. His greatest strength—close-quarters brawling—was now being suppressed by Yuuki.
To be overpowered in his own specialty was humiliation beyond measure. And so, like he had done to Asta, Vetto planned to cripple Yuuki by destroying his arms.
"You think you're the only one who knows curse magic?!"
Vetto's beastlike eyes locked onto Yuuki's in a cold, savage stare as he tightened his grip.
Yet the resistance coming from Yuuki's arms prevented him from crushing the bones outright as he had with Asta. A flicker of regret crossed Vetto's eyes.
Breaking bones wasn't a requirement of curse magic—it was merely Vetto's way of making his opponent taste pure pain and despair.
THUD!
Sinister black mana surged from Vetto's thick arms, rapidly spreading over Yuuki's.
"Hehahaha—feel it! Feel the pain! This is a real curse!"
Vetto's frenzy deepened as he roared.
With his arms pinned, Yuuki felt the curse the instant it made contact—like countless ants gnawing into his flesh.
It wasn't just searing agony. His arms began to lose sensation altogether, growing heavy, unresponsive.
So this is the pain Asta felt…
"And what are you getting so excited about—
Magic-Binding Iron Chain Formation!"
Gritting his teeth against the pain, Yuuki's eyes flashed coldly. With Vetto also immobilized, he immediately activated his Chain Magic.
Once bound by the chains, no matter how strong Vetto was, losing his mana would reduce him to a lamb awaiting slaughter. Aside from devils, no one—regardless of mana reserves—could resist the sealing effect of Chain Magic.
He had held it back all this time, waiting for the perfect moment. Against Vetto's speed and reflexes, binding him head-on was nearly impossible.
It had to be a surprise—and it had to work the first time. If Vetto noticed it, restraining him again would become exponentially harder.
And now—
This was the best chance he would ever get.
Clatter—clatter—!
In an instant, countless black chains manifested around Yuuki, lashing out toward Vetto. Just as they were about to bind him—
Though Vetto looked completely deranged, his instincts reacted first. His figure flashed, reappearing several meters away on the sea's surface.
The chains struck nothing but air.
"What sharp instincts…"
Disappointment and regret flickered through Yuuki's gaze. He exhaled heavily, his arms drooping under the lingering effects of the curse.
Missed my chance. I'll have to stick to the original plan.
"Weren't you so arrogant just now? Why'd you run?" Yuuki raised his head and sneered at Vetto in the distance. "What, you beast-faced freak—are you all talk?"
"Shut up, you vermin!!"
Vetto roared and charged.
When the chains appeared earlier, his body had screamed danger at him. He was certain that spell was anything but ordinary.
"No matter what you're plotting, your arms are already useless. All that's left for you is to be hunted by a beast!"
"Leopard Rush!"
Dark-red afterimages streaked across the sea, explosions erupting wherever Vetto passed. He intended to finish Yuuki in one decisive burst before anything else could go wrong.
"Ice Magic: Heaven-Piercing Ice Fang!"
The sea beneath Yuuki's feet froze layer by layer, boosting his retreat as he widened the distance—while unleashing ice magic.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Massive ice spikes surged upward from beneath the sea, relentlessly striking at the pursuing Vetto.
BOOM!
Vetto bared his sharp, beastlike teeth. He didn't dodge. He smashed straight through the thick ice spikes with his body.
Thumb-sized—some even hair-thin—Gluttony Wolves continued to devour his mana, swelling as they fed. Vetto ignored them entirely.
His eyes held only Yuuki.
No matter how troublesome the magic, once the mage died, it would all end.
"You really think you've got me cornered?!"
Yuuki kept retreating, never stopping his taunts.
He needed Vetto to fall completely into madness—so far gone that even self-destruction would be acceptable. That would be the true end.
The Demon-Dweller Sword was reserved for that moment—used too early, and Vetto might sense it.
As Yuuki retreated and shouted insults, two razor-sharp ice blades condensed in midair, gleaming under the sunlight.
"Cut."
Enduring the agonizing pain in his arms, Yuuki raised them and gave the command.
Shhk!
Shhk!
Blood sprayed.
Yuuki grunted as both arms were severed cleanly.
Vetto, charging from behind, froze for an instant, shock flashing across his eyes.
Whrr—
The magical tool Element Sphere appeared beside Yuuki. Amplified by it, his mana boiled over, transforming into blazing crimson flames that wrapped around his entire body.
"Flame Recovery Magic—Phoenix Feather Robe!"
Yuuki roared.
Before Vetto's stunned gaze, Yuuki's severed arms regenerated—growing back in an instant.
"It looks like I still have the upper hand."
Yuuki stopped retreating. He flexed his newly regrown arms, grinned brightly, and looked at the equally halted Vetto.
Among all recovery magic, only two spells could regenerate the body itself: Phoenix Robe, and Vetto's own Beast Magic.
How is that possible…?
Vetto's beastly pupils widened. The spell Yuuki had just used—it was Fana's technique. Why could this human use it?!
In that moment, Vetto realized just how mysterious—and abnormal—the human before him truly was.
BOOM!
Yuuki didn't hesitate. With his arms restored, he charged back in.
In an instant—
The two clashed once more. Their ferocious collision sent massive waves exploding across the sea, the thunderous roar of mana colliding echoing through the sky.
Having lost the final chance at initiative, with both mana and senses severely diminished, Vetto fell completely into disadvantage. Yuuki battered him back relentlessly—there was no trace left of Vetto's former ease.
"You kept saying you'd make me despair—this is your despair? Pathetic."
"You're being driven back by the 'vermin' you despise so much."
"The one in despair is you."
"Run. That's all a loser can do."
"Revenge on humanity? Give it up."
Yuuki taunted him endlessly as he attacked, all the while judging whether it was time to deploy the Magic-Binding Iron Chain Formation again.
Vetto was losing—but he hadn't completely lost the ability to resist.
He truly was powerful.
Even after having so much mana devoured and being crippled by stacked curses, he still possessed terrifying combat strength.
Unless Vetto fled—which he never would, given his pride—there was no longer any path to victory for him.
"Damn you… human!!"
Driven deeper into madness by Yuuki's taunts, Vetto's boiling dark-red mana suddenly compressed inward.
"Beast Magic—Iporapuevigu!"
An eerie chant, as if from beyond the world, echoed through the air. A dark-red magic circle appeared before Vetto.
The mana he had compressed erupted through the circle in a single release—an overwhelming torrent that became a crimson shockwave of annihilation!
Yuuki's eyelid twitched violently the moment Vetto cast the spell. He instantly used spatial magic to evade.
The crimson energy tore a blazing line across the sea. Wherever it passed, the ocean evaporated outright, the beam flying beyond the limits of sight—
Then came a world-shaking detonation.
Seeing its sheer destructive power, Yuuki couldn't help twitching his mouth.
As expected of Zero Domain Beast Magic… terrifying.
"Dodged it, huh…"
Vetto gasped for breath. Having poured most of his remaining mana into that attack—only for Yuuki to evade—it was clear now.
He had no hope left.
How can I lose to humans…
"Don't cry, Vetto."
"Humans even bully birds this weak—unforgivable."
"I chased them away. Go back and get treated."
"Sorry, Licht. I keep causing trouble."
"Don't be like that—we're friends. We'll always help."
"We're not that strong either, just like those birds. We can fly… use some special magic, and that's why they envy us. But maybe one day, we can coexist with humans."
…Hope?
Scenes from the past flashed through Vetto's mind.
And the ones who stole that hope—
Were you humans!!
Yuuki's gaze suddenly sharpened.
Vetto's third eye opened fully. An indescribably horrifying aura poured forth—dark-red mana spilling from the eye and engulfing his entire body.
"Then you'll die with me! I'll blow up this entire sea along with you!!"
Vetto's enraged roar shook heaven and earth. His body was swallowed by raging dark-red flames of mana, hovering in the sky and radiating heart-stopping power.
Seeing this—
Yuuki actually relaxed, his eyes tinged with something complex.
"…I've won, Vetto."
For different races, right and wrong held no meaning.
Because the victor took everything.
BOOM!
The sea beneath Yuuki exploded as he launched himself upward toward the massive dark-red sphere of mana.
Sensing the rapidly escalating pressure, Yuuki drew the Demon-Dweller Sword from subspace and shot forward like an arrow.
The instant the sword's tip touched the mana mass, the expanding mana was rapidly absorbed—collapsing inward.
In a single breath—
Yuuki pierced through the mana sphere and appeared before Vetto at its core.
"Magic-Binding Iron Chain Formation!"
Shhk! Shhk!
Locked in a self-destruction state, Vetto couldn't move. He could only watch as countless black chains bound him completely.
Humm—
All the dark-red mana pouring from his body vanished in an instant. Even the third eye on his forehead—once blazing like a flame—went dark under the seal.
It worked.
Yuuki reached out, seized Vetto's grimoire, and before Vetto could recover from his manic state, had his silver grimoire devour it.
"You… you stopped my self-destruction? How did you do that…"
Clarity returned slightly to Vetto's eyes as he spoke in stunned disbelief.
Then—
"The Demon-Dweller Sword?! Why is it in your hands… that's Licht's sword!"
Seeing the blade Yuuki held, Vetto struggled wildly, roaring.
"That answer will wait until next time," Yuuki said calmly. "For now—you've lost."
He shook his head slightly, raised the Demon-Destroyer Sword, and drove it straight into Vetto's heart.
Blood sprayed along the blade.
"You… who exactly are—"
THUD.
Vetto's voice cut off as his body fell lifeless onto the sea's surface.
"Next time we meet, I hope I won't have to kill you again."
Yuuki murmured softly, looking at Vetto's floating corpse.
BOOOOM!
At that moment, an immense surge of dark-red mana erupted from Yuuki's body—forming a roaring torrent that shot skyward.
In an instant, the entire sea was bathed in crimson.
(End of Chapter)
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