What if you are reborn as a demon after a funeral?.

Because demons learn magic on their own, they don't need a lot of theoretical foundations; they can build magic from scratch. But humans can't do that, and humans don't even have the most basic theoretical foundation for spatial magic.

Or rather, the foundation was interrupted from the very beginning. After all... the space of this world seems a bit too solid, and various theories that should have taken shape basically lose their meaning and are eventually abandoned, as it is considered impossible.

"But what kind of technique is this? It doesn't seem like a self-destruction, or even an attack..."

He stared at the magic circle at his feet, casually kicked it, and wiped away some of it... but it was pointless anyway.

Because the magic circle had been fully activated, strange effects appeared in mid-air, but he didn't feel anything was about to appear, nor did he feel anything being summoned.

...............................

Ash didn't move, and the other members of the Empire who were standing still naturally didn't dare to move either, just standing there trembling with fear.

The entire hall was shrouded in an aura of death, like a grave about to bury them, making everyone breathe softly, afraid of being noticed.

This excessively quiet and tense state did not last long.

Dozens of purple beams flew in suddenly and silently, like shooting stars chasing the moon, and were already upon them in the blink of an eye.

Huh? What's going on? — The moment Ash looked up and his gaze truly caught the beam of light, he realized something was wrong and sensed the approaching attack.

Throughout the entire process, there was no sign of activation whatsoever. Magic detection seemed to completely fail at this moment, and even intuition seemed to have suddenly vanished.

This extremely abrupt attack made him feel extremely uncomfortable.

Ash didn't have time to use defensive magic, so he could only choose to teleport away.

However, the "web of death" was too dense. With a "poof!" sound, a beam of light pierced through his shoulder, and his thigh was also grazed by the beam, causing a long-lost, excruciating pain to return, and he could even see his own blood splattering out.

At that moment, he finally understood that the magic circle was actually a backup plan.

His own magical iron wall was stronger than ordinary defensive magic, but it was directly pierced through, and even his body was pierced... If he had been even slightly slower, his heart would probably have been pierced through.

If it were a pure mage, there would be no chance of survival, since even if the mind could react, the body certainly couldn't keep up.

Because... those remaining comrades in front of him, as well as those who had wanted to fight but had lost their will to fight, were almost instantly riddled with holes. They didn't even have time to scream before they all fell into pools of blood.

"...I can understand being blocked, but where exactly is this attack coming from—?!"

He looked at his deceased friends with regret, but before he could figure out what was going on, a group of "corpses" behind him silently leaped up.

Two longswords, two long sabers, and a halberd—without exception, they all aimed at vital points and attacked from different angles.

The speed was astonishing, and more importantly... with his senses stripped away or rather, blocked, the Shadow Warrior, who was extremely skilled in assassination, moved without making a sound. He hadn't even had a presence before, so Ash, despite being on guard, couldn't detect him.

Just as the fastest longsword silently slashed down and touched his shoulder, Ash immediately noticed the problem and reacted, trying to dodge to the side.

Before his magical defenses could recover, the longsword that swung at him still tore through his clothes, leaving a deep bloodstain on his back.

Immediately afterwards, the halberd lashed out from the right like a venomous snake. He couldn't dodge in time and hurriedly leaned back, letting the halberd's blade graz his chest, tearing his clothes open but... without breaking his skin.

"Damn it!" Ash hissed, a surge of anger rising within him.

He didn't mind getting injured on the battlefield, nor did he care about this level of injury; he had suffered much worse injuries before.

But these guys are really too... frustrating.

It didn't really matter if the halberd couldn't hurt him, but damaging his clothes was a very insulting act, though not extremely harmful.

Despite his right hand, which was gripping the blade, being unexpectedly unable to lift due to his previous injury, he dropped the longsword and instead of advancing, retreated to meet the attack head-on.

He suddenly swung his left arm, like a black lightning bolt, striking with astonishing speed to deliver a decisive blow.

"Bang! Bang!" With two loud bangs, the heads of the two shadow warriors exploded instantly under Ash's powerful punches.

Blood mist instantly filled the air, and shattered bones and flesh flew everywhere.

The remaining shadow warriors were all startled by this sudden scene, and they reflexively stopped in their tracks.

The surprise attack had lost its effect, and the Shadow Warriors were now on the defensive.

Looking at the injured yet still demon-like boy before them, the remaining shadow warriors wore increasingly grim expressions.

They knew full well that the situation was extremely unfavorable for them, but they were helpless and could only silently pray that the deadly poison released on the weapons and in the air would work and bring them a glimmer of hope for a turnaround.

...............................

...............................

In the hall strewn with corpses, Ash, surrounded in the middle, never expected that these shadow warriors were hiding here.

Because—when he was slaughtering them, they must have been hiding among the crowd.

However, most of them were killed by him without showing any real strength, so much so that he thought they were all guarding the emperor's side.

Unexpectedly, these assassins were so patient, dying silently in frustration until this moment when they seized the opportunity to strike him... their weapons were even coated with deadly poison.

"How boring... It's all just petty tricks, so annoying."

While their fearless courage in the face of death is commendable, their overly manipulative behavior left Ash, while moving his injured right arm, looking not only disdainful but also extremely impatient.

Meanwhile, the one-eyed shadow warrior, disguised as a mage, removed his human skin mask at this moment, revealing half of his disfigured face.

This person was none other than the middle-aged nobleman in Ransen's memory who always wore a neat suit, a pirate-style single eye patch, and had blond hair with a tuft of hair in his ponytail.

"The lord of the northernmost territory of the Empire, the Rolbaya Territory... Levi? A nobleman actually resorting to such methods?" Ash narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Though I am a nobleman, I am also a shadow... and a shadow should fight in the way of a shadow. Great deeds will not be engraved in history, and naturally, I do not need beautiful decorations. I only need to fight like a ghost, abandoning pride and glory, and pursuing victory with all my might."

The one-eyed nobleman, the shadow warrior—Levi—did not bow or do anything like a nobleman, but simply gazed at him calmly and gave his answer indifferently.

Although he didn't become a nobleman because he was the strongest warrior in the empire, it was purely because... he was a nobleman first, and then he became a warrior.

However, it seems that when he is fighting, he pays more attention to the fighting style of the Shadow Warrior.

After stating his beliefs without reservation, Levi simply stared at him expressionlessly, as if he had him completely under his control, and said:

"Surrender. Besides the deadly poison, you also have many drugs in your body that are not really deadly poisons, but rather have paralyzing and sleeping effects. Even if you can resist the poison, you can't resist these drugs."

"I see. Are you talking to me now while waiting for the drug to take effect?" Ash, who was skillfully bandaging his wounds, glanced at him with surprise and sneered, "I thought you were waiting to die."

"...If you now pledge allegiance to the Empire, I can still plead with His Majesty for leniency, spare your life, and even give you the opportunity to serve the Empire." Although puzzled as to why he was still standing, Levi was simultaneously trying to provoke him, hoping to make him lose his composure in anger, while also keeping a wary eye on him.

However... Ash not only wasn't angry, but his gaze even held a hint of pity:

"Do you really think that if I'm slightly injured, or poisoned, and become a little weaker, you can easily defeat me?"

“It seems you truly don’t know your own limitations. This place is our home turf. You, who are seriously injured and poisoned here, absolutely cannot defeat us… or rather, defeat me.” Levi was not angry either, but instead calmly stared at him.

In his view, Ash, who was severely poisoned, was already at his limit. No matter how powerful he was, he could not escape their encirclement. It was impossible for him not to be poisoned, after all... no human being could be exempt.

With just a glance, the shadow warriors around him once again launched a swarm attack on Ash.

Even if they were disguised as soldiers or other characters, and didn't put up any excessive resistance, the shadow warriors who survived the previous situation were all highly skilled. They should have been able to at least stall for time, but...

boom--!!!

"Even I'm a little annoyed right now." Ash just stared at them coldly, and his powerful repulsive force expanded wildly in all directions like a raging tsunami.

Those who attacked were like fallen leaves swept by a gale, instantly being flung away at an even faster speed than when they arrived.

Levi alone, whose speed surpassed the speed of sound, and who imbued his sword with magic, allowing him to break through the repulsive force and attempt to strike Ash's heart.

But before he could reach his target, he was astonished to notice that the figure in front of him was expanding and changing at an alarming speed, and even—transforming into a demon.

This startled him, and an unprecedented fear, like a cold, venomous snake, quickly crept up his spine.

But his sword strike was already unleashed. Yet, upon seeing Ash's change, he hesitated for a moment. But the arrow was already on the bowstring and had to be released. He could only grit his teeth and continue forward, hoping that this all-out attack would break through the defense once again.

But before he could even touch it, in the blink of an eye, lightning burst forth beneath Ash's feet.

The sudden burst of lightning instantly tore through the seemingly indestructible floor. At the same time, a terrifying gravity, like an invisible mountain, crashed down, making Levi feel as if he were being crushed by the air directly above him. His body was pressed tightly against the ground, and his movements were momentarily halted.

But Ash's figure was completely unaffected, as if he could instantly traverse space and appear in front of him without warning.

Before Levi could react, Ash's left fist, as powerful as a cannonball, slammed into his face with a deafening roar that broke the sound barrier.

The exaggerated force made it impossible for him to maintain his balance. He was sent flying far away without any resistance, his body bouncing like a skipping stone, crashing to the ground and flying far away again and again.

The remaining shadow warriors who had just been swatted away hadn't even gotten up from the ground when Ash raised his palm slightly, causing them to suddenly feel an anti-gravity force that made them lose their balance and float into the air along with all the corpses, even crashing into the ceiling.

Before they could even figure out what was going on, Ash suddenly slammed his hand down.

All the corpses and shadow warriors in the entire hall were slammed to the ground with a loud "Boom!!" as his palm swung down.

The unimaginable gravity brought about an even more unimaginable and powerful impact.

Their eyes widened as their bones were shattered almost instantly, and their limbs were nearly embedded in the broken ground.

Their bodies were brutally torn apart, and their eyes even collapsed, causing them to collectively lose their sight.

The corpses were in an even worse state. Their bodies, now devoid of magical protection, were as if they had been smashed to the ground by an invisible, enormous iron hammer, losing all human form and turning into an indistinguishable mass of flesh.

In an instant, the hall, already littered with corpses, was transformed into a gruesome hell of flesh mixed with blood, and the smell in the air was nauseating.

...............................

Neither the screams bursting from everyone's mouths, nor the blood gushing out like a fountain when gravity was lifted, nor the mud and human flesh scattered all over the ground, could arouse Ash's interest in the slightest.

But this sudden blow made Levi, whose body was the most robust among all the shadow warriors present, feel as if all the air in his lungs had been sucked out in an instant when he was suddenly struck, and he was in so much pain that he couldn't say a word.

But he was no ordinary man. As Ash slowly walked over, stepping on the flesh, he suddenly flipped over and stood up, and with astonishing force, slashed at Ash's neck again.

His sword speed far exceeded the limits of the naked eye, but...

Ash didn't even bother to pick up his fallen sword. He simply raised his hand and accurately caught the trajectory of Ash's attack, then lightly flicked the sword against the blade.

That's all there was to it. An irresistible force made it impossible for Levi to hold his beloved sword. In fact, the moment it flew out of his hand, it shattered with a "bang!" into countless tiny metal fragments that flew and embedded themselves in the wall behind him.

Even a longsword imbued with countless magical powers showed no resistance whatsoever to this extreme repulsive force.

"....!"

When Levi saw this, his wrist, which had been broken by the force of the repulsion when he was unwilling to let go earlier, suddenly narrowed his eyes and instinctively wanted to retreat and create distance, hoping to find other hope of winning... or rather, surviving.

But Ash's figure reappeared in front of him as if by shadow, and slowly raised his hand as if to gently touch his forehead with his fingertips.

Even though he hadn't used any force, Levi felt as if he'd been hit by a battering ram.

An invisible pressure, even vibrating the air, produced a loud bang, and his body, with his head as the vanguard, flew backward in a bizarre posture.

The back of his head slammed hard against the wall behind him, causing his vision to blur and his consciousness to become hazy from the impact.

"I may have become a little weaker, but—that doesn't mean you've become stronger! Want to defeat me... you're not qualified." In that blurry vision, Ash's figure reappeared before him, coldly speaking these words, and once again extending his finger:

"What kind of toxin is absolutely irresistible to humans? As you can see, I'm not human. It's none of my business if humans can't be immune. As for your level of immunity... you're so shallow that I don't even need to touch you. I could crush you with just one finger. Yes, like this."

As he finished speaking, Ash pressed his fingertips against Ash's forehead once more.