Ahahahahahahahahaha!
Thanatos’s laughter exploded through the air, reverberating far and wide.
Crackling, crackling!
At the same time, an indescribable sensation swept over my entire body. The energy Thanatos unleashed was twice as intense as before, pressing down on me with an overwhelming force. That chilling, blind murderous intent made the hairs on my arms stand on end. No matter how hard I tried to steady myself, my body trembled uncontrollably.
Is this… the true form of Thanatos, the god of death?
“You insignificant human… How dare you provoke my wrath?”
A calm yet terrifying voice echoed through the void. At first, I thought it was Hwa-jeong speaking, but no—it was Thanatos. Even his voice carried a magical pressure that crushed the spirit. Suddenly, the whites of his eyes vanished, replaced entirely by black irises twisted into a grotesque glare fixed on me.
Damn it. Did I provoke him for no reason?
“Fine. If you beg for death so desperately, how could I possibly ignore you? I will grant you a death so unforgettable, even in the afterlife.”
Whoosh!
In an instant, a dark mist flowed from Thanatos’s limbs. The smoke, neither thick nor thin, wrapped tightly around his wrists and ankles. It writhed and twisted like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.
Then—
In a split second, a streak of light surged toward me, hair fluttering as if caught in a gale. Swallowing hard, I shifted my weight back. The oncoming attack felt like a black tidal wave crashing down.
“Don’t block it—dodge!”
Hwa-jeong’s voice rang sharply, and I reflexively leapt backward.
But—
“!”
Just as I thought the strike was about to hit me, Thanatos vanished. All I saw was a white heel descending like a blade aimed to split my skull. I jerked my chin up just in time to feel a razor-sharp gust brush across my nose.
I narrowly avoided having my head shattered, but the blow still slammed into my chest armor.
Bang!
“Ugh!”
The impact felt like my chest had exploded.
That was all.
When I finally regained my senses, I was already flying through the air, plummeting toward the ground. It was as if a chunk of my memory had been abruptly erased.
“Get a grip!”
I was conscious, but the problem was that Thanatos was closing in on me at a speed beyond anything I’d ever faced. It was so fast, it made all our previous fights feel like mere warm-ups.
I scrambled to regain my balance and activated my sword’s power. Victoria’s Glory unleashed a clear, dark gleam, and dozens of sword lights flashed around my opponent in an instant.
But Thanatos’s charge didn’t falter. He glanced at the shimmering blades with obvious annoyance and flicked his hand. Like a lie, the sword lights melted away all at once.
There was no time to be surprised. Before I could react, Thanatos struck again, slicing through the air with a lightning-fast thrust.
“Don’t even think about blocking! Just dodge—no matter what!”
“Ugh!”
I didn’t understand why I had to keep dodging, but gritting my teeth, I twisted my body as hard as I could. His fist grazed my side by a hair. Before I could even exhale, a grotesquely twisted kick came crashing in. I barely managed to evade that by sheer luck, only to be met with a shoulder ram from Thanatos.
Thud!
The breath was knocked out of me. The attack was simple but brutal. I needed to catch my breath, but my vision spun wildly.
Just then, a sharp, stinging wind brushed my cheek. My skin prickled painfully. Sensing danger, I quickly unleashed Caligo Abraxas.
Click.
A light snort echoed.
Losing my balance, my eyes involuntarily lifted. What I saw was Caligo Abraxas soaring vertically, while Thanatos descended with outstretched hands.
The next moment—
Crack!
The flat of my blade crumpled like paper, bursting with a sharp metallic sound. Watching the iron shards scatter endlessly, a dizzying wave of panic washed over me. Forget the broken sword—this all happened within minutes of my foolish provocation, and the situation had flipped in an instant.
No, this is how it’s supposed to be. But still, I couldn’t hide my sense of emptiness.
What’s worse, Thanatos’s assault wasn’t over.
In a flash, he was right in front of me. A grotesque smile stretched from ear to ear. As if to finish me off, he clasped his hands together and swung them upward toward the sky. I tried to escape with a Dimensional Shift, but Thanatos was already bringing his full force down.
Too fast.
Impossible to block.
I closed my eyes tight, thinking this was it.
Then—
Vrrrrrr!
Suddenly, the magic circuits in my body seemed to drain away like a receding tide.
Bang!
A deafening explosion rocked my entire body. The shockwave shattered my already fragile balance completely.
Sssssssssss!
My back scraped the ground as I slid backward. Rolling on the earth, I hastily lifted my eyes. A red veil blurred my vision before fading away. Thanatos stood there, halting his attack, staring at me with a look of surprise.
Only then could I finally exhale the breath I’d been holding.
So that’s it. The Gehenna’s Guardian Fortress activated. Until just moments ago, I hadn’t felt any lack of magic, but after using just one Dimensional Shift, my reserves were nearly empty.
Lucky to be alive, but I wish it had kicked in sooner.
“Can’t be helped. You didn’t read Thanatos’s attack.”
“Didn’t read it?”
“Yeah. He moves at more than twice your top speed. How could you block that? Unless you keep your magic shield up constantly.”
“…”
That’s true. And as Hwa-jeong said, if I kept it on, my magic would have run out in minutes.
Still, this is maddening. Twice my top speed? What kind of agility stat does that even mean?
“It’s the power of Fearfire.”
“Shield?”
I planted my sword in the ground and stood up as Thanatos smirked.
“Must have met it before.”
“Lies.”
“Wasn’t it?”
Huh? Thanatos’s voice sounded strange. After releasing his power, his deep tone suddenly shifted to a normal voice, then back again. It was like a microphone cutting in and out.
“Listen carefully. You’re doing well, so don’t think about anything else. Just focus on holding on and dodging. Got it?”
“Doing well?”
What exactly am I doing well? I was already regretting provoking him.
“Hey, what am I supposed to do now? He’s pissed.”
“You idiot! Can’t you see him?”
At Hwa-jeong’s shout, I glanced at Thanatos—and suddenly, my eyes sharpened. The smoke that had wrapped around his limbs earlier was now translucent. No, it looked like some unknown liquid was dripping off, slowly melting away.
“Th-Thanatos-sama!”
Lucifer’s panicked shout cut through the air, but—
“Shut up.”
“Never!”
Thanatos snapped sharply. Before I could react, he slammed his foot into the ground with a thunderous crash.
I tensed, unable to take my eyes off his limbs.
For some reason—
“He’s coming. Get ready.”
At least one thing was clear.
Thanatos was eager to end this.
As Thanatos darted forward like an arrow, the two of them launched into a fierce battle so fast it was almost invisible. Every punch and kick from Thanatos whipped up a tremendous gust, while Kim Soo-hyun countered with twin swords swinging like a storm.
Black and red clashed in a blur, dozens of afterimages scattering through the air. Not even elite fighters could keep up with this terrifying speed.
Moments later, another thunderous explosion shook the battlefield. The heat blast from their collision whipped outward, nearly reaching the fortress walls.
Mar, who had been watching in a daze, snapped his eyes open as a cracked brick suddenly fell.
“You rat!”
“Dodging well, aren’t you!”
Thanatos’s roar shook the entire field. Mar saw Kim Soo-hyun retreating as far back as possible—or rather, Thanatos had already broken through and was kicking Kim’s abdomen.
Kim grimaced, crossing his swords in defense, but was overpowered and sent flying through the air again, crashing to the ground.
Seizing the moment, Thanatos leapt high into the air. Spreading his hands wide, he swung them down toward where Kim had fallen. The dark mist coiled around him stretched out in a straight line, mercilessly bombarding the earth.
Kraaaang!
A massive explosion. The ground where Kim landed and the surrounding ten meters shook violently. The earth cracked like eggshells, dust soaring skyward like a series of massive landmines detonating.
“No!”
Mar urgently shouted as she watched the faintly fluttering debris scatter around. She didn’t want to imagine the worst-case scenario, but the nagging thought kept creeping in.
“Dad!”
Unable to hold back any longer, Mar spun around. A strange unease settled over her, but there was no time to dwell on it. Saving her father was her only priority.
Just as she was about to sprint down the city wall,
“Huh?”
Her jaw and shoulder were suddenly grabbed.
Startled, she turned to see a woman gazing at her intently.
Her eyes were unlike usual—deeply sunken, heavy with something unspoken.
“Ah, Ansol unni?”
Mar stammered, unsure what to say. Ansol shook her head gravely.
“Don’t go out.”
“W-what?”
“You can’t be seen yet.”
“…What did you say?”
Mar couldn’t believe her ears. She had hoped that even if she couldn’t face Thanatos head-on, she could at least help Kim Suhyun.
“This battlefield is a stage for the enemy’s play. But there’s no role for you in this act.”
“W-what do you mean? Why can’t I go out?”
“They don’t know you yet. If they do, they’ll definitely respond.”
“What are you talking about right now?!”
Knowing the urgency, Mar snapped in frustration. She tried to brush Ansol’s hand aside and push past her, but—
“If you go, you’ll die.”
A cold voice pierced her ears.
“The moment you step onto the stage and get noticed, the man you love—your father—will die. Probably, almost for sure.”
Though she thought it wasn’t worth listening to, Mar found herself frozen in place. For some reason, Ansol’s words carried a weight she couldn’t easily dismiss.
It was almost ironic. If Hwajeong were here, she’d probably find this quite fascinating.
The fairy queen who insists every word and action has a reason, and Ansol, who foresees the future with an unprecedented 105 points of luck.
“Unni…”
Mar looked at Ansol with a sad, disbelieving expression. But the grip on her shoulder was so strong, it hardly felt like Ansol’s—it was as if saying, “You absolutely must not go out.”
“Wait a moment.”
In the silence, a silver-haired woman cautiously stepped between them. It was Nimue, Mar’s bodyguard.
“If the queen says no, how about I go instead?”
“Nimue!”
Mar’s face twisted oddly at the unexpected suggestion. But Ansol quietly closed her eyes and nodded slowly.
“As long as you only show yourself briefly.”
Then—
“Now!”
Thanatos’s harsh voice echoed sharply in the ears of the three women.
Looking down quickly, the thick dust was slowly settling. Thanatos still hovered in the air, grinding his teeth.
“Why aren’t you coming out already?”
Bang!
In response, a figure burst through the hazy cloud of dust and shot up into the sky.
It was Kim Suhyun, brandishing the wings of a dragon.
---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------
Taking a day off really feels like healing.
That said, midnight updates are tough. -_-;
I started writing two hours earlier than usual, but still ended up an hour later than midnight… OTL
Sorry about that. Please scold me harshly. (?)
Oh, and a reader asked—if Thanatos and the Evil God fought in the middle world, Thanatos would obviously win overwhelmingly.
Remember that scene where Gehenna was beating up the Evil God?
Thanatos can do the same.
The only reason he’s acting like this right now is… well, um!
Anyway, long live Godsol!