[Phantoms].
They had originally been [Angels], the race first created by Veldanava, the [Holy Emperor Dragon], and were entrusted with the duty of protecting the world. In the end, however, they fell.
After being corrupted by the demonic energy of Ibaraje, the [Destroyer Dragon], the first of the [Cryptids] and the one called king of all cryptids, they became rulers of another world. For countless ages, they had sought to invade hell in order to return to the material world, the middle realm.
The seven [Netherworld Gates] that existed in hell.
To move stably between worlds, they had to pass through those gates, each guarded by one of the seven [Primordial Demons].
It was not as if there were no other methods at all, but those required at least centuries of investment. That was why Feldway, king of the Phantoms, had kept his eyes on hell without pause.
But this invasion was on a completely different level from anything that had happened before.
"Have those insane Phantom bastards decided to wage war on all of hell...?"
The one who shouted was Moss, Blanc's trusted subordinate and the only duke-class [Arch Demon] in hell at present.
He was usually the type to fight in silence and rarely swore even in battle, but right now, curses came naturally.
[Seraphim], monsters from the age of creation who stood as the counterpart to a [Devil Lord].
An angel overflowing with radiant, overwhelming magic power had suddenly appeared.
And not just one.
"Not one, but two of them came charging in here..."
Two of them.
One was a female angel with long black hair, dark as if the night sky had been spun into threads and drawn out behind her. The other was a male angel with a massive frame and a savage expression utterly unbefitting an angel.
There was no need to ask who they were. They were members of the [Seven Angels of Origin], the rulers of heaven.
Their names were Obera and Corne.
Among the [Seven Angels of Origin], they were roughly mid-tier powerhouses.
By Feldway's orders as the Phantom King, the two angels had infiltrated hell using temporary bodies created by splitting off their own avatars.
Originally, each of them had been tasked with monitoring Ibaraje and conquering other dimensions, but Feldway had sensed Adelio's soul evolve and made a forceful move to reduce any possible variables.
That factor, similar to that of a True Dragon, had more than enough potential to become a threat.
grrk... grrk...
That was why Feldway had treated even part of the legions under their command as expendable and sent them marching into hell.
Thanks to Noir's subordinates noticing and intercepting them, the size of the invading force had been reduced somewhat from its original scale, but even so, it was still enormous.
If demons had not held the advantage over angels by nature, or if Blanc's side had not been fighting from a defensive formation, they might already have lost.
"Even with Noir blocking the invasion from the other world, this many still made it through. That probably means the Phantoms are serious this time."
Cien, the empress's scribe, adjusted her horn-rimmed glasses with one hand while tearing the wing off a lesser Phantom, and spoke to Moss.
"I'm curious too why the Phantoms are trying to wage war this seriously, but that isn't what matters right now."
As the one calmly directing the battlefield in Blanc's place, he knew it well.
If Blanc, who was currently facing those two [Seraphim] at once, were defeated, then their own defeat would be decided that very instant.
Boom! Crash! Rumble... KABOOOM!!!
High above the White Castle at the center of the land ruled by Blanc, three beings clashed violently: two of the [Seven Angels of Origin] and one of the [Primordial Demons].
Blanc and Corne hurled out countless high-powered spells that would make most mages faint on sight.
And Obera casually swung an enormous greatsword, cleaving through every one of those spells in a single blow.
It was a battle so catastrophic it seemed like disaster itself had come alive.
"How terribly uncouth. Barging into someone else's castle without the owner's permission. I suppose that's exactly what you'd expect from [Aggressors]."
Blanc used her main weapon, a whip, to hold back Obera while simultaneously intercepting Corne with dark magic.
It was an unfavorable two-against-one fight, but true to a demon specialized for combat, she was using every tool available to force the battle into a shape that favored her.
"...! You lowly demon! How dare you mock us?!"
Provocation was naturally one of those tools, and Corne, simple to a fault, fell for it with embarrassing ease.
Wooooong...!!!
Basic but powerful light-attribute [Elemental Magic].
Dense magic power filled with radiance gathered in Corne's palms, then split into dozens of spheres and shot toward Blanc.
It was the most fundamental kind of spell, but because it was being cast by one of the [Seven Angels of Origin], the density of the magic power was on an entirely different level.
"What a cheap little trick."
But her opponent was one of the [Primordial Demons], the very pinnacle of magic.
And among demons, Blanc was counted among the top three when it came to magic power control alone.
Whip!
[Curse], frozen flames.
Blanc's whip, forged through forbidden magic, lashed once and instantly burned away all dozens of spheres without leaving a trace.
Every last one of them. Not a single sphere escaped.
"Did you really think a mere low-tier spell like that would work on a demon?"
As if to prove she was no demon that Rouge and Noir watched warily for no reason, Blanc revealed her true martial might without holding anything back.
"?! Ngh... a demon like you...!!"
"......"
Corne glared at Blanc in furious frustration, incensed by the overwhelming gap in their level of skill.
Obera, on the other hand, seemed taciturn, and looked at Corne with contempt as she thought to herself.
'...The fact that Blanc is bothering with provocation at this stage means she's starting to feel uneasy too.'
Unlike Corne, she had no intention of fighting thoughtlessly.
Even if demons held the advantage in compatibility, there were still two angels here of the same rank.
True, the bodies they were using were not even proper avatars but merely split-off vessels, so in a one-on-one fight they would never have been able to defeat Blanc no matter what happened. But with two of them fighting her at once, that weakness might as well not exist.
So even if the battle looked even for now, the side still at a disadvantage was Blanc's.
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