ABSOLUTE POWER
A Tensura Alternative: The Rise of Yuuki Kagurazaka
Chapter 1: The Awakening
The news reached Yuuki Kagurazaka on a rainy afternoon in Ingracia, delivered by a trembling messenger who could barely form coherent words.
"C-Clayman is... Lord Clayman is dead."
Yuuki's fingers, which had been casually flipping through a manga volume, stopped mid-turn. The bright smile that perpetually graced his youthful features didn't waver, but something shifted in the depths of his dark eyes—something cold and calculating that the messenger was too terrified to notice.
"Dead?" Yuuki repeated, his voice maintaining its characteristic cheerfulness. "My, my. That is unfortunate news indeed."
The messenger swallowed hard. "It was Rimuru Tempest, sir. He... he underwent an evolution. Became a True Demon Lord. The entire Walpurgis Council bore witness. Clayman was executed in front of them all."
For a long moment, Yuuki said nothing. His mind, operating at speeds that would have shattered his original human body on Earth, processed this information through countless permutations and possibilities. Each calculation led to the same inescapable conclusion: his carefully constructed plans had just been dealt a catastrophic blow.
"I see," Yuuki finally said, closing the manga with deliberate gentleness. "Thank you for the report. You may go."
The messenger fled with obvious relief. Only after the door closed did Yuuki allow his mask to slip.
The manga hit the wall with enough force to crater the plaster.
"Rimuru Tempest," he whispered, and for the first time in this new world, Yuuki felt something he hadn't experienced since his parents' death on Earth: genuine, unfiltered rage.
But beneath that rage lurked something far more dangerous—fear.
Yuuki stood at the window of his office in the Freedom Association headquarters, watching rain cascade down the glass like tears. His reflection stared back at him—a face that appeared no older than a middle schooler's, frozen in time by the curse of his summoning. But the eyes that looked out from that youthful face belonged to something far older, far more twisted.
I underestimated him.
The admission tasted like ash in his mouth. Yuuki Kagurazaka, the genius who had manipulated nations, deceived Demon Lords, and orchestrated the deaths of thousands, had made a fundamental miscalculation. He had treated Rimuru Tempest like just another piece on his game board, a useful tool to be controlled or eliminated when necessary.
Instead, Rimuru had become something unprecedented—a True Demon Lord who had harvested ten thousand souls and emerged stronger than Yuuki had ever anticipated possible in such a short time.
"Two years," Yuuki muttered, his hand clenching into a fist against the windowpane. "In two years, he's achieved what should have taken decades. What should have been impossible."
The Unique Skill Creator stirred within his soul, responding to his turbulent emotions. It whispered possibilities, offered solutions, but Yuuki knew better than anyone that his current arsenal of abilities wouldn't be enough. Not anymore.
Rimuru had evolved beyond the scope of his contingency plans. The slime who had once been a harmless curiosity, a fellow Japanese reincarnator with whom he'd shared manga and pleasant conversation, had transformed into a threat that could potentially unravel everything Yuuki had worked toward.
Everything.
His empire of shadows, built through decades of patient manipulation. The Free Guild, Cerberus, his network of spies and assassins spreading across both Eastern and Western lands. The carefully orchestrated conflicts designed to destabilize the old powers and create a world where he, Yuuki Kagurazaka, would reign supreme.
All of it was suddenly, terrifyingly fragile.
Because Rimuru Tempest had done the unthinkable—he had introduced an element of chaos that Yuuki's genius intellect couldn't fully predict or control.
A knock at the door interrupted his spiraling thoughts.
"Come in, Kagali."
The door opened to reveal a figure shrouded in a hooded cloak. Kagali, the former Demon Lord who shared Yuuki's body, manifested in their material form—a necessity for this conversation.
"You've heard," Kagali said. It wasn't a question.
"Of course I've heard." Yuuki turned from the window, and Kagali actually took a half-step back at the expression on his face. "Clayman was useful. Predictable. He played his role perfectly."
"And now he's dead."
"Because I made him too useful," Yuuki admitted, a razor-sharp edge entering his voice. "I gave him just enough power to be dangerous, just enough knowledge to be effective. I thought I could control the variables. Instead, I created the perfect catalyst for Rimuru's evolution."
Kagali moved closer, their spectral form flickering slightly. "What will you do?"
It was the question that mattered. What would he do?
Yuuki's original plan had been elegant in its simplicity: use Rimuru as an unwitting pawn to destabilize the Western Nations while positioning himself as the reasonable alternative to chaos. Let the slime and his little nation draw attention while Yuuki consolidated real power in the shadows. Eventually, when Rimuru had served his purpose, eliminate him before he could become a genuine threat.
That plan was now worthless.
"I need to become stronger," Yuuki said quietly. "Significantly stronger. My Anti-Skill is powerful, yes. My combat abilities are exceptional for a human. But against a True Demon Lord who has access to Ultimate Skills?" He shook his head. "I'm outmatched."
"Then evolve," Kagali suggested. "Force your awakening as a Saint. You have the knowledge, the capability—"
"Not enough." Yuuki cut them off with a sharp gesture. "Even as a Saint, I would only be delaying the inevitable. Rimuru isn't going to stop growing stronger. That's the nature of his existence—constant, exponential growth. I've seen it firsthand."
He began to pace, his mind racing through possibilities. "I need Ultimate Skills. Plural. I need to transcend my current limitations entirely."
"The Greed skill," Kagali said slowly. "Mariabell's Greed."
Yuuki's smile returned, but it was a terrible thing—sharp and predatory. "Yes. Dear Mariabell and her grandfather have been thorns in my side for far too long. They think they control the Western economies, that their Council of the West makes them untouchable."
"You've been working to undermine them for years."
"And now I'll accelerate my timeline." Yuuki stopped pacing, his decision crystallizing. "I'll take Greed from Mariabell. Her desire is strong, but mine..." He laughed, a sound devoid of genuine mirth. "Mine is absolute. I desire to control everything, to reshape this world into something perfect. Compared to that, her petty greed for wealth and influence is nothing."
"Killing her won't be simple."
"No," Yuuki agreed. "But I'm done being simple. I'm done with slow, methodical plans that can be disrupted by unknown variables. Rimuru has taught me a valuable lesson today, Kagali. Sometimes, overwhelming force is the only answer that matters."
He walked to his desk and pulled out a detailed map of the Western Nations. His finger traced lines between various cities, marking out territories, power structures, and weak points in the Council's network.
"I'll move against Mariabell within the month," Yuuki declared. "Once I have Greed, I can evolve it into an Ultimate Skill. From there..." His eyes gleamed with dangerous ambition. "From there, I'll seek out the other sins. Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Envy, Sloth, Lust. If Rimuru can become a True Demon Lord in two years, then I can become something even greater in less time."
"You're talking about a level of power that even the Primordial Demon Lords haven't achieved."
"Am I?" Yuuki's smile widened. "Or am I talking about finally claiming what should have been mine from the beginning? I was born a genius, Kagali. In my original world, I could have accomplished anything. World domination. Total economic control. Anything. But that world was too boring, too predictable."
He gestured broadly. "This world, though? This world has magic. Skills. Ultimate Skills. The very fabric of reality can be rewritten by those with sufficient power. And I intend to seize that power."
"Even if it means war with Rimuru?"
The question hung in the air between them. Yuuki considered it seriously, turning the variables over in his mind.
"Rimuru Tempest is... complicated," he finally admitted. "Part of me still views him as a fellow Japanese soul, someone who understands the loneliness of being trapped in this strange world. But sentimentality is a weakness I can't afford."
He met Kagali's eyes directly. "If Rimuru becomes an obstacle to my goals, I will eliminate him. If he can be turned into an ally, I'll use him. And if he can be neither..." Yuuki's expression hardened. "Then I'll become strong enough that the choice won't matter."
Over the next week, Yuuki threw himself into preparation with manic intensity. His subordinates in Cerberus noticed the change immediately—their usually affable, laid-back leader had transformed into something colder, more focused, almost terrifying in his efficiency.
Damrada, one of the Three Great Heads of Cerberus, entered Yuuki's private chambers to find his master surrounded by ancient texts and magical implements.
"Lord Yuuki," Damrada said carefully. "The preparations for the operation against the Rosso family are proceeding on schedule. But some of the men are... concerned. You've been pushing them harder than usual."
"Then they can be replaced," Yuuki said without looking up from the grimoire he was studying. "I need results, Damrada. Not excuses."
"Of course." Damrada hesitated. "May I speak freely, my lord?"
"You always do."
"This change in you—it's because of Rimuru Tempest, isn't it? Because he evolved into a True Demon Lord?"
Yuuki's hands stilled on the pages. Slowly, he looked up, and Damrada fought the urge to step back from the intensity in those youthful eyes.
"Rimuru showed me something I'd forgotten, Damrada. In this world, absolute power trumps careful planning. I've been playing a long game, content to pull strings from the shadows while others fought and died for scraps of territory." He closed the book with a sharp snap. "That ends now."
"You're going to confront him?"
"Eventually." Yuuki stood, and despite his diminutive appearance, his presence seemed to fill the room. "But first, I'm going to surpass him. I'm going to claim power that will make his True Demon Lord evolution look like a child's first steps."
He walked to a cabinet and withdrew a ornate dagger—the Snake Sword, one of his most prized possessions. The blade gleamed with an oily sheen, coated in venom capable of damaging even spiritual bodies.
"Tell the teams to accelerate the timeline," Yuuki ordered. "We move against Mariabell in three days. I want every asset in position. This needs to be surgical, complete, and absolutely devastating."
"Three days? Lord Yuuki, that barely gives us time to—"
"Three days." Yuuki's voice cut through Damrada's objection like the very blade he held. "If our people can't execute a plan with that much preparation, then they're worthless to me anyway."
Damrada bowed deeply. "As you command."
After he left, Yuuki returned to his studies, but his mind wandered to memories of his first meeting with Rimuru. The slime had been so earnest, so genuinely kind. They'd bonded over manga, over the shared experience of being Japanese souls in a fantasy world. For a brief time, Yuuki had almost believed they could be genuine friends.
Almost.
But friendship was a luxury Yuuki Kagurazaka couldn't afford. Hadn't been able to afford since the day his parents died because of an overworked truck driver, since the courts ruled it an accident and let the man walk free. That day, Yuuki learned the fundamental truth of existence: the world was unreasonable, unfair, and cruel to those without power.
He'd vowed never to be powerless again.
"I'm sorry, Rimuru," Yuuki whispered to the empty room. "But in this world, there can only be one of us at the apex. And I've been climbing toward that peak far longer than you."
Three days later, under the cover of darkness, Yuuki personally led the assault on the Rosso family's manor.
The estate was a fortress, protected by layers of magical barriers, elite guards, and Mariabell's own considerable abilities. On paper, it should have been impregnable.
Yuuki walked through the front gate as if he owned the place.
The first barrier shattered against his Anti-Skill like waves against a cliff. The second and third barriers followed in rapid succession. Guards rushed forward, casting spells that should have incinerated an army.
Nothing touched him.
This was the true terror of Anti-Skill—a constitution that nullified Skills and magic on contact. Every defensive spell Mariabell had erected, every offensive ability her guards deployed, simply ceased to function in Yuuki's presence.
"M-monster!" one guard screamed before Yuuki's Snake Sword found his throat. The venom acted instantly, destroying not just the physical body but damaging the spiritual form beneath. The guard didn't even have time to scream before he dissolved into nothingness.
Yuuki moved through the manor like death incarnate. His Enhanced Thought Acceleration allowed him to process combat at speeds that made the guards' movements seem frozen in time. His Instant Motion let him cross distances in the blink of an eye. Combined with his superhuman physical abilities and expert swordsmanship, he was unstoppable.
Bodies fell in his wake. Not many—Yuuki was precise, eliminating only those who stood in his path to Mariabell. He had no interest in pointless slaughter. Every death served a purpose, removed an obstacle, sent a message.
Finally, he stood before the door to Mariabell's inner sanctum. Beyond it, he could sense her presence—and the presence of her Unique Skill, Greed.
"Well," Yuuki said to himself, adjusting his grip on the Snake Sword. "Let's see if my greed truly exceeds yours, Mariabell Rosso."
He kicked the door open.
The room beyond was opulent, decorated with wealth that could have fed entire cities. Gold, jewels, priceless artifacts—all testament to Mariabell's insatiable avarice.
And in the center of it all stood Mariabell herself, a beautiful woman whose eyes burned with fury and... fear.
"Yuuki Kagurazaka," she spat. "I should have known. You've been a thorn in my side for years."
"And you've been an obstacle to my vision for just as long," Yuuki replied pleasantly. "I'm afraid your time running the Western economies has come to an end."
Mariabell's Unique Skill Greed activated, invisible waves of desire-manipulation washing over Yuuki. In theory, it should have dominated his will, turned his own desires against him, made him nothing more than her puppet.
Instead, Yuuki laughed.
"Is that all?" he asked, genuine amusement coloring his voice. "Mariabell, your greed is impressive. You desire wealth, power, control over markets and men. But my greed?" His expression hardened into something terrible. "I desire to control everything. Every nation, every person, every fundamental force of this world. I want absolute dominion."
He took a step forward, and Mariabell's Skill shattered against the sheer magnitude of his desire. It was like comparing a candle to the sun—both were sources of light, but one was fundamentally superior.
"Impossible," Mariabell whispered, backing away. "My Greed is—"
"Inferior," Yuuki finished. "In every way that matters."
Before she could react, he closed the distance between them, his Instant Motion making the intervening space meaningless. The Snake Sword found her heart with surgical precision.
"I'm truly sorry," Yuuki said, and for a moment, he almost sounded sincere. "In another life, we might have been allies. But you chose to stand in my way."
As Mariabell's life bled away, Yuuki felt it—her Unique Skill Greed, masterless now, seeking a new host. And because his desire was so much greater, so much more absolute, it came to him like a moth to flame.
The sensation was intoxicating. Power flooded through him, and with it came knowledge, understanding, capability. Greed wasn't just about manipulation—it was about taking, claiming, possessing. Everything Mariabell had owned, every connection she'd made, every secret she'd uncovered, it all became Yuuki's in an instant.
But more than that, he could feel the Skill evolving, responding to the magnitude of his ambition. This wasn't just Unique Skill Greed anymore. It was transforming into something greater, something that matched the scope of his desires.
Ultimate Skill: Greed King Mammon
The evolution completed itself, and Yuuki gasped as reality seemed to reshape around him. He could see desires now, not just sense them—luminous threads connecting every living being to the objects of their wants and needs. And more importantly, he could manipulate those threads, strengthen them, redirect them, use them to control people in ways that made Mariabell's Skill look like a child's toy.
"Magnificent," Yuuki breathed.
He looked down at Mariabell's cooling corpse. "Thank you for your contribution. Your greed was impressive, but it was always meant to serve as the foundation for something greater."
The return to Ingracia was triumphant, though only Yuuki's inner circle knew the true significance of what had transpired. To the outside world, Mariabell Rosso had simply... disappeared. Her wealth, her connections, her empire—all of it dissolved into the shadows, absorbed into Yuuki's growing network.
In his private chambers, Yuuki stood before a full-length mirror, examining his reflection. Physically, nothing had changed. He still looked like a teenager, perpetually youthful and harmless.
But behind those dark eyes lurked something that would make Demon Lords pause.
"Greed King Mammon," he said aloud, feeling the weight of the words. "The first Ultimate Skill. But not the last."
Kagali materialized beside him. "You're planning to collect them all, aren't you? All seven Deadly Sins."
"Among other things." Yuuki smiled. "But yes, the Sins are a good starting point. Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Envy, Sloth, Lust—each one represents a fundamental aspect of desire and power. If I can claim them all, evolve them all..."
"You'll become something unprecedented," Kagali finished. "Something that might even surpass the Primordial Demon Lords."
"Might?" Yuuki's smile widened into something predatory. "No, Kagali. Not might. Will. I will surpass them. I will become stronger than Guy Crimson, stronger than Milim Nava, stronger than any being currently walking this world."
He turned from the mirror to face his companion directly. "And then, when I'm ready, I'll deal with Rimuru Tempest once and for all."
"You still see him as a threat."
"I see him as an inevitability," Yuuki corrected. "Our paths will cross again, and when they do, only one of us will walk away. I intend to make sure it's me."
"What's your next move?"
Yuuki walked to his desk and began sketching out plans, his Enhanced Thought Acceleration allowing him to process multiple strategies simultaneously.
"I need to become a spiritual lifeform," he said, his hand moving across the paper with practiced ease. "Currently, I'm limited by this human body. Even with Mammon, there's only so much power I can channel without tearing myself apart."
"The evolution to Saint, then True Saint?"
"Exactly. But I can't do it through normal means—that would take too long. I need a catalyst, something that will force my evolution." His eyes gleamed. "Guy Crimson."
Kagali stared at him. "You want to fight Guy Crimson? The oldest and strongest Demon Lord? Yuuki, that's suicide."
"Is it?" Yuuki's smile didn't waver. "I don't need to defeat him. I just need to survive the encounter. Guy's power is so overwhelming that even withstanding it for a few minutes would push me to my absolute limits.