"Reflia, can you do one more shot?"

"Yeah, I think I can manage one more..."

Reflia answered, but her spirit energy clearly looked exhausted.

She had already used several light attacks today, and the new spell seemed to consume even more spirit energy.

And there were no spirit energy potions left.

Crystals and points couldn't be used either.

"Alex! Do you have any spirit energy potions? Or if you have crystals, I'll trade for them—just give me a moment, I'll repay you later!"

"Sorry! I used them all up—those were the last ones I gave to Jale!"

"Does anyone else have any?!"

The rear-line spirit mages all shook their heads in unison.

Spirit energy potions were high-grade items—this outcome was unavoidable.

Refréa strained every last bit of her strength, concentrating spirit energy into the palm of her hand.

Spirit magic is the manifestation of power in the form of an ability—borrowed through a contract with spirits.

However, the spirit energy itself must be drawn from within oneself. That is why there is a limit to how many times a human can use spirit magic.

"Ugh... gah..."

The light gathering in Refréa's palm flickered weakly.

Photon Ray is capable of long-range attacks, moves quickly, and possesses tremendous power.

It must require a significant amount of spirit energy.

Clearly, she had no strength left to fire it again.

...Then.

There was no choice but to draw power from outside.

"Spirits! Help Refréa! Strike down the Demon King!"

"H-hikaru...? What are you saying...?"

"The spirits have wills of their own. If you call upon them, they might help."

I spoke to the spirits.

In the world of Earth, I could never have felt the stirrings of the spirits.

But here, I could truly sense something like their touch.

"Please! If you truly have wills, lend me your power—just this once!"

―"Kyakkyaku!"

―"Are you going to defeat the scary thing? Please, defeat it!"

―"Ufufu."

I heard voices.

I felt the light spirits gathering around me.

Faintly, twinkling specks of light floated in the air.

Could this be the light spirits?

"Refray, can you see it? The light spirits are coming to lend their support. It seems the Demon King is an enemy of the spirits."

"Eh, light spirits...? Since I'm not beloved, I... can't see them."

So this is what it's like to be unable to see.

But it's certain that the light spirits are trying to lend their strength to Refray.

Yet the light gathering in Refray's palm still flickers unevenly—still not enough to activate the spell.

I reach out from behind, wrapping my arms around Refray, pressing my hand against her forehead as I grip her wrist.

"Eh, wait, Hikaru...?"

"Refray. The spirits are offering their power. Focus well. Listen to the voices of the spirits."

The gift of the spirits' favor.

In this world, they call such people "the beloved," but I've drawn power from spirits before. When I nearly died, losing my spirit energy in that forest, I managed to survive by using their power to cast the "Create Undead" spell.

Probably only those favored by the spirits can draw power directly from them.

But—

—hehe

—bad children are scary, so

—take them down,

—use us,

—gather the children of light,

"Huh...? I can hear it... Is this the voice of the spirits...?"

It seems, through me, the spirits' voices have reached Refreia as well.

"Strange voice, isn't it?"

"Yeah... it's like it's coming from right beside me, yet from so far away... And I feel it. The spiritual energy flowing into my body... Are the spirits really giving me their power...?"

"That's right. The spirits want you to defeat the Demon King."

I can feel her power passing through me.

At the same time, the Photon Ray light grows, dazzling and immense—far beyond anything we've seen before.

"H-Hikaru...! I can feel it, I really can! The spirits are lending me their strength!"

"Looks like the spirits really hate the Demon King."

Glittering particles gather beneath Reflia, forming a massive radiant mass.

Unimaginably larger than the Photon Ray we used before.

"Gwaaauu!"

The demon, leisurely soaring through the sky and likely regaining its strength, suddenly noticed the anomaly on the ground, swiftly changing direction and charging straight toward us.

"The demon doesn't seem to like this light. Looks like it's coming right at us. Can you hit it?"

"Yeah. Leave it to me. I won't miss."

Baring fangs like sharp knives, the demon glided through the air, descending toward us.

We stood firm, facing it head-on, the deafening roar echoing so powerfully it felt like physical pressure.

Yet the light gathering in Refrea's palm radiated a reassuring strength, pushing back the fear.

I measured the demon's distance, speed, and timing, separate from Refrea's attack.

"Pierce it! Photon Ray!"

The enormous sphere of light was unleashed with such force that the sound of its launch could be heard, transforming into a single beam that struck the approaching demon lord head-on.

The beam entered the demon lord’s face just beneath the right cheek, pierced straight through, severed the right wing at its base, and split the left wing in half.

"Gwoaaarrrrgh!"

The demon lord, now wingless and writhing in agony, plummeted toward us.

If left unchecked, he would crash into both me and Refreia.

—But not if I have anything to say about it.

"Dark Coffin!"

Right before us, a coffin of darkness materialized.

It was an impossibly deep, profound darkness, as if hell itself had manifested—a sharply defined, perfect icosahedron of shadow.

The demon, rushing forward with the momentum of its fall from the sky, is drawn into the darkness.

"Guaaaaaaoooooooooooooo………………"

The coffin door shuts.

And then, silence descends.

"Huh? Huh? The demon...? Did we really lock it inside?"

"Yes. But... this spell isn't like a binding—it seems designed solely for complete restraint."

In exchange, its restraining power is immense. So we can maintain the hold indefinitely as long as the spell remains active. The demon won't be able to attack us from within, and we gain valuable time.

But the spiritual energy leaking from my body is draining at an unimaginable rate, far surpassing even the darkness fog. I'll likely run out of spiritual energy in just about ten minutes.

There's no way to attack the monster sealed within the coffin from the outside.

—Except for one single exception.

I knew it instinctively, as a sorcerer.

"I'm going out for a bit."

"Huh? Wait, a minute, Hikaru!?"

"――Darkness Fog!"

Spreading darkness, gripping the short blade and dashing forward――