And that's how it got released...

"UGRAAAAAGH!?"

The monster's scream confirmed that the feeling of stabbing into flesh wasn't just a delusion, and the next moment, the bandit-turned-monster pulled his arm back, only that it was now neatly split between the radius and ulna with a thumb, index, and the middle finger being separated from the ring and pinky fingers.

"I will make you suffer so much. You will regret ever crossing me…!"

"This King doesn't allow you to use magic!"

The monster gritted his teeth and growled, creating even more black orbs, just to have them all dissipate at the command of the green-haired youth.

"WHAT!? BUT YOUR FAULTY ABILITY SHOULDN'T BE ABLE TO…!"

The monster stumbled back and roared in disbelief, but he was the only one to act like in such a way.

Ace was already rushing at him, with his golden weapon transformed into a battleaxe that he swung upwards using the momentum of his charge, slicing through the stomach and ribcage of the shocked monster…

"I got it upgraded."

"PFGH...!"

Ace pointed out before changing his weapon into a war hammer and bringing it down on the monster's head, crushing it like a ripe watermelon.

The sound of a level up didn't resound in the green-haired youth's ears, but it was clear that his opponent was dead. The claw-like growths were attempting to cover the wounds of the demon-crowned monster, but the damage was simply too massive for it to work.

"...yes…!"

"!!!"

But at the same time, the amaranth crystal in the metal arch broke apart and crumbled to the humanoid monstrosity's satisfied cheer, forcing Ace to pay attention to her.

"Come out~ You have a place to sow some destructio…"

The monstrosity breathed excitedly into the metal arc, digging her elongated fingers into it and pulling down as if trying to pry it open.

"This King takes away your right to move!"

Just as she managed to do that and was peering through the crack she had created, the green-haired monarch ordered her body to freeze up.

With a target like that, Ace changed his weapon into a javelin and winded up for a throw, but the very next moment, everything went wrong to the degree that no one expected

*WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*

A pillar of fire erupted from the crack, swallowing the head of the paralyzed monstrosity. It was so hot that it melted through the rest of the metal, and the entire room was engulfed in the crimson inferno.

"!!!"

Ace managed only to raise his arms to shield his head and chest, but it was for naught as the fire burnt him to a crisp in less than a second.

The blaze burst out of the building and poured onto the former streets, engulfing the ruins and setting the plants outside on fire.

As the eruption ended and the initial inferno subsided within the ceremonial chamber, a large, round monster emerged from behind the melted remains of the metal arch.

A levitating flaming head, similar to a Flame Skull Champion.

Surrounded by lion-mane-like flames, the main difference between it and the Flame Skull Champion was its skull, which looked as if some skilled artisan carved the shape of a furious old man in the bone.

The face bone was bluish-gray, and although it appeared to resemble a human skull, its size definitely didn't.

Just its skull was over four feet tall and three feet wide.

The crimson flames covered it like hair—it even had a mustache and beard—and gave the monster additional volume, but they were also filling it.

The eyesockets didn't hold eyeballs. They were just holes behind which even more flames burned, as was the case for its mouth, too.

"..."

The massive flaming skull looked around, stopping to get a better view of the burnt creature next to the cave that it had been sealed in for hundreds of years…. a shallow cave that was never a tunnel or passage to anywhere.

"I don't like my vessels being destroyed like that… but since we managed to get rid of the human with Veto Rex on top of the original objective, it can't be helped."

"...?"

A freakishly tall, charred skeleton of a humanoid with horns growing into the shape of a horizontal crescent moon spoke up despite not having any organs that would allow such a feat, making the floating flaming head tilt to the side in confusion.

"Don't you have something to do? Find the other heads and reunite with your main body, Deep-Dusk Hearth Head,"

"~!"

The skeleton spoke up, raising its hand, which began emitting pale blue light. The flaming head joyously bounced in place a few times before disappearing in a flash of the same pale blue light.

"Perseverance's champion will not mess up our plans."

The skeleton clacked its teeth decisively, and then the mana holding it together ran out, causing it to collapse into a pile of brittle bones the next moment.

"KHE, KHE! KHEGHE!"

While the skull had yet to land on top of the pile, Ace Adonis, still holding on to a golden weapon that returned to its dagger, emerged naked from under a thick layer of ash, coughing out soot with the light coming out of a deep-blue bracelet around his wrist.

"...wh-what…? Huh…? What?"

He shook his head, trying to comprehend what had happened, but he ended up dropping to his knees as his legs trembled too much to support him.

"What… happened…?"

Ace mumbled to himself, trying to comprehend the events that happened in such rapid succession.

"Did… did the demon kill itself with that fire…?"

The green-haired youth asked out loud, staring at the pile of bones next to a blackened shallow cave on the opposite side of the room.

'Wait…!"

Suddenly, his eyes widened, and Ace pulled himself to his feet, turning his weapon into a staff for support.

The green-haired youth stumbled his way out of the building…

"...no… that level up wasn't a hallucination…"

Where his legs give out once again at the sight of the burning ruins and the charred bodies of the people he incapacitated and in whose deaths he involuntarily participated.

"...the fire… I need to check if the village is alright…"

Regardless of his feelings, Ace didn't allow himself the luxury of despairing and got back up again.