— — — — — —
"That's impossible!" Regalzeva's voice shook with disbelief. "There's no way my body would submit to you."
He was a mechanical lifeform, an Evie. Every part of him was forged from the Empire's strongest alloy, and the only thing capable of controlling that body was his own consciousness core.
That was true for all three Evil Gods: Melvazoa, Regalzeva, and Seraselbes.
Their bodies were the pinnacle of the empire's technology, built with the highest resistance to soul-based attacks, energy manipulation, electronic viruses, and physical destruction. As far as they knew, nothing surpassed them.
So how could anyone bypass the consciousness core and seize control of their bodies?
Then a possibility struck him.
His eyes widened.
"Wait… this is your Integrated Concept ability? You actually went beyond its limits?!"
"Integrated Concept?" Ryo looked at him in surprise. Then, after skimming through Regalzeva's memories, he let out a disappointed sigh. "So you've already reached this stage, huh? You're researching how to turn concepts into Authority... but you still haven't succeeded."
There were plenty of races capable of manipulating concepts. The traits of Devils in this world, the unique abilities of Dragons, even Sacred Gears—all of them qualified as forms of conceptual power, or what the people of Little Garden called Limit Authorities. They were still Gifts, but ones with the potential to evolve into Authorities.
Still, no matter how many races were capable of manipulating or fusing concepts, the knowledge of how to truly forge them into Authorities was incredibly rare across the multiverse. It even demanded specific, often stringent requirements.
What was funny was that in Little Garden, among the Five-Digit Communities and above, it was practically common knowledge. Even some Six-Digit Communities had access to it.
Ryo shook his head. "To think something this basic has kept the three Evil Gods busy for so many years. The gap in foundations really is terrifying."
Then he looked at Regalzeva, who was desperately struggling to wrest back control of his own body.
"Give it up." Ryo's tone was almost gentle. "The Mechanical Authority I possess is top-tier, even among Authorities. In terms you'd understand, it's the final stage of Integrated Concept. I've only just begun incorporating it into my Spirit Rank, but it's still far beyond what someone at your level can resist."
"...Even if our Spirit Ranks are almost equal."
Ryo admitted it. Regalzeva stood on the same level as him in terms of Spirit Rank, both of them within the realm of four-digit elites.
Yeah, on paper, they were equals. But their foundations were worlds apart.
In raw combat potential, Ryo's accumulated power could push him into the realm of four-digit rule-breaker.
Regalzeva, meanwhile, was merely elite-class. Strong, yes, probably mid-tier among that class, roughly close to Kurousagi.
The difference between them was like charcoal and diamond.
The substance was technically the same. But the hardness? Not even close.
And at the four-digit level, even the slightest difference in quality could create a gap that felt infinite.
Plus, this world had no Gift Games to stall for time or create openings. So from the very beginning, Regalzeva had never had a chance of winning against Ryo.
"Ridiculous!"
Regalzeva roared, though whether he was cursing Ryo or his own helplessness, even he didn't know.
He was the commander of the Devastator Order fleet, a conqueror who had rampaged across countless worlds and laid waste to untold planets.
And now? In some foreign world, because of an enemy's bizarre ability, he was being crushed like an insect.
How could he possibly accept that?
"Where's your control core?" Ryo asked calmly, as if Regalzeva's desperate resistance didn't even exist.
Regalzeva's electronic eyes flashed wildly. His consciousness core fought like mad for control.
But his seven-meter-tall body, under Ryo's command, steadily opened up its own chest cavity, disabled its defensive systems, and revealed its innermost core: A spherical furnace.
This was his consciousness core.
Seeing it, Ryo reached out without hesitation.
His fingers touched it. Then he gave it a light tug.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The electronic chimes rang out.
Regalzeva's five eyes dimmed one by one until all light vanished.
A moment later, the Creator God stepped forward, staring at Ryo, who was now casually turning the apple-sized consciousness core over in his hand with obvious curiosity.
"That's it?" She looked stunned. "It's over just like that?"
Ryo didn't even look up. "What else were you expecting? Some big head-on fight with that oversized hunk of metal? Sounds exhausting."
"If there's a clean way to take someone down, use it. Why leave room for accidents?"
"Well… true, I guess." Creator opened her mouth, then let out a sigh. "It's just… I spent thousands of years preparing for this. And it turns out none of it mattered."
"Oh? Lady Creator, want me to make your preparations feel useful? I can return everything to how it was then." Ryo raised his hand, as if about to shove the mechanical core back into Regalzeva's chest.
"Wait!" Great Red rushed over and grabbed his arm. "Aren't you supposed to take me to that Garden place? I said yes! Don't do anything weird!"
"Should've said that sooner." Ryo laughed and pressed the core back in.
Click.
The core slid into place. Regalzeva's five eyes lit up again.
"Fuck!"
Great Red cursed in surprisingly human fashion.
A second later, Regalzeva's eyes flickered. Then the giant mechanical god raised a hand and gave Ryo a crisp salute, "Governor!"
His voice boomed. "Invincible Devastator Regalzeva reporting for duty!"
The Creator God froze.
"You..." Her voice was tight with shock. "You rewrote his consciousness core? In that short amount of time?"
Ryo rolled his eyes. "Obviously. You think my Mechanical Authority is that simple? Did you even read the information I gave you about Authorities, or were you slacking?"
"..."
Creator said nothing.
What could she even say? An enemy she'd spent millennia fearing and preparing for had been dealt with by Ryo in minutes.
The difference between them was simply too absurd.
She could only let him show off.
"So," she asked quietly after a while, "what now?"
"Now?" Ryo thought for a moment, then pulled the pocket watch Shiroyasha had given him from his Gift Card—the same watch that had accompanied him in every world he had traveled.
He glanced at the hands.
"Eleven o'clock?" His brows furrowed. "So I'm still one step short? But Regalzeva's invasion of this world is already over."
He had thought that taking down Regalzeva would be enough to secure DxD and push his influence to its peak.
Apparently not.
Which meant... he'd probably have to make a trip to the ExE World.
Great Red, not knowing what the hell Ryo was talking about, feigned understanding and nodded. "One step short? That's understandable. You only dealt with one of the three Evil Gods. There are still two left. It must be them."
"That might be it." Ryo pocketed the watch again, his expression thoughtful. "According to Regalzeva's memories, the one actually in charge of invading this world is Melvazoa, the Ruler of the Evies. He's supposed to attack thirty years from now."
Creator went silent for a moment.
Then she sighed. "You're planning to conquer the whole Evie Etoulde, aren't you?"
Ryo turned to her and smiled. "So it's that obvious."
She let out another sigh.
"Then... if you see the Holy Mother Goddess." Her gaze softened. "Give her my regards."
Ryo's eyes flickered.
Then he smiled.
"I will."
.
.
.