Hm...? What the...? Where am I?

Ow...something's chafing and digging into my wrists. And my shoulders and arms feel sore, I-...wait, why can't I move them?

I squinted slightly as I began to open my eyes, a bright blue glow surrounding me, and a disconcerting, prickly sensation in the air.

What's going on?

I feel so woozy-...wait, that's right!

I was fighting that Archdemon, and then he summoned a ton of Monsters!

It's all kinda hazy after that, what-...?

"Ah, it seems you're finally awake, Kaivel Intrix."

Huh?

I turned my gaze forward, in the direction the voice had come from, an unfamiliar figure coming into sight.

My eyes widened as I looked down, a massive, flowing stream of energy below me.

Is...is that an exposed Mana Current?

"Who are you?" I uttered as I turned my attention back to the figure...but one look at his Aura gave me my answer.

I've never seen such a massive, imposing Aura before. It's so dark and ominous, impossibly intense and vast, it's practically radiating power.

"I am Vaszel Vos Kealfaos, also known as the Demon Lord and Monster King," He introduced himself with a smile.

"A child?" I blurted out in bewilderment, his right eyebrow twitching with an incredulous look of irritation on his face.

He looked like a prepubescent kid, maybe a twelve or thirteen year old.

The front of his hair was black and spiked up, the rest of it was a dark red, wild and pushed back, going down to the base of his neck.

His eyes were red, with the whites of the eyes black like all Demons, but...he doesn't have horns, and his skin looks human, with a fair complexion, instead of the usual scaly red skin.

His fangs were white instead of black, though his claws were black. Actually, his entire hands, forearms and elbows were black and scaly, with curved spikes extending out of his elbows.

His tail was narrower and longer than other Demons, his wings more sleek. The top of his ears were narrow and pointy, and he had a third eye on the middle of his forehead.

He wore a coat that had red buttons, with the sleeves ripped off, a black cloak that extended down to his knees, with a jagged red pattern across it.

He had on black trousers and tall black boots that went halfway up his calves, with a streaky red line across the sides.

"I am not a child, I shall give you one warning not to make that mistake again," He remarked icily.

"Yeah, my bad, Vaz-...can I call you Vaz? Sorry about that, you look like a human kid with a high budget cosplay on, so yeah."

"You certainly are bold, provoking me in your current predicament. This is a special prison cell...see the crystals lining the walls?

They amplify the waves of Mana that leak from the Mana Current below, creating a dense chamber of Magical energy.

Due to that, it is nearly impossible to control your Magic while in this space. I'm sure, with your strength and power, you would be able to break free of those shackles without much trouble.

But without being able to control your Magic, you would plummet straight into the Mana Current and die," He informed me with a smirk.

The shackles around my wrists were attached to chains embedded in the ceiling, and I was dangling over the Mana Current.

The Demon Lord was standing on a platform a few dozen meters ahead, and there's nothing else to stand on.

But, uh...

It doesn't feel like I'll have any real trouble channeling my Mana and using my Magic. Ai?

<Yes, I'm able to block the interfering effect of the amplified Mana waves, so you should have no trouble using your abilities>

Great. But I'll play along...

"Yeah, now that you mention it, I am having trouble channeling my Mana. Vaz, you bastard," I growled, putting on a frustrated look on my face.

"Do not call me-...well, I suppose it does not really matter. Or rather, it will not matter. For you will die soon enough."

Let's take a look at what the final boss is packing, Appraisal:

Personal Details:

Name: Vaszel Vos Kealfaos

Age: 367

Gender: Male

Height: 5'2"

Weight: 56 KG

Skills:

Appraisal

Item Box

Immortality

Negative Energy Generation

Elemental Immunity

Status Effect Immunity

Demonic Arts:

Larceny

Evolution

Intimidation

Disintegration

Petrification

Alchemy

Reflection

Binding Chains

Gravitational Field

Divide

Pause

Rewind

Empty Skill Slot

Empty Skill Slot

Empty Skill Slot

Stats:

HP: 17,000

MP: 20,000

Strength: 16,000

Agility: 22,500

Vitality: 18,000

Perception: 22,000

Power Level: 19,250,000

You've gotta be fucking kidding me.

Obviously, I knew he'd be the most powerful being I've ever come across, but not by this much. A Power Level of nearly fucking twenty million?!

And that's a lot of Demonic Arts he's got. That Immortality Skill must be a step up from Instant Regeneration. I really hope it doesn't mean that he's completely unkillable.

And that Larceny Skill, I'm guessing it works like Invidia's Pilfer Skill, but likely permanent. Those Empty Skill Slots, he can probably use Larceny to fill them...ohh, now I get it, that's why he wanted me alive, he wants my Skills.

Yeah, that must be how he got at least some of the rest of his Skills too, he probably started with a few Skills and a bunch of empty slots...huh, that's giving me the impression that he's got a System.

Uh, Ai, what are the chances that he'll be able to steal my Skills?

<Low, the Sinner System should prevent that>

Okay, good.

No, I can't be sure unless and until he tries it, I can't completely rule it out yet. It's certainly concerning, but...

The Demonic Arts that have me the most concerned are the ones called Pause and Rewind.

Because those sound like time-manipulation abilities. Can he really freeze and turn back time?

No, it can't be that convenient...otherwise, he could've just spammed those abilities and adjusted his moves to ensure his victory ages ago.

Maybe there's some specific activation conditions, either that or those Skills have limitations.

Something like, he can only freeze time for a short while and turn back time a short amount.

Or, hopefully, I'm completely wrong, and they have nothing to do with time manipulation. Like, maybe Pause could be an ability that freezes a person in place instead of freezing time, like the effect I trigger when I use Command: Don't Move.

Hm? Wait, I almost overlooked a key detail...

"Now, then-...," He began, as he started to raise his hand towards me.

"Hold on a sec...are you from my world?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

He tensed as his eyes widened, his face twisting into an expression of immense rage.

"H-How...," He uttered seethingly.

Just play it cool...

"While I definitely won't be able to cast my offensive Skills in this place, a low-cost Skill like Appraisal, I can just about manage. And I can see your age, which is most unusual.

See, for whatever reason, I can never see the ages of Monsters, or any beings from this world, for that matter. But that isn't the case with you...I think I get it, you're a human who reincarnated into this world, aren't you?" I realized, his expression and reaction all but confirming it...

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