Side Chapter 6: The Tournament Part 1: Lord Swordsman Vs The Fiendish One Who Rules Over Demons

The Heroes, a group of humans who came from another world summoned by the Cornelia Empire to defeat the prophesied new Demon King. Two special classrooms were created for them because they didn't really have a designation for them, Class S The Hero Generation Class. In the Academy City a hero was not that special and they would receive them every time the Demon King rose to power, however this was different. A generation of heroes had been summoned meaning the situation had changed, this meant that the new Demon King was either very powerful or employing the power of the Evil Gods. A list of examples for the heroes were as follows: one with the ability of acceleration, another one who could stop time, and another couldn't be harmed by anything. These were but a few examples to show off that the heroes were very strong and thus could easily conquer class A and the school if they felt like it. Nations who didn't know about the heroes' unique skills would find out in this tournament and then they would work so they could negotiate what to do with them when the war with the Demon King was over. Obviously for conquering other nations that they had their eyes on, assassinations and the like were the key thoughts here, this was the fate of these children who were summoned here.

However not all heroes were as useful, the outcasts were a pair that didn't have their skills necessarily active hence why they were discarded and often bullied by their own classmates. Those two went missing causing a bit of an uproar with their classmates but the tournament was here and it was to show off the power of the nations that held the children who they sent. It was a painfully obvious truth they could stand against the heroes from the other world, no matter how skilled or talented they were none of the other students could hope to actually win against the heroes. Hence why it became a tournament showcasing the abilities of the heroes instead, the fights themselves were very fierce and they amazed the arena with their prowess. They had all lost to the leader of Class S-1, the Lord Swordsman Tadashi Matsuoji, having been trained by the Empire's Sword Saint Reinhart Minerva. This was a natural result, he was well loved by the girls of the school and envied by the boys because of his strength and handsome looks. This was the end of the tournament and he would receive even more glory and fame by being praised in front of everyone including various nation representatives who were invited here by the principal who was very well known. He waved at the increasing volume of cheers that the crowd was giving him, flowers were even thrown to the stage in full excitement that he won the tournament all alone through his power alone. He stood there proud of his ability basking in the praises of the crowd and smiled to hear them shout his name, the screams are cut short as the principal of the school is about to congratulate him on his win after fighting both the regular peasants and his own classmates.

"You have done well Lord Matsuoji just like your peers have. I praise your prowess as it is something that is truly worthy to be praised"

"Thank you Principal Calthius"

"You're welcome. However now begins the true tournament."

"?"

"So far you have faced regular students who are not heroes and your classmates who you could easily conquer with your skill but now you as well as the other six heroes who have given you a tough time shall face true threats to mankind. If you manage to defeat them then you are certainly the defenders to humanity's long reign of power but if you do not. The end of an era is neigh."

"I and my dear comrades shall face them head on"

"Excellent, you may appear now"

The crowd was thrown into a wave of confusion as to why the principal did this, the students felt like he was cheated out of his certified victory whilst the nation representatives were unsure to make of this. Was the principal of this school a traitor to mankind?If so what was he really plotting?And why show it off now?It was all confusing to really figure out really. Five figures clothed in cloaks stood next to the principal, five?But didn't he say there were six? Footsteps are heard walking from the entrance where Tadashi was, he could feel a presence that could grip his entire soul and rip it into shreds but he kept that to the back of his mind. First a gloved hand reached out feeling the sun as if testing it like water whether it's hot or not, then a figure gets out of the darkness walking towards the stage. It's wearing a black hooded jacket with red lines, jeans are the same color as well as its sneakers.

His focus was on who this person was, he held an abnormal aura he never felt before. It was difficult to tell if he was even human because of the aura that surrounded his body, was this perhaps a hero who was previously summoned to this world?Did he come from their world?There were many questions spinning in his head but he ignored it to focus on the match, there were only two people who could best him in swordsmanship that was Reinhart the Sword Saint and Ayato Kishikawa the Knight Lord of Blades but now it felt like there was a third in that slot. He wasn't sure of what to make of his opponent. He points his scabbarded sword at the stranger who was to become his opponent.

"I accept the challenge that the principal has given me but I must know who you are. Whether you are a devil or a man I shall defeat you"

"Its the same with you huh?Putting up a noble front, acting all prim and proper with people not knowing what you're really like, certainly you Tadashi-kun. C'mon now. I am pretty sure you don't have a goldfish's memory, you didn't forget about me did you Tada-kun?"

"?!It can't be!"

"It is"

He recognized that voice it belonged to a classmate he had forgotten about completely. Toshiro had suddenly vanished and he thought that the Empire had secretly dealt with him and ended his thoughts about him and Ren right there. But this person was certainly Toshiro however he was not the same person he knew. He removes the hoodie and reveals his face and it certainly is Toshiro with a grin that was making his feelings become complex with anger. With a calculative gaze he uses the skill Status Examination on Toshiro but is shocked to see a message that makes him doubt his sanity.

『Goddess Sophia Has Prohibited You From Viewing This Status. 3 Tries Left』

"Did your momma tell to not peek into other people's statuses?Your manners are as crude as your personality"

"I do not want to receive smartass remarks from you!"

"There's the Tadashi I know, c'mon show him more to everyone to watch"

"I will silence you before you get the chance"

Despite his threat Toshiro's grin widens even more as he steps forwards with a nonchalant step that doesn't have a single care in the world, this unnatural devil may care nature to danger feels suffocating to Tadashi which makes him by reflex leap backwards.

"Oh?Hey bro you okay?You seem to be mighty afraid of someone who is an insect in your eyes, are you tripping or something?"

"I said silence you mongrel"

"Yup, show me that side more Tadashi-kun, let everyone see the real yo-"

"Tch"

Without letting those words finish Tadashi had already unsheathed his sword and was sprinting towards the stationary Toshiro who was smiling at him even more. He sends out a vertical slash that would leave his organs falling down to the stage, he didn't care if he murdered a classmate to him it would be nothing more than an action that he did to someone who the Empire didn't need. He would leave this stage proud that he faced his greatest fear but reality wasn't so kind much to his surprise a living wall with 3 eyes stares at him and laughs at his stupid effort of bisecting Toshiro. On top of it is Toshiro who has folded his arms and stares down at him.

"W-What the fuck is that?!Answer me now Toshiro!"

"This?Its the nurikabe, a demon under my contract you should recognize it from Japanese literature. Pretty famous in Fukuoka if I recall correctly."

"Stop wasting my time and hurry up and fight me already!"

"Are you sure Tadashi-kun?I might be very scary in close combat though?"

"I am not afraid of a weakling like you!Now come down and face me like a man."

Toshiro's eyes are smiling as soon as he says those words, he throws an item having the appearance of a blue gem with a similar skill to Analyze II near where Tadashi is standing. It briefly scans his body something that he reacts to and breaks it with his scabbard. But the result is already clear to Toshiro who checks out the status screen in front of him.

『

• Name: Tadashi Matsuoji

• Age: 17

• Race: Human

• Title: Hero, Apprentice of the Sword Saint, Lord Swordsman

• Job: Sword Saint Protege

• Level: 13

•Job History: Swordsman, Junior Knight, Knight of Swords

○ Attributes:

• HP: 11,000

• MP: 17,500

• Strength: 7,000

• Agility: 7,500

• Stamina: 5,000

• Intelligence: 14,250

』

"haha...hahaha..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

"W-Why are you laughing?!"

"At the fact I used to be your errand boy because of the power gap. Weak this, weak that. Despite being a hero you are nothing but an insect when compared to fighting a god who took me approximately years in that world to defeat with my strength alone. Dying repeatedly until Death was but common to me."

"What kind of nonsense are you spe-?!"

Toshiro opens up his hoodie to reveal his finely built up upper body which causes the girls of the school to scream for him but he ignores this and begins to focus closing his eyes as he reaches out his right hand out to something. He clutches it and places it on his chest as a fist, the surroundings start to become dark as he continues to focus. This was the start of something else with Tadashi starting to fear for the worst, he leaps up into the air to cut him down immediately down before he could finish whatever he was doing. For a brief moment in time time seems to have paused as Toshiro opens his eyes which have become crimson colored before he takes his hand off of his chest revealing a hole in his chest. A pressure hits the stage into silence and causes Tadashi to fall back to the ground and silently stare at Toshiro whose upper body is covered in glowing arcane tattoos that resemble the faces of demons with red tear like markings found on his face. This wasn't the Toshiro he knew, this was an entirely different being with death surrounding him as if it were natural. The nurikabe vanished along with Toshiro who appeared right in front of him within the blink of an eye, Tadashi's reaction to him is far too slow as he gets punched as a result. This sends him flying across the stage with the only thing stopping him being him stabbing the ground and staring hard at Toshiro who slowly walking towards him. The previous Toshiro wasn't able to do such a thing.

"C'mon now that isn't something that should send the Hero flying stop fucking around"

"........."

"Heh"

"Waves of Swords: Act 1: Sage's Sorrow"

Tadashi slashes rapidly but to no avail does this work as Toshiro seems to dodge this nimbly with his hands in his pockets. He stands on his sword with a smirk on his face as he kicks him in the face before being grabbed back for another punch to the stomach, rolling around like a tumbleweed made the arena very quiet. This was their hero and yet he was having his ass handed to him by a defective hero, an outcast amongst the heroes. Tadashi stares at the reaction of the people and knows that if he doesn't turn the tables here that demon would break their trust in him.

"Sword Art: Sword Rain!"

"Otou!!"

He sends a mass of swords flying down on Toshiro who simply dodges them as easily as if he could see them coming from a mile away, he steps on some of them and kicks one towards Tadashi who immediately makes it disappear. In a moment of shock he finds Toshiro even riding one of the great swords like a surfboard grabbing another which transforms into a spear with a thunderous clap it is hurled towards him. The lightning that strike which Tadashi barely escapes makes him wonder what kind of skill he had activated. But all was going according to plan as Toshiro stepped on the place where he had placed a landmine like spell that would explode upon being stepped on.

"What a fool. Falling for such a simple trick, I hope you have learnt your lesson. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha...ha?"

There was something within the blaze other than Toshiro who was still very much fine, the presence of something very evil was inside of that flame with him. Tadashi froze for a moment and was in extreme doubt not even wanting to accept that Toshiro could survive that if at all without having some kind of burns on his body but reality was very unforgiving as Toshiro comes out of it with red skin and a crown of horns as well as glowing eyes turning into a yellow color. They were like the full moon when it turned into that shade at nightfall, mysterious as well as dangerous it was like encountering a new yokai at midnight whilst walking down the road.

"This can't be.....You're supposed to be covered in burns!WHY?!"

"I am just that strong and I have a very high resistance to death Tada-kun"

"IMPOSSIBLE!! I HAVE NEV-?!"

His face was grabbed by Toshiro's burning hand and he was slammed into the ground with an impact that sent vibrations throughout the arena, right after he groans his right leg is grabbed and his entire body is slammed onto the ground as if he were a ragdoll. He is made to stand up once more before Toshiro lands a punch to his stomach which sends him flying into the air but he is kicked back down, as soon as he lands on the ground his face is dragged across the floor before sent flying into the air once more with a small red point of energy rapidly grows in the mid of Toshiro's horns.

"Lado"

Tadashi is hit by a red stream of energy that feels like swimming through a sea of broken glass being dunked into a giant bathtub of salt. His clothes are burning out and showing signs of extreme damage, he lies on the ground completely motionless. Toshiro claps his hands for a brief moment.

"Wow you are certainly weaker than I had expected. So this is the limit of the Sword Saint Protege huh?How sad, but I am not done screwing with you yet they want to play around with you as well. So here have this, should heal up mostly everything."

Toshiro spills a bottle of something on Tadashi whose wounds and even mana begin to become restored to the previous state that they were in before they started this match. Toshiro sprouts bat like wings and flies in the air whilst sitting on it like it was a chair. What was he planning to do with him?He could make this his big breakthrough and finally defeat him.

"I am going to disable all of the demons I equipped to be fair, the first part was just payback for the shit you made me go through. In fact I do not even need to fight you to be honest"

"D-Demons?But they are in the dark conti-"

"Not those demons, demons from our world. Demons I have control over so show me that you are a true hero"

"Master you're such a showoff"

"Sorry Sylvie I got too excited but hey you get to fight now"

"Yay!"

The little pixie like being that appeared on his shoulder spoke whilst staring at Tadashi who was confused as all hell about what was going. The monster flied in the air without a single care in the world, she was dressed in street fashion and looked rather cute in it. It was clear to Tadashi that he wasn't a regular fighter he was using the strength of his summons as his own and thus was far superior to him in every way, how could he defeat an enemy whose strength was based off of a lot of summons whose origins were from earth. The truth was harder to swallow but he had to accept it, Toshiro was far stronger than him in this case.

"Don't underestimate me because of my size I will put you down"

Tadashi lifted his sword up but then put it back down and made a magic arrow instead to fire at her. Unfortunately the magic that he had sent was lightning elemental based and this caused a reaction of the arrow coming back to him tenfold in power, if he hadn't dodged it then he would be cooked alive. He was right, the demons were just as powerful as he was.

"I'll take my chances"

He decided to go against his better judgement and lunged himself at her swinging his sword and casting bullet sized arrows at her for her to not dodge but she was evading them as if they were something very easy to see at the rapid speed they were flying at her even using one as a surfboard to go back to him, she raises her arm at him to which he laughs at what could she possibly do to him with such a tiny fist. Mana constructs in midair as he watches with a fist bigger than his head smacking his head, another hand grabs him by the collar with her bitch slapping him constantly before throwing him like trash. With a red face Tadashi gets up furious running towards Sylvie who is going back to her master. Toshiro clicks his fingers and now what appears before him is a real threat, a traditional red skinned oni which smiles as he cannot stop sprinting towards it.

"THE OUTSIDE WORLD LOOKS SO GOOD!!YER COMIN' TOWARDS ME HUH?!ALRIGHT THEN LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOO!!!"

It punches the ground which cracks into a web of unearthed tiles which send Tadashi flying into the air, the oni leaps up into the air and grabs his legs aims to slam his head on the ground. He tries his best to get it off by all means using magic and even his sword to stop this one hit kill it was about to do on him but nothing works in his head as he crashes into the ground. Because of the way this world is structured his HP is at a dangerous low almost near death even, a mere hundred. The oni stretches its arms and adjusts itself with a smile on his face, taking a breath in. Another dreaded finger click is heard with Tadashi shaking like a leaf in the wind as he slowly raises his eyes to see what it was, an immense presence that could be felt with his entire being. It was obviously different from the fairy and the oni, power was radiating out of its body as if giving life to the very world itself. Despite his skill with the Appraisal being rather low he used it anyway and his eyes widened in shock.

『God of the Storms, Susanoo』

"no.....fucking....way....A GOD?!HOW?!"

"Where we come from we are all demons in the end, that is why I could make a contract with him. You are just unlucky to face this boy in combat Hero. You definitely need more training."

The warrior god is in battle armor whose motif is cloud based, his black hair is tied in a ponytail and his blue eyes stare down on him, his androgynous face would have made him fall in love but in this case it was terrifying. He crossed his arms and smiles looking at Toshiro who nods.

"I can see you have lost your will to fight but not just yet you have to look pitiful hence I will show something special"

Susanoo claps and suddenly he and Tadashi share the same vision. He turns around to face Toshiro who has many demons standing behind him, of many different sizes and strengths. The one that made him lose all control of his bowels is the dragon king that Susanoo bows in respect to. He screams horribly before fainting.

"Well then I guess that ends that, time to head back"

"That was certainly fun"