The Death Mage Who Doesn't Want a Fourth Time

Side Chapter 54: Rikudou’s reincarnation

The entrances to Rikudou’s main headquarters were guarded by mercenaries and the Nordic Federation and Chinese Republic’s soldiers who were disguised as mercenaries, and they understood that when the time came, they would have to fight against monstrosities – the monstrosities that called themselves the Bravers. The group of superhumans that possessed special abilities and had become as capable as the most veteran elite soldiers after just a handful of months of training.

‘Balor’ had destroyed a tank with his bare hands; ‘Sleipnir’ had overwhelmed veteran pilots in state-of-the-art machines while piloting an older machine himself; ‘Mage Masher’ had been capable of rendering any mage completely useless; and ‘Oracle’ had predicted the secrets of crime syndicates and nations in a way that rendered intelligence agencies unnecessary.

The mercenaries had prepared themselves so that they would be able to fight against a group of superhumans like these.

Mana-powered anti-tank rifles – simply known as anti-tank rifles – that combined both gunpowder and Mana to fire projectiles made of a special alloy, capable of piercing through a tank’s armor. Enormous triple-barrel gatling guns with firepower that could be considered excessive for use against infantry targets. Frost bombs loaded with an offensive spell so powerful that it could freeze someone down to their bones in an instant.

Every single one of the soldiers using this equipment was wearing a state-of-the-art power suit. Naturally, these suits increased the physical capabilities of their wearers and acted as magical media, and they also made them as resistant to physical and magical attacks as an armored vehicle. They could keep out anything, whether it was poisonous gas or a virus.

In addition to that, they had military Golems, Magic Items, biological weapons, Undead weapons… enough military forces had been gathered to overwhelm even the Federal States in a conventional battle.

With this, perhaps they would be able to defeat the superhumans. After all, they were still humans.

Or so the soldiers had thought until yesterday.

A spell cast by the ‘Chiron’ Derrick engulfed an anti-tank rifle in flames, and the consciousness of the soldier operating it quickly ceased to exist.

“This thing’s function as a magical medium is really impressive, considering that it’s giving even my spells this much firepower. If I handed this to a manufacturer, they’d pay me enough that I wouldn’t have to work for the rest of my life, wouldn’t they? Well, not that I plan to do that,” Derrick said as he kicked a piece of armored plating from a tank he had destroyed to prop it up and use it as a shield.

He was one of the Bravers who was capable of fighting. However, he was only a little stronger than an ordinary elite soldier. He wasn’t so capable that he could one-sidedly overwhelm an elite soldier provided with a plentiful budget for state-of-the-art weapons.

What made him capable of doing that now was the metallic-looking power suit that he was wearing… his transformation equipment.

I feel like it provides way too much – an increase to physical capabilities, defense, as well as boosting the power of spells. It’s more of a weapon than armor. Just what kind of carnage-filled ‘next world’ does Amamiya Hiroto live in that makes the development of weapons like this necessary? Derrick wondered with a shudder as he recited an incantation for yet another spell.

“‘Lightning!’”

The spell he cast struck a military Golem directly, causing a shower of sparks to fly into the air.

“Handing it to a manufacturer wouldn’t get you anywhere. It’s apparently made of a metal that doesn’t exist in this world,” said the ‘Sandman’ Youdou as he rolled into cover behind the makeshift shield that Derrick had made. “Ah, this is so tiring. Break-time, I need a break!”

“I see, it’s a metal that doesn’t exist in this world. Is it something to do with death-attribute magic, then?” said Derrick.

“Probably. I don’t know the details, though. And I’m sorry to those manufacturers and the people in that profession, but we can’t exactly show them this,” said Youdou.

Derrick took this to mean that there wouldn’t be much point showing this technology to manufacturers since it couldn’t be replicated in this world anyway.

What Youdou actually meant was that it would hurt the manufacturers’ pride to learn that the transformation equipment that Vandalieu had made for fun as a hobby and to help Kanako’s idol activities performed far better than the suits they had researched and developed seriously. He didn’t know exactly what materials had been used to make the transformation equipment, but he had heard the story of how they had come to be made.

“By the way, can’t you make the Golems go to sleep?!” said Derrick.

“Sorry, but it’s taking me everything I’ve got to put the traps on the ground and the surveillance cameras to sleep,” Youdou replied. “This equipment doesn’t reduce the amount of Mana that’s spent by my ability.”

As if to say ‘Then allow me,’ the trees growing nearby wrapped themselves around the military Golems, growing their roots underneath their armoring and destroying them from the inside.

Beside the Golems, an armored vehicle was crushed as if a giant had stepped on it, and an enemy soldier holding a grenade launcher turned into an ice statue.

“Have most of the large weapons been destroyed, then?” asked Amemiya.

The reason they were keeping the fighting at the entrance was partially because the inside layout of Rikudou’s headquarters was unknown, and also because they were supporting Banda, who had come here to rescue the victims of Rikudou’s research.

Given that the facility was underground, fierce fighting inside the facility would risk causing a collapse. Of course, Rikudou and the nations that had provided the facility had built it to be sturdy. But if Amemiya used ‘Ignore Defense,’ he could cause even the sturdiest building to collapse in seconds.

That was why they wanted to deal with the tanks and large military Golems above ground.

“I wish we knew more about the inside layout…” Yukijoro lamented.

“We were just guinea pigs, after all. We know the facility’s location, but we have no way of knowing about any parts of it other than the research building and the areas where we were kept,” said Bokor.

Yukijoro was turning soldiers into ice statues, while Bokor was proliferating the plants that Joseph was controlling.

They were limited death-attribute mages – Yukijoro controlled death by freezing, and Bokor’s ability resembled life-attribute magic at first glance, but he actually controlled proliferation – decomposition.

When a person dies, the microbes inside their body proliferate, causing decomposition. The corpse becomes nourishment for new life to form. Bokor’s ability gave him control over this process. When the Undead went on a rampage at the research facility he was kept in, he had killed the scientists with a spell that caused bugs to eat their way out of their bodies from the inside. Bokor was capable of using this spell.

“So, how come you didn’t go with Banda and the others?” Nanamori asked them.

“God and the Saintess instructed us to support you,” Yukijoro and Bokor answered together, smiling.

“God asked us to protect you, Nanamori, and his other friends,” said Yukijoro. “He also said that it would be troublesome to him if any of the rest were to die, too.”

“The Saintess said to help you all equally. If that is the Saintess’s wish, then it is our duty to carry it out,” said Bokor.

Everyone present knew that there were no lies in these words. Through Narumi’s ‘Angel,’ the minds of Yukijoro and Bokor were linked to the minds of the Bravers.

One reason for this was that it would be difficult to coordinate with the Bravers, who were connected to each other, if they weren’t connected themselves. But it was also true that the Bravers would hesitate to rely on them having their backs if they weren’t connected in this way.

Bokor and Yukijoro had pointed this out themselves and asked to have their minds connected to the others through ‘Angel.’

Narumi had been surprised by this request.

“Ordinary people would call people like us ‘fanatics’ and ‘insane,’ wouldn’t they? If you are going to entrust us with your backs, then we thought it would be best for you to have some level of reassurance,” Yukijoro had told her.

“And besides, we have our own reservations about entrusting you with our backs as well,” Bokor had added with a smile.

“… I see. I’m grateful for your aid. I know that you won’t accept my thanks, but even so, allow me to express my gratitude,” Amemiya had said to them as he turned with a swish of his cape to rejoin his companions.

But even those words had been met with a cold response. Yukijoro and the others worshiped Mei and called her ‘Saintess,’ but they were uninterested in the Amemiyas despite the fact that they were her parents.

“You are right, but we do understand that you are treating us with sincerity,” Bokor had said.

He and the others didn’t ignore the Amemiyas, and they answered any questions they were asked. But there was no emotion in their interactions; it was very dry and adult-like, and there were no signs that this would change.

“It seems that the tanks and armored vehicles have been dealt with,” Narumi informed everyone. “Should we press on? Or should we wait here until Mari and the others have finished their rescue mission?”

Her ability was an ability that connected her mind to those of others and allowed real-time communication that wasn’t susceptible to interference by magical or scientific means.

However, after the loss of allies who were specialized in gathering information, such as the ‘Clairvoyance’ Tendou who possessed the ability to see through objects, she had been pressured to improve the ‘Angel’ ability.

As a result, she had become able to sense the numbers and relative locations of human minds within a certain range. With this, she had been able to sense the enemies inside the tanks and armored vehicles.

Incidentally, ‘Angel’ couldn’t connect with or sense the minds of things that weren’t human. Perhaps due to this, she was unable to connect with Banda’s mind, and even though she could sense Mei’s location, she wasn’t able to sense Banda’s exact location.

Thus, Gabriel and Mari were accompanying Banda and the others, keeping them up-to-date with the current situation.

“Banda’s group still hasn’t finished rescuing the victims… That’s surprising. I thought it would be a walk in the park,” said Iwao.

Everyone else nodded. They had the impression that Banda would be capable of breaking through any obstacle in his path.

But it seemed that even Banda was finding it difficult to move at paces he had previously shown when the environment he was navigating was an enclosed space and he had more people to protect.

In fact, perhaps Rikudou’s orders deserved praise for being able to stop Banda’s infiltration.

“But everything that’s come at us so far was just ordinary soldiers, excluding their high-performance heavy weaponry,” said Amemiya. “Rikudou should know that this wouldn’t be enough to stop us, but…”

Rikudou had been the central figure of the Bravers. He knew better than anyone just what they were capable of in battle.

Their fighting strength had been increased by Banda’s transformation equipment. But even if that was removed from the equation, the latest tanks and military Golems might be able to give Derrick a tough time, but there was no way that Rikudou would believe they were enough to defeat Amemiya Hiroto.

“Could it be that he’s buying time? Then we have no choice but to press on, but –”

Just as Amemiya was about to give the order to move forward, he was interrupted by a piercing siren.

“What’s that?! Have they initiated a self-destruction sequence or something?!” shouted a flustered Iwao.

“I would totally understand why he’d lose hope after seeing his former companions from the organization he betrayed attacking him while wearing costumes, accompanied by a monster, but… I don’t think so,” said Derrick, the blood completely drained from his face as he pointed at the newly-arrived enemies.

There was a horde of roaring, snarling, grotesque creatures.

Furless wolves the size of tanks, bears with one extremely hypertrophied front limb, eyeless lizards that walked on two legs, and Zombies with machines embedded in their bodies.

“These must be… the biological weapons and Undead soldiers that Rikudou created using death-attribute magic!” Amemiya shouted in disgust.

Indeed, these were the failed creations produced by Rikudou’s death-attribute magic research, and he had decided to try and make use of this research to produce weapons.

They had been developed as weapons specialized in the use of a single type of death-attribute magic, like Berserk of the Eighth Guidance. But although they had been made powerful in combat, they had become so ferocious that they were nothing but monsters that were impossible to control.

The Zombies were the result of experiments to create immortal soldiers with strength that surpassed humans granted by mechanizing parts of their bodies, but as there were difficulties with controlling them as well, they had also been marked as failures.

Still, the production of these creatures and Zombies had continued so that they could be used as disposable fighting forces.

“I don’t have a good feeling about this, but we don’t have a choice… do we? Or should we wait for Banda?” said Iwao.

He and the other Bravers had defeated a countless number of magical beasts – beasts that had been mutated by Mana – as well as naturally-occurring Undead.

But after learning that the ‘Undead’ that they had killed more than ten years ago was actually a reincarnated individual like them, and that he was now Banda, they were hesitant to defeat enemies like this now.

And like Yukijoro and Bokor, who were present here, these creatures were also victims of Rikudou’s death-attribute research.

Banda had told them that they didn’t need to pay any consideration to any enemies that approached them, but they still second-guessed whether they should fight here.

Mari, who had become aware of the situation due to being connected to the others through ‘Angel,’ relayed a message from Banda. “‘I already told you that you don’t need to pay any consideration to any enemies that approach you, didn’t I?’ he says.”

“Huh? Is it really okay?” Iwao asked.

“It seems that it is,” Mari replied.

Iwao and the others were under the impression that Banda was trying to rescue the limited death-attribute mages – the experimental subjects – and that all the experimental subjects worshiped him.

But that wasn’t actually true. Banda had only come here to save those that Vandalieu had been able to guide, and he had no intention of saving anyone else.

Though Rikudou and his subordinates were unaware of this, there were some experimental subjects who hadn’t been guided, like the man with the ‘Decomposition’ ability. People like him would likely beg for their lives, promise to change sides, and give up any information they had once they realized that they could not defeat their enemy. And after they were spared, they would look for an opportunity to either escape or kill their captors.

Neither Banda nor Vandalieu were interested in saving such people.

Similarly, they had no intention of saving beings that were only capable of aggression, with no ability to reason.

“Well, if Banda himself says so, then I don’t mind, but… Huh? They’re not coming this way?” said Amemiya, confused.

The disposable fighting forces that Rikudou had sent were staying in place rather than charging in Amemiya’s direction.

And then, with fierce roars and shrieks, they started killing one another.

Much of the fighting was between the beasts and the Undead, and it seemed that they had started fighting each other, totally ignoring Rikudou’s commands and the presence of Amemiya and his allies.

“… What are we supposed to do now? They’re not coming this way,” said Iwao.

“Let’s make our way through! Only attack the ones that attack us!” said Amemiya.

And so, another large miscalculation was added to Rikudou’s plans.

Meanwhile, Banda and the others were proceeding through a long underground corridor. The combat personnel that were supposed to be slowing him down had mostly collapsed due to the betrayal of experimental subjects such as the man with ‘Strengthen Lethality’ and the woman with ‘Possession,’ so they were barely obstacles at all.

A six-eyed tiger standing in Banda’s path roared ferociously.

“So, some of the experiments fail,” Banda said as he slaughtered it.

The only obstacles were these beasts deployed by Rikudou, but they were being massacred with ease by Banda.

“They have mutated due to death-attribute magic, but many of them are still ordinary beasts, I suppose,” said Gabriel.

“So it seems,” said Banda. “The Eighth Guidance had an altered bear named Berserk, but perhaps because he spent years with his companions while being kept in check by Isis, or perhaps because I provided him with my Mana…”

He pondered the differences between Berserk and the dead six-eyed tiger at his feet, but quickly stopped that train of thought.

The Undead that had been sent to stop them were under Mei’s command. They were groaning, and she was making excited noises. Incidentally, the man with ‘Strengthen Lethality’ and the woman with ‘Possession,’ whom they had found collapsed on the floor, had been turned into Undead to join them.

“Mr. Tiger, get well, Mr. Tiger, be a good boy!” Mei chanted with closed eyes, waving a wand.

When she opened her eyes, the tiger stood up with a low growl, its eyes still lifeless and dull.

“Meh-kun, you’ve become such a capable young lady… It’s possible that your ability to allocate your Mana for basic death-attribute magic is already better than mine,” said Banda.

“I would expect no less from Mama!” said Mari.

The two of them were praising Mei’s ability to charm and create Undead.

Of course, Rikudou had not intended to provide Mei with pleasant friends or Banda with new devotees. He had chosen experimental subjects that had not been in contact with ‘Metamorph,’ and he had positioned the Undead here to act as assassins.

But Vandalieu and Mei had come into contact with the experimental subjects through their dreams – something that Rikudou had been unable to even observe, let alone prevent – and Mei had inherited the ability to charm Undead. Unaware of these things, he had inadvertently done the exact opposite of what he had intended.

Even the military nation that had discovered death-attribute magic had failed to realize that the ‘Undead’ had the ability to charm spirits. And Isis and Valkyrie of the Eighth Guidance were only capable of controlling Undead that they created themselves. With only these as his data points, Rikudou could never have imagined that the Undead that he had created himself would become Mei’s allies.

“… It’s good that she’s getting better at magic, but… should we really be happy about this? She looks like a really evil villain, you know,” said Hiroshi with a dry smile as he looked at his sister, who was surrounded by Undead.

He had already become accustomed to seeing Banda, but it seemed that he didn’t have much of an immunity to other Undead.

“Honestly, I find it questionable as well,” said Ulrika. “It seems that you can get rid of the hygiene-related problems with that spell of yours called ‘Sterilization,’ and the ‘Deodorization’ spell means there won’t be any complaints from the neighbors about the smell, but still… And if I recall, there are restrictions on transporting tigers from overseas. You should discuss this with Amemiya and the others later.”

“Aunt Ulrika, what I’m worried about isn’t possible trouble with the neighbors when we take these guys home with us, or pet-related problems,” said Hiroshi.

“Hmm? Really? Then I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.”

Incidentally, Mei’s mother and father, who were connected to Mari through ‘Angel,’ had agreed that they would think about what to do about Mei after Rikudou was dealt with – just like the issue of Banda’s true identity.

And Banda was fine with this.

“By the way, Gabriel, are you a girl? Or a boy?” Hiroshi asked.

“I am both. I was originally a pair of twins – a boy and a girl who were used in an experiment that aimed to fuse two people into one in order to combine their total Mana,” Gabriel replied.

“Are you serious?!”

“I am serious. The experiment succeeded, and my Mana doubled. The experiment failed for all of the other subjects, though.”

“I see… Everyone’s gone through tough times.”

“From my perspective, it wasn’t so bad. You are going to go through some tough times yourself.”

“Yeah, I get the feeling I am.”

Hiroshi wasn’t feeling very tense as he conversed with Gabriel, who looked like a boy or girl who was a little older than him. But that was because Banda was making sure that he wouldn’t be exposed to gruesome and violent scenes, so even though they were currently battling against Rikudou and the other traitors, Hiroshi was barely aware of it.

There had been no problems with that up until now, but…

“This might be your time to shine, Hiroshi. There are too many targets I need to protect,” said Banda as he continued slaughtering the incoming beasts.

Banda was a being without equal in this world. But he couldn’t crush every threat while keeping a growing number of targets protected. Thus, he needed Hiroshi’s help.

“Huh? My time to shine? What the heck do you mean by that?!” Hiroshi exclaimed. “The only thing I can do is crush a can from a distance using no-attribute magic, or cast regular spells of the other attributes. I don’t know many offensive spells, either!”

Hiroshi didn’t have cheat-like abilities, but he had inherited the exceptional physical abilities and qualities for magic of his parents. However, he was still just a boy who would be turning nine years old this year.

He might be of use in a fight between children, but not in a battle to the death.

“No, I am not asking you to fight –” Banda began.

But in the next instant, a man who had been concealing himself among the beasts using magic appeared.

“Now’s my chance!” the man shouted.

“You! You’re the ‘Copy’ Iguchi!” exclaimed Mari.

This man was one of the Bravers – the ‘Copy’ Iguchi Takeo.

He had masked his own life signal by using a spell to conceal himself among the beasts, and waited for an opportunity – not for an opportunity to attack, but an opportunity to use his cheat-like ability that allowed him to copy magic used by its target, regardless of its qualities.

Now that Mei was within range of his ability, he thrust both fists out towards her.

“Now we’re even! Come forth, my monster… Huh?”

The beasts, now aware of Iguchi’s presence, began attacking him.

“I-impossible! Why can’t I use ‘Copy?!’” I can even copy death-attribute magic… Why can’t I copy the death-attribute magic that created that monsteeeer?!” he shouted.

Rikudou, the one who had sent Iguchi here, had guessed that the unidentified monster – Banda – was a being that had been conjured by some death-attribute spell cast by Mei.

Although he and his subordinates were aware that the ‘Undead’ was Amamiya Hiroto, they were not aware that he had been reincarnated as Vandalieu after his death in this world, and that he had created a split entity of himself from fragments of his soul and sent it to this world through his dreams to possess Mei.

The cheat-like abilities of the reincarnated individuals could not be inherited even by their blood-related children. With that being the case, it was only natural for them to assume that Banda, who seemed to be connected to Mei, had been created by her death-attribute magic.

That was why they had thought that Iguchi’s ‘Copy’ would be able to improve the situation, even if it didn’t completely tip the odds in their favor. However…

“Well, that is because I’m not a spell,” said Banda.

The premise of the plan was wrong from the beginning, so the plan fizzled. Not only that, but Iguchi had revealed his defenseless self to the beasts that his own allies had created, essentially committing suicide.

Banda quickly spat mucus from his mouth. Iguchi was immobilized by the cloudy, gel-like mucus, and Banda stabbed him to death with his claws.

And then, he decided to perform a little test to see if he could break his soul while he was at it. After the battle with ‘Balor,’ he had been able to take the time to break his mind and implant trauma into him without Mei and Hiroshi being able to see, but he didn’t have the time to do that now.

After a few seconds of testing, Banda discovered that because he was only a split entity of Vandalieu, he was not able to break souls.

There’s no sensation of the soul breaking at all… I suppose it’s impossible without my main body, he thought.

With that, he gave up and released Iguchi’s soul. Would he have to summon his main body to destroy Rikudou?

“As I was saying, I’m not asking you to fight, Hiroshi. I want you to help me protect everyone. As we proceed, we will come across a large number of people who haven’t been used as experimental subjects yet and have no ability to fight, and we need to get them out of here,” said Banda.

“But I don’t have the ability to do that…” said Hiroshi.

“It’s alright, as long as you use this.”

Banda produced a mass of metal that was large enough to need both arms to carry – something completely different from Mei’s wand or the portable transformation equipment.

“This is the heavy-armor-type transformation equipment I made for you, Hiroshi. Try using it,” Banda said.

“You made this just for me?! YES!”

And so, the young boy on the precipice of adolescence who admired heroes reached out for the new transformation equipment that Banda offered him.

The important figures of political and business circles all over the world, who had been drawn by Rikudou’s promise of immortality, were now feeling agitation, distrust, and impatience.

If everything had gone according to plan, Rikudou should have perfected death-attribute magic today and become a god of the new world, and they should have been granted the blessing of immortality. No problems were supposed to occur, and nothing should have interfered. They should have safely achieved humanity’s dream of eternal life and begun their rule as the nobles of the new world.

“I know that life is full of troubles, but… do we not at least deserve an explanation? Where is Mr. Rikudou?” asked the president of the Federal States.

“Mr. Rikudou is currently making the final adjustments to the plan. I am sorry that we must keep you waiting a little longer, but rest assured that there are no problems,” said the ‘Shaman’ Moriya, deflecting his question while concealing his own discomposure. “The fools who are attacking this base will be suppressed shortly.”

But Moriya was aware that this was a lie.

Rikudou had tried to get rid of every individual who could possibly interfere with the plan, but they were all still alive. The allies that were supposed to get rid of these enemies were all dead or their whereabouts were unknown. The pawns should never have been able to betray them, and yet they had joined the enemy.

And although this base had been well-prepared, Rikudou had never actually expected it to be attacked. And yet, it was currently under a heavy assault.

The base was managing to hold, but Moriya understood that this was because the enemy was prioritizing the rescue of the guinea pigs. It was fortunate that Rikudou had thought of using the guinea pigs as forces to slow the enemy down, rather than as hostages, and this had bought them some time, but… there was no telling whether this would buy them just a few more minutes or more than an hour.

At the very least, it was unlikely that they would be able to escape this place and go into hiding somewhere else.

Just before Moriya left the command room, he had shouted, “What the hell is that?! It’s a monster!” after seeing footage from surveillance cameras showing Hiroshi turning into a metallic monster that was over two meters tall.

No matter how one looked at it, this was Monster Number Two. Even Moriya, Rikudou’s devoted adherent, had started to think that it might be impossible even for Rikudou to turn this situation around.

Rodcorte, in his Divine Realm, was surely shouting at him: “Kill yourself and at least make sure your soul gets here!”

If even Moriya was having such doubts, the doubt was certainly even greater for the president and the others who had collaborated with Rikudou out of self-interest rather than worship or trust.

They were likely thinking of plans to abandon Rikudou and escape this place, how to conceal their involvement with these events, and how to manipulate the media to minimize the damage.

… It was already too late for the president and Secret Services chief of the Federal States, however, due to the coup d’état that had occurred in their country.

At that moment, Rikudou’s face appeared on the large screen that was mounted on the wall.

“Sorry to keep you all waiting,” he said.

“Mr. Rikudou?!” the president of the Federal States exclaimed.

“I have just made the final adjustments. I am truly sorry for keeping you busy people waiting,” Rikudou said.

“What?! Then we can finally acquire eternal life?!” someone shouted.

“Hurry! The Bravers are attacking us from the surface!” pleaded another person.

“Please calm yourselves. First, I will need to acquire the power of death-attribute magic before I can bestow that upon you,” Rikudou explained.

Moriya could only watch uneasily as Rikudou continued to talk through the screen.

This talk of the ‘final adjustments’ was nonsense. They were supposed to secure Amemiya Mei, perform research on her, and then use the results of that research on Rikudou himself.

But Amemiya Mei had not been secured.

“Rikudou-san, you can’t be…” Moriya murmured.

On the screen, a cultivation capsule was visible behind Rikudou. There was a man suspended in the liquid inside it with his eyes closed. He looked just like Rikudou but with a larger, sturdier body.

“First, I must die. And then, I shall reside in this body, which has been created and adjusted with death-attribute magic in mind… I must be reincarnated into it!” Rikudou declared. “That is why I have spent over a year constructing a system that can transfer souls, which we have already confirmed to exist, to another body after it leaves its original body! Whether this is the correct method – Whether my research is correct… We are about to find out!”

Rikudou produced a pistol and placed its barrel against his temple.

“Rikudou-san! Don’t be so hasty!” Moriya shouted.

“Mr. Rikudou! What is the meaning of this?!” exclaimed the president of the Federal States, alarmed by Rikudou’s erratic behavior.

“Now is the moment… The moment when I transcend humanity!”

And with that, Rikudou pulled the trigger. A dry-sounding gunshot rang out, blood sprayed from Rikudou’s head, and he collapsed somewhere off-screen.

Moriya and everyone else in the room froze at this shocking sequence of events. But their silence did not last long.

The man who resembled Rikudou floating in the cultivation tank opened his eyes.

He broke the capsule from the inside, and Rikudou’s successfully-reincarnated form became visible on the screen.

He let out a triumphant laugh. “I have finally acquired the power of death – the power to rule this world!”