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The attack was flawless. I can confidently say it was one of the cleanest strikes I’ve ever delivered with a sword, even considering my past life. That’s why I was convinced—I had beheaded Vulcan.

“Yeah, yeah. I got so caught up playing with the girl in front of me that I forgot about you. I know it’s a bad habit, but I just can’t seem to correct it.”

However, the guy was still standing. To be precise, he was not in good shape, but at least he was still alive.

I aimed for his neck, yet what fell to the ground was merely one of his arms.

The moment the Holy Sword was drawn from its sheath, Vulcan sensed something was off. He raised his hands to block, twisting his body, causing the sword to instead plunge into his shoulder.

Sure, losing an arm was a significant blow, but the fact that I missed my original target—his neck—was undeniably disappointing. Especially since my attack had been more perfect than usual.

While I was filled with regret, Vulcan, despite losing an arm, was grinning wider as if he found it amusing.

“You crazy bastard.”

Seeing beings at their peak often reveals they’ve got a screw loose, and the demonic race is no different. If anything, they’re even crazier.

Vulcan seemed to be completely out of his mind… No, his brain structure just wasn’t normal.

Ah, but Selian is an exception. She’s perfect in every way. She was chosen as a Hero before me for a reason. Though I ended up being chosen this time around, it doesn’t diminish her worth.

Since I had no intention of indulging his whims, I charged straight at the one-armed Vulcan. Selian, sensing my intention, ran in at the same time.

However, rather than blocking our two swords, Vulcan jumped back. Naturally, I should have pursued him, but he tossed his severed arm aside like a projectile, forcing me to focus on stopping him.

“Huh!”

Taking a brief moment, Vulcan grabbed his shoulder and let out a short shout, as a hand suddenly emerged from the severed stump.

“What the…? It’s not like you’re using magic, and out of nowhere, a hand just pops out. Is your mother a troll or something? I should’ve asked if your parents even exist in the first place. Then again, if you had proper family education, you wouldn’t be rampaging as a Four Heavenly King.”

“…If that was meant to provoke me, well played. But what you humans don’t get is that our family education starts with punches being thrown between parents and kids. I’d say I’ve been educated pretty well.”

In the blink of an eye, his arm had regenerated. Even the trolls, famous for their regeneration among monsters, don’t regenerate that quickly. At least they recover wounds and rebuild in a way that suits the term “regeneration.”

But Vulcan surpassed the concept of regeneration; he created an entirely new arm from his body.

While it’s regrettable that his severed arm returned, at least his energy seemed to have noticeably diminished. This meant that our strategy wasn’t entirely for naught.

“Shall we begin round two now?”

Vulcan cracked his neck, the sound echoing, as he spun his freshly grown arm around.

I considered hiding in shadows again to wait for an opportunity, but having already been detected, there was no point. If he were a mediocre opponent, I would have done just that.

Yet Vulcan was instinctual, one of the strong who had reached enlightenment. He had blocked my sword without even knowing I was there, so now that he was aware of my presence, it was a whole different ball game.

Rather than burden Selian, it would be smarter to press the attack together starting now.

However, Vulcan didn’t seem the least bit fazed by the fact that it was two against one; instead, he charged straight at me with a punch aimed at my face.

Whoosh, a fierce wind brushed past my cheek. A gust from the punch tousled my hair, but this wasn’t the time to worry about messy hair.

Quickly retreating, I grabbed a throwing dagger from my thigh and hurled it at Vulcan. While it wasn’t as effective as swinging a sword, it was far from something to dismiss.

At the same time, I caught sight of Selian swinging her sword towards Vulcan from the opposite side. A coordinated attack from both sides.

If Vulcan focused on my dagger, Selian’s sword would slice him in two.

Clang!

But to my surprise, Vulcan—the craziest of the crazies—showed some wild antics.

Rather than swatting away the dagger, he bit it with teeth harder than his own fists.

As he clenched his jaw, the expensive dagger I had bought from the royal blacksmith shattered like glass or brittle sweets. Damn it, it wasn’t my money, but it was expensive…

Freed from the distraction, Vulcan lifted the arms to block Selian’s sword as an added bonus.

As he successfully blocked Selian’s attack, I ran at him, gripping the Holy Sword tightly. Vulcan squeezed between Selian and me, trying to block both our attacks with his hands.

However, knowing that Selian and I were no novices ourselves, there were limits to how much he could withstand. Slowly, wounds began to appear on his body.

Though they were shallow, with Vulcan’s regeneration, they wouldn’t do much damage, but it clearly indicated that we had the upper hand.

Vulcan, realizing that dragging this fight out wouldn’t favor him, was not anxious at all but rather thrilled, as if he wanted to enjoy the fight for just a little longer.

“Watch out…!”

Bang!

In the midst of it all, as Vulcan retaliated with a heavy punch, Selian managed to block it with both hands, her sword resting against the punch. The impact sent her sliding back, leaving clear footprints on the ground.

To protect Selian, I swiftly jumped in, swinging my sword at Vulcan while keeping him from rushing towards her.

Even if it was a great opportunity, it seemed my sword was sharp; Vulcan had to retreat to avoid my attack.

Once again, we found ourselves in a standoff.

“Uh… is something weird going on? Is there an issue with my memory? Because I distinctly remember Vulcan not being this strong…”

Feeling Selian approach my side while still facing Vulcan, I spoke to her.

“…You’re right. He’s definitely strong. Stronger than any enemy we’ve faced so far….”

It seemed I wasn’t the only one feeling it.

In the memory of the past four rounds, Vulcan had certainly been a battle maniac and a madman, but he wasn’t this strong.

Of course, as a Four Heavenly King, it was natural for him to be far superior to other demons, but he shouldn’t have been able to easily handle our coordinated efforts.

Everything was unfolding contrary to our expectations. The one piece of good news was that, in the distance, where war was being fought instead of mere combat, our main forces evidently had the upper hand.

After all, even with a high-ranking demon holding the line, our strength clearly outweighed theirs.

“But both you and I… we’ve grown stronger too. I’m not afraid of any enemy if I’m with you, even if it’s the Demon King. Don’t you think so, Selian?”

In the midst of all this, Selian managed to lighten the mood with a joke, prompting a small chuckle from me. Even if it was a jest, such a sincere quip was enough to give us a brief moment to catch our breath.

“Yeah. I’m not alone. If I’m with Selian, there’s nothing to fear.”

“Yes. Then for the rest of our lives….”

Boom!

“Ah?”

Just as Selian and I were exchanging trivial banter, something flew in from the distance, kicking up sand as it crashed between Vulcan and us.

“Hehe… Sorry, sorry! I was just hitting it without thinking, and somehow it flew away unexpectedly….”

As Selian and I looked on, bewildered, the one who appeared with an awkward smile was none other than Anne.

With her small stature compared to others, she lifted a massive great sword as if it were a twig, waving it above her head. The disparity was always striking. The fact that that strength came from pure physical power rather than magical force was even more terrifying.

“I’ll bring it back quickly!”

Anne, now right beside us, appeared to be heading towards the high-ranking demon lying on the ground.

“Uh…?”

But before Anne could reach him, someone else approached the high-ranking demon. It wasn’t Anne, nor Selian, nor me—it was Vulcan.

“Well… Normally, I’d just leave it be since having another hand would be convenient, but given the current situation, that’s a different story.”

I thought even a crazy guy would want to help, but Vulcan’s demeanor was unusual.

“Grr! Argh! Grr!”

Vulcan grabbed the severed hair of the high-ranking demon lying on the ground and lifted it up. The high-ranking demon, despite its status, didn’t seem to know a basic language, letting out sounds that truly matched its hound-like appearance, squirming to escape Vulcan’s grasp.

Boom!

Ignoring those desperate struggles, Vulcan’s other hand pierced through the high-ranking demon’s chest. The creature didn’t even have time to scream before Vulcan pulled out its still-beating heart.