Highlights
- Diablo shows his power by using Despair Time to crush the Clerics of the Seven Luminaries with ease.
- The technique creates a virtual reality that erases opponents and controls their fate, leaving them powerless.
- Diablo’s control over this space is absolute, comparable to a Domain Expansion with no escape except through strong will.
In the 10th episode of season 3 of That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime, the Clerics of the Seven Luminaries, who conspired against Tempest and the chief of the Western Holy Church’s Holy Knights, Hinata Sakaguchi, pitting them in battle over a series of orchestrated misunderstandings. Three of the Seven Luminaries attended to the scene in Falmuth, where King Edward had just sent an army to invade the Nidol Domain where the Champion Youm is based, looking to kill all civilian witnesses and the unfortunate leader of the Rook Geniuses, Saare.
Finally getting the chance to unleash his fury against those responsible for sullying Rimuru’s name and even turning him into a murderer, Diablo used a powerful ability to take them down in a single move: Despair Time. What is it, and why is it one of the most terrifying techniques in That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime?
A Threat Beyond Calamity
Diablo’s Courtesy Towards Saare Did NOT Extend To The Luminaries
In the 9th episode of That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime season 3, Diablo appears before Saare, who remained with King Edward and his forces after Grigori was sent to take down Youm. Knowing that Diablo is a demon, the king summoned the Eastern demon hunters that he received through his dealings with Eastern merchants, but they were no match for Diablo. They collapsed at the sight of his terrifying aura, leaving Saare as the only fighter standing. Despite the mismatch, Diablo did not attack, allowing Saare to experience his own powerlessness before him and understand why: Diablo must be a demon beyond a regular demon lord.
When Diablo confirms himself to be a Daemon Lord, mentioning Primordial Daemons like Rouge (Guy Crimson, The Lord of Darkness) and Blanc, it becomes clear to Saare that he has no chance. Three of the Clerics of The Seven Luminaries appeared before Saare and the crowd of reporters brought to bear witness to the developments, pretending to be preparing a powerful attack spell to protect them against Diablo, but their intention was to eliminate all witnesses. Diablo protects the crowd, and after ensuring that Edward will relinquish the throne to Youm and that the journalists will report the developments that have taken place, he focuses his attention on the unfortunate enemy.
Despair Time
A Technique Beyond Reason
“Learn the despair of being powerless as the world slowly collapses around you. Lament your own foolishness from the depths of the abyss.”
– Diablo, That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime, Season 3, Episode 10
The Luminaries employ their powerful ultimate spell, Trinity Break; however, it has absolutely no effect on Diablo. He smiles ominously as he activates a technique so broken, it makes the extent of his power beyond imagination. Despair Time casts the target into a virtual reality born from the materialization of the Temptation World, the manifestation of Diablo’s Unique Skill, Tempter, which allows him to affect the consciousness of a chosen target, thus changing their perception of reality. Diablo brings this virtual reality into the material world, meaning that its effects are not just psychological but also real. Diablo has absolute authority over this new space, making the impossible possible and completely overwhelming the target through erasing their techniques, attacks or even people from existence. When he used it against the Luminaries, their Trinity Break completely disappeared as they were first cast into an infinite darkness. The darkness began to close in around them, eventually crushing them completely as it crumpled like paper. This is an extension of the Despair Time technique known as “End of the World”.
In the end, the three were compressed into a small ball before it withered away. What makes this such a terrifying technique is that there is no way out of it except through exercising a stronger will than Diablo, and the fact that what happens inside this container reality is completely under his control. On some level, the ability is comparable to a Domain Expansion from the JUJUTSU KAISEN series, particularly in the fact that to escape the effects of the caster’s attacks within this space, one would have to erect one of their own and therefore exhibit greater will than the original caster. What makes this leagues beyond, however, lies in Diablo’s ability to collapse this realm over the enemy, quite literally removing them from this existence by scrapping the destination universe in its entirety.
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