Agnes shouted, «Ailette! Step away from the range of her attacks!»
Yes, I do realize that's what I'm supposed to do.
«Move, Ailette! Move!»
But I can't move my body at all!
"Argh..."
My body trembled like a broken wind-up doll, but that was all I could manage to do in defiance.
"Resistance is futile."
The Demon Lord's Command was a form of the Voice, which used the power of words to dominate a target. I no longer had control over my own body, as it had been taken from me. Seeing that I was vulnerable, Inferinos approached me without raising her guard.
"You shall be punished for challenging the queen."
She stopped five steps away from me and pointed her index finger at my forehead. My body immediately froze, as if something had skewered my body.
"By my command."
Her words swiftly altered my mind and body. I was becoming her obedient servant. The queen's voice resounded in my head once again.
"I sentence you to death."
Shocked as I was, I could not say anything back. A sharp noise rang in my ears. Perhaps it was the sound of my soul responding to the command.
"Die, Ailette Rodeline."
There was nothing I could do. I had been ordered to die, so I slowly raised my body to carry out the absolute command of the queen. The glimmer of Liv Lily's blade was the last ray of light I saw before my consciousness faded away.
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"Wh-what's happening?!"
"Your Eminence?"
"Your Eminence! Please!"
The battlefield suddenly became as still and quiet as a graveyard. The two at the center of the arena now stood in complete silence, even though they had been devastating the stadium with their destructive might just moments ago.
They couldn't possibly have decided to sue for peace in the middle of such a fierce fight. Everyone was watching intently as the Demon Lord's power manipulated the space around them.
"By my command."
Everyone could hear the demon's voice loud and clear. It pounded against the hearts of every living being in earshot and made them realize something. This was bad.
"Your Eminence!"
Their desperate cries were in vain. Even the Divine Emissary trembled before the Demon Lord's sheer strength and power. All her movements stopped, and one of her knees soon buckled. She was completely neutralized despite having no critical injuries.
"Ailette! Wh-what's happening?"
"Ailette!"
Hestio and Ephael's voices trembled as they cried out to her, but she could not hear them.
The five most powerful people in the continent suddenly had a collective realization, their eyes widening in panic. They could clearly see Inferinos use her words as a medium to enforce her power. Dark energy spooled out from the Demon Lord's mouth and bound all parts of Ailette's body to turn her into a marionette.
Then they heard the demon say, "Die, Ailette Rodeline."
A puppet show unfolded before their eyes. The Divine Emissary didn't say anything. Instead, she slowly stood upright and raised Liv Lily above her head. Gradually, as the audience watched on in horror, she brought the sharp blade toward her neck.
"Your Eminence! What are you doing?!"
"My child! No!"
"Pink Saintess! I mean, Your Eminence!"
Marchioness Lecandro, Grand Duke Heathfenrir, and Moriphys all shouted in confusion.
Fleagel Night studied her with his hawk-like vision and relayed his findings. "The Divine Emissary is staring into space."
Muriel calmly summed up the situation. "It seems that she has succumbed to the Voice of the Demon Lord. She's about to kill herself."
People froze when they heard the saintess's words. The despair quickly spread through the camp like a plague. The others caught up with what was happening and realized the danger they were in.
"Ailette! Can you hear us?! Darn it!"
"Big Sis! Please stop!"
"Sister!"
Wham!
Hilde slammed into the barrier with her Tier 7 Divine Power. The heavy thud shook the air, but the Divine Emissary couldn't hear her. The blade slowly neared the Divine Emissary's throat. It drew a thin line of blood which gradually extended across the neck.
"N-no...!" Hilde shrieked as she cried out. "Please don't! Please!"
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Reed was silent. He frowned as he felt like the battle was turning into a tedious puppet show. There was nothing to keep him on the edge of his seat, so he lazily tilted his head sideways with his chin in his hand. Then he mumbled to himself in an equally lethargic tone.
"Does she need more power to fight back?"
He ought to help her. So, Chaos and Evil decided to do something rather odd.
"Win, Ailette Rodeline."
He decided to cheer for her. Reed was sitting in the Divine Emissary's support section. The spectators in the coliseum were required by its rules to cheer for their appropriate champion based on their seats, and were tortured when they failed to do so. But the rules weren't just there to punish the rule breakers.
Cheering for one's champion also had the effect of boosting the champion's morale. Furthermore, the influence of the spectator had a bearing on the effects of their cheering activity as well. And as the great Chaos and Evil, Reed utilized his massive influence to support Ailette Rodeline. And he was sincere about it.
"Make sure you win. I'll be waiting."
In the VIP seat of the section across the coliseum from Reed sat yet another person who was unfazed by the events happening on the arena floor. It was Tesilid Argente of Loop One Hundred and Seventeen, who was essentially Reed's future. He refused to follow the rules of the coliseum from the moment he was forced to take the VIP seat, so the chair turned itself into thorny vines and squeezed down the rebellious spectator to punish him.
But the handsome man was unperturbed, as if he was no longer capable of feeling pain. His eyes were indifferent, they way they used to be, like the eyes of a man who witnessed the end of the world. After all, Ailette Rodeline was about to kill herself. The very person who gave him the will to live and kept him benevolent time and time again was about to take her own life. His entire world was crumbling down.
But Tesilid of Loop One Hundred and Seventeen was calmer than ever, even though he was about to witness a scene far more horrible than the end of Loop One Hundred. There was a simple explanation for it. He was going to save her.
A deep voice whispered, "Defend Partner."
He meant to take her injuries, as he often did, even if it resulted in his own beheading. But he didn't wish to die if he could help it.
Whoosh.
The holy sword answered Tesilid's summon and appeared before him. He didn't need to hold the sword since it gently hovered at eye level once it was imbued with aura. The blue square jewel embedded in the hilt of the sword started vibrating as its color slowly turned dark.
A holy sword is useless in times like this. He needed a demonic sword. He had once taken countless lives in one of the timelines, and he needed the healing power made possible through their sacrifice. Ailette was his ultimate goodness, and protecting her was the only thing he could do to guard the last shred of goodness left in him.
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This was Inferinos' favorite moment in every battle. The moment her foe turned against the cause they had been fighting for at her command never failed to make her feel ecstatic. The euphoria of conquering her enemy was ever more intense when her adversary was strong and beautiful.
In that regard, the Executioner of Evil gave her joy she had never experienced before. She was the most powerful human who was loved by God, and she had managed to match the Demon Lord's prowess in battle. But, in the end, Inferinos shattered her willpower and turned her into an obedient puppet.
Ailette rose to her feet against the desolate breeze on the battlefield as her golden eyes stared into space. The Demon Lord curled her lips into a grin and savored the moment of her enemy's defeat.
What a beautiful human. I'm sure she would look even more beautiful when her head drops from her shoulders. Her previous command urged Ailette Rodeline on.
"Die. Die. Die. Die, Ailette Rodeline!"
Ailette Rodeline obediently followed the orders. Her right hand raised the Holy Scythe and placed its glimmering bade against her pale neck. She started drawing a thin line of blood on the left side of her throat.
Inferinos' eyes opened wide with excitement when the sweet scent of blood reached her nostrils. Ailette was about to harvest her own head and offer it to Inferinos. The highlight of the battle had finally arrived.
"Yes. As you command, Your Majesty."
Her adversary now addressed her with utmost respect, having fully transformed into her loyal servant. The puppet's obedient words of servitude filled Inferinos with euphoria. The Demon Lord could hardly believe she managed to conquer the Executioner of Evil, the enemy of the entire Demon Realm. The Demon Lord wore a broad smile as she waited for the human's pretty head to drop like a camellia plucked from its stem.
"Wow... My submission makes you that happy? But I have to tell you, it was just lip service."
Inferinos barely had time to express her shock before Liv Lily made a beautiful half circle in the air.
Slash!
The power of the demon, which had bound Ailette like a spool of black thread, immediately snapped and fell away. Inferinos glared upon seeing her puppet break free from her strings.
Ailette darted forward and mounted a brilliant attack with her scythe, which narrowly missed its target by the length of an eyelash. The movement of the scythe caused a vortex of air to rise. With their hair swirling about, the two stepped back and stared at each other. Ailette's golden eyes were now sharp with focus.
The Demon Lord couldn't hide her surprise.
"But how?"
Ailette did not answer.
"How did you resist my command?"
As the Demon of Knowledge, Inferinos not only felt disturbed by both the unfamiliar and the unknown, but she also feared them.
Seeing the demon's red eyes tremble in fright, Ailette provided a simple answer. "Willpower."
The Demon Lord did not know what to say.
"You know, your power was honestly nothing special."
Feeling ridiculed, the third-ranked Demon Lord unleashed the might of her demonic energy. A ferocious battle ensued once again as the great powers collided.