What was Anti-Magic exactly?
This was a question Tsuki often pondered about, it was something that had greatly troubled him since his transmigration; and it was something that still bothered him till this day. Not being able to use his Anti-Magic Attainment, It was something he deeply regretted.
Yet, just because he couldn't use it in combat, didn't mean he didn't experiment to find the answer to his question. It drained his mana unceasingly, it caused wounds to be afflicted upon him at times; evidently, juse using it for a small duration seriously harmed Tsuki.
He tried many methods to counter Anti-Magic's danger, Formations, Runes, Soul Magic, etc.
Nothing worked and due to pressing time he was forced to stop experimentation, he couldn't have this mythical magic divert his entire attention, he also had other techniques he needed to desperately work on after all.
Even after he returned, he didn't have thoughts of figuring out Anti-Magic, not until he reached the Satan Class.
Be it through fate or luck, the answer to this matter finally landed on his lap.
If he allowed this chance to slip by, to allow the opportunity of reaching a new level, of obtaining a qualitative change, then he wouldn't be Tsuki.
As such, as multiple thoughts collided and dispersed inside his mind, cold light flashed through his eyes as he resolutely made a scheme; capture Armaros and acquire the method to use Anti-Magic no matter the cost.
Seeing his own brother stand between his own group and the Fallen Angels, Tsuki watched as conflict slowly escalated between the two teams; it was only due to Neru that full blown combat hadn't happened, Armaros merely watched with a curious smile.
Tsuki inwardly sighed, if he had known such a character was in Grigori, he would've spared the lives of the Fallen Angels and even negotiated, it was a pity. But life often doesn't go the way one desires.
Are you going to step in? At this rate, even if Neru is firmly suppressing it, they'll eventually fight each other; if Neru's group dies, the Descendants won't let the opportunity to target you go.
The System calmly analyzed and stated inside Tsuki's mind, it was rather rare for the System to act like this, she only did so after she realized how vital Armaros was for his plans.
'Of course I know this, but I can't just kill them all and integrate Armaros, he definitely has the capability to escape from me'
Tsuki smiled as he made up his mind, he was resolute in obtaining the Anti-Magic methods, even if he had to expose his Soul Magic Attainment, he would do so without hesitation; who cared if anybody found out? Who would know about it besides the two squads in Cocytus? He would just kill them, it would harm his future development, but Anti-Magic would definitely prove to be handy if the Descendants targeted him
There was no need for further consideration.
000
Armaros
When he had accepted the task given to him by Azazel, he had immediately chosen a few of the elites that remained -and that could be sacrificed if the occasion arrived- and had set off to Cocytus as soon as he did so.
With the artifacts given to the rest of the team and their map, they were able to easily travel to Cocytus after flying for a day; just when they arrived and planned to set camp to rest, they had met with an expected situation, something Armaros blamed himself for.
While they had received news of the grand Tsuki Satanachia being sent to Cocytus to suppress the hellfire, they hadn't received the unimportant information that concerned the other team who was participating.
Azazel had limited energy and resources to spare, atop of this, Neru was widely known to be the weaker brother of Tsuki; none of his achievements combined could be compared to Tsuki's feats in the Battle of England.
Tsuki along with his -former- team were regarded as one of the strongest in the Underworld, and rightfully so, nearly no other team could surpass them in strength and contributions. When he considered Neru and his crew, he compared them to Tsuki's.
As such, they had little to no info about him, not even knowing they would be a part of the quest; even if they had known, it was of no importance to them, only Satanchia heir posed any sort of threat in their eyes.
That was of course before he saw the opposing group's strength, Neru was able to easily suppress the entire rising conflict with little action; even his Adventurer squad had more power than Armaros'.
Armaros finally realized something at that point, it wasn't that Neru and his gang were frail -it was the exact opposite in fact- it was that he has always been compared to Tsuki and seemed weak!
If one compared the eldest brother to any other gang, they would realize that they were also one of the strongest in the Underworld.
He could only argue with the opposing squad, if he were to show his strength, there would no doubt be suspicion drawn and investigations by the Satans and Six Houses of Lucifer; until they successfully obtained Tsuki, this was something they were not willing to see.
But even if he used his full strength, Armaros wasn't confident in capturing them before Tsuki arrived; killing them would immediately cause Tsuki to retreat, it would be an immediate failure of their plan.
Defeating someone was easy, killing was difficult, but capturing was extremely hard!
As such, they could only argue and negotiate.
"You pieces of shit, we try and help and this is how you act?!"
A Fallen Angel on his side roared, fury in his stone as he viciously glared at Neru and his team. Neru's team immediately displayed an attitude of arrogance as they demanded the Fallen Angels to back off.
As one could see, the Cadre's plan of 'Arguing and negotiating' wasn't exactly panning out.
"Hmph, help? From the filthy crows that lost to Young Master Satanachia? You act quite arrogantly for someone so weak, with such a temperament too, you dare to speak kindly but you actually demanded such a thing?"
Maria retorted with an unsightly expression, her brown chocolatey eyes showing clear contempt towards the Fallen Angel. Against the short auburn haired female, the dark haired Fallen Angel known as Haru clenched his fist.
Previously, to cover up the fact they wanted to capture Tsuki, they had come up with an excuse of wanting to help the Underworld; offering to cooperate with them. But, to display their greediness, they also wanted to be compensated through knowledge regarding Tsuki.
They had no choice but to ask this, they needed to fully convince them that this was their ulterior motive. It was better for them to think they wanted to know more about Tsuki than them knowing they wanted to capture him in this mission!
This immediately drew the anger of Neru's group, this was far more than crossing the line, giving info about one of their Ultimate Class Devils would encite fury and anger upon the masses; they wouldn't be surprised that with Tsuki's fame, they would be sent towards their death for betraying such a thing.
Armaros couldn't help but sigh, his objective was to ask for artifacts and rare potions, but the group actually wanted info. It seemed logical, the more information they had, the easier they could handle Tsuki and his tactics.
Information was power after all, many methods would be countered once exposed, it would cripple their source of power. But this was the exact reason why the Fallen Angel governor didn't request this.
"It's only natural! Wouldn't you want the same if your kind was killed by one of our members? After you helped our race? What type of ruthless demon repays kindness with slaughter?!"
Haru, the young Fallen Angel, argued back with intense anger. The rest of the four man team stayed silent, they also felt the same way, who was shameless enough to kill their own benefactors? Wasn't it because of their friends and or family that Tsuki was able to survive?
The Cadre of the group also felt this way but didn't dare to drag his own personal feelings into the mission, it showed his maturity, while the young Fallen Angel fully exploded in rage as he countered.
Neru's expression darkened, while he was on opposing sides with the other faction, he held the foresight of a leader despite his lack of talent; he knew that eliminating the hellfire was the most important objective here, arguing with the Fallen Angels would only deter this.
But just as he was about to interrupt and speak, a shocking scene occurred, it was something even the mighty Cadre couldn't ignore.
Descending from the gloomy and dark clouded sky, the cold blizzard blew heavily against all creatures and beings, tainting all terrain and life in pristine white snow; in this horrid weather, a single figure slowly came down from the sky.
Immediately the two groups, be it the Devil Faction's or the Fallen Angel's, noticed this and showed varying expressions at the male's presence; Neru's group held joy while Neru himself snorted in displeasure, the Fallen Angels' expression darkened considerably. Only their leader showed an eerie gleam, it was filled with anticipation.
"It's a pleasure to see you again, brother."
Tsuki's silky and warm voice spoke, reverberating into the ears of all those below him, yet as he got lower their expressions only amplified in joy and wariness; his ten dark bat-like wings were now easily visible to them.
Previously, Tsuki used an unknown artifact to hide them, but after the Battle of England he simply had no reason to do this anymore, and as such he now showed his rightful status as an Ultimate Class devil.
Hearing his younger brother's words, he hid the hatred in his heart as he gave a warm smile to the heir of his family.
"I'm glad you accepted the mission younger brother, after such a long time, we finally have the chance to bond."
Neru replied without hesitation, Tsuki's eyes stayed on his elder brother's figure before retracting his gaze.
Tsk, he actually has some talent in acting, I thought that he'd be all muscle, no brain.
The System said with pity, she felt wariness against the oldest Satanachia brother due his low affection status; having her host be near such a person was something she didn't want to see. It would be great if Tsuki could kill him early on.
'Neru Satanachia…'
It could be said that Neru was someone that had little to no effect on Tsuki's life, his responsibility weighed much on him, and his strength was needed far too much for him to be able to focus on Tsuki.
Due to Tsuki stealing the position of heir, he held deep resentment, this resentment was further mixed with jealousy as Tsuki shot straight to fame; wherever he went, he was always compared and looked down upon by others.
The Satanachia heir was well aware of this, and due to their conflicting issues and interests they haven't interacted all that much; Tsuki was rather thankful for this, with Neru's personality and strength, Tsuki had no doubt that he would be suppressed in his early stages of growth.
Giving a hearty laugh, Tsuki's two feet finally landed on the soft snow as he stood between the two factions, the leader of the Fallen Angel group had a change of expression; the male's actions naturally had deep meaning.
If he stood next to Neru and his group, it would mean he was fully supporting them and would even target them, this was something he didn't want to see so early on.
But Tsuki didn't do this, he instead chose to stand in between them, this meant that he had no intentions of causing a large-scale battle; a sigh of relief escaped his breath, he was rather happy to see this.
There would be no telling of the consequences if Tsuki decided to oppose them, their plan would fail before it even had the chance to begin.
"Friends, why must we fight? You're here for the same reason as us, right?"
The Fallen Angels gnashed their teeth, the image of Tsuki's warm smile accompanied by his kind words made their hatred for him all that much deeper; as the man who murdered their friends, he had no right to speak such righteous words!
Tsuki gazed at them with a look of pity as he softly spoke to them.
"I know you're mad at me, I know you feel anger about what happened to your friends, but believe me when I say I simply had no other choice. Seeing my weakness at that moment, they targeted me and I could only defend myself."
If looks could kill, then Tsuki's whole body would have burst into flames hot enough to melt the icy terrain of Cocytus. With vicious glared and clenched fists, their fury and hatred became unquenchable, even Armaros started to frown.
Tsuki only snickered inwardly, regarding what truly happened, nobody but Doku and Michael could say. But they wouldn't give such info to their enemies, and because of this the Satanachia heir was free to twist the truth to his heart's desire and they could only accept that!
"But… I know what you're feeling and because of this, you can accompany me during this mission, as long as you truly help suppress the flames then along the way I can answer any questions you have regarding me."
Tsuki's words caused deep shock to both sides, they couldn't comprehend why the male was willing to do such a thing; information regarding oneself was often kept tightly sealed, especially regarding their techniques and experiences, they were invaluable to their enemies and could be used as counters.
Tsuki offering them his information was the same as letting them grasp onto his weakness. But even then, the young Fallen Angel known as Haru wasn't content with the Devil's words; he spoke with a growl.
"How will we know that the information you give us is true? They could be lies to deceive u-"
Just as he spoke, his words came to a sudden halt as Tsuki's aura grew, his warm and kind smile and gaze turning icy cold as he looked at the youngling with contempt; so with a heavy frown and unconcealed mockery, he spoke.
"Mind your words, little crow, I wasn't speaking to you, I was speaking to your leader; it's his words that matter, keep that in mind."
Tsuki decided to firmly suppress the young enemy, he was arrogant, rash, and was someone that was too overconfident; his nature was something the heir hated to deal with, it would be like speaking to a boulder.
He held little to no care about the opinions of the rest of the Fallen Angels, the only one he held in regard was the Anti-Magic user. On Top of this, if he allowed the young crow to gain momentum, then the others would slowly be more inclined to follow his opinion, it was something Tsuki didn't want to see.
Despite the harsh words, Haru could only lower his head helplessly, he had no right to speak in a matter that concerned the whole group! As such, their leader stepped up, a curious gleam still held in his eyes as he gave Tsuki a deep look; it was quite some time before he decided to speak.
"We can gracefully accept your offer Lord Tsuki, I hope you can disregard Haru's outburst."
Even though he said these words, his hurt thumped loudly as he calmly gazed at Tsuki's bottomless onyx eyes; he really wanted to fight him! He felt like it would be a huge significance to his own growth if he did so.
Tsuki gave a hearty laugh, patting the Cadre on the shoulder as he exclaimed.
"Of course! We're all friends here aren't we? But right now the most important matter is suppressing the hellfire, the sooner we get on it the better."
Tsuki directly told them his goal as the opposing leader of the group nodded, if an outsider were to see them, they would they think they were best friends or long lost brothers.
000
Not long after, due to the cooperation between the unofficial leader of Neru's team and the Fallen Angel's they were able to forcefully make their two groups cooperate, for some duration at the very least.
Under great reluctance -with Neru being indifferent- Tsuki parted ways with the Devil Faction's group and temporarily joined the Fallen Angels; it showed the sincerity in the words he spoke earlier.
Of course, the Fallen Angels allowed a way for the Devils to track and transmit messages to Tsuki using an artifact, if it wasn't for this then the devils would never allow their strongest Ultimate Class to leave.
After this little agreement, the two groups immediately departed as they agreed to meet at the entrance of Cocytus; as such, with few words spoken between them, they went off to dispel the hell flames.
The odd thing about hellfire being that some were blazingly hot, their mere presence caused distortions in the air and were known for causing immense agitation or death to all nearby lifeforms; while others were freezing cold, having an appearance of a kindling blue blame.
This azure flame had the exact opposite effects as its counterpart but it also contained the same exact outcome if one was near it, death. Although beautiful and pretty, it froze everything in its surroundings and was often regarded as the most dangerous out of the two.
But both were extremely dangerous, hellfire burned the soul while the azure flames directly froze the soul; unless one possessed Soul Magic methods -like Tsuki- they should never get into contact or be near it.
In the middle of a desolate and barren forest, azure flames wreaked havoc upon the land as they slowly began to spread; it was even slower than mortal fire. This was one of the characteristics of this type of hellfire.
Hovering above the forest, was a group of five men, four of them Fallen Angels while the other one was a Devil; it was a weird contrast.
"Hellfire isn't known to be easy to handle, certain methods have to be used for certain situations. I wonder if Lord Tsuki's Dream Magic has any effect on them?"
One of the Fallen Angels spoke, for now past grudges had to be thrown behind, this was something all of them had to accept; it was for their home, for Lord Azazel, for Grigori!
Tsuki gave a bitter smile as he said.
"Unfortunately, both flames and dream are mystical and elusive, they would simply pass through each other unless both were condensed; even if I did so, the fire itself isn't and would merely spread further and or destroy my magic"
This was the truth, dream magic in itself had no effect on the hellfire, Doku had once came to Cocytus to personally handle the matter but came empty handed; this was contributed to the fact that he was restricted and couldn't use Power of Dream, he was forced to use his other weaker types of magic.
Of course, Tsuki possessed Soul Magic which could be used as a defensive method against it, he even possessed a few techniques to directly dispel the blue fire, but Tsuki wouldn't ever expose this magic to anybody unless necessary.
Glancing at the leader of the different race's team, Tsuki aimed a question at him, "I wonder if you possess any methods, Lord Ararmos?"
As expected, he nodded.
"Lord Azazel passed down a few artifacts that can be used to cancel the soul magic effects of the flames, with it, we don't have to be concerned with being harmed. As for dispeling it, I have a few ways."
Tsuki's eyes shined with considerable light, be it the artifact or the dissipation method, they were things he was most curious about; he could already tell that one of his means was Anti-magic!
Facing Tsuki, he cupped his fists and bowed, it was an unusual action. Without hesitation, he spoke, his voice clear for all to hear. "I hope my lord can keep whatever happens in the forest to himself, I would rather have my methods concealed."
As he said this, he gave no chance for the Satanachia heir to speak as he rose from his position, pulling out a pendant from beneath the folds of his clothes; he grasped onto the thin silver chains of it, Armaros held the silver and amethyst core pendant up in the air.
As he did this, a dazzling ray of light began to spread across the destroyed forest, rays of purple swept through the blazing and uncontrollable conflagrations; in an instant, the large blue inferno ceased!
While they didn't vanish, their large forms were immediately suppressed into small patches of fire and all movement of advancement was halted; it was clear to both Devil and former Angels that the artifact possessed deep power meant for hellfire.
The minor shock of the Satanachia heir didn't stop there, as the Cadre placed the dim purple gemmed pendant underneath his clothes, Armaros took a deep breath just as the Devil's mind shook.
The reason for this stood before him.
Like a Sea dragon roaming free in the river, silver energy convened and wandered around the ten winged Fallen Angel; this energy seemed to be both liquid and condensed, it was an odd sight to behold. But what was most important was that this energy was directly produced from the male's body.
Every other magic, be it fire, lightning, wind, soul, dream, destruction, etc. they all used mana and usually formed outside the user's body; it seemed mystical and otherworldly as it directly formed from Demonic or Holy energy, something that is completely invisible unless special methods are involved.
But the magic that he was using didn't follow this trend.
They were evidently coming straight from his body, it was as if his soul was being directly sucked out, but as the man who currently stood at the peak of Soul Magic Tsuki knew that this wasn't the case at all.
Tsuki needed to find the source, immediately!
'Observe!'
Armaros
Level - 135
Class - Anti-Knight
Race - Fallen Angel (10 Wing, Cadre)
Alignment - Grigori, Azazel
HP - 182,012/202,000 (5)
MP - 0 (5)
STR - 1,200 (4x) = 4,800
END - 1,010 (4x) = 4,040
DEX - 1,000 (4x) = 4,000
INT - 400 (4x) = 1,600
WIS - 300 (4x) = 1,200
CHA- 200 (4x) = 800
LCK - 400 (4x) = 1,200
Thoughts/Emotions about you: Curiosity, wonders how powerful you are, Expectance, wants to fight you
Goal: Research his anti-magic even further
Affection: 10 /100
Secret: Has been tasked to capture Tsuki Satanachia
Tsuki gave a look of meaning to Armaros, it was at this moment he fully memorized his appearance to his heart, his name to his mind; this Cadre wasn't simple in the slightest. With time, he would be like the blazing sun that encompassed all those below him.
Standing tall and proud Armaros' appearance could be described as odd at first glance, his golden armor and helm reflected the rays of the light, fully displaying its regal glory. His long ink colored cape and eye patch largely contrasted against his armor, but it gave the odd sensation of balancing each other perfectly.
With a large axe and shield behind his back, he gave off an intimidating expression that was supposed by his muscular physique, his piercing violet eyes, and flowing black hair that could be distinctly called a mane.
Tsuki sighed in admiration.
If he didn't possess the Gamer System, Tsuki held little doubt that he would be moved by Armaros' actions. He would begrudgingly start to trust him and work with him, and in due time he would be captured!
What was Anti-Magic in essence? As he watched the Cadre send the new silver energy towards the flame covered forest, he faintly grasped onto the answer to his question as he watched all signs of fire, as he watched all hints of remaining sparks dissipate into nothingness; Tsuki gained an answer.
Anti-Magic was the counter to all magic, but this wasn't correct either. It was the counter to all magical beings, it was the counter to all mana, all forms of energy. It was the enemy of the supernatural!
This was the meaning Tsuki obtained as he watched the violet eyed man.
But how did the man use it, how could he grasp such a profound way to use the strongest counter of all magic? Tsuki did not know but he gained many questions.
When using Anti-Magic, why did Armaros' HP drop? Why was it so drastic? Did this perfect counter to all magic use the lifeforce of the user as its fuel instead of mana? Or was it a mere side effect of using such dangerous magic? Did this relate to the reason why he had no mana? Was it a backlash? Or was he born that way which was the reason he could use Anti-magic?
In an instant, Tsuki was able to grasp the truth. Unfortunately, he had no confirmation to any of his guesses and could only keep them in mind.
Watching as the Cadre flew back to them, he could barely see the sweat and paleness of the violet eyed man; Tsuki continued to see through these tiny details with great interest, he could only discern that using Anti-Magic was clearly taxiing to even an expert.
Tsuki hung his head back and gave a loud laugh as he applauded.
"Amazing, I have never seen such magic before, especially none strong enough to eliminate the azure hellfire; is it perhaps the ancient Anti-Magic spoken in legends?"
Speaking of, Anti-Magic in itself had a short and complex history, the reason being nobody could accurately point where it had originated from and when. Some say God himself made the mystical magic, others argue it was there from the beginning, being the yang to the yin that was magic.
Even to this day, the topic of Anti-Magic was extremely controversial. Only one thing was certain, whenever an extremely rare user of this ancient magic was born, they would cause unparalleled changes to history.
They would be great heroes, champions with tales as long as a river, mighty figures that could stomp on every being beneath them! And yet, despite this, despite the records of their names, not once has anybody obtained a clear answer on how one even gained Anti-Magic, much less use it in combat or any form of matter.
This was the reason why Tsuki was stumped, was it purposely taken out of the records so nobody could decipher this grand secret? He could only dejectedly give up on this magic, up until he met one of the generals of Grigori of course.
As long as he gained this secret, he would be unstoppable!
"I'm not worthy of your praises, it is mostly due to the artifact that my insufficient skills in Anti-Magic can dispel such mighty fire"
"To tell you the truth, it is indeed the legendary magic known as Anti-Magic, it's something I have diligently studied for many centuries. It was only after I got seriously wounded and crippled did finally succeed in obtaining Anti-Magic"
Armaros calmly said, a smile planted on his face as he explained the difficulties but he never truly touched upon the method on how he did it. The two shared laughs as they conversed with warmth even as they flew to the next location.
The Fallen Angels stared dumbfounded at this, weren't they enemies? Didn't Tsuki slaughter dozens of their friends? Why were they so relaxed with one another? Where's the grand friction that would lead to a battle?
What they didn't understand is that their leader was already engaging Tsuki in combat!
By probing one another continuously, deciphering their moves, personality, battle experiences, they were repeatedly fighting the other to see who would grasp the biggest understanding of their enemy!
000
Over the course of the day, both groups worked diligently to dispel the fire that surrounded Cocytus, they worked without seeing an end to their mission; even Tsuki and Armaros began to experience tiredness.
It couldn't be helped, even Doku took many days to suppress them all by himself; a single day was already the limit for the two groups even with the Ultimate Class beings in their teams. Fortunately, the hellfire they encountered were of low quantity and quality.
As such, after this single day, both groups could finally relax; it was something everyone was content with, all except one Devil.
Naturally, this Devil was none other than Tsuki Satanachia; throughout this entire mission his goal has never been to suppress the flames that covered Cocytus. His only two tasks was to gain the method of how to use Anti-Magic and find Samael!
Gaining Anti-Magic was easier said than done, Tsuki formulated a few ways he could forcefully do so, ranging from using Soul Devourer to Power of Dream methods; both had their demerits and positives.
Soul Devourer's sole weakness was the fact it couldn't discern with what the user wanted, he could end up getting a bunch of useless skills and no info regarding Anti-magic; the only way to counter this was to of course reach the pinnacle of it.
It was something he's been planning to do for some time and has even achieved minor success, but he was still a far distance from reaching the limit of the skill.
[Soul Devour] -LVL 4/100 (9%) [Grand Master]
Grants the user the capability of devourer the souls of other beings.
This skill activates upon the consumption of a soul and does not need to be commanded to activate.
Cost: 5,000 MP
Effect: Gains 6/10 of their known skills -along with proficiency- and stats
Warning: User may experience side effects if the soul is too powerful
Rarity: ?
Sixty percent might be high but this task was something Tsuki held in high regard, that remaining forty percent was too much of an eyesore to him. As such, he could only discard it, unless he ate the souls of all his familiars there wasn't any way to increase Soul Devourer to the next tier but that was something he wasn't willing to do.
As for Power of Dream, if he wasn't careful then he would be immediately discovered in which full blown war might erupt due to Tsuki's intrusion; Armaros' stats along with combat experience were higher than Tsuki, he had no confidence in completely erasing all traces of his Dream Magic. Furthermore, who knows what type of artifacts Azazel gave him, some might even be able to find these traces or directly prevent Tsuki from entering his mind.
So he also chose to give that option up, so if he couldn't use his two main paths, then what other options did he have?
Tsuki hovered in the air, his expression focused as he continued to think in peace. Yet, this peace did not last long. Feeling gale force winds, Tsuki's eyes widened as a loud explosion rang throughout Cocytus, shaking the foundation of the nearby mountains.
'Wind barrier!'
Even as energy swirled around Tsuki, even as the wind condensed to form a barrier, the shockwave of the explosion penetrated and broke through the crude shield with little force; Tsuki was actually damaged.
[You have suffered 2,400 DMG!]
Tsuki immediately waved his hand, the winds of nature kneeled at his action as they moved around his figure; condensing, refining, shaping and changing to his will. At this moment, Tsuki seemed like the reincarnation of the god of wind.
Tsuki assessed his situation, the earlier attack had done around ten thousand damage, thankfully both Wind barrier and Damage Reduction had achieved a qualitative change in recent time and could sustain damage that exceeded tens of thousands; of course, if Tsuki had to deal with such an onslaught, his HP would eventually dwindle down to nothingness.
[Damage Reduction] -LVL 9/100 (21%) [Grandmaster] (Passive)
All Damage dealt upon the user's body will be reduced to a certain degree.
Effect: All DMG reduced by 20%
Rarity: Common
[Wind Barrier] -LVL 21/100 (89%) [Advanced]
Oxygen and nitrogen will gather and condense around the user tightly to form a barrier of wind.
Effect: All Damage will be reduced by 15%, Wind Damage will be reduced by 20%
Cost: 400 MP
Durability: 4,000 DMG (Barriers can be tasked to multiple the durability)
Warning: The DMG Reduction percentage will not rise
Rarity: Rare
"Oh my, no wonder you're proclaimed as the Underworld's Greatest Talent, your ingenuity with all forms of magic is definitely impressive."
A loud laugh resounded through the air, before Tsuki's eyes, a sole figure stood before him; Tsuki's pupils couldn't help but contract.
Fixed with ruggish golden bangs and black hair that matched the color of his goatee, the man stood like an unyielding onyx spear, the most eye-catching thing about the man were his large never ending black twelve wings.
Coupled with a v-neck maroon coat with a wide, open high-collar that opens up at the hem; it only took a single second for the Satanachia heir to be able to identify the man that stood in front of him.
There was no doubt who he was.
There wasn't a single living breathing that breathed that didn't know of him.
The Governor of the Fallen Angels, The Tactician of Grigori, The undisputed most dangerous Fallen Angel in all of creation; formerly known as God's child, formerly the Angel of Justice, he was the leader of the Fallen Angel Faction.
Azazel.
Tsuki paled, eyes wide as he immediately made a move.
'Wind Barrier, Wind Barrier, Wind Barrier!'
His thoughts moved, clashing and creating at a continuous speed, Thought Processing was used to the very limit; every fiber of his mana moved from his body and into the air, condensing and refining everything that stood.
Azazel raised an eyebrow, he was amused as he observed the wind barrier that was thickening and growing without pause; Tsuki's expression halted for a second at his appearance but he immediately regained his bearings, he was quite amazing.
As the Governor of the Fallen Angels observed this skill, his eyes brightened.
"What a wonderful skill, most would try and create wind with their energy and move said wind; mostly condensed versions but it comes at a high cost and as such isn't practical. It seemed like you refined and perfected this skill! By using the natural air and merely applying pressure through your Demonic Energy, an even greater effect is shown. Amazing!"
He praised as he lifted his palm, the bright and relaxed smile on his face becoming a bit colder.
"But such a thing can't stop absolute power."
With a loud bang, his palm pressed against the wind wall and clashed with the magic; it was at this moment, his expression changed completely, shock and awe flashed upon his face as he destroyed the technique.
This wasn't why he was shocked, no, it was because of what came after!
With the burning intensity of the sun, scorching flames soared towards Azazel, he grinned; Tsuki's objective wasn't to defend, it was to deceive him into thinking that while using the barrier as a support for his next attack.
Azazel instantly understood Tsuki's tactics, if he really defended himself than he would be giving up the initiative and would be subjected to Azazel's methods; it was the worst outcome for Tsuki, it wouldn't be a problem if he was stronger or at least equal in strength, but he knew that Azazel far surpassed him.
Most Devils -or any Supernatural creature- wouldn't be able to see any paths ahead of them, the mental pressure of facing the leader of an entire race would cause their minds to corrode; it would dwindle their true battle strength.
But Tsuki wasn't such a person, he didn't feel any true fear or pressure from Azazel, or if he did then he simply ignored it. Furthermore, just because he didn't see a road he could walk on to survive, he forcefully created one!
Azazel's grin widened even further as the heat of the flames intensified by a dozenfold, with a slightly crazed smile, he slammed his hands together. Immediately, the flashy scenery that was the flames vanished into nothingness.
Azazel took a deep breath.
'That took a lot more energy than I thought it would, and he's still holding back? Fucking hell, just how terrifying is this kid.'
As he expected, as the traces of fiery crimson flames completely dissipated, all that was left was the roaring wind. Tsuki had apparently used both of these attacks to not only probe Azazel but to distract him while he vanished.
"Come on out Tsuki, I'll admit that you're a rare genius seen once in a thousand years but even you have your limit!"
Azazel stated, his figure fixed in position as he calmly stated the fact that Tsuki was most worried about; his mana. Every being contained a core for their finite energy, once it was exhausted they would simply be pigs waiting to be slaughtered. In this situation, Tsuki was the same.
Just deceiving Azazel cost him a decent amount of his energy, atop of the flames he had to create to create a combustion to distract the Fallen Angel Leader? It would be far too much if he continued.
"Heh, even if you don't want to come out, you'll be forced to. Why do you think no one has arrived despite the commotion? Why do you think your brother and his team haven't done anything? They're probably dying as we speak, you should know Armaros is far stronger than your eldest brother; are you really so cruel that you'll let him die?"
"Is the grand Tsuki such a coward? Not even saving his own brother and friends? Hmph, Michael truly let you off lightly, I don't know what he was thinking. A weakling like you can only run like a dog now, it's pathetic."
Azazel continued to pressure Tsuki, his words would often pierce through one's mental defenses and force them to act; yet as nothing occurred, Azazel frowned but in this frown there was a trace of admiration.
Many geniuses held onto their pride as being as such, their arrogance was often their own undoing, the cause of their death. He tried to use the arrogance a genius would have, against Tsuki but he still has yet to even speak, even Azazel was a bit surprised.
What he didn't know was that Tsuki was already planning, so without hesitation, he used Observe.
'Observe'
Azazel
Level - ?
Class - ?
Race - Fallen Angel (12 Winged)
Alignment - Grigori
HP - ?
MP - ?
STR - ?
END - ?
DEX - ?
INT - ?
WIS - ?
CHA- ?
LCK - ?
Thoughts/Emotions about you: Interest, wonders how far you will go, Caution, is wary against you and your dream magic methods
Reputation: 30/100
Although Tsuki couldn't see his goals nor his secret, he could vaguely guess that it was the same as Armaros'; Tsuki wasn't particularly surprised to see that he could only see such a limited amount of info, the only thing that was a bit shocking was his reputation.
But even then Tsuki understood, in a world where strength dominated, power was respected! Only those shortsighed fools that were doomed to be at the lower rankings for all of eternity couldn't grasp this.
Where the hell did he come from?! I was gone for a single minute-
Hearing the System's sudden entrance to his mind, Tsuki quickly responded as ideas flashed through his mind. His situation was too perilous, if Azazel was anything like Michael then he only had a single choice before him.
'They probably planned this, but that's not important right now: the most pressing matter is to escape!'
Tsuki held no delusion concerning his strength, he knew that once Neru was dealt with, Armaros would immediately come; at that point Tsuki would have to use every trump card in his arsenal to escape with his life!
One Faction Leader? As long as Tsuki was careful and only prioritized in escaping, he had a solid success rate. Escaping five Fallen Angels? Three of them were elites while the other two were the Fallen Angel Faction Leader and the Cadre? He might as well surrender, the chances were far too low.
The only reason why he was confident in escaping Azazel was because killing was far easier than capturing, if Azazel gained the assistance of Anti-Magic though, then it would be the end of the Satanachia heir.
As for Neru and his team? Tsuki already disregarded them, if they died then they could only blame themselves for their weakness.
"If you're not going to come out, then I can only force you!"
Azazel raised his hand, at this gesture, peerless and dazzling light was brought onto the world and with a simple gesture this piercing light scattered onto the surroundings, bombarding everything in its path.
Chaos ensued soon after Azazel's attack, all living beings that lived in Cocytus died by his hands, their blood spilling onto the white snow and dying it an eerie red; he continued this without pause.
Tsuki could only watch Azazel unceasing attacks, while Azazel's attacks had a small cost of Holy energy, Tsuki's concealment had a rather high one. He had to apply multiple layers for it to have any sort of effect on Azazel.
Tsuki! If you don't act soon, you'll die! Go!
The System shouted within Tsuki's mind, yet he stayed silent, this silence was deafening to the System; even all of his thoughts stopped fluctuating. She couldn't comprehend what he was doing, she was far too agitated to do so.
Suddenly, with a small thin dark and red hue surrounding Tsuki's body, his body vanished from the air and appeared before Azazel with a fist raised; this wasn't teleportation, it was Tsuki's pure and raw speed mixed with Demonic Energy Infusion.
[Demonic Energy Infusion] -LVL 5/100 (92%) [Master]
Infuses the object in the user's hand with their own Demonic Energy, enhancing its capabilities to a higher degree.
Cost: 600 MP (100MP per Hour)
Rarity: Common
Effect: Increases DMG and DUR,STR,DEX by *405
Azazel gave a loud laugh of triumph, suddenly before Tsuki's eyes, large lumps of blood began to separate from the soiled ground below him and cluster together and shoot up into the air at shocking speed; their target was obvious.
The Leader of the Fallen Angels purposely targeted these animals while having the intention to observe Tsuki, not only did he have a counterattack, he even forced Tsuki to come out; he was worthy of the title The Tactician of Grigori!
Is this… Blood Magic?!
Blood Magic had an extremely long history in the Great War, it was used by both Devil and Fallen Angel Factions with the Angel Faction ostracizing such magic; it was as powerful as it was feared.
Azazel was naturally known as one of the most feared users of Blood Magic in all of history, his strength and might went above logic. It can use both allies and enemies as its strength, and where death and blood flowed the most, The Great War was where Blood Magic truly shined.
The Governor was doing the same tactic as he did in The Great War, once Tsuki was submerged in the large river of blood, all of his magic and strength would be depleted; it would be too easy to capture him successfully.
Yet at this moment, Tsuki's fist struck that river of blood that tried to impede his movement, a shocking scene occurred.
A loud sound akin to an explosion reverberated throughout Cocytus, the two forces collided with brutal force that sent out gale force winds; the vapor in the air that was left by the flames dissipated completely, the corpses of the animals down below was pushed and flung.
Not only that, all the blood that was collected also evaporated under the pure strength of the fist, vanishing into the air like it had never existed. Atop of this, Azazel's chest caved in as he took a step back with a loud cough, blood dripped from his mouth; Azazel's internal organs were actually harmed, with a single punch, Azazel was forced back.
[1,049,075 DMG Dealt!]
[You have suffered 5,080 DMG!]
Tsuki's left eye twitched as pulsing pain flashed through his arm, he vastly overexerted the limits of Demonic Energy Infusion and suffered a backlash; the odd angle his arm was in showed just how severe the consequences were. The sensation of piercing bones, warm blood, and crushed bones was not a pleasant one that Tsuki would like to experience in his life again.
He watched with cold indifference as the wounds on the Fallen Angel leader vanished without a trace, despite himself suffering a rather serious backlash, Azazel himself barely sustained anything; the only trace of Tsuki's attack being the small stain of blood on his lip.
"To think the heir would have such achievements in Demonic Energy Infusion, very impressive. But don't think that's enough-"
Just as Azazel spoke with a mocking tone, Tsuki gripped his collar with shocking speed.
Before he could react, his head was rocked backwards with unprecedented force, another mountain shaking punch was delivered towards his skull, and another, and another, and another. Each contact with flesh produced shockwaves that shattered mountains and split seas, it was awe inspiring, such physical power was rarely ever seen.
[1,102,918 DMG Dealt!]
[1,401,001 DMG Dealt!]
[1,891,200 DMG Dealt!]
The unrelenting assault caused dozens of notifications to appear before Tsuki, be it Azazel's serious injuries or his own, the intense recoil caused Tsuki's forearm to burst open, his bones were shattered and his flesh and blood were reduced to dust. Yet Tsuki's expression never changed as he continued with the assault.
'How the hell?! Why does he have so much Demonic Energy!?'
Azazel shouted in his mind as the punches thrown at him got continuously stronger! What type of monster was this? He wasn't even a Devil anymore, to abuse his core and body to such an extent, who would do such a thing?
Even as mana pumped through Tsuki's body without end, even as his bones shattered and reformed, he never stopped moving his body; due to all the blows and punches, Azazel couldn't move much less counterattack.
The most astonishing thing wasn't his strength or speed, it was his Demonic Energy!
Weren't supernatural beings supposed to have cores? A limit? Then why was he getting faster and stronger? Why was he able to suppress him to such a large degree? Why was his aura getting larger and more condensed?!
The thin crimson and ink aura that covered Tsuki's frame was no more, it couldn't be called as such anymore; standing tall like a raging flame, the two colors mixed perfectly to form a crimson blood hue, the size of this aura was incomparably massive. It was like Azazel was staring at a mountain, and the most terrifying part was that it was continuously condensing and growing larger!
Naturally, this was one of Tsuki's trump cards, it was something he solemnly ever used. It was something he had recently thought of during his trip to Heaven, it wasn't anything special on paper but when used it would shock the whole world.
It was the collaboration between Demonic Energy Infusion and Mana Storage. This arrangement seemed plain and simple, but the deeper one thought about it, the more terrified they would become and praise its ingenuity.
[Mana Storage] -LVL 14/100 (2%) [Intermediate]
Allows the user to store up their mana in a blue ball of their making, indefinitely. Location of this storage doesn't matter, the user can draw from the stored up energy.
Cost: Any MP
Effect: Only two blue ball of storage is created
Rarity: Unique
Due to the fact he had so little time, Tsuki was barely able to raise it by a whole tier, but this was far more than enough for his future plans. As a cautious person, Tsuki had used every second he was awake to dump every bit of his Mana into these Mana Storages.
While it seemed useless to have any more of the blue storages, since each of them possess infinite capability to hold in Tsuki's energy, it was extremely crucial that Tsuki can make more than just two. The reason being that many areas in his dungeon needed one, it was akin to a battery, even if this battery held infinite energy the output would be too little to cover every single location. As such, having more than one was definitely optimal but on this occasion he only needed one.
This was the sole reason for Tsuki's continuous growth, he was expending the mana inside Mana Storage to amplify Demonic Energy Fusion to a never seen before degree!
Since Azazel was holding back his strength to prevent Tsuki dying, he could only endure the soul shaking punches that seemed to produce their own forces of wind with each movement. Yet, he knew extremely well that Tsuki's body was near collapse.
How many people haven't thought of such a method? To continuously strengthen Demonic Energy Infusion? There were too many, it was just that their own physical bodies restricted them, too many geniuses died this way.
It wasn't that Tsuki was the first to think of this, it was that he was the first to be able to use it in genuine combat!
Raising his shattered arm up in the air, every drop of Tsuki's mana condensed at this moment! The sun dimmed, the sky scattered and split, the mountains shook, at this point of time, pure unrelenting force shot down onto Azazel's face.
[40,000,004 DMG Dealt!]
[You have suffered 20,000 DMG!]
[Skill 'Perseverance' Activated!]
[Perseverance has leveled up!4x]
Boom!
Shooting down like a rocket, Azazel's figure slammed against an ice glacier that was soon shattered by the collision, his frame continuing to fall deep into the depths of mountains and natural icebergs; as his body was flung away, Tsuki coughed up a mouthful of blood as his body trembled.
'Stats'
Tsuki Satanachia
Level - 74 (3%)
Class - Mage (100/100)
Race - Great Lust Demon
Alignment - Self
HP - 1/33,600 [6,720 per half a minute]
MP - 40/100,600 [9,920 per half a minute]
STR - 420 (8x) = 3,360
END - 420 (8x) = 3,360
DEX - 520 (8x) = 4,160
INT - 520 (8x) = 4,160
WIS - 620 (8x) = 4,960
CHA- 420 (8x) = 3,360
LCK - 520 (8x) = 4,160
Stat - 582
Credits - 1,912,082,000
[Perseverance] -LVL 4/100 (3%) [Novice] (Passive)
Once the user's health reaches '1' the skill will be activated.
Effect: User is invincible for 14 seconds
Warning: Skil can only be activated once a day
Rarity: Unique
Tsuki's body shook once more as he patted his chest, this time he coughed out three whole mouthfuls of blood, dying his chest and garbs in the warm liquid; he took a deep breath as he allowed his natural regeneration to take effect for a few seconds.
He looked at the Perseverance skill with joy, it was something he had gained as a reward for reaching a hundred in his Endurance stat a long time ago; due to Tsuki's vast strength, he has never been in a situation where he was truly in danger and as such the skill never had the chance to be used until now.
It was the sole reason why he had confidence in resisting and damaging Azazel to certain extent, of course his main goal was still to escape but to do that he would need to shrug off the Faction Leader of the Fallen Angels.
Giving a dark look towards the hole in the mountain, Tsuki's body vanished and reappeared far away from their battle, he didn't dare to look back to see Azazel's condition; the chances of the man being in near perfect condition were high!
The strength Azazel displayed was way too low, it almost seemed as if was merely in the Ultimate Class, but this wasn't true at all. Tsuki had personally witnessed a fraction of the true strength of a Satan Class being, if he stayed any longer Azazel would be enraged and forget about his mission and directly kill him.
He couldn't take the chances, even if Azazel was fatally wounded -which the chances are near completely zero- Tsuki would still choose to run. If the benefits were high, Tsuki would risk it, but this concerned far more than revealing the Gamer System or Soul Magic, it concerned his life and as such wouldn't take such risk.
Not long after, a scene occurred that would prove Tsuki's action was the correct one.
Leaning against the soft snow, Azazel gave a long sigh.
"He's too smart for his own good, he actually saw right through me."
Throughout the entire fight, Azazel has never truly engaged in combat, he merely probed and purposely charged into all of Tsuki's attacks; it was as if he was never The Tactician of Grigori but a simple brute. Azazel used this against Tsuki in hopes he would fall for it, in hopes that once Tsuki finished treating him like a punching back -something he'll repay- that he would for the scheme.
Sadly, he was wrong, even when he allowed his body to be flung into the mountains and indebted inside, acting as if he was seriously harmed, Tsuki never took the chance to try and kill him.
Despite the failure, a certain something gleamed inside of Azazel's eyes. It was the same gleam he held as he watched his fellow brethren being slaughtered, when he watched the death of his father, when he watched the internal collapse of Heaven; the same gleam was now present.
"Either way, I've already won, I just need to wait."
000
Flying at speeds unfathomable to the normal Devil, Tsuki pierced through the sky like a comet, his ten wings in full display as he flew in a single direction, on occasion he took long routes or detours. It was just a precaution measure to see if anybody was truly following him.
"Little brother!"
Hearing the familiar voice of Neru shout out in panic, Tsuki turned his head but remained vigilant. How was Neru here? He escaped? Where were the others? Was it Azazel in disguise? A brief Observe assured him that it wasn't.
Eyeing the male in front of him, Tsuki's tense gaze relaxed.
Bald head dyed splashed with crimson blood, his clothes were ripped and torn from all angles as Holy Magic permeated through it, even worse were the deep gashes that revealed pristine bone below. Neru was seriously harmed, as for what? At a glance, it was easy for Tsuki to deduce what had happened to his elder brother
Even as Tsuki remained on guard, he slowly approached his brother with a look of intense concern and worry.
"What happened, elder brother? Who attacked you?"
Even though Tsuki already knew, he still had to ask. At Tsuki's question, Neru revealed an unsightly expression as he spoke through gnashed teeth.
"It was those filthy crows! While you were gone, they attacked us and even killed my teammates."
Neru said with a downcast expression, his body trembling in grief as warm tears slowly leaked from his eyes; even Tsuki knew that these emotions were real and subconsciously lowered his guard.
Raising his head, he gave a determined look as he spoke with pure resolution.
"Please brother, follow me and with your strength we can take revenge!"
Neru begged as Tsuki inwardly sneered, how could he leave? How could he care for something as petty as revenge? What was the use of such a thing when you're already dead. Tsuki never had the intention of going back.
Seeing his brother's hesitation, Neru grabbed onto his sleeve and continued to plead even further as he revealed the details of the fight; he was extremely desperate if he was showing this side to Tsuki of all people.
"Please! Armaros' is already heavily harmed, with him in such a state, we have a chance to kill all of the Fallen Angels"
Tsuki's heart palpitated in excitement once he heard this, if he used his strongest methods and Neru as a shield, could he capture Armaros successfully? While this would give the Descendants the chance to harm him, the prospect of Anti-Magic was too much, once he grasped how to use it, it would immediately become his trump card against Satan Class beings!
Pondering, Tsuki spoke as he also revealed the contents of his own battle.
"I won't hide it from you Neru, recently, I only barely managed to escape from their leader, Azazel, I fear that he might've already regrouped with them"
At Tsuki's concern, Neru nodded, he was seemingly aware of this.
"Of course I know that, though that isn't a concern anymore as their communication artifacts have already been shattered; furthermore, we fought somewhere far away from Cocytus, it will be hard for Azazel to find them"
Tsuki gave a look of meaning to Neru as he pondered, while his initial goal was to escape Azazel, wasn't his original task to find Samael and obtain the secrets of Anti-Magic? As long as he accomplished one of these, he would be satisfied and who knows when such an opportunity would present itself again; so without hesitation Tsuki answered to his brother's begging.
"Then let us not waste any more time, go!"
Tsuki commanded as Neru nodded, in this instant both brothers united and had flown to a specific location; Tsuki instantly gazed at it, it wasn't anything special. It was a barren frosty valley with large sky blue stalagmites.
What attracted his gaze was the bottom of this valley, dyed red with the blood of the Devils on Neru's team, corpses of his fellow kind were scattered; spears of white light were still indebted in their bodies.
Tsuki lowered his frame as he flew into the dark and cold valley, his eyes focusing on the figures of Neru's team; as he continued to inspect them, his frown tightening as he continued to observethem.
His lips only curled downwards even further as he continued to view the scenery.
Mixed with the holy white energy that was in their bodies, there was an odd mixture of black and red that collided with this; they were clashing against one another like oil and water, they simply couldn't mix. But as Tsuki saw this, his expression darkened.
'Wait… isn't this Demonic Energy?'
Just as he thought this, pure raw energy exploded forth from his surroundings, the corpses of his allies turned as their blood seeped into an encompassing circle that circulated around Tsuki; atop of this, a single silver and amethyst pendant stood at the top of the formation, it was as if the blood was gathering towards it.
Before Tsuki could even react, hundreds of blood red chains surrounded and restrained Tsuki, their liquid and solid properties easily squashing Tsuki. Even more frightening was the humble light produced by the artifact, it was suppressing him!
As this occurred, a loud laugh resounded through the valley.
"To think the grand Tsuki Satanachia would actually fall for a scheme!"
Walking out of the shadows, Armaros along with Azazel and his subordinates stepped into the light, standing next to them was an indifferent and cold Neru; his previous pitiful state no more than a washed away facade.
"We meet again, little prince."
Azazel's sarcastic voice reached his ears as Tsuki coldy snorted, it didn't take a genius to know what had happened. Neru betrayed his own team and lured Tsuki into a trap. Or more accurately, Azazel's scheme succeeded.
Tsuki has finally been captured!
000 000 000
AN
This took a whole lot longer to create than I would've liked, but damn if I didn't enjoy writing it; I particularly like writing fighting scenes, they're cool, my absolute favorite in writing if I had to say.
Anyways, have a good day, I'll see you next week!