He was the masked clone of the Duke of Hell, Vanir—one of the three Demon King's Army officers present on the battlefield.
Although merely a clone, his strength surpassed that of every other officer in the Demon King's Army—and even the Demon King himself couldn't compare.
His reason for joining the Demon King's Army was simple: amusement. He found joy in toying with the Demon King's subordinates while feeding on the negative emotions they released.
In principle, he adhered to one rule—never kill humans. For him, humans were ideal sources of endless negative emotions, which were his primary nourishment. Hurting them brought no benefit; if anything, he celebrated the birth of new life, for it meant a new source of emotional sustenance.
At this moment, he stood quietly at the rear of the Demon King's Army, observing Ilina and Lilian's dazzling performance on the battlefield, as well as Megumin's relentless casting of Explosion Magic from the rear lines. He made no move to attack.
"Splendid, truly splendid… To think such powerful beings exist in this world. That old fool of a Demon King is in for quite the beating. How amusing," he said cheerfully.
As a great demon destined to one day contend with the gods for control of the world, Vanir could easily gauge the power of Ilina and Lilian. He could sense that their strength far exceeded that of the Demon King and his officers combined.
Even his current clone would not survive a single strike from them.
Then his gaze shifted toward Eriri, who sat regally upon her throne at the rear of the human army. The fluctuations in his emotions grew even stronger.
Because he couldn't see through her at all.
For the first time since his creation, Vanir encountered a being whose essence was completely obscured from his sight.
Moreover, the threat he sensed from her was overwhelming—so immense that even his true body would feel insignificant before her.
Were it not for his instinct for self-preservation and his desire to continue feeding on negative emotions, he would have approached her out of sheer curiosity.
For now, however, he decided to simply watch in silence. Once the Demon King's Army was defeated, he would quietly slip away. Returning to the Demon King's Castle was no longer an option.
In fact, he already had a plan: to build a magnificent underground dungeon—a labyrinth filled with traps and monsters—only to place an empty treasure chest labeled "Nothing" at its end. The despair and frustration of the adventurers who cleared it would produce the finest negative emotions imaginable.
And when that day came, he intended to savor those exquisite emotions to the fullest… before meeting his end in grand fashion.
Meanwhile, the final Demon King's Army officer—Wolbach (in her human half form)—finally began her assault.
At this moment, Wolbach was clad in a long robe that concealed her entire body, a deep hood covering the upper half of her face.
Using teleportation magic, she flitted across the battlefield, searching for the perfect moment to unleash her Explosion Magic.
Because of her, the human side began to suffer notable casualties.
Megumin naturally noticed Wolbach's presence—and her curiosity was immediately piqued. After all, Explosion Magic users were extraordinarily rare. Other than Eriri and the elder sister who had introduced her to the art of Explosion Magic, this was only the third person she had ever seen wielding it.
Just then, Chomusuke—who had been hiding under her hat—suddenly poked her head out and looked directly toward Wolbach amid the chaos.
The instant Chomusuke appeared, Wolbach's gaze locked onto her. Abandoning her attacks on the adventurers and knights, she instantly teleported in front of Megumin, her eyes fixed intently on the small black cat perched atop Megumin's head.
Startled by her sudden arrival, Megumin paused her chanting and looked up.
"Hey, are you one of the Demon King's Army officers? Your Explosion Magic isn't bad!"
Because Wolbach stood some distance away, and her hood obscured the lower half of her face, Megumin didn't fully recognize her identity.
Wolbach didn't answer Megumin's question. Instead, she raised her hand and pointed directly at Chomusuke.
"Can you hand that child over to me?"
The moment Megumin realized that Wolbach's attention was on Chomusuke, she immediately flared up. Quickly, she scooped the little black cat off her head and held her tightly in her arms.
"No way! I'm not handing Chomusuke over to some random weirdo like you!"
Wolbach froze for a second, her body stiffening visibly.
"Hey… what did you just call that black cat?"
"Chomusuke. Why? Do you have a problem with the name I gave her?"
Megumin glared sharply at Wolbach, while the latter staggered back two steps, looking as if she had just heard something incomprehensible.
"What is the meaning of this!?"
Wolbach let out a cry of disbelief, staring at Megumin with visible frustration and confusion.
"Um… I think that child is female, so… maybe that name doesn't quite fit?"
"Chomusuke is Chomusuke! She's my familiar and my pet. The name fits her perfectly! Don't you think it sounds cool?"
"This can't be happening! Why… why is this happening!? How could the other half of me end up in such a ridiculous situation!?"
Wolbach's voice trembled with emotion, her expression on the verge of collapse.
"What are you talking about? You're saying weird things again. Anyway, don't even think about taking Chomusuke away from me! My Explosion Magic doesn't go easy on anyone!"
Megumin had completely abandoned her earlier curiosity about discussing Explosion Magic. She raised her staff and aimed it squarely at Wolbach.
"Please, don't be like this! I'm begging you—give her to me!" Wolbach pleaded, her tone carrying a faint hint of sobbing.
"That child… she's the other half of me! This is a long-awaited reunion between two inseparable partners!"
Megumin frowned deeply at her words.
"The other half of you? Who even are you?"
Megumin suddenly remembered something that had happened not long ago—two high-ranking demons named Anis and Host had tried to steal Chomusuke from her, saying strange things about "Wolbach-sama."
Could this woman before her really be that same Wolbach?
Her suspicion was soon confirmed by Wolbach's next words.
"Come to think of it, I haven't introduced myself yet. I am Wolbach, one of the Demon King's Army officers—the Dark God of Sloth and Violence."
As she spoke, Wolbach pulled back her hood, revealing a head of brilliant red short hair and a beautifully sculpted face. Her feline-like golden eyes shimmered with tears.
Seeing her face clearly, Megumin's eyes widened in disbelief.
"You… you're that Onee-san!?"
She remembered vividly—the woman who had once saved her life and inspired her to pursue Explosion Magic had been none other than the person standing before her now.
Her voice trembled with emotion as she cried out:
"Onee-san! Do you still remember me? I'm Megumin…!"
Wolbach wiped away her tears with her sleeve and smiled softly.
"Megumin… you've grown up so much."
...
A few hundred meters away, Eriri watched with mild surprise as Megumin and Wolbach interacted.
In the original storyline, Wolbach had denied remembering Megumin when they met on the battlefield. But this time, she admitted it without hesitation.
Eriri couldn't help but wonder how this new encounter would unfold.
Ilina and Lilian, still mowing through the Demon King's Army in the distance, also noticed the strange interaction between Megumin and Wolbach. Yet neither of them moved to intervene.
They knew that Eriri would never allow Megumin to come to harm.
...
"Onee-san, why did you join the Demon King's Army?"
Cradling Chomusuke protectively, Megumin looked at Wolbach with innocent curiosity. To her, Wolbach was like a mentor—a teacher she deeply admired.
"Well… about that…"
Wolbach's face showed a faint trace of sorrow and wistfulness—it was clear she didn't want to talk about it.
"Let's not bring that up. Megumin, hand that child over to me."
She extended both hands toward Megumin.
Instinctively, Megumin tightened her hold on Chomusuke.
"What do you plan to do with Chomusuke?" she asked cautiously, her voice trembling slightly. She was conflicted—she didn't want to fight her mentor, but she couldn't bring herself to hand over Chomusuke either.
"Of course, I intend to destroy her—and reclaim my complete power."
Wolbach's merciless words struck Megumin like lightning.
Though she had already guessed Wolbach's goal was to fuse with Chomusuke, hearing it directly still filled her with fierce rejection. After all, Chomusuke had been with her for so long—their bond was deep, far beyond something that could be severed by a few words.
"Chomusuke is my familiar. I'll never hand her over," Megumin declared firmly.
"Then there's no helping it. If you won't hand her over, then you'll have to defeat me."
Despite the calm expression on Wolbach's face, her eyes were deadly serious.
"But I don't want to fight you…"
"You have no choice. As a general of the Demon King's Army, it's my duty to fight. And your duty now… is to defeat me."
Megumin fell silent at those words.
Meanwhile, the smile faded from Wolbach's face, replaced by a look of quiet pain.
In truth, she didn't want to fight Megumin either. But with their current opposing positions, she didn't want to make things harder for her. That was why she had bluntly declared her intent to destroy Chomusuke—to make Megumin's resolve clear.
And deep down, she had already accepted that she would lose this battle.
"No need to hesitate anymore," Wolbach said softly. "Didn't you promise me once that I'd see your Explosion Magic? Now's the time—show me."
She smiled faintly, though her eyes carried a deep melancholy. "Even if you refuse to attack, I'll do it myself. If you don't want to die, then fight back."
With those words, Wolbach used teleportation magic to move farther away—ensuring that when Megumin cast her Explosion Magic, she wouldn't be caught in its immediate range.
Then she began chanting the incantation for Explosion Magic. With her mastery, she didn't even need to chant—but her goal wasn't victory. She deliberately slowed her casting, giving Megumin the chance to strike first.
Watching the telltale glow of magic gather around Wolbach's body, Megumin gritted her teeth, her heart torn with emotion.
Finally, she raised her staff and shouted with all her strength—
"Explosion!"
...
Half an hour later, the battle was over.
After suffering devastating losses, the Demon King's Army finally retreated, fleeing back toward demon territory in defeat.
The only surviving general, Vanir, did not follow them. Instead, he quietly slipped away in another direction.
Most of the Demon King's officer candidates had been annihilated by Ilina and Lilian, while Iris alone had slain countless monsters herself.
Of course, the knights and adventurers had suffered considerable casualties as well. In such a chaotic battle, even with the overwhelming strength of Eriri's companions, deaths were inevitable.
Eriri, however, didn't care in the slightest. To her, even if the entire knight order and all the adventurers had perished, it wouldn't have affected her mood at all.
As long as Iris, Ilina, Lilian, and Megumin were unharmed—that was all that mattered.
Speaking of Megumin, one could not ignore what had happened with Wolbach.
In the end, Megumin's chantless Explosion Magic had completely overwhelmed Wolbach. The Dark Goddess was defeated and then fused together with Chomusuke—becoming whole once more.
In other words, Chomusuke had now become a complete goddess, though she still retained her small black cat form.
Perhaps one day, she would take on Wolbach's human form again and stand before them once more.
After the battle, the surviving knights and adventurers fervently praised Megumin and her companions for their outstanding heroism.
As for Darkness and Eris, who hadn't participated in the fighting, some among the crowd quietly criticized them—but no one voiced it openly.
And although Eriri had never lifted a finger throughout the entire battle, not a single person dared to harbor a negative thought about her.
—
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