Chapter 576: Chapter 576: Stripping down his Power...
Trinity Abyss, a Demon King from another world, sought to escape his world's cycle of reincarnation.
He transferred the Demon King Factor to his daughter Lilith by fathering her—then waited for a chance to once again obtain demonic power and destroy his old world. That was how he planned to restore himself to Demon King–level strength.
"That's my plan, Newly Awakened Demon King. How do you like it?"
Trinity Abyss fearlessly laid out his entire scheme.
"You have no right to call yourself Lilith's father!"
Kasuga Hijiri fixed him with a hostile glare. Her very first friend at this academy had been Lilith, so she was furious.
"Hmph, Demon King? More like a spineless coward!"
Snap, snap!
Selena pulled out her camera and snapped a few shots of Trinity Abyss.
"I'm gonna post these all over campus. The title will be: 'History's Most Cowardly, Most Despicable Demon King!'"
"…" Ai Hayasaka stood to the side, her mouth twitching. Isn't provoking the enemy like that kind of risky? As an ordinary human, she alone truly understood how terrifying a Demon King could be.
The aura alone that Trinity Abyss radiated upon appearing had nearly stopped her heart—if not for some sort of barrier protecting her (obviously Rei Ao's doing).
Ai deeply regretted coming here. She felt completely useless, and this place was insanely dangerous. The first time she visits another world, she immediately encounters a Demon King–level threat? Talk about high-stakes!
"Coward? You're calling me a coward?!"
That word seemed to strike a nerve in Trinity Abyss. His eyes went bloodshot, and crimson light burst from his body. Glaring murderously at Selena for a moment, he then turned his gaze on Rei Ao.
"New Demon King, you should already know what reincarnation means. Don't tell me you aren't angry about it, that you aren't scared?"
He wanted to see fear on Rei Ao's face to soothe his own humiliation. But in the end, he was disappointed. Rei Ao's expression remained perfectly calm, completely devoid of any emotional reaction—like a lofty deity looking down from on high.
"Rei Ao, can I cut him down?"
Hearing Trinity Abyss insult Rei Ao made Yatogami Tohka bristle. Her greatsword, Sandalphon, was itching for a fight.
"Lilith is still under his control. Leave it to me,"
Rei Ao said, turning his gaze on Trinity Abyss.
"You're asking if I fear reincarnation? Sorry to disappoint, but I'm not worried about that at all—because, like you, I'm also from another world."
"Hm?"
Trinity Abyss froze for a moment, then let out a wild laugh.
"Hahahaha! So that's how it is… So you're the real coward. You already accomplished what I haven't—I see it all now!"
He clearly believed Rei Ao was just like him: a Demon King from another world who had replaced this world's Demon King.
"Hahaha, excellent, excellent! This only proves my logic was right!"
Seeing a living example right in front of him made Trinity Abyss even more excited.
"Sigh."
Rei Ao shook his head with a light sigh.
"It seems you've misunderstood something. But it doesn't matter."
"Because this world will no longer have any reincarnation."
At these words, Rei Ao spread his arms wide.
"!!!"
Trinity Abyss jerked his head up in shock. All at once, he and everyone else vanished from the dark dungeon and found themselves under the bright sun, high up in the sky.
"Aahhh!!!"
Ai Hayasaka let out a cry upon seeing nothing but open air beneath her feet.
"You…"
Trinity Abyss started to demand an explanation of what Rei Ao had just done, but the next instant, he fell silent, dumbfounded. A blur moved, and suddenly a hand was clamped around his throat.
"!!!"
He tried to pull away on reflex, to fight back—but he realized his power was trembling with fear, as though paralyzed, refusing to obey him. The arm gripping his neck had a force like it could bind the entire world. In no time at all, he was reduced to a powerless chick, all his former bluster gone.
Rei Ao, his face icy, stared at him from up close.
"Allow me to introduce myself properly. I'm not 'the Demon King' anymore. I'm… the One and Only God."
"I said this world will have no further reincarnation."
The pronouncement was like a peal of thunder, echoing across the heavens. Trinity Abyss's expression went blank.
He could sense the fabric of reality shifting.
"Impossible… Reincarnation… gone…"
What had just happened? Why could this "Demon King" in front of him erase the cycle of reincarnation with just a few words?
"What have you done?!?!"
He demanded an answer, confused how he and Rei Ao could differ so greatly. Why did Rei Ao have the power to change the laws of the world with a single statement?
"Heh."
Rei Ao, having just taken control of this world's essence to become its sole god, saw no point in responding to something so trivial. Instead, he gestured, summoning the vacant-eyed Lilith to his side.
"Wake up, Lilith."
His soft call seemed to restore light to Lilith's hollow gaze. A moment of confusion later, her eyes locked onto the pitiful sight of Trinity Abyss—her father.
Even though she'd lost control of her body just moments before, she could still sense everything that happened around her. She'd heard it all loud and clear—especially the things Rei Ao had warned her about, confirmed by the mouth of the father she'd never met (but whose bond she felt). Lilith's heart felt as if it were being shredded.
"Do you have anything to say to your daughter, as your dying words?"
Rei Ao offered Trinity Abyss—who, realizing the vast difference in their abilities, had abandoned all resistance—one last chance.
"…Dying words…"
Trinity Abyss paused, then gave a grim smile.
"Heh… So it seems I can't escape my fate after all. How ironic."
He let out a bitter laugh, then turned to look at Lilith, who appeared deeply upset.
"Hmph. If I'd simply reclaimed your Demon King Factor back then and obtained my full power, everything would've turned out differently. Too bad."
Even in the end, those words were utterly merciless—just him regretting that he hadn't acted sooner.
"…"
Lilith bit her lip so hard she trembled. Her last shred of hope for her father dissolved right then and there.
"He's all talk."
Rei Ao could see that Trinity Abyss was, in his own twisted way, trying to make Lilith hate him, perhaps believing that hate could blunt her sorrow. All the way until the end, he was walking the darkest path.
Releasing Trinity Abyss's throat, Rei Ao stepped back.
"Huh?"
Trinity Abyss blinked in surprise. But a moment later, his expression changed drastically as he shouted:
"My power!"
With a simple tug, Rei Ao had extracted all of the Demon King Factor—from both Trinity Abyss and Lilith's body.
"He's now lost every shred of his Demon King power, and he'll remain an ordinary human. His fate of becoming a Demon King is gone."
"Since he's your father, I'll let you decide how to handle him."
Leaving those words to Lilith, Rei Ao brought everyone else back down to the surface.
~~~
For Every 100 Powerstone = 1 Bonus Chapter! Please Vote for more Chapters!
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 200 Chapters Ahead of Others!