Drowned Madness Walks The Land

by EdgytheWriter

A mercenary driven by revenge is locked into a virtual world where he continues his horrid craft, but what if that was to become reality? A list of names, religious zealotry and… his kids? How will the New World change when the drowned king rises from the abyss? One thing is sure, a world so twisted with violence and hate suits one like him well… (No Nazarick/Alternate main cast)

6. The Scourge of the Gods

[Chapter 5: The Scourge Of The Gods]

Pyke gathered Blue Rose back in the throne room where the other members of the council of 13 waited. In truth, Blue Rose had never felt better, those beds were simply divine. However the time to leave this godly realm had to come at some point and indeed it did. They were there merely to say goodbye to the denizens of this city before going back to the surface world. Lakyus and the twins were rather grumpy, leaving Galakrond and Lillius behind was rather unpleasant, but perhaps they could meet again.

Suddenly Pyke's eyes shot open, "[Abyssal Gate]!" he yelled. He knew this call, it could only be one person. He gave his word and what kind of person are you if even your word holds no value?! No, he wouldn't be like the idle Gods of this world who did nothing. If there was one thing he kept, it was his fucking promises. "Vacuus, Valodan, you're with me! Blue Rose, move it as well!" He leapt through the gate, the guardians following without question, their lord was never wrong after all. Blue Rose hesitated, but quickly relented under the pressure of those left behind, accompanying their lord was the highest honour and these mortals would dare deny it?!

So Blue Rose followed, concerned as to what could possibly make a God like Pyke act in such haste…

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

The captain of the Black Scripture, an androgynous, young godkin with long, black hair, Cenarien Hydros, one from the line of the God of Water that went by the same name, found his team to be problematic. So problematic in fact that not only did it already have a traitor, who was the sister of one of their current members, but even a simple assignment like reconnaissance of a village was turning out to be tedious.

Thankfully, aside from their extra seat Zesshi Zetsumei, he was the strongest and could stop any fights that broke out. Either way, the amount of times his teammates were at each other's throats just the past couple days was staggering. Someone made fun of Time Turbulence's height and a fight broke out, then someone talked shit about Clementine and again, and again, and again.

The pain would however soon be at its halfway point, a brief respite as they actually conducted the reconnaissance of the village and interrogation of its inhabitants. Given that they were the strongest humanity had to offer, the trip through the Great Forest of Tob, not counting their brawls, was safe and rather uneventful. Surprisingly, no monsters bothered them, which only left more time for them to argue.

With a beast tamer like One Man Army, camping in the forest was quite simple, his beasts being a perfect alarm system. Still, frustration was building up and Cenarien himself had not scratched his itch of killing heretics for quite some time. He, the descendant of a God, was basically relegated to managing toddlers that had too much power for their own good!

'The cardinals should be listening to me, not the other way around! Like they even know what being out in the field looks like, besides Raymond and Dominic. "Observe and don't engage at all costs" they say?! Bah! Nigun failed so if they turn out to be heretics I might as well finish the job! The Gods know it'll make the trip back easier if their bloodlust is sated…'

True, he did live in absolute luxury and got any whore he wanted, human or otherwise, in hope of making more awakened godkin, but having to live a double life was so tiring. Once these cardinals began to die off he was sure to try and get a more important position. Sure, protecting his country was grand and all, but why isn't the Theocracy ruled by him!? He was a link to the Gods, it was his birth right!

While their captain was having imperial ambitions, the others were mostly losing their minds over being given a job that would normally go to the Windflower or Clearwater Scriptures. "We were meant to fight the Catastrophe Dragon Lord not so long ago, but that stupid bitch had to go and get herself blinded!" yelled out the 12th seat, Heaven and Earth.

"Watch your mouth! I'll kill you just like I will the one who did it to her if you don't!" shouted back the 6th seat, grabbing number 12 by the neck.

"Ha! As if you'd have a chance with her!" added the 11th seat, promptly getting hit on the back of the head by the captain.

"Stop fueling this fire!" he shouted, finally silencing them. "We're close now so stop fucking around! We do reconnaissance, see what happened to Nigun and his Scripture, then we go back. Understood?" With an affirmative response, they pressed on.

When they finally left the forest and found themselves on open ground, they saw something rather unexpected. Walls. What kind of village has walls this sturdy? True, they weren't the 3 stone walls of Fortress City E-Rantel, but they were more than sufficient for a frontier village such as this one. Was this a consequence of the Sunlight Scripture attack that caused them to be more wary?

There was only one way to find out, so they walked to the gates, garbed under illusions as to not display their divine weaponry and origins…

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

Enri was having a good day. She was now chief, which was a heavy responsibility, but Nfirea, an alchemist prodigy, her childhood friend and now her boyfriend, moved in alongside her after his grandmother died from old age and the Bareare alchemy business was left to him. The goblins summoned with the item given to her by their saviour, Pyke, as he demanded to be known with no honorific, were also a great help.

They listened to her, hunted and did all kinds of chores! She did have to cook for them, but it was a small price to pay. She named them all after a mythical goblin hero and his compatriots. Still, since the day she was given them, the carving and second horn given by Pyke have never left her body. She would not allow a tragedy like that to repeat itself. 'Damned Theocracy!'

With the influx of residents, in the form of the goblins, the village had to adapt, so they came up with the idea of building a wall in order to not rely on a saviour coming along again. Additionally, this helped when the tax collector or other official came along, hiding the goblins from sight until they could hide in one of the houses. Enri found the kingdom and humans in general to not be very cooperative, her goblins on the other hand were great! The people slowly were adapting to their presence, some finally memorising their names and using them.

The diet of the villagers also improved drastically. The wolf rider goblins and those skilled in archery, including a redheaded ex-adventurer called Brita, were more than capable of hunting down some wild animals for meat and going into the forest for fruits and the herbs they were pestered for by Nfirea who often accompanied them. Speaking of the young alchemist.

Both of them having lived through a tragedy, they bonded even further rather quickly, now spending long nights together, despite how little sleep they got during those times. Being the curious boy he was, he wanted to meet Pyke in the hopes that the mysterious man would be able to provide answers about alchemy or magic. The small statue, in the makeshift shrine they made to the man, showed a crude likeness of him, but Enri assured him that to see him was a different experience.

Her little sister, Nemu, also became much more diligent and hardworking. It was needless to say that when their parents were alive, the young Nemu was spoiled. Alas, with them gone and Enri having to take on the role of chief, her sister began combat training with the goblins, however small the benefit was, and helped Nfirea around with his alchemical chores.

Life in the village wasn't stagnant as some may have called it, but it was repetitive and set around a routine most followed. After that routine being interrupted by the Theocracy, she hoped they'd be able to live the typical village life, with the only interruption hopefully being the occasional visit from Pyke. 'He was just sooooooo cool!' Enri thought to herself. She was thoroughly convinced the man would be a legendary hero! Little did she know just how right she was.

For now it was almost time for lunch, so she went to the gates to see if anyone was still out in the fields. When she went onto the tower meant for defence and scouting, she saw 11 people out there, dressed like adventurers. "Excuse me, could we perhaps rest in the village, Miss? The journey through the forest had not been very kind to us!" the man who appeared to be their leader yelled.

She fell into thought for a second, last time strangers killed her parents, but a stranger also saved her. She would be no better if she didn't help them. "One second please!" she called back. Running to Jugem, the leader of the goblins, she told them to hide and that they'd have to remain hidden until the visitors left in a couple hours. They did grumble about missing lunch, but complied either way.

Finally making her way back, she pulled the crank in order for the gate to open, "Sorry that took so long!" she said when they finally made it in.

"It's no problem" answered Cenarien in disguise. Enri unwittingly led them to the main square where everyone ate. It was simple fare, soup with vegetables and the occasional piece of meat. "If you need any potions or alchemical things, my boyf-, I mean, Nfirea Bareare also moved here recently!" The adventurers merely nodded.

The Black Scripture meanwhile was communicating using the [Message] spell, discussing why they recognized the faint stench of goblins here. By now it was a kind of 6th sense to the Scripture members, the detection of non-humans rooted deep in their psyche, practically running through their veins.

The people here didn't look unhappy or oppressed and this could only mean one thing, they are traitors to humanity and have allied with demihumans. From this moment, the entire place was marked for extermination. The Slane Theocracy was going to cover this up, they always did. If they were suspected, but no evidence was found, then what? The kingdom was too weak to do anything and the Empire would be more than happy to see tragedy strike Re-Estize. And even if that Pyke guy could trace it back to them, there was no way he would win against Zesshi.

The Sunlight Scripture was weak, just a bunch of 3rd Tier magic casters. He probably just got the drop on them and killed them before they could summon the highest tier angel. 'And then he blinded Kara! I don't know how he did it, but he will pay!' Kara was the target of affections from several team members, always sparking conflict about her, but now their anger was directed at her assailant.

Most of his teammates didn't care and mocked him for being a complete zealot, but he firmly believed in upholding what his bloodline stood for, that being the complete and utter extermination of non-humans in order to achieve human supremacy. Humans were a weak race, but in the minds of the Theocracy's citizens, they were chosen by the Gods! Destined to rule the world via ingenuity and might! No disgusting demihuman or heteromorph could match the wonders built by humans. Their culture unrivalled, their destiny decided, it was only a matter of time in the captain's head before he led humanity on a great crusade.

To unite all humans and destroy or enslave every other race, that was his goal. Of course the only ones to be enslaved would be the attractive ones, after all, he had quite the thing for elf whores. Thanks to the war started by Zesshi's mother being raped, he not only gained a comrade, despite her disgusting lineage, but also an almost endless supply of pointy-eared toys. The Theocracy's techniques were brutal, but also brutally effective in breaking slaves.

Now it was time to make one more step towards that dream of a human supremacist reality. Conveniently, the villagers were all in one place now. "Please sit down. I'll bring you your portions in a second." said Enri in a cheerful voice. 'Of course Nfi is still too busy to help me' she internally pouted. As she began to walk away, the massacre began. It was simple fare, but still better than what most villages could get, a decent portion of both meat in the stew and fresh fruit available afterwards.

Cenarien took this chance to strike up a conversation and hopefully begin gathering information, "Miss…" he said.

"Enri, just Enri. I may be chief, but I'm still a humble village girl at heart." she answered, still embarrassed over having to introduce herself like that.

Cenarien ate a spoonful of the stew before continuing and was pleasantly surprised; it was not a delicacy the likes of which he ate in the Theocracy, but it was better than the average supplies you'd have on a mission, "I can't help but notice that the village is a bit empty. Any reason for that?"

Alarm bells began ringing in Enri's head, but it was a natural question to ask, "Monsters attacked us and several people died. An adventurer that came through here saved us." she answered, her voice carefully controlled.

'Lying? She's not entirely stupid for a village girl.' the captain thought to himself. "Oh I see, is that who the statuette represents?" he asked with a charming smile.

"Yes. I'm sure you'll hear of him soon, he was really strong!" she answered, talking about her saviour loosening her tongue. Lunch eventually finished, but the scripture had gotten nothing out of the villagers who were being extremely tight-lipped about what incident actually happened.

For the rest of the day they scouted the area and tried to chat more people up, but there was no sign of a fight except for some dried out mud and the villagers all told the same story. They were getting impatient and were thinking of kidnapping a few villagers for interrogation, until they saw something that confirmed their suspicions. Out of the window of one of the empty houses peeked out a goblin, they would normally go unnoticed, but this was the Black Scripture, humanity's pinnacle.

Already irritated and on edge, this was just the spark that ignited the fulminating silver. They dispelled their illusions, revealing their gear that was left behind by the Gods and began slaughtering the alarmed villagers that were now proven to be heretics. Stabbing, slashing, whipping, throwing spells; they got to work fulfilling their Gods-given task.

The Black Scripture had a couple thoughts about this situation, most were apathetic, some thought of this as their duty and a few revelled in the murder of the innocent. In the end, it was just a matter of how well they could do their jobs and whether they succeeded. Here it was simple. Blood flowed, screams were heard as people tore their throats out from the pain and souls were sent to the Six for judgement. People were cut in half, acid burned through their bodies and so on.

The goblins rushed out of the warehouse they were hiding in, ready to throw away their lives just to buy a second of survival for their summoner. Nfirea left his laboratory for the first time in days, only to be able to get one scream of anguish out before he saw Enri was about to be killed. He tried to cast his Tier 2 spells, but he was too tired from his experiments. They were too far away and it was too late. Canerien was about to skewer her with his divine spear, but there was one variable that changed the course of history. One trivial item would cement their fate and that of their country, for the one they were sent to investigate had put this village under his protection.

Enri clutched the little figurine tight to her chest as she was told to do by her saviour, confident that she could trust in him, that he, unlike the Gods, would once again answer her prayers. The item shimmered and turned into motes of light, flowing away with the wind. Shock became despair as she thought the item failed or Pyke didn't answer, but a mere moment later a dark blue rift in reality opened in front of her, forcing her would-be killer to jump back from the unknown threat.

All the members of the Black Scripture turned their eyes to the unknown spell and stopped their massacre, getting into a defensive position. First came the man Enri recognized, scarred, tall, wearing hunting trophies as armour and of a dark skin colour, it was Pyke. She was about to jump with joy when the familiar and comforting mist rolled in, reminding her that she was safe now and her assailants were doomed. That was until the Bloodharbor Ripper looked upon the bodies of the couple dozen dead villagers.

The explosion of bloodlust, rage and sheer, utter fury knocked her back and put the Black Scripture flat on the ground. They tried their hardest, but even the awakened godkin couldn't manage something as simple as getting to his knees. Fear was struck into the hearts of the merciless killers for the first time in forever. Zesshi was supposed to be a monster, but she didn't even compare. Understanding dawned on them, their actions may have very well signed the Theocracy's death warrant.

Out from the gate came several more figures. Two massive titans, dwarfing even Pyke, one with blue skin and intricate gold armour, holding a godly scythe that seemed to contain the stars themselves, and one with scales, intricate chainmail armour, white hair and a scarred eye. Behind them came adventurers everyone knew, Blue Rose. 'What are they doing here?' Enri asked herself when she realised who they were, recognising them from some of the stories her parents told her.

"Secure the perimeter." Pyke said quietly, desperately struggling to reign in his bloodlust before his aura activated, crushing the entire area into dust. The two guardians bowed and secured the Black Scripture, "Prostrate yourself before the King of the Swimming City, you scum!" announced Valodan, his rough and deep voice already enough to make most people obey, but this time activating [General's Authority] bending any and all beings of level 50 and below to his will if they had any jobs concerning combat, magical or otherwise.

The Black Scripture had no choice, they obeyed, their subconscious overtaking their body and yielding to the Supreme General of the Swimming City. This however wasn't enough, the smallest offence against their lord and father would be unacceptable, thus Vacuus followed up, "[Titanic Chains]" This skill was able to contain all but the strongest players of YGGDRASIL, available only to World Enemy level creatures, and now it cast upon weaklings.

"Blue Rose, if you even think about attacking one of the goblins I will fucking gut you. They are Enri's summons from an item I gave her." Pyke said. The adventurers merely nodded and stepped back, too scared to contradict what seemed to be the source of all the rage and bloodlust in the world. After several minutes of silence, the mist receded and the heavy blanket of bloodlust that was covering the area was lifted.

The Black Scripture at first struggled mightily with their chains, but in the end it was futile. Finally, Pyke walked up to Enri and something extremely uncharacteristic for a monster like him came from his mouth, "Are you alright?" Genuine concern for the first person he saved in this world.

The village girl nodded, still sniffling, Nfirea now next to her, comforting her. "I am… B-b-but the others." she began crying again.

Pyke gave her a tap on the cheek, "Look at me." he said. "I'm not like those pathetic Gods of the Theocracy, I actually answer prayers. Vacuus, Valodan!" The two titans stood at attention, ready to carry out any orders within a heartbeat.

"Gather all the bodies and summon Amal'Thazad." They did so, respectfully laying the corpses of the fallen next to each other. A moment later another gate opened and a tall, fit man in a blue, magical robe came through.

"You called father and I answered your summons. What is it you require of me?" He already had an inkling of an idea, he was the man with the most holy magical power in the Swimming City, his Lord was infinitely compassionate and there were corpses in front of him.

"Resurrect all of them, but use at least the 9th Tier or else it might fail, turning their bodies to dust."

The magic caster nodded as the Black Scripture was still fighting their bonds when they heard of 9th Tier holy magic. "Such a thing doesn't exist! Blasphemy!" shouted Cenarien. Pyke walked up to him and grabbed his jaw, pulling it up so the captain was looking at him, breaking it in the process. "I should have killed your pathetic ancestor long ago! Your Gods were weak creatures unworthy of my attention. Everything they've built and all that could prosper from it will be wiped from this plane of existence, not even a memory will remain when I'm done!"

The eyes of the captain widened, it was impossible! The holy artifacts were unbeatable! This was all a fluke! These chains were going to break and he would kill this man! He flailed and flailed like a dying fish to no avail, his jaw causing him excruciating pain. Pyke looked at Vacuus, who promptly activated another feature of the chains, summoning spikes out of them that bit into the flesh, prompting an agonising scream to leave the captain's throat.

Amal'Thazad was done with his preparations, after analysing the corpses of the insects to determine what spell would be needed. "[Maximise Widen Magic: True Resurrection]!" he said as life returned to the still-warm corpses. One by one they awoke, first frightened by the unfamiliar magic caster and titans, but seeing their past saviour there, next to the bound Black Scripture, put them at ease.

Cries of "Miracle!" and "Our Saviour!" were thrown around with wild abandon, even the goblins were celebrating. But Pyke was still seething, "It's no miracle, miracles are done by Gods and those creatures are beneath me. Good job Amal'Thazad, go bring Lillith here so we can extract their information before we go and give the Theocracy a show." The caster bowed, exiting through another gate in reality, that soon replaced him with the beauty that was the foreign affairs minister.

"Father, who are these little darlings?" she asked.

"Get all their information so they are as useless as they should be. Make it painful." A wide smile appeared on Lillith's face, being useful to her father and getting the pleasure of torturing those inferior creatures who offended him? A dream come true. She walked up to them one by one, putting her hand on their head as the male members ogled at her despite the circumstances. Then came the screams. The tables had turned as the vocal cords of the Black Scripture members tore and snapped with a sickening crack.

Every time she seductively whispered in their ear, "[Skill: Rip And Ransack]!" they would feel the excruciating sensation of having their mind be flayed, memories and knowledge taken, physically ripped from their brains. The damage was so great that their own mind began copying the damage onto their own body. Faced with such a horrible experience, the subconscious had to justify it and thus their own bodies began to deteriorate.

In YGGDRASIL it worked on players that were under some sort of long term stun or other movement inhibiting effect, granting the user all the knowledge of their allies' stats and dealing a decent chunk of damage, but its utility had expanded much in this new world. When she was done, she licked her lips, tasting the despair in the air and the information she had gathered. Lillith may have had a sadistic streak, but the real delight was gathering information, she fed on it like a succubus on lust. Once more she looked over her captives, wondering if perhaps something more could be squeezed out of them. Alas, no such luck, so she turned to her father.

"It is done, shall I go and transcribe it? If you're wondering, they were here to investigate you, father. Additionally, they possess the World Item [Downfall of Castle and Country] used by one called Kaire. It has the power to mind control anyone. World Enemies and World Item holders are immune, naturally." she said.

Pyke looked upon the captives once more, they were now utterly broken, their minds barely able to register stimuli due to the intensity of Lillith's extraction. "This is the path of your faith, Lakyus." he turned to her. "This is what your beliefs do. You call me a killer, yet these," he said, kicking Time Turbulence in the stomach, cracking four of his ribs, "these are your brethren in faith."

Lakyus shook her head, "No! These are the very most extreme people, a Scripture!"

Yet Pyke merely sighed, "Do you still not see that this is what your beliefs embody?! Would you hesitate to kill any of these goblins in some mistaken quest for justice!? The Theocracy kills and enslaves, what makes you any better? Sure you rescued a village once or twice, only to exterminate dozens more. You, just like these creatures, are a monster clad in human flesh."

Lakyus had no response, but Gagaran did, "You call us a monster and yet what have you done for humanity!? We're heroes!"

The councillors were about to explode and kill these people, until that frustration and anger turned to confusion as Pyke laughed. "HahaHAhAhaHa!" A million overlapping voices were heard in the true voice of the monster, crying out in his mad cackle. "What have I done? Me? In a week, I did more to purge corruption and the Eight Fingers than you did in your entire lives! I saved a righteous warrior! Stopped two massacres of Carne and freed dozens of slaves! Oh, but I'm still the monster because of my race!? You are blind and deaf to the fate and suffering of your own comrade! You call her sister and yet you pierce her heart with millions of tiny blades whenever you spout your bullshit! Keno, show them!"

Pyke was right. Whenever Evileye heard her closest friends, her sisters, reject all nonhumans, it hurt. It stung so deep every time she wondered if they'd accept her. First she was saving humanity as one of the 13 heroes, or rather over 25 heroes, yet those inhuman and heteromorphic, like her, were painted over and removed from the sagas. Only 13 remained in the stories, meanwhile she, one of the heroes who accomplished the most, slayed and contained the most Demon Gods, was described as a monster that was put down by the others. A city full of god-like monsters and beings who should be the surface world's most dangerous enemies accepted her without a care, but would her closest equivalent to family do the same?

All of Blue Rose looked at their short companion. After decades travelling together, would they finally learn the truth about the petite magic caster? Tiny hands were lifted up to the sides of her mask and unclasped it. Unlike what they expected, a curse, a wound or some other horrible visage, a perfectly ordinary and cute face awaited them. Then, she opened her eyes. All of them gasped and drew their weapons. At that moment, Evileye knew the answer and her heart shattered into a million pieces.

They were blood red, a characteristic common in only one race. A vampire. Maintaining their defensive position, Lakyus began yelling, "A vampire!" She turned to Pyke, undoubtedly the architect of all of this, "What have you done to her?" she yelled.

Pyke scoffed, "Denial. A common symptom of being confronted with what you would hate the most. Did you not consider how she didn't eat, barely slept, never got tired? Think of all the pain you have unknowingly caused her! You dare accuse me!? You have been with her every hour of every day during our travels and yet it is I who did this? Tell me Lakyus, what do you value more? Your sister or your Gods?"

"No, it's impossible! Undead like you could never be like the Evileye we know! The Gods can't be wrong and they would never lie! All undead hate life, just like you! My sister could never have been a monster!" shouted Lakyus as the rest of Blue Rose stood on guard.

"You don't even know her real name, you fool! You have heard the legend of Landfall, not knowing you worked alongside that so-called monster! I should kill you where you stand for wasting my time!"

The adventurer still shook her head, "The Gods can't be wrong! They said humans will reign supreme! You must have changed her in that city, monster!"

{Galakrond, come here. If this dumb whore keeps speaking I will kill her.} The guardian bowed his head and made preparations to move out. "And yet who was fawning over my son just this morning? A being so monstrous he could destroy this world, but he somehow is pure!? Don't make me laugh!" To be fair, most of the NPCs were able to act like compassionate people, their real feelings expertly hidden beneath the surface. The two notable evils of the council were Jericho and Lillius and, while they didn't mindlessly rampage, they basked in the atrocities their father let them commit. Galakrond happened to have one of the highest karma values of 350 out of 500.

"He felt different! Benevolent! You are a monster! And the Scriptures are radical, but they work to protect humanity!" the ex-noble shouted back, her arguments becoming more and more unhinged.

"Work to protect humanity?! Stop fucking lying! They tried to massacre my village twice! And what did Blue Rose do to save us!?" interjected Enri, stunning Lakyus. "This man saved us twice from you religious fiends! Damn you and damn your Gods! You have done nothing for us so don't you dare call our saviour a monster!" The rest of the villagers joined in, booing and yelling at the so-called heroes of humanity. Soon they began throwing rocks and whatever else they had on hand.

"What will you do now, Blue Rose? Kill your dearest friend for a factor out of her control and massacre these villagers for whom you have done nothing? All in some abstract ideas thought of by some mortals centuries ago?"

"T-the G-gods… will… save… us…" came a hoarse whisper from the 4th seat of the Black Scripture, Divine Chant. Pyke turned to her and crouched in front of her, looking deeply into the eyes of a deluded soul.

"Oh? Is that so? Tell me, where will your Gods be when I massacre every last priest? Where will they be when I wash away your sacred texts and defile your holy grounds? I know where they will be, in the ground, rotten like your country." he spat on the soil and kicked the scripture member in the side of the head.

"Blasphemy! The Gods will smite you for this! You are only waiting to kill all of us for some sick pleasure!" said Lakyus.

"And what of the villagers and slaves he saved? My father and creator, a murderous monster?! You mortal dare tell such lies and call yourself a hero!?" answered a deep voice as Galakrond arrived. Obviously, Lakyus was smitten with the man, but he was subordinate to this monster. Just like about Keno, she felt conflicted, her heart pulling in one direction while her faith steered her away from him.

"Show her your true form, my son." Galakrond bowed and morphed. Growing into a massive dragon, the size of a small mountain, with grey skin, countless eyes, tentacles, limbs, spikes and maws across his body. This was the incarnate of madness. An anti-divination skill was used by Valodan, hiding the form of the progenitor of dragons from anyone outside of Carne. The jaws of everyone dropped, this was a subordinate of Pyke!? Even the Dragon Lords of legend look like mere pups in comparison to this! The only one who could possibly compare was the legendary Heavenly Dragon Lord! Lakyus' eyes were practically glazed over, refusing to believe that he too was an enemy of the Gods, who also seemed to surpass them in power and stature.

"And you dare call your sister a monster and then blame my father!?" The deep voice caused the ground to rumble as everyone stared in awe at the mighty beast.

"No, no, no, no, nonononono! A monster can't be my sister! Vampires are evil and need to be purged!" In that moment Lakyus snapped, lunging at Keno with her blade out, intending to kill the vile undead. Her blade however was blocked by two daggers, belonging to Tia and Tina. Besides their obvious infatuation with Lillius who had been created for the purpose of charming women like them and was already subtly manipulating them during the dinner in the Swimming City, they couldn't allow their leader to fall this far. They called her demon and oni boss as a joke and they would not let it become true.

Gagaran still stood there stunned, "Evileye… Shorty…" she murmured. The magic caster walked towards Pyke as the twins dashed after her to block any more strikes,

"I'm not Evileye. My name is Keno Fasris Invern." She turned to her new ally, "Can you not kill them? They deserve a chance at redemption…" Laykus and Gagaran were currently being restrained, courtesy of Vacuss and the now de-transformed Galakrond.

Pyke sighed as he put his elbow on Keno's head, "Fine, just this once. That blonde bitch already looks like a rabid dog. [Twin Maximize Magic: Go Where The Current Takes You]! There. By my estimation, they'll be somewhere in the Holy Kingdom, perfect fit for zealots." he said as the Gagaran and Lakyus turned into fog and disappeared.

"My children, you can go back to your previous tasks. For you, Valodan and Vacuus, that means accompanying me." A predatory grin formed on Pyke's face as he looked over the captive Black Scripture, "I think it's time to give the Theocracy a show!" A chill ran down Keno's spine wondering just what he was talking about. In the end however, two of her friends were lost to theocratic ideology, it was time for them to pay.

"What about us?" said Tina.

"Do you kill us or send us away?" added Tia.

Pyke gave them a onceover. Fellow killers, proficient ones and rather reasonable, accepting Keno almost immediately. Of course in their minds, that were trained to be logical at all times, once the shock passed, they understood that a sister is a sister, no matter the race or occupation. Their other biological sister was one of the most notorious and brutal assassins in the world, so why not add a famous vampire to the party?

"You'll be useful. I suppose I have a soft spot for talented killers… You in for the ride?" The twins nodded and a gate opened.

"Then let's show them why I was called the Scourge of the Gods."

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

The cardinals and Pontifex Maximus gathered around the table once again. As the commander of the scriptures Raymond began the meeting, "The Black Scripture left two days ago and should arrive at Carne now. Once they're done they can return with [Teleportation]. The 11th seat can cast it and I've given them a [Widen Magic] crystal, since lingering in the area would not be wise."

Berenice nodded, "Good, those kids may be strong but they lack the common sense of our other agents. Now onto the more important matter. Ginedine, Maximilian, what do the holy texts say of this abomination?"

Maximilian grabbed one of the books that constantly floated around him and adjusted his glasses, "We do not know much, except for his strength being second to none. At least, that is what our usual tomes say. There also records of what we presume to be a heavenly war, called the "Arcology War" although information on it is scarce. His involvement there supposedly wiped out entire countries with millions of inhabitants." The other cardinals gasped at this revelation and began to have the all too familiar feeling of anxiety creep up their backs.

"However there is something that followed the Arcology War that the Gods described in more detail." continued the cardinal of darkness, "This event was called "The One Man War." The details of its beginning aren't clear, but supposedly an ally of the Ripper's betrayed and killed him. Yet he still came back and sought vengeance, killing and I quote, "as many people as a mercenary could hope to without causing a total genocide." The races of the people he killed is unknown, but since the Gods refer to them as people we can presume they mean humans. Apparently during his rampage he brought low something called a "corporation." The Gods describe it as something all-powerful and near omniscient that even they would not dare face in any capacity. My best guess is that it was a legendary beast much like our Dragon Lords, although most likely exponentially more powerful. There is still more however in an alternate source."

A heavy thud echoed as Ginedine put an extraordinarily thick book on the table, dust flying everywhere, "This one however was deciphered by Rufus, most likely in a vain attempt at finding a way to resurrect Lord Surshana. It is apparently entitled "The World Tree's Ghostly Butcher" and is supposed to be a cooperative effort by the Six, written during their so-called "E-RP" as Gods."

"I have studied the Gods' work at length and yet I have not heard of this one, where did you find it?" asked Yvon.

The two scholars gulped, "This one was in the lockbox at the end of the treasury…"

"HERESY! OF THE HIGHEST ORDER! THE OPENING OF THAT BOX WAS FORBIDDEN BY LORD SURSHANA HIMSELF BEFORE HIS BATTLE WITH THE GREED KINGS!" burst out Dominic.

"Reign yourself in Dominic! This is a necessary evil! Prefer the enemy you know over the one you don't!" yelled back the Pontifex, "I am the highest authority in this country and I permit it!" It was taboo to mention their rank at the round table where they sat as friends, but it already seemed as if this was a time of taboos being broken.

"Need I remind you what happened last time a cardinal of darkness did such things?! We have the entirety of Zurrenorn to deal with thanks to one such as him! Are we just going to let history repeat itself?! Have you gone mad Julius?!" shouted Yvon.

The shouting match continued on for several minutes as the other cardinals tried to pacify their colleagues. Eventually the gavel started to break and so did the voices of the cardinals, prompting a quick use of healing spells to repair their sore throats.

"Now that we have calmed down," said Maximillian, eyeing Dominic and Yvon carefully, "I believe I can begin describing what is written in this tome. We all know that our Gods come from a world where the basis of existence was a so-called World Tree with nine worlds, correct?"

The others nodded, prompting him to continue, "The names of these are indecipherable in other books, seeming to be an even different language, but their rudimentary translations were obtained by Rufus from this book and go as such, Hel, Nidavellir, Alfheim, Muspelheim, Niflheim, Jotunheim, Vanaheim, Asgard and Midgard. We can presume that the world the Gods were trying to recreate in our own reality was Midgard, the world of humans."

"There were supposedly many powerful foes that our Gods faced, some that even threatened the World Tree itself, but there was one who stood above them and from whom no realm was safe. As you've guessed, this was the Bloodharbor Ripper, Butcher of Gods, Fenrir's Master and more, his real name being Pyke."

Ginedine took over, his deep voice echoing throughout the dimly lit hall, "His exploits number many and on average left little evidence besides waterlogged corpses and bewildered spectators. His most notable exploits that our Gods actually witnessed go as follows. First, "The Asgard Massacre" where he broke into the heavenly palace of one called Odin that our six respected as a fellow God of Valor, and slaughtered everyone there, staining the pristine city with blood for several days."

"Next came "The Drowning of Vanaheim" where our Gods watched as a group that was going to visit the world of heteromorphs, Muspelheim, to slaughter their wretched kind was instead butchered to the last man. They numbered in the hundreds and were supposedly one of the largest expeditions into that world, but the Gods only saw glimpses through the mist as they were killed."

"The last recorded one was in the world of man, Asgard. A righteous group named Seraphim, or at least a part of it, was torturing weak heteromorphs for the sin of existence, as should be done, but it seemed to draw the ire of the Ripper. As you've come to expect, only the heteromorphs survived."

"There are supposed sightings of him in nine worlds, attacking humans, demihumans and heteromorphs alike with no distinct pattern. His massacres number in the hundreds, but these were the few our Gods witnessed. Supposedly some groups searched him out in order to record his actions or seek his assistance and were successful. This at least lets us know that he isn't completely unreasonable."

Maximilian began speaking once more, "In the lockbox also was this odd item." he said while throwing a cube onto the centre of the table, "It resembles a Rubik's cube, however we've yet to find a way to activate it."

Raymond looked at the curious object and turned to his colleague, "Yvon, blast it with some mana. I've been on several adventures and that typically works."

"Are you daft?" asked Yvon, "You would risk damaging a potentially precious artifact?"

"Do it Yvon." said Julius, "It wouldn't be valuable in a fight if it got damaged by one of your spells anyway."

The cardinal of light grumbled about his spells being seen as weak despite being one of the strongest holy casters in the country, but still did as he was told, "[Holy Ray]!"

The device stirred to life and a weird floating image appeared above it… and the image began to move, sound appearing with it. "Are these not… the Gods?" asked Berenice.

Indeed, the six Gods were right there, well, five given that it seemed to be shown from the point of view of Surshana. Suddenly someone launched a spell at what seemed to be Egnetius and knocked him out of the sky, prompting a frightful yell from the cardinals, as well as prayers.

They watched bewildered as the Gods battled what seemed to be Greed Kings of all possible villains and acted much more casually with each other than the situation warranted. It even reminded Raymond of some of the life or death banter he had experienced during his time in the Black Scripture. Maximillian meanwhile was too busy transcribing this and relating it to Surshana's final battle against the Greed Kings.

When the device ceased functioning and all of its content was shown, Dominic had passed out, Berenice and Yvon had fallen out of their chairs and the rest desperately required a drink. Reconvening after a short break and recuperating themselves, they discussed what they saw.

"That was the Gods and the Greed Kings? And he… saved them?" said Berenice.

"Appears so. Still, we cannot forget how afraid the Gods were. We can presume the holiest artifact still works, however we still need to be extremely cautious. His crimes against the Gods are numerous, saving heteromorphs for instance. Should he appear we need to view him as an enemy and try to negotiate. Chances are slim, but perhaps he shall listen to reason." said Julius.

Suddenly the door to the room burst open and in came the scythe wielding undead they knew to be Surshana's first follower and the one to translate the forbidden text. "He's here!" he yelled in his raspy voice.

"Who?! Who's here?!" asked Raymond.

The undead's fiery pupils quickly moved to the book that was on the table, but before he could answer an odd, black mist swept down the corridor and surrounded Rufus. In an instant slashes appeared on his body and the distinct glint of metal was visible but for an instant, the last concrete remnant of the Gods promptly falling to the floor and disintegrating, the mist disappearing down the corridor.

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

The rulers of the Slane Theocracy were currently rushing towards the central square of Kami Miyako, which was in front of the 6 Great Cathedrals and statues of their respective Gods. In tow with them were Zesshi Zetsumei, a half-elf with black and white hair, split down the middle, and heterochromatic black and white eyes. Behind her admittedly beautiful appearance, hid a dangerous and volatile battlemaniac. On par with Dragon Lords, she was the last remaining member of the Black Scripture. With her was also Lady Kaire, a godkin capable of using the divine artifact that could mind control anyone and anything.

"How did they get here!?" Dominic shouted while activating martial arts.

"It doesn't matter now! What matters is if we can defeat them!" answered the Pontifex. "Do not doubt the Gods' artifact, they shall protect us and this holy city!"

Finally they made it, the officials and Lady Kaire winded from the long run, while Zesshi had a broad grin on her face. 'Maybe finally I'll get to have a good fight! Whatever is freaking out the cardinals must be pretty strong!' Because of this obsession with battle and finding someone who could defeat her, she was, as always, kept in the dark when it came to powerful foes that weren't an immediate threat. She wanted a child with someone strong, a mirror image of her hated father in that regard. Always running from one foe to another, but never leaving satisfied. But now? Now she finally saw a chance to go all out and excitement built up in her body, making it tense like a spring about to be launched.

In the centre of the square sat the man described in the warnings of the Gods, a magnificent throne beneath him. He had dark skin, scarred and massive, adorned in bones of horrible creatures. On his sides stood two titans and what seemed to be a few members of Blue Rose. One titan had blue skin and odd-looking equipment, the other looked human except from the distinct shimmer of his scales. A deep-voice, one that was overcome with venom, resounded across the city, "Ah, cardinals. You have finally arrived. A pleasure to see Zesshi, Kaire and [Downfall of Castle and Country] with you."

"What are you here for, Bloodharbor Ripper?!" asked Maximillian.

"So those pathetic insects did leave you a warning. How fortunate, introductions are so boring compared to what I have planned." he narrowed his eyes and analysed those in front of him once again, "Seems that one undead left behind isn't here? Lillius must have deemed him irrelevant… Shame, I'd have liked to have the chance to talk to him. Whatever, not like a creature summoned by puny mortals could turn the tide."

Yvon almost burst a vein, "Blasphemy! Our Gods were far beyond mortals and monsters like you!" All the cardinals looked at him with concern, what kind of fool would incite a fight with a being the Gods feared?

"Let me tell you a story of the universal truths." he began, the cardinals began settling in for a discussion and hoping to avoid combat for now, even if it was just to give Kaire a chance to channel the spell, while Zesshi prepared for battle, growing more and more impatient.

"In the worlds I have travelled, including those inhabited by the ones you call the Greed Kings and Gods, I left behind nothing but rivers of blood and ashes. In every world I was the Apex Predator, a force of nature that merely adhered to the principle of the strongest shall eat, the weak are meat. And in all of those worlds I prayed…" The eyes of the cardinals widened, could this man be a believer after all, saving their Gods in their time of need after finding what he was searching for? Perhaps this was a chance to gain a powerful ally?

'Something is wrong…' thought Raymond. 'He came here so soon after we sent out the Black Scripture. Don't tell me those hot-headed brats brought this upon us!' As a former member of the Black Scripture, he knew them the best and he sure as hell understood that inciting a fight with someone like Pyke wasn't beyond them. By the Gods, why did the other cardinals always have to reject his reforms! A team built on nothing besides strength would be incapable of nuanced decision making!

Yvon's and Dominic's through processes were however much different. They were the most devoted cardinals, to the point of borderline delusion. 'Aha! The light of the Gods compels even such malignant creatures to obey them! As expected of our true saviours!' thought Yvon.

'No wonder this monster came here! He was drawn to their presence, searching for salvation from his inferior, inhuman form! Just like in the other world!' believed Dominic.

"You seem to misunderstand me. You're Gods were not Gods in the worlds I travelled. They were nobodies, weak and pitiful creatures I saved on a whim." The Cardinal of Wind was about to spout cries of blasphemy when Pyke raised his hand, silencing him. "I prayed to whoever would listen. To Gods beyond your imagination, holy and evil, eldritch and pure, benevolent and malevolent. And yet none answered… None delivered me from the life of bloodshed I seemed to be fated to live. That was because Gods didn't exist, they never had. Only mortals, strong and weak, existed and none of them could break the strands of fate that bound me. So I became a God and took destiny into my own hands!" Valodan and Vacuus were of course delighted to learn more about their lord and, despite Vacuus being rather stoic, he too was getting ready to brag about his new knowledge at the family dinner.

"Impossible, Gods come from the divine realm, you can't become one!" shouted Berenice.

"You are a fool!" yelled back Pyke, "You know nothing of your Gods! They are now dead like any mortal, fools who didn't possess something as simple as immortality! Who answers your prayers!? Angels!? Bah! Mindless formations of mana, so far removed from the heavenly realms that mere summoning is blasphemy! In times of plague, in times of strife, your Gods only appeared once. Their arrival was mere luck, the stars aligning, the great game of the universe deciding that the numbers were right! They do not answer prayers for they have no such power! I am a God, I answer prayers and I answered the one your Gods directed to me in their time of need! But, perhaps you can answer this. What is the one fundamental truth about all Gods?"

The cardinals turned to Ginedine, one of their best scholars, "They possess power beyond mortals!" he said, presuming the most simple and obvious answer sometimes being the right one.

Pyke shook his head, "Wrong again. The one fundamental truth about Gods is that…" he paused, overlooking the city and snapping his fingers. Suddenly, 11 figures materialised in front of him, their eyes lifeless, not even resisting their bindings. It was the Black Scripture. Zesshi's eyes widened, now sure that this man could satisfy her urge for battle. The tale however was entertaining, so she listened further, not everyday did she get to see these old cardinals get so riled up by mere words.

Kaire and the cardinals were in shock, the entire Scripture broken into empty husks? "Gods are fickle. We don't like to be trifled with. So what do you think you brought upon yourself when you attacked Carne again?" The cardinals eyed the scripture with despair and disdain, their orders were to strictly observe and not engage. And now they have brought "Divine Wrath. [Maximise Magic: Wipe The Slate Clean]!" The cardinals turned around as they heard crashing and crumbling, only to see the 6 Cathedrals and statues break away in a massive flood, disappearing to wherever this ghostly water went. The grandest monuments to humanity and their saviours were gone within seconds.

"NOOOO!" they all cried out. "Kill him! Use the artifacts!" yelled the distraught cardinals. Angels from the 8th Tier materialised, only to disappear as the man simply pointed at them, turning them into dust with just his aura. Zesshi still stood back, she didn't care about any of the Theocracy, she only stuck around for the chance to kill her father. Once they were done with their bullshit, Zesshi could ask for a duel. She had a modicum of common sense, not rushing into this utter clusterfuck of destroyed angels. 'If he can kill those angels so easily I doubt I'll fare much better. I sure hope he'll be willing to take me if he defeats me…' A slight blush appeared on her face as she thought of the lewd things that her captor would do with her when she was defeated.

Pyke picked up Cenarien by his head, the godkin still limp, drowned in the depths of despair. "Kaire Hydros, how does it feel to see your pathetic cousin so broken? Just like how your entire country will end up. I can't wait to rob all those precious treasures of yours and leave you to die in the ruins of this hell."

"Shut up monster! Soon you too will serve the Gods!" The white qipao with a golden dragon sewn into it began to glow and suddenly the dragon leapt off of the fabric, attempting to coil itself around the Bloodharbor Ripper.

Then, it stopped.

By the time the Ripper appeared it was already night, in the sky a full moon, but now something was wrong. It was red; the entire night appeared as if it was dyed in blood. The man in front of them changed as well. His bone harpoon turned into a shining, blood-red dagger, the centre of it made of a gold alloy. The bones and greenish-blue clothing shifted into glorious white fur on his back and around his neck, becoming almost a mane. The rest turned red and gold, with stains of blood visible on it. The lower part of his face, where the red bandana once was, was now covered with a demonic white mask, displaying sharp fangs and two golden tusks. From his head sprouted two red horns, surrounded by golden markings on his skin. His forearms were now covered by guards resembling golden, demonic visages.

A million appendages, hands, tentacles and paws appeared from behind the Demon God, distorted voices from contorted faces behind the monster crying out as one. "SaAAAaaAaaAAvvEeee UuussSs!" they begged as they ripped the golden dragon into pieces, the shriek of it piercing the night, heard all over the city, as the supreme treasure was subjugated by the mere existence of a World Enemy like Pyke. He limited his range to not cover the entire continent as it probably could, instead limiting it only to Kami Miyako. It'd be rather hard to explain why the moon changed red and holy magic stopped functioning for the entire world once word of mouth spread.

But for Kami Miyako, it was the beginning of a nightmare…

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself, the 3rd princess of Re-Estize, was called the Golden Princess for not only her astonishing beauty, but also her initiatives. Cutting travel taxes for adventurers, paving roads, banning slavery were only a couple of the ones that passed, most of them being blocked by the noble faction. Yet, behind that veil and façade of the submissive, decorative princess, hid madness.

Brilliant beyond measure, far more intelligent than even the Bloody Emperor of Baharuth, she became very isolated at a young age. Like a clockwork marionette built to make the kingdom better, but broken with the abuse from her siblings and neglect from her father, turning against everything she was meant to love. Her mother was some unimportant noble that laid with her father for financial reasons, abandoning her child the second after Renner was born.

With no friendly figures left, she became twisted, until one day she rescued a homeless orphan that was dying on the street. She named him Climb and ever since became completely and utterly obsessed with the blonde boy. The way he looked at her, the way he worshipped her like a goddess. She wanted more, she needed more. Alas, due to her station she would be instead married off for political gain.

Everyone discounted her intellect, so instead she began enacting her plan of making the kingdom fall to ruin so she would be able to disappear with her precious climb, keeping him all for herself. Who would suspect her, a cute princess stuck in the palace, to be manipulating both the Kingdom, and the Empire to a lesser extent, from things as simple as what she overheard from the maids.

Still, she proposed policies she knew would not pass, not only to keep up her façade, but to also have Climb look at her with those eyes of his. Oh! How mad they drove her, those puppy eyes! She would chain him up and never let him go, finding immortality for them one way or another! An eternity with her puppy, the purest joy in existence. 'My Climb! I will kill everyone who looked down on you! Both the nobles and royals!'

Whenever she was during some meeting with her puppy she could barely stop her mask from dropping, the only thing going through her mind being, 'My Climb! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Only mine! Don't look at him, he belongs to me!' Repeated over and over and over again, she could never focus on what was going on in front of her when he gave her that look.

But there was one variable that could destroy her carefully laid plans, that being the new adamantite adventurer, Pyke. He knew about her true self, but she had yet to come up with an answer, the only thing coming to mind being magic, but even Blue Rose, who she often manipulated, did not have knowledge of such spells. Many sleepless nights were spent sitting up on her bed and pondering what the man had in mind.

She knew his moves were carefully calculated, the opinion of the common people about him already rivalling her own despite his appearance in the kingdom being brief. Killing nobles was a crude, but effective way to endear yourself to the common people, but she didn't have such power. The brilliance that hid underneath his madness was visible to her. Pyke of course was smart, but no genius, simply doing what he thought was right and such a view of him was the result of overcomplicated analysis. 'Who is Pyke? Where did he come from? What is his goal? He's a complete enigma!' she thought to herself.

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

Pyke sneezed. "My Lord, do you require an item or spell against sickness? If so, I shall immediately go fetch it!" said Vacuus.

"No, it's fine. It just seems someone is thinking about me."

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

Racking her brain over this situation was doing her no good, so she was about to go to sleep in order to keep up her royal beauty, when a blueish oval, within which sparks of lightning danced, opened in the middle of her room. She decided not to scream, the palace guards wouldn't be able to do anything against a magic caster of such power anyway. 'Perhaps here come my answers?' she thought to herself.

Out from the hole in reality came a voluptuous beauty with topaz hair and eyes, blue nails painted in a complex pattern and thin tail. She took a seat on the other side of the table from Renner, "Princess Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaisel, pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Lillith, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Swimming City ruled by my creator and father, Lord Pyke. Oh! By the way, please do not hide your true form, we already know how dark your soul is."

The Princess complied, the colour fading from her eyes and a demonic, cruel, almost inhuman smile appearing on her face. Renner already knew she was cornered and outplayed; if they knew about her madness, they knew about her weakness, that being Climb. With their magical prowess, it was already checkmate, so what did they want from her? "To what do I owe the pleasure, Lady Lillith?" she asked.

"Oh please, in private there is no need for honorifics. My dear, we just found you to be a rather interesting specimen that could be a useful subordinate." answered Lillith.

"Then please call me Renner. Presuming I'm interested in becoming your subordinate, what would that entail?" she asked. The situation was turning out to be better than expected, given that the opposite party held all the cards.

"Well, we know how much you love your puppy, but can't marry him. We know you are the most intelligent mortal in the region. And we know you have no feelings of empathy for anyone besides that boy. So, since we are going to be taking over the world, we are giving you the opportunity to be the Queen of Re-Estize, later a governor queen of the region if you assist us."

"And what about my puppy?" Renner asked. So far, the proposition was rather tantalising and hearing that they were planning to take the world over made everything click into place. The actions of Pyke, his choice to connect with Gazef and Blue Rose, gaining the goodwill with the people, she finally understood it all. At this moment, she understood that she was, for the first time in her life, intellectually outmatched.

"Oh, I thought you'd understand what I was getting at, he'll be king. Don't worry about succession and all that, we'll grant you immortality if you prove yourself to be loyal." Renner's eyes widened, shock at the idea that giving away immortality was something they could just do permeated her brain. Normally she would think over the proposition and try to manipulate the opposition, but she recognized not only the strength of her adversary, but also the fanatical gleam in Lillith's eyes; betrayal wasn't an option and the terms were fair, so she saw no point in pushing her luck.

"Umu. In that case I accept, I hope I'll be able to speak with our master in the future. For now, do you have a concrete plan, Lillith?" The minister lightly clapped her hands.

"Wonderful, I knew you'd accept, my dear. As for the plan, simple really. My father will stop being an adventurer, becoming a vigilante of sorts, lending the kingdom assistance during the war against the empire, in exchange for E-Rantel, the Katze Plains and the Great Forest of Tob, which you will give official support for. And when we get more prosperous, an artificial famine of your design taking over your kingdom, you will swear vassalage in exchange for support and later be integrated as a province." proposed Lillith

"That does seem sound, however there is one fatal flaw, I don't have the authority to do any of that." countered Renner. Her visitor let out a melodic giggle, like the sound of wind chimes in the gardens of heaven, surely charming an entire court if they were present.

"Not yet you don't." Lillith took out a couple small vials, one filled with sand and the others with various viscous liquids. "This one is called the [Sands of Time], which rapidly quickens the ageing process, which in the case of your father will kill him with just a couple grains in his drink. No magical residue and no link to you, simply old age." In YGGDRASIL the item let players change their character's age and appearance, but its properties were made manifest in the New World.

The smiles on both of the women were predatory and wide, "These on the other hand are poisons that have been modified by magic. My sister made these, which means they are vastly superior compared to mortal ones. I assure you that even your best physicians won't figure out what was the reason behind someone's death if you use these. Kill your brother before the war, take the throne, defend yourself, hire my father and the plan goes as outlined.

Renner gave Lillith a genuine, chilling smile, her wishes all but fulfilled within minutes of meeting the women, "I believe this meeting was rather fruitful. What will you do about the empire? Jircniv isn't stupid like the nobles here."

Lillith replied with her own pure smile, "Stupid maybe not, but what if you could control his biggest asset and grandfatherly figure?"

The princess understood what the temptress' words implied and smiled once again. "Well, I believe it is getting late Lillith and I need my beauty sleep to better serve our master." said Renner.

"Do get some rest, you'll be busy, but it'll all be worth it." Lillith waved goodbye as she disappeared back into the [Abyssal Gate].

Renner promptly fell asleep, no longer worried as to what the world may hold, her puppy now firmly secure within her grasp.

ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ

Kaire collapsed as the artifact used her lifeforce to fuel itself, only to be ripped to shreds. "Your pathetic artifacts can't even scratch me!" said the incarnation of evil that Pyke transformed into. This form was designed to fight groups containing large amounts of holy magic casters, eliminating one of the racial weaknesses of Pyke. There were few things that could be more annoying than a mass of holy casters summoning high level angels. There would be no repeat of the Sunlight Scripture here.

The Blood Moon itself was one of the trump cards of the Bloodharbor Ripper, disabling holy magic below Tier 8 and acting as a tweaked [Wish Upon The Star] spell, with the range of the power depending on what he sacrifices. In YGGDRASIL that effect however was rather useless, even when he massacred dozens of players within the time limit it didn't come close to the Super Tier spell. Bonuses were given to him if holy casters died in the range of the skill, but even when he killed ten level 100 holy casters it proved to be almost useless. Still, the effect was useful in combat. Not to mention he was also very curious as to what the effect would look like in the New World, the crimson light now covering the entire city being better than whatever he could have imagined. As exploitable as YGGDRASIL was, the New World proved to be equally, if not more so. Could this be another such case?

"Valodan! Bring me the heads of every priest in the city! Stain the grounds red with their blood, show them the beginning of the end!" This was the time for an experiment. Including the 11 Scripture members before him, how would the Blood Moon react to an offering of the blood of so many holy magic casters? It was impossible to gather so much blood in YGGDRASIL so what would change here?

Valodan bowed and instantly disappeared from sight, leaving behind only the sound of snapping of bones and tearing of flesh throughout the city as he fulfilled his maker's wish. He was a blur of death that broke down the doors of priests and brutalised them that would haunt the Theocracy for years to come. Pyke then turned to Zesshi who, for the first time in her long life, felt genuine fear as she attempted to tiptoe out of the area. Her heart nearly stopped when the monster addressed her, "Where are you going Zesshi? Scared to have a good fight?" he asked.

She gulped, but before she could answer, Pyke spoke up again, "Worry not. You are merely… misguided. Unlike these scum you worked with, you have been created for war. I'll have a use for you, so fight, fight to your heart's content! Vacuus, play with her, scythe versus scythe. Not yet, but in a bit, there is still much to be done. And as for you cardinals, learn despair!" The cardinals were already losing their minds from his resistance to the supreme treasure, but it was still not over. Pyke increased the pressure from his aura and silence followed as they struggled against the pressure of the deep. Several minutes had passed with them immobilised by Pyke's aura and righteous fury burned within the cardinals.

Pyke meanwhile chatted with Vacuus about the architecture of the city, as if the situation was something normal. "Interesting that this place isn't in a more Roman style like some of the castles in the Oldest World."

"Indeed father, however I believe the cathedral dedicated to Surshana was in the so-called gothic style. Perhaps the former players simply weren't familiar with that style?" asked Valodan.

"Maybe, that one is indeed older." answered Pyke. The rage within the cardinals was about to cause them to burst a vein after listening to such inane discussion, only for their blood to instead be chilled to the core by a grotesque monument to the greatest of blasphemers. Thousands of heads materialised in front of them, the blue outline that characterized some teleportation spells quickly dispersing.

"My lord, I have killed every priest in this city. I apologise for how long it took, but as you can see, they were rather numerous. In hopes of not wasting your time I had to use a [Widen Magic: Greater Teleportation] scroll, I hope you will forgive me." said Valodan, appearing next to his father with blinding speed, his right hand morphed into a blade of impossible sharpness, stained with blood. In addition to being the greatest general, he could shift his hands into almost any shape and was blindingly fast by the standards of the New World, and even among the councillors it was among the highest echelons. He was a general who could appear anywhere on the battlefield and led from the front.

"Wonderful job, Valodan. Execute these insects as well." The general obliged as he swung his morphed hand once, creating a blade of pure wind from the shockwave and beheading the Black Scripture members all at once. "[Offering To The Blood Moon]!" Pyke shouted.

All the blood from the dead of the city, priests, scripture or those who killed themselves out of fear, not that any innocents were directly harmed by him, flowed into Pyke's red blade which was held up, pointing at the moon. "Heresy of the highest order! The Gods will come to save us! [Holy Ray]!" shouted Yvon as the pressure was briefly lifted when Pyke focused on the ritual. The cardinal tried to attack, more than half-mad already, but instead the magic failed to cast as the bloody glow of the blade intensified. It drank deep of the blood, leaving the grounds as unstained as if a massacre never took place. Then… nothing. There was no great catastrophe, tides of blood didn't wash away the city, it was unnaturally quiet.

"The Gods have foiled your plans, demon!" shouted Berenice.

The answer to her provocation was a mad cackle, all the souls of those absorbed lashing out like a choir of dissonance from the depths of hell, "HahAhaHaaHAhAhaHa! I will get a wish granted as if this was one of the twenty for such a sacrifice!? Oh, the Blood Moon is simply a glorious occasion! I'll show you true despair yet! I wish for the ones known as the Six Gods to be resurrected in front of me at their strongest!"

The eyes of everyone, including the councillors, turned from Pyke to where he was pointing his blade, from which blood flowed like a river. It coagulated into 6 humanoid forms, 5 of them becoming distinctly human and one a bony undead. They resembled the 6 statues that were washed away by the Great Old One. "Where the fuck are we? Surshana, you there?" muttered out Egnetius, the God of Fire. Before an answer could come the cardinals and Pontifex Maximus rushed in front of them, prostrating themselves.

"Oh Gods, you have finally returned to protect us! Please! Command us as you see fit and slay this abomination!" yelled Julius. The fact that they were resurrected by that demon didn't matter to them, what mattered was that now the Slane Theocracy was saved.

"How the fuck do I feel dizzy when I'm undead?" cursed Surshana as they all attempted to stand, only to be bound by crimson chains that bit into them, drawing cries of pain from them all, even Surshana whose sense of pain was dulled as an undead.

A voice they could have never forgotten called out to them, "Welcome back. Remember me?"

They all looked up from the chains at the one that evidently bound them. "You!" they cried out in unison.

"Please Gods, slay that vile demon!" said Raymond.

However the cardinals were ignored, "What has it been? 500 something years since you last saw me? Maybe more? Well, for me it's been like a week." Pyke said off-handily. The six players looked to Surshana, deciding that, like in the old days, he should lead them.

"Why are you here? And how did you revive us?" he asked.

"I know as little about my transportation as you." he lied through his teeth, knowing that an ancient Wild Magic spell by the dead Dragon Emperor was responsible.

"As for why I resurrected you, let me ask you a question. Why did you create a xenophobic, theocratic state that has been responsible for some of the worst crimes imaginable?"

Surshana's eyes burnt brighter, "We needed to establish a strong state. When we came here humanity was almost extinct! Demihumans hunted them down to almost the last! If we didn't do anything we would have been monsters!"

Pyke sighed, "Creating such a horribly governed country, which probably massacred enough humans to be on par with the demihumans, was idiotic. For the ignorance of your crimes I pronounce your sentence: death. "

Alaf interjected, "We're fellow players, how can you do this!?"

Slowly Pyke walked towards them, "I killed on Earth, I killed in YGGDRASIL and I will kill here. These insects that follow you have attempted to massacre innocent villagers I saved, humans that threatened no one. It is your fault they turned out this way, so now they shall watch as death reclaims you."

The cardinals stood in front of the ones they worshipped, shielding the Gods with their bodies, "You'll have to get through us!" yelled Raymond. With a flick of Pyke's wrist the pressure appeared once more and the cardinals were knocked to the back of the square, now bound in the same crimson chains as the Gods.

"You could have made this world a paradise, but your only legacy is a tyranny worse than the Greed Kings. The burden of millions of innocent deaths rests on your shoulders. For this, your soul will forever belong to me." One by one he walked up to them, grabbing their heads and pulling. Flesh was torn, blood stained the holy city, a sickening sound of skin stretching and snapping echoed in the absolute silence that Pyke's presence demanded .

They tried to scream or pray to an even higher power, but those were just mere ripples compared to the tide of the Ripper. Finally came Surshana's turn, "You. The mightiest of them all, who could have done everything and yet did nothing at all. Your comrades, your people, your world; abandoned. Die knowing that you lived and died a failure." With a snap the God of Death's skull was separated from his body. The five lifeless bodies fell to the ground, exsanguinated as the blood flowed to his dagger and the rest of Surshana's body disintegrated.

He grabbed six low-level spears from his inventory, impaling their heads on them as he walked towards the area where the six cathedrals were supposed to be, putting them there as a grim reminder. "[Time Capsule]." he said while pointing at the impaled heads, stopping the flow of time around them and making them an eternal reminder, a barrier impenetrable by anyone weaker than what this world would consider a God. Typically this spell would be used to stop expensive food items from spoiling, but the New World brought with it new, gruesome possibilities. He made his way back to his temporary throne in the centre, sitting down and turning to the cardinals who were either crying, cursing him, or in denial.

"Now your pathetic Gods will serve as a reminder, nothing more. Your time will come." He waved his hand, knocking the cardinals out by overwhelming their senses with his aura. He looked at Zesshi who was trying to make herself as small as possible to display that she didn't want to fight.

"As a God, I should answer your prayers shouldn't I? Vacuus, defeat her, but don't kill her." The blue titan that had been silently watching until now gave a bow of acknowledgement and swung his scythe before Zesshi could even process what was happening. Time and space were rent as the scythe's lore became true, an artifact with the power to cut reality itself, cutting off Zesshi's legs.

A yell of sheer anguish escaped Zesshi's throat, 'How could anyone hope to fight these monsters!?' she thought to herself as she clutched at her bleeding stumps. "The enemy has been defeated non-lethally, father." said Vacuus with his usual stoic demeanour and monotone voice, causing Pyke to facepalm quite hard.

"It was supposed to be more of a show match. You've gotta loosen up a bit, this is a fun family vacation here, at least now that those "Gods" got what they deserved." He sighed, "Fine. Heal her." As it always should be, his will was done, the full form of the heterochromatic half-elf restored.

Zesshi was terrified at the casual demeanour of Pyke, 'What do they want from me?'

Once again, the God-Slayer spoke up, "Sorry 'bout that, Vacuus is a bit… literal." He began walking to her, she fell on her behind and tried to run from the monster, backing off until she hit a wall of one of the buildings lining the plaza. He reached down and caressed her cheek, his fingers wet with blood staining her pale skin, "I was also made to be a weapon. Kept in a prison, only let out to be unleashed upon the enemies of those in power. I still seek revenge, always will. But you…" He stood up, towering over her and extended his hand to her. "You can be free of this. The elf king dies and it's over. The world doesn't need more like me. Stand tall, head up and weapon in hand."

'Like the old me…' he thought to himself. People weren't made to be weapons and if all those lives he took let him save this one, then it was worth it. Zesshi stared at him with wide eyes, before grabbing his forearm and pulling herself up. He went back to his makeshift podium, Zesshi holding onto his flowing, red cloak like a child following their parent through the darkness, sensing an odd feeling of kinship with the God Slayer in front of her. Once he was in front of the terrified Tia, Tina and Keno, he gently reassured them, "No innocents were harmed, don't worry. Now then, let us go to the Swimming City. There is a world to take over after all!"

The adventurers' eyes widened, "What do you mean!?" shouted Keno.

"I will take this world and do what those pathetic Gods couldn't! A paradise where none have to suffer as I did! Corruption, death, destruction will be but memories of the past! I've seen what warring nations do, I've seen what those in power do! Even the good ones die. Me however? I won't. I can't. Death keeps spitting me right back out… This world is diseased, rotten to the core. I will shape it, make it pure! No longer will a noble rape a peasant, no longer will the people starve while others live in opulence! Now I have the power for change and unlike those insects I killed, I won't let this world become like the first. They saw catastrophes and did nothing! Follow me and do what every hero should, or choose the old ways and perish with them."

A gate opened and he, the guardians, and Zesshi, stepped through. "What do we do?" Keno asked.

"We can't stop him, but he hasn't killed innocents. He did what the nobles wouldn't." said Tia.

"Brutally, but he did. Meanwhile Lakyus went insane." added Tina.

"You're just saying that so you get to spend more time with that Lillius guy!" cried out Keno.

"Yes. But we also agree with Pyke and don't want to be in his way. He just killed the Gods." answered Tina with a shiver at the thought of being in the Theocracy's place.

The petite vampire sighed, "I guess I'll go as well, I'm too close to finding the one who made me what I am. Might as well try and keep him in check…" They stepped through the [Abyssal Gate] which closed behind them. Keno still had one more question after that display of power, killing the Gods like animals to be put down. "Pyke, what really are you?" she asked. Pyke, now in his normal attire, smirked.

"I am the tide of change…"

(AN: So that's chapter 5! Next up is the epilogue and that will be the end of Volume 1! Worry not for Volume 2 is already written as I type this and it will focus more on the councillors, hopefully endearing them to you just a little bit! I'd just like to thank Spacemonkey777 for the wonderful review! It warms my heart to see someone enjoying my story so and yes you did in fact inspire a whole section of this chapter! You're a damn good writer you know? Anyway, speaking of enjoying stories, this chapters recommendation is [The Supreme Overlord: Ainz Ooal Gown] by AbiWolf666! It may not be everyone's cup of tea but if you're looking for an overpowered Ainz story then there it is! As always, more to come and I hope you enjoy the story!)