The next moment, Quattro’s figure vanishes.

Not just my vision—my hearing and even my sense of touch should have been sharpened.

Where did he go—

“Now it’s my turn.”

Before I could react, Quattro burst out from behind me and struck me with full force.

The blow came down on my shoulder, slamming me into the ground.

So this is payback, huh?

…I really don’t think I like you all that much, Quattro.

“Just because I don’t like close combat doesn’t mean I’m bad at it.”

As if to prove his words true, his movements were fluid and precise.

The angle of his fists, the direction, the distribution of force.

The clever mix of feints and real attacks to ensure his strikes land.

While our speed wasn’t too different, there was no mistaking it—his experience in battle far outclassed mine.

Every one of my serious attacks was either dodged or nullified, while I struggled to read his moves, unable to fully adopt a defensive stance, taking hit after hit.

“So it seems… huh!”

I swung a large attack and pulled back to create some distance.

My breathing was slightly ragged, while his was steady. Even though it had quickened, it hadn’t turned rough.

“I prefer magic combat… brute fights lack elegance, don’t you think?”

A black light radiates from him.

With this level of strength, I can deflect it without issue.

Coating my fist in light, I strike back against his attack.

“You might be right.”

I close in on Quattro once again.

If he kept relying on teleportation to maintain an advantage, I figured I’d rather force a melee battle.

“I’ve seen the extent of your magic output. The fact that someone who isn’t a Hero could fight me this far is impressive. And that’s why…”

The black light gathers into Quattro’s fist.

And just as that fist is about to strike my core—

“Gah…!?”

Before he can land his blow, my uppercut connects with the underside of his jaw.

“You were saying?”

Then, raising my output even further, I start pummeling Quattro into the ground—harder than before.

I have no talent for magic.

That was a reality I had to accept once I started seriously training.

By borrowing the magic power of Ivy, with whom I share a deep bond, I can activate my abilities.

I can also use her powers.

However, to fully wield Ivy’s strength, I need her assistance.

And if that leaves her exhausted, then what’s the point of me fighting?

So I trained to be able to fight on my own.

And through that training, I discovered something.

Apparently, my personal magic reserves are abnormally high.

Thinking about it, that made sense.

I am constantly connected to Ivy, who possesses nearly infinite magic power.

Humans can store magic like a reservoir.

And it’s common knowledge that when magic exceeds a person’s limit, the excess spills out.

But what happens when someone is continuously supplied with magic beyond their limit?

Nobody had ever known the answer.

Because no one had ever done something so meaningless—except for me, the one person who fights by drawing power from Ivy.

Every time Ivy used magic, a portion of her nearly infinite power flowed to me through our link.

Even if it was a tiny fraction of her total, in sheer volume, it was massive.

Every time I borrowed her strength, every time she unleashed her power, I was continuously supplied with an enormous amount of magic.

And as a result—

“Haaaahhh!!”

“Gah…!?”

My fist pierced through Quattro’s crossed arms, landing straight into his abdomen.

As he was blown backward, I pursued, striking relentlessly with my body enhanced by my overwhelming magic reserves.

If he defended, I would strike with enough force to break through.

If he attacked, I would knock it aside and counter immediately.

That was my sole focus, pouring magic into my strikes as if it were endless.

—Every time my magic reservoir reached its limit, my body adapted, expanding to store even more.

Since the day I picked her up, unnoticed by anyone, my magic capacity had been increasing, little by little.

And now, my magic reserves had become something beyond measure—even to myself.

Like Ivy, I had reached a point where no matter what I did, I would never run out.

“Impossible…! With that much magic power inside you, why isn’t your body breaking apart?!”

I had no answer.

Even if my capacity increased, surely there should have been a limit. But I had never once suffered any physical harm from an excess of magic.

Perhaps the goddess of victory, watching over me from behind, had done something.

…That’s right, Ivy is watching my battle right now.

I have to make sure I fight in a way that I wouldn’t be embarrassed to show her!

“Light Arrow, Five Hundred Barrage.”

At my command, five hundred arrows of light are unleashed.

Each arrow is packed with an enormous amount of magic. By the time the hundredth arrow lands, Quattro’s defenses begin to crack, and the attacks start dealing direct damage.

—Ivy possesses a vast variety of techniques, but I can only use about ten percent of them.

So, in order to grow stronger, I deliberately narrowed down my options.

I only use three techniques in combat: body enhancement magic, Light Arrow, and its upgraded form, Pile Light Arrow, which increases speed and power through layering.

I refined these three techniques to the limit, increased their magic efficiency, and poured an overwhelming amount of power into them.

That’s how I perfected my combat style.

“Light Arrow, One Thousand Barrage.”

A massive array of light arrows appears above me like a chandelier.

To counter, Quattro summons an equal amount of dark energy.

The clash of light and darkness fills the battlefield with a deafening roar.

“Pile Light Arrow, Load.”

But even this thousand-arrow barrage is merely a distraction.

The moment his attention shifts upward, I channel a tremendous amount of magic, strengthening my body beyond its limits.

I charge at Quattro, and the instant my fist makes contact, I unleash the Pile Light Arrows coiled around my arm.

"Gaaahhh!!"

Blood spurts from Quattro's mouth.

But the Pile Light Arrows, infused with an overwhelming amount of magic, have become so hot that they instantly turn even the moisture in his blood into steam.

A sizzling sound fills the air as Quattro is sent flying.

"Pile Light Arrow... Fifty-shot!"

I form a line of Pile Light Arrows between Quattro and me.

Then, I pour magic into my body Reynforcement, pushing my output to the limit and breaking into an all-out sprint.

Using the Pile Light Arrows to accelerate the next Pile Light Arrows, I unleash a strike at the speed of light.

"Tch... Mystic Eye, Release!"

Faced with my attack, Quattro removes his eyepatch, revealing his concealed left eye.

There, in its place, is a crimson eye marked with intricate patterns.

"Negation!"

But the enchantment on my arm is erased, and my Pile Light Arrows disappear.

It seems Quattro's Mystic Eye possesses the ability to nullify magic itself.

However, it does not seem to affect body reinforcement that is already in effect.

In that case, I still have plenty of options!

Punching, kicking, blasting away, sweeping aside—

As I pierce through everything in my way, I continue my relentless assault using sheer brute force powered by body reinforcement.

"T-This is insane... What kind of fighting style is this!?"

"If brute force is enough to push through, then even reason itself can be shoved aside!"

A rising kick lands, sending Quattro's body soaring into the air.

Aiming for his falling figure, I prepare to unleash the strongest attack I am capable of.

If his Mystic Eye nullifies magic... then all I have to do is flood him with so much magic that erasing just one will make no difference!

"Light Arrow, Thousand-shot... times ten! And... Pile Light Arrow, Hundred-shot times ten!"

A massive barrage of Light Arrows and Pile Light Arrows rain down upon the free-falling Quattro.

Quattro tries to use his Mystic Eye to erase the more powerful Pile Light Arrows, but with tens of thousands of Light Arrows layered over them, he struggles to nullify them all as intended.

Against ordinary magic users, he might have been invincible... but against me, that Mystic Eye doesn’t seem all that effective.

Unable to completely erase the attacks, Quattro takes the full brunt of them, his body left in tatters like a rag doll.

And then, I deliver the final blow—

"Pile Light Arrow, load... Take thissssss!!"

With my fist cloaked in light-speed arrows, I land a clean hit on Quattro.

And then...

"Demon King... please..."

With those final words, Quattro crumbles into dust and disappears—

"Hahh... hahh... it's over, right?"

Even if I have an inexhaustible supply of magic, that doesn’t mean I can cast spells without limit.

Magic requires energy to wield, so regardless of my magic reserves, I still get exhausted.

In fact, since I use an absurd amount of magic all at once, my stamina consumption is several times greater than that of normal spellcasting.

Because I had been carelessly expending large quantities of magic to overwhelm Quattro, exhaustion suddenly crashes over me.

It’s not to the point where I’ll pass out, but at the very least... I don’t want to use magic again for a while.

"—Wait, what about Rey!?"

Now that the battle is over and I’ve had a moment to catch my breath, I suddenly remember that another fight had been unfolding nearby.

If Rey is struggling, I need to rush to her aid immediately.

With that thought, I scan my surroundings—

"Guh... ah..."

There, lying on the ground with a radiant, multicolored light piercing through his chest, is Belial.

Blood gushes from his wound as he collapses, revealing the shadowed figure behind him—

Rey, breathing heavily but still conscious.

Looking closer, I see that she is covered in wounds, her entire body battered and bruised.

But the battle seems to be over, and she stares blankly at her sword, as if lost in thought.

"Good work, Rey. It looks like you won, too."

"Ah... ahh, I... I won?"

At first, she seems dazed, but as the realization sinks in, she clenches her fist tightly and looks at me.

Her eyes shine with confidence, more radiant than ever before.

"It was a hard-fought victory. But... what even happened here...?"

Rey looks around at the devastation left by our battle.

The land around us is ravaged, as if struck by a natural disaster.

W-Wow... I might have gone a bit overboard...

"Looking at this, my desperate struggle against Belial feels almost insignificant..."

"N-No, that’s not true! Besides..."

My gaze shifts toward the one place untouched by all the destruction—the staircase, still standing perfectly intact, ominous black energy still seeping out.

"No matter how intense our battles were... they’ll pale in comparison to what’s coming next."

"R-Right... the real fight is still ahead. I can’t let myself get discouraged now!"

As Rey regains her composure, we turn to head back to Ivy, who had been watching our battle.

"Mii!"

With a small hop, Ivy places her feet on my head and begins patting me.

"Mii-mii."

Her gentle touch seems to be praising me, as if telling me I did well.

Her floating expression is a beaming smile, so bright it almost makes me embarrassed.

"Mii!"

"O-Osu!"

When we reach Rey, Ivy crosses her arms.

Then, with a nod, she gives a silent look of approval.

Since she’s Rey’s master, her attitude toward her is different than it is with me.

After taking a short break, we decide to move on as soon as we’re able.

Our destination—the very peak of the Demon King's Castle.

The audience chamber, where the Demon King awaits.

"Mii!"

With a lively bounce in her step, Ivy takes the lead.

Watching her confident figure from behind, I feel not even a trace of doubt—only certainty.