《Deuteronomy-Postremum: Reincarnated as a Vampire in an Extremely Chaotic World!》


 Prologue: Behold! The story of how everything came to be!

    The Era of Apostasy or simply, the Great Apostasy, took place during the Earth''s Great War.


    Dr. Valentine, a major asset of the German Empire met Lemenopathology and the two later suffered death. The time they had on that putrid planet was of no significance to the war.


    Enoch, who wanted to bring back Yeshua, was blown to smithereens by the remnants using nuclear technology. An angel quickly assigned her to heaven, but in anger, she broke through the firmament to seek revenge.


    An unknowing fool, a fire, stumbled upon her and met death.


    You may know her as a Witch, remainders of the gods, and as ones who dwell within the past. They are horrifying monsters who insert fear and madness into this world.


    "Why?" You may ask? Because the gods said so. Gods are unforgiving entities who strive for enjoyment and entertainment. For ones who''ve been living for such a long time, it''s only natural.


    For someone who''s been living under a rock, Lemenopathology, A.K.A the Witch of Lethargy, is the first. She lived as a normal person in North America, but sadly passed away due to some mild disease.


    After awakening at the start of everything, the Gods surrounded her. "A soul doesn''t come from nothing. It requires an already existing one." They stated that to be reincarnated, it needs one to already exist.


    To be reborn as the first, it is very fortunate. That is until a little brat came in to ruin everything. Even a simple magic spell can be turned into one of the greatest. [Teleport], "Teleport! Teleport! Teleport!" It was used without end, until the Witch had to disappear.


    For the Alpha to come back, it wouldn''t need a smattering. Everyone hates each other, and to meet that end, everyone must bring back what they all loved.


    "Lemenopathology"


    Without her, everything will be fine. Though the Gods could revive her already, but they''re not allowed to do so. Humans are really entertaining creatures to watch, scrambling around and trying to ruin each other''s lives. But why though? Does the Devil tempt them? Or do they tempt the Devil?


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    The Red Serpent, or simply, The Devil.


    It is the monster that brought the destruction of everything by giving the same fate of Lemenopathology to 6,000 people in the past world. Simply put, he killed six thousand humans on earth, and brought them back to Cvvoer, or what you might call "The World of Fantasy".


    Militarized cults later attacked this world and caused intergalactic wars, disturbing the sleeping dogs and awakening world-ending threats like the Sun of God and the Tarantula.


    The fire who has been killed, kept on living despite death, meeting up with the Sun of God and later getting betrayed.


    The fire became so huge, it turned into water.


    But we all know that fire can''t become water. It simply dressed up as water, which is a blue flame, but not quite.


    Yeshua, in her birth, was a feline who acted literally as yeshua. Yeshua never hated, never loved, and never assigned. She was the balance, not Baphomet, as Baphomet isn''t physical here.


    After being killed, the fire sought it''s long lost friend, a fish, but it was betrayed again, poisoned and left to die. The fire never accomplished anything but for itself, it wanted to save all, but could only save one.


    The cult fought Enoch and the fish, but they reached a point of no return, awakening a sleeping cosmic horror, which was another fish.


    The fire had everyone die around it, but nonetheless, it kept burning, not from the rage, fury, or hate, but because of the fact that it was simply a fire.


    Dr. Valentine then returned, becoming the next after the fire has died out.


    Dr. Valentine became an angel, tasked with defeating a remnant, but everything has sinned, meaning, it was her job to destroy everything now.


    Eventually, the modern nations, the United States of America and Great Britain teamed up with Russia and formed a power strong enough to defeat Dr. Valentine, who has betrayed everyone''s trust.


    Dr. Valentine who was now chasing the fish, the other fish, and a snake, had to crush the devils while simultaneously preventing the world from ending.


    The Sun of God who never wanted to live, wanted everything to end.


    The Devil, who also wanted all to end, brought back the Alpha, bringing the Omega.


    In the end, Dr. Valentine must face her long lost patient, Lemenopathology, and stop her from destroying the entire world, but she refuses with another plan in mind.


    However, Deuteronomy, angered, came to stop Valentine from doing so.


    The two then fought to the death, resulting in a final conclusion where all is solved. The fire''s, The remnant''s, The fish''s, everyone''s, and everything''s problems, all solved.


    The end/start contains all of the gods in their deathbed, with the sole exception for The Goddess of the Night.


    "Yo, long time no see. Did you miss me? Sorry to interrupt, but I''m feeling quite corybantic right now."


    Dr. Valentine and Lemenopathology rejoiced, but met a sudden interruption.


    "Relish! I am nay modernist, thou shan''t bow befoe'' me, mortal!"


    "Hah? Really? I can''t understand what you''re saying, but you mustn''t bite the hand that feeds you, child!!"


    And so, the show ends, while the story progresses.


    Born as the protagonist of the show, and as the villain of the story,


    Dr. Reona Valentine.

 Chapter 1: The Festival of Reincarnation.

    I am not that significant of a person, you may know of me simply as Chris Teal. I was in Arizona, living a normal life with my family. My mother was Hind Teal, and my father was Fisher Teal. My ancestry comes down back to the Great War when it peaked. My grandfather¡ªwho everyone knows as Francis Deuteronomy¡ªwas a soldier in the Soviet Union. He''s now living today somewhere in a field in America.


    My life was all for nought when one night, I had a strange dream. I awoke laying on my bed at the middle of nowhere. The clock ticked for who knows how long, until a man appeared in front of me.


    "Greetings, Chris. For now, you may consider this nothing but a dream. I am the dream God, you shall acknowledge me as Tan."


    His voice echoed, as if he was talking inside a bathroom. I didn''t have much to describe him, as he was shaped like a human, but shined intensively, indicating that he isn''t. His glamorous appearance hovered above ground, where he stood before me.


    "Uhh... Okay. Tan was it? Greetings to you too. How, and why are you here? I''m just your average Joe, aren''t I? What brings a god like you to stand before me?"


    I asked, sitting up, legs crossed. It was strange, why would a god be here? Maybe he was just a part of my dream? My mind was hazy at the moment, so I couldn''t quite tell if he was even real. I didn''t even really think much about anything that was happening.


    "Your existence here has little to no meaning. That being said, a festival of entertainment has been hosted by one of our sponsors. A festival of where many of the pointless ants that roams about gets to experience the treasuring life that lies beyond what they have ever imagined."


    "Hraaahhgh... This bed is quite cozy, it feels like my bed back at home... Well. Now that I look at it, it IS my bed!"


    "Such impudence a mere mortal can have. Though it is but disgrace to the higher beings that rule above me, it is also one of the very reasons why you were chosen."


    "Hah... Me? Chosen? Shut your mouth, little feller. I like the life that I, as a pointless ant, am living right now. Don''t take that away from me, even if you were to present me heaven, I''d still say no."


    Half of what I said was true. I was simply making fun of the entity that appeared in my dream. After all, it''s just a dream, isn''t it? None of this is real. Nothing will happen after I wake up. It''ll all be back to the simple days where I go to school, hang out, go home, and then repeat.


    "Impertinent fool. You may be of interest by the gods about, but shall they wish to abandon you, thou will be struck down before an instant."


    "Bla-bla-bla. It is common knowledge that if god does exist, then they could just wipe away anyone who goes against them. Tell me, what have I done to be hit by lightning? That hasn''t happen yet, therefore I haven''t done anything yet."


    "Your point is that you have done no wrong so god won''t do nought to thee? Very well... We will see... At the second opening once again..."


    With his final words, I awakened back in the real world. My room was pitch black. The curtains prevented light from entering, but through the tiny gaps, were beams of light cast down onto my dirty floor.


    After packing up all my things, I repeated the daily cycle of going to school, and going back home again. Although this time, the cycle had been broken. When the traffic lights delayed my walk, I gazed upon the empty roads to find nothing but civilians walking through. I could see no risk in crossing the red light, but you know, "anything that can go wrong will go wrong".


    A car, which came out of nowhere, hit me.


    The next thing I perceived was that I staring up at the sky where the sun scorched my vision. Alongside the pain in my eyes were the pain in my lower body. It was nothing to worry about, as it all slowly began disappearing. A few witnesses came to look at the scene before the paramedics arrived to get me. It didn''t take too long for me to lose all connection to the psychical world, leaving only my consciousness behind.


    Endless repeating patterns were all that I could see. It was colourful, vibrant, and terrifying. It felt like I was in another dimension experiencing god knows what. All I thought of in here was "death". It''s not a stretch to say that my life ended there when I was hit by a speeding vehicle. Suddenly, the words of Tan came into mind, when he told me about the festival that will let "pointless ants" experience "the treasuring life that lies beyond what they have ever imagined". The meaning was pretty clear, I was the pointless ant, and I guess I''ll be transported into heaven?


    The world around me then began to shatter. The shards of spiral patterns and rainbow fractals fell to form a walkable floor that prevented me from falling into the abyss.


    My ears still had nothing to take in, deeming them useless, until a new figure arrived. Despite being deaf right now, a soft and feminine voice spoke to me following the appearance of a woman who looked just like another citizen of earth. She was wearing baggy pants and an oversized long sleeved white shirt striped yellow, along with a trenchcoat and a red necktie.


    "Yahoo! Yahoo! Our 201st candidate for the festival of reincarnation!"


    She had jet black hair and red eyes. She then began clapping with a big smile on her face as confettis rained down on us.


    "Clap clap clap!!"


    I stared at her in confusion, wondering what was happening. I didn''t even have a physical body anymore, I was just a floating transparent ball with a face. I could tell she was quite an important figure judging by the fact that she''s here, in this strange world with repeating patterns.


    "Ummm... W-who are-"


    "Ahem ahem! Thou shan''t interrupt me, mere mortal! I am a bit jocular but by the existence of you here, little Chris. I am Nyx, N-Y-X, or Nyz?zy''kl Z¨±y''iyris? Kkyrieyr?! I am the 2nd Goddess of Creation! Some might say I''m a fake, so I tossed them into a lake! Fyaa-hahahahaha!!!"


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    She put her left hand on her chest, and her right hand on her hips to present herself. It was quite an exaggerated greeting. I wonder why the Goddess of Creation is here to meet me. Is it because of the festival Tan mentioned, or something else entirely?


    "R-rhyming..? Anyways... Why are you here? I thought I died, now I''m inside in some sort of hell."


    "Calling this ''Hell'' is impertinent, little Chris! This is the plane between life and death! We call this the Daylight Nightlight Graveyards! I have come down to speak to thee about tedious matters of En''s world. The festival hosted by one of our fellow sponsors requires innocent souls like you, and I was selected as the director of creation, just like how you were selected as a candidate for this festival!"


    "Candidate..? Isn''t it insanity to just hit one of us with a car and then bring them over to heaven or whatever just for some festival? Whoever you guys are... You''re all too far from god..."


    "Wha-! You dare not speak of En that way, little Chris! Even if you are a bit special to them, this disrespect against En shall not be tolerated by me! As the one responsible for your recreation, I shall turn you into a snake, a putrid animal fitting for the likes of you!"


    Did I provoke her or something? I was a bit irritated by how the gods just hosted a festival and then took me in without my knowledge. They could at least transport me to wherever it''s taking place in through less violent ways. "Recreation" was the most notable thing I''ve heard from her. Even though she''s supposed to be creating things, she''s going to be recreating things instead, if that''s what she''s responsible of. So instead of "Goddess of Creation", she''s more of a "Goddess of Recreation". I can tell why she''s called a fake. Also, when she told me that she was going to be recreating me, does that mean that I''m going to get reincarnated?


    "Hmmm... This festival you guys''re talking about, is it perhaps a festival of reincarnation? A festival of recreation, or a festival of reincarnation. You guys do speak a lot, I don''t understand most of it, but by the words I understood, I figured that this''ll be a festival of reincarnation?"


    "Ting-ding-ding!! Correct! We got a winner here! The award of being the dumbest person ever goes to Chris Teal!!"


    She''s annoying... I want to go home already..! How was I even wrong there? This is a reincarnation festival, right? I''ve seen a lot of books and TV Shows where the protagonist is hit by a car and then gets reincarnated into a fantasy world, just like what is happening right now.


    "Huh..? What? How am I wrong!? Explain yourself. Also, what was that snake you were talking about? Are you going to turn me into a snake? Why would you do that? Are you even supposed to do that? Also, how, in any way is that a putrid animal? You dare mock creations of god, you imbecile!?"


    "BWAA-HAHAHAHA!!! You call me an imbecile while you spoke about reincorporating?!! You make me laugh, idiot!!!"


    She broke down laughing hysterically. I was confused by what she meant when I was actually correct about what I said. Also, she didn''t even acknowledge her disrespect to her own god, En, or something?


    "Ha- ha-...!! What do you mean by reincorporating..? The festival of reincorporation..? Stupid fool! Gwahahahaha!!!"


    "Oh. That was what you heard!? You damn wench, you''re dumber than I thought! I said RE-IN-CAR-NATION correctly! You''re dumb and deaf, just like what I thought when I first saw you!!"


    "Reincarnation..? Reincorporation..? Eh? Really? You were right? And I was..."


    "WRONG!! HAHAHA!! Stupid wench!! Ha-ha!! Hahahaha!!"


    Suddenly, she got angered by my laughter and yelled at me furiously. This whole entire conversation was pretty stupid. I got it wrong and then she made fun of me so I made fun of her instead. But in the end, this all seems like some childish fight. I almost forgot that we''re in the middle of a strange dimension.


    "Kh! Grrr!!! Y-You call me a wench, so how about I turn you into one in your next life?! That word is supposed to be for women who do weird things, isn''t it? I swear to you that I. AM. NOT. one!"


    "Hehe forget that, forget that. I just ran out of words to use."


    "You only have 2 words in your dictionary?! Fhu-! Destitute little swine! I, as the one responsible for your recreation, shall turn you into a little wench swine in En''s world, as a part of the festival!"


    "Eh... I understand a REAL, TRUE god, but a fake god abusing their powers for their own satisfaction..? You aren''t supposed to do that, aren''t you? Just reincarnate me as another Chris Teal in the other world. I don''t care about what other things might happen. Even if the sky fell, as long as I have a bed and a place to sleep, I''ll be-"


    "Hah... Alright. I guess it''s time... Actually, I''m not supposed to do anything personal. I''m just here to spin a wheel and turn you into anything according to what I got from the wheel. The wheel''s called the ''Wheel of Fate''... I''ll meet you again, Chris, in the 2nd opening."


    "Eh? What? Wait! HOLD ON-"


    I yelled at her to wait, but she didn''t listen and proceeded to blind me instead. Her entire personality changed, from an energetic girl, to a serious, and calm woman, just right after she sighed.


    Everything blurred for a second before I woke up again.


    I was in the hospital after getting hit by a car. Behind the windows are rain and the cloudy sky. Was everything that happened after I got hit just a dream? It''d be cool actually if I was reincarnated into another world like in ones of those Japanese TV Shows, but it seems like that won''t be happening any time soon. Maybe I''ve watched too much of those types of stories that I''m beginning to have dreams about them.


    However, it wasn''t actually just a dream, as an unfamiliar little girl appeared before me, sitting on a chair whilst the darkness covered her face, highlighting her bright red eyes and a bit of her black hair. Was it Nyx? She spoke to me the same way Nyx and Tan did, but it was obvious that it was neither of them.


    "...Thee never-dying flame sought more warmth in hell... Thine eyes at me, soft and flowing, yet shallow like a puddle. You lack comprehension, Heart. May your juvenile heart be of use to the dying place known to you as the afterlife."


    I sat up from the bed, gasping for air as I realized what has happened. At that time, I remembered that I was hit by a car, went into a very strange dimension, and then woke up in a hospital bed probably long after the accident. The lights are out, and it''s raining heavily outside. No one but me and this girl were here.


    I tried speaking to her, but my voice began to hurt, preventing speech. She appears to already know this, because she proceeded to take out a gun, aiming it at me.


    "Relax, I won''t harm thee. Instead, dread awaits within this rock that floats about space, so why not guide thou, a lost sheep to ye flock, with this glock."


    I reached my arms out to stop her, but it was already too late. The sounds of gunshots filled my ear. It didn''t take too long for me to lose all of my senses, and then my consciousness.


    The best I could describe her was that she was wearing a black skirt and a white shirt. The rest of her appearance was caught in darkness.


    It felt like a long time, but then I finally met air again, regaining my consciousness in the other world Nyx and Tan talked about. I felt extremely uncomfortable and cold as I cried to the 2 humans in front of me. They spoke in an unknown language whilst I laid there trying my best to get their attention. Meaningless to say, I have been reborn, but is it normal for babies to be able to see and think properly at this age? Or is this because of me being a reincarnation?


    I later figured out that the 2 humans who took care of me the next following years me were "Maya Corr", my mother, and "Trnzhennel Corr", my father.


    How strange it is. I was reincarnated into another world just like in those Japanese TV Shows. But something still feels off¡ªsomething that feels like it shouldn''t belong here. Although it is no use to think about the past now, my mind still turns to look at it, as if it was any better back there.


    My questions now are; is this world any better? Or was my old world just terrible? Well. I will answer that later, once I have lived long enough...

 Chapter 2: The New World.

    In this new world, I was named "Vixen Corr". I was born in a small town named "Priln¨°set", situated somewhere not too far away from the capital. It wasn''t a very notable town, the people here were friendly and nothing bad has happened around us. It seems like it''s the perfect time to be alive right now.


    It''s a good thing I was born in rather fortunate circumstances, but throughout the years, the memories of when I used to live in earth began to fade. I''m quite talented if I say so myself, but nothing is stopping this memory loss despite everything I''ve tried. Magic exists here, unlike in earth, but the only spells I can use are low tier or simply weaker spells. The only things I''m actually good at are Blood Magic and anything psychical.


    I learned about my abilities when I came across a strange man with a staff and a pointy hat. He appeared to be a wizard. He claimed to be the "Great Wizard" of this land, and refused to say his real name. I found out about my spells and skills when he told me about them using [Appraisal]. He was quite surprised to see my Blood Magic, but later calmed down to speak to me about the dangers of Magic.


    "Young one... I may not be that useful to you once you''ve grown... But you must remember... You mustn''t choose the path of the Demon, but rather, you have to come back to the path of Wisdom. There lies truth, which you will receive..."


    At that time, I couldn''t understand what he said, even though I usually understood most things said in a strange way.


    Was it because of my strange memory loss..?


    One fine morning, I stumbled upon large, winged beasts who flew above a dense forest. I believe they were called Dragons, fierce monsters who burn down entire kingdoms. These ones were smaller, too small to be considered a nation-ending threat. I took them down with ease using a mysterious ability that allowed me to imitate anything, and I mean literally anything. From guns, to black holes, if I was strong enough.


    "Sniper Imitation."


    I held an imaginary rifle, aiming it at the red Dragons¡ªwho seemed to be trying to fly to somewhere else desperately¡ªbefore pulling the invisible trigger, destroying them in a complex way. A gaping hole in their stomach appeared one by one, each time an earsplitting sound shook the forest, alerting many birds to flee into the sky. Afterwards, the Dragons fell, completely unaware of my presence.


    I had defeated 4 young Dragons while I was still very young myself. But I shouldn''t really be considered young right now, after all, I do still have the mind of a 17 year old boy. I''m probably older mentally now, but my point still stands.


    I then spent more years roaming about this world. The more I find out, the more I realize how much of a fantasy world this is. There are Magic, Medieval kingdoms, Elves, Dwarves, and much more. Is this what Tan was talking about? The "treasuring life beyond what they have ever imagined"? I''m quite thankful, but they could''ve at least transported me here without sending a speeding vehicle at me. I''ve forgotten the pain that I felt during that time, along with the memories I''ve experienced back there.


    A friend named "Zen Swytmnyt" appeared before me one day, and we spent a lot of time together playing around. It was a good experience, but it makes me forget who I am. Luckily, another friend, "Frelhr Xadd" showed up from the capital, reminding me of who I once was. He had brown hair and was always wearing his uniform while drinking about in the middle of a forest. Frelhr wasn''t from around here, he''d been loathed by the people of where he''s from, forcing him to come to this depressing lifestyle he''s in right now.


    I had met him whilst looking around for certain things in the forest. Zen was supposed to be with me, but she couldn''t make it for some unknown reason. Frelhr looked at me like a homeless person on the street. We later talked on and on until I had to come back to give my mother the items she asked me to look for.


    During one of our conversations, he has yet again walked away from the capital, rendered absent for his job as staff officer. Actually, he looked he didn''t care about anything. But he had quite a bit of influence on the capital that I wanted to learn more about.


    "...During the Errr... The Great Catastrophe, a massive battle sparked between two powerful beings created a massive crater in the middle of this planet. That crater reached extremely deep, so deep that molten rock and other fiery materials could be seen. A friend of mine, that you may know of as the Rabbit of Earth, gathered information from many countries and later found out that a war is brewing."


    "Ah... I knew it. Times like this could simply not last forever. I figured that this 500 year time period of peace would eventually come to an end here. My father''s spending more and more time at work lately. He''s a soldier, probably under you, so I could tell something''s up in the world right now."


    "Corporal Corr? Quite a serious man there, but this country isn''t really involved in any conflict, so I doubt he''d be sent into the battlefield. Anyways. About the Rabbit of Earth, she''s a heavily religious person. She wears a scarf with the image of Ennism. But you mustn''t think of her as another one of those false believers everywhere in the cities. Her knowledge and her wisdom allows one to change their perspective of reality entirely. You must see her for yourself, she travels a lot, so it''s lucky for us to be talking about this at a time when she''s nearby."


    Frelhr gave me a map containing the forest we were in right now, and a small area located in the south, where the empty fields were all you could see. It''s not that detailed, but I doubt I''d lose my way with this map. He''s supposed to be making maps at his job, isn''t he? I expected him to be better...


    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    I left the town after a few days, through the forest nearby using the map he gave me, and the path that had been created a long time ago. It turns out that a new contagious disease has been spreading around the world lately, and Zen has fell sick, probably not to the disease, but it''s still a serious matter, since there aren''t much effective medicine at this time, and Magic isn''t really something everyone has. Even the best Magic user from this land couldn''t heal her, so I don''t think it''s just a simple fever.


    I arrived at the place the map led me to¡ªa small hut with a campfire burning nearby. It seems like it was built primitively, with sticks and stones, and all by one person. A caveman perhaps. I knocked at the door and waited for a while until someone came to open it.


    "Who''s there? I told you I already have permission to-"


    A strange individual comes out. It''s a woman with cat ears, wearing a rabbit headpiece. Have I been deceived? She had white hair, and dark eyes. She''s towering over me since I''m really small at this age. The scarf that Frelhr mentioned was with her, around her neck, but still seen down her chest. It had the image of Ennism, just like what he said. But this woman doesn''t really look like a rabbit. Isn''t she a Catfolk?


    "Oh. Hello there... You must be the key huh..? You may enter. Frelhr told me about you already."


    "H-hah... Right..."


    I walked into her home. I could see there''re a lot of religious items around. She must have a strong belief in something. She looks like she has just woken up from a long sleep. I can tell with her voice, she''s extremely tired. Though, I wonder what she meant by me being a "key"...


    "Sit down... Tell me why you''re here..."


    I sat down on the carpet where she sat on. It has a strange pattern, probably religious again. But the patterns reminded me of that time. It''s still all fading away, but things like this makes me remember.


    "I guess you already know about him already. Frelhr told me to come here and meet you. I believe you had something that''ll make people change their entire way of thinking. My name is Vixen Corr. I guess you already know about me as the key or something..?"


    "You''ll ask about the key, of course, of course. I''m the Rabbit of Earth. I''ve been in this world for so long I can''t even remember. But maybe for you short-living ones, your perception may change with the words I have written since my days of living. As long as you have this book, your entire life will be saved from the supreme being that ruled this world since it a- agkk..! A-arised..."


    She held her throat as if trying to get something out. Her body was in a pretty bad state. Is she old or something? A being so old can''t just fall to old age at this time, can they? What coincidence, how could one like her fall when I appeared?


    "Take this. This shall be my gift for you, as thanks for visiting me. But worry not, since I''m an immortal being. Or just someone who lives very long. I don''t die that easily, and I certainly won''t die in a place like this."


    She handed out a book titled "The Book of Epitomy". I opened it to find a locked compartment, it is separated from the papers. How strange. She told me it was important if I wanted to achieve what I told her I was going to achieve, which is to change my ways of thinking. Though, I''m not actually trying to do that, I just wanted to meet her and see what kind of person she was.


    After leaving the hut, I returned home to read the book. A note was placed between the pages, saying something about saving some people. "Denon Invasion"¡ªa chapter in The Book of Epitomy¡ªstates that the humans will capture other humans and force them to war. I could see that happening, but there''s really no conflict right now. It''s the chapter the note is telling me to read, but I can''t really figure out why. The back of the note reads: "Accomplish my task and you will receive a reward." But I couldn''t find what task it was talking about.


    The next day, my parents sent me off to the capital so that I could study better in the finest schools they have. Along the way, I saw a pathway leading into a manor. I stopped the driver of the horse-drawn vehicle I was in just so I could investigate the place that I was drawn to. A symbol the demons had back at the Great Catastrophe is still being used today by some humans, and The Book of Epitomy stated that "those with the mark shall not be trusted". That same symbol, or mark was in the banners on the manor.


    I could say that these guys were suspicious. Or is it the Rabbit of Earth who''s suspicious? I''ll have to check for myself then. It''s better to see it with my own eyes. But how should I do this, I wonder.


    Fearing that I might take longer, I told the driver to go a nearby town for a while. I''ll probably find my way there, but I must do this one thing first. Though, how should I do it? I can''t just barge in through the gates at this evening. There''re guards positioned there anyways. I guess I''ll have to be sneaky. The back of the manor seems like a good place to enter.


    As I walked around the place, I arrived behind the manor through the forest. There, the windows were the only way I could enter. But making a loud sound would give away my position. Magic might be the best course of action here, even though I can''t really use anything useful, except for [Spatial Lift]. Anyone can cast it, but not a lot has enough Magical Energy to do so. It''s basic, but requires a ton of energy. It''s one of the few spells I can use.


    I knew about the dangers of casting a spell that you aren''t really supposed to be using. It becomes unstable, even with the right amount of energy. [Spatial Lift] here would just send me into a random place in this universe. I could be transported into the ground, or into space. I''m not cut out for this, but I have enough to use it.


    "Spatial Lift."


    After casting it, I was engulfed in light moments before I found myself in darkness. It''s obvious that I have been trapped underground. Even though this spell isn''t for me, I can still focus enough so that I''ll actually be transported into where I wanted to, instead of just a random place, like underground right now.


    "Spatial Lift."


    Upon casting it again, I opened my eyes to see that I was falling down from the sky, a long height way above the clouds. The view is quite familiar though. There are strange infrastructure and tall buildings below me. It reminded me of earth. The earth which I barely even remember. Maybe I am in earth. I grew up not hearing of any tall buildings that looked like this. Though, I don''t really know what I''d actually do once I''m back on earth. I''m no longer Chris Teal. He has been sacrificed to become Vixen Corr.


    "Spatial Lift."


    Before I could fall to the ground, I casted [Spatial Lift] again to arrive at where I was supposed to arrive at. But my speed didn''t actually stop. I was transported here, along with the speed I had while falling. It was impossible to do anything currently, so I crashed straight into the floor, making a loud sound which alerted the guards.


    Quite pointless now, since the whole purpose of this was to sneak into the manor without any noise. But here I am, sitting down on where I fell. My body has been damaged, but it began regenerating at high speed. I don''t know why I have such strong healing abilities. Maybe it''s because I''m a prodigy. But I shouldn''t be thinking about that now. Guards are probably on their way here.


    I''d rather not harm anyone, but if it comes down to it, I won''t show mercy. Not that I''m sure that I can actually win, especially against adults, even with my gifted abilities.

 Chapter 3: The Manor Investigator.

    I got up from the crash site after looking around. I was now inside the manor and I could sense multiple people heading my way. It''d be bad if I got caught here, so I should probably escape. But that''d also mean my attempts at trying to use [Spatial Lift] will be in vain. I don''t like trouble, but I also don''t like wasting time.


    It looks like the door is the only way out, only problem is that it''s locked. I can''t find any keys anywhere in the room either. It might be loud, but casting [Devastate] is the only option that I have left. My supply of Magical Energy is pretty low, despite being a talent who''s really good at Blood Magic. But that''s one of the only things I can do, not taking into consideration, my physical prowess.


    "Devastate."


    I casted [Devastate]¡ªone of the weaker spells I had¡ªon the doorway. It''s quite unstable due to my lack of Magic proficiency, but I have too much energy for it to fail.


    After the doorway collapsed, I stepped out of the room to be met with a long hallway. The windows allowed the sunset to enter, where I could see many shadows of men closing in quickly. At this point, hiding will be near impossible. It didn''t take too long for me to begin hearing their voices coming from behind. I tried running away, but I couldn''t escape them. A group of heavily armed knights appeared before me, seemingly alerted by the sound I made when I crashed into the manor.


    "Huh!? ...A kid? This ain''t no place for a kid like you to be roamin'' around in."


    The knights surrounded me all confused, preventing my escape. In an attempt to get out of this situation, I spoke to them like an innocent child who lost their way, accidentally stumbling upon this manor. But it''ll be futile once they investigate the destruction I caused. Finding me out would be pretty easy, since my name''s pretty well-known around here.


    Everyone knew what I could do, but not a lot thinks that I''d actually use them.


    "No way she did such thing. A powerful attack cast upon this place would mean that they''ve betrayed us, but relations have been fine lately..."


    "Which could only mean one thing... The resistance forces! You''re one of them, aren''t you? Everyone, get ''em!!"


    The knights started charging towards me, leaving me no choice but to unleash my oh so powerful hidden weapons, which are my Blood Magic spells. [Blood Banishment], one of my few spells for offense, is mostly a made up anti-body weapon that invokes blood in a certain range and gravitates them into a chosen point, effectively deeming most creatures lifeless. I''ve practiced this on small animals, but this too, can be used for larger creatures.


    Music is magic, it''s one of the most common knowledge people can have. Chanting can be considered music as well, which updates Magical Energy casted after the user has finished their incantations. In this case, my Blood Magic spells are still really above me, so chanting''d be necessary if I wanted to take out more than 10 heavily armed knights.


    "Rally dog. Vine forward. Decline and Acceptance. Varied falling molecule torpedo. ...Blood Magic: Blood Banishment."


    Thankfully, the knights were surprised by my sudden chanting so they hesitated for a bit until I was done chanting. They all fell unconscious as the essence of their life was taken away without their knowledge. Once I left the scene, reinforcements arrived to look for me. I wandered about the manor for a while whilst the people here kept searching for the intruder, unbeknownst that the one they''re searching for is actually just a child.


    While walking in one of the hallways, I witnessed a group talking about affairs concerning the lord here and supposedly, demons, right outside the windows. Them being connected to demons when we''re inside in a holy kingdom, makes me more suspicious. I wonder why no one has ever spoke to them about this, or is everything already falling apart here? You''d think that they''re an ally of the demon race with those banners outside, and the mentions of them actually very clear as day, but we''re in a holy kingdom still. The church must''ve done something already.


    The sun has almost set. I won''t survive at night inside a forest all alone, if I can even escape this place. I need to finish this job immediately.


    After a bit of investigating, checking rooms, and looking at anything interesting, I found a secret passage leading into an elevator that looks like it has sat there for a thousand years without any use. The elevator was hidden behind a bookshelf, which I simply pushed away to reveal the large hole in the wall. I couldn''t find any way to use the elevator, as everything was too corroded to be used anymore, so I destroyed a small contraption that looked like it connected to the elevator. I''m not sure what I was thinking at that time, since the contraption was actually the only thing preventing the elevator from falling.


    In an instant, chains were flying everywhere in the room as the elevator began to fall, progressively getting faster until it hit the ground. I crashed into the floor again. Fortunately, I was safe and sound, probably because of my extraordinarily strong body.


    It appears that I had fallen into a dungeon or something. Torches were lit on the walls, becoming my only source of light. As I saw above me, the sun has set, meaning it''s night time now. How will I get out of this current situation? By more exploration perhaps? And I was right, there were corridors that led me into a room where eerie sounds could be heard. Dried blood was everywhere on the place. Quite frightening, but I don''t have much time for Halloween.


    In one of the rooms, the corpse of a woman with cat ears could be found. I guess it was one of the Rabbit of Earth''s kind? That''s why I was led here? Am I supposed to save her kind from the evil corrupted rich guys, and save the day or something? I could find many other prisoners held in other rooms, so I suppose I had to help them. By using [Physical Enhancement], I was able to get them out of this place, but at the cost of 2 hours.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    I wondered what my driver thinks right now. I hope he didn''t leave me.


    The prisoners thanked me as they ran away, telling me about a pathway made by a former prisoner. It looks like my escape is clear, and I''ve saved many people from god knows what. In victory, I left the dungeon and the manor. I arrived back at the forest where some prisoners stayed behind, giving me their aid as we navigated through the darkness. A small fire I casted with magic helped us a lot, but when we finally got back on to the main road, the man in front of me was beheaded before another second.


    "You''re but a mere disturbance, Vixen."


    Another person spoke behind us, making one of my escorts run away, and the other one cower in fear, begging me for help. The 3 men who were with me are now useless. Needless to say, we''ve been caught by the enemy.


    Multiple knights from the manor stood around us. There was one man unlike the rest of them, he did not wear a helmet, and it seems like he''s the leader of these guys here. His eyes are glowing, and he had silver white hair. Is this a demon? My instincts were saying one thing; "Devil." "Dirt." "Godless." It wasn''t the first time my body began yelling like this, it happened sometimes when certain people from the capital passed by our town.


    "I was expecting more from the prophecies, but oh how I''m so disappointed... Well. I suppose you don''t look too weak either. I guess it would be pretty dumb for me think that a weakling could get into the mansion, and defeat a group of heavily armed knights."


    "Hold on. Can you explain to me what''s going on? I stumbled upon this man here, while I was just looking for my way back to the capital. Who even are you? How do you know my name..?"


    I asked him questions after turning off my light, allowing me to hide my left hand into a darker spot. I was done with my job, and now, I had to return to the Rabbit of Earth to claim my reward for freeing these people, if that was what she wanted me to do. I have also accomplished my mission of trying to see if these guys were actually up to something bad. To escape, I''ll have to use force again. But chanting wouldn''t be too good, especially when your enemy knows about you already.


    After sighing, the man spoke for a while before explaining to me who they were, and what they were doing. They were obviously bad guys, and they were preparing for a war. It''s no surprise, the Book of Epitomy has stated humans using other humans for a war with each other. But a demon being on the human''s side whilst being inside a holy kingdom... It''s quite the uncommon event. The man blabbered on and on, meanwhile, I was gathering up the blood of the man who has fallen from one of the knights, turning it into a small blade hidden in the dark for my surprise attack.


    I casted [Physical Enhancement] without chanting, but it still gave me enough strength for throwing a hardened spear of blood before the man could react. It pierced his chest. He fell to the ground clutching the spear in an attempt to remove it from his body, but it was too late, the spear wasn''t just a normal spear, just like [Blood Banishment], it took his blood into the weapon each second. The rest of the knights around us were surprised, stunned for a moment, giving me a chance to escape with the prisoner. They failed to find us without the help of the man who was most likely a demon. The man, before his life ended, gave me his name, which was "Tayzznyyzz Locyzz", a very strange name that even had his allies whispering to each other, questioning his real name. Though, I still wonder what he meant by that prophecy he mentioned. He didn''t really say much about it.


    The prisoner thanked me before leaving me back on the main road. I travelled for a few hours in the darkness, sometimes getting lost, until I found an odd figure. It was a woman sitting near a basket full of fruits in front of her house that had lights coming from the interior, which were also the things that led me here, helping me find my way back after getting lost again. Using a small fire doesn''t really mean you won''t get lost in the darkness, you know? There isn''t much light from the moon either, even though I''m on an empty road.


    I realized the woman had white hair, with some parts red. She was wearing a cloak, and she had a large enchanted golden sword next to her. I figured I''d talk to her to find where the nearest town is so that I can return to my horse-drawn vehicle. But then she talked to me first.


    "He was quite remarkable wasn''t he? Do not fret. We only know about all of you through magic. It''s easy being a demon. But do not think of me as one, Vixen."


    Could these demons please not call my by my name..? It''s a bit uncomfortable, knowing that demons like them can just see all the details of humans like me with a mere glance. Are they using [Appraisal] like that old man? The Great Wizard back at that forest only told me he could see my abilities. But I''m sure he can also use [Appraisal] to see my name or something.


    "You may call me Claw. I''m supposed to be here to take out a child grown too old... But I see you''ve already done the job. Well done."


    I heard Claw was a very important figure back in the Great Catastrophe. I doubt this woman is actually her. I already have many reasons to why there''s simply no way someone like her would come here personally just to take out such a weak demon, or whatever he was.


    I asked her about the sword, and she explained to me that it was the "God-Slaying Blade", the infamous sword that Claw used back in her times to slay overpowered beasts, such as gods and other godlike beings. I can''t really sense any Magical Energy from the sword itself, which means that it''s probably just a fake, or simply a sword without any special abilities. The woman claiming to be Claw later pointed towards a certain direction, where the town could be slightly visible due to its bright light. As I turned to look back at her, she was suddenly gone, vanished into thin air.


    The sword next to her also disappeared. I checked the basket, and found a note in between the fruits. The note was quite familiar, it read: "Key, or rather, Vixen, my whereabouts have changed due to some mishappenings that most likely involve your appearance in my home. Basically, someone followed you to my little hut, and called authorities to hunt me down. My house was burnt in the process, but I successfully escaped into the capital with the help of your friend that I coincidentally stumbled upon in the forest. May you return to us safely as well." I felt quite guilty, but I wonder why she was being hunted down. Does the prey, a rabbit, need to be chased constantly by its predators, the lions?


    I proceeded to head down the road, and into the direction where the woman pointed at. The darkness surrounded me with the little fire I casted on my hand. The cold breeze made my light sometimes disappear, but I managed to get to the nearest town without getting lost again.


    My driver was talking with a group of people, but when he noticed that I was here, he waved at me before we finally proceeded to continue our journey to the capital city of Djouflour¡ªthe kingdom that we''re in right now. It was pretty boring, having to sit there staring at the darkness, so I eventually fell asleep without knowing it. When the vehicle stopped, the driver shook my shoulder to wake me up. Upon opening my eyes, the sun burnt them forcing me to cover my face, pushing the driver away for a moment before I finally looked back at where we have stopped at.


    We finally arrived at the city gates, where the sun shined gloriously above the walls, casting light down on us. But despite the beautiful scenery, I had to block the sunlight with my arm to avoid getting my eyes hurt again. I have just woken up after all.

 Chapter 4: The Capitals School.

    A couple guards stood in front of us, I haven''t gone to a city before, but I''ve heard that to enter, you would need an ID.


    "Halt! Who are you- oh wait... You look familiar... What''s your name?"


    Says one of the guards. I ponder, how do I get in?


    "U-umm... Actually... I don''t have an ID..."


    I say in a nervous tone.


    "What?! Then, I''m afraid that we can''t open the gates."


    "Wait wait wait..! The question earlier... Umm... my name''s Vixen..."


    "Vixen..? As in Vixen Corr!?"


    "Oh, so you know about me, then?"


    "Hmmm... Even if you don''t have an ID... Well. I guess you could count as an exception."


    "Thank you..!"


    The guards opened the gates for us, the carriage moves in. It seems like I''m pretty famous, at least in this nation.


    I leave the carriage and start walking around. The city is lively, and full of people, it''s different from the place I lived in. I explore the city for a bit, buying new things, watching street performances, and eating delicious snacks.


    After I was done with exploring, I stayed at a nearby inn for a while, later, I headed into the school where I am supposed to go to, supposedly, the entrance exams starts today.


    As I enter the school building, a man sat at the front, waiting. Should I ask him about the school? I don''t know much, since this is a pretty new place to me, nonetheless, I approach him.


    "... Are you taking the entrance examinations too?"


    He says. Oh, it''s "Yuqo Zin", one of the teachers around here.


    "Uhh... Yes."


    I say, hopefully, I won''t have to pay for anything, because that would be a bit troublesome.


    "Alright alright... Vixen? Is that right? A lot of well known people really are coming here, huh..."


    Hm? What does that mean?


    "I see. So, do I have to pay for anything? Or do I just have to take the exams immediately?"


    "No need to worry about that. Yours are already payed."


    "Huh? By who?"


    "Hmmm... Let''s see... It says that their name is..."


    He looks down a desk, he takes out a stack of paper and begins searching for something.


    "Oh, there we go. Their name is... Uhh... How do you say this?"


    "What is it?"


    "Their name is... God, their name is long."


    "Let me see."


    He hands me a paper, it contains a lot of information and details, but the most important one is the name of the person who payed for me, who could it be? Is it The Rabbit of Earth? How can she even get here before me?


    The name of this person is... "Himawarimegumi Yamakamikizune", what a long name..! There''s no way someone could have this name, right? Anyways, who even is this person?


    "Uhhhh..! Who is this?!"


    "Who knows. They came in here wearing a black cloak."


    "Black cloak? What a strange person..."


    "I know. Anyways. Now you know who payed for you, right?"


    "Yeah. I''ll try to find this person later. But now... Uhhh... How do I take the exams?"


    "Just go straight into the yard. It''s going to start right about now."


    "Really?! Okay then..!"


    I went into the school yard, many students are already in here, they''re lined up like an army, I walk up to the back of a line.


    A man is standing in front of everyone, must be the principal here, what was his name again..? Right! "Fault Nolet" is his name.


    "Good morning everyone! Welcome to Nox Academy! Whatever means for you to have arrived here, you will now prove them by passing this test! Now. Begin!"


    He says. Wait, was that all? What did he want us to do?


    "Huh..? Was that it?"


    "What did he say?"


    "Uhh... what should we do?"


    The students began whispering to each other, suddenly, a sphere appeared behind Fault, it looks like a sphere of magic energy.


    "Haha, sorry sorry! Your first test for now, is to make a crack, or a dent, in this sphere..! However, this is no ordinary sphere. Formed with magic energy and hard materials, it will prove difficult to break. That is, if you''re not qualified enough..!"


    Fault says. This should be easy, at least for me.


    "Heh..! This will be easy!"


    "Fireball!"


    BOOM


    A student casts [Fireball] towards the sphere but it deals no damage, others do the same but reach the same result.


    "Hm. You are all just too weak. Earthen Spike!"


    CRASH


    One of them casts [Earthen Spike], wow, the sphere is actually damaged.


    "Woah!! As expected of you, Ettik!"


    "No way..! It worked!"


    "Well... Even if i tried... My magic energy is not enough to damage the sphere..! You''re just too strong, Ettik!"


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    Ettik? Who''s that? Everyone cheered for him, have I forgotten something? I ask one of the students next to me.


    "Hey..! Who''s that Ettik guy?"


    "Huh? You don''t know?"


    Know what? He must be a pretty famous person if everyone knows him, I wonder why I''m the only one who hasn''t heard of him before.


    "Ettik Trak is one of the greatest mages in this country! You-... You''re Vixen, right? How could you not know?"


    "Hmm... I see I see..."


    So they''re a mage? I see that they chanted to use that spell, it must mean that I''m stronger then, chanting''s usually used to boost and enhance spells, but of course, since I''m too strong, chanting is useless, at least, for most spells.


    "Piercing Light."


    WHOOSH


    A beam of light shoots through the sphere, wow, it made a hole, impressive.


    "Huh?! Who did that?!"


    "A hole?! I can''t even make a dent!"


    "N-not even Ettik could make a hole in it..! Who was the one that casted it?"


    "Hey look! It''s her!"


    Everyone looks at the caster, hm? They have a familiar face... I feel like I''ve seen them before...


    "H-heheh... Thanks everyone... I-I''ve been practicing magic for a long time now..!"


    I sigh, that''s a personality that I don''t like. Anyways, I don''t want to cause too much attention so I''ll just make a little crack in it, I cast [Lightning Strike].


    BOOM


    "Huh? Another damage? Who did that?"


    "Oh! It''s Vixen! Another popular person huh..."


    Yay, it worked, it was a bit difficult trying not to destroy it, but I can proceed to the next test now.


    I walk back into the school building and meet a student standing in the hallways, he''s leaning on the wall, who might this be? Suddenly, he began walking towards me.


    "Hello there. Vixen Corr."


    He says, as he stands in front of me.


    "Hm? What do you want?"


    I ask, arms crossed, while looking at him cautiously.


    "Nothing. Just wanted to introduce myself. Im Fin Dozz. One of the top students in this academy. Your performance earlier amazed me."


    Did he figure it out? Most people would think that it was the most I could do with that spell, but for professionals, they should know that it was weakened over 20 times.


    "H-huh? How-..!? I mean... I didn''t do anything impressive, I just made a little dent into the sphere."


    "Really? Sigh... There''s no reason to hide it, Vixen. I know that you''ve weakened yourself. I''m one of the best here for a reason."


    I sigh, what''s wrong with this guy? He''s wasting my time, I need to get out of here quickly.


    "So? what if I did? What are you trying to say here?"


    "The cult."


    Cult?! What is he talking about?"


    "I know that you''ve heard of it before. I need a strong ally in order to fight the cult. You don''t look like someone who would betray me, so..."


    "Sorry but, I have to go to the next area. No time to waste on your childish games right now."


    I walk past him, heading into the next test area, he stays silent as I make my leave, sorry for him, but I already have my own battles.


    An artificial forest stood inside, everyone does the same lineup as before. Fault sat at the front, making his announcements.


    "Congratulations everyone! Making it into the second test, I am truly impressed..! It seems like this year will be an interesting one. The second test will now begin! Keep in mind that this will also serve as the final test before the written exams. I wish you good luck!"


    Everyone ran into the forest immediately, as expected. Also, I wonder how everyone just got here so quickly? I thought there wouldn''t even be that much students passing the first test.


    "Go go go!!"


    "I don''t know what to do yet but it seems like we need to go in there!"


    I follow behind the crowds, inside the forest, medium-levelled monsters roamed everywhere, they''re not a problem for me but the other students won''t do well against them.


    "Fireball!!"


    KABOOM


    "AHH!! Why won''t you die!!"


    The slime monster attacks a girl, looks like she doesn''t understand that [Fireball] won''t be effective on it. I stood there in disappointment until she noticed me.


    "Huh?! Hey!! Can you give me a hand please!?"


    Me? Is she talking about me? In sarcasm, I look around and point at myself.


    "Me?"


    "YES YOU!! HELP ME!!!"


    "Fine fine... stop shouting..."


    Such weaklings shouldn''t be here anyways, I breathe in, aiming my hand towards the blue slime, I cast [Fireball], and it''s defeated immediately.


    BOOM


    "E-Ehhh?!?!"


    "There you go."


    "How did you beat it with the same spell I just used?!"


    "It''s simple. I''m just better."


    "How simple... Too simple even!"


    I sigh, walking away into the forest. Hm? She''s following me, how annoying, I don''t need someone slowing me down.


    "Why are you following me? Go away."


    "Khu..! How cold! I just wanted to thank you."


    "Really? No problem then."


    "Don''t just say that..! Let me tag along! I promise, I won''t drag you down..!"


    "Kh..! Fine."


    I let her come along, eventually, we made it out of the forest, a few monsters stood in our way but I took them down immediately.


    "Phew..! We finally made it out!"


    What do you mean "we"?


    "Oh right. I almost forgot about it..! I''m Clar! Clar Fich..! Nice to meet you, Vixen!"


    "Yeah yeah. Nice to meet you too."


    Haven''t heard of her before, must be just a another regular student out here, though, something about her feels off... Fault stood at the front again, there were lots of students who passed too, maybe I was just underestimating them.


    "Congratulations everyone, for passing the physical exams! Now it''s time for the written ones..! To avoid cheating, I will be speaking to all of you telepathically!"


    Telepathically? Guess I''ll have to turn off [Soul Protection] then. Drawing attention to myself right now would be a bit troublesome, it''s annoying to weaken myself but if I don''t, it''ll also be the same.


    "Hello student! I''m speaking to you telepathically right now!"


    Fault says, looks like it worked.


    "I will now give a couple questions for you to answer! Don''t even try to cheat..! I''ve given everyone different questions, so asking someone else will be useless!"


    It isn''t too long until I answered all of them perfectly, they were simple questions about magic, thanks to my knowledge and experience with magic, there was no way that I''d fail them.


    "Congratulations to those who passed the exams!! Now, you are all students of Nox Academy!!. School will officially start tomorrow. Be sure to get proper rest before then!"


    "Nox Academy", one of the best academies in this kingdom, it mainly teaches magic and sword fighting. Dorms were given to everyone, and of course, I had to move all my items from the inn, back into my dorm.


    As I began to fall to asleep, the window opens, and I hear someone enter my room, it''s already nighttime so I get up, prepared for the intruder.


    "Who''s there?"


    Noone responds, though, I already see the person sneaking around thanks to my [Night Vision III] skill, it''s Clar, what is she doing here? And at this time of night? I get up and turn on the lights.


    "Ahh!! Bright!!"


    She quietly yells.


    "What are you doing here?"


    "V-VIXEN!! OH- UMM... UHHH.."


    "Well, I can''t sense bloodlust from you... So..."


    "Bloodlust?!? You can sense that?"


    "I''ll get rid of you, with force if I have to. If you don''t state your reasons for coming here, right now."


    "Wait wait wait!!! Alright... uhh... I was... I was just here to check on you! that''s all..!"


    What an obvious lie, though, it is true that she doesn''t look like she has any bad intent.


    "Liar. Get out of here, I''m trying to sleep."


    "Right right..!"


    She then leaves through the window, what a strange girl, but I should worry about my sleep first.


    Zzz...


    When morning rose, school resumed exactly like how I expected it be. The teacher arrived later as I sat at the back of the classroom.


    "Hey there. Nice to see you."


    Oh, it''s Fin, he''s sitting next to me, how great, I don''t want a delusional person near me right now.


    CRASH


    "Hey! What happened!? Are you okay?!"


    "Enemy attack?!"


    Hm? What''s this? The wall next to me just collapsed, oh, a rabbit appeared, is this The Rabbit of Earth''s doing? As everyone is confused and panicking about the situation, I pick the rabbit up and find a note again.


    "Hello once again, Great Wizard. It is I, the rabbit of earth. I have settled in the city now, you may find me in the sewers, don''t worry though, this place is safe."


    It says. Sewers? Oh, I almost forgot about it, only humans are allowed in this city, I see why she sneaked in.


    "The Book of Epitomy" was useless now, since it was mostly just a book for survival, with a long list of her jokes, the most useful thing it has right now would be the item inside the book, I wonder what it is.


    "Someone, fix that wall already..!"


    "Got it. Earthen Wall!"


    A wall of stone emerges from the ground, replacing the missing one, it was Fin who casted it. After a long silence, the teacher finally began the class.


    "Ahem. Hello everyone! I will be your teacher! My name is Rloun, Rloun Coll! For today, we will only be introducing you all to the school, and your classmates of course! We''ll start with... You! Over there!"


    "Me? Umm.. my name is Bren Face..."


    "Alright! Tell us your hobbies, things like you like, and things about yourself!"


    The teacher made us introduce ourselves to everyone, the rest of the day went well, I planned on visiting The Rabbit of Earth when suddenly, a girl calls out to me.


    "Hey..! Wait..!!"


    I look back and see a familiar face, it''s the same girl who casted [Piercing Light], what does she want?


    "Hm? What is it?"


    She stops in front of me, catching her breath.


    "Hah... f-finally..! You stopped..!"


    "And... Who might you be..?"


    "It''s me..! Franz Reinhard! I know who you are, haha..! You''re the one who saved us from that mansion, aren''t you?"


    She''s one of the prisoners huh. Did she come here to thank me? Wait, how does she even know I was the one who saved her?


    "Follow me..! I know where Rabbit is!"


    Rabbit? I see. She met The Rabbit of Earth, guess I''ll follow her.

 Chapter 5: The Attack.

    "The Rabbit of Earth", a con artist who is also known to have advanced knowledge of magic energy and the brain. It is unknown how long she has lived. At most times, she wears rabbit ears even though she already has cat ears.


    "Long time no see, Great Wizard."


    After Franz Reinhard led me to her new home, the sewers, The Rabbit of Earth, Frelhr Xadd, and Fin Dozz greeted us in a secret underground room below the city.


    "Ah. Good to see you again, Vixen. I''ve recruited a new member right after I arrived here. This is Fin Dozz. Of course, you may already know him because he''s your classmate."


    "Looks like I''ll be working with you instead. I knew you were strong, but not this strong. Don''t worry though, I won''t let you down."


    Looks like Fin was already recruited by Frelhr. Everyone sat around a campfire, Franz joins us as well.


    "Great Wizard. Here''s the key. You may receive it as your reward."


    Says The Rabbit of Earth, she then gives me a key, which I immediately use on the compartment inside The Book of Epitomy, it opens and I find a...- What is this? It looks familiar, I definitely have used something similar to this before.


    "It''s a gun. More specifically. A desert eagle. Deagle for short. It''s a fine piece of weaponry, though, no one uses it around here. You have it, don''t you? The Imitation Technique. I know you haven''t used it for a long time now but these are the true, and the original. It is what you commonly imitate."


    She says. "Imitation Technique" is a special technique that only I can use, although it is magic, it''s more of a technique rather than a form of special spells.


    "I see. How do I use it again? My memories are kind of fading away. I don''t think I even know to use that technique anymore."


    "Fear not, Great Wizard. For you will find out soon. Search for the Dungeon of Ferner. He was a kind friend until the holy knights burnt him. As remnants, he turned himself into a defensive plant, incapable of thought."


    "Ferner Dungeon? I''ve heard about it before. Isn''t it near this city?"


    Suddenly, Franz stands up.


    "Vixen..! Actually... Before I was captured... My family was very poor. We eventually got int debt, and before I knew it, I was sold off. Frelhr has already told me about it. They''re gonna use humans as test subjects for making biological weapons..!"


    Biological weapons? Oh, that''s right, currently, the demons have grown too strong, the only way for humans to fight back in case the demons declare war on us, is by heavily modifying our bodies artificially.


    "I was fortunate enough to be saved before they did something... But when I returned... M-my father had gotten sick... And my mother disappeared somewhere else..!"


    "How sad. At least you''re still alive."


    "How unfortunate. I almost shed a tear."


    Says The Rabbit of Earth, as she takes a sip of tea.


    "What a tragic fate. Don''t you agree too, Fin?"


    "Right. If I was you, I would''ve slaughtered everyone in that mansion already."


    An awkward silence ensues.


    "How can you all be so emotionless!? A-anyways..! My father''s still alive... Though, he needs a special medicine... I think one of the ingredients is only found in the same dungeon that Rabbit mentioned..."


    "Ferner Dungeon?"


    "Right... It''s a rare flower, in this place at least. It''s usually found on the other continents, but sometimes you can find one here..."


    Is she asking me to get the flower?


    "Before he died, my friend used to travel around the world. He was a vampire, so he only walked at night. He found a flower which he treasured, he kept that flower with him until the end. It wouldn''t be too rude if you, yourself took the flower from him. Besides. This is also another mission for you. Get the flower and give it back to Franz. You''ll find out how to use the Deagle along the way too."


    "Huh? How?"


    "Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice. She''s the Goddess of Order. Ferner was another one of her believers, he made the dungeon mainly to give offerings to her. You''ll get blessed if you give a proper offering. There, you will receive great wisdom."


    I think I''ve heard of that name before, "Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice" the Goddess of Order. She was mentioned in The Book of Epitomy.


    "You''re so knowledgeable, Rabbit!"


    Says Franz, as The Rabbit of Earth takes another sip of tea.


    "Of course I am. After all. I''ve lived far longer than you could ever imagine."


    She says. I think that''s enough talking, I should go by now.


    "Alright then. I shall take my leave."


    "Hold on, Vixen."


    Says Fin, what does he want now?


    "The cult. Among the 8 founding Gods, there exists a forgotten God. The holy kingdoms are in an alliance with this God. Also, be careful of Clar, and Yuqo because-"


    "Wait..! What are you saying? Forgotten God? Clar and Yuqo? What about them?"


    "There''s a high chance that they might be worshippers of the forgotten God too. And remember. This God is not necessarily evil, but they do need blood. You have Blood Magic right? You might be related as well. Though, Never let anyone else but us know that you can use that form of magic."


    "Okay okay... I wasn''t even planning to."


    "Alright. You may go now. Remember. Beware of the Blood God and the Holy Kingdom."


    "Okay. Goodbye."


    I shut the door behind me as I leave. First thing I should do is to find the exact location of the dungeon. I asked multiple people inside the city, unfortunately, almost none of them had a clue about the dungeon.


    "Have you heard of the Ferner Dungeon?"


    "No."


    "Hey. have you heard of this dungeon?"


    "No.. haven''t heard of it."


    "Have a second? Do you know about this place?"


    "Nah."


    I continued asking random people until I acquired significant information.


    "Ferner Dungeon? I suggest you don''t head there. There are traps everywhere! One of my friend stepped on one, and his entire leg came off...! I-I still have nightmares about that place. Please... Not even you would make it out alive."


    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!


    Eventually, I managed to get a hold of a map leading into the dungeon, I followed it and arrived in front of a forest. I find a path connecting the forest and the city, which made exploring easier.


    The forest was dark, many dangerous creatures roamed inside, I cast [Spatial Investigation] to avoid them as I made my way towards the dungeon.


    The smell of fresh blood was unavoidable throughout the place, the average person would vomit on the spot. Blood was scattered everywhere inside the dungeon, multiple bodies belonging to monsters lay on the floor.


    Traps were everywhere but they weren''t too difficult to avoid. I reach the final chamber of the dungeon, an altar is placed on the middle, more bodies lay nearby. Upon closer look, something is written on the altar.


    "Offerings for the Great God: Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice"


    It must be where I should give a proper offering. I take out The Book of Epitomy and place it on the altar, it''s basically useless now that I''ve got the item.


    RUMBLE


    CRASH


    Suddenly, the place starts shaking, light glows from the altar before breaking into pieces. Was that a bad offering?


    RUMBLE


    The dungeon begins falling apart, as I try to run, I sense something move from the altar.


    SWOOSH


    A spear impales me, it looks to be made out of hardened blood, is this Ferner? Fortunately, I''m already a master of Blood Magic so it doesn''t really affect me. I cut off the spear and continue my escape.


    RUMBLE


    Gah!- what''s this..? While running, I began to feel sick as the dungeon proceeds to collapse, I trip and fall before I began to pass out.


    What happened? Did I die? No way, I''m too strong to die like this. A few seconds later, everything goes dark.


    "Wake up. This isn''t the time to rest right now."


    Huh? Who said that?


    Oh, looks like I''ve gotten a new spell, [Full Recovery], which I casted immediately. Wow, not only does it heal my physical body, but it also heals my brain.


    As the dungeon collapses, blood rushes out from the ground and begins striking down nearby creatures, destroying everything in it''s path.


    Monsters, animals, trees, plants, everything is eradicated as blood passes through, taking in more blood from the creatures inside the forest. It didn''t take long until the entire place was rid of, leaving a small crater.


    I wake up under the ground, digging out like a zombie until I reached the surface.


    "Hey! Come on! Follow me! Something''s happened!"


    "What in the world was that?! A monster?!"


    "Have you called the reinforcements already?!"


    Seems like the guards are already on their way towards me.


    "Chris Teal". Born in south america, raised by normal parents, died of a car accident, my former self. [Full Recovery] not only healed my body, but also gave back my memories, which disappeared just a few years ago.


    "Hey!! What''s going on!!"


    "... Wh-What happened here..."


    "This is a disaster..."


    The guards find out about the destruction, fortunately for me, I''ve already escaped the scene.


    I took a rest in my room, oh wait, I think I''ve forgotten something... The flower! Oh no! I''ve forgotten-... Huh? How convenient, Clar is outside the window holding a flower. Shortly after, the door opens, and Clar enters.


    "H-hello..! Uhh... Vixen..! I think you forgot this."


    Clar shows me the flower, placing it down on the ground before leaving. Hah..? How did she get this? And why does she have this?


    "D-don''t ask how I got it!!"


    She yells outside. Really..? I pick the flower up, is this the flower that Franz needed?


    I head back into the sewers and find only The Rabbit of Earth.


    "Welcome back, Great Wizard. Have you gotten the flower?"


    She says. Where is everyone? Guess I''ll just let her give it to Franz.


    "Umm... Is this the flower?"


    I give her the flower. She begins inspecting it carefully with a magnifying glass. Is this another one of her jokes?


    "Hmm... Yes yes... This looks like the right one... I will give it to Franz later. In the meantime. You shall practice the gun."


    "Alright... I''ve gotten back my memories... But the most important thing right now, is how do you know about guns? I thought they didn''t exist in this world. Also, how do-"


    "Shh..! No asking questions more than one. For your first question, I answer. Ahem. I''m a magic user too, you know? Back in the day, we had guns in every corner of the city. Humans without magic made them as a way to combat other humans, with magic or not."


    I see... So they don''t use it commonly now?


    "Okay then. Second question. How do you know so much about me?"


    "Simple question, Great Wizard. I have the ability to read minds."


    Hah..?? Really?


    "Sigh... Alright then. Shall we help your kind now? You told me something about how humans captured your people."


    "Kukuku... I only said that as a joke. Truth is, I''m neither human, cat, or rabbit. It will be a secondary mission for you to solve the puzzle... Am I a cat? A rabbit? A human? Or all of them?"


    Huh? Another mission? Also, isn''t this the first I''ve heard her laugh?


    "Since you''ve gotten back your memories now, I''ll be talking to you not as The Rabbit of Earth, but as Rabbit! There''s a big difference between us, you know..! Franz and the others have already started calling me Rabbit."


    Alright, she''s a comedian huh, well, I don''t really care since she''s still an ally.


    "Also. Do you know who payed for me when I arrived in the academy?"


    "Himawarimegumi Yamakamikizune."


    "What a long name..! But yeah. That''s right."


    "In English, her last name means, Mountain God Fox. She holds a great, and deadly form of magic. Best not to be involved with her... Fufufu..."


    "So? Why did she pay for me?"


    "The Blood God. Mountain God Fox is also one of my friends. She ventured out into the red mists, said to be a passage into the demon realm, she disappeared shortly after, never to be seen again... There are several liars in this world. Wouldn''t be the worst thing to believe that was a fake..?"


    "Still, why would they pay for me though?"


    "The Blood God. I''ve told you already, didn''t I? The holy kingdom sided with the Blood God in order to fight the demons. Fake Mountain God Fox helped you to fight back the demons attacking this city."


    "Huh? What are you talking about?"


    "Frelhr... I shall call him right now."


    Call? Why can''t she speak in a normal way? She''s too confusing. Suddenly, Rabbit pulls out a telephone, what..? I didn''t even think those things existed here...


    "Hello? Is this Frelhr? Come here right now."


    She then puts back the telephone. An hour later, Frelhr arrives.


    "Ah, Good to see you, Vixen. And Rabbit."


    "Sit down sit down..."


    He sits down near the campfire.


    "So. Ahem. Vixen. I''ve forgot to tell you this but the demons have declare war on us. Not too many people know about this so we must hurry. They will be attacking soon."


    "Soon? You mean right now?"


    "No. The day of the festival. Prepare, for the demons will arrive. Franz will evacuate, along with Rabbit. You, me, and Fin will stay to fight the demons."


    "I see... The festival starts next year though?"


    "Get ready before then. I''ll be preparing my forces as well."


    Demon war huh... I guess it has already begun.


    A year later, the festival began. The people of city roamed recklessly, unbeknownst to their imminent danger. When suddenly, it happened.


    "GAHHH!!"


    "AHHHHHH"


    "HELP!!"


    The demons have attacked. Everyone panicked, running around in fear as the monsters tear down the buildings, along with the people.


    "Hey! Get out of here! The demons have attacked!"


    Several people have already fallen, where might Frelhr''s army be? A large crowd of demons appear in front of me. The, what used to be full of stalls and stands, is now a massive field of corpses and bloodshed.


    "Demons! We won''t let you take away our city! We''ll hold you down until reinforcements have arrived!!"


    "Everyone! Charge!!!"


    A few guards have arrived, charging straight towards the tall beasts, their efforts prove futile as the monsters crush them with ease. How tragic for them, I guess I''ll be the one to finish their jobs.


    As I aim my hand towards the enemies, a group of people shows up, students? From the academy? They''ll fall no doubt against these monsters.


    "Hey. What are you guys doing here? Leave immediately. The army is coming so there''s no point in fighting right now."


    "Then, why are you fighting?"


    One of them says. Oh wait, Ettik... I think? Is in the group, along with some popular people. They must think that they''re strong just because people call them strong.


    "I''m just here to test out my new weapon. You guys get out of here. You don''t understand the power difference between us, and the enemy."


    "Testing you say..?! How disgraceful. We''ll fight these monsters for the sake of the city."


    The rest of them steps forward, taking a fighting stance. The demons began to walk towards us. Are these guys serious? Do they not see the immense amount of aura around me?


    "Vixen... You''re not the only one who''s labelled the strongest."


    "We''ll crush these bugs in an instant!"


    "These guys... I don''t see much strength in them..."


    I sigh, they will definitely be defeated quickly. Hm? What''s that..? I look up and see Fin, standing on the rooftops, looks like he has arrived, Franz and Rabbit should be out of the city by now.


    "Very well. I shall take down these weaklings with you."


    I say as I take a stance as well.


    SPLAT


    Oh, I see...


    "Ettik Trak". One of the greatest mages of Nox Academy. He possessed high magic energy output after years of hard work.


    "Plaret Fas". Same as Ettik.


    "Hinder Goels". A strong swordsman, possibly a future candidate for the royal knights.


    "Lindo Fas". Plaret Fas''s brother, they lived together under one roof, by helping each other out, they managed to get in the academy.


    "Wallo Baer". A professional healer, his wish is to become a doctor.


    And then the rest: "Pwea San", the lively boy, "Later Jaell", the rich girl,  "Madn Fort", the popular girl, "Ginoya Reed", the genius, and "Mich Willson", the short-tempered boy.


    In an instant, all of their futures came crumbling down.


    "Divine Light. Cast of the Iron Maiden."


    What just happened? Why did they all... just suddenly die..!?


    "Surprised your still alive..! Fine then..! Divine Light. Cast of the Iron Maiden."


    He smiled wickedly, his sharp teeth reflecting the sun''s bright illumination. Had I not let my guard down, I would''ve been turned into mincemeat.


    Another wave of reality distortion hits me, reflectively, I casted [Holy Barrier] to deflect the attack.


    "How pointless! Those who fight back falls quickly to the dark depths of the abyss. Those who stand back up inherit it. For you..! I will show no mercy to one who bests my power!"


    How irritating. Such monsters shall not exist in this world. I''ll cleanse them myself if I have to.

 Chapter 6: Declaration of War.

    "The fourth pillars of creation. Born of the 7th God, he who governs the mortal realm, the human dimension, as we call it."


    Before the demons attacked, Rabbit explained how "the fourth pillars of creation" works.


    "Silk, a strong fiber commonly used by silkworms and spiders, it is one of the most important features of them creatures."


    "What does that have to do with anything?"


    "Divine Light. Cast of the Iron Maiden. Those chants enable the use of spatial restoration. Divine Light, it allows one to create a cocoon, more of a ball of silk, it captures a space within this realm, entrapping a target and plundering it''s dimension. Cast of the Iron Maiden, it warps space, distorted of reality. Basically, it''s an effective form of killing."


    Titled: Celestine Central Electrical Box, "Cricket Cricket". Otherwise known as: "The 4th Pillars of Creation"


    "Electric Eel, a fish that generates an electric field around them, a major problem is, they don''t exist in this world. Cricket Cricket uses this as a reference to recreate a field of electricity around him."


    Really? Wait, how do you know that?


    "Divine Light. Cast of the Iron Maiden."


    A sphere of electrical silk forms around me, I barely manage to avoid it, but [Holy Barrier] gets destroyed in the process.


    "How dare you!! May the lights of heaven be casted upon you!"


    "Heh. What nonsense are you talking about? Aren''t you with the demons?"


    "Silent! The message shall be delivered no matter what!!"


    What a monster, I can''t see any way of winning this fight, unless I unleash my ultimate spell.


    "Sniper Imitation."


    He dodges it swiftly, I guess snipers won''t work on him.


    "Rocket Launcher Imitation."


    BOOM


    He avoids it again. I pull out the Deagle and began shooting at him, ammo won''t be a problem with magic.


    "How weak..! To rely on such machinery..!! Let me show you, my natural power."


    "FGHUA!!-"


    How strong?! In the blink of an eye, he appears in front of me, throwing his fist into my chest, breaking through and catching my heart.


    SPLATTER


    "H-heh... I see no way to win huh... An-"


    He pulls his hand out and sends a devastating [Chop] through my neck. My head drops, along with my body, I guess I''m dead now.


    Just kidding, I''ve grown too strong to die like this, good thing he doesn''t know it yet. I was about to cast [Antares], which would destroy this entire kingdom, but... Seems like he stopped me before I could even use it.


    "Everyone. Let''s-"


    "Spatial Lift."


    Phew..! I successfully teleported him somewhere else. At least this city will be saved now. I put my head back on and get up, of course, injuries won''t be a problem too.


    "Fin. Let''s get revenge for them... Shall we?"


    Apologies to my fallen classmates, we will avenge them. The demons still remained in the city, but they won''t be a problem for us anymore.


    "Blood Magic: Blood Banishment."


    5 days later, me, Fin, and Frelhr, along with his army, defeated and got rid of the demons inside the city. Franz and Rabbit disappeared during that time, we searched for a few days, but we never saw them again.


    While the city was still repairing the damages done by the demons, Frelhr gave me a message from the Holy Kingdom.


    "It seems that the time has come. It is unfortunate that we lost Rabbit and Franz. But good news is, we can finally proceed with the plan."


    "Sigh... I see... So? What''s the message?"


    "The Holy Kingdom of Korpa has requested you to meet their king. Fin, I, and my army won''t be able to come with you, so be careful. You only got lucky fighting Cricket Cricket. I know you couldn''t do anything else other than that. But still... Stay safe out there."


    What wise words. Though, what could the king of Korpa want with me? Are they going to recruit me into their army to fight the demons? Have they figured us out? Whatever it is, I must be careful, I still don''t have enough strength yet.


    I left the city and began heading towards the Holy Kingdom of Korpa. After a few days of travelling, I arrived at the city gates. The walls look really damaged, bodies are laying around, it seems like they''ve been attacked as well, one of the guards walk up to me.


    "Hey..! Are you the Great Mage?! Thank God! Come on. The royal family is waiting."


    "Everyone!! She''s here! Call the royal guards!"


    The gate guards leads me in, a group of royal guards meets me at the other side, their commander walks up to me.


    "You must be Vixen. The great wizard that I''ve heard about. You''ve finally arrived huh..! The royal family awaits you. We are the Royal Guards, we will guide you into the castle. I am the commander. Ken, Ken Trook. Nice to meet you."


    "Nice to meet you too, Ken. Did the demons cause all of this destruction..?"


    "Yeah.. that''s right... They showed up out of nowhere... We weren''t prepared for this... We suffered a lot of damages but we eventually won... Somehow."


    "I''m sorry to hear that..."


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    "Don''t worry. We''ll avenge those who lost their lives in this war! Firstly, we must go meet the king, and the royal family."


    "Alright. Lead the way."


    Ken, along with his guards, guided me into the castle.


    The sight of death, destruction, and hopelessness, was unavoidable in the city. Houses were ruined, people were mourning, and the guards were dragging bodies from one place to another.


    Once we made it into the castle, the royal guards left me with Ken, he led me into the king''s throne room, where the leader of this kingdom sat in.


    "You must be Vixen. I''m very glad that you''ve come here. The demons ran through the place, destroying everything in their path, it seems that the era of peace and harmony has ended. A new era has begun."


    "I see. So? What did you call me here for?"


    "I want you to join us. We, the Holy Kingdom of Korpa has too little forces. Doom is inevitable for us, we aren''t a kingdom well suited for war."


    "What will you offer? I can''t just risk my life without getting something in return."


    "Hm? I''ve heard that you''ve never even lost before. Not once-"


    "Actually. I-"


    Oh wait, I can''t tell them that I just revived myself after my head was cut off, no one would believe I''m a human anymore.


    "You continue your speech..! I just saw something insignificant..."


    "As I was saying. You helped a lot in taking back that city the demons almost captured. It''s tragic that your friends and classmates passed away in that battle, but you don''t have anything to do now, don''t you?"


    "Sigh... Sorry but I''ll-"


    Suddenly, a person next to the king interrupts, the princess?


    "Wait! I know... You don''t want to, right..? But wait, I have a good deal for you..!"


    "And, what would that deal be?"


    "I''ll give our family, the royal family''s treasure..! Passed down from generation to generation... I-It''s a weapon of mass destruction..."


    Weapon of mass destruction?! I''ve heard about it back in my world, nuclear bombs, and atomic weapons. Basically weapons that can harm several people at once.


    "The Divine Intervention..! L.A.S.E.R, laser for short... It''s a light amplification device, similar to the concepts of a laser, it''s also one of the few remaining guns of this era. Well, not this era, but from the past."


    Intervention? If I''m correct... Rabbit has told me about it before...


    "The Intervention. You can also call it the M200. It is an American bolt-action sniper rifle, also can be classified as an Anti-materiel Rifle. It exists in your world, right? I can''t show you right now but if I could, might it be possible for you to imitate it?"


    She said. Also, how does she even know that?


    "Very well, Tra. Vixen, please accept our treasure, in return, you will become part of the Hero''s Party."


    The king says.


    "Hero? Wait, what did you mean by laser? How is it similar to that?"


    "Umm... It''s quite complicated actually... But in simple... It amplifies light from the sun and uses it as power for the weapon, hence the name, Divine Intervention."


    I see... Taken from the heavens, or the sun, which is worshipped as a God around here, and then intervening on their enemies... Truly a weapon of the Holy Kingdom.


    "Alright... I''ll accept. That gun seems pretty nice to have around."


    They look at each other as if sending a signal before looking back at me. Did I say something wrong?


    "You have my thanks. Now... We can officially declare war on the demons. It was a surprise attack on us humans, so I can guarantee that the other races will help as well."


    "Tra Nol", daughter of the king, princess of Korpa. Most recent descendant of the Nol royal family.


    "Ofich D''Leai Nol", king of Korpa. Current Leader of the Nol royal family.


    We walk over to the balcony where the king will now officially declare war on the demons.


    A large crowd stood below us, their loud noises quiets down as the King arrives, he stands bravely as the masses expected, before clearing out his throat and beginning his speech.


    "Good morning dear citizens of Korpa. It has come to my concern that the demons have began an offense towards us. Their violent attacks against humanity shall not be overlooked! We hadn''t done nothing to them, yet why do they do this? Whatever their reason is, I will be the representative for us humans. Today will be the day we show them our might! Not to attack us again without reason! Today is the day that we declare war on them monsters!!"


    "YEEEAAHH!!"


    "WARR!!"


    "TAKE BACK OUR LAND!!"


    "REVENGE!!"


    The crowd cheers, yelling and celebrating. I never wanted chaos in this world, but it seems that it is impossible to live in peace.


    The king walks away, we follow behind as he leads us to down a stairwell.


    "Where are we going now?"


    "We''re going to get your reward. The treasure, Divine Intervention. It is hidden under the castle. For it is sacred."


    Soon, we arrive inside a labyrinth. It is hard to see, but the king looks like he knows the way. As we continue walking, I notice many writings carved into the walls.


    "Excuse me but, what do they mean?"


    "The writings? Those are the words of God. Written by our ancestors, it has complicated meanings, it would take too long to explain."


    "Can you say it simply?"


    "Alright. Listen Carefully then. A long time ago, the Gods created the first man. Whom was the greatest, and the absolute peak of all life. It was the perfect creation. We, humans come from it. Eventually, it was sealed, no... It sealed itself... During the Great Catastrophe, it disappeared."


    "Is that the history of this world? Like, did we just come from another human? Do you know about evolution?"


    "Part of it is true, of course. The first man was shaped exactly just like us. Strangely as it sounds, time travelling magic exists, but none has mastered it."


    I see... It''s almost like my original world, but magic exists, evolution does exist too so... Who is the first man?


    Eventually, we arrive at the weapons chamber. There are racks of weaponry sitting everywhere. And there it is, the Divine Intervention, placed on a table in the middle of the chamber.


    "That''s Divine Intervention? Hmm... It''s a strange question but, why would you give it to me this quick? Isn''t it one of the most important treasures of your family?"


    "... A more important fellow met us. One that could bring greater damage unto this world if they wanted to. They recommended us to give this to you. We don''t know why, but... You seem like you''d use this well."


    "And who was that important fellow you mentioned?"


    "I''m not so sure, but... They''re similar to the same God that the Mharkalayen Sun Tribe worships."


    "Mah- what..? Sorry, but my brain capacity is too small for that word."


    "Mharkalayen Sun Tribe. The most common worshippers of the Sun God. A God- err... no. An individual similar to that of the Sun God visited us. A warning sent to us. A message telling us of an upcoming new God. The birth of a God, it would be major, a disaster that will fall into this world once a billion years, though, it was always unsuccessful for a new God to be born."


    "I see. Why worry then?"


    "This God is none other. It''s a fallen God. They have walked on this world already, until they fell. Now, they''re coming back soon, to hunt us all down."


    "What were we talking about again?"


    "Why we''re giving you this weapon. Our fellow told us that you have at least the potential to protect humanity from the new God, and the demons of course."


    "Haha..! Thank that guy for me, if you meet them. Now... I shall gladly accept this."


    I step forward and take Divine Intervention. How beautiful it is, I can already sense how powerful it will be..!


    In this day, a war between demons and humanity has begun, which means that a Hero and a Demon Lord have arrived as well. Since I''ve already taken the weapon, it would mean that I''ll have to join the Hero''s Party now.


    Before she disappeared, Rabbit told me about my last lesson.


    "Vixen. Yuqo and Clar are your enemies. More specifically, our enemies, enemies of mankind. Though, I am not a human, you see? You may never see it but, have you heard of the placebo effect? This will be my final lesson as your teacher."


    "Teacher? When did you become one? And why am I your student?"


    "The placebo effect. Similar to the placebo effect, I can alter the brain using a little bit of magic. It is a special type of magic that only I can use. You could call it a direct attack to the soul..."


    "Hmm. Interesting. So? Why do I have to know about this?"


    "The brain, which is it? Your soul? Or your consciousness? Only I, have this special type of magic, but you can also copy this using your imitation magic. For your final lesson, learn and use Soul Retraction, my main magic technique, it''s basically the weakest form of Mind Control."


    "Mind Control?"


    "Do you know about the hero? This will be important information for the war."


    "Yeah. I''ve heard that when a Hero is born, the Demon Lord will be born as well. Same if turned around."


    "That is true. Wanna hear an interesting thing about the hero? They either defeat the demon lord or they will be punished by the Gods."


    "What? Why?"


    "Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice is important to that. To the goddess of order, the hero must serve as humanity''s main offense, same goes for the Demon Lord."


    Most of the time, I couldn''t understand a single thing she says. The Rabbit of Earth, or Rabbit, was a huge mystery. Well, she is someone who has lived for hundreds, possibly thousands of years after all.

 Vampire & Friends: Chapter 1

    "Yawn..!"


    It''s a sunny day, I stretch my back as I wake up.


    "Hey! It''s time for school!!"


    A few rocks are being thrown at my window.


    Who is it? What is going on..?


    Upon checking, I see that it''s Clar, standing outside. Oh. That''s right. I''m going to be late!


    I dash outside, bringing my uniform with me. I put it on, over my pajamas.


    Later, I arrive in my classroom.


    Looks like I made it just in time..! Phew..!


    "Yo. Why are you late, Vixen?"


    Says Fin, sitting next to me.


    I take my seat, putting my bag down as the teacher walks into the room.


    "Hello! And good morning everyone!! It''s a wonderful day today! Let''s get class started shall we?"


    It''s another boring school day. I ponder, how will I get through this?


    I''m a genius thanks to my regenerative abilities, healing my brain, which gives me perfect memory, so if I can just remain conscious, even barely, I can memorize everything said in this room.


    "Ha....."


    I rest my face on the desk.


    "You seem more tired than usual. What''s the matter?"


    "Hm? Nothing, of course. I just had some trouble sleeping. An annoying girl kept sneaking into my room."


    "Oh my. Isn''t that a serious problem? You should contact the authorities immediately."


    Eh... I don''t think it''s that serious... The police would only be annoyed if they came into my room and find nothing.


    "No no... It''s okay, I have enough strength to kick her out anyways."


    "May I ask, who is this girl, that keeps sneaking into your room?"


    Suddenly, the teacher finds out about our conversation.


    "Hey! What are you guys taking about? It''s not good to speak while the teacher is speaking, you know? Hah... Kids these days..."


    Ah, another adult who thinks that kids are less behaved today, than in the past.


    How many of these people have I met? One? Two? Maybe only one...


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    "Anyways. Vixen Corr. Since you want to keep talking, how about you answer this question on the board? Hm?"


    How annoying. But there''s no problem in showing my overwhelming smarts.


    I walk up to the front, and see an easy question.


    Only problem is, everyone is looking at me... I don''t like having a lot of people looking at me, so I''ll answer this quickly...


    Oh. I''ve answered it too fast.


    "Huh? I''m afraid that''s.... WRONG!!"


    Huh?! Did I get too confident? Or did I lose focus because of all these people watching?!


    "W-what?! Teacher, explain to me why this is wrong! Combining magic requires one to focus on both spells, and the outcome itself. If you aren''t able to do that, you shouldn''t even consider yourself a magic user!"


    Rloun looks at me, surprised.


    Have I gone too far..? Uh-oh... Maybe I was being too angry.


    "W-wow, Vixen..! I was just joking about you being wrong... But your knowledge on Magic... Hmmm..."


    "Woah..! Vixen really is more talented than what I''ve ever expected!"


    "Heh. That was no problem for her. Teacher, better not joke around professionals."


    Uuu..!


    This..! T-this is worse than being embarrassed..!


    Why does being praised feel more embarrassing than being humiliated?!


    I quickly return to my seat. Spending the next following hours thinking about what I''ve done.


    This situation... I feel like I must disappear, and never return to this place again... H-how will I get through this class..?!


    "Good job, Vixen..!"


    Now''s not the time to give me a thumbs up, Fin!


    ...


    After the day was over, I went back into the sewers, where Rabbit and the rest were waiting.


    The fire crackled, as Franz roamed around, reading a book.


    Meanwhile, Rabbit and Frelhr discussed about how their next plan will go, eating a carrot soup.


    "Nom nom... Mm... Aboug thag cannomgg..."


    "Make sure to eat first, before talking. It''s proper manners, and basic knowledge, you know?"


    Rabbit really is good at eating carrots huh...


    Even though she''s not actually a Rabbit. Fufufu..!


    "Ah. The Great Wizard, Vixen! I haven''t seen you at school, where have you been all day?"


    Says Franz, lifting her head up from reading the book she holds in her hands.


    "One of my friends wouldn''t stop talking to me after lunch... It was a long day, Franz. It was a long day..."


    Yes. That''s right. It was Clar.


    During lunch, she went up, and talked to me as we ate. Later, she wouldn''t stop talking, and I had to escape by making an excuse to go back into my classroom.


    "Franz... Focus on our work here. We need a blueprint to make an artillery cannon."


    "Artillery cannon? That''s easy. I can make one right now."


    Artillery cannons are simple. I saw them in movies back when I was still in Earth, Perfect Memory really helps a lot huh.


    "As expected..! Now, I can finally rebuild my army."


    "Rebuild your army? Why? I thought you didn''t have any problems with them?"


    Franz then closes her book. Looking at me, angrily.


    "Uuuu...!!! Frelhr told us that he doesn''t have any money left..! His boss cut off his pay because he wouldn''t show up, they say."


    "The army has really strict people. I wonder why his pay was cut off."


    Because he was always absent..?


    "Hah... Please... I don''t want to hear about it. Our plan here is better than whatever nonsense they had. You can write down the blueprints on Franz''s book, I''ll see it later."


    "Alright alright. I''ll do it later..."


    I then sat down next to the campfire.


    A thought suddenly came up, Where does the smoke even go to? Is there just a hole in the roof?


    "Vixen, want some carrot soup? It''s the best thing I have."


    "Don''t be fooled by her lies, Vixen..! Rabbit can only make carrot soup."


    I take the bowl of soup either way. It''s delicious.


    Wait... Even after all those years of living, Rabbit only knows how to make this?!!


    "Making a bunch of delicacies won''t have any change in this world, if they all taste the same. Making one soup however, if it''s better than all of them, will make a change."


    Isn''t that from the Book of Epitomy?


    Also, is that even true? Sounds like a bad advice to me. Or is it just an excuse?


    "I heard that from a guy, a few hundred years ago. I don''t know what happened to him later."


    "Sigh... I thought you were just making up an excuse."


    "It was an excuse. But I am a master of making carrot soup though."


    Well. At least she''s better than everyone, at making carrot soup.

 Chapter 7: The Heros Party.

    After I took Divine Intervention, I went back up to meet the Hero''s Party.


    "Hey..! Is this the new member? I''ve already told you we don''t need another member!"


    He says angrily. It''s "Den Mako", the Hero, his party stood in front of me. Ken tried his best to convince them to take me in as part of their group, but Den kept declining him.


    "You''ll see it when she shows you her abilities..!"


    "I don''t care how strong they are. It will only be a hindrance if there''s one more in the party!-"


    One of them interrupts. It''s "Liand Err", a mage from the kingdom of Pmonly, East from the kingdom of Djoflour.


    "Well... We could have another mage around here too. We don''t really have one do we?"


    He says. From the looks of it, it is true that there are no significant mages in the group, I wonder how they even managed to survive this long.


    "You''re just too weak. Liand. She''s one of the best in her kingdom. You just can''t compare, really."


    Holding the role of the swordsman, is "Rayan Cross", a human from the kingdom of elves.


    "Sigh... Fine fine. We''ll take her. She''s at least a better option than these guys."


    "How rude of you, Den. We''re all strong, you''re just the Hero."


    "Thank you for the compliment, Lare. Now what was it..? Ah, right. Vixen! Vixen Corr! You''re welcomed to the party!"


    Says Den, sounds like he has an unlikable personality, but how easy it was to change his mind, seems like they''ve accepted me into the party already.


    "Don''t worry about him. He may act like that but actually, he''s a good guy."


    Says "Lare Niklen" of the support role, he came from the kingdom of "Lanfer", a small kingdom from the other side of the ocean.


    "Alright. Can we leave now?"


    Says the one with the deep voice, it''s "Crowler", a strong warrior from the same kingdom I was born in, he''s the second strongest in the team next to the hero.


    "Alright then everyone! Let us slay the demons!"


    "Yeah!"


    "Let''s go!"


    It was a peaceful day, the sun shined brightly on us, to the demons however, it was the opposite.


    10 days later:


    "Man..! How long until we get there?"


    "Just keep walking..! The heat will get us before the demons do..!"


    We were in the desert, the heat of the sun was deadly, my magic energy output was significantly reduced as well. We haven''t even reached the battlefields yet. The demons were discovered to have taken an entire city, casualties were major, we couldn''t afford to waste more time so we took a shortcut, which is through the desert.


    "Is that a scorpion?! Or a crab??"


    "Wait..! That''s a village!! Let''s get a rest..!"


    There was a village down the road, should be safe, according to the map.


    We arrived at the village and entered peacefully, the villagers were friendly and gave us food and shelter. As we rested for a while, the Village Chief appeared.


    "Man. The food is here great."


    "Do they actually eat cactus?"


    THUD


    The door suddenly opened.


    "Huh?"


    The Village Chief stood in front of the doorway, he held a stick in order to remain standing, he must be very old.


    "Good morning everyone... I''m the leader of the Village... You can call me Lanter Amn... I have a request, you see..."


    He says. Crowler stands up and walks up to him, he stood over 8 feet tall, how short Lanter was compared to him.


    "What do you want?"


    "You see... The waters around here have dried up... We might have nothing to drink anymore..."


    "How''s that our problem? We''re only staying here for a few hours."


    "Aren''t you guys the hero? Why not help a village out? You''re supposed to be the good guys, right?"


    "We''re the fighters for humanity. Not helpers of the poor."


    Hah... I guess I had the wrong impression of this team... Suddenly, Den joins in the conversation as well.


    "Stop, Crowler. Alright. We''ll help."


    Crowler then sits down.


    "Thank you thank you..! You see... There are no more water sources nearby... We sent one of our people but they never came back... Could you-"


    "No problem. We don''t need to dig up water or wait for rain. We can just use magic for this."


    "Magic? I see... Very well. Pour water into the well..!"


    "Alright, lead the way..."


    Den and Lanter walks out, leaving the rest of the party inside the house.


    "By the way... Vixen... I haven''t heard you speak before... Is there something wrong?"


    Oh, she''s right. I haven''t spoken since I''ve gotten Divine Intervention.


    "..."


    "What is it, Vixen? Can you tell us?"


    "..."


    What''s this?! I can''t speak?! What''s going on?! I try to speak but it''s impossible, like I never even learned the ability to speak in the first place.


    I remember hearing about something like this before... Ah, I remember now! It was that one guy in the forest a few years ago, the appraiser.


    "Great Wizard... The path of light isn''t too far... Your supernatural abilities aren''t natural. Care to learn more about it? Only for 20 coins this time. Kukuku..!"


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    Why did he have the same laugh as Rabbit?! Do scammers always talk like that? I hesitantly gave him 20 coins, which he took immediately.


    "Thank you..! Now. Truth be told, your powers will become a curse soon..! For... For if you get take too much..! You commit a major sin... The sin of Gluttony... The Goddess of Order does not like those who surpass their given limits... So to balance things... You will lose a part of yourself..! A part of yourself..! A part of yourself..!"


    He tried to make his voice echo, are scammers also comedians?


    Anyways, that must be how I lost my voice, did I gain too much strength from Divine Intervention? I pick up a pen and start writing on paper.


    "I''ve been cursed, I can''t speak anymore."


    "Really? Uuu... When did that happen? Should we try and break the curse..?"


    I shake my head.


    "Why? Isn''t that bad? I''m pretty sure we can break it easily..."


    What? How does she know that? She''s asking too much questions.


    "Rayan. Don''t annoy her. She probably had this curse for a long time now, perhaps she already knows how to break it."


    "Really? Aww... Too bad... They say that the voice is one of the things that makes a human... Without it, what are you?"


    "Aren''t you being rude? I feel that Lare and Liand are at least more respectful than you."


    "Ho..??! You dare to insult me, Crowler? I''m not rude in any way, this is just how I speak..!"


    "Very well. Let us battle-"


    "WAIT YOU GUYS!!"


    Lare yells. We were all sitting around a carpet just a few minutes ago, until Crowler angered Rayan somehow.


    "We''re in an unfamiliar village for god''s sake! We can''t just go around fighting each other either, we''re supposed to fight demons, not humans!"


    "Heh. We''ll stand in peace for now then."


    What an unorganized team, is Den the only one holding them together? Liand suddenly gets up from his nap, looking around in confusion.


    "... Gah..! What time is it..? Shouldn''t we go now..?"


    "What a terrible time to wake up..! But no. Den is helping some villager out there. He''ll be back soon, and then we''ll head to the city."


    "Alright then... I''ll go back to sleep..."


    He did go back to sleep. Seems like things have calmed down now. I take out Divine Intervention and start cleaning it, since it has been left underground for a really long time, it would be the best choice to clean it right now.


    "Hm? What''s that? Your main weapon? To rely on such things... Hah..! I assume you must be pretty weak without them huh."


    Rayan says. She''s kind of talkative huh, or is Crowler just quiet?


    "I know. I use weapons too, but not ranged weapons..! I''m not that cowardly to just hide at the back and shoot the enemy without them knowing it!"


    "Isn''t magic the same though... Are you calling us magic users cowards too..? We have to be in a range, you know?"


    "Hmm... I guess that counts as ranged too... But don''t worry, you''re too weak to even damage anything!"


    "Sigh... I''m a support..."


    Suddenly, the door opens, Den has came back with Lanter.


    "Oh, he''s back."


    "Let''s go everyone..! I''ve given them enough water to at least survive this heat. They''ve given us a map too! How awesome is that?"


    "Thank you thank you... Thank that as my thanks..! And for your payment for staying here... Goodbye..."


    Later, we left the village and continued our way to the city. We had our energy back so we weren''t as tired as before now.


    The "Dessert Rover". An individual, another friend of Rabbit, one who lives in the desert, and in the hot uninhabitable lands. It is said that Dessert Rover will give those worthy enough a special gift.


    "I''ll have a lot of fish once we get there..! Man... I forgot how fish tastes like..!"


    "Speaking of fish... Doesn''t it smell fishy around here?"


    Den stops on his tracks and raises up his sword in a fighting stance.


    "Everyone! This place is rigged to blow!"


    "What?!"


    How great vision. This place reeked of gunpowder, looks like Den has noticed it already.


    "Oooooo... Whoo... Interrupts... My ssslummberr...!?!"


    It must be Dessert Rover. Everyone looks around to see an obelisk nearby. We slowly head towards it, careful not to step on any traps.


    "Huh?! Who are you?!"


    Den yells. For the man in front of us, he wore many expensive jewelries and treasures, he had a rabbit ear headpiece similar to Rabbit''s. He sat cross-legged on a rug next to the obelisk.


    "Ooooooo.... Fooliishhh mannkind... I shall bestowwww vengeannncceee for my kiinddd...."


    Are all scammers comedians? Genuinely, why do they speak like this?!


    "Don''t worry. I''ll take care of him."


    Crowler says, taking out the huge sword from his back.


    "Wait waiittt.... I am not a doerr of evil deedss... But I am a followeerrr of the great deiitttiess...."


    "Hm? What deities!?"


    He pauses, putting down his weapon.


    "Thee Forgotten one...."


    "What are you talking about? Stop speaking nonsense or I''ll strike you down."


    "The blood God... I''m a priesstt off thee blooddd goddd..."


    "Blood God?!"


    Blood God?! Doesn''t this mean that Dessert Rover is another worshipper of the Blood God? The Blood God''s cult is the same cult that Fin is fighting, should I strike this man down? Or should I trust Rabbit..?"


    "Ohh... Vixenn... You''ve arrrivvedd huhh..."


    Oh no! He just told all my allies that we know each other! What should I do?!


    "Huh..? You and Vixen know each other..?"


    I quickly write down on a paper.


    "This man is a friend of a friend. We have never met each other before."


    "Really then? Who''s that friend you''re talking about?"


    "Probably his co-worker."


    "Is that right? Mysterious man?"


    Den looks back at Dessert Rover.


    "Yesss... Correeccttt... She is The Rabbit of Earthh''s frienndd..... She was expected to arrivvve here...."


    "Who''s The Rabbit of Earth? Vixen, how were you expected to arrive here?!"


    I mean... I really don''t know... She''s just that smart, I guess.


    "Well... Whatever it is... He doesn''t look like a bad guy..."


    "Hm. You''re right. Hey! What are you doing around here?"


    "I do nottt repeattt my wordsss...."


    "Ummm... I think he said something about being a priest..?


    "What''s a priest doing out here?!"


    "I''mmm here tooo spread the worddd of thee bloodd goddd before it is too latte...."


    "Before it''s too late? What do you mean by that?"


    "Repent now... Orr you will sufferrr..."


    "Sigh... Alright. So? What''s the deal with all this gunpowder in the air?"


    "The bloodhounds willl bite me too deathh.... But thee obelisk protects me in case I blow thiss place uppp...."


    "Bloodhounds? Haven''t heard of them but wouldn''t they be your friends? From the name, blood... You know..."


    "The bloodhounds are dogs who have fallen under the curse of the blood God.... I must calm down the blood godd by sending a message...."


    "What a bad priest..."


    "Not only do I worshippp... But I alsoo selll desert fruitts... The people know me as the desert trader.... There are those who stop by to relieve their hungerrr...."


    "Oh. How lucky we are then! Everyone, want one? I''ll pay!"


    Fufu..! He''s definitely going to be scammed! Too bad I can''t speak..! It will be funny though..!


    "For 10 gold coins.... I sell thee delicious roasted cactus.... For 20 gold coins I sell thee apple juiccee... And then for 50 gold coins... The coconuttt..!! Yes, it''s a coconut from the lands far awaayyy.... I''m one of the only source of fooddd hereee... So it''s alright if I raise the value uppp..."


    "How expensive! But, I''m rich already, so... I''ll take 10 coconuts."


    "Very well thennn...."


    Dessert Rover then takes out 10 coconuts before handing them to us. Wow, I knew Den was rich but not this rich, must be the kingdom''s money though.


    "Whoa..!! Thank you Den! You''re the best!"


    "Not bad, Hero."


    "Hah..! It''s been so long since I''ve tasted something like this..."


    We continued eating as we walked towards the city. Also... What did he mean by the curse of the Blood God? Should I be worried..?


    After another 5 days of walking, we arrived at the mountains, just 2 more days left until we get to the city, however, the mountains are one of the most dangerous places to be in, filled with monsters and deadly plants, not a lot of people make it out alive.


    "Is that true..?! Man... I''d rather go with the long way than go here then..."


    "Don''t worry, Liand. Crowler exists for that reason."


    "Don''t say that. I may be a natural warrior but that''s not my entire personality."


    "Sorry sorry haha..! Well. Let''s go now, shall we?"


    By the time we entered the mountains, the moon rose to the skies, it casted moonlight down to the forest, brightening it up, which saves us from using light, and getting caught by the dangers of the mountains.


    This place had the stench of death, everyone knew that we were going to be attacked by something soon.


    RUSTLE


    "Who''s there?!"


    "Vixen! Take out your weapon!"


    I aim my Deagle at the bush where the sound came from. Looks like we''re being followed. I casted [Spatial Investigation] and found a... Something..? The magic energy field around them was distorted, it was impossible to see the one using it, similar to [Divine Light], but instead of an attack, it''s an aura.


    "It''s a strong one..! Be careful! Crowler, get above the trees! Liand, cast fire! Lare, give us ammo. Rayan, Vixen, stay with me!"


    "Got it!"


    "Fireball!"


    BOOM


    A fire erupts from the weak [Fireball] that Liand casted, even without power, intelligence will be crucial, is that why Den took these weak mages into the team?


    Suddenly, a beast appears from the flames, their menacing look made Liand and Lare freeze in fear.


    "Wh-who the hell is that?!"


    "Don''t panic! That''s the last thing we should do right now!"


    "Vixen! Open fire!"


    I pull the trigger and shoot the monster, but the bullet only deflects on their magic barrier, this is probably why no one uses guns anymore...


    And then, the mysterious figure spoke in a gravelly voice, his metal helmet made him sound more inhuman.


    "I am the savior. The one who will bring light into this world of darkness. There shan''t be none sinners who stand before me... Though, may I ask? What foolishness are you performing, humans?"


    He wore full metal armor under a cloak, blades were on his gauntlet, and on his feet, his tail wagged slowly behind him, it is easy to tell at first sight that he is not man.


    Is he an enemy though? I have a feeling that he''s not here to attack us, but he does have Bloodlust.

 Chapter 8: The Roads to Hell.

    Actually, there was some misunderstandings. After a bit of talking and explanation, we found out that the monster was not an enemy.


    "Hahaha! You should''ve told us at the start! Why make that awful entrance?!"


    Den laughs as he drinks his alcohol. We all stayed camping, soon, everyone fell asleep, leaving me and "Fang" alone. Yes, his name was Fang, seems like he''s a Dragonspawn, a hunter from a far away land.


    "What were you doing out here, Fang?"


    I write on a paper.


    "The Blood God has awakened... No, they will awaken soon..."


    The Blood God again?! How many times will I hear that name?!


    "Fear not, Hu-... you''re not human..!"


    Eh? Did he see me use my Blood Magic? Fufufu..! Can''t blame him then, these powers don''t really belong to a human.


    "Hah... Well. Whatever you are. You are not sinner. It isn''t common to find non sinners nowadays. There are still lots who roam around. But since the sinner population has grown too large, the Blood God will attack soon."


    Do they bring judgement or something? Or maybe... They''re just a strong person who got called a God? Because I''ve heard about it from Rabbit before, all Gods do not directly disturb the world or something..?


    "I''m a sin hunter of the north. We tend to hide in forests because you humans keep attacking us. Though, it is reasonable. I''m still on the path to becoming a dragon. We dragonspawns come from dragons, of course. But once we get hold of True Dragon blood, we become a dragon again, a weaker one at least."


    Fang helped us for the night, when sunrise came, he disappeared.


    We continued down the road, after a path was made, probably by Fang, eventually, we got out of the forest without any problems. After 2 days, we finally arrived in the battlefields... Or, well... The city at least...


    "Oh! Vixen! What are you doing here? Shouldn''t you-..."


    Frelhr appeared. I sigh in disappointment. Looks like his army has arrived before us, the battle is already over.


    "What??!!"


    "You''re telling us that we came here just for nothing?!"


    "Ohh nooo... Why did I come allongg...."


    Everyone was mad, of course. We decided to stay in the city, another city was attacked again, but we needed to rest for a while.


    One of Djoflour''s military bases was nearby, which is also where I met up with Frelhr and Fin again, along with 2 new members of our group.


    "Ho-ho-ho..! Is this leader?! What a weakling!"


    "D-don''t say that Manta..! I''m sorry, Vixen!"


    Hah..? This is our new members? I wish I could speak right now, gah! How irritating! Our new members were "Manta" and "Sting". Isn''t that just Manta ray and Stingray? Who named them? Reminds me of Rabbit.


    They appear to be Shark-People. There''re markings on their face and a tail like a shark''s. But overall, you''d think they are just kids wearing a tail.


    "They were siblings lost in war. Their parents died here, and they found out about our plans so we had to either get rid of them, or recruit them."


    "What do you think? Vixen? They have an above average level for magic, but they also have potential to use a special kind of magic."


    Hmm..? A special kind of magic? Is it Light? Dark? Or perhaps... Blood?!


    "I can hear your thoughts, Vixen."


    What?! How creepy! Did he learn [Telepathic Communication] spells?


    "Yes I did. And also, no, these guys do not have any of those that you''ve just thought of. You see, they have Electricity magic."


    Huh? Isn''t that just normal magic? Can''t anyone just also use that too?


    "No. Not everyone can use it, or at least with their form. Sting, show your leader."


    "Woo..! Very well then..! Behold! My Electromagnetic Magic!! Gamma Ray Burst!!"


    Hm? Gamma Ray Burst? Wait, isn''t that... That''s like one of the strongest explosions in the universe!! How is that even electromagnetic magic?!


    "Allow me to explain, Vixen... Hmm... Actually... I can''t even explain this. No one has been able to use even 10% of Electromagnetic Magic''s full potential yet. It isn''t surprising that these guys can''t use it as well. But good news is, they''re only 8 years old!"


    And? What would that mean?


    "We''ll break records by creating a master of Electromagnetic Magic..! We have a lot of time on our hands. They have the potential to master Electromagnetic Magic."


    That''s for all Electromagnetic Magic users... Even if they do have potential, that doesn''t mean it''s guaranteed that they''ll become a master.


    "Sigh... We''ll do the best we can, Vixen. Also, they''re not only useful if they have full power of E.M Magic, they can help us out with a lot of things too."


    Give me an example.


    "Uhh... Radio waves! We can use them as radios..!"


    "What?! Don''t think I''ll ever agree to that!"


    So they''re useless huh... Suddenly, Fin gets up.


    "Vixen, how about we create a massive weapon of ultraviolet radiation or something similar and shoot it at our enemies?"


    Hmm... What a brilliant idea!


    "Hohoho..!! I can do that! That''s easy for me!"


    "Alright then. Let us begin."


    Wait. How do we even make it though? A massive weapon that can attack at a far distance, also, their magic energy isn''t even above 3%, right?


    "Worry not, we can amplify it with magic. All they have to do is cast a little bit of E.M Magic on the weapon and it will increase 10 times. We''re not making a direct weapon, we''re creating a magic amplifier."


    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Magic Amplifier?


    "Yes, with technology and magic, it will be possible. I''ll have some of my men help as well. In the meantime, Fin will train those 2 until their magic energy has at least reached 10% of E.M Magic''s full potential."


    Currently, our enemies are the demons and the holy kingdom, though, if Frelhr''s men will help, only the demons can be attacked, because of course, it would be bad if people knew we were enemies with the holy kingdom.


    "Also, Vixen. We can create, or learn new spells with their help too. E.M Magic is extremely rare so not a lot of people use E.M Magic spells. Even if they can''t use it effectively, we can."


    Gah... I kind of feel bad for Sting and Manta...


    "Don''t worry. No harm will be done of course. Their training sessions will only take place once every 3 weeks."


    Wait, what? Wouldn''t it take a long time then? Just for 10% of E.M Magic''s full potential?


    "E.M Magic is really dangerous. We need Manta and Sting to be as relaxed and calmed as possible, one wrong move and an explosion on the same scale of a Thermonuclear Explosion will occur."


    What?! How ridiculous! Also, how does he know of Thermonuclear- or whatever, or Nuclear Explosions actually?!


    "Rabbit told me about it."


    Rabbit huh... How does she even know that anyways?


    "Well then. We will start the plans, Manta, Sting, don''t even worry about anything. My men are all over the city, and outside, basically, the entire city is safe. Unless there''s a spy, which is very unlikely, feel free to roam around."


    "Yay!! Thank you!!"


    "Ha-.. haha... Much thanks to you, Commander!"


    What shall we call this project, Frelhr?


    "Magical Electromagnetic Superweapons Project. How does that sound?"


    Eh... Good enough, I guess.


    "See you later now, Vixen. This city is the safest place right now so I recommend that you stay for a while."


    I will, goodbye Frelhr, and see, you, later!


    I left the base later and went back to my team, the hero''s party. Lare was just laying around, resting, and sleeping. Den sat on the floor, playing guitar, while Rayan continued fixing the ruined house, with Liand helping her.


    "Next song... Also, more nails."


    "Man... This guitar is cool! I''ll take this with me."


    "We''ve run out of nails!!"


    Hold on, where''s Crowler? Is he out hunting or something? I ask Den through a piece of paper.


    "Where is Crowler."


    "Him? Oh, he''s just walking around out in the wild. Why do you ask?"


    "Just thought one of our allies went missing."


    "I see. What were you doing out there in the military base though? Wanting to send a message back to your family? Don''t worry about them, Djoflour is one of the safest kingdoms right now!"


    I see... I really hope so.


    "Jruhgu", another city hit by one of war''s consequences, it is the same city we are currently in. The most noticable things in this city are the cries and the pleads of those who lost something important in this war.


    The gloomy clouds filled the skies. We were leaving in a few days, but until then, I had to progress the plan for tearing apart the holy kingdom.


    "Blood Magic", it is a form of magic considered taboo, one would immediately think of "witch" or "vampire". It is safe to say that the Holy Kingdoms will turn on me one day.


    "Vixen, we have completed the plan to counter the holy nations. After a long time pondering, I have come to the conclusion. That we should just join the demons."


    The demons huh... Well, I''m pretty sure that they would immediately accept someone strong with Blood Magic. It''s not a bad plan but is it really the final conclusion?


    "Though... If you are actually a vampire, we can wait until the Blood God has come, and then request help. Actually, the Blood God is not a God, it''s the First Pillar of Creation. Basically, the perfect human, 5 million- no. 1 trillion times the full potential of humanity."


    What a ridiculous number. It feels like I''m talking to Rabbit right now, oh right, I must remember, she''s gone now.


    "Humanity branches down to 5 million years ago. The perfect human being was born, they''re much closer to a vampire than a human. Currently, there are 5 pillars of creation born across the world, they are always born once a billion years."


    Pillars of Creation, if I remember correctly, Rabbit told me about them. The Pillars of Creation are the Pillars which hold the dimension of humans together, in other words, the pillars of the human realm.


    "The Blood God is the first. However... Back in the Great Catastrophe... An unknown force came down and defeated them. It''s ridiculous but it''s true. Once the Blood God comes back, we will have to be the first to meet them, and then befriend them. Fighting is pointless, no matter how strong you become, Vixen. A modern day creature has no chance against a primordial being."


    So... In order to not be targeted by the holy kingdom, who has the help from the gods, I must team up with the Blood God.


    "Vixen, you must meet Ruthenoceras Ptychodus, a friend of mine, she''s originated from salmon sharks, but she''s also a Beastfolk. You could call her a chimera. I believe that you''ll meet her in the nearby city that the demons have attacked. I do hope Korpa will send you there. Good luck, Vixen."


    And thus, we headed to another city. Me and the Hero''s Party made our way through the harsh terrains and weather until we arrived at the city.


    As the thunder roared, the rainstorm fell down on us, bloodshed brewing in the wind as the thick army of demons marched towards us.


    We were sitting on a cliff. What a perfect opportunity to use Divine Intervention. The enemy crawled around like ants, waiting for their impending doom. The sun might be blocked but this amount of light should be enough to at least destroy all of them.


    "You can use it now, Vixen."


    "Go for it. Show these demons hell."


    "Blow them to smithereens."


    I take a deep breath before stepping forward, aiming the sniper rifle at the center of the crowd.


    KABOOM


    As the demons laughed their last laugh, immediate death struck them, blown to bits, all that''s left of them now is their ashes.


    "Woohoo!! Victory!"


    "50 thousand gone... Just like that..."


    Heh..! Don''t be sad, Den. They are monsters after all.


    "Let''s go now! Mission accomplished! Time to take back the city, there are no more demons left in there so it should be easy."


    Lare''s right, all of the demons left the city that we were heading to, seems like they already knew that we were coming, but they definitely didn''t expect us to destroy them in just a second.


    We continued our way down to the city, but as we arrive... I sigh...


    "Again..?"


    "No... There-"


    "Oh god..."


    This city is destroyed... There is smoke everywhere, fires are raging throughout the place. We walk through the streets but can''t find a single soul, not even a cry.


    "Did we arrive too late..?"


    "We crushed them without wasting another second... How..."


    How can this be? Did I let people die again? I thought I avenged them already..?


    "Hey look! Oh- never mind..."


    "This guy''s face is messed up..!"


    We walk around, searching for survivors, if Frelhr was right, that one... Who was it again..? Salmon Shark or something..? They should still be out here.


    "Let''s split up. We can work more efficiently this way, don''t forget to watch out for enemies too. Lare, and Rayan, go with Crowler. Vixen, and Liand, come with me."


    We do as told, splitting up in two groups. Crowler''s group goes down the left road, while we go right.


    "What a horrid sight..."


    "I can''t even see anything..!"


    After roaming around for a while, we eventually found out that there were no survivors in this city. We come back in a group to begin a discussion, what should we say to Korpa? All the demons were gone, along with the citizens?


    "Sigh... The brass won''t like this. Though, we can say that we confirmed all the demons are dead..."


    "The demons aren''t the main problem here. We came here as heroes, not weapons of war. The innocents lives are more important to us than the demon''s."


    Crowler stands up, seems like he''s got an idea.


    "Whatever happened... I can assume that we''ve been set up."


    "Hm?! What do you mean?!"


    "They destroyed this entire city just right before they tried to attack us. Or maybe..."


    "They were sent to die."


    Rayan says.


    "Why..?"


    The Blood God..? No... There were no bloodshed in my attack, they turned into ashes before they even bled.


    "Sacrifices..."


    "Sacrifices what?"


    "They were sacrifices... I''ve heard of it before... In order to be revived, or revive something, 1 billion souls must be sacrificed."


    "How stupid. That''s too much for 1 soul."


    "No. Actually, that''s not even enough. Looks like there have been a 90% discount on a spell."


    "Heh. No matter what you tell me. 1 billion or more souls is just a ridiculous amount."


    No. I''ve heard of this before, Rabbit told me. During the Great Catastrophe, the one with the power of Mind Control was struck down, dead in an instant.


    "... through means, physically, and psychologically. He, who delivered Divine Judgement unto mankind. But through the souls... The souls which made up the body, he revived. Though, he was killed, full body stopped, all sources of magic disappeared, right in an instant, he survived, for even a split nanosecond, and casted all souls into his body."


    "And that man''s name is..."


    "Right. Remember this well. His name was-"


    What was his name again? I can''t remember...


    Back to our discussion. Rayan and Crowler continues their argument, while Lare and Liand began cooking our food for the night, with Den looking around for enemies.


    "Well. That''s what I believe too, I''ve heard that this spell can bring anyone back to life. No matter what, or who, even if they''ve been erased from existence."


    "Ha. Hahaha! You make me laugh, Rayan. There''s no way that a spell like that exists."


    "It''s just a theory you idiot..."


    "Huh?! What did you say?!"


    Later, we slept inside a ruined house for the night, it was barricaded, and there were no signs of life other than us in the city anyways.

 Chapter 9: The Forgetting of the Past.

    A few days later, a messenger of Korpa arrived in the ruined city, along with an army.


    We were soon ordered to help out a kingdom, whom is currently being ravaged by the demons. All those who are still alive are the soldiers of both sides.


    Looks like the world acquired a permanent gloomy mood. The weather constantly became terrible, filled with storms and natural disasters, is something else happening?


    "I got a bucket of fish back in my home. Isn''t that cool?"


    "Well. I have a guitar right now. Nothing can compare to that!"


    The group chatters as we walk between the mountains, our current mission was to destroy one of the bases belonging to the demons. "Zxanthryya". A stronghold mainly used for holding significant artifacts and sending out supplies for the military. Located in the mountains, it is our main target.


    "The sun has gone... Is your weapon even going to be of use anymore?"


    Den says. Sunlight really has become lesser than before, the effectiveness of Divine Intervention is also reduced.


    As we walk towards the front gates of Zxanthryya, a demon also approaches us. Is that one of their commanders?


    "We come in peace. I think."


    "Move out of the way or die."


    "Kukuku..! You think you can handle us all at once?"


    The stronghold was surrounded by a strong magical barrier, there was no way to break in without being noticed. So we just decided to attack through the front gates instead.


    "Sniper Imitation."


    BANG


    The demon falls. Was that a weak one? Or were they actually just trying to communicate with us? Either way, we only came here to destroy them.


    We stood in front of their gates, the guards are nowhere to be seen. Something is off, but we still proceeded to break through.


    CRASH


    I cast [Devastate], allowing our entry. A massive crowd of demons waited for us. But they won''t be a problem, they''re all medium-levelled monsters, Crowler can take them out.


    One of their commanders step forward, preparing for a fight.


    "Humans- no. Hero... What might be your intentions for attacking a non-combatant unit? We''re all here for resupplying, not for fighting. How unchivalrous."


    Is that all they''ll say? I mean... That is true. We''re not here to fight, really... We''re all here just to massacre them...


    Den makes his response, as our leader, and as our representative.


    "Sorry but. We''re heroes of mankind. Not soldiers, not knights. We''re saviors of our species."


    "I could say that too... Well then. I suppose we can''t just die without-"


    Before he could continue talking, Crowler dashes forward, ending him instantly. The rest of the demons attack, but the power difference is too incomparable.


    "Raaahhh!! This is for-"


    "How dare you!!"


    "Attackk!! We won''t let you win!!"


    They all charge at him, but die within a single swing from Crowler''s massive sword. This kind of feels depressing.


    "Man... I kind of feel bad..."


    "Don''t worry, Lare. For now, support him with any support magic spell. You too, Liand."


    Crowler continues mowing down the enemies, aided by Lare and Liand. Rayan suddenly charges forward.


    "Hey! Where are you-"


    "I''m helping! Of course!"


    Well. I guess I should help too. I can''t just let them take all the targets.


    "Machine gun Imitation."


    The demons are helpless, as we tear them all down without effort.


    "Come to think of it, Vixen. This is the first time I''ve heard you speak. Even if it''s for using magic."


    Oh yeah, my voice came back, did my power get reduced? Or is it because Divine Intervention has become less powerful due to the sunlight being blocked?


    "You''re right- cough cough!!"


    "Huh? What''s wrong? Don''t try to speak if you still have the curse!"


    Well. It looks like my voice still doesn''t work that well. I guess I''ll continue staying silent, or else my throat will hurt again.


    We continued fighting for a while. Eventually, we won. The demons laid lifeless on the ground, as we stand on top, victorious.


    "Woohoo!! Finally! My first win!"


    "It''s ours, idiot!"


    "Hahahah! I''ve done the most work here! You are all useless!"


    "Don''t say that, we all did our roles."


    "Vixen! You have to let me borrow that- uhh... Right! That eagle weapon sometimes!"


    Is she talking about Deagle? Well, I suppose I could let her borrow it, I can find it, or fix it easily, and ammo won''t be a problem.


    "Sure."


    "Oh. You talked again! Man! I thought you were mute!"


    I let Rayan borrow Deagle for a while.


    Later, we headed back to the Holy Kingdom of Korpa again. Finally! I can rest after all these time roaming around in the wilderness!


    It''s been a year now since I''ve joined the Hero''s Party. We were all sitting around in Korpa as the continent has been cleared of demons. Our next job was to go into another land, far away, and defeat the demons there.


    We were now going to leave Korpa and get put into new hands by another Holy Kingdom in the other continent. A new group was waiting for us as well. However, there was one huge problem. Frelhr and the others were going to stay here. I sent one last message to them, before getting on the boats.


    "Yawnn... I do hope we get more strong members. You guys here are too weak. Why did Den choose y''all."


    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    Says Rayan as we wait onboard.


    The birds flew above us, massive waves of water hit the boat, shaking it slightly. We were on the middle of the ocean, heading towards the other continent.


    "Listen up you guys! There will be less fishes later, get some now or we starve to death!"


    "Right! Lare! Let''s gooo!!"


    "Yeahh!"


    Ahh... My head... It hurts... I''m feeling sick... It''s the first time I''ve been on a boat after all...


    "I have some medicine if you want..."


    I''m gonna barf- oh... Thanks a lot Rayan- wait. You''re not Rayan..! Who is this woman?! I thought we were the only ones here?!


    "Hehehe..! It''s me! Keasius! The tale of the great white!"


    The tale of the great- what does she want..?! I need to find someone... Gah... My head..!


    Lare and Liand are out in the waters, and Den is up in the sails, what''s he doing? Where are the others?!


    "Hihihi... Don''t worry, Vixen! I''m an agent!"


    Agent..? What''s she talking about- ku-! I''m about to vomit!!


    "Here! Take this medicine!"


    I have no choice..! I''ll eat the medicine..! K- oh... Wow it did work.


    "See..! I''m not an enemy, you know..? Nor am I an ally!"


    "W-who... Are you..!?"


    I try to speak the best I can. This is the last words I can speak for today, one more word and my throat will hurt. My Deagle is still with Rayan so the curse isn''t that bad right now.


    "Hah?! Didn''t I tell you?! I''m Keasius! The tale of the Great White! I''m an agent!"


    What is she talking about? Is she a shark? Isn''t there a shark called the Great White? Why is that name here?! It''s supposed to be only in earth..!


    "I''ve come to help you..! But don''t misunderstand, I''m not an ally, though, I''m also not a foe..!"


    Hm? If she''s neither ally, or foe, then that must mean that she''s... She''s an agent of Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice!?


    "I may be the upholder of order. But I''m not of Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice, okay?!"


    Huh? What does that even mean?


    "Fufu..! Come with me! For I shall bestow you my plans..! Boss told me that we needed you in order for the plan to happen!"


    Boss? Anyways, I guess I''ll follow her for now.


    She leads me inside the boat, it''s a large vehicle so there''s obviously space inside. Also, where was she even hiding here? And since when?


    "I''m the Tale of the Great White..! You may call me that! For the great white... will always be the greatest white..!"


    What..? She suddenly sat down on a chair, taking out a newspaper.


    "You mustn''t worry, Vixen..! But the holy kingdoms are against you... They may not attack now but be wary! Another agent is in there, you may know him as the Sundown Lighter. He''s part of a resistance group against the Demons. He''ll be one of your allies for fighting against the Holy Kingdoms as well!"


    She shows me the newspaper. Oh my! What has happened..! It reads:


    "Terui taken under Demons, is this the fall of humanity?"


    Below, it talks about how the demons sent one man to destroy 30 human kingdoms. How did the demons manage to take an entire continent?! I''m pretty sure that this didn''t even happen before we got on the boat... If we''ve been here for about 20 days now... Then does that mean that the Demons took over the continent in only 20 days?!


    "Vixen... I know what you''ve done..."


    Huh?! I didn''t do anything about this!


    "The superweapon... That you''re making..?"


    Oh... That?


    "You must use it as soon as possible. And shoot it at the Demon Lord''s Castle. I''d love to help you... but I don''t know where it is though... May you please tell me?"


    Hmmm... I can''t trust her that quickly. Also, How does she even know about the Magical Electromagnetic Superweapons Project?!


    "Hihihihi..! Vixen. I can read your mind as well..! Thank you very much-"


    I guess I''ll just cast [Blood Banishment] then-


    "HOLD ON!!! I''M JOKING!!!"


    I can''t just let someone who can read my mind go, except for Frelhr, and my allies.


    "Huhuhuhu...!! How about this..!? I can be your ally for now..?! Believe it or not... But the Tale of the Great White is NOT a fighter!"


    What even is this "Tale of the Great White" that you keep talking about?


    "Keasius is a God but the Tale of the Great White isn''t..! Does that make sense?!"


    No.


    "In short... I have to switch my body into the Tale of the Great White... Basically, I''m collecting power for Keasius in this form. But I can''t really do much, really... The more who knows, or believes that the Tale of the Great White is true, the more powerful Keasius is!"


    Hmm... I see... That''s pretty simple for something so complicated...


    "It''s not complicated actually..! I''m just in collecting form, and not in my God form!"


    Alright. So? Why, and what are you doing here?


    "How many times must I tell you?! I''ve come here as the Tale of the Great White! And I''m here to speak upon you our plans!"


    Plans? Oh right...


    "Ahem ahem..! Now to what I was saying, we need you to shoot your superweapon into the demon lord''s castle! Then, will this apocalypse stop!"


    That''s what we''re already trying to do. The shortest amount of time that we can create the weapon would be... 8 years. And for Sting and Manta to achieve 10% of E.M Magic''s full potential, it would take 20 years.


    "Kukuku..! If only I knew where your superweapon is... Then I''d be able to at least... Uhh... Shorten the overall time to just 10 years! Yes, we''ll make the weapon, and train the electromagnetic magic users to 10% of their full potential, all in just 10 years! How''s that sound? Hmm?!


    I sigh... There''s no way that you-


    "Oh, there is a way."


    Huh?! What?! Impossible..!


    "There''s a fellow that you need to meet. Ms. Salmon Shark. She has the basic ability of Temporal Shortening. Basically, she can alter time and space, though, she hasn''t mastered it, she will still be useful."


    Salmon Shark?! I''m pretty sure I''ve heard it before... I think-... Oh right, Frelhr told me about a Salmon Shark. Uhh... Who was it again..?


    "Ruthenoceras Ptychodus. She''s from the same continent you''ve just left. Though, she''s probably dead by now. But not to worry, we can still meet her, and talk to her."


    What? How? How does that even work? Is she undead?


    "No. Hah... How stupid can you be, Vixen? I''m sure you''ve heard of it before. Temporal Shortening is basically just stopping time. Before she died, she stopped time and trapped herself inside the Temporal Spatial Pyramids. It is located at the center of this planet. At the core..."


    Core? Oh, the Great Catastrophe''s main event! Rabbit has told me about it before. Let''s see let''s see... I need to search in my brain for a bit...


    "The Great Catastrophe. It is an event, an era where all fought to become the greatest. During that time, a dragon and a demon god fought against each other. Eventually, their fight led to a series of calamities. A massive hole in this world was formed, reaching down to the center. The center, the core."


    I remember now. The hole later became known as the "God''s Wrath", a massive hole which reaches down to the planet''s core. And of course, many people, animals, and creatures arrived around the hole, creating their homes and settlements. It''s one of the most dangerous places in this planet right now.


    So... What did you mean by the Temporal Spatial Pyramids in the core?


    "Did you listen with your ears closed?! Hah... I guess I''ll have to explain it to you then... Back in the-"


    RUMBLE


    Huh? What now? Is the boat shaking?


    "Oh no... I''ve run out of time..! Guess we''ll have to meet again, back on land! All you need to know for now is that you should find Sundown Lighter, and the Temporal Spatial Pyramids. Also don''t forget to believe in the Tale of the Great White!!!"


    Then, she disappeared in the blink of an eye. Was that teleportation magic?


    Suddenly, the boat shakes again. I head outside and realize that it''s raining. Liand and Lare are getting out of the waters, while Den tries to get back on the floor.


    "H-help..!! Khaaa-..!! Someone!- I''m gonna fall into the water!"


    "Hey..!! I can''t even stand properly!!"


    "I''m gonna fall!! Help me!!"


    I sigh... Is this really the hero''s team..? Later, everyone got back into the boat. A massive storm has hit us, water levels have become dangerous, it''s almost impossible not to fall into the water now.


    "K-khhh... How cold... Maybe we should just burn this entire boat down for warmth..!!"


    Liand says as he continues shivering under a blanket. As the boat''s surface has become too slippery, both Liand and Lare fell into the water just right after getting out, good thing that Crowler managed to get them back though.


    "Is this all the fish you''ve got?! I would''ve gotten more in my sleep!"


    "Good to be you, Rayan... You were just born with superhuman strength..!"


    "Time to sleep guys. The water will begin slipping through the roof, if you can''t sleep from that, better sleep now."


    "How''s that any better..?! Now I can''t even sleep anymore!"


    Soon, we all fell asleep. The boat continued moving until we reached the dock. The gloomy weather also reached this continent somehow.


    "Hah..! Fresh air finally!"


    "Whoa..!! It''s the first time I''ve gotten to another continent!"


    "Heh. I''ve walked around the world 2 times now."


    As we step out, the soldiers of "Asanrak" greeted us, they''re the same soldiers of the Holy Kingdom that we''re going to take orders from now.


    Their commander walks up to us. It''s "Reo Luck", the 5th commander of Asanrak''s Holy Knights Group.


    "We''ve been expecting you, Heroes. Come, follow us, for we will guide you to the base. There, we will talk about your mission."


    "Mission already?! We''ve just arrived here!"


    "We arrived here for the mission, don''t forget. Follow him."


    We follow Reo, he leads us to the military camps. The city near the dock is already ruined, there are obvious fortifications and barricades everywhere. Looks like this place has been destroyed far worse than I had imagined.


    As we enter the camp, a man standing on a raised platform begins his speech in front of a massive crowd of soldiers.


    We stop right next to the raised platform as the man clears his throat before speaking.


    "Good morning everyone. To make it short, the Eleantad Empire has declared war on us. They have sided with the demons as well, our troops won''t be enough obviously. Even with the help of Atton and Fond, we won''t be able to take them down. That''s why! These people have come from the Holy Kingdom of Korpa! From the other side of the ocean! They are ones blessed by the Gods! Sent to us with one reason! To deliver judgement on these fools! Our fellow humans have betrayed us in this war, in return for land and what?!! Those blinded will become nonexistent with the wrath of God!!! For today! We will crush them fools! And rise! For the fate of mankind rests on our hands!!"


    "Rahhhh!!!"


    "Yeahhh!!"


    The crowd cheers on.


    That was short? And are we going to war with humans now..? How great. Humans really are... Unexpected.

 Chapter 10: Fighting Fire with Fire.

    "General Litharin Fanine". Commander of the 8th infantry division of the Holy Kingdom of Asanrak.


    He''s the commander of the army. And Reo will be the leader of the Heroes, at least for now.


    We sat inside a tent with Reo and a few of his friends, as the soldiers began their preparation for tomorrow. Our main goal as the Heroes were to attack one of the enemy''s main source of power, a general of the Demon Lord''s army.


    "In front, the empire''s troops will act as shields, the demons behind will attack after deploying their formation. Demon General, Yynfur, is your main target. I''m only the commander of the holy knights, not a commander of military."


    Reo says, as he takes a sip of coffee. Everyone, including us, prepared for the fight, we weren''t suited for a battle against more than a thousand, of course, but our target is one, though, they do have the capability to destroy an entire kingdom of they wanted to.


    "Commander. May I ask, why don''t we just bombard them with Artillery?"


    Says "Rika Zerai", one of the sergeants.


    "Good question, Sergeant. But you can refrain from calling me commander, for I am not your commander. For the answer, we will bombard them, but magic barriers exist. It''s one of the main reasons why ranged weapon are rarely used. Though... With enough bombardment, we can break through their barriers, but also with a large cost."


    "I see... But how about if we concentrate it all on one target? Forget about the costs, and just bomb that guy to death..!"


    "Don''t underestimate a Demon General. Our explosives would get shredded instantly when it hits his barrier. One of Yynfur''s main abilities can do that with ease."


    "Hmm... How about... How about we destroy the ground they''re walking on- oh wait, no! Let''s set up bombs under the ground so that when-"


    "Foolish. Yynfur wouldn''t be damaged with any of our explosives. Even if-"


    "Haaaahaha..!! I''ve got a thermobaric bomb in my house! It''s safe to say that these demons will taste the flames once more!"


    T-Thermobaric bomb?! In her house?! What on earth is she doing?! How did the police- or how did no one even notice it?! How did she even make one in the first place?!


    "First of all, why do you have a thermobaric bomb in your house? Second of all, demons are immune to flames."


    "Fight fire with fire they say..! If we can just burn them enough, they''ll surely die. Bears grew fur in order to survive in the cold. Shouldn''t it be the same for demons as well? Even if bears do have fur, they can still die if frozen. Same for demons, if we melt them, they''ll die."


    "Hah... It''s pointless arguing with you. So? What even is your plan? Freeze ice until it breaks?"


    "You got it, Commander! I also have napalm bombs in my home, my plan is simple, but not that simple! If we can lay the napalm bombs under the ground, and then drop the thermobaric bomb on them, simultaneously. There''s no way that they''d survive that!"


    "And what if they do survive? Everything goes wrong and we lose the battle?"


    "Ku-ku-ku..! Obviously, we are going to do this as the last plan, for if our soldiers are defeated, we can finish off the remaining demons, they''ll be weakened of course, and then they''ll melt into nothing!"


    "There-"


    Suddenly, Reo spits out his coffee.


    "Hahahahahah!!!! I truly am a genius!! Hahahahahahhahah!!"


    "Impossible... There''s no way that I''ve lost to this idiot..! No! What if it doesn''t work anyway?!?"


    "What are you saying, commander..?? That''s just a miracle you''re talking about now, even if fire doesn''t work no matter what, we can perform a miracle and burn them anyways, same for them, you know what I''m saying."


    "She-she''s!!- wait! Why do you even have bombs laying around your house anyways?! I''ll have you arrested if you don''t give a proper reason-"


    "I''m a sergeant, commander. I''m one of the military. Let''s just say that these were given to me as a gift from general..."


    "General?! General who?! Your-"


    "You''re really sacrificing mankind just to arrest me?! How foolish of you-"


    "Quiet! Everyone! Quiet!"


    Everyone stops arguing. That military plan argument really just took a huge turn huh... Luckily, "Torn Foee", a soldier under Rika managed to calm everyone down.


    "Hah... Alright. What is it? Torn? You''re not even superior than me."


    "That doesn''t matter! You''re all acting like children. Even the actual child here is smarter than you guys. She''s hasn''t said anything since we''ve gotten here. You have a plan don''t you, Vixen?"


    Huh? Is he talking about me?


    "..."


    "Hohhh..?? You have a plan, outsider? Let''s hear it then."


    "Umm... Excuse me, idiot. But Vixen here cannot talk."


    Phew... Looks like he can explain it for me. But I do have a plan, although... Rika''s plan is not that bad... I guess we can go along with her plan.


    "Umm. Excuse me but. I have a plan also."


    "Hm? Alright. what is it, Corporal Sandem?"


    "We can send out special forces to break through their defense. Magic users for example. Once it''s broken, we can launch artilleries and-"


    Bla bla bla... I''m getting tired of this battle plans.


    "Neer Sandem", another soldier under Rika continued talking for a while, explaining his plan to us. Huh? What''s this now? A radio... Oh?!- is this Sting''s signals? Have they- no... They have gotten 5% of E.M Magic''s full potential already!?


    "Vixen. It''s me, Manta... It''s difficult trying to speak to you, but basically, Frelhr has created a basic magic amplification device. Using the blueprints of Divine Intervention, we managed to use it as reference to make a smaller, and magical version of LASER."


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Heh..? This quick? It should''ve taken at least 5 years... I don''t get it... Also, I thought it was Sting...


    "This is Sting''s magic, I''m only speaking to you with it. Actually, I''ve come to tell you that we''ve created a new spell already."


    What?! A new spell?! It should''ve-... Hah... These guys really are unexpected huh...


    "Divine Whirlpool. You activate it by using Burning Rock, Spatial Lift, and Cast of the Iron Maiden, all at the same time."


    What?! What on earth?! What do you mean by all of that?!


    "Burning Rock. It''s a famous dance used by the Mharkalayen Sun Tribe. you know the rest... Divine Whirlpool is a mixture of all of the spells casted simultaneously. We saw this when we were watching ants. Ants in the northern lands. They carried leaves even though there were no plants, or trees nearby. That''s when I found out. They dug a hole through space!"


    What..??! What are you talking about?! Have you gone mad..?!


    "The angels. Once they descend upon us, their trails never disappear. I assume that one went down on the Northern Regions, ripping a tiny hole in space, ants managed to find it out and began using it. It''s basically just wormhole reaching into another place. It was 5 years ago when they began using it. Now, we''ve seen massive changes on the hole..! A .05 nanometers change is evident!"


    What..?! I need to get out... Why is she just talking nonsense..?!


    "That''s when we found out. Divine Whirlpool. It''s a form of reality distorting magic. Combined of magic and techniques. If you can pull it off effectively, you could create a wormhole through space as well. Though, it is very risky, and dangerous. But with your level, I assume you can do it!"


    Huh??? I can?! What are you even talking about?!


    "Just combine all of them together. Burning Rock, Spatial Lift, and Cast of the Iron Maiden. You''ll have to learn Burning Rock though, because it''s not a magic spell, nor it is a skill. It''s a dance! Find someone who can teach it to you! It''s easy, for you at least. Fin has managed to do it before. So you probably can too... Good luck, Vixen!"


    Wait. Don''t just disappear like that!!!


    I sigh... What on earth is the Burning Rock dance..?! Oh, and Sandem is still explaining to Rika about his plans.


    Afterwards, Rika just rejected his plans, it was a total waste of time. We all slept for the night later. When morning came, everyone began moving towards the enemy.


    The battle was taking place in the plateaus, there weren''t much places to hide in, so our plan as the Heroes would definitely not do too good. General Litharin Fanine wasn''t just known as the general for nothing, he was also the leader of the Fanine Clan, a clan existing 5 thousand years ago, they were savage human beasts, made specifically to tear down monsters.


    "You wretched fools shall not perceive this land!! For it is the last sacred lands of Terui!!! My men shall not falter to the immense pressure of your power, for we are the last pawns of God!!!!"


    "RAAHHH!!"


    "GGHAAAA!!!"


    The enemy forces clashes with Litharin''s forces, colliding with swords, spears and horses. Meanwhile, the soldiers next to us began firing artillery into the battle, ignoring both sides as the shells hit the flesh, and the ground.


    "Crowler. Head to the sky and find Yynfur. There, we will throw Vixen up to you so she can use Divine Intervention."


    Den says. Crowler nods before jumping upwards. Rayan grabs me and throws me towards Crowler, he catches me so I can then use Divine Intervention.


    "Sniper Imitation. Blood Magic: Blood Hardening."


    BOOM


    [Sniper Imitation] and [Blood Hardening] were used at the same time, as Divine Intervention shot, blood fused with the bullets, aided by [Sniper Imitation]. It was to use Divine Intervention at 100% of it''s full power, since the sun was always blocked.


    The monsters behind the frontlines were decimated. But as the smokes disappear, we realize General Yynfur still remained. He looks at us from this distance... Uh-oh. We''re definitely doomed. He chants something before firing a spell at us, it hits Crowler but I managed to avoid it in time.


    "Crowler! Vixen!!"


    Ow. I fall into the ground. It''s not a problem since I''ve fallen into the ground many times now. But for Crowler...


    "Oh god... Lare! Liand! Hurry up!"


    His entire arm was blown off, he''s unconscious but he should still be alive.


    "Man..! What did I tell you about underestimating..?!"


    "How disgusting..! We need medics!!"


    Well, the injury isn''t fatal, but he''ll lose a lot of abilities after. For now, we should worry about the battle.


    "Fire the artilleries!"


    "They''ve crushed our men in front! Retreat!"


    The demons have won, at least for now. Litharin survived and began his retreat along with the rest of the survivors. We were now proceeding to plan B. Bombard them. Once they cross a certain line, Rika''s bombs will detonate, and enemy survivors will be picked off one by one. Not by our infantry, or anyone else, but by the artilleries, and one man.


    "Render Essaten", another soldier under Rika. He''ll be the one to signal the artilleries after the explosions, it''s a risky job but he''s the only one who can do it.


    "Wait for it wait for it..!! And boo-"


    BOOM


    An ear-piercing sound shuts Rika up as the napalm bombs detonate under the enemies. Sandem charges towards a perfect spot before kneeling down and shooting the thermobaric bomb at the demons.


    KABOOM


    "Wooohooo!!! Send them demons back to hell!!!"


    The demons burn and melt, dying of many different ways as the napalm spreads. Render is sent out near the enemies, laying down in a safe position before signaling the artilleries to fire at the remaining enemies.


    "Get em Render!!!! Finish off the small fry!!"


    It''s a beautiful sight for us humans, but for the demons, its hell. Don''t they come from a place like this anyways?


    Torn looks at the battle with a pair of binoculars, then he faces us with a concerned expression.


    "H-hey! Their general is still alive!"


    "Huh? What do you mean?"


    We all look back. He''s right..! General Yynfur emerges from the flames, stepping out of the napalm fields to meet Render.


    "Yes! West west..! And-... Oh.... Cra-"


    The collosal beast stomps on the fragile human. This has gotten bad.


    "Render!!! God! Fire at him!!! You bastards should see that giant demon already!!"


    The artillerymen shoots at General Yynfur but the shells stop quickly upon contact with a barrier.


    "Hah..! Reo told you about this! What should we do if they survived!?"


    "I don''t know..! This is the last plan for when everything goes bad..! If this didn''t work... Everyone would simply die..."


    "Don''t worry."


    I say. My throat should be fine with that amount of words.


    We shouldn''t lose moral. I have remembered what Manta told me. Actually, before all of this happened, I received a book from General Litharin.


    "What''s this- oh. It''s you, Vixen was it? What are you doing here?"


    Hmm... He looked really strong, probably even rivaling my strength.


    "Oh! Did you come here for my book? Haha! Do you like dancing? You can borrow it for a while..! You won''t be at the frontlines anyway! Hahahahahaha!!"


    Afterwards, he handed me the book. The book showed descriptions about a dance used by the Mharkalayen Sun Tribe. Actually, this is just a book about breakdancing!!! What on earth am I supposed to do with this?!


    And then I realized. It''s just like what the ants did. Hold on, how did those 4 even managed to find about the ants?!


    "Didn''t know you could talk..! What is it, outsider?!"


    Heh. It''s finally my time to shine. I jump off the cliff and began walking towards Yynfur. The soldiers look surprised, trying to stop me along the way.


    "Hey! Wait! I understand that you''re one of the heroes... You''re probably strong too, but you''re no match for that monster! Not even General could beat it!"


    It is true that General Litharin has almost the same level of strength as me. But he hasn''t even fought General Yynfur yet! I hold my hand out to stop him.


    "H-huh..? You''re telling me that you have a plan?! Even at this moment?!"


    Yes I do, but I can''t tell you that. Because I cannot speak.


    "Outsider!! Don''t die on us!!"


    Rika yells. Don''t worry. I won''t die here.


    I continue walking forward, until I come face to face with General Yynfur. A few miles away from the military bases and my allies, is the burning fields with the fallen soldiers. Render''s corpse remained near the gigantic foot of General Yynfur. How horrible. But it''s unavoidable in war.


    I throw away Divine Intervention, along with all my weapons. This was going to be a hand-to-hand fight now, even if my enemy is almost 8 meters tall.


    "How''s it feel to crush a bug, General?"


    I can finally talk normally after all this time not being able to..!


    "Mortal... No... You''re not mortal... Why is such a monster on the mortal''s side..?"


    He asks with that low, demonic voice.


    "Hm? What are you talking about? I can''t blame you if you think I''m a monster for being this strong, but that''s kind of an insult to me, you know?"


    We stared at each other. Waiting for the other one to make the first move. The ominous feeling in the air seemed to wait for death.


    I have understood [Divine Whirlpool] now. It will be extremely risky and dangerous, but, if I can just perform this, everyone will be saved. [Burning Rock], [Spatial Lift], and [Cast of the Iron Maiden], all of them are exhausting to use, I can''t even cast [Cast of the Iron Maiden] yet, and I''ve only learned about [Burning Rock], I haven''t used it before, but this will surely work.


    I think I kind of understand what you said now, Rabbit. "It is better to win, than to lose, we don''t talk about in-between.".


    So you''ve been telling me to either fight, than to give up, huh? Fine then! I shall accept this way of living! So that there won''t be anymore people who will die!


    Apologies to you, Render. I should''ve arrived sooner...

 Chapter 11: The Militarys Recognitions.

    "A long time ago, from a distant land, people of the lost kingdom used to prey on the weak, they conquered the seas, and defeated their oppositions. Until a great force appeared, they tried their best to stop it, eventually, it led to the fall of 10 thousand men. The force that attacked them that day was later named the Great White. A massive shark rumored to have lived a million years, a monster that ate entire ships, and made many species extinct."


    Before the battle happened. The Tale of the Great White told me to believe in this story in order to gain further strength for [Divine Whirlpool]. Though, the tale might be true, it is still obvious that the entire thing is exaggerated.


    "Foolish... You may be strong. But you and I shall not be compared."


    "General Yynfur". A collosal monster belonging to the Demon Lord. It stands almost 8 meters tall, it''s massive tail can be used as a weapon to swipe away at their opponents.


    This fierce beast has not only a massive amount of magic energy, but it''s physical strength also has the capability to destroy an entire kingdom without the usage of magic.


    "Very well. I shall show you what a mere weakling can do!"


    [Burning Rock]. It is a dance used by the Mharkalayen Sun Tribe, but in my old world, it''s basically just breakdancing.


    I use [Burning Rock], jumping into a handstand quickly.


    "Cast of the Iron Maiden Imitation."


    I then cast [Spatial Lift] on my feet. [Burning Rock] is a form of breakdance where you spin with your head, turning sideways very quickly, the reason why it got its name, is because the friction caused by spinning will generate enough heat to cause a fire.


    I began breakdancing furiously, the ground immediately started burning.


    "Such power..! It seems that I may have underestimated you, Vampire. Now, prepare to get crushed..!"


    As soon as his massive fist comes near me, it is blown away by the intense amount of wind pulling at the gravitational field around me.


    "What an annoying ability. Do you wish to continue dancing until you die?"


    His hand quickly heals while I continue breakdancing. Soon, a fire tornado is formed, is this what she meant by [Divine Whirlpool]? No... It needs to be more powerful!


    [Cast of the Iron Maiden]. Even though it''s only an imitation, [Spatial Lift] still mixed with it, or combined with it. Warping of reality started within my feet, as I continued spinning, my feet also spun around, further spreading out the distortion of reality.


    "No. I can''t let you continue this. You''ve become an anomaly to me now. There shouldn''t be anyone who can warp space at will! Die!!!"


    Yynfur uses [Titanium Rush], a flurry of punches are sent towards me, but they are immediately blown away as I continue spinning.


    Soon, the fire tornado disappeared, a portal formed above me in the shape of a whirlpool.


    [Divine Whirlpool] has now been achieved!


    "No! You shall die right here and right now!! Such power rivals even the Demon- no..! It''s one being used of the gods!"


    Truly Divine..!


    A power worthy of being used by the Gods... Huh? What''s that? Someone''s...


    A person drops down from the portal. Uh-oh. Did I accidentally summon something bad?


    "I thank you, Vixen. For opening up a shortcut."


    He grinned diabolically suggesting that of the devil. This immense field surrounding him..! I may have just brought a world-ending threat into reality...


    "What- what are you doing here?! This is bad... I must retreat!"


    "No you won''t."


    A deadly beam of magic energy shoots through Yynfur, blasting his head into pieces. Is he defeated..? Did I defeat him..?


    More importantly... Who is this menacing figure..?! He is shaped like one, but he has too much power to be called a human... I don''t sense bloodlust coming out from him though...


    "Vixen, did you forget about me? Or no... Heh. I see. It''s no worries if you didn''t recognize me. This body certainly is changed way too much."


    Huh? What is he talking about? I have no idea who this person is... I may have perfect memory, but I can''t remember having met him before..!


    "Wh-who are you?!"


    "It''s me! Keasius! I told you didn''t I? That I''d help you out! Looks like boss was right. You really are powerful huh."


    "Keasius?! Oh. Tale of the Great White? How did you come out from that portal?"


    "You ripped up space, and created a portal back to Jruhgu. That city where your friends are in."


    "Huh? You made it back there in just a day?!"


    "Huh?! Are you dumb?! Isn''t that obvious?!! I''m a shark, a very powerful one too!"


    "That''s an entire ocean, you know..? There''s no way that a shark can cross that in a day."


    "I''m just that strong, haha!"


    "Anyways. So did you teach Manta and Sting E.M Magic? For them to get 5% of it''s full potential already..!"


    "Yeah it was easy. Actually, the record books were kinda lies. They say that no one has been able to get above 10% of E.M Magic''s full potential before, but most of the demons born with that form of magic actually have 50%, usually."


    "How insane..! I see... So do we just have bad information then..?"


    "You humans use books from 10 million years ago and are still mad that it doesn''t work?!"


    "Well. Not a lot of humans are born with E.M Magic, you know?"


    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    "Sigh... Anyways. You better get back to your friends now. I''ll be waiting in Jruhgu as well. Your friends managed to hide me somehow. So, bye bye!"


    "Huh..? Hey wait!"


    And then he just jumps back into the portal. So he really was a Great White Shark huh... Wait! Why did he help us? Wasn''t Salmon Shark supposed to help us? Also, who is his boss..? I''ll have to talk to him later... For now, I should go back to the military bases. No one saw me opening up a portal to defeat Yynfur right?


    After returning to base, everyone greeted me happily, knowing that I''ve won.


    "Back in one piece huh."


    "You w-won!?"


    "Hahaha!! Let''s goo!!"


    "Well done, outsider! Didn''t expect you to win at all..!"


    The entire army celebrated for the night. I received a massive reward. It was great, but soon, It was too loud, I couldn''t sleep. While laying around, trying to sleep, Rika visits me.


    "Yo. I''ve got a few questions for ya."


    Hm? What does she want? And at this time?


    "How did you defeat that thing..? General Litharin definitely wouldn''t have been able to win without a scratch... So, you coming back here unscathed. What does that mean?"


    Oh no. I can''t tell her about Keasius saving me. Maybe my inability to speak will help?


    "Also... How did you talk earlier..? I thought you couldn''t speak."


    I''ll just pretend to sleep then-


    A knife stabs next to me. Uhh... This is getting bad.


    "Stop pretending to sleep. You''re a big mystery to me... First... I haven''t heard of a curse that takes away the ability to speak. Second. General Litharin is the current strongest here... Beating that demon was strange... And Third. What was that strange lightning, and tornado where you were fighting at?!"


    How do I get out of this situation..?!


    "Fine then. If you don''t want to speak... I''ll leave you alone. We''ll change plans for you. The army will move in a different direction from the heroes. But we''ll meet again soon though, don''t worry."


    Heh..? I thought she was going to stab me... I guess all is fine then.


    After I woke up, the army began moving again. They moved towards the south, but we were tasked with moving to the north. The military left us alone, and so we travelled into the harsh winter.


    Our main goal was to destroy as much Bases used by demons as we can. Den decided later that we should take out "Fort Kol". Well known for its impenetrable defense, until the demons arrived to break in and wipe out it''s former owners. A few survivors remained in the Fortress, though, they were not our main targets, we still needed to save them.


    "Everyone. Be careful of those giant beasts. This blizzard will only continue to get worse..! I can''t even see a thing anymore..."


    "Ah..! I stepped on something!"


    "Oh, I forgot. There are also spikes all around. So-"


    "You should''ve told me that already!! I- nevermind. My shoe just broke."


    We walked through the blizzards, the snow was blinding, and it was freezing cold. Not to worry though, our stop was nearby.


    "It was a shame that you lost your entire arm haha!"


    "Even I, at this state, could destroy you."


    Crowler lost his entire left arm, but he still had the ability to fight. We were planning on giving him a new arm but... There isn''t anyone around, skillful enough to give him a new arm.


    Soon, we found some ruins, it was enough to make a camp out of, and to go under for shelter. A formidable ally awaited for us here, a black sheep. "Feradon Ultrias". Also known as "Black Sheep", he is a master of fire magic. After being exiled from his village, he ventured out into the ocean, never to be seen, until, Litharin found him, now, he''s going to be our leader, and our only way of communication to Asanrak.


    "Huh? Is this going to be our leader? Looks weak."


    "What did I tell you about not underestimating people?"


    Feradon sat near a wall, there''s a campfire burning only thanks to the wall. Is this the place for us to sleep in?


    "You must be Feradon huh. General Litharin told us about you. You''re a master of Fire Magic, and used to be one of the Mharkalayen Sun Tribe''s, am I right?"


    Den says. The blizzard was too strong, we rested behind the wall, next to the campfire, it was warm somehow, even with all of this snow.


    "Feradon. I understand that you''re a very quiet man. You want silence and peace right? But we need to know the details about our mission. Keeping quiet about it will only slow us down."


    "Hey..! This guy''s not responding? Why don''t we beat him till he talks?! Hehe!"


    "Is this really the hero''s team?"


    That''s what I am asking. But it''s true though, Feradon hasn''t spoken a word since we''ve got here. Maybe... It can''t be..! He can''t have passed away right..?!


    "Speak now. Or I''ll kick you."


    Crowler says. But Feradon still doesn''t talk. Is he actually...


    "H-hm?! Hah! Wh-who''s there?!"


    Oh... Was he sleeping?! Sleeping in this cold?! Is it because he''s a fire magic master? Hmm... I can see how he can heat himself up to survive in this winter.


    "You were sleeping?! Wow..! That''s kinda impressive here actually."


    "H-huh?! Who are you people- oh. Um. Ahem ahem!! It seems like you''ve finally arrived huh... Heroes. I am Feradon Ultrias. A friend of Reo, you may say. General Litharin ordered me to stay here. But after a whole night of doing nothing. I fell asleep. Forgive me for that."


    "Hm. I knew you were sent here by General Litharin. But didn''t know you had friends!"


    "Hahahaha! Funny joke, Den."


    "That wasn''t a joke, Crowler."


    An awkward silence ensues.


    "Anyways. Feradon, what is our current mission?"


    "The demons have captured Fort Kol. An impenetrable fortress of the Holy Kingdom. It was one of our main, critical points. Losing it would be a huge advantage for the demons."


    "I see. So what''s our plan?"


    "Plan? Oh- um... Well. Let me think of one."


    He really didn''t have a plan..? After almost an hour of waiting, he finally got a plan.


    "Okay. So our plan is to... What was it again..? Oh right. Our plan is to storm in and destroy all enemies. But it''s not that simple though. We''ll dig up the ground and tunnel our way below the fortress. Then, we will strike."


    "It is simple. How are we supposed to do that though? There are a lot of flaws in your plan. We can''t just tunnel our way in there. Other people have already used this method and failed miserably."


    "Uh... Okay. How about we drop down from above? The demons can''t see that well, especially at night. So if we can just attack anywhere at night. We''ll win."


    This guy''s pretty bad at making plans huh.


    "Wait. I have an idea..!"


    Lare stands up. Hm? Is this first time he''s being significant for once?


    "Lare? What''s your idea?"


    "H-Hear me out on this alright?! First... We''ll have Vixen shoot the entire fortress with Divine... Whatever her weapon is..! Then... Then we''ll throw spears straight into the enemies before attacking. And I think Rayan will shoot the guards with Deagle..? And then we throw smoke bombs into the enemy..!"


    "Huh?! Was Lare ever this smart before?! Also, how am I supposed to shoot this small weapon at a long distance? I''m not that good at it too you know."


    Rayan''s right. The Deagle isn''t really designed for long-ranged use.


    "I''m not done yet! We will burn them demons to the ground again. But it''s not actually to damage them, it''s so Crowler can charge in and swing at them..!"


    "Hm. I see. This plan is well thought. How did you learn such?"


    "Hehe..! Actually... this isn''t even my plan. A strange woman told me this..! She was wearing rabbit ears, even though she already had cat ears!"


    Rabbit?! She''s here?! She''s still alive?!


    I throw away Divine Intervention to talk. I must take any form of clue for finding Rabbit. She has too much knowledge, I can''t just abandon an ally like that as well!


    "Heh? Why''d you throw it just like that-"


    "Lare. Who did you see?"


    "You can talk?!"


    "Answer me first. Do you know about The Rabbit of Earth?"


    "N-no..? She said her name was... Uhh... Oh right! Her name was exactly that! The Rabbit of Earth! How do you know each other?"


    "We''ll talk about that later. So? Where was she? Where did you meet her?"


    "Actually... She''s probably dead already..."


    What?! W-what does he mean by that..?


    "..."


    "While we were staying at the military bases, She walked up to me randomly, and gave me a paper containing the entire thing I just said. She then told me that she was going to fight the entire Fanine Clan..!"


    "The entire Fanine Clan?! General Litharin Fanine''s Clan?!!"


    Why would she do that?! This isn''t like her... But this plan is too good to be made up by Lare. He must be telling the truth then..!


    "Y-Yes... She disappeared shortly after... She was also wearing the army''s uniform..."


    What could this mean..?


    "Vixen, can you tell us more about this... Rabbit of Earth woman..?"


    "Heh... no. Please excuse me. She''s one of my friends back in my hometown. She disappeared at the start of the war. You can continue discussing the plan. I''ll get the curse again."


    "Huh..? You can just activate and deactivate the curse?!"


    "Kind of."


    I pick Divine Intervention back up. I must tell everyone back at Jruhgu about this. If we can get back Rabbit, she may have just the solution to end this entire war. I don''t know how, but for someone that has lived that long, she must have some kind of plan. That plan is probably ongoing right now.


    "Anyways... Then back to what I was saying..."


    Lare explained Rabbit''s plan. Somehow, Rabbit managed to predict our meeting up with Feradon, and gave Lare a plan before the battle even happened.


    Just who is she..?

 Chapter 12: The Ceasing of Death.

    After discussing the plans, we headed towards Fort Kol. Where the enemies are at.


    What met us later was rather disappointing.


    As we arrive at the front gates, the demons have already expected us and took a defensive stance to protect themselves, and the gates.


    "Humans. We see the massive power difference between us... But for th-"


    The demons were shot before they could even continue speaking. Rayan shot down the enemy guard on the fortress walls. The plan proceeded, but with a few changes.


    "Crowler. Break in through the gates."


    Says Den, before Crowler dashes forward, crashing through the front gates. The enemy charged towards us right after the gates collapsed, but Crowler cuts them down in an instant.


    This is going exactly like as we planned. Almost like it''s the same as when we used to be with Korpa. Feradon fires [Flame Burst] at the enemies, helping out Crowler.


    "Just like how we always do it! Actually... the enemies are too weak! Can anyone give us a challenge?"


    Suddenly, the demons stop fighting. A white flag is raised up by their leader. Have they surrendered?


    "Surrendering? Didn''t know demons do that too."


    The flag holder walks up to us. Is it offering it''s head to save the rest? What''s going on?


    "Hero... We have seen it already... We are no match for you... We give up..."


    Says the Demon.


    "Hooray!! Good thing I didn''t waste any of my magic energy on you guys!"


    "Hm. How strange. For a demon to surrender..."


    Something is definitely off... Why would they surrender so easily..? I can''t sense any bloodlust anymore...


    "Hehehe... You humans can celebrate for now... For the Blood God will arrive soon... There won''t be any escape during the apocalypse..."


    Blood God again?! Even on another continent, I still hear that name!


    "Blood God? Oh. That guy. Yeah. We''ll definitely die during that day. But for now. We''ll have fun slaughtering you guys."


    "No need for more bloodshed... I am Opera... The leader of the demons in this fortress... We can talk this out... We have some message to you as well... Coming from our home. Kikikikikiki..!!!


    "What a funny laugh. But alright. We''ll follow you. Don''t even try attacking. My guys have like... I don''t know but they can sense danger for some reason."


    We follow behind Opera, he leads us down into the fortress, into a room with a lot of papers. A magic circle is drawn on the floor, looks like some sort of ritual.


    "What''s this? Summoning chamber? The portal to your home?"


    "Something like that... It also serves as a communications room... Where we talk to our friends back in our world..."


    Hmm... If I''m right, demons come from the demon world, or the demon realm. Though, the demons in our world are weaker, and they have no way back home.


    "Here it is... The message..."


    The demon shows a paper to us. It reads:


    "Blood God''s Return."


    "This is Keraya, the 1st Demon General. The reality disturbance in the human realm has become too strong, Sawa has given all of you an order to kill as many humans as you can, we need more food for the revival of the Blood God."


    "Apocalypse will dawn on us, when the end is nigh, will the Blood God return and open up the gateway back into our home."


    This Blood God sounds really dangerous... Is it the end of the world when it comes back? What can we really do against this thing?


    "Hmm. What nonsense. Even if it''s true, I''ll just save the world from this, Blood God or whatever."


    "Heh... Do what you want to do... The Blood God has an immeasurable amount of power... Mere humans like you wouldn''t be a match against it..!"


    "Wouldn''t you be taken out by the Blood God as well though?"


    "We only want the destruction of mankind... We don''t care what else happens to us along the way..."


    "Well then. I shall crush your head right here now."


    "That wouldn''t matter... More death means more souls for the Blood God..."


    I think we''ve talked about this before... To revive the Blood God right? Those cities being destroyed, and left alone by the demons...


    "Sigh... So what should we do to stop this..?"


    "There is no way to stop it... The blood God will come back soon... And the end of humanity will come..."


    "Oh... Right... I remember now. I''m the Hero for a reason. Even if it means fighting a God. I will save humanity!"


    "How great... Too bad everything will be crushed soon... There will be none stopping the Blood God..."


    "Anyways. Goodbye now, Demons. I suppose there wouldn''t be any reason to kill you guys here right now. It would only speed up the Blood God''s revival. And you''re only a defense group right? I''ll just let our guys know that killing is just pointless."


    "I shall see you again... Hero... Back in the abyss..! The place where all souls come to rest..!"


    "Yeah. But don''t expect me to show up. I''m in a hurry, you see? A man like me don''t have time for places like the abyss. Feradon. Contact Asanrak. Tell them about the situation. We''re going to be the heroes of humanity..."


    We really are going to be the heroes of humanity huh... I wouldn''t want to fight a God myself but I guess we''ll have to!


    "Very well, Den. May the fate of humanity rest on our hands."


    "Let''s go! I can''t wait to hunt down this Blood God or whatever..!"


    "Heh..?! We''re really fighting a God?!"


    "I shall strike down, any who stands against humanity."


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    "Haven''t gone full power before..! This''ll be great!"


    This will definitely go wrong. Frelhr has already told me about how the Blood God is a trillion times stronger than humanity. Even Den won''t be able to make a scratch- no, he won''t even get near in first place.


    Later, we left the fortress without taking down another demon. We head down a long road leading into "Madagon", a city now taken by the Eleantad Empire. Feradon told us that there was someone skilled at crafting in the city, now, they have become a part of the resistance groups. Is it the same person that The Tale of the Great White mentioned? Wait. No... Madagon is not from the holy kingdoms...


    Now that we know that losing more souls means reducing more time for the Blood God''s revival, it would be pointless now to attack demons, or fight enemies.


    Thanks to some disguise made by Lare, we managed to get in Madagon without being caught by the soldiers. There were many people of the empire in the city, the former inhabitants were treated terribly by their new occupiers.


    "Ha..! How horrible..! Shouldn''t we help them? Like... More death is bad, but if we sacrifice one so he doesn''t make more deaths... It would mean good, right?"


    Says Liand as we walk past multiple people being kicked around by the soldiers.


    "It doesn''t work like that you idiot. Besides... We don''t want attention right now..."


    "We''re here for your friend right, Feradon?"


    "No. Not my friend. I haven''t even met them before. They''re more of a... Right! They''re a friend of Rika! That one commander back in the bases..? Yeah. This is also her hometown. It wouldn''t be surprising if the army comes in and fight these guys."


    Hmm... I''m more interested about her home. Why, how, and where did she even keep Napalm, and Thermobaric bombs? Is it thanks to her friend?


    "Rika Zerai? Oh, her. So? What about her friend? What do they do?"


    "We''ll see. I''ve heard that they''re making something called a plane. Basically a flying vehicle, made to fly in the sky! Isn''t that cool?!"


    A plane?! In this world?! Judging from the bombs used by Rika, and the plane mentioned by Feradon, this person must have some knowledge about my old world... Perhaps, they''re another reincarnated human??!!


    "Hmm. That does seem interesting. There has been some people who have tried making that before... But it''s mainly used in the military now."


    "It''s only a rumor. But if we can get them on our side..!"


    "We can fly."


    "Exactly! I have more details about the plan later. But for now. We''ve gotta find them first."


    "Where are they? You must have their location already huh. But if-"


    "Nope. I don''t know where they are."


    "..."


    "Really. I told you we are gonna find them."


    "Why do you have no plans?"


    Afterwards, we spent 2 days trying to search for this person. No one had a clue about them! Did they even exist in this city? But if Feradon''s right... Rika''s house should be around here somewhere...


    "Hm? Where are you going Vixen? Wanna buy carrots? I''ve already run out of cash so don''t expect me to pay for you..!"


    No, Rayan. I just want to leave.


    We stayed at an inn for the time being. Me and Rayan were sitting at the bench right outside. Even though it''s already getting dark, I''ll have to find Rika''s house as fast as possible, and find her weapons somehow.


    I roamed around the streets for while. Until I finally found it... H-how obvious!! Is this what they meant by "hidden in plain sight"?! How did I not notice it before?!!


    A large sign was placed above a house saying: "Rika''s Home".


    I entered the house, the door wasn''t locked but the lights were also turned off. Is no one home? Of course, she''s in battle, probably...


    I turn on the lights and find the place... Surprisingly clean... Looks like someone has been living in here. Is it the person we''ve been looking for? A locked door sat on the kitchen. I rip the lock out and find a stairway leading down to the basement.


    As I descend down the stairs, the sound of someone singing can be heard.


    "La-la-la-la-laa!! Hmm!! Time for my favorite meal!! Copper and Iron!!"


    Copper and Iron?! Is there a robot?!


    As I reach the final steps, I cautiously look behind the wall and see a woman cooking something on a table. Wait. What''s the point of hiding? I get up and put my hand on her shoulder.


    "HAA!!!"


    The woman jumps back in fear, trembling, before freezing. Isn''t she overreacting?


    "Wawawawawawa!!! W-w-who the hell are y-you?!!"


    Gah! I wish I could talk right now... But I don''t want to throw down Divine Intervention in a stranger''s home.


    I perform some hand signs. I don''t know what this means but I hope she will understand that I''m friendly.


    "H-huh?! P-please!!! Spare me!!! I''m not!!- I''m not!!! Waaaahhhh!!"


    What?! She''s crying?!!! She''s an adult! Why is she crying like this!?


    I sigh. I guess I''ll have to talk. I throw away Divine Intervention for the curse to disappear.


    "Ahem ahem. Relax. Woman. I am not a threat. Do not fear."


    "Waaaahhhh!!! Nooo!!! Please!!! What have I done wronggg??!!!"


    How can I forget how to speak now?! Has the curse done too much damage?! That I can''t even speak properly now?!


    "Do not fear. I am. I am the hero."


    "Please..!!! Spare me!!"


    "How many times will I have to say it woman?!?"


    "Noo!! I''m sorry!!!"


    "Hah... What should I do..."


    "I''ll give you the plans!! Please!! Don''t!!!!"


    "Plans? Oh. That''s right. The plans! Where is that plane you''ve been making?!"


    "P-plane..?!! Okay okay..!! I''ll show you..!!"


    She slowly takes something out under the table. It''s a- it''s a gun!!


    "Stay back o-o-or I''ll have to shoot!!!"


    "Relax. Please. I am not a threat..!"


    What should I do..? Getting shot is painful. But she''d become more scared if I just destroy her gun.


    "Please. Trust me!"


    She shoots anyways. I dodge the bullet perfectly. But she becomes even more frightened. How annoying. I guess I''ll have to beat- no... I must calm down...


    "Woman... Relax your mind... I am not a threat..."


    "W-why are you in my house anyways!!!?"


    "This isn''t your house. This is Rika''s house."


    "Doesn''t matter!!"


    What does she mean it doesn''t matter!?


    "Calm down. I''m her friend. We have worked together in the past."


    "W-worked together?!!? I-I-I have no choices but to kill you thenn!!"


    Huh? What? Why?


    I grab her gun and take it away. I''m really gonna crush her skull if she doesn''t stop being this scared..!


    "Wawaawawa..!! Why!! Noo!!"


    "Relax. Please- wait."


    I walk away and come back with a cup of tea. This should begin a normal, and friendly discussion now.


    "Sit down. And drink the tea."


    She sits down at the other side of the table.


    "Please..!! H-huh... tea..?? Oh... Hehe... A-alright then..!"


    She drinks the tea while shaking. How does one overreact this much? Wait. Does she think it''s poison? If she has calmed down already. I can assume that she''s not afraid of poison.


    "S-so..? Why are you here..?!"


    "I''m with the Asanrak army. Allies are somewhere in this city. We''ve come here to help you."


    "R-really..?! I don''t need help..!! Rika will be back soon... She''ll be the only help I''ll take..!!"


    How annoying. If we can''t get her on our side... This will be an annoying mission. I''m not that good at communicating. Especially now that the curse has damaged my communication skills. I could get everyone here... But there''s a risk of her running away...


    "Rika is in the army. She''s probably fighting some demons right now. She''ll be here though, don''t worry."


    She did tell me that we were going to meet again...


    "I know..! I-I don''t need your help..!! Shoo shoo! Get out of the house!"


    "Hah..? I guess I''ll have to speak the truth then. We need your help."


    "My h-help..? No! I won''t help you!"


    "I haven''t even... Anyways. Were you the one who made those thermobaric and napalm bombs? It was a massive help in taking down the enemy."


    "It w-was..?! Hehe..!"


    "So it was you who made it."


    "W-what?! No! I never said anything about it!!"


    "How simple minded. But please trust me. We''re not going to hurt you, in any way. We just need your help."


    If we can get her on our side, we might be able to fly back to Jruhgu, and her abilities would be a massive help in creating the Magical Electromagnetic Superweapons. They''ve only copied the LASER blueprints after all.


    Of course, we could just take her forcefully... But I''d rather not do that...


    "No! I''ll never help you! I don''t even know who you are..!!"


    "I''m Vixen, Vixen Corr. From the kingdom of Djoflour at the other continent. We''re sent here as heroes, to save humanity from doom."


    "I-I don''t care if you will save us from- what or what!! As long as I can live peacefully- I-I will-"


    "You will live peacefully, you know? Our base is one of the safest places in this world right now. Unlike this continent, which is filled with war and death, Jruhgu is in a continent where the humans have already won. It''s also a city controlled by my friend. We also have a God on our side."


    "A-a god?! I don''t believe you!! Besides... I don''t mean-"


    "You wanna live with Rika, right? Well. You can live safely there too."


    "Kh!! Stop being annoying! I won''t join you!"


    She''s the one being annoying! Hah... This feels really childish... I must take care of this immediately.


    "You impertinent little brat! Don''t you understand that the fate of mankind is in your hands?! Once you give us your help, the demons will be eradicated off the face of this planet!!"


    "H-hah... I''m sorry... You have something to get rid of demons..?"


    "Yes. Exactly."


    "I see... You aren''t really a bad guy, I know... But I''m sorry... I''ll only stay by her side..! And-"


    How damn annoying! For such a weak and unimportant person...


    "Come, on..! We can get both of you into our base! Why do you resist so much?!"


    "... Actually... T-the Eleantad Empire has me to make them their weapons... If I don''t... Something bad will happen..."


    "Hmm. I see. How about we destroy the Eleantad Empire as well. So why don''t you. Come with us?"


    I hold my hand out to her.


    "H-huh... Really..? You can do that..?"


    "Hm! That''s right!"


    Her eyes fill with hope, almost beginning to cry again.


    "Alright then! Let''s destroy the demons! And the Eleantad Empire!"


    She says, before taking my hand.


    How naive..! But that''s fine, I guess.

 Chapter 13: Weapons Creation.

    Eventually, the gloomy weather died down, as well as the rising of the death count.


    Inherited after a terrible accident, she, herself named by the divinities, called upon the dried lands, to bring out the harvests.


    She, who named: Pikaia Adell, blessed of the Gods, with the talent for crafts and inventions, similar to that of earth. What''s a girl like that doing here? We should''ve taken her to base already, but the Empire kept bugging us.


    "I suppose we''ll live here for a while... Until Rika comes back, I''ll continue working on the plane."


    She says, as she nails a hammer into the piece of metal, that will soon become a civilian form of flight.


    "Very good. For my allies, you shouldn''t worry about them right now. Keep working on the plane. Strategic Bombing and Chemical Warfare will be a massive advantage in this war."


    Of course. Strategic Bombing and such wasn''t on her mind when making such machinery.


    "Uuu..!! Don''t say that!! Everything doesn''t need to be weaponized, you know?! Try to enjoy things in life without destroying someone else''s life..!"


    Hm. She may be right. But it would be a shame if her talents were to be wasted.


    Currently, everyone else but me in the hero''s party is sitting around in the city, doing whatever. It''s been 10 days now since we''ve been here, and yes, they all know about Pikaia as well.


    She''s been living under a rock, literally. After Rika locked her in the basement, she left out for war, possibly dying from a stray bullet.


    "Hello..? This is manta again! Glad to see you''re still alive, Vixen!"


    Oh, it''s Manta. How long has it been since we''ve last talked, about 30 days?


    "Ah. What is it, Manta? What''s the situation?"


    "Device Short Circuited..! Because Rabbit left us without a clue, the entire magic ampi- ampi- ampilification... Amplification device blew up!"


    "Huh..? Is this really Manta? You sounded like Sting for a second there."


    "Hoh-hoh-hoh!! Surprised you saw through it! Thought you were deaf and blind! But now I''ve changed my opinion about you, Leader..!"


    Sting''s kind of annoying huh. Was she also the one who talked to me back in the military bases..? The connection was terrible, and it was hard to hear her, but that nonsense storytelling was definitely not by Manta!


    "Now. Tell me the actual situation, be serious for once..!"


    "Hihihi..!! Not to worry, Leader! Everything''s fine! Except for the amplification device of course..."


    "Can you tell me what happened? How''d it blow up suddenly?"


    "It''s a long story to tell..! But looks like progress has been reduced!"


    How''s everything fine then..? Could this be Keasius'' work? If he actually did help us, there should''ve been more progress instead.


    "Hold on, did a man, or woman, come to help you guys..?"


    "What? Of course no..! What are you talking about, Leader?"


    "Are you being serious? A person going by the name of Keasius, or the Tale of the Great White should''ve arrived at our base..."


    "Who''s that? More importantly, we''ve received a really good book about Electromagnetic Magic! Looks like we''ll be able to reach 40% of our full potential in just 5 years! Perhaps the sender is the same person we''re talking about..?"


    Has Keasius not helped us yet? He said something about everyone hiding him in Jruhgu, but if they don''t even know about him, then how..?


    "Are you sure that no one came to visit you..? Wasn''t there a portal that opened up in the city..?"


    "Oh! Are you talking about the agent?! She came in from the ocean! She helped us a lot with the superweapon you''re making!"


    So Keasius did arrive at base... This kid... Why didn''t she just tell me?!


    "I know what you''re thinking, Leader..! You''re thinking bad about me huh!?"


    "Why didn''t you just tell me that he did show up..?"


    "He, or She! Both doesn''t matter! No one going by He or She, Keasius, or the Tale of the Great White, appeared at our doorstep! Only Agent TGW showed up!"


    TGW... Isn''t that just short for "Tale of the Great White"?! Maybe I should be mad at Keasius here...


    "So? Why did the amplification device blow up?"


    "Looks like you''ve become deaf again, Leader..! Fine then. I shall explain to you the hundredth time!"


    "No... You haven''t even explain it one time yet..."


    "After Agent TGW arrived, she threw the magic amplification device into a bigger magic amplification device! Don''t worry though, all is fine on our end!"


    "What..? Why''d he do that..?"


    "I don''t know! It''s some incomprehensible science..! Not even I can think of it..!"


    "Hmmm... Okay then."


    "Okay then!"


    "Have you seen Rabbit anywhere?"


    "That guy? Oh yeah! Teacher and Commander was always looking for her!"


    Teacher and Commander..? Oh, Fin and Frelhr.


    "So? Did you find her?"


    "No! She''s dead!"


    Heh..? Dead? Really? No way that she''d die just like that...


    "What..?"


    "Literally! The Fanine Clan fought her! And they chopped her head off! How foolish it was of her... Kukuku..!!"


    Really..? It''s the end for her..? Just like that..?


    "Everyone seem sad about it for some reason..! But I don''t feel emotions, really, so don''t hate me for that, alright..?!"


    "Sure... I won''t..."


    Hah... What a shocking news... For her to die this quickly...


    But fighting the entire Fanine Clan was really strange... And foolish... Why would someone like her fight them..?


    Soon, the airplane blueprints and mechanics were built. It''s a basic aircraft, but it should be enough for bombing.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "Hah..! What a fine masterpiece! Thanks for the ideas, Vixen."


    No problem. The rest of the team arrived, we placed the plane at the middle of a field. Now... The only problem remaining... Is that we don''t have bombs anymore. Rika used them all during the battle against General Yynfur.


    "Hmm. How brilliant. Haven''t seen one before. Even in the military..!"


    "The military doesn''t use it that often, you know..? How''d you even see them if you''re on the ground?"


    It''s not supposed to be seen you guys!


    "Well. This piece of machinery definitely rivals magic..!"


    "Yeah. It''s a shame that any Magic user with the Flight spell can just catch up to us though..."


    "Noo..! My years of hard work..! Gahh..!"


    Don''t worry though. Most magic users aren''t able to use [Fly], only those at certain ranks, or those significant in the military.


    "It''s not even supposed to be for civilian transportation, right?"


    Oh- this is bad... Pikaia didn''t make this plane as a form of weapon... This was made specifically to carry a person..! Has she forgotten the fact that most mages can just shoot it down? Gun users could also just do the same!


    "I''m sorry..!! Noo!!"


    "Wait. If we can just modify it a little bit. We can turn it into an effective bomber!"


    "Great idea, Den! We''ll be the ones to get the materials just like before. Lare, Liand, come with me."


    "How tiring..!"


    "I don''t want to go into that forest again!"


    And then, Crowler, along with Liand and Lare, left the city in search for materials. This was going to take another 10- no, an entire month! It might take less time than before... But since it would be entirely remade- what an annoying piece of metal..!


    Production of the plane began a year ago, the entire thing was only made in less than half a year since then. Pikaia could''ve make it with less time, but since Rika asked her to create weapons as well, the plane was created worse than expected.


    "Hold on. I''ve got a new idea."


    Hm? What is it, Feradon? Is the first time he''s gotten a plan?


    "How about. We create boxes and throw them at our opponents?"


    What a simple idea..! But it could work, actually..!


    Our current goals were now changed since we''ve learned about what Opera told us. Simply put, we were going to put all demons into eternal sleep. Literally.


    "We have magic as well. If we can just put chemicals and magical poison into boxes and send it to our enemies... No blood will be shed! And no souls will be lost! All demons will be put into a state where they can''t wake up anymore! Basically, we''re going to trap their souls in their body! That way, the Blood God won''t come!"


    But death is still inevitable. Old age, random diseases, anything, most creatures will die eventually. We''re just prolonging the time before the Blood God''s arrival, are we?


    "Seems like you''ve got it already. The Blood God will definitely come back soon, but until then, we''ll have to prepare. We need the most time we can get, in order to defeat the Blood God..!"


    I see... What a simple, but good plan.


    "Since Pikaia is still creating the plane, our alternative for dropping chemicals will be..."


    By bombarding them from far away!


    "I''ll let the others know. Artillery should be easier to create, than a plane."


    Thanks, Feradon. He might be useful without his magic after all...


    "Plutonium", and "Uranium". Common things used in Nuclear Weapons. But a Nuclear Bomb would be too much to drop on our enemies, instead, we''re going to drop only, radioactive materials unto the demons!


    "Sniff sniff... This is plutonium! You can''t fool me haha! Nom."


    Hmm... Seems like Pikaia isn''t a human. For one that eats rocks and metals... Even radioactive materials...


    What actually is Pikaia?


    "Who knows! I was born in the desert, and Rika picked me up, she said..!"


    So Rika''s like her mother..? I see why she''s acting this childish... She''s probably never been sent outside huh...


    "Nope, Vixen, you''re wrong."


    Huh? Feradon is correcting me..?! Wait, how does he even know what I''m thinking?!


    "Plutonium isn''t edible. So don''t even try eating it. You''re too simple minded haha!"


    No. You''re the one wrong here.


    "What? But I just ate it! Want some..? I don''t mind sharing these rare food to you... Vixen!"


    "What?! No way anyone would eat a rock! Stay away from us, freak!!"


    "Grrr!! Who told you to eat this!?"


    I''m pretty sure most species would die by just being near that... Is Feradon using [Barrier II] too?


    "Anyways. Calm down, freak. Judging by your diet. I can tell that you''re a Demi-human huh?"


    "H-huh?!"


    "Ha! Got you now! Demi-human!"


    "No! What even is that?! For your information... I am a dragon..!"


    "Heh..?"


    "Heh?!!"


    Heh..?


    "You''re a dragon!!!?"


    She''s a dragon??!!


    "Of course! Wasn''t it obvious? Looks like my camouflage technique works really well huh!"


    Heh... How ridiculous... I have no words to say...


    "You told me that you were picked up in the desert!"


    "Yeah? That was what Rika said. But I''m a dragon obviously! I also have a lot of magic you know?!"


    Why was she so scared then..? And also, what about the Eleantad Empire hunting her..?


    "You told us that you were being threatened by the empire right..?"


    "Well. I am a dragon, of course! But my powers have been sealed right now! By the Eleantad Empire! If only we could kill my sealer!!"


    "Sealer..? Who are they?"


    "You wish to help me, mere human?!"


    "Ha. I won''t then-"


    "Fine fine!!! I''ll tell you please..!"


    I can tell... My senses tells me that she definitely will backstab us once she gets her powers back...


    "A priest of the Blood God came down and chopped my head off... It was painful! And then they locked me inside a box..! Rika found me and broke me out..! That''s what she said!"


    Hmmm... I have a feeling that she''s lying...


    "So where''s this guy now?"


    "How should I know? You should find them out yourself!"


    "You annoying brat..!! I''m trying to help you here..!!"


    Well. This was the same exact reaction I had when I met her.


    The production of the airplane, along with the weapons and artillery continued. Materials wouldn''t be that difficult to find now, with this team, all of them should be done in about... A month! Not really the expected amount of time, but it''s the shortest right now for making all of them.


    Suddenly. "Triax Fanine". One of the strongest members in the Fanine Clan, arrived in the city.


    The Fanine Clan wasn''t related to any side in this war. Only General Litharin is joining the human''s side. But other than that, most ignores the Fanine Clan, treating them as neutral.


    Looks like Rabbit has really lost... What''s a member of the Fanine Clan doing here though?


    After 10 days later, I finally realize...


    "40,000 men lost against one man?!"


    There were newspapers about the Eleantad Empire''s soldiers being sent off Madagon. All because of one man. That man being, Triax Fanine. Of course, we, and the resistance groups helped as well, but he did most of the work in the battle.


    "Hooray!! Thank you Lord Triax!!!"


    "We will give you anything as thanks!!"


    "My family will be saved now!!"


    The people thanked him, celebrating as he walks around the streets. The Asanrak army arrived later, and he disappeared shortly after... What a mystery..!


    "What was that all about..?"


    "Who knows. Did he just come down here to wipe out everyone..?"


    As I walk down Pikaia''s basement. A letter is seen placed on the table.


    I walk over to pick it up. It says...


    "Vixen Corr. This is Rabbit. Don''t tell anyone about this. Don''t even think about this. Cut it out off your brain or something. I''m still alive. The Fanine Clan is not an enemy. They''ll be our greatest allies against the Blood God."


    Rabbit''s still alive?! Such relief..!! But wait... What if it''s not from her..? What if it''s from that Triax guy..? I must still be careful...


    There''s something written on the back...


    "Have you learned Soul Retraction yet?"


    Heh. This is definitely her then. I guess I still need to continue learning about [Soul Retraction]... I haven''t found any clues about it yet, so learning will be extremely difficult.


    I mustn''t let anyone else know that Rabbit is still alive though. Mind readers will be difficult, but I can''t just cut off my brain or something! There isn''t any memory erasure spells too... Guess I''ll just be careful about it.


    Later, the chemical weapons were now prepared. [Poison II] was poured into shells, along with multiple hazardous substances and venom. All of this wasn''t to put one to death, instead, it was turn conscious beings into vegetables.


    At high grounds, we set up artilleries and cannons aimed at the enemy forces approaching the city. The army has helped us as well, reducing time for creating the plane, and our weapons.


    "Cenry! Man the cannons! Sile! Take the artilleries! The rest, ammunition and snipers!"


    "Lt. Wedden", was sent from the army to help us, along with his men. Explains why Rika didn''t return.


    The soldiers fire our weapons at the enemy. It''s a success!


    The empire''s troops fell quickly, under the effect of the chemicals, the survivors were shot down by the snipers, but only to incapacitate them.


    After a long day of capturing and arresting, we won! The army gave us rewards before moving on. A few soldiers were left to patrol in the city, which means that Pikaia will be safe now...


    .... Or should be....


    Her seal still remained, the empire should''ve been wiped off Madagon by now, yet her powers still hasn''t come back. Is she really a dragon? Or is there something else?


    "23 Confirmed kills... 5,801 captured... What sort of magic and weaponry did you use..?"


    It''s Triax. While I was out collecting flowers in the forest, Triax appeared.


    "The Baphomet calls... The abyss will be opened up soon... Prepare thyself until Baphomet says so... Vixen, join us together with Baphomet."


    Baphomet? I''m pretty sure that guy only existed in the old world... What''s the two of them doing here? Why do they want me to join?


    I shake my head, saying no.


    "You wish to destroy evil do you..? Baphomet controls Order... Your friend is already with- ahem no. An agent has already joined you... You may know them as the Salmon Shark''s friend... We''ve situated in the Holy Pyramids... Meet the cat there... And she shall tell you the details..."


    I see... The Holy Pyramids huh... They''re located in the deserts... But how should I even get there?


    "Prepare for as long as you want. But this is in order for the Blood God to not awaken... Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice has began it''s move, Baphomet will be your gateway to Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice..."


    Hmm. I''ll visit as soon as possible. Once we finish the plane, we''ll head to the Holy Pyramids first.


    "I thank you in advance... I''ll be waiting as well... See you later, Ms. Vampire..."


    Alright. See you later, Triax Fanine.


    The Blood God really is troublesome huh...

 Chapter 14: The Heros Return.

    "Frillet Tofan". Conqueror of the Heavens. Aggressor of the origins.


    After creating the plane, bad news struck. As terrible as the revival of the Blood God.


    The Hero of the Great Catastrophe has arrived!


    Benefactor of the Pillars of Creation. Wielder of "Umbra", Blade of Deliverance. 2nd governor of the human realm. Next to the Celestine Central Electrical Box, Cricket Cricket.


    "Flights ready! Get the weapons on board!"


    The plane was ready to take off. Den led the plan for bombarding our enemies.


    Though, a massive disaster has hit mankind. War still continued, but we all now had a common enemy. Frillet Tofan.


    "Shouldn''t we target the old hero first?"


    "The demons will be more important..! Why would the old hero even target us? Besides. He''s like a few continents away from us."


    The barrels filled with chemicals and poison were now loaded into the plane.


    I feel bad for the demons now. Having a fate worse than death...


    "Fly my creation!!"


    "Look at it go!!"


    "Goodbye plane! And demons!"


    The plane was being controlled by magic. It doesn''t take that much magic energy to fly one. Accuracy wasn''t that well, but it will be enough to destroy the demons.


    First target we''re going to hit, is obviously Fort Kol. It will take a few days to get there, but we''ve already prepared Crowler''s magic energy for this. Eventually, the plane dropped the weapons into the enemy fortress. Mission was a success.


    "Alright. So this thing does work huh..."


    "Of course! But I hoped you didn''t use it as a weapon..!"


    "Worry not. We''re going to put an atomic bomb on it one day... After the Blood God is taken care of-"


    "Wait..."


    Wait... Why don''t we just drop a nuclear bomb on the Blood God? Let the war continue and then destroy the Blood God when it comes..? Oh right. Humanity still doesn''t stand a chance.


    "Why not... Just kill the blood god?"


    "Idiot. No matter how many atomic bombs we drop. It won''t scratch them."


    "Aww..! What can we even do then?!"


    Later, we continued attacking enemies with chemical weapons. Those struck by this were quickly captured by the army, along with their base.


    Perhaps. It should be time now... To visit the Fanine Clan. Triax said something about the pyramids? I don''t have a clue where it''s at. And besides... I still need to confirm Rabbit''s situation.


    "Fanine Clan". Located in the mountains, is a large village owned by the Fanine Clan. General Litharin Fanine, Triax Fanine, and Ruley Fanine. They are the top three strongest members of the Fanine Clan.


    As I step foot near their land, a group of guards approach me. There are multiple traps in this area, but I''ve already sensed it a few miles away from here.


    "Ah. It''s the Great Wizard."


    "How foolish. Have you come here to avenge your friend?"


    Hm? Did Rabbit really die? Looks like I''ve been set up huh.


    They all take their stances, pulling out their weapons. Since I''d rather not cause more bloodshed... This should work.


    "Your friend''s already dead. We have-"


    I walk up to one, and use [Snap Suplex]. It breaks their neck, paralyzing them. It won''t be fatal.


    "W-what the!? How unchivalrous! Going up to-"


    I perform [Snap Suplex] on another one. Why aren''t they attacking yet? Do they need to make their speech before attacking?


    "You''re really just going to keep doing that?! Men, attack!!"


    "Raaahhh!!"


    A sword swings, which I quickly dodge and use [German Suplex] on the attacker.


    "A-are you really a wizard?!!?"


    Well... Using Blood Magic would definitely take away their souls... But this will be fine. I cast [Blood Hardening] on my arms. Should be good enough.


    "Fgyah!"


    "Ughk-!"


    I''ll just punch all of them in the gut for now. Is this really the most brutal clan I''ve heard about..?


    "What seems to be the problem here..?"


    Hoh..? It''s the old man. Ruley Fanine huh... Glad to finally see a strong opponent..! If I''m right... He''s the only one who''s actually strong here. Litharin and Triax have gone elsewhere.


    "Lord Ruley! That Con Artist''s friend has come to take revenge!"


    "Heh! Looks like your time is-"


    Well it doesn''t really matter. I''m still as strong, or stronger than their number 1 member, General Litharin.


    I use [Chop] on a guard''s collarbone. I also need blood for my Blood Magic to work, you know?


    "Aaaahhhh!!! M-my!! I can''t even feel my arm anymore!!!"


    Ruley steps forward, preparing to draw his sword. Advancing in a split second, swinging vertically as I break his sword with my arm. Looks like technique won''t work on me!


    "What a monster..!"


    I send a [Chop] down his hand. He jumps back as his hand falls. He won''t be able to use two-handed weapons anymore.


    "Seems that I''ve underestimated you, Vampire. Now. Time to get serious."


    Is he joking? Calling me a Vampire and then saying that?


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    He proceeds to crack his neck, and his knuckles before using [Dragon Piercer]. A volley of slashes are sent at me. I can only dodge and block against his attacks. Some of the swings hits me, but I instantly regenerate them. Also, since they really expected me to be a Great Wizard, I can''t let them down then.


    I cast [Earthen Spike], but Ruley just instantly cuts it down.


    "Your tricks won''t work on me. For I am a master of the blade. Of course. A vampire like you, wouldn''t understand all the patience and hard work in order for me to get at this level... Die!"


    Unfortunately for him. I don''t care about all of that. I cast [Blood Hardening] on my legs before using [Counter Dropkick].


    "What are you? A martial artist?! You can only choose one, magic, or techniques! You can''t choose both-"


    Yes I can- ow! Ruley uses [Flower Switch]. Cutting off my leg. But it won''t be a problem with my regenerative abilities.


    He seems to be extremely tired. Looks like it''s the end.


    "Heh. You haven''t realized it huh."


    Hm? What''s he talking about?


    "I still have something up my sleeve. Not my sword techniques, but one of my secret-"


    I use [Snap Suplex] on him. I can''t let him- huh!? what''s this?!"


    "Hahahaha! I wasn''t known as the 3rd strongest in the Fanine Clan for no reason!"


    It''s [Pocket Hornets]! He has released hornets into the air!


    Hah... Is this really even a fight..? What was the point again?


    "Take that, Vampire! The element of surprise-"


    I use [Rushing Dropkick] on him. He''s knocked down. I win! Well... This wasn''t actually much of a fight at all huh...


    "M-monster..! What do you want?! F-fine! I''ll tell you the truth..!"


    The truth? I''m more impressed on how he can still talk after taking [Rushing Dropkick] to his face.


    "Your Con Artist friend..! They didn''t actually come here! Triax just told us to tell you that!"


    "Y-yeah..! He''s the only one who can really defend this village too..! So please don''t end him!!"


    I wasn''t planning to. But that''s good news... Seems like Triax is planning something. But Rabbit definitely hasn''t come to this continent. She''s still back there at least.


    "Triax has ordered us to kill you! After General Litharin has gone... Triax has been acting strangely..! I promise you! We didn''t do this for no reason!"


    Hmm. They don''t have Bloodlust anymore. Guess I''ll trust them for now.


    Ruley and his guards leads me further into the village. The people don''t seem happy tat I''m here... I can''t blame them. I did paralyze a few of their friends.


    Ruley then stops in front of a castle. Is this their main base? Oh. He''s heading into a gazebo. I follow behind.


    "Sit down. Let us discuss peace..."


    Peace? What is he talking about? I don''t think there''s any conflict between us now.


    "The hero... Ahem. I assume that you''ve come here for your friend. Or just to visit us or something... But let me tell you first. The entire Clan began falling apart after General Litharin left. Triax is up to something. And it''s not good. In other words. You''ve been set up, Vixen."


    Huh? What? Is there actually no other strong person in this clan? I feel like something big has happened...


    "A few years ago, The clan was still going fine. Until this war happened. Unlike any other wars before, this war is a War that will end all Wars. One of the major events that will happen, is the Blood God''s revival. Triax''s plan is also probably tied to the revival."


    I see. It makes sense now... A little bit. One good news is that Rabbit is not in this continent. Bad news is...


    "The Hero has arrived, Vixen. We need your help. We thought you were weak, and we only followed Triax''s orders or else we''d die. I apologize. And we will all apologize as well."


    No need to apologize... I feel bad actually... I hurt a lot of them and they still apologized...


    "We don''t know much about Triax, other than him being one of the strongest. Besides him, there were more members that were actually strong. That was until the war obviously. I''m only in the top three because the rest are gone. Dead."


    Sounds like this clan was already crumbling before the war even happened- no. The entire world was ruined even before the war..!


    "Sen Fanine. A savage warrior that tore down everything in it''s path. But eventually, he disappeared without a trace. Zoe Fanine. One of my friends... She was killed by Triax after she fought him for some reason..! Ghen Fanine.... He disappeared the same day that Zoe died... I don''t even know what''s happening anymore..."


    Hmm... He doesn''t look too well. It''s safe to say that this clan won''t be here any longer. Most of their important people died after all.


    "There were more... But they all met the same exact fate... Vixen...! .... There is still a way... To revive them...!"


    And what would that be?


    "Kill the Blood God."


    W-w-w-what a ridiculous request!!


    "The Blood God is incomprehensible amounts stronger than us... But still... During the Era-"


    Huh? There''s rumbling? An earthquake? Or an attack?!


    "Oh god... We don''t have much time to talk..! I''ve set up bombs all around the village. Good thing you''ve avoided them..! Looks like Triax has returned. I- no... The entire Clan will probably be gone later... For now. Find Ruthenoceras Ptychodus! You probably already know where they are but- we don''t have much time! Run!"


    Something exploded in the village. A massive fire is breaking out. Triax is here... I can sense the immense aura... There''s a massive difference between Triax and Ruley. But I''m still stronger than both of them combined.


    That Salmon Shark again..? They''re really important huh... For someone who''s dead.


    "There''s a secret route near the river. It''s getting dark already... Triax is not that strong when he''s in the dark. That''s why he''ll burn this entire forest down just for light. You see. He has an intense fear of darkness. Use that to your advantage.... And good luck. Vampire!"


    Heh. Calling me a Vampire again... Is that an insult?


    Anyways. I''ll head out now. Goodbye, Ruley. The river is just right next to us. Wait. Which way should- he''s gone already...


    Well. I''ll just find it out on my own then! I head down the river, and as expected, there''s a road in the forest. It''s very obvious... But it''s also very dark. One of senses allows me to see without light though.


    The road leads me into an empty field. The fires behind me, where the village was at, grows bigger. It begins to fill in the dark sky. Was fires always this huge? No! The forests burning! He''s already found me out huh. That means Ruley has been defeat as well... How tragic...


    Huh?! He''s already out of the forest!? I''ll have to run then... Engaging in a fight would mean one of us will die... The nearest village is...


    I sigh... There''s no way he''d let me go huh. It''s nearly impossible to escape so...


    "Curveball". Taught to me by Lare, a few days ago while we were still in the city. It''s a technique used in baseball, but it could also be used in anything. Anything round enough, or shaped like a baseball.


    I use [Blood Hardening]. I cast [Physical Enhancement II], before picking up a rock. This will do.


    It is a difficult move to perform, and usually, it isn''t supposed to be made using a bat, but Divine Intervention''s stock is shaped perfectly, just for a Curveball.


    "Vixen... You should''ve joined us when you had the chance to...-"


    I flip Divine Intervention as I throw the rock up in the air. Then, I catch the weapon and swing it back, preparing to hit. I cast/use [Physical Enhancement III], [Blood Hardening], and [Holy Barrier] on the rock.


    Triax has already stepped 50 meters in front of me as he realize this. It''s too late for him now. I swing Divine Intervention, hitting the rock, perfectly, it blows up into multiple pieces, and into dust. The gun and the rock aligned too well, and the pieces curved towards Triax, while the dust forms into a dome, blocking all light for less than a millisecond.


    I mean... Isn''t this kind of ridiculous?


    "You!!- Aaagghh!!!"


    I use [Rushing Dropkick], hitting him on the face. Unlike the one used on Ruley, this time, it''s with my full power.


    "Kkkghhhaa-!!"


    He''s knocked out as I follow up. He is blown back into the forest. He won''t be getting up for a while, at least.


    I run back towards the nearest village. Escaping the scene.


    After I returned, I immediately called reinforcements, and the army. Everyone searched the Fanine Clan''s village but everything was burnt down to the ground. Including the forest around it. Triax disappeared. Our only clue in finding him is that he''s in the Holy Pyramids, probably.


    "That Triax guy was kind of crazy huh. Burning down his entire village just like that..."


    "Yeah..! Pikaia, you shouldn''t be like that guy, okay?"


    "Uuuu..!! Who are you to say that?!"


    Looks like we''ve got another enemy. We all sat down around Rika''s house for the time being. There was no rent here, and it''s a pretty safe place.


    "So? Vixen, who were those guys that died before the war again?"


    Den asks. But I can''t talk right now, you know?


    "Ghen... I used to know him before. He was in Djoflour for a while, right?"


    What? Someone in the Fanine Clan was there? How? And why?


    "Don''t believe anything he says, Vixen. He''s probably drunk again."


    "No. I''m serious, Den. I haven''t even drunk anything this month..!"


    "Feradon... You just said Drunk."


    "I mean Drunk! As in drinked! Do you have a brain?!"


    "Heh. Of course. You''re talking to one right now."


    "How nerdy. Why aren''t you using it then?"


    And then, Feradon and Den continued arguing for 5 hours straight. Lare went to sleep, while Liand and Rayan joined in with them, adding more fuel for the argument. Pikaia was then ordered around to cook food and bring drinks.


    "Uu...!! Wawawawa..!! Why do I have to do this?!! Waaaahh!!"


    "Shut up! More drinks! D-Den told me that you still hug pillows when you s-sleep!! Don''t make me reveal that!!"


    "Haha! It appears that you''ve mistaken! You''re the only one who does that!!"


    "Hah... Even I don''t do that... Is there something wrong with you, Feradon..?"


    Huh..? How unexpected. How does Den even know that anyways?


    "Wait you actually do that, Feradon?!!"


    It was chaos. The house was really loud. And so I went to sleep in the basement.


    Why are they doing this when the Blood God might return..?! And the Hero of the Great Catastrophe has already returned!! Does these guys have no fear..?


    Or am I just too serious..?

 Chapter 15: Potential Enemies.

    Consequences of some mushroom dressed a human, the 8th infantry division was heavily damaged.


    "Sisisaya Mandrakora". A mushroom who originated from the North. Usually hunted down by hunters.


    "Hah..! I-I''m home..!"


    "Huh..?"


    Rika Zerai, has returned home to Pikaia Adell. Since it was damaged, the 8th infantry division began to rest. Most soldiers returned to their homes, and to their families, same for Rika.


    "Rika!! You''re home!"


    Pikaia yells happily, as she runs up to hug Rika. Suddenly, Rika pulls out a revolver to shoot Pikaia.


    That was a premonition made by my [Sense of Impending Doom], one of the new senses I''ve woken up with.


    [Drone Prop Attack]. A spell that converts Folate into Gunpowder. Folate, is usually found in many foods, but by turning it into Gunpowder, I can cast [Heaven''s Model], a spell that detonates explosives. Basically, it''s another combination of spells for effective killing. Though, it''s probably useless now since we can''t take more souls.


    Those are the new spells I''ve learned many days ago, during the making of the plane...


    "Vixen, good to hear from you again. Manta and Sting has done their part in making the radios. Telepathic radios. We''ll send some new spells into your brain once we create more spells. Everything''s going fine here. Fin has began his search for Rabbit. Though, I have a feeling she''s not in this place anymore."


    It''s Frelhr huh. The new spells he sent me was [Drone Prop Attack], and [Heaven''s Model]. Keasius should be in the base right now. And Frelhr will be able to confirm this.


    "Keasius you say? He''s the God of the sea, I''ve heard. A shark, you may have already known of that shark as the Great White Shark. Truth is, he didn''t swim back here, instead, he dug under the ocean in order to reach this place."


    I was curious to why he would do such thing. But then I realized! The ants of the Northern Regions! Angels are rare creatures said to have come from the heavens, they descend upon earth once a thousand years. Sometimes, they rip up space along the way.


    "Yes. Seems like you''ve understood it already. The path of wisdom and the path of darkness doesn''t differ so much. To the dreams of Rabbit, she didn''t wish to make this world a better place, but rather, to revive Frillet Tofan, the hero of the Great Catastrophe. For Keasius, the waters underneath the ocean contained a small virus only taken by the fishfolk. Another thing under the ocean was the lost empire of Traunta. His home, he used to be the leader, until the empire was destroyed. It seems that he still wishes to bring it back someday."


    It is still unclear what Rabbit was always trying to do. She definitely didn''t just want to help us. A threat greater than the Great Catastrophe''s Hero remained, and she was somehow involved with it.


    Back to the present day. Everyone chatters, as Pikaia prepares the food. The sun is rising, and it feels like it will be another wonderful day.


    "It''s a shame that your friend had to betray us huh. One thing though, I''ve read about this old Hero back in the Libraries of my hometown."


    We were in Rika''s house, after the night when Triax betrayed us, and his clan. The discussion continued. It is right after the Hero has returned. News spread like wildfire. Everyone in the world knew about it by the time already.


    "Didn''t know you liked reading. Where did you live before anyways? And I''m pretty sure there wasn''t that many books about the hero during the-"


    "Shh. Listen first. To the tale of Frillet Tofan. The hero..! A long time ago, the demons have declared war upon us humans, just like today. Then, the hero was born, he was already a master of the swords! Yes, swords specifically, he used a technique called, the 800 Blades Style! Cool isn''t it? After gaining allies, he began his quest to defeat the Demon Lord! Though... It''s not... The same story every time..."


    "What do you mean..?"


    "You see... For some unknown reason..."


    It wasn''t called the Great Catastrophe for no reason. It was a few thousand years ago. When everything was so powerful.


    "Witch. Demon. Demon. Demon. Demon. Angel. Demon. Demon. All are high-ranking monsters, from either, heaven, or hell. Yes. It was written correctly. What they called the Great Catastrophe, is the giant hole made in this world. Actually. It wasn''t the Hero who defeated the Demon Lord. Rather. Both of them were killed, caught up in a fight."


    "What?! No way..! The Hero is the strongest during the time they are born..! Nothing other than Gods are stronger than them..!"


    "Yes. It was a fierce battle between the Gods. Though, it was never even a battle. An entire God fought someone... It is unknown who they were. As everyone around was wiped out when the battle took place. No one saw what happened. Only the aftermath."


    "So..? How did the old Hero come back today? Don''t tell me-....!"


    "No. He wasn''t the one to be revived. The Blood God is still being revived. And Sacrifices are still ongoing."


    "So... How did he return then?"


    "This is where his allies come in. You see, he didn''t really die. Instead, he was sent out of this world. One of his allies just brought him back. And no. This never happened during that time. Today. He has just been brought back today."


    "What..? H-how..? How does one even bring someone back from outside this world?"


    "Te-"


    The door suddenly opens. Rika is outside. But I know. Using [Spatial Investigation], the Hero is in this Continent, approximately 9 Million Kilometers away from us.


    "R-Rika..."


    "Sergeant..!"


    "Rika!!! You''re home..!!"


    Pikaia jumps up to hug Rika. Rika then takes out a revolver, aiming it at Pikaia. What a surprising reunion. But I''ve seen this already.


    "Huh?! What''s the meaning of this?! Sergeant?!"


    Feradon stands up, preparing Fire Magic. A magic circle is already summoned in front of him. Looks like he''s being serious for once


    "Wh-w-whaf...!??? R-rika... No...!"


    Rika pulls the trigger, but the Revolver has no bullets. Though, before all this, why would she do such thing? Has Rika betrayed us? It will be unfortunate. But there''s always a solution, somehow.


    "Tsk!"


    Who said that? Suddenly, she falls down, unconscious. I couldn''t sense Bloodlust from her, due to two main reasons, one, I couldn''t react in time, and two, a strange field surrounded her, blocking my senses.


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    "Huh?! Rika!!"


    Everyone runs up to her, checking her state. Looks like she didn''t do this for no reason. Someone has used [Mind Control] on her.


    "Who would do such thing?!"


    "Waaahhhhh!!! Y-you shouldn''t h-have done that, Rika!!!"


    She''ll be sleeping for now. Thanks to some sleeping magic, we can also investigate her case as well.


    "This must be the works of Frillet Tofan huh. There''s still traces of Mind Control magic left on her body. And the Hero of the Great Catastrophe was well known for his Mind Control Magic."


    He may be true but... From that far away..? She couldn''t have come here from that far away. The army hasn''t even reached that far yet. Unless Frillet actually has long-ranged spells, Mind Control can''t be used on such distances.


    "Cry cry..!! Huh?! T-the old hero?! I don''t c-care about any of that!! I''ll kill those who t-threatens!!"


    What a surprise it is, when suddenly, a pair of wings grow out from Pikaia''s back. Has the seal been undone?!


    "What the?! Did the seal get broken?!"


    "Oh no- heh... We only have one option then... I suppose killing the old hero wouldn''t make much difference in this war."


    We all moved onto the empty fields, where the plane first took off. Looks like we''re going to attack the Hero now. My style of fighting should be better than theirs, if they only plan to fly out and try to find the Hero.


    "This is revenge then..!"


    "Um, excuse me, Pikaia... But what are we doing..?"


    "Umm... I don''t know?! Shoot a fireball at the Hero?! Or I''ll fly-"


    No need. I take out a fork as I hold my hand out to stop them.


    "Huh?! What are you doing, Vixen?! Allow me to deliver judgement!"


    I take out Divine Intervention, performing a curveball again, but this time, with a fork.


    [Orbital Curveball]. A skill that turns any projectile into a weapon, by throwing it into orbit, and sending it crashing down to a target.


    I use [Orbital Curveball], hitting the fork with the stock of Divine Intervention, shooting it into orbit. Soon, it will cause a massive explosion. Since the fork has three spikes, the middle one will be the only one to survive in the sky. Effectively, it''s similar to a missile.


    "What?! What was that..?"


    Not being able to speak Is annoying, so I throw Divine Intervention onto the ground. I do need to explain to them what I did.


    "No need to worry anymore. The Hero will be eliminated."


    "H-huh..? What..?" What was that you threw?"


    "A fork."


    "Fork?"


    "A fork was the most effective way to deal with him. Truly, the shape of that utensil was enough to break through the atmosphere and not burn out during orbit."


    It was slightly embedded with magic after all. A normal fork would immediately melt if hit with Divine Intervention.


    "H-hah...?? What do you mean?"


    "I see. The fork huh... It''s almost shaped like a missile. Those things that the military sometimes use? Yeah. Those."


    "Why are you giving a question to yourself? And then answering it?"


    "Don''t question. It''s a way of speaking, you idiot."


    "Hey! I''m not an idiot!"


    I can''t see where the fork will hit, but I do sense it''s target. Once the target stops moving, it should mean that we have won. The target being Frillet of course.


    "Still..! How does a fork work like that?!"


    "Read more books, and educate yourself, Pikaia."


    Eh... I don''t think any science or books will be able explain that...


    "Anyways. The old hero should''ve been struck down by now. We will have to worry about Rika first."


    "H-huh..?! The old Hero attacked us for no reason! We need to confirm his death! He might still be trying to kill us or something!"


    "Yeah! Den''s right! Also, isn''t he your leader?! You should trust him!"


    Wasn''t Feradon our leader? Den may be the leader of his party, but Feradon is still our current leader for this mission.


    "Relax relax. I know a bit of Spatial Magic. I can see- huh?!


    "What is it?! Are they still alive even though the fork hit?!"


    "Seems like it. Quick! Give me more forks!"


    "Hah... Guess we can count on you for long-ranged attacks then... Also, won''t this kill the old hero? Or everyone around him?"


    "I can''t detect anyone around him. And besides. He''s the old hero for a reason. He''s stronger than Den, who could get hit 50 times by this attack, and still come out without a scratch."


    "W-what..?! Don''t we need like, 200 forks then?!"


    "Give me all the forks in the city. Also. Give me any fruits or vegetables that you can find. Spinach, for the best result, since the fork can hold on to it, even when there are no more spikes left, other than the middle one."


    "W-what?! What would you even use them for?! But okay! You can count on us!"


    A fork may not be the best option, but creating something made out of blood right now would make everyone think I''m a Vampire..!


    Everyone scatters around, picking up forks, vegetables, and fruits, and giving it to me, so I can I quickly use [Orbital Curveball] again. Right before the fork will hit, I will immediately cast [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model] on the vegetables, or fruits, impaled on the fork, triggering an explosion. Basically, we''re just bombarding the old hero with exploding forks.


    "More forks! More vegetables! More fruits!"


    "Ummm... Vixen... May I ask..? Why are your abilities so random..?"


    "Think about it later. When we''ve destroyed the old Hero."


    Come to think of it, Pikaia might be the only one who will be unaffected by the [Drone Prop Attack], and [Heaven''s Model] combination. She''s a dragon who eats rocks after all.


    The entire day passes. We spent the whole time trying to destroy the old Hero, but ended getting tired, with wasting forks, fruits and vegetables, in the city. The old Hero has been slowed down, but he doesn''t look like he''s been eliminated.


    "Hah..! Why..! Why won''t that guy go down..!"


    "Are your attacks even working..?!"


    "Let''s give up for now..! It doesn''t look like the old Hero is going to attack anyways..!"


    Everyone sat on the grass. It''s already nighttime. So we go back home, to find Rika awake. She''s finally recovered!


    "Hey! Sergeant''s awake! Look, everyone!"


    "Huh?! Let me see!"


    She looks confused. Looking around as she realizes she''s back in her home. Perhaps she doesn''t have any memories of being under [Mind Control]?


    "Hmm... Has something happened?"


    She says, with a smile. Pikaia jumps up to her, this time, without anything bad happening. Looks like we finally got a wholesome reunion!


    "Rika!! Yayy!!"


    "Hehehe... I''m sorry that I''ve locked you in there. Seems like you''ve broken the curse already..! And- oh..."


    Everyone but Pikaia looked at her in anger. I mean, how could you not get mad, when she literally locked Pikaia in her basement, fed her rocks, and then left her there?


    "So? Care to explain the story?"


    "Hahaha....!! Ha....."


    Also, she still managed to make Pikaia not hate her, while being that irresponsible.


    "Actually... If I didn''t lock her down there... The soldiers of the empire might''ve found her and killed her. You know, she''s still hiding from them."


    "No need to lie. She told us already, that the empire already knew where she was, and that they needed her to make weapons in order to survive."


    "Heh. That''s what I''ve told her. It''s for her survival too, you know?"


    "What a bad person you are. But you''d be a good parent."


    "Seems that you understand."


    And thus, we continued the party, now with Rika Zerai on the group. A huge concern still remained. Who used [Mind Control] on Rika? And who wanted to attack us? There''s a low possibility of the enemy being the old Hero, Frillet. But remember, low chances doesn''t mean no chances. Yes, I''ve heard that from Rabbit.


    "Woohoo!! Let us celebrate Rika and Pikaia''s reunion! After a... What is it again..? After a month or two, they are finally back together again! I''ve bought the food and drinks for tonight, so don''t worry about cooking anymore!!"


    "Yayy!!! I get to eat something that''s not... Oh wait... This isn''t copper..!"


    "You can eat other things too, you know? Not just rocks!"


    "Hey. Where''s the meat? These are all chicken."


    "We shouldn''t have let Den get the things huh..."


    "How rude! This is my money, you know!! And chicken meat is still meat!!"


    With all that money that he has, why buy chicken meat? It''s the cheapest in this city.


    The night went on, and eventually, we all fell asleep. But then... How strange it is. And how surprising it is... I''m back in the dream world again.


    It''s been a long time since I''ve been here. Is that Dream God going to tell me something again? Or did he get into an accident again?


    "Yo. Welcome back. Chris."


    He says, with the same voice from many years ago. I''ve gotta thank him, for transporting me into this world. The power, and everything that I have right now, is definitely better than everything I''ve had back in the old world, earth.


    "Hello, Dream God."


    "Have you forgotten who I am already? Heh... It hurts me a bit, you know. Even with your perfect memory, you still forgot?"


    "Sorry. But someone must have removed that memory or something."


    "I could tell you who did that... But I''m not allowed to interact much with the worlds. Goes for both worlds, you know?"


    "So? Where''s Nyx? I''ve gotta thank her first."


    "Ahem ahem. Excuse me but... Who is Nyx? You seem to be referring to somebody, perhaps a God, or Goddess? I''d want to meet them, but they don''t exist, do they?"


    They don''t exist you say..?! The Goddess of Creation... Nyx... Don''t tell me he doesn''t remember..! Though, I can''t even remember his name right. But him not remembering another Goddess, is something else.


    "The Goddess of Creation. Stop joking around for a bit. I need to thank her too."


    "Chris... I''m sorry but I have no idea what you''re talking about. And thanking them before me, remembering their name and forgetting mine, seems like something removed some of your memories. And gave you different ones."


    "Yeah. Seems like this a dream. You''re the fake Dream God huh. Guess I''ll just wake up then."


    "Allow me to say this first. Both worlds have been interrupted by something, by a God perhaps. And Gods usually aren''t allowed to do that. Chris. You''re actually involved with this interrupter. Also. Be sure to prepare for the Fake God''s revival as well."


    The Blood God''s revival? Yeah. Of course I will. Don''t worry, Dream God.

 Chapter 16: A Peaceful Day.

    During the Great Catastrophe, the Hero had great allies with unique abilities. One of them, having [Residue Detoxification], which will be one of the more important clues in learning [Soul Retraction].


    "The old Hero is that far away from us?! Well. It''s still strange for him to be in this continent. He was on the other side of the world just a few days ago..!"


    "Yeah..! For him to get here that fast... Teleportation Magic! It''s a difficult and risky spell, but that would be the only answer to this!"


    Den and Feradon argued over how the the Old Hero managed to step foot on this continent in just a few days. He did return from a great distance, far away from us after all.


    Lare, Liand, and Crowler were still asleep. Rika and Pikaia were cooking something in the kitchen. Pikaia still needed to learn that she can eat things like fruits and vegetables too. We had to eat horrible food most of the time because of this, fortunately, Rika is finally here to teach her about not eating rocks.


    "You see... Crushing potatoes is bad! They''re very fragile, like dirt. They''re different from metal. Don''t eat metal as well! From now on, eating rocks and metal is banned!"


    "W-w-what?! But I thought we needed iron to be healthy!!"


    "That''s... Hmm. I think I''ve heard about it before. That we eat metal iron? I guess you can eat Iron then..."


    "Yay!! I have blocks of iron back in the basement!! You can have them if you want!!"


    "No! You think I''m the same as you?! Humans can''t eat a block of metal, you know!?"


    "W-what?! Why?!!"


    I step out of the house. It''s finally a peaceful day, where nothing bad will happen. The sky is clear, and the streets are windy, there''s not much people around as well! It''s truly a perfect day to go on a walk around the city!


    I walk through the streets, there are several people walking around, some are doing laundry, while some are walking their dogs.


    "Good morning, soldier! Thanks for keeping us safe from the empire!"


    "No problem, citizen! That''s our job after all!"


    How friendly. The soldiers are roaming around as well, keeping the peace. The enemies are too far away to attack, and even if they do want to attack, the army has already pushed far enough, that the nearest cities around Madagon are already retaken by Asanrak.


    Oh, who is that I see? It''s a familiar face. Must be one of the soldiers during the battle against General Yynfur. Is it one of Rika''s men? I must go say "Hi" then.


    "Hey there, Soldier! Aren''t you from the 8th infantry division?"


    I yell as I walk up to him. Divine Intervention is in the basement at Rika''s house, so talking will be fine. I hope no one steals that gun though.


    "Huh? Oh! It''s the outsider! Hello there!"


    Outsider? Yeah, he is definitely one of Rika''s men. It must be Neer Sandem, the one who tried to make another plan during the battle against General Yynfur.


    "Hm. What brings you to this city? Perhaps you''re looking for your leader?"


    "Haha..! You''re right! Sergeant Rika Zerai should be around here somewhere. Another outsider is here as well, Feradon, I think..?"


    So Feradon isn''t part of the military huh... He must be a member of the Fanine Clan then. Probably General Litharin''s assistant?


    "Well. We''re currently living in her house. But no... We can''t let you enter. So sorry haha..!"


    "Really?! Come on..! I just want to talk to her! She did a great job in our last mission, you know?"


    "Last mission? Can you tell me more about it?"


    "Yeah, of course. Let''s talk at Rika''s house..!"


    "Hmm... I guess that''s fine then. Bring snacks though, and prepare for annoyance before you step in..!"


    "Annoyance..? What do you mean by that..?"


    The guys back there would definitely kick him out... Well. I guess Rika can let him stay.


    As we arrive in front of the house. Pikaia opens the door, and looks at us with confusion.


    "Huh? A new member? Vixen! I told you the house is already full!"


    She says, angrily. She''s still wearing an apron, she must''ve been cooking something just a few seconds ago. Oh wait! Her wings stand out too much! I forgot about that!


    "W-w-what the?! A dragon?!"


    Sandem panics. It''s an expected reaction. But I need to calm him down!


    "No no..! It''s just fake wings. You know, she wants to be a dragon."


    "What?! How rude!! I am a dragon!!"


    I sigh. How stupid can she be... Can''t she understand the situation here?


    "A dragon?!! I need to call the-"


    "Relax. I told you already. She really wants to be a dragon. Just call her one. Or get out."


    "H-huh..? Oh... She''s fake... Heh. Now that I look at it... The wings look too unrealistic!! Why would a dragon have the body of a human, but have blue wings!? You''re pretty bad at trying to be a dragon!"


    Hmmm... She actually doesn''t really look like a dragon... He''s right! Pikaia has the body of a human, but with blue dragon wings on the back! It''s a terrible combination! Oh. And she also has a tail.


    "Wait..! How does her tail move!?"


    "Magic magic... It''s simple. It''s moved by magic."


    "I see..! Sorry..! I just saw a lot of dragons on the battlefield, and seeing another dragon is terrifying..! I don''t want to see one again!"


    I understand that. Also, when did Pikaia get a tail? I remember her only getting wings yesterday. Did she get her tail back when I was asleep? I didn''t really see her when I woke up. She was in the kitchen after all.


    "How rude! You''re seeing a real dragon right here, right now! A true, beautiful, wonderful, and powerful dragon!!"


    "Heh..! I see through your lies now, woman! Sorry but, your dragon wings, and dragon tail, doesn''t look realistic at all!"


    "Surprise!!! I am surprised!! You still don''t believe that I''m a dragon huh?! Fine then! Let me show you what a real dragon can do!!"


    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Oh no... This is getting bad. I''ll have to stop her from proving the fact that she is a dragon!


    "Pikaia... If you''re truly a dragon... Real dragons don''t get mad at things like this... Perhaps. You''re actually just a human?!"


    "What?! No! You''ve seen me-"


    "Shhh!! Stop talking. Stop being fake. And let us enter. In peace...!!"


    What a relief. If she said something about eating rocks and metal, Sandem would''ve find out she was a dragon!


    "Hey! What are you doing?!"


    We walk past her, entering the house. There''s another problem though... Everyone is still in the house! Den and Feradon are still arguing! And the others have woken up! Where''s Rika though..?


    "Pikaia. Where''s Rika?"


    "Oh, her? She''s out buying somethings!"


    Ah... This is bad... The guys would definitely kick him out. Should I just tell them about what we''re going to talk about? No... It''s going to be more chaos! What should I do..?!


    Kahhh!! He''s already stepped forward, interrupting Den and Feradon''s argument!!


    "I''ve told you already! The sun. Is not a planet!!"


    "That''s what everyone wants you to think!! You also think that humans are just normal humans too huh?!"


    "What do you- huh..? Who are you?!"


    Both of them looks at Sandem as if he was an alien. He begins to get nervous and scratches his head, fake laughing.


    "Hahahaha...! What were you talking about..?"


    Den and Feradon looks at each other. Hah.... This is definitely not good...


    "Hmmm... Are you-"


    "Shut up, idiot!"


    Feradon slaps Den on the back, quieting him down, before whispering something to each other.


    "Oh... I see..!"


    "Hahaha! Welcome! Soldier! Are you in Rika''s team? You look familiar, feels like I''ve seen you somewhere!"


    "Yeah yeah! Come sit down!"


    Looks like nothing bad is going to happen... Sandem sits down next to Den, I sit down as well, next to Feradon. Hold on. Why don''t we have chairs..? Not saying that the rug is uncomfortable...


    "Now. Back to what we were saying."


    "Man... Using two "we"s in a sentence is really tongue twisting huh."


    "What are you talking about? Your tongue can''t get twisted, you idiot!"


    "Man! Are you an idiot!?"


    "No. You''re the idiot here."


    "Sigh... Can''t you figure it out? Have you been living under a rock?! Even Pikaia here could understand what I meant!"


    "Heh?! Is that right, Pickaxe?!"


    Pikaia leaves the kitchen, appearing next to us, hands on hips. Did she figure out that Feradon said Pickaxe, and not Pikaia?


    "Tongue twisters? That you''re talking about? Hehehehe...!! I may have lived under a house, but I definitely have heard of them!"


    Ehh...? No way... How''d she- oh right. Books.


    "What?! How- how could...!!"


    "You really are stupid huh..?! Even this dumb useless dragon knows about them! If you''re dumber than her, then you''re dumber than a rock!! Hahaha!!!"


    "What..?! Is this defeat..!!? I''ve never been defeated before...!! Not by someone like you!!"


    "Hahahaha!!"


    This conversation seems dumb... Sandem is pretty quiet... Pikaia looks angry...


    "Hey!! What did you say about me being a dumb stupid ugly dragon?!!"


    "What? I''ve never said that before."


    "Really?! I''ve just heard you say that a second ago!!"


    "Really?? I only said that you''re a dumb useless dragon! Not a dumb stupid ugly dragon!"


    "W-w-what?!! I''ll let you know! That dragons are the most beautiful creatures in the planet!"


    "Heh. In the sun? Feradon would agree with you..... Because there''s no one else on that planet!! Since the level is so low, you''re the only thing that doesn''t look bad. Basically. You''re on the same level as water!!!"


    I don''t think there''s water on the sun... Also, is water bad?


    "W-w-w-w-!!"


    "Can''t even talk?! Let me tell you something more devastating! I kicked your tail while you were asleep!"


    Huh..? Why would he do that? That''s kind of stupid.


    "What?! I''ve always cleaned this tail for many years! You dirtying it means war!! Fine then! I won''t give you gold for breakfast anymore!!"


    "Heh..? Wait wait wait! No I''m sorry please..! Don''t don''t don''t!! It''s my favorite food please!"


    Is Den eating gold..? Wait no... Is he just using the gold for money?! Hah... Pikaia is too stupid... Also. Weren''t we going to talk about the 8th infantry division''s most recent mission..?


    "Ha-ha-ha!! If you''re truly sorry.... Grovel right now!! And say sorry 200 times!!"


    What a ridiculous request- he''s actually groveling!!!


    "H-huh?! T-the hero!! Is groveling!!!"


    "W-what!? Den is?!"


    "Let me see! Move out of the way!"


    "How low the hero has gotten..!"


    Huh?! Where did everyone come from?! Were they just listening in on us?!! And Den is still grovelling!!!


    Liand, Lare, Rayan, and Crowler stepped into the room. Looks like it''ll be more chaos then...


    "Hahahahahaha!!! Look everyone!! The hero-"


    An uppercut hits Pikaia. Den stood up, he looks really mad. He looks like he''s about to cry... Uh oh...


    "Hey! What''d you do that for?!"


    "No.... Where the hell did you all come from?!!"


    Same question, Den.


    "Hehehe..! We just woke up, and then we heard you guys screaming so loud!"


    "We were scared that you guys were arguing seriously..!"


    "I didn''t know you liked doing that. I''ll keep this secret for you."


    Looks like everyone misunderstands Den now. Well. He did kind of deserve this, for tricking Pikaia into giving him gold to sell.


    "Hahaha! Den! I thought you actually wanted to say sorry! But now I see... You only did that because you wanted to! Am I right-"


    "No, you idiot!!!"


    When are we going to talk about the mission..?


    "Umm... Actually.... Can I leave...?"


    Sandem finally spoke.


    "Who are you..?"


    "Who''s this man..?"


    "Huh? When did this guy come in?"


    "Who''s he?"


    "Leave. Intruder."


    Did they not realize him being here..? Suddenly, the front door opened. It must be Rika huh....


    "I''m home!! I got the carrots!!"


    "Hah!! Rika!! Welcome back!! Let''s cook!!"


    Pikaia leaves the room. And just like that, everyone looked at Den in disappointment, as he looks down, in disappointment as well. How did the conversation go from tongue twisters to this anyways?


    "We''ll keep this a secret, leader."


    "Yeah. No one will know about this. I''ll get rid of anyone who does."


    "Didn''t that guy over there know about it already?"


    Sandem? Well. He shouldn''t have stepped foot into this house anyways...


    "I didn''t hear anything!! I swear!!! Okay okay... I''ll leave now, bye!!"


    He runs off, leaving the house. No one chased after him. He should be fine, I guess.


    Later, the sun set. Rika told me about her last mission anyways. It wasn''t even interesting. And- wow... Looks like Pikaia has learned how to cook fruits now..! But why fruits... It''s a bit unusual to cook apples, isn''t it?


    "Hmmm... This actually tastes good..!! I give it 1.5 stars!"


    "Hey! If it''s good, then at least give it a better rating!!"


    "Yeah... I give this 2 stars!"


    We were all eating on one table. The food isn''t bad, actually, it''s better than the average food. Should we be resting like this when the world is still at war? I guess it''s fine then... Rabbit once told me, "Hard Work without Rest isn''t Hard Work." And yes, I don''t even know what that means.


    As I tried to sleep, a knock on the wall startled me slightly. Is it an enemy? I must go check. Rika''s house is between two large buildings, the knocking came from behind the house. How should I... I''ll just climb it then.


    At the back, a person is sitting there, as expected. Looks like she isn''t aware of my presence, she doesn''t seem to be hostile either. Is she another homeless person? I should just send her away.


    "Hey. Would you mind leaving?"


    I say. She looks up to me. Wait! She isn''t just another homeless person... She''s-! I forgot. Hmmm... I swear I''ve seen her face before...


    "Huh?! Who are you?!"


    She says.


    Despite having perfect memory, I somehow forgot who she is. No doubt that this the work of a spell!


    [Conceal IV]. [Conceal] is normally weak, only hiding your presence, but at high levels, It conceals, presence, physical form, soul, knowledge, and more..! At this level, I can only barely see her, I thought it was the darkness, but no..!


    "A Vampire?! What is one doing here?! The soldiers really aren''t doing much huh..."


    She knows about my Blood Magic?! It''s a bit irritating when people automatically assume that I''m a Vampire just because I have Blood Magic, you know?


    "I''m not a Vampire. And you should leave now..!"


    "Such a weak monster... you can''t intimidate me. Begone. Holy Light."


    [Holy Light]? Well, of course it wouldn''t work on- Gahh!! My hand is burning!! She''s just that powerful huh..?!


    "Tsk. What are you doing? I''m not a vampire. Leave now, or else I''ll have to use force."


    "You''re still alive? What a tough vampire. Holy Light."


    "Told you it wouldn''t work-"


    "Holy Light. Holy Flames. Holy Light."


    She keeps using Holy Magic?! Most people would burn with that level of magic! Hah... Guess I''ll have to use force then.


    "Holy Light- Huh?!"


    I use [Missile Dropkick].


    "Kkha-!! Ouch!!"


    Hmm... My feet is also burning. Why won''t she stop that?!


    "You are a strong vampire huh...! Seems that I''ve underestimated-"


    "Holy Light."


    "Huh-?!"


    It doesn''t do damage to her, but it will be enough proof that I''m not a Vampire. Even though I can''t cast any Holy Magic spells, casting [Firelight II] while saying "Holy Light" will work as a fake [Holy Light].


    "Huh...? You''re not a vampire? There''s no way that the system is wrong!"


    System..? System!?! Game system?!! Like the system in a fantasy game?!


    "What?! What do you mean by that?!"


    "Hahaha..! Nothing nothing..! W-who are you anyways..? If you''re not a vampire, then..!"


    "I''m one of the Heroes. I can''t say my name yet though. Forgive me for that."


    "H-heroes?! The heroes?! Den Mako?! Or Frillet Tofan?!"


    "Den Mako. We live right here. Why were you knocking anyways?"


    "U-umm..! Nothing! I was just doing unnecessary movements!!"


    "Okay then. Leave."


    "No way I''d leave without visiting the heroes!!"


    Ah... Another annoying person. The house is already full, you know?


    "Sorry but. I was lying. Leave now, because I''m a vampire."


    "Liar..! I''ll eradicate you then!"


    "Sigh... Fine. But only tomorrow. We''re still trying to sleep, you know?"


    "Yay!! Yay!!! Thank you, Ms. Not-Vampire!!"


    "I''m not Ms. Not-Vampire... I''m-"


    "See you tomorrow then, Ms. Not-Vampire!!"


    She runs off, leaving me behind without even listening to me... Will she become another nuisance..?


    I guess I''ll just go to sleep for now...

 Chapter 17: The Branches.

    The next day, "Rintan Firanha", princess of "Zerra", and the leader of the "Western Holy Alliance", arrived at our house.


    What''s a very important person doing here..? She doesn''t even have her guards... Does she actually just want to meet us..?


    "Hello there, Heroes of humanity."


    She says, as she sits in front of us, legs crossed. Seems like she didn''t have that immense aura surrounding her for nothing. I didn''t even realize that it was her, that I met last night. Probably because of the spells she used.


    "I''ll speak simply. The demons have taken over more than 40% of the world. Everyone wanted me to take action so I ran away. Pressure was too much, ya know?"


    That''s right... Almost everyone in the world right now knows about her... If she ran away from her home... Then a large group of people must''ve been sent out to find her right now..!


    Everyone, including Den, stood frozen in front of her. I can''t blame them. If she actually went serious on me last night, I would''ve been gone by now.


    "W-what are you doing here..?!"


    Den asks. He sounds really nervous. But he''s probably the only one who can speak right now, since I''ve picked up Divine Intervention again.


    "This world is in absolute chaos. An ancient hero has returned. A primordial god is being revived by this war. And a new disease has broken out from the ocean. Lives are dropping. Death is in the air. Blood is dripping everywhere."


    Well... I think everyone knows about that already... But the disease is new information. It must be the same virus that Frelhr mentioned. How did it break out though?


    "I''ve been looking for you, Heroes. We need to kill the Demon Lord, and the old Hero as soon as possible."


    Frelhr and the rest are already working on that, you know?


    "Mind for mind. Soul for soul. Everything has a cost. The cost for one revival, is 50 billion souls. This war has been going on for 5 thousand years now. Since the Eras of Apostasy..."


    The Eras of Apostasy?! I haven''t heard of it before... And for a war to continue for that long... Is it a different war she''s talking about?


    "And the cost for living...... Someone has been interrupting with our plans for many decades now. We''ll have to go into the resting place of Xlae-Thanea. Vampire, you know about it, don''t you? Your friends told you to go there..."


    Me?! I don''t-... Resting place..? My friends..? Is she talking about the Holy Pyramids? Triax and the Fanine Clan does know about it somehow... I guess I can tell her about it...


    "Yes. One of the strongest members of the Fanine Clan has told me to visit the Holy Pyramids."


    I write on paper.


    "Very Good. Cat should be there too. Do you know what that means? What lies in the ocean, but walks in the skies? The divine emperor has no answer, but to you, you do have one. It is merely a fold within reality... Eating salt won''t get you dehydrated, but what''s inside will. You get what I mean?"


    Cat..? Sky..? Reality..? Salt..? What in the world is this woman even talking about?!


    "C.A.T. A quick way to say: Celestial Antennae. It means that the world will come into a collapse soon. And the Blood God won''t be the only one returning upon their revival..."


    Oh... "C." = Celestial, "A.T." = Antennae... Why make it sound so complicated? Also, shouldn''t it be "C.A." only?! And what is its connection to the Blood God and the World''s Collapse?


    "Celestial Antennae is the Baphomet. More specifically, the Baphomet''s second self. Similar to me, Sushi Sand, and Rintan Firanha are two different beings. Though, they share the same physical form."


    Cat is the Baphomet? And the one I met last night was Sushi? Hold on... isn''t there a food called sushi back in the old world? Is it a coincidence?


    "The Baphomet and Cat shares one goal. To uphold Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice''s orders. The Goddess of Order does not necessarily need a Hero, nor a Demon Lord. Only a result. A constant result."


    A constant result? To hold the world together in order? I don''t really get it... Is it to keep the world the way it is?


    "Ruthenoceras Ptychodus has more details. Though, it may be near impossible to visit her now. But the Temporal Spatial Pyramids exists for a reason. There, time is frozen, and space doesn''t move. Nothing moves there. Thus, it becomes constant in the universe."


    How is it constant if it doesn''t move? And that Salmon Shark again..? I''ve heard that name so many times, but it''s still sounds almost unintelligible to me.


    "It exists within the thin thread between real and fake. Basically, it''s not existing, and existing at the same time. Ruthenoceras Ptychodus is trapped there with almost no way out. Unless someone comes in to interrupt, she will be forever trapped in her own prison.... Ahem ahem. For now, we will have to find the Holy Pyramids, and help Ruthenoceras Ptychodus out of her prison somehow... We have 10 entire nations on our side. Whatever goes against us, goes against everyone single one of them."


    "Umm... Excuse me, but where should we go first..? T-the pyramids that Vixen mentioned? Or the prison that you were talking about?"


    Den asks.


    "The north... Everyone is heading to the north. The Blood God, the Ancient Hero, and us. Everything belongs in the north, where everything began..."


    "Where everything began..?"


    "Do you wish to learn more about the story? We don''t have much time, but if you need more information-"


    "No no no! I can''t even understand what you''re saying!"


    "Very well. Let''s move then. Firstly, we''ll have to return to my kingdom. It''s very far from here. The fastest escape from this continent is through the underground tunnel system, abandoned by the miners. It''s also how I got here..."


    "Alright... Let''s go then."


    Everyone stood up, ready to go. I guess we would all have to leave this place sooner or later anyways. We haven''t been here for a year...


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    "Heh. I know you guys would''ve left us after a while."


    Pikaia says. Is she mad or something..?


    "Don''t worry, everyone. This house may be quiet now, but your presence will always be here..!"


    "How does that even work..?"


    "Are you being dumb? It means that I''ll remember all of you until you all return!"


    "Alright. We''ll do the same, don''t worry."


    "H-huh..? Oh. Thanks..."


    We walked down a long road, leading into the entrance of the mine. Rika was left behind, since she still had a job in the military, she didn''t want to leave her home as well. Pikaia also stayed behind, of course, because of Rika. Come to think of it, was Rika a parent before? How does she manage to keep a dragon in her house?


    The underground tunnels were abandoned salt mines. Many years ago, due to monsters that randomly arrived, most of the miners lost their jobs, and some lost their lives.


    We walked through the dark tunnels, aided by [Firelight], and other light magic spells. There was a foul smell around the place, it was impossible not to smell it.


    "Sniff sniff. Do you smell that?"


    Rintan stops us, looking around for something. Is there an enemy around? I cast [Spatial Investigation], but nothing seems to be there.


    "Umm... Rintan... Is there something wrong?"


    Den asks.


    "Hmm... If you look closely in the air... You can see tiny blood particles. It wasn''t here before. Something else has entered the tunnels."


    "Something else? You mean there''s something besides us here?"


    "It''s not a monster... And it''s not human... But this smell... It might be an anomaly. Be careful."


    "An anomaly? What is that? I''ve never heard of it before."


    We continued walking down the tunnels. Though, What is an anomaly? Is it something neither alive, nor dead? I think I''ve heard about it before...


    "Anomalies are things not from this world. You could still call them... Gods, demons, or angels. Basically, they do not go by the rules, and the laws of this realm. They''re mostly from the demon realm, where demons reside."


    "Huh. So? Why are they here? Do you have an idea? Usually, demons are the only things in their realm, along with other creatures like dragons, and dangerous monsters right?"


    "Correct. One of the dangerous creatures you spoke of, is the Void Trilobite. A more of a... Carnivorous monster. It''s shaped like a spider, but slightly bigger."


    "A spider?! That''s gonna be terrifying then! A tiny spider already scares me, but a carnivorous monster spider...?!"


    "Don''t worry. They only live in caves... Caves like this... They''re underground creatures, but they usually don''t live in mines. Or places where there''s large groups of people."


    "But the people here are gone, are they? How long has this mine been abandoned? I really don''t want to fight spiders, you know..?!"


    "Hmmm... I think... Ah. This place has been abandoned for a thousand years now... Well. There''s definitely a Void Trilobite here now."


    "Hah... Why didn''t you say so earlier..?"


    "I told you didn''t I? That creature wasn''t here when I first arrived. It most likely came from the demon realm, and then roamed around here not too long ago."


    "You should''ve made some light in this place while you were still here... Your plan was to bring us back to your kingdom wasn''t it? At least secure the path first..."


    "S-sorry... The chances of an anomaly getting into this world are very low, it was extremely unfortunate for us to get visited by the Void Trilobite... I never expected to see one in this world after all..."


    "Hmmm... So now what? Should we hide? Or kill that spider? I''d prefer if we hide... But knowing that thing is roaming around here... It creeps me out..!"


    "I see. Well, okay then. I''ll cast fire into the tunnels, it should burn everything until it reaches the exit."


    "Heh..? What about the things inside the tunnels? What if there''s valuable objects in here..?"


    "Do you want to kill it? Or hide from it? You only have one option, you know?"


    "L-let''s hide for now..."


    That was a bad decision. With our strength, I doubt we could lose to a mere monster right now. But something from the demon realm... There may be some problems huh.


    We moved carefully, and slowly, trying not to get the attention of the Void Trilobite. Though, I''ve never heard of such creature before, it still sounds dangerous.


    "The tunnels stretches far out into the ocean. An exit should take us back into the waters, where my subordinate awaits, along with the boat that I took to get here."


    "How long does this tunnel actually stretch? We''re on the middle of the continent at least. For us to get there... how long does the tunnels even reach..?"


    "Hmmm.... I''m not sure. But it took me at least 3 days to get here... I was running at full speed. To be able to get back while walking, and sneaking, it should take us 5 days. Probably."


    "5 days?! Why this route then?! Can''t we take another road out of this continent!?"


    "I''ve heard that you have planes. The planes would get us back to my kingdom faster, but we''d definitely get attacked. You know how many people are after us right now? The moment I''ve arrived here, a massive group of assassin''s and hunters have been sent to attack us."


    What? I didn''t hear anything about assassins landing on this continent. It is no surprise though, people would definitely want to hunt us down, whether they be demons, or humans.


    "Eh..? Really..? But still... I don''t think anyone could beat us anyways. I''m the Hero. And the Hero is the strongest person during the time they''re alive..."


    "That may be true, but with the old Hero''s return, and the Blood God''s revival, you''ve been thrown off your throne. Also, just because you can beat everyone in a one versus one fight, doesn''t mean you''d be able to take on ten thousand men at once."


    "Ten thousand-..! That''s kinda unnecessary for such a small group..!! They''re probably fighting each other right now... So, it''d be less than ten thousand at least."


    "Yes. That''s unavoidable. Though, the amounts sent to kill us aren''t really unnecessary. To fight the greatest man alive, and the potential ruler of this planet, it would take more than just tens of thousands."


    "Potential ruler? Aren''t you overexaggerating yourself? Also, why isn''t there anyone going after the old Hero..?"


    "Oh. There''s already a ton of people sent after him. More than 50,000 professionals... Probably more."


    "Man... I kind of understand, but why is it such an unbelievable amount, compared to the ones sent after us."


    "Haven''t you realized it already? You see... There''s an astronomical gap between you and the old Hero. For one from the Eras of Apostasy, it''s just reasonable."


    I''ve heard about it before... The reason why the old Hero is absurdly better than everyone, and everything.


    From The Book of Epitomy, Chapter 72: "Those who can''t contain their own strength eventually falls down into the path of darkness. Those who inherit it, become one with the darkness. Those who become one, are godless, for they shall become absolute. For the Great Catastrophe''s Hero, none of this matters, for he conquers fate itself."


    Yes. Conqueror of Fate... Frillet Tofan. Not only does he have supreme strength, the most terrifying fact about him, is that he controls fate itself.


    "... The old Hero never loses. He lived his life without a single mistake. Him getting sent away from this world wasn''t a miscalculation. He can only live the same time an average human can live. So he sealed himself in preparation for today."


    "What...? I''ve never lost in my life too! Besides... There''s no one in this world who is perfect. We all have at least one downsides..."


    "Except, this man is flawless. No imperfections. No downsides. No problems. Everything is going according to his plan. That''s why. We''ll have to remain unseen by him."


    "That''s just impossible. Is he a god or something..? No way anyone is like that. Must be some error in your source of information."


    "You refuse to believe? That''s okay. Eventually, we''ll have to fight him. There won''t be any way to defeat him other than to. Break through fate."


    "Break through fate? Isn''t that impossible too? Everything is controlled by fate. Nothing can break out. It''s simply impossible."


    "No... We only need to have a chance that isn''t zero, and then we''ll win. You need to have this mentality, or else it won''t work. Basically. It''s either, we lose, or we win..... And I swear, I''m not a gambler.


    "I don''t want to risk my life for a chance smaller than 1%... And that''s literally the exact same mindset of a gambler!!"


    "We don''t have a choice. If we can''t kill him, the Blood God will revive. The apocalypse will come. And it will be the end of the world. I came here for a reason... And that is to stop all of that from happening."


    "I see... Well. Let''s think about going to your kingdom for now..!"


    "Good thinking. But first. We''ll have to pass through this underground tunnel without being spotted by the Void Trilobite. It has great senses, and it''s an extremely dangerous predator back on it''s land. Not sure about this place though..."


    "Heh. So that means that it will either stay as the predator, or become the prey here..!"


    "Yeah. You and I could take it down, but the others here... I doubt they''ll be safe during the fight. Same for you, Vampire. You may be strong, but the Void Trilobite is your natural enemy."


    Huh..? Why? Is there anything that can counter Blood Magic? Well. I won''t really have to worry about it. Since I still have other ways of attacking.


    We continued walking down the tunnels. The Void Trilobite is still nowhere to be seen. Does it even exist?


    Also, I think I forgot to ask Rintan about the system that Sushi used.

 Chapter 18: The Ant Nest.

    I could barely see. The only sources of light that we have is a torch, and my [Firelight] spell. That foul smell still remained, and Bloodlust could be sensed from far away.


    "Man... This place is huge..! Are you sure there aren''t any treasures here? We could dig the ground for something..."


    Lare says as he looks around. The roof wasn''t visible, due to the lack of light. This place is probably bigger than we thought it was. even a dragon could fly here without any problems.


    "Hey look! What''s that?"


    "Treasure..? No... It looks like a hole... A shortcut perhaps? It''s big enough for us to crawl in. Rintan, what do you think?"


    Liand asks. Rintan was inspecting a strange trail on the ground before looking at the hole.


    "Hmmm... It seems like there''s an ant nest nearby. There''re multiple smaller tunnels around here, and this is probably one of them."


    Ant nest? Is it Giant Ants? They''re medium-levelled monsters that lives inside caves like this, it''s common for them to make tunnels, and they''re not that dangerous, at least for someone like me.


    "Ants? Do we have to be extra careful now..? What if the Void Trilobite wiped them out already?"


    "Sure, it must''ve eaten some of them by now. But we still have to be careful, there''re also other monsters that lives in caves."


    "Well. Whatever they are... We will eliminate them!"


    "Yeah. I''m well suited with fighting inside places like this, so there shouldn''t be much to worry about."


    The only thing we should be careful with, is the Void Trilobite... We still don''t know much about it after all.


    We continued walking for a while, eventually, stopping for a rest. It was dangerous to go without knowing what time it was. Sleep and Food were important, especially when you''re underground.


    "Uhh... I''m hungry... Why didn''t we bring food with us..?"


    "Sigh... I''m sorry.... Well. Even if you did bring food, I usually eat luxurious meals so I won''t even know how to eat the same food that you guys eat."


    "We already know about that..."


    Luckily, I had potatoes in my bag. It was needed for the [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model] combination, but it wouldn''t be too bad if I shared it with everyone.


    Later, Crowler and Den cooked the potatoes. Looks like they actually know how to cook, it doesn''t taste bad, but it''s not that good either.


    While eating, I write down on paper.


    "Rintan, what was that system that you''ve mentioned at the back of our house?"


    "System? I don''t know. Only Sushi knows about it. We don''t share the same memories after all."


    "I see. Can you switch back to Sushi then? I think I know something about that system."


    "Switch back..? Are you sure? Sushi isn''t that powerful, you know? If we were attacked while Sushi is still awake, I''d definitely get hurt. There''s also a chance that she''ll attack everyone. You know that she only remembers sleeping a few days ago, right?"


    "Well. I can talk to her. And besides, if we got attacked, we have the Hero on our team. She also used a lot of spells the first time I met her, so she''s not really defenseless."


    "Fine... But you only have 10 minutes, okay?"


    "Okay."


    Suddenly, Rintan falls down. Is she asleep? Has Sushi taken over? Her eyes spring open as she gets up, not even using her arms. She looks at us without expression. Hands raised to the sides. Is this really the same person I''ve met that night?


    "A group of assassins? Heh. Even a hundred of you guys won''t stand a chance against me..!"


    This doesn''t look too good. I sense an attack coming. It hits the wall behind me as I dodge it reflectively. Isn''t it rude to attack first without even listening to us? But I guess that''s a good reaction for her, waking up without knowing the situation.


    "What the?! Rintan?! What are you guys doing?!"


    "Step back! Has she betrayed us?!"


    Everyone didn''t hear our conversation? I wouldn''t want to start a huge fight. I need to end this quickly.


    "Vampire... You brought your friends along huh? I guess-"


    I use [Rushing Dropkick]. She is thrown onto a nearby wall as I break through her barrier.


    "Cough cough..!! Using the same move-"


    I show her a paper that I quickly wrote on.


    "Calm down, Sushi Sand. We''re Rintan''s allies."


    "H-huh..?! You..? Ms. Not-Vampire..? Oh... I-I''m sorry then!!"


    "Don''t worry. I''ve expected this."


    After a quick explanation to everyone, we all calmed down and went back to what we were doing.


    "W-well then..! Why did you bring me out? For Rintan to trust you... You must be good allies huh... You guys are the Heroes right?"


    "Yes. I''ve took you out from Rintan to ask you something. We only have little time left, so try not to waste more time."


    "I-I see... Okay then! What do you want to ask?"


    She adapts quickly to the situation huh... I wonder what she thinks about Rintan... Her second self? Or an enemy that took over her body? Seems like she doesn''t have full control of her own physical form.


    "What was that system that you''ve mentioned before?"


    "System? Oh. I thought you forgot about it..! Well... If you really want to know... Then please tell Rintan to give more time for me to use this body!"


    "Sure. I need more time to talk to you anyways."


    "R-really..? Okay so... Ahem ahem. The system is a special ability that only I can use. It allows me to see things better. And know things with perfect detail! For example. I can see..... Wow..! You have a ton of abilities, Ms. Not-Vampire!"


    My abilities? Well. I do have many, too many actually, I don''t even know most of them. And also..... That System that she''s talking about... Isn''t that the same type of System used in videogames back in the old world?!!


    "Can you tell more about my abilities? Even I don''t know too much about them."


    "Sure! Most people don''t! It''s no surprise that you don''t know as well. Now.... First. I''ll tell you all of the spells that you have, then, all of your skills, and lastly, your special abilities!"


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Finally... I can see all of my abilities. I thought that after getting reincarnated, I would have the same system used in most of the fantasy videogames back in the old world...... Also, why is she the one to have it anyways?


    "Okay so...


    Blood Magic Series:


    [Blood Hardening]: Allows for blood to harden around the user. Hardened Blood can take on any physical form, as long as it has the required blood.


    [Blood Banishment]: Takes away nearby Blood from their sources, and moves them into one place.


    [Blood Conversion]: Converts blood into Magic Energy.


    [Blood Storm]: Gathers blood and turns it into energy for the body. Enhances the user overall, and puts physical strength into it''s maximum output.


    [Blood Reformation]: Changes blood temperature. Can turn blood into 3,000 Degrees Celsius, or absolute 0 Degrees Celsius.


    Also... How much time do we have left?"


    "4 minutes. Don''t worry, I''ll tell Rintan to give you more time later."


    I already knew some of those Blood Magic spells, but the others... I haven''t even heard of them before! I would''ve probably find out about them someday, but learning about them now...... That system really is useful huh.


    "Thanks..! Now for your spells, other than Blood Magic..!


    Spatial Magic Series:


    [Spatial Lift]: Transports space, from one place to another. Lack of knowledge can lead to errors.


    [Spatial Investigation]: Further expands vision out of its physical form. It is an option to choose what the user can see, and not see.


    [Spatial Dimension]: Creates a pocket dimension. The user can choose what their dimension contains, if they have the required magic energy."


    Sushi falls to the floor. Looks like her time is up. She stands back up again. This time, with the same face that Rintan had.


    I wanted to know more about my abilities, but wasting more time in this place wouldn''t be good. I guess I''ll go to sleep for now.


    "Have you gotten what you needed? It looks like none of you guys have been attacked. That''s good, but how did you calm her down?"


    "It''s simple. She''s just not an enemy."


    After a long sleep, we woke up and continued to walk down this place. Seems like Rintan knows where to go. She''s not even using light, she''s just walking ahead of us. I wonder what spells she''s using right now, is it night vision? Or [Spatial Investigation]?


    Hm? What''s this?! I can sense more bloodlust..! A large group of ants are heading towards us.


    "Looks like they''ve found us. Not to worry, they''re just weak little ants. They might be slightly bigger than the average ones you find on the ground, but their strength is still the same."


    "Prepare your weapons!"


    "Ants...? I wouldn''t like to see a giant ant..."


    The ants appear in front us. They''re huge..!! No way that these are only slightly bigger than the average ants..! Isn''t she just understating it?


    "Krrr..!! Kkhhh!!"


    "Hisss!!!"


    "Hrrr hrrr!!"


    I flip Divine Intervention and swing it at them. They''re surprisingly weak. Still... Their size isn''t just slightly bigger than the normal ants...


    "Fireball!"


    "Lare, Liand, help Crowler!"


    "Bang bang bang!!"


    Looks like we can fight without any problems. Rintan isn''t doing anything though. She''s sitting on the ground, just looking at the fight. Well, It''s understandable that it would be kind of dangerous to use too much power in this place.


    "Take that, overgrown ants!!"


    "Pow pow pow!!"


    "Flame Turbine!!"


    The ants are getting taken down. Crowler uses his sword, one handed, as Liand and Lare supports him. Rayan shoots the ants with the Desert Eagle. And Den swings his sword at them. While Feradon casts fire magic spells.


    After a while, the ants are finally defeated. It''s a victory!


    "Woohoo..!!"


    "Yay..!"


    "... Well... Those ants really are just bigger ants huh..."


    "They were too weak... I guess they''re just food for the Void Trilobite then..."


    Hmmm... The ants may have been weak, but they would definitely be a huge problem if there was only one of us, against all of them. It''s great to be in huge group huh.


    The mine had more holes and smaller tunnels the further we go. Looks like we''re heading into the ant''s nests. Also, how did Rintan get past without destroying all of them?


    We come to a stop as we find a larger hole. I can''t sense Bloodlust coming from the tunnel. Maybe it''s a shortcut?


    "Where does this lead to, Rintan?"


    "Hmmm... It wasn''t here before... It''s probably just another ant tunnel. Perhaps leading to their nest..?"


    "Why don''t we head inside then?"


    "Great idea. It''s a good way to get ambushed by the ants, who will attack from every direction."


    We head down the hole. Looks like everyone''s confident... The ants earlier were too weak anyways.


    Light comes from the end of the tunnel. As we reach the exit, a massive cave is found, along with a huge army of ants. Looks the only way to escape is by destroying this entire place..!


    "Hoh..!!? Intruders have arrived in our home!?! Get them!!!"


    One of them says. I didn''t even know that ants could talk. All of the giant ants rushes towards us, but we immediately crush them before they even get near.


    "Four-Leaf Clover Trick!"


    A Four-Leaf Clover shoots from underneath Rintan''s fingertip.


    "Uggkaa--!!"


    The talking ant gets hit in the face by the flying Four-Leaf Clover. Wait, why does Rintan even have this as an attack?


    The ants suddenly stop attacking. Did we take down their queen? The talking ant stands up, holding it''s face which was hit. We stand over it, ready to attack.


    "Is this the queen ant? Looks like a Demi-human..!"


    "No, isn''t it a Demi-beast?"


    "It''s not even a demon! Look! It''s an ant queen!"


    The talking ant tries crawling away, but we stop it from doing so, by surrounding it.


    "Uuu..!!! What are you d-doing humans!!? I promise you that I''m a normal human too!!"


    What an obvious lie. But it looks like a rare creature. Normally, ants can''t talk, even the giant ones.


    "Hmmm... Should we capture it? Rare monsters are expensive. We need more resources for the trip back to your kingdom too."


    "No no. I''ve already carried a lot of resources on the way here. No need for carrying large items. I''ll cut it down quickly."


    "NOO!! WAIIT!!"


    As Rintan swings her sword, the talking ant barely dodges, severing it''s foot in the process.


    "KAAAHHH!!! Ow ow ow!!! Noo!! Please stop it!!"


    It kind of feels terrible to eliminate a giant screaming insect...


    "Hmmm... Perhaps we should burn it?"


    "I don''t want to burn down something that looks like a human. Without it''s antennae, it would look like an actual one too."


    Now that I look at it, the talking ant does look like a normal human, but with ant antennae.


    "Wait!! Humans!!! I''m a human!! Don''t kill me for god''s sake!!"


    "Huh? It knows about god too? What god does it worship? Maybe one that we don''t know about?"


    "No no no..!! Please!! Let me live..!!"


    The talking ant kneels down in front of us, it looks like it''s trying to beg for mercy.


    "P-please...!? Don''t kill me please..?!"


    What a terrible actor. I swing Divine Intervention at it, but it dodges quickly.


    "Please!!! Why are you all so heartless!??"


    "Well. You did just attack us suddenly."


    "Wait wait! I have a deal..!! Do you accept?"


    "What is it?"


    "Accept first, to find out about the deal..!!"


    "Why should I? But fine. If you do anything bad, I''ll cut you down."


    "Alright! The deal is that you won''t do anything, while we attack you!"


    "I''ll cut you down then-"


    "NOO!!! That''s not the deal actually..! I''m just joking haha...! The true deal is that we won''t attack you, and you won''t attack us. Peace, alright?!"


    "Sounds like a good deal, sure."


    Rintan and the talking ant shakes hands. Looks like we have a deal.


    "Heheheh...!! Come then... We''ll need you to give us one of your treasures, in order for the deal to work!"


    "Do we have time to waste, Rintan?"


    "No we don''t. But theres a possibility that these ants have a shortcut back to the other side."


    "I see. Well then. Lead the way, talking ant."


    "How rude! I''m the ant queen, you know!!?"


    The talking ant leads us further down the ant nest. There''s a lot of ants everywhere. But at least there''s light now. I was tired of walking around in the dark.


    What is this creature though? It''s not a human... It only has ant antennae... Without it, you''d think it''s a human...


    "So? What do you want? We can''t just give you our things."


    "No no no..! We only need a few sacrifices... Not blood sacrifices or anything by the way!"


    "Sacrifices? You want us to give you something that we have?"


    "Yes, correct..! Did you know that a strange monster has showed up outside our home? It''d be bad if we let it roam around any longer. That''s why we''ll need something to defeat it with!"


    The Void Trilobite? I guess we were right about them getting eaten by it. Wait, how will the ants even use weapons?


    "Our weapons? Nope. We can''t give you our weapons. I have 3 coins here, if you want."


    "Who would take that?! Not even a beggar would!"


    "Huh..? How do you know about beggars? Are there ants like that here too..? Or maybe the people on surface?"


    "Our tunnels are connected to the surface of course. We even hunt down the animals up there!"


    That explains the light in this place. Also, does that mean that they''ve hunted down a few people already? But I can''t blame them, it''s just nature after all.


    The talking ant leads us to a large cave area with a pile of corpses and skeletons covering the entire floor. It smells really bad. Are these all the defenseless creatures that they''ve killed?


    No...... I can see something familiar... It''s a dismembered body wearing a uniform I think I''ve seen before...


    "Ta-daaa!! Welcome! To our trophy collection!! Those worthy, are left here! Those unworthy have even their bones eaten to nothing!!"


    "Hah... I guess this will be more reason to kill you guys..."


    "We''re animals too, you know?!! Even you guys kill animals! What about the poor cows, pigs, and chickens?!"


    I point at the familiar body. It looks like the talking ant understands.


    "Oh, that? Have you met them before? I think his name was... Uhh... Ummm...... Don''t worry don''t worry!! We never forget the names of worthy opponents!!"


    The talking ant thinks for a while, until it finally gets an idea.


    "Ah! That''s right! His name was, General Litharin Fanine!! The strongest one we''ve had so far! His soldiers gave us his name. Right after we''ve defeated him! Haaaahahaaahaha!!!"


    General Litharin...? He''s dead...?


    That face is too damaged to be recognized anymore. But to be defeated like this... A mere ant shouldn''t even be capable of doing that..!

 Chapter 19: The Tunnel Escape.

    What do you mean that''s him? That General Litharin Fanine? I thought we were on the same level of strength..?!


    "General?! You insolent ant! I''ll tear you down just like what you did to General!"


    Feradon yells angrily, before grabbing the talking ant by its shoulders.


    "Woah woah woah!!! I didn''t do this, you know! Don''t hurt me please..! My foot is already gone!"


    It says, trying to push him off. Feradon calms down and takes a step back.


    "Finally..! You see, our armies are just better than yours!"


    "Shut up, ant. I''ll crush you if you say anything again."


    The talking ant looks angry but it stops talking. Feradon walks back to where we came from. Is he sad? Depressed? I can understand. Though, I''m more surprised and confused at how these ants managed to defeat someone as strong as him.


    "Hey! Feradon, wait!"


    Den chases after Feradon. Lare and Liand begins panicking, talking about General Litharin''s death.


    "W-what should we do?! If General can die... Then that means we''re all weaker than these ants..?!"


    "N-no..! Calm down! General was probably just attacked by something else before getting ambushed by the ants..!"


    "That doesn''t make it better!"


    Meanwhile, Rintan and Rayan discusses over how General could''ve died.


    "That''s your general? Getting beaten by an ant is kind of a disgrace to his kingdom, don''t you think so?"


    "Hmmmm... I thought he was stronger... Maybe something else killed him and these guys just took his body..?"


    Well. Whatever happened, this will be big news. An important figure of the Asanrak army being defeated would lower morale, and it would definitely give the demons a significant advantage over the war.


    How should we report this..? Oh wait. Where''s Feradon? Isn''t he our communicator? He must be talking with Den right now. I guess we can let him calm down for a while.


    "Uhhh.... Can I leave now..?"


    The talking ant says. I show it a paper that I wrote on.


    "No. I need you to give me further information about this place, and the tunnels."


    "W-why...?!! Why can''t you just leave me alone?!!"


    "I''ll heal that foot of yours."


    "Hehehehehehe..!! Fine fine! I''ll give you a tour of this place! Your friends can stay behind..! They don''t want to come along, do they?"


    Hmm. I guess they''re still talking about the death of General Litharin. This place is safe anyways. I doubt anything bad will happen to them. Den is with Feradon, and Rintan is with the rest.


    "Sure."


    I follow the ant as it leads me further down the nest. There''s light coming from small gaps in the roof. I wonder how close we are to the surface. It''s nice to know the time at least.


    "Hehehe...!! Good good! By the way, my name is Lide Via! The queen of ants!"


    So this talking ant really was the queen huh..? Is it because it has the ability to speak, or the ability to think properly?


    "Also, why do you wear clothes? Just curious, you don''t have to take them off. I just thought that ants don''t need any. Did you steal them from the corpses too? Because I''m pretty sure that the terrible stench I''ve been accidentally smelling is coming from you."


    "How rude..! We have morals too, you know?! We don''t just steal these from the dead! We make them! Anyways. Back to the introduction. Ahem ahem. You can call us the Ant-People, we''re basically just humans... But for the mindless giant ants, you can just call them ants."


    Ant-People? I think I''ve heard of them before. They''re uncommon monsters that live with Giant Ants. It''s rare to find a queen though.


    "This is the food storage! Where we store all of our food! You can take some, there''s plenty!"


    "I think I''ll pass."


    There''s multiple pits nearby, all of them containing corpses, plants, and meat. I don''t think I''d be able to eat those. Does Ant-People have the same body as humans? How does Lide eat those without getting poisoned?


    "How picky! When someone tells you to eat the food that they''ve spent so much time making, you eat them! Declining is not an option!"


    Is that actually true here? Good thing I''m not one of them...


    Lide continues walking down the nest. Ants are always around us, but they don''t seem to care. At the end of the path, an altar sits next to a wall.


    "This is where you sacrifice things for the greater good! Basically, where you give us something important, or valuable! Come on come on! That large weapon that you have on your back will work too!"


    Divine Intervention? Well. Of course I can''t give it away. But what do I have though... Helping them would be nice, but can they even stand a chance against the Void Trilobite? Not that I know about it''s strength, but these ants are just really weak... How would they even use weapons?


    I take out 50 silver coins. Hmmm... Is this all that I have? I thought I carried more resources with me. Let me check my pockets.


    "Are you all actually really poor...? That guy earlier had less money than you, but you only have those...."


    I didn''t consider buying things along the way..! The food that I carried was only for an attack, and for selling...


    Maybe this potato will work? I still had it because I forgot to eat it- oh. Lide slapped it out of my hand. I thought that she wanted something valuable?


    "Don''t tell me that''s all you have....! Even ants are richer than you...."


    "Well. That''s because you steal stuff."


    "No... We have our own currency, different from human money... It''s not even funny anymore... I-I''m just... Disappointed..."


    Gah-! For an ant to be disappointed because of how poor I am..!


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    "Fine. I can give you something more valuable. Does feelings count? You''re the most beautiful insect I''ve ever seen."


    "How rude..!! To call me an insect..! Shoo shoo. I don''t need anything from you guys anymore. Only your weapons have value."


    Tsk! You don''t even look good! That was so obviously a lie!


    Hmmm... After a long time pondering. I have to come to the conclusion that I should just blast her away and pretend that nothing ever happened. As I put Divine Intervention on the floor. Lide looks at me with confusion as I aim my hand at it''s direction.


    "Blood Magic: Internal Compress-"


    "WAIT STOPP!!"


    Looks like a slight hesitation stopped me from eliminating it. Well. That was only for scaring it anyways. I wouldn''t want to lose the one who knows a lot about this place.


    "Hah..! Why are you humans so violent?!!"


    "Aren''t you the same? Why did you attack us earlier?"


    "What?! I didn''t know you could talk!! And no! We were just protecting our home!!"


    "Also, can you please stop yelling? It hurts my ears. I would''ve crushed you with this gun already, if it wasn''t for the fact that you know a lot about this place."


    "Alright alright..!! Fine..! How about you just heal my foot, and then I''ll forget everything about you being disgusting, and poor..?! How does that sound..?"


    "Alright. Heal."


    I cast [Heal] on it. It''s foot is healed quickly. It looks really happy, it makes me want to take it''s foot off again.


    "Yay!! Thank you..! Now...... Ah! Wow! Who are you?! Are you one of our invaders? I won''t let you go! Wait! I can sense your overwhelming strength! Ah! I guess I surrender!"


    Is she pretending to lose her memories? She has quick thinking, but still a pretty bad actor. I guess I''ll let her go for now.


    "Okay okay. Let''s go back now. I don''t want to waste more time."


    We head back to where everyone was at. Wasting more time in this place would be bad. We''re still looking for the Void Trilobite after all.


    "Oh. I almost forgot. Do you have any tunnels leading outside to the ocean?"


    "Why of course we do... We''ve been using it for years. But there''s one major problem though.... And we need your help in order to solve it..."


    "Is it a big spider? That''s what we''re fighting already. We''d help if you guys help us too."


    "Oh really..? Well then. I suppose we can let you aid us in capturing this beast. It has already taken down many soldiers. But we haven''t even scratched it, after 6 days of fighting!"


    "A fight lasting 6 days? Is it just you guys running straight to your doom? That''s a bad strategy actually. Can''t you just dig around it, and attack from all directions?"


    "Oh my. You''re right! How didn''t we think of that earlier..! You''re a genius! Haha!"


    Hehe. Of course I am. A mere ant wouldn''t even be capable of thinking about-


    "Of course not, you idiot!!!! Did you actually think that I was praising you?! That''s basic common sense! Even you humans do that! We''ve tried it everytime and it always failed!"


    "Well that''s just because you''re weak. You and your soldiers are weak. I could take on all of you at once, and still come out victorious. That''s just how weak you guys are."


    "We may be weak..... But we''re not as poor and dumb as you are!!! Think that strength is the only thing that matters in life..? Try using that rock in your head for once!! And then you''ll realize that it''s actually the strongest thing that you have!"


    "In the end. Only the strong remains. Only using your brain will eventually lead to a weaker body. And besides... Having less resources doesn''t really matter to me. I don''t carry much items because of a curse that I have."


    "Curse?! What curse gets rid of your carrying abilities?! If you had such a curse, then you''re already weak!!!"


    I use Blood to take back Divine Intervention and swing it at the talking ant. It''s been annoying me for a while now- oh. It dodged my attack.


    "Aaah-! What are you doing?! Trying to kill me?! How violent and barbaric!"


    Well. Let''s just go back to where everyone was at for now. They''re still talking..? Den and Feradon are back though. And Rintan seems to be inspecting something.


    "Oh! It''s Vixen! Where did you go? We thought the ants captured you so we took down some of them!"


    Uh oh. Lide wouldn''t like to hear that. Is she going to be mad again?


    "Why would you do that?! You know we''re the most peaceful animals on this planet, and you still believe we''d hurt you guys?!!"


    "Anyways, uhh.... Talking ant, we need to find a way out of here. A shortcut to the ocean would be great."


    Rintan says.


    "Sigh.... Alright. It''s about time you guys left. I guess I''ll show you to that horrifying beast back at one of our tunnels."


    "Huh?! Why would you do that?! Want us to slice you down huh?!"


    "Calm down calm down.... You''re still mad that your general died..?? Oh right. I forgot to tell you all about it. A strange spider creature is sitting at the shortcut you all want to go in."


    "The Void Trilobite?! Heh. You couldn''t stop it, little ant?"


    "I''m not really much of an ant, you know..? I''m more human than you guys even."


    "Anyways. Lead the way, ant. You''ll be our shield while we take down the Void Trilobite."


    "Wh-What?!"


    "Want us to cut you down already?"


    "Kh..!! Fine...!"


    I kind of feel bad for Lide.... Later, It leads us down the tunnel where they fought the Void Trilobite. There''s many fallen ants around, it smells really bad.


    As we reach the tunnel, a huge shiny spider monster is sitting in front of us, eating a giant ant as light rays shine behind it.


    "I-It''s the Void Trilobite!!"


    Rintan takes a steps forward, pulling out a Khopesh. She takes off her hood, letting her long blond hair sway along the wind. When you look at her, you can''t really help but say "beautiful", can''t you?


    "Don''t worry. I''ll handle this. I''m better at fighting things like these after all. And besides. It''s kind of my fault that this anomaly got here."


    She says, right before aiming her hand at the monster. She cracks her middle finger, and another Four-Leaf Clover shoots out from underneath her index finger. Is this the [Four-Leaf Clover Trick] again?


    "Four-Leaf Clover Trick. Intestinal Break: Fireworks."


    Fireworks shoot from the palm of her hand. It explodes right next to the monster, as the [Four-Leaf Clover Trick] hits as well.


    The monster shrieks. It''s too loud, we were forced to cover our ears. So I cast [Blood Hardening] to block the sound.


    "?!!+-&+??!&+-!"


    I still couldn''t hear anything. Rayan begins shooting the monster, while the rest attacks.


    "Attack!! Fireball!"


    Looks like it has finally stopped screeching. Crowler swings his sword but it dodges swiftly before sending a counterattack. The monster then proceeds to dash forward, impaling Lare, spitting [Electrical Acid] at Crowler afterwards. All in just a few seconds.


    "Blagh!!! Cough cough!"


    "This thing..!"


    What a fierce beast..! It throws Lare towards the light. His scream fading away as he falls into the ocean.


    "AAAHHH!!!"


    "Lare!!"


    Rayan yells, when suddenly, a slash cuts through her hand, throwing her weapon away.


    "Gaahh-!!"


    Oh no... This is bad... Only Den, Crowler, Feradon, Rintan, and I can beat this monster. I almost forgot that the rest of the people on our team were just support.


    "Don''t panic!! Regroup!! Regroup-"


    Den yells, as another swing of the spider''s razor sharp limb interrupts him. Forcing him to block with his sword.


    "I''ve made a mistake. I apologize, everyone. I couldn''t think fast enough."


    "We don''t have time to talk!! Help me!!"


    A myriad of cuts and slashes tear through the monster, but it avoids further attacks before jumping back. Den steps away as well.


    We regroup, fixing our formation. We didn''t expect this creature to be that strong. Lare has been impaled, and thrown out into the ocean. Meanwhile, Rayan had her right hand cut off. It would be bad if we take too long fighting this thing. We need to beat it as fast as possible.


    "Flame Burst! Fireball! Flame Turbine! Fire Amplification!!"


    Feradon? He''s casting a lot of Fire Magic spells. Is he angry? Getting enraged by a monster like this would be a major disadvantage for us. Den is already trying to stop him.


    "Wait!! This monster is-"


    The Void Trilobite attacks, swinging furiously at us. Fortunately, it''s easy to avoid. Did it slow down?


    "Intestinal Break: Rewind Kick."


    Rintan sends a flying knee at the monster, catching it mid air. It''s good, but how is that even a kick..?


    "Intestinal Break: Rewind Kick."


    She continues attacking the enemy, sending a combo of kicks and punches.


    "Fire-!"


    "Stop! We''ll let Rintan take care of it! Take the injured ones back to safety! We won''t be able to fight at full strength if they''re still here!"


    "F-fine..! Rayan, get out!"


    Den, Crowler and Feradon quickly retrieves Lare before retreating with Rayan. Meanwhile, I cast [Blood Hardening] on Rintan''s hands, further increasing the damage of her attacks as she continues punching the monster at lightning-fast speeds.


    The monster doesn''t have a chance to counterattack. It''s head is mercilessly crushed by the non-stopping fists. It''s blood splashes everywhere. Though, why is she using her fists instead of that sword?


    "Fire-"


    "Hold on. Let her defeat it."


    "H-huh..? Why..?"


    Den and Feradon has returned, but without Crowler? Huh? Where is he? Is he guarding our injured allies? Also, did Lide run away? Because of this fight, I didn''t realize that it wasn''t even here anymore.


    "Rintan, allow me to help! Fire Amplification!"


    Rintan and the Void Trilobite are still fighting. They jump around the tunnel, sending attacks at each other. They''re too fast for me to follow their movements.


    "Intestinal Break: Fireworks."


    It is obvious who''s going to win. The monster is getting slower with each hit. But it wouldn''t be a good idea to join in the fight right now.


    Rintan continues punching the enemy, now with burning fists covered with hardened blood. The enemy tries to fight back but her attacks are too fast.


    Her strength is greater than what I''ve expected. Is she even using her full power..?

 Chapter 20: Late.

    The sounds of squishing can be heard throughout the entire tunnel.


    Rintan continues to punch the spider without end. It''s unsightly, but we still observe the fight anyways.


    Suddenly, her punches makes a sound similar to hitting a hard metal surface. Has she gone weak? No. The monster has become stronger! It''s going into its second form, turning it''s skin into diamond.


    "RINTAN, WATCH OUT!!!"


    But it was too late. It''s sharp limb pierces through Rintan''s shoulder. But wait! She''s... She''s grabbing it?!


    "Don''t worry. This arm is fake. I was lucky to get hit here."


    Fake..? I see... That kind of explains why there''s fireworks in her arm.


    She then proceeds to twist the limb, tearing it off and smashing it into the monster. I guess that''s one way to use a weapon.


    "Huh..?! Should we help?!"


    "No need. I''ve already won this fight before it even started. Just make sure that the others are okay."


    "R-really??! But alright! We''ll be back later. The others don''t have any serious injuries, so we''ll just protect them in case the ants attack!"


    "Good. Now-... Hm? What are you doing, Vampire? Won''t you help them as well?"


    Den and Feradon runs back, leaving me behind. This has become kind of awkward. I guess I''ll just sit here and watch her fight.


    "I don''t understand what you''re doing. But if you don''t plan to help them, then why don''t you help me instead?"


    Huh? Help her? Alright. The Void Trilobite is still buried in the ground, it should wake up after a few minutes. But what am I supposed to do? I don''t really have full control over my Blood Magic spells so there''s a chance that she''ll get affected by my attacks.


    "This creature is a tough one. My fists won''t be able to break it even if you gave me more of this armor. So that''s why, I''ll use it''s limb, and you use your weapon, so that we can hit it again and again, until it breaks."


    Hmmm... It''s simple but it''ll work. I grab Divine Intervention and take a stance.


    "Ready? Here we go."


    Rintan swings the limb at the sleeping monster. It launches the spider towards me so I can hit it. Rintan catches it and strikes again.


    We repeat this again and again. Seems like the monster has already woken up, but is unable to move. It''s an odd way to defeat a monster but it works somehow.


    "It''s being knocked out for a second every hit. It''s effective for a creature like this, who is extremely fast."


    Finally, with a final blow, the monster is crushed into tiny pieces, splattering everywhere on the tunnel.


    "Phew... It would''ve been better if we didn''t destroy beyond recognition... But I guess this is okay too."


    We rest for a while. Afterwards, we head back to where everyone was at. They''re not far from here, but I can sense dangerous amounts of bloodlust coming from their direction...


    As we arrive at the scene, visions of dread and horror is perceived. What on earth happened here? Dark, red blood is smeared on the floors. There''s cloth, that looks like a place to sleep in, but it has more gore placed on it. Meanwhile, Den and the rest are trying to help Lare, who seems to be in a lot of pain.


    "AAAaaghh!!!"


    "Hold still! T-this shouldn''t even have happened...!"


    Rintan walks up to them and checks what''s going on.


    "Yo. What''s happening?"


    "R-rintan..! You''ve finally defeated that monster?!"


    "Right. Could you please explain the situation?"


    "Sigh... When Lare was thrown into the ocean...... W-w-we''re too late, everyone. The Blood God''s revival i-is..."


    "What?"


    "AAAKKHH!!"


    Lare continues convulsing. More than half of his skin is gone. It''s a horrible sight. What could''ve had happened to him? Is it because of the Void Trilobite''s attack? No way that a mere impalement to the shoulder can do this.


    "Just keep doing what you''re doing. By the way, where''s the talking ant? It disappeared suddenly before we even fought the spider."


    "Ant? Oh. I have no clue. Why? Is there anything you want with that ant?"


    "No... I just have a bad feeling about all of this..."


    Out of nowhere, the place begins rumbling. A large explosion breaks through the walls and a huge monster emerges from the destruction. Looks like Rintan''s intuition was right.


    It''s Lide Via!


    I wonder what had happened to it? For such an ant to turn into this abomination. It must''ve hurt. But the only way to stop it now is by putting it out of its misery.


    "Ant..?"


    "ANT!? NO..! ITS A BLOOD BUG!!"


    "This is bad! Run!"


    Everyone scatters around as the monster punches the ground. It is strong... But unlike the Void Trilobite, who is very fast. This thing wouldn''t take much work to defeat. Only a little bit of Blood Magic can tear it apart.


    "Goodbye, Lide. Blood Magic: Blood Hardening."


    I run up to it as it retracts it''s huge arms, before jumping up and punching it in the face. It''s hard. Is this diamond? How does an ant become this strong?


    It''s too late to think about such things now. A huge fist crashes into me, but I reflectively use [Barrier II], though, it easily breaks through and sends me tunnelling into the wall.


    "Vixen!!!"


    "V-Vampire..!"


    They all yell. But my body is in pain. Best I can do is take back my blood and repair myself.


    "This is bad! Flame Turbine!"


    Feradon shoots Fire Magic spells at the monster, which doesn''t work, as expected.


    Ouch... It pains... I must help them though...


    Wait no... Rintan is still there, isn''t she? But her fake arm is probably broken now. I doubt she could use any of her attacks from earlier. Rayan and Crowler are out of the question, they''re both too injured to fight properly. Looks like Den is the only one who can save us now.


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    But why..? Why..? Why isn''t he doing anything..? I thought he was one of the most powerful people alive right now......


    "This is very bad... This situation it is..."


    "AAGHKKK!!"


    Feradon is hit into the ground. Rintan sends multiple slashes with her sword but it doesn''t deal enough damage. Another punch smashes her into the roof. For Rayan and Crowler, they simply retreat with Lare.


    It isn''t too long before I fell unconscious. I would like to help but... Wait. Den is still fighting, isn''t he..?


    Zzz...


    As I wake up, my body is already fully recovered. I jump up and look around.


    Eh..? What happened here? Did we survive? But it''s good news at least... Everyone is alive. And the Blood Bug is dead, laying on the ground. Though, I can''t really see any damage on it, but Rintan is already inspecting it''s body.


    "Ah. Vixen, you''re finally awake!"


    Den says, as he walks up to me. His sword doesn''t even have any damage, or any stains on it. There doesn''t seem to be any traces of him getting hit, or him hitting the enemy either. So how..? How did he manage to beat that monster..?


    "Everyone is okay. You don''t have to worry about anything now. Good news, Rintan just got trapped in the ceiling so she wasn''t even damaged! For Rayan, I''ve already returned her lost hand. And for Lare, most of his wounds are gone now. Crowler is still out looking for enemies so that everything will be safe!"


    Hmmm... I feel like we''ve forgotten something again...


    Well. We''ve won, and everyone survived. You know what they say? All''s well that ends well.


    We proceeded to head back into the tunnel where we fought the Void Trilobite. It''s remains are still there, and the smell is awful.


    "Woah... This is really disgusting... But I''m glad you guys managed to defeat that thing."


    "My subordinate should be waiting outside. That is, if that anomaly didn''t notice them."


    Walking towards the light, we soon realize, the cause of almost everything.


    "Yeah... When we dodged the Void Trilobite to get back Lare... The sky was already like this... We didn''t have enough time to think about it though..."


    What on earth is happening..?


    The sky is crimson red. It''s not an ordinary event that happens in this world. At first glance, everyone can instantly figure out the situation here.


    The Blood God''s Curse has become stronger. There won''t be much time left to prepare for their revival. We must get back to Rintan''s kingdom as soon as possible, through this red ocean.


    The Dessert Rover has told us about this already. First, it was Bloodhounds. Now...... This is just too much. How didn''t we notice anything while we were still in the salt mines?


    "The Blood God..? Looks like they''re almost here. We have to hurry up before everyone dies."


    "Let''s go... But first of all... It''s all just water down there. Where even is your subordinate? They should be in a boat right? Don''t tell me that they''re already dead."


    "No... This tunnel did lead outside, but my subordinate wouldn''t be around here. We''ll have to look- oh. There they are."


    A person in a plane waves at us. Looks like their kingdom does have planes too. And this way, it would be quicker than using a boat.


    "Ayo!! Hop on the raft!!"


    We head over to the floating plane, where we climb on and sit down. Though, I wonder how does these types of planes work in this world. By magic? Or by science? Or maybe both?


    The plane begins to take off.


    Finally..! We can rest after fighting two really strong monsters..! Though, we''re probably going to fight things stronger than them later, but until then, we''ll have to rest and prepare.


    "Hah... It''s really windy huh... For such a depressing looking environment... By the way, Rintan, what are we going to do in your kingdom?"


    "My people, and everyone else are waiting. I never told them about my leave, but now in this situation... I doubt they''d like my return."


    "Don''t be so negative..! We''ll go to that pyramids, or whatever, and then defeat the old Hero, and whatever goes against us!"


    "Hm. You''re right. It may be near impossible, but we''ll definitely win. My soldiers will be a big help in this war, though, we''ll only save lives, and we won''t take any sides. Once we return, we''ll take a few soldiers with us, both for sacrifices, and for defending us."


    "So, our plan is to stop the Blood God from reviving, right?"


    "No... We''ll kill the blood God."


    What..? Isn''t that impossible..? It''s basically just the same as fighting an actual god...


    "Are you insane? There''s no way to kill that thing. There might be a chance if we have the old Hero on our side, but even then, it''s still almost impossible."


    "So you''re just going to let them destroy the entire world? I''ve told you already, we''re going to defeat the old Hero, the Baphomet, and then the Blood God. It''s either we die, or we win. Besides. We can probably find a way to defeat all of them if we can just talk to Ruthenoceras Ptychodus. There''s a ton of important information that she has."


    "Alright alright... Sigh... I just want this whole thing to be over with..."


    Well. Everyone does, and that''s why we''re fighting the old Hero, and the Blood God anyways.


    The plane continues flying below the clouds. I can see a lot of fish down the red ocean. Though, they''re probably not even normal fish anymore. The curse of the Blood God has gotten too strong in just a few days. I wonder what will happen in a year...


    Will we even survive for a year? The progress of their revival is going a bit too fast, but I guess we''ll just have to worry about surviving for now.


    "Hello everyone..! Once we get back to land, I''ll need a lil bit of payment, you know? 100 gold will be enough for this flight, fuel isn''t cheap, haha!"


    Payment-? uh oh... I don''t have enough coins! Not even 1 gold coin... Hmmm... Only option I have now is to get coins from the others. They have enough, don''t they-? They don''t even have anything!!?


    "Uhh... Isn''t this flight supposed to be free? The world is ending, you know?"


    Says Rayan. She''s right. Why even care about it? We''re the heroes, doesn''t the pilot know that?


    "Well then. Im afraid I''ll have to throw you guys off the plane, meow meow!"


    Thrown off the plane?! Meow?! Is the pilot a cat? Also, can''t Rintan figure this out for us? She''s the one who brought us here, isn''t she?


    "Rintan, who''s the pilot? I''ve used a plane before so it wouldn''t be too bad if I took control right?"


    "Calm down, Feradon. The pilot is Captain Cantaloupe. They''re one of my most trusted allies. Also, they''re just joking, obviously."


    "What? Phew... I thought they were being serious..."


    What a relief. It would''ve been bad if they were being serious, especially during this time, when the world is literally starting to end.


    "Fwahahah..! You thought I was being serious? Why would you guys get frightened by a 100 gold payment anyways? Could it be-....?"


    "No no no..! Focus on your job, pilot."


    "Meow meow? I am. I''m merely just talking to you. This flight will continue for a while, so it wouldn''t be too bad to focus on something else..!"


    "What if-... What if a dragon shows up or something..?! We''d crash if you didn''t look forward..!"


    "Don''t worry. I have good eyes."


    We do hope so. Cats do have good eyesight don''t they? Though, Cantaloupe is probably not even a cat. Not like I have already seen them, I can see a part of them, but since we''re sitting back here, it''s a bit difficult to view them.


    We proceeded to head towards Rintan''s kingdom.


    "Liefs". The kingdom, which located near the giant hole made by the Great Catastrophic explosion. It is connected with multiple other nations, and is allied with most of them. It''s one of the most powerful kingdoms right now.


    The daughter of the King "Ghundz'' Loann Firanha" is Rintan Firanha. Greatest successor of the Firanha royal bloodline. Soon to be the next inheritor of the throne.


    Hold on. What''s this? I''m sensing interference within the magic waves- no... Electromagnetic Magic waves, specifically... Is this Frelhr?


    Wait. Come to think of it. Aren''t we going to betray Keasius, or The Tale of the Great White anyways?


    Fighting the Baphomet means......


    "Vixen. It''s me, Frelhr. Manta is dead. Keasius has turned against us. And everything has gone wrong. Seems like your plan with the princess really messed up our own plans."


    What..? Manta..? Dead..?


    "The project is cancelled. Most of my men died, but with the magic amplification device, we managed to flee from Keasius. But do not fear, Vixen. For we will come again and stand back up to defeat those who we go against."


    But are the others okay..? How had I not realize this earlier..?


    "It''s not your fault, Vixen. Keasius'' betrayal was inevitable. No... He had known this from the start already... Might it be that he wanted us to stray from fighting the Baphomet and join them in defeating the Demon Lord instead? Another possibility is that he was just a spy gathering information from us."


    Whatever it is, we must prepare for their next move. Was the entire project destroyed? Do we still have anything to rebuild it? How far were you in creating the device?


    "About 74.89% complete. Until that walking menace just barged in and destroyed everything. Using all that we could we use, we put the machine at 100% success rate, so that we could teleport into another place."


    Where are you right now? Is everyone still with you?


    "Of course. Sting and Fin are with me. Though... The thing is... We''re in the deepest depths of hell."


    What? What do you mean by that?! The demon realm?!


    "Yes. Anywhere in the mortal realm, Keasius can just find us through a tiny bit of magic that he put on us. Though, ridiculously smaller than an atom, it''s still enough for him to find our current location. In the demon realm, the chances of him finding us are lower, and the fastest time he could find us is approximately 20 years."


    20 years? Hmmm... I guess that could be enough time for you guys to find a way back home or defeat him, right?


    "Correct. But incorrect. We can only do one. To either, get back to the human realm, or to defeat him. And we only have one option to survive. Going back home without defeating him would mean death. But staying here would also mean death, due to the dangerous creatures roaming around the demon realm."


    So? What''s your plan? Though, I can probably guess it already.


    "You''re our only hope, Vixen. Defeat Keasius and the Baphomet. So that we can then return. We don''t have enough time, the longest we could stay here is 10 years. That is, if we don''t encounter anything dangerous."


    I see... I''ll do my best- no... I''ll definitely defeat the Baphomet, and bring you guys back here no matter what.


    I really don''t want to lose anymore people, you know..?

 Chapter 21: The Red Sea.

    ... What a cruel world it is...


    Manta is dead. General Litharin Fanine is dead. Franz Reinhard is gone. Rabbit is gone. And Keasius has betrayed us.


    At least I still have Fin, Frelhr, Sting, Pikaia, Rika, Rintan, and everyone on the Hero''s Party on my side, right?


    The gloomy red skies were devoid of the sun. The Blood God''s revival is imminent. Even Den, the Hero, wouldn''t be able to defeat them. Not to mention the fact that the old Hero and the Baphomet are also against us.


    Are we really going to succeed..? Hope is not lost yet, for we still have a potential solution to all of this. That Salmon Shark may just be the only way to win this almost unwinnable war.


    ... It''s been a few hours of sitting on this plane now. Though, I was beaten pretty badly back in the ant nests, another strange interference was in the air, not electromagnetic magic interference, but something else. It must''ve been the reason why I was severely weakened, and why I passed out that quick. It may be faint and slight, but bloodlust was always following us around back there. Normally, my regenerative abilities would''ve prevented me from going unconscious, but during that time when I was about to fall asleep, that faint bloodlust, grew significantly stronger...


    What in the world even happen back there..?


    "Hmmm... By the way... I''ve been thinking about it for a while now... Captain Cantaloupe, what is that huge thing around your neck?"


    Says Feradon, looking at the huge collar- or whatever that thing is on Cantaloupe''s neck. It''s similar to that of a collar, but it''s too large and thick to be called one. It looks like a small object could fit in that thing.


    "Meow meow? This? Oh, it''s just a small lil portable grill! I use it to cook some fish or something, and eat it! Hahahaaa!!"


    "P-Portable Grill?! You mean-... That thing can be opened, filled with charcoal, and then heated up to cook food?!"


    What an odd portable grill..! Not even that existed in the old world-! Or maybe it does exist? It doesn''t look like it uses any magic... Though, the average person would burn their necks. It could''ve been some cruel device back in the old world actually...


    "Yes, of course... What else did you think it was? Fishes are common around here, but I do eat other food as well!"


    "But in this situation... Fishes wouldn''t even be in the waters anymore... The Blood God has ruined the beautiful ocean, what will you eat now?"


    "Do you really want to know that badly? I eat anything, of course. Anything that fits in this grill! Once it''s ready to eat, I just bite!"


    "Anything? Really..? Is that really the only way for you to eat?"


    "Well. It can be taken off, but I can''t seem to reach the lock..! Not that I even have the key anyways!"


    "Who has the key? And why not just break it down?"


    "Are you mad?! Grr!! Who would want to destroy this expensive, and very useful grill?!"


    "Woah woah. I''m sorry, but why won''t you take it off? Most small creatures will die soon, and use of that thing will decrease."


    "Hah... Meow meow. Mind your own business, this isn''t just for food, you know? I can also put drinks in it."


    Eh..? What an odd device. It''s pretty useful though. It would be a bit heavy to wear, such a huge piece of metal, but I guess it''s not a problem for Cantaloupe?


    The flight went on for a while. Looks like we can confirm it now, the red sky is everywhere. What did the Blood God even do? What does this have to do with their revival anyways? I thought they were just collecting souls?


    Suddenly, an unexpected slash cuts through the plane.


    God... I almost forgot about it again...


    "You mustn''t worry-- Sundown Lighter-- Holy kingdom--"


    The Tale of the Great White gave me important information, but for me to waste it by forgetting....


    "W-what?! The plane''s going down!! Meow meow!! Rintan, what''s happening?!"


    Cantaloupe yells, as they fall, separated from us.


    Everyone screamed, as we went down into the ocean. It would''ve been terrible now if we touched the red waters, but what can we do? Where even is the enemy?!


    "AAAAHH!!"


    "Oh no... We''re falling... Guess I only have one option left. With this broken arm, and weakened body, physical abilities are rendered useless."


    "What are you even talking-?!"


    We then began floating. Is this [Fly]? No... It''s [Fly II]. For such a spell to be used at this scale... It must be from Rintan- wait. it''s not Rintan?! This magic energy is different... It''s Sushi? Did they switch?


    "Woah!! I''m levitating!?"


    "What''s going on?!"


    Everyone panicked. But Rintan- or Sushi, remained calm. Looks like this really is her work.


    "Sushi?! How dare you steal Rintan''s body again!!"


    "Relax, Captain. Rintan woke me up. Spatial Investigation."


    [Spatial Investigation]? Is she searching for the enemy, Sundown Lighter? I''ve already casted [Spatial Investigation], yet I still can''t seem to find them...


    "There you are. Abyssal Magic: Divine Light. Abyssal Magic: Shadow Dragon Resonance."


    [Divine Light]?! It''s been a long time since I''ve heard that. [Shadow Dragon Resonance] is a well-known Abyssal Magic spell though. Still, it''s really impressive that Sushi can actually use them.


    "Now... Looks like the problem''s gone."


    "W-what even happened?! The plane just randomly got cut in half and then we began floating..!"


    "A strange man attacked us. Don''t know what''s going on in the world right now, but seems like you guys are going through tough times. May I help?"


    The strange bloodlust, and magical interference in the air is gone. Was it because of Sundown Lighter? If that''s true, then that would mean that Keasius already began his attack on us not too long after we entered the salt mines.


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    "Rintan- no... Sushi... Alright, we''ll get all the help we can..."


    "Good. Rintan probably wanted to save you guys, so let me just.... Fly."


    Sushi then took us out of the ocean. A small ship was sunk in the shallow red waters, so she put us on what we''re able to step on.


    It''s difficult to keep balance, but it''s better than falling into the waters.


    "Hah... I doubt Rintan would let me roam for a while, so this''ll be the most I can do for now."


    Not to worry. My Magic Energy has been replenished after Sushi took out Sundown Lighter. I could do something to get us out of here now.


    Oh wait. What about that one spell that she told me about? [Blood Reformation] or something? It''ll be the first time that I''ll use it, but it''s the only way to get out of this situation right now.


    "Blood Magic: Blood Reformation."


    Luckily, there''s a pile of corpses beneath us. Good way for trying out a spell for the first time. It''s not lucky for them, but at least their death won''t be in vain now.


    "Woah! The ocean is freezing..?! Vixen, I didn''t know you could do that..!"


    "Meow meow? Is this Blood Magic? Are you a vampire? Rintan has told me about your Blood Magic already, but it would be impossible for just a human to use Blood Magic at this level..!"


    Well. Let''s just say that I''m not just an ordinary human.


    "Let''s talk about that later. For now, we need to get out of here before the water rises. It''d be bad if we even get touched by the water. Considering Lare''s reaction to it...."


    "It hurt a lot... Felt like my entire body was burning..! Let''s not talk about that again, just remembering it makes me sick..."


    We proceeded to walk down the frozen blood path I made using the fallen people''s blood. It''s hard, hard enough for us to run on at least.


    A thick red fog always surrounded us. I cast [Spatial Investigation], and it seems that the nearest land is a bit too far away... This blood from the corpses on that ship won''t be enough. We need more. Maybe fish will work? There''s a ton of dead fish under the shallow waters. I guess I''ll use them.


    "Blood Magic: Blood Reformation."


    "More path? Let''s go!"


    "You know... It feels kind of wrong to step on the blood from many corpses as a road..."


    Well. It''s the only option we have right now. Rintan has switched, Sushi is now sleeping again. Without Sushi, we won''t be able to fly, since she''s the only one here who can use [Fly]. I''m a powerful mage, but even [Fly] is an exception, or maybe I''m just suited for Blood Magic.


    Huh? There''s a huge creature walking behind the fog. It must be difficult for everyone to see it, but I have [Spatial Investigation]. I can see that it''s a "Blood Dweller", rare monsters that can only be found deep in the ocean. They must''ve been showing up now because of the Blood God, and their curse.


    "What is that?! It''s huge..! I''d rather not get close to it..!"


    "What are you so scared of? It might just be a random lil fishy cursed by the red smoke!"


    "A cursed fish? Yeah. More reason to stay away from it. If you''ve been in the ant nests with us, you''d see with your own eyes, how a ''little'' ant became an abomination that almost crushed everyone."


    "Pfff- pffwahahaaha!! You guys got knocked out by a tiny lil ant?! How weak does one have to be to get beaten by an ant!?"


    "Hah... Why do non-human have such high egos..?"


    Hmmm... It seems that Lare is right. Pikaia, Lide, and Cantaloupe are really confident about themselves, is this common for talking creatures that looks like humans, but are not?


    "Vixen, that weapon of yours... It looks like a ranged weapon. Isn''t this a good opportunity to use it? We have a good target here too. My arm is still broken, so I won''t be any help for now. Please forgive me, until we return."


    No need to apologize, Rintan... I was already planning to, but now, one thing is for sure.


    Rintan can only use physical attacks, and that Intestinal Break thing from earlier. Meanwhile, Sushi can use Magic spells, and at such a high level at that. Perfectly balanced, don''t you think?


    I aim Divine Intervention at the Blood Dweller. The red clouds are blocking most sunlight, but this should still be enough to destroy that monster.


    Bang!


    I shoot the enemy with Divine Intervention, but unexpectedly, the damage is way too strong..! An explosion occurs, blowing up the monster, and the area around it. Water is launched towards us, giving us no time to escape.


    "AAAHHHHH!! DO SOMETHING!!"


    Without a way to escape, I simply cast [Holy Barrier], big enough to protect everyone from the incoming wave.


    "Phew... That was close... Who knows what might''ve happened if we got hit by the red waters..."


    "I-Im sorry everyone, and Vampire... I should''ve told you to use something else other than that extremely powerful weapon..."


    Well. Nothing bad happened, so let''s just continue our way back to land.


    We walk past the defeated Blood Dweller. It''s remains are scattered everywhere, another horrible sight to see, but at least the ground is clear from red water now.


    I use the blood splattered everywhere to turn them into another bridge to protect us from the red waters. Later, we stop to rest at a small island. I can''t sense any bloodlust around, so this should be a safe place to sleep for tonight.


    "Are we going to sleep here..? On this island..? On this sand..?"


    "Of course, but for rich people like you, you probably wouldn''t even know how to make a campfire, so you can just go and dig into the ground or something. You''re a cat aren''t you?"


    "Cats don''t sleep in a pit in the ground! And besides. I''m not even a cat. What made you think that? Meow meow?"


    Cantaloupe is not a cat? Well. It might''ve been obvious since they didn''t even have cat ears, or a tail, but why do they keep saying ''Meow Meow''? They''re not even trying to imitate a cat, just literally saying ''me-yaw, mi-yaw''.


    Later, we built a small camp for everyone to sleep in.


    "The sun is setting. Not that I can see the sun anyways, but the clock here says that it''s time to go to sleep. I''ll be guarding all of you, so rest well."


    "Rintan? Come on. You need sleep too, right? I can be the guard, just-"


    "Shhh shhh..! I don''t need sleep, and I mean that literally. I have a mechanic that allows me to stay awake for 10 years without sunlight."


    "Sunlight? Why sunlight? Are you going to die without sunlight?"


    "Kind of. Besides. I need to repair my broken arm anyways. It''s how I get sunlight as well."


    Sunlight? Why does she need sunlight? Does she have a solar panel or something, that gives her electricity? Or is she a plant?


    ... Wait... Since we can finally rest, isn''t this the perfect time for me to speak with Sushi and learn more about my abilities?


    I place Divine Intervention somewhere safe before walking up to Rintan.


    "Hey, Rintan. What are you doing out here? Everyone''s asleep now."


    "Oh. It''s Vampire. I''m just watching out for enemies. What about you? What do you need? We don''t have coffee, or tea around here. If you want to eat some snacks, save it for once we return."


    "I''m not here to talk about that... Actually, can you switch with Sushi for maybe an hour? She''s pretty strong, and powerful, why do you always keep her sleeping anyways?"


    "That is-... You see... It''s a long story, one that can bring fear to those who listens. Would you still open your ears?"


    "Yes... Is it going to be like, ''Sushi awakened and killed everyone, oh no..!'' Or something?"


    "Wow. Good intuition, Vampire, but it''s a bit more than that. Ahem ahem. One day, while I was asleep on the garden, a strange mosquito bit my foot. That''s when memories began flooding into my brain. It hurt pretty bad, so I carved out a chunk of it."


    "Eh..? Really..? How does one even carve out a chunk of their brain..?"


    "Who knows. My hand just reacted on its own. Anyways. Since blood was leaking out of my brain, doctors took me to the nearest hospital to get treated. Magic wouldn''t work, neither did physical treatment. That''s when, a spark of hope shined from the windows... A girl opened the windows above my bed, carrying a bowl of brain soup. Though disgusting, ''it was the only way for me to survive'', she said."


    "What..? Why is there just a random girl carrying a bowl of brain soup..? This story doesn''t make any sense."


    "You may know her as Heart. Heart then immediately poured the brain soup on the hole in my brain. ''Death was beside my bed, so why not do everything in a desperate attempt to survive?'' She said. Not only did the brain soup actually recover my injured brain, but it also gave me everything inside that brain, and I mean everything. Memories, information, and everything."


    "So that''s how Sushi Sand became part of you..? How did you even fuse with that brain anyways? People shouldn''t be able to do that."


    "Who knows. Now, back to the story. Sushi Sand was a talented person living somewhere in my hometown. Heart killed her, and took her brain. Later, she told me that Sushi wasn''t dead yet, and that she continued to live within my Heart. Figuratively..... Now for some strange reason, after a group of bandits hunted me down. I was knocked unconscious, and when I woke up, everyone was dead. Both my guards, and the bandits."


    "I see... That''s a reasonable reaction for someone who has died. If I were to be killed, and then revived with a large group of enemies surrounding me, I''d do the same."


    "Well. That''s a normal reaction. Which is also the same reason why, I rarely awaken her."


    "So? What happened to Heart? And what was that about the system, that Sushi has?"


    "Who knows. Heart suddenly disappeared after I fully recovered. Sushi kind of calmed down now, since she isn''t doing much damage over these years, whenever I wake her up."


    "Hmmm... That''s good. Well. Can I talk to Sushi now?"


    "Very well. I shall be sleeping for the night. Please tell Cantaloupe to repair my arm while you''re still talking. Now then. Bye bye."


    Rintan falls down. Standing up again, with that same look that Sushi had.


    Time to learn more about my abilities now..!

 Chapter 22: The Apocalypse.

    "Yo. Ms. Not-Vampire. Since you''ve awaken me, I assume that you wish to know more about that system, am I right?"


    She says, as she carefully sits down on the ground, smooth sand, right next to a tree.


    "Hm. Yes, correct. About my spells, skills, and abilities overall, I would like to hear about them."


    "I''m not your videogame system, you know? Anyways, there doesn''t seem to be anything dangerous around here. You guys found a good spot to sleep in huh."


    Videogame system? How does she know about that? Could it be that she''s another reincarnation? I''d like to ask her more about it, but I don''t want anyone to know that I''m also another Reincarnation too...


    "What do you mean by that, videogame system?"


    "Nothing nothing.... Okay so. For your Basic Magic spells...... Nevermind, they''re all too insignificant. I''ll only tell you the cool abilities that you have for now.


    Physical Skills Series:


    [Dropkick]: Jump and kick with both legs at the same time.


    [Suplex]: Grab something and slam it into the ground.


    [Chokehold]: Choke something using your arms-


    Gah..! There''s too many skills... Are you a wrestler or something?! Most of your Physical Skill moves are Wrestling moves, or moves from random martial arts!!"


    "Well... They are effective... I learned them back in my hometown..."


    To tell the truth, a strange fellow named "Zen Swytmnyt" taught me most of the skills I use now. She was my neighbor. I wonder what she''s up to now, or if she''s still even alive.


    "Alright. Now, actually moving on to your cool skills. These ones sounds great...


    Mharkalayen Sun Tribe Series:


    [Burning Rock]: Spin furiously, creating fire around the user.


    Freezing Ant Series:


    [Drone Prop Attack]: Converts folate into gunpowder.


    [Heaven''s Model]: Detonates anything that can explode.


    Godless Angel Series:


    [Divine Whirlpool]: Creates a wormhole in space.


    Now for your special abilities... I can also tell you your stats if you want, but I should tell you about your special abilities first.


    [Blood Regeneration]: Regenerates the user''s physical form by taking back it''s lost Blood, and converting the Magical Energy in the air for more blood required to repair the body.


    [Malice]: One of the user''s 12 senses. Allows user to sense bloodlust.


    [Advanced Perception]: One of the user''s 12 senses. Allows user to sense the space surrounding them.


    [?!!&+&+_?&!+-]: ?!-(-!?!--+!??--? ?!+&-_?&! ?!+&_!_&+&- ?!&+_-_!&?+_+ ?!_+_-_!&&+---_ ?!_+_-_- ?!& !?_+_&+!.


    [?_!_+_!_?&+& ?!_+__+_?_?]: ?!&+_!_!_ ??_+_+& ?!+&+&;_."


    "Huh..? What are you talking about, Sushi?"


    "Seems that it''s incomprehensible. I can read it, but I can''t understand. It''s just the limits of my human mind, don''t worry, you can understand them."


    12 senses..?! No I don''t! What even are the 12 senses that I have..?! I''m pretty sure that sensing Bloodlust was just part of my Blood Magic..!


    "Anyways. Let me tell you about your description, and your stats."


    "I have a description? Who even wrote it?"


    "Who knows. Most people don''t, and you''re kind of lucky to even have one.


    -?!+_!& ?!+-


    Level: 890


    ?!+_-_&??! ?!&+_-? ?!+__-_!? ?!_+;_!_+-_!? ?!_+_?&!&. Appears to be what everyone calls a female human. Blonde hair. Red eyes. Has a cute little fang. Wears a red ribbon on her hair. Holds the ?!+&-_? ?&!_+_+ !&+_+?& Condemned ?!?_+_&-? ?_!&?&!+&_+_? ?__!+_+!+_-!&+&


    Race: Vampire.


    Health: 90593/2000000


    Physical Strength: 20341


    Magic Energy: 85205


    Speed: 9056


    Stamina: 45600


    Intelligence: 5000000


    ?!+_-_: &!?&+_?


    ?!_+: __-!_?_+!&?_+-"


    W-what... What the hell even is all this..?! Why are most of it incomprehensible? What did I condemn..? Why are my stats so high..?! And why does it say that I wear a ribbon?!


    "Forgive me if this was shocking news for you. Even I, don''t understand........ Who. What. In. The. World. Are. You?"


    We stood there for a while. Staring at each other.


    This information... It''s one of the few things in this world that I just want to forget. Sometimes, perfect memory is a curse.


    "Huh? Rintan? Meow meow? What are you two doing? It''s midnight already. Go to sleep, Vampire."


    "H-huh..? Oh, it''s just you, Cantaloupe... Y-you''re right... I must go to sleep..."


    "What was all that about? Rintan? Are you even Rintan? Grr!! Sushi!! Switch back to Rintan!!"


    I walked away, heading back to my tent.


    Well. Let''s just pretend that this never even happened. Sleeping is a good way to forget things, haha.


    Zzz...


    The sun rose again. Hmmm... If I''m right, it should be a new year.


    ... A new year..? Isn''t this a huge coincidence..? This red sky... All of this Blood God revival apocalypse... It''s all starting on a new year..? Something isn''t right. What is it..? Why can''t I think properly..?


    "Yawn... What another good day to go walking on the red frozen roads."


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    "Ah... Shouldn''t we eat something first? I don''t want to go without eating."


    "Huh..? Come to think of it... The red clouds are gone, aren''t they?"


    "Woah..! You''re right..! What''s happening?"


    Hm? What''s going on? We all look at the sky. Instead of seeing the usual, gloomy red skies, a bright blue sunny day greets us.


    What?! Something... Something is happening...


    What in the world is happening?!


    "Oh look... Isn''t that a..."


    What is..? A strange individual is walking towards us. They''re carrying a huge sword... I can''t sense any Bloodlust though.


    "Hey hey. It''s me! An assassin sent to kill you guys."


    "Assassin-"


    In an instant, a swing is catched by Rintan, using her repaired arm. Needless to say, we''ve been attacked.


    "Enemy attack!! Kill them!"


    "Flame Burst!!"


    A fireball shoots at the enemy, but they simply just cut it down. Currently, the world is ending. Why even fight?!


    "Everyone. Run."


    Unexpectedly, everyone agrees and begins running from the assassin.


    We all run forward. I use [Blood Reformation] to create a path using the dead fishes in the water. It''s a good way for us to escape, and I can just get rid of the path behind us.


    We mustn''t forget, losing another soul will be terrible, even if we''re fighting an enemy.


    "Looks like they aren''t even chasing us-!"


    "Look out!!"


    A hand breaks out of the frozen path ahead of us.


    What comes out, is a heavily injured, severely damaged, Sundown Lighter.


    I can''t be mistaken, this Bloodlust, and this Magic Energy. It''s the same when we were back in the salt mines.


    "Hah... How t-truly... It''s a terrible state to be in... Abyssal Magic: Cross-"


    He stood there, excessively bleeding from many wounds, holding his chopped off arm, right before Crowler steps forward, swinging his sword at him, which he quickly dodges.


    "Abyssal Magic: Shadow Dragon Resonance!!"


    Shadows form within Sundown Lighter''s hands, piercing through Crowler''s sword.


    Rintan attacks, slashing him, and tearing off his leg.


    "GH!! AAHH-!!"


    "Intestinal Break: Rewind Kick"


    She repeatedly beats him down. Punching, and kicking as he struggles to stand.


    Finally, Crowler swings his sword at him, crushing his face, and sending him back to the waters. The frozen blood road breaks, the red water below turns darker. Though, we''re not even sure if it''s blood or something else.


    We continue running forward. The Bloodlust is now gone, seems like Sundown Lighter has been defeated!


    Later, we finally lose the assassin, so we slowed down, saving up energy by walking.


    Huh? It''s a... It''s land!! We''re finally back on land!!


    "Land..? Rintan, are we back?"


    "Hmmm... I think so. This is the same grass from the town of Liope. Allies should be here, that is, if the curse didn''t affect everyone."


    "Man... Isn''t this just an apocalypse?"


    We roamed around until we finally found a town. The streets are empty, it''s unavoidable to see blood and corpses. All the houses are closed, not even a single window unlocked.


    Looks like the Blood God''s Curse has affected everything, even on land.


    "Hmmm... Shouldn''t the curse only turn creatures into monsters? I''ve been wondering, there''s a lot of monsters, and corpses everywhere... What if, this isn''t even the Blood God''s work anyways?"


    "That''s a possibility. Still, we must do something about it. Blood God''s Curse or whatever, we must stop this apocalypse."


    "Well. Let''s start by finding survivors. The red smoke only affects those in it right? There should be people still unaffected in their homes then."


    We searched around, but to no avail. Best we could find is barely living abominations, or giant monsters.


    Wait a minute... Where did everyone go? Well. Let me just use [Spatial Investigation]. Hm. They''re a bit far away. There''s a lot of bloodlust around us, most of it is probably coming from what used to be humans, so we need to be careful, that assassin from earlier is still around too.


    "Len... Len... God..."


    "Save us..!"


    I seem to have stumbled upon a small camp full of disfigured, and cursed people.


    "Uu...! Save... God has returned..."


    "Rapture... Died...."


    "Mom..? Are you..."


    It''s a horrifying sight. People are crawling around everywhere, some are holding their guts, which is hanging off their body. While some are trying to climb the walls.


    Though... If they''re all here somehow, then it would mean that someone put them here, or this place used to be a camp before everyone turned into this...


    "Ha..! Let me..! AAH-!"


    Ow. What was that? Something hit my leg... Oh? It''s a child? A perfectly normal child? Not cursed? Is she the one helping these guys?


    "H-huh..?! You''re finally out of the curse..? Yay!!"


    Does she think that I''m one of them? Well. I should put down Divine Intervention to talk.


    "Sorry, but I was never cursed. What are you doing around here? This place is dangerous."


    "Y-you''re not..? Really? Oh! You''re one of the soldiers sent here to help us huh? Where''s your allies?"


    She looks around for something. Perhaps my allies? They''re too far away from this place. She wouldn''t be able to find them here.


    "No. My allies are far away..."


    "Oh... Can you please help us then..? Everyone has turned into a monster after these few days... I..."


    "Can you explain what happened in this city? I''m not a soldier, or maybe you could call us one. I''m part of the Hero''s team, Vixen."


    "Vixen? I''m Fone, Fone Aeiall... For some reason, the curse didn''t affect me... Probably because I was sleeping, but when I woke up, the entire city was covered in red fog..."


    "Red fog..? Do you know the Blood God? Isn''t this the result of their revival?"


    "People were talking about it for a few days... Didn''t know it would actually come true...."


    "So? Can you tell me the story of how you survived?"


    "Yes yes... I went out the house and looked around for mom... I couldn''t find her, only her upper body......"


    "How sad... I''m sorry for that."


    "No it''s okay... Right after that, a giant showed up, it was scary, I ran as fast possible... That''s when I met these guys... We lived together for a while, before a strange man in a cloak arrived at our front gates..."


    A strange man in a cloak? Man... What''s going on right now?


    "He then slaughtered everyone, but I survived by hiding in the sewers... The dead bodies of everyone then turned into this... Now I''m currently trying to help them go back to their original form... Can you help?"


    "Sure, why not. I can cast healing on them, but it will take a few days for everyone to recover. Mentally... Some won''t be the same anymore..."


    "Hah..! Thank you..!!"


    Well. I haven''t used [Revitalize] on a lot of people before, so there''s a chance that this spell might become weaker as I use it.


    "Alright! Follow me-"


    An expected appearance, the face of a familiar one arrives.


    It is, not without a second glance, this entire place is a trap. The one who set me up, is the one who murdered my friends a few years ago.


    Is he also the same one who slaughtered all these people? He might have arrived here with a few of his allies, I need to be careful.


    "HahaahahaHHAAAA!!! YOU DOLTISH LITTLE BASTARD!! Fools like you, cretinous and naive... How did it feel? To be separated from the chains..?"


    The little girl looked back, right before multiple slashes captures the space surrounding her.


    "Divine Light. CAST OF THE IRON MAIDEN!!!"


    It''s been a long time since I''ve heard that. Amongst all of this confusion, and this apocalyptic nightmare, the one enemy, that I thought I''ve gotten rid off, comes back.


    [Spatial Lift] should''ve transported him into another realm, or into the dirt at least. Getting brought back here was a miracle, terrible luck for me.


    I grab all of the slashes before it hit Fone. [Physical Enhancement III], and [Blood Storm], I cast.


    "V-Vixen..?!"


    She asked, quickly before I kicked her into a nearby building. She has [Holy Barrier] that I''ve casted instantly, so she''ll be safe.


    [Holy Barrier] is the strongest form of the [Barrier] spell, it won''t be easy breaking through.


    "Still carrying on your hero act? The true hero has arrived, Vampire. It''ll be the death of humanity, and the start of a new era! There''s no more hope left for you in this world!"


    "Really? I thought I put you back in the ground? Did you dig out? You demons really need to stay where you belong."


    "Oh..? I''m not a demon. I''m a pillar... One, consisting of this world. Creators have forgotten about me, or maybe they didn''t..? Hmmm... Well, whatever! Calling me a mere demon, IS A DISGRACE TO THE PILLARS OF CREATION!!!"


    "Stop shouting. Does the Pillars of Creation have bad temper? Well, it doesn''t even matter anymore. I''ll make sure you meet the same fate as those you''ve killed."


    We''re not going to have a Rematch here. My only goal is to survive, not to fight.


    His magical field definitely changed, [Spatial Lift] won''t work anymore.


    This overwhelming power... it''s impossible to win.


    ...


    Bloodlust? Where did that come from?


    Silhouettes suddenly appeared on the rooftops... Looks like I''ve been cornered.


    Frillet Tofan? Fang? Cricket Cricket? Triax? Sundown Lighter? And five more?


    Whatever. I''ll kill them all.


    "Time to get serious."


    Crack, crack.


    I crack my fingers, stretch my back, and prepare to attack.


    "You have no way of winning here... What are you planning to do?"


    "Vixen, I gave you a chance to turn back. Apologizing now won''t work."


    "My face is gone... You''re going to pay..."


    They all step forward, looking down at me.


    "I am the savior. The one who will bring light into this world of darkness. There shan''t be none sinners who stand before me... Vampire, you have committed a mortal sin. Even helping lost souls, won''t make you go forgiven."


    What a bunch of nonsense. Still, the only way out of this situation, is pretty easy.


    Consisting of blood, air, oxygen, bloodlust, and magic. It is my ultimate spell, [Antares].


    Thanks to my extraordinary intelligence, and my perfect memory, learning it was easy. Not much people can have my abilities, for some, it''s a curse, it''s the same for me.


    .....


    Gather up all of the Magic Energy in the vicinity, with lower focus, oxygen and air won''t be a problem. Then take all of the bloodlust you can get, Cricket Cricket''s for example. It ranges over 2000000km long, take all of this into one place, and mix it all together. Lastly, pour all of your energy, and everything that you have in it, and release them all at once.


    "Time to end this...


    Divine Light, Cast of the Iron Maiden-"


    "Antares."


    Bright light consumes the area. Immediately, I cast [Holy Barrier] on myself, and [Spatial Lift II] on Fone, Rintan, Cantaloupe, Den, Lare, Rayan, Crowler, and Feradon.


    It wasn''t long before I lost consciousness.


    It was the best decision, probably. After all, I was ambushed by insanely strong opponents.

 Chapter 23: The Demon Realm.

    Everything, wiped out.


    As I awaken, a massive crater is the first thing to be seen.


    Seems like [Antares] worked. All of my enemies are gone now, along with everyone in this place...


    It''s horrible, but something worse would''ve happened if I didn''t get rid of those assassins.


    Thinking won''t do good. I have to get out and find everyone. [Spatial Lift] only teleports targets to random places, I''ve explained it before, knowing them, they''ve probably survived.


    ....


    I walked through the wastelands, of what I''ve created. The bloody skies are now gone, replaced with your favorite, sunny blue background.


    Through an entire day, I managed to find my way back to the main roads. At the sacrifice of losing sight of the beautiful skies, and back to the gloomy, and red atmosphere.


    "Yo, Vampire. Looking for your friends?"


    While walking down the road, a lady riding a horse stops in front of me.


    She looks at me with that sly face, obvious that she''s another enemy. She''s not even hiding her Bloodlust, what am I supposed to do with her?


    "Divine retribution it is... I''m Heart. You''ve known me from that woman, haven''t you?"


    Heart? Surprise. It''s a known person, Rintan has told me about her, which means that her hometown should be near as well.


    "Don''t give me that silence..! Fufufu..! I''m with the Military Police. Though, the nation''s probably fallen already."


    "What do you want? I don''t have time for this. Move out of the way."


    "The embodiment of fate, it''s arrived."


    Embodiment of fate? I see. Let''s go along with her then.


    I get on the horse, as she moves down the road at full speed.


    "Embodiment of Fate", a false redeemer. He''s Rintan''s assistant. Back at her kingdom, he supports Rintan with most of her works, but I do understand, how he''s a fake.


    "Vixen, you got jumped by Frillet, right? He began moving as soon as he returned. You going into the salt mines basically meant your demise. Ever wondered how, and why he was even in Terui?"


    "A great mistake huh... Me throwing forks at him wasn''t a bad idea though. He got weakened, with no way to escape."


    "Same for you. You''ve basically consumed all corpses, and every evil intent in this continent. For a while, there won''t be anything bad happening."


    "Anyways, where are we going? Do you know where Rintan and the others are?"


    "No, of course. I can bring you to the Ninth Polar Heaven, where I live however. But at a cost. Wish you luck, Vixen."


    "Hm? What''s the cost? I don''t have anything on me right now..."


    "You don''t seem to realize, you have the key to unlock it. When I tell you, break a watermelon at the right time, while bending your finger 1 nanometer to the left, okay?"


    Huh? Why should I? That''s a pretty random request.


    "Super Thunderblade!!!"


    "Wh-WHAAAA!!!"


    What?! What is she doing?! She threw me straight into the sky!!


    A watermelon comes along. Should I do what she told me to do?


    A bullet flies past me, is this the signal?


    I bend my finger, and smash the watermelon instantly, a giant gate suddenly opens in the blink of an eye. What even is going on?!


    "Good work! Now get back here!"


    I fall back on to the horse, which runs into the gate. The gate leads us into a dark fiery world.


    Don''t tell me...


    T-THE DEMON REALM?!!!?


    "Extraplanetarium rose."


    A red barrier forms around us.


    Ummm.... What is happening..? I don''t understand what''s going on anymore... Why is there a random portal to the Demon Realm on this road? Why does breaking a watermelon and bending your finger open it?


    "There''re demons everywhere. We''ll have to meet one of the demon generals here, so that we can find everyone."


    The most notable thing right now, is Heart''s purple hair, while she continues moving forward, heading towards that ominous burning castle.


    The horse finally trips, it''s impressive how long it managed to stay up while running on these molten rocks.


    "We''ll have to run on lava now. It''s better than running on water at least."


    Eh..? Do I really have to..? I''ll just use [Blood Reformation] and use that horse''s blood as a bridge.


    "That''s cheating, Vampire."


    She looks at me with a disappointed look on her face.


    Well, what can I do? No way my feet won''t burn running on lava.


    "My friend, Sawa will be in there, meet him, and 5 other demons. Don''t try to attack though, any signs of malice will instantly make you an enemy."


    "Wait. How are we going to get into the castle? I don''t see a gate, or any entrance anywhere."


    "Just run into it."


    What..?


    We suddenly crash into the castle. Luckily, I didn''t catch fire.


    The interior is seemingly normal, as if there isn''t even a burning inferno outside. Did we enter another portal? The sounds of fire crackling can still be heard. I guess we''ll have to find Sawa for now.


    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    "Let''s go right. The chambers of eternal suffering is in the left. Make sure not to stumble in there..!"


    "Chambers of eternal suffering..? Why is that even here?"


    "Hm? Why ask such a stupid question? We''re in hell, of course."


    I mustn''t forget that the Demon Realm is basically just hell.


    We move down the right hallways, eventually finding a door which leads into a library.


    "This is the library of sharks. In the upper world, or the mortal realm, it is called the Forgotten library of Triio."


    "Triio? I think I''ve heard about that before. It''s where forbidden magic, and other things are written about, right?"


    "Correct. Dinofelis, the Tiger king will be in here, as the librarian."


    Dinofelis? Aren''t we going to meet Sawa?


    A strange man then walks by. Oh. It must be Dinofelis.


    We walk up to him.


    "Hey there. Have you any books?"


    "Heart? Heart Cornea? What are you doing here? I thought you went back onto the surface?"


    Heart Cornea? That''s Heart''s full name? Why is she named after some parts of the human body?


    We then take a seat nearby. Libraries can be a good place for resting too, huh.


    Dinofelis, the King of Tigers. Currently one of the greatest Beastfolks. If I''m right, he should''ve come from the north, and passed away in a fierce battle against the humans not too long ago. So, how is he still here? Or is he already dead, and this is just hell? Well, it is hell, but my concept of hell is kind of different from this place...


    "Vampire Vampire, this is Dinofelis. Dinofelis, this is Vampire."


    "H-ha.... Nice to meet you, I guess.."


    "You too..."


    How awkward. Why is Heart introducing us to each other?


    "Ahem ahem. Now on to business.... The old Hero, Frillet Tofan, ambushed Vixen. In a response to this attack, Vixen detonated a nuclear bomb, and transported all of her friends to random places. Is that right, Vampire?"


    "I''m not a vampire.... But yes, that is correct. Why are you explaining this? And how do you know this?"


    "We''ll be the ones to judge, whether you are innocent, or not. Dinofelis, if you were to be thrown into the same situation as her, what would be your reaction?"


    Dinofelis then stood up.


    "As a response to such an unexpected attack, I would first, negotiate with my enemies, and second, run away as fast as possible. If I were to fail, my 2nd plan wouldn''t be to instantly murder everyone in the area, but to use teleportation magic and get away."


    "Ahem ahem. Vixen, what did you do? You brutally decimated everyone, including those who aren''t even involved. I''d expect you to say something like "they were already dead" or whatever. But even if they weren''t even conscious anymore, a soul is still a soul, taking away ones soul counts as murder."


    Eh?? What even are the rules of this world? Besides, I would never say something like that. I even tried to help them.


    Why are we doing this in a library anyways?! Isn''t this supposed to happen on court?!


    "Let me speak, the soul is merely a concept. Are you really sure that everyone has a soul? I was also going to help everyone, until I got attacked. It was self-defense. Since I was being ambushed, self-defense was my only option. It is without a doubt, my enemies wouldn''t let me get away, even with my teleportation magic."


    "I have an objection. There was no reason to instantly kill everyone. You had a ton of options as well, just a few examples I have here... First, you could''ve spoken with them. Second, you could''ve jumped into the air and escape. Third, you could''ve dug into the ground and tunnel out of the city. And Fourth, you could''ve just run through the entire city, it''s all not a problem for you, right?"


    "No. Even if I tried to escape, no way that my enemies would''ve let me. Speaking wasn''t an option either. They have already tried to kill me before I even made a move. You guys didn''t even witness it, so why are we doing this..?"


    "Hoh-hoh-hoh..! Simply because it''s fun!"


    "Eh?? I don''t have time for this, Heart. My friends are waiting."


    What a waste of time. I get up, and started walking away.


    "Hold on, Vampire. This talk isn''t useless. This entire thing was merely just a part of my plan, to waste time while waiting for my ultimate goal...."


    "Ultimate goal? Fine, I''ll hear about it before I leave."


    "Coffee is ready."


    Huh? What is she talking about? Did she just waste more time simply because she wanted me to wait for her coffee? A mere coffee isn''t even a nanometer worth of significance compared to the search for my friends..!


    "Well... Why not stay a bit for coffee? Rest is important too, you know?"


    "Sigh... Okay. Why not. This coffee better be good, as a compensation for my lost time. And not just good either. It must be beyond the greatest of the greatest. For such an ordinary, plain coffee, I wont show any form of mercy towards whoever made it..!"


    "How angry how angry.... Fear not, Vampire. This is the coffee made by the purest of them all. Truly a perfect delight from heaven!"


    Delight from heaven? Heavenly Delights? Sounds good.


    We returned to our seats.... And waited for an hour.....


    ......


    How long?!!? How dare she waste more time!!! I get up to leave, but suddenly, our coffee arrives.


    "U-umm... D-do you have... Do you want an coffee..? Is this yours..?"


    Wow. It''s a maid. She''s fidgeting, nervous, and holding a plate with 3 cup of coffee.


    That shining, silky silver hair. Paired with those, bright green and blue eyes, heterochromia perhaps? Now with a beautiful maid uniform... Is this the one who brings coffee from heaven? Let''s ask Heart- oh. Nevermind, she''s asleep.


    "Ah... Free..! Didn''t think you''d be the one to bring us our coffee!"


    "Free? Her name''s Free? Hmmm... Maybe I''ll stay here for a while after all."


    "Yes, you chose the right option..! Karran Verran, or Sun Free in your language. The best of the best in this castle!!"


    "Sun Free? That sounds below terrible for someone like her! I''ll call her Fiya for now, such wonderful words for the likes of her!"


    Not sure if it''s because of her charisma, or because of the strange magical field surrounding her that pulls many eyes. Still, she doesn''t seem to realize it.


    "Uuu.... Wa..? W-w-w-what might you be talking a-about..?"


    "Nothing nothing. Come sit down, you can drink one of the coffees, it''s supposed to be for a friend here, but they''ve told me to not waste drinks for if you bestow them upon us, whilst they''re away."


    "H-huh..? Isn''t that your friend over there?"


    Is she talking about Heart, who is sleeping? Let''s just pretend that she''s not there. After all, she did annoy me a bit. Sleeping when you know you''re getting coffee from Fiya was your mistake, Heart. Fufufu..!


    "Ignore her. And let''s talk about my country''s declaration of independence."


    "Woo..? Hm..? W-why..? But okay..."


    She sat next to me. How lucky I am..!


    "Ahem ahem. Free, can you tell us about how you''re able to make such immaculate drink? It''s savory taste, much sugar, but not too many... A slight bitterness, at the right amount... And the perfect pieces of caffeine, enough to make you feel regenerated, whilst preventing any negative side effects..!"


    "G-guu... Ha...? I-I can''t understand what y-you-..."


    "Oh? Let me make this simpler. How do you create the perfect coffee?"


    "Perfect? I-I''m not- it''s not perfect... I just added a bit of magic to it..!"


    Magic? When was there magic for things like coffee?


    I take a sip of my coffee. It''s not-! How delicious..! This goes beyond even the concept of cosmically great..! What even is this..?


    I cast [Appraisal], yet nothing seems to show up. Is it because I''ve only learned that spell not too long ago? Or is it because this coffee is just too good?


    "E-eh..? Umm... Miss... You seem to enjoy my coffee huh..? Hehehe... Same for you too, Mr. Dinofelis..."


    I didn''t even realize, I had already finished drinking my coffee..!


    "You too, Free. Go on, drink yours. After all, you did make it."


    "O-oh... Thanks... Very well, then..."


    How cute..!


    She began drinking her coffee with the proper etiquette. Must I only see this for less than even 20 seconds?


    "Ha... R-refreshing, to say the least..."


    Suddenly, an interruption occured.


    "Yawn..... Gah... Oh? Free? You''ve-...."


    Heart woke up, realizing what''s happening.


    Uh oh. Will she get mad at Free for taking her drink? I''ll cut her down in an instant before she can even say anything about it.


    "W-w-waaa..!! I-I''m sorry Ms. Heart..! For drinking your coffee..! It is yours... Isn''t it...?"


    "Hm? Just so you know, if you wanted to, you could order me to do anything, if you just asked. So of course, if you wanted to drink my coffee, it''s all yours. Never was it mine. Ever."


    "H-huu.... O-okay then.... I appreciate your kindness, and will c-continue to drink..."


    It''s a sight to see, but I need to get back to finding my friends. If I could, I would bring her with me.


    I stood up, putting down my coffee.


    "Heart, about our mission... You told me that you were going to bring me to the Ninth Polar Heaven, or whatever?"


    "Hihihi..! When did I ever say that? Are you saying that you want to leave behind, this adorable, little girl, and move on to find your allies?"


    "Hmm... I''ll find my friends first. After we regroup, we''ll take Fiya with us, if she wants to."


    "Alright alright. Let us move then."


    "Apologies, Fiya, but we will meet again."


    As we prepared to leave, Fiya suddenly said something unexpected.


    "W-wait..! The N-Ninth Polar Heaven that you speak of... I know where it is... C-can I come along..? It''s where my parents live..."


    "Your parents? Of course of course! I''d love it if you wanted to come with us!"


    "R-really? Woohoo..! Yay..!"


    We then left the library and returned to the hallways.


    The large hole that we made on the wall is now gone. Is this place automatically healing? Or are there people that repairs the walls?


    "Hold on, Vixen. Have you forgotten our first objectives? We must meet Sawa, and obtain the second key to unlocking the gates leading into the Ninth Polar Heaven."


    Sawa huh... I''m pretty sure that he''s the same demon that ordered every demon to get rid of all the humans that they see.


    Well, whatever they are, Heart is here, so I should be safe from harm.

 Chapter 24: Gods and Truths.

    As we arrived in front of the giant, menacing demon, Heart crossed her arms and speaks.


    "Hello hello, Sawa."


    The demon then turned towards us, it''s bringing fear, no doubt. Even Fiya here is afraid, it''s safe to say that this is the same monster who brings terror upon humans, and its own kind.


    "W-wawawawa.... P-please speak quicker..."


    "Y-you can wait back there, Fiya..."


    Fortunately, Fiya does what I told her and leaves the dark red, blood soaked chamber.


    The giant then spoke, in a deep, demonic voice.


    "Heart... Who might this be..?"


    "You can call her Vampire. What about you, Sawa? The progress within her world diminished. Further action recalls, such an act would cause significant chaos."


    "Release... Kill everything... Operate the second action... Go home, if you must... I will wait... Vlaia... Drein... Find them, the action depends on their incapability..."


    "The southern hemispheric gates have opened. It won''t be that easy. Rest assured, me and Vampire will do something about it."


    We then left the place. What were they talking about? I wonder.


    We later regroup with Fiya before walking down the hallways. The sounds of burning wouldn''t go away. It is unknown where they come from, but it is always there, as if there was always fire next to you.


    "What was that about, Heart?"


    "The talk I had with Sawa? There''s things in this world you''d rather not know, Vixen."


    "Hm? I know, but still. I can''t just go without learning about our mission. We''re not just going to the Ninth Polar Heaven, your home, right?"


    "Correct. If you wished to know, it took place a couple hundred years ago. The 1st Polar Heaven was situated in this place. A place where Heaven existed, literally."


    "Heaven? What about it? And why is it in a place like this? Aren''t we in hell?"


    "Hell, it''s ignorant to call it that. I was born in the 1st Polar Heaven. My parents wished nothing but food. Everyone wished nothing but food. We all wished for food. A place where hunger is nonexistent, as everyone always eats each other."


    "That''s common sense. I know that you''d all do bad things in hell."


    "It''s not the hell you know about, Vixen. A hell where the serpent lived. Tsuchikonoko. The mastermind behind all of this. She''s the one who brought this apocalypse. To tell the truth, Rintan, your friend didn''t get Sushi from that brain, like what I''ve told her."


    What? It was all fake? Does that mean... Sushi doesn''t exist then?! Is Rintan just acting as Sushi? Though... Rintan never uses magic, but Sushi does. Why is that?


    "Sushi Sand was a separate. A clone of her. A clone of herself. Tsuchikonoko is at the bottom of it all. She already planned all of this from the start, as a way to combat the Blood God. You see, the Blood God''s revival was unavoidable. There was no way to prevent. As such, Tsuchikonoko improvised by murdering everyone during the Eras of Apostasy."


    "May I ask? Who is this Tsuchikonoko that you speak of? I''ve never heard of someone like that before..."


    "She''s the Devil. A demon born in hell. The second coming of the devil. All life narrows down to it. The structure of creation.... Jiapoua, The 3rd Pillars of Creation. Tsuchikonoko, The 2nd Pillars of Creation. Cricket Cricket, The 4th Pillars of Creation. Leviathan, The 5th Pillars of Creation. And at the last, Frillet Tofan. You already know where he''s at."


    Frillet Tofan?! The old Hero?! H-he''s a pillar of creation..?! But wait... Who''s the 1st Pillars of Creation then?


    "Unknown. No one knows of them. But they did exist at one point. Through the Eras of Apostasy. A couple of our smartest guys managed to figure it out, and put the pieces together though."


    "Just to find out that the 1st Pillars of Creation is the Blood God? I already know. There''s no reason to tell me, haha."


    "All of the Pillars of Creation are at war with each other. Mainly because of the Blood God. The 2nd Pillars of Creation, Tsuchikonoko, already began her movement a long time ago. Frillet has also started, of course."


    "So? What''s our goal? What are we going to do in the Ninth Polar Heaven?"


    "Vixen? Have you not realized it yet? There''s no way to kill, defeat, or stop the Blood God. Such concepts must not even be thought of when encountering them. HOWEVER!! If we can just get the Blood God on our side..!!"


    "Uhhh... Aren''t you acting strange..? What''s happened with you?"


    "Ahem ahem. Sorry, my bad. Back to what I was saying. Tsuchikonoko''s main goal isn''t to combat the Blood God, despite all of this. Humanity has done horrid. Everything, I can''t even say a word about it... Humanity- Humanity just needs to perish. They''ve done all wrong. They don''t- no... They have to die right now..."


    "Huh? Why!? Do you hate me?! Besides. Aren''t you a human too anyways?"


    "I know. That''s why... Tsuchikonoko''s true end goal isn''t to defeat the Blood God or anything..! It''s to kill humanity!"


    "Eh? Destroy humanity? That''s impossible. Only the Blood God would be strong enough to do that. Do you know how strong some humans are? You know, humans like me for example!"


    "You''re not a human, Vixen. Anyways anyways. The Blood God doesn''t just need souls for their revival. They also need a vessel. A vessel, perfect enough to hold in a primordial God. Tsuchikonoko''s true, and actual plan is becoming that vessel. Not only does taking a vessel bring back the Blood God, but it also gives them all of the memories of that, Vessel."


    "Vessel? Why would she do that? Is she stupid or something? Or maybe I just can''t think fast enough?"


    "Both. The reason for all of this, once the Blood God comes back. To have the Blood God to come back, Tsuchikonoko will only take all ways to get them on her side."


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Hmmm... Aren''t we also trying to get the Blood God on our side?"


    "Yes yes. But for the Blood God, you see here... The Blood God was beloved by everyone. And I mean everyone. No one had hated them. Especially before the Eras of Apostasy. When all Gods abandoned this planet, all hell broke lose. We all turned against the Blood God. And they responded, by murdering everyone. Because of this. Because of this hatred, hate and to detest. They sealed themselves."


    "Sealed themselves? I don''t think anyone is capable of that. Why would they do that anyway? I thought someone defeated them?"


    "True. Someone fought them. But with their lack of will, they simple gave up and let their enemy defeat them. Now, only a few know of this. Another person has been behind us. Acting. They set up all of this. For everyone to fear, hate, and want to kill this Blood God. Now, Tsuchikonoko, if she manages to gather up all of the memories of this world, it will give the Blood God no other option, but to kill us all."


    "I see... So the Blood God just wants everyone to love them huh..? But everyone''s trying to hate them, or use them to destroy each other..."


    "That''s right. Tsuchikonoko wants to take all of history, and show it unto the Blood God. Humanity already deserved to perish, the Blood God gave us a second chance. Once Tsuchikonoko shows everything, everything is done for."


    "I see. So we have to make the Blood God think that everything is okay? We have to love the Blood God huh. Well, I already feel bad for the Blood God so it''s safe to say I won''t get murdered, haha."


    "Our main goal is to prevent, and to defeat Tsuchikonoko before she does that. Then get the Blood God on our side."


    "How? It''s impossible to change all of humanity now. We''ve all done horrible things. Not saying that we should just bring the destruction of everything, but we need another plan."


    "I know.... Hehehehe... Vixen... This plan... It will never fail..! Would you like to hear about it?"


    Hm? She''s acting strangely again. I can''t get a good impression on Heart...


    "Alright. What is it? You seem dangerous and evil right now, but I''ll hear you out."


    "Another truth. Simply put, the Red Serpent, or the Devil, is a reincarnation."


    W-what?! A reincarnation?! Another one like me?! How does she know?! But it looks like Heart only knows about one Reincarnation at least..!


    "What? W-what does that mean..?"


    "In a place called Earth, we set up a small base by creating a portal. It reaches to the elites, and the governments of that world. Since we''re stronger, they fall easily."


    E-EARTH?!!! THEY GOT BACK TO EARTH?!!! H-how in hell...?!


    "E-e-earth..? W-what is that..?"


    "Heh..! You''re kinda dumb, Vixen! That''s- ahem ahem. No forget about that, I''m sorry. Anyways. Earth, if you don''t know, is the 3rd world, similar to this world. It''s the upper mortal realm. However, one of the Gods hosted a festival, taking people from that world and putting them here, in our world."


    The festival of reincarnation? I think I''ve heard the Dream God talk about that- no... Was it Nyx? The non-existing God?


    "The Nightmarish Mortality, is what we call it. It''s a connection to all of the world leaders and governments. It connects all souls to each other. Basically, a devil''s contract. Sell your soul to the devil they say, and you will get what you wished for."


    "I''ve heard about that before... It''s pretty common around here too."


    "Right. But in this world, Earth. Magic and such does not exist. To compensate for that, the people of that world trades something important just for the basic reward of magic. They sign a contract with the devil, Tsuchikonoko."


    "Wait. Aren''t you guys supposed to be against Tsuchikonoko? Why are you being... Why is it connected to her then?"


    "No. We merely connect everything, we connect their wishes and prayers to what they''re praying to, Tsuchikonoko. People give us their souls, meanwhile, Tsuchikonoko gets nothing. She''s just our face for that, of course, we don''t really do anything worth suffering for them of course."


    "I thought you guys were the bad guys. Aren''t demons supposed to hurt humans instead of helping? Not saying you should, but..."


    "The Nightmarish Mortality serves as our face in Earth. And our portal into the 3rd world. No one is suffering currently, all of their trades are just information. No one gives their souls yet. However, if Tsuchikonoko just figures it out, most humans in Earth will die. In short. We''ve planted a bomb into everyone on Earth, and the trigger, is Tsuchikonoko herself."


    "I see. So you guys are the first ones to get on Earth? I don''t think there''d be much difference in there even if you didn''t arrive in that place."


    "Our main goal, The Nightmarish Mortality, is only to gather information, so of course."


    "Okay okay. So what about Tsuchikonoko''s reincarnation? Who was she back in Earth?"


    "She''s the Reincarnation of the devil. But back in Earth, she was just a homeless girl. Everyone hated her. It was a long time ago though. Seems like time differs in Earth and in Cvvoer."


    Medieval times? Oh... So people during that time hated her? How ironic...


    The hated, wants to become one with the beloved...


    "She hates everyone and everything. The gods gave her a second chance, to respond and decide the future of mankind that exists in both worlds, Earth, and Cvvoer. The second chance being, the Imaginary System, Godless Angel Rhapsodies."


    "So it''s called the Godless Angel Rhapsodies..? The one that she gave to Sushi, and what you gave to Rintan?"


    "Yes. You can still call her Sushi if you want. But remember that it''s just Tsuchikonoko''s clone, with a different name."


    What a long talk it was. We finally arrived at the end of the hallways.


    Wait. What was the plan again?


    ....


    It was an extremely long hallway. The sounds of burning never left.


    "We''re finally here. The gates to the 3rd layer of hell. Where the Ninth Polar Heaven resides."


    "Uuu.... I-it''s also where my parents live..."


    What are we looking at? It''s just a blank wall. Perhaps there''s a secret door somewhere?


    Heart then walks up to the wall and punches it. Her hand goes through and she begins tearing out the wall.


    "What are you doing? Aren''t you just destroying the wall?"


    "This is the gateway to the Ninth Polar Heaven. Just wait..."


    Finally, she destroys the entire wall and reveals a heavenly paradise.


    Nothing else than to call it heaven. There''s snow falling everywhere, on the trees, and on the ground. It was actually a portal, exact opposite of this hell.


    We step in. It''s cold. A giant wall is behind us, with the same hole that Heart made. Does Heaven and Hell just have a giant barrier like this between them?


    "That huge monolith over there, it''s the Heart of this place."


    Heart? Isn''t she...


    "Yes. And I''m Heart."


    "E-ehh... It''s kind of embarrassing to say... But she''s right... I''m one of Heart''s children..."


    Really..? So Heart is a God..? Or a Monolith..?


    "Not really a children... You''re a spawn of the devil. A devil, different from Tsuchikonoko of course."


    "Hm? You''re the devil, Heart?"


    "No no no. I''m heart, and Heart is the devil, but I''m not the devil."


    "What does that even mean?"


    "This monolith is the heart of the Ninth Polar Heaven. Look.


    Godless Angel Rhapsodies, Activate."


    Suddenly, multiple patterns on the monolith began glowing. Is there an imaginary system in there too? How is it even in here?"


    "It''s broken. It will only glow. Vixen, the mission that I''ll give you, wanna hear it?"


    "Huh...? Alright... What is it?"


    "Kill Rintan. Or more specifically, kill Tsuchikonoko''s clone."


    "I see. But how can I do that? It''s almost impossible to-"


    Soul Retraction! I remember now... Last lesson from Rabbit. I need to learn and use Soul Retraction. Though, I don''t even have any clues on what it is.


    "My main ability... It''s called Soul Nullification. It nullifies the soul on contact with the physical form. I can give it to you."


    "W-what..? You can give abilities?"


    "Of course. Soul Nullification, or Soul Retraction, it''s an ability stolen from the Fanine Clan. But I''m not the thief, just so you know."


    It''s from the Fanine Clan? Hmmm... What even is Rabbit''s connection to the Fanine Clan? Is she Heart''s teacher or something?


    "How does the ability work? And how will you give it to me?"


    "It attacks the soul, the soul of anything, and nullifies it obviously. Basically, it takes away any form of magic from a creature that can use it. A direct counter to magic, don''t you think? I can give it to you, once we meet Rintan. We''ll meet up with your friends too, but just right after this mission."


    "Thanks... Still, why are we in this place? Is there any reason for us to come here?"


    "Nothing really. I''ve planted potatoes next to my house here. Free must''ve went with us just to help with it."


    The Ninth Polar Heaven being used for planting potatoes?!! Why are they doing that here?! Well... I guess it is their home.


    "You can explore for a bit, if you want. We''ll be harvesting while you do that."


    Alright. This place does seem interesting. I''ll look around that giant Monolith, and try to fix it.


    Though... I''m still curious. What did she mean by her not being the devil, while still being the devil at the same time..?

 Chapter 25: The Gateway Between Hell and Earth.

    Come to think of it, was I actually the key?


    The gates leading into the Demon Realm, and the gates of the Ninth Polar Heaven did open despite us doing nothing.


    Heart mentioned something about keys but we never even took one along the way. We didn''t even open any locks.


    ...


    Fiya and Heart walked over to the small house near the monolith. Leaving me behind to explore this place.


    I walked over to a door on the giant wall surrounding the monolith. It''s a chained metal door, resembling that of a door that you''d find back in Earth.


    I turn the doorknob to open it. Inside, a group of people wearing gas masks and protective gear are working on something.


    "Felan, hand me that barrel."


    "Fuu..! Sha..!"


    As one of them gives a barrel to the other, everyone suddenly looks at me.


    Did I accidentally stumble into something dangerous..?


    "Huh? Who''s that?"


    "A new worker? Must be him. Come on in, we''re currently fixing the elevators, but remember, one wrong move and this entire place blows up."


    Ehh..? What does he mean by that..? Isn''t this a-...


    IT''S A NUCLEAR SILO?!!!


    "Operations operations..."


    Why do they even have such technology..? Magic already exists so this world would''ve relied on it, making scientific advancements later.


    Besides, Missiles aren''t even that useful around here, since magic users can just shoot them down.


    "U-umm... I''m not actually a worker here... Heart brought me to this place and I just accidentally opened the door... So if you don''t mind-"


    "I can sense the size of your magic energy. No need to be shy, you can help us out by giving our weapon a bit of magic."


    Magic..? Well. I''m still waiting for Heart and Fiya to be done harvesting their potatoes so I guess I can help for a while.


    "Alright... What are you guys even doing?"


    One of them walks up to me as I say that.


    "We''re making a Magical Hydrogen Bomb. I assume that you already know, since Heart brought you here."


    Heart did tell me about the Nightmarish Mortality... So is this bomb made with blueprints from Earth?


    "One of the Elites from Earth is our current leader. You could call him our main source of information. I don''t like the humans of Earth, but we still have to help them anyways for the sake of our nation... Sigh..."


    He then leads me further into the facility, a separate section from the missile silo.


    It looks like some generic secret science laboratory from a movie or something.


    "This is the Magical Scientific Research facility. I''m Iyan from the Nightmarish Mortality."


    "So I assume that the Nightmarish Mortality is an organization huh. It''s bigger than what I''ve expected."


    Iyan then takes off his mask, before walking into another room.


    "If you want a tour of this place, meet Manta Ray. I''ll be back later."


    Manta Ray?! Manta..?! I thought Manta was dead..! She''s alive?! I must go meet her!


    What a huge surprise. Though, Manta is only Manta. She doesn''t have a "Ray" on her name. I mustn''t let my hopes up, maybe it''s not her after all...


    Why would she be here in this place anyways? Only Fin, Frelhr and Sting escaped from Keasius.


    ...


    I went down a long hallway before finally walking out into a large chamber with a strange lighting.


    "Ah, Vixen... How long has it been..?"


    The chamber was dark and extremely huge. Countless amounts of wires were hanging from the ceiling and on the walls. Sitting on the middle is a huge reactor submerged in water and encased behind glass. Perhaps it''s a nuclear reactor?


    Manta. The real, actual Manta was standing in front of it. Her magical energy was different though.


    It''s a fake..?


    "Manta..? What are you doing here..? What happened..?"


    I ask as I walk up to her, standing on the elevated platform surrounding the reactor.


    "The Gods have abandoned us. I''ve escaped through a portal after I got my collarbone chopped through."


    "You''re still alive though... That''s what matters right now. Can you answer my questions first?"


    She then walks up to the reactor. Holding her hand out to it.


    "Vixen, they lied to us. Let this be a message to them all."


    Huh? What does she mean? What is she doing-


    ......


    "Attention. People of Cvvoer. This is the Demon Lord speaking. May you spend your last days living, as your final lives won''t matter anymore."


    She telepathically spoke.


    Even with all of my strength, I still couldn''t move. It''s as if an immense, invisible force was being pressured throughout my entire body.


    "An all-out nuclear doomsday will now commence. I have lived in this world for more than what you could ever imagine, taking in multiple forms as they roamed as another. You monsters, humans, demons, all life forms will perish within 20 years from now. For me, it will merely be a second, but for you however... I hope you pray the best you can, because no one will help you. The Gods have brought this on their selves. I am not sorry."


    The girl in front of me suddenly disappeared the moment I opened my eyes after blinking.


    What was that?


    I take a look around but I can''t find Manta anywhere.


    The door quickly opens as 5 people enters the chamber.


    "What was that?!"


    "Who''s there?!"


    They all look at me as if I caused all of that.


    "The guest? Get away from that machine! It''s dangerous!"


    I step away as they come to check the reactor. Later, I go back to meet Iyan as he leads me into a meeting room.


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    I might have gotten into another awkward situation.


    "This is the witness. I-I''m sorry that I let them into that chamber..."


    Iyan says.


    I can see that he looks really stressed out...


    A group of people wearing suits are sitting around a long table.


    I wonder how I can get out of here without being noticed...


    "Heart''s guest huh. You''re Vixen right? We''re the Defense Management team, otherwise known as Lord Tio Fen''s personal bodyguards."


    "H-huh..? Who''s Tio..?"


    "Lord Tio Fen is the leader of the Nightmarish Mortality. We''ve come here to discuss about the Demon Lord''s speech... Vixen, how are you even related to Manta Ray?"


    In my opinion... That wasn''t Manta... That was the Demon Lord.


    It was said in the Book of Epitomy, a long chapter talking about how a Demon must go through a ranking system before becoming the Demon Lord.


    It''s different from becoming a Hero, for they can only be chosen by the Gods.


    An odd Demon existed in the past, simply titled as the "Hammerhead Demon". That Demon lived by hiding it''s soul inside many different souls. It was almost impossible to guess what that Demon was doing, until now...


    "Manta was a friend back in the human realm... I don''t know how she even got here. It must be the works of the Demon Lord, I don''t know who this Manta Ray even is, I only know Manta."


    "I see I see... Write that down, Hurell!"


    One of them writes it down.


    "Hoh..? That Manta that you know of, is it the same Manta that was killed by one of the Baphomet''s agents?"


    Baphomet? Keasius? I guess the Demons must be connected with the Baphomet as well huh.


    "Yeah. The Tale of the Great White or Keasius... That traitor killed her out of nowhere..!"


    "Keasius? The Ocean God? My my. How are you connected to such important figures?"


    "Who knows? I was just walking around and then I met them."


    "Perhaps you are of the Royal blood as well, am I right?"


    Royal blood? People do call me a Vampire, which isn''t true. Royal blood however...


    "No, why do you think of that?"


    "Just a thought. Don''t worry about it."


    The door, opposite side of the room suddenly opens loudly, silencing everyone.


    A woman with silver white hair, long gloves, red eyes, wearing a smooth uniform, only having black and white as it''s colors, slowly walks into the room.


    Who is she? She looks familiar... It feels like I''ve seen her before...


    "Everyone. I''m sure that you all know why you''re here for."


    "Yes. To discuss the matters about the doomsday apocalypse. It''s happened too quickly, our Magical Hydrogen Bomb won''t be done by then. Heart''s army will have to stop the Baphomet from invading us, while we work on it."


    Heart''s army..? Am I part of it? I don''t want to fight the Baphomet, those agents are too strong..!


    "Her guest here is one of the only people remaining in that army. Vixen, I''m sorry but, most of our forces have been destroyed by the old Hero, it''ll only be a matter of time until the Baphomet wipes us out."


    Baphomet? Keasius, an agent of Baphomet destroyed the superweapon that we were making, the main purpose of that weapon was to destroy the demons, so why would the Baphomet attack them?


    "Ummm... Can you give me more details about the situation here..? I thought the Baphomet was on your side?"


    "They were, until they found out about our Magical Hydrogen Bomb. Same day that you, and your friend''s Magical Electromagnetic Superweapons Project was destroyed. A connection between the Demons realm and the Mortal realm caught one of their agent''s eyes, which directed them to this place."


    "So the Ninth Polar Heaven is a nuclear- no... The Nightmarish Mortality''s headquarters?"


    "Yes. I don''t know why you hate us, maybe it''s because you just want to end this war, but we''ll stop it, and request an alliance with you- the humans, in a way to combat the Baphomet and the Blood God."


    I see... It wouldn''t be difficult to get the Demons and the Humans on one side, a massive threat, that is the Blood God remains, and our only way to get even a chance of surviving is by working together...


    "Alright. What do you need me to do?"


    "Get the Baphomet out of here."


    Eh..? That''s a huge request. The Baphomet has an entire God on their side...


    "Guest, the Baphomet is a threat greater than the current Hero, our own army won''t be able to stop it. So that''s when you come in! Heart is a master of the ?_+?!&+&&+_?, basically, get her to teach you her Soul Nullification techniques and get the Baphomet outta here."


    "Excuse me but what did you say? I couldn''t hear it properly."


    "The ?!+&+_?&+...? I guess you can''t understand it huh. Think of it as the 5th dimension. Free also knows about it, you can have her explain it to you, but you can only understand 3rd dimensions. 4th if you''re a prodigy but it''ll still be more than difficult to even learn."


    It''s a terrifying thought. The 5th dimension... What is it? It would be impossible for a 3rd dimensional being to understand such concepts.


    "Alright. I''ll accept I''ll accept... By the way, have you seen any of my friends? You guys know about our project, so you should know about where everyone went to as well."


    "Nope. It doesn''t work like that. We only found out about your project when they transported themselves down the demon realm, it''ll be impossible to find them, or reach them now. They don''t seem to be in this layer."


    I guess I''ll just find them later.


    The Baphomet needs to leave this place first.


    If Keasius couldn''t find, or get to everyone, that would mean that the Baphomet will be the only one to come down here. It''ll be a 1v1 huh...


    Not a 1v1, more like a desperate attempt for survival. The Baphomet is much stronger than me if they''re stronger than a God, but then again... Keasius isn''t even a true God. Only 8 true Gods exists in this world.


    "Heart should be done with her harvest. Meet up with them, the Baphomet has been baited to come down here, in the Ninth Polar Heaven. Don''t worry though, Heart, and the Monolith can bring you both to the 5th dimension so anything you do, you can just go free and use your full power."


    Full power huh... I have never used my full power before. Who is to say that I won''t lose?


    I head back outside, where the Monolith awaits.


    "Ah, Vampire..! Have you done with the meeting..?"


    It''s Fiya. She''s running up to me holding a basket of vegetables.


    "Hah... hah..... H-heart is waiting in the house... Please come with me..."


    She leads me into the house next to the vegetable farm. As expected, Heart is waiting with her legs crossed.


    "Yo... It''s been a long time... Where have you been all this time..?"


    "Q-quit it, Heart..!! Vampire here, s-she just experienced her l-long lost friend possessed by a demon..!"


    Well. That didn''t really annoy me, Heart is already annoying, so anything she does will always be on the same level of annoyance.


    "So? How will we deal with the Baphomet here?"


    How does Demons even know or predict so much anyways?! Do they have a telepathic communication system or something?


    "We''re basically in a giant pit. The Monolith here is the only thing besides my house and the Nightmarish Mortality''s headquarters, but that''s in the walls, not in the pit."


    "How does this place work anyways? Is hell in front of the Monolith, and the research facilities inside the walls?"


    "Yes, kind of. You may have noticed why the sky is blue, when hell is red, and the surface is red."


    "Hmmm... No I didn''t. But why is that?"


    "It''s because the Ninth Polar Heaven is a separate section between Hell and Earth. It''s the gateway to Earth, that''s why the Nightmarish Mortality''s headquarters is here."


    So there''s a way to get back to Earth? There''s not much reason to go back though. I could meet my friends, family, and everyone back there...


    But no way that they''d recognize me.


    "Think of it as a map. Earth is northwest, on the corner. Cvvoer''s surface, the human realm is on the middle. While the Demon Realm is on the southwest. The long road between the northwest and the southwest is called the Ninth Polar Heaven, directly on the west side."


    "Hm? Okay, but how will we defeat the Baphomet? We can''t just sit here thinking about worlds and maps."


    "No no no. I''m explaining our plan here. The Baphomet will go towards the West, where the Ninth Polar Heaven is, this place. That''s why, if they can capture this place, they can capture the borders between Hell and Earth. It''s effective for their plan so we''ve already expected it."


    "But the Baphomet already knows about your prediction too, right?"


    "The Baphomet is strong, confident, and tough. However, they won''t expect a 5th dimensional breaker, me. Vixen, I''ll pass on to you, the Soul Nullification technique. The last user named Wishbone, was also my master. Don''t forget that name as you pass this onto the next successor."


    Heh... I''ll gladly accept-


    "JUST JOKING HAHHAHA!!"


    "Kh!"


    I clench my teeth.


    "Ahahah.. haha... You''re funny, Vixen. It''s- hmm... No no. Back to my plan, I''ll open up a gateway into the 5th dimension, where you will fight the Baphomet. It''s an incomprehensible reality. It will be different from the 3rd and the 4th dimensions."


    "How will I fight the Baphomet then? As a 3rd dimensional being, the 5th dimension won''t even be seen with my eyes."


    "Ke-ke-keh..! No need to worry. The 5th dimension interferes with your mind. In short, you''ll have the advantage here."


    "Hmm? What does that mean? Sigh... Intense Bloodlust''s heading towards us. There won''t be much time left until the Baphomet arrives."


    "I set up a net right below the top of the Monolith. It''s the invisible roof of this place, not even the Baphomet will expect it..!"


    "I don''t think the Baphomet even knows of your existence..... So that net will be the gateway to the 5th dimension, right?"


    "Yes... I''ll ignore what you''ve said there... But once we catch the Baphomet, it''ll be easier for you to fight them. Only if you''re in the 5th dimension okay..? I don''t want my home to be torn up in your fight."


    The Bloodlust that I''ve sensed is coming from really far away.


    It''s extremely strong and it''s without a doubt the Baphomet or one of their agents.


    Well, whatever they are, I will win.


    "First of all. How does the 5th dimension even work?"


    "I''ll explain to you later, but all you need to know for now, is that my 5th dimensional gates sends conscious beings into a world where their perception of reality becomes shifted along with their entire vision.


    "Huh? What does that even mean? What will they see?"


    "Who knows. It''s indescribable... One of the few side effects gives you major brain damage and nullifies your soul properly."


    "Nullify the soul? How? Did you put your Soul Nullification things in it too?"


    "No no no. It''s simple really. Since your brain will be damaged, the soul will be as well. The consciousness is the soul.... Simply put, most forms of magic will become unusable so you''ll have to fight the Baphomet physically."


    Eh..? Seems like a lot of trouble to do...


    Martial arts may be easy for me, but strength would still be a big part in fighting.


    "Don''t worry. Some specific forms of magic will work as well..... Blood Magic for example.... And don''t forget Abyssal Magic..!"


    Abyssal Magic..? The Baphomet and their agents do use a lot of Abyssal Magic...


    "Well. Whatever magic there is, it''ll still be heavily weakened. Chanting will be extremely important now."


    Hmmm... The Baphomet should be here by now...


    I can sense the incoming Bloodlust growing stronger each second...


    ...


    A fierce battle between me and the Baphomet was about to start...


    "Sigh.... I don''t want to fight....."

 Chapter 26: Courage and Transformation.

    "What doesn''t belong here, usually belongs in another world. Those with forbidden knowledge, they do not exist as well, for only the demons here can access the Library of Sharks."


    I wondered what she was talking about.


    I ignored her until the Baphomet arrived. By using [Spatial Investigation], I finally saw her.


    She had 2 pairs of wings. Her arms and her legs had dark green stripes. I could sense a strong presence of Magic surrounding her.


    "Gotcha!!! Vixen, go get em!"


    I quickly understood and ran straight outside, jumping to the net where I entered the 5th dimension. A faint then reality took over my vision.


    It was almost indescribable, extremely difficult to explain.


    I couldn''t see a thing. I knew that my enemy was right next to me, but I couldn''t attack yet..!!


    I must calm down... Even this, can easily be solved with a simple solution.


    I can readjust, and reconstruct my entire body to move normally again.


    The structure of the 5th dimension is alien... So I''ll just have to avoid it then!


    "Vampier...!"


    An odd voice speaks next to me. Before I can think, a jab is thrown immediately.


    Dodging was easy. It appears that the Baphomet is unable to see or even think properly.


    "Blood Magic: Blood Hardening."


    I cover my hands in hardened blood before striking my enemy.


    A quick realization that I had, when she suddenly counterattacked.


    "BLUAHH-!"


    I expected my enemy to be strong... But not this strong...


    We exchanged punches. A cross hits my nose so I launch an uppercut to her jaw but it only slips through.


    She throws a jab, but I managed to block it on time.


    "GAH-! HKK-!!"


    I then landed a direct blow into her face, knocking one of her teeth out.


    Another surprise attack hits me when she sends a devastating punch into my liver.


    I couldn''t block in time. Blood rushes out, spilling down below us.


    "Blood Magic: Blood Storm!


    Physical Enhancement III!"


    "Avvysal Majik: Rivirb Lite!!"


    The Baphomet casts [Reverb Light], meanwhile, I cast [Blood Storm] and [Physical Enhancement III].


    It''s supposed to bring the output of my physical strengths up to 1000%, but I still can''t feel anything...


    Is it not working?


    At this state, I must worry more about dying by magical energy rupture or by depletion of blood, rather than getting beaten to death by the Baphomet.


    "HYAA-HYAHYAHYAHYAAA!!!"


    She laughed sadistically right before shoving her hand into my stomach, ripping it open and making an impalement.


    "Kllhhruuaaghhkk!!!"


    It hurts...


    The pain is overwhelming, but this allows for a trap to be initiated.


    I regenerate my body, catching her hand inside my stomach before sending an [Overhand Punch], but she simply pulls out, drawing my guts along the way whilst dodging my attack, proceeding to strike multiple fists at me.


    "D-du yow reilly ffink thak vi-ving stunger tha me vill work?!"


    My body heals again, taking this chance, I perform a [Discharge Uppercut].


    Unexpectedly, the Baphomet decides to attack instead of avoid.


    She shatters my skull by landing 2 slaps on my head.


    "G-guuu...!"


    My eyes roll back, and I pass out for a second. The moment I regain consciousness, another swing is already coming at me.


    I block, but her sudden attack still sends me flying into the air.


    "Ve lizets bi wiz yuu!!"


    A dangerous blow slips past my head, giving me a chance to use [540 Corkscrew Punch].


    My fist collides with her face, shattering my [Hardened Blood Glove] as she''s sent tunneling into the wall.


    "Avvysal Majik: Jiviyn lite!!"


    [Divine Light] again. How many Abyssal Magic users will cast that? I''m tired of hearing that spell again.


    She tries to get up. Meanwhile, I cast [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model], but none of them works.


    Why..? Almost everything in my arsenal becomes instantly deactivated when exposed to the air.


    I''ve noticed that healing is almost impossible now.


    I fly at her, punching the wall as she ducks.


    The Baphomet realizing this, uppercuts my jaw, shaking my brain aggressively, and knocking me out again.


    Whilst I was still asleep, she uses [540 Corkscrew Punch], striking me in the chest, crushing my ribcage.


    Her attack woke me up. Seeing another attack incoming, I quickly counterattack, blasting her off the wall.


    "Blood Imitation."


    The Baphomet doesn''t understand what I''m doing, which gives me more advantage.


    The 5th dimensional net only works as a brain damaging trap. Because we''re out now, I can finally move without problem, the same goes for her though.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "U-uukk..!"


    It was done within seconds. The Baphomet regenerating her extremely damaged brain, became stunned. I, who took less damage however, didn''t get affected too much.


    I lunge at her, landing a perfect blow into her face.


    The Baphomet then hits the Monolith. Her eyes tells me that she''s passed out as well.


    Is it unbreakable? I''m sorry Heart, but I must test it out.


    "RRRHAAAGGHHH!!!!"


    I perform a [Missile Dropkick], crushing her between my feet and the Monolith.


    She''s still knocked out, so I struck multiple jabs, hooks, kicks, and punches into her body.


    A volley of attacks renders her unable to move.


    As a deathblow, I throw my fist at her face, but then she regained consciousness, dodging my attack swiftly before sending a counterattack.


    "AAAGGHHH-!!"


    "HHHUAA!! HAHAHAAHAHAAA!!!"


    Another blow to the stomach, followed up by a punch into the skull throws me back on to ground level.


    I tried to get back on my feet, but to no avail.


    The Baphomet landed on the ground, shattering it in the process before walking towards me.


    "GHHRRUAAAAHGHHHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!"


    Blood is leaking out of my body. My focus has diminished.


    The brain damage was too severe. I can''t even stand up without wobbling around, almost falling again.


    "G-GAH!!-"


    I fell to my knees, vomiting blood.


    "BLLUAAGH..!!!"


    Ah... This pain... When was the last time I''ve felt this pain..?


    "Ready to give up, Vampire? My regenerative abilities are far better than yours. My brain will be fixed, meanwhile... Yours won''t!!"


    Huh..? Brain..?


    I was still dizzy, but she still jumped forwards to attack.


    A hook to my face sends me stumbling backwards.


    "KHH!!!"


    I stomped my feet in an attempt to remain standing.


    Suddenly, I remembered that Blood Magic is my specialty. Healing myself will be easy. Though, the brain will still be unhealable.


    Hmmm... No no no... I can use [Revitalize] while constantly recovering my blood and Magical Energy. This way, both brain and body will be fixed.


    "HAAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"


    She laughed maniacally, punching my face with the intent to kill.


    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 11, 12, 18, 30, her punches are getting faster each hit. At this rate, I''m going to be damaged faster than I can heal.


    And then there was hope. Or rather, there was Heart.


    "5th dimensional gate: open!!"


    My vision goes dark again. Luckily, I''ve already expected this. Since we''re on ground level, no way that my allies wouldn''t help.


    I punch the Baphomet with all my strength, sending her crashing into the ground.


    "Aak-! AAHH-!! AAK-!"


    I continued punching her in the face.


    Blood splattered every punch, which only gave me more energy to use.


    "Blood Hardening."


    "DIFINE MAJICK: SHADOW FRACTURE!!"


    I was caught off guard as a large spike impales me through the stomach before I could even throw another punch.


    "Ah, shit... Vixen, Free will be here soon! Hold off the Baphomet for a while, until she arrives!"


    I see... But why do I need to wait for her?


    "You vools half really angried me!! You all shack repeat!!"


    I''m losing blood each second. When will she arrive?


    As Heart watches me trying to pull myself off the spike, another person breaks through the walls, holding a familiar object.


    "Vixen!!! Your weapon is here!!!"


    It''s Fiya. She''s holding Divine Intervention.


    "Kekeke..!!! No matter w-what you do... Y-You''re still gonna lose..!!"


    Heart looks at the Baphomet. Her face clearly showing disappointment, and dissatisfaction.


    "How did you recover from my attack? The 5th dimensional gates should still be active right now."


    Out of nowhere, the Baphomet changes expressions.


    "O-oh that..?!! Grr...!!! Impudent little bastards!! My only mission in this world is to save it from it''s imminent downfall..!! Who in their right minds would try to stop me from doing so?!?!"


    Actually, I''ve already figured out her plan right from the start. But first, I must focus on surviving and saving the rest of the demons here.


    Fiya throws Divine Intervention at me, which I quickly use to break the spike impaling my body before shooting the Baphomet.


    A large explosion occurs.


    After a few minutes of coughing, a figure emerges from the flames.


    "Cough cough cough..!! Is this all you''ve got?!! Hehehehe...!!! Perhaps I''ve overestimated you guys!!!"


    The moment she reappeared, she immediately threw a punch, which I narrowly avoided.


    "HRYYAAAGHHH!!!"


    Multiple punches were sent, hitting Divine Intervention out of my hand. In an attempt to fight back, I began punching as well.


    Suddenly, my regenerative abilities stopped working.


    "5th dimensional gate: open!!"


    Heart opened up another 5th dimensional gate, but the Baphomet still showed no signs of stopping.


    She stared at me with intense bloodlust.


    I thought that no one had evil intent anymore. But it seems that the Baphomet wasn''t even on that continent.


    Wait... This strength... No way that this is really the Baphomet...


    She''s Cat?!


    "FGHHHRRRRRAAAAGHHH!!!"


    A powerful punch tears off my arm.


    "Toi Muay Imitation."


    To counterattack, I swiftly move in between her punches to send a [Spinning Elbow] into her face.


    She dodges it and punches my stomach, so I kneed her as she ducked.


    Her skull caves in. The attack was better than what I''ve expected.


    It''s clear that we''ve been heavily weakened. There''s only one way to win now.


    "Dragging out this fight will be useless.


    Highland Triangle Imitation."


    I gained a sharp blade as a replacement for my lost arm.


    The Baphomet seeing this, quickly charges forward. She throws a fist into my face, but I slash at her arm before she could do so.


    My blades meant nothing however, when she just broke it by sending a [Chop], tearing off my new weapon.


    Another [Chop] goes through my collarbone, stunning me for a few seconds.


    "VIXEN!!!!"


    Fiya rushes forward in an attempt to help me, but she is simply kicked away by the Baphomet.


    "Blood Hardening."


    With the last supplies of Blood that I have left, I create a sword.


    The Baphomet quickly regains footing and lunges towards me, sending an uppercut, which I dodged swiftly, but then she hits me with a hook using the same hand.


    I swing my sword into her stomach, but she effortlessly grabs it, crushing it bare-handed.


    She throws a jab, followed up with a hook, and then 2 more jabs.


    I narrowly dodge them, sending another blow into her stomach.


    I perform a [Downward Jumping Elbow], breaking her spine.


    Then, another [Chop] goes through my arm, cutting it off.


    "Blood Hardening."


    I''ve noticed that we''re not even healing anymore.


    I''ve casted [Blood Hardening] on my legs, my only weapon for now.


    "Vampire... I never expected you to fight this desperately... Not to worry though, I''ll get Free out of here. It seems that the Baphomet has already figured out my ways of attacking, so, good luck."


    Says Heart, as she takes Fiya back into their house.


    The Baphomet swings her hand from above, throwing a punch without technique.


    Seeing this clear sign of exhaustion, I kick her fist, brutally crushing her hand.


    Her eyes opens widely.


    Looks like she failed to realize that one of my legs weren''t even damaged this entire fight, until now.


    "HGRRRRGGGGHHH!!"


    I follow up my kick, hitting her in the face.


    She steps sideways, struggling to even stand as blood leaks out like a fountain in her face.


    I knee her in the stomach, but she grabs my leg, hugging it and putting me in a lock.


    I kick and kick, but she wouldn''t budge.


    It wasn''t long until my leg broke. The pain overwhelms, and I pass out for a second, but as I regain consciousness, she''s already holding my other leg.


    With the final kick, I crush her face, unrecognizable.


    She loses hold of my leg, staying on the ground as I get up, before stomping her with a slight jump.


    Blood splatters everywhere.


    "Phew... Finally...."


    I fall to the ground, victorious.


    I can finally rest...


    Or so I thought.


    "HRRGHHAAAAGHHKK!!"


    The Baphomet rises upright. Her body has regenerated in just a few seconds.


    The battle''s not over yet?


    I cast [Spatial Investigation] to find out that the Magical Energy in the air has been reduced by 94%, probably by Heart. A strange, foreign particle is also present.


    Soul Nullification..?


    Did Heart put some of her Soul Nullification techniques in the air? How did she even do that?


    "GRRRHAA...!!!! Hah.....!! You thought you''ve already won..?"


    "Sigh... I didn''t want to use this..."


    "Our Goals don''t even differ that much, Vampire...! May I ask a question before we get back to killing each other?


    Why are you doing this? You wish to save the world right? That''s our job as well!!"


    "Your job is to keep this world still. I''ll bring world peace, and raise humanity up into a new age... Or something."


    Well. My actual goals are to save myself from the Holy Kingdoms, and bring peace into this world again.


    I don''t really care that much about the balance of this world, I just want to live peacefully.


    "Well then. You don''t have enough blood to fight back anymore. So just sit down and die peacefully. This place is the Heart of Heaven. It belongs to angels, not demons. So just know that the angels will be thanking you later..!!"


    "But you''re not an angel are you? Why are you even here? The angels are dead, Cat."


    "S-surprised you figured it out..! The angels aren''t dead however. This place is the first step in reviving them. This place is the Heart of Heaven, the sacred place for resurrections."


    I''ve been casting a ton of spells and imitating multiple things while talking to her.


    This whole conversation was a distraction, I can finally use it now.


    "Alright alright. Enough talk. Time to die now."


    "Heh. You''ve been blabbering on and on. Didn''t you know that that''s how most villains lose?!!"


    The only reason why I never used [Blood Banishment] and [Blood Reformation] in this entire fight was so I could use my new ultimate spell.


    "Six-eyed Avian. Banished. Bezalel."


    Chanting was necessary for this spell, since it''s just a mix of many imitations.


    "Channel, Benevolent Blood Eagle."

 Chapter 27: The Conclusion.

    I arrived at a final conclusion, instantaneously imitating whatever was needed to win.


    Bird Imitation, Frog Imitation, Spider Imitation, Insecticide Imitation, Blood Imitation, Demon Imitation, Crimson Blood Magic Imitation, and then finally, Arisa Skarret Imitation.


    Cat stopped abruptly, standing in front of my new form.


    "W-WHO ARE YOU?!!!"


    Her face had the look of confusion, shock, fear, and irritation.


    "A-ARISA SKARRET!??!"


    It was obvious that my new body was an Imitation of the Crimson Blood Demon, Arisa Skarret.


    In The Book of Epitomy, Denon Invasion chapters, it states that a fierce demon, another general of the Demon Lord once existed.


    It took the appearance of an Angel, covered in blood, and metallic red armour.


    But this form that I''m currently using is a mix. 80% of it consists of Arisa Skarret''s body, and only 20%''s my own body.


    "You... You have come this far... Just to defeat such a mild creature like me... Heh. You''ve wasted your life saving these unforgivable souls. Even ancient demons like her will be no match against me!


    Playtime is over!! It''s time for me to actually take this serious..!"


    "Kukuku..!! Serious?"


    Little did she know, the Magical Energy in this place has reached 0. All forms of Magic are now disabled.


    "You think this is funny? Let me show you a mere fraction of my unparalleled strength!! Abyssal Magic-"


    Arisa Skarret had 2 blades on each limb. Using her left blades, I dash forward, attacking Cat.


    "Fffff....-!! Bluaagh-..!!"


    The middle part of her body was destroyed, leaving behind only her feet, and her head.


    It was a long and intense battle, but the winner was finally decided.


    A group of people show up, most of them surrounding me while the rest scatters around the place.


    "Rest for now, Vampire. We''ll handle this situation."


    That voice... It''s Iyan.


    Come to think of it, even if I couldn''t defeat Cat, there are still some powerful demons here, like Sawa, or Heart.


    Why did they make me fight her? I wonder.


    "Vampire...? Can I still call you a Vampire..? Your body has changed quite dramatically."


    My body? I''m still in Arisa Skarret''s body huh? It should be time for me to return to my usual form now...


    Uh-oh. I can''t get out.


    "Ummm.... Iyan.... It seems that I can''t go back to my original form...."


    "What a shame it is, Vixen! I would''ve loved to see that beautiful vampiric body of yours for a second time, but..."


    Only Iyan and another person remained while the others began cleaning up the place.


    "Who are you? Shouldn''t you go fix up this place with them? You too, Iyan."


    "Are you talking about me? I''m part of the attack unit, with Iyan of course."


    Attack unit..? Is there a unit, or group formed to be responsible for the Magical Hydrogen Bomb? These guys do look familiar... Perhaps the ones from the silo?


    "We''re the 2nd Defense unit for the Magical Hydrogen Bomb project. This is Felan. She''s a human so don''t be too harsh with her. Humans are fragile creatures, compared to monsters like demons, or vampires."


    "Human..? I know I know... I used to be a human too, you know? Before I took this- no, I am still a human, just in armor..!"


    People won''t call me a human anymore, it''s kind of annoying, but I''ve already gotten used to it.


    This huge transformation that I had, despite all of this change, I am still a human.


    "No... At this current moment, you are Arisa Skarret, but with a different mind. That''s how it works in the demon realm. For now, we''ll call you Arisa Skarret, until you return to Vixen Corr."


    I would rather be known as Vixen, or Vampire, not a terrifying demon that only knows war..!


    "Arisa, I''m Felan, Felan Plear. And this man is Iyan Frow..! I''m a sniper, and he''s just another average soldier!"


    Felan..? I think I''ve heard of that name when I entered the silo.


    "I''m a demon of course. A weaker one though, but we''re not really a fighting unit, we''re just the defense forces. Our job is to defend the silo, and operate the defensive systems."


    "Wait, you operate the defensive systems? another defense management team already exists though... I''ve seen them during the meeting."


    "Those guys are the Nightmarish Mortality''s main defense management team. The ones in the Magical Hydrogen Bomb project are different."


    I see... So there are a lot of units in the Magical Hydrogen Bomb project as well huh..?


    These people seem weak for the defensive team of an extremely dangerous weapon though, maybe they''re just cleaners?


    "Our team is more of a maintenance team rather than a defensive team, but repairing and fixing up a bomb is still defending this entire place, right?"


    "Alright alright... Since the battle is finally over, you guys can go clean this place up. I''ll go get some rest, and try to go back into my original form."


    I still have to meet up with Tio Fen''s personal bodyguards, or whoever are the higher-ups of this place, to discuss about our deal.


    If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    Later, I tried to go back into the Magical Scientific Research facilities, but I couldn''t even fit into the door...


    It''s too small..! Approximately, Arisa Skarret''s body is 5 meters tall, these doors are only for creatures shaped like a human... Well, I am a human, or shaped like a human, but not as tall as the average one..!


    "Hmm-... Heh!!?"


    One of the staff members have seen me, but how will they even get me into the facilities..? The roof is too short for me.


    "W-what are you..?!"


    "Me? I''m a Vampire, or Arisa Skarret currently. I''m also Heart''s guest... By the way, where''s Heart?"


    "Oh... Vampire... I thought you were an attacker... Heart is inside, she''ll be out soon."


    I see... I guess I''ll just wait outside until she returns...


    .....


    After a few hours later, Heart finally went outside, stretching her arms out as if she has just woken up.


    How''d she even get there in the first place? I thought she went back into her house with Fiya.


    "Hgaaaahh..!!! What a beautiful day it is..."


    Iyan and the rest were still cleaning up all of the blood, and the debris caused by my fight with Cat.


    Heart walks up to me, while I sat down on the ground, resting my arms on my knees.


    "V-Vampire..? Vixen..? What has happened to you..?"


    "Heart, what took you so long? I''ve been waiting for 4 hours now, sitting here with nothing to do."


    "What took me so long? Hmm... Let me see... I went to put Free on a safe place, then I took her to the hospital... Then I went back into the research facilities... Then..."


    She puts her hand on her chin, and her other hand under her elbow, as if visually pondering.


    "Anyways. Where is Fiya? Is she alright? That kick from Cat knocked her unconscious, where did you even take her to?"


    "There''s a hospital in hell too, you know? She wasn''t really wasn''t damaged, her brain just got shook a bit."


    "Well... Did you demons finally come into peace with us humans..? If so, can I go back home then?"


    "Sure, of course. It took a lot of time talking with them, but eventually, we agreed to stop this meaningless war with humans. We''ll be the ones to announce this on the surface, so, I''ll have to come along, with your favorite, Free, as well!"


    Fiya?! She can come along?!


    "Wait?! R-really?! Did she agree..?! It wouldn''t be nice for you if you forced her into this..!"


    "Calm down calm down... Yes. Once she recovers, we''ll go back on to the surface and find your friends. You want my Soul Nullification techniques too, right? Once I tear off Tsuchikonoko out of Rintan, you''ll help me kill her."


    Oh. About that. I do want to help Rintan, but Sushi is kind of a friendly person, unless she is planning something.


    "Is there another option here? Can''t we just take Sushi out and live along with Rintan? Why get rid of her anyways?"


    "Haven''t I told you already? Tsuchikonoko is evil, her clone still doesn''t know about her original self, but when she does, it''s over for all of us."


    "So we''ll just prevent Tsuchikonoko from meeting Sushi then, easy as that."


    "Not so easy, when Tsuchikonoko can just use telepathic communication with her. Who knows if her clone has already turned on us? A clone instantly follows it''s original, the Imaginary System states that already."


    "Sigh... We can''t defeat Tsuchikonoko that quick too huh..? I guess I''ll have to say goodbye to Sushi then... Or rather, Tsuchikonoko''s clone..."


    "Good. Think of her as a clone. Don''t worry though, we can just revive her after all of this..! I have a spell for that, since she''s just a clone after all."


    I see... It''s good that we can have Sushi Sand as an actual person, but we still have to deal with Tsuchikonoko, the old Hero, the Baphomet, and the Blood God.....


    We left the Ninth Polar Heaven, meeting up with Fiya before walking back into the unnecessarily long hallways.


    The sounds of crackling are now back. It''s an irritating sound. How does it even work when there''re walls right next to us?


    "Ah... M-my head still hurts... V-Vixen..! How about you..? It''s a surprise for me, when you t-turned into this... Your new form... Or rather, Arisa Skarret''s..."


    Fiya says, holding her arm.


    Bandages were wrapped around her head. It''s actually a miracle that she survived.


    Even while heavily weakened by the Soul Nullification techniques, and the lack of magic in the air, Cat still remained stronger than me, before I transformed into Arisa Skarret.


    If I were to fight her without the traps that Heart set up, I would''ve been defeated without a chance to use [Benevolent Blood Eagle]...


    "Heart, what about the 5 other demons that you mentioned I would meet here?"


    "They''re waiting outside. A slight movement, and a change of plans led us to this. We couldn''t get a chance to meet up here, so we''ll have to meet up later."


    This annoyingly long hallway... I never want to walk down this place again...


    After we finally reached the front doors, we opened them and walked down a bridge that I made using [Blood Reformation].


    It seems that all of my abilities have been further improved, thanks to this body. My blood now regenerates faster than before, meaning, I can create an entire mountain of blood in just 10 seconds without getting any negative side effects.


    "Hah... Don''t you feel ashamed? You achieved this body, the body of one of our greatest generals, yet you still refuse to step on hot rocks."


    "It''s safer this way. I might break the ground and slip into the lava below. Besides, Fiya here wouldn''t be able to step on molten rocks, right?"


    There was already a bridge, a natural bridge made out of molten rocks leading into the castle.


    Fire and lava can be seen below, with more bones and skeletons making up a mountain underneath.


    "U-ummm... Actually... I can walk on fiery rocks... I use this bridge almost everyday... D-d-don''t forget that I''m a demon too, Vixen..!"


    Oh. I almost forgot. This place is the home for demons.


    It would be common sense huh..? Demons are always burning... So fire wouldn''t work on them... Unless it''s too strong.


    "4th dimensional gate: open."


    A gateway back into the human realm opens.


    Was I actually the key for opening this gate..? How did that work..? Or did the gate just needed to be opened by breaking a watermelon and bending a finger when you''re outside?


    "Aren''t you glad? The gates only require you to open it by breaking a watermelon and bending your finger at the same time when you''re outside. It''s really easy on this side though, because that''s just how Sawa made it."


    "Why would he implement such a random mechanic? Was he just bored?"


    "Correct."


    As we make our way into the red shining light coming from the gates, 5 other people can be seen standing confidently, as if waiting for something.


    The moment the 3 of us stepped on the grass outside, the gates behind us closed immediately.


    "Oh. They''re already here. I should introduce you first huh..."


    Heart walks up to the group, talking about something for a bit before turning towards me.


    There were 5 people, 3 of them holding swords, 1, holding a staff, while the last one held a rifle.


    There was a familiar face. A face that I''ve definitely seen before. A face that was definitely a close ally of mine.


    But what is this..? I can''t seem to get a hold of that memory... It''s as if someone just magically took it out of my brain...


    But my soul... It has an advanced memory, unlike the flesh brain, the soul is different. It holds memories differently.


    "Vampire, this is Maire Flass. A warrior from the east."


    She says, presenting the man holding a sword, wearing an ordinary metal armor.


    "Nice to meet you, Vampire. I''m strong, just so you know."


    Says Maire.


    "Noll, Noll Ten. Gray Weld. Doun Sean. Ziio Fanine. They are friends from Terui, this place, of course."


    They all greeted me happily.


    And lastly, Heart showed me the familiar face.


    He looked at me, appearing to have no knowledge of my existence until now.


    Still, I have known of his existence for a long time. Yet, I still don''t understand...


    Who is he..?


    "Vampire, this is Liand, Liand Err."


    Scars made up 70% of his entire body.


    His mouth lacked enough skin, allowing his teeth to be exposed, despite not even opening his mouth.


    I can tell... He has gone through a lot of pain, and suffering...


    Still, who is he?


    "More details about our mission, and why we''re taking these guys with us: They''re sacrificial lambs, offerings for the great Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice."


    "Hmmm... I see... But not all of them are demons though... I thought we were meeting 5 demons?"


    "They have the souls of demons. The flesh is unnecessary for us demons. We possess resurrection techniques, and such. So there won''t really be any point in physical bodies."


    We began walking down the path that I was taking before I met Heart.


    It''s quite relieving to see the red skies again. Not sure if it''s because of this new body, but I''m just glad to finally be back on the surface, after all those crackling sounds in the Demon Realm.


    "We''ll offer them after we help you, and announce peace with humans. Though, with that form.... I doubt humans would even look at you..."


    "So we have 3 missions... We''ll offer these demons to the Goddess of Order, after we find my friends and ally with the demons..."


    "Right. I don''t think anything will go wrong, so you can relax. There''re no bloodlust, there''re nothing to attack us out here anymore."


    Oh. Because of [Antares] huh? But that also means that I won''t be able to use it for now.


    Well. I must focus on finding my friends first. This''ll be easy!

 Chapter 28: The Obvious Lies.

    Afterwards, we left the place to search for my friends.


    The bloody red skies still remained, but at least it wasn''t that severe anymore.


    Heart revealed to us that the "Bloodlust Forest", is what she called it, isn''t actually a disaster caused by the Blood God, but rather a strong spell of Soul-attacking magic casted into the atmosphere.


    For those with a weaker soul, they will quickly fall victim to the Bloodlust Forest, turning into abominations, or simply passing away.


    Unaffected creatures, whether they just didn''t catch it, or because they had a stronger soul, will have their souls slowly deteriorated, slowly becoming more and more...


    Angry. Mad. Hostile. Violent. Until they become monsters, the usual horrors of this apocalypse.


    "Rabbit you say? The Rabbit of Earth huh..? Unfortunately, that name has never existed, never in the entire history of this world."


    Heart replied, after I asked her about Rabbit.


    It seems that the flesh was merely just a barrier, protecting the soul from harm.


    My memories have been altered. My powers have been sealed. But by who?


    "This is Ziio. Anyone still there..?"


    Ziio from the Fanine Clan had no idea about what happened to everyone in his clan.


    It was only a few days ago. After the Fanine Clan got destroyed, Litharin Fanine was eliminated by Sundown Lighter and his body was later found by the Giant Ants.


    "Hello..? Is anyone there..? Are the radios broken?"


    "Give it up, Ziio. Even in this apocalyptic nightmare... I''m sure that those guys survived, somehow!"


    Says Gray while Ziio continues trying to fix his radio, which receives no signal.


    "Don''t forget, everyone. We''re the demon''s, and humanity''s last hope in defeating Tsuchikonoko. Arisa Skarret has also been revived, and she agreed to help us for a while."


    "Wait. Isn''t it "Tsuchinoko" instead of "Tsuchikonoko"?"


    "My my. You managed to figure it out, Maire. Took longer than expected."


    I''ve been thinking about it for a while now... I thought it was actually called "Tsuchikonoko" in this world, so I never even said anything about it.


    "Huh? What''s a Tsuchinoko? I know that Tsuchikonoko is one of the Pillars of Creation, but I''ve never heard of Tsuchinoko before."


    "It''s folklore. Don''t worry about it, I just made a little test. It''s originally from Earth, and it''s story is now held in the library of sharks."


    It''s a well-known story in Earth, but I can see how it was taken into this world. The Ninth Polar Heaven does connect to the Nightmarish Mortality, which is the gateway to Earth after all.


    Though, if Tsuchinoko exists as a Pillars of Creation in this world, does that mean that the story of Tsuchinoko has been here for a long time now?


    "So Tsuchinoko is just a title, or a nickname for the 2nd Pillars of Creation then? No way that a being that old was named after a new story."


    "Correct. We named her "Tsuchinoko", or "Tsuchikonoko" as a joke, another reason is that it''s because she''s a snake. A serpent, a master of lying and deceiving."


    "I haven''t heard of it''s story before, but I''m pretty sure that the Tsuchinoko is not always a liar..?"


    "Well. There are a lot of Tsuchinoko in this world too, we just labeled the liar as "Tsuchikonoko"."


    Eventually, we stumbled upon an abandoned town. There are a lot of monsters and corpses, but no signs of my friends anywhere.


    It was already nighttime, so we went into a safe building and slept until morning.


    "Zzz..."


    .....


    Apparently, Divine Intervention matches with the strength of the user''s soul.


    Fiya is currently holding Divine Intervention. It solves the problem of me losing the ability to talk, and the problem of Fiya being in danger due to the lack of any forms of defense for herself.


    "Yawn... What a beautiful day- oh... There''s no sunlight, and there''s no sun to see... I forgot..."


    When morning rose, we left the town to continue on our journey to find Tsuchikonoko and my friends.


    Once I find them, we can finally resume our mission to head into the Temporal Spatial Pyramids and meet that Salmon Shark.


    ....


    13 days later...


    We couldn''t find anyone from the new Hero''s Party.


    Everyone might''ve been scattered everywhere, on Earth, on the Demon Realm, on Cvvoer, and on the lower Realms.


    We were still on the land close to Rintan''s kingdom. Heart was familiar with this place, and the roads leading into her kingdom.


    In a few months, an important speech with the demons and the humans, where they will come into an agreement, will begin. We were told to arrive at Rintan''s kingdom, where it''ll take place in, so I can be the representative of the humans.


    "How did you become such a terrifying monster..? I can sense something familiar within your soul..."


    Soul..? Liand appeared behind me as I was sharpening the blades on my body.


    "Hm? Liand was it? What do you mean by that? I''m not a monster. This is merely just an armour, I''m still a human in the inside."


    "A shell? No no no... Tsuchikonoko has taught me how to use Soul techniques, and an Abyssal Magic spell I can barely use... These techniques allows me to see one''s inner self... And I can definitely tell that you''re not a human in any way possible..."


    "Soul techniques? Can you teach me soul techniques as well? How do you even know Tsuchikonoko? Also, this transformation was kind of unnecessary now that I think about it."


    "You needed to survive right? Heart told me the story. Arisa Skarret has been administered into your soul the moment you entered Heart''s 5th dimensional gates."


    "What? Hmmm... I see... It wasn''t just a random demon I picked to imitate, I know... But for Arisa to actually choose me..."


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    There were many other Crimson Blood Demons, yet I still instinctively chose Arisa... It wasn''t a coincidence huh..?


    "If you didn''t transform into Arisa Skarret, would Cat be able to kill you at that moment?"


    "Hmmm... Unlike humans, Beastfolk and other creatures like her adapts quickly to the situation. It was the same thing I''ve experienced with an ant... Cat could''ve gotten rid of me if I didn''t turn into this. Even a 1 second difference would''ve left me a corpse..."


    I could''ve done something else to defeat Cat at that time. I only casted [Benevolent Blood Eagle] to ensure my victory... I didn''t think about the consequences huh..?


    It appears that in this world, humans aren''t that good at adapting anymore, compared to other creatures.


    Well. At least Cat didn''t get to adapt to my new "Crimson Blood Magic", she has already adapted to Vixen''s Blood Magic, they''ll be useless against her now.


    ....


    A few more days have passed, we arrived at the Kingdom of Hreamlea, where the Beastfolk commonly resides.


    It was quite a surprise. The people and everything else in here has actually survived this apocalypse.


    "G-gah..!"


    Heart was also surprised. It was the first time I''ve seen her this surprised. Heh. Did the demons underestimate us humans? Or rather, Beastfolks?


    Beastfolks and humans live in this nation as one, in peace and harmony.


    "W-woah..!! I-It''s such a lively place!"


    "They actually survived..? These guys really are tough huh."


    "Yeah, they''re tough. How''d they even survive?"


    "Is there something surrounding this place like a dome? That would explain how such weaklings survived."


    Everyone looked like humans, but me being part of this group really made it clear that we''re actually demons.


    The guards runs up to us, pointing spears and swords.


    Of course, we could easily just wipe them all out, but that would also destroy all information that they had in this place. Our current mission isn''t to eliminate enemies, but to find my friends.


    "Demons!! Watch out! These things aren''t Cursed, they''re pure blooded, actual demons!"


    "Man the cannons! That one''s big!"


    "Prepare the crossbows, they''re not attacking yet!"


    They defend the gates, going into a formation, preparing to strike us down.


    There were cannons on the walls and soldiers on the ground, their weapons were all aimed at us.


    "Wait wait wait!! I''m from the Fanine Clan situated on Terui! We''ve come in peace! There''re no reasons to fight!"


    Ziio yells at the soldiers, but it seems that they don''t want to listen to us.


    "Silence, demons! This place is sacred..! Demons aren''t allowed here!"


    Eh... It''s fair. The demons are still at war with humans. Even when it''s finally announced that we can now unite as one, some kingdoms will still hate demons, especially during this apocalypse.


    "Don''t worry. I''ll take care of this."


    Says the heavily armed knight menacingly walking out through the gates.


    "Piercing Light."


    A beam of light shoots into my hand, which forms a small cloud, clearly showing no signs of damage on me.


    "Huh?! Arisa?! That demon is back?!"


    "Fear not, everyone! I''ll-"


    "Stop it already! We''re not enemies! Fighting at this time..? Shouldn''t we negotiate first?"


    Negotiation..? Sigh... Maybe we should''ve just used [Conceal] and sneaked in.


    "I''m from the Fanine Clan! Cease this violence immediately!"


    "What weak response, for someone from such a deadly group. I don''t believe you, you might just be another demon."


    "We''re just trying to settle things peacefully. We could destroy this entire city right now, but we need more information on how you guys survived."


    "Threatening us now? We are the people of god. We shall not abide by any demon. Prepare to die, monster."


    Huh..? What''s this..? A strong surge of magic is being pulled into the knight''s hand.


    Wait, holy magic..? It''s a Holy knight?!


    Holy knights are small groups, specialized forces. They''re one of the main sources of power for the Holy kingdoms.


    They specialize in destroying demons. Unlike other knights, holy knights carry a special form of magic, Holy Magic.


    Before, I didn''t have any worries about them, since I was just a human, but in this body... In Arisa Skarret''s body... Who knows what will happen to me if I was hit with Holy Magic.


    "Holy Light. Cross body manipulation."


    The embodiment of Fate..?


    Before I even realized it, a gaping hole in my stomach had blood rushing out profusely.


    "Hah...... H-Heart....!?"


    The pain was unbearable. I was about to pass out again, when suddenly, I heard a telepathic voice echoing in my head as if there was someone talking right next to my ear.


    "Oh Vixen.... The path for power.... Or the path for wisdom...?"


    Who was that?


    My blood wouldn''t stop pouring out.


    Smokes are erupting from my injuries. Everyone has panicked, trying to figure out a way to heal me.


    Meanwhile, Heart continued staring at me with that smirk. That ominous, evil smirk.


    "Let''s make this quick... Resurrect me... And you will live...."


    The actual Arisa Skarret?!


    Something has been combined with that attack. Everything that my body has instinctively tried in an attempt to stop this injury and fix itself has failed.


    "Currently.... There are more of you than me in my own body.... Since you won''t accept my deal.... I''ll give you more than half of my soul, but that means I''ll awaken too, alright...?"


    It was a terrible idea for sure. Resurrecting an ancient demon, just so I can live...


    Seems like Heart has planned all of this. She knows about this place and these roads, yet she still chose to come here.


    How annoying... I guess I''ll have to go along with her plans for now.


    ....


    My body wasn''t moving, blood continued dropping into the ground.


    Fiya was crying, a sad sight to see.


    When I finally accepted Arisa''s deal, a full transformation occured.


    The moment I''ve used [Benevolent Blood Eagle], the output was only below 80%, but it was still enough to get a part of Arisa Skarret''s soul into this body.


    Magic in the mortal realm works differently in the demon realm. Heart must''ve planned it so that I would transform into Arisa Skarret while I was still the Ninth Polar Heaven.


    So is this why they called me "Arisa Skarret" instead of "Vixen"?


    "Finally.... Arisa Skarret is finally free!!"


    A vibrant, colourful and shiny thick armor surrounded her body, as if it was diamond sprinkled with red and blue coloured powders.


    The colour of blood, faintly mixed with her new colours, hardened into her fleshy limbs.


    Her teeth were exposed, showing a permanent smile. They were wide, sharp, and extremely dangerous.


    She had metallic and dark red, smoothly textured scales.


    Non-organic wings erupted from her back, all bloody and red, along with sharp, and tall claws replacing both of her hands.


    Her already existing blades extended, becoming over 3 meters tall. They also became retractable.


    The blades, which were on the back of her forearms, on the back of her elbows, on the back of her legs, and on her claws, all became shiny, reflecting light like a mirror.


    Her limbs had no skin, no scales, only muscles and red, bloody flesh.


    It was beautiful, wonderful, and terrifying.


    "Arisa...?"


    "Vixen..?"


    "V-Vixen?!"


    Fiya wasn''t supposed to say that.


    Arisa takes a step forward, instantly turning every human 890 meters near her into a puddle of blood, slowly gathering towards Arisa''s back, in between her wings.


    Only the Holy knight survived, thanks to their quick response to the danger.


    "Demon blood and human blood differs from each other. Not just because of their colour obviously."


    "I know- oh... It''s you... Keh. It''s been a while since we''ve last met. It''s a pleasure to meet ya, but we''ll talk later, alright?"


    Heart and Arisa knows each other? Well. They are demons after all.


    The holy knight then shows an expression of horror and disbelief, quickly closing their helmet before sacred writing began glowing from their armour.


    "Demons... I can''t believe it... You monsters waited for me to attack huh..?"


    "Correct. A troublesome friend here wouldn''t let an old friend wake up from their long nap."


    "The Beastfolks are still alive. Most of my soldiers here have died, but I''m not like the rest of them."


    "There''s a Holy Barrier..? You holy knights always rely on your God for such simple abilities... I don''t think your god would like that."


    "What do you know about our god? Die, for real this time.


    Holy Thunder-"


    "SUPER THUNDERBLADE!!!"


    A flash of lightning passes through the knight''s body, making them vomit blood.


    Was that a rock..? Did Heart just threw a rock at them..?


    "Super Thunderblade converts anything into a blade by electrifying it and following through like thunder. A good way to use Lightning Magic, am I right?"


    "Heart..! I thought we were here to gather information! What''s with all this unnecessary bloodshed..!!?"


    "Stand back, everyone. You know why we took you guys with us. Fighting won''t be necessary, okay?"


    Heart crosses her arms, giving the dying knight a smug look as they try to stand back up using their sword.


    "Blguahgk..!! Hah... Hah... You foul monsters... I-"


    The [Holy Barrier] that the knight casted broke. Blood rushes out due to Arisa''s [Automatic Killing Range] skill.


    Eventually, the knight was turned into another puddle of blood.


    My body has been taken over, I can still control it, but it''s kind of difficult trying to do so. I''ve been trying this entire time since I''ve accepted the deal with Arisa.


    "Vixen Vixen... Stop tryna wake up right now. I''m actually a friend ya know? Your soul''s been damaged by some strange..... I don''t know... But I''ve been tryna fix it ''n get rid of that annoyin seal restrictin'' yo powers!"


    My powers..? So it wasn''t her who sealed my powers?


    "Seal? Vampire, what does she mean by that? You''ve never told me anything about seals."


    Well. I don''t even know how I got these seals in the first place.


    I guess I can let Arisa heal my soul for a while. Those seals, my senses tells me that it would be dangerous if my powers become unsealed but I''ve also been feeling more tired before I even transformed into Arisa Skarret.


    Whoever she is, she''s probably an ally, just not too friendly towards others though...

 Chapter 29: Knowledge of the Soul.

    Spatial Magic + Blood Magic, it is Arisa Skarret''s main abilities, Crimson Blood Magic, an advanced form of Blood Magic.


    Since I''m still trapped inside her body, I can check out her soul by using [Spatial Investigation], an old spell that I''ve been improving for a while.


    Poof.


    Wow. I''m suddenly in a beautiful place full of flowers.


    The valleys stretch out as far as the eye can see. I know that it''s not real, as it is just the representation of one''s soul.


    "Ooo... Welcome, little Vixen."


    Says the strange little girl sitting on a plastic chair, surrounded by large pillars. She looks familiar, like I''ve already met her before... But I just can''t remember for some reason.


    There''s a magical circle formed with blood around her, it has an odd interference of magical energy right above.


    "Sip sip."


    She''s drinking tea.


    What''s she even doing in here?


    "Hmmm... Aren''t you the little one here?"


    I approach her, but an invisible force prevents me from crossing past the circle.


    "This is the sacred sanctuary of the Behemoth. This is the heart of hearts."


    Heart? Is she talking about Heart Cornea?


    "I''m the guardian. The last. The one of Earth."


    "What strange words you''re saying. May I ask, where is Arisa, if we''re in her soul?"


    "I cannot answer that question."


    "Sigh... You''re kind of annoying..."


    She stares forward. While talking to me, she takes a sip of her tea.


    It seems like she''s not looking at anything, as if she''s blind.


    She''s wearing a red dress. There''s a halo above her head, like those things that angels have.


    "When you tried to enter Arisa''s soul, I took you here instead. I''m her protector, I get rid of any attacks to her soul."


    "I''m not an attacker though... Ahem ahem. Anyways. While she''s healing my soul, let''s talk for a while then!"


    "You''re a pesky one aren''t you? Can''t you see that I''m drinking tea here?"


    The tea she''s holding isn''t even decreasing, even when she takes a larger sip.


    She talks calmly, not expressing any forms of emotion, despite being this rude.


    "I''m the leader of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. To save myself from danger, I had to accept a deal with Arisa Skarret and become her guardian."


    The USSR? If I''m right, that only existed in Earth.


    "Giggle giggle. No way that a mere child like you is the dictator of such a powerful-"


    "I''m Reyana Sorret. You may know me as Dmitri Arel."


    Dmitri Arel..?! Isn''t that the same name as the dictator of the Soviet Union back in earth?!


    His name''s probably in the Library of sharks huh. You can''t fool me, Reyana!


    "I can''t use magic but I can manipulate humans. This body is Arisa Skarret''s body, before she became that monster."


    "Hm? Was she actually a good person, or a friendly human before?"


    "No no no. She''s still a good person. She did save me from death after all. Despite being her soul, my body is still alive, this place is real, you know?"


    "So if Arisa were to die, you''d die as well?"


    "Yes. It''s that kind of deal. But not really. Once Arisa completes her demon form, I''ll return to her world, with this body of course."


    "Better be thankful then. I did revive you and Arisa after all!"


    "Sip. Sip. Okay. I can help your soul. As thanks for bringing us back to life."


    Help my soul? When Arisa told me that she would fix my soul and remove those seals, was she just going to make Reyana do it in her place?


    "The first step in fixing your soul, is by giving me an electric guitar."


    An electric guitar? Seems pretty random. How will it even fix my soul?


    "I''m a master of the arts... The arts of electrical guitars. You see, I''m not just a dictator. I''m also a guitarist."


    "Guitarist? There were no records of Dmitri Arel having a guitar. You''re a fake huh?"


    "No. Sip sip. Before we died, Ruthenoceras Ptychodus taught me how to use strings, I applied it into the electric guitars, and it worked."


    That Salmon Shark again..? How long did they live? Demons like Arisa... The Book of Epitomy stated that she lived for more than 10k years, if that Shark lived longer than that, then....


    "Oh right. There''re 21 seals removable in your soul. I can take them off without problems. But it will also give me access to all of your memories.


    "My memories..? Well. You are a reincarnation too huh..? I doubt it would be bad if you found out that we''re the same as well..."


    "Reincarnation? Ah. A strange man told me about that. I don''t mind, little Vixen. I''ve already seen some of your memories since you''ve gotten here."


    "Great. It feels nice to finally talk to a friendly reincarnation! The only other reincarnated person I know is one of the main villains of this story!"


    "Story? Oh. Tsuchinoko, the snake. Speaking of japanese things, the Baphomet is a japanese as well. Or at least, her master was a japanese man."


    Master..? The Baphomet? Japanese?


    The Japanese martial arts of Karate? So her master was another reincarnation?


    Man... Reincarnated people really are overpowered or significantly important in this world.


    "Well then. Let''s get rid of those 21 seals shall we?!"


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    "Alright. Here we go. It will only take a few seconds."


    Reyana puts down her tea on the grass before standing up, deactivating the magical circle around her.


    She steps out, allowing me to walk past the circle.


    I sat down on the plastic chair and the circle began to activate again.


    "O'' great gods of heaven. Relinquish thee kind soul, innocent and untainted. O'', May the lights of lights be with you."


    Didn''t Cat say that as well-?


    "FUGHHUUU-!!!!"


    The magical circle brightened. An intense pain struck my body, or my soul, I think.


    A stream of smoke forms.


    Reyana dusts off her hands, as if there was even dust on her hands.


    "Now that it''s complete, the dark gods have taken some of your soul, basically biting a chunk off your soul."


    "WHY''D YOU DO THAT?!!!"


    "You told me to remove those seals didn''t you? Besides, souls grow back, they just got rid of some of your feelings. You won''t be feeling the emotion of Love anymore. Kukuku..!"


    Love..? Well... I can grow it back anyways, and I don''t think Love would be useful during this apocalypse right now.


    "Oh, love. Heh. It''s better than losing happiness at least."


    "I couldn''t help but giggle. Giggle giggle. Anyways. You''re right. There''re 2 types of soul soups, first one are the emotions, and the second one are the consciousnessses."


    "Consciousnesses"? Is that even a real word?


    "Huh? What do you mean by soul soups? Soup for the gods?"


    "Yes. The dark gods eat souls. One of them just ate a large part of your soul. It might''ve made your magical energies weaker, but once they grow back, you''ll bee stronger than beefloor."


    "Beefloor? What are you talking about?"


    "What''s a honeycomb full of bees? They usually fly onto honeycombs, for many reasons of course. When a larger creature, typically a human, steps on them, you could call it a floor of bees don''t you think? Beefloor. Floorbee. Frisbee."


    "Frisbee..? What does all of that have to do with the dark gods?"


    "A frisbee, or rather, a freezebee. When you catch and freeze a bee, it becomes a freezebee, frozenbee, Frostbee, and then, Frosbee."


    Wait... Aren''t those Rabbit''s jokes?!


    They''re all written down on the Book of Epitomy. She also memorizes her jokes just to say them in public..!


    "Yes. I''ve only helped you slightly, but you''ve helped me greatly. I''ve acquired all of your memories now. If I wanted to, I could act, and do anything that you can do."


    Well. That''s expected, of course.


    "The dark gods, when they bit you, a portion of your soul ripped out. I took all of those pieces, like collecting bread crumbs and put all of them together, effectively getting 100% of what they held until now."


    "But it wasn''t my entire soul, was it? How did you get all of my memories from such a small portion of my soul?"


    "It wasn''t just a small portion, I''ve told you already, it was a large one. The useless part of your soul, like emotions and feelings were ignored, and only your memories spilled out."


    "My memories spilled out? I shouldn''t have any thought then. Besides, you could''ve just chosen the "useless" parts of my soul to be eaten, why my memories specifically?"


    "Because why not? Fufufu..!"


    Oh. She showed me a smile.


    So she wasn''t actually emotionless then?


    Later, Reyana sat back on her plastic chair, leaving me outside the circle.


    "Now then. Go on, walk forth. You won''t heal in here. Observe Arisa''s actions, and try to find an electric guitar along the way."


    Is the electric guitar necessary..?


    Poof.


    I was back in the mortal realm again.


    The next thing I see is Arisa Skarret walking through the empty city, devoid of living creatures other than Ziio, Maire, Doun, Noll, Gray, Heart, and Fiya.


    "The Automatic Killing Range, or the Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast is a fancy lil'' way to instantly drink all blood within a range. I''m still a bit rusty after wakin'' up so I had to make slight adjustments for the Beastfolks."


    She says, as she stomps out the road each step, leaving behind large footprints trailed with blood.


    ....


    Arisa Skarret''s body mass-produces blood, so much that it spills off externally.


    The blood outside then gathers up, forming a thin, but concentrated field surrounding her entire body. This shield of blood can be used as [Extraplanetarium Rose], a Crimson Blood Magic spell.


    "Vixen Vixen... Don''t take too much from my soul, okay? It tires me more, and it''s kinda annoyin'' when you do that."


    I apologize. Surely, she will know telepathically.


    While my soul''s still trapped inside her body, I can search more inside of her soul as well, gathering information and knowledge. It isn''t the same for me though, she won''t be able to search mine. Hehehe..!


    "Ah. We''re here. The Royal, Ugrondemion family palace."


    She says as we stop infront of the large mansion, surrounded by fences.


    The Ugrondemion family is a royal family that has existed for over a thousand years. They prospered thanks to the Beastfolks who helped in producing weapons for wars, making their jobs easier due to their natural strength better than the human''s.


    The population of Hreamlea has decreased drastically, probably by 70%. All because of Arisa Skarret just walking around.


    "I hate these guys. Let''s go in ''n kill them."


    "Killing because of hate is bad, you know? We mustn''t murder personally, that just makes you unlikable."


    "I''m sorry I''m sorry... Kekeke..! Let''s kill them because they''re too rich then! These guys were startin'' to ruin the economy with their annoyin'' business. It''d be bad if they kept it up for another thousand years."


    "Good. I''ve heard that they have something called chocolate. That''ll be my reason to kill them."


    Demons trying to be reasonable in getting rid of people..?


    At the end of the day, they are just murderous monsters.


    Arisa walked through the front gates, as if she was walking through a simple cobweb.


    The guards and most of the people in this place''s already passed away. The city is big so there are still some survivors left but they''ll eventually be eaten by monsters anyways.


    Come to think of it, why''d Heart get surprised by their survival when she already planned this from the start?


    "The Embodiment of Fate is here, or more specifically, their spell books. The actual person is in Rintan''s kingdom of course, but they also left some things in here."


    "Ummm... Do we need to kill them..? I-I thought- can we just take the books and leave..?"


    "Ziio, these guys are dangerous, didn''t you see Arisa get blown in the stomach by one of their spells? I never thought they''d actually spread those books everywhere, especially right now..."


    So that was what Heart was surprised about?


    Arisa broke through the entrance, revealing the large interior of the palace. It was large enough for Arisa to walk around without destroying anything.


    "I can see them. Anythin'' within the range of Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast''s also within the range of Psychokinetic Blood Clairvoyance''s."


    [Psychokinetic Blood Clairvoyance], it is just [Clairvoyance], but automatic and better. It instantly shows all blood within range.


    Because my soul''s also shared with Arisa''s, I can see what she sees. Most of the things she learns, knows, and thinks about, I can see them as well.


    "There''re still some small fry in here. It''s best to make this quick."


    "Don''t worry. You don''t have to worry about anything.... Because with this, it''ll all be over for them...


    Cloud Refrigerating."


    A certain way to use her 5th dimensional gates is by targeting particular things only.


    [Cloud Refrigerating] is an easy option, it can spread her Soul Nullification techniques, ingraining the air with it so that her 5th dimensional gates won''t attack us.


    In a matter of seconds, the presence of foreign Demons were quickly rid of. A massive portal instantly opening from thin air rapidly breaks through the palace.


    Rumble...


    "Cloud Close."


    The portal closes. The void seen through it becomes faint, and it slowly began to disappear.


    Thanks to Arisa''s knowledge, Heart''s abilities are also clear to me now.


    The Cloud spells are a secondary of her 5th dimensional gates. Although it is almost devoid of her Soul Nullification techniques, the effectiveness compensates for that.


    The 5th dimensional gates are mostly just gates leading into an empty void, the void, which is the abyss.


    It is the upmost, but not the best. It''s special, another branch of Abyssal Magic. It''s extremely rare to find someone actually using them, since most records have been lost and learning it will be very difficult.


    Another reason why not a lot of people can use it is because of the Soul Nullification techniques, which are only found on the hands of the Fanine Clan.


    Poof.


    "My my. The 5th dimensional gates accidentally hit you?"


    Says Reyana, sitting on her plastic chair.


    It seems that Heart accidentally hit me, even though her abilities weren''t supposed to that.


    Nothing to fear however, since my soul only exists within Arisa''s physical form, no damage will be done and I can just go back to the mortal realm.


    "Mind to speak for a bit? It''s lonely being in here, you know?"


    "Lonely? Don''t worry, you''ll be back outside soon. Besides, why''re you saying that now when you''ve been living here for decades?"


    "Arisa and the subjects will only be doing boring nonsense. Why do pointless things with them? Besides, let''s have a brief discussion of what has happened so far. Sip sip."


    Well... It is true that they''re just walking around and destroying things instead of actually finding my friends.


    "Alright. You''re still fixing my soul or something right? I guess I can sit here and wait for my powers to come back."


    I say as I sat down on the soft grass.


    "The Hammerhead Demon has infiltrated Earth. It won''t be long until the end of days arrive."


    "Hm? The Hammerhead..? Oh, Manta Ray?"


    "Yes. While it is almost impossible to stop them now, a potential solution to all our problems may just exist within the Temporal Spatial Pyramids."


    "That Salmon Shark''s place? Whoever they are... They must really know a lot of things huh?"


    "I have a plan however. Different from everyone, who doesn''t have one."


    "Hohhh..? I''d like to hear it. Heart told me that she had one but then completely forgot about it."


    "Oh right. We have the same plans as well."


    Eh? Really? But Heart mentioned it even before Arisa was revived...


    "The real one''s about to introduce themselves soon. I''ll only explain the plan shortly before she arrives."


    The real Baphomet is going to attack us..?!


    Well. We have Arisa Skarret on our side.


    Escaping should be easy.

 Chapter 30: Dacquoises, Oysters and Gooseberries.

    "The 5th dimensional planes exist between the borders of reality and unreality."


    "Huh? What does that mean? Doesn''t her 5th dimensional gates work as a gateway into the abyss, or as a brain damaging technique?"


    "No. That''s only the repercussion. Once the gates open, as a net personally by Heart, they engulf the area into a void. This void is known as the abyss, where nothing exists, and everything exists at once."


    "I can''t quite catch up. What''s our plan anyways? You told me that you''d make this quick."


    The 5th dimensional gates, an ability aided by Heart''s Soul Nullification techniques branches from Abyssal Magic.


    Heart, who somehow stole the Soul Nullification techniques from the Fanine Clan, now has, unlike most people in history, an overwhelming amount of knowledge about the dimensional structure of space.


    The 4th dimension, even though it''s a dimension lower than the 5th, is a dimension that Heart hasn''t mastered yet. Heart also has no mastery over the 5th dimensions, but she does have complete mastery with the gates and the panels reaching into the abyss through the use of her 5th dimensional gates.


    "The 5 sacrificial lambs are our special guests. We must protect them for now. Failure means disaster for the Demons, and the Humans as well."


    "Those 5 demons with us? Protecting them will be easy. That is, if they don''t do anything that can cause trouble for us. We just need to place them on a safe place and fight the Baphomet in the meantime."


    "It''s not that simple. A complete mastery over the 5th dimensional gates is near impossible, Heart hasn''t even mastered it despite all of what she has showed you."


    That was obvious. There''s simply no way that a 3rd dimensional being can master manipulating 5th dimensions.


    "I can see souls, similar to the Baphomet''s abilities. Currently, her agents are all scattered throughout the entire world. There are only 10 in total. The Ocean God, Keasius, is one of the only agents left in Cvvoer, or the Mortal Realm."


    "I can open up a portal into my last base, where my friends used to be at. It was the first time I''ve met Keasius as well..."


    "Because of their absence, the Baphomet has been left with one last option: To stop us herself."


    "So she''s going to arrive in Hreamlea? Our first steps in defeating her would be to get into a place where we can fight with an advantage. This city wouldn''t be too good."


    "Nope. This city is perfect actually. There are not much creatures alive right now, which means that we can just wreak havoc. Not we, but you guys can."


    So Reyana will be useless for now huh?


    She weakened my soul and my Magical Energy output, but why now? Why didn''t she tell me about this plan earlier?


    "If your powers were still sealed, you''d have no chance of winning. No need to thank me. Once your soul heals, there shouldn''t be much problem in dealing with the Baphomet."


    "My soul''s been weakened... But my skills and physical strengths are still there, aren''t they?"


    "Huh? Don''t tell me that you''re planning to do hand-to-hand combat with the Baphomet..!"


    My Imitation Techniques doesn''t necessarily need Magic.


    The Imitation Techniques were Techniques that I was born with. It imitates anything that I can think of. It helps in performing anything by utilizing anything that I can use.


    Basically, it performs things using things that I currently have.


    It''s a convenient ability. It helps a lot, not just in combat, but in daily life as well.


    "My prowess is unmatched. There will be no one to defeat me, once I copy all of their skills."


    It can be used as a way to copy anything, anything that can be performed. Weapons can be imitated, by using only my hands as well.


    "Heh. I guess you can use that as well..."


    Poof.


    Back to the physical world. We are still roaming around the mansion. Everyone''s looking for something


    "This place''s huge. I might make this my home."


    "Uuuu... Vi- Vampire..!? Are you still there..?"


    My soul has healed 50% of what was lost when my seals broke.


    It shouldn''t be difficult to separate myself from Arisa, and come back in my own flesh now.


    "Vampire, you can come out now. There''s no point in hiding for that long. Arisa has been revived, you know?"


    Heart already knows..?


    Well then.


    Of course, I wouldn''t come out by just ripping open Arisa''s stomach and then stepping foot on to the floor like a monster.


    I opened up a Magical Circle, manifesting my physical form back into the Mortal Realm.


    "T-This is Vixen..? You are Vixen?!"


    "Woah. I didn''t know that Arisa was actually a woman."


    "That''s Vixen, not Arisa..."


    It felt good to finally be back in the flesh...


    Having no physical form, I could only watch the world using Magic. Everything was coloured blue and green. I couldn''t see anything physically.


    It felt like I finally regained eyesight after being blind for a very long time.


    "Heart, should we tell them about your plans?"


    "Sigh... I guess it''s a good time to tell everyone... I can''t make any excuses."


    "P-plan..?! What were you guys h-hiding from us..?"


    The plan was quickly put into my brain.


    The plan, which is:


    First, have Heart set up her 5th dimensional gates by putting nets around the area. Our environment is good, since there are large roads and huge spaces for us to run around in.


    Second, weaken the Baphomet and launch a surprise attack. The 5 demons will run off to a safe place while me, Heart, Arisa and Fiya fight the Baphomet together.


    Third, weaken the Baphomet enough so that we can escape.


    And then the final step, send one of the Pillars of Creation to the Baphomet. Heart wanted to send Tsuchikonoko personally, but she hesitated to tell me about it.


    I wonder why.


    Did she actually wanted to send someone else..?


    Is that why she didn''t tell me the plan during that time..?


    ...


    After Heart explained our plan, everyone went into formation.


    The incoming Bloodlust is growing stronger.


    This Bloodlust... It''s coming from the skies?


    A loud familiar sound was then heard outside.


    "What''s that sound?"


    "Hm? Is the Baphomet ridin'' a fly?"


    We walked out of the mansion to find a plane heading towards us.


    "Baphomet? Didn''t think she''d come in like this. Technologies are for the weak. That goes for you too, Fija, or whatever she calls you."


    Heart then picked up a rock, immediately throwing it at the plane.


    "Super Thunderblade."


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    A massive gush of wind blows through, tearing out the fences near the front gates, and the rooftops of the deserted houses.


    "Huh?!"


    We were met with an expected confrontation. The Baphomet comes out, catching the rock despite the speed it was thrown with.


    "BAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!"


    She was wearing a sleeveless Karate uniform. Bandages were wrapped around her arms, from her wrists, up to her elbows. She had a black belt tied right above her baggy pants.


    Upside-down deer antlers were on her head.


    She also had Arisa Skarret''s Crimson Blood Blades attached to her left arm.


    I wonder how she even got those.


    "Tsk! You annoyin'' piece of shit..!


    Flower... Rain!!"


    Arisa aimed her sharp claws at the Baphomet''s aerial vehicle, firing large amounts of exploding Blood bullets.


    The Baphomet quickly counters all of the attacks, moving the extremely tall blade attached to her left arm in a certain motion, cutting through all of the incoming bullets.


    "You bullied poor Cat, Vampire... You''ll be the first one to die."


    Even when we''re this far away, her murderous gaze still sent shivers down my spine.


    Her eyes were turned upwards, and her pupils were dilated. She had a wide smile, her teeth were really sharp, and really white.


    It reminded me of Arisa''s smile.


    "I thank you, Arisa... For your Crimson Blood Magic.


    Crimson Blood Magic: Blood Refraction."


    I fire a long, thin line of Blood. It''s designed to cut through extremely hard materials despite it''s size.


    However, the Baphomet still finds the nearly invisible threads, picking them up between her fingers before casually breaking them.


    "At this rate, she''s going to close in on us!"


    "DON''T YOU WORRY!!! BECAUSE I KNOW THAT YOU''LL BE THE ONES TO CLOSE IN ON ME!!!"


    She then jumps out of the plane, grabbing it''s tail and spinning the entire aircraft around before throwing it at us.


    Boom!!!


    It explodes right on the destroyed front doors of the mansion.


    A massive fire breaks out, filling the air with smoke.


    "W-wawawa... M-my head... Blood...?"


    A familiar voice spoke from behind the flames.


    But before I can think more about it, the Baphomet is already falling down on to the road.


    Boom!!


    The ground shatters as she lands. She slowly gets up from her knees, finding herself in front of two massive blades dropping down on to her face.


    Her reaction time was impressive, dodging Arisa''s surprise attacks before doing handsprings to get out of the way.


    "Not so nice, when it''s the first time we''ve met huh?!"


    "I''m going to kill you."


    I didn''t even realize her suddenly appearing in front of the Baphomet.


    A second ago, she was just standing next to me. As soon as I blinked, she''s already fighting the Baphomet 200 meters away.


    "M-my 5th dimensional gates didn''t work..?!"


    For the first time since I''ve met her, Heart has become really surprised. She was shocked, and swallowed up by fear.


    Crash!!


    Arisa and the Baphomet immediately began fighting each other, smashing through multiple buildings along the way.


    "H-huh..?!"


    Fiya was in shock as well, but after she recovered, she quickly grabbed Divine Intervention before trying to aim it at the Baphomet with her shaky hands.


    "Channel, Benevolent Blood Eagle."


    The [Benevolent Blood Eagle] is a Crimson Blood Demon imitation and also an Eagle imitation.


    Similar to Arisa Skarret''s body, my body grows a pair of wings and sharp blades like Arisa''s, but shorter and only on my arms.


    "Show me whatchu''ve got!"


    I say as I sprint towards her.


    A myriad of slashes were sent at the Baphomet, which she swiftly dodges before sending a devastating blow into Arisa''s stomach, crushing her bones and destroying the surrounding houses.


    Arisa flies through, stumbling around as she is thrown back into the palace, breaking through several walls in the way.


    "YOUR TURN-"


    BOOM!!


    As I ran towards the Baphomet, Fiya fires a shot with Divine Intervention. It was aimed at her head, creating a huge explosion directly in her face.


    Unexpectedly, she was left unfazed by that attack.


    A stream of smoke flowing out of her head quickly disappears, revealing her psychotic face.


    She grabbed me by the neck and threw me further away from the mansion.


    "Vampire!"


    "V-VIXEN!!"


    She kicks me in the stomach as I try to get up, sending me flying into the air.


    Whack!


    Another kick straight into my side tosses me down back on to the road.


    "Bluagh..!!"


    I tried to recover, but she''s already walking towards me.


    In a desperate attempt to fight back, I swing my blades at her, but she quickly dodges, landing a blow into my stomach.


    It was extremely painful, but unfortunately for her, I already prepared a plan in case my stomach is hit again.


    I had a similar plan while fighting Cat, but it failed horribly.


    However, I won''t fail using the same technique twice. I''ve already learned from my mistakes. There''s no way that I would fail now.


    Splat!!


    I thrust both of my blades down her body, kneeing her as the blades dives deeper.


    I then perform a [Suplex] on her, plummeting her head down into the ground.


    Ignoring my attack, she breaks off my blades before throwing a punch into my back, crushing my spine.


    I was sent flying down the empty road.


    Death imminent, I instinctively began focusing on surviving.


    My regenerative abilities functioned properly and my senses further heightened.


    As she bolts through, her fist collides with the air, destroying everything behind me as I ducked before swiping her legs away with a kick.


    "Not bad."


    She says, before performing a [Hurricanrana] on me, smashing the ground with my body.


    I then utilize my blades, fixing them before diving into the ground.


    "Hiding like a little worm?"


    She stomps the ground, causing a massive explosion that destroys the entire town we were in.


    I then swam upwards, sending multiple slashes at her.


    We flew into the air. In a counterattack, she rapidly punches my slashes, applying more pressure on me. It gave me more worries due to the mere thought of one punch slipping through and hitting me in the face.


    "THAT''S WHAT I WAS EXPECTING!! YOU-"


    In an instant, Arisa appears behind her, clutching both of her claws together before swinging down, giving the Baphomet no other way to dodge the attacks with me being right in front of her.


    But in a split second, she closes her eyes. Then, an instantaneous slash cuts through Arisa, tearing off her arm.


    Innumerable punches then landed on my body. Meanwhile, Arisa continues getting torn apart by her other arm, which had the Crimson Blood Blades attached to it.


    "Breakfast.


    Utensils."


    With her left arm, she propels sharp jabs into my body.


    With her right arm, she cuts through Arisa''s body with numerous slashes using her blade.


    She was standing with an upright posture while brutally attacking us horizontally mid-air.


    Fiya then fires another bullet at the Baphomet, but this time, she doesn''t even react.


    The bullet flies past her.


    Fiya was then burnt down by the familiar person from before.


    That person''s eyes showed no mercy. It wasn''t terror, and it wasn''t fear.


    It was anger, hate, rage, and wrath.


    "Free?!"


    Heart looked in horror as the fearsome dragon incinerated the pitiful girl in front of her.


    The dragon had flames spreading throughout her body. Figuratively, and literally.


    I recognized that face.


    Pikaia...


    My former ally...


    Her Bloodlust suddenly grew stronger, stronger than the Baphomet''s.


    I had a lot of questions. What was she even doing here? Why is she attacking us? But I don''t think it''s a good time to be thinking about that right now.


    The Baphomet''s fist collides with my face, and her blade with Arisa''s torso.


    However, thanks to our effective healing abilities, we somehow survived.


    "Channel, Benevolent Blood Eagle."


    A model for [Benevolent Blood Eagle] was [Shadow Fracture] from Cat, but during our fight, it wasn''t used the way it was supposed to be used.


    It wasn''t just an imitation of a Crimson Blood Demon, those strange blades that [Shadow Fracture] used were quite interesting.


    I shall take this chance to finally use them as my blades as well.


    "A copy of the same sword doesn''t make one better."


    She landed on the ground full of debris. She then proceeded to approach me with the intent to kill.


    She was really confident, but I''ve already spread my blood throughout this entire area.


    "Drone Prop Attack. Heaven''s Model."


    Her eyes widened, finally realizing the situation she was in.


    She had thought that all that I could''ve used against her were Blood Magic and Crimson Blood Magic.


    Oh how wrong she was.


    KABOOM!!!


    Everything around me exploded.


    An explosion the size of half the city occurred.


    It still wasn''t strong enough to defeat her though.


    We were now left with only one option: To bring Keasius into this fight.


    I''m sure that Heart would''ve wanted me to do this. We can''t find the location of any of the Pillars of Creation, so I guess this would be the alternative for the final step of our plan.


    It''s still unclear whether or not the Symbol, and the Bringer of Order and Balance would win against an Ancient God, even though it''s technically a Fake God.


    But would they fight? No.


    A way to win isn''t by using [Antares] again. Doing so would only put my Magical Energy output down to 0. It isn''t even possible anyways, due to the insufficient amount of Bloodlust in this continent.


    Bringing The Tale of the Great White however...


    I haven''t even tried it before, but if I can redirect [Divine Whirlpool] to where The Tale of the Great White is at, I can win.


    I''ll chop her head off since she''s incapable of fighting.


    That way, I can absorb all of her energy, along with Keasius'' powers as well.


    With this, we can also finally solve that question.


    ......


    Whoosh..!!


    The winds blows greatly.


    The flames had died down.


    The 5 demons had a way to defend themselves. With their natural resistance to fire, and with their Magical abilities, they''d be capable of casting a [Barrier]. So, I don''t think that they need any help.


    Heart, Fiya, and Arisa were also out of the question. They''re not really your average demon.


    "Bit flashy, but I guess that''d kill most targets huh?"


    Emerging from the thick smoke, is the Baphomet, unharmed, unaffected, and as lively as usual.


    My arms have been converted into blood armor, fixed with blades. They''re almost like Arisa''s arms...


    "That boosts your physical abilities? You still wouldn''t catch up even if you copied her entire form."


    She jumps up, performing a [Tornado Kick], which I block using my blades.


    Whoosh!


    Another kick to my legs?!


    Wait, no! It''s a kick down my head?!


    Bang!


    She faked a Low Kick to land another kick down a straight line.


    It shattered my skull and gave me severe brain damage.


    Even though I healed quickly, she''s already up in the air. She then sends a [Dropkick] into my throat.


    My neck broke and I was sent rolling through the ruined city. Multiple pieces of debris stabbed into my body along the way.


    I stopped my speed by digging my blades into the ground.


    "Dinner.


    Utensils."


    Her stance has changed?


    She lunges forward, swinging her leg at me. I dodge it this time, but she spins, and performs a [Tornado Kick] again.


    I blocked it by slashing at her leg, but my blades were quickly destroyed and her kick lands into my arm.


    Bang!!


    I was thrown backwards again, breaking through multiple buildings in the way.


    "You can not win."


    She says while slowly walking towards me behind the smoke.


    "Heh..! No... I will win..!"


    As I get up, Pikaia appeared with her hands aimed at me.


    I''ve already sensed her Bloodlust so her arrival was expected.


    "You are an annoying-"


    Crash!!


    Arisa then passes through, kicking her forwards and sprinting towards her, smashing her into ground again.


    She kicks her back into the air, where she punches her again and again.


    "Don''t worry about me and this one. You guys should be safe now. My blood has been spread down into the ground... Just blow ''em up, Vixen!"


    Boom!


    She swings her blades down at Pikaia. Although it wasn''t sharp enough to cut her, it still dealt a ton of damage.


    "Bgguuaahk..!!"


    Pikaia tried her best to get up. She vomited blood and crawled around in pain.


    Arisa dropped down, kicking her again and again, destroying multiple buildings as they make their way through.


    "Heh..! She''s just playing soccer at this point..! Hurry up and kill the Baphomet..! I''ll help you guys as well..!"


    Heart says, limping behind me.


    "Fiya''s still alive, don''t worry. She''s already finding a spot to shoot down the Baphomet..."


    "Still alive and kicking huh?! Haaaahahahahaaah!!! Say your last words! No one has defeated me before..! Well... Not in a fair fight at least!"


    Arisa''s blood is currently everywhere, right?


    Okay..! I''ll just have to adjust [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model] for "Crimson Blood Demon" blood then!

 Chapter 31: Interloping.

    Due to the high amounts of Arisa''s blood in the city, converting them into explosives would need extreme concentration.


    "Tails of Ideology. Dull Railings. Shared Colonial Ideology."


    The ''Tails of Ideology'', a branch of Anti-physical Magic that specializes in producing creations.


    A sharp, yet dull piece of guarding, perfect for an Imitation of [Extraplanetarium Rose]. Although I can use Crimson Blood Magic now, having my soul weakened renders most abilities unusable.


    Sharing both Colonial Ideologies, simply for mass-producing blood on the same level as Arisa.


    "Symplirothe¨ª"


    The completed form of [Drone Prop Attack] and the [Heaven''s Model] combination.


    "Huh-?!"


    "I really need to thank that ant sometime huh?"


    KABOOM!!


    The entire city was engulfed in flames. A massive explosion erupts, absolutely decimating all life on the surface, with the only exception being me, my allies, and the Baphomet.


    An Imitation of [Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast] was necessary.


    More information than what Arisa had given: The [Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast] works as an automatic long-ranged field of death. All source of blood will be drained and manipulated when it enters the field.


    The closer you are, the greater the pull becomes. Even when they''re unable to see it, a thin gap within their skin, or any gaps for that matter, no matter how small or how thin, even below nanometers thin will work.


    Blood can seep out with the help of [Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast].


    For weaker creatures, just standing at the edge of the field means instant death.


    Unregistered blood however, will take more time to pull than the average, and the common blood.


    "Cough cough..! G-good thing that I casted Extraplanetarium Rose before getting blown up... Give me a warning next time!"


    Similar to how [Antares] works, [Symplirothe¨ª] creates a large explosion.


    The only difference are the requirements.


    "This-.... Huh..?! FREE!!!?"


    Fiya has died?!


    Carrying the same amount of Bloodlust as she did, is the figure walking past the thick smoke.


    Emerging, and revealing that annoying, and sickening smile.


    "Oops. You were the ones who did this..! Not me!"


    "Channel, Benevolent Blood Eagle."


    Forget it.


    Unlike Arisa Skarret''s body, I''ll restructure only my arms and confirm them as full blades.


    They stop at my shoulders. They shine colourfully, and vibrantly.


    These beautiful, and sharp blades, they''re a hardened and a concentrated mix of blood.


    "Transforming takes a lot of focus, I get it. But you don''t have to keep repeating those same lines every time you change a meter of your body!"


    The Baphomet lunges forward, striking me with her blade.


    I counter by swinging my full-bladed arm at her, blocking the attack.


    "Hoh..? We have the same blades, don''t we?"


    "Are you sure?"


    Her blade derives from Arisa Skarret. Meanwhile, my blades are formed with my own blood.


    "Your own-!?"


    I slash at her, but she dodges it by performing Back Handsprings.


    "Crimson Blood Magic: Splitting Axe."


    A stream of hardened blood tears through the Baphomet, catching her off guard.


    She then grabs the rope of blood and pulls it towards her, bringing Heart along.


    "Extraplanetarium Rose-"


    She punches the moment Heart casts [Extraplanetarium Rose], breaking it immediately.


    But before she can follow up her punch, I smash my left blade into her body, throwing her into a nearby building.


    I sprint towards her, cutting through everything in the way.


    "Too bad! It didn''t hurt me one bit!"


    She looks really excited, for someone who''s about to die.


    I slash at her, but she blocks.


    Fortunately, her blade shatters.


    "You''re stronger..? Well. Thanks for getting rid of that!


    Breakfast


    Utensils."


    I get it now. Her [Breakfast Utensils] mode is how she eats in the morning, by using her arms.


    Her [Dinner Utensils] uses her legs.


    Is that how she hunts creatures at different times?


    What''s her [Lunch Utensils] mode then?


    Whack!


    Smack! Smack!


    Her hands are too fast..!


    A chain of punches were landed into my body, giving me no time to block or evade.


    19 chops were hit into my jaw, neck, and collarbone, crushing everything her hands made contact with.


    52 jabs were then thrown into my upper body, slapping away my blades as I tried to defend myself.


    "HAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!!!"


    She laughed maniacally.


    A final blow hit my face, destroying it instantly.


    I prevent falling by digging my feet into the ground.


    This place is dark and she has suddenly disappeared.


    We''re currently inside a destroyed house. It''s sunset now. The battle has begun 2 hours ago, when her plane entered this city.


    The blood, which were taken from all of the residents here, were then put into the ground. I turned all of them into explosives, but was that really the best option..?


    "Your first mistake was rejecting Triax''s request. You should''ve joined us when you had the chance. There is no more room left for you in this world. Not with the humans. Not with the demons. Not with the heroes! ...Maybe you can side with us, but I''ll think about it in a million years."


    Her voice came from a strange direction. I couldn''t figure out where she was, even with [Spatial Investigation].


    Her Bloodlust''s also gone. She''s hiding her Bloodlust?


    "Your terrible sense of bloodlust, it only senses the intent to see blood. I don''t want to see your filthy red blood anymore."


    "So that''s how it is huh?"


    My body has already healed the moment she hit the final blow.


    I''ve recovered, but still, how can I defeat her though?


    The Baphomet''s blood is odd. I can''t figure out what her blood is. It''s going to be near impossible to use them against her.


    Which means... I should blow everything up until she comes out?


    "Spreading your blood will only kill you. I-"


    "Heh. You''ve finally noticed it?"


    Heart appeared behind the large hole in the wall.


    She held her arm tightly, preventing further bleeding.


    It seems that she has put her Soul Nullification techniques into the air while we were still fighting.


    "Your mistake here was talking on and on. That''s the first rule that villains must avoid!"


    Well... I really wonder why villains always tend to continue blabbering on and on instead of just finishing off the main characters.


    ...I can''t use much Magic because of my weakened soul, so fighting on equal level is the only option here!


    Her Utensils modes are powered by magic. Getting rid of the Magical Energy in the air was the right choice!


    "Rushing Dropkick!"


    I found her on the roof, crawling around like a bug.


    We flew outside. My foot landed on her face. I jumped on her and she was directed further into the sky.


    "That was disrespectful. But. Bye bye, Vampire!!"


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    I wondered what she meant by that, when suddenly, Pikaia appeared with her wings spread, colliding with my body mid-air.


    The Baphomet''s smile grew wider. She aims her finger at the house where Heart was at.


    "Abyssal Magic- no... Even a slightly focused magical bullet will do the job!


    Light Magic: Piercing Light!"


    A beam of light pierces through Heart''s chest.


    Blood rushes out of her mouth.


    She looks at me through a hole in the building while Pikaia continues dragging me away.


    "Ow... L-looks like my heart''s been shot... I''ve done my part... It''s up to you now, Vixen. ...Heh... Heart dies by Heartbreak... What a stupid way to go out..."


    It was a moment of silence.


    Heart finally ceased all movement, passing away while standing upright.


    The hold on her arm falls, along with her head. She looks down motionless. Blood continued dripping out of her mouth.


    "RGHHAAA!!!"


    Pikaia then throws me into the ground, breathing out a huge flame right after.


    "RHAAAAAAAA-!!"


    Splatter!


    A giant ominous figure appears, swinging it''s large blade at her, which instantly disables all forms of magic within her soul.


    Dragon Magic is different from the common Magic, Soul Nullification and such won''t work as expected.


    A fatal slash to the stomach, even with intense regenerative abilities, would render one ultimately deceased.


    One''s soul usually comes from the core of their physical form, which is the stomach for most. Pikaia having her stomach cut off was a terrible sight, but her life finally comes to an end here.


    "Wow wow. No mercy huh? Are we going to do hand-to-hand combat now?"


    Arisa stood above the ground, hovering over me, while standing in front of the Baphomet.


    Pikaia''s body was smashed into tiny pieces, only things left that were still recognizable were her shoulders, her head, some parts of her tail, and her legs. But all of them were thrown into a pile of debris after Arisa''s attack.


    "Your Sacrifices were quite extraordinary. Were you actually planning to use them for combat?"


    "It''s none of yer business. We expected you to come here, so don''t think that you even had a chance of winning."


    "Just because my arrival was sure, doesn''t meant that-"


    Boom!


    A devastating shot hits through her body, creating a gaping hole in her stomach.


    I can sense her trying to heal it, but all forms of magic has been neutralized already.


    It''s her loss-


    wait..!


    "Lunch. Utensils-"


    Before she could finish her chanting, Arisa smacks her into the ground.


    Did her blades become dull, or is the Baphomet just that durable?


    Arisa lands on ground, walking towards her with a large smile.


    ...


    They both had the same smile, wide and menacing.


    "That stance...!"


    Arisa stopped in front of her, surprised by the Baphomet''s sudden move.


    "Lunch


    Utensils."


    She had already activated her [Lunch Utensils] mode. An odd stance where she positions her elbows widely.


    A strange position, one that most has definitely have not heard of. Her footwork''s the same for most martial arts, but her guard is a rare one.


    "I had forgotten about this. But the difference in size would prove all techniques useless."


    "Oh really..?"


    I could tell by that look on her eyes, she had full confidence in winning.


    "Despite that hole in her stomach, she''s still stronger than both of us combined. That''s why..."


    "Vixen?"


    I walked past Arisa, confronting the Baphomet on my own.


    "What''s your plan? Do you plan to use that strange "copy" technique that you have?"


    "Yes. Because with this, her death will become a reality."


    She quickly realizes what''s happening, cancelling her [Lunch Utensils] mode as they were instantly deemed useless against my incoming newfound technique.


    "Shuffle Imitation."


    The shuffle dance, imitating it was easier than crushing an ant.


    This entire time, my soul has been constantly healing itself. Eventually, I reached 82% of my fully unsealed intelligence.


    My full intelligence is supposed to have 5000000 points.


    Whoever sealed my soul''s abilities... They were definitely smart.


    I felt like I could do anything right now. The universe was almost within my grasp. Complete victory was right in front of me!


    I began dancing, giving the Baphomet intense fear and confusion.


    "Electromagnetic Magic!!?"


    I thought it was a good surprise attack, so for her to figure it out this quickly... It should be expected, she is the Baphomet after all.


    "Huh?!"


    Suddenly, my plan goes wrong.


    She began to counterattack my surprise attack by performing a strange, but magnificent dance.


    She began moving her feet around immediately, but they weren''t just aimless dance moves, they were coordinated and professional. It was a surprising move that people in this world shouldn''t have any knowledge of.


    The Magical Electromagnetic waves that I''ve emitted were then flown right back at me due to her reversal of Electromagnetic waves.


    "What..? Are you guys having a dance competition..?"


    It might''ve looked like a simple dance competition, but it was actually a fierce battle that could decide the winner of this entire battle.


    I have created the Magical Electromagnetic waves by imitating a reversed version of [Gamma Ray Burst]. Although no one in the entire history of mankind has ever managed to use Electromagnetic Magic at this level, my Imitation Techniques were about to set a new record, since they technically allowed me to use Electromagnetic Magic.


    She projected magical sound waves with her feet, while I sent magical electromagnetic waves with my own.


    "The air is changing..?! Wait! Electromagnetic Magic!?"


    One wrong move could''ve resulted in this entire place getting devastated by an explosion overwhelmingly stronger than [Symplirothe¨ª].


    But I''ve made sure not to make any more mistakes today. Because I''ve already made too much blunders.


    Heart... Pikaia... Fiya...


    It''s time to redeem myself!


    "Gotcha!!"


    She sends a different sound wave into my hand, trying to cut it off.


    But this opening however, was a major error for her.


    "Huh?! Healing..?! Wait-!"


    The conflicting magical waves hit each other, creating an illusion that my hand was cut off.


    It was enough for me to move into the next stage. I''ve already expected her to try and fight back against this attack, so everything was working out as planned.


    "DON''T TELL ME-"


    I jumped into a handstand.


    I quickly began spinning, creating a circle of fire with [Burning Rock].


    I then proceeded to the final steps of our plan, casting [Divine Whirlpool].


    The reason why we can win now was because we have slightly manipulated the electrical and spatial particles in the vicinity with the use of Crimson Blood Magic and Spatial Magic. The [Spatial Lift] with an imitation of [Cast of the Iron Maiden] went along with [Blood Refraction].


    Another imitation, which was imitating the basics of Electromagnetic Magic, was done quite easily due to the help of the disarranged air particles aided by Heart''s Soul Nullification techniques.


    Even with the insufficient amount of Magical Energy and Magical particles within the air, imitating an inverted version of [Worm Charming] was an effective way to compensate for this.


    [Worm Charming] with the use of my imitation of [Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast] was a nice way for me to imitate Electromagnetic Magic waves.


    Although it was just an imitation of the technique used to imitate a sound to catch worms, it can be used wisely for other purposes as well.


    All of this leads to the generation of Magical Electromagnetic waves and a wormhole ripping through space and time.


    "Heh. You''re planning to call someone else..?


    Huh? An ally of mine..?"


    She had already sensed it as my legs spun around, creating a massive tornado within a matter of seconds.


    Then, a wormhole finally opened.


    Electricity surged throughout the entire city, sparking up many fires, and burning away ruined infrastructures.


    "Keasius?!"


    But what came out wasn''t Keasius.


    "WWAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!"


    The Tale of the Great White has arrived!


    I jump up and slash at her, but my blade breaks.


    "..."


    "Ow..! What was that all about..!?"


    I stood there in silence.


    Our plan has gone extremely wrong.


    "Keasius..?! Vixen, what the hell have you just brought upon us?!!"


    As she sat there confused, the intense pressure overwhelmed me. I felt immense dread, horror, and death. It was imminent, my death, that is.


    I have never felt this terrified before. I feel like vomiting. My sweat is dripping down into a lake.


    "Were you trying to absorb her powers..? The Demon Lord''s Vessel tricks..?!"


    "Uuuu...! Vixen?! Ah! How convenient! I was just about to get to you!"


    I did imitate the Hammerhead Demon''s abilities. Although I never even witnessed it''s full use, a mere glance was enough for me to imitate it.


    The overwhelming amount of intelligence points that flowed into my brain gave me precise instructions on how to solve this battle, but for her to actually be strong...


    The entire plan that I have just calculated failed!


    "Kha-kha-kha! It is I!!! The Tale of the Great White!! I have come here to rescue you, Rireith!!"


    Rireith..? Who is that?


    "Come now!! For I, the greatest of the greatest great whites, will lead you down into my humble abode!!!"


    What''s this...? I''m too terrified to even move an inch. She''s already walking up to me with that enthusiastic look on her face.


    "You are-..!! You''re Keasius aren''t you?!"


    Boom!!


    Another bullet flies into the Baphomet.


    Her right shoulder was blown to bits by the girl covered in severe burns, excessively bleeding, holding on to a weapon with all of her strength.


    "Hah...! Hah..!! You..! I''ll kill-!"


    The Baphomet abruptly turns around, taking her hand along the way to slash at Fiya''s throat.


    The [Chop] sent into her neck instantly detached the head from the rest of her body.


    Her head drops to the floor with a thud. A small puddle of her own blood forms shortly after.


    "Well then.... Arisa, you have failed once again. Next time will be the same, no matter how many times you come back..! Haaahahahahahaah!!!"


    "Ummmm... Let''s go, Rireith! If you want, I can call you Vixen, but your sudden transformation and your new updates turned you into Rireith... So... Yeah..!"


    I stood there in silence, unable to respond.


    Arisa Skarret''s bloodlust grew stronger at the sight of Fiya falling backwards, dropping Divine Intervention next to her head.


    Fiya has finally ceased living.


    "Crimson Blood Magic: Blood Plunder."


    "So that''s your answer? Fine. I''ll take another sword if you lose...


    Lunch. Utensils."


    "Shall we go then?! These two here are clearly wanting to have a duel with each other. We mustn''t interfere with personal matters, Rireith!"


    She took my hand as we walked away from Arisa and the Baphomet.


    Heart, Fiya, and Pikaia are dead.


    The 5 other demons are still there, aren''t they? I should convey a message to them...


    Oh. That''s right. There''s no magic to even use.


    I messed up huh..? I underestimated the Tale of the Great White. She told me she couldn''t fight, didn''t she..?


    Why couldn''t I damage her then..?


    Misinformation?


    I whack away her hand, stopping everyone in the area as they looked at me confused.


    The Baphomet and the Tale of the Great White were unbeknownst to their imminent demise.


    "This is what you''ve wanted huh? Time for you two to die, I failed a ton of times, but this will be the last."


    "Huh? Have you gone bonkers?"


    "Wait! This- the air has changed drastically..!"


    "Rireith..?!"


    Those Magical Sound Waves and Magical Electromagnetic Waves created a major change within reality and unreality due to Heart''s 5th dimensional gates that were left open this entire time.


    It took quite a while, but my soul has finally healed the damage done by getting unsealed.


    Meaning, I have finally achieved my full, 5000000 intelligence points.


    "The seals..! Heh. Reyana has finally done it huh?"


    "Why even try fighting back? All magic has been disabled. Besides, there''s not a single reason left for you to-"


    Those words annoyed me. But with all of the conditions met, there was no way left for them to win.


    10 years worth of information quickly flooded my brain.


    ....


    "Thou mere mortal shan''t falter, uprise to thee immortal flame of dependence..."


    I became omniscient for a second, giving me a clear view on how to defeat this monster.


    All I needed was an over-coordinated pathway to see the layout of the universe before sending an overflow of plasma within my body.


    "Particle Accelerator Imitation. Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast Imitation."


    I compressed all of my plasmas into something smaller than even the very concept itself, instantaneously increasing it''s speed and size 500 times, multiplying it again and again before tossing this Anti-physical slash at the Baphomet.


    The Particle Accelerator inside of my plasmas quickly made Antimatter, giving me the chance to use Anti-physical Magic to cut through the Baphomet''s physical form.


    As ridiculous as it sounds, it actually severed the entire universe.


    "F-FGHUAAA-!!!"


    Her blood rushes out like a fountain.


    "T-this..! This isn''t even possible..!"


    The Baphomet fell to the ground. Her extremely dense body had denser Magical particles surrounding it, but they all fell useless against my unwavering attack.


    "Rethink about your actions in the-"


    Suddenly, her eyes shined brightly, sending intense pain into my own eyes. It felt like I went through hell and back for just a couple seconds. Inaudible noises screamed into my head as I tried my best to process what was going on. My senses have shifted, and I can''t even see anything but repeating patterns.


    After what felt like an eternity, a familiar man appeared with an oxhorn on his head, wearing a what appears to be a black german army uniform from the Great War. He had an armband with the Spiral insignia, indicating his identity as the leader of the German Empire.


    "Huh? Oh. Don''t worry, she''s still there. I''ll stop her somehow... You keep on doing what you''re doing. ...That bastard''s coming back. Once I''m done with all this, I''ll come back to save you all..."


    Colourful repeating patterns were everywhere. A throne sat behind him, while a headless body whose blood was spread everywhere laid down next to it.


    It looked like the body was trying to escape, it''s hand was reaching forward, but it''s clear that it couldn''t save itself in time.


    After a few more minutes, I woke up into reality again.


    "Wake up! Wake up, Vixen!"


    Arisa yelled at me to wake up, but I was already awake.


    "Calm down. I''m still alive. What has happened?"


    The Baphomet was smiling at me again. She had a massive cut in her body, a gaping hole in stomach, and a chunk removed from her shoulder.


    She showed no signs of being hurt however, as her eyes tells me that she''s still seeing victory.


    "The Reversal of Regeneration would''ve turned this entire continent into a massive crater, it only activates once the Essence of Life stops flowing in my body... But it seems that you have failed to kill me..."


    "How''d you even survive that? I could''ve sworn it bisected the entire universe..."


    "I barely dodged the force of that cut by manually splitting myself in half. It destroyed physical matter, but it can''t destroy something that isn''t physical!"


    "What? How?!!! How''d you even get that wound then!?"


    "It''s called the Cross Body Manipulation from the Embodiment of Fate himself. I saw it on a book under a pile of rubble. Good thing I have good eyesight!!"


    When did she do that?!


    Well, whatever. I''ll just do it again, but this time, I''ll make sure she doesn''t dodge it.


    I thought I already slew her, but after I met that man, she''s back in the flesh again... I wonder who that man was...

 Chapter 32: Blessings of the Great White Shark.

    The next thing I saw were the peaceful flowery valleys.


    What happened..?


    I''m back in Arisa''s soul? I thought I already left her body. If I''m inside Arisa''s soul, then that would mean that I''m either back in her body, or she''s back in mine.


    "Relax, little Vixen. A slight error could''ve resulted in a universal collapse."


    A universal collapse?


    Reyana was in front of me again. She''s sitting on her plastic chair, slowly drinking that seemingly endless source of tea.


    "189, 482, 900, 4670, 10231, 40827, 91027, 400972, 988000, 194552164, and so on."


    "What are you talking about? Why am I back here? Weren''t we fighting the Baphomet just a few seconds ago?"


    "Your soul having it''s seals removed was a grave mistake. My apologies, it appears that leaving them alone was a better idea. Whoever did that, you and I shall thank them."


    My seals..?


    I was capable of destroying the entire universe..?


    How ridiculous. There''s no way that is true.


    "The first thing that regenerated was your Magical Energy. Next was your intensively sealed intelligence. I''m sure that you''ve noticed it already. Your intelligence and wisdom were at extremely high levels, innumerable, and overwhelmingly unsurpassable.


    "If I had left you without sealing them again, this whole entire universe would''ve been crushed, ripped off, before another universe gets created."


    "Eh..? I''m really that powerful..? Perhaps you''re just over exaggerating..?"


    "I''m not wrong, I''m sure of it. The outer forces have already began their movement.


    "There exists 6 realms in total:


    "The Surface, [Heaven]. Despite it''s name, it''s actually hell. It used to be Heaven of course, but that was long ago. No one calls it Heaven anymore, you may know of it simply as Hell, or the Demon Realm.


    "The 2nd layer, also known as the Upper Mortal Realm, or simply, [Earth]. ...I don''t need to explain since you already know what it is.


    "The 3rd layer, Cvvoer, or the [Land of Fantasy], which is this realm. You can also call it The Mortal Realm, or The Human Realm."


    "Huh? Why are you telling me this? I already learned them from books."


    "The 4th layer is the Lower Mortal Realm, the [Land of the Fallen Gods]. There''re not much records and information about it, but it''s basically where fake gods like Keasius come from.


    "The 5th layer is the [Immortal Realm], where immortal entities live in. You may have heard of it as the Abyss before.


    "And then lastly, the [Realm of the Gods]. But of course, everything below the Mortal Realm were just named by the humans. So remember that their real names might be different."


    "So..? What does all of these have to do with my current situation here?"


    "Your powers and abilities belong in the [Immortal Realm]. Just the mere presence of them being here is already tearing up this universe."


    I think I understand.


    The overwhelming amount of intelligence that I possess was too dangerous. I guess the person who sealed my powers actually had good intentions.


    "I tried to seal your powers completely but failed, I''ve done what I can, Keasius will do the rest. Arisa has already been defeated by Baphomet. We''re in your soul now, so good luck. This entire conversation didn''t even last a second in the physical world. If you need more time to think, then you can stay for a little longer."


    "Hey, wait..! Are you telling me to go and try negotiating with those guys..? That''d mean instant death for me! With my unsealed powers, either the world ends, or I die."


    "One last things. Pikaia, Free, and Heart are still alive. Heart is the Heart of the Ninth Polar Heaven, the Monolith. Cornea was one of her spawns, or her clones if you can call them that."


    "Really..? Thank god... That calms me down a bit..."


    "Demons are professionals when it comes to resurrecting and reviving. I''ll explain more in detail. For now, try to survive without destroying the entire world, and get Keasius to seal your powers."


    Poof.


    I was back in the physical world again.


    "Yo, Vampire."


    Said the Baphomet who sat down cross-legged next to the lifeless bodies of Heart and Fiya.


    I wanted to attack her, but I remembered that they can still be revived.


    "I planned to kill you before those seals broke... But it seems that I don''t even need to do that anymore."


    She looked at The Tale of the Great White.


    "Huhhh?"


    She tilts her head, pointing a finger at her face.


    "Seal her powers before they come back. Our time limit is 10 seconds. Be hasty now."


    "10 Seconds?!!"


    "10 Seconds?!! W-w-wha-!?!"


    "Quick! Do it now, shark!"


    "R-Right!! Channel, Chains of Reflection!!"


    Suddenly, I felt thousands of pieces of metal crushing my body. An excruciating pain quickly took over. It was extremely painful, until I finally felt relief again.


    "Hah...! Ow..! What was that?!"


    I asked her angrily, but then my arms began glowing red.


    Writings in an unknown language were carved into my arms, covering my entire arm from the tip of my fingers, up to my shoulders. The writings were beautifully coloured turquoise. The mere sight of it was mesmerizing, it was also pretty annoying because it slightly blinded me when I just got a glance of it.


    "That should work..."


    "Good. Our main mission here was to rebalance the world by killing all of you, that means Cornea, Lilith, Scarlet, and Free. We don''t want people to carry around world-disturbing abilities. ...but death wasn''t actually necessary hehehe... we just needed to stop you guys from making a disturbance in this universe."


    I see...


    It seems that they''re unaware of Heart and Fiya being revivable though. I should keep it a secret to avoid the possibility of them finding out a way to permanently get rid of my friends.


    "You can go now. But never release those seals. Your Crimson Blood Demon friend''s also trapped in those seals, if you release her, you know what happens... I know about those other demons too, the Sacrificial lambs or something. But causing more unnecessary trouble for me will result in death, do you hear me?!"


    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    "Alright alright. ...also, Heart planned out your attack, and Cat''s attack as well. Don''t blame me if my powers become unsealed without my notice, I feel like she still has more planned for us..."


    "Don''t be ridiculous. Cornea is dead, along with Free. The new ones won''t know about those plans anymore. If they do however... You know what will happen. We''ll leave you guys for now, remember that having strange abilities like a 5th dimensional gate opener will result in the user''s death."


    Says the Baphomet as she gets up, dragging both of the corpses with her. Their blood made a trail as she carries them further into the city.


    She slowly faded off into the darkness, into the ruins of Hreamlea.


    "Wait... I forgot!! What will I say to the Demons, and the Humans..!?"


    "Hah-hah-hah!!! Don''t you worry about that! I''ll take care of all the unnecessary talking! Your collaboration with that-... Uhhh... That man''s kingdom will begin in a few months! Better rest for now!"


    "Whose kingdom are you talking about? The alliance with demons will take place later, in Rintan''s kingdom."


    "Oh! I''m sorry! Forgive me for such foul mistakes! I humbly ask for your forgiveness, O'' great Rireith!"


    "Stop joking around for a bit. I need some rest, before going back to finding my friends..."


    "Do not fret! I''ll take you to my royal castle! Speaking of royal... The Sacrificial lambs will have to wait in that royal palace for a while..!"


    Well. That''s better than getting lost in the ruins of this city, and possibly attacked by monsters.


    ...


    Later, The Tale of the Great White led me out of the city, and into a strange forest.


    A road was visible thanks to the moonlight shining down to create our path into her home.


    Along the way, there were many ducks roaming around in groups.


    The Tale of the Great White wagged her tail in front of me as a cold breeze blows through, making her dark hair fly around, flowing beautifully like water.


    The markings on her face were almost invisible, but her nostalgic appearance reminded me of Manta and Sting.


    They were both sharks. Sharks use Electromagnetic fields back in my world, is that why they can use Electromagnetic Magic effectively in this world?


    "Here we are! The lovely little house that I made using whatever materials I could find!"


    We stopped in front of a strange wooden house covered in plants and leaves.


    There were lights shining outside through the windows.


    "Looks like an abandoned shack. Where''s the house that you were talking about?"


    "You meanie..! This IS the house that I was talking about..!"


    An odd melody was playing inside the house.


    The sounds made by the strings fit the atmosphere, giving me that fresh feeling, which relieves me from all of what has happened.


    We entered the house through the front doors, setting foot into the brightly lit room filled with a ton of furniture and decorations.


    A man was sitting next to a wall, playing a string instrument.


    "Oh! It''s Shinpitekina!"


    Shinpitekina?


    "You''re back. Very well. I shall play another song."


    He then placed his instrument on the floor before heading upstairs.


    I wondered who that man was, so I asked the Tale of the Great White about it.


    "Who is that man?"


    "He''s Shinpitekina, a friendly man who likes playing music! He''s a mysterious individual, he doesn''t just play songs..!"


    Mysterious? I didn''t have much time for solving mysteries so I sat down on a couch near a window, taking a fruit from the plate placed on the table in front of me.


    The Tale of the Great White left us alone after stating that she had something to do outside.


    There were some potted plants in front of the house, they were visible through the windows. From what I see here, it seems that she likes decorating this house.


    Come to think of it, was she just living in this place near Hreamlea? Her location was one of the first things I found out when I gained omniscience.


    She told me that she was looking for me, so maybe she set up a house here while searching.


    "Hm? Thee odd Vampire... What are you doing here?"


    Shinpitekina appeared carrying another instrument while I was still eating fruits.


    "What are YOU doing here? A lot has happened recently, so I''ll rest here for a while."


    "Heh. I was just joking, I know what you''re here for. That Shark wanted to ask you something. She set up a base here for that reason. You can call me Shinpitekina. I''ll explain to you what has happened, so that you won''t have any troubles for now."


    Explain what to me?


    After these writings appeared on my arms, my head did start having a strange feeling. It feels like I''ve lost a bunch of intelligence points. I can''t even see how much intelligence points I have anymore.


    "You''re still dizzy after nearly becoming a god for a second, so I''ll briefly explain to you what you did after you gained 82% of your full intelligence before having a "Dance competition" with the "Baphomet".


    "Your soul was constantly healing itself during the entire fight. When you finally recovered 82% of your full intelligence, you acquired immense intelligence and knowledge required to defeat the "Baphomet".


    "Some could say that you two were just having a dance competition, but normally, dancing wouldn''t create magical waves or anything similar.


    "You two were moving in the most specific ways possible, following the ways to position yourselves in this universe. That one dance that you did was coincidentally just the most similar dance for moving one''s body to create those magical waves.


    "You were imitating a magical upside-down version of worm charming by moving your feet in a specific way.


    "Worm charming is a method of attracting earthworms from the ground, but the magical upside-down version of it created vibrations in the air, you then imitated Scarlet''s Redone-Auxiliary Blood Feast to enhance them, making pseudo Magical particles to compensate for the lack of actual Magical particles, since they were destroyed by Cornea.


    "All of this were necessary for you to cast Divine Whirlpool because of the different conditions. The first time you casted Divine Whirlpool was in an empty field full of Magical Energy, this time however, Magical particles were almost nonexistent.


    "Take note that your soul was still healing here, so when you finally acquired all of your unsealed intelligence points, you became nearly omniscient for 1 second.


    "The overwhelming amount of knowledge that flooded into your brain gave you many years worth of knowledge, the amount of knowledge grew the more intelligence points you acquired. So eventually, you became nearly omniscient, but your intelligence points met their limit, immediately stopping you from becoming permanently all-knowing.


    "While you were still in a state of omniscience, you learned about the path you needed to take in order to defeat the "Baphomet", that path had become visualized in your head.


    "Reality was shifted because of you suddenly becoming nearly omniscient, and because of the 5th dimensional gates and panels that were further opened up because of the magical waves you and the "Baphomet" made, also turning the path physical now.


    "You also had a ton of pathways to take in order to defeat the "Baphomet", but you only took one single road. Knowing everything you needed to do and having all of the conditions met, you began mass-producing your own blood using Scarlet''s techniques, further improved by you imitating a reversed version of Gamma Ray Burst.


    "The Gamma Ray Burst spell was supposed to be a very powerful attack spell, but when reversed and heavily weakened, it now heals instead of causing radiation.


    "The radiation that was supposed to cause harm to your blood proliferation was reversed, causing multiplication and improved blood proliferation instead.


    "Blood contains plasma. You multiplied your blood but since you only wanted Plasma, you separated them using your in-depth knowledge of blood.


    "The extremely stretched out mass-produced blood plasmas were then compressed before you began moving them at ridiculously high speeds, instantly destroying everything in the way.


    "This was all done with the help of the Crimson Blood Magic''s improved blood manipulation, aided by you imitating a Particle Accelerator.


    "The Particle Accelerator within your extended blood plasma thread created Antimatter, making your next charged attack an Anti-physical slash that would erase matter.


    "Once thrown, It immediately reached the edge of the universe, and everything beyond that point.


    "When there''s nothing within the middle of this world, a division is created, splitting up reality and generating several different universes around our tiny little bubble."


    That was an insanely long explanation...


    I forgot most of what he even said.


    "Yawn..! Couldn''t you have shortened all of that? I''m about to fall asleep now because of your nonsensical science lesson..."


    "That was the shortest it could''ve gotten. It seems that that Shark''s seals also affected your memories, accidentally deleting some of them."


    Those words made me stand up when I was about to lay down on the couch.


    "What?! She deleted my memories?!!"


    "Don''t worry. I know a lot about those seals, they can only make you forget recent events. In this case, most of the memories you had while fighting the "Baphomet" were removed."


    I fell back on the couch, sighing.


    Well. There''s not much I can do now anyways. That Shark has already deleted them.


    The door then opens, and the Tale of the Great White enters happily.


    "I figured it out, Rireith!! 90% of the knowledge and information that you acquired from being nearly omniscient were all deleted!!"


    "How great. What were those seals even supposed to do anyways?"


    "I wanted to come here just so I could put them on you! They seal away your powers and abilities, but the words aren''t actually necessary... The words only tell the tale of the great white!!"


    "What?! Can you remove them then..!?"


    "What? Why? Besides, if I removed them now, you''ll suffer intense pain, and the seals will be removed as well..!"


    "Sigh..."


    She was being annoying.


    I wanted to sleep as soon as possible but this couch wasn''t that comfortable anymore.


    "Also.... I wanted to ask you.... I-If you could help us for a while!!"


    What a strange request, but it seems that there isn''t much reason to deny it.


    "Hm? Alright..? You came here just so you could seal my powers and help you guys out after trying to destroy me?"


    "Nuh-uh! It appears that you are having a misconception about me! I''m a shark! But I''m also Keasius, the Ocean God!!"


    "What does that have to do with anything..?"


    "With Rireith, Shinpitekina, Keasius, and the Tale of the Great White together, this whole curse of the Blood God will finally be resolved!!"


    So she just wants me to join her in resolving the Blood God''s Curse? I thought she wanted me to help her with the Baphomet or something.


    Well then. She''ll be a great replacement for my lost allies until we find them.


    "Baphomet wanted to kill you, so I came here mostly so that I could prevent that from happening! So you better thank me, okay?!!"


    Rayan, Crowler, Lare, Feradon, Rintan, and Den...


    I will find all of them so that we can all head into the Temporal Spatial Pyramids after this war is resolved.


    Who actually is that Salmon Shark anyways..? What kind of knowledge do they hold?

 Chapter 33: Consequences of their Actions.

    I awoke to a song being played by an electric guitar.


    Such an instrument must be needed for Reyana''s request, but it seems that there''s no way to hand it to her because of the seals.


    "When I grow up I wanna be a bio-logist!! ...Cus everyone nowadays needs a thera-pist!! ...Why! does! every-thing! need a! reason. to! EXIST?!!!"


    The Shark was singing loudly on top of a wooden crate.


    She and Shinpitekina then looked at me, abruptly stopping what they were doing.


    "Ah. Long live the king, they say. Must it be a reason to keep on living? When everyone around you has concluded?"


    "Good morning, Rireith!!"


    I was sitting on the couch where I fell asleep on.


    A blanket was placed over me, it has the stench of fish and unknown plants.


    "Food is ready..! We had to wait until you woke up so we could eat!"


    I stood up and walked over to the table where unfamiliar edibles were placed on.


    "What is this..? Never have I seen such delicacy..."


    First things I''ve noticed was that my voice is slightly different, and my arms have turned normal again.


    Have I reached full maturity?


    My body has changed, it has become longer, and I can feel it''s also more athletic now.


    "This is called a Cake! An expensive meal you find in a city..! Rest easy, Rireith. Today''s your birthday!!"


    Confettis then exploded, raining down at us.


    It was surprising. I forgot what day it is, after everything that happened.


    Well. I guess this means that it should be the time to take a break.


    "Happy birthday. We shall feast on fine luxuries. Pitiful Shark had to sever multiple heads for her pay from oh-so great Baphomet."


    "Really..? Thanks then, Shark. Also, your name is too long, so I''ll call you Shark for now..."


    She replied by saying it was okay.


    Later, we began eating. The food was delicious, but I couldn''t recognize what it was.


    More than 30% of my memories have been deleted. She told me it wasn''t that worrying, but I fear more will be lost.


    "Reach for the skies, not the stars. An unappealing figure awaits within the firmaments, where we will head to."


    "We''re going to heaven..? The Ninth Polar Heaven, or that place of religion?"


    "We seek not from the physical world, but in the eternal solitude."


    The sky shined down on us, lowering the mood with that unpleasant color.


    Nonetheless, we still head forwards.


    After leaving the forest, we journey towards the North, in hopes of finding the New Hero''s Party members.


    "I''ve kept a multitude of rats under this cloak. We''re going to meet up with an enemy Vampire. Not to worry though, since YOU are the strongest..."


    The Shark wore a loose garment covering her entire body, only thing visible was her head and tail.


    Through the use of spells, I could see her animals hiding under.


    They weren''t hostile, despite being one of the most violent species. I can sense magic within them, which explains why they weren''t attacking us.


    My guess is that Shark imbedded them with some kind of spell to subjugate their body, completely ignoring their will.


    We arrived at a large city in a few days.


    Birds constantly kept flying up to her along the way. She gave them letters, while some gave her messages from other humans.


    I thought she was just joking when she told me that she would handle everything.


    "An Apothecary named after the Solar Altadena-Superi lives here."


    "The Solar Altadena-Superi?"


    "The Sun God, leader of the Raddi Administration."


    That name was unfamiliar. I wouldn''t be able to find anything about it even if I searched my brain deep enough.


    We walked into the city, entering through the sewers where the Shark picked up more rats.


    Upon reaching the surface, I began searching around using [Spatial Investigation], and sure enough, I found a suspicious individual.


    "Keep an eye out for anyone standing out from the rest. The crowd may remain unwary, but we will seek redemption."


    "Irredeemable... Thou shall be struck down, as gratitude..."


    "Rireith, that fraud is a descendant of an ancient Vampire race, where the strongest ones were born from. Although it is a fallen race today, we will never forget about it."


    People roamed around in a panic, some desperately trying to find food while some attempting to steal from others.


    The effects [Antares] had on this continent caused hysteria, leaving the survivors a chance to save themselves one last time before death became more common again.


    Some monsters still ate people, and a ton of lives still continued dropping, but the numbers have greatly decreased.


    "Prime Solar Blood Technique: Flower Disarray."


    The suspicious individual, a man with a red flower on his head then began chanting while resting his hand on another person''s shoulders.


    "...This smell... Sniff sniff..."


    After sniffing out the blood in the atmosphere, the Shark''s friendly eyes grew confrontational.


    "This..."


    My Blood Magic was different from the enemy Vampire''s Blood Magic. They weren''t even using Blood Magic, but Blood Techniques.


    "Enemy... ENEMY ATTACK!!!"


    The massive crowd of people were then torn apart by threads of hardened blood.


    Shinpitekina began to take action, pulling out a long sword enchanted with Magic.


    He struck down the enemy''s attack, defending us from harm.


    "Crimson Blood Magic: Dilapidated Killing."


    Crimson Blood Magic was instantly carved into my soul when Arisa took over, giving me intensive knowledge of her personal usages of Blood Magic.


    Even among Crimson Blood Demons, Arisa''s Crimson Blood Magic remained one of the best.


    A shield of blood forms on my left arm while a blade erupts from my right.


    The perfect way to use a shield and a sword, was in my hands. The enemy realized that it was an outmatched 3 versus 1, but he still didn''t give up.


    The Shark then opened up her cloak, letting 50 rats run free. They all charged towards the Vampire in front of them, forcing him to use his threads on the poor animals to save himself.


    "Prime Solar Blood Technique: Royal Cruelty-"


    This opening however, led to him being sliced open by Shinpitekina.


    He had dashed in a straight line, slashing at the Vampire with his sword.


    "KKRAAH-!!"


    Another slice severed his head, leaving him a headless body.


    As Shinpitekina sheathed his sword, he realized that there was no blood spilled from his demise.


    I also realized there was no blood anywhere, despite all of the innocent people who had their blood turned into weapons.


    Detached limbs and organs were scattered everywhere though.


    The Vampire then regenerated himself, taking his head back to his body through the use of strange tendrils.


    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    "Reduce the amount of bloodshed, fraud. We are not here for such reasons."


    "It''s a 3 on 1 right now... You are doomed to fail..."


    But the man still remained calm. His eyes gazed up at us.


    He figured it wasn''t the best move to attack us again, so he peacefully stopped the battle.


    "I see. Your Bloodlust has gone. It''s safe to say he won''t be causing more problems anymore."


    "That''s more like it!"


    He looked really exhausted. It seems that even Shinpitekina can defeat him even though he''s significantly weaker than us.


    "You damn bastards keep on trying to hunt me down... For what reason..? This place is the last place I''d destroy... You have forced me into such misery. ...Using such disgraceful techniques just like last time..."


    "Kukuku..!! Actually... We aren''t here to turn you into mincemeat..! We''re here to ask you for education!"


    "Eh?"


    Eh?


    We both had the same reaction. I thought we were here to defeat an enemy important for resolving the Blood God situation.


    "Education..? What lies have you spoken..? What lives have you ceased?"


    "Stop speaking, fraud. I''d like to introduce you to a newborn Vampire. This is Rireith, or Lylycan. Full-bladed conjurer of Time, Born of an Ancient Demon deriving from Primordial Entities, a Vampire, you can call them."


    "Huh..? I can sense Arisa within her... Fallen comrade helped me during the Eras of Apostasy, sad to see her gone... Why''s she even here..?"


    I wondered what they''re talking about.


    Having relieved that we weren''t going to fight, I turned my limbs back to normal.


    "Come forth then. Thou shall became my apprentice. Until her return, I''ll teach you the ways of my blood''s Prime Solar Blood Techniques."


    "Alright now! Goodbye and take care, Rireith! Our house isn''t that far away from this place, and they also have a telephone if you wanna talk with me!"


    Shinpitekina and the Shark left me alone with the Vampire.


    They all went back into the sewers, where they eventually found their way out.


    The Vampire led me into a mine before the guards arrived at the scene he made.


    A line of electrical lights were on the ceiling, along with innumerable amounts of wires. Multiple hazards were on the path, which explains why there aren''t too many people around.


    Only desperate souls lurked in the mines. A lot of corpses remained untouched. This place was perfect for hiding.


    Although there were a lot of dangers here, we still somehow made it inside a closed off section of the mine without any problems.


    "This is the place... I fought in the wars during the Eras of Apostasy, and when it was all over, I found peace with my new family."


    "May I ask, what is your name? My allies only called you a fraud, or an Apothecary named after the Solar... Uhh... The Solar Whatever."


    "Ah, I remember... I was a medic during the wars. I eventually grew tired of bloodshed near the end, so I poisoned friendly soldiers to escape, and fake my death. My name is Veno Atri. That''s what everyone called me, but my name won''t show up in any records, simply because no one was there to record it."


    The lights were weak, but my [Crimson Vision] skill allowed me to see without any problems.


    More disgusting sights could be seen in here. Flies circled around the torn up corpses, which were similar to the corpses made by Veno earlier.


    He then opened up a door leading into another room.


    The room had a cleaner interior. It''s at least better than outside, where the cursed monsters and the angry people roamed around in.


    "Hostile creatures walk around in here, even the city isn''t safe. But recently, they grew weaker and less violent. The same went for humans, who weren''t even that cursed in the first place. This is my home, where you will be safe from most dangers."


    "Hm? Oh. I''m responsible for that. Also, I thought you had a family, so where are they? I expected people to be in here... But it looks like it''s an abandoned military underground bunker."


    "This place is too dangerous, so of course my family wouldn''t be here. This is mostly just a place for communication. I use it to contact allies and help out the Holy Kingdoms to save us from this mess..."


    The Holy Kingdoms huh..? I still fear that they''ll turn on me really soon...


    He sat down on a chair below a ceiling fan, grabbing a rifle to clean it or something.


    I looked around the place for a while, inspecting many devices and unfamiliar objects.


    I was right. This is a military underground bunker. There are a lot of medical supplies and useful items around.


    Rats and other small creatures were also crawling around everywhere, but they''re mostly harmless so it won''t be a problem, I think.


    After a few hours of roaming around, I laid down on a soft bed near a control panel.


    Eventually, I fell asleep.


    "Zzz..."


    The following morning, I woke up like usual.


    The telephone rang and I went to pick it up while Veno was still asleep sitting on his chair.


    "Hello? Who''s this? Shark?"


    After a bit of static, someone finally picked up the phone on the other end.


    "Doctor? Doc- ?!'':!?''+_+&!& Doctor, I repeat! ??+&_;! ?_!_++? This- ?!+_+_?"


    "Hello hello? Who''s there?"


    "Doctor?! Where have you been?! It''s Sergeant Will! Enemy Codenamed ?!_&++ has interrupted, we request further assistance, over."


    It wasn''t what I expected. Maybe they have mistaken me for Doctor Veno?


    "Umm... This isn''t Doctor Veno, but I''ll get him to ya."


    After I woke Veno up, he went to pick up the call and they later talked for a few hours.


    They spoke like soldiers. When he was finally done talking, he sat down on the carpet before chanting.


    "What was that about?"


    "Nothing. They just wanted me to take part in another mission. I denied their request since I don''t want to go back to war. Furthermore, I almost forgot about blood practice. Today we will begin training."


    Training..?


    I sighed. Shinpitekina and the Shark led me here just so I could learn more about Blood Magic. But is it really necessary?


    I can still remember cutting the entire universe in half. With this power, maybe I''ll finally be able to defeat the Blood God...


    "Alright I''ll-"


    Suddenly, the telephone rings again.


    I picked it up and found the Shark speaking.


    "Hello, Rireith. The Dragons have gone wild. Operators have gathered Intel and we''ve figured out that the Demons have kept a nuclear missile hidden from us."


    I went silent as I realized what the situation has turned to.


    Having Cat defeated, the Demons must''ve achieved full control over the Ninth Polar Heaven.


    The Baphomet has done her job, there won''t be any fight with them anymore, since Heart is defeated along with Fiya and Arisa now.


    Heart was the ruler, and also the Obelisk guarding that place. With both Cat and one of their most important figures, Heart Cornea out of the picture, the Demons have finally resorted to using Nuclear bombs against the creatures with the most potential of becoming their enemies; the Dragons.


    "I didn''t hear anything about it. No one but Baphomet did. ...Rireith, why did you kill Cat?"


    Mistakes after mistakes.


    I''ve been making too many mistakes.


    We should''ve focused on escaping rather than fighting the Baphomet during that time...


    Wait. No... It''s my fault again..?!!!


    I should''ve saved everyone and escaped instead of trying to defeat the Baphomet..!!! I should''ve let Cat live in the first place..!!


    Or- wait... I did cut the universe in half... So that means... I defeated her..! It was our only option, so that we could escape, probably.... But then something else happened...


    I''m not just trying to make excuses here... I truly feel like someone else has done something to save the Baphomet...


    So it shouldn''t be my mistake then... Someone must''ve wanted this to happen...


    Someone...


    Heart..? Or that Mysterious Man..?


    "Do not worry. I''ll always be by your side, Rireith. Let us leave the past in the past. They who lingers, mustn''t interfere."


    "Ummm... So what exactly has happened..?"


    "Even before the Eras of Apostasy, no one dared to catch the attention of Dragons. They were fierce beasts who ruled the skies. Monstrosities who grew larger than mountains. They tore apart the humans for a million years."


    In comparison to True Dragons, Pikaia and Fang are just butterflies...


    "The Blacktail Dragon Plains are where they''re native to. Demons, who feared complete destruction of their race, launched a massively powerful weapon capable of mass destruction into their home."


    They existed in the peaceful mountains where collosal bones sat around in.


    Peaceful now, but in ancient times, it was hell.


    "The Private Sentinel Group has established an alliance with an extremely powerful nation. It seems that the people of Earth will be partaking in this situation now."


    "The Private Sentinel Group? An alliance with who? Who even are they?"


    "They''re Otherworlders who lack Magic. They''ve grown to adapt to this, and created weapons capable of being on the same level as Abyssal Magic. The Private Sentinel Group are also known as the Worshippers of Baphomet. Our current situation here has become dire because of them temporarily becoming allies with the most powerful nations in their world."


    So they''ve allied with the United States of America and Great Britain?!


    "Isn''t that good for us though?"


    "Yes. But also no. They''re here to calm down the situation, and try to stop it from escalating to a point where Earth is directly involved. But Demons will be against it. Since their main mission is to relocate the Dragons and bring them back to their original numbers, a possibility still remains, a chance that the dragons who survived might find out about their attackers and fight back."


    "Hmmm... I think I''ve heard of something something... Uhh... The southern hemispheric gates or something..? Maybe they''re here to close them, and prevent radiation into Earth..? I''m not saying it''s 100% sure though..."


    "That''s their secondary mission. The southern hemispheric gates are actually one of the ways for the Otherworlders to observe us, but they''ll be closing them for now. Our biggest problem here is that if the Demons find out about this, a huge war between the Otherworlders, all members under Baphomet, including us, and the Demons will break out. It''s a secret mission since the Otherworlders feel that the Demons might get paranoid and turn on them if they find out that they''re getting help from the Baphomet."


    "Sigh... My god. Why can''t you guys just get along with the Demons?!!"


    "We can''t. We tried for a long time, but nothing worked. Only thing you can do now is help us out and try to make the Demons believe that the Dragons are all dead, Baphomet will no longer cause trouble for them, and that the Demons are the strongest creatures alive now."


    "Using me to help you guys now huh? After trying to get rid of me just yesterday? But okay. I''ll help... Since you guys are actually doing the right thing here..."


    "Y-You really don''t forget huh..? But thanks youu!! Also, don''t worry about anything for now. Continue with your training. Once you become a Full-fledged Vampire, we''ll go deal with the Demons and the Dragons! Don''t forget about the Blood God and the New Hero too, alright? ...Mission begins in a few years so you''ll have some time to prepare..!"


    How annoying... Guess I have to do more work...


    The Demons will be a huge problem for us now. I''ll act as a spy for the Baphomet. But they might be suspicious of me after everything that happened.


    Heart and Fiya''s defeat led to their bodies taken away. Without their bodies, they can''t be revived.


    I saved their superweapon from Cat, but that was a mistake. They won''t think I realized that and betrayed them at the end, won''t they..?


    They just wanted to save themselves, and the Nuke must''ve been their backup plan for if Heart failed the mission.


    I''m not sure what happened to the 5 sacrificial lambs, but the Shark has already told me that she would take care of any problems.


    "Alright... Also, what''s with the Full-fledged Vampire thing? What do you mean by that?"


    "The Electrocandle, also known as Rireith, or Crynosphere, is the separate being born between Vixen and Arisa, which is you, a newborn Vampire."


    A newborn Vampire..?


    I see...


    During the fight I had with Cat, Crynosphere must''ve been born amidst my transformation into Arisa.


    My human self, which is Vixen, and my Crimson Blood Demon self, which is around 80% of Arisa, when both of them were combined, they made Crynosphere.


    Crynosphere, which is the current me.


    A Crimson Blood Demon mixed with a Human... Creates a Vampire..?


    "Well then. I heard what you two were talking about. My senses exceed yours, but I feel that you''ll become stronger than me."


    I put down the phone, looking at Veno sitting on the carpet with his eyes closed.


    "Even when blinded, you can use Blood Echolocation to perform normally again. Though I am not blind, because it''d be painful. ...So, would you care to learn the ancient Blood Techniques?"


    "Seems that there wouldn''t be any reason to say no."


    "Hm. It''s been a while since I''ve thought anyone anything. I stopped, when they all kept dying. But you... I sense great potential within you, Crynosphere."


    I walked over to the carpet and sat down in front of him.


    It''s a good opportunity to finally hone my skills. There weren''t too much books I could read to improve my abilities, nor were there anyone to teach me.


    Blood Magic only belonged to Vampires or similar creatures like Crimson Blood Demons, but Vampires and Crimson Blood Demons are just rare monsters nowadays.


    Sometimes I wonder, how did I even get such abilities?


    Blood Magic and Imitation Techniques are a mystery to me. It appears that I was just born with them. Is this the "Basic but Overpowered Skill" that every protagonist in a reincarnation fantasy story has nowadays?


    Well. Those type of stories don''t exist here, they only exist in Earth, but you know what I mean.

 Chapter 34: Cor the Crynosphere.

    The day has arrived.


    For 4 years, Veno trained me in Blood Magic and Blood Techniques. They were pretty easy to learn thanks to my perfect memory. I expressed my gratitude before he gave me the flower tied to his head.


    The flower was rich with Magic, it was made due to his lack of Magic. Veno could never improve his Magical abilities, so he stayed with Skills and Techniques instead.


    After the destruction of the Blacktail Dragon Plains, the dragons wreaked havoc. It was the "Second action" that Heart and Sawa talked about. It seems that the two demons, Vlaia and Drein, were supposed to be the replacements for Heart. Fearing a war with the one of the most dangerous creatures in the planet, they instinctively launched their greatest weapon.


    The Baphomet who came to realize what has happened, called out her small, but dangerous military group.


    The Agents, representatives of the Baphomet, were mostly absent in Cvvoer, forcing the military to be put to use.


    A war was becoming more and more likely between the 3 powerful forces, Baphomet, Earth, and the Demons.


    "You shall fill this world with graves. Go on now, Crynosphere. I repeat the same day again and again, until the death of time. Or until the death of me."


    I mastered Blood Magic, Crimson Blood Magic and Blood Techniques completely. The normal Skills and Spells I''ve acquired are:


    [Compact Flower Burn]: Solidifies and sharpens blood. Compressed blood becomes a weapon to be used against anything.


    [Drought]: Utilizes blood within a 1km range to destroy everything before heating up to melt whatever remains.


    [Morning Calamity]: Automatically absorbs blood within a 4km range and regenerates user''s body.


    [Midnight Calamity]: Freezes blood within a 1km range. Frozen blood is extremely cold and can spread out of it''s original source.


    And then my new Ultimate Skills and Spells:


    [Exsecrabilis]: Allows me to fully transform my body. Requires huge amounts of blood and Magical Energy. Transformed body can be anything, as long as it meets the requirements.


    [Jeopardy-Condemnation]: Manual Blood Manipulation. Requires huge amounts of Magical Energy. Transforms/Manipulates blood and reshapes it according to the user''s will.


    [Jeopardy-Condemnation] is the most useful ability, but it requires a ton of Magical Energy. All of my Skills/Spells are just ways for me to use [Jeopardy-Condemnation] without using too much Energy.


    Like, for example; I use [Compact Flower Burn], and it uses 10 kg of Magical Energy. Then I use [Jeopardy-Condemnation], to do what [Compact Flower Burn] does, but instead of just 10 kg, it uses 50 kg of Magical Energy.


    [Jeopardy-Condemnation] should only be used when I need to create something using my blood, something that doesn''t exist in the lists.


    "One last thing before you leave. You mustn''t forget about the Enchanting techniques from the Solar Altadena-Superi. They are the Solar God''s forgotten techniques, entrusted to my ancestors, but I fear that they will be lost eventually. You, Crynosphere however, are a special one. May you succeed in your journey and spread my teachings land to land, sea to sea, sky to sky."


    The Enchanting techniques were techniques used for Enchanting equipment and other objects. They gave special functions, and/or Magical Energy inside Weapons, Armor, and other similar devices.


    Such techniques were too much for me, so I mostly forgot about them.


    "Alright. I thank you for whatever you thought me, Mr. Veno. I''ll humbly leave your shelter now."


    Nothing to worry however, since I wrote all of them in a book, and will now hand them out to whoever I find worthy.


    I left the mines where his underground bunker hid in. I then left the city, and proceeded to head out into the mountains. There, the skies were devoid of sunlight as usual, and demonic creatures roamed around in search for food.


    Before I walked out of his home however, I took quite a few items with me. He gave me the equipment I needed, and everything I could''ve required for my journey.


    The following items were given to me:


    An Enchanted Tactical Eyewear, [Blood Panel], which was really convenient thanks to it''s built-in [Thermal Sensor], and it''s [Automatic Appraisal]. It fit me pretty easily, because my ears somehow became pointy.


    An enchanted Scythe attached to a gauntlet on my right arm, [Foe Reducer], an Enchanted mechanical blade powered by electricity, Magical Energy, and blood.


    A Tactical Vest designed for distributing force when hit powerfully. It can carry stuff too, but it''s too noticable so I also got a jet-black hooded cloak.


    Another flower from Veno. Both of the flowers were tied to my head, one on the back, and one on the front, but don''t ask how they don''t just slip off.


    2 enchanted Katanas inside each limb, with 8 Katanas in total. It was possible thanks to me becoming a "Full-fledged Vampire", but it was really disgusting opening my body, putting them in, and then healing myself so that they''ll be stuck inside. I can take them out again, but it''ll be unsightly. No damage is done on me though, it''s simple, but gross.


    4 small explosive devices, labeled [Foot], tied to each leg, with the trigger on the back of my hand. They''re designed so that I can pick them up and throw them, but they''re also for increasing running speed. They can''t cause harm to me, but they can destroy my surroundings.


    And then lastly, a small container tied to my left arm. It''s filled with knives, forks, and spoons. They''re for [Orbital Curveball] or for my current [Symplirothe¨ª], but they can also be used for eating purposes as well.


    There''s a ton more items everywhere on my body, especially on my backpack, but they''re a bit too insignificant.


    I arrived at the top of a mountain and slowly realized that I was actually heading north instead of south.


    The Dragon field or whatever was in the south where the mission will take place in, but I''m already this far away from my allies.


    Fortunately, I had a pocket radio connected to the Shark''s house... or her radio?


    "Hello? This is... Uhh... This is Vixen. Are you there, Shark?"


    After a few minutes, she picked up.


    "Where are you?! The mission has already started! Get to us now, or try to talk to the demons or something!!"


    "Heh. I''m already in the Demon Realm. Rest assured. Everything''s fine on my end."


    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    I then turned off my radio and went back to trying to find my way back to the Demon Realm.


    The Shark took care of the Alliance speech in Rintan''s kingdom by sending a clone of me, so I really need to thank her somehow.


    I''ll thank her by helping out the Baphomet.


    A few more days went by and I was now lost in the desert. The tumbleweeds rolled around as sand hit my face. There''s nothing to see here but lifeless yellow landscapes.


    If my life was an animated japanese TV show, I''d definitely be the main character, but recently, everything''s been so boring. I''d think that this is a comedy show, but sometimes, reality hits you in the face like a shotgun.


    Yeah, the world is ending, everyone''s dying, but I''m just out here walking around cluelessly.


    A settlement appeared before me in the middle of the night. It was filled with people... Or maybe not?


    It was a conveniently placed portal with abandoned buildings surrounding it. "It must be the portal to the demon realm!!" I thought to myself, and sure enough, I was right.


    What a strange story this is. Are the gods playing with me or something?


    I went into the portal and the moment I opened my eyes after blinking, I found myself falling from the ceiling before landing into a long table, breaking it.


    "Ow...! Uhh... My head...."


    "Who''s this? Has my wish been answered finally!?"


    My my. It was a strange demon praying to the gods. How ironic.


    "Yes. I am whoever you think I am. I''m here as a messenger, to deliver a message to you guys."


    The [Solar Deceiving Technique] is one of my most convenient techniques. I learned it from Veno, of course.


    I brushed the dust off my body as I stood up, fixing my clothes without revealing too much underneath the cloak.


    "Is that a... that''s called a swimsuit isn''t it..? ...But very well. If it is you, ARock, then our race will receive a new powerful member."


    "Sorry sorry. It seems that I damaged my head upon impact, who is this "ARock" and what have they accomplished?"


    "Heh. I am not to blame you, alright. You are ARock, a powerful demon from the Eras of Apostasy. You served us greatly, until your end. Now you have come to a new beginning! We shall destroy our wretched foes and bring back what was once the greatest!!"


    Hmmm... I have never heard of a demon named "ARock" before. I don''t think that name even appeared in The Book of Epitomy.


    Also, did he see under my cloak? Only thing I''m wearing underneath besides my strange devices and equipments is a one-piece swimsuit with long sleeves.


    I''m not revealing most of my skin though, since there are wires connected to my explosives, and extremely hardened blood frozen over my feet, up to my knees.


    I''m not exactly sure why Veno told me this was necessary, but I think it''s for swimming or something similar... I must adapt according to the situation after all.


    "Right..."


    The Demon led me into another room after explaining his wish; to bring back a great demon and save his currently dying race.


    This place reeked of death. It was many layers deeper from the place I walked around with Heart. There were many sights that one won''t bare to see.


    The [Automatic Appraisal] from [Blood Panel] allowed me to see the Demon''s specific race, class, name, and stats. It was a weaker demon named "Killer". It''s stats were mediocre, and it was a [Necromancer].


    "You see, almost all of our finest members were wiped out in less than a second during the Eras of Apostasy. Those who remained were then picked off not too long ago after the arrival of our greatest enemy, Frillet Tofan."


    So that guy was a huge problem even for them huh?


    We arrived at a large chamber with an elevator at the middle. Everything on the surface was corroded and blood red. Multiple bodies could be seen laying on the ground.


    "The one free from every... It was our last card, but then another old enemy took it. It appears that they''re still unaware though. We have sent out a powerful weapon to destroy the Dragons, the biggest threat on this continent, and one of our current missions now is to reinforce this place in case of an attack."


    Well. They''re definitely not too good at that then. I did just snuck in here through a portal in the middle of nowhere after all.


    "We must wait until we can deliver our sacrifices to the Blood God, so that the final action will begin, reviving the Blood God to finally destroy the Mortal Realm!"


    "By the way, why do you guys hate dragons? I''m sure there''re stronger creatures out there, yet you still chose to destroy them."


    "They aren''t just strong... It''s been rumored that Dragons are born from the gods themselves. They''re made to be the perfect monsters, but we must change that now."


    I walked towards the elevator and Killer went to a control panel to adjust the buttons and activate it.


    Loud metallic noises echoed throughout the chamber. After a while, the chains connecting to the elevator finally got released from something and became loose.


    "Watch out, ARock! You''ll be sent back into the Mortal Realm to search for surviving dragons and get rid of them! Don''t forget that, and be sure not to let one escape! Your mission will be given to you in more details once you land! ...also, I didn''t think you''d be a woman..."


    "H-hehh..??? So you did see.... ...Ahem ahem. One request before I go. Can you deliver a message to every Demon you can contact? Tell them that I''ve returned and I''ve sensed that an annoying foe, the Baphomet has stopped fighting us. Also, I''m 100% sure that the Dragons will be gone once I arrive, so tell them that ahead of time."


    The chains holding the elevator broke and I was sent falling down at an increasing speed.


    The walls sparked as I continued to fall. It screeched loudly whilst I tried to hold on, terrified of letting go and getting caught on the wall.


    When it crashed into the ground, I slowly got up from all of the smoke, coughing as I looked around.


    "Cough cough cough..!!"


    Through a quick search with [Spatial Investigation], I found out that I fell through a portal in the Demon Realm and slipped back into the Mortal Realm.


    A scroll fell on my head and I opened it to find a key along with text in the Demon language.


    "ARock Mission: If General ARock is successfully brought back to life, leave Danger Zone after sending him to Mission #50."


    Another scroll fell on my head and on the left it reads:


    "The Key in the first scroll opens the gates back to the Demon Realm."


    And then a really long description of my mission is written to the right. It was too tiresome to read it so I threw it away and picked up the key.


    I looked around with [Spatial Investigation] and found myself in the dragon fields or whatever it was.


    [Blood Panel] gave me the information I needed about this place and thus I began to search for the Shark and the Baphomet''s military group.


    "So... let''s see... Mission 1 completed... Mission 2... Kill dragons- No... Find Shark... Mission 3 kill dragons... Alright. All good now."


    Suddenly, as I was walking towards the mountains where I felt the most Bloodlust on, a huge man appeared.


    All of the Bloodlust that [Antares] absorbed has finally come back. It''s stronger than before, but at least it saved a lot of people.


    People... This guy a hundred miles away from me looks like he can eat a thousand people.


    He''s extremely defined and muscular. His entire body is built like a Golem. He looks like a human at first glance, until you see his head. I''m not sure if the average human can even train hard enough to achieve that look.


    The main thing putting him so far away from humans however, isn''t his muscles, but the large mushroom for his head.


    "I''m a bit rusty and foggy right now, but even I can tell. You''re from the Old Hero''s Party aren''t you?"


    Sisisaya Mandrakora. The one who destroyed General Litharin''s army and crushed him personally was this mushroom.


    He''s a well-known prodigy, and by that I mean the man. Sisisaya is a mushroom that grows like fungus and benefits it''s host''s body greatly. The host is usually a human. This one''s a prodigy who had excellent genetics to become strong.


    All of that was wasted by this Mushroom however.


    I won''t be able to save him from this tragic fate, the most I can do for him now is putting him to rest.


    However, I realized that he hasn''t even noticed my presence yet. He appears to be walking towards a specific area, it''s filled with Bloodlust and humans.


    The Magical Energy in the air is extremely thin. A war must be going on right now, for Magic to be used this much.


    Just as expected, a group of Fighter jets flies through the skies, followed by an earsplitting sound. It must be the United States Air Force. There''re more incoming, along with multiple different life forms.


    I can sense massive creatures moving in the air with the jets. They must be dragons according to their intense Bloodlust and Magical Energy, which wasn''t very present in the military.


    "I''m here, Shark. I''ve sent a message to the Demons and have arrived in the land of dragons."


    I connected to the Shark''s radio and spoke to her about our mission.


    "Huh? Oh good! Finally! It seems that there are already some demons roaming around here... They don''t look like the humanoid ones. These guys are huge and monstrous, I doubt we can talk to them. Be careful, we''re behind a mountain, you''ll find us with the least Bloodlust."


    "Bloodlust? The closest mountain to me is full of Bloodlust. I thought you guys would be there but..."


    "Ah... You must be near a dragon''s nests... Notice the giant crater behind that mountain? There''ll be sunlight there because of the nuke. Remember that you''ll burn under the sun as a Full-fledged Vampire."


    Almost forgot about that.


    Also, I thought I sensed humans... But I guess my senses were wrong..?


    "I''ll do what I can. A member of the Old Hero''s team is here. I''ll fight him off before he gets to ya."


    "Thank you! Let''s go to the city or something after this!"


    Well. That''s if I can actually survive here. There''s little to no magic again. I won''t be able to use most of my Blood Magic, I''ll have to rely on Blood Techniques now.


    [Antares] also can''t be used again even with the current amount of Bloodlust present in this continent, it''d just fail our mission.


    Crimson Blood Magic isn''t available either, since Arisa has been sealed and most of her Magic in my soul has slowly died out...


    But I have new items don''t I? This''ll a good opportunity to use them!

 Chapter 35: Adventures in the Land of Dragons.

    I roamed around for a few hours, walking past many fallen Dragons. It appears that the atmosphere is still the same here even after 4 years.


    The aftermath of the Nuclear explosion made this place almost unhabitable. It''s a wasteland, but fortunately, I''m at the edge of the affected area, under the protection of the red skies.


    I must find Sisisaya and stop him from attacking the Baphomet''s military group. With the small amount of Magic that I have, I found him using [Spatial Investigation].


    He''s behind the mountain, which means he''s at the crater.


    I followed him for 10 days straight, walking and walking until I reached the mountains. This place was extremely huge, but all you could see was a barren wasteland.


    Upon arriving at the crater, which used to be the biggest home to Dragons, I realized that I still haven''t burnt even under the sun. Is it because of my cloak?


    Nonetheless, I continued searching for Sisisaya.


    The Shark told me their location, so naturally, I began heading there as well, since Sisisaya is also approaching them.


    I could just detonate a [Foot] to catch up, but I feel that I could reach him before he reaches the soldiers.


    The Dragons here aren''t humanoid, or looking like humans, but rather, tall, monstrous, and gigantic reptiles that leaves massive footprints, or craters every step.


    I''d say that the Demons destroying them was justified, but it''s kind of annoying having to fix up their mess, preventing the damage from reaching Earth, and stopping the greatest Dragons to become extinct.


    "One step at a time... How irritating..."


    A Dragon who appeared as a human stood before me as I was walking through.


    It''s been 5 weeks since I left the crater. The Baphomet''s military group has already captured a few dragons, meanwhile I only walked around in circles trying to find out where they were at.


    I''m still chasing that mushroom but I should get a dragon too, right?


    "Ah... Hatred... Human..."


    "Sorry to bother, I''m from the land of man. The demons caused this, so I''ll help you guys out and take you to a habitable place."


    "Come then... My kind suffered... We hide... Is in a cave..."


    I followed him to a cave after a bit more talking. The cave wasn''t very deep, most of it has collapsed already and barely anything was holding it from caving in again.


    A large group of dragons who looked like humans were hiding, along with an imposter...


    "Yahahahahah!! Knnn!!! Get e'' bread befo'' all thy loaves encaptured!!"


    A Catfolk dwelled among the Dragons. Worst of all, she had Divine Intervention from Hreamlea 4 years ago.


    I thought the Baphomet took the gun but it seems that some wanderer managed to find it after our fight.


    "Kee!! I am thee! We are all!!"


    And all the Dragons knelt down to show their gratitude.


    The supply of bread that "Tov-Yeua" had, was passed down to the Dragons with the intention to feed everyone, but with food so little, they could barely feed a family, let alone 50 Dragons.


    "Yonder mountains, see how they wind pass about, when all hell is clear, but thee faith remaine?"


    She had long black hair, a tail, and the ears of a cat. 3 eyes were written over each of her limbs. Her stats were pretty low, nothing standing out, since everything was on the same level.


    "B-balance..!!?"


    And that''s when I realized the truth.


    She wasn''t evil or good, but rather neutral. Completely opposite from all, since she stood at the middle, divided from everything, yet connected with all.


    "Meow! Youe, a saviour perhaps? But we do not need the external to help the internal, for we are thine souls."


    "I-I''m here to get the Dragons to a safe place, s-so they can live..."


    "They ay souls, they do nay yield to such unnacompanying. Yu'' who hay showed when they never, yu'' do not have the right given!!"


    Tov-Yeua... How is she... How is she so goddamn beautiful?!!!


    She stood in front of me. Her smile shined not physically, giving me slight reminiscence of the Baphomet when she ran before me with that psychotic look on her face.


    Her position gave the appearance of an angel, giving out salvation to the lost souls.


    "A-a-ah..!! You are Baphomet, aren''t you?!!"


    "I''m nay between or beneath, I am simply Salvation! Tru'' salvation is simply nonexistent, for yu'' cannot live withou'' regrets, and happiness."


    I felt joy like never. Have I even felt this before?


    I wanted to catch her, crush her, take her, eat her, become her.


    "What hath happened to you, supposed savior?"


    "KKHRHHGUUHAHAHAHAHHK!!!"


    I couldn''t hold in my laughter. I split the Dragon in half before walking towards Tov-Yeua who was between the crowd of Dragons kneeling down.


    "M-my fellows!!"


    The Dragons then noticed me and tried to force me out of the cave, but I tore them apart with [Foe Reducer] before they could successfully kick me out.


    Once outside, I immediately began running towards the entrance again, but a sudden roar made me stop.


    "You cursed soul..!! How could such one do this..?!!"


    I looked around and instantly saw a True Dragon flying into me, crushing me between it''s jaws. I fell inside it''s mouth and into its stomach, where nothing but darkness and acid sat in.


    I came back to my senses and realized what happened.


    "..."


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    Let''s think for a moment here. I''m inside a True Dragon after failing my mission to capture, or take Dragons for the Baphomet.


    Hmmm... I''m definitely not into people the same gender as me. Why''d I even eliminate those Dragons anyways? Who was she? She had an extremely familiar smell, and the Magical Energy around her has definitely touched me before.


    My perfect memory isn''t active right now. I''ve found out a way to disable it by shaking my brain in a specific way. Perhaps I can enable it again by doing the same thing.


    After shaking my brain, I searched through my memories and found it.


    The strange but familiar Magical Energy surrounding Tov-Yeua is the same type of Magical Energy that surrounded Fiya.


    I think I get it now.


    There''s a spell that attracts people to its user or something?


    Well. Now that I know about that, I must find my way back there and accomplish my mission. This Dragon here won''t let me out, so I''ll have to do something about it.


    I began punching a nearby wall, and then the Dragon vomited me out after a while.


    "Yawn..! Stretch stretch..."


    The Dragon roared at me again, so I grabbed it by the tooth and threw it into the direction of the Baphomet''s military group.


    [Spatial Investigation] allowed me to see that it has reached my allies safely.


    "Hello, Shark. Like my gift? Hehehe. It was pretty easy, but could you please prepare a black cloak for me back there?"


    I spoke to the Shark on the radio again.


    "Ah! Quite a nice catch you got here! Thanks!! And I''ll gladly grab a cloak for you, bye bye!! Good works!!"


    After turning it off, I wiped off the strange liquids on my body and began heading back to the cave where Tov-Yeua was at.


    She''s a cat isn''t she? I guess it''ll be okay to get rid of her then. Mind-disturbing abilities are pretty annoying, so I need to remove that as well.


    I think I kind of get the Baphomet''s ways of thinking now.


    After 2 days of walking, I found the cave again but this time, it was empty.


    What a waste of time. I should''ve chased Sisisaya instead of her.


    Anyways, nothing I can do now. Time to head back to base.


    I started walking around again, roaming aimlessly for a few days straight. The air was constantly changing along with the Magical Energy, making searching around with Magic difficult.


    Along the way, I found multiple creatures sent here by the Demons. They''re not like those humanoid ones, these guys are huge beasts, designed for dealing with bigger monsters.


    Demon-beast "Firewalker" in particular, was a strong one and caused some trouble for me by further decreasing the Magical Energy in the air, which made finding my way back almost impossible now.


    It''s been multiple weeks of walking around now. The fights I had with the Demons only continues to reduce the chances of me getting a better sight of this place.


    "Yeah. You''ve done a good job, Rireith!! I''ll treat you some of the finest fish I''ve found later! For now, come back to us so we can go back home!"


    I also found a few Dragons, true or not, I still sent them to my allies when I could see still them.


    "Problem is, it''s another day of no magic. I can''t use any of my pathfinding spells without magic, so I''ll be here for a while."


    "Haaa... It''s an annoying place, I know. Try not to fight too much or you''ll reveal yourself to the demons!"


    "I''ve already considered that. I analyzed these monsters and found that they don''t have anything that connects to the Demons Realm except for their keys, but none has escaped me so..."


    "Still! Be careful! One of our teams got wiped out by one demon! Do you even know how strong we are? For us to get destroyed by just one..."


    I heard they use militarized monsters like Salamanders and Pegasuses. It''s pretty crazy, but it''s not strong enough for Demons like Agares.


    The Shark later left the call, so I went back to trying to find them again.


    A thick fog has covered the entire place, but I can still see with my skills. I''m now a bit further away from the crater, and closer to the mountains, which has a river just right behind.


    I walked over to the river in a few more days, exhausting more time and resources.


    "Wow. What a surprise."


    The water wasn''t red here. Since the skies weren''t red, the water shouldn''t be cursed as well huh?


    I took some water and rested for a while.


    Checking my backpack, I couldn''t see anything other than ammunition and useless junk. I had eaten the plants and meat while walking around, so now I only have these left.


    Veno prepared some blood inside a glass container in case I was low on them, but I accidentally drank those as well.


    I dug a hole and made a quick shelter by putting up sticks and leaves over me so I could sleep. It''s what I always do at night after cooking animals in a campfire.


    It''s better to eat them raw, but for moral reasons, I prefer to cook them first.


    "Zzz..."


    A hard rain hit me, destroying the shelter that I made. This happens a lot too, so I have something else prepared for such.


    I had a fishing net, so I can just put it above me and cover it with leaves so the rain won''t crush it. I also had foldable metal poles so the wind won''t break it.


    I couldn''t sleep properly now, because of the sound.


    After pondering for a while, a fairy came up to me.


    I''ve been wondering why there are various species around here, like this fairy for example. They must be Demons or just curious individuals who came to see what the bright light was all about.


    Terui is a huge continent compared to the others, so it has a lot of creatures.


    Fun fact, Cvvoer is actually bigger than Earth, with a diameter of around 22,508 km.


    "Ummm... Excuse me, random traveller! Do you have edibles?"


    The fairy asked me a question, but I was still meditating on the hole that I dug under my shelter.


    Meditation was an important part of training, Veno made me carry rocks up a mountain to meditate under a waterfall, which helped improve my abilities in Magic, but eventually I would fall asleep pondering.


    Later, I fell asleep as well, sitting on the same position while the fairy continued trying to talk to me.


    "Zzz... Snore... Snore..."


    "Huh..? ...Heh! What a stupid human! Zeira shall take your edibles then..!! Kikikikiki!!"


    The next morning, I woke up to the fresh smell of air after a rain. It was quite pleasant, but I should get going now.


    I took my backpack, but what I saw wasn''t appealing much.


    "U-uu... Hey..."


    The fairy from last night was laying on top of a small lake formed by the water which fell into my backpack, because I accidentally left it open before I fell asleep.


    There weren''t anything to eat though, so the fairy here just got really unlucky. It must''ve fell in when a raindrop hit it from behind.


    "Let me tell you a life lesson, Zeira."


    It''s name was "Zeira" according to [Blood Panel]. It''s pretty weak, I might crush it like an ant if I''m not looking hard enough.


    "H-heh..? Zeira still won''t appreciate you..!"


    "When life gives you an opportunity too good to be true, chances are, it''s a trap. A bee doesn''t mistake which flower to take from, an ant won''t let go the chance to carry the crumbs off the floor, but they also never hesitate to fight the giant higher beings who walk upon them.


    "What if they aren''t actually mindless, dumb robots who only move on instinct, but rather, they know who places these flowers, they know who dropped these bread crumbs, they seek those who can perform these miracles.


    "We aren''t much different than them, don''t you think so too? We strive to find the gods who drop these trees to us, those who sprinkle some gold on to our land.


    "But remember that in the end, they can still take all of these away from us. It''s a trial, a challenge, a test, and most will fail. Gluttony and Lust are sins you mustn''t fall for, Zeira.


    "I forgot the rest, but basically, some things are just not what they seem to be. So be careful next time, don''t fight the gods who gave you the fruit, and definitely do not take their fruit which they didn''t give to you. The gold that they didn''t intend to drop, aren''t for you, so do not take it, unless you want to suffer the consequences."


    Veno gave me that lesson whenever I took fish from him. I didn''t steal actually, but rather, I just forgot to ask. This insanely long lesson he gave me, makes me want to give it to others as well. This is a good situation, so I couldn''t resist, because I might just not find another chance again.


    Zeira rested, sweating profusely while trying to avoid eye contact. It looks extremely nervous, knowing that it can''t do anything besides lay flat inside the space it''s in.


    It''s wings were wet, and now it can''t dry up anymore because my backpack is even wetter.


    "H-ha... W-w-what might y-you be talking about..? Zeira i-isn''t much of an understanding p-person, you know..?


    "Do you fear death? Do you fear pain? Well then. Get out of there-"


    "What?! Zeira can''t even move here!! Let alone fly!!"


    Hmmm... I''ve thought about it. Birds are sometimes used to deliver messages, but they aren''t that intelligent so they make mistakes a lot, Fairies on the other hand... They''re just like birds, aren''t they?


    "I just had a wonderful idea! Zeira, can you please help me find some people? There''s a woman with a large tail like a shark, so you won''t mistake it for sure."


    "Zeira cannot move here... What do you expect Zeira to do..? Besides, Zeira will never accept anything from someone who won''t even help a poor fairy dying inside a bag."


    "Fine. I''ll dry you up. How do you want me to do it? Clothing style? Or Hand style?"


    "Huh? What does any of those mean? Zeira cannot comprehend your stupidity, human."


    The "Clothing style" is twisting to squeeze the water out, and the "Hand style" is shaking until it isn''t wet anymore, but of course, why should I tell any of this to it? It''s a thief, isn''t it?


    "Kukuku..! J-just choose one..!"


    "You''re smiling heinously right now..! But fine... I''ll choose the Clothing style or whatever... The Hand style sounds like you''d beat me to a bloody pulp!"


    Well. I''m not sure which one is better actually, but if that''s it''s choice, then I''ll gladly do it!


    I pick Zeira up and upon closer look, this fairy is a female!


    I don''t think that matters though, since the results will be the same no matter what gender.

 Chapter 36: End of the Mission and a Continuation of the Journey.

    Using heightened blood sorceries and whatevers, I changed the properties of my blood so that it can function properly in my favor.


    I took Zeira and drenched her in my own blood, which was hot enough to dry up the water without harming her in the process.


    "Ew..! What is this!?? Blood?!!"


    "Correct. I''ll send you into the direction where I last sensed the Bloodlust of my allies at. There, you will find them and lead me to them in under 10 minutes. It''s the most time I could give you, since that''s the only way my blood can still be detectable from afar. Once the time is up, you will blow up and become deceased. Timer starts now."


    "WHAT??!! WAIT, NO PLEASE!!!"


    To prevent Zeira from escaping, I made my blood explosive after I won''t be able to sense it anymore.


    "I also made it sticky, sticky enough for you to move your wings freely."


    "D-DO YOU NOT HAVE SYMPATHY?!!!"


    She wiggled around in my hand trying to get away.


    I quickly began to grab her with both hands, lift her above my head, and take a step back.


    "I don''t know how to throw really, so I hope you don''t tunnel into the ground by accident."


    "NOOOO!!!!"


    I then pulled my arms back and put them to the side before setting down a leg in front to toss her from the ground and into the sky.


    "YAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHhhhhh!!!"


    Her screams drifts off into the red cloudy skies as I put a hand over my eyes and another hand on my hips to try and see where she went off to.


    I dust off my hands before proceeding to prepare my stuff so I can continue my journey.


    I need to get to the Baphomet''s military group and the Shark, Zeira will be a good recon drone for my trip there. Fairies have wings to act as planes don''t they? Well. I guess that would go for other animals too, but I doubt they would hold up the air pressure.


    Veno thought me how to change my blood''s properties, it''s some sort of blood manipulation, but it''s too weak to consume any magic.


    Eventually, I met her again before my blood exploded and absorbed hers. It appears that she had really good eyesight and flying skills. Impressed, I clapped my hands.


    "Hah... hah.... Hah... Cruel monster..! Y-your allies are this way..!"


    "Hmm... Come to think of it, I could turn you into a drone or something. We''ll both benefit from it. I feed you, and you look around for particular targets. Deal?"


    "Hell no!!!"


    "Wha-..? Really...? Sigh... Anyways. Let''s go."


    She doesn''t know it, but I wasn''t trying to threaten, or destroy her. My blood automatically explodes due to some training I did which permanently locked the current [Symplirothe¨ª] for if my own blood becomes unrecognized.


    I grabbed her again and we started making our way to my allies according to Zeira''s information.


    My backpack was still wet so I left it behind, there wasn''t much left in there anyways. As for my clothes, I guess this swimwear is actually waterproof. My cloak was ruined though, but it would be dangerous to be out in the sun.


    "Aaaaah.... C-can you not squeeze me to death...?"


    I guess my grip on her was too tight. Even a mere finger could destroy a fairy''s weak and fragile body like a grain of sand.


    We met up with the Shark and the Baphomet''s military group. They were all in some sort of military base, one that you''d see back on earth. Looks like Sisisaya wasn''t after it, considering how it''s unaffected when I''m this late. It took me a week to get here, when Zeira only had 6 minutes.


    "Yeah. I''m keeping you. I won''t crush you or anything though, and I''m good at cooking as well."


    The Shark appeared wearing a military uniform, waving at me as she walks out of a tent behind chain-link fences.


    "Nice to finally see ya after so long! Come in! The Private Sentinel Group and the Americans have set up this whole thing, quite impressive isn''t it?"


    "Hmmm... How''d they even get here anyways? This is like a basic military base, I don''t see anything significant about it."


    "They went through the Southern Hemispheric gates, which I thought were record panels..! Appears that they have other purposes as well!"


    That wasn''t so surprising. They''re literally called gates. How did she not think of people coming in if they were able to see through it?


    Multiple landmines and weapons were placed around the base. It was named "Beta 10", since it was the tenth base set up by the second group of Americans that arrived here.


    The Private Sentinel Group is basically just the weaker members under the control of an agent of the Baphomet. The soldiers here who are not from the Private Sentinel Group are Americans and Europeans, from many different nations on earth.


    After a long mission, I could finally rest without getting struck by lightning, attacked by undead dragons, or buried under loose dirt.


    "Ah. Aren''t you the assistant of the representative of Baphomet here? I''m Captain Leon Crow. Nice to meet you!"


    Appeared before me was a man, Captain "Leon Crow". He was the captain of the 1st unit here, which is still resting after the succession of this mission.


    He later assisted me, providing me the necessary meals and items, probably as my reward for helping them out.


    The mission came to an end as the Shark and Leon announced it. The one in charge, General David Pick, ordered most of the soldiers to continue with a second mission, leaving me and the Shark out.


    Multiple units and teams were missing, and eliminated in the mission, possibly by the demons or by Sisisaya, but we''re all still not sure what he was actually doing here. My best guess was that he was trying to destroy this base, but got lost or picked off by a Dragon or something.


    I went out of the Dragon fields and arrived at an island after 10 days straight with Zeira.


    The Shark stayed with me for a while before leaving with the rest of the soldiers, as the representative of the Baphomet, or as "Captain Tahgweiy". I guess I''ll call her Tahgweiy as well, since "Shark''s" a bit strange for a name. It reminds me of Rabbit...


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    What has happened to Rabbit and everyone? Where is everyone?


    "Zeira fears you... Mind you tell us our whereabouts..?"


    "Who knows. The sky''s red and everything is foggy... Can''t see a thing for miles here."


    We were walking in a dark forest, almost devoid of light. Red fog was always surrounding us, preventing my body from burning away into ashes.


    Zeira acted as my automatic hostile detector.


    Even after many days of roaming around, we still found no hints leading to my friends. Until...


    "This is Corporal John May, do you copy?"


    "Yeah yeah. What do you want?"


    "Tell me your situation. Captain''s a close fellow, you might know him, same reason to why you''ll know me."


    Corporal John May spoke to me details about the other locations of different portals leading into the demon realm.


    Knowing them, they''ve probably thought ARock or whoever I was supposed to be have died, along with the rest of the demons sent into the Dragon fields. I don''t think they''ll suspect of anything once I get back, right?


    "Let''s see here... Surveillance tells me that you headed straight west, and crossed the ocean to arrive in a remote island known as the Mount of No Return..."


    "That doesn''t sound reassuring..."


    "Vuvuvuvuu..! Z-Zeira requests help again, dear military people..!"


    Right. She tried asking the soldiers for help back there, but they all giggled and instead asked me if they could take her as a pet.


    Maybe I''m in the right here. Who knows what would happen to creatures like her if the military gets their hands on them. Will they have fairy machinegunners, or something similar?


    "One of our bases were settled in that place as well so fear not. Worst you''d encounter are bloodhounds, they tore our men apart in seconds. You''ll find them in a base there, along with demon equipment and things. Better make use of them so that my snitching won''t be in vain."


    "You''re American? I know that place, yeah. Was in Arizona before all this. As thanks, I''ll show you my grand canyon, so you won''t miss your home too much."


    "Yeah. Also... Two jokes at once? Heh. You''re quite the comedian, but alright, once we get back, I''ll take it."


    "What might you be thinking? I can''t quite understand what you''re saying. I''m actually going to make a grand canyon here, preferably in a place not as small as this. But anyways, I''ve made a new spell, you''ll be the first one to know of this."


    "A-a grand canyon..?! Damn... I don''t even live near that place... I know it''s in my country, but never visited it. Guess I''ll see it for the first time then. Might ruin my view of the real one once I get back home, but I guess I''ll be the one to see two grand canyons then. Three, I hope."


    Hope they all live to see that day.


    I finally figured it out after 4 years, the [Space-Breaking Time-erosion Multigenerational Blast], another ultimate spell I was trying to learn in my other consciousness.


    Before I died, I was in Arizona. I never saw the grand canyon either, only in online I viewed it, so I''m not sure if this will be an accurate remake.


    "Zeira feels that you were avoiding it on purpose..."


    "Avoiding what?"


    I wonder what she meant by that. Not minding her, I was in relief thinking that maybe this will actually work. But one thing is still missing, and I can only get it again once I meet Cricket Cricket, that is, if he''s still alive.


    Channeling something into one''s soul is different from casting a spell directly. [Benevolent Blood Eagle] was always used with channeling, which means that it''s full power hasn''t even been used yet. It''s full power is extremely dangerous, more dangerous than [Antares] actually, but it can only be used once.


    To prepare for my next battle, a fight against Cricket Cricket, one of the Pillars of Creation, I will have to first find him. The rest are easy, but the final steps require me to actually meet him in person... Having some of my memories lost really is annoying. To put it simply, I must acquire and successfully use [Space-Breaking Time-erosion Multigenerational Blast] and [Benevolent Blood Eagle] in order to defeat the Celestine Central Electrical Box, "Cricket Cricket", or otherwise known as "The 4th Pillars of Creation"


    "It must be really tiring walking day and night into some rotten, destroyed and abandoned base that might not even be there anymore huh?"


    I kept Zeira around, not forcibly anymore since she decided to give up escaping for some unknown reason.


    The jungles of this island were dense. The remains of animals weren''t that rare about this place. I''m not sure what creature lurks in here, but I don''t think I''d want to find out.


    We stopped before the ruins of a military base covered in plants like it had been sitting there for a thousand years.


    "I-I had a bit of connection to them... I guess you managed to figure me out just by the fact that us earthlings have close ties with the Demons while Baphomet''s guys hate them."


    "Yeah. I can kind of see why you guys chose Tahgweiy as your leader. She doesn''t necessarily hate Demons, so I guess she could make some whatever story she has to convince the Demons or something something."


    Captain Leon for the Otherworlders and Captain Tahgweiy for the Baphomet''s army huh? It''s quite well-organized.


    There weren''t any bloodhounds around, but corpses could be found. Judging by these bodies, it seems that the bloodhounds aren''t here anymore, probably after they were first attacked?


    "No doggies around here. Care to explain, Corporal?"


    "H-huh..? Camera footage and survivors all told us how our men were mercilessly killed in there... No way their bodies are still intact. Perhaps some other team arrived after the bloodhounds got away. I''ll look more into it, but suppose your safe for now."


    Time to find the portal then.


    Actually, if I wanted to defeat the Blood God, I''d have to defeat Cricket Cricket first, then Frillet Tofan. I already prepared for everything, but not for the Blood God... Not yet...


    The Sacrificial lambs, those guys me and the Hearts were supposed to protect and lead to, what I eventually figured out, Rintan''s kingdom, were all left inside deeper layers in the Demon Realm.


    The mention of the Embodiment of Fate made me come along with Heart, it was a well-known story that a man, who was fate himself, became evil and was then later defeated by a group of warriors sacrificing themselves. But that only led to an apocalypse, along with fate and everyone being deceased.


    I wanted to confirm their existence, but at that time, my mind was a bit strange... I couldn''t quite focus on what I was trying to do.


    Was it because of the odd magical field surrounding Fiya?


    Too late to be thinking about that now. The Baphomet came in to ruin everything, or actually help me..?


    Things that matters right now are whether or not the Sacrificial lambs are still alive, and whoever is in charge of sacrificing them now. The Demons have no idea that I actually survived that day, and now I must somehow convince them that I''m not actually against the Demons...


    We investigated the remnants of what used to be a military base, searching around whilst taking along useful, and significant items for the journey.


    My supplies have been replenished back at Beta 10, but I still have a bit of space left. It wouldn''t be too bad to take more.


    "Still... These guys look like they''ve been torn apart by god knows what..."


    It was quite a grotesque sight. Multiple bodies laid around with their insides hung outside, some had their limbs ripped off. Anyways, it looks like the work of humans. Better than having to face bloodhounds at least.


    "I can sense Bloodlust. Not sure if they''re just random animals though. Can you check it out, Zeira?"


    "Zeira has no power over this... You''re forcing me to go out and risk my life, aren''t you..?"


    "Nah... Actually... You can take some gunpowder or blood with you. You can be an explosive drone or something. That way, I''ll be safe and sound if there''s actually monsters about."


    "Barbaric. But you''re joking, aren''t you? Hehehe! No way a human can be that cruel. I see through you! Isn''t there a word for that..? Hmmm... I forgot, but it''s there."


    "Actually, I''m not a human, I''m a Full-fledged Vampire or a half-demon."


    Unexpectedly, we had a conversation for a few hours straight inside a building in the middle of the jungle, under a large hole in the roof.


    I figured out with [Spatial Investigation] that the Bloodlust around us were from normal animals, completely unaffected by the Bloodlust Forest.


    I wonder why is that. Is it because of this jungle?


    We used a bit of Magic to activate the electricity on this place again. Most of the things here didn''t work, as expected. But after setting up the area so that we''d be safe if something weaker attacked, we slept for the night, since we''ve been travelling on boat for the past weeks, and then roamed around in the jungle right after.


    Morning came but the darkness remained. I could barely see anything in this state, just woken up from a good sleep. One thing for sure though, the portal here wasn''t working despite everything we''ve tried. I guess we''ll have to find another portal somewhere else then. I still do have some business back there.


    "Snore... Snore... Snore..."


    Zeira dozed off on top of my backpack. Most of my edibles have been eaten, even though they were supposed to last at least a few months. It''s no doubt the thief is her. I don''t even eat, I just drink blood.


    She''s right though, I won''t just take her life away for if she failed to do what I told her to do. Most of the times where she almost died were unintentional, I thought she was an enemy at first so I didn''t think too much about destroying her with blood.


    "Wait... What is this..?"


    I said to myself, having experienced something else than just coldness.


    What am I experiencing though? What am I feeling? Character development? It''s not that I was heartless and emotionless before, but something new has been entered into my consciousness.


    Something has been changed in my flesh, and It''s heavily connected to my soul somehow.

 Chapter 37: Volca-noes and Rock-stars.

    A few more years after the end of the "Dragon Relocation" mission, as the soldiers called it, the bloody red skies never changed, remaining the same as the time it first showed up, when the world fell into complete chaos. Almost every nation was in a state of anarchy, destroying a large amount of countries, and ending the lives of many people. Now, the situation is a bit steadier but lives continues dropping each second while the end keeps getting closer. Tahgweiy, after the completion of her mission, went to join me and continue our journey with Zeira in another continent where almost all life is gone, with another mission, that is to prevent any chances of the Demons finding out about the Dragon Relocation mission while the Private Sentinel Group and our allies hide the dragons in a safer place.


    Their new mission shouldn''t take that long, but we''ll still be here for a while, since I need to find Tov-Yeua, if she''s even here.


    I didn''t acquire anything new for my arsenal, but my body continued changing. It all started with my meeting with Tov-Yeua, the Catfolk who saved most of the dying Dragonspawns. She was spotted in this continent helping out the survivors of this apocalypse, but it might just be rumors made by the maddened people here.


    Zeira flew around searching for anything significant while Tahgweiy spoke to me about our next mission, and whatever is interesting.


    Tahgweiy carried many books on her backpack to spread the tale of the great white, along with some of her military gear, including food, water, and most things needed for one to live.


    "Have you ever wondered why ants are ants and man are man?"


    "What kinda question is that? Ants are creatures made because of some complex science thingy, and humans are the same. What''re you tryna say there?"


    "Ants are ants because of the existence of man. Without man, you''d consider ants to be of significance in this world, right? They''re weaklings, compared to man."


    Blah blah blah. We talked for hours on end, arguing over and over about ants and humans. It was a very long and nonsensical conversation, but in the end, she was actually talking metaphorically, while I was thinking realistically. Though, her lesson still didn''t actually make sense anyways.


    After many days and nights, we stopped to rest at a ruined fortress. It was from the Demons, but it contained nothing useful, besides the shelter it served as. There were volcanoes nearby and geysers were around. Mountains could be viewed well here in the castle, but we had to leave for the adventure. We couldn''t stay for long.


    Whilst Tahgweiy was walking forwards, a geyser explodes, surprising her. She stepped back, somehow dropping her backpack.


    "Yaah-! W-what the heck...!"


    We were quite dumbfounded by her ignorance of her surroundings. Not only had she forgotten there were geysers around, but she also got surprised by such a small explosion, even though she could take out an entire army by herself. Come to think of it, she''s not really a fighter, but she''s still crazy strong. Why is that?


    "Careful now. The burning water pains thy flesh, but it is merely a diversion created by the volcanoes, to help us forget about it''s destructive nature."


    "Hmm... You''re right. Wait. No... You''re wrong... There''re geysers because of volcanic activity... Was all of what you just said a diversion to make us forget about your childishness? Anyways, speaking of volcanoes, one is about to erupt, Blood Panel gave me some info about it, and it seems like the closest volcano here is called the ''Silverfish Volcano.'' It erupts every once in a while, and it seems that today is the day..."


    "Why didn''t you tell us that earlier?!"


    We began to hear the area rumbling. Soon after, a thick cloud escaped from one of the nearby volcanoes. It wasn''t that far away, and we could get there in just an hour, so obviously, we started running. A volcano has erupted. Quite a bad time to be in this fortress right now.


    We managed to flee into a safe place, where we were sure the volcano couldn''t reach. Everyone was gasping for air, including me, since the red clouds began to slightly open up from the volcanic eruption, letting in some of the sunlight to weaken me, I''m not sure how that worked, but I am weakened, so it worked.


    "Hah... Hah... Hah... Thank god we actually escaped... That volcano was no joke. A rock could''ve fell on us. It''s a miracle we survived! Phew!"


    "Quit being dramatic... It wasn''t that big of a deal... We just ran because Vixen here was scared of being hit by sunlight..!"


    I made an ''X'' with my arms and shook my head to let them know I''m saying ''No''. Tahgweiy seems to get it, but Zeira looks confused, like she''s seeing something new. It is true that I was a bit uneasy of the sunlight touching me, even though I''m wearing a cloak, but I was more worried about getting caught up in the volcanic eruption, which could possibly destroy this cloak.


    "Hah..? What are you trying to say? Zeira doesn''t have a clue on what you''re doing. Are you perhaps telling me ''Yeah yeah. I was scared. Don''t blame me though, I had to save my life in case the one meter of light hit my skin.''?"


    "Kakaka! You fairies really are simple-minded creatures huh?! Can''t you see that Rireith is denying your claims here!?"


    "Why''re you defending her, woman? Don''t tell me- Gasp..!! Ha-ha-ha..!! Zeira found out your secret! Vixen, listen here! You might not see her the same after this..!"


    Suddenly, a blush appeared on Tahgweiy''s face. She tried to squabble with Zeira, but with her size and speed, she couldn''t catch up to her. I tilted my head in confusion, wondering what they were talking about.


    "Wa-wawawa!! Stop it!! Don''t say it, little bug! I''ll squash you!"


    "Haha! Try to catch the almighty Zeira, if you can! Vixen! Listen closely! Tahgweiy, the captain of an entire military unit, is actually a irresponsible fool who left our things back at the geysers!!! She''s just trying to deceive you and get you on her side until she says that!"


    "You-! ...Wait. What...?"


    Uh-oh. Our things?


    Wait. Our things!!? Oh no! We gave Tahgweiy most of our things, including foods, drinks, equipments, gears, and everything we needed for this mission! I just realized that she actually doesn''t even have her backpack on... Did she really drop it at the geysers..? The volcanic eruption will be a huge problem, and it''ll be quite risky for me to retrieve our things properly. Zeira didn''t even tell us about it while we were running. How could she!?


    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    "Why didn''t you tell us earlier..?"


    "Why didn''t you tell us the volcano was erupting today..?"


    How childish of her. How long has this fairy even lived? I expected her to be more mature by now, but she''s still as smart as a 10 years old kid. Fairies are immortal, aren''t they? They''re kind of like spirits, they''re not actually that physical, and they only die by supernatural ways.


    "That''s petty... I only forgot to tell you guys about it... Why be so annoying...?"


    "It''s okay it''s okay. I''ll go back for it... Zeira won''t be able to pick it up, and you can''t go out in the sun. So..."


    "Great. Don''t you feel proud of yourself, Zeira?"


    Zeira sat on a tree branch whistling. I picked up a rock and threw it at her, but I missed and it broke the branch instead. She fell into the grass and rolled down into a pond. She emerges from the water and instantly begins yelling at me.


    We got into a fight and saw that Tahgweiy wasn''t even around anymore.


    "Kraaah!!! You angered Zeira, impudent Vixen! You shall feel Zeira''s wrath, and welcome your demise, right here and now!!"


    "Very well! You were starting to get on my nerves! Now that Tahgweiy''s not here anymore, I will take the gratification of dicing you up into blocks of fairy dust, like blocks of sugar!"


    I can''t see any way of Zeira actually winning here, when she''s all drenched up in water, and can''t even fly anymore. But when I thought I was winning, the opposite happened. I threw multiple punches at her, but she dodged all of them easily thanks to her size. She couldn''t get me because of her lack of strength, so we pretty much ran around until we were too tired to fight anymore. I can''t really use serious moves on her, so punches were all I could do.


    We laid down on the ground to rest. The both of us were still catching our breath, so, taking this chance, I caught Zeira and held her tightly in my hand.


    "Yo... Hehehehe..! Finally caught you now!"


    "Gah! Let me go, meanie!!"


    "Who''s the meanie here? You started all of this!"


    Suddenly, we heard something move in the bushes. Tahgweiy appeared with a look that says it all. She didn''t have a backpack with her, so it''s safe to say all of our stuff were unfortunately destroyed by the volcanic eruption. She was pretty glum, so we stopped our meaningless fighting.


    I dropped Zeira on the top of my stomach, where she stayed put. It appears that Zeira has finally understood the situation. It''s a major screwup for all of us. I doubt Corporal John or Captain Leon can even help us now. The radios were also inside that backpack after all.


    "Boohoo. This is all your fault, Vixen."


    "No, it''s yours, Zeira."


    "Sigh... Let us eat the sleeping dogs, and the resting sheep for the night. You hunt though. I swear I''ll do my job as the surveillance drone."


    "I sure hope you do."


    Afterwards, we searched for anything edible so that we could survive the night. Finding food was easy thanks to Blood Panel''s [Automatic Appraisal], making the hunt quicker. Although I don''t need to consume anything other than blood, plants and meats are still necessary since they served as snacks, pleasing the mouth, Veno also ate food mainly for that reason too. It seems that Tahgweiy also didn''t need to eat anything, since her kind can actually survive on 1 fish for an entire year, but we all had to eat anyways, or else the situation would become awkward.


    We survived like this for multiple days, finding carcasses and eating them. Zeira was the only one here who needed to eat the most, so she had quite the comfy life, just following us around and eating 80% of our catch.


    One day, whilst walking around the beach, we stumbled upon a strange rock with strange writings carved into it. With [Automatic Appraisal], I read: "GOD ROCK" on the odd rock. It didn''t have anything else significant about it, it was just a rectangular rock with words from the Demon language. We thought it would be important later, so we kept it with us.


    "Come to think of it, I haven''t seen the stars in years. That rock just gave me an idea, why don''t we open up the gates to heaven and give the stone back to god or something?"


    "Brilliant idea! We''ll leave the job to you then! Me and Vixen will proceed to rest whilst you do that."


    "Sarcasm..? I''m being serious though..."


    It is true that we''ve almost never seen the stars in years, but opening up the clouds just to see them would be too much work. Although I could clear the skies just by throwing an object, I''m worried that I might accidentally hit someone or cause a major disaster.


    "Speaking of rocks, you want to be a rockstar, right? Tahgweiy?"


    "How does that relate to rocks at all..? But yes, that is true. During the Great Apostasy, I worked with people to form a band mainly for supporting our allies through music. Rock music was one of the most aggressive genres of music during that time, so we prospered as a very huge and successful band!"


    "Oh, wow. I didn''t know rock was so important to you. Actually, I know of someone who''d be a really good addition to your band."


    "Heh. No need to waste your energy, Rireith. My band vanished not too long after our success. Humans just don''t live as long as me, you know? Long-living creatures do live most of their lives in pain."


    "Sorry to hear that.... But my friend is a rather good guitarist, kukuku..! She''s also inhuman, so you two would most likely get along well, and for a very long time, or maybe forever..."


    "Eh? An inhuman guitarist?! Very well then! Introduce me to them some time, will ya?! I think I''ll be getting back to one of my favorite hobbies soon!"


    "Sure sure..."


    I say that confidently, but I wonder how I''ll get Reyana out here. She''s Arisa''s soul''s guardian, she''s not even physical. She- or he, also lived as a human back in Earth, didn''t he? That strange man I met when I defeated the Baphomet was most likely her worst enemy, considering they''re the leaders of two great opposing nations in Earth''s Great War.


    Still, I need to get her an electric guitar, but I don''t know how to get physical objects into Arisa''s soul.


    "Hmmm... But first, you''ll have to offer her an electric guitar. It''s her main instrument. You, her, and Shinpitekina would actually form a really good band, not gonna lie..."


    Suddenly, the rock began to glow in one of my pouches. We all stopped in our tracks to take it out and investigate. The writings on the rock was certainly glowing, but we wondered why.


    The rock kept glowing until midnight, when it started letting out a strange buzzing noise, preventing us from sleeping. We all awoke to the rock''s odd sound, and so we tried to various ways to stop it, even attempting to break it, but we found it was pretty durable compared to the regular rocks.


    "Gah..! When will this noise stop!? I can''t sleep with this!"


    "Ahh..! Zeira''s ears are in discomfort, somebody help!"


    "Then try to do something about it! Rireith, how about we send it back to god?!"


    Back to god..? Is she telling me to throw it into space? Well, considering the rock''s hardness, it would certainly survive the heat it''ll take once thrown upwards.


    "Is this actually a rock sent by god? Or just some random stone that''s made for an unknown reason."


    "I don''t know! Throw it out of here or something!"


    "Alright... Fine... I''ll miss you, God Rock. I won''t forget the moments we had whilst we were still together!"


    "Y-you only had that rock for about 5 or 8 hours..! Don''t just say that, idiot! What are you? A caveman!?"


    Well. I''d be more of a cavewoman, since I''m female, but I guess that''s okay too. I was a man back in Earth so...


    While moving the same way as that one time I threw Zeira like a baseball, I held the rock tightly before preparing to throw it with all my strength. I hardened all of the blood and muscles in my arms, making my veins pop out like tree roots before sending the "GOD ROCK" through the clouds, clearing out the skies, and letting the rock into outer space.


    I watched there until I thought I couldn''t see it anymore, and realized I was actually just looking at a star this whole time. Wow. The ''rock'' really led us to view the ''stars''.


    "Woah... It''s quite a beautiful sight. It''s really been a long time since I''ve last seen the stars. I can''t believe a rock opened up the path for the stars."


    "Talk about rockstars! A rockstar actually saw the stars thanks to a rock being thrown towards it!"


    I wonder what that "GOD ROCK" was actually about though. It must''ve been made by dwarves, since they''re the types of people who''d make random, but interesting junk and then throw it away since it''s not interesting enough, so if it actually was, then they should be around here somewhere. But we also found the rock on a beach, so it was probably just washed ashore.


    We never found out why or how the rock glowed or made that strange sound after that night. All we know was that that rock was rectangular, and had the words: "GOD ROCK" written on it.

 Chapter 38: Sea Creatures and Life Energy Extraction Differentiation.

    Tahgweiy appeared to be looking a bit out of the mood these days. One day, she even refused to eat any food when we were at a waterfall. I figured I''d ask her about it, and she began to tell me the story about the Ocean God, Keasius, and her origin.


    "Long ago, there lived a man, or a self-proclaimed god named Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl. You may know of him as a god on Earth as well, but he didn''t actually come from Earth. Needless to say, he was born from Cvvoer. As a fake god, he made people happy by giving them rain, making their crops prosper, and such. And then a man named Keasius was born. Keasius lived under the villages blessed by Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl. He eventually grew suspicious of him, and began investigating. It didn''t take long for Keasius to find the secrets of Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl, him being an absolute monster, and a bit of a demon who hosted secret rituals to eat victims sacrificed by the brainwashed cultists."


    "Hold on. How did people from Earth find out about Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl? Isn''t Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl also a bird, or a dinosaur?"


    "We''re talking about Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl the fake god here, I''m just about to tell you what he is. ...He had a huge influence around the world. But of course, most won''t know of him since he existed in ancient times, tens of thousands of years before the Great Apostasy even happened. Anyways. Back to Keasius... You might have an idea of what happened already because of me being here. So yeah. He trained for many years, becoming stronger to defeat the monster, that is Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl. After a long battle, Keasius finally won and freed the villagers from his tyranny. As he grew old, he started a family near the ocean and lived happily ever after."


    "Hmm... I feel like there''s more into it. How are you here? Why are the both of you connected? Why is he called the Ocean God? Too many questions are still left unsolved. Also, it''s kinda obvious you just wanted me to ask."


    "Correct. Good ears you have. Actually, he never lived peacefully, and happily ever after. After a regular day, he woke up to the ocean in front of him turned red. It was all bloody, just like the ocean today. But the water didn''t have the same effects like the Bloodlust Forest''s ocean, instead, an extremely deadly disease broke out from under the water, killing a ton of sea life, especially in his area. ...Keasius realized what was happening and grabbed his sword before fighting off Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl who appeared in it''s true form. Everyone knew he was no longer man, but rather, a feathered serpent. Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl overpowered Keasius and pushed him near death. ...And that''s when one of the most fearsome and powerful sea creatures arrived just in time to save the day!


    "And you know it! It was me! The Tale of the Great White! I came in just before his death! ...I had to save Keasius from Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl, but the disease has already spread too much into my body. I was near dead actually. I was only wandering around land to view what it looked like one last time before my death. But what awaited before me was a land creature being brought to death by a sea monster. I couldn''t take it. You know... I can''t just die there, it was the moment I realized I had more purpose to this life. To this seemingly meaningless life I had.


    "We Shark-People are strong creatures, predators of the ocean. I in particular, am a descendant of the Great White Sharks, the greatest species of sharks in this planet. We''ve grown too old however. Our species have died out, and getting new members of our kind have proven to be almost impossible. I didn''t care much about death, since no one has been around me until then. That man looked me in the eyes covered in blood, holding on to his sword with the last of his strength. I saw how tightly one clinged to life, when I was only waiting for the end of mine. ...Through my more powerful spells, I managed to combine the space between our souls and our bodies, creating that mysterious switching system we have, where I can switch to Keasius and he can switch to me. And with our combined strength, we pushed the great Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl back to the ocean."


    I applauded as I listened to her while eating the fish I just caught. It was quite an interesting story, I didn''t yawn one time. Though, I still had many questions, like even though they were both heavily weakened, they still managed to defeat that feathered serpent.


    "How''d the both of you defeat him really? You were too weak to fight. And also, where is Keasius now? Why isn''t he switching to you? Is he being shy or something?"


    "Well. Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl was already weakened by Keasius at that time. It''s not like he got his full strength back by going into his true form. Keasius, when he was younger, absolutely destroyed Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl. He''d still win even if Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl was in his true form, as long as he was in that state. Keasius was old now, so I gave him some of my powers to get him strong enough to defeat Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl once again. He eventually got titled as the Ocean God thanks to my powers while I was still sleeping, trying to get my full energy back, because of the disease and that fight."


    "I see... It''s pretty simple. So he just started training with the powers you gave him, until he became very strong, strong enough to be called the Ocean God? Where is he now then?"


    "Just right before this whole Blood God apocalypse thing, he realized he has used up too much of his energy and went into sleep mode just like what I did. He''s asleep now, so I''ll be in control for another 1000 years. Hehehe!"


    "Great. When he''s actually needed now, he just goes to sleep. Also, what was that about you not being a fighter? You told me he could fight, and you couldn''t, even though you just told me now how you''re stronger than him."


    "Right? How could he?! Also... About the fighting thing... It''s just morals and my own ways of thinking... Bloodshed is unnecessary, don''t you think so too? I leave that kind of work to Keasius, but only when it''s more important... He can''t just go around killing innocent people if he got mad or something."


    That''s kind of a waste of her powers... What if I had them instead of Keasius? Oh right... Keasius was probably stronger than me when he was younger. I kind of see why she gave them to Keasius.


    "Can I have your powers too? Please??"


    "No. Sorry, Rireith, but my powers can only be used for good. I''m not sure why it''s like that, I think it has something to do with my kind soul or something. But anyways. Your soul... Ummm... I can''t really see anything in it... Wait. Let me take a closer look."


    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Whilst we were sitting on a small camp pretty far from Zeira, Tahgweiy suddenly crawled closer towards me and put her ear to my chest.


    "Hmm... I can''t hear your heartbeat."


    "Y-you''re not even supposed to do that... Aren''t you going to look at my soul instead of trying to hear my heartbeat?"


    "Ah! Right! I forgot!"


    What is she doing..? She''s not a doctor. My heartbeats are also pretty slow, since I don''t need much blood pumping for most of my blood magic, so it''d be pretty difficult trying to hear them.


    She then put her head closely in front of my chest. It''s pretty embarrassing, but I must not ruin the setting right now. I''m doing this to get her in a better mood.


    "There we go! I can see... N-nothing..!?"


    "W-w-what? What d-do you mean nothing?"


    "Uhhh... How can I say this..? There''re Magical Energy everywhere in your body, and in your soul as well. But the presence of your kindness, love, hate, and... Well. Your emotions don''t exist, Rireith..."


    I could see her sweating whilst I was sitting there in confusion. Reyana told me the dark gods only took my emotion of love. Having my other emotions taken isn''t really likely either, since I can still feel a lot of things, like ''liking'' for example. I can like things too, so that''s an emotion.


    She sat down with a strange face. I wondered what she was talking about, and how she can even see my soul, but it must have something to do with her being a powerful shark, right?


    "Eh... I''m sorry to disappoint, but... You''ve been emotionless this whole time, weren''t you..?"


    "N-no way..! I-I was embarrassed when you put your face close to my chest..!"


    "Isn''t that instinct, or nature, or whatever? Y-you''re a vampire, or a human, kinda, so it''d make sense for you to be thirsting when another human-like creature is really close..!"


    Hah... I think I''ll just go to sleep. I haven''t asked her why she''s feeling down though, so I''ll do this before I sleep.


    "A-anyways... C-can you tell me why you''ve been feeling sad these days..? I asked about it earlier, and you only told me your story."


    "Yeah. About that. I was just thinking about what happened to my home, the ocean. It seems that Quetzalc¨­¨¡tl has returned not too long ago, at the beginning of this apocalypse, which explains why the ocean is red, and sea life is dying. I''m a bit sad, so I just wanted to speed things up a little. No use saying it though, we all want to end this apocalypse already."


    "So you just felt sad about those fish I wanted to give you..? Isn''t that putting their life in vain? Their lives ended, and the best you can do now is not putting them to waste, by eating them."


    "Sigh... Alright. I guess so..."


    I gave her one of the fish I had with me, and after that day, everything went back to normal. Zeira, Tahgweiy, and I journeyed towards the North, where we thought one of the Demon Lord''s Castle was situated at. According to the survivors here, that castle was built not too long ago. I hope it''ll be easier to get into. I don''t really want any conflict with the Demons.


    It''s a bit far away, but I think we''ll be able to get there in just a few months. Sigh... If only we had modern technology, like planes. Pikaia had planes, because I taught her, but she''s just a bunch of gore splattered on the floor right now. I''d need a trustworthy necromancer, or a demon who can bring her back to life. I can also try to find people who can create planes too, but that''s very unlikely, especially in this place.


    After walking for a few weeks, we arrived at a field of dead flowers, and so we all agreed to rest for a while. Zeira flew around like a bee looking for flowers to take pollen from, leaving me and Tahgweiy in the middle of the field, like we were having a picnic.


    "Quite a lovely picnic during the end of the world, isn''t it?"


    "Yes. Right. We''ll leave Zeira to scout for nectar, it''s one of her main sources of food and energy, I heard. But maybe I was just reading a book about the bees of Earth. It''s not hard to confuse her with a bee after all."


    "Hmmm... Speaking of sources of food and energy, you have blood and life essence as your sources of energy too, huh? Fufufu! Doesn''t that sound familiar? Life essence.... Essence of Life... Vital energy... Life energy... Vampires... Succubi..."


    "What''re you getting at here? Are you saying that I''m the same as a succubus?"


    "Good job! Bingo! Hyaahyahyahya!! You two really aren''t that different after all! Huuhuhhhhuhuhu!!"


    She was laughing really hard. But I still didn''t know what was so funny. Vampires and Succubi have similar sources of food and energy, but the extraction process is really different. I only drink "Vital fluid" by shoving my hands into creatures, or by biting them. Succubi doesn''t do any that.


    "Hm? What''s gotten into ya?"


    "Hahahaahaaa...! Ahem ahem. Sorry, I had a bit of a laugh there."


    "Don''t worry. It''s better for you to laugh at times like these. Also brings me reassurance, so go on."


    "Eh..? Are you mad, or angry..? I''m sorry..."


    Do I sound too serious? I genuinely enjoyed watching her laugh. But I guess I just can''t say it well.


    "Anyways. About Succubi and Vampires..... One of the higher ranking members of the Private Sentinel Group is a succubus. Her name is Backbone, she''s also the 2nd-in-command of the Private Sentinel Group''s main unit back there. I wonder if she''s doing all fine with her mission..."


    "Well. I-It''s a bit of a wonder to how she gets back her energy, considering how she''s in a really difficult mission right now..."


    "Is that really the first thing that comes to your mind..? What are you, a pervert or something!?"


    Well. Generally, Succubi and Vampires don''t share much asides from their sources of energy. Of course, I could also just do the same thing that succubi do, but it won''t be as effective as just biting. Succubi can try to copy us too, and it will have the same results as extracting "that" way. In a way, they''re just better vampires, aren''t they? Succubi has better abilities, but I''m not sure about their strength though. Maybe that''s why they only resort to being secretive and such.


    "Iiiiif... Just if... If Backbone were to fight you, would you win? She has advanced healing abilities, and really good physical strengths and speeds. I heard she even took out 4 entire armies in just 1 day back in the Great Apostasy!!"


    "Well... Did she do that on the battlefield, or nah? But for your question, Succubi might be strong, but fighting them on fairly would be pretty dumb. They''re secretive for a reason. You can''t just throw in a sniper into a sword fight in the ring."


    "Hah... I see your point... But she''s grown really strong because she''s one of the ancient demons born long before civilization was even formed. You know how much Life Energy she has now? Succubi become stronger whenever they extract vital fluids, it''s one of the few things that Vampires don''t really have."


    "T-that long..?! Really?! Sigh... If only I could grow stronger after drinking blood, I''d be a monster by now!"


    "Well. You''re kind of a monster already. You can make an entire mountain of blood if you wanted to, and you can also just detonate a nuclear bomb on your spot anytime you want."


    "It''s a terrifying thought that you are actually like 50 times stronger than me... I wonder what happened to your enemies... IF you didn''t have any morals..."


    "Stupid question! I''m strong because of my morals! If I wasn''t so kind, I wouldn''t be so strong either, even if I was the descendant of some of the greatest predators in the ocean."


    Backbone must be a really strong succubus if she''s the 2nd-in-command of her main unit. The Baphomet''s group is full of powerful creatures, but is it really for the sole purpose of upholding balance and order in this world? The Goddess of Order, Lazarus-Delta-Aquamarine-Alice exists, right? They should just leave the job to the actual gods.


    Later, we left the fields of dead flowers and continued our journey towards the North. We were all supposed to go North anyways, so I guess I''ll just go first. I hope everyone doesn''t get mad at me or anything. They should still be alive, right?

 Chapter 39: Cooperative Utensils Ritual and Truth-Seeking.

    I figured that some of the people I used [Antares] on that day are probably still alive and healthy. Fang, Frillet, Cricket, and 1 other, had the most Magical Energy perceivable. If I were to run into them again, I''d have more chances of surviving than last time, but the best course of action would be to determine their location and bombard them using [Orbital Curveball] and my current [Symplirothe¨ª], so that''s what we''re going to do right now.


    We ventured to the most suitable place, the summit of a mountain. This one mountain in particular, called "Mount Date", is 2 times taller than the average mountain. It''s pretty windy up here, and the cold isn''t helping much either. Luckily, I had a cloak. I''m thankful to Veno, for giving me such adjustable equipments, helping me to adapt to certain situations and environments. Veno also taught me how to climb mountains easily, so it wasn''t that hard getting up here, especially with these legs that has my hardened blood frozen over them.


    I could see above the clouds, how the brightly setting sun easily burnt away my skin, but I kept regenerating it, making no actual damage. The sunlight is quite weak this time around, compared to that time when the scorching sun was welcomed upon me because of the volcanic eruption. Even though there wasn''t much sunlight, the heat was really strong, strong enough to weaken me despite the sunlight not being too visible.


    Tahgweiy had found a string instrument, which was a guitar, along the way and kept it with her until now for ritual purposes. She also carried a basket full of vegetables for the same purposes. With our advanced magical technologies, we made a circle using chalk, before I sat down on the middle of it. More circles were drawn around the first circle, and feathers were placed down on the middle of all those new circles. The flat surface we were on served as a great place for rituals. We had to spend half the day digging out the snow and making the environment fitting for it.


    The circles acted as an eye for the eyes that represented omnipresence. Because I''m someone who has almost experienced omnipresence before, this job was made a lot easier. All of the feathers were plucked from feathered lizards, and soaked in rainbow liquid obtained after the rain, they served as magical objects for slight flying and levitation. After all the preparations were completed, the circles became my way of finding our enemies'' positions and the feathers were turned into tools used for enhancing my weapons'' speeds and effectiveness.


    "Ready? Let''s rock ''n'' roll!!"


    Tahgweiy used her electromagnetic powers to amplify the sounds produced by her guitar, with the help of Zeira who sprinkled some of her fairy dust on Tahgweiy to reverse her electromagnetic waves, converting them into sound waves. Tahgweiy then began playing a song aggressively with her guitar, making Zeira hide away under a rock because of the extremely loud noise.


    "Twilight radiance, fall spirit diamond. Purity foundation reverberation. Spears of judgement. Sator arepo tenet opera rotas. Omega(¦¸)."


    To end the current [Symplirothe¨ª], which was only but a combination of [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model], I spoke out the last chants in order to achieve full power for it''s final use, before the spell is destroyed, never to be used again, unless I get to someone who is proficient at spell resuscitation. Demons are good at it, aren''t they? Maybe I''ll find a human who is able to do it as well. But first of all, I must use this spell at it''s end. It''s not respectable to think of such things when it hasn''t even ended yet.


    I got up from my sitting position once the circles brightened up, indicating that they have become active now. After taking out the forks, knives, and spoons from their container, I stabbed each one into small vegetables before throwing all of them into the locations according to the circles, casting [Orbital Curveball] every throw, and [Symplirothe¨ª] every time the objects gets near a target. I picked them out one by one, flinging 5 utensils every millisecond with 1 hand, while holding the rest with my other hand. The circles gave me the location of each target, whilst the feathers helped prevent every single one of the small vegetables and utensils from getting destroyed before getting detonated with [Symplirothe¨ª]. While the feathers did help the utensils stabbed into vegetables, the chants I did also put protective magic over them so that they could reach their targets without any disturbance.


    After just 3 seconds, my speed has gone up, making throwing easier. The explosions caused by [Symplirothe¨ª] weren''t just normal explosions as well, their sizes could reach higher than a mountain, and the destruction they cause are very powerful. [Symplirothe¨ª] creates explosions that instantly destroys everything down to the very last molecule in it''s effective range. The aftermaths are also great, making major natural disasters like thunder tornadoes and massive earthquakes. The [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model] combination I used back then were nowhere close to this. The chantings played a huge part, and right now will be the most effective these spells could get.


    I could feel each target''s Magical Energy slowly disappearing each hit. But just like last time, Frillet Tofan isn''t really getting affected. Is this just slowing him down? What a monster.


    After just 5 seconds, all of my supplies were depleted. I sat down to rest, realizing that each target were on different continents, at least a few continents away from me as well, which means I just threw forks, spoons, and knives across many different continents and hit all of my targets with pinpoint accuracy. My [Symplirothe¨ª] spell has also been destroyed now, along with [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model]. It''d require a specifically great power to bring back those 2 spells. But if I wanted to, I could just combine another 2 different spells together again to make another [Symplirothe¨ª], but with different outcomes. [Symplirothe¨ª] basically just upgrades and combines 2 spells together to create a new, and advanced spell that can use the 2 combined spells'' abilities at the same time to produce an overall better outcome. It''s much more complicated than that, so remember that that''s just a simplified explanation of [Symplirothe¨ª].


    I took one last look while the circles still worked, and I could see, from all 4 of my targets, only Frillet Tofan and Cricket Cricket survived. I didn''t forget about Sisisaya Mandrakora as well. But it seems like he''s underground, and under the ocean, so it''d be very difficult to try and attack him. I wonder what he''s doing there anyways. Did he figure out that I would do this, so that''s why he went down to a safer place?


    We then left the mountain to continue our journey to the north, not forgetting to pick up more utensils from abandoned villages along the way. We figured that we might get to find the Demon Lord''s Castle if we just continue going north. The Temporal Spatial Pyramids are also not a bad find, if we somehow miss the castle, or fail to find it. ...If only we ran into another portal just like that one time. I almost forgot where that place is now, but before falling into the Demon Realm, I swear I sensed the portal closing, so it''d be a huge waste of our time if we came back there and found the portal closed. It''s a mystery why that portal was even there, and why it led to that particular place where Killer was trying to resurrect a demon or something.


    5 months later, we arrived at a snowy area, indicating that we were closer to the Temporal Spatial Pyramids now, at the place where the Great Catastrophe mainly took place in. We still haven''t found the Demon Lord''s Castle though. It was written in the Book of Epitomy, how those Pyramids came to be. It''s pretty obvious already, but the Great Catastrophe also involved the entire world, including all of the 6 dimensions. In Cvvoer, the Great Catastrophe was known to man because of how catastrophic it was. To give a bit of an idea, it''s 50 times worse than this current apocalypse right now. The Blood God did walk the lands during the Great Catastrophe after all.


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    Whilst walking around orange-coloured frozen forests and terrains, we got caught up in a strong blizzard, interrupting our journey and slowing us down. I could sense intense Bloodlust coming from behind the freezing clouds, but both Zeira and Tahgweiy couldn''t see anything. Tahgweiy of all people, she should be seeing what I''m seeing right now, the silhouette of a familiar man.


    They stopped with me as I froze in place, going eye to eye with the man before me. His left arm had been dismembered, and all of his scars had gotten pale. It''s clear with those wide, and sharp eyes, that he''s seen death before, and faced hell to survive and tell the tale. I could remember now, how this person was with us all along. He always existed, but never did at the same time. From the moment I met Den and the rest of the new heroes, this man never had any presence until now.


    Ah... How long it has been since I''ve last met Liand.


    He stared at me full of hostility and anger. But I knew he didn''t want to attack me. No one could see him except for me in this tough storm. I''m in such great jubilation right now, I feel like I''m going even higher. For some reason, I began smiling widely again, just like that time I met Tov-Yeua. It''s not something I do regularly, and I''m obviously not this psychotic. Something must be controlling me right now, or a bug must''ve been put into my brain. I''m so exhilarated, the bars are getting raised beyond their limits. What the hell''s going on?


    "Vixenn... I figured I''d meet you here again... I can explain why you''re going crazy seeing my horrible appearance... But first, let me tell you how I managed to find you..."


    My left eye was twitching, closing and opening like I just lost my mind. I clenched my teeth and slashed him using [Foe Reducer], but I saw that he didn''t even budge despite getting torn from his collarbone to his hips.


    "When this apocalypse started, I realized that the spirits have been living in my body since I was born. All that madness made them escape, run, and flee. I wasn''t brutalized by anyone or anything in those salt mines... The spirits left me and I suffered literal hell. My spirit self, which you all may know as Liand, died, and ceased to exist. The very concept of myself was removed, and that made me finally figure it out. The Blood God''s true abilities... They aren''t the one who caused all of this. But they did do something so powerful it affected all forms of existence and non-existence. ...I was destroyed, but my body wasn''t."


    "What... What the hell do you mean by that?"


    "I looked for you guys everywhere, until I finally found that city where you all stopped at. But then, a massive explosion hit me, it was the same explosion you made, Vixenn. I managed to survive thanks to someone... It''s someone you know... ...But I''m not referring to you, Vixenn... I''m talking to you, ?!&+!."


    What did he say? I always have an ability to automatically translate words into a language I can understand easily, but what he said only pained me everytime I try to translate it.


    Liand''s body was falling apart every second. My attack only made his situation worse, it added another fatal injury to his already dying body. Both Tahgweiy and Zeira were looking at me confused, wondering who I was talking to, and what I was doing.


    "Yeshua... In the Demon language, you may know her as ''True-Savior'', or Tov-Yeua. ...She saved me from everything that happened. She''s the polar opposite of Frillet Tofan. ...You''ll know the truth soon, Vixenn. I may never know it, but you will.


    "Ah... Despite all of these miracles keeping me alive... My life has finally come to an end... Thank you, Vixenn. All of those things you threw in the air gave out your position. It made me remember how stupid and silly you guys were back in the days. Thank you, and goodbye..."


    His Bloodlust was gradually fading away as we spoke. After he was done saying all those words softly, his upper body began to slowly shatter into pieces. A smile remained on his face even though his entire body has been suffering extreme damage. It didn''t take long for him to finally be left a frozen pair of legs with a bit of his lower body, which was very clearly sliced off with my scythe, [Foe Reducer].


    The strange feelings I had eventually went away as I looked down on his remains. I couldn''t even shed a tear. Was Tahgweiy actually telling the truth? Do I just not have emotions?


    I stared at his legs for an hour until Tahgweiy slapped me, snapping me out of it. She scolded me for standing still in the cold for such a long time, asking me what''s wrong. I replied saying that there was nothing wrong, and so we continued our journey to the north. The pyramids were still really far away from us, since it''s on the other side of the planet after all. Our mission to prevent the demons from finding out about the Dragon Relocation mission is still not over. We''ll just have to find something in another place, since that continent was obviously useless.


    It was really difficult trying to leave this place, because of all the blizzards and snow everywhere, so we stopped to rest at a safer place, where the environment was a bit warmer.


    I couldn''t put Liand''s death to waste, so I began thinking about what he just said back there. ''Tov-Yeua'', or ''True-Savior'', is actually ''Yeshua'' in Earth''s language. I''ve reactivated most of my brain functions and all 12 of my senses, including the [Sense of Impending Doom], even though I know it won''t really help much. [Sense of Right and Judgement] and [Sense of Malice], or simply, [Malice], allowed me to finish this job faster, then with my [Sense of Common Knowledge], I managed to finalize all of the information I made; ''Yeshua'' is a word from the Hebrew language back on Earth, and the Demon language mostly consists of Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and many other different languages from Earth, and only has a few languages from Cvvoer, which means that Yeshua is probably from Earth as well. Her name was only translated to Tov-Yeua because of [Blood Panel], and it''s lack of Earth''s languages. Taking all of that information, I managed to find the name back in the English language, and alphabet; Y-E-S-H-U-A = to save, rescue, or deliver. ''Taw'', or ''Tav'', in the Demon language, becomes ''Tov'', so the most accurate translation would be [Good Savior], instead of [True-Savior], but that could also just be a title for her, the "True Savior".


    Yeshua is known as the true savior in this world. It''s pretty obvious, because most of the survivors we ran into wouldn''t stop talking about her. But what was that strange field surrounding her? I must investigate this person who just randomly showed up one day and decided to become an actual hero, unlike Den and Frillet. Where did Yeshua even come from, though? It''s unlikely she''s from Earth, since she''s a Catfolk, but having such a name would mean she had connections to Earth at least.


    I don''t know much about the spirits that Liand was talking about. But I did get more information about Yeshua and the Blood God. The name ''YESHUA'' has 6 letters. ''SAVIOR'' also has 6 letters, which is the word she''s most known with. Since both has 6 letters, a connection with the shape ''Hexagon'' wouldn''t be too far off. The Hexagon is a polygon with 6 sides, it is a shape that has 120¡ã internal angles, with the total being 720¡ã. Since the 2 words have 6 letters, we''ll take them as variables since they can still be changed to have a different amount of letters in other languages (a and a). We''ll also take both words'' letter counts, and use them as well (6 and 6). Then, we''ll add a side to the total, but not after it is squared to match the word count (1202). We must also divide the total by the average side before adding it. When all is done, we''ll finally be able to add it to the second word (6a). The solution only needs to be found using simple math, so first, we get 14,400 from 1202, then we divide it by 720 to get 20, so now we can do the easier part; 6a + 20 + 120(6a). So after solving and simplifying all of that, you''d get 726a + 20. Remember that I wasn''t solving it like normal maths on Earth, there might be some things you won''t find there that you''ll find here in Cvvoer.


    Now, since we got our number as 726 + 20, we can move on to determine Yeshua''s field of strange energy. In her field, I can remember that day''s, and that place''s temperatures being 30 degrees Celsius, if we convert it into Kelvins, we''d get 303.15 Kelvins. Using the normal formula, if we multiply 5.67 by 10?? and then by (303.15)?, her radiant kinetic energy would be 480 W/m2. Basically, she has a really strong aura, very similar to Liand''s and Fiya''s.


    Thanks to the numbers 726, 20, and 480, we have finally acquired a very important clue to where the Blood God might be resurrected at. On Earth, latitudes 4.14444, and longitudes 2.66666, something will happen, something massive, and great. Me and [Blood Panel] were making a ton of calculations, but we finally arrived at a final conclusion: The Blood God will revive somewhere in the Gulf of Guinea, back on Earth, instead of on Cvvoer. It''s possible that the Blood God might be connected to Earth, but I''ll figure that out later, since I just realized I''ve been sitting on the ground in front of a campfire for roughly 10 hours now. Tahgweiy and Zeira were talking to each other while eating something.


    Man, I was so focused and concentrated that I actually forgot about time.

 Chapter 40: Godsent.

    According to the information [Blood Panel] and my brain during "full concentration mode" made, the reason why I was the only one that could see Liand was because of the senses only I, as Crynosphere, had. Normal Vampires, and most creatures wouldn''t have the 12 senses I have, and I didn''t even have them until I channeled Arisa''s soul into mine. Sushi told me about my 12 senses before, but I couldn''t use them because I was still "Vixen Corr", or in my completely human form.


    Almost all of my abilities were present even when I didn''t even know about them because of my [Sense of Past and Future]. But most of them would come in incomprehensible form, which meant that they wouldn''t have any use until I manage to acquire them in the future. That''s why me and Sushi were having trouble trying to understand my stats that time. If I meet Rintan, or Sushi again, I''ll definitely ask her to tell me about my status. I wonder what kind of things I''ll have in the future.


    As I was sitting before Tahgweiy and Zeira, thinking about the things Liand said, Zeira then stopped her conversation to speak with me instead. But I only noticed her after realizing that there''s a campfire burning normally in front of me, even though we''re in a blizzard right now. I didn''t know how it worked, but I guess it just worked somehow.


    "Hey! You awake yet? Zeira''s been quite annoyed by your behavior for a couple hours now! If you got any worries, you oughta apologize and talk to Tahgweiy more, that girl''s been gettin'' depressed because of ya!"


    "W-what!? Don''t worry, Rireith, I''m not mad at you or anything! This dumb little bug just likes saying things without any thought at all!"


    Well. It''s obvious that she''s been getting worried since I met Liand. I can''t blame her, to them, it must''ve looked like I''ve been acting differently after freezing in place for no reason at all. Also, I''m still in my "full concentration mode". The aftereffects of this will be annoying to deal with, so I''ll have to do the things I wanted to do before going back to my "normal" form again. One of the main reasons why I don''t have perfect memory, or most of my 12 advanced senses and whatevers all the time, is because it''s pretty damaging to my brain and mental health. I feel like I''m going insane or something when I can see everywhere, the past, the future, the 4th dimension, the astral plane, and the strange otherworldly places around me all at once. I can comprehend all of it, but it still gives me a lot of worries for some reason.


    Whilst I was still deep in thought, Zeira landed on me and proceeded to put her hands on her hips.


    "May you give Zeira some time, Vixenn?! I have but one really important question for ya!"


    "What might you ask, little one?"


    "Geh..! Don''t speak like that, please. It makes me feel embarrassment..! Ahem ahem. Anyways. A-as a female vampire, or as someone like you, whenever you''re on that t-time of the month, do you just use all of that blood to do your strange blood magic thingamajigs?"


    I knew a bug like her wouldn''t be able to ask authentic questions. I don''t even bleed from those types of things, even when I was weaker. After all, I did have my regenerative abilities since I was born.


    "Dumb question, little bug. Don''t you dare ask me such stupid questions ever again."


    Tahgweiy then put down the food she was eating, and spoke to defend Zeira.


    "Fufufu! Don''t be so serious, Rireith! I was just wondering the same thing as well!"


    "You should knew then, that I don''t just bleed like that. If that does happen somehow, I won''t use that blood to do Blood Magic, obviously."


    "Kah-kah-kah! You still fell for it and answered the question!"


    Sigh... What annoyances. I can''t concentrate like this. These guys are being a bit of a problem, and the blizzards around us doesn''t help either. I made a ton of conclusions, but that particular one about the Blood God''s place of resurrection seems to be the most accurate and most likely one. I used the mathematics of this world, which was quite similar to Earth''s, to solve that problem. The "Advanced Problem-Solving Procedures" were taught to people in schools, and it''s meant to be used for situations like that, so I figured I might as well just use it since I can do it easily in this mode, and I''m really glad I did. The only problem now is how we''ll get back on Earth, since we''ll have to go back to the Demon Realm for sure.


    I''ll leave those problems later. We must find a way out of this place without freezing to death just like Liand. After making more calculations and casting some spells, I managed to get a view of a possible escape.


    There was a temple not too far away from us, and it seems like getting there won''t be too difficult. I can sense some Bloodlust there as well, but it''s pretty faint and it doesn''t look like anything actually dangerous is around us. Along the way, we talked about why this place was orange, and we figured that it might be because of the Bloodlust Forest, colouring the ice and snow red, but somehow it all turned orange.


    After we arrived at the temple, we immediately began searching around for something that might help us get out of this place. I think I saw a hidden pathway leading outside of this frozen area, but whenever I try to look again, I see nothing. We looked around for a while, until everyone got tired, so we took a rest inside the abandoned temple. The temple worshipped the "God of Peace and Harmony", also known as the god "Clyauyzyth". There weren''t anything that caught my eye, except for the many religious items placed around the temple.


    "Whilst we''re still resting here, why don''t we talk about something interesting, alright? Tahgweiy, all of your books were destroyed in that volcanic eruption, right? How''re you gonna spread the tale of the great White now?"


    "Hmmm... I heard there''s a magical device called the ''Telecommunicator Device'' that lets you say anything to people telepathically. It''s rumored that the Demons are in possession of it, but nonetheless, I''ll try my best to find it and tell everyone about my story!"


    The Telecommunicator Device? Her explanation seemed a bit too simple, but I think I know of a similar device that had the same functions. The Demons used it back in the 9th Polar Heaven, inside that huge chamber in the Magical Scientific Research facilities.


    "Tell me more about that device."


    "Huh? Uuuu! It''s rare to find you asking me for more!"


    "Don''t say it like that, okay..? But yeah, I need to know about this Telecommunicator Device thing. Whilst I was in the Demon Realm, the Demon Lord personally used a similar device to tell me, and possibly everyone in Cvvoer that they would all be destroyed in 20 years starting from that time."


    "Telecommunicator Device huh..? I''ve only heard about it a long time ago, it''s obvious that the Demons were constructing many superweapons with the help of their allies from Earth, one of them was the Telecommunicator Device. It was said that this superweapon uses a specific form of magic and amplifies it to spread it into every consciousnesses, or souls, that it can get to. It''s not particularly a dangerous device, but with one specific spell, it''d be possible to kill everyone on this planet..."


    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    That''s terrifying! But I see how it can be used now. Rabbit told me about a man from the Great Catastrophe, and he was not an ordinary man, he had a unique ability that allowed him to be able to control the minds of others, psychologically, physically, and magically. He was one of the most horrifying figures back in the Great Catastrophe just right behind Frillet Tofan, the hero. With only a simple command, or order, all that heard him would obey without even knowing it. Rabbit told me that had the "Mind Control" ability. But then something more dangerous arrived to defeat him, despite his extremely powerful ability. No one knew who defeated him, some even think that he just got old and passed away undefeated.


    "Yeah. There was a ability called ''Mind Control'' that lets the user control every mind that can hear their orders. You participated in the Great Catastrophe, or the Great Apostasy, right? Maybe you''ve heard of the user of this ability before."


    "Ummm... While it is true that I was around during the Great Apostasy, I''ve never heard of such an ability before... But maybe you''re right, that kind of ability would be needed for the Telecommunicator Device to be put into effective use."


    How strange. Tahgweiy, or the Tale of the Great White, is a really important figure in the Great Catastrophe. For her to not even know of the ability itself... She''s also an agent of the Baphomet, they should know something about such a game-changing ability. Rabbit didn''t tell me the name of the user, so I''ll have to find it out, maybe I''ll get even more clues if I do that. There''s also a possibility that the user was just like Liand. When the spirits who have taken a liking to them goes away, their entire concept and existence goes away as well.


    Whilst we were resting, I managed to figure out more things while I was still deep in concentration. The reason why Liand disappeared to everyone wasn''t just because of the spirits leaving his body. I dug more into my brain, and found out that when I was still much more younger, in my hometown, Priln¨°set, my friend, Zen Swytmnyt, had a disease that was very similar to Liand''s case. The disease was called "Fairful Bite", it destroyed the victim''s body by eating away their vital organs. It''s mostly fatal, but there have been some who''ve lived to tell the tale. Before, I wasn''t so sure she actually had that, but now that I have all these abilities, it''s certain now; she was in the 1st stages of the disease. No one thought much of it, and I never received much letters from my hometown, so I never knew until now.


    Fairful Bite and that strange field that surrounded Fiya, Yeshua, and Liand, are pretty much the same. They eat the victim internally, leaving them out of the real world. The disease itself is pretty normal, like those deadly diseases on this planet. But the survivors suffered the same abnormal things; loss of presence and 3rd dimensional existence. Yeshua, and Fiya... They have probably experienced the same thing Liand experienced back in the salt mines already.


    Since Zen was suffering the earlier stages of the disease that time, not much happened to her except for a little headache. After I left the town, she must''ve passed away, at least in the eyes of everyone but me. If they all didn''t want me to be sad, then there''s no way that they''d tell me about her after I just left. Even I''d get depressed if I was told that she has just fallen victim to such a deadly disease. But now I know, instead of becoming lifeless, Zen entered the stage where she no longer existed in most people''s eyes.


    Well. There''re still some chances that she actually didn''t make it, but it''s more likely that she''s still alive, and if she is, then I''m sure Zen has been following us all this time, along with Liand... She must''ve been the one who took Liand''s arm. I''m not sure what happened, but it''s not a stretch to say that they got into an argument around the time I was throwing utensils, and began fighting each other, leading to them getting split up. It makes the most sense because Zen and Liand would be the only ones left without getting teleported or anything. Zen must''ve wanted to meet me for help, just like Liand. But I''m not really sure if Zen will need me alive to help her though...


    We''re still heading for the Temporal Spatial Pyramids while trying to find the Demon Lord''s castle. We shouldn''t waste any more time in here, even if someone familiar is around. I don''t think we''d need Zen for this journey.


    Suddenly, I realized something about my abilities while looking down at the snow... There were ants on the ground!


    "Woah..! I didn''t know that white ants existed in this world!"


    "Well. Now you know. They''re called the freezing ants, or the exploding ants. Cool thing about them; once they find anything with folate, they convert it into gunpowder and blow it up, warming the place and calling out the rest of their guys!"


    Yes. I was right. My spells, [Drone Prop Attack] and [Heaven''s Model], are spells Manta took from these ants! I''m not sure how they did it, but they did. It''s much more powerful than what these ants can do, but it''s still the same abilities. Also, since these ants are here, then that must mean that we''re in the northern regions now. Manta also told me about angels who come down on these types of places, causing a tear in reality. The ants must''ve gotten these abilities because of those angels a long time ago. But if I''m lucky, I might be able to find the hole that Manta was talking about. It was really small last time we talked, but now, how big will it be?


    I got up from the temple after taking a few items with me. Zeira followed while Tahgweiy stayed behind, telling me that she had something to do before catching up. We looked around, and soon enough, we found a mysterious individual.


    Walking out from behind a huge ice spike was a woman with a psychotic smile, wearing baggy pants for martial arts, and a tight, black, long-sleeved shirt under a loose-fitting white T-shirt. She had short dark hair, and was holding a knife stained with blood. Without a doubt, it was Zen Swytmnyt, the person who taught me most of my fighting techniques. She might be strong, and skillful, but I''m still overwhelmingly stronger than her.


    "You met him before his death, didn''tcha? Surprised to see you see me, Vixen Corr..."


    Both Zeira and Tahgweiy couldn''t see her, or even sense her in any way. Thanks to my senses though, I''m able to see and hear her. I''m also currently in my full health, mentally and physically. There''s no way I''d lose, if she tries to attack me. Why would she even attack me? I''m assuming that she and Liand got into an argument and fought each other. The winner is obvious, but why did they fight? What ard they trying to accomplish here?


    "I''m sorry, old friend. But the reason why I''ve lived is because of the Demons. They told me you were a massive threat to both mankind and demonkind, so I''m only doing what''s right for everyone here."


    "Why? Who told you? I can defeat you within mere seconds. This is not a threat, this is a warning. Don''t make me do this, Zen Switamen."


    "You think so..? I didn''t just come here without a plan. I didn''t follow you from that mountain, only Liand did. It was no coincidence you guys got caught up in this winter hell. Did you really think I''d even lay my hands on such filth?"


    Huh? What is she talking about? She knew about us, and where we were going? Who the hell told her? Demons? Have they figured me out already? This is bad...


    In an instant, snow blew up from where Zen was standing at, and then she appeared in front of me with her knife over her shoulder, prepared to strike me with powerful force. I jumped back to avoid the attack, but she already predicted it and dashed behind me, throwing another attack, forcing me to jump again. She followed up with more slashes but I managed to avoid all of them, as they were too slow to even do damage to me. But what she was aiming for wasn''t me. She was luring me to her trap, which was actually the hole the angels made in the past.


    I immediately took the situation seriously by grabbing her neck. The wormhole would lead into another place, far away from here, where plants and greenery are present. My body can still get cut up by that medium-sized hole though, since it''s not big enough for me to fit through. Was that her plan? Shoving me into a portal in an attempt to hopefully destroy me? As I looked back at her, I saw her eyes filled with victory, and I could sense her Bloodlust slowly disappearing.


    She stabbed my arm multiple times before kicking me with both of her legs, throwing me towards the hole.


    The next thing I knew, I was facing the skies, where cold and snowy winds were blowing harshly. I felt my enormous supply of Magical Energy rapidly decrease until almost nothing remained. Under me was the bare ground, it was without snow or anything in particular. It was difficult to find or even move half of my body. Most of my senses have shut down. But with all the strength I still had, I managed to keep my eyes opened, just so I could see a glimpse of my body with the upper part gone, from my left shoulder, down to my right elbow.


    Am I just the upper part now? My arms have been scattered around the place, and my blood is still running out of my body.


    Was that quantum entanglement?


    Anyways. Enough random nonsensical calculations. At this rate, I might actually die.

 Chapter 41: Unbetrayal.

    Before all of my bodily functions completely stopped working, I began focusing on trying to survive, even when I''ve been torn apart, and even when my source of Magical Energy has been cut in half, causing a leakage of Mana.


    Imitating everything useful for survival, and casting every spell for healing didn''t work, my life only continued disappearing every millisecond, until my time for thinking became 1 second long, indicating that another 1 of my 12 senses is no longer working. Losing 1 more function and ability every second meant my death was coming very quickly. My heart, and most of my vital organs are dead already. I still didn''t give up however, because if I did, then I won''t be able to meet everyone again. It''s all going to waste though. Everything was going down for me. I knew that I wasn''t the main character, or the protagonist of this story. Life isn''t like fairy tales. This life was good. But I had a ton of regrets.


    While waiting for my death, I suddenly heard a couple voices getting louder along with the sounds of many footsteps. Has god came down for me? Was my prayers heard? I could feel my body more and more as the voices grew louder after the footsteps couldn''t be heard anymore.


    "Q?!_k! we !?n sti?+ ?!+& !er, al!?+ !&+! h!? f!?&!&!"


    I could barely make out what they were saying. But it seems like a group of people has appeared to save me. It doesn''t look coincidental though. They''re well-organized and were riding horses to get here. Did they follow Zen and Liand? Who are they, and why are they here?


    The group continued to help me survive with the best of their abilities until I finally managed to get my heart beating again. My heart died from shock, and from the sudden attack that hit my body. I needed it for blood production. But I couldn''t get enough time to heal before it died. Now that It''s back and beating, I can produce as much blood as I can, and reconnect my entire body, seeing that they''ve fallen not too far away from me. I can''t be too hasty though, or else I''ll lose all of my Magical Energy, preventing effective blood manipulation. The first thing I did was slowly get my lower body back, so I could stand. The group stepped back in surprise, yelling at me before drawing out their weapons.


    "I-It''s actually alive!?"


    "Stay back! It might be dangerous! Who knows what those guys''ve been hiding from us..! Something that can kill even the Great White is something that we won''t have a chance of hurting..!"


    "Oh god! Why''d they even sent us out here?! To die!? Count me out, p-please!!"


    One of the people from the group ran away from the rest. It appears that these guys''re knights, and their leader is the one riding a horse.


    The most obvious things I first noticed once I fully recovered my eyesight, was that the entire place has been cut in a diagonal line, from the ground, to the ice spikes, to the frozen trees, and to the skies. Zen Swytmnyt was also laying on the ground, decapitated. Her blood was everywhere. But I didn''t have time for all these things right now, so I manually reattached my arms before running towards the temple.


    The knights tried to stop me, so I swung [Foe Reducer] at one of them. Seeing them avoid my attack, I was surprised by my weakness. My body has never felt this heavy before. I guess that attack from earlier really took out a lot of my strength. I can''t use Magic now or else I''ll die, so I''ll just have to rely on the weapons that Veno gave me. All of the swords inside my limbs were thankfully left undamaged, except for the sword on my upper right arm, which was split in half. The knight that I tried to attack earlier has put up a defensive stance. But nothing can deflect or block [Foe Reducer], since it has an enchantment that rots anything it touches.


    "Everyone, halt!"


    The knight in front of me looked at their leader before stopping the fight. It seems like everyone here follows orders without any complaints. All of the knights were wearing white armour, so they must be Holy Knights. Did they come here to arrest me? Did they find out about my Blood Magic? I almost forgot that they can''t see Zen and Liand, they don''t even know of their existence, so they must''ve been sent here for either, Tahgweiy, or me. They said something about Tahgweiy, or the Great White, getting killed, so Tahgweiy must''ve been hit by that attack as well. Seeing that they''re here now...


    Did Tahgweiy really die?!! I don''t have time to waste, I must go to her right now.


    "Submachine gun Imitation."


    I imitated a submachine gun and began shooting down the knights. They didn''t expect to see a half-dead woman reattach herself limb by limb before gunning them down with an invisible submachine gun, right? I was wrong, somehow. Their leader pulled out a pistol to shoot me up, but I managed to react quickly, and avoided the attack by jumping to the back of a nearby tree.


    Around 4 knights have been defeated, but there are still a lot remaining. I think there''re 50 knights here, including the fallen ones, and some of them are already approaching me.


    "F-fuck! I won''t forgive you for killing Hander!!"


    One of the knights yelled out loud, giving me their precise location, which was just right behind me. I spun around and sliced them up along with the tree. Blood sprayed around, surprising the knights long enough for me to imitate a rocket launcher, blasting more of them to hell.


    Their leader was carrying a shield with a red flower symbol, which meant that these guys must be the holy knights of Foielrhyy, from somewhere around this continent. I don''t know why they''re here, but it''s either me, or them.


    Suddenly, one of the knights opened their helmet, revealing another familiar face. She had long purple hair, indicating that she was another person I knew long ago. It wasn''t Heart, obviously, it was Clar Fich. The actual Clar Fich from the school I went to before the war between humans and demons started. She has grown older. We''re probably the same age now. But all of them are definitely not even equal to a quarter of my strength, if I didn''t get hit by that attack.


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Still... What''s she doing here? What''s Zen doing here? What''s everyone doing here!? Why is Liand dead? Is Tahgweiy still alive? What happened to Zeira? Who actually are these guys?! I need to get out, and save Tahgweiy before it all repeats again. I''ll lose everyone, and then I''ll lose everything after achieving more again. Why does everything keep on repeating itself? It''s happening again, just like those times, when I split up with the rest of the new heroes, and when we got attacked by the Baphomet.


    "V-Vixen! It is I, Clar Fich! Please come back to us! W-we mean no harm! Trust me, I''m your friend from many years ago!"


    She''s right. But hasn''t Fin also warned me about her? She and Yuqo Zin aren''t supposed to be trusted. There''s still a possibility that they''re worshippers of the Blood God. Though, looking at her eyes, I can for sure say that she''s not lying either. I can''t even sense Bloodlust from her. Who should I trust now? The Holy Knights from the Holy Kingdom of Foielrhyy, or Fin and the rest of my old allies?


    Causing more meaningless bloodshed wouldn''t be the best option, so I put down my guard and gave up the fight. Everyone in the area calmed down after a while. The leader came up to me once I sat down to rest, whilst still covered with the blood of his allies, along with a bit of Zen''s, and my own blood.


    "Greetings, Vixen. I apologize for such a rude and sudden introduction. I''m glad you''ve calmed down, even with the news that the Great White has unfortunately died."


    "Sigh... So she actually did get hit huh? But no way that that attack would instantly defeat her. I''m sure you guys know a lot about her already."


    She''s a well-known figure. Most people would know of her, especially Holy Knights. The way their leader spoke to me tells me that they aren''t actually here to attack us or anything. There''s also this strange field of Magical Energy surrounding their leader. It''s not like Yeshua''s, Liand''s, or Fiya''s, it''s something else entirely. It must be an identity-hiding spell or something similar. I can''t see what''s under that helmet, but I can assume that their leader is a man, despite having a bit of a feminine voice.


    "Call me Iraya, but it''s spelled ''Jirania'', just so you know. I''m the leader of the Holy Knights of Foielrhyy. Again, I apologize on behalf of my men, including Clar, for disturbing you out of nowhere. We were sent here by the King personally, to stop an anomaly from becoming a potentially world-ending threat, but it seems that we were too late. Someone, or something out of our control managed to get to it in time, causing another Anti-physical rip in the universe."


    An Anti-physical rip? I could sense something familiar exploding from behind me before I was sliced into three parts. I guess you could say that it was quite similar to the Anti-physical slash that I used on the Baphomet. But mine required a ton of conditions to be fulfilled and many more spells and imitations to be used and casted. The slash that came out of that wormhole was near-instant, and didn''t need anything to go out.


    I had a lot of calculations in my head, so I managed to kind of solve it whilst I was near-death; the wormhole, or the rip in space caused by the angels who rarely come down on these lands connected to a place with greeny, unlike these snowy, and icy forests. It didn''t only connect to one place however. My best guess is that there''s another wormhole in the future, and I, someone, or something, managed to cast the Anti-physical slash, which got into the wormhole, causing the slash to get out through the other end. That hole must''ve been the same as the hole in the future. That phenomenon was similar to quantum entanglement, since despite how far away the hole was in time and space, it still managed to make the slash pass through.


    "For now, let us get to a safer place, far from this winter hell. We''ve recovered the Great White''s body, the other group should be around here somewhere, carrying her to our camp."


    Jirania then led everyone down a trail that the knights took to get here. I could sense heavy Bloodlust everywhere, inside the forests, and outside. Zeira was nearby, hiding between foliages. We couldn''t communicate properly, but with a bit of sign language, she managed to tell me how Tahgweiy was caught up in the attack that cut down everything in a straight line. Tahgweiy was obviously fine. She woke up a bit late, and knights already got her in their camp. She''s safe and sound right now, so I guess we''ll just have to hurry and get back to her.


    I''m not sure how long I was sleeping for. It felt like an eternity before the knights arrived. I must''ve been half-conscious, until my heart began pumping again.


    Along the way, some of the knights got back on their horses, whilst the rest travelled on foot. Most of them didn''t seem to like me, especially that one guy besides Clar. It looks like Clar was the only female knight here. I wonder what''s she doing as a Holy Knight though. She''s more connected to the Blood God, or the Demons than the usual gods. How, and why is she even here?


    "Clar, let me ask you something."


    "H-huh? W-w-what is it!? I''m so sorry for what happened earlier, Vixen! But I hope we can make up, and be friends again even after the whole war and apocalypse thing..."


    "Why are you here? What are you doing here? Do you have anything to do with the Demons? How did you survive when your city was destroyed by the Demons in the war?"


    "T-that''s a ton of questions..! But it''s only natural since we''ve been separated for a long time after all... I''ll answer all of them once we''ve arrived at our camp."


    "Sigh... No one has ever stayed long enough with me. Everyone always disappear one way or another. I''m just glad you''re still alive, Clar. What happened to Yuqo? Do you still know Fin?"


    "Haha! Let''s talk more once we get back..! Yuqo''s still alive, don''t worry. I''m not sure what happened to Fin, but I still remember him!"


    It was good to know that everything''s still fine for her. I''m worried about everyone from my hometown, because of this whole apocalypse thingy. A lot has already happened. Fin, Sting and Frelhr are gone deep in the Demon Realm, while Manta has been possessed by the Demon Lord, or the Hammerhead Demon. Rayan, Crowler, Lare, Feradon, Rintan, Cantaloupe, Fone, and Den, are all scattered everywhere in Cvvoer, whilst Liand and Zen passed away in the same place. Heart and Fiya are both dead, with a slight chance of getting revived, since the Baphomet still has their bodies. Cat, and Sundown Lighter, presumably close friends of Tahgweiy, are both dead because of me. I wish to atone for my sins by helping out the Baphomet, and Tahgweiy, but things are somehow still getting worse. Something similar to my Anti-physical slash has been unleashed, probably causing another split in the universe.


    I hope the gods don''t come down personally because of all this.


    Once we got to the Holy Knights'' camp, I rejoiced upon seeing Tahgweiy in a good condition. There was a huge wound going from her ear to her other ear, along with a ton of blood smeared on her uniform. But in the end, it looks like she hasn''t suffered anything serious. Her brain has been cut in half, I can tell, but despite that, she''s still fine somehow.


    "R-Rireith!!!"


    "Tahgweiy!!"


    We jumped into each other''s arms, and stayed in one position for a couple minutes before stepping back into seriousness.


    Clar, Jirania, and two other knights, Quick, and Pure, followed us to a specific tent where Tahgweiy was in. Everyone was quite surprised by our reactions to meeting each other again. Jirania left us all in the tent, stating that he had to go talk with his men. Clar, Quick, and Pure, were assigned as our bodyguards, so that there will be less conflict and confusion with the rest of the knights.


    We had a bit of an awkward situation afterwards, as everyone just roamed around the place doing whatever, and not really talking to each other. Zeira was hiding behind a crate, whilst Tahgweiy and I talked about some nonsense. Zeira told me she couldn''t reveal herself to the Holy Knights, because she''s a well-known troublemaker, and is despised by most people around this place. I guess she''s really just a fly who likes travelling around the continent. How long has she been living anyways? She has never answered that question whenever I asked her about it.

 Chapter 42: Hidden Pyramids of Dragonland and the Origins of the Abstract Sphere.

    Tahgweiy, Zeira, and I resumed our journey to the north, but now with the Holy Knights of Foielrhyy. Jirania told us that they were sent here to do the opposite of what Zen was trying to do. But needless to say, they''ve failed and now 20% of my strength is gone. One of my enchanted swords became unusable before I even had a chance to use it, but I managed to fortunately repair the rest of my equipment. Tahgweiy was also weakened because of that attack, but she''s still really powerful, so it wasn''t that serious. She just got knocked out, and then the knights carried her to their camp to wake her up.


    Zeira was still hidden from the knights. She, as a fairy, had quite the convenient things for concealing herself, and hiding away from the human eye. Though, conversation would be difficult now that she can''t reveal herself mindlessly.


    A few days went by, and we were all still travelling together. Jirania had us go through many forests and places with harsh terrain, as they have agreed to help us get to the Temporal Spatial Pyramids at the north. One of their messengers have been sent out to Foielrhyy, to tell the king the truth of what happened. Despite failing their mission and causing a massive disaster, there won''t be any punishments for the Holy Knights for some reason.


    On one of our walks inside a forest, Quick found a clearing, so we all went there to stop for a rest.


    "Sigh... When''s the Blood God even coming? I''m tired of being scared, waiting for them to arrive."


    "Don''t say that... What if they came back suddenly right now?!"


    Clar appeared to talk to me as I was standing behind a tree murmuring to myself. It was an attempt to maintain and regain control over my 12 senses, after they were all instantaneously shut down. I had to heal myself, and my brain from that sudden attack, you know?


    "By the way, what are you doing here, Vixen?"


    "Clar? It''s been a long time since we''ve last talked to each other like this. How''s things going for ya?"


    "Fine fine... That Shark-Girl calls you- uhh... Rireith- Lilith, right? How''d you get that name? Vice-captain told me that you were the abstract circle or something... What does all of that mean, haha?"


    The Abstract Circle? The Abstract Sphere?


    Is she talking about my title as Crynosphere? I''m not sure what it actually means, but Veno told me it meant "Compact Sphere" or "Abstract Circle." Tahgweiy calls me Lilith too, but I don''t really know why, I don''t even know what that word means. It must have some connections to the Baphomet, or her group.


    "Hmmm... The Abstract Sphere is my title. My master told me that I was the most vampire a vampire can be, so he gave me this title, or rather, Tahgweiy did. Well. Want to hear more about it?"


    "Eh? That made no sense. Tell me more!"


    During the days before Cvvoer was even made, it was said that the Demon Realm also began to fall into damnation. The rise of Cvvoer and the fall of the Demon Realm took place at the same time. It was no coincidence. The "Garden of Eden", situated somewhere at the surface of the Demon Realm, was one of the last places to be destroyed. The main attraction of that place was the Apple of Knowledge, which grew on a tree at the garden. It was known to give one knowledge of all that exists and does not exist. Basically, it was the fruit that gives all the knowledge of everything in the macrocosm.


    Tahgweiy passed on this title to me, and said it to Veno before he sent me to his home. Veno, during my training days, explained to me the concept of the Abstract Circle/Sphere, and the Apple of Knowledge. Since the moment I almost gained complete omniscience, I became worthy of this title, as I have nearly achieved the effects of the Abstract Sphere, or the Apple of Knowledge. I became "Crynosphere", as I have become a being that has almost acquired the effects of the Abstract Sphere.


    The true meaning of life lies within our flesh, and our souls, so as a consequence of learning it first to combat the Baphomet that time, I became a Vampire.


    "Then call my master or something. Tahgweiy probably knows something about it, so you can ask her as well. Phones are common nowadays, right?"


    "Bruh... Why can''t you just say it?!"


    "Too long. ...Also, what did you-"


    Suddenly, one of the knights yelled out to us, calling everyone back to the clearing.


    I thought people in this world had a language completely different from Earth, but what did she just say earlier? Was that a translation error made by my senses? That slash really did damage my senses, huh? I don''t actually know the language they use in Cvvoer, because it has always been translated into English since I was born. There''re subtitles near the bottom of [Blood Panel], but it''s automatically translated by my eyes, so it''s kind of useless for language stuff.


    We all went to the knight that yelled out loud. He claimed to have found a secret passage leading into the ground. But it looks like it was just a hole dug for burying a body. There weren''t any bodies around though, so we all thought that maybe the body turned into a monster because of the Bloodlust Forest.


    Jirania felt something odd however, so he ordered one of the knights to dig further into the hole, and surprise, we discovered an entrance leading deep into some kind of underground facility.


    "What''s that? Captain?"


    "Hey! Let me see!"


    "Careful! The ground may loosen. Step back from the hole!"


    Quick threw a rope down the hole, but we never heard it hit the floor, even though the rope was really long. Nonetheless, Jirania commanded one of the knights to go down there. After a bit of hesitating, the knight finally went down. He mumbled something not good about his captain before doing that. But it seems like noone wants to go against Jirania. He must be really powerful huh? Not as powerful as me though!


    The knight safely reached the bottom and told us to follow in as well. One by one, we managed to set foot on to the unknown labyrinth that we eventually came to know as "Futhol Messy", an underground passageway supposedly leading to a nearby town. Though, I can''t seem to sense any nearby Bloodlust asides from everyone''s here, so I assume that we''re the only creatures in this place right now.


    It was a confusing place, the darkness didn''t help us either. All we had was torches and light magic spells to navigate through this maze. The structure was old, meaning that this place hasn''t been used for a long time. There''s also this strange smell, I''m not really sure what it is.


    We carefully walked around, checking for traps in case this place was a dungeon. Even after many hours later, we still haven''t run into anything dangerous, but we realized that we''ve lost our way back to the entrance now. Some of the knights panicked, some ran away, and some went mad. Well. It must be because of the Bloodlust Forest, normal humans like them are naturally weak against the effects. They''re lucky to still be in one piece up until this moment. I wonder if it''s because Jirania isn''t taking much of the negative effects, that the knights took him as their leader.The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    For 4 days, we wandered the labyrinth with the little food we had. Me and Tahgweiy didn''t need it, so of course we were still fine, not sure about the others however.


    Using my 12 senses and [Blood Panel] again, I figured that we were in an underground pyramid. I told the others about it right away, but we still didn''t know what to do about this information. Wherever we are, we''re still inside a mysterious maze. The knights back at the surface have most likely left us, so I guess it''s all up to us now. Did the failure of their mission trigger something in them? I can understand why the knights have become so lazy and ineffective, even if they did manage to get to Zen''s burial site all fine and okay. I imagine them being unusually paranoid, then one of the worst things happens, causing them to lose morale and motivation.


    "Shit..! Where the hell are we?!"


    "W-we''re inside an underground pyramid, Ley... Perhaps the curse has gotten hold of you too? You can rest, you know? Just ask."


    Clar calmed down one of the knights, and the knight then asked for us to stop our movement and rest for a while. We agreed, since there weren''t any reason to say no. I''m not really in a hurry to the Temporal Spatial Pyramids and whatever. I suppose this is fine.


    "Captain... We''ve lost 5 men down here... We also lost 10 men when we first met Crynosphere. What shall we do now?"


    "Resting will be necessary. This mission''s a tough one for you guys, huh? Remember, we were sent to investigate and stop the world-ending threats, such as the Abyssal Magic Release, and the Potential Place of Rebirth for the Blood God. Crynosphere and the Great White will be powerful assets to help us in accomplishing our mission, since they seem to have the same goals in mind."


    "But Captain! Why do you trust these guys so much? We''ve lost most of our men because of Crynosphere... We''ve only met them for like a few days and you instantly accepted them into the Holy Knights group! Vampires are sinful creatures, same goes for the shark here!"


    Yeah. Why does HE trust us so much? Also, I feel a familiar presence around Jirania... But maybe it''s just my imagination. There''s a lizard sticking on the ceiling, just right above him, so maybe that''s what it is? I dunno but, perhaps it was just coincidentally following us around.


    "Eh? What''d I do?"


    Tahgweiy asked, with no response.


    "We mustn''t get so worked up, especially in this place, Pure. You''re speaking harshly of Crynosphere and the Great White right in front of their very eyes. You''re supposed to be their bodyguard, aren''t you? I have a personal reason for it, but it''s none that should bother you all."


    "Sigh... Fine. But don''t expect us to work together after this mission. Should you even do things personally? I doubt the king would like this."


    After a while, we were met with a dead end. A giant wall stood before us, leaving only the path behind for us to go back to. It was very much of a nuisance so we just began taking down the walls, never minding the labyrinth that was this pyramid.


    A couple of demolishing walls later, we were now at some sort of tomb for the ancients. Though, everyone was kind of confused and demoralized, I realized that the old gods of this place had been dead for centuries, so there wasn''t really anything to fear. The scriptures and writings on the walls told us a bit about the story of this place. Coincidentally, this place was also connected to the Garden of Eden back in the Demon Realm, I think. "Sacred Sanctuary of the Cold Roses" was seen a lot, a number of large sharply rectangular rocks were placed everywhere on this huge chamber with that same exact line carved into them.


    Despite the rocks being roughly 10 times bigger than us, we saw through a hole in one of them and realized that they were all just coffins for the old dragons. These dragons in particular were big, and I mean BIG. It''s a good thing that they''re just bones now, but their presence still lingers around in this cemetery.


    "What is this place supposed to be anyways? It''s creeping me out."


    "Ah. I''ve heard about it before, the ancients were all really powerful, so powerful that they could destroy entire continents if given just a few years. This place is probably a resting place for those guys, made by their slaves and servants."


    "How knowledgeable, Quick. As expected of someone with a poor background. You guys always know useless things."


    "Hey! Not everyone''s as rich as you, Pure. Besides, you guys only know information useful for academics, you ain''t know nothing about the real world."


    "Huh!? What did you say? Everything I know is important and useful, what do YOU know?!"


    I crossed my arms inspecting the big coffin in front of me. I''ve already seen what''s inside of most of the coffins, they''re only filled with dragon bones. Old dragons were basically dinos, huh? I can see why they''re so big and strong.


    The most notable thing in this place for me were the writings that said "Free thyself from the cattywampus world that is handiworked by thee, for art thou divine. Thy answer shall be reckoned in the land of wonders, there lies the tree that bears the fruit of knowledge. Trust the little white bunny, and you will reach it, snake." I didn''t really know what it meant, but I guess it must be really important, since it does mention a fruit of knowledge, pretty much like the Apple of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. The "Land of Wonders" must be the Demon Realm. But who''s the little white bunny and who''s the snake? Was this a message for someone else?


    Someone else... Snake... Tsuchinoko?


    Come to think of it, I''ve been smelling alcohol and booze this entire time, but where is it even coming from? I can''t find anything but rocks and bones in this place, there''s not a single trace of alcohol anywhere.


    "Sniff sniff. Yo Rireith, the bones smell like alcohol! Wanna bite them down? I''ve been craving something yummy for a while now..!"


    What useful timing. But if this smell is actually coming from these bones, then they must taste something like alcohol if they were liquidized unless the fluid in their bones are actually the alcohol I''m looking for. Since it''s something important, I guess I''ll have to turn my 12 senses back on, and begin calculations on how to turn them into booze.


    Do sharks even munch on bones? Their teeth must be real sharp and hard to be able to grind bones to dust huh? Or is it just Tahgweiy who eats bones?


    Anyways, using the same way you''d melt metal and stuff like that won''t work, so I guess I''ll just have to chop them down to a million pieces and find the liquid, or actually turn them into liquid. Though, turning bones into liquid will be hard, so I''ll just cremate them instead, and get their ashes. Luckily, Earth to Water spells exist, since this isn''t a science fiction where I overexaggerate things and do some complex explanation on how to liquidize bones.


    The [Hyperborean Culinary Technique] is a technique from the hyperborea. I''ve learned and mastered this in less than a second this by searching through my brain using my 12 senses, and then calculating all my findings with [Blood Panel], thanks to the extensive knowledge Veno put into it. ([Automatic Appraisal] naturally has all of the information it''ll need for appraising and finding things out. It''s basically a quantum computer in the shape of goggles. It can be manipulated and used in many ways too mainly because of the [Automatic Appraisal] thing.) Tahgweiy carried all the bones I needed in front of me, then using this technique, I casted a fire from my hands, the fire was strong it couldn''t be seen by the naked eye, but thanks to [Blood Panel], I could see that the fire was black. The black fire melted the bones, leaving them nothing but pure liquid.


    To explain: the [Hyperborean Culinary Technique] is a technique used by the hyperboreans mainly for cooking their food out in their unusual environment, which is the northern regions. The hyperboreans are people who lives around the Temporal Spatial Pyramids, so they''re always dealing with foreigners who came for the pyramids. They''re kind of like the guardians, but they don''t really care about the pyramids. They just live there. The dragons were the most common creatures to come to their land, and naturally, a war between them started. The [Hyperborean Culinary Technique] is the most effective technique for cooking and eating dragons, but in this case, I''m going to be drinking them, so I''ll have to turn up the heat, or it''ll only become food.


    It was pretty easy to get all of the bone juice into a bowl, and drink them like soup. I shared some with Tahgweiy, and then some with Clar, but it appears that the alcohol was too strong.


    I was right though, these bones had alcohol. Were these reserved for her? Or is this place just Tsuchinoko''s restaurant..? Some tsuchinokos like alcohol don''t they? I didn''t just start a war with her, right..? Uh-oh, I think it''s better to leave now. I''ll take some of the dragon bone soup. But what does Tsuchinoko have to do with the Apple of Knowledge and the Garden of Eden? It''s better if she''s- Oh... If she''s already arrived at the garden... And she sees that there''s no apple...


    The title of the Abstract Sphere has been given to me since I''ve gained near omniscience. If someone''s already taken the apple, then that''d leave me as the only Apple of Knowledge, the Abstract Sphere, Crynosphere.


    She must be searching for me right now. I must leave..! No way I''d stand a chance against one of the Pillars of Creation. I only managed to keep Cricket Cricket away, but next time we meet, I surely won''t be in one piece..!

 Chapter 43: Charlie Foxtrot, Attempt to get Back in Action.

    This place suddenly began shaking. I knew that our time was up, and that Tsuchinoko has arrived. I can sense heavy Bloodlust coming from the surface.


    A strike of lightning then bursts through the ground coming from the ceiling. We managed to run away from the tomb, but we only got to another section of the pyramids, with not much indicating an exit. We stopped to rest whilst the rumbling continued. The Bloodlust I can sense is still getting closer, slowly, but it doesn''t look like anything''s stopping it.


    We ran forwards, into wherever we think is safe. Eventually, we found a tunnel leading outside where light was shining brightly. Walking towards us was a man with intense Bloodlust, much like Tsuchinoko''s, if that was even her back there. This man had red cloth tied to each of his bulging biceps, and one on his head. He was wearing only a pair of shorts, and a face of anger.


    Using a bit of magic, I saw that the person behind us had a powerful golden sword that was so bright that I couldn''t even see it''s holder. For some reason I just can''t figure out their identity, but the man right before us now is a man that everyone should know of. This man was from the old Hero''s Party. His name...


    "Man of Steel... Wirehand Gon... From the Ayutthaya Empire..!"


    Jirania knows him as well. But the Ayutthaya Empire shouldn''t be in Cvvoer. I wonder how he got here. It was said that after the Demon Lord was slain, he left this world and returned to his home, Earth.


    "Leave. I shall handle this monster. It is credible enough that you people did not fight back. I trust that the woman in the swimsuit here will guide you back to where you''ll need to be. But you all still can not win."


    Wirehand walked pass me as I was still staring into the light and said:


    "You know what to do. You crush them and lead us to paradise."


    Though I didn''t fully understand what he said, we all left the pyramids and escaped the monster chasing behind, as Wirehand told us he''d defeat it. Wirehand was a very strong martial artist, they said that he was the embodiment of primal human strength, the Absolute Hunter. Despite being born as but a human of Earth, with no potential for magic, he still beats demons into a bloody pulp, just with his bare hands, feet, and legs. He was the model for my fighting style, the ''Muay Thai'' fighting style, or ''Muay Boran'' actually.


    Outside, the sounds of bombers and fighter jets couldn''t be ignored. A forest in front of the cliff, which held the underground pyramids, was then bombarded with napalm by the same bombers.


    "What''s going on?! What''re those things!?"


    Really, why''re they here? I thought the Southern Sentinel Group were no longer behind us. Are they here for Tahgweiy? How did they even find her, with all the military equipment gone? It''s not a disadvantage, but I''m curious. What is actually happening right now? Are they even the Baphomet''s people, or are they the United States of America''s Air Force?


    "Ah! My guys are here! I sent out a signal using electromagnetic waves. Took them long enough!"


    "Great White, you know... whatever those are? I thought some kind of magical creatures have arrived to attack us. They seem to be on your side, but why are they destroying the forest?"


    More loud explosions fill the air. A strong smell of something burning made us leave the area through a small passageway in the forest, where the fire wasn''t too hot. Some of us wouldn''t have any problems with running into fire, but I''m not sure about the rest of these common knights.


    Jirania led the way, casting protective magic for those incapable of defending themselves from the fires. These fires weren''t just normal fires you''d make with magic or matchsticks by the way, they''re most likely magically amplified napalm, napalm are also already better than your everyday fire. I can''t find a single reason why they''re burning the forest though, despite using all my thinking abilities.


    Once away from danger, we sat down to rest for a while. The forest was quite big, luckily, only one knight fell to the flames, I thought we would get like most of the knights out, but Jirania''s surprisingly good with magic, she managed to protect all of her men, including Clar, from the raging napalm. Perhaps I underestimated her, since I''ve gotten too strong now.


    Whilst we were still catching our breaths, an obviously American Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey landed down on the clearing, many yards away from the forest fires they''ve caused. Surprise and confusion replaced the faces of our native allies, as they have never really seen a military aircraft before. They must think it''s some sort of flying metal behemoth, similar to what Clar thought of the jets and bombers. I wonder what those guys are thinking though, burning an entire forest just to smoke out their target, who are probably just me and Tahgweiy, maybe even Tsuchinoko. She looks really excited and happy to see them however, she must know whoever''s in there prior to this.


    The allied Americans greeted us and welcomed everyone in. The Holy Knights were skeptical at first, but they soon remembered who the Tale of the Great White was, and knew that the Baphomet was always on some strange, unknown, and alien things.


    "Nice to meet ya, Captain Great White. I''m Sergeant Thomas Filn, crew''s really not feelin'' too good right now, be advised."


    "Ay! I was wondering who might it be! Good to know that command''s still got it in them. It''s been so long, Thomas. May the spirits still be with you!"


    The soldiers already sitting here were wearing scarves and goggles. I can tell they''re not in their best behavior. Tahgweiy and Thomas went to have proper reunion, meanwhile, the rest of the Holy Knights tried settling in with the Americans as the aircraft lifted off. The technological difference between us made it look like time travellers came in from the future to get back into the medieval times.


    I could see the dust and flames fill the air outside. Everyone inside was burning as well, but not physically. The Bloodlust Forest, and whatever this whole apocalypse is, is mentally torturing the Earthlings who came here expecting something easier. I feel bad for them, I can see why they wanted to team up with the Baphomet.


    Kio Fraal, one of the members of the Holy Knights, got curious of the American''s military gears. He picked up an automatic rifle, which interested him as it was similar to this world''s semi-automatic rifles. Thomas showed up just in time to get him away from the dangerous weapon.


    "Ah ah ah! Not so fast, primitive. Luren, tell ''em not to go around touchin'' our stuff."


    "Very well, Sergeant."


    Seems like Luren Kasse was their interpreter. He told Kio and the other Holy Knights to keep their hands away from their equipment, especially their weapons.


    "Oops, I''m sorry!"


    We all went towards the North, continuing our journey as Tsuchinoko and Wirehand fought each other back in the underground pyramids, where napalm burnt down everything surrounding the area, preventing escape, if the fires even had any effect on them. I guess it wouldn''t be good if they left heavily weakened from their battle, and succumbed to the smokes, or more likely, the flames.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    After Tahgweiy was done talking about their pasts with Thomas, they went to the middle of the interior of this aircraft, between all the seats, and claimed to have found a pragmatic solution and answer to everyone''s problem.


    "Everyone, I know we may not be on the same level of technology ''n'' such, but we can still help each other out by doing one simple thing!"


    Luren said to everyone the same thing but in Foielrhyy''s language.


    "And what might that simple thing be?"


    "We must- huh? Why y''all got only one single lady on yo team? Captain Great White''s not even on y''all''s side, right? And her assistant here is on Baphomet''s group as well, so why do y''all only have one female?"


    Luren then translated everything that Thomas said.


    "Is that so important right now..? Would you mind telling us why you guys, along with the Great White, cause such unnecessary attacks on the forest, when the enemy isn''t even on the surface? You think something that can bust through the ground like a mole''ll suffocate from measly smoke? Even I can make shields to protect myself from dying! So imagine what that thing can do!"


    Clar was speaking too fast for Luren to catch up, so he just said what he heard.


    "Ummm... She told you to get back on topic."


    "Ahem ahem. Right. As I was sayin'', Captain here sent us electromagnetic signals thanks to her shark abilities and so we managed to find her without problems. Buuut! As we were headin'' to where she was at, a damn stream of lightning passed through from the ground! Do you believe it!? A goddamn horizontal lightning strike! I''ve neva'' even seen one before, like holy guacamole!"


    Do people even say that anymore? I know I''ve been long gone from Earth now, but I''ve never heard anyone say that line, except in TV shows. Even with this advanced and overcomplicated brain I have, I still can''t find where I heard that line before. Was it from cartoons, or from movies? I can''t seem to remember correctly.


    After Luren put it into words that the Holy Knights will understand, Jirania stood up to speak.


    "So- Uh... How should I address you? You haven''t given us your name yet. I''m Jirania, the Captain of the Holy Knights of Foielrhyy. From what you said, lightning was passing through from the ground. I assume you were moving in the air with this... alien contraption. So if you''re correct in what you saw, then something must have came from far away for the sole purpose of meeting up with us at the underground pyramids... But for what reason was it chasing after us? A rather famous individual arrived not long before you burnt down the forests, he''s from the Ayutthaya Empire, you know that right?"


    Luren was surprised, he quickly told Thomas what Jirania said, seemingly nervous about everything that''s currently happening.


    "What?! I told him he ain''t fit for the job no more! That darn old man''s gone senile. His name was Wirehand, yeah? He must''ve followed us, since we''re too visible up ''ere. That lightnin'' probably followed us as well. Man, we really need to start usin'' somethin'' more stealthy!"


    I don''t think those were the only things that followed you... While they were still trying to catch up to us, Zen and Liand probably found us easier thanks to them, while Tsuchinoko and Wirehand arrived later because they were just too far away. They might not be next to us, but you can''t underestimate people''s prediction skills. [Clairvoyance] is the easiest spell to learn, at least for me, and it''s very upgradable.


    Should I blame the American Air Force, or Tahgweiy? She got me sliced up into four pieces because she didn''t stop moving the whole time she was sending off electromagnetic signals for these guys to get us. If only she stood in one place until help arrived, we wouldn''t get attacked by Zen and Tsuchinoko. But then again, saving Zen might be more difficult, and we wouldn''t be able to meet up with the Holy Knights.


    Is all''s well that ends well?


    "Anyways, now that yall''re here, Captain Great White ''n'' your assistant, Vixen Corr, we can resupply ya and send you back to yo mission."


    "Uuuu! Sounds great! I''d like some of my books to spread the tale of the great white around, since they were burnt down before I even handed one out."


    "How''d ya even do that ''nyways? Go get yo stuff here, promise to pay me back after the mission''s over, alright? Also, Vixen, ya gotta letter from one of our guys. Someone ya know?"


    Thomas dropped a bag containing a ton of useful items and supplies. More importantly, there was a letter from Corporal John May. We restocked first before taking the unnecessary stuff. The letter reads: "A river cuts through rock not because of it''s power but because of it''s persistence - James N. Watkins" It was some sort of motivational quote. But why give this to me? I rely on power, and power only. I''m not persistent, and will never be. Perhaps he''s telling me about my opponents who always keep on coming back no matter how many times I get away from them?


    Our communication devices were back, so Tahgweiy no longer needed to send out electromagnetic waves. I''ll have to tell her to inform me next time she does something so ignorant. There are a ton of other creatures and entities that can just find and read electromagnetic waves, some might even send them off like the Shark-People.


    A lizard on the roof caught my eye, as it was the same lizard that I saw back in the underground pyramids. No doubt about it. Did it sneak in? Also, there''re mysterious dust inside the bag. Why''s there strangely familiar dust here? Oh, right. Zeira must''ve slipped into the bag. I was wondering why I never heard of her inside that dark labyrinth. Did she somehow get lost up on the surface, and just went with the allied Americans instead? If so, then why is she hiding again? She should know we''re not enemies with these people, or is it because she knows we''ll meet up again, along with the Holy Knights.


    "Psst! Over here!"


    I looked around as I heard a whisper coming from the back of my head. It seems that she''s actually here, I can sense it.


    "Zeira was suffocating inside the bag, you know? You guys took too long to find me! Can you and Zeira get out, and leave these guys alone..? Please!!"


    No can do. I shook my head. These guys are important people, they didn''t just come here to freeze to their deaths. And telling me to leave the Americans as well... That''s just abandoning our mission. We still haven''t found a way back into the Demon Realm. I thought there''d be a portal in that pyramid, but the possibilities of it having one is close to zero. That place was a graveyard for dragons. Demons could never rest with them, even if they had been bones for over a millennium now.


    Anyways, now that we''ve restocked, resupplied, and fixed ourselves up, we can complete this mission at least 5 times faster now. My Magical Energies were drained, and I was using around 90% of my full power just to remain standing while calculating everything in my head. I''m so grateful that they gave us Magical medicine, potions, and just the right things needed for me to recover completely.


    Thomas picked up an AK-47 to rest it on his shoulder. His gun had a scarf tied to it, attached to the scarf was the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, indicating that he was probably in Afghanistan before coming here.


    "Okay, listen up, everyone! We''re on a mission to take down the demons, guys you people probably hate. We''re all on the same side here, y''know? So what we''re going to do is give ''em hell while the rest of our men fix up whatever they''ve messed up. I know you also went to pick up one of Baphomet''s trusty fellas for your own convenience in this whole clusterfuck. But now that all sides are together to prevent another extinction of the dinosaurs, we, in the rear end of it, have to go and interrupt the bad guys tryin'' to sniff us out. God-damned cowards you hear me?! They''re nothing but rats! We''ll burn ''em to the ground, just like that forest! That thunderbolt I seen probably one of them. Lucky you guys get saved by us, eh?"


    Luren immediately translated Thomas'' words for the Holy Knights. It was clear that we weren''t enemies, since we all had a common ally and a common enemy right now.


    The Baphomet, our friend, and the Demons, our enemy.


    We''ve got a representative of the Holy Knights, and the representative of the Baphomet all in the same boat and at the same time. Jirania''s not just your average Captain of a Holy Knights group, but he''s probably one of the best. Now that I''m feeling much better, I can remember that Foielrhyy was a kingdom strict against non-humans, so it''s common sense that they''d have some sort of anti non-humans. Foielrhyy is similar to Rintan''s kingdom, but basically, they have some of the greatest, and most loyal knights ever. Tahgweiy, or rather, the Tale of the Great White, is also not just another agent of the Baphomet. She''s in 3rd place, 1st is Dog, and 2nd is Cat. Quite a pattern there. Dog, Cat, Shark, then... Who was in 4th spot again?


    Veno told me a bit about Tahgweiy while I was still training with him. Ah, right! In 4th spot was... Sundown Lighter.


    Apparently, I was the one who took the lives of the 2nd, 4th, and 8th, in the list of the best agents/representatives of the Baphomet. I can''t even remember who the 8th one was. It was probably just another assassin that I took out back when I first used [Antares]. I seriously need to apologize, huh...


    But then again, it was all self-defense, wasn''t it?


    As Thomas sat down, he picked up something from the radio. It was a call directly coming from their command center.


    "Shit! It''s become a Charlie Foxtrot! Thomas, where the hell are you right now?! You''re supposed to be butchering them demons, so why on earth are they attacking our main troops!? They''re all on the other side of the planet, and Satan''s unleashed his forces on us! Get your ass to work, now!"


    But we were just discussing our next mission while the demons still didn''t have a single idea about what everyone else was doing, right?


    "Huh? Command..? Awww shucks. Who ratted us out?"

 Chapter 44: Interference from Earth.

    "This is Command, our main unit has been cut down by enemy forces, we''ve requested the Southern Sentinel Group for back up, but they''ve been compromised as well! Captain Backbone is one of the only survivors of her unit, so we ask patiently that you send Captain Great White to us as well."


    "What?! We can''t just hand over our girl like tha''! Besides, she''s the main powerhouse in this chopper righ'' now. If we give ''er to you, a good chance''ll be that we''ll get sho'' down by that lightnin'' mofo."


    The ride went quiet as Thomas argued on and on with their command center. Tahgweiy had received orders to go back to the Baphomet''s main unit, as chaos has happened whilst they were still trying to proceed with their mission of securing the Dragons a safe place. No one knows how and why the Demons figured us out so suddenly. They took precautions and used advanced techniques just for this one mission, yet it was all deemed useless now that they''ve been found. Suspicion arose within the Osprey, as everyone questioned each other, wondering who betrayed us.


    "Vixen Corr will be a good substitute. I promise you. She''s fought Baphomet once, and managed to significantly injure her. Though she might''ve had the help of 2 other powerful monsters, she still did her job."


    "Sigh... Fahn. I''ve already heard about it, it''s barely news. That incident yeas'' ago shocked the entire world, who doesn''t know about it these days? Well, there definitely ain''t much who knows what she looks like, yeah."


    "Good to hear that, Sergeant. Please get here ASAP. Over."


    "Over."


    How flattering! I didn''t know I was that popular after that fight with the Baphomet.


    The flight resumed. As soon as we were far enough from where the pyramids were, a bomber dropped an atomic bomb on the spot. A giant mushroom appeared from where the Dragon''s resting place used to be at. I wonder how much money that caused them. Probably not a problem for guys that have access to another world, right?


    It''s a shame that monsters in this world can survive, or simply brush off intercontinental-ballistic-missiles though.


    We tried to curve, trying to get to the other side of the planet as fast possible, but then lightning struck us from the direction of the mushroom cloud. Fortunately, it only grazed us a a little bit. If we were truly unlucky, that lightning bolt would''ve hit the Osprey right in the center, most likely putting everyone''s life to an end.


    "May!?% mayday!! !?& propellers aren''t working! The ?!!ine''s a failure! We''re go!?! &%!!!! ?!& ?!!&%!!?"


    A few men inside were either unconscious, or have passed away already. One of them, a member of the Holy Knights, had a whole chunk of his body carved away. Fire bursted out from the interior of the Osprey. It didn''t take long for the hull of the aircraft to become a wreck. The Osprey was spinning around, slowly dropping to the ground.


    Everyone was panicking. Screams and shouts were everywhere as we tried to fix the situation. I don''t think I have any spells that could save everyone here right now. And even if I did have, my brain is in a mess, and I can''t get into my full concentration mode, nor can I think straight. So if I, the wisest and the most intelligent here, couldn''t make a single move, what can anyone else do?


    Kaboom!


    The Osprey crashed into an abandoned town. It took some time for me to readjust and stand back up, unharmed. Looking around, I quickly realized that the bodies of my allies, the Holy Knights, and the American soldiers, were all scattered everywhere. Their body parts, and their remains had flown throughout this town, and wherever we were spinning around at. Our aircraft was burning along with our pilots. It''s impossible for them to survive that.


    I held my head as I tried to look for survivors. Tahgweiy shouldn''t be hurt, but her flying away when we were spinning wouldn''t be good.


    "Ummm... P-perhaps you might be looking for cookies? Perhaps?"


    I looked up to see a girl, who''s as tall as my entire leg, asking me if I was looking for cookies. Was she a resident of this town? She had pointy ears and sharp teeth. I tried analyzing her with [Blood Panel], but there were no results. She had short silver white hair, and looked like a kid somewhere around the age of 4. No, wait. She''s probably even younger than that. Or maybe it''s just because I''m tall. I''m taller than the average person because I''m a vampire, so how tall would she really be?


    Everyone around me were still laying down on the ground, either butchered or asleep. I casted some healing magic on them, so they should be fine now, that is, if they somehow survived the crash, and that attack. I don''t know where the rest are, since the bodies here seem to be few, so I assume they fell out during the spinning.


    "Y-you''re Heart, right..? My cr- m-master sent me to find you... I wonder what happened here... I wonder..."


    "Who are you? I''m not Heart, I''m Vixen. Vixen Corr. But I know her, she''s a friend of mine. Heart Cornea, right? She got taken away by the Baphomet long ago. You should''ve known that already."


    This feels familiar. The first time I met Heart Cornea was right after a terrible mess that included having everyone with me being scattered away. It really is happening again, huh? Who''s tormenting me? This all feels like a terribly written book, whose writer wasn''t creative enough, so they had to copy the same events, but in a different place with different characters.


    The girl spoke in a pretty quiet voice. She seemed shy, and was always fidgeting. She said she''s come here for Heart Cornea, but that woman''s been taken away by the crazy Baphomet long ago.


    "Heart Corn..? W- O-o-oh! I''m sorry, I''m sorry!"


    "No need to be sorry. What do you even need her for? And why''d you have to come at such a bad time? My friends are everywhere, literally, and you don''t care. Are you a monster or something?"


    "Ah..! Ahahah..! I''m sorry... I-I was simply ordered to find Heart... I didn''t know I-I had to do more work... I really didn''t..!"


    It''s fine really. I just need to get more focused and find everyone before Tsuchinoko comes to get us. [Clairvoyance] should do the trick. I can already sense Jirania nearby. She''s fine and unharmed, but she appears to be looking around for survivors as well.


    I''ll have to get to her so that we can solve this mess quickly-


    "Wait! Vixen..! I-If you want... You can help us as Heart... The task is very simple, would you like to take it? Would you like to take it!?"


    If it''s that simple, tell me already, you little brat. I don''t want to lose everyone again. Last time it was because that kid, Fone, who led me into a trap set up by Cricket Cricket, Frillet Tofan, Fang, Sundown Lighter, and many more. I won''t let another kid fool me, and lead me into another trap again!A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    "B-basically, you just need to get to my master''s friend, Jacob, and my master s-said that a gate to the 10th Polar Heaven will be created! My master said it!"


    My eyes widened and I immediately stopped what I was doing, which was hurrying over to Jirania. The 10th Polar Heaven?! Finally! Something that has to do with the Demons! The 9th Polar Heaven connected Earth to the Demon Realm, so what might the 10th Polar Heaven be? I''m not sure about the 8 other Polar Heavens, but most of them were probably just gateways from the Demon Realm to another world.


    I''ll gladly take on the job and go over to that guy, Jacob. I just need to meet him, right? And the 10th Polar Heaven will be made. Now, if another Polar Heaven is to be made, it should be in the Demon Realm. I assume that these guys already have a way to get there, and this girl is just their messenger.


    "Fine. But first, I have some things I need to do."


    "Y-yay!! Now then, if you e-excuse me, Vixen..! Oh! I haven''t given you my name yet... I''m T- Hili! Call me Hili! W-we will meet again, in the 10th Polar Heaven, or in Jacob''s house! Farewell, Vixen! Farewell!"


    The girl, Hili, picked up a rock before running off behind a house. I ran after her, but she was nowhere to be seen now. A basket full of cookies was placed on the ground. I didn''t say yes, but I guess I''ll take it.


    I mean, who''d say no?


    I met up with Jirania later, she was just around the streets, trying to resuscitate the corpses desperately. His helmet was gone so I could see his face better. He asked me to help him, but I knew these guys were no more. It''d be rude to try and ask him to stop though, some of these are his men, but they''re gone now. It''s hard to tell who''s who since they''re all just burnt and messed up.


    We managed to find other survivors after a bit of searching. Clar was slightly injured, sitting down inside one of the houses which she crashed into from when the Osprey was spinning about. Quick was heavily injured, along with Luren, both laying on the streets not too far from the aircraft''s crash site. Kio and Thomas were the last ones to be found. They were fine, they said. Tahgweiy was roaming around outside the town, so we all regrouped and decided to get her back into the team.


    Pure unfortunately perished upon impact, and his only remains were an arm with his name on it, a bag of rice, and a fully automatic Glock-40. I took his gun with me as a way to respect him, since soldiers do live their lives by the sword. This was a common way of respecting the dead around here. Basically saying that we''ll take on their lives, and defeat their enemies in their place.


    The rest of his body was never found, and the bag was placed down on his arm as a way of making his grave. We did the same to the rest of the fallen soldiers before checking up on Tahgweiy.


    The main road led us outside the town. Tsuchinoko is probably still alive, but a possibility remains that she thinks we''re all doomed. Well, a lot of our allies got taken away by her, so she is kind of correct. But we shouldn''t underestimate Pillars of Creation. Cricket Cricket survived an attack comparable to an atomic bomb. Or rather, he was hit by it point-blank, and simply walked out unscathed. A stronger attack got Tsuchinoko, but she still managed to throw a spear of lightning a couple hundred thousands of kilometers away.


    "A? Oh, if it isn''t Rireith and her team! Glad you guys came to find me! Over here! Over here!"


    Tahgweiy waved her hand enthusiastically. She stood in between the mountain, a road leading into the thick red mist behind her. Our traumatized soldiers have suffered enough, it''s time for them to see her cute face up close again. Maybe that''ll bring back morale, and fix their mental states.


    She was sending off electromagnetic signals again. I should''ve told her to stop doing that, but surely there shouldn''t be anything bad that can use that to their advantage now right? Besides Tsuchinoko, Zen and Liand, who''re now gone, and many more.


    Jirania ran up to her first, but then a goddamned UAZ-3151 hit her from seemingly out of nowhere. She flew across the road, her armour breaking off as the car spun around to stop behind Tahgweiy. I''m really not sure where that vehicle came from, but it sure got Jirania at around 140 km/h. My best guess is that it came down from the mountain, but how''d they be able to do that in this mist? If they''re using vehicles, then they probably don''t have any magic to see through the mist whilst dodging obstacles along the way.


    Can we not have another one of Earth''s stuff in here? This is supposed to be a fantasy story, a fairy tale, not some weird sci-fi action movie. Why''re there fighter jets and military vehicles in a magical world? This doesn''t make sense at all! Not to mention, Thomas and his team are presumably the only ones left on this side of the planet. The bombers and fighter jets have left already, the last one was after the atomic bomb was dropped. So who are these guys? The Demons? They do have access to Earth, but how''d they find us so quickly? Was it because of Tahgweiy''s electromagnetic signals?! They didn''t need to use such a vehicle, they could''ve arrived through portals or anything other than cars.


    Tahgweiy stood still in surprise, along with everyone in our team. Clar looked irritated for a bit, whilst Quick went up to heal Jirania. He didn''t really get much damage, since he can survive worse attacks, the only problem is his armour breaking. I''m surprised it hasn''t broken off when the Osprey crashed, or in his case, when he fell out of the spinning aircraft.


    Thomas prepared his weapon and aimed at the enemy''s vehicle, Luren did the same thing, but with a different rifle instead of an AK-47. Clar and Kio took out their swords for combat, unbeknownst to them, their enemy probably uses ranged weapons, and not medieval swords, bolt-action rifles, or semi-automatic rifles.


    "Who''re these guys?! I thought Command didn''t wanna send us backups! We''re supposed to be the backups here, so they''re definitely not our allies..!"


    "Yeah, I recognize that sorta car. I haven''t seen it during the war in Afghanistan, but it''s surely some kinda Russian military vehicle."


    "You''re saying that Russia is involved in this too?!"


    The Demons had stuff from Earth on their hands. It''s unlikely that Russia is directly involved in this war, but it''s more likely that they made some trade with the Demons, and gave them some of their supplies, weapons, and vehicles. We''re still not too sure if the Demons are on the U.S.A''s side, or on Russia''s side. If they''ve found out what the Americans are doing, then they''ve probably cut off trading and other relations with them already.


    So this means...


    "It''s still too soon for another Great War, you know?!!"


    "Huh? What are you guys talking about?"


    Clar and the rest of the Holy Knights were oblivious to Earth''s political status. If the Demons¡ªwho were making trades and other sort of things with the U.S.A and Great Britain¡ªsuddenly found out that their greatest enemy¡ªthe Baphomet and her group¡ªhas made a military alliance with those two major nations behind their back to help out another significantly powerful enemy, then it wouldn''t be a stretch for me to say that they had to take another nation from Earth on to their side, causing a war to occur on Earth, even if it''s a smaller, indirect war between the Demons'' allied country, and the Baphomet''s English allies. If that is true, then that would mean that the Demons and the Baphomet has access to the more important parts of Earth, and has already established relations with many countries in there.


    If Russia was one of those countries that the Demons had good relations with, then a war between the Demons'' other allies, including Russia, and the Baphomet''s allies, the U.S.A and Great Britain, wouldn''t be impossible. If ''siding'' with your friend''s traitors meant cutting off ties with these otherworlders and supernatural alien creatures, then the best option would be to help out your buddies and wage war on their enemies as well. Who knows what else the Demons might have in store for you, when they literally have portals to many other worlds besides yours?


    Even if another Cold War happens, losing trade with these aliens would be devastating,


    right?!


    Coming out of the vehicle was a man wearing a Russian officer''s uniform. He held a handgun, aiming it at Tahgweiy as I aimed Pure''s Glock-40 at him.


    Bang!


    The man fired at the air. He then put his gun down before raising his arms up. What was he doing? Surrendering? Why would they suddenly hit Jirania and then surrender on the spot? I couldn''t understand what was going on. Was this a trap?


    "Hold on, Knights and Soldiers. I am 1st Lieutenant Frank Wolv. Currently, me and Sergeant Amalie Soon are on our way to the nearest Infernal Headquarters... I apologize if we caused you harm, but we are in a bit of a hurry right now."


    I could sense Bloodlust coming from the mountains, and from the mist. This was definitely an ambush, but why are they revealing their leader to such danger? I could strike them down right now, since they''re too vulnerable. Maybe they have some sort of plan that would make sudden attack useless?


    "Come on, Lieutenant, they still haven''t dropped down their weapons, perhaps this was a bad idea after all."


    "Nope... I wanted to see her up close... What could the devil want from her..? I need to find the answers, and so... before we go home, let''s crush them to the ground. I can''t see how one little anthill that has already been pissed on could possibly take on a mortar shell afterwards."


    He might think he''s doing well with his little surprise attack, but I can hear clearly everything that he''s saying, even from this far away.


    He had a mischievous smile as he put one arm behind his back whilst smoking a cigarette with his other hand.


    Once he was done smoking, he threw his cigarette down and ordered his not-so-hidden men to attack.


    "Open fire."

 Chapter 45: No More than One.

    Most of the more recent books were practically the same during the time back when I was still alive on Earth. I haven''t read any reincarnation fantasy novels where the Demons establishes relations and alliances with multiple nations from Earth like some kind of aliens who''re trying to take advantage of inferior humans as if they were in a science fiction. So this is all too new for me, and my brain can''t quite catch up to whatever is happening right now.


    Basically, since the U.S and Great Britain has secretly allied with us, the Baphomet''s group or the Southern Sentinel Group¡ªwhich is one of, if not the Demons'' worst enemy at the moment¡ªa conflict between us and the Demons'' side would automatically cause another war to happen on both Earth and Cvvoer. And since the war finally began, nations allied with the Demons must''ve received an ultimatum to help them out in this sudden war. The Demons really are quick with it though, being able to get a Russian military vehicle and then just sending it off to the field in no time. Either they knew about the betrayal already, but were too slow to act directly, or they just found us out and sent in one of the vehicles they currently had at their disposal.


    The Russians must''ve already gave the Demons a ton of their supplies at this point, or else these guys wouldn''t just drive one of their cars down a mountain with the intention to hit one enemy, despite the risk of crashing straight into the ground, losing the vehicle, and possibly lives.


    If I was wrong about the Demons finding us out however, then there shouldn''t be anyone attacking us right now, along with our allies working on the main mission. The mission given to us has failed since we couldn''t get to the Demons in time, but another one has came up, and to redeem ourselves, we must get Tahgweiy to the Southern Sentinel Group''s main unit and regain control to complete the main mission.


    Anyways, enough political thinking and whatevers. I dumped an entire mag on Wolv, but only a few hit him. The recoil was crazy, or maybe it''s just because my hands are still weak from the Osprey crashing. I managed to hit Wolv''s vehicle after Tahgweiy jumped out of the way, my bullets barely catching Amalie unintentionally.


    "Woah, easy there."


    "Shit! Men, open fire! Open fire!"


    Meanwhile, our team,


    "Ambush!! It''s an enemy attack!"


    "Blast ''em to hell! They ain''t our guys!"


    "Eh..? Even I can tell we''re surrounded. Where''re we even supposed to hide? And what am I supposed to do with a sword when they''re up in the mountains?!"


    "Captain, what are we gonna do?!!"


    "Captain, help us!!"


    "Quiet down, we are the Holy Knights of Foielrhyy, we shall not falter against such-"


    The only part where there were no enemies was the road leading back to the town, but we are literally getting gunned down by machine guns and sniper rifles from every direction but the town right now. Jirania managed to put up a Magical Barrier, temporarily saving us from the projectiles, but also preventing us from using our guns as well. The only option we have left now is to retreat into the abandoned town.


    But really, we''re only getting sandwiched by the Demons and Tsuchinoko in this situation.


    Good thing is that Tsuchinoko, despite being a not-so-morally-good snake, doesn''t necessarily side with the Demons, or anyone in particular. She''s not necessarily evil either, but for some reason, she''s currently after us. So should we try to make her fight, or rather, destroy these Demons before she can get us? She''s been chasing after me and Tahgweiy from the other side of the world, so either she''s tired right now, or she actually got defeated by the atomic bomb, and that lightning spear was her last move before passing away. Well, either way, she''s stunned right now, so we must use this to our advantage and prevent ourselves from getting pressed between these two great forces.


    "Fall back, fall back!"


    "Wait, I feel like we''re forgetting something..."


    Oh no! Tahgweiy''s still near the enemy''s vehicle! She dropped to the ground in order to avoid the gunshots, but Jirania ran up to us and casted [Holy Barrier] before Tahgweiy could even get up! She''s strong enough on her own, though. She''s not known as the Great White for no reason, unless she''s still weakened by that Anti-physical slash, which she probably isn''t, right?


    "Vixen, don''t you care about the Great White at all?! I thought she was your friend, why''d you just leave her like that?!"


    As I looked back, I saw Tahgweiy getting stomped by Wolv. Amalie drove their vehicle to crash right into us, breaking down the barrier that Jirania made. Noone got hit because of how spacious the road was, and the car just crashed into a nearby house after Thomas shot it down, possibly injuring the driver.


    Bullets rained down on us as soon as our protection was no more.


    In a split second, I began to think. I pondered, what could I possibly do right now? Bullets, rockets, and other projectiles are heading towards us. I could save myself, or no, I wouldn''t even be scratched by such a weak attack, but for the others here, they would be suffering heavy injuries. Most of my spells are slow, even my more powerful ones, they would take at least a couple seconds to become effective, especially with this brain damage that I got from the Osprey crashing. Not to mention, I still haven''t fully recovered from the Anti-physical slash that hit me point-blank. If I try doing anything, at least two of these guys would be shot down. Most of the people here are just normal humans! I can''t resurrect them once their hearts stop beating, even though I''m a vampire, since biting creatures only turns them into mindless zombies!


    What should I do? What should I do? Time''s running out, and my brain is still melting..! Should I force myself to get back into ''Full Concentration mode?'' Even if I do, I still won''t be fast enough to do anything...


    Well. I don''t have anymore options.


    Upon entering Full Concentration Mode, all 12 of my sense began to function perfectly again. Despite the brain damage, and my instincts telling me not to go into this state, I still managed to find myself inside some sort of 4th dimensional space. I was feeling better, and this mode was working more effectively than all of the other times I used it before. Not only could I see more things, but I could also feel more, and touch more. Now that I can move freely, think instantaneously, and react quickly, I realized just how stupid I was for not going into this form quicker.


    There were some utensils, knives, and other throwables in my vest, so I threw them all towards the enemy soldiers up in the mountains, whilst interrupting their bullets before they could hit my allies. I saw how weak Tahgweiy currently was, and how Wolv tormented her in this nearly frozen time, so I threw my last knife at him and then I continued analyzing things. However, once I slowed down, he simply dodged the knife and aimed his handgun at me. A bullet almost hit me, but I managed to grab it in time, throwing it back to the sender right after. It still missed him though.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    But now, 86% of the enemies on the mountains were no longer able to fight. It only took me 4 minutes to fix this mess up, at the cost of more brain damage and-


    Oh, wait. I remember now. I can heal my brain as well! Using a strange technique, I can function perfectly and perform in complete form again. I forgot how to regenerate lost brain matter and other diseases that quickly grew inside this skull due to my overuse of magic after I got out of my Full Concentration Mode, but going back into Full Concentration Mode solved all those problems instantly, despite previously needing cutting edge precision and skills which were thought to be nigh impossible. I casted [Compact Flower Burn] to create a spear out of my own blood before throwing it at Wolv''s chest. Surprisingly, he swiftly dodged that as well. To get rid of any nuisances, I casted [Drought], bringing the enemy''s loss percentage up to 98%.


    Only Wolv, Amalie, and 4 other soldiers in the mountains survived for now. I wasn''t done yet, so I casted [Compact Flower Burn] to create more spears using my blood, with the intention of ending this as soon as possible.


    "Wait wait wait!! Stop it, Lilith!! I surrender! I give up, I give up!"


    Wolv backed away from Tahgweiy who was laying on the road and knelt down with his hands behind his head. I wanted to throw the spears at him, but I should probably hear him out first. Besides, I don''t think there''re any other reasons left for me to take his life. We could take him as a prisoner, and send him to the Americans, or the Southern Sentinel Group. Doing that will probably get us some cash without needless bloodshed and more fuel for the Blood God''s resurrection.


    "Lilith? Who the foo'' is Lilith? Come out come out wherever you are, Lilith!"


    "Are you referring to Crynosphere? I guess the Great White does call her Lilith as well."


    Tahgweiy rose up holding her back like an old man. It''s obvious she wasn''t that hurt physically, but getting stomped again and again must''ve been humiliating. I wonder how she didn''t even get any scratches though, despite being heavily weakened.


    Luren took out a sniper and began hunting down the last 4 enemy soldiers. Quick went around healing everyone and patching up our wounds, since getting hit was truly unavoidable, even for me, as there also seems to be multiple bullet holes in my body which indicates that I was hit without my knowledge. I''ve already healed myself though, so I''ll just have to take these out of my body. Amalie was still in her car, hiding from us while observing from a distance. She knows how dangerous I am, but she doesn''t know that I''m aware of her surviving the car crash, and Thomas'' emptying 2 mags into her direction.


    "Dang. I should''ve known that someone who took down our general wouldn''t be someone that you can just defeat with ordinary human resources."


    He was still smiling wickedly. His eyes were faced upwards, much like the Baphomet''s, and it disgusted me terribly. I could feel my left eye twitching, trying to hold back from proceeding with throwing the spears at him, but I didn''t let anger get the better of me and took the spears back into my body.


    "Gah..! My back still hurts! I swear I''m not even that old..!"


    Tahgweiy started stretching and doing exercises to relieve her back pain in front of Wolv. She wasn''t physically injured in the slightest, as she was shot multiple times by the enemy but the bullets only deflected off her.


    "You killed General Seidel. Now you''re going to kill us all? I''m simply a man trying to personally get revenge. All of those soldiers you just murdered were all under General as well. You, The Tale of the Great White Shark, or Tagwei, out of all people, should know best about General Seidel."


    "Hm? Who might this General Seidel be? Huhuhu! I only know of Sundials, are you perhaps asking me what time it is? Sorry but, the sun''s not even out right now! And I wouldn''t be out under the sun with my vampire friend, Rireith anyways!"


    Suddenly, I could feel Wolv''s bloodlust growing heavier. I saw Amalie trying to fix their car desperately, as if something was about to happen. I can calculate what''s about to happen right now, and everything I come up with are definitely not good scenarios. One thing is for sure however; their car won''t work. Thomas shot it down, from the wheels to the engine somehow. It can''t possibly work now, even if they use some sort of magic, since it''s literally impossible.


    "So..? Who''s Seidel?"


    "My bad, he''s actually known by you and the rest of your friends as Sundown Lighter. Yes, he''s the one your beloved Lilith killed."


    Tahgweiy stood still for a moment. While it is true that I MAY have caused the death of a few agents of the Baphomet(CAT, Sundown Lighter, and some other insignificant agents whilst taking down the general enemy), the Baphomet and her guys are very neutral, or at least they are supposed to be, so forgiveness is really easy for them. Tahgweiy probably knew about all the people I defeated already, as there''s just no way that an agent of the great Baphomet doesn''t know who has passed away in their group, right?


    "Wha-? Ahahaha! S-stop joking around and die already! Kahaha! Rireith knows how important Lighter is to me! And he even sends me letters every few months! I can tell by the handwriting that it''s him! Thomas, get this guy out already!"


    "What was tha'', Captain Great White? If you wan'' me to dispose of tha'' man, then just wait over there!"


    Phew. I was right. ...I think?


    Who''s sending her letters?! Did Sundown Lighter actually survive [Antares] to the face?! His face was crushed and he almost drowned under ice, in those bloody cursed waters before taking a nuclear bomb, or at least a weaker one, up to his face. So there''s just no way... How could he possibly survive that?!


    Well. I guess I should become friends with him if I ever meet him again since we''re on the same side now. And the friend of a friend is my friend, right? When have I heard that again?


    "Hehehe..! It appears that they''re hiding it from you... Don''t worry, Lilith, the truth is going to be told not long after this. Even if you kill me now, or send me off to prison, you won''t escape your fate. ...May the wonders of the world be kept wonders, until his arrival, until the sabbath."


    "Shut your damn mouth, weirdo. Now now, let''s getchu ass to base!"


    Thomas walked up to Wolv, but then Amalie''s broken car began to function again. She almost ran over Tahgweiy and Thomas. Fortunately, they both got out of the way before anything bad happened. Bad news though, Wolv got up and entered the car through the broken front windows by dropkicking. Our enemies were driving off into the mist, so I quickly casted [Compact Flower Burn] to create more spears, immediately throwing it at them afterwards. One of the spears hit the car, but it barely had any effect other than sticking into the vehicle.


    The most confusing thing here wasn''t how almost every attack I throw at them misses, but rather how their broken down car still managed to work. It doesn''t even seem to slow down as I keep on throwing spears at it, whilst Thomas and Luren fires aggressively at them. Luren isn''t just a translator, but he''s also a sniper. He''s not the best, but he''s still pretty good, yet he somehow misses every single shot despite his target only moving in a straight line.


    What kind of magic are they using to make bullets avoid them? Now I believe that I was actually doing well with Pure''s Glock-40, most of my bullets just slid off his magnetic field or something.


    "Luren, you suck at this!"


    "Shut up, Sergeant! I''m trying my best here..!"


    Annoyed, I casted [Jeopardy-Condemnation], gathering up the blood of all the fallen enemy soldiers, and then using them to create a massive ball of burning hot blood to build electricity for me so that I can use Electromagnetic Magic to catch up to Wolv''s and Amalie''s car.


    "What?! Crynosphere is actually using our enemies'' blood to make a fireball so that she can melt down the remaining bad guys!??"


    You didn''t have to yell it out, Kio, everyone can see clearly.


    "Over relight. Jeopardy-Condemnation. Tokamak Imitation. Nuclear Fusion Imitation."


    Since I didn''t have enough Deuterium, hot plasma, and all three isotopes of hydrogen, I had to create them artificially, starting with the plasma by using my own plasma, heating it up with Blood Magic, moving it really fast, and then mixing it into the ball floating above me. Making nuclear fusion reactors is easier here, but there shouldn''t be anyone other me that can actually perform such a feat without knowledge of the ones from Earth. I then formed a doughnut structure, or simply, I created the Tokamak device using all that blood, then I took all of my enemies'' Deuterium and plasma, whilst also producing them on my own. Now that plasma, Deuterium, Tritium, and the rest were born, I manually began moving them like how the reactors would inside that strange complicated structure. The Tokamak device did the rest of the work, until the 100 million degrees Celsius hot plasma finally created heat energy for me to use against the last two enemies.


    It might be overkill, but these guys really are getting on my nerves.


    Like lightning, I caught up to them, but I realized that not only was there noone driving the car anymore, but Tsuchinoko has also arrived to get us, and the rest of my allies haven''t even realized it yet.


    For me, time has stood frozen.


    The incomprehensible face of my enemy, Tsuchinoko, or whoever it was, has now appeared behind the UAZ-3151, just a few meters away from me.

 Chapter 46: Letting a Dino Taste the Power of a Thousand Suns.

    What?! What just happened?! Why am I suddenly flying around in an unfamiliar environment now!?!


    My confusion is great, but what''s even greater is the lightning bolt chasing after me. It seems like I''ve been knocked at least a few thousand kilometers away from my team, meaning, my enemy at the moment is Tsuchinoko, or whatever this thing is, running up to me. On closer look, it appears that the biological threat was simply running so fast that it looked like a lightning bolt. It''s wearing white loose garments, one covering it''s entire body, leaving only the hands, and one covering it''s long hair. The face of this monster is not visible to me, and ''tis shining so bright I can barely see anything with [Blood Panel] and my spiritual visualization. In other words, I can''t see a single pixel of it''s face, even with my 12 senses and with [Blood Panel]''s abilities. Whenever [Blood Panel] tries to analyze and use [Automatic Appraisal], an error shows up.


    I don''t know what''s happening, but I still have the artificial nuclear power I made earlier, so there''s a good chance that I can catch up to this entity who survived a nuclear bomb, and one of the old Hero''s Party''s members. I can''t quite say they survived, considering the fact they''re still well and lively, but one thing I can say for sure though, it was slowed down for a few hours by Wirehand and that atomic bomb.


    Cvvoer is massively bigger compared to Earth, so you could consider this a Super-Earth. Since it is huge, the size of it''s star also needs to be enormous to give the needed amount of sunlight for life to thrive.


    I''ve harnessed the power of 10 suns, which were only equivalent to 2 stars of this solar system, nonetheless, this power was still enough to burn away my body if I kept holding on to it for but a few minutes. One of the beneficial side effects of having all this energy is that Electromagnetic Magic is now in my hands, so I can use a ton of overpowered spells without doing too much overcomplicated science thingies. The only problem is; my enemy is probably still stronger than me, despite all my efforts to gain heat energy and nuclear power.


    I''m still flying in the air, breaking through the sound barrier at around Mach 5.4, gradually decreasing each nanosecond. The enemy still manages to get to me however, immediately throwing a punch straight into my face. I was blasted further away from my allies, so I regained footing and planted myself into the ground, digging myself deeper until my speed comes to a stop. The lightning strikes me again, but this time with an enchanted golden sword. In an attempt to survive, I dodged the sword instinctively, and good thing I did, because that sword cut up a mountain far away from us, yet the user still doesn''t seem to be a little tired.


    I threw a [Spinning Backfist] at it''s face, but my hand only froze up just inches away from it.


    What am I even fighting? A god?! I''m not sure who it is, but someone as powerful as this must be a very important figure. It''s definitely not Tsuchinoko, since their descriptions are too different from each other, but they both have a tail though. It''s tail, and a pair of wings just came out when I tried to punch it. Still, I don''t know what kind of Dragons back in the Great Catastrophe were moving like lightning, whilst attacking their enemies with an enchanted golden sword.


    It counterattacked with a bunch of slashes, but I somehow managed to avoid all of them, barely, thanks to the nuclear energy still present in my body. Since it didn''t stop it''s assault, I began mine by throwing in a volley of slices using [Foe Reducer]. We were engaged into a fierce clash of blades. It was faster and more experienced than me, but my technique was better, since I''m smarter, and more intelligent.


    Once I saw the slightest change of rhythm, I instantly pulled out Pure''s Glock-40 with my other hand and began spraying the Dragon with bullets, unloading the entire magazine into it''s body as it was caught off guard. Not only was the gun enhanced by my magic so that it became faster, it was also covered in my own blood so my enemy couldn''t detect it using my [Presence Disassociation] spell.


    I successfully got a good hit in, but I fear that it only made the Dragon angrier. It''s rapid assault of slashes has stopped though, so I quickly did my best to cut it up into a trillion pieces. The Dragon was heavily injured, and It''s blood exploded from it''s body like a grenade. Knowing me, you''d probably know what I''d do already with all that blood, yeah? I created another Nuclear fusion reactor with the amount of blood the Dragon spew out.


    "Full Rose. Jeopardy-Condemnation. Tokamak Imitation. Star Imitation. Nuclear fusion Imitation."


    This time, it wasn''t exactly the same type of reactor humans made back on Earth, but rather, it was the literal sun built using this Dragon''s blood, and a bit of my own mixed into it. Now that I''ve gained energy 20 times hotter than the sun, my timer has been shortened, and it shouldn''t take long for me to melt down from the inside, or explode and spread all this heat into my surrounding environment. I know it sounded weird when I said that, but isn''t building nuclear fusion reactors with blood already weird itself? Normally, one shouldn''t be able to make such a thing inside something as simple as a ball of blood, but we''re in a place that defies logic, remember?


    To defeat this absurd monster, I''ll have to use everything I have right now and make sure it doesn''t come back from being crushed into something smaller than an atom. Basically, I have to continue cutting it up while using it''s blood as more fuel, so that I can generate energy to finally destroy the source of it''s magic, and everything it has, physically and spiritually. I was about to make a third nuclear fusion reactor when the Dragon snapped out of it.


    "How foolish. I''ve yet to yield into your simple-minded barrage of wild swinging, but you''re already resorting to self-destruction? Where''s all the chivalry and elegancy in that?"


    It grabbed my scythe and regenerated it''s entire body as it spoke in a menacing tone. It said something about chivalry, but I''m a woman, you see? Well, unless it sees me as my former self, then I suppose I should use a bit of the chivalric code myself, and beat this too-weak-to-be-considered-a-man more gently rather than sending in multiple suns her way.


    In agreement, I stopped all of my nuclear fusion reactors and dropped down all of ''her'' blood into the soil. Nuclear energy still worked within my body, so I slowly got rid of it as well, giving back more lifetime for myself.


    "That''s more like it. Unlike those desperate souls, you, alone, stopped to listen to me. I appreciate it, and I apologize for not introducing myself earlier. I am a messenger from the old world, Yawei. Though, you may think of me as but another embodiment of he who is known as the old god."


    Is she telling me that I''m different from other girls? Sorry, old man, but I used to be a guy. Anyways, I need to get back into serious mode. Where did I hear the word ''Yawei'' again? Ah, Yeshua and Tahgweiy! They all sound similar to each other somehow, or maybe it''s just because I''m in a weird state right now.


    Am I being weird today? I guess my full concentration mode really did something to my brain.


    Still, if his name is Yawei, then it must be spelled something like ''YHWH,'' if Tahgweiy''s real name is spelled as ''The Tale of the Great White.''


    "Hehehe! Enough talking, old man! Let''s get this battle continued!"


    "You seem to be in a different shape, Satan, or should I say, Lilith? It irritably reminds me of the god most high... If you so desire to give me a meaningful battle, then I shall grant your wishes and send you back to where you belong, devil."


    And so, our battle continued after our formal introductions. She already knew me, but calling me Satan, or whoever that is, is kind of annoying. I don''t like being misnamed! I don''t like it! I already have too much names to go by: Crynosphere, Lilith, Vixen, Chris, and many more that I definitely forgot about. Getting another name is like getting another ability, it all happens randomly, and just too quickly!The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    "O'', Lord, grant me power and one of your dearest angels so that I will crush this demon. Summon the Living Creature: Lion."


    "Cataclysmic divine break. Foremost property railings. Eyes of the holy blessing. Cast. Of. The. Iron. Maiden."


    That''s right!


    I''ve finally achieved Cricket Cricket''s [Cast Of The Iron Maiden]!! It brings me great delight to finally use this against the worthiest foe I''ve ever come across yet! With all those considerations I made inside my head, I quickly acquired the 4th dimensional torture machine that I''ve been terrified of for years! I don''t know what Rabbit was spitting up when she told me what [Divine Light] and [Cast Of The Iron Maiden] does, because everything she said was just straight up bullcrap! I should''ve never believed the words of a con artist!


    Being in Full Concentration Mode for this long made me calculate so much, that I even got more intelligent. For some reason, I''m more lively than usual so of course I''d make more calculations and do things faster. That attack Yawei did when she thrusted her blade towards me, destroying a mountain so far away, was [Divine Break], similar to [Divine Light] by just a few differences. [Divine Break] is a Divine Magic spell, and so unholy creatures like me supposedly can''t use Divine Magic. The spell was made to enhance one''s own weapon and triple their next attack''s effect. It''s very simple when you say it, but it''s more complicated than that. You see, Magical particles are always in the air, and those''re what most people use to cast spells. When CAT and I didn''t have enough particles to use, we simply fought with our fists (and legs, and elbows, and whatever we had). Divine Magic, unlike most types of Magic, reorganize and remake the structure of Magical particles so that it becomes more deadly towards unholy creatures, especially ones weaker under sunlight, so the unholy ones will either need to be over-intelligent like me, or they''ll simply burn away trying to use it. [Divine Light] is basically just a light so bright, that it becomes Divine. I''ve learned how to actually use Divine Magic now after making all those nuclear fusion reactors, because you remember how I''m still in Full Concentration Mode? In this state, I calculate a ridiculous amount of things each second, so it was only a matter of time before I learned how to use Divine Magic, because Divine Magic and Nuclear fusion reactors are very similar to each other, since both simply smash atoms together until something big happens. In [Divine Light]''s case, when the spell is casted, nuclear fusion immediately occurs, causing a really bright light to burst out, but this process is slightly different from the sun''s, or the Earthling''s nuclear fusion thingies, since magic exists. [Divine Light], instead of having normal atoms and magical particles for nuclear fusion, it uses restructured magical particles and a new version of an atom, which I call ''Magiatom,'' to perform nuclear fusion, making that invisible light explode from within the caster''s hand, giving the caster light and energy so divine and powerful that they can freely move within the range of that new light, which is Divine Light, like they''re actually light themselves, and also, the light is just so powerful it catches everything, even things through the ground or through the walls. Most casters, and living creatures in general, don''t know how to move their entire bodies around this light though, so they only stick to transporting their attack, or spell into somewhere the divine light has shined upon. [Divine Break] is not so different due to it being just a more specific [Divine Light], made particularly to cast the divine light into a form better for attacking things, instead of transporting them.


    Now, since I managed to successfully acquire Divine Magic despite being considered an unholy beast, [Cast Of The Iron Maiden] wasn''t that difficult to use anymore. All it was was basically just a 4th dimensional torture machine, the tricky part about it is that you can only cast it on the source of your magic, which is somewhere inside your body, so if you can''t cast [Divine Light], say goodbye to life if you ever use [Cast Of The Iron Maiden]. [Divine Light] was needed so that you could transport [Cast Of The Iron Maiden], and put into the enemy, which explains why Cricket Cricket always casted [Cast Of The Iron Maiden] before [Divine Light]!


    "Wha-!"


    Yawei was turned into mincemeat along with his monster that crawled out of a magical circle.


    I didn''t plan to play games today, so I immediately collected all of the blood he gave me, and made many more nuclear fusion reactors in an instant. He had a ton of blood inside that old body of his, so I could make a lot of nuclear fusion reactors easier. He didn''t expect me to suddenly go against my words, did he? I know it''s a bit cowardly, and not chivalric, or elegant at all, but it''s better than fighting for 10 days and then exhausting yourself just for some fun.


    Actually, I didn''t stop making my nuclear fusion reactors because I wanted to be more chivalric and elegant, but rather, I figured out that Yawei produced more blood than me, or in other words, he could regenerate faster than me, so cutting him up would mean that at least over 20 nuclear fusion reactors could be made, and simply risking my own life for 2 nuclear fusion reactors is dumb, so I planned to make a ton of nuclear fusion reactors using Yawei''s blood in under a nanosecond, then generate enough energy, that it can actually be comparable to a few hundred suns, to throw all that energy towards Yawei, hopefully reducing him into something far smaller than an atom.


    If he thought that that nuclear bomb he ate was good, then he''s about to taste something even better: The Power of a Thousand Suns!


    "Huh?! What''s tha-!?"


    He regenerated his body just in time for me to throw a barrage of punches moving with all the energy produced by the nuclear fusion reactors I made with his blood. In game terms, I''m currently on 0.1 HP, barely surviving thanks to my regenerative abilities, and my body''s automatically healing using some of it''s 12 senses, whilst having so much speed that my enemy can''t even see a single bit of colour without another punch hitting him. And remember, each punch hitting him is literally equivalent to the sun crashing into his face, and there''s not really much he can do about it.


    "Hea-! V-Vixen-! Oh god... What the heavens is happening here!?! Oh god?! It''s like that little Dino is tasting the power of a thousand suns!! It really looks like it!!"


    Where did Hili come from? We''re floating in a crater you know!? There''s nothing but dirt and rubble here, so there''s no way that I didn''t notice her whilst I was beating Yawei into oblivion. How is she even alive right now? The radiation should''ve destroyed all life near us, and not to mention, each one of my punches creates a nuclear bomb to atomize everything nearby, so why''s she still here?!


    Confused, one of my punches accidentally slipped by a few nanometers, and so Yawei took advantage and sent me flying through the skies. I couldn''t see what he actually did, but we''re in an airspace where supposedly no creatures should be able to survive in now, all thanks to Hili. If only she didn''t show up just to give me another question to calculate and find the answer to.


    Yawei blasted me back and forth across the skies. For a couple more minutes, eye candy appeared everywhere, covering around 70% of the island''s red air. This old man really wanted me gone before I can even have another chance to fight back, but little did he know, my nuclear fusion reactors are still active. They may be smaller now, but that only means that each one of my red blood cells contain power equivalent to the sun. As ridiculous as it might sound, everything I do is all calculated and planned! Even this scene where he punches me about whilst breaking up the ground to scatter the debris around for me to bounce off of. It''s a relentless assault, yet I''m still going to be the one winning here!


    "O'' Lord. Forgive me for commiting another sin against you, thou art always mine savior, and so will mine be mine savior at this very moment that I declare this foul demon but another one of Satan''s fallen spawns. Becometh one with the flames again, Lilith."


    As he threw another punch to my face, I slid around it and spun to produce pseudo energy enough to act as a stand-in for the nuclear-powered punches, hitting him right in the face and sending him off to make a beautiful vortex through the structure made up by debris and residual electricity.


    "Becometh? I thought you said Baphomet. I''d rather not hear that word from an enemy again, so please don''t make any sounds that may cause misunderstandings."


    "Y-You... You..! YOU ABHORRENT ANIMA-"


    Before he could finish his sentence, I decided to finish him off with a bang!


    "Cast Of The Iron Maiden! Divine Light! Benevolent Blood Eagle! Divine Light!"


    Taking 2 4th dimensional torture machines at once should be considered an applaudable achievement.


    Perhaps old geezer''ll have something to brag about once he''s finally in heaven! Fufufu! He brought this upon himself after all. Fighting someone you could call the devil themselves... Don''t you need something more than just being fast and relying on brute force for that? Especially when you just took a nuclear bomb, and then a thousand of them point-blank.


    Not only was both of those spells thrown with the power of a thousand suns, but I also casted them when Yawei was at his weakest, which was when he spoke to leave his guard down.


    Was he still under the impression that I would actually decide to be more gentle and stop my wild, inelegant attacks? You''re too kind, Yawei! We could''ve been great friends if we met under different circumstances!

 Chapter 47: Aftermath.

    During the Great War on Earth, every major nation was racing to become the most technologically advanced out of them all. There were many reasons, but the most obvious one, they all wanted power to conquer over their enemies. The German Empire was the most advanced before the war, so it shouldn''t have been that surprising for them to take a ton of victories, due to the other surrounding nations lacking in power and strategy.


    Bla-bla-bla.


    At that time, the one thing that changed Earth''s future the greatest was solely humanity''s race towards destruction. It showed how the humans were so naturally violent that they would rather evolve past a couple hundred years just to destroy each other. The technological advancements humans made during the Great War were equivalent to roughly three hundred years of progress by living more peacefully. In other words; humans advance faster in war.


    It isn''t the only time humanity has progressed so quickly. Throughout the years, humanity has condemned themselves to hell by practically saying that they''re demons of war. They realize that if vocal communication doesn''t work, the only option they have now is to resort to their old-fashioned barbaric methods, which is physical communication, or simply, violence. You KNOW how much destruction humans can cause, especially now. Not only can they destroy their own planet at the press of one button, but they can also crush anyone, or anything if they really wanted to.


    One of the many tactics they used to succeed in war, mostly during the old times, was to take away their only way of retreating. Either it was by boats, bridges, or wherever they came in from, destroying those escape routes would mean that their army would only have the option to win, or the option to die. And as crazy as it sounds, it worked 90% of the time!


    There''s a saying that goes: "Diamond is made under pressure."


    While it is true that diamond is made under pressure, I won''t go too much into detail about that, but that sentence can also be taken in many other different ways.


    For Humanity, they found diamonds when put under extreme circumstances. They acquired power by putting themselves at war. The greater the war was, the greater their technological advancements. There''s a reason it''s called the "Great War." It was not just because it''s a planetary war, a war that involved all the nations from Earth. Those people who were told their only option was to fight, used up 100% of whatever they could use to win the battle before them, as defeat was no longer an option. Most soldiers know that they can just run away from combat once they realize their army has lost, but those who can''t escape are forced to overcome themselves so that they can win and survive. Basically, while everyone believes they have somewhere to run off to, the ones who have nowhere to run, either become a figure praiseworthy, or they turn into but another piece of forgotten history. They couldn''t become better, stronger, or whatever. They could only become the best, the greatest.


    So. Isn''t that what happened in this world as well?


    So why? Why? I thought I had become a diamond after being put under extreme situations! But that''s not the reason why I''m laying in the dirt several meters underground, is it?! So what happened?!


    Perhaps I''ve underestimated my enemy, who was left even more desperate than me, but I was winning, you know?! How could I lose?! What did I forget? Why? Why? I had to save everyone, I couldn''t survive if I had lost that battle, right?! So what happened?! I was below 0.1 health most of the fight! You can''t tell me I wasn''t on the brink of death, forced under extremely heavy pressure, so why didn''t I come out on top?!! What did Yawei hold so dearly? His faith in his god, supposedly that one god of goodness and holiness, from what I''ve seen and heard from him during our battle? What do you hold so closely that you are given the power to defeat the forces overpowering you?! He was about to die! No, he was supposed to die! What made him win?! Was it because I was enjoying our fight, so I let my guard down a bit?! Was it because of my arrogance? I made sure to get rid of anything that might''ve hindered my chances of succession, so why''d I lose?!


    ...Because I lost, does this mean that Yawei went out and killed everyone?! I couldn''t let him..! Why''d he even attack us in the first place?! Why?! I couldn''t let him so I had to overcome and become stronger to save everyone from him! So why..?! Aren''t I supposed to be the MC anyways?! What happened?!


    God, I feel like my body is trying to pry itself open. This feels like trigeminal neurologia but 3 times more painful and is everywhere in my body, without any stops whatsoever!


    In response to the overwhelming pain, I tried to enable all my bodily functions again, but most just wouldn''t work. It appears that a part of my brain had blown up, and using any form of Magic shouldn''t even be considered for now. My regenerative abilities might as well be gone for the moment. The only way for me to keep using magic for now is by using Veno''s flowers, but I''d be a goner if I couldn''t cast a healing spell enough for me to regenerate my brain.


    I dug myself out of my grave only to find out that the world has become worse. The skies had turned darker, and the land has been destroyed beyond recognition because of my battle with Yawei.


    One other important thing to note; my swimsuit has become sleeveless now, so the wisest choice I made was to cover my arms, from the elbows down to the finger tips with hardened blood, since Blood Magic only required a little bit of Magic, and mostly relied on blood. But I got sharp claws, and [Foe Reducer] is now officially part of my body!


    The rest of my equipment is still fine somehow, except for that one sword that got cut up from the Anti-physical slash.


    I can''t detect anyone, or actually, any life within a long distance. I don''t have the smartness to calculate and say the precise distance as well, so I guess I''ll just have to stick with my own estimates. I lost track of time and direction, since I can''t even see the slightest bit of sunlight, or anything my human pattern recognition abilities can find significant. I was basically in the middle of nowhere. The ground was destroyed, and the skies covered everything in darkness. I suppose my allies have left me after assuming I was gone. I can''t blame them. But Tahgweiy..? Why''d she leave me as well?!


    Ah..! This pain! I can''t seem to get over it! What should I even do?! It''s not like there''s any medicine I can take!The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "I have medicine... If you want..!"


    Those words... Tahgweiy!!?


    I turned around expecting Tahgweiy, but the only thing I see is a tornado approaching me. I don''t think I can stay here and longer. Where did the Osprey crash again..? That abandoned town, huh?


    I arrived at... Where even am I? There''s nothing but destruction everywhere! Let me think... The only option I have is to go back to... I can''t even go back! Where the fish am I?! Where is everyone!? Where''s Tahgweiy!? Man, I''m in hell.


    I spent a couple more days roaming around, looking for any clues for what happened, but I was only met with disappointment. It took me a long time, probably multiple months, but I eventually managed to get back to a not-so-destroyed place. I don''t know why everything was so destroyed even when I was sure I left the area of where me and Yawei fought each other, but it seems that I finally found a checkpoint! This town was abandoned, but it looked strangely familiar. If I was in a better form right now, I would''ve known whatever this place is by now.


    There was a passageway leading underground, so I went in and found a very familiar area. It was very dark, but [Blood Panel] allowed me to see better. It didn''t take long for me to arrive inside a room with flickering lights. A slightly opened door showed more light coming from the other room, so like a moth to a fire, I came towards the room.


    As the lights continued flickering, the sound of a door creaking could be heard across the room outside the one brightly lit.


    Creak~!


    "It''s been a while, Alice. ...I hope this is all just like your dream."


    Bang!


    Upon entering the room, I swear I caught a glimpse of Veno, blood exiting out from the back of his head, and onto the ceiling.


    The Veno that I thought so high of, fell to the floor in front of the mirror. A handgun was next to him. Meanwhile, his blood on the reflecting glass slowly dripped down to the cabinet below.


    I stood still, taking in the scenery. I could hear ringing in my ear, and I just couldn''t process what was happening. So... There''s a gun in the floor, right? There''s also blood near the body of this man. I heard someone talking when I opened the door, and then the sound of a gunshot followed after. This room is undoubtedly the room where I used to sleep in during my training days. Even while brain-damaged, I can tell that it''s the same underground military bunker that Veno and I used. Yeah! He was my master, and I was his student! I remember fetching him some berries as a part of training. Good times! So...


    What was going-..? Shit.


    The last person that I''d see kill themselves actually killed themselves. Come on, man, why do you have to do this to me? To whatever god out there is responsible for this, can you please at least show yourself once you''re done tormenting me? Where''d everyone go? Why''s he dead? Why does everyone always leave me one way or another?! He was just sitting here alone, and so when I tried to reach him since he''s one of the few people who doesn''t always roam around the planet, who I''ve also grown attached to, god, or whoever is up there, suddenly decides to push him away from me by doing this? God, why''d you have to do this to me? What''d I do to deserve this?!


    Did a few tears just fall from my eyes?


    Crap! Everything around me is warping into impossible shapes and colours..! What''s going on?! Huh? I swear I just saw Yawei''s figure hovering above me just now...


    I remember that one saying: "History always repeats itself." This world is repeating. It''s exactly just like the last time, but in a different place with different characters. I gotta get out of this loop. Whatever is happening right now, it must be the work of some higher being. Oh, to hell with them! I must escape and break this cycle somehow, but I feel like I''d fall into it again, like a mouse to a mousetrap. Just like how I blew up my enemies, getting separated from my allies in the process, then getting blown up by my enemy, and everyone is separated from me again. It''s all the same, isn''t it!? Who''s writing this sick and twisted story!? I don''t want to be in this sick tragedy! Get me out!!


    Though, what could''ve made him shoot himself? He said something before his death. His last words were something about someone named Alice and a dream? Who''s Alice?? What dream? I''ve never heard of anyone with the name "Alice" before in my entire life! Even [Blood Panel] can''t find anything about it, so how did Veno know of this Alice? And why didn''t he put it into [Blood Panel]?


    Ah..! Too many questions! My head hurts and I don''t have anything to ease the pain!


    I took some things from his home, mostly medicine, before leaving his resting place, only to find myself deeper into the predicament. Whispers and loud screaming filled my ears as I walked through the deep blue wasteland raging with hellfires. Yawei and a few other figures appeared multiple times, attacking me when I least expected it. Eventually, I stumbled upon a burning ocean of boiling blood. However, this wasn''t just another one of the places where the ground is cracked and reality is warping, this place was a museum made specifically to spite me!


    Here, the headless body of Heart Fiya is laying behind a guillotine, but her head isn''t inside the bucket. The ant, who I forgot the name of, was watching me between the flames with a darkened face. Hanging dead with her neck broken was Heart Cornea, eyes widened, looking at me with that look that I really didn''t want to see from anyone in my entire life. I fell to my knees gritting my teeth whilst scratching my head as Rabbit, Franz, Zen, and Veno appeared without their faces, all bleeding out from wounds that opened up like how a zipper''d open, and they all spoke to me about something, but I couldn''t hear them properly. A body standing with it''s upper half charred then began whispering something, or actually, just spitting out gibberish. I assume it was Liand, since he died similarly. Inside a pile of corpses was Fang with a few parts of his body missing, and resting on top of that pile was the head of Litharin Fanine, slowly being eaten away by ants. CAT, with a huge cut where I slashed her in half stood behind me just laughing like a maniac as I continued to cry. Sundown Lighter looked down at me with a grotesquely disfigured face, not saying anything. Burning in napalm was Pikaia and her caretaker, Rika Zerai. Meanwhile, the silhouettes of the Baphomet, Yawei, Cricket Cricket, and Frillet Tofan surrounded me, just looking down at me like I was nothing, not even an ant, except for Cricket Cricket who was laughing at me like CAT.


    But in front of me, behind Sundown Lighter, was the body of Rayan Cross with an arrow stuck in her back. Wait... Every single person I just saw right now has been dead, or just too strong for me to even think of fighting against... So why is Rayan here..? Don''t tell me...


    "The end is nigh. Everyone is dead. There is no hope."


    Accompanied by the rustling of fire was the never-ending comments of the dead. I couldn''t think of another thing as everyone suddenly began speaking out their minds.


    "HYAAA-HAHAHAHAHAAA!!!! KAAHAHAHAA!! HIHIHIHIHII!! AAAAHAHAHHAAHA!!"


    "I''m kind of let down... You didn''t think about us at all, Hato-chan."


    "Too bad, little Vixen, but you failed."


    "FWAAA-HAHAHAHAHAHAAA!! YOU WEAK SIMPLE-MINDED PILE OF GARBAGE!!!! YOU''RE LESS THAN AN OBJECT!! KRAAA-HAHAHAHAHAAHH!!"


    "You''re a failure, Lilith."


    "...I shouldn''t have sacrificed myself for you..."


    "You''re heartless, Vixen. Why did you kill me and Rika..?"


    "My body hurts, you know..?! It feels like my stomach is ripping itself open... And it''s all because of YOU!!"


    Then finally, to add icing to the cake, to put salt on the wound, The Tale of The Great White showed herself with a disappointed look on her face. She crossed her arms and looked down at me like everyone else.


    I could see her form flickering, switching between Tahgweiy and Reyana Sorret before speaking in tongues and in English at the same time, both languages spoken in Reyana''s and Tahgweiy''s voice, making it sound like 4 voices talking at once.


    """"Satan, stars shine brightest before their deaths.""""

 Chapter 48: On the Brink of Collapse.

    After the death of Veno and the disappearance of everyone else, I used up both of the flowers containing magical energy to regain my sanity. Whilst I was still sane, I ventured towards south, opposite direction of the Temporal Spatial Pyramids, in hopes of finding Tahgweiy along with the Southern Sentinel Group''s main unit.


    It wasn''t just the island me and Yawei fought on, the rest of the continent and maybe more of the planet was left devastated by something powerful, as if giants trampled the world whilst asteroids crashed into the lands, wiping out most life and nature. Is this truly the end of Cvvoer? I kept asking myself that again and again. If the revival of the Blood God wasn''t bad enough, the current Demon Lord is the Hammerhead Demon, and is somehow capable of destroying everything known to man. Meanwhile, the Hero of the Great Catastrophe and his team came back for an unknown reason. So this entire gallimaufry should be the least of everyone''s concerns.


    Still, what even is happening anymore?!!


    The world''s in chaos. I still feel intense pain all over my body, but it''s not as strong as when I woke up in the dirt now. If I can just get something to ease this pain, then I''d be able to do a lot more, and find the answers to at least most things. The spare blood in Veno''s home wasn''t enough for me to be able to heal myself with magic again. I couldn''t eat Veno''s corpse, since that''s just wrong. You know I''m still not in that level of insanity.


    Fortunately, [Blood Panel] has info on the kingdom nearby which is a kingdom filled with elves, and the info is quite promising. Elf medicine is better than Human medicine because the average Elf is just smarter than the average Human. I can''t see how they wouldn''t have any medicine, even if the world is ending right now.


    I noticed how along the way, the ground became less incomprehensible whilst foliage began to show up more often. A large structure resembling a portal was sitting at the center of this region, so naturally, I went to investigate it before trying to find the elven city. It didn''t look functional, as it was broken and shattered already. But there were strange scriptures carved into the lower parts. Luckily, [Blood Panel] was still able to translate them for me.


    "Portal to the Demon Realm."


    Seems quite sketchy. The Demons wouldn''t just leave a portal out in the wilds and make it as obvious as this. I don''t have a reason to go to the Demon Realm now, but if only I found this earlier... Wait, I don''t think this even existed 27 years ago.


    Chirp chirp~!


    The birds were chirping all around me. The tall trees made the surrounding forests darker, but I also realized how it was darker than usual. Nighttime is almost here, huh? I must find the city quickly. It''s supposed to be nearby according to [Blood Panel]. Though, I can''t really see anything other than trees and this destroyed portal. Are the elves really that stealthy, or am I just blind? I swear I don''t rely on my 12 senses that much.


    Ah! I can see a dirt road ahead. Maybe if I follow this, I''ll arrive at the city! But I still need to confirm whether or not the city is here, and if it is here, does it still have people and the supplies I need, considering the current situation?


    My steps echoed across the road, accompanied by the rustling of the leaves. The atmosphere seemed to be blood red, reflecting it''s wicked beauty on the greenery. I can feel the breath of the wind blowing against my hardened blood. My scythe was creaking worryingly each step I make. At times like these, I could feel the world in it''s most peaceful state. Oh, how nostalgic it is to achieve this feeling once again! There was a long, dying path of blood that ran towards the path I followed.


    At the end of the road, there lied the corpse of a woman I knew. An arrow had pierced her through the back, and the trail of blood seemed to stop just under her body.


    Chirp chirp~!


    I looked back to see the world blue. My pain has disappeared along with the last bits of my insanity. I came back to my senses, but why hasn''t the body of Rayan Cross gone away as well..?! Nows not the time for you to be dead, you know?! Goddamnit!


    Shoot, I can''t stop the tears falling down my face. If there really is someone deciding my path, I''d love to meet them. Really, I hope they''d just show up in front of my face and tell me directly how they''re going to torture me until the day I die. Whoever they are, I''ll spit-roast that fuck.


    I can''t seem to get hateful enough, can I? This isn''t the end of the torment, isn''t it? I''ll have to continue down the road and find the one behind all this! Currently, the road leads me to the ruins of an Elven city. Nothing but death and destruction is present here. The locals appeared above me, aiming bows and ranged weapons at my hopeless self like I''m some sort of demon. Don''t you all know you''re the demons here?! Why am I supposed to suffer?! I''ll butcher all of you pointy eared cucks!! Especially you who murdered dear Rayan! Even if we weren''t together for a significantly long time, my allies are my friends! Who are you to take them away from me?!


    So, around the time I was sulking, my mental illness got so bad that I lost all sense of time and place. Along with my confusion were the errors my brain made; since it was literally melting and experiencing multiple life-threatening issues after reawakening from death, it tried to fix itself through any possible means. One of it''s solutions for the lost memories was to put in whatever it thinks is the most realistic thing that happened as a replacement. While these memories did not actually happen, they are the best results my brain came up with so the chances of them being true and useful are... Well, nevermind, most of them just makes things more confusing and complicated.


    Sighing, I quickly took down the elves and left. Two magazines were thrown away, and a bit of meaningless bloodshed took place there.


    Although this story is insanely edgy and just dark without reason, I can finally begin to see it making sense. This isn''t some kind of fairy tale, this is just the end of the world. Nothing anyone does works, everyone''ll just die. But I do wonder what happened to the Baphomet and the Goddess of Order... If they''re still alive, then they should''ve been trying to resolve this entire mess the moment it began. With their power, what makes this situation so hard to deal with? Or has the Goddess of Order already began her move, starting with Yawei killing me, then creating a bunch of angels to fly around and fix this planet? Well, no matter, the Blood God''s resurrection is still not cancelled. Somehow, I just know that these angels won''t be able to do anything to their revival.


    Now that I could see properly, I found that the world was trying to repair itself. The survivors after the year I died rebuilt major cities and nations with the help of Yawei, crowned as the Archangel Yahweh, who led an army of angels to heal everything they walked through. I still have hallucinations and nightmares about him, but I heard he was currently out at the west side of the planet, meddling with the Western Alliance, or what remained of it after the apocalypse. It wasn''t as unpleasant as the times during the apocalypse, but the sunlight was becoming a problem for me. For some reason, everyone was also against me and the members of the New Heroes party. The Old Heroes party on the other hand, noone really knew what happened to them, except for Frillet Tofan who always roamed about searching for something. He''s still out today, but it doesn''t look like he''s looking for me. He''s a strange guy for sure, however, I should be safe from him right now.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    I couldn''t fully recover mentally and physically. The only places for me to sleep in were the sewers and the abandoned cities. Fortunately, my body developed an automated spell to pair with [Blood Panel]. The spell, [Catarax], allowed me to perceive things like how I would under Full Concentration Mode whilst forcibly removing hallucinations and other things not useful for me, that includes rocks and whatever is too insignificant to be considered an obstacle. Whilst using [Catarax], I was blind in human terms, and they''d only see a crimson red void if they stared long enough into my eyes. This spell not only kept my sanity at bay, but it also managed to get me to one of the largest human settlements currently available.


    I believe they called it "Tu''awoi Ra'' alin." This city was once the greatest city, but that was only before the apocalypse. After it''s collapse, and after the apocalypse settled down, the city began to prosper again when it was blessed by Yawei, transforming it into a place of worship in the process. The people here are more insane than the me one year ago. Yes, that whole memory of me meeting everyone who''s died so far can''t seem to go away, and that was only a year ago, but my brain''s faulty self-repair systems made it feel like it just happened a few months ago.


    Fish, fish, and fish. I emptied 5 whole magazines on the fishermen because they kept bugging me with fish. The ocean wasn''t too far away, but land animals are also present everywhere, you know? Can''t you people hunt anything other than fish?! The only thing you can eat here is fish and the dead bodies of "non-believers." I don''t plan to stay here for long, but I do have to rest more in here than in any other place I''ve been to these days. Noone really gives one look at the corpses stacking up on each other, nor do they care about the foul stench of fish and death.


    Right now, my left eye is half-closed whilst my teeth have been tightly shut. The blood and guts of the people here have stained me both physically and mentally, but it''s still better than getting found out by the angels that walk this continent. They make their rounds like the army of an empire who has successfully ruled the world. There isn''t just one army as well, there''re 580 according to human news. The demons say they have 500, while the elves thinks there''s 522. I hoped I''d find their numbers less than 500 so I asked around before coming here. There''s not much I can do to harm these monsters who use Divine Magic without any hesitation whatsoever, especially in my current form.


    Thirteen days before I had to leave, the cultists held a ceremony for the angels who has successfully reclaimed yet another one of the lost cities. Since my bloodstained cloak and underwear was no longer suspicious, I took part as well. It wouldn''t be so bad to hear them preaching, talking about how good their god is, despite what they''re doing on this planet right now.


    "Rejoice! Today, the voice of god spoke to me, that another one of our brothers and sisters have joined the kingdom of god!! Us humans created under his image are to serve him directly, and to take in his angels as our saviors! Archangel Yahweh has almost completed his mission after 27 years, so as devoted followers of the God Most High, we must celebrate this victory and drink our wine and eat our breads!! Archangel Yahweh is only here for the mission god has given him, in a few years he will be gone back to heaven, so we must spend the time he''s still in Cvvoer the best!! Praise the lord!!"


    Mmmm... The god ''Mars,'' is more believable than this shit. He''s the god of war, and I''ve actually prayed to him a lot more than you''d think. I do fight constantly after all.


    After taking in this information, everyone began eating and drinking. Bread is now sold, but I didn''t see one yesterday, and I still don''t see one today. Well, it''s obvious that these breads are nothing more than just an illusion. Without [Catarax], I''d have thought they made bread by crushing and mixing fish together and then dying it brown. But they don''t even have bread at all!! The preacher... I think his name was Myua M''so, pronounced as Mi-o-wa Mi-soh, he gave out these nonexistent bread to the locals, but how''d he do it? He doesn''t seem like a magician, so it''s more likely that the very thing he worshipped made him do this.


    "Sister Vixen, how do you like your stay here?"


    A young girl stops next to me holding wine. While I doubted the existence of wine in such a world, the wine I never thought I''d see again appeared before me in the hands of a blue-haired little girl. Before I developed [Catarax], I''d see Reyana Sorret when I looked at children, so I''d always run away holding my head, or straight up shoot them with Pure''s Glock-40. Gun ammo wasn''t an uncommon find in Demon-occupied places, so I''d always empty magazines everytime I use this gun. Now that I''m fully sane, would I mag-dump this kid? Probably, unless all my calculations prove that they''re 100% not a threat in every single way possible. ...What? Did you think I''d say "No"? Kids are getting on my nerves these days, alright? That creepy one, Hili, the annoying one, Sting Ray, the other one, Manta Ray, and then the other creepy one, Reyana Sorret, they all irritate me! And then this one...


    "My name is Se'' wa Al Arikk Fewa'' nawa. I''m Hatzegopteryx Thambema''s unprideful dog. It''s a pleasure to meet you, Satan. Could you please take off your hood so I can see your face more clearly?"


    "Uuu- Uaa- UAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!"


    Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang-bang!!


    With a loud scream, my hands moved on their own to clutch the gun on my vest and open fire at the kid. I don''t know why, but hearing that word again really drove me to this. I promise you I''m not insane, nor am I mad! But this was my last straw, there were just too many times Reyana''s figure appeared when I saw things in her shape, and now, I just want to throw that out of the window..! I''m shaking, barely even holding the Glock in my hands because of the psychological trauma and the hardened blood on my arms.


    Her body drops to the ground, blood everywhere. Noone even gave one glance at the scene, as if it was normal here. I know it wasn''t normal- no, this is not normal!


    "UAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGHHH!!!"


    With a bloodcurdling scream, I began shooting down everyone in my sight. Once I ran out of ammo, I used my bare hands to tear them all apart. Seeing them not reacting to the violence just made me even more violent. Why won''t these guys do anything?! Are they really that far gone into their own delusions!? Your god doesn''t exist, you fanatics!! You people have gone insane! This is the only way for me to save you now, so I''m sorry!


    Whilst I was butchering everyone, the preacher grabbed my shoulder with a blank expression. I stopped attacking and stared at him for a while.


    "O'' Satan, doth ye realize ''tis in best regards for thou to act not against thy fellow innocent bystanders but yet? As Se'' wa Al Arikk Fewa'' nawa proposed upon thee, when the smell of entrance opens through into a cascade, one should seek the comfort of the other even with the slightests of the slightest. Yea, thine figure shall be bestowed on WE, the faithful! And comes the birth of the Anti-Christ as Hatzegopteryx Thambema knows it!!"


    "K-KAA- UYAAAAAAAAAGHHH!!!"


    I fell to my knees, holding my face whilst trembling in terror. The man behind me tried his best to see my face. In anger, he tried using force, but failed every time. I continued screaming to make the preacher go away, but he only continued to push through.


    "SAITAN!!! Why do you wish to doom us all?! I-If only- if only the master was here..! Please..! The prophecies will be fulfilled, a-a-and as a faithful worshipper of the God Most High, I should be able to perceive the world that is within your eyes!!"


    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHH!!!"


    I screamed out loud again. The man persisted on trying to get a good look at my face, but since my hardened blood arms were too sharp and heavy, he couldn''t force his way through. Oh, wait. He''s prying my arms open by digging his own hands into my tiny blades. I almost forgot these guys were no longer in the world that I knew. ...Pain shouldn''t bother them anymore..!


    It was probably because they felt no pain that the kid that I just shot down with an entire magazine of 15 10mm bullets stood back up to her feet without any support. Her face had been torn beyond recognition, but she still managed to speak out her last words as I looked up at her.


    "Sister Vixen, go apologize to my sibling and take responsibility. She tells of herself as Hili. My death shan''t go to waste, so please take my body as an offering to the Anti-Christ."


    And then she fell to the ground as the heat escaped from her body, as seen through [Blood Panel]''s heat detection systems.


    The man didn''t care one bit and only focused on looking at me clearly. As soon as he got a good gaze at my eyes, he was fixed without any further movement. He froze in place and collapsed to the ground, foaming at his mouth whilst shaking aggressively. I covered my face again, still kneeling down surrounded by the corpses.


    A while later, all the residents of Tu''awoi Ra'' alin fell victim not to the air bread, but to the neurotoxins in the air.