CHAPTER 253: OPERATION WOLF SLAYER. (PART 42)

[I have been aware of your presence for some time now, but I do not remember inviting you to my humble abode.]

Equipped with the blue demon power suit and shielded by a silver cocoon, Klaus Stahlwölfe easily survived the torrent of flames. The displeasure in his voice showed he wasn’t too happy about being targeted, however, which is why he shifted his attention from the heroes to the red demon.

The stare they exchanged lasted far longer than it should, and the tension it permeated put the entire floor in stasis. Even the heroes found themselves unable to move, but that might have been for the better, seeing as it gave them a moment to catch their breath.

Seeing as the red demon had no intention of replying, the Stahlwölfe scion spoke again, his anger giving way to calmness and rationality.

[No matter. Going by how things have developed so far, I believe it is safe to say we have a common enemy.] He motioned for the heroes. [What do you say we take care of this problem first? We can handle whatever conflict between the two of us afterward.]

The silence resumed, and the tension only got stronger. After a few seconds, the red demon turned its head in the heroes’ direction, seemingly staring at them for a while before turning back to the blue demon. As he raised his left hand, the free one with no dragon head, it felt as if he was agreeing to cooperate. Something dropped into his palm at that moment, putting everyone on high alert once more.

The tension turned into confusion as the red demon stared at the item, and after what seemed like a very long moment, it turned it around as if to show Klaus.

The item was a smartphone. Not only that, but it was also a rather cheap model. The screen showed a mishmash of black and white squares, and though it was something they came across more times than they could count, it still took them a while to realize it was a plain QR code.

Staring at it for a moment, Klaus looked up at the red demon then at the phone again. He guessed that it wanted him to scan the code, but that seemed like a bad idea. Then again, what was there to fear in their current situation?

Commanding his blue demon helmet to open, he focused his gaze on the phone, scanning it with his OAM. Doing so opened one of the apps on his NIM and he understood what was happening the moment he saw it.

"Oh! You want payment!" He exclaimed. "Alright, alright, I understand."

The app was just a common digital wallet to store cryptocurrencies, mainly Gold. The red demon was offering to help him for a prize, and that made things a lot more. Selecting what he thought was the appropriate amount, Klaus pressed the send option without hesitation.

"I hope this will be enough."

Money was never a problem for someone in his position, but that exact reason made it difficult for him to use the currency known as Gold. Even if he had the funds to buy as much of it as he wanted, the peculiar qualities of the coin made it impossible for him to own too much of it at one time.

Since there was no way to work around such a restriction, his only choice was to keep a small amount in case he needed to make a deal on the spot, and this seemed to be the right time.

Once the five million Gold coins were transferred, Klaus turned to the red demon with a smile.

"If you gave me normal bank details, I would have transferred more, but... Hope this will be enough."

The red demon didn’t answer, nor did it move. It felt like a statue with no life for a while until it looked at the Stahlwölfe scion and nodded once, turned to the heroes right after, then raised its right arm, the dragon head at its end spreading its jaws as brilliant flames spilled out.

"Alright!" Klaus commanded his helmet to close and turned to one of the other blue demons. [Ushida, let’s finish things here and go take over that ship! So long as we claim victory today, those fools will know not to underestimate our power ever again!]

[Understood, sir.]

The battle resumed as if it hadn’t stopped at all. While the red demon rained fire, the blue demons vanished without a trace. A dome of powerful gales rose to surround the four heroes, but it couldn’t withstand the continuous bombardment, dispersing as fast as it was created.

Pillars of ice rose from the ground to block the fire, and frost spread over the burnt field. Just when it appeared like the flames had stopped, the ice pillars began to shatter as if pierced by something invisible.

The Shirogane esoteric Arts, Silent Breath, were mainly focused on stealth precision strikes, but a few were still dedicated to causing damage. Air Missile had always been a powerful offensive Art, even with its limited range, but when enhanced by the power of the Blue Skull suits, they turned into deadly artillery capable of piercing through some of the sturdiest alloys humanity has ever produced.

Klaus dashed around the battlefield, his body brimming with power unlike anything he had felt before. He gave a mental command and the suit responded, creating several cones of compressed air around before launching them at the heroes. Another command created sturdy panels under his feet, allowing him to run through the air.

An uncalculated step placed him on a collision course with one of the red demon’s fire balls, but a silver shield manifested around him at the right moment, blocking the flames with such ease that he barely felt the heat. He remained invisible the entire time, unnoticed by either his enemies or allies.

The Shirogane’s Silent Breath, the Romano’s Argentomancy. Those were only the start, and soon enough, every Sorcerous Art in the world will be his to command. Klaus had higher ambitions, however.

With his creation and the power it granted him, inventing his original Sorcery was no longer a distant dream. All he had to do was defeat the enemy trying to bring him down, and once they were out of his way, his life as the world’s most powerful Sorcerer would finally begin.

As the thought of his brilliant future filled him with excitement, Klaus lost interest in toying with the four heroes. He wanted to end them right then and there so he could be free to chase his dream, and so he commanded the activation of one Art after the other, preparing to launch a wide-scale attack that would erase his enemies and bring him victory.

Nothing could stand in his way, not even the Level 5s from Eidolon, nor the Level 6 they are so proud of. He was going to rise to the pinnacle of the world, and nothing would stop him from reaching those heights ever again.

"AWOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Silence enveloped everything, then darkness followed. As everything came to a sudden halt, only the sound of a lonesome howl was heard through the thirty-seventh floor.