As the Demon King, I have married a slave elf. How should I express my love?

The reason he didn't mention it was simply because he didn't care. He wasn't entirely without friendship towards Barbarossa, but he didn't care whether Barbarossa betrayed or hated him.

Barbarossa said this with considerable surprise.

"So you really dare to come to the auction with me?"

"After all, I'm a little curious about how you'll design me. Besides, since it's the legacy of the Demon King, I've always been quite interested."

As a result, thanks to him, Sagan had the opportunity to meet Nefertari. Sagan is still grateful to him for this.

However—after answering with a wry smile, Sagan continued:

"Was it you who hurt Neffi?

The ground cracked open.

Sagan's step cracked the rock beneath his feet.

"──!"

By the time Barbaross took a fighting stance, Sagan was already standing directly in front of him.

"You brat—"

"Let's start with the arms."

Barbaross raised his hand as if to perform some kind of magic trick, while Sagan waved his hand in response.

An unpleasant cracking sound rang out, and Barbaros's arms bent in an inexplicable direction.

"──?"

"Next, we'll replace the knee."

No sooner had a muffled scream rang out than Sagan mercilessly delivered a sweeping kick to him.

No, calling it a sweeping kick isn't accurate. That kick, coming from an angle above, twisted the knee, clearly shattering the knee joint inside.

"Aa ...

Barbarosza foamed at the mouth and fainted.

It had only been a few seconds since Sagan arrived directly in front of him.

Sagan paid no further attention to his friend, who was lying on the ground like a caterpillar with broken limbs, and instead knelt down in front of Neferpitou.

After using brute force to pry open her hand and foot shackles, he then helped her remove her collar. This collar was different from the previous ones; it didn't have any mechanisms, and could be opened with a little force.

Once he was sure the girl was no longer bound, Sagan turned to face Neferi.

Her snow-white hair was now covered in mud, and tears even welled up in the corners of her eyes.

"Uh... will it hurt?"

"……pain."

"I thought so too... I'm sorry."

With a soft "pop," I felt a punch to my chest.

"Compared to me, you look like you're in much more pain, Master."

"...Me?"

Large tears streamed down Neferpitou's face.

"I don't know what happened to you, Master. If you truly no longer need me, I'm willing to accept your decision. But—"

Nefi clutched his chest tightly.

"Master, you're injured, how can I just ignore you!"

Illustration p277

This was probably the first time he had ever heard Neferpitou speak so loudly.

"Do I look like an injured person?"

"Yes."

"If I had to say, I'd probably be the one who hurts others..."

"That's a separate matter from whether you're injured, Master."

"...So you're saying I really did hurt you?"

Please don't change the subject.

Nefi was truly unsmiling today.

Still holding on, she looked up at Sagan's face.

"Master, please don't leave yourself all alone."

A surge of warmth welled up within me.

—I'm the kind of bad guy who's planning to leave you all alone.

As a result, Neferi not only didn't complain, but even showed concern for him.

He wanted to hug the girl in front of him back, but then he felt that such an action might be too selfish.

"Nefertari..."

But compared to those, he must have other things to say now.

Just as Sagan was about to speak—

"You brat, you think you've won before you've even killed me!"

Barbarossa got back up after his shattered limbs had regenerated.

At his feet was a whole blood-red magic circle.

"Owner!"

Neferi screamed, but Sagan gently patted her head to comfort her.

"Don't be afraid, nothing will happen."

"What—?"

As expected, nothing happened at the magic circle, just as Sagan had predicted.

That wasn't because Barbaross didn't activate the magic. He did, but nothing happened.

"Excuse me, what's going on...?"

Seeing Nephew's great confusion, Sagan then explained.

"Remember when I mentioned that there's a theoretically strongest magic trick?"

That refers to magic that adds circuits inside the magic circle, disrupting the laws of magic. While that method exists in theory, it is an impossible feat, purely theoretical.

"Actually, there's a secret technique that can achieve that."

Fingers danced in the air, tracing the exact same magic circle as the one on the ground.

"If you can create a magic circle that is exactly the same as your opponent's, you can overlap them from the inside. In this way, the magic will produce a phenomenon similar to resonance."

He first used magic when he was eight years old.

Sagan, who was still a homeless child at the time, was captured by Antoine in "Grievance" and prepared to be a living sacrifice.

Sagan, now imprisoned, quickly realized what would happen to a child like himself, whose origins were unknown, if caught by a magician. Therefore, he memorized the magic circles he saw and drew them on his hand. Having nothing to write on, he could only use his blood.

Looking back now, it was just childish cleverness. Even if an amateur tried to imitate it, they would never be able to use magic.

But Sagan actually did use magic.

Sagan, having succeeded, attempted to escape but was unfortunately spotted by Antos, who intended to kill him with a lightning strike.

But when faced with the descending lightning, Sagan used the exact same magic trick.

Whether by chance or not, the same magic trick, due to a slight time difference in its activation, resonated and bounced back onto Antoine.

The phenomenon is not as simple as it is described. Even if the same magic trick is matched, it will only result in an explosion or a reflection, not to mention that it is generally very difficult to match them simultaneously.

This is a miracle triggered by the same magic trick overlapping in less than a tenth of a second.

And so Sagan killed Antos.

This is Sagan's unique magic—the power to make twelve "Demon Lords" decide to make him their ally.

Barbarossa retreated step by step.

"H-How is this possible... Could this be Antous's legacy?"

"Antoine...? I'd completely forgotten about him. So he uses tricks like that too?"

Then his death was far too swift.

But Barbarossa knew, of course, that wasn't the case, and his face turned pale.

"You, you brat, just who are you?!"

The mentally unstable Barbarossa unleashed a barrage of magical fire.

This is his barrier. Barbaros' power is amplified to its limit here, while Sagan's power is significantly diminished.

But unexpectedly, none of Barbaros's magic spells hit Sagan; they all vanished at the last moment. It turned out that no matter what magic Barbaros used, Sagan would draw the same magic circle to trigger "resonance."

Even when faced with a magic trick they've never seen before, they can instantly counter it.

If such talent truly exists, then this must be Sagan's magical talent.

Faced with this scene, Neferpitou murmured in surprise.

"But how come nothing happened? If the same magic overlaps, shouldn't the magic still activate...?"

"Very good, Neferi, you've got the point."

The apprentice's keen observation earned him praise from Sagan.

"What I just mentioned is the most basic part; even a beginner can do it if the timing is right. But as someone who studies magic, of course you have to strive for perfection, right?"

What Sagan first learned was the magic reflex triggered by 'resonance'.

But could such a reflection be elevated to other techniques? — Once the idea arose, Sagan's research as a magician began.