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...
Whoosh,Â
It was as if a gentle breeze swept through, and then, with Badr at its epicenter, an eerie silence descended upon the surroundings.Â
As though breaking through some invisible barrier, Badr's boundless aura abruptly vanished without a trace.
The young man, who had been standing with his eyes closed, slowly opened them, his gaze calm and unreadable.
Badr saw Rias and the others standing nearby. His expression remained neutral as he glanced at the surrounding corpses, his brow furrowing slightly.
He stepped forward. With each step, an invisible wave of demonic power emanated outwards, causing the corpses to melt away like snowflakes.
"Is the battle over?" Badr asked Rias softly.
"It's finished," Rias replied, her eyes widening as she sensed the complete lack of demonic power emanating from Badr. "W.. Why can't I sense any demonic power from you at all...?"
"It's a bit complicated to explain, I'll tell you more later."
Badr smiled faintly, his demeanor relaxed and unconcerned.
Vali, who had been hovering in the sky, descended and approached them.
"I can sense it. You've definitely become stronger."
"Careful."
Rias immediately warned Badr, "He's the one who betrayed Azazel and told the enemy about the location of our meeting."
Badr nodded, his gaze shifting to Vali. His tone remained calm.
"So you're the traitor. Why did you do it?"
"My true name is Vali Lucifer," Vali replied nonchalantly.
Aside from Azazel, the name "Lucifer" caused everyone present to narrow their eyes.
So this guy was also a descendant of the original Satans?
Badr, however, remained unfazed. He said calmly,
"You don't seem like the type who would care about the position of Satan."
"Indeed. I'm merely the product of a union between the Satan Lucifer and a human woman. I have no interest in the throne. All I've ever wanted is to battle strong opponents."
Vali Lucifer chuckled.
"I simply thought that if you signed the peace treaty, you'd lose your drive to become stronger. How boring this world would become then. As expected, you didn't disappoint me."
"So I've been on your mind this whole time?"
Badr responded flatly, his voice betraying no emotion.
"We're the same, aren't we? You also yearn to become stronger. Come, fight me!"
Vali pointed at Badr, his aura brimming with intensity.
"I do yearn for strength, but we are not the same."
Badr shook his head, then gestured lightly. "However, I suppose you won't give up until I've beaten you, will you?"
"Exactly. What are you going to do?"
"Exactly what you want, of course."
Badr stepped forward. His body held no trace of demonic power, yet he effortlessly rose into the air, floating towards Vali, their eyes meeting across the vast expanse.
"What's going on with him now? How is he doing that?"
Sona Sitri and the others couldn't comprehend Badr's current state.
"It's a powerful state known as Absolute Mastery"Â
Serafall Leviathan, the Maou, explained to her sister, "Reaching this level signifies complete control over one's magical power, without wasting a single drop."
Whether angel or devil, there's always a degree of leakage or wastage of holy or demonic power, especially during combat. This is what's commonly referred to as externalized magical power.
That's why you often see scenes where the more powerful a spell is, the more intense the externalized magical power, creating an awe-inspiring spectacle.
But in reality, that externalized power is just for show, a pure waste...
Most beings have no way to prevent this wastage, but some, through complete mastery over their power, can achieve a state of zero leakage.
Badr had miraculously reached this state of returning to the basics.
Clang,Â
King Sword appeared in his hand, and King Shield materialized before him, rotating slowly around his body.
"Heh! I'm attacking! Be ready!"
With that declaration, Vali, clad in his white armor, vanished from his spot.
Without even looking, Badr swung his sword to the right.
Clang!!
King Sword met the incoming Divine Dividing, the white dragon's light wings, with pinpoint accuracy!
A faint smile touched Badr's lips. King Sword in his hand seemed devoid of any menacing aura. His swing appeared effortless, its trajectory clear due to its seemingly slow speed.
Boom!!
He crashed into the ground, creating a crater over a hundred meters wide. The surrounding earth cracked and splintered under the impact.
"A being with Absolute Mastery can mask their attacks, making it difficult for opponents to gauge the true strength of their demonic power..."
Sirzechs Lucifer muttered, a smile spreading across his face. "impressive. To think he could reach such a strength..."
Rias and the others looked on with excitement.
Badr's seemingly ordinary sword strike had actually contained an immense amount of demonic power. Vali had clearly misjudged it, resulting in him being sent flying by the devastating blow.
Vali roared, launching himself back into the air, showing no signs of discouragement. His roar was filled with exhilaration.
"Excellent! You're worthy of my full power!"
Badr merely smiled faintly, his voice calm and confident.
"Come."
...
Vali's demonic power surged as he got serious.
He unfurled Divine Dividing, the white dragon's light wings, and a wave of demonic power washed over Badr.
Badr's heightened senses instantly detected something amiss.
Hum,Â
Space trembled as a colossal black city materialized within a dimensional gap, filling the entire sky of the pocket dimension.
He had activated the [Endless Dusk City], placing himself in a state of perpetual [Stasis].
"Excellent vigilance. Vali's ability has been countered."
Azazel chuckled, praising Badr's quick reaction.
"The Vanishing Dragon's power is [Half Dimension]. It weakens the target's power by half every ten seconds and absorbs that lost power to enhance its own abilities."
Sirzechs and the others were well-versed in the abilities of the White Dragon Emperor, one of the Two Heavenly Dragons. Badr had also anticipated this move.
His response was undeniably perfect.
The [Stasis] effect of the [Endless Dusk City] rendered him immune to all status changes, effectively nullifying Vali's [Half Dimension].
Vali, however, wasn't discouraged.
"As expected, your Sacred Gear's ability can resist my [Half Dimension]. Truly An impeccable defense..."
Badr smiled faintly, his voice calm.
"It's more powerful than you imagine."
"Is that so? Then I'm even more eager to experience it!"
Vali's demonic power surged as he transformed into a streak of white light, hurtling towards Badr like a meteor.
Even without halving Badr's power, Vali's own strength was not to be underestimated!
Badr swung King Sword. As he activated his Juggernaut Drive, King Sword's amplification reached its full potential, boosting Badr's power tremendously.
This time, King Sword's amplification reached a terrifying twentyfold.
He maintained absolute control over his demonic power, not wasting a single drop, utilizing every ounce to its fullest.
But to outsiders, it appeared as though he was facing the Juggernaut Drive-activated White Dragon Emperor with his bare flesh. Each clash between them sent ripples through space.
This was, after all, just a hastily constructed pocket dimension created by the magicians. After the initial activation of the apocalyptic magic, the dimension had become unstable. Now, battered by the shockwaves of their battle, it seemed on the verge of collapse.
"Doesn't Badr need to Promote?" Akeno Himejima asked Rias curiously.
"It seems... he already Promoted himself,"Â
Rias replied, a puzzled expression on her face.
She, the [King], hadn't even had the chance to designate a territory for Promotion...
Sirzechs, with his greater knowledge, simply shook his head.
"You underestimate the power of Absolute Mastery. Promotion is a limitation imposed by the Evil Pieces. With Absolute Mastery, he can now break free from that limitation."
In other words, Badr could now freely wield the full power of the Evil Pieces without the need for a designated Promotion area...
"T-that's completely breaking the rules," Sona Sitri said, feeling a sense of helplessness.
She imagined the headache it would cause if she had to face Badr, a walking cheat code, during a Rating Game against Rias in the future.
"I have a feeling this is far from his limit," Michael chuckled.
Behind him, Irina Shidou's expression was complex.
She had been able to spar with Badr before, but after just a short time apart, he had become so powerful...
Just how monstrous was his talent...
Badr was indeed stronger than ever before.
But his current opponent was the White Dragon Emperor, one of the Two Heavenly Dragons.
"Not enough! Your power is impressive, but it hasn't reached my expectations! You can get even stronger, can't you? Right!"
Vali seemed to be getting even more excited, each of his moves infused with immense demonic power.
He had maintained his Juggernaut Drive for a considerable amount of time. The price for using Juggernaut Drive was the consumption of one's life force or demonic power, yet Vali's demonic power showed no signs of weakening.
"Vali has been able to maintain his Juggernaut Drive for over a month since a long time ago. Trying to stall is pointless," Azazel reminded them with a chuckle.
Everyone watching was stunned.
This generation's White Dragon Emperor host was far more powerful than they had anticipated...
How would Badr respond?
Seemingly realizing the same thing, after exchanging dozens of blows and noticing that Vali's demonic power wasn't diminishing, Badr created some distance between them.
Swish!
A longsword radiating holy aura appeared in his hand.
"The Dragon Slayer, Ascalon? My, what a fated coincidence," Azazel chuckled.
The legendary [Dragon Slayer] facing one of the [Two Heavenly Dragons]. This battle was getting increasingly interesting.
"A holy sword that once slew a dragon, huh? A fine weapon, but it won't do much against me. If you think you can defeat me with just that sword, you're delusional."
...
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