Shikkaku Mon no Saikyou Kenja~ Sekai Saikyou no Kenja ga Sarani Tsuyoku Naru Tameni Tenseishimashita~-Chapter 324: Strongest Sage, Reminisces the Past

"Do you know what kind of demon is it, Mathi-kun?"

"Yeah… Its body's power level itself isn't any different than an ordinary demon."

I replied to Ruli. 𝑓𝒓𝚎e𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯𝘰𝐯𝒆𝑙.c𝚘m

From the mana flowing in Dragon Vein, I've hazarded a guess that the reincarnated body [Demon of Destruction] Zadokilgias possesses is no different than an ordinary demon in term of basic capabilities like stamina and mana.

That's exactly the reason why it didn't take long for its awakening.

Other demons were predicting it would get awakened in a month time… But the weaker a demon is, the less time is needed for its revival.

"Eh? Ordinary demon… You mean like the demons that raided Second Academy?"

"Yeah. Your run-of-the-mill ordinary demon like the 10 or so demons we defeated back then."

There was this time when around 10 or so demons raided Second Academy, I took care of them all by myself--the body Zadokilgias has now is most likely around the same level as those demons.

They've still got far higher mana and stamina even compared to us now though.

"Err… Don't you think that's such a let down for a demon those other demons tried so hard to awaken…?"

"Doesn't sound like it's any more dangerous than an ordinary demon then… Was it really worth the effort awakening it, I mean… from the written information we got, shouldn't it have been stronger than Zaridias…?"

"Oh oh, I can probably beat that demon up by myself then!"

The girls looked disenchanted when they heard me.

True, if we only look at it from demon body's inherent power… We have defeated many demons far stronger than reincarnated Zadokilgias so far.

However…

"Nah. If we, say, pit this newly awakened demon against Zaridias, this demon would most likely come out victorious."

""EH!?""

The girls looked surprised when I said that.

Zaridias was a [Chaotic Demon] that got awakened from its seal.

I couldn't manage to defeat it with only my mana and had to resort to using an extremely valuable and disposable weapon [Sword of Revival] and even died once before I succeeded killing it.

However… Reincarnated Zadokilgias would most likely win against Zaridias without relying on a weapon.

It's partly due to an issue with compatibilities but mostly due the difference in pure strength.

"By Zaridias… You mean that Zaridias?"

"…Can an ordinary demon really win against that?"

"Yeah. Undoubtedly."

Reincarnated Zadokilgias is at an ordinary demon's level, speaking only its body's power level.

But that's not what's terrifying about Zadokilgias the [Demon of Destruction].

"Its mana quantity and quality… may be far inferior to Zaridias in pure output. However, the mana that mixed in Dragon Vein contained a trace amount of control finesse in it."

"…Control finesse…?"

"Yeah. A quality that determines how precise one can control mana… In other word, magic skill."

"Mana quantity that's inferior to Zaridias, but more masterful skill-wise… Doesn't that sound like Mathi-kun?"

"Exactly that… I defeated all the demons so far due to the gap in skills and combat tactics. But the demon this time is on a whole other dimension than your average demon in those regards."

The reason why we prevailed against all demons we had encountered so far was due to our understanding in combat methods and techniques.

However… Zadokilgias is an especially masterful one even amongst demons.

This was true in the past.

In an olden era where the past me lived, Zadokilgias was once feared as the worst demon.

But even the Zadokilgias at the time was not a demon with a particularly strong power or anything.

The demon simply boasted superior combat skills.

In my past life… during my youth, Zadokilgias also got caught in the Demon Detection Network.

Zadokilgias at the time had an average quantity of mana for a demon… or rather, it was lower than the average even.

But humanity already had a full understanding on the danger of demons, and magic combatants at the time formed a steadfast subjugation unit before they went on a campaign to exterminate it.

Demon subjugation forces at the time were outstanding.

A unit could easily defeat several of the most feared demons in this era with zero casualty.

Casualties were very rare unless they were up against a very high-ranking demon… such was common knowledge to the people at the time.

That subjugation unit was annihilated in five minutes flat.

Despite having six members each capable of killing an average demon solo.

Countries suspected that they were caught in a trap.

And then they sent out another unit consisting of 30 magic combatants, and pros in magical traps.

That unit faced a total annihilation as well.

Past countries were quick to move.

They designated Zadokilgias, which only had an average amount of mana, as a dangerous being at the same level of the most powerful superlative demons, and sent experts in fighting superlative demons.

And they too met the same fate as their predecessors.

It was an absolute nightmare to those countries.

However, it was not like Zadokilgias was a bearer of mana that exceeded superlative demons.

This demon was simply good at fighting.