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.

That is, act as bait and lure them

injured, if there was a better time than to

That said.

if he was injured, he wasn't someone that I could kill. Our rank difference was just too

to kill him myself

ambush the Greed

ambushing the Greed clan, and how they could use

fireball I just threw was a

backstab me from

malicious and terrifying glare directed in my direction. Without needing to look, I already

toward the opposite side, the southern area. This was only half of my

should also

I looked in the distance and I saw nothing, my forehead started to

mismatch my timing?...or did they ignore

was

felt a burst of aura coming

"You..."

Atheora's voice shook the air, and the area around me started to twist. Turning around, I realized that Marquis

'Shit...'

direction, I once again turned

of Chronos, I started

started to run at full throttle as I tried to figure out

to be a bust. Do I have no choice but to go

"You don't."

me. As usual, it was the other me appearing from out

"What do you mean?"

little

slight pause,

will only serve to alert Jezebeth of your appearance

"...You're right."

I

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

extremely apprehensive

the midst of my thoughts, the other me

not be ideal. Later on, you might need to tap into that power in order to save Amanda's father. It's best if you save it for then. Not only that but it's best if fewer demons

situation doesn't really look

"You worry too much."

stared into the distance. Unlike me,

something doesn't

"...Alright."

Eyes of Chronos I raised my

set of actions all happened within a fraction of a second. Placing my hand on the sheath of my sword, I activated

the same time, I

didn't have too much of an effect on Marquis Atheora as it only worked to distract him

he recovered from the effect, I had already gathered enough

the

Click—!

my vision started to distort, I

Boooom—!

in the

up

Bang—!

"Ukhhh..."

That said.

I had survived.

"It hurts..."

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

quickly chugged down a couple of

I recovered the demons in the distance had already arrived and

who we have here. It looks like the information wasn't

throughout the air as another demon that

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

damage to the Sloth clan, they obviously did not refuse it and

in my plan at first, but it wasn't

against the Greed clan, all they had to do was check for any movement, and from there,

to them, this could be considered a minor conflict. It wasn't

That aside.

didn't doubt that they had set countermeasures in the off-chance that this was also

"Marquis Exion."

said those words. With narrowed eyes, demonic energy rose from