Aozaki Aoko Case File

Since Aoko had already made her stance clear, the Demon King Shabranigdo had no reason to try persuading her further.

The Ruby-Eyed Demon King opened his massive maw, gathering an enormous amount of magical energy into a crimson sphere, which he then hurled directly at Aoko, who was hovering mid-air.

The moment Aoko noticed the Demon King begin to act, she started casting a spell. A semi-transparent force field, enhanced by advanced magical techniques, was erected between her and Shabranigdo.

To be honest, Aoko was taking a gamble against this attack. She was betting that Shabranigdo's attack didn't contain divine power, or that the divine power in this fragment of the Ruby-Eyed Demon King was too diluted to break through her Invincible Force Wall.

If the gamble failed, Aoko planned to immediately cancel her concentration on the force wall, use her Misty Step to escape the attack's range, and then figure out her next move.

Fortunately, it seemed her gamble had paid off. The Invincible Force Wall once again withstood the powerful spell attack, as long as the opponent's attack wasn't something like Disintegrate.

The crimson torrent of energy collided with the force wall, but the thin, semi-transparent barrier didn't budge. The scattered shrapnel from the impact, however, caused considerable damage to the surrounding statues and buildings, indirectly showcasing the immense power of Shabranigdo's attack.

"Th-that's... Dragon Slave!" Zolf exclaimed in shock as he watched Shabranigdo casually unleash the spell. "How is that possible? Isn't Dragon Slave supposed to be...?"

"Dragon Slave was created by the ancient sage, Lei Magnus," Lina said, frowning.

"Lei Magnus? Isn't he the one from the War of the Monsters' Fall…?"

Zolf was confused as to why Lina would bring up such an ancient figure.

"One of the key players in the War of the Monsters' Fall, Shabranigdo's fragment, was sealed within Lei Magnus," Lina explained. "In other words, the sage who created Dragon Slave borrowed power from the fragment."

"You mean…" Zolf's pupils widened as he pieced things together. He suddenly realized how ironic it was that he had once considered using Dragon Slave against Shabranigdo.

"That's right," Lina nodded, turning her gaze toward the ongoing battle between Aoko and Shabranigdo. "The incantation for Dragon Slave—'Darker than twilight, redder than blood'—is a hymn praising Shabranigdo, the Ruby-Eyed Demon King. The spell itself draws upon his power to function."

"So, it's no surprise that Shabranigdo can use Dragon Slave," Zelgadiss added. "It's his power to begin with, just like how the Ragna Blade borrows power from the Lord of Nightmares."

After successfully blocking Shabranigdo's attack, Aoko immediately launched a counterattack. Countless spindle-shaped magical projectiles filled the sky, interweaving and descending like a meteor shower, bombarding Shabranigdo relentlessly.

The Ruby-Eyed Demon King's fragment was caught off guard by this mortal's unexpected capabilities. Moreover, her magic was peculiar; while it appeared to deal spell damage, the impact felt more like a purely physical force—and it injured him!

Interesting, Shabranigdo thought. This mortal can hurt me with magic? Could it be some kind of contingency left behind by that decrepit old Red Dragon God? Doesn't seem like it...

With that thought, Shabranigdo flapped his wings and ascended into the air, facing Aoko at her level. This opponent was not someone he could afford to take lightly. He needed to go all out to eliminate her before he could focus on recovering the other fragments of his body.

The Ruby-Eyed Demon King's four arms moved into a strange formation, and four Dragon Slaves launched from different directions toward Aoko, forcing her to counter with a combination of magic projectiles, force walls, and teleportation spells to evade.

After all, this world wasn't Aoko's home universe. If her Fifth Magic were functioning at full capacity, she could've used her Redshift to simply tank Shabranigdo's attacks without dodging. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case here.

Although her Magic Circuits continued to provide her with an endless supply of mana, her output capacity was being suppressed. She couldn't overwhelm her opponent with sheer magical brute force and destroy him outright.

The battle between Aoko and Shabranigdo grew more intense with each passing moment. While Lina, Zolf, and Zelgadiss also launched various magical attacks at Shabranigdo, the Ruby-Eyed Demon King ignored everything except Aoko's projectiles, as the others' spells couldn't harm him at all.

"This is bad," Lina said worriedly as she watched Aoko in the sky. "Miss Aoko might be able to hurt Shabranigdo, but his regeneration is way too fast. Once Aoko starts to tire, her combat effectiveness will drop, and that's when things will get dangerous."

Lina's concerns were valid. Although Aoko had seemingly infinite mana, her body in this world was still subject to fatigue. This was because she couldn't use the Fifth Magic to lock or reverse her physical state. Moreover, her spell slots were limited, and she couldn't maintain aerial combat indefinitely.

It wouldn't be an overstatement to say that this was the strongest opponent Aoko had ever faced. Even the Primates' Murder she encountered before becoming a Magician didn't give her as much pressure as Shabranigdo did.

This felt like being pushed back by a steadily advancing wall. While she could hold her ground for now, failure seemed inevitable in the long run.

If worst came to worst, Aoko decided she'd have to retreat with her companions, dragging them back to her world of Type-Moon's Earth. But as for this world, she'd have no choice but to abandon it.

Even as she carefully countered Shabranigdo's attacks, this was what Aoko was considering in her mind.

Unbeknownst to her, however, Lina Inverse had decided after much hesitation. She couldn't bear to see this world and her companions perish at the hands of the Demon King. Lina decided it was time to bring out her trump card.

"Gourry, lend me the Sword of Light," Lina said calmly. "I'm going to use that technique."

In this critical moment, Gourry didn't waste time asking questions. Trusting Lina completely, he handed over the Sword of Light.

As Lina gripped the hilt, the blade of light extended, becoming longer and wider than when Gourry wielded it. Holding the sword horizontally, she placed one hand on the hilt and the other on the blade, then closed her eyes.