"Hunger! Endless hunger!"

  The colossus, now blinded by gluttony, lunged at them, but Almodea repelled it with a wall of fire.

  “Can't anything be done for him?”

  "I have a solution...maybe. But it's risky!"

  "Please, Lady Almodea! Save him!"

  "Yes! I'll do anything for you! We'll submit to the city of Almy with immediate effect if necessary!"

  Scylla and Gherd's requests stirred Almodea, who decided to try the flawed plan she'd devised while the colossus was being held at bay earlier. It was only a theory, but it was the only thing she'd managed to conceive in a short time that wasn't deadly to the Doom Orc.

  Thanks to Gerud's magic, Gherdmiude has lost control and yearns only to satisfy his hunger. Perhaps there's a way to save him!

  Convinced of her plan – more or less – Almodea spread her wings and launched herself at the monster, conjuring a magic circle in front of her right hand.

  "Absolute Uncurse!"

  The only spell she knew that could remove a curse was Absolute Uncurse. It allowed her to eliminate any mind-controlling or status-altering effects. It essentially reset the target to their original state, preventing them from being affected by the same spell in the future.

  I hope this works or I'm out of ideas!

  Almodea raised the magic circle to Gherdmiude's face, got close enough to aim and…the spell failed.

  "What?! Impossible!"

  She froze in midair. The magic circle she had conjured had shattered into a thousand tiny pieces, indicating that not only had the spell fizzled, but that it had failed to find a suitable target. It was rare for Absolute Magic to fail, but not impossible—especially with a highly specific spell like Absolute Uncurse.

  "Isn't he under the influence of a curse? But then why- “

  "Lady Almodea! Watch out!"

  The demoness looked up and her eyes widened. Gherdmiude swung his fist and hit her squarely, hurling her into a pair of trees, which promptly fell on top of her.

  "Fuck! Lady Almodea!"

  Shion immediately rushed to the crash site and began moving the logs, using her monstrous strength to free her beloved from under all the trees.

  "Wait! I'll help you! Lady Almodea saved me and I have to return the favor!"

  "Scylla?"

  To Shion's surprise, Scylla approached and began lifting logs with her.

  "My heroines, eh eh ."

  Almodea emerged from the pile of wood, greatly weakened by the combined effort of the two women. She didn't appear to be injured by the blow or the fall, but they helped her up anyway.

  "Lady Almodea!"

  "You're safe! Thank goodness!"

  Shion grabbed Almodea and lifted her up, beginning to crush her with her affection.

  "Luckily I'm not made of bones and flesh..."

  "I thought I lost you!"

  "Calm down, Shion. An attack like that is nothing to me."

  Almodea's words were true; she seemed completely unharmed by the blow she'd received from the Doom Orc. To be honest, her body was taking more damage from Shion's embrace than anything else, even though she felt no pain.

  I don't understand...why didn't it work?

  Almodea's mind was a complete mess. She couldn't understand how her spell had failed. It was Absolute Magic, the highest level of magic in existence—even surpassing Divine. It was impossible for the Doom Orc to have any defense against it. Not even Almodea herself was immune to it.

  "Mistress, what do we do now?"

  "You keep him busy without getting too close! I have to think..."

  Shion nodded and, along with the others, led a desperate charge against the newborn Archdemon: Zed used shadow threads to pin him down; Shen summoned pillars of black fire to reduce him to ashes; Shion and Scylla—along with the rest of the orcs and lizardmen—targeted his legs to force him to the ground.

  -It was all in vain. The Archdemon absorbed and regenerated, pushing anyone who came near with its devastating power.

  There must be something that can work against him ! What did I miss? Ahhhhh ! Think brains! Think of something other than pretty girls!

  Almodea put her hands in her hair and started slapping herself on the forehead.

  If Dad were here, he would have solved it already! After all, he's stronger and more experienced than me, he probably couldn't even evolve being at his peak and—wait a minute... Of course!

  A light bulb went on above the demoness's head. She had finally understood where she was going wrong.

  "His transformation into an Archfiend was due to the forced evolution of the skill, not a spell! That's why Absolute Uncurse didn't work!"

  Even though she understood the truth, it didn't mean she'd solved the problem. Almodea didn't possess temporal abilities capable of erasing an evolutionary stage, and she had no way to contain the monster without incurring too many casualties.

  Had she been alone on the battlefield, Almodea would have bought time by beating the enemy bloody until her father arrived, but now she had allies. Unfortunately, they proved to be a liability in this case, as she couldn't guarantee their safety. Lizard Magnus and Gherd's escorts weren't expendable, but losing even one of their key personnel would be tantamount to failing part of the mission.

  “I can't save the King, but I can save everyone else!”

  Deciding what to do next, Almodea immediately moved toward Gherd, who had been knocked back and backward. The Doom Orc was held back only by Shen's pillars of dark fire, which seemed strong enough to damage him.

  "Gherd! I know how to stop him!"

  She told to the Orc Prince, casting a healing spell on him to regenerate his wounds.

  "Really? How?"

  “I'll have to kill him.”

  She answered, looking away. Almodea knew it meant failing the mission, but she couldn't help it. She was not prepared for that situation.

  “It's the only way! I'm sorry-"

  "K-Kill him?"

  "No! Please! Don't do it!"

  Scylla threw herself at Almodea's feet and bowed desperately.

  "If you kill him, we orcs will be left with nothing but despair! I beg you, Lady Almodea! Try to save him!"

  A hot girl desperately asking me for something...my weakness!

  Almodea shook her head reluctantly. The evil afflicting the King had been implanted in his soul. Surely there was a cure, but she didn't know it. She had a thousand different spells to kill the Doom Orc easily, but nothing that could save him from his condition.

  "I can't. I’m sorry."

  "Yes, you can! Shion said that-"

  "SHION OVER EXAGGERATE ME!"

  Almodea clenched her fists and slammed her boot into the ground, creating a small groove beneath it.

  "I...It's not that I don't want to save him, but I don't have the knowledge to do it! If only my father were here, everything would be easier. My sister Hirashi would be fine too. Unfortunately for you, I’m the only one here who doesn't know how to do shit!"

  She groaned, still trying to find a solution to the problem in her mind.

  Shit! This should have been so easy! What's the point of all this power if I can't use it as I please and am limited to my own nature?!

  Almodea looked at her hands; she hated not being able to do what she wanted, or being restricted. In that situation, she couldn't save the King, and someone would surely die if she tried to buy time. The only option was to make everyone retreat, but she doubted Gherd and the others would agree.

  What to do? I have no idea! Why isn't Hirashi here to help me?

  "Lady Almodea..."

  Shion approached her and placed a supportive hand on her shoulder. Almodea was trying her hardest not to cry like a spoiled child and look pathetic in everyone's eyes. It wasn't just sadness, but frustration too. She could never do anything too difficult without help. She had failed another mission yet.

  "I'm not perfect...okay?! There are so many things I can't do! I'm lazy, selfish, irresponsible and I treat everything like it's a game!"

  She declared to Shion, leaning against her.

  “But I’m trying to fix this by doing good for everyone! You’re disappointed in me, aren’t you, Shion?”

  "No! I could never be disappointed in you. I love you, Lady Almodea."

  Shion smiled at her and kissed her cheek. Scylla also stood up and stood on the demoness's other side, smiling.

  "I've only known you for a short time, but so far you guys are the coolest! I've never seen anyone punch something that size through a mountain and come out unscathed! Shion's not exaggerating...you truly are amazing!"

  Almodea smiled at those words, taking hold of the two girls' hips, pulling them close.

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  "You're right...thanks for the confidence boost!"

  It was good to hear how fantastic she was. Almodea had a thousand flaws, and losing confidence was one of them. Especially when it came to something she couldn't solve with power alone. But hearing two beautiful women compliment her? That was more invigorating than a drug.

  “Even with your support, I can't save the King anyway.”

  "Try it..."

  Gherd joined the discussion, taking a step forward.

  "I just ask you to at least try. If you fail, no one will hold you responsible."

  "Really?"

  “Exactly. You're the only one trying to help us. You have no duty to us orcs.”

  Gherd continued, trying to reassure her.

  "You're doing everything you can to help us, and you've ordered your people to save us. Besides, if you were truly as selfish as you said earlier, then you wouldn't be looking for a solution to the problem so much."

  Almodea nodded at that statement, but the fact remained that she had no idea how to save the King.

  He is right. Damn, I became really mature! But the problem remains; I can't separate Gherdmiude’s skill from his soul, but maybe...

  An idea dawned on her. She couldn't cure the King of his condition, but she could save him from himself if all went well.

  "Okay! I have a plan!"

  “Thank you, Lady Almodea. We will do our best to support you.”

  “I appreciate it, Gherd. So, the plan is– oh, shit! Watch out!”

  In a lightning-fast movement, he threw Shion and Scylla away, just as the Doom Orc broke the others' formation, swinging his arm toward them. He swung his fist downward, crushing Almodea in the process.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  “Hunger...Endless hunger!”

  He shouted, managing to break through the barrier of black flames created by Shen. His skill, Ruthless Devourer, It had given him a good resistance to that element, but not complete immunity. Evolution had increased Gherdmiude's defenses all around, but his skin was still completely burned, causing him to lose sensation over the vast majority of his body. It would take a while to regenerate, even for him.

  I'm hungry, I'm hungry!

  He grabbed one of the orcs who had placed themselves before him, trying in vain to stop him. He lifted him effortlessly and opened his jaws, ready to devour him. His evolution into a Doom Orc had made him nearly double the average size of his race. To him, they were like dolls in his hands.

  “M-My King! No! Please! I beg you— “

  The poor soldier's pleas went unheeded. Gherdmiude brought the orc's head to his mouth and clamped his jaws shut. Blood and bits of flesh flashed in his mouth as he chewed, the poor soldier's lifeless body lying in his hands. Three more bites and he vanished completely, as if he had never existed.

  Delicious. I must have more! More!

  Driven by hunger, Gherdmiude looked toward the main enemy force. He saw his son, his bodyguard, and the petulant demon girl Gerud had ordered him to kill.

  She...Is strong.

  Gherdmiude could sense the enormous power of the opponent who had hurled him down the mountain, but this didn't frighten him—in fact, it made him salivate even more. If he could devour that little girl named Almodea, he would become so powerful that he could swallow the entire world without difficulty.

  I have to...I have to eat her!

  It was his only thought. Gherdmiude moved quickly toward the girl's position, but was stopped by three lizardmen. One of them lifted a boulder with his powerful arms and threw it at him, but it had little to none effect.

  Weak...small fish.

  He wasn't too interested in them. Gherdmiude sensed they were decently powerful, but not strong enough to make them first on the menu. He could have ignored them and devoured them later, especially since he would have eaten everything that breathed.

  -That was his only purpose, after all.

  “How do we stop this thing, Druso?”

  “I don't know, Kan! Tiberio, defend His Majesty!”

  “Yes, brother! Be careful, you two!”

  One of the three retreated, joining another group; to Gherdmiude, what they were doing was pointless. He had no interest in weak lizards. The one named Kan was the first to attack him with a strange Battle Art. The second, named Druso, was swinging a strange sword made of mana, powerful indeed, but not enough to worry a being like Gherdmiude.

  “You are just a poor appetizer!”

  A stomp on the ground was enough to destabilize them. The earth shook beneath his paw, causing the two lizardmen to halt their advance. He reached out to grab the larger of the two, whom he considered the tastier, but was stopped by a wisp of shadow.

  Those Oni again...

  The thread tightened around his arm, further burning his skin. It hurt, but not enough to stop him. He took a few steps, and a black flame engulfed him. Gherdmiude was truly growing tired of all these interruptions to his eternal feast.

  "Enough! Death Dance!"

  He opened his mouth wide and, like a mortar, spewed forth dozens and dozens of energy spheres that would then rain down on the battlefield, bombarding it. Thanks to his skill, he had assumed Gerud's abilities, but given the difference in level, Gherdmiude's were twice as powerful as the late demon's. If even one of the enemies were hit, they would die instantly.

  Unfortunately, there were no casualties—even after such a large-scale bombardment. One of the two Oni had teleported with a shadow move or similar ability, carrying the two lizardmen away. The other, the red-haired one, had hidden under some nearby trees, using them as a shield.

  Irritating...

  Gherdmiude clicked his tongue and decided to move toward his original target: Almodea. He took a couple of steps forward and stopped short when his eyes fell on two individuals in particular: his son Gherd and his trusted guard Scylla. Seeing them together awakened something within him...something primal.

  Scylla? My son...What am I doing?

  He paused for a few seconds and looked at the burned, blood-stained hands of his companions. How had he gotten to this point? Why was he killing everyone? His goal was to feed his people, not devour everything in existence. It was then that he saw Gherd bow to Almodea, and something inside him snapped.

  She made my son bow down? How dare she? How dare she?!

  Gherdmiude's sanity was short-lived. The sight of his submissive son brought back memories of him bowing to the Troll King for the good of his tribe. He had only slightly alleviated their endless hunger, but at what cost? Now they were slaves. He had been a fool...

  The Doom Orc felt anger, sadness, and desperation. His emotions, which until then had been second only to hunger, began to increase, causing him to salivate spontaneously. Gherdmiude had now completely lost the ability to control his killer instinct. For just a second, his fury became stronger even than his own skill.

  “Die!!!”

  He swung his fist without even thinking, gripped by a fury that even Ruthless Devourer couldn't quell. Almodea, the being he'd wanted to devour with all his might—and now wanted to kill without hesitation—was crushed, reduced to a pulp.

  What... did I do? Why do I feel this way? Why didn't I eat it? Am I... hungry...?

  After that blow, Gherdmiude's fury had completely disappeared, as if it had never existed. He withdrew his fist and stared at the puddle of ink at his feet. How could he eat her in that state?

  "Lady Almodea!"

  He heard the scream of the broadsword-wielding female Oni who had confronted him in the slaughterhouse. She had leaped to her feet, watching her beloved become a stain on the floor. As in her nightmares, her mistress had been reduced to a puddle of black ink. This was the reason behind Shion's sudden fury, but Gherdmiude couldn't know it—and he didn't care.

  “What did you do to her, you dirty pig?!”

  "Stay away! I'll take care of this!"

  “C-Certainly, mistress.”

  The Oni had raised her sword ready to attack him, but a voice stopped her.

  Is that the demoness's voice? Did she survive?

  Gherdmiude moved his eyes to look around, but saw no one. There was no sign of Almodea. It was only later that he noticed the girl appear on his arm. He deduced that she had avoided the attack, since she didn't appear to be damaged in any way. How she had done it was completely unknown to him, but it didn't matter.

  -Now that hunger had taken over again, the Doom Orc would not spare himself: Almodea would be completely devoured.

  He could have swatted her like a fly, but instead he grabbed her, enclosing her in his fist. He brought his face closer, to make sure the girl was actually there. Gherdmiude's skin was still burned from the previous attacks, so his sensation was still virtually nonexistent.

  "Greater Hell! "

  "Hmm? What?!"

  As he opened his jaws to devour her, a giant A materialized at his feet, from which a huge jet of flame erupted, engulfing the two. Almodea took no harm due to her immunity to fire, but Gherdmiude seemed to suffer intensely.

  "Ahhhhhhh ...!”

  Gherdmiude's shouts could be heard across the battlefield. Although they soon turned to laughter.

  "Ahhh...Ahahahaha!"

  The colossus stepped back and emerged from the circle of fire as if nothing had happened, unharmed. Thanks to his evolution, he had gained immunity to normal fire, so only the will-o'-the-wisp—or dark—fire used by Shen could harm him in any way.

  "It seems that regular fire doesn't hurt me that much..."

  He commented, tightening his grip on the girl.

  "Oh, I know!"

  She replied, laughing.

  “You became part demon with your transformation, so you gained almost total immunity to fire! That attack was just to keep my friends away.”

  "Do you think you're smart? After I've eaten you, I'll eat them too! You may be a demon like me, but you won't save yourself! Someone like you can't do anything to me!"

  "I have a thousand reasons to tell you how wrong your statement is, but you're right about one thing! We're both demons!"

  Gherdmiude could see a grin creep across Almodea's face, transforming her pretty face from one of a defenseless princess to something more sinister. The Doom Orc's heart skipped a beat when he locked eyes with the girl. Something was wrong, even his skill sensed it.

  “However, there is a substantial difference between the two of us..."

  "And that would be?"

  "That you are made of flesh, muscle, bone, nerves, organs, and who knows what else. I, on the other hand, am made of ink!"

  "Mh?"

  Almodea's figure began to suddenly shrink, until Gherdmiude's hand was completely covered with a blackish, sticky substance.

  Huh? What the hell?!

  He started to tear it off, but stopped when he felt something creep up his legs. As luck would have it, the burn wounds inflicted by Shen had now completely healed, restoring feeling to his skin. He shifted his gaze and could only watch helplessly as the puddle of black goo on the ground magically came to life and crept up his legs.

  How long has it been stuck to me?!

  When he'd earlier crushed Almodea with his fist—reducing her to a mere stain on the wall—Gherdmiude hadn't noticed that the liquid had remained on the ground, even after the girl had appeared on his arm. Due to the numbness in his legs caused by the dark fire he'd been engulfed in earlier, he hadn't noticed that the damned liquid had already reached well above his thigh.

  -Gherdmiude had been tricked; he had fallen into Almodea's trap.

  "I don't care what you're made of!"

  He roared in fury, taking further steps back and away from the rest of the enemy forces. If they had attacked him while he was in that vulnerable state, it would have been difficult to emerge victorious—even for him.

  “Accept your fate and get eaten, you stupid little girl!”

  Ignoring his complaints, the liquid began to move up Gherdmiude's arm, reaching his neck. The ink spread across the rest of his body, showing no signs of stopping.

  "I'll be the one to eat you! I'm a very hungry girl, and Shion knows it!"

  Following Almodea's declaration, the liquid began to bubble as it covered the remaining parts of the Doom Orc's body. The skin was melted away by Almodea and regenerated shortly thereafter by Gherdmiude's abilities. They seemed to be at a standstill.

  "How about a contest? Whoever eats the other first wins!"

  "Ahhh! Get off me, little girl! Get off! Get off!!!!!"

  The colossus began tearing the ink from his skin, accidentally taking chunks of his own flesh with it. Nothing mattered to him now except getting that demoness off his back. He felt a searing pain, as if his entire body were melting away.

  "Stop it!"

  “Nope! I won't stop!”

  “Stop it, I said! I am...The Archdemon Gherdmiude!”

  He roared, before his own fist, driven by an inky tentacle, silenced him. Dozens of black tentacles had appeared from the ground and began restricting his movements. One grabbed him by the neck, another by the legs, and the rest by his right arm. He was being manipulated like a puppet by Almodea, who was going mad with fun.

  “Why do you hit yourself? ”

  There was a second punch.

  “Why do you hit yourself?”

  There was a third, a fourth, a fifth and so on.

  "Why do you hit yourself? Huh? Huh? Ahahahaha!"

  "Enough now! Damn you!"

  Gherdmiude grabbed the tentacle with his free hand and tried to pull it off, but it unraveled around his arm, making his already precarious situation even worse. He could hear the girl's laughter, and he didn't like it at all. He hated how the situation reminded him of his imprisonment beneath the demon he'd devoured moments before. How satisfying it had been to kill that fool off.

  "You sound just like Gerud! Did you get his attitude after you ate him?"

  Almodea mocked him.

  “I can't blame you, you know? It was so indigestible that it stuck in your stomach!”

  "Shut up! Shut up!"

  From the rear, everyone admired the battle, watching the Doom Orc grow more and more desperate. Where before he had torn his flesh inadvertently, now he was doing it on purpose, ready to do anything to rid himself of Almodea.

  “Get away from me! Get away! Get away!”

  "Let's see who's stronger, your Ruthless Devourer or my Absolute Devourer? Who will win? We all already know..."

  Almodea, now completely wrapped around the colossus, seemed to be gaining the upper hand. The tentacle around Gherdmiude's neck forced his head back, opening his jaw and allowing some of the liquid to enter.

  “W-What are you doing?!”

  He could feel that damned ink trickling down his throat and wrapping itself around his internal organs in a dark embrace. His eyes widened in terror when he felt a hand gently massaging his heart, as if teasing him—she wanted to make his heart explode, he was sure of it.

  And that wasn't the worst part. Opening his eyes had been a mistake; now the liquid was seeping under his skin from there, blinding him. He could feel thin filaments entering his nose, choking him. He wouldn't die from this because of his regenerative ability, but he still had to find a way to win this fight.

  "No ! I can't lose, I-"

  "You don't think I'm done here, do you?"

  “W-What do you mean?”

  “I will eat everything! Not just your flesh, but your very being! Your memories, your soul, and even the skill that corrupted you! Let's see what we have here...”

  "No! Wait! Wait! No! No! Noooo!"

  Gherdmiude raised his arm toward the position where he had last seen his son, as if it were a symbolic gesture. He felt his mind growing increasingly dull; Almodea's ink had seeped through his eyes and was now gripping his brain in a tight vice.

  “My son...”

  In that moment, for just a second, Gherdmiude felt his hunger subside. It was as if his skill had finally released him. His sanity returned for that single moment, and the weight of his actions weighed heavily on his heart. A single tear managed to make its way through the ink, sliding down his cheek and landing on the ground before him.

  “What...Did I do?”

  After that – as if he had become a statue – the Archdemon Gherdmiude stopped moving.