The Author's POV

My next set of actions was quick.

As I was dealing with a Marquis-ranked demon, every little second mattered.

Taking out a stack of magic cards from my dimensional system, I injected them with my mana before throwing them in the air.

Swiping my hand, three rings formed around the igniting cards.

By the time the cards were about to fully ignite, the rigs turned red and a small ball of fire resembling a sun was contained in the middle of the rings.

"Go."

With a simple wave, the rings flew toward the sky.

"What's this?"

Catching sight of the ball of fire, Marquis Atheora reached his hand out. But it was already too late.

BOOOM—!

A large cloud of fire bloomed in the air and accompanying it was a thunderous explosion.

The fire receded after a couple of seconds, but it served its purpose.

"Anytime now..."

"You."

Feeling Marquis Atheora's gaze land on me, I raised my head and stared back at him.

Slowly descending to the ground, he looked back at the area where I threw my attack.

"What were you trying to do?"

"Testing something."

"...You seriously want me to believe that?"

Raising his head, he smelled the air. His face changed a little.

"This sensation..."

I felt his gaze pause on me, as he carefully scrutinized my body. After a while, his eyes opened up.

"You...You're not a demon."

'Ah, looks like the cat is out of the bag...'

In order to make it seem like I was a demon, I had placed a couple of cores inside of my body. By simply creating a thin coating of mana, I stopped the demons from regenerating, and in the process, created an effect that made it seem as though I had demonic energy inside of my body.

This was a trick that I learned from my other-self.

It was quite a useful one at that as it really helped me out quite a bit. Without it, I would've probably been found out in the first month.

Had it not been for my last attack that left some lingering mana in the air, Marquis Atheora would have never found out.

"A pity..."

I muttered underneath my breath.

"I don't know how you—"

Stopping himself mid-sentence, Marquis Atheora's head snapped toward the distance. It was then that he managed to spot several demons heading his way, coming from the northern side.

His face finally changed.

"This..."

Staring at him from below, I smiled from behind my mask.

"It looks like someone noticed all of the commotions you've caused."

Not quite.

From the moment that I decided to help him out, I knew that he was going to try to silence me. Even if he wasn't, I wasn't still going to go through with my plans.

one. That is, act as bait

now injured, if there was a better time than to get rid of him, it

That said.

he wasn't someone that I could kill. Our rank difference was just

didn't need to kill

just like I had convinced him to ambush the Greed

how the Sloth clan was planning on ambushing the Greed clan, and how they could use this opportunity to deal

was a signal

backstab me

felt a malicious and terrifying glare directed in my

my attention toward the opposite side,

should also be coming

as I looked in the distance and I saw nothing, my forehead

I mismatch my timing?...or did they

so, this was going to

a burst of aura coming from behind

"You..."

the area around me started to twist. Turning around,

'Shit...'

aura that was directed in my direction, I once again turned to look into the

Chronos, I started to

my head started to run at full throttle as I tried to

like Plan A is going to be a bust. Do I have no choice but to go with plan

"You don't."

voice rang from beside me. As usual, it

"What do you mean?"

little bit

a slight pause, his voice

that using that power will only serve to

"...You're right."

Jezebeth's power, I became extremely

only sent a clone to fight me. What if he showed up in

thought made me extremely apprehensive about using my

thoughts, the

for then. Not only that but it's best if fewer demons know about you being a human. If they are made

situation doesn't

"You worry too much."

his head, he stared into the distance. Unlike me, he could

of more minutes. If something doesn't happen by then, you can go ahead with

"...Alright."

Eyes of Chronos I raised my

all happened within a fraction of a second. Placing my hand on the sheath of my sword, I activated my sword's effect, and the mana inside of my body started to circulate at a faster

the same time, I

was a bit more than one rank, it didn't have too much of an effect on Marquis

time he recovered from the effect,

movement of the

Click—!

rang in the air. At the same time my vision started to distort, I saw Marquis Atheora's attack

Boooom—!

the area that I was

unable to come out unscathed as I ended up crashing against multiple

Bang—!

"Ukhhh..."

That said.

I had survived.

"It hurts..."

I had trouble moving as some of my bones were broken, but it

chugged down a

the time I recovered the demons in the distance had

we have here. It looks like the

throughout the air as another demon that bore striking resemblance to Marquis Atheora stepped

he was an executive coming from the Gluttony clan. A clan that

presented them with an opportunity to deal damage to the Sloth clan,

believe in my plan at first,

I told them that the Sloth clan would make a move against the Greed clan, all they had to do was check

them, this could be considered a minor conflict.

That aside.

in the off-chance that this was also a trap, but it

"Marquis Exion."

Atheora's voice was filled with spite as he said those words. With narrowed eyes, demonic energy rose from his body at