★42
THIRD POV
"None shall escape."
Dark clouds rolled outward, spreading like an advancing tide until the entire Kingdom of Harley Clown was swallowed by suffocating darkness. The sky vanished, replaced by a churning canopy of shadow that pressed down on the land itself.
"Barak, Amri, remain with me. The rest, move on."
Majo's voice carried effortlessly across the battlefield, calm and absolute. The demons responded without hesitation.
Barak stood at her side, a demon of the black lineage. His form was that of a child, small and unnervingly still, his eyes permanently shut, mirroring Elaine's vacant serenity. Despite his frail appearance, the space around him felt heavy.
Beside him was Amri, a demon of the red lineage. She wore a pristine white outfit that stood in stark contrast to the blood-red hue of her long hair and eyes, both burning with the same cruel brilliance associated with Guy. A faint, dangerous smile lingered on her lips, betraying her eagerness for what was to come.
Zelda, the youngest-looking among them, belonged to the yellow lineage. Her attire blended yellow and white, giving her an almost innocent appearance that clashed violently with the destructive aura she emitted.
Spikey assumed the form of a composed blue-lineage demon, dressed neatly in a dark-blue butler's uniform. His expression was calm, almost polite, even as mana surged steadily around him like a restrained storm.
Lastly, Vasal of the purple lineage stood silently, clad entirely in black. His presence was subdued yet oppressive, like a poison that seeped unnoticed until it was too late.
These five Archdemons, all named by Shinn, were long acquainted with Majo. Their loyalty was unquestionable.
From every direction, demons descended upon the kingdom. The air ignited as countless spells were unleashed at once, magic colliding and overlapping, painting the darkness with violent flashes of crimson, violet, azure, and gold.
"None shall be spared."
Majo said coldly, hovering above the carnage as she surveyed the destruction.
"Save the human souls for me."
Barak and Amri stood silently behind her as the kingdom burned below, their expressions unchanged while Harley Clown was systematically erased.
Amidst the chaos of battle, four demons surged into the air from within the kingdom, positioning themselves directly before Majo.
"A demon turning on her own kind. Have you lost your mind?"
One of them shouted, trying to rein in the situation.
Majo didn't bother to answer right away. She wasn't here to argue. Her orders were clear: spare no one.
"You've touched the wrong tail."
She said calmly before ordering her companion.
"Prove to me that you haven't become rusty."
Barak was unresponsive, Amri however was waiting for such opportunity.
"Watch me."
The two set off each taking on two demons at a time. The battle between Archdemons was splendid and fierce, clearly in a realm that surpasses A-rank. But the two demons were taking the lead, probably thinking quantity outweighs quality.
"You think you can defeat us Archdemons? We'll wipe you and finish the job."
One of the demons scoffed and Amri, a demon of red lineage, a race of demons with held pride didn't take that lightly.
"Shut up! Red Magic: Blood Curse."
She snapped and lunged forward, exploiting the blood already spilled across the battlefield.
At her command, it answered. An endless rain of razor-sharp spikes formed from crimson liquid, screaming through the air before punching clean through all four enemies at once, their bodies perforated in a blink.
"Is that all you can do?"
They healed almost instantly, flesh knitting back together as they laughed, unfazed, mocking her effort. But Amri had already moved past that moment. That exchange had never been the point.
"Your arrogance will lead to your death."
She said coldly.
"Cocoon Blood Prison."
The blood within their own bodies rebelled.
It tore through them from the inside, veins rupturing as Amri's magic seized control, merging her power with their lifeblood.
Their forms were shredded violently, reduced to convulsing masses as the escaping blood wrapped around each of them, sealing them inside four pulsating crimson cocoons.
The cocoons drifted closer, drawn together by her will, fusing into a single, larger mass that throbbed like a living heart. With a dismissive gesture, Amri absorbed it entirely. The blood vanished into her body as though it had never existed.
She returned to Majo's side without a trace of exhaustion, her expression calm, almost bored.
"Barak is the rusty one."
She remarked casually.
"I had to take care of them all."
"We strive for the same goal, so there is no problem."
Barak replied, his tone even and unconcerned.
With that, he drifted back to his position beside Majo, the battlefield below continuing to burn as if nothing of consequence had occurred.
"You've mastered blood magic this good, Amri. I'm impressed."
"It's all thanks to you Mistress."
"Hmm. Barak, go retrieve all the human souls."
It appeared the genocide was nearing its end, so she sent one of her subordinates to fetch the wandering souls.
"On it."
He plunged down headfirst, vanishing into the ruins below, then returned a few minutes later.
"The humans aren't that many."
"Don't worry. It's all good."
She gathered them without haste, securing the remaining souls, then waited in silence for Asteri's command.
From above, she watched as her demons finished dismantling what little remained of the kingdom. The final elf was engulfed by overlapping demonic spells, her body reduced to nothing, her soul burned away alongside the flesh.
"This kingdom has fallen. Well done, guys."
Cheers erupted from every direction. Demons unleashed waves of magic into the sky, spells colliding and exploding like fireworks over the ruins. No resistance remained. No force stood to oppose them. With Asteri, they are unstoppable.
<
<
<
The first kingdom fell, its collapse absolute. At that same moment, two overwhelming presences descended upon an island.
Atlas and Ban revealed themselves, and the continent itself shuddered in response. The volcanos groaned under the pressure, the air warped, and the land trembled as if recognising calamity incarnate. It wasn't an attack, nor yet. It's just their existence alone was enough to shake the foundations of the continent.
"Enemy attack!"
"How many?"
"T..two!"
"It can't be... send word to The Knights Order now!"
"Copy that."
"Guy's let's goooo!"
Their military is always prepared for surprise attacks, so they charged towards the two.
"I'm in no position to order you but don't kill anyone just yet."
Atlas voiced out as the two watched the army marching towards them
"You've been acting pretty strange lately, Atlas."
Ban's eyes narrowed. He had some theory but Asteri isn't going to let him have his way. His decision is final, with or without him.
"What if this is what Mimon wants? Us in a war with El Dorado and Jistav?"
"It might seem so. However, we can wipe their face off the Central World in one night. That's not going to be a problem."
Of course they can. A single clone, mechanically locked in one those two nations, they won't see another light of day. Yet...
"..."
Atlas hesitated for a moment. Weather they're right or wrong, they can annihilate their enemies without breaking a sweat.
"Good. And you're right, you can't order me!"
Ban rushed down and started attacking the army. Atlas didn't make any effort to hold him back. He simply stood back and watched.
Ban amidst his rampant, paid no attention to his surroundings and was surrounded. He stormed his way out, sending the soldiers flying. After making his way out, spreading his palm mid air and attacking..
"Turn to ashes. Mystic Hell Flare."
He launched a crimson fireball, but the moment it left his hand, it twisted unnaturally, shedding its colour as it turned into pure light before dispersing into nothingness.
The sight stirred a memory, one etched deep into his instincts and his blood began to boil. Excitement, mixed with caution, set his nerves alight as he fixed his gaze on the empty sky, waiting.
Then came his decent. A presence descended slowly, effortlessly, as if gravity itself had bent to accommodate him. No wings carried him, yet his fall was graceful, almost divine, like an angel cast not from heaven but born above it.
There was no mistaking him. The ruler of the city of gold has arrived, the Demon Lord Leon is here.
"Demon Lord Leon! We meet again!"
"The red-haired."
He replied, his voice flat and hollow, each word stripped of emotion, giving nothing away. The emptiness in that tone made it impossible to tell what he was thinking.
Ban's form flickered violently, glitching between his true self and the guise he had worn while infiltrating El Dorado. The shift was unstable, driven by rage rather than control.
"Not necessary. I know it's you."
"Goddamn right it's me!"
Ban's aura erupted outward in a violent surge, warping the air around him. He leaned forward, muscles tensing as he prepared to launch himself and Atlas seized him by the shoulder.
<
"Wait."
"Let go of me!"
Ban struggled, but Atlas's grip was absolute, unmoving, his gaze never leaving Leon. His instincts screamed louder than Ban's fury.
"Leon,"
Atlas said, his voice low and heavy,
"did you order the invasion of Star Island… together with Mimon?"
"Yes or no, whichever it may be, what you did here is unforgivable."
Leon drew his sword in one smooth motion, the blade catching the light as he stepped forward.
At that moment, Atlas released Ban's arm, letting the beast go wild.
Ban exploded forward the moment the restraint vanished, his rage converting into raw momentum. The distance between them collapsed in an instant as Ban swung with lethal intent, his strike aimed to crush rather than test.
Flesh met steel. The impact rang out like a cannon blast, but the result was immediate and brutal. Ban was forced back, his feet tearing grooves through the ground as Leon advanced without yielding an inch. His stance was flawless, every movement economical, refined through countless battles.
Ban attacked again, faster, thrusts, feints layered with overwhelming force. Leon deflected them all with ease, his blade moving just enough, never more than necessary. Each parry carried crushing power, rattling Ban's arms and numbing his grip.
A sharp kick struck Ban square in the ribs, launching him sideways before he could recover. He twisted mid-air and landed hard, skidding across the ground.
Leon did not give him time. He was already there.
A downward strike crashed into Ban's guard, driving him to one knee. The ground beneath them fractured, unable to bear the pressure. Ban gritted his teeth and pushed back, but the difference was undeniable.
From the very first exchange, Ban was overwhelmed.
Not because he was weak, but because Leon was on an entirely different level and must of all...
<
Unable to accept it, his green pupils darkened, the colour deepening unnaturally as he invoked his real eye.
The shift was subtle, but the pressure it released was not. The moment his gaze settled on Ban, the glow recoiled sharply, as if repelled by something it could not comprehend.
A flicker of distortion rippled through his vision.
<
The question surfaced instinctively, not spoken aloud, but pushed through perception itself.
Ban straightened slowly, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth as his posture changed. Leon narrowed his eyes.
Atlas's real eye strained again, trying to read, to predict, to overwrite, but the recoil returned, stronger this time. It wasn't being resisted.
Whatever he was planning, it wasn't something meant to be seen.
Ban's released his aura once more, the weight digging through the earth. He dashed forward and they exchanged hits and blows & they were equally matched at some point but Leon had the upper hand due to his attacks that destroyed spritron.
"Light Speed Slash."
The same attack that damaged him earlier but he managed to evade it.
"That won't work again!"
"It's over.."
Ban who was lured to a specific area was trapped.
"Cubic Disintegration"
Magic circles encircled him forming a cubic structure. The moment the circle was complete, it exploded and Ban was obliterated.
But, thanks to his link with Asteri, he survived, albeit unconscious. Shinn forcibly summoned him off the battlefield. The two v one was reduced to one v one.
"You've disappointed me, Ban. The Master had high hopes for you.'
Atlas shook his head in disappointment.
"If you fight for vengeance, you will undoubtedly lose. Now then."
<
As Atlas turned to face Leon, Leon attacked knowing it would be better this quickly because. His instincts warned him that Atlas is on a complex, different level compared to Ban.
"Light Speed Slash."
Leon lunged forward, intent clear, but before he could land the strike, two fingers clamped around the tip of his blade, holding it effortlessly.
<
Leon froze mid-motion, disbelief flashing across his features. He hadn't anticipated such speed or strength.
"I'll ask one last time. Did you conspire with Mimon to attack our home?"
Atlas's voice was low, controlled, devoid of any trace of human emotion, radiating an authority that made even the air feel heavy.
Leon's hand twitched on the hilt. He released the sword, slipping away from the unshakable calm of Atlas's presence, his escape calculated but cautious.
<
"Invading my nation is another reason I must defeat you."
"So be it..."
A black aura flared around Atlas's fingers, swallowing the blade's edge in silence. In the next instant, Leon's sword crumbled into black ash, dispersing before it could even hit the ground.
Mega Art Necrotic Grasp, the Art of Death, is a legendary and feared Mega Art, known for its absolute dominion over mortality itself. Only two Stars in the entirety of the Pond—Atlas and Alnath—are capable of wielding it.
Nect, Atlas extended a single finger. A ray of light erupted, so fast, so precise, that Leon didn't even register the attack until his body was already moving. He staggered back, blood spilling from his mouth as his breath hitched violently. With his core fractured, it's time to end it all.
"It's over."
Atlas raised his right arm. The sky above seemed to recoil as dark, cosmic energy gathered in his palm, space around it warping under its weight. The power continued to swell, each second amplifying the pressure until the continent itself felt like it was being judged.
"I'll hold back just enough to incinerate this continent."
He said flatly.
"Galactic Bomb."
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To be continued...