That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Primordial Demon

An eventful and normal life. That's what I'll call it.

Upon my birth, I was given the title "White Ice Dragon" as a representative name.

With my sentience low at the time, I couldn't witness what truly occurred during my birth.

But it's nothing to complain about.

Spending most of the time I had with my brother was blissful.

He taught me everything I knew today, leaving me to grow up on my own.

Upon the realization that he had chosen someone to serve as a mediator for the world, I was filled with curiosity and annoyance.

I had stayed with him for the longest time. Yet, he hadn't trusted me with any valuable position to handle in his stead.

"Why would he trust someone he just met instead of his sister who had stayed with him the longest?"

He had mentioned how strong he was. It almost seemed like an exaggeration.

For someone to be strong enough to fight on equal footing with the dragon race?

It was unheard of. What ticked me off the more was that it was a mere demon.

Even if it was a primordial, it still didn't make sense.

My brother would always brag about his strength, making me ever the more annoyed.

In a quest to sate my curiosity, I ventured out to see just how strong this demon was.

Meeting this demon for the very first time, I was already ticked off with his arrogant behavior.

He acted as if he was the king of the world, a pride that brought about the idea to fight the world's creator.

The thought of it alone brought a sense of anger. The thought of killing him right there and then filled my mind with ecstasy.

But unfortunately, it would displease my brother.

It was just a small test, and yet, the fight had turned out to be a very nerve-racking one.

Just as my brother had said, he was strong enough to battle a dragon like me.

Looking back at it, he only possessed a unique skill at the time.

So the fact that he was able to fight on par with a dragon in possession of an ultimate skill goes to speak volumes about his strength.

Our fight was so intense that it shifted the world's axis, changing the state of the world's natural operation.

Seeing this, I knew that my brother would have to intervene if the fight went to the next level.

This is why I resorted to end the battle right there.

I also had to acknowledge him.

He was strong.

The place where we fought was his homeland, which now bore the aftermath of our battle.

It was now a permafrost, making it inhabitable.

I decided to stay and watch him, taking the form of a teenage girl to regulate the amount of aura I leaked out.

"It was only to control my haki and has nothing to do with him!"

That was what I told myself every day.

That brings us to another anomaly.

The silver primordial demon Sariel.

A person whose mysterious tendencies were top notch.

He was very unpredictable, which made him ever-the-more mysterious.

His behavior was unlike the demons I've seen.

I always felt this strange bond with him.

I tried to figure out what it was, but my curiosity was not sated.

Even now, he had this air of warmth and mystery, masking his existence with his aura.

Unlike Guy, who boasted unbridled pride and arrogance, he always seemed naive and playful.

He strongly bore resemblance to the humans, making me believe that he was reincarnated as a primordial demon.

But such a thing is as close to impossible as possible.

Reincarnating as a normal demon is quite possible, but as a primordial, that's unheard of.

If one were to reincarnate as a demon, their demon factor would greatly change the wavelength of their soul.

Meaning, their soul would undergo a change to fit that of a demon.

If he still had his human characteristics in a demonic body, then that speaks volumes of his willpower.

The demon factor of a primordial is extremely powerful, making it possible to recreate demons.

Their factor is too strong for a human soul to bear, making changes unavoidable.

For his soul to be constantly repelling the demon factor, it should have been worn out by now, so the fact that he still stands makes him very strong.

There must be something behind him protecting him, but that is all I can figure out.

I only recently found out that he was the world's protector and guardian.

It was strange hearing that a demon was the one protecting the world.

The stranger thing was that the humans actually accepted him as such.

Seeing a demon and a human in cooperation is quiet.... well, weird, to say the least.

I heard stories about him once defeating a being called the "Mad Titan God," as they called him.

According to Velda-nii, he was at least stronger than me, making him at the level of a dragon already.

But he was inexperienced and young, without any particular combat style, so it was only understandable.

But still, even a brute like him can not be easily defeated.

To be able to kill such a being, this is another thing to keep in mind.

But he is still the most dangerous primordial, in my opinion.

Guy might be strong—yes, but all that he has accomplished was at his peak.

This silver primordial has not yet reached the peak stage of his evolution, and yet, he is capable of pulling such feats.

I can only wonder what type of monster he would turn out to be in his peak.

It was only recently that I found out that he was the closest companion to Velda-nii.

Seeing as he was brother's bestie as he called it, my jealousy skyrocketed.

I wanted so badly to kill him, but that would instantly make brother mad.

He would always talk about how awesome or how great his friend was.

Whenever he got scolded, he would cry and complain about how mean he could be, but he would still praise him.

He was anomalous, but that didn't mean he was so great!

I understand why brother was so obsessed with him.

The worst part of it is that I couldn't do anything about it.

This annoyed me greatly, so I decided to forget about it all.

The next thing that happened was something no one could predict.

My brother married the hero's sister.

That same hero who would always barge into Guy's castle and challenge him.

It was so unexpected, but that marked the day that everything would go wrong.

Some time after, Lucia, as she was called, got pregnant with my brother's child, making him decline in power.

The fact that he would die soon did not come to mind, but it was inevitable.

Brother died. According to Guy, who got this piece of information from the hero, their homeland suffered from an invasion.

The invaders were from the Super-Sorcery Kingdom, which led their group towards my brother's residence, leading to the eventual death of Lucia and Velda-nii's death.

The propensity of those humans to act stupidly is just that high.

The eventuality of his death was unavoidable, but I believe that he would return, and we would be one happy family again.

My youngest brother, who was born at the time Velda-nii still lived, was not as good as I expected.

He would always thrash around recklessly and kill the humans, brother loved.

I had to teach him a lesson or two, but it changed nothing at all.

Whenever a dragon dies, they lose some of their memory, so I figured that if he died a few times, his might develop a new personality and change his ways.

But it never changed anything. Today is a clear example of that.

Even after my several disciplines, he still ventured out to destroy a small village, ending the lives of several humans.

I honestly do not mind it, but that goes against brother's will for humanity to strive, plus I'm in a very bad mood after brother's death, so I took all my anger on him.

Veldora:「I already said sorry, sister!! I won't do it again! Just spare me! Please!!」

Hearing his plea for mercy, it almost made me smile.

He was just this stubborn.

Velzard: 「I'm sorry, little brother, but I'm all out of forgiveness. It's too late to apologize.」

Even though I said this, he continued to assault me with attacks, failing to do so miserably.

Velzard: 「I hope you come back to be a better person with a different mindset. Goodbye.」

I gave him my final words and unleashed my devastating attack towards him.

Although it took no effort to pull off, it was a very powerful technique.

And yet–

Sariel: 「『Soul Lord』.」

The same primordial that she always thought of as an anomaly appeared right in front of my attack and countered it.

Sariel: 「Phew. That was close.」

He said as he made a gesture that made it seem as if it was a hassle to deal with and wiped off the sweat that was definitely not on his face.

Sariel: 「I quite recall telling you never to touch Veldora ever again. Did I stutter?」

Oh? Brave words coming from him. Is he implying that he commanded me that day?

Velzard: 「And what if you did? Am I obligated to take orders from you?」

Sariel: 「Even so, am I supposed to teach you how to think? It should be clear that if you've tried it so many times, and he never changed, it means he will never change.

Am I even supposed to teach you that spiritual life forms are not easily influenced by external factors? I expected more from the so-called "White Ice Dragon."」

Hearing what he had to say, I was overly pissed off. Just now, he showed his demonic nature.

He hasn't yet fused with his demon factor, and he's already acting like one.

Velzard: 「You know, if I wanted you dead, it would have been so the moment you interfered.」

Sariel: 「Yeah. Let me just bow down to you, right?」

That was the last straw. Without a second thought, I released my a bit of my aura I had always restrained.

My intrinsic skill, 『Dragon's Haki』 was released, and the casualties took place.

The land below us began to freeze, spreading the effect further.

Seeing this, Sariel sighed.

He seemed to ponder about something but shrugged it off.

The same Veldora who was attempting to escape my wrath flew beside Sariel, as if intending to lend a hand in our upcoming battle.

Sariel: 「Don't worry, buddy, I've got this. Just watch.」

Saying this, Sariel also decided to flex his aura to counter that of mine.

Although it wasn't anywhere near what mine could do, it still regulated the destruction it caused.

He decided to set an additional barrier to ensure the forest's safety.

With his final words given, we began our first clash.

With just a few microseconds, I appeared in front of him, aiming my claw downwards to cleave him into.

Unfortunately, he managed to dodge my attack before he released a deadly mist that seemed to have a soul destroying effect.

Using my innate ability 『Deceleration』, the thermal state of his attack was instantaneously reduced, successfully freezing his attack.

Flinging my wrist towards the frozen mist, I easily shattered it.

Although I must say that it is an impressive attack.

Anyone without a counter to this skill would die quickly.

I took control over his attack, manipulating the ice shards and sending them over to him.

Each of them where imbued with the effect of 『Fixation』, a subskill of my ultimate skill 『Gabriel』.

A skill that was granted to me by my dear brother.

He intended to make use of his all-devouring ability, but since this was empowered by a legitimate ultimate skill, he resorted to evading the assault.

But alas, that was my intention.

I planned to make an attack he can't casually devour, forcing him to evade at the expected location.

Appearing beside him, I applied my deceleration effect on my claws and attempted to slash him, all to make his speed decline.

He dodged most of my relentless assaults, but I managed to at least scrape his body.

The effect, although menial, began to take place, reducing his velocity.

His regeneration rate was reduced, and the damage was being done.

Seeing this, he had to deal with the problem by slicing off his arm.

As he did that, the wound was instantaneously healed.

Seeing as he had dealt with the problem, I smirked giddily.

The thought of killing him slowly by expending his magical capacity crossed my mind.

Unfortunately, he countered this thought by activating his barrier skill, surrounding himself with a sturdy barrier.

It would be difficult to deal with, but it wasn't impossible.

Our little exchange intensified, and with just a few minutes, our clash expanded to reach an unimaginable level.

My blows were ferocious and brutal, making them nigh-impossible to counter.

As I expanded the distance between us, I attempted to solidify the space around him instantaneously.

It was a clever attack to which he countered by devouring the aura around him before it froze him completely.

Whilst doing so, he prepared an attack of his own.

But it was surprising, to say the least.

He used elemental magic and created a gust of wind that converged to form a very sharp wind blade.

But no matter how sharp it was, it would never be able to affect me.

Is he underestimating the toughness of we dragons?

No! It must be a trap.

Thinking of such, I immediately dodged that attack, and as expected, it was a trap.

The attack had managed to easily sever the tough barrier he had set up around us.

Seeing as I would find it difficult to break through such a barrier, I could say the attack would've definitely cleared me.

Choosing to be careful with my next action, I tried to retaliate, but he was one step ahead.

Sariel: 「Aha! Take this!! 『Chaos Magic: Divinity Nova』!」

No, it would be wrong to say he was one step ahead.

He had already planned for the future.

I intended to take the attack head on, but as the formation of the magic concluded, I felt it.

A life-threatening glow. I instinctively created my absolute barrier, 『Snow Crystal』.

It wasn't just once, but multiple times over.

The durability of the snow crystal was highly reinforced.

With multiple layers upon multiple layers, I kept on stacking the ice barrier, compounding them to form one ultimate defense.

With this done, I enveloped myself in this protective barrier, successfully blocking the disintegration light rays.

Sariel: 「Eh?」

He seemed way too surprise to realize the reality of things.

I took advantage of that.

Velzard: 「There is only one person who managed to get me this serious. So be proud. Now, let me show you an art meant to be used for those I deem worthy. 『Time Stop』.」

I acknowledged him. He was strong. It was difficult to admit it, but he definitely surpassed my imagination of him.

I had always seen him as this weird and unpredictable human, always creating havoc wherever they went.

It seems like I have to revaluate my estimation of him.

As I concluded my thoughts, a cold yet familiar feeling overwhelmed me.

That cold and distant feeling, the feeling of the ultimate ability, 『Time Stop』.

 ◇◇◇

As she said that, the overwhelming feeling of uselessness weighed on me.

Why was that?

TIME STOOOOP!!!

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!!!

How do you expect me to counter that!?

Rather, how does she counter that!?

Wait–

It was then that the realization dawned on me.

My consciousness blacked out for a moment there before being restored, right?

Shouldn't my consciousness remain out?

How am I thinking in a time stop!

——— Raziel-san? ———

「....」

Eh? What's this? Raziel-san?

Wait, is she also frozen in time?

Kalisha: 「Unfortunately, that would be the case.」

——— Wait, Kalisha!? How are you unaffected by time, but Raziel-san is? ———

Kalisha: 「That's because I'm a digital life-form. I'm not really sure, but I think digital life-forms are not affected by time.

And as I'm a time spirit, there's nothing like Time Resistance or Nullification, so being a digital life-form serves as a substitute for anti-time purposes.」

Oh? A time spirit... It all makes sense now.

Since Raziel-san is not with me, I think I need to act sharp.

It seems like most spirits are immune to the attribute they possess.

From fire to water, wind to earth, light to dark, and space to time.

Since there's nothing like space or time resistance, they come with different properties.

As for time, it's being a digital life-form.

I see...

But wait, am I not a digital life-form?

I remember clearly from Raziel-san that I had succeeded in becoming a digital life-form.

Kalisha: 「Yes.」

——— Then that solves everything, but how do I move? ———

——— I feel like I can do it, but the sensation is unfamiliar and uncomfortable. ———

Kalisha:「By manipulating information particles. To me, it seems the speed of the information particle was constant.

Our conversation had been established, and the reaction speed of vision was also constant.

This is as clear a physical phenomenon as the fact that all things can not exceed the speed of light. But in that case, why did the information particles exceed the speed of light?」

——— Hm... This is not a matter of the speed being exceeded. ———

——— It is as if the information particles, which were supposed to be at different coordinates, were transferring information to each other with zero time difference, right? ———

Kalisha: 「I see... Regardless of how far they were from each other, as long as the information particles existed in the recognizable space, there was no time difference.」

Hm! In other words, information particles transcend time and space.

Our communication had also been established by using the information transfer between information particles.

In that case, how can one move? No, rather, how did Raziel-san make me do so...? Could it possibly be…

Kalisha: 「If it is a spiritual life form, then she must have transformed all your matter into 'information particles,' thereby resulting in you becoming a Digital Lifeform.」

I knew it! Assuming that the mind and spirit are also information, it's not impossible.

Whether it could be done or not was another matter, but it is significant that there was an answer there.

At least I know what I'm doing. So, by using that matter that has been transferred into infons, I could also move!

Exactly! As expected from you, Kalisha!

Kalisha: 「You also did magnificently well, Sariel-sama!」

Hm! Now, the first thing I noticed was that the 'Timeless World' had no concept of defense.

I mean, each particle is held by a force of attraction, right?

If that force of attraction was to be halted in time, any substance would instantaneously collapse.

Now, the other thing I noticed was that the person who activated the 'Suspended World' seemed to be at a disadvantage.

Velzard would be one example. Her energy count has reduced drastically, supporting my statement.

Not only that, but it seems that repeatedly stopping and deactivating it consumes more energy.

I wasn't completely sure, but I didn't think I was wrong.

I mean, think of it as jumping once, then later deciding to jump repeatedly. Irrational, right?

That would simply be a waste of energy—no I think that would be stamina, leading to fatigue.

Comparing it to this, by repeating this process, your energy would get easily depleted if I'm correct.

It appeared that stopping time consumed a lot of energy.

A surefire way to get rid of any spiritual life-form.

In that case, there was no point in suspending all the people who were able to move in the 'Suspended World'.

That would soon include me.

With the confirmation given, I began to manipulate the infons, passing them out discretely to catch a glimpse of the situation.

Staring at Velzard, she slowly walked towards my seemingly immobile figure.

With a plan already prepared in mind, I waited patiently.

Her claws appeared, and a sinister smile was formed on my face.

Sariel: 「A very stupid mistake.」

Without missing a beat, I summoned my precious blade, 『Ares』, and in an instant, stabbed it into her core.

Doing so, I jumped back to observe the result.

She didn't seem affected as she shattered the sword.

The mark she had on her chest healed up, and she looked at me in shock.

Velzard: 「You... How are you moving in the stopped world?」

Sariel: 「I will tell you after I've died. Trust me.」

Velzard: 「Tch.」

Sariel: 「Tch–Tch!」

She seemed really annoyed by my attitude, intending to finish this long battle but being unable to do so.

That's just how stubborn I am. It's an achievement, and I'm proud of it!

I mean, who wouldn't like to piss the shit off a hot... you know what, let's put that aside.

My point is to make her lose composure and win. Nothing big, right?

Yeah, no kidding. That's one heck of a mission. These beasts possess incredible wills, making them stationed at the top of the food chain.

But it isn't impossible, so I'll try.

Kalisha: 「If there's any difficulty, you can always rely on me.」

Yeah, I'll hold you to that.

Steadying myself, I held out my newly reacquired soul blade and took a fighting stance.

Velzard: 「You shouldn't get complacent.」

Sariel: 「I don't get complacent.」

Velzard: 「You still have to adapt to this change, right?」

Saying that, she instantaneously appeared beside me, aiming for my left torso.

My ability to perceive the stopped world was quite limited, and my reaction speed was greatly reduced, ending up with me on the defensive.

I had already activated my absolute barrier, successfully securing me in the process.

But now that I think about it, how is my skill still working?

If I'm to get things straight, Magic is not supposed to work in a timeless worl, right? So how?

Kalisha: 「It seems like if magic were to be activated before this stationary world, its effects would still be active.」

Really? That's cool. So I basically have『Multidimensional Barrier』here for me constantly.

Kalisha: 「Also, the result of my research proves that primitive magic can be used in the stopped world.」

Wait seriously!? That's hella cool! The limitless impossibilities...!

This is just perfect! It's time to use this in an actual fight.

Facing her back, I unleashed a devastating flame magic at her, primitive magic as it's source.

The result?

Astonishing!!

This actually had an effect on a dragon specie!

Her back, initially as sturdy as an unbreakable wall, melted under the intense heat of the flame.

This was all calculated.

Even though Raziel-san was currently affected by time, her abilities, that is, her subskills are still usable.

One example would be 『Law Manipulation』. Allowing me to change the properties of my flame at will.

Another would be 『Existence Alteration』, which was part of it all.

The function for existence alteration was to change the properties of any matter and the ability to insert your will upon infons or any matter in general to achieve the desired result.

But from my deduction, the Voice of the World abolished such a thing.

This might stem up due to a fact that one would have part of Velda's creative authority if the person in particular was capable of doing so.

It looks like when time is stopped, the forces influencing the world's laws are also frozen in time. What a scary thing.

But in fact, it favors me greatly.

That along with the fact that the force rejecting my ability is now incapacitated.

At this point, a frozen world is like my domain.

Velzard sensed this and intended to lift this ability, but I wouldn't allow her to do so.

Appearing in front of her, I unleashed a lightning bolt which extended from my palm at her solar plexus.

In response to my attack, she twisted her body position to the far left, barely evading my brash assault.

In an attempt to gain space, she sent a deadly information wave at my leg, an attack meant to disrupt my movement.

But with 『Existence Alteration』, I negated this attack.

By simply erasing the effect of the attack using my will, it is possible to outright eliminate the ability of the attack.

She seemed overly perplexed at my sudden increase in strength.

It was all due to her time stop, but I wasn't telling her exactly why.

From there, we clashed repeatedly, attempting to overwhelm each other with sheer strength.

A slash to my neck was parried.

A kick to her abdomen was deflected.

A blow to my head was dodged.

A slash to her neck was countered.

With such pace, we fought tirelessly, aiming to bring this fight to a conclusion.

At some point, the ability that froze time entirely faded out, and my advantage was lost.

But–

「Sariel-sama!!」

——— Heh. Missed me already? ———

「...!!!」

Hah! Newsflash, Raziel-san is so cute when flustered.

I even felt a slight blush on my cheek, one that definitely did not belong to me.

Velzard: 「*Sigh* I suppose I'm satisfied.」

She said so whilst drawing back from me, her form slowly changing back to her younger female version.

Sariel: 「A test?」

Velzard: 「You could say so.」

Sariel: 「So you weren't actually mad?」

Velzard: 「That quality suits my sister better.」

Even though she wouldn't easily admit, but I must have annoyed her slightly.

As long as she says it's cool, it's cool.

Velzard: 「I am content now. I think I'll just take my leave.」

Sariel: 「Hold on! Can you please keep this a secret from Guy?」

Velzard: 「I see... Don't worry yourself over that. I didn't intend to tell him either way.」

Sariel: 「Thanks. I appreciate that. Also, sorry for saying such harsh words, I kinda lost it there.」

Velzard: 「It's alright. I just hope this little brother of mine will grow up. At least he has someone who cares for him... I'll take my leave now.」

With that, she disappeared like she was never there in the first place.

This was a mind-blowing battle. I feel spiritually exhausted.

As in, literally. My spiritual constitution aches a lot, like having a headache.

It was a tiring yet enjoyable one. This marks a century of no fighting then.

With that in mind, I decided to head to Silverion to get some rest.

Veldora: 「That was.... weird.」

Oh, I forgot. Veldora can't sense the stopped world.

Well, at least for now.

With his absurdity level, I'm pretty sure breaking through it would be a breeze.

As for now, it's rime to rest–

「Notice. Weaknesses detected. The process to acquire necessary components needed has now commenced.」

Ah, Raziel-san. Let a man rest in peace damn it!!