Those time travelers that year

"Xia...you, you..." Iris struggled for a moment, but the hypnosis was too much for her to withstand in her extreme weakness. Her head lolled to the side, and she lost consciousness.

"Done! Well, at least I don't have to worry about my identity in the main world anymore." He picked up Iris in a princess carry, then looked up at the increasingly cracked barrier, estimating it would be crushed in a little while. "This spell can actually affect spatial teleportation?" The magic cast by this demon was unexpected for Sharl.

Outside, the demon, seemingly unleashed, finally broke free from the Balrog's suppression, albeit at the cost of having half his chest cleaved open by a flaming greatsword. Regrouping, the demon, after capturing Shar with magic, turned his attention to the Balrog. In his eyes, this audacious mortal wizard was doomed to die before his spells, so he ignored him. Instead, he set his sights on this 'kin' before him. Of course, the demon realized the Balrog wasn't one of his kind, but an elemental being, but that didn't stop him from seeking revenge for the humiliation he had previously endured.

Black and red flames extended out, transforming into the heads of numerous beasts that lunged at the Balrog. Simultaneously, rows of black spikes shot up from the ground, hindering the Balrog's movements. Now free to attack, the demon, prepared, began to relentlessly beat the Balrog. If the Balrog had been considered immortal to some extent, it would likely have been dead long ago.

"Was it really too much of a stretch?" Looking at the Balrog that had been counterattacked, Charles said with a hint of helplessness, "After all, it's not a real Balrog!" Although it had undergone several modifications, the Balrog's combat power was indeed somewhat low, though this was relative. After all, Charles didn't expect his knock-off Balrog to be able to defeat a demon comparable to a Servant. "Hahaha... However, this gain might be able to make up for the Balrog's shortcomings." Looking at the demon with a strange, almost gratified gaze, Charles smiled sinisterly.

"Finally, I have a baby to take care of! But before that, I'll have to beat him half to death..."

……

The black and red flames transformed into the heads of various wild beasts: jackals, tigers, leopards, crocodiles, lions… These heads emerged from the demon's body, viciously biting at the Balrog. No matter how many heads the Balrog severed with its flaming greatsword, new heads would always join the tearing feast. Of course, this wasn't a major problem for the Balrog; the spells imbued within it ignored most of the bites. However, these beastly attacks hindered the Balrog's movements.

The demon, possessing superhuman speed, wasn't a melee fighter; instead, it was a master of magic. While manipulating the head of a beast, extending it to bite and thwart the balora, it simultaneously created more and more black spikes to pierce the balora. Whenever the balora tried to close the distance or swing its whip, the cunning demon would dodge with an absurdly fast speed. Soon, the flames on the balora's body weakened, and its desperate counterattacks grew increasingly feeble.

"You lowly commoners who provoke the king, you ants, die!" the demon roared arrogantly.

The black and red flames transformed in the demon's hand into a javelin several meters long, its surface crackling with black and red lightning. The demon hurled the javelin at the fire demon. A bolt of lightning struck, and the javelin hit the fire demon, piercing its body…

"Hahahaha, this world will eventually submit to my feet, and in the future I will be the king of the world!" The demon, laughing wildly, was about to step forward to tear the fire demon, whose flames had dimmed and were almost extinguished by the javelin wounds. A deep chant, carrying magical power like a tsunami, swept in.

"? ??? ?? , ? ?? . (Elemental chaos, calamity for all beings)" The demon sensed the sudden surge of magical power and turned towards the source of the impending crisis. On the other side of the platform, crimson and dark green light burst forth from the clenched fist of a jet-black hand.

"??, ??? ?. (The sky collapsed and the earth shattered, black wings swept across the sky.)" The surging magical power surged forth, tearing apart the black hand summoned by the demon's magic. The tangible magical power, accompanied by a gale, swept across the entire platform. Black shadows spread out; however, this was not the shadow power the demon usually controlled, but another, even darker energy.

"No!!" Feeling a terrifying power rise within him, the demon screamed in terror, about to rush towards Sharl, who stood still, holding the girl and chanting a spell. However, before he could move, the Balrog's fiery whip pulled him back once more. "Aaaaaah, what is this, what kind of flame is this..." But this time, it wasn't the original flame. The Balrog, who should have been on the verge of death, suddenly erupted with power, like a second transformation. However, for this demon, the second transformation wasn't his own, which was truly a sad topic. The Balrog, now burning fiercely again, was engulfed in black and dark green flames, and the fel energy of destruction and plunder on the whip it lashed out began to annihilate the demon's body, constructed from a twisted soul, various negative emotions, and curses.

The world began to shake. Yes, the castle was shaking, and even the world shrouded in the barrier, existing between reality and illusion, was trembling. Destructive and fel energy began to undermine the foundations of this world, distorting its laws.

"??? ??? ?, ?? . (The earth cracked in all directions, and flames engulfed everything in the apocalypse.)" The earthquake tore open the castle, and red flames spewed out from the gaping hole. Lava erupted as if a live volcano was about to erupt from the castle.

"? ?, ???. (The storm gathers in the sky, the end of time.)" Thunder roared across the heavens, and fiery red cracks tore through the dark night sky. This world was being led towards its end, and the one leading the end held the girl in his arms, arrogantly watching the final moment he had unleashed.

“Unavoidable, unstoppable.” Charles’s voice echoed, shaking the very air. Compared to the demon struggling to break free of his second transformation, Charles was now more deserving of the title of 'king'. The demon who ushered in the end times!!!

The spreading shadows, "(Under the Shadow)," enveloped the entire castle and even the space outside. At this moment, no one could stop Charles from casting his spells; even he himself was powerless. A spell powerful enough to tear the world apart was poised to be unleashed.

"?? (At the time of destruction)"

Lava erupted, shooting hundreds of meters into the air. The power of fire raged wildly, igniting everything flammable and uncookable. This virtual world, created by the barrier and existing between reality and illusion, had come to an end; the hero's battle against the demon king was all a lie. Another, even more ferocious monster forced its way in, pushing the 'demon king' aside and beginning to destroy the world that should have been under his control. Meanwhile, a girl who should have been the 'hero' fell into a deep sleep, held in someone's arms, incidentally allowing someone to achieve the 'sister-in-arms-kill' feat.

“I am the Great Cataclysm.”

The world is collapsing...

Fire and destruction reigned supreme.

91. Lines from a late-stage chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) student

Flames surged forth from the torn earth, and the world trembled in terror. The sky roared, and more and more cracks appeared, tearing open the pitch-black night. Above the ripped sky, fiery rain fell mercilessly upon the world below, hastening its demise.

"No, damn it!!" Faced with the cataclysmic apocalyptic scene, the demon roared madly. Countless wails and curses echoed through the castle and the city beyond, gradually engulfed by fire and lava. From the platform, countless white shadows could be seen tumbling and dancing in the fire rain. Those white shadows were countless souls, imprisoned in this world, imprisoned within the demon's body, tormented and devoured…

Within them, these souls constantly and madly cursed the world, their pain and resentment corrupting them all. Today, as this illusory city teeters on the brink of destruction, these imprisoned souls are released. Though they cannot escape their inevitable demise, until then, it does not prevent them from celebrating the world's impending doom with roars.

But for the original ruler of this world, this was the last thing he wanted to see. The destruction of this world, along with the souls he had painstakingly collected, was the most unacceptable reality for him.

"No!! This is mine, mine, all these souls are mine. You lowly ants, how dare you, how dare you oppose me, oppose me! Oppose your king..." The crazed demon desperately tried to break free from the evil whip binding him, but to no avail. "I will sentence you to death, death..."

"Has this thing gone mad?" After unleashing the full power of the [Cataclysm] spell, Sharl looked at the crazed demon and muttered, "But it seems like none of the demons are truly innocent. Well, in the words of the Toril world... every demon is a chaotic, evil idiot... Oh well, the game should end now!"

"It's you, mortal, you deserve to die!!" the demon roared at Sharl. Although bound by the fel whip and constantly being burned, the demon struggled under the fel flames, trying to attack Sharl. Shadows stretched from the demon's feet towards Sharl, and from them appeared one after another the heads of beasts, lunging to bite at Sharl.

"It's no use!!" All the beast heads, upon approaching Charles, were ignited into torches in mid-air. Charles, watching the demons struggle in vain, said, "If you had agreed before, you'd be living the high life now. Too bad!"

"Hopefully your head will clear up a bit later..." Charles, holding Iris, turned and walked to the edge of the platform. "However, I don't really care if she's a puppet or not, it's all the same..."

"That's it. See you later, you self-proclaimed 'king' demon!" Taking a step forward, Charles jumped off the edge of the platform. "Flame Demon, self-destruct."

roar!!!!!

The balora, which had been pulling at the demon with its long whip, suddenly roared to the sky, its flames surging violently. Fel fire extended from its feet, causing the entire platform to crumble, cracks spreading and eventually collapsing. The fel fire seeped into the cracks and continued downwards…

"Stop! No!!!" Sensing the frenzied aura emanating from the Balrog and the deadly threat emanating from its rapidly expanding magical energy, the demon howled, its body constantly enveloped by twisted souls. "I am immortal! No one can kill me! No one!!!"

Immortality has never been reliable. At least, as far as Ciel knows, there has never been a truly immortal being. Even Alcatel's River of Death has a fatal weakness, and the perfect being, Kaz, eventually turned into a meteorite. So, anyone with a brain and some knowledge knows that the so-called immortality is just a facade. As long as the power to destroy you is strong enough, then immortality is a joke.

However, it is clear that there are many intelligent people in this world, but very few people with extensive knowledge and experience.

Then, in the next instant, the Balrog exploded. Flames poured out from its body, engulfing and destroying the platform. The last remaining intact structure was ultimately consumed by the flames.

——————————Divider Line——————————

More than a dozen carriages lay abandoned on the deserted railway, their empty carriages resembling a bizarre nightmare. It was hard to imagine that not long ago, these carriages were being pulled by locomotives along the tracks. All the passengers had vanished from the train, and it was clear that soon the truth would be revealed, and bizarre rumors would spread everywhere, such as "ghost train."

Now, above the abandoned train carriage, a sudden ripple of vibration appeared in the air. Then, from the ripple in mid-air, a foot emerged, landing precisely on the top of the carriage.

"Speaking of which, wouldn't you call this a Gogol ghost train incident?!" Having stepped back into the real world with his girlfriend in his arms, Charles looked at the abandoned train carriages below and said with interest, "I wonder if there are any people in this world who like to court death like the Russians. But, whatever..." He looked up at a certain point in the void and flashed a bright smile. "The rest is just waiting for those who've drawn enough hatred to come knocking on my door."

After setting Iris down from his princess carry, Charles decided to leave the girl alone. Anyway, given her physical condition, she wouldn't catch a cold in this rainy weather… at most, she'd just get soaked. (Those with dirty minds, go stand in the corner and reflect – the upright and incorruptible paladin uncle's face)

……

Not far from the carriage, in mid-air, with a crack, the void appeared like a shattered mirror, riddled with cracks. With a whoosh, the surrounding space shattered into countless translucent, glass-like fragments that scattered and vanished.

A giant, its body charred black, fell from mid-air and crashed heavily to the ground. This was the demon, but at this moment, the demon no longer possessed its previous arrogance; instead, it was utterly wretched.

“Just as I thought, your power comes from the souls you devour.” Walking up to the demon lying on the ground, Charles said to the heavily wounded and dying demon, “Once that alternate dimension you used to store the souls you devoured is completely destroyed, you will be finished.”

The demon lay on the ground without saying a word, as if he were already dead.

"What a boring tactic!" Charles continued. "Do you think you can fool me with these petty tricks?"

"Or do you really think you can turn the tables?"

"Die, mortal!!" The demon, who had been lying motionless on the ground, suddenly sprang up, its claws crackling with black and red lightning, and lunged at Charles. At the same time, dozens of fully armed knights, emanating black and red mist, appeared behind Charles and raised their various weapons to attack him.

"Sorry..."

"Tiid Klo UI..." [Dragon Roar - Delay Time]

"Now it's my time."

Time seemed to freeze. Looking at the seemingly frozen scene around him, Ciel spread his arms wide and chanted aloud:

“I am a seeker of power.”

“Death is my crown, destruction is my power.”

“??? ???, ? ?? ? (Creating suffering, plundering wealth)”

"(Exchanging passion for power)"

"(To seize power through authority)"

"The darkness of the abyss is my desire, the primordial fire is my ambition."

"? ?? ??? ??? (At the end of the starry sky)"

“I will ignite the divine fire and exalt the kingdom.”

92. The end of my chuunibyou phase.

Why does the Catholic Church extol the holiness of Yahweh? In the Bible, this Creator created a complete world in seven days, revealing his greatness and supremacy. What if a human could accomplish such a miracle? Then, would the human who performed the act of creation truly be human?

In this world, this demon, who had finally escaped his seal after being sealed for hundreds of years and was now severely injured, was forced to ponder this philosophical question. Perhaps, he no longer even had the capacity to think.

The distorted time was restored by the world's rules, and the forbidden scenes became vivid again. But as forbidden time returned to normal, twilight-colored flames rapidly spread from beneath the outstretched arms of the Shall. Unlike the fel fire, which destroyed everything, ended life, and ushered in the end times, the demon felt a tremor of descent into an abyss as it faced the spreading primordial fire. He tried to block the spreading flames, but it was too late. The flames swept through, but instead of bringing intense heat, a thick white fog enveloped the demon and his summoned minions.

"Where am I?" His severe injuries were constantly draining his demonic power, and the alternate dimension had been completely swallowed up by the [Cataclysm] spell. The souls and flesh he had accumulated through blood sacrifices over the centuries, hiding behind the scenes, were now almost entirely depleted. Once he lost all his souls, even he would die.

This is unacceptable to this demon. He gave up his human identity to become what he is now, all for the sake of eternal life! Having finally been reborn, he doesn't want to die now and lose everything.

"Come out, mortal!" the demon roared. "Come out and face me! I'll snap your neck with my own hands. Come out, come out..."

"Give up!" A voice of admonition echoed through the thick fog. "If you're willing to sign a contract and submit to me, then you can still..."

"Delusion!!!" The demon interrupted Charles, roaring, "Humble mortal, lowly commoner, who gave you the right to be so insolent before me? I am the king of this land, the sovereign of all here. You lowly commoner, get out here, I'm going to kill you, come out."

"I don't know which kingdom you're from, nor do I care about your background," Charles's voice rang out. "But now, you're no longer human; you're just a monster, a demon. What kind of king are you?!"

“Shut up! I am the king, and I am the rightful ruler of this world, no matter what. Whether it was hundreds of years ago or now… no one can defy me, no one…”

"Although I know that in most settings, most demons are chaotic idiots," Charles said with a slightly disappointed tone, "I didn't expect the demons in this world to be so brainless... Well, oh well, having an idiot as a shield is better than having nothing at all."

"One last question for you..."

"Submit or be destroyed!"

"Die, you lowly and contemptible mortal! I will kill you with my own hands, you traitorous scoundrel..."

Ciel: "Alright! I understand. You want to kill, right? Fine, I'll grant your wish..."

The thick white fog suddenly churned and then slowly receded to both sides. Light began to shine through the fog, and soon, under the sunlight, the pitch-black fog completely dissipated.

"Where am I? What kind of place is this…?" In the blink of an eye, as the thick fog dissipated, the demon was astonished to find himself in a different world. It was a plaza, surrounded by tall buildings and neat streets. In the distance, a Gothic castle stood on the edge, its clock tower chiming loudly. Above, a sunset painted the sky with the hues of dusk, the sun hovering on the horizon. On the other side, a dark abyss lay devoid of stars. This interplay of light and darkness divided the world into two parts, the echoing bells sounding like a funeral procession for a city shrouded in twilight.

"Welcome, welcome, welcome to my world." The vanished Charles reappeared in the demon's sight.

On the rooftop of the building in front of the demon, on an open balcony, Charles clapped his hands and spoke to the demon. At that moment, to Charles's right, a blue-haired woman wearing a black cloak stood respectfully beside him.

"An alternate dimension? A demiplane?" The demon looked around uncertainly. "No, no, what is this place where we meet the dead?" Fear gripped the demon's soul. He felt the world radiating malice towards him, a desire to devour him and a greedy gaze locking onto him, and the source of this was—this strange world.

"Didn't I tell you? This is my world." Charles spread his arms, proudly and arrogantly declaring, "The world I created is my kingdom. Welcome, you are the first outsider since this place was established..."

"As for our first guest, I believe my subjects will treat you well..."

One after another, fully armed knights appeared in the square. Unlike the knights summoned by the demons, who were shrouded in black and red smoke, the newly appearing knights sent sparks falling from their bodies with each step. Even their exposed skin seemed to be on fire.

Each approaching knight wore a triangular helmet, carried an identical greatsword in one hand, and a much shorter dagger or short sword in the other. Behind each knight fluttered a tattered cloak, as if they had just returned from a brutal battlefield. These knights silently surrounded the demon and his minions, then, in a simultaneous motion, raised their greatswords and daggers, pointing them at their encircled prey!

"If you don't submit, then die!" Charles raised his right hand, looking at the demon with a smile, and said, "Anyway, I'll take your soul."

He swung his right hand down.

"Fran Undead Guard, kill them..."

A dark gray figure charged forward, a knight wielding a greatsword in one hand and a dagger in the other. He swept his greatsword across, beheading a demon servant, while his dagger pierced its chest, tearing it to shreds. Like a pack of wolves hunting, the knights of the Charles attacked their surrounded prey one after another. Despite being fully armed themselves, they possessed unimaginable agility, their greatswords and daggers creating a storm of blades like a meat grinder.

In a mere instant, the attacking knights surrounded the demon's summoned servants and the demon himself. The swordsmanship, which had been like a dance, transformed in the hands of these knights into a howling gray-black storm, a pack of wolves attacking their prey...

"Get out of my way! Get out of my way!!!" the demon roared, using shadows as weapons to fend off the knights who were closing in. His servants had been easily slaughtered in the knights' first wave of attacks. Now, it was his turn, exhausted and badly wounded.