Chapter 156 -A Leanbox Obelisk

"#GASP#...#GASP#..."

Rugged gasps escaped his lips, gasps which took in much more air than normal and almost stressed the limits of the user's lung capacity. Steam filled his vision like a potent fog covering an entire area, trapping it within its murky, bleak embrace. As the steam continued to persist, the sounds of sizzling reaching his ears like a constant hum, he himself kneeled on one leg, embraced by the scorching heat which pretty much outshined any form of sauna in terms of hot air. Although, considering how a lot of it came from the boiling blood which got scattered throughout this entire camp, one couldn't really misunderstand. Not to mention that thanks to the quantity of steam all around him, there was really a strong lack of vision for him, even for his own Gene Seed Implants enhancing his vision along with his Ghoul Side.

Panting hard and heavily, a now unarmored Nico himself focused on regaining his bearings in the midst of this steam, steam caused by his own hands by the mass slaughtering of so many Bloodletters, that their blood got splattered all over this Camp and generated this steam as a result. In addition to that, there was the fact that his Hellfire had also been used to great quantity, which contributed to the immense heat filling the vicinity. Although, thanks to his absolute immunity to fire, his body didn't sweat in this scorching temperature of over 3000 degrees Celsius one bit, if anything he only had a light bead of sweat forming from all the action he had taken so suddenly. His body had just started getting used to the idea of not fighting 24/7, not something that he would allow for hiss line of work.

His hands now had become bare save for his leather gloves, his swords vanishing out of existence via wisps of flames and data particles which receded back into his Void Storage. Without them, the redhead used 2 of his Rinkaku Tentacles to keep himself steady, by impaling the ground beside him as well as planting one hand on the ground before him. In essence, he looked like a knight with his head lowered like it was, with sweat dripping from his forehead down to the ground below. His eyes, faintly glowing red, showed a heavy sense of exertion, his mouth open as he took in as much oxygen as his lungs could store. His upper body heaved and heaved like there was no tomorrow, all the while the male felt his body being wrought with intense respiration from the brutal workout he had done...

Something which he couldn't help but elatedly grin at, despite the fatigue coursing through his system.

'Man, that was a GREAT fucking workout...' The male couldn't help but think to himself, his heart almost soaring with the elation and life which now coursed through it, greater in quality than even the blood within his veins. His body, wrecked as it looked, also felt positively BRILLIANT, lighter than it had been in a while. Thanks to all this ventintg, Nico felt positively lovely, lighter than a feather and much more relaxed than he had been for a long while. His muscles no longer felt heavy from lack of use, his bones didn't feel like lead anymore, his stress from everything that had been building up no longer existed, and his body overall simply felt… better. Somethig of which he could not help but be BEYOND grateful for, especially with everything that had happened.

Although, what Nico had NOT expected was for all this steam to be generated from the blood of those Bloodletters and Heralds of Khorne, combined with his Helfire. He honestly felt glad that his Hellfire had been caged inside this Camp by the large walls of stake-like tree trunks, as he didn't want to destroy this forest with how chaotic his powers were. Though when the question of HOW they could endure the infernal heat from his Hellfire, Nico looked with his senses and had sensed large amounts of Demonic Power coursing through each stake. Pretty much screaming at them that they had Desecration applied to them to make them more resistant, at least that was what Nico assumed when he had glanced at them during all that fighting. Raw power would be best to keep more raw power at bay, that seemed to be the thought process going through the limited intelligence governing this humongous force.

Well, not anymore, not after he pretty much launched a mass genocide on their asses.

Something which felt so goddamn GOOD, seriously Nico just couldn't get enough of this relieving feeling.

'HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! YES, YES-YES-YES! THIS IS IT, KING! THIS IS WHAT WE ARE MADE FOR! WE SLAUGHTER THE WRETCHES WE CALL OUR FOES WITHOUT MERCY! WE EAT THE FUCKERS WE DEEM AS SINFUL YET DELECTABLE! WE WRECK EVERYONE'S SHIT WHETHER THEY LIKE IT OR NOT! WE RULE WITH OUR INSTINCTS! WE ARE CHAOS INCARNATE, WE DESTROY WHAT WE DON'T LIKE, AND THAT'S FUCKING EVERYTHING! WE DON'T CARE WHO WE KILL, AS LONG AS BLOOD FLOWS AROUND US FROM OUR KAGUNE, IT MATTERS NOT WHO WE SLAUGHTER! DEMON! MONSTER! HUMAN! ALL WILL FALL VICTIM TO THE MIGHT OF THE GHOUL!'

Nico mentally winced however, when his Ghoul Side ecstatically squealed with sadistic, twisted delight through the confines of his mind from his Inner World. The male felt some of his good mood vanish with what he had said, but after thinking about what he had done and his behavior during it… to his horror, Nico couldn't really find much of a fault in his logic. Back then, Nico hadn't really cared about the fact that there were Demons nearby, beings which could destroy everything peaceful around them if left unchecked. Sure enough. he HAD acknowledged that fact, he had registered that they were a threat to the endangered Nature Elves whom he had grown fond of in such a short time… but the moment that the slaughter began, none of that seemed to remain inside his mind's awareness anymore. Nothing did, except for the sheer pleasure and sinful desire to shed blood. To rip his claws through flesh and to sink his fangs into the necks of his opponent. Desires which stemmed mostly from his primitive true nature, something he had been fighting against for as long as he could remember.

Just… what did that mean for him?

What did that… his brain tried to find an answer, even though it was already right in front of him.

'In any case, Nico, now that the Demons have been defeated, there should be one last thing we need to do to ensure the Nature Elves safety from them.'

Before he could completely lose it and fall into the… darker corners of his mind, Nico heard his Demon Persona break through the chaos within his mind to advise him on how to proceed next. He was no fool though, Nico got the correct idea that Biko had spoken just now in order to prevent him from losing himself to the madness inside. Nothing EVER good happened when he did that, and Nico would know this. He'd seen what happened in that case…

Shaking his head, the redhead teen shut out those dark thoughts and freed himself from the pleasure coursing through him. All so he could swing his right arm and disperse the steam as well as the boiling blood in one fell swoop. Pretty much cleaning the entire camp with one swing. It helped that he'd applied Demonic Energy into his arm to reinforce the swing as well, though, as he lowered his arm to gaze up towards the last remnant of the Demonic taint: The Hellgate.

The Hellgate, shaped like an Obelisk, stood tall in the center of the Camp, untouched and unwavering in the light of the recent slaughter which had taken place around it. Its black, metallic-like structure shined in the sunlight, glimmering like it possessed some form of demonic beauty to it. The structure definitely had that sleek, deadly beauty to it Nico would readily admit that. However, like a rose this thing definitely held its own thorns hidden beneath its beauty. Raw beauty could be used as a weapon to catch people of guard, especially if the user is doing it on a member of the opposite sex. He should know, he knew someone who did that kind of thing on a daily basis. Gazing up towards the top of this structure, Nico recalled the first time he'd seen this thing back in Planeptune when he fought the Defiler, then gained Absolution. Though, he only knew that last part a while later. 'Heh, even after all this time and all the Demons I've killed, this thing still has its own kind of magic...' the male couldn't help but think to himself, a bitter chuckle escaping his lips.

Afterwards, Nico raised his right arm and pointed his hand towards the Hellgate. Calling upon his power, the male saw Hellfire flames erupt all around his arm, like a second layer of skin. They then slid down towards his hand, as if being sucked in by a whirlpool before he held in his hand a basketball sized fireball. Nico gazed at the flaming ball of fiery death for a moment, as if contemplating the flames for a moment, before making to shoot it at the Hellgate. He DID have enough power focused within the fireball to burn the structure to nothingness in one shot, just as he calculated...

But before he could...

'Don't do it just yet, actually.'

'Huh?' Blinking owlishly, Nico paused in his attack, regaining his control over the Fireball but not lowering his arm just yet. 'Biko? Why are you saying to not destroy this thing?' he questioned his Demon Persona, soon getting an answer.

'Normally I would have just let you blast this thing into oblivion and have zero complaints about it. However, while you were fighting, I took a look at the Hellgate with your senses, and have been detecting large fluctuations of Demonic Power within. They were large, larger than anything i had ever seen before, almost like they were a whole new world or something along those lines. Nico, I believe that this structure may be something we can get some use out of for the time being. How that can be done, I'm not so certain, however I do feel that it wouldn't be in our interests to destroy it just yet.'

So, that was his angle, huh? The redhead furrowed his brows as he lowered his arm, dismissing and absorbing the Fireball back into himself before looking back to the Hellgate. Now that he looked at it more closely and analyzed it with his senses, Nico could see what his Demon Persona was talking about. He could indeed sense a MASSIVE build up of Demonic Power inside, larger than anything he had felt prior to this moment. If he were to make a comparison, it would be similar to looking upon an ever-expanding ocean or something along those lines. The more that he looked at it, the more curious that Nico became, until eventually he decided to take a look at the other side himself. It wasn't like he'd done that before, as with the first one any Hellgate Nico had come across got destroyed by his hand. 'Hmmm, yeah, it likely would be quite interesting to see whats on the other side of this damned Gate... maybe then I'll be able to learn more about my opponents, the Chaos Gods. Though, i'm still a little worried that this Gate will be used for more Demonic incursions through the forest, the threat to the Nature Elves is still here after all.'

'You could shroud it in Darkness from Erebus, then. It'll keep the Obelisk shrouded and bar any access to it save for you yourself.'

Once again, Biko offered a solution to his dilemma, getting a nod from the redhead male. 'Alright then, i'll do that. How is Erebus doing anyways? Last I heard, she had an... interest, in my Ghoul Side.'

'... You sure you want to know?'

'...With that ominous tone you just used, probably not...'

Dismissing the link for the time being, Nico shook his head as he fully released his Rinkaku Kagune and narrowed his mismatched eyes towards the Gate. Stepping towards it, the male saw it reacting to his presence, as right before his very eyes... the Gate began to open. All along it's flat, smooth surface, flames of a similar color to his Hellfire erupted, covering its form before shaping into a spiraling whirlpool, revealing to him what looked to be some sort of walkway. Using his senses, Nico quickly realized that the Hellgate had sucked up a portion, small as it may be, of his Demonic Energy in order to activate. So, one could say that he had unintentionally activated a demonic Hellgate… though, he wouldn't give anything on the other side a chance to cross over. Not when he had a say in the matter.

Just by standing there, Nico could hear the countless distant roars of furious Demons, Demons overly zealous in their fanatical conquest for bloodshed, warfare and slaughter. They constantly roared, shrieked and screamed as they seemingly battled it out in an eternal conflict. He could even hear sounds of explosions and the roars of erupting flames. Taking a deep breath, Nico took a moment to mentally prepare himself for whatever he would be seeing on the other side...

And stepped into the Walkway.


Things were hell… there was no doubt about it.

Thoughts such as those plagued her mind like a thousand of tiny, annoying bugs, unable to be swatted due to their sheer numbers as she looked over the reports of her latest… attempt, at taking back what was hers. To retake what HAD been hers before shit went down, how it went down in a way not even her worst nightmares could have performed. She sat within her bedroom in her own little hideout, a room she had modified to be comfier and welcoming for her to reside in… although it admittingly would be nothing in comparison to the Basilicom. Where she REALLY should have been staying… had things not turned out the way that they had. Just thinking about it made her grit her teeth as a building fury rose from within her being. It caused her to grip the report in her hands tightly, although thanks to prior events she had to rein in her temper before she shredded the report to pieces… though, with what she read on it, it DEFINITELY didn't help matters.

Looking down at the report in her trembling hands, she could feel a huge, terrible weight slam onto her shoulders with ever word she read. The report summarized how the raid had went, what they had discovered, and whom had returned from the attempt… alive and uninjured that is. Originally, shehad sent out over 300 able-bodied soldiers to try and raid a nearby convoy belonging to her enemy. An enemy whom she could NEVER have known existed back up in Celestia nor could she have ever prepared for. She didn't have that large a force, and she had been banking a lot of her chances on these raids she had been limited to thanks to her lack of manpower. These Raids she had been ordering had served to bring in a boost to their own war funds, bringing back valuable resources like supplies, intelligence etc. They were practically crucial in keeping ahead of her opponents while finsding chinks in the enemy's armour, sort to say. Not like she found very many, not to mention the state of the Nation… she had nightmares about it every night, leading to a lot of sleepless nights which did NOT help her mood. Not in the slightest, if one wanted to know how bad they were, then any dream revolving around Thunder Tits… would be like a paradise in comparison.

However, whilst the Raid succeeded they lost about 90% of their forces as a payoff. Most of them fell during combat, which wasn't something she felt good. Not just because they died (she would have had to write condolence letters to their families, if they even had any proper familied to begin with). However, it would have been better if they perished AWAY from the enemy, since they had their… methods, in using the battlefield and everything in it to their advantage. If they weren't on the battlefield, then she could have retrieved their remains herself, but in the hands of the enemy…

She almost didn't know why she even bothered anymore, if her enemy had this much power and control, how could she hope to fight against them? Her powers hadn't been enough when she had been at her freaking damned PEAK! The power of the Goddess had failed, goddamn FAILED! Something which she hadn't been able to grasp till a week after the incident… but she still had to try since if she gave up, then everything she had fought for would have been a waste. Fighting the Console War, teaming up wit those damned broads including that aggravating CPU from Leanbox would have been wasted. What point would it have been if she had given up right as she had finally taken out one of her rivals? There wouldn't have been any point, that was the answer which she always concluded whenever she thought about it.

This enemy she had fought… she did NOT overstate how twisted, evil and powerful it was. In fact, she felt like whenever she thought about it's strength, she felt like she would be grieviously underestimating it. Even the prospect of meeting it once more, something which happened more than she'd like to admit, caused her no small number of shudders which fell down her spine like a violent river. That, and the champions it had chosen to fight her had been just as tough, and before she even knew it, her Nation had already fallen. Isolated from the other three so she couldn't figure out what the heck was going on with them, Lastation, Leanbox or that goddamned PLANEPTUNE. None of the Nations would be able to send scouts into Lowee, nor would Lowee be able to contact the outside. Not with the barrier set up around the Nation, blocking any and all access not to mention communication between these parties. It honestly worried her, Lowee's isolation, after all it would no doubt cause the other Nations to get suspicious about her home and, should they try to send forces to investigate… then the barrier would NOT be pleasant for them.

Which would only make things worse in the long run.

Just as she felt like her mind would have lost it to her internal tendencies to go on a rage when things were too stressful, a wave of subh zero cold washed over her body, dousing the flames which burned through her heart. When she had begun forming the shadows over her eyes, this cold feeling set her expression back to normal, causing her to sigh in relief. 'Things may not be very good right now… but thanks to this thing, and everything that followed, I can at least say I'm getting more prepared for the battles ahead…' she thought to herself. 'Even with the state my people are in, this resistance is still around mostly due to how these powers have been helping me keep them safe… as long as I keep on training, learning and growing, I'll be able to at least keep these people alive…'

Still, she hoped that one day, things would start looking up for her people… especially soon.

If not… then while it would be kinda ironic, she'd pray for her people's salvation.


Okay… when he had entered the Gate shaped like an Obelisk, he did NOT expect to see this coming.

'Duuude, this is just waaaaaaay too trippy…' Nico commented inside his mind as he leisurely strolled through the… apparent whirlpool of crimson energy yet not at the same time. Ironically, it gave him more of a corridor like feeling, and one time he had reached out and actually felt an invisible wall, or something. That meant that this was INDEED a corridor of sorts, but the whole visual aspect of it all, well, it didn't share that aesthetic. After all, the entire place looked to be one crimson red and orange whirlpool, with the exit being the centre while spitalling inwards. It SO did not feel like a walkway or anything of the sort, and for a bbrief moment Nico felt like he would lose his balance and fall to his knees in a dizzy daze. Fortunately, he remained steadfast in his strides, not breaking his pace no matter what he had seen.

Still had to give them points for trying, though.

'Hmmm… interesting, very interesting…'

'Hm? What's up, Biko? I know this walkways curious and all, but you seem to be more into it than normal.' Nico questioned his Demon Persona as he strode through the Walkway. Despite his own intrigue about this Hellgate, he felt more intrigue coming from Biko, and considering his mass of knowledge about the Demonic aspect of things, thus he had designated it with a reasonable question.

'This Hellgate… no, perhaps all ofthem. Remember when I said they were portals to the Underworld way back when? Perhaps I wasn't that off the mark, after all. I can sense more and more Demonic energies coursing through the other end of this walkway. They do not seem to be particularly threatening, as I they aren't the energies of actual Demons wanting to whip us up into a nice sacrificial dish for their Gods. But stil… It feels like we're crossing the very boundaries between Gamindustri itself and the rest of the galaxy in this Devildimension.'

Once he heard this, Nico hummed thoughtfully, before disconnecting the link when he found himself approaching the entrance. Though, the redhead DID sense the buildup of Demonic Power increasing by the second the more he got closer, he didn't feel all that worried. The quantity may be great, but the quality of the energy itself felt quite poor, so it likely wasn't anything too serious. Still, when he got there, Nico felt like he would see for himself if this was as serious as his gut told him.

Inside his Inner World however, Biko just let out a sigh a troubled frown slightly forming on his lips. There was more to it than that though, but Biko wasn't so certain about it yet so he didn't say anything to the main aspect. These things, however, didn't revolve around the Hellgate specifically… but rather, Soul Edge itself. Like he said, he didn't have much, hell he only noticed something off briefly with the blade, but he had paid it no mind considering how short it had been. Stll, he wanted to keep an eye on the blade just in case he was wrong.

Both thoughts filled their minds, just as Nico stepped into the walkways exit, soon finding himself being blinded by a bright flash forcing him to cover his eyes.


By the time that the flash died down, which took more than a couple dozen seconds or so, Nico finally lowered his forearm back to his side and opened his eyes. He blinked momentarily at first to get his blurry vision back into focus… but the moment that he did, his eyes shot wide open like dinner plates as he nearly did several double takes. 'Wh-what the…?'

If one had asked him what he was expecting on the other side of this Hellgate, then he'd be unable to answer them…

But it DEFINITELY wouldn't be this.

From the moment that he first stepped foot into this side of the Helgate, Nico nstantly sensed something was wrong. In fact, he could say that this situation he found himself in would be an abomination against the very fabrix of nature itself. The moment that he stepped foot onto what felt like solid ground, Nico could only gape in shock, horror and dread as he beheld the spectacle before him. Hell, Nico felt so stunned and helpless the moment he entered this side, that he instinctively summoned Soul Edge to his hand.

Everywhere he could see was a mixture of red and black. The male found himself within the depths of a forest… or rather what looked to have once been a forest. Now, the forest looked more like some grotesque, twisted abomination, a shadow of what he had once seen back in the Nature Elf Forest. As someone who ad seen such otherworldly beauty for a while, seeing such a grotesque, demonic sight, the polar opposite, made him do several double takes.

The trees, they looked like the ones one would see in the winter climates of Lowee… if they weren't carrying any snow or ice on them. All they were made from, simply seemed to be thin bark, their trunks looking thinner than his own right arm. It almost felt like all the life in them haqd been greediy sucked out, leaving them in this shrivelled, disgusting state. Not only that though, but from them Nico could see dozens upon dozens of… Skulls. Lots of them, all being different in both shape and size, hanging off the limb-like branches like ornaments in a trophy room. Gazing across each of them, Nico could see human, Abnormal and even Demon Skulls, a lot of them beig species that he recognized, whilst many more failed to be recognized by him. Each of them looked to have been frozen in a state of contant torture, groaning in agony and… pure rage that they had been reduced to such a state. Their eye sockets may have been bear, but Nico did NOT doubt that if they were real, then the flames of hatred would have burned brightly within them, like two scorching infernos of raw anger and malice.

If that wasn't enough, then the skies themselves looked different. The Skkies themselves looked to be redder than the blood that Nico had seen in his lifetime, as well as containing a darkness and sinister feeling the moment that he looked toit. As if he was looking into the purest form of the word 'chaos' with his senses identifying countless blasts of energy coursing throught them. Energy so violent, so chaotic, wild and untamed that it would cause those with high level ensing abilities to enter a freaking COMA just from BRUSHING with this energy. It coursed through the skies, swirling into whirlpools in more than a few places, all the while crackles of energy danced across the skies. Thunder boomed, as if a great beast was roaring through the hells of tihis world, causing inhumanly large and vast tremors to shake the planet to its very core. These thunder strikeskept happening within these titanic sized ash clouds, which filled the skies and showed where the energies were swirling inwards by following their flow. Just from what he could see fro his position, Nico could see and sense over a couple thousand small/big whirlpools of this chaotic energy, making him feel a size smaller than even an ant.

Glancing downwards, Nico saw that the ground itself wasn';t that of soil or eatrth like he was used to. Kneeling down to inspect it, the male reached downwards and plucked a piece of it into his hand. Something which baffled him so since he didn't expect to be able to do it with such ease. Way more than when he was back in Gamindustri. The feelings he got when it was in his hand, the smells and the looks of it confirmed one thing for the redhead male, and that was that this ground looked to be made entirely of soot. Burned ash as iif the very landscape itself had been the victim of countless battles, battles which raged on and on, almost as if for eternity. He could sense traces of twisted energies from large-scale attacks still staining this soot-like ground, as he twisted his hand and dropped the soot back onto the ground below. Sniffing the air, Nico could smell the smells of charred corpses in the air, the air which seemed to carry an unholy amount of heat. Enough to make it worse than the sun's surface at the very least. The winds felt like they were animals, biting away at him like they were trying to devour his very flesh... though, from what he could feel the winds weren't doing a very good job of that, since his body had various means of defending itself. Though, the fact that those defences had to be employed meant that this wind had one hell of a bite to it.

Fortunately for him, Nico had devoured an entire Crimson Fatalis back in Zelretch's Trials, which allowed him absolute fire immunity across the board. That meant that any type of fire or heat-based attack would end up failing…. Failing epically against him, leaving no signs of damage to him one bit. It would be something Nico would come to be extremely grateful for, since fire immunity would be a freaking GODSEND when fighting against Khornate Demons and their followers. As a result, he didn't find this climate very uncomfortable in the slightest. Part of him wondered what it would be like to just strip into some swimware and catch a tan to take advantage of this heat. Thoughts like that elected a small smirk from the redhead, just imagining it inside his mind.

Though he soon shifted back into serious, or in some (read: a LOT) people's opinion, edge mode.

Twirling to face the direction behind him, Nico gazed at the Hellgate of which he had just come through. He noticed that the gate seemed to be inactive right now, probably having shut itself down the moment that he had stepped through. Nico had been so engrossed in identifying these… abominable surroundings around him that he hadn't even noticed. Not to mention that the Hellgate on this side, seemed to radiate with similar remnants of energy that the soot possessed, something which spoke volumes about its users. These observations, were MORE than enough to ring thousands of alarm bells in Nico's mind, sharpening his instincts as he glanced about again, searching for any signs of attack since everything around him (the wind, ground, skies, trees etc) felt like they would come to life at any moment. The intense, ominous atmosphere he found himself in didn't exactly helpt o ease his nerves, either. "What the hell is this place? I doubt I'm anywhere on Gamindustri anymore, since I hardly recognize the layout of this place. Not only that, but if there was a place like this on Gamindustri, then I would have surely known about it. That, or large forces would have been sent to clerar this place out since it would have been used by Abnormals or Demons to stage their attacks…" the male summarized, frowning in worry.

'I can tell you, but you must enter your Inner World first. Do not worry, your Ghoul Persona will connect with your Kagune to provide defence for your body should anything dare attack you.'

Biko's words flowed into Nico's head, making his eyes narrow in concern and confusion. Why did his Demon Persona sound so… nervous, when talking to him just now? No, it felt like everything in this strange new place just, unnerved him to the point of being almost jittery. He had no clue why, but anything which had the ability to draw something like THAT kind of emotion out of Biko, Nico would treat with extreme caution. There were few things which could cause him to express such emotion after all, and with that thought crossing his mind Nico closed his eyes and entered his Inner World.


Opening his eyes, Nico found himself within he entrances to the Library building of his Inner World, something of which he had been paying more and more visits and attention to in recent times due to the information stored inside. Information about the abilities, history among other things regarding the DPU Era. Information was what he needed in these trying times, not just training. Whilst he would need to get INSANELY more powerful if he wanted to get onto even footing with Mundus, something which would likely be hellish in and of itself, he would also need to have enough information about the era his powers had originated from. Information he could use soon, such as info about the powers that were left behind in secret by the many residents of that age.

When he laid eyes on it though, Nico quickly noticed that Biko was already floating there, with a couple books floating behind him. The look on his face, Nico wouldn't forget it. It was the look he usually had when something of grave importance, as well as something worth troubling over, got his attention. Those books seemed to be a part of the reason why, the male thought as he stepped on over to him. "Your message to me sounded like it was pretty urgent, so I came as quick as I could. What is this place I was in, what's so dangerous about it that got you spooked?" he questioned. In Nico's mind, it HAD to be something Demon related, a lot of things he had seen in Gamindustri seem to be related to the demonic arts in some way or form. Thus, the redhead male wanted to know EVERYTHING about it before he would proceeed, something which got mirrored in the eyes of his Demon Persona as the books finally closed themselves and floated behind him.

"Unfortunately, the situation we are in is of grave importance, Nico. We must tread carefully, for even the slightest mistake could prove fatal to us. We could lose our lives here, and we wouldn't be able to register it until it already happened and our souls will reform somewhere else. Where we are right now, is what Gamindustri would literally call hell…" Biko explained to him, his tone and demeanor almost deadly in its severity. It was almost similar to him talking about the end times, something whichNico suppressed the shudders crawling up his spine from showing. "We are what is called… a Demon World."

The moment those words left Biko's lips, both males narrowed their eyes when they felt waves upon waves of earthquakes shake the entirety of the Inner World. Waves which would have caused them to be thrown off balance if A: Biko didn't float as his default way of moving, and B: Nico not reflexively dig his feet into the depths of the desert sands he stood on. Not only that, but the moment he heard those words, Nico didn't understand why but he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, cold chills of dread filling his gut whilst his lungs felt like they were being squeezed to death by some powerful python.

When they passed, the Demonic Persona soon began to explain once more, his tone never dropping that grim pretext from before. "A Demon World, in its essence, is… what will happen to Gamindustri should the Demons belonging to one particular Chaos God take over an entire planet. These Demon Worlds are planets, Nico, PLANETS corrupted by Demonic Power coming from either a Chaos God or a Demon Prince. When these Planets are made, they are made to become unbound by the laws of physics and reality, instead their rules appearance, everything is bound to the whims of their Demonic Masters. They are normally ruled by a Demon Prince, who can shape the entire world's environment to his or her liking. Any attempts to take these worlds are usually met with failure, as the reality warping effects they have made any attempts to invade them from outer space… pretty much impossible."

Warping reality… just hearing those words spoke volumes about the situation Nico had found himself in. Reality Warping wasn't something that Nico had no experience in, he had seen it a few times himself during his travels. Some of the Demons he'd fought also displayed this ability, but in minute, limited scales. Nothing so massive like being able to warp an entire Planet's environment at, quite posiibly according to Biko's testimony, the whims of their masters. He rcalled the power system Biko had used to describe Demon Princes as well as the hiarchy between these Demonic entities, suddenly understanding a whole lot more why Demon Princes were above those like Bloodthirsters in terms of sheer power. Probably the only reason why he had defeated that one Demon Prince before regrouping with IF at the Hellverse, was likely due to him taking it by surprise with his Ghoul Side. A side of him which was, in hindsight, weaker than his DPU form. Quickly, he began to think, and soon enough a realization dawned on him: the fact that these Hellgates and other entrances where Demons came from, originated from such worlds where Demons were the main governing party. Where they dominated the planet and forced any other species remaining after their conquest to become their servants at best… and slaves at worst. It made sense, since those entrances just oozed with Demonic Energy, he would know since he experienced it every day of his life since becoming a DPU.

And he had unknowingly stepped into such a world…

"Shit, that's bad…" the teen mused, cupping his chin with one hand and cupping his elbow with the other. His eyes gazed downwards, sharper than a blade as millions of thoughts pertaining to his next move rushed through his brain. He had to think carefully here, he couldn't afford to take on a Demon Prince at his current level, and who knows what the numbers for the Demons were on this so-called 'Demon World'. He had so little information about Demon Worlds, or rather he didn't know much about this world specifically, so he opted to look towards Biko and question him further. "Do you know anything about the world we're on right now?"

Much to his fortune, Biko nodded as well. "I do not know much, but there is some that I do. It was revealed to me when I looked up Demon Worlds in the Lexicanum and recorded what I could. Unfortunately, the details themselves are sketchy at best, but this is what we know for a fact: this world was once called Bulwark: a highly militaristic planet dedicated to the art of combat and strategy. Only fitting that it is now ruled by a Demon Prince serving the Chaos God Khorne, then. The name of this Demon Prince is Krakiota, and he usually seems to occupy his throne at what seems to have been a Temple once, something akin to a Basilicom only desecrated beyond recognition by its new occupant. As a result, this world is under Khorne's control through his Demon Prince, and across it battles are constantly waging. I can sense dozens across the face of this Planet, battles between aspects of the environment, battles between various species such as Humans and Demons. Its one of those words which embody the ideal: everything is out to kill you." Biko explained, furrowing his brows. "Luckily for us, none of the Demons controlling this world know that we crossed through the Hellgate, simply due to you activating it from the opposite side while remaining in human form. It may be a door which opens from both sides, but such actions are indeed possible. We can still, for the time being, roam this Planet without attracting too much attention to ourselves. However, there is one problem tat must be addressed: should we wish to activate the Hellgate and return back… that will require much more energy than when you. activated it before. The reason for this, is because the Hellgate itself requires energy to function, the one which appears on Gamindustri needs much less than the one in the Demon World due to there being a bigger supply of Demonic Power. Thus, for the time being, we are indeed trapped in this place. A proper estimate for the energy consumption needed, I haven't figured out yet, but when I have I'll inform you immediately."

After hearing this, Nico hummed in thought whilst scowling. That didn't seem too good, it didn't seem good at all in fact. Not only did it mean that they were practically stranded on this Demon World, filled to the brim likely with beings who would want to kill him and devour his soul, but it also meant that he couldn't return to his comrades. He couldn't return to his mom, the Party he was in, none of them. He couldn't even let them know where the hell he was due to him being on a completely different planet. He could only imagine the worry his mom would be going through, even worse the girls who he considered comrades… he could totally imagine Compa going absolutely berserk at the thought of him vanishing, same with Neptune and IF. Hell, practically all of the girls he ascosciated with often would likely do the same thing, none of them would be all weepy and in despair. He didn't think they were that kind of people, Compa maybe but ever since her ascension into… what she was now, he felt like a drastic change had occurred within her. A change which could bring forth pretty much anything.

Though, if they vented their frustration on some Noble's back yard, Nico wouldn't complain, heck he'd likely give them patts on the back while saying 'good job!'

Still, the fact remained that he couldn't get into contact with any of them whilst on this Planet, this Demon World ruled by a being serving Khorne. Nico had to admit, it made sense that such a world had a Hellgate leading to Leanbox. Khorne's been lusting like hell over it from what he could accurately assume, so if he figured out which Chaos God wanted which Nation, he'd be able to accurately judge what kind of enemies he'd face, both in Gamindustri and in the Demon Worlds. 'Anyways, I can think more on that later, right now I'll have to see if I can possibly train in some of the powers I have regarding martial prowess… hmm, lets see…'

Soon enough, a list began forming inside his mind, a list Biko was privy to due to being part of him. He would have to use some powers which didn't rely on his Demonic Energy, as according to Biko he would likely need to access a LOT more than what he did with the Hellgate back in Gamindustri.

One such would be the Star God's Broken Shadow, something which if mastered, would give him a HUGE boost in the speed department. If he completely mastered it, then when he'd inevitably find someone way stronger than him, it wouldn't matter very much since his speed would prevent him from getting hit very often. Not only that, but with his regeneration factor being as potent and powerful as it was, Nico doubted there would be many people who could permanently bring him down. Though, the male would have to be cautious and not let even a single possibility of his healing being overtaxed happen, nor become dependant on his healing. hat sounded like a perfect way to bring out his own demise, not something he particularly looked forward to. He preferred evading to defending anyways, and even then he still had some defence thanks to the Great Way of the Buddha, which at its current stage allowed his body to strike and defend with 50,000 kilos.

Another thing he could start training on, was the Golden Crow Flames. Because he tried to absorb the blood of the Golden Crow he got while in his Inner World, Nico could only absorb up to 30% of it, with the rest laying dormant within him. As a result, the Golden Crow Flames would be NOTHING in comparison to their full power, which would only be available if he absorbed the blood up to 110%. The perfect fusion process, which Nico learned would only be achievable if he strained his body whilst using those flames. Something he would have to do in the real world, not rely on his Inner World unfortunately. Once he fully absorbed the blood to that level, only THEN would he begin developing the techniques recorded in the Golden Crow's Record of the Burning World: a Tome which he got with the blood that he kept within his Void Storage. It had a series of techniques which were only compatible with those golden flames, but once he mastered them... then he could potentially generate up to nine suns which would destroy everything in his path.

Not that he LIKED destruction, he did see himself as more of a technique type... though a part of him began to realize he would slowly transition into that kind of character soon enough...

Next, would have to be his sword skills. Now, Nico would no longer lie to himself, his sword skills could be classified as abysmal in comparison to someone like Okada Izou, hell he wouldn't be surprised if even Guts secretly thought the same way. That was a fact that had hit him the hardest in the water trial, when he had been possessed by said man and fused with his soul, gaining a connection to him which allowed Okada to instruct him in the ways of the Manslayer sword style. If only so that he would stop sucking at swordplay like a little baby nooblet. After that Trial ended and the process happened, Okada pretty much forced him into his inner World and trained him to the bone, breaking down what he knew about swords from the get go in order to build the foundations for learning the Manslayer Style. In essence, his sword style was no longer that of his own, but rather it had completely transformed into the Manslayer Style of his mentor. It had been that style which earned him his infamous reputation, and the fame his self in Nico's own Dimension had earned was also because of it.

According to Okada, the Manslayer Style is a sword style which constantly refined itself for the sole purpose of killing the opponent. Its name was actually a bit misleading though, since no matter who the opponent was, their gender their race, ethnicity etc, everything would be considered equal in this style's presence. Its true purpose nonetheless, is to ruthlessly and efficiently kill the opponent. There would be no wasted movements, no wasting of precious energy. All the style required one to focus on would be to kill. That would be the essence of the Manslayer Style, not even armies would be able to take down a master of this style, since its more on killing than actual fighting. Back then though, Okada only showed Nico the basics of the style aside from some intense sparring, imprinting him with the knowledge on how to advance it to his own level and beyond one day (even though he doubted that he would ever reach the same level as a genius like himself). Refining wat he knew about it would be a huge advantage in the future. It went well with Nico's own techniques, as practicing them allowed Nico o start refining them into better forms. Nothing had happened as of yet, so it hadn't been worth mentioning back in the trials, but he DID feel something beginning to change, what that was though he didn't know... yet.

Then, there was the stuff in the Library of his Inner World, the Lexicanum. There would undoubtedly be a lot more information gleaned from it, information stored there by Biko. Now that he knew more about Mundus and the original DPUs, he could focus on learning everything else they had gleaned so far. Information which could help him as well as his comrades fight against the battles that would surely occur once they got stronger. Hell, maybe there were a few things he could use to help the girls progress, if they truly wished it. All of them had strong stubborn streaks after all, not to mention most of them were leaders. They tended to have a lot of pride in what they do, and don't accept help so easily.

And so, the thinking continued…


After a bit of thinking (try about 4 hours real world time, making it about 240 hours worth of contemplating), Nico returned to the real world, opening his eyes and strapping Soul Edge to his back. He had a plan for his training within this Khornate Demon World, but for the time being the male wanted to explore this place and check out the landscapes. Get at least a decent map of this forest by having his Bracers scan the surroundings, despite how worthless it could end up being later on if this World's Demon Prince were to discover him. After strapping Soul Edge into its proper place, Nico raised his arm and activated his right Bracer, as well as its scanning abilities. The Left one's motion tracker didn't register any hostile movement as of yet, but Nico didn't kid himself into thinking that would be it. No, it would likely be that Demons would discover his existence eventually, he DID activate their Hellgate from his side after all.

Before that would happen though...

'Biko, have you made any progress on the Hellgate situation while I was within the Inner World?' the teen questioned his Demon Persona. Sometimes the male wondered if Biko got affected by the time dilation effects his Inner World had, though he never voiced anything so he didn't question it much. While he asked that question, Nico gazed upwards towards the chaotic skies above, watching the many lightning strikes which filled them. His eyes narrowed at them whilst he felt Soul Edge lift him off the ground and just above the forest's skull-clad trees. Just by moving though, the teen felt the bite of the wind grow ever harsher, not enough to break his defences but still enough to be noticeable. No normal person wouldn't be able to survive in this world if they hadn't grown up in this environment, surely...

'I have not made much progress unfortunately, but I do have this: The Hellgate's energy consumption will likely take more than a couple days for me to decipher, so we can use that time to refine your various powers. I sense that there is an ideal area nearby where you may train in harnessing the Golden Crow Flames, it seems to be an active volcano to your north west. Be warned though, using Demonic Power will indeed draw Demons to your location like moths to a flame.'

'I'm aware of that, Biko, but thanks for the update.' the male replied, cutting off the link and shifting direction to the North West. Thanks to the skies being what they are, Nico couldn't see through the stars even with the Gene Seed Implants and various visual enhancers on his eyes. Just went to show how thick and heavy those clouds were, as well as the denseness of that damned chaotic Demonic energy. Though, he had already noticed where the sun was thankfully, and had used that to judge where the North West direction would likely be. Refining of the Golden Crow Flames had been made his top priority in those last 240 hours. refining something that he had damaged had been deemed more important than the rest for the time being, with refining his swordmanship his next line. Since his Inner World couldn't be used for these flames, was another reason.

Thus, Nico tilted his body forwards and with a WHOOSH!, dashed through the air thanks to Soul Edge.


It didn't take him long to arrive at the top of the Volcano, about 15 minutes actually (though Nico attributed it to Soul Edge having a Multi-Continent Class DPU level of power now). Though the fact that he hadn't been able to see the Volcano until now (and the fact that for a brief moment skulls had fallen from the skies like rain) showed him a small portion of the reality warping powers that Demon Princes had. The first one he fought must have been made only recently or something, since he didn't display anything close to this sort of scale.

Right now, Nico stood on the edge of a HUGE volcano, one which felt like it was half as tall as the space between the ground and the skies themselves. The volcano itself looked to be made from skulls and blood, with the rocks forming from clotted blood like the scabs which would form on little scratches. Not only that, but the Volcano constantly erupted with bloody lava, showering the surroundings with it and erupting small building sized explosions. Thus, it made sense when Nico saw how it had desolate ash lands surrounding it which expanded to over a hundred meters in every direction. 'Now that I think about it... this might actually be the first time that I've actually been to one of these... Volcanos are kinda rare in Gamindustri these days since we live on floating islands and not on some crust...' the redhead thought to himself, his Trench Coat flapping wildly in the gushing winds.

'Be warned, Nico. I sense a large build-up of Demonic Power within this Volcano. Likely a powerful Demon, at least Sky Class, should be slumbering inside. Once you enter, it will undoubtedly notice you and try to have you for lunch.'

'Got it.' Nico replied curtly, closing his eyes as he called upon the flames of the Golden Crow. He held his hands out in front of him, positioning them as if he were clutching two basketballs in the when he managed to locate their essence within himself. The essence within him hadn't been that hard to find, but the moment he did Nico honestly found himself appalled. The flames felt more like embers that were dying than the raging firestorms that they should be, all due to the method he'd used in gaining them. It filled him with revulsion that he had done this without getting some advice first, but then the male shook his head to clear such thoughts aside. All he wanted to do was summon them into existence, preferably through his hands, so he could get them to work. If he couldn't use them, then what would be the point?

Instantly, his hands lit up, and as a result, two fireballs the size of basketballs roared into existence. They roared like the bird they came from, fierce, brilliant with unimaginable radiance and raw destructive power. The most powerful flames he had ever seen aside from Urthemiel's Primordial Flames. even in heir weakened state, they still provoked these feelings from the depths of his being. They shone brightly with a pure golden colour, carrying a powerful divinity which felt opposite to his own Demonic power set. Thankfully his Demon powers didn't feel afraid of it, since they were a part of him now. They were firmly clutched in Nico's hands, the male staring into them with no small amount of pride. For a moment, Nico had feared that he wouldn't be able to do anything with this incomplete Bloodline he possessed, but this just proved him wrong. The Golden Crow Flames, whilst weaker than they should be, could STILL be used. That alone satisfied the male as he dispersed the flames and clicked his fingers.

When he did that, a swirling vortex of Hellfire erupted beside him, soon vanishing to reveal his treasured Archdemon Urthemiel. The moment that it formed into solid mass, the Archdemon gave a small howl of happiness, before looking down to its master, waiting for him to speak. It didn't have to wait long, as Nico began stepping towards the Volcano's chute. "Urthemiel, your task is simple. I'd like for you to stay here and guard the Volcano for me. If you see any signs of hostile activity, please report it to me or Biko. I must train within this place to increase my power." he told it, getting a nod from the Archdemon as it stretched its wings and took to the skies, unafraid of the chaotic climate.

Whilst he watched it fly away, Nico then thought of something. 'Say, Biko, how strong do you think Archdemons would be using that classification system you told me about.'

'Since it can go toe to toe with Demon Princes, definitely World Class at the least. With everything Urthemiel has gone through, that level of power is naturally its own to command. However, Chaos Class DPUs or the Chaos Gods would be way beyond its limits, and don't even get me started on Mundus or the originals.'

'Got it.'

With that thought, Nico jumped down the chute into the fiery depths below.


THUD!

A loud sound happened when the redhead finally hit something solid after a good 10 minute fall. The moment he did, Nico kneeled like a knight with one hand on the ground in front of him, whilst the other was thrown to the side. During the fall, Nico had been trying to sense the presence of whatever Demon lurked within his Volcano, making sure to not let the magma spouting from within touch him, but had no luck. It appeared that this Demon held quite decent intelligence, considering how it was using the heat to hide its presence. The moment that he landed however, did the male stand up and look around, gauging his surroundings.

'This looks to be the place.'

'Indeed. I was right, it will momentarily appear before us to try and get an easy meal.'

'Whelp, sorry mister demon, but ' freshly cooked Nico' is not on today's main course menu...'

The male found himself in a place eerily reminiscent of the platform and lava area of the Fire Trial where he had entrusted himself to Soul Edge. The volcano's interior seemed to be quite large, way larger than what he had initially expected. The ground beneath him looked like superheated rock, with its size being about 300 meters in all directions. The platform floated endlessly within a pool of molten hot crimson magma, so even whilst it had the colour of blood Nico could feel the heat it emitted. Not only that, but he could sense a HUGE amount of rage and hatred coursing through this place. If it hadn't been for his previous exposure to intense negative emotions, Nico wondered if sensing this hatred would have pushed him over the edge. The interior of this Volcano had countless skulls, arms, legs and other bones protruding out of its walls, crimson magma pouring down like streams from their eyes, mouths, hands etc.

His senses informed him that there was a MASSIVE collection of Demonic Power in the atmosphere, too. He could feel it all over the place right now.

'Fortunately this platform has solid enough foundations that a fall like mine wouldn't shatter it...' the male thought, glancing downwards before walking to the edge of the platform and kneeling, his eyes narrowed as he reached into the crimson liquid with his hand. Moments later, he retracted it, finding no damage done to his crimson coloured limb as he shook it to clean the liquid. 'looks like my fire immunity still works in this world...' Nico thought to himself, mentally sighing in relief. Now that he had this fact reinforced within his mind, Nico decided to try to sense the Demons presence once more... only, soon after he found there to no longer be a need for such things... since the Demon was actually making its way towards his position.

'Well, now THAT's just peachy...'

The moment Nico thought that, a massive roar which shook the interior of the volcano sounded, causing rippling waves to expand across the crimson magma's surface. Raw power could be felt in that roar, though it did little progress in shaking Nico's desire to face it. In fact, it actually got him a little excited, the prospect of finally fighting something powerful on the level of the being his comrades fought at the end of the Gala sending his blood pumping. With those thoughts in mind, the male used to confirm his Demon Persona's testimony. 'Yep, definitely Sky Class...' the teen thought to himself as he held his right hand out, a fireball made from the Golden Crow Flames. 'Still feels a bit stiff, but like a muscle this power can be trained and harnessed...'

'It is here.'

It didn't take him very long to finally track down the creature's position, something of which Nico mentally sweat dropped when his eyes beheld his incoming opponent. 'Well, subtle doesn't seem like something in this guy's category...' the male thought when he saw it. The Demon emerged from the depths of the magma, rising from it similar to rising from a grave before stepping onto the platform, glowering menacingly at him. If Nico were to describe it, then Nico would call it a 'gigantic humanoid mass made entirely from flames themselves'. The creature's height, the male judged to be about over 30 meters, with two hollow crimson eyes brimming with intense, raw anger and bloodlust. Atop its skull, Nico saw a pair of fiery horns at least about 10 meters long, a roaring flame seemingly burning by itself in the middle of these horns.

'Nico. I've took a look at the Lexicanum, and this creature appears to be called a 'Purgatory Flame Demon'. Excels in using fire attacks, and is capable of using any source of heat as nourishment. They are usually formed within the depths of volcanos or other such places filled with heat, very territorial, carnivorous... pretty much our idea of a fun time.'

'Well, now doesn't that get you going on a good day?' Nico quipped in his mind, a grin slowly spreading across his face as he held his Fireball-occupied hand to the side. 'Since fire attacks will likely be ineffective against it, we can see if we can surpass the limits of the threshold this Bloodline has for me. Only then will I be able to train in it effectively' He didn't see the Demon as much of a threat right now, at least it seemed that he didn't though Nico merely wanted to rile the creature up some. Make it show its hand on what it was capable of, so he could properly counter it in battle.

Nico's tactic however... seemed to work a little TOO well, though, as the Purgatory Flame Demon opened its mouth. From there, a series of super-charged Fireballs, ones strong enough to wipe out about a couple hundred meters of land in one strike, got launched towards him with the speed and rate of fire a Gattling Gun possessed. Nico stopped his movements upon seeing this and narrowed his eyes, frowning as he remained motionless while the Fireballs descended upon him. 'These Flames...'

As that thought passed through his mind, Nico's body collided with the Fireballs, which kept hitting him without a second's distance between them. Forcibly, each Fireball erupted into a mushroom-shaped cloud of fire and heat, with the force behind them capable of shattering huge skyscrapers with ease. However... just as the flames did attack Nico's body... they pretty much self-vaporized on the spot, not leaving anything behind not even embers. All the while the teen had slowly started to move towards the Purgatory Flame Demon, his strides slow but firm and determined. Eventually, the last fireball descended upon him and Nico backhanded it away, all before dashing towards his opponent and arriving before its foot. Thanks to the sheer height difference though, Nico couldn't eve reach the top of its foot, though he didn't really give a damn about that. However, facing the Purgatory Flame Demon which was around a hundred feet, his body seemed far too miniscule and he could barely be considered to have reached the bottom of its foot.

Not like it mattered to him as he leapt over the foot activated the Bloodline slumbering within. As a result, Nico's right fist got enveloped by golden fire, fire which surged around it and created a fiery gauntlet of sorts which he used to throw a single punch, slamming it into the top of the Demon's foot. At the moment of impact, Nico saw the flames making up the foot get devoured by the hungry golden flames, their destructive quality (although severely weakened) managing to emerge superior. However, because of that weakness, the flames didn't last very long and extinguished themselves, allowing the flames once being devoured to completely reform the foot.

'Tch, looks like this thing's durability is commendable... if it weren't for my Bloodline's weakness then it would have been devoured by my flames...' Nico thought to himself, frowning. At least, in that moment he had seen a glimpse of the creature's body beneath the flames, a section which informed him that it likely had a pitch black body.

"RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

Unfortunately, Nico couldn't do more in time when the creature released a mighty roar, one born from the pain it briefly felt from those flames licking away at it. Nico DID note that this big fellow had a temper, a short one too, since it got this angry over a mere flesh wound, all the while it made its own move to counter attack him. The creature's right claw swung itself in a horizontal manner, releasing an even denser shower of fireballs upon him than what it had done before which fell down on top of the redhead... as well as covering a 100 foot radius all around him.

Said redhead mentally scoffed as he jumped back, not to avoid the fireballs since his fire immunity protected him from them, but to avoid the foot which tried to stomp on him. Fire immunity protected him from flames, but Nico did NOT fool himself into thinking that it could also protect against the physical force behind the attack. Sliding to a halt, the redhead Spec Ops Agent threw his arms to the sides, generating more Golden flames and forming about 60 Fireballs around him. He then threw both arms forwards, and the 60 Fireballs shot straight towards the creature's chest, slamming into it and making it step backwards...

Though to Nico's annoyance it only stepped back a couple inches. 'Tch, annoying... Looks like I'll have to be a bit more creative!' the male thought, conjuring flames beneath his feet and having them explode. Thus, the force propelled him forwards as well as into the air, allowing him to constantly hurl fireballs at the creature with speed rivalling its first attack. The Purgatory Flame Demon roared in anger at this attack, and as he hurled one strike after another, Nico noticed how its wounds reformed faster than he could strike, making him narrow his eyes at it. 'Biko... is this creature doing something weird? Its restoration ability is effective, but...'

'Its not going full out because it doesn't wish to destroy the volcano. Not only that, but this environment is perfect for it in a battle sense as well, since it is using the heat and the flames here to increase its restorative prowess. If you plan on defeating it with the bloodline you have right now, then it will likely be a prolonged fight... then again, that is what you intended to have to begin with, didn't you?'

'Hmph, you know me so well, Biko...' Nico quipped, a smirk forming on his lips while he hurled fireball showers at his opponent, before switching tactics and Warping behind the creature's skull. Raising his arms Nico conjured golden flames above him, shaping them like two fiery gauntlets similar to the one he used before, only large enough to rival the creature's head. After that, the following event would be simple: Nico raised both gauntlets by raising his arms, the gauntlets mimicking them, and brought them smack down on the back of the beast's head.

WHAM!

"ROAARRRRR!"

The pain that the Purgatory Flame Demon had eaten violently enraged its temper after stepping forwards a few times, causing it to twirl round and swing towards the teenage Spec Ops Agent with its left claw only for Nico to Warp out of the way. It then followed up with another offense, rearing back its head before opening its mouth to roar again. When it roared this time though, an instantaneous wave of heat got released from its body, which forced everything around it not nailed down to go flying, preventing Nico from launching another attack.

Not like he planned on doing it so directly anyways.

When he reappeared, the male did so close to one of the clotted blood-like walls, planting both feet and one hand on it before making several jumps across it as he circled around to the creature's left flank. Once there, Nico gathered the golden flames beneath his feet, forming two small spheres which erupted a split second later, propelling him forth through the air towards his opponent. More flames gathered around his hands as he entered a spiralling twist, becoming a human-shaped spinning top as he flew right past the creature... all the while taking its right arm for himself when he did so, having sliced through it with a single hand swiping motion.

Whilst the creature let out a pained and angry howl, Nico landed on the ground in a crouching position, then stood up before turning to face his opponent with a look of satisfaction, even as the creature's arm reformed itself as it drew power from its surroundings. Power which he could sense now, flowing into the Purgatory Flame Demon as its arm completely restored itself, the one on the ground vanishing out of existence. 'No, wait that's not right...' the male thought, mentally correcting himself when he focused his senses a bit more. He felt the energy which had once been the creature's severed arm, merge with the environment, fuelling its energy which would allow for more reserves for the creature to draw on. 'I see... so its body parts nourish this place, whilst it nourishes the creature... its like a never-ending cycle...'

'That just goes to show how long it has lived. If it had been at least under 80,000 years, then this symbiotic relationship would not have been possible. It also means it has experience under its belt, for I sense that it has killed and devoured the souls of many adversaries to get to the point that it is at today.'

'That so, huh...'

That was what Nico thought, when all of a sudden the teen gasped. His hands reached for his chest when instantaneously, a surge of energy started pouring into him from where his Heart was. As it did so, the surrounding atmosphere also changed, the hot air quickly feeling like each particle carried 1000 tons, more so when one got closer to the cause: Nico himself. The teen thought he would have fallen over from the sheer surprise that he felt at being so caught by surprised thanks to this new development, but luckily Nico found himself able to retain his posture, if only barely. 'Ugh! G-Gah…!' the teen cringed, feeling like his insides were starting to heat up, and not even his Fire Immunity was helping him at this point. No, it rather felt like whatever this was, had begun trying to melt him from the inside out but his Fire Immunity prevented that, thus he could only feel this sensation as a constant. Fortunately, the teen found himself able to bear it, since he had felt way worse in his many years of combat. 'Th-This feeling... I... I-Is it wh-what I th-think...?' Yet, even under this feeling's oppressive nature, Nico couldn't help but think of only one answer to this new problem his body had begun facing. Looking down to his chest area where his heart was, Nico also noticed that area of him also sported a fierce glow, a glow so brilliant that it illuminated even the lighting of the crimson magma around him. It had been shaped like a Crow, brilliantly glistening in all its beauty as it began spreading its wings, almost like an imprint on his chest, causing him to quickly grit his teeth. His eyes narrowed sharply as an idea came to him. 'Biko... is this...?'

'Looks like, it appears that the fusion process, thanks to your continued drastic use of the Golden Crow Bloodline, has finally been initiated. I can feel the Bloodline now, slowly assimilating into you through your bloodstream. You must keep this power going, Nico, let it run wild within you while you fight this monster. Only then, will the fusion percentage increase towards the targeted 110%.'

Standing up straight while taking his hands away from his chest, Nico stared forth in determination mixed with a pained grimace. Hearing those words pretty much confirmed what he had suspected the moment that he felt this sensation. 'Is that so, then.. well, looks like I have even MORE reason to prolong this fight. Biko, keep monitoring the Bloodline for me, I'll do some more 'playing' with this hot-headed Demon.' Nico ordered, standing tall as he generated more golden flames. As he did so, a pulse of pin shot through him, one of which he endured with no change in his facial expression. Just from this sensation he could tell that this process would NOT be a quick one and more than likely he would have to feel it multiple times in order for him to fully assimilate the Bloodline. As a result, the teen took a deep breath, exhaled and closed his eyes... before he opened them and his features settled back into his usual serious expression. Like nothing had even happened... the only thing reminding outsiders of this event would have been the glowing Golden Crow symbol over his heart.

All the while, the Purgatory Flame Demon howled as its recovery finished and it proceeded to charge at him, intending to finish Nico off for good... plus, possibly take his soul for its newest meal.

Like he'd let THAT happen though.


About 4 hours later...

"Ugh... Hufff… Guh…!"

Heavy pants escaped his lips, sweat trailing down his forehead like a waterfall whilst Nico remained standing. Albeit, with his upper torso hunched over like a certain hunchback inside a bell tower, with wisps of Golden Flame vanishing from several parts of his body. Internally, his body quickly began settling down, like a rapidly heated object suddenly being cooled by a waterfall. Although, he could feel faint remnants of the heat still persisting, something which made a small smile form on his lips when he felt it... though it vanished soon after when he went back to heaving. All the while, his form no longer had that intense, ominous pressure which accompanied that glowing symbol, vanishing into nothingness along with said symbol while Nico felt his body already start repairing itself from this experience... all the while, his Ghoul side memorized every second of this experience, so that he would be able to build up a tolerance for when it would happen next.

Glancing upwards, Nico looked to wards his opponent... or rather what was left of it, since he had strained his Bloodline quite a bit to utterly destroy it beyond recognition. There was LITERALLY nothing left of it... not after all the successive attacks he had launched with the Golden Crow Flames, he'd made sure of that by straining his Bloodline as much as he possibly could. Aside from it, Nico had only used more evasive-oriented abilities, such as his Warping or his Star Gods Broken Shadow, to evade the enemy's attacks. He didn't focus on any other ability he possessed, not his human, Demon or Ghoul related powers, focusing solely on harnessing and fusing the Bloodline with his body. Throughout the battle with the Purgatory Flame Demon, Nico had gotten the impression that the longer this process went on far, the more strenuous the process got... which was why he had lasted only four hours before finally forcing himself to use one last attack to completely erase the creature entirely, leaving nothing behind for it to regenerate from.

'Well… that definitely yielded some interesting results...'

Biko could definitely say that again, the male thought (right before he stopped the guy from actually repeating it), as he looked himself over, patting himself down to wipe away any imaginary dust from his Trench Coat. Rolling back his left then his right shoulder, Nico grunted as he felt bones cracking from the experience. Tat fight had been some intense sit for him, not only physically but mentally, but it had been worth it in his mind. Why? Simple, because now that he had done it, Nico understood better about the fusion process for his Bloodline... as well as how much he will have to train in the real world for it. Thanks to that battle, Nico found that the fusion process had increased his connection to the Bloodline of the Golden Crow up to a whopping... 50%. Not even halfway to his intended target.

Apparently, it had been discovered that fusing with the Bloodline took a LOT out of his body, Nico felt more exhausted from the process than he did from even fighting that Demon. A Sky Class Demon at that. The process involved pretty much setting every blood cell going through his veins on fire, allowing them to merge with the Golden Crow's blood cells that were laying dormant within those very same veins. As a result, aches and faint eruptions of pain filled his bloodstream, something which Biko had investigated and told him that, should he try to continue, the process would start to fail without question, and then he would explode from the stress. Literally. Not only that, but once those hours passed, Nico would have to wait for up to 4 hours before he could start the process again, to let his body recover from the intensity that the Golden Crow Flames provided... not to mention that the more the fusion percentage increased, the less time he would likely be able to stand it without risking his body.

Nico would happily admit to himself that this information about his Bloodline felt... more than a little vexing, to say the least. It frustrated him that he would have to take such delicate measures to securely fuse with the blood, since it wasn't something that he was used to. However, according to what he knew, Bloodlines themselves were an extremely complex lot, especially when one uses a poor method of fusing with them like he had, thus he couldn't completely blame the Bloodline for its requirements, but he didn't feel discouraged by it either. If anything, Nico felt even more determined than ever to do so. Still, that would likely not bee happening again for a while, so the teen began to wonder what else he could do whilst in the centre of this Volcano, sitting down in the cross legged position in the very centre of the platform.

'Surprised that this platform hasn't been destroyed from all the explosions that happened...' the male thought to himself, a small chuckle escaping his lips at the image in his mind. Though, he didn't find it too bad considering that, whilst he enjoyed a perfect fire immunity, Nico preferred it if he WASN'T submerged in lava thank you very much. In any case, perhaps he could check in with his Demon Persona about the amount of energy required to power that Hellgate of theirs, the male mused as he held his right Bracer at torso level and activated the Holomap function. He manipulated it so that it could show the Hellgate and the forest surrounding it, allowing him to stare at the structure with intense, burning eyes. 'This thing... its worth now known to me, perhaps I can use these worlds in order to train myself further... Say Biko, what do you think about all this?'

'It is a risky move, I will admit that, Nico.'

'That sternness in your tone... please elaborate.'

'These Khornate Demon Worlds do indeed have their own benefits to train in, benefits which could speed up one's training ability by large amounts. Thanks to them being able to warp reality, Demon Princes tend to shift the time zones of their Planets often it seems. I've been keeping an eye out, and it appears that time moves much slower in this world than compared to Gamindustri. If we were to stay in this world for a whole day, only about 6 hours would have passed in Gamindustri. That means we could spend a lot of time honing our skills here instead of in the Inner World, not to mention you have a wide variety of opponents to consider. You don't have to worry too much about destroying anything either since the ruling Demon Prince's power would just warp the reality around the damaged areas, making it so that they didn't exist. They do have ABSOLUTE dominion in their respective Demon Worlds, which makes defeating them in them exceedingly difficult. I will say, that the Demon Prince we fought prior to the Hellverse incident likely wasn't even trying to fight us, we only won due to catching it off guard. We could even gain access to various treasures that normally we wouldn't have had any hope in accessing if we stayed in Gamindustri all the time.'

Hearing all this, Nico couldn't help but frown. All those benefits (aside from that Demon Prince stuff since he already figured that) sounded like they would be excellent. Especially in his case where he could develop the Bloodline for the Golden Crow in peace, maybe even get his daily dose of Demon killing as long as the Demon Prince didn't hone in on his location. However, the redhead couldn't help but detect the 'but' in those statements. 'And what's the bad side of this arrangement? It would have to be pretty serious if its got you unnerved.'

'I'm getting to that. As you know, Khornate Worlds are controlled by Khornate Demon Princes. However, that means that each world will have different time zones, so while we may spend a day in this world and only lose 6 hours in Gamindustri, that will not always be the case. We could wander onto a world where we could spend a day and a whole century could pass on Gamindustri, or worse a thousand years. The Demon Worlds themselves cannot be completely trusted as a Training source unlike the Inner World all DPUs possess, think of it like a 'rock' whilst the many planets occupied by Demon Princes coming together to form a river. It is the best constant in that 'river' of planets. You were lucky in this case, but once you return and destroy this Demon World's Hellgate, what about the next one? Or the one before that? Then there are all the Demons and creatures on this world, there could be ones which far surpass us in power, excluding the Demon Princes as the moment we MEET one, we may as well hand in our life discount card right then and there.'

At the moment of hearing those words, understanding flashed in Nico's eyes, his mind already comprehending the extreme gravity of the situation. What Biko had tried to tell him, he understood. Whilst Demon Worlds were a great place to train due to their time dilation effects, and since he was not training inside himself he could still use them to train his other techniques as well as his Bloodline, they were also a double-edged sword. He had a point that once Nico returned to Gamindustri, he indeed WOULD be destroying the Hellgate to protect the Nature Elf Village, which meant he could only use this world once without much risk. However, who was to say that the next Demon World Nico would encounter would have the same benefits? Just considering it from that angle alone would be risky, he didn't even need to think about the other risks Biko had highlighted since he could understand them already. 'I see... got it, i'll make sure to be careful whenever using these Hellgates. It should be possible for you to analyse the amount of time that passes between our worlds, right?' Nico thought, getting a confirming hum from Biko. 'Then we'll make sure to conserve power when entering Hellgate, enough to use one a couple times at least. In that case, we'll be able to quickly determine the worth of staying in that world.'

'True...as long as we'll be able to supply the Hellgates with enough power, we should be able to return should things not go in their favour.'

Yeah, that would indeed be the case, Nico mused to himself. He honestly had no proof that this was the case don't get him wrong, there was still a possibility hat the Hellgates functioned differently to what they would have expected. If it were anyone else talking to him about this, then he likely wouldn't have spoken those words. However, Nico would rather place his trust in his Demon Persona than most others. Speaking of which, just as Nico made to ask him about the energy consumption, the male suddenly twitched his brow when... something weird began to happen. 'Huh...?'

'...Come...'

"Wha…? Did I just hear something right now...?" Nico muttered to himself, putting one foot on the ground in order to stand up once again. Confusion filling his eyes, the redhead glanced from the left to the right and vice versa, trying to locate the source of the strange voice he just heard. Not only that, but deep down inside, Nico could feel this strange... tugging sensation. It felt... sort of like ow a team of people would pull on a rope in a tug of war, that sort of intensity. 'Hey, Biko, did you ear that as well or is it just me...?'

'Its not just you, I heard it too... Most peculiar...'

'...Come...'

There it was again, and this time the tugging sensation within him felt even greater than before, almost doubling in intensity. The teen frowned to himself, his confusion only becoming more prevalent as he looked around some more... before his eyes got drawn to the space beneath his feet. He didn't know why, but as the tugging feeling grew, a sense of... direction came from it, a sense which told him that the voice was trying to call to him from BENEATH the Magma... 'Biko... I can't help but get the feeling that...'

'Yes, I sense it too. Something is... lurking beneath the Magma. It is most interesting... perhaps the Purgatory Flame Demon's power was masking it, making it so that I could not sense its presence earlier. Whatever the case may be, there is indeed something deep within the magma's death, Nico. I advise you to seek it out, for I am nearly complete with my calculations on the Hellgate.'

With those words, Nico gave a sharp nod in the real world, before kneeling down on one leg and running a hand over the molten rocky ground he currently occupied. Rearing that very same fist back, Nico finally set upon his task of smashing it onto the platform, using just enough force to create a small hole in it to expose the Magma beneath. He managed to create a small shockwave which sent ripples throughout the crimson coloured magma, but Nico ignored it as he hopped into the hole and dove into the crimson blood-like Magma.


'So... this is what is its like beneath Magma...' Nico thought to himself, narrowing his eyes as he dove deeper and deeper through the crimson depths. Heat bombarded is form with great intensity, bubbles surrounding him after they escaped from his nostrils and his lips. Thankfully, Nico had his heat immunity to protect his body from the Magma around him. Not only that, but it honestly felt more like he was bathing in a warm hot spring at just the right kind of temperature... a very nice feeling, though he bet that if a normal person dove into this place then they would have melted and evaporated in seconds. 'I have to admit, should I find any volcanic areas back home, then I'd like to take a bath in one, maybe even take some coffe there and watch videos on the internet. Sounds way better than bathing in a public bath house...'

It didn't take long for him to push those thoughts back however, especially when a faint 'throbbing' occurred within his gut to alert him that the source of the sensation was getting close the deeper he went. However, it had only been through the use of his Gene Seed Implants that he'd been able to navigate through these depths... sort of like the oceans of the Water Trial as he fought those Evil Spirit Orcas. Partway into his descent though... an idea came to him, and with two quick explosive bursts two rocket flames made from his Hellfire roared to life, propelling Nico further into the depths. 'Though, I'll have to maintain them at a low intensity to avoid crashing into the Volcano's walls...' the male thought, mentally chuckling at the image of him crashing into walls all over the place. It reminded him of pingpong for some reason, which made a part of him question his own sanity if he found that amusing.

Though, considering what he had gone through so far...

After a while, Nico finally reached the place where he had felt the sensation originating from, a section of the depths which seemed to be much clearer than the rest of the depths, practically spotless. It was like he had found a section of a piece of floor in a house untouched by dust in over countless centuries, which to be frank roused his curiosity and willingness to learn its cause. As for the cause, his eyes soon fell upon it...

And when he did, he almost felt his breath get caught in his throat.

Deep within the centre of the clear magma, there was a single, untouched altar-like structure, circular in its design but covered in ancient looking carvings. From it, a bright red glue illuminated the surrounding areas, like a beacon within a grave storm. It consisted of a circular platform with dozens of ring-shaped fractions, the stone seemingly filled to the brim with carvings in a language that... honestly Nico found rather familiar. They reminded him of the words used for Runecraft THAT GUY used, but felt more... Demonic. It instantly clicked to him that they were Demonic-based Wards like those in the Hellverse incident, ones which were likely responsible for keeping this place clear of the murky depths. Around the platform, there were several stone pillars, about 8 of them with similar carvings and arranged to look like an octagon, whilst at the platform's centre was an altar... one which held the source of Nico's intrigue: A single, lava-like crystal, engraved with dozens of Wards as if a story was written on it, held in place by a set of metallic fingers.

'What is that...?' The male wondered to himself as he went closer to the altar. The moment that he did, the male felt like he had lost all his weight as his form moved on its own, lowering itself onto the stone surrounding the structure as he suddenly found himself to breathe like he was intaking air normally. 'Is this the Wards' doing? Or is it the reality controlling shit that Biko mentioned...?' the male wondered, frowning to himself at this development, although he didn't necessarily dislike it. Breathing air felt particularly nice, thank you very much.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Nico strode forwards, feeling the familiar sensation of his boots meeting stone. Though he mentally questioned if this really was stone or something else, since his place bent itself tot he whim of its ruler. As he stopped when within arm's length of the altar, Nico stood there, motionless as he silently stared at the jade crystal with various emotions swimming behind his light blue pools for eyes. Just by looking at this thing, the sensation within his gut swirled like a whirlpool, then began moving as if being drawn like a magnet. Drawn towards the crystal that is, almost as if it sensed that he was here, that Nico had answered its call.

Strange...

Very strange indeed.

'Biko, what do you think about this thing...?' the male questioned his Demon Persona, walking around the altar whilst inspecting it from various angles to check for traps. Prior experiences worked with him in this case, and he didn't want to get caught by surprise. He'd also scanned it with his right Bracer, only to get some weird readings from the Crystal, not much he could make out but what he COULD had been... lets say, thought-provoking. Fortunately, his Scanner didn't detect any traps of any sort, so odds were that there really weren't any... nonetheless, he wanted to remain on the side of caution.

'Hmmm... interesting. I recall having seen this particular crystal once before when skimming through one of the books in the Library. I'll try to do more, but for now I believe it is a safe bet that you will be able to take the crystal for your own.'

With those words echoing in his mind, Nico finally relented and decided to risk it. If he did take the crystal and traps would be activated, then he would have to deal with it as they came, not like he'd make taking his life easy for them. Whenever he would learn of something unknown in the past, he always cautiously examined and scanned it with his Bracers. Anything unknown could be dangerous, and a more times than he'd care to mention this habit had saved his skin. Stopping in front of the Altar like he had been before, Nico slowly reached out with his right hand towards the crystal, gently grasping onto its form and pulling it out of the Altar without much difficulty.

Two things followed suit after that: One, Nico tensed as he looked about for any signs of traps activating, straining his senses to the limit to pick up even the slightest traces of abnormality or mechanisms. Those Wards worried him particularly, since eh didn't know their exact functions even if he could guess. Having a solid answer was better than a guess after all. When he didn't hear anything off or feel any kind of motion beneath his feet, the teen slowly began to calm down, heaving a heavy and relieved sigh.

But before he could completely calm himself, the second thing happened: the moment he began calming down, the crimson crystal began to glow brightly, slowly at first until it eventually forced Nico to cover his eyes. The teen grimaced as he did this, before a sharp gasp tore from his lips when he felt like his mind had begun bearing the full brunt of rushing water exploding from a burst damn. "Guh! Wha-What is...?!" The teen grunted an exclamation as he used his other unoccupied hand to grasp his face, hunching over whilst falling onto one knee. A searing pain shot through his skull, like thousands of sledgehammers repeatedly slamming into it with full, unrestrained and merciless force. All the while, he could feel... what he could only describe as information, information being download into his brain's receptors as if it were a super computer. Information which came directly from the crystal, Nico realized as he saw through one barely open left eye, lines of demonic Wards flying right off the surface of the crystal, flowing around his arm like water streams spiralling together, all the whilst travelling up to and impaling his forehead.

That was the last thing he had seen, before passing out.


By the time Nico came to again, the redhead groaned as his eyes blinked open, his head aching whilst he groaned as his consciousness stirred. Slowly, the teen got onto all fours, before shifting into a Japanese sitting position whilst holding the side of his head with his right hand. 'Ugh... Guh… d-damn, that as one hell of an experience... remind me to never touch alcohol if this is what a hangover feels like...' the teen thought with no mild irritation, especially with how his face twisted into an ugly grimace. After a moment, the teen's eyes snapped open as confusion filled him, his eyes glancing towards his right hand of which he had used to hold the crystal... a crystal which no longer resided there. 'Huh...? What...?'

'Do not worry, Nico. You need not concern yourself with it, that crystal only had one purpose; to pass on the information stored within it to someone strong enough to take out that Purgatory Flame Demon. It shattered into nothingness when the transfer completed itself, and before the area could return to what it should of been thanks to the Wards being disabled, I took control just enough to Warp you back onto the Platform on the surface. Whilst you were out, I went ahead and analysed this information which got placed in your Library. You will not believe what I found.'

Biko's words filled his mind, and caused Nico to heave a sigh as he let his hand hang by his side. The mire he interpreted his words though, the more confused the teen became. Just when had Biko been able to take over his body like he had said he did, albeit only temporarily and just enough for him to Warp them out of the Magma? He didn't know what that was all about, but he decided to not put too much thought into it for the time being. After all, they had other things to talk about, like whatever it was that Biko had learned. 'What did you find that I will supposedly be unable to believe, Biko?' he questioned his Demon Persona with an arched brow.

'Judging from what have observed, it appears that this crystal has downloaded information for a martial technique into your brain. A particularly useful one if I'm not mistaken, one which can match that of your Star God's Broken Shadow. Like it, it seems to be a movement Skill, which if I am honest we are sorely lacking in those compared to our other options. Evading and offensive tactics are our forte, but we have so little in the way of mobility techniques in comparison to offense-based ones. As for defence, we don't have to worry too much about that for the time being thanks to the Great Way of the Buddha, but I'm getting off topic. The name of this Skill is called 'Extreme Mirage Lighting' and it is a movement Skill which, unlike the Star God's Broken Shadow which is more like a quick speed burst that leaves Afterimages, allows us to travel at speeds which break the sound barrier for a sustained time-frame. Its like firing a shotgun round and rounds from a machinegun, one's which the other's more continuous.'

At hearing that, Nico nearly stumbled at the surprise of what he had just learned. A movement skill on par with one from Zelretch's trials? How the hell did he get so lucky to find that? He had thought the extent of his luck ended when he had been invited to that dimension to earn a chance at these rewards, so why the hell did he find something like this so quickly? It didn't make sense! He found it odd that Biko didn't comment about the Skills he'd inherited from the Arrancar back in the first trial, but in the end he didn't question it for the time being. Just as Nico thought that, he felt a pulse of electrical energy rush through him, and when he did Nico quickly tracked its source to the link between him and his Lightning-based Archdevil Arm. 'Ouranos...?'

Mentally reaching out to it, Nico summoned the Archdevil Arm into his hand, sitting down into a meditative stance while looking down at the blade while it rested horizontally on his lap.

{Thank you for summoning me, I wished to speak with you about the Martial Skill you just found.}

'Okay, so what is it you wish to discuss?'

{That Skill of yours, it was left in this World by myself a long time ago, since before the DPU Era ended and I was sealed away by Sparda. It wasn't much of a plan, but more of a whim, I implanted the knowledge of this Skill into that crimson crystal and hid it in this world, setting it so that nobody but one whom has myself or a similar level of potential for Lightning element could grasp it. The reason why you could grasp it, is because it noticed that you are my wielder, and by that logic it satisfied the requirements.}

Blinking at that, Nico hummed thoughtfully. It was true that Ouranos was originally the first Demon who could use Lightning back in its prime, so it would make sense for something like this, a Skill attributed to movement, to be connected to it somehow. Seriously, one of its powers WAS movement enhancement (Kinetic Energy Manipulation) after all! 'Huh, I see... so, that would imply that you could use this Skill, and as such can understand it in the best way possible.' he mused, getting an acknowledging hum from the sword as it vibrated on his Lap.

{Indeed. However, the way I constructed the information made it so that the technique itself is split into two parts. One Part I eloquently called 'Hidden Flowing Lightning' whilst the second is the 'Extreme Mirage Lightning'. In this case, you can only learn the latter after fully mastering the former, so whether or not you arecapable of leaving this damned Demon World, you will e training yourself here regardless. Do not fret, for I shall teach you how to use it, as my wielder I will not allow anything under complete mastery of one of MY skills.}

Whilst the thought of spending ANY time longer than necessary (even though he had his Inner World to help) in this Khornate Demon World, as it increased his chances of attracting attention, the fact that Ouranos would be training him in this Skill made Nico heave a sigh of relief. Self-development is god and all, but it wasn't a bad thing to find an instructor to teach you, as Nico had experienced first hand through his swordsmanship and Okada. Thus, his relief stemmed from the fact that Ouranos would be helping him learn how to master both parts of this 'Extreme Mirage Lightning' Movement Skill... though, one part he DID dread ould be that he would likely be going through some hell when he entered his Inner World, if his luck with instructors was anything to go by.

Why were instructors the ones with the most sadistic streaks?

Maybe he'll never know...