He walked down the path, his legs heavy and his breath shallow as the sight of his village came into focus—or what was left of it.
The air reeked of smoke, blood, and charred flesh, the stench twisting his stomach.
The blacksmith's shop was nothing but a skeleton of scorched beams, the forge cold and silent.
The bakery lay in a heap of rubble, its familiar warmth replaced by ash and ruin.
Scattered among the debris were bodies—faces he knew, now pale and lifeless, some burned beyond recognition.
He averted his eyes but could not escape the sight of them: a mother clutching her child, their forms frozen in one final, desperate embrace.
The marketplace was in shambles, the stalls collapsed, their goods scattered and stained with blood.
He stepped over the body of a merchant he had spoken to just days ago, the man's lifeless eyes staring blankly at the smoke-filled sky.
Judas halted his steps when he spotted the corpse of an elf.
Although burned to a crisp, almost unrecognizable, he could still make out the faint traces of familiar pink hair.
"C-Cindy."
His voice trembled.
It had not been long ago that they were laughing, enjoying each other's company.
One of the first friends he ever had, now reduced to a corpse.
With a heavy heart, he continued forward.
The more he walked, the more familiar faces he saw, one after another.
He clenched his fists tighter and tighter, yet he could not sense a single life force anywhere nearby.
Finally, he came to his home.
The roof had caved in, the walls scorched black. He hesitated before stepping inside, his chest tight with dread.
'Please be alright, please, please.'
The fire still raged, but he ignored it, treading forward as the flames licked at his skin but failed to harm him in any way.
The once familiar home was now in ruins.
Perhaps the only mercy was that he had yet to see the corpses of his parents, leaving the faintest chance that they had survived.
'That's right, my parents used to be adventurers. There's no way they would die so easily.'
There was still a fragment of hope. Although sorrow gnawed at him for the other villagers, his mind clung to a single priority: his family.
But when he opened the door to his room, the sight before him made his heart come to a complete stop.
"Mom... Dad..."
The words slipped out in a broken whisper. His hands trembled as he reached forward, stopping inches from the remains. Their features were unrecognizable, the fire having stripped away anything that could confirm who they were.
At this point, his mind was drowned in sorrow.
"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."
The words cracked from his lips, barely audible. He stayed there for what felt like hours, his tears streaking through the soot on his face.
Even with the experience of his previous life, though he was no stranger to wars and death, the sight of his loved ones lying dead before him shattered his heart.
The people who had cared for him, who had given him warmth, were gone.
As if the heavens themselves mirrored his grief, dark clouds gathered above, the promise of a storm looming overhead.
When he stood, the ground trembled beneath his feet. His eyes glowed with a dark radiance.
He snapped his fingers, and all the fires devouring the village instantly died out.
'This is my fault.'
He rose into the air, overlooking the remains of the village.
'I could have prevented this.'
Blood ran down from his clenched fists as he gritted his teeth.
'Why was I so complacent?'
Thunder rumbled across the sky, each roar echoing his despair.
"DAMMMMMIITTTTTTTTTT!"
He screamed into the heavens, venting his grief and fury in a voice that shook the air itself.
Winds howled violently, whipping into giant dust clouds with him as the center. The rubble below scattered, trees shuddered in the storm of his rage.
Grief gave way to unbridled fury.
"I shouldn't be using this since I'm not an Archmage yet."
Magic surged within him, vast and overwhelming.
"But who gives a damn!"
He raised his arm as lightning crackled across the storming clouds.
『Ultima Magica』
Ultimate Magic.
A term reserved for spells of the Seventh Tier and beyond.
Unlike lower-tier spells that merely drew upon elements or arcane forces, Ultimate Magic transcended ordinary spellcraft.
These spells did not simply bend the laws of nature—they rewrote them, broke them, shattered them. They carried power vast enough to scar the land, unravel time, or summon catastrophes of divine scale.
To invoke such spells was to wield creation and destruction itself. They were not seen as tools, but as forces that only the most exceptional beings could ever hope to command.
For this reason, they were often given another name.
God-Killer Magic.
In Estelon's world, common sense dictated that Judas, being only at the Fifth Tier, should never have been able to wield such power.
But through the experience inherited from Estelon, and the flawless resonance of his perfect mana core, Judas managed to temporarily defy this law.
The cost, however, was devastating.
Each casting carved deep scars into his body and soul, straining his mana circuits to their limits. It was a burden that threatened to consume him should he dare to wield it again.
Yet Judas pressed on with gritted teeth.
A jade-colored magic circle appeared in the sky, growing wider and wider until it spanned the entire village.
Judas looked up at it as blood dripped from his eyes. His breaths grew ragged. This was a level of magic his current self could not endure.
With one final breath, he chanted.
『Chrono Replay』
Time itself stopped.
The world drained of color—the trees, the grass, the ground, even a bird mid-flight froze in dull gray.
Holographic displays shimmered into existence, recreating the village in perfect miniature.
Judas wiped his hand to the left, and the replica began to rewind.
He saw himself walking through the destroyed village.
He swiped again, farther back. The fire was still raging, screams still echoing through the air.
Again, he swiped.
"Found you."
His voice dripped with malice.
There, in the display, he saw it—the red dragon. Fire and lightning spilled from its maw as it tore through the village.
It was a massacre. The villagers stood no chance.
The more he watched, the more his anger burned.
'I'm gonna kill you if it's the last thing I do.'
Judas coughed blood, pain blazing in his chest.
"I can't maintain this magic any longer."
"Where did you go?"
He swiped again, this time moving the timeline forward, following the dragon's flight.
"Northeast."
The word was carved into his memory just before the hologram shattered into countless fragments, and the spell collapsed.
He wasted no time. His body shot forward like a rocket, the air splitting as he broke the sound barrier.
『Heal』
Blood smeared across his lips as he cast healing magic on himself. The cool sensation dulled the pain, but the rage still burned.
On his way, monsters appeared in droves, but he ignored them. Nothing mattered but his quarry.
'I sensed a strong presence... this way.'
Judas froze mid-flight when he saw it—a colossal wall in the distance, taller and thicker than anything he had ever witnessed.
"This wasn't in the anime... what the hell is this?"
The wall stretched endlessly from west to east, so massive it seemed to cleave the continent itself in half.
But Judas had no time to marvel. His bloodshot eyes scanned the wall until they locked on a massive hole torn into it.
His pupils shrank.
There it was.
The red dragon, resting on the broken wall.
A malicious grin twisted across his face.
"Found youuuu."
Lightning crackled violently around his body. He outstretched his arm, commanding it to form into a massive spear. With a forceful throw, he hurled it at the dragon.
『Lightning Spear』
The thunderous roar split the heavens.
The dragon stirred, its golden eyes snapping open.
It turned to move, but too late. The spear struck it, blasting its body backward through the wall.
"Roooaaarrr!"
The dragon bellowed in agony, its massive body writhing as arcs of lightning chained around its form.
It tried to rise, but Judas was already there, standing face-to-face with the beast, his mad grin unshaken.
"Get ready to suffer."