From Now On, Kill Each Other!
Flames and ice storms raged, while somewhere massive boulders and trees were uprooted and hurled at them. Hideous hunting dog shadows lunged at the shadows beneath their feet, mercilessly tearing and devouring them. In a single instant, this ambush had already claimed dozens of lives—at the hands of children not even ten years old.
"Burnnnn!!~~"
Whoosh!!~~
"I'll freeze you prettyyy!!~~"
Crackkkk!!~~
Whoooosh!!~~
"Kuh! Filthy demon scum! The Flame Devil and the Ice Devil?!"
"Sister Gloria! The paladin order stands ready to fight in God's name at any moment!"
"Good. Let's go! We'll exterminate these evil demons and purify the wickedness from this world!"
"""Yes!"""
"The Blue Lord Gunter commands it. Sweep away those hideous demons completely!"
"""Yes!"""
Actor's group's preemptive strike had been highly effective, but their opponents were the elite of the temple's forces: the Seven Virtues Knights, specifically the Purity Paladin Order—specialists against great demons—under the command of Gunter, the Blue Tower Lord and elder of Magus Civitas.
The paladins first drove back the approaching hellhounds with holy light from their divine power, while the mages countered the flame and ice storms with opposing spells. No matter how powerfully demonic or monstrously transformed they were, at their core, they were still children under ten. Faced with the overwhelming presence of paladins and mages for the first time, along with their competent responses, the kids couldn't help but show their bewilderment.
Whoosh!!
Craaaack!!
"Wh-what?"
"M-my ice..."
"Now's our chance! Wipe out those demons!—"
"Eek!~ R-run away!—"
"Nooo! The boss said to save the grown-ups and bring 'em back!"
"In God's name, punish the wicked!—"
Rooooar!!
No child could stay composed seeing hundreds of fully armored adults charging with murderous intent. At that moment, Rina—who didn't look a day over ten, her massive muscular frame barely covered by ragged cloth—tore off the last scraps and charged headlong at the paladins.
The paladins sneered at the heretic who thought one person could stop them, forming a shield wall and charging right back.
"Raaahhh!!~~"
"Ha! One heretic against our paladin orde—"
BOOOOM!!~~~
"""Aaaaagh!!~~"""
Crunch! Crack! Splinter!!
"Gasp?!"
Like a battering ram smashing a castle gate, her absurd destructive power shattered the paladins' front line shield wall. Over fifty paladins had their limbs twisted, reduced to bloody pulp, bodies flying meters into the air—all from a single blow.
"Rina sis... scary..."
"Yeah... never make sis mad..."
"%$#&§ª... scary..."
"[Chain Lightning]"
⟨ ZAP! CRACKLE! ⟩
"[Fire Blast]"
⟨ WHOOSH! ⟩
"Yummy~♪"
"Shaaa—"
Sluuuurp...
"The magic... vanished?!"
"It's [Anti-Magic]! That demon's power!"
Allen's snake-tail head gaped wide, devouring and breaking down the mages' spells—aimed at shooting him down from the sky—into pure mana. Stunned by the unprecedented sight, Gunter and the mages assumed it was spell nullification. But it wasn't.
"What you give, you get back—boss said so. Here's a gift!—"
Clang! Whoosh!
From Allen's hands erupted the very lightning and flame spells the mages had cast, forming thunderbolts that crashed down on their heads.
Jean, Pablo, and Derek—who'd been scared at first—snapped out of it watching Rina and Allen shine, diving back into the fray. Gunter and the mages scrambled with defensive spells, while the paladins tangled in Rina's reckless assault backed by the other kids' support, turning the battle into chaos.
***
"Hmm~ Warp array's done... Added extra wards against tracking, just in case. Time to fetch the kids?"
"Boss. Sis prepped the obstacles."
"Good work. Now go call the kids. Mary, get ready too."
"Yeah... got it."
"It's been a while and no sign of the kids... something's up. Let's move. [Warp]"
"[Warp]"
⟨ HUMMMM! ⟩
My first time using spatial transfer magic, but a map naturally drew itself in my mind, calculating coordinates, distance, and target—like tapping a calculator. Mana flowed from my body like keystrokes on a typewriter. It felt just like playing a game. Right now, I was purely the actor playing the mage. It was me, yet not— a strange sensation, like first-person shooter gaming.
Activating the warp with my own hand, I arrived near the kids, as expected: panting, exhausted. Wounds slashed and stabbed across their bodies, ragged breaths telling of their brutal fight.
About 400 paladins and mages held formation, slowly encircling our kids, whittling them down. Behind them, the wounded recovered via the paladins' healing miracles.
Our DPS is solid, but no tanks or healers—we're getting pushed. Still, all those corpses... they've killed a ton. Who'd believe kids that age did this?
"Boss. The kids!"
"Stay put. I'll drop a big one—Estelle, gather the kids and grown-ups in the meantime."
"Yessir~ Leave it to me, mage gramps~♪"
"Tch! See you after this!"
"Pfft!~"
Thinks he's got me pegged with that old-man talk 'cause I'm enjoying this?!
**
"Receive the judgment of light by God's will, you evil demons!"
"Huff... huff... haa... too... many..."
"Hiss... shhh... haa... gonna smash 'em all..."
"Rina sis... haa... don't overdo it..."
Actor's group faced their first large-scale battle—against a great demon extermination squad led by a tower lord. Shaking legs barely holding them up was all they could manage.
The initial ambush downed many, but that was just the surprise moment. Above all, the enemy: veteran paladins fully armed with holy-blessed gear. Far beyond average knights in physical prowess, with regenerative blessings making them cockroach-tough.
Kids might win burst damage, but rotating shifts drained their stamina—they'd tire first.
"Sisters! Show them God's wrath!—"
"""Yes!"""
"You'll receive judgment... [Solarion]"
"[Solarion]"
⟨ BLAZING LIGHT! ⟩
Flashhhh!!
BOOOOM!!
"""Aaaaagh!!~~"""
"What?! Advanced White Tower magic?!"
A searing beam of concentrated sunlight crashed down on those tightening the noose around the kids. Blinding flash. Deafening roar shaking the earth, vaporizing air. Like God's wrath itself, a massive pillar of light evaporated the paladins at the target point—not even ash remained.
Whoooosh—
"Ugh... s-sisters... aaa... why... God..."
"Paladin Gloria! Pull yourself together! That's no divine judgment! It's White Tower pinnacle light attack magic!"
!!!
"Who are you?! Who dares use magic on a member of Magus Civitas?!"
"I did. Blue Lord Gunter."
After the solar pillar swept past, I appeared before them, greeting words slipping out naturally. Seemed like my personality was starting to get devoured by the mage's.
Gotta hurry—grab the kids and grown-ups and bail. Can't handle the mage's mental strength yet!
"You?! Ostis's..."
"Long time no see. Ah! Note that this 'me' isn't the one you know, Lord."
"What do you... no way! You?! The ManbianjaDantalian?!"
"Impossible! Lord Gunter! That demon's already manifested in this world?!"
What'd these fools eat wrong? Mistaking me for that bastard?
They'd badly misunderstood something, but seeing fear and terror on their faces, I decided to milk it. Dantalian was called Manbianja for transforming into anything... probably thought I was Dantalian disguised as a White Tower mage.
Not unrelated, though. Contractor of that con-demon.
"Sisters... today we walk the path of martyrdom into God's embrace! Take up arms! Even if it's one of the 666 demons, we won't retreat!"
"Tsk tsk tsk. Temple fanatics still stake their lives on pointless faith. So foolish."
"Shut up! You filthy demon, how dare y—"
"This 'me' has no interest in your lives. As long as you don't summon me on a whim like that fool Pladeus and irk me..."
"Pladeus? Summon?! What nonsense is this?! Blue Lord Gunter!"
"W-we know nothing of that! Don't listen to this demon's wicked lies!"
Ha! Hilarious! They know about reclaiming Pladeus's legacy, summoning Dantalian—and their ongoing dealings, dug from Ostis's memories. Trying to play dumb?
It clicked. Couldn't secure the legacy themselves with demons involved, so elders decided to destroy it. Feared leaks about ignoring the summoning, so played victim to manipulate the temple into this second purge squad.
Could the temple handle the truth if I spilled it?
From now on, kill each other!
That comic line flashed in my mind; my face twisted into a sly grin. I pulled Pladeus's grimoire from my robes, revealing Magus Civitas's truth to the paladins.
"Don't you want this grimoire, you fools of Magus Civitas? Craving forbidden knowledge, like Pladeus?"
!!!
"God's servants. The one who summoned me to this mid-plane was none other than Pladeus—the elder of Magus Civitas! Their goal isn't destruction. It's acquisition!"
"L-lies! Don't fall for it, Paladin Gloria!"
[Demons Do Not Lie]
"Believe it or not, your choice. But you mages always crave forbidden knowledge, don't you?"
"Sh-shut up! How dare you sow discord!"
"Blue Lord Gunter! As God's proxy, I ask: Did you know about Pladeus and the demon summoning?!"
"That..."
...
Plan working... heh heh heh!
The tide turned. Paladins' hostility shifted from us kids to the mages. Gunter and his crew fumbled answers, glancing nervously.
[As God's Proxy, I Ask]
[As God's Proxy, I Ask] meant high priests or paladins discerning truth from lies via divine power—no flimsy lies allowed.
Mistrust piled like kindling. I poured oil: tossing Pladeus's forbidden grimoire between them.
I'd already read it cover-to-cover in the mage's skin. Normally incomprehensible, but with his knowledge, I could recall it perfectly.
Feels weird, like swapping my brain for a hard drive.
"Gunter! Answer truthfully! For that grimoire's knowledge—did Magus Civitas condone the demon summoning?!"
...
"No business with you. I'm out."
"W-wait! Hold on! Dantalian! We won't forgive y—"
"[Warp]"
⟨ HUMMMM! ⟩
Ignoring Gunter's murderous glare, I warped away with the kids and grown-ups to the pre-drawn warp array.
Now, just sit back and watch Magus Civitas and the Holy Kingdom tear each other apart from afar.