— — — — — —
"I have no other choice now. I will become the blade in your hand and the shield at your side. I offer you my loyalty and my life. Please… save this world. Save this country!"
Erza looked at Kazuma and took a deep breath. Her past obsessions shattered in that moment, but in their place, a new hope was born.
She went down on one knee, formally swearing her loyalty to Kazuma.
"Stop thinking about being a knight all the time," Kazuma said with a grin. "You're a girl too. How about trying to be my queen instead?"
"Q-Queen? Y-Your Majesty, please don't joke like that!" Erza panicked instantly. "I'm not pretty, I'm not gentle, how could I possibly be a queen?"
She had never thought of herself as a girl. Hearing Kazuma suddenly say something like that completely caught her off guard.
"Take it slow," Kazuma said.
As he spoke, a spatial wormhole began to form in the sky. He lifted his head and looked up. "It's starting."
"What's starting?" Erza asked, staring at the sky in confusion.
"The reversal of magic. Destruction before rebirth. Under the final spell, the world's magic will completely disappear."
"The reversed anima magic will drain all magic away, turning this place into a world without magic."
"A world… without magic." Erza stared at the wormhole. Her body trembled uncontrollably. She had already accepted what Kazuma told her, but fear still crept in.
What she feared wasn't the loss of magic itself, but the unknown world that would come after.
Like birds fearing the loss of flight.
They had lived in a magical world for so long that they simply couldn't imagine what a world without magic would look like.
"Don't be afraid," Kazuma said calmly. "I'm here."
"…Okay." Erza nodded, took a deep breath, and stood beside him. She forced herself to gather her courage and witness the world's final spell with her own eyes.
Before long, the world's magic vanished completely.
Kazuma's subordinates immediately went into action. It didn't take long before they took control of the entire world.
Next came the wave of new policies. The first change was the flag. The kingdom's banner was replaced with the emblem of Fairy Tail.
New laws followed. Kazuma ordered the study of new energy sources, the development of new technology, and preparation for a brand-new world.
At first, many people opposed him.
But Kazuma was no benevolent ruler. He was a tyrant.
He directly had demons rip out the souls of those who resisted and take them as rewards.
Erza was deeply unhappy with his methods. She tried to persuade him to push the reforms in a gentler way.
"In times of chaos, harsh measures are needed," Kazuma replied coldly. "Especially now. Mercy is just a pretty word for hesitation."
"But if you do this, everyone will hate and fear you!" Erza insisted. "They'll still remember your cruelty!"
"We can take it step by step, slowly—"
No matter how hard she tried, it was useless. Kazuma said just one sentence, and Erza was left speechless.
"Hating me requires them to be alive. If they're dead, they don't get the chance."
Kazuma cared about the world, not individuals. If a certain group of people died out completely, he wouldn't lose a wink of sleep over it.
...
Time flew by.
One month later, a new energy source was successfully discovered with the help of Kazuma: natural energy.
Research into combining technology and this new magic began.
As for the ordinary people, they adapted even faster. They simply continued living as they always had, following familiar routines.
...
Three months passed.
In the hands of the earliest inventors, the most primitive form of magitech was born.
It was crude, but it truly replicated the effects of magic. Its most astonishing feature was the new energy source itself.
Not electricity, but a mysterious natural energy that existed throughout the world.
...
Half a year passed in the blink of an eye. People fully adapted to their new lives. Inventors completely replaced the mages of the past.
Magitech fully replaced magical tools.
"Erza, here," Kazuma said with a smile, tossing her a magitech crystal. "A gift from the new kingdom."
"What is this?" Erza asked, looking at the crystal.
The next second, a translucent screen projected into the air, and Kazuma's face appeared on it.
"This is the magic-version smartphone," Kazuma said, holding an identical crystal. "It's still pretty basic, but it can do close-range video calls, take photos, and show the time."
"Magitech that doesn't rely on magic anymore…" Erza stared blankly at the floating screen.
She reached out to touch it, her hand passing straight through.
She was extremely happy.
Her choice back then hadn't been wrong.
Kazuma's methods were brutal, but he truly was leading the entire country forward.
[Ding!]
[You have completed the achievement: Unify a World.]
[Reward: Undead Army!]
[Detected: You possess a max-level Shadowkhan.]
[Both powers have fused, forming a brand-new ability: Shadow Kingdom!]