If an Explanation is Needed (2)
Ranked 63rd. Demon King, Andras.
The owl-headed demon opened its beak.
"To call this seat a mongrel of the Demon Realm."
An unmistakable insult. Yet Andras's reaction differed from his usual self. Rather than rampaging in destruction as was his nature, he simply regarded the figure before him with interest.
He had no choice. What stood before him was none other than a Great Evil, one of the Seven Deadly Sins: Gluttony.
Gluttony sneered.
"You who call yourself a Demon King."
"!"
It wasn't Andras who flinched in shock. His demon legion commanders did.
Not content with the mongrel slur, to mock the throne itself? Even for a Great Evil, wasn't that going too far?
Yet Andras did not rage this time either. He merely replied in a dry tone.
"A most accurate statement."
"……!!!"
To acknowledge such blasphemy? The demon legion commanders wore confused expressions.
In stark contrast, the corners of Gluttony's mouth curled toward the heavens.
"Do you grasp your place? You are a mongrel. Unlike me and my foolish brethren born purely from evil, or the Ten Thrones Demon Kings born with immense power, you are but a half-breed."
Andras fell silent.
'As expected of a Great Evil.'
Ever since Akshan's revival, Andras had felt his limits keenly. Even now, as he drove the Arcana Continent to the brink of annihilation, he and the other Demon Kings could do nothing about a single survivor, the last of Akshan.
And in the midst of that, Gluttony had come to him.
"Yet I shall tell you how to overcome that mongrel blood of yours."
With an offer too tempting to resist.
Gluttony. As he himself had said, he was pure evil born from evil itself. Even if Andras could somewhat pierce the hearts of other Demon Kings, peering into this unadulterated malice was no easy feat.
Andras asked in return.
"Do you think I would trust your words?"
Gluttony laughed.
"Whether you believe or not is your freedom. But I guarantee you lose nothing by hearing me out. That lowly Demon Realm blood? Swallow a denser evil, and you shall overcome it."
"……A denser evil."
Blood might vary in thinness or thickness, but since it was all demon blood, he understood. Were they not beings who drew power from negative energies?
Andras's beak parted.
"A laughable tale, Great Evil."
"Laughable?"
"This seat has killed and slain all things on this continent. I piled mountains of corpses and formed rivers of blood. Those who resisted, I tore asunder and fed to beasts; the pitiful survivors, I violated before slaying."
"Oh ho."
"Is there some evil deed that even I have not committed?"
Gluttony laughed once more, as expected.
"Naturally."
"What is it?"
"You have yet to unearth it, have you not?"
"……Unearth it?"
"That 'past'."
Even Gluttony, who had sneered throughout, changed expression the moment he uttered 'past'.
Andras sensed it instinctively. Something extraordinary lay buried in that 'past'.
Thus, he said,
"So that past is why you have come to me."
"Correct. I intend to use you as bait to unearth that past."
"Bait."
"I shall hurl you at the past. Should you survive confronting it... perhaps you may even be reborn a true Demon King. As you know, a seat has opened up, has it not?"
The vacant seat of Gamigin, no doubt.
"Do you think I would accept such a proposal?"
Gluttony shrugged.
"Do you know why mongrels are mongrels?"
"?"
"Because they are base and overflowing with vulgarity."
Pure evil indeed. He knew the demon nature all too well. It felt as if Andras danced in the palm of his hand.
Yet it was an offer impossible to refuse.
Soon, Andras replied.
"I accept the proposal."
"An owl after all—your birdbrain is birdbrain enough."
"So what past must this seat unearth?"
He had expected some grand, tangled tale for such a momentous past.
But no. Gluttony uttered just one word.
"Claudy. That suffices."
"……?"
"For that one word shall shake the world."
*
Crystal Hall. Fitting the Mage Tower's space, its structure was profoundly fantastical. At first glance, a simple ornate circular chamber. Yet beyond the doors lay special spaces.
The waiting area. Simply put, a lounge for the next presenter.
Of course, if it were an ordinary lounge,
"Not bad."
such a reaction would not have escaped Grandfell's lips. Nor would he make a fuss over its special structure.
Gazing down at the dizzying vista of Crystal Hall beneath his feet. He had entered through a door attached to Crystal Hall, yet now he overlooked it from above, as if from the ceiling!
'I should just admire it purely.'
If this was an occupational hazard, so be it.
"Not illusion magic."
The processes of detection, interference, manifestation flooded his mind.
"Yet utterly familiar to me."
How could it not be? It was magic akin to a projector's interference process.
In Arcana terms... the Mage Tower version of the Demon Eye Telescope, perhaps.
'Effective only in Crystal Hall, though.'
The name was no misnomer. Built from precious mana crystals among magic stones, the surrounding crystals amplified mana to enable such extravagant magic.
'That aside...'
His turn approached.
Overlooking Crystal Hall from above, he could almost feel the packed hall's anticipation on his skin.
Tense? Hardly. If anything, he shamelessly savored it!
Preparing his presentation to announce the new school of Reversal Magic, he realized once more: Grandfell's brazenness was thicker than he could fathom.
"I trust you shall comprehend it capably."
The implication was clear. If they failed to understand, it was not his fault. Theirs.
'Our Grandfell overflows with pride...!'
He gazed down at Crystal Hall again. Knowing Grandfell's temperament, seeing the expectant mages filled him with unease.
'Soon that anticipation will turn to dread.'
What words or deeds would stir the Mage Tower today? Even he couldn't predict.
But he'd do his utmost. He'd packaged it meticulously, to seem as plausible as possible.
'Truth be told...'
It suited him rather well. Packaging the trivial—Grandfell's specialty, no?
Mundane physical training like grinding? A sublime challenge against limits.
Teabag green tea? The world's most perfect brew.
Simple web surfing? A quest for the wondrous.
'...Listing it out is mortifying.'
Still, a relief. This packaging skill ensured he wouldn't run short on presentation time.
Clap clap—
Applause rang out. Senior ice mage Curtain Revel's presentation ended. At last, his turn arrived.
He rose nobly.
Clack—
With impeccable poise, he strode toward the podium in Crystal Hall. Dawn's Jacket draped over his shoulders, as always.
A look that would normally evoke self-loathing, but...
'No room to fret over that.'
His mind was consumed with successfully delivering the Reversal Magic presentation.
First, he surveyed Crystal Hall. From Yugweed to Banggrit Tom, all senior mages from the Origin were present.
'...Stretching like that is infuriating.'
Stretch— There was the Tower Master, elongating her cat form the moment he appeared.
All gathered, no need to dawdle. He plunged into the main topic.
Rooooar— As he drew up mana, the mana crystals adorning Crystal Hall resonated, twinkling.
Mana filtered through the crystals scattered into the air like an immense canvas unfurled.
'Now that I see it, akin to a system window.'
⟨ Reversal Magic ⟩
Murmurs arose from all corners.
Grandfell might be prickly, but not eccentric. No barking at noise like some hothead.
"……Reversal Magic? What's that?"
Not just players.
"Reversal Magic... Do you know something of it, Miss Cley?!"
"Pardon? Why ask me...?"
Skilled mages.
"B-Banggrit senior, do you know anything?"
"No, first I've heard of it...!"
"Might silence and focus be preferable, Senior Bensy William?"
"Eek."
Seniors like Matis and Bensy, all.
"My, quite unexpected."
Even elder mage Yugweed.
No one could readily guess.
As expected. Only he, Marcelo, and that smug cat knew of Reversal Magic in Crystal Hall.
He spoke.
"Reversal Magic. Its founder is I."
A fastball from the start. So straightforward even he, who said it, marveled at its honesty.
Yet the same words differ by who utters them and how.
Amid the intense focus, he continued.
"Reversal Magic. Its principle is exceedingly simple. Detection, interference, manifestation. Merely listing the structure of magic in reverse. Indeed. The detection target is already manifested magic, interfered with in reverse during the interference process, reverting it to its original state."
Murmurs didn't subside but swelled.
"……The Chief Mage explains it so simply."
"Is such manifestation truly possible?"
"No, it's not an issue of manifestation power!"
Right, not manifestation power.
Packaging it glibly, gold-plating it—he had come to realize.
'How monstrous Grandfell's talent is.'
As its founder, he declared: Even if he explained Reversal Magic kindly and someone grasped its structure, none could manifest it in practice.
In a word, Reversal Magic was for Grandfell alone.
Knowing this, he said calmly,
"I harbor no expectation that you manifest it."
The phrasing seemed taunting, but sincere.
"Comprehension suffices for you."
Even so, the mood didn't settle.
The more one knew, the more one saw. Magic experts couldn't help but be shocked by Reversal Magic.
'Why Grandfell has grown lenient.'
That leniency sometimes manifested oddly. He couldn't ignore an audience plunged into shock and awe from the intro.
Thus, he declared,
"Fret not nonetheless."
"……?"
"Until you comprehend Reversal Magic."
"……!"
"This regular conference shall not end."
Hold on. A class that doesn't end until they understand...?
Do you truly think that's for the audience, Grandfell?
He realized anew. Grandfell, never become a teacher. The National Professors' Association would be aghast at this horrific declaration!
'More than that.'
What was he to do...?
Damn his fate. He'd barely escaped embarrassment, only for overwork to await.
But it was a miscalculation. A sudden voice.
"……What is this?"
Then, smartphone vibrations echoed through Crystal Hall—
Seeing as much as they knew, players couldn't focus on his explanation.
They couldn't comprehend what he said.
'I keep my word. Generously.'
He'd said comprehension sufficed. Checking phone alerts mid-conference? Understood.
Yet the ensuing conversation was ominous.
"Emergency update?"
"……D-Demon King? Out of nowhere?!"
"Wait, not a rift—regional addition?"
Emergency update. Demon King. Not a rift, but regional addition.
Not for nothing had vibrations rung out in unison.
Still, up to there, he could follow.
What kind were demons? He hadn't expected Gamigin's execution high to last forever post-Akshan revival.
But the next words made him realize: Escaping embarrassment? Bullshit...!
"A Demon King searching for someone?"
"Searching? A player? Or Arcana native?"
"Wait, it says clearly... "
One word pierced his eardrums.
"Claudy! It says Claudy!"
His mind went blank.
Creeeeaaaaaaaauuuuudyyyyy?!
My name... no, that name—why the hell is it there?!