"My name is Ikki Kurogane!"
Eiji declared solemnly.
He knew very little about this world. To guard against potential name-based curses or similar threats, he decided to conceal his true identity for now. It would be wiser to understand this world better before revealing anything else.
"Ikki Kurogane..."
The Demon King murmured the name quietly.
"Just as I suspected. Your black hair and eyes already made me wonder, and coupled with that extraordinary swordsmanship—you must also be a reincarnated individual from that place called Japan, correct?"
Oh?
The overarching setting of this world seemed quite intriguing!
"Indeed!"
Eiji nodded with utmost sincerity.
By any reasonable measure, he was indeed from Japan and indeed a reincarnated being.
"But no matter how strong you are, you shouldn't be so arrogant as to challenge this Demon King's Castle alone. This place could very well be the most dangerous location in this world!"
The Demon King spoke with unwavering confidence.
"Ikki Kurogane, was it? I shall remember this name. Later, I will carve it onto the pillars of my chamber, where it will undoubtedly be commemorated as the name of a fallen hero—which is to say, your life ends here!"
This Demon King sure had a flair for the dramatic.
Eiji silently scoffed at the thought.
"Go forth, my loyal servants!"
The Demon King waved his hand casually, brimming with confidence.
"Yes!"
The four Dark Knights standing at his side raised their obsidian greatswords in unison.
The knights charged at Eiji from four different directions. Despite their heavy armor, their speed was astonishingly fast, almost dizzying to the eye.
Meanwhile, the three sorcerers at the rear began chanting softly, each preparing their most powerful "High-Level Magic."
Elsewhere, a horned oni let out a sinister laugh, raised its spiked club, and stomped the ground violently before charging toward the entrance with earth-shaking force, its power causing the entire room to tremble.
Finally, a skeletal monster resembling the Grim Reaper stood guard in front of the Demon King. Though its bony face betrayed no expression, an aura of absolute indifference could be faintly sensed.
Under the Demon King's protective blessings, every monster in this room possessed strength on par with the Demon King's elite commanders!
In this world, there was absolutely no individual capable of single-handedly defeating all nine of them.
Each of them held this unshakable belief.
Admittedly, they were indeed formidable.
For a moment, even Eiji seemed momentarily stunned by their assault, standing motionless.
"So strong, incredibly strong—Portray."
Eiji clapped his hands together, smiling.
Then, with a soft incantation, an ultra-short spell was instantly completed.
Swish!
A golden light-sword suddenly shot forth!
The sword became light.
The light became a cage.
Rip!
Rip!
The sound of tearing fabric erupted one after another.
A mere second later.
The charge of the four Dark Knights came to an abrupt halt.
The three sorcerers suddenly stopped chanting.
The horned oni stared blankly at its chest.
Thud!
Thud!
All eight warriors and sorcerers collapsed to the ground in unison.
Soon, their bodies were soaked in blood—clearly, they had already breathed their last.
The eight flying swords that had shot out returned to Eiji like baby swallows to their nest, lining up in a row before him.
"Only two left."
Eiji smiled as he looked at the skeletal monster and the old Demon King.
"E-eight officer-level monsters... wiped out in an instant?!"
The skeletal monster's jaw dropped, the air thick with shock.
"...A devil? Or a god?"
The old Demon King widened his eyes, his aged face full of disbelief.
No.
Not even devils or gods might possess such power!
"I'm neither a god nor a devil—just a human."
Eiji stepped forward, stepping over the Dark Knight's corpse as he approached the Demon King's throne.
It was laughable.
If he wanted, he could even one-shot Ottar. What were a few measly monsters at best Level 5?
True, the Aurora Blade spell consumed a lot of mana, but that depended on the scale and power of the light swords created. Making shortsword-sized blades like these, he could easily produce dozens at once.
Simply put, it was ridiculously effective against weaklings!
"D-d-don't get cocky!"
The skeletal monster's bones clattered uncontrollably.
Honestly, he wanted to run, but with the Demon King watching from behind, he had no choice but to stand his ground.
"Even if you took out Noth and the others, I'm an undead-type monster! Physical attacks don't work on me! Against me, Payne of the Demon King's Royal Guard, you don't stand a... gulp, a chance!"
"Did you just swallow?"
"No."
"How? You don't even have a throat."
"None of your damn business!"
Payne the skeletal monster roared.
Dammit, he was already nervous enough without this guy messing with his resolve!
"Just curious. How does a skeleton even produce saliva?"
Eiji mused aloud.
"Grrraaahhh!"
Feeling deeply insulted, Payne let out an enraged scream and charged with full momentum.
"—!"
In the blink of an eye.
A silver blade light split the air.
Eiji, wielding the Bling Blade, casually slashed through the skeletal monster.
Payne froze in shock.
He frantically patted himself down, only to find not a single scratch.
Relieved, he burst into laughter.
"Hah! I told you—you're just a swordsman, probably a Sword Master with the highest attack power! But undead like me, immune to physical attacks, are your natural counters!"
Payne brimmed with confidence.
"Go on ahead to the afterlife."
But Eiji paid him no mind, walking right past him.
Payne's anger flared, about to shout—
Only to realize he could no longer speak.
A thin silver line appeared across his body, gradually widening like the radiance of a holy sword, incinerating both his form and spirit bit by bit.
Payne ascended to the heavens, utterly bewildered.
"...Interesting."
The old Demon King snorted.
He clasped his hands, resting his chin on them, a smug smile playing on his lips.
"I must admit, your strength exceeds my expectations! Even I couldn't discern the details of that last move. How did you do it?"
"When swordplay reaches its pinnacle, all life, undead, and energy become no different from shattered bones and minced flesh."
Eiji crossed the short distance, arriving at the foot of the throne.
He looked up at the towering old Demon King, his face bearing a faint smile.
"Your heart rate is skyrocketing, sweat glands all over your body are activating, and your fingers are gripping so hard to suppress their trembling that you haven't even noticed they've turned blue and swollen. These are clear signs of your nervousness."
Eiji stepped up onto the stairs, gradually closing the distance to the old Demon King.
"Yet you still haven't given up. You're trying to buy time, waiting for your subordinates below to realize what's happening and come up to surround me, aren't you?"