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

there was a better time than to

That said.

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

to kill him

like I had convinced him to ambush the Greed clan, I

planning on ambushing the Greed clan, and

was a signal

to backstab me from the

directed in my direction. Without needing to look, I already knew who it

direction my attention toward the opposite

also be

looked in the distance and I

mismatch my timing?...or

this was going

of

"You..."

the area around me started to twist. Turning around, I realized that

'Shit...'

direction, I once

Eyes of Chronos, I started to assess

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

a bust. Do I have no choice but to

"You don't."

rang from beside me. As usual, it was

"What do you mean?"

little

a slight pause,

that power will only serve

"...You're right."

power, I became extremely

had only sent a clone to fight me. What if he

me extremely apprehensive about

of my thoughts, the other me

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 know about you being a

doesn't really

"You worry too much."

head, he stared into the distance. Unlike me, he could freely move in this slowed down

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

"...Alright."

of Chronos I raised my head and met Marquis

a second. Placing my hand on the sheath of my sword, I activated my sword's

time, I activated 'The

was a bit more than one rank, it didn't have too much of an effect on Marquis Atheora as it only worked to distract him for a

from the effect, I

the [Keiki style] :

Click—!

vision distorted, and a low clicking sound rang in the air. At the same time my vision started to distort, I saw Marquis Atheora's attack shoot in the direction of where I was previously

Boooom—!

second, it arrived in the area that I was previously

I was unable to come out unscathed as I ended up

Bang—!

"Ukhhh..."

That said.

I had survived.

"It hurts..."

moving as some of my

down a

I recovered the demons in the distance had already arrived and had surrounded

we have here. It

demon that bore striking resemblance to

was an executive coming from the Gluttony clan. A clan that wasn't on good terms with the

opportunity to deal damage to the Sloth clan, they obviously did not refuse it and secretly sent an adequate

would believe in my plan at first, but it wasn't exactly

make a move against the Greed clan, all they had

be considered a

That aside.

had set countermeasures in the off-chance that this was also

"Marquis Exion."

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