The High Demon before Cadel had dark hair with a bluish tint, long, slanted eyes, and a smile that curled upward in a way that was more unsettling than menacing. Cadel couldn’t place him in his memories.

“Damn, this is so tasty. I’d love to take you back to the Demon Realm and suck you dry until you die.” 

The demon said with a grin, forcibly clasping hands with Cadel and squeezing with brute strength. Cadel had no chance of breaking free with mere physical strength, but even releasing mana didn’t allow him to shake off the demon.

‘What is this guy doing……?’

The flame Cadel had unleashed, a combination of his own mana and Kunra’s energy, had disappeared without a trace. No, it had been ‘devoured’. The moment the demon landed and placed his hand over Cadel’s, Cadel could feel it.

‘He absorbed my attack.’

If it had hit, the attack would have killed instantly. Cadel had thrown everything into that strike, disregarding the need for restraint. The demon had absorbed it all.

‘It wasn’t a defense. It wasn’t even a counter. He literally absorbed my mana.’

A High Demon with the ability to absorb energy—was that even possible? Cadel, shaken by the appearance of such an overwhelmingly powerful foe, quickly realized something even more horrifying.

‘It’s not just my mana… He absorbed Kunra’s power too. Then what happens to that power? Does it go into his hands now?’

If the demon was able to fully control that immense energy…… Cadel twisted his wrist with all his strength, glaring at the demon with vicious intent.

“Get your dirty hands off me.”

“Well, I’m not letting go. If you want me to let go, why don’t you try some magic?”

“Who do you think you are?”

“Haha, I see you’ve realized I’ve absorbed your power. I was hoping you might have something more palatable to eat.”

The demon smirked as he slowly released his fingers, one by one. Despite the decreasing number of entwined fingers, Cadel still couldn’t break free. The disparity in strength was overwhelming.

As the demon mockingly loosened his grip, Cadel resisted the urge to lash out and instead tried to gather more information.

“I don’t recall any records of a High Demon like you. Are you a recent creation?”

“Are you referring to the records from the last war? In that case, yes. I’m a young and highly capable High Demon.”

“……So, the power you absorbed is yours to keep forever?”

“What……. you want it back?”

“Sure. If I kill you, will I get my mana back?”

“Well? I’m not sure. If you’re curious, why not try experimenting yourself? Though I doubt it’ll succeed.”  

Cadel was fully aware that it was natural for new demons in Hell Mode to be unknown to him. As he watched the demon mischievously shake his pinky finger, Cadel calmly asked,  

“What’s your name?”  

“Arpa. Arpa Solavis. If you somehow survive here, be sure to spread my name far and wide. I’ve always envied the old demons who’ve made a name for themselves in the Human Realm.”  

“……This is the first time I’ve heard of that name.”  

“Yeah, that’s because I’m new to the stage. I need to make a name for myself in this fight. I’m full of ambition. The Solavis family is only just beginning.”  

Solavis family. Cadel etched the name deeply into his memory. As he blinked lazily, Arpa finally released his grip and flapped his wings, soaring upward.  

“Ah, now I can finally do something! I was getting bored of seeing so many weaklings, but now I’ll get to show off my skills. Thanks, human!”  

Cadel’s face hardened as he watched Arpa fly further away, his expression set in stone.

‘That bastard… He can use the absorbed power. He’s planning to attack the humans with Kunra’s and my energy.’

Cadel felt his complexion pale as he layered more mana onto the protective barrier he’d already enhanced.  

‘She’s gone.’

While dealing with Arpa, the red-haired demon had disappeared without a trace. There was no real need to search for her now.  

“It’s back!”  

“Defense! Prioritize defense!”  

“Magicians, set up the barriers!”  

The demonic energy that had vanished reappeared, seeping back into the ground where it had once been. Cadel noticed the traces of the energy, which passed through his waist and cheek, causing him to swallow dryly.  

‘I can’t touch it, I can’t stop it…… How the hell do I defend against this?’

He knew the fastest way to end this was by dealing with the source. But with High Demons like Arpa around, attacking her directly didn’t seem like it would be easy.  

If he couldn’t eliminate her in one go, he at least needed a way to defend against her attacks. But even the reinforced barrier didn’t seem like it would be enough to block the oncoming assault.  

Cadel cast a glance around, looking for a place where demonic energy wouldn’t reach while adding additional scale armor to his subordinates. But then……  

‘Damn, it’s too far!’

The distance between him and the safe area, which was outside the range of the magic circle, was too great. Even if he ran as fast as he could, he wouldn’t be able to escape completely. There was also the risk of moving and getting hit by an attack intended for his arm, only to take it to the head and die instantly.  

‘Waist and cheek…… This should be fine.’

In the end, Cadel gave up on dodging and simply stood still in his place. And into Cadel’s line of sight, a scene appeared that he hadn’t noticed just moments ago.

‘The enemies are within the range of the demonic energy too. Even High Demons with wings are showing no signs of trying to avoid it. ……Why is that? It’s not that demons are immune to demonic energy.’

It was evident from how Garuel’s demonic energy was able to attack demons. Just as a new question arose in Cadel’s mind, the demonic energy tendrils glowed even darker. When this light extinguished, dozens of holes would once again be pierced through his allies’ bodies. Cadel’s expression, which had been grinding his teeth in frustration, subtly shifted. And at the moment the light faded away……

“Darling, you weren’t thinking of marking that pretty face with scars, were you? You were waiting for me, right?”

The body that had been lying on the ground suddenly shot up, and a scream ripped through the air from beneath his feet. Surprised by the sudden lift, Cadel quickly turned his head to see Lydon with a rather serious expression on his face.

“……You don’t need to come save me, Lydon. I told you to cover Garuel.”

“I can do that from afar. This won’t do! Since you’re not answering, I guess you were just planning to take the hits! From now on, stay close to me.”

“I don’t want to be carried around like a sack of potatoes. And……”

Cadel’s gaze, which had wiped away his brief astonishment, sank. He looked down at the allies who had failed to avoid the attack and ground his teeth.

‘I definitely felt it. Just before the light went out, I felt the demonic energy touch my skin.’

Was it just a hallucination caused by foreseeing future pain? If it wasn’t a hallucination, could the sensation he felt provide a clue to dealing with the red-haired demon?

As Cadel pondered, a frantic shout reached his ears.

“Sir Cadel! What are you doing right now?!”

“……Sir Ector?”

What are you doing. After narrowly avoiding the attack thanks to Lydon, Cadel was about to check the condition of the barrier, wondering if he had missed something. Flustered, he shifted his gaze to find Ector’s position. Then—

“There’s fire on the ground……”

“Huh, Cadel, it’s your mana, right? What’s going on?”

Into his eyes, the ground was ablaze without mercy. Not only the inside of the magic circle but also the surrounding land was engulfed in flames. The ground was covered in a crimson inferno, burning fiercely. The magicians hurried to extinguish the flames, but the more they tried, the fiercer the fire became.

Allies standing on the flames were showing their pain and confusion due to the heat. There was only one human capable of using fire magic of such a scale, one that was difficult to control—Cadel himself. That was why the confusion among his allies had increased.

Lydon also seemed bewildered. Instead of answering Lydon’s question, Cadel scowled and shouted loudly.

“Look for the High Demon with the blue tint in his hair! He absorbed my and the Scarlet Dragon’s energy!”

If it had just been his mana that was absorbed, it wouldn’t have been this desperate. The mana, now combined with Kunra’s power, was so strong that even Cadel himself had trouble containing it.

“Huh? Absorbed? You let a demon take something so precious from you?”

“I’m losing my mind! Lydon, use your mana to suppress that fire. Can you do it?”

“Hmmm…… It’s mixed with the lizard’s energy. It’s going to take some time.”

“Please. While you do that, I’ll deal with that thief…… No, the red-haired demon first……”

Both Arpa and the red-haired demon were fatal threats to his allies. Even Cadel couldn’t decide who to deal with first. As he hesitated for a moment, Cadel’s eyes quickly scanned.

“……The red-haired one.”

Not far from where he and Lydon were positioned in the sky, the red-haired demon that had vanished earlier reappeared. Though her body was still swollen in several places, it was worse than when he had first discovered it. Both her arms and legs were incomplete, and half of her face was missing.

“It really looks like Emmental cheese. Gross.”

Lydon, who had also noticed her appearance, frowned slightly and said. It was a fitting metaphor, but instead of agreeing, Cadel tapped the arm that was wrapped around his waist.

“Take me to that cheese. Don’t attack, don’t gather mana.”

“What about the fire?”

“Leave it for now.”

Arpa had only appeared after he deployed a magic strong enough to kill the red-haired demon. It was as though he had sensed every attack directed at her, and he appeared instantly to block the most dangerous one.

If that was the case…

‘I don’t know who to deal with first, so let’s aim for a two-for-one.’