Exposed

“Ah~ Feels tingly~”

“What…?”

Furenna’s pupils contracted slightly as she drew back.

Iris appeared beside her, completely unscathed.

The lightning had been useless against her too.

Furenna’s inner calm grew increasingly turbulent.

All the magic she had used was at the pinnacle ninth-tier level.

How could it have absolutely no effect on the Demon King before her?

Iris acted with ease, as if playing a speedrun game.

The gap between the Demon King and the Heroine seemed like a chasm.

“Truly pitiful, and disappointing.”

“Is this all the strength the Heroine possesses?”

Iris appeared on a rock not far away.

Her delicate finger beckoned towards Furenna, her provocative intent overflowing.

“You are… right about that.”

Furenna stopped her pursuit.

She sheathed her Sacred Blade, her magical power dissipating simultaneously.

Her amber eyes met the Demon King’s mocking scarlet gaze calmly.

“Oh dear~ The Heroine finally deigns to speak with me properly.”

“What an honor~”

Iris put on an overly flattered expression.

But Furenna was no longer swayed by the Demon King’s mind games, growing calmer instead.

“The gap between us cannot be this vast.”

“Even the most magic-proficient Demon King of the past could never treat ninth-tier grand magic as nothing, as you do.”

“Unless…”

Furenna paused.

Her amber eyes reflected Iris’s figure.

“You are the Goddess.”

“Oh? Perhaps?”

“Has your beloved Goddess descended to comfort her wounded Heroine?”

Iris covered her mouth with a laugh, her black hair flowing in the wind, mocking Furenna.

“We both know you cannot be the Goddess.”

“Or rather, you aren’t even the Demon King.”

Furenna showed no intention to continue fighting.

She even dropped her guard, walking straight towards the opposing Iris.

“Poor little kitten.”

“I won’t deceive you like humans.”

“I am the genuine, new Demon King.”

Iris adopted a look of pity for the Heroine, expressing an uncertain goodwill toward the overly suspicious Furenna.

Furenna’s steps faltered slightly.

Iris had indeed struck Furenna’s sore spot.

In that rainy night ten years ago, for the first and only time so far, she had harmed and killed a human.

Violating her “Moral Character,” Furenna had been unable to suppress the self-loathing and pain after fleeing into the deep mountains.

Her loyalty to the Goddess and humanity, the constraints of “Moral Character” upon her, and her deeply buried true self clashed violently within.

That tearing sensation had tormented Furenna, leaving her mentally dazed.

These years, the Heroine had lived in a daze.

Apart from her essential training and fixed routines of eating and sleeping, Furenna spent most of her time whiling away in this crude hut, until Iris’s visit today.

“No.”

“You are not the Demon King.”

“You are merely an illusion meant to deceive me in this illusory realm.”

Furenna regained her clarity of mind.

Setting aside human matters for now, she had already thought of a way to break the situation.

Just as Furenna said, no being could remain so relaxed and effortless under her assault, except the Creator Goddess herself.

But this demon before her was definitely not the Creator Goddess.

It was the new Demon King, Iris.

Impossible in reality, but within a created illusion, one could remain completely unharmed with ease under Furenna’s attacks.

“What are you talking about, Heroine?”

Iris was still trying to deceive Furenna, to trap her mind.

But at this moment, verbal guidance had lost all effect.

Furenna’s will was firm.

She charged swiftly toward Iris.

“If you are the true Demon King, then try attacking me!”

Back when she had clung to her earlier, an attack could have been launched.

During the countless subsequent close encounters, an effective offense could have been unleashed.

But Iris showed not the slightest intention to strike.

Each time, she merely teased before immediately creating distance.

While it was possible Iris was deliberately holding back, playing with Furenna, it was equally possible the other simply could not attack her at all.

“Heroine, there’s no need to be so impatient~”

“We have plenty of time~”

Iris still maintained her enchanting smile.

But she clearly had not anticipated Furenna charging forward directly without any defense.

Faced with this kind of suicidal assault from Furenna, Iris actually chose to retreat rather than attack.

The Demon King’s action confirmed Furenna’s suspicion.

And more importantly…

“It seems I truly am not in my best condition…”

“I didn’t even notice such an obvious flaw.”

Furenna gave a self-mocking smile, pressing tightly toward Iris.

Wind elemental magic gathered beneath Furenna’s legs without needing the Sacred Blade’s summoning.

Combined with the Heroine’s terrifying physical body, a mere instant burst brought her face-to-face with Iris in a blink.

“Your illusion is quite realistically constructed.”

“Pity you made one biggest mistake…”

Furenna thrust out her right hand and seized Iris by the neck.

Her gradually awakening consciousness made the illusion unable to evade Furenna’s speed.

“…That is, my attacks could never cause only this level of damage.”

“Huh?”

Hearing such a reason, the illusion, whose fate was seized by the throat, let out a confused sound.

But soon, under the force of Furenna’s right hand, it lost the ability to make sound.

As the illusion dissipated, this illusory realm created by Demon King Iris also began to collapse inch by inch under Furenna’s gaze.

“So Demon King Iris is proficient in mental magic…”

The true body of Demon King Iris manifested within Heroine Furenna’s sight, identical to the illusion.

Only, she had lost her composure and allure.

Now, Iris’s face held a trace of bewilderment and speechlessness.

“Impossible to cause only this level of damage?”

In reality, Furenna drew her Sacred Blade once more.

She showed no intention to converse.

She decided to immediately eliminate the Demon King, lest Iris bring disaster upon the human world.

“Truly an unfair level of power.”

“But unfortunately, you and I won’t be having a battle today.”

Iris understood she could not possibly be Furenna’s opponent.

Therefore, upon meeting Furenna, she had activated her soul magic, pulling Furenna into her carefully constructed illusion to trap her.

By confining Furenna within the illusion, she planned to gradually control her mind, finally imprinting a control mark upon Furenna’s soul.

Demon King Iris had summarized past battles between successive generations of Heroes and Demon Kings.

She had repeatedly studied the blurred footage of the last Demon King’s fight with Furenna, reaching a conclusion.

“This generation’s Heroine is not skilled at mental defense.”

Thus, Iris had prepared and refined soul magic for a long time.

She hadn’t expected the soul magic to indeed be effective on Furenna, but not to the extent of defeating her.

In less than ten minutes of stalling, Furenna had already seen through it.