Overgeared

Hayate's Dragon Killing Sword was a weapon crafted by gathering sword energy. Baal's demonic sword was similar.Baal's magic power wasn't just a medium for using magic, but also the medium that made matter real. It was a type of energy that came from a mental image. It was a technique that was also a symbol of an Absolute.

Couldn't he make armor if he could make a sword?

The black light that shot out in all directions as Baal was facing Drop Dragon Pinnacle Link Kill Wave was a sign of the destruction of the armor that wrapped around his body in real time. It was armor made from the mental image of a strong self-defense. It was the mental image of the Absolute of hell. Yet it was pierced. It was torn apart.

"......"

Baal's original body had a different weight from his fragments of consciousness. He didn't show any ugliness like coughing up blood. He slowly raised his body while swallowing the gushing blood.

The wide field of view spread out in front, behind, to the left, and to the right as he confirmed that his fingertips were slightly trembling. He looked again at the senses that were spread throughout hell and found that this trembling was real, not false. It had been a long time since he had seen his heart personally.

Baal stared at the wounds on his chest that were recovering quickly with the power of super fast regeneration and immediately smiled.

"Finally."

Baal felt a joy that was more intense than the fires of the hell river. It was because the tension he had been longing for had finally arrived after so many years.

"I found the right toy."

Baal had witnessed more deaths than anyone else. In a contradictory manner, he dreamed of death as he watched every being, who died and fell into hell, yearning for a new life. Didn't even these insignificant beings realize that life was precious after dying?

He naturally developed a curiosity about death. The unfulfilled curiosity degenerated into twisted desire. Baal wanted to die. If he couldn't die, he wanted to feel a near-death crisis once again. For example, like when he confronted Beriache. It was in order to realize that he was alive.

[It is nasty nonsense.]

Bunhelier heard Baal's story and made an expression like his ears were going to rot. Grid didn't even respond. From the beginning, he didn't have the expectation that Baal would have a special story. It was because Baal was pure evil. It was different from the situations of three-dimensional characters who had detailed stories. It was just garbage. He had to be erased.

Would Baal's death accelerate Satisfy's ending? The ending...

Where was the ending? Did the world he live in have an ending?

"...The world."

"?"

"It is a world without you!!"

The yelling Grid once again unfolded a sword dance. From a single sword dance to a five fusion sword dance, he almost went on a rampage. He was influenced by the madness and gained the debuff 'unable to identify the enemy.' Even so, he consciously avoided the use of Revolve in the midst of the confusion.

[What is this guy doing?]

Bunhelier struggled in a startled manner. It was because Grid's sword was stuck in the middle of his forehead. That's right. Grid couldn't distinguish between Baal and Bunhelier. He even forgot that he was enjoying the effects of Dragon Knight and mistakenly thought that the existence he was standing on was also an enemy. It was the influence of the madness.

Grid felt like he was fighting two Baals. He couldn't tell what was real, so he just attacked and tested it randomly. Whether it was because of the madness of Baal's craftiness, Grid had no way of knowing.

"You have done something crazy like embodying demonic energy with divinity, so it can't be helped. It is a situation where you should be considered lucky that you didn't degenerate into a demon god."

The sword dance that reproduced the power and characteristics of an old dragon—it was powerful, but the side effects were too great.

Baal clicked his tongue and moved his fingers. Long fingernails rubbed against each other, releasing frost-like fragments. A chill filled the area. A bone-chilling cold came unknowingly. It was a temperature that was hard to experience in hell where a river of hot fire flowed. The master of hell was denying the ecosystem of hell.

"It is still too early. Come when you are a little bit better."

Among the legends, the reason why Sword Saint Muller was so highly regarded wasn't because his swordsmanship had reached the realm of being unsurpassed. The perfection of technique was something that ordinary humans, so-called craftsmen, could do. The biggest existence in hell that lost to Muller was Hell Gao, the 9th Great Demon, but the reason why they couldn't forget and feared Muller was purely due to the 'Heart Sword.'

Heart Instant Kill—the realm of cutting the target as soon as they made up their mind. In other words, Muller was someone who completed the mental image. It was like the Absolutes such as Baal and Hayate.

"......!"

Black ice trapped Grid. Grid froze without even being able to scream. His breathing stopped and the loss of health was uncontrollably fast. The items he was equipped with stopped functioning altogether. The dragon armor was no exception. Even the items made of Greed, which had infinite durability, stopped functioning due to the frozen effect.

It was Baal's mental image.

[Hey...! Hey!! Wake up!!]

Bunhelier, who had been struggling while swearing at Grid for going on a rampage, glided. He shouted at the frozen Grid a few times. However, it was useless. Grid couldn't shake off the ice of death wrapped around him. It was even after becoming a knight of an old dragon and raising his status by several levels.

I lent you the back of this body, but you are hit by something like this?

Bunhelier was offended and felt like his own value had been decreased. His ego was so hurt that he gritted his teeth badly. However, he couldn't swear at Grid.

'It is natural.'

Grid—this guy was a lot younger than a hatchling. He was young even for a human being and had only been a god for a few years. In fact, it was fortunate that he didn't make a crying sound like a newborn.

Was I relying on this guy?

Bunhelier realized it again and laughed at the absurdity. Then he uttered Dragon Words.

[You are great.]

He didn't make a promise he wouldn't keep. He also didn't attempt to increase his self-world by demeaning others.

Bunhelier—an evil dragon who was unable to train his Dragon Words because he broke the oath of the covenant every time. For the first time, his Dragon Words were used for the benefit of others. It was quite strange. Awkward and unpleasant emotions welled up, but it wasn't particularly difficult. Bunhelier merely acknowledged Grid. It didn't take any effort to do this.

The effect appeared immediately. The truth acknowledged by an old dragon, who had existed since the beginning, became providence. Cracks started to appear on the surface of the ice that froze Grid. They were cracks that cut off death.

"You did something pointless."

Baal frowned for the first time. He didn't like Bunhelier's intervention. He had predicted Grid was at his limit.

It was understandable. The candy that Grid was biting in his mouth had melted away and his consciousness wasn't intact. During the rampage, his wounds had increased quite significantly. It was minor compared to the wounds Baal had suffered, but it had to be taken into account that Grid's body was weak compared to Baal.

Baal's skin was as hard as dragon scales. Instead of absolute defense, he had the ability to recover and proliferate at a very fast speed. On the other hand, Grid was a human being. His physical condition wasn't significantly different from humans at the transcendent level.

Yet he was in a ragged state. He was a toy on the verge of breaking. It was impossible for Bunhelier, who forced Grid to move, to look good.

"Bunhelier, don't overlook the reason why I am keeping you alive..." Baal took a step back as he spoke coldly. No, he accelerated two and then three steps. He gradually moved back and replaced 80% of the magic circles he was creating with defensive technique.

A rain of battle gear fell toward him. Each one had the power of a mental image. Then the high canyon rising to his left and right caught his attention. It was the Sanctuary of Metal. It was the mental world opened by Grid, who came to his senses thanks to Bunhelier's Dragon Words. He had suppressed it due to the thought that it would've been useless before he received the effects of the Dragon Knight, but now it was different. He believed in the elevated status from riding an old dragon.

In fact, Baal failed to block Grid's mental world.

"A canyon of black iron..."

Is this your mental world? It is a world of lifeless metal. You are more desolate than me.

Baal had a surprised expression on his face, only to notice it one step late. The energy that rose from the center of the canyon—it was the energy released by the heart of the Red Phoenix.

Grid's mental world was warm. It was different from Baal's mental world that was frozen cold.

"Haha... Kuhaha!" Baal finally burst out laughing. He felt a certain fate with this toy he expected to be in a position to confront him. It was so much fun that he was ecstatic.

"However, it is too early."

Baal stopped laughing and made a serious expression.

The canyon of black iron—black iron alone couldn't do much harm to him. This person obviously needed more time. Baal was convinced again and extended the hand holding the demonic sword. Baal made sure his field of view captured Grid, who was restoring his breathing while staring at him, and the stupid old dragon carrying Grid on his back.

"One Million Army Massacre Sword."

Undefeated King Madra—a human being who was expected to be chosen as an archangel. Yet surprisingly, he didn't ascend to heaven. Perhaps it was due to lingering regrets, but the soul that remained on the surface for some reason was captured by Pagma.

Thanks to this, his soul ended up in the depths of hell and the knowledge and skills he accumulated during his lifetime belonged to Baal. The sword energy with supreme power stretched out. It was a sword energy that would cut everything that entered Baal's field of view in a single breath. The canyon of black iron was cut without being able to resist, exposing a cross-section. The canyon turned into a plain.

Bunhelier's absolute defense, magic, and scales were also cut helplessly. Bunhelier looked at the sword energy heading toward his neck and glimpsed death. It was Grid who protected him.

Valhalla of Infinite Affection—this was the form the cut black iron canyon took. Hundreds of thousands of copies of Valhalla rose in front of Grid and Bunhelier, protecting them from the sword energy. Every time they were cut and broken, they were reshaped and protected the two of them.

'Khan, I actually knew it.'

I realized that your armor is gradually becoming useless. The bigger the world I lived in, the stronger the enemies. The increasingly difficult reality forced me to take off your armor. The reason I couldn't make new armor and wrapped myself in your armor is probably because I want to rely on you.

The first friend I ever made. The family member who only cared about my safety until the moment you lost your breath. Your affection and kindness still sustain me.

"...What?"

There shouldn't be anything that couldn't be destroyed. This was the Undefeated King's swordsmanship. Yet the armors that made up Grid's mental world weren't easily cut. Even if they were destroyed, they immediately reformed.

Baal noticed it. The fact that this was the source of the mental world that Grid relied on the most.

Grid shot through the fragments of armor that were broken and assembled repeatedly. He gained acceleration due to the Breath he fired from his hands. He moved in front of Baal, whose movement was restricted in the aftermath of using One Million Army Massacre Sword.

"Serve Dragon Pinnacle Wave Kill Link."

This time, Baal was cut from the beginning.