Request Granted

"So you've come to settle things, have you?"

Ryu Hwi slowly drew up the power of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

He couldn't use the Shuffle Gun in the real world. The only thing he could trust here was the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

If I'd known this was coming, I should've equipped a grimoire before coming out into reality.

Regretting it, he contacted Arty through his SEED.

"This time I merely came to check on your well-being, so there is no need to be quite so on guard."

"You deployed a Field just to check on my well-being?"

"Then shall I rephrase? Inside a game labyrinth, who knows—but in reality, it would take me less than a minute to dispose of the likes of you."

It was outright contempt, but it wasn't wrong.

"You seem to have learned some halfway serviceable skills, but you are still far away. To truly stand against us, you would need to prepare some means of breaking a Field itself."

"So why the sudden change of wind? Did you come all this way to tell me that?"

"The situation has shifted somewhat. Unfortunately, Hecate has marked you as her own, which means I can no longer carelessly lay a hand on you."

"So you're saying that lunatic bitch is the reason you can't touch me?"

"How harsh. She may look that way, but she is a young lady of pure, single-hearted devotion."

Thinking of everything Hecate had put him through made his teeth grind.

"I wouldn't lose if I fought Hecate, but I'd rather avoid S.E.N members clashing with each other where I can. Though there's also a troublesome monkey actively trying to provoke exactly that."

"A monkey?"

"You were just meeting with him before you came here, were you not?"

Crowley spoke as though he had every one of Ryu Hwi's movements mapped out.

He probably wasn't talking about Arty. Which left one candidate: the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

"And another troublesome matter has come up. You received the blueprints from Loki, didn't you?"

"……!"

"Those blueprints are Pentagon's Legacy. Loki handing them to you means he wants that legacy completed. I would like it completed as quickly as possible."

"Hearing you say that makes me want to never finish it. Why should I do what you people tell me?"

"Haah……."

Crowley pressed his hat down firmly.

"You are not, by any chance, mistaking this for a request?"

"Am I wrong?"

"Phew. To put it in terms you can easily understand: because Hecate and Loki have stuck their noses in, things have become ambiguous, so hurry up and go build your game labyrinth."

The words were polite, but venom ran beneath them.

"You are a game developer, are you not? Then how about you stop fooling around and make your game labyrinth? If you do, I too can face you with an easy mind."

"Haah……."

Ryu Hwi imitated Crowley's gesture and pressed his own hat down firmly.

"And if I don't finish that labyrinth? What then?"

"Shall I leave it to your imagination? Or would you like me to spell it out?"

Killing intent seeped into his voice.

"You'd kill me?"

"If that is how you choose to interpret it, then so be it. I have no desire to waste time on a fool who kicks away his own chance. And at that point, even Loki will have nothing to say."

"I see."

"It seems you finally understand your position. Good. Then hurry up and finish that labyrinth. That labyrinth is the only lifeline you have."

"Ah, right. Got it. So what you're saying is, you're pretty low on the S.E.N totem pole? Low enough that you have to tiptoe around Loki's moods."

"……."

A cheap provocation.

But Crowley was curious what Ryu Hwi was playing at with it.

"A provocation, in this situation? How amusing. Then allow me to return the favor. Do you truly believe the power you wield now is your own? If you are such a remarkable human, why did you spend three years living without even the treatment of one? On your own strength alone, you have accomplished nothing. You are nothing but a bonus attached to a UR."

Crowley flipped the provocation back onto him.

"Well, in the meantime, your mother did sacrifice herself for the advancement of humanity, so it wasn't entirely without value. Wouldn't you say? Oh my, why are you trembling? Angry? Or am I frightening you? Then why not call for Hecate? If you bawl loudly enough, she might come running to comfort you."

He knew exactly how to enrage Ryu Hwi.

Ryu Hwi's fist clenched before he could stop it.

But if Crowley knew how to anger him, then Ryu Hwi knew just as well how to anger Crowley.

"You're right, I have been lucky."

Ryu Hwi gave a light shrug.

"I never even intended to pull Intuition, but it just came out on its own. Real nuisance, that."

"……."

The air around Crowley turned sinister.

"You know exactly how to make me angry, don't you? I'll admit it. You are the better provocateur. But tell me—what do you hope to accomplish by angering me now? Do you have a death wish?"

"You're the one talking about death. I might not be able to win, but I don't feel like I'd lose, either."

Crowley burst out ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠laughing, as if he couldn't believe his ears.

He clutched his belly and laughed for a long while, truly finding it hilarious—and then his eyes flashed with a razor-sharp glint.

"A most amusing joke. One last question. If I change my mind and decide to kill you here and now, what will you do about it?"

"Try it and find out."

"Haaah."

Crowley pressed his hat down and let out a sigh that seemed to sink the ground beneath him.

"Well, fine. I shall honor your request. I'll entertain you briefly, so do take care not to die."

Darkness converged on Crowley from every direction.

When he seized the darkness in his hand, it took shape, morphing into a variety of forms.

They radiated an aura so ominous that merely looking at them made vomit rise in his throat.

It was as if they had been assembled from countless coils of hatred.

"Let's keep this light. A sword will do."

At length, the darkness condensed into a colossal blade.

"Allow me to impart a lesson in life: next time, know your opponent before you provoke them."

The instant Crowley swung the sword, everything in sight was swallowed by darkness.

It was nothing more than a single sword strike, and yet there seemed no way to dodge it.

But dodging had never been the plan.

Ryu Hwi took one powerful step forward.

A violent shockwave erupted outward from the step Ryu Hwi had taken.

A massive shockwave, sweeping a diameter of thirty meters.

Its force shook the very earth and, for a single instant, broke Crowley's stance.

"Still calling my skills halfway serviceable?"

"Whether this counts as halfway serviceable or not—find out by taking the hit yourself."

The moment Ryu Hwi drove his fist forward, a thunderous detonation tore through the air, punching a massive hole in the darkness.

The shockwave didn't stop at collapsing the darkness—it carried on through, straight toward Crowley beyond it.

"……?!"

Crowley immediately spread the dark energy into the shape of a shield and blocked the shockwave.

But he failed to contain it completely, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was driven back dozens of meters.

As Crowley staggered, on the verge of losing his footing, the surrounding darkness transformed into chains and caught him.

Ryu Hwi had already closed the distance to right in front of him, and without granting even a sliver of an opening for a counterattack, he activated his next skill.

Planting his left foot as the axis, he unleashed a spinning kick carrying the full rotation of his entire body.

Crowley threw up his arm to block at once, but the Dragon Whirl Kick—powered by a body pushed to the absolute limit through Fist Extremity—erupted with tremendous force.

"Tch!"

Unable to withstand the impact, Crowley was thrown back yet again.

He instantly spread the darkness out in chains and counterattacked.

Chains of darkness lashed out at Ryu Hwi.

Reading the attack through his Intuition, Ryu Hwi declined to press the chase and retreated instead.

It had been a single instant of exchange—but the one who came out on top of that exchange was Ryu Hwi.

"Crowley. Still think I'm a pushover?"

"……."

Crowley said nothing.

He pressed his hat down, murmured something under his breath, and then let out a long, deep sigh.

"Allow me to apologize. It seems I underestimated you far too much. The UR truly is dangerous. I suppose……."

A ring of gold surfaced in Crowley's pupils.

"It would be better to kill you here and now."

A chill ran down his spine.

As though everything until now had been mere play, Crowley unleashed an overwhelming killing aura.

Tch. It won't end that easily, will it?

He had hoped to bring Crowley down with the attacks he'd already spent, but even the Heavenly Demon Divine Art couldn't finish him completely.

Still, this much had paid back what he'd suffered last time.

Crowley stretched his hand toward the sky, and darkness gathered around it.

Current recovered internal energy: 5.

The rate of five per minute felt maddeningly slow.

Just then, a voice whispered at his ear.

A voice that grated on the nerves just to hear it. Hecate.

She was surely watching this place from somewhere, no question about it.

"I'm fine. Get lost."

"Don't need it."

"I said I don't need it. Sit there quietly and watch."

Crowley was feigning composure, but he couldn't hide his rage.

Trying to kill him outright, without warning—that was the proof.

He had contacted Arty, so waiting for rescue was one option, but relying on that sort of thing wasn't Ryu Hwi's way.

Trickster.

Toy with the enemy, deceive them, and strike the gap in their guard.

That was the style of combat Ryu Hwi aimed for.

And right now, Crowley—believing the situation favored him—had left that gap wide open.

He had never intended to win in the first place.

One solid hit would be enough.

"Don't overexert yourself. You haven't felt your Field creaking this whole time?"

"Is there some problem with it?"

"Well, from what my Intuition tells me, maintaining a 'Field' in reality seems to be a bit of a strain for you people too."

He wasn't bluffing.

Compared to a Field unfolded inside a game labyrinth, the one Crowley had deployed now felt small and unstable.

Just as skills couldn't be brought to their full power in reality, the Fields of S.E.N surely had their limits here as well.

"Your Heavenly Demon Divine Art is already making this Field groan as it is—what do you suppose happens if you force it to draw on even more power?"

He hadn't used the Heavenly Demon Divine Art merely to blast Crowley away.

He'd used it to gauge just how strong this Field's structure was.

"Aha, so you were assessing the durability of my Field? Well, as you say, maintaining a Field in reality is somewhat taxing. Certainly, left as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it is, it will collapse soon enough."

Crack.

A fissure split across the Field.

But Crowley reacted as if it were of no consequence whatsoever.

"Even so, killing one lone human like you is hardly an effort."

"I wouldn't be so sure. Forgot the feature that got added with the Yggdrasil 2.0 update?"

"……?"

A puzzled expression crossed Crowley's face for a moment.

"……!"

Only then did he grasp Ryu Hwi's scheme.

"Rider-On, Connect."

In that instant, Ryu Hwi leaped into the world of the game labyrinth Rider-On.

A game labyrinth overlaid upon the Human Realm.

If Crowley's Field had been a little more solid, invoking Rider-On would have been meaningless.

But things were different now.

A Field cracked and destabilized by fissures could undergo Conversion into the Rider-On labyrinth.

The Conversion completed in the blink of an eye, and the Shuffle Gun materialized in Ryu Hwi's hand.

Among the seven cards laid out in his deck, Ryu Hwi—showing off just a little—selected the card he needed most at this very moment.

Even after converting into the Rider-On labyrinth, Crowley's Field still lingered—but that was no problem.

Ryu Hwi aimed at the fissure spread across the sky above and pulled the trigger without a moment's hesitation.

Having slipped free beyond the edge of Crowley's Field, Ryu Hwi immediately activated his next card.

Crowley released his Field and entered the Rider-On game labyrinth himself.

"You truly do enjoy startling people. I shall have to revise my assessment of you entirely. All the more reason you must die."

Just as Ryu Hwi could exert his full strength inside a game labyrinth, so too could Crowley unleash everything here.

"Let me make you regret fleeing into a game labyrinth."

"Idiot."

Crowley moved to deploy his Field once more.

An aura incomparably more powerful than anything he'd mustered in the Human Realm surged around him.

"You think I'm going to keep hanging around with you? Logout."

Before Crowley could finish deploying his Field, Ryu Hwi logged out of Rider-On and returned to reality.

"See you around."

Pushing the power of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art—Fist Extremity—to its very limit, he vaulted far into the distance in a single instant.

At the same moment, he converted into the Super Gemini labyrinth, vanishing completely from the real world.

"……."

Crowley watched the spot for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"It has been quite some time since anyone made such a fool of me. Thoroughly outplayed. If it were up to me, I would chase you to the ends of the earth and kill you……."

The moment Crowley took a single step forward, a cold blade pressed against his throat.

"That's quite enough, wouldn't you say? This round belongs to Crowley."

"Hecate."

"If you still want more, how about you go play with that 'monkey' who's headed this way?"

"Even I would rather decline that particular invitation."

Crowley brushed the dust from his suit.

"And yet, what a man who truly cannot be underestimated. Summoning that monkey in advance—that, too, was surely a course already drawn up inside that man's head. A splendid defeat, I must say."

Time over.

Crowley, understanding that the pleasant interlude had ended, sighed.

"Let us be off before the monkey arrives."

Crowley dissolved into the darkness.

Hecate showed no interest whatsoever in where Crowley went, and instead turned her gaze over the space where the battle had just taken place.

"Magnificent."

Both of Hecate's cheeks flushed a deep red.

Seen in isolation, she might have been a woman fallen in love—but the bloodshot eyes straining to the very ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠whites betrayed a gleam of outright madness.

"Truly…… just how far do you intend to excite me? Then, until next time, Ryu Hwi."

Hecate, too, vanished somewhere without a trace.

A short while later, a lone figure emerged where everyone had disappeared.

"Tsk. Late to the banquet, I am."

An old man with a snow-white beard hanging long like a Taoist immortal's, draped in a red martial robe. Yet nothing about the way he moved his body resembled a frail elder in the slightest.

"So the young whelp escaped Crowley by his own strength? Kyaahaha, what an entertaining talent—far more than I expected, I must say."

The old man grinned, plainly delighted.

"Until next time, Master of the UR."