"You seem to be in a haste, little ones. Your death is inevitable; why are you trying to hasten it?" the entity asked, his voice dripping with malice.
"Are Demon Lords always this dumb, or are you just a special exception?" Leo asked, his tone laced with sarcasm.
"You talk big for a mere child," the demon hissed. "I am Shina, one of the Seven Great Demon Lords. Do you really believe the two of you stand a chance against me?"
"Oh, it's you, Shina... long time no see," Leon said, his voice dropping into a cold, familiar register. "Do you still remember me?"
Shina took a deep, piercing glance at Leon, peering directly into his soul. Suddenly, the realization hit him like a physical blow—he recognized the soul he had killed nearly a thousand years ago.
"It's you... the Red Demon Slayer, Mikasi Haruna!" the demon exclaimed in shock. "So, you somehow found a way back here. Do you really think you can defeat me now, considering you lost back then?"
"I'm certain I can," Leon said, a sinister smile creeping onto his face. "As a matter of fact, I'd like to show you exactly how."
"What makes you think they are alone?" Damian shouted, stepping forward. Amy followed close behind, her eyes narrowed.
"I knew there was something off about you," Amy added. "Anyway, that won't be a problem for us. After all, it's four against one."
The other students remained down, including Glen, who was still unconscious from her previous battle. The Demon Lord stared at the four of them for a moment before bursting into mocking laughter.
"Do you really believe the four of you can defeat me? I have seen all you have to offer, and I know your limits. You are nothing but dust to me," Shina said, his ego on full display.
"You've underestimated us, and you are about to feel our wrath!" Damian yelled confidently.
"Pathetic," Shina replied. He pointed a hand toward the group as dark flames erupted from his palm. He blasted the fire toward them; they all raised shields in response, but Damian and Amy's barriers shattered instantly under the sheer force of the inferno. The impact sent them flying backward, leaving them heavily damaged and barely able to stand.
"How is that possible? Why is he so strong?" Damian gasped, his body shaking in pain.
Is this the true power of a Demon Lord? Amy thought, struggling just to sit up. However, despite the devastation around them, the princes remained completely unfazed.
"Well, I'm impressed. It seems the princes aren't so weak after all," Shina said, his voice echoing through the emptiness.
"You guys can relax. We've got this," Leon said, looking back at Damian and Amy while completely ignoring the Demon Lord's presence.
"Is there a way for you to leave this place?" Leon asked.
"Yes, there is a spell to exit the pocket dimension," Damian replied, still struggling to catch his breath.
"Then use it. Take everyone with you. Don't worry, we'll be fine," Leo added firmly.
Amy and Damian struggled to their feet and gathered the unconscious students together. Damian began the chant: "The great gate through which dimensional barriers are doors: Open Space Gate!" A black circle manifested above and below them, glowing with intense energy. However, just as it reached its peak, it suddenly shattered into thousands of fragments.
"What happened?!" Damian asked in total shock.
"Oh, I forgot to mention," Shina replied, brimming with confidence. "This is not a pocket dimension... it is the Void that exists beyond the multiverse. This is the absolute Void, and your space distortion spells won't work here because space and time simply do not exist in this realm."
"No... no, that can't be!" Damian stammered, realization dawning on him.
"That's not a problem," Leon said calmly. He stretched his hand toward Damian and the others and commanded: "Open: Void Path."
A shining white circle opened beneath the group, and they all fell through the light, reappearing safely back in the classroom.
"Don't you think that was a poor decision? They might have been of help if you fall," Shina sneered.
"Tell me," Leon said, stretching his body as his mana began to vibrate. "What makes you think we would fall?"
"Well then... let's make it interesting," Shina said, touching the ground. "Truth Seal: Caged!"
Shina stood back up, his eyes glowing with dark power. "I have totally sealed the Void. Even your 'Void Path' won't work now. Neither you nor I can escape. You would need power equal to destroying infinite universes to shatter this cage. Either you kill me, I kill you, or we remain trapped here forever. Demons can live for eternity without food or water; you, however, cannot. You are at a distinct disadvantage."
"Leon," Leo called out telepathically. They had altered the 'Third Eye' spell into a permanent mental link. "You've fought a Demon Lord before. On a scale of one to ten, how strong do you think he is?"
"I'd say a nine," Leon replied telepathically.
"This will be fun, then," Leo thought back.
Leon faced Shina directly, a look of absolute liberation on his face. "So, you said we couldn't leave even if we gave it our all? That's perfect... it means we can finally go all out."
Both Leon and Leo smiled—a terrifying, genuine smile. This was exactly what they had wanted: a place capable of handling every ounce of power they possessed.
"Well, let's begin," Shina said, stretching his right hand upward. "Summoning: Unholy Disintegration!"
Over a hundred red magic circles manifested above Leo and Leon, discharging a thick, black ichor that poured out from all of them at once. Each stream traveled with the velocity of a bullet, raining down in a lethal curtain. Both Leo and Leon moved instantly, dodging the entire barrage with ease; their movement was so fluid it made the speed of light look slow by comparison.
"Where did they go?!" Shina panicked, his eyes darting frantically as he realized he could no longer keep up with their speed. Suddenly, they both appeared directly in front of him, landing a synchronized twin-strike kick to his face that sent the Demon Lord spiraling away.
They both pointed a finger toward his receding form. Leon muttered, "Incinerate," while Leo whispered, "In-sin-deha."
A dual blast of white and black energy shot toward the Demon Lord. The resulting impact was like a nuclear detonation, a catastrophic explosion that rocked the Void. Shina eventually stood up, his clothes torn and his face twisted in visible rage.
"Do you think those small spells were enough to stop me?" he roared, ripping away his shredded garments. "Playtime is over... now I'll unleash Hell!"
Shina's form began to warp and change. A large, jagged horn erupted from the center of his forehead, his skin deepened into a blood-red hue, and he grew to over seven feet tall as his muscles tightened with unnatural power. Tattoos made of living hellfire coiled around both of his arms. The Demon Lord was now fully transformed.
"Well, it's time for round two," Shina said with a predatory smirk.
"Black Hole," Leon muttered.
"Ver-Nis In-Sin-Go-La," Leo whispered.
The entire sky of the Void was suddenly filled with swirling black holes and white singularities. Each one crashed down upon the Demon Lord one by one, but despite the cosmic scale of the attack, they did little more than superficial damage to his reinforced hide.
"How weak... the Red Demon Slayer has become soft," Shina mocked, walking slowly toward them through the gravitational storms. "Maybe you need more time to remember how to fight."
"He is strong," Leo said, a genuine smile spreading across his face.
"I told you so," Leon replied. "Okay... let's leave the lower-tier spells behind. It's time to unleash Hell ourselves."
"Shall I go first?" Leo asked, a confident smile playing on his lips.
"Sure, let's see what you've got. Just try not to kill him in one go," Leon added casually.
"Kill me in one go? You truly underestimate me," Shina growled, a sinister sneer twisting his features.
Leo took two steps forward. Two magic circles manifested at the corners of his mouth, connected by a shimmering line to his ears, while his eyes began to glow with a brilliant white light. He began the complex Three-Way Resonance:
"Veldros... Sindil... Rekko... Dismer... Lisia... Shina... Vandris."
An invisible wave, vibrating like a cosmic echo, launched toward Shina. The Demon Lord flew upward, folding his arms. "A three-way spell? I underestimated you," he admitted.
But suddenly, he was struck by an invisible force that triggered an explosion so great it shook the Void itself. Shina crashed violently into the ground; this was the first spell to land with a truly devastating impact.
"I said don't kill him yet!" Leon scolded.
"Hey, I haven't even started! That was just a mid-tier spell," Leo replied, looking slightly displeased. "How can he call himself a Demon Lord if he dies from something that weak?"
"Forget it... it's my turn," Leon said, stepping forward.
The Demon Lord rose from the rubble, his injuries healing rapidly as his vile aura began to saturate the air. "Now... I'm truly pissed," he hissed. He stretched his hands toward the princes and whispered: "Open: Eternal Erasure."
A massive purple magical circle appeared, discharging a concentrated beam of violet light. Leon countered immediately: "Holy Purification."
A brilliant yellow circle materialized, shooting out its own light. The collision released disastrous shockwaves—the kind that could erase a kingdom in an instant—yet neither party was fazed. Leon thrust his hand forward with increased force, and his purification light surged, pushing the Demon Lord's spell back, totally obliterating it and tearing Shina's hand clean off in the process.
Wait, what? His spell is strong enough to remove my limb? Shina thought in disbelief. In the next instant, his hand grew back through rapid regeneration.
The Demon Lord smiled, his face lighting up as he began to laugh. His heart was racing; he was genuinely pleased. He walked toward them slowly, then vanished, appearing beside Leon to deliver a heavy kick. Leon dodged it smoothly, as if he had predicted the trajectory before it was even launched.
Shina began throwing a barrage of punches, but Leon dodged every single one. At one point, Leon even closed his eyes, which absolutely infuriated the Demon Lord.
"It seems you've gotten too old for combat. Let me show you how it's done," Leon said. He caught the Demon Lord's hand mid-strike and slammed him into the ground. Leon then launched a series of punches, each one possessing enough capacity to obliterate a mountain.
Leon's movements were swift, precise, and incredibly fast. He caught the Demon Lord and slammed him multiple times into the earth. Finally, he sent Shina flying with a kick to the gut. Before the Demon Lord could even land, Leon appeared above him, smashing him back into the ground with a devastating downward kick.
The Demon Lord sat upright, coughing up black ichor. "How... how... how are they so strong?" he muttered, staring up at Leon, who looked down at him, completely unimpressed.
In that instant, the Demon Lord knew: in a one-on-one fight, he would lose to them. He couldn't afford to play around anymore. If this battle stretched on much longer, the princes would undoubtedly emerge victorious.
Suddenly, he vanished and reappeared at a great distance. Leo teleported beside Leon, both of them curious about what the Demon Lord still had left in his arsenal.
Shina lifted his hand toward the emptiness. It's all or nothing, he thought desperately. If I have any hope of winning, I have to hit them with everything I've got all at once. I'll give it my all!
"What do you think he's about to do?" Leo asked.
"He wants to end the fight in one swift move," Leon replied calmly.
"Open True Oblivion: Conceptual Annihilation!" Shina muttered.
A massive red and black magical circle expanded to cover the entirety of the Void, emitting a pungent, suffocating aura. Since the vastness of the Void could contain an infinite number of universes, the Demon Lord's attack was everywhere at once. There was nowhere to hide, and no way to escape.
Leon and Leo simply smiled. Facing an all-range attack, they grasped each other's hands and began their joint chant. Three magic circles opened on both sides of their mouths, two in their palms, and one on their tongues. Each mouth spoke in different ancient tongues, weaving curses and spells into a single harmonic frequency.
As Shina's spell began to rain down upon them, both princes muttered simultaneously: "Twenty-Four Way Spell: Absolute Erasure."
The spell echoed throughout the Void itself. It didn't just counter the attack; it totally erased everything—including the Demon Lord and the Void itself. The Twenty-Four Way Spell ignores the laws of physics, time, space, concepts, and dimensions. It was truly an absolute erasure of existence.
Because the spell was designed to reset the environment, it also transported the casters back to their home universe. Both princes suddenly appeared back in the classroom, smiles on their faces. It was the first time they had ever had the chance to truly give it their all.