The End Of Evil V.
Normal POV.
Bell and his party immediately ran out of the clinic leaving Amid who couldn't come a long because of her duties.
Worried if the white haired boy is alright, she held both of her hands in front of her chest while staring at the direction that he ran off with his companions.
She held her position for a few minutes until the goddess of justice arrived.
"Dea Saint!" The goddess called out to her.
"Lady Astrea, I'm glad you are already here but there is something I have to tell you."
"What is it?"
"Mister Bell already left, I couldn't even ask if he's already fine because so many things happened. He woke up a while ago and took his weapons and asked his friends to accompany him to the battle field." The saint wore a very worried expression that one can only see rarely.
"I see... If he is headed to the battle field then I have no choice but to pray for him..." Astrea closed her eyes before opening it again and eyeing the gray haired waitress.
"Now, tell me why are you here and who is the one we were talking to earlier... Freya."
Knossos
Riveria's POV.
We've been walking around inside this eerie dungeon for a few hours now but we were yet to find anything. But even though the whole place is empty and quiet, we never took a break and kept exploring. Not wasting anytime.
"This way, I found an open door."
"Thanks Lefiya. By the way, why are you with us? Aren't you with Finn and the others since I'm not with them?" I asked her.
"Well, Captain forgot to assign me so I just went with Aiz-san but we also got separated so..." The young elf beside me scratched her head in embarassment.
Wait.
" Finn forgot to assign her to his group..? That thing never happened even before... Even in the most do or die situation, he never forget anything especially when it comes to grouping... Is the situation so scary even for you? Finn? "
We walked again aimlessly inside this fortress while marking the places that we've already been through, exploring every corner until we came into a giant white wall with a Mural.
"A Mural.." I muttered as I saw the detail of the sculpture.
"What's that? A dragon? And girls?" Tione said.
"Maybe they were some kind of Sacrifice or some holy saints to calm the Dragon." Tiona commented.
"That might be true, if we are talking about ancient times like the tales of heroes you always read... But just what is this?"
I've read every single elven book I can read in our library back at the Alf Forest when I was still young. But I never saw this kind of dragon, it doesn't look like the Black Dragon but it doesn't look like a normal kind of dragon either.
"Nidhogg... Is the name that you are looking for."
The room was suddenly filled with divine will after the mysterious person spoke to us.
He is clad in a jet black robe with some demonic yellow battern on it.
"Evilus god. Thanatos." I glared at him as he slowly walked out of the darkness to reveal himself.
"Ahahaha..! As expected of the High Elf Queen. You recognized me at a glance, I applaud you for that. Anyway, you want to know what's that right? I shall tell you..."
"Enough with smal' talk, time to smash ya' to the ground-"
"Wait Gareth, let him speak first." I interrupted the rowdy dwarf. Because we might be able to get an important information if we don't rush into killing him.
"Then I shall tell you... Behemoth, Leviathan and One Eyed Black Dragon. The mark of the three great quests. But before these beasts, the land was terrorized by a single beast. And that beast is the one in that Mural. Niddhog, that grisly creature once plunged this surface into the depths of fear and despair." He eyed Lefiya and me before muttering something to himself and cutting off the topic.
"Well, that's that but I knew all along that that isn't the reason that you people came here. You also knew already that I am the god of the group that you guys Evilus, and I admit that I've been accumulating Childrens these past 5 years. I even picked up Valetta-chan and her crew after they lost their own god. I also accepted the invitation of Revis-chan and the others to destroy Orario... Everything was ME."
His words sent chills towards my spine. He's not joking about it, I can tell that he is indeed plotting about the destruction of Orario. That's why I decided to ask him the first question that popped in my mind.
"God Thanatos, are you Enyo?"
"Me? Enyo? AHAHAHAHAHAHA!! You've got it all wrong! I've never even seen or heard of Enyo. I'd be hard-pressed to provide evidence that such a god exist! I don't even know what are they! God? Mortal? Who knows, but most definitely not me."
"Stop joking! You've never seen him!? DON'T TOY WITH US!" Tione said furiously.
"That I haven't. What I do know, however, is that Enyo is the mastermind behind
our current calamity and intrigue. At least according to Revis-chan and our masked friend. That and He was the one who brought all these murals from over some ruin or another... I say that the rumors about your beauty doesn't hold a candle against your actuall appearance. Riveria Ljos Alf, you are just as beautiful if not more than the 3 goddess of beauty."
This time, I snapped. Because I don't want to be compared to a god in terms of appearance, not because I feel like I'm more beautiful than them but because I don't think mortals have what it takes to rival gods. For me, it feels like he's just mocking me.
"Enough with small talk Thanatos! If you are really not Enyo then why... Why do you want to lay Orario to ruin!? Why would you want to wreak havoc across the mortal realm!?"
"Honestly? Back in Heaven, I did my job diligently as the god of death and reincarnation. It was pretty fun actually because souls always come up every minute without a fail. I miss the good ol' days because it's different now. This city changed things. Orario sealed the monsters and even the dungeon itself... The lower world's teeming with life now... and I HATE it. I wish for THAT era to come back... THE CHILDRE CAN DIE A LITTLE MORE."
The way he said those words coldly shook us to our core. I felt my grip on my staff shake not because of anger but because it feels like I'm losing my strength.
"Wha... What do you think you're doing!? Now I understand why you have so many followers! You trick them into reincarnation with their loved ones so they can throw their lives easily. Even though they knew that they won't have any memories of their previous life, you still promised to reunite them, am I right!?"
"HIHIHAHAHA!!! YES! YOU'RE RIGHT! THOSE CHILDREN EVEN SAID TO ME THAT THEY MIGHT BECOME A SPECIAL CASE WHERE THEY CAN REMEMBER EVERYTHING AND REUNITE WITH THEIR LOVED ONES!! SUCH FOOLISHNESS!! AHAHAHAHA-Oops. I must apologize for keeping you guys here this dreadfully long time."
A bunch of Evilus members emerged after he said those words as if he knew they were coming.
They went in front of their god and hid him behind their numbers, letting him escape in the process.
"Everyone! Close your eyes!" After my order, I threw a ball that I acquired from Perseus earlier. It was a light ball that disables the eyesight of anyone who saw it for a few moments.
The light exploded and blinded our enemy and that gave us time to dispatch them quickly.
"Oy cheeky elf, that was a smart move from you! If you haven't done that, these bastards would've exploded on our faces!" He took a robe off of one of them and exposed the countless explosives under their clothes.
"It's just a gut feeling. Anyway, let us continue. We didn't get any clue about this fortress but we got something valuable from them."
Aki's POV. (5 Minutes before Valetta's arrival)
This is my plan. I know how risky it is. I know that a single miscalculation might result to the end of Loki Familia but still. I can't let our stories end here. And that goes for our most unreliable second string leader, Raul Nord.
"Those bastards think they've cornered us, which gives us the best opportunity to fight back." Raul said as we started our meeting.
"You're right Raul. Running around would get us nowhere but engaging the enemy gives us 2 options. It's Either to steal the Key for this doors or broke through past them by brute force. But there also exist the possibility of the 3rd option. Think about it. That red haired women is the only one who can control those crazy colored monsters right? So if these evilus psycopaths were to release monsters all over their hideout, they'd run the risk of being attacked themselves. So far, all we've seen down here are those water spiders that act as an army to guard this place, which means there must be some way to keep those things from attacking."
I looked at everyone and observed if they are able to follow our discussion. Everyone then nodded to me one by one except for Bete who kept his eyes closed and his arms crossed.
"Okay. But what ever that item is, it's making them careless of their surroundings. That's where we will use Captain. As a sacrifice."
Everyone, including me sweat dropped when I said those words.
"Hey, they are here. What now?" stood up as their scent entered his nose.
"We execute now our plan, let's go."
Present time.
"Pfffft... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! YOUR PRECIOUS FRIENDS LEFT YOU HERE FINN!? DID THEY DECIDE THEY COULDN'T PROTECT YOU!?"
She walked towards captain and when she was only a single meter away, I gave the signal to Raul and he launched at her from above.
"Hrrggh!!"
Raul was then grabbed on his face and dropped to the ground by Valetta, but that was all according to plan.
"Arrgh!!" Raul grunted in pain as he landed head first at the floor.
"Is that all? Did you forgot my level or something high novice? As if your half-baked plan would work against a level 5!" She smiled maniacally at the sight of Raul in pain.
"Almost makes me feel sorry for you Finn. A real good-for-nothing you've got workin'for you."
I smiled in the shadows when I saw the captain's proud smile. It gave me the determination I needed.
"Good-for-nothing? My familia members are made of nothing but... Heroes."
Raul then stood up and flickered a stone at the sack that I dropped on top of them which resulted in the powder pouring down to them.
"What-This smell is!!"
"The Magic Stone Powder we got from Melen!" I continued her sentence as I let Raul pick up Captain and before I face Valetta.
"Now everyone!!"
Our familia members then arrived with a pass parade. A swarm of endless new species monsters that Bete gathered through all the available spots in this floor.
"Raul! Hide with the Captain! Don't you dare die on me!!"
"I got it!!"
As Bete and our fastest members cleared the way full of monsters, the said ones immediately targeted Valetta and her crew because of the powder. She then tried to retrear but I intercepted her with the weapons I prepared in advance.
"Rapier? But with that second tier we-what!?"
"Yeah that's right, you might have a first tier weapon but with the kind of environment you are in, you won't be able to swing that giant thing!!"
I've never wielded these types of weapons before. Rapier, Bow, Dagger,Spear, Cestus, Cleaver, Sickle, Sai or Katana. but after being with everyone for a long time, after observing how they fight. I was able to mimick their movements. Although not perfect, I can somewhat copy their fighting style thanks to my memory.
" Bell!! Lend me your strength!! "
"Arrgg!!! You!! You've got some skills you second class cat!! But you're still no match for me!!"
I smiled to myself as I picked up my original weapon and colliding it towards her sword.
"So the news didn't reach you?"
"Huh...?"
"That I, Anakitty Autumn, became a first class adventurer last two months and received the alias- TWILIGHT CAT!!"
With my final attack, I shattered her sword and sent her flying towards the pack of Violas behind her and letting the monster eat her in the process.
"Get down! Akii!!!"
I moved in instinct when I heard Raul's scream. I ducked and then saw the mouth of a violas that was about to bite my head off.
"Not in my watch!!" He then slashed the monster's head which resulted in it's demise and the others soon then followed and slayed all the remaining monsters.
"We can't let Raul-san be the only one show to off like that in front of Aki-san can't we!?" the boys in our Familia arrived.
"Yes!! Let's burn them!!!" Elfy and Lefiya chorused before unleashing their fire magic burning off all the monsters ahead.
"Everyone... Thanks..!"
Realizing that it was finally over, I teared up and smiled which then led to a cheerful short celebration.
"Now everyone! Let's go!"
It doesn't matter if you don't have the strength.
There is no need for skills.
Even if you're not great.
As long as you have the desire and resolve.
You can become the type of hero you want to be... Right?
Bell!!
Knossos
Riveria's POV.
How did this happen?
We are currently running around this cursed maze of a fortress because of the acid volley that was released from one of the gates that we were investigating earlier. It continues to flow around and chase us like there is no tomorrow.
"Oy old hag!! What do we do!?" The good for nothing dwarf asked from behind as he was the closest to the acid.
"It doesn't look like it'll not stop, and also-!"
I looked ahead of me and noticed that there it is a dead end for us as we have no way of opening that invincible door.
"We only have one option left, to take that acid head on!"
I began to chant my magic as I reached the end of the path and positioned myself to fire it towards the monsters ahead and their acid but noticed that I will need some time.
"Uryaaa!!!!"
Luckily, Tiona noticed it and tried to block it with her Urga which did not last longer but long enough for me to finish off my chant.
"Thank you Tiona, you've done well. Now stand back!"
"Wynn Fimbulvetr!!" I pointed my staff towards the enemy and casted my magic which created an ice path and clashed towards the acid.
"Woah, as expected of Riveria..!" Tione said as she helped her sister whose hands got burned by the acid.
But that moment of relief did not last long as the acid melts down my magic.
"AH! What do we do!!??" Cruz screamed as he saw the acid rush towards us but this time, the one to block it is that dwarf.
"Ggrrraaahh!! Hey Riveria!! It looks like Fire magic is the only choice we have left but we can't have you toasting us as well!! What now!? I can't hold this for too long!!"
He's right, I can't use Rea Laevateinn at a space as closed and small as this, and the fire magic that I learned from our tribe won't be strong enough. Bell's Firebolt is much stronger than it- "That's it. Gareth, sorry but I need you to push yourself harder. I'll heal you later so don't worry but for now try to hold out as long as you can while I learn a new magic. Don't worry, this won't be too long."
"Nngghh!! It better not be!!"
I closed my eyes and held my staff horizontally in front of me and began studying the components of his magic based on my image.
It was both a Fire and Lightning type magic that complements each other really well. Fire's destructive power and wide area of effect enhanced with Lightning's speed.
"Analysis... Complete... Beginning deployment..."
I formed a giant magic circle in the air in front of me and started to pour mana at the tip of my staff.
"Gareth!! Get behind me if you don't want to disappear with them!!" I gave him a heads up and he nodded before letting go of the half melted shield.
As soon as he landed behind me a long with the others, I started to increase my mana output as much as I can and then I saw his magic forming. Crimson lightning flying around as the fire in the middle starts to form a circular shape.
A smirk made it's way to my lips as an image of him fighting that giant Xenos popped up into my head.
"Oh Destined Hero, Please Lend Us Your Strength. FIREBOLT!!"
I fired it at the magic circle in front of us and all of them gasped as they saw the small fire magic I released become a giant storm of explosion when it passed the magic circle.
BAM.
"Via Shilheim." I decided to errect a barrier to prevent the explosion from reaching us and as the explotion died down, I saw no remaina of the monsters before. Nothing was left other than the smell of the acid that evaporated.
"Haaa... I thought we are a gonner for a second there... Good thing we have Riveria-sama with us..." Remilia slowly limped out as the adrenaline slowly left her body.
"I'm just lucky, if I didn't know how his magic actually works, we would've died there earlier... Even though I amplified it, it is still quite inferior to the one that Bell Cranel uses, I just gambled earlier." I said as I sighed in relief.
"Anyway, Gareth, Tiona. Come here, I'll heal your arms."
After healing both of them and taking a rest for a few minutes, we decided to go back from where we came from and go inside the door that those worm like monsters came from. And then...
"Hey... I can feel something... Is this a divine will..?" I whispered as we cautiously walked up to a stair.
I peaked at the right side at the end and saw a regular Evilus member talking to a person clad in pure white robe without any design that resembles that of an Evilus.
And when she tilted her face to the left, I recognized her.
Goddess Ishtar.
A/N: Hi, sorry for the long absence, just busy playing and fiddling with my phone recently.
I don't think this will end soon but I also don't want to rush this Evilus Arc since I want to give Loki Familia and later Asfi some nice screentime.
That's all for now, I hope you enjoyed reading.