I don't own anything. All characters and all rights belong to Natsume Akatsuki*

M for mature topics. No children allowed. *

Konosuba (Not): Thanatos Blessing Upon This Broken World

By Try Another Time

The sound of explosions and shouts of the fights below reached his so-called ears as his monstrous body walked through the room that acted as the control room for the Spider, although it was a mostly empty room.

Several windows that covered the north part of the room allowed him to bear witness to the destruction of his forces. His metallic steps showed his anxiousness as his forces dwindled down with each second.

His body resembles a mechanic werewolf combined with a spider. The flesh of his human form remains attached to certain parts of his body, like tetric scars of his transformation into a demon lord, while relics such as ancient magic cannons and bladed weapons made his extra arms. A metallic spider's abdomen replaced the werewolf tail, containing other secret weapons the demon lord could use.

Cables hung from the ceiling where a metal coffin was placed as the spider's heart. Around said coffin, several metal cubes were also visible as they supported the strenuous activity of being the power source of the spider relic.

"Damn it!" Talus roared as his monstrous wolf mouth split into four like that of a demonic spider. "Why do they dare to oppose us? Can't they see that this fruitless fight can't be won? Demons are the owners of this world, and nobody can change that."

"F..o..o..l." A weak voice calls out to him from inside the metal coffin.

Talus glares at the coffin. "Silence wrench! We defeated you, and now you're nothing more than a living battery like those so-called Crimson Demons. You and those foolish spell casters will live for our sake as tools for our glorious future. No longer fearing a so-called goddess and no longer bending the knee to anyone. Now, we stand at the top and take control of our own fate. We can take and do what we want, and nobody will stop us."

"... They…. Are… here….Fool. Meg…." The mysterious voice says before it goes completely silent.

Talus turns around and faces the gate that keeps the room separate from the rest. His mind sees the incoming arrivals as his connection to the relic spider allows him to see what's inside the spider. He smiles as he sees the group getting closer, but his smile disappears as he locks eyes with the reaper leading the charge. "Who are you?"

The gate shakes as someone hits it.

Talus glares as he waits to see if the gate would be enough to keep his enemies away.

Sadly for him, the gate doesn't last as several slashes cut right through the metal alloy. As the pieces fall, Talus faces the masked team; his eyes remain focused on Kazuma above the rest, although Aqua is present. Although the mask hid their faces, the demon lord could sense their hate even from a mile away.

Kazuma POV.

*30 Seconds to Mars- Night of the Hunter*

The reaper glared at his target while he analyzed his body for any weaknesses they could use against him. From a mere glance, Kazuma could already detect multiple weapons all around Talus's body, with a few spots that seemed a bit weaker due to the strain so many relics put into his body. "Darkness, we take the lead. Yunyun and Megumin, please use electric and explosive spells to bring him down. Target the cannons and extra limbs while being mindful of the arena. Aqua, you know what to do. Let's go."

Kazuma rushes forward without another word, alongside Darkness, while the rest of the team starts to mobilize. They divide themselves into two teams: Yunyun takes the left, and Megumin and Aqua rush for the right

"No time for talking? No glorious declaration of war? You're not very hero-like." Talus says as he points his cannons at the spell caster while he rushes forward to clash against the reaper and fallen knight.

Projectiles are fired from the magic cannons that stretched out from his back, which forced Megumin and the rest to take evasive maneuvers while keeping an eye on the central physical engagement in the middle of the room.

"I'm not a hero," Kazuma says as he tries to slash the neck of the demon lord. "I'm an executor who has come for your head and those of the other traitors."

"Executor? Don't make me laugh, discount reaper." Talus laughs but still steps back as his body senses the lethality of the blade that Kazuma wields. His very being feels threatened for some unknown reason before the reaper's presence, as if death was just around the corner. Darkness doesn't miss this chance as she rushes in with her sword and aims her attack at one of the multiple limbs that stretch out from the back of the demon lord.

Her sword struggles momentarily, but the attack successfully severs the bladed spider leg.

Talus's eyes widen as the limb falls to the floor. His body doesn't register pain, but his eyes remain incredulous as a mere adventurer has done the unthinkable. "How dare you!?" Talus tries to cut Darkness with his claws as he allows anger to take over, but Darkness doesn't back down; she blocks his restless attacks with some difficulty, as the strength of her opponent is nothing to joke about.

As anger takes over, Talus's mind loses track of the spell caster for a moment, and that is enough time for Megumin and the others to go on the offensive.

Several spells fly through the room before they impact the demon lord's body. Megumin explosions send him crashing against the wall before Yunyun's lighting attacks send waves of pure raw electricity, which seek to fry him from the inside out.

"Bastards!" Talus shouts as his body endures the electricity. The demon lord takes a few steps forward while endless currents of electricity fry his insides, yet he doesn't stop. "I took so much shit from others. Always the toy and follower who had to lower his head before others." His eyes cry purple blood as they flare with anger. Several turbines activate around his body as the demon lord activates the internal relics his body contains. The temperature of his body rises as the platinum color of his body turns blazing red. "I won't bend the knee anymore. I will be the one that takes from all others now!" His chest opens up as a large eye becomes visible.

Kazuma's instincts go rampant as he feels a devastating incoming attack. "Drop to the floor!"

"Too late!" Talus shouts as the eye accumulates all the energy it needs before releasing a devastating beam attack that cuts through anything.

The team does their best to avoid the beam as Talus twists his upper like a spinning top while his legs remain motionless. The demon lord ignores the damage he's causing as he only sees red. "Die!"

The beam pierces the walls of the room, thus compromising the structural integrity of the room.

"Kazuma! He's going to bring this entire room down!" Megumin shouts as she evades the beam by a mere inch.

"Damn it!" Kazuma rushes forward while ignoring the danger Talus presents to his own survival. His steps are sharp as he jumps and pushes on while the beam continues to spin without control, yet he doesn't turn back. "Off with your damn toy!" The reaper uses all his energy before releasing Oblivion Edge against his opponent's chest.

Beam and lethal attack clashed before the reaction created a blinding explosion that almost destroyed the entire room alongside everyone inside, if not for the quick response from the spell casters and Darkness.

Dust covers the room briefly as the team starts to recover.

The dark priestess began to recover her sight as the dust settled. Her body ached as if her skiing had been burned, but she wasn't hurt. The barrier that had protected her and Yunyun started to crack as the spell ended. "Kazuma?" Her eyes chased after her partner.

"Goddess, we barely survived," Yunyun says as her eyes look for the other team members. "Megu?"

"I'm alive," Megumin shouts as she stands up with her own barrier falling apart. "Darkness?"

"I'm fine. The armor and shield protected me from the damage." Darkness replies as she moves her shield away before examining the area for Kazuma. "Kazuma?"

The dust settles as the reaper becomes visible to his team.

"... I'm also alive… but not doing so fine." The reaper slowly rose up while the left side of his body was covered in nasty burns of the highest degree. Even his mask crumbled as the pieces fell to the floor due to the damage, which was so severe that it couldn't hold it anymore. Blood falls from the edge of his mouth as he swallows the pain with a determined expression. His injured left hand reaches out to his waist belt before it grabs a small blue bottle, which he wastes no time drinking down before throwing to the side. "The bastard lives." The reaper says as he sees the body of his opponent twitching within the hole it created as the previous explosion sent him flying back.

A gruesome cut stretched out from one corner of Talus's chest to the other as the eye that rested deep within his chest cavity was no longer usable as it was nothing more than melted metal and broken components. But even with such an injury, the demon lord lived, and his eyes didn't hide his anger as he dragged himself out of the hole in the wall. "How dared you continue to oppose me?" Several vessels around his body start to glow red before his body moves with such speed that most of the team loses track of him.

"I won't let you do as you please with my team!" Kazuma increases his speed as he matches the demon lord and blocks his path as it tries to pierce Megumin's chest with his claws. "You will die in this place, no matter how hard you try," Kazuma shouts as he engages the demon in a high-speed clash, which takes them around the entire room while the girls try to follow their movements.

The demon lord released his extra weapons as the spider's abdomen attached to his lower backside broke into several conjoined arms that had laser chainsaws and extra magic cannons, which Talus didn't think twice about using.

"Die!" Talus shouted as his eyes, driven mad with anger, focused on Kazuma and disregarded the rest of the team.

Kazuma was forced to push his body to work thrice as hard as he not only had to keep track of more than ten limbs that were trying to take him down. Be it the wolf claws, the blade arms, the chainsaws, or the magic cannon, Kasuma moved his body to evade at least 89% of the attacks while chipping away at the chest of his prey as his eyes noticed a significant flaw in the metallic body of his opponent. "Just a bit more. There seems to be a core inside that is powering up the relics. If I can take it down, he won't be able to fight back."

The reaper told himself as he delivered swing after swing as the effect of his pendant activated. But then, he saw something out of the corner of his eyes, which distracted him for a mere millisecond before his brain screamed in joy.

Darkness POV. A few moments before.

The fallen knight felt annoyed as her eyes tried to follow the vanishing bodies of Kazuma and Talus. They seemed to pop up for less than a second before they disappeared again.

"We can't keep track. Is this the true power of a demon lord?" Yunyun asks as she tries to figure out how to shoot her spells without missing and hitting Kazuma.

"I can try using the mines again," Megumin said as she tried to follow the fight.

"Set them up, but don't activate them until he's alone, Megumin. I want to try something that will likely give you that opening." Darkness says as she changes the shape of her weapon into the attack form. "Aqua, are you still buffing Kazuma?"

"I haven't stopped since the fight started. Increased speed and attack were the buffs he asked for." Aqua replies.

"Increase my speed. I will join Kazuma, and hopefully, I'll slow Talus down for long enough to allow your spells to hit. It is time for me to use Feather Steps, just like Kazuma." Darkness said as she prepared herself for the daring strategy.

"Are you sure? You lacked training with the skill." Aqua asks with a worried expression.

Darkness smirks. "Is now or never. I can't just stay here and do nothing about it. I'll risk it, and hopefully, it pays off. Megumin, Yunyun, don't miss the chance. Take him down. Don't hold back."

Aqua and the rest can only nod in acceptance as they see the determination in the eyes of their ally—Aqua buffs Darkness. Before they have time to blink, Darkness disappears as her body dashes at an impressive speed to join Kazuma.

"Shit. This is rough." Darkness told herself as her body began to move at inhuman speed levels. Her brain and eyes were working to adapt to the sudden change in speed, but luck was on her side as, from the corner of her eye, she met the gaze of Kazuma.

Kazuma's eyes seemed to tell her to join him and break through the limitations of a mere tank as he needed the help.

"I'm coming!" Darkness changed directions as she forced her body to follow her will. Knowing that she had the surprise factor on her side, Darkness chased after Talus. Her body dashed as she tried to cut the distance like a lioness chasing after a gazelle, and before long, her axe hit her target as one single slash cut right through three of the extra arms.

"What!?" Talus's eyes glared in complete surprise as he sensed the missing connection to several of his limbs.

"I'm here, you bastard! This is for everyone that died due to you!" Darkness shouts as she spins and slams her axe into the torso of the demon lord.

The mechanical abomination is sent crashing into a wall. His mind couldn't believe what had happened, but his luck wasn't improving as a red magical circle ignited under him before an explosion occurred. "Damn it!" Talus shouts as he tries to get away after receiving the full damage of the spell. His body starts to glitch as the relics inside begin to fail due to the damage his core has received.

"Take him down before he recovers!" Aqua shouts.

Yunyun and Megumin waste no time opening fire with electric and explosive spells against the demon lord. Like a dual machine gun of spells, the casters go all out as they seek to take their enemy down.

Although some do hit the mark, Talus dashes and evades most of the spells as he tries to seek a way out, but then, at the last moment, his luck runs entirely out as Darkenss rushes in from one of his blind spots and cuts one of his legs. "Shit!" The demon lord jumps away to create some distance with his remaining leg.

Kazuma wastes no time and follows suit as he takes the other leg before he dashes away. He watches from the corner of his eyes as the demon lord falls to the ground.

"I'm not dying here!" Talus is forced to use his remaining blade arms to crawl around the room like a spider running away. The spider runs and jumps as it tries to reach the door like a coward who has run out of options. Fear takes over as he feels the pressure of his situation.

"You're not getting away!" Aqua uses her scepter to summon several skeletal arms that catch Talus and lock him into place. The demon lord tries to escape, but his body loses its strength as the core fails to power the systems that compose it. "Megumin, Yunyun, do it now!"

"Implode majestic crimson star which shines upon the darkest night. Deliver your judgment, Crimson Explosion!" Megum and Yunyun chant in unison as seven magic circles appear at the tip of their magical weapons before a devastating explosion incinerates Talus and creates a gaping hole in a part of the room's ceiling.

Kazuma's POV.

The reaper watched as the dust began to settle. As his eyes scanned the area, he noticed how Megumin and Yunyun had calculated how much power to give to the spell without blowing the entire area to kingdom come. His eyes then focus on the broken body of his enemy, which is nothing more than a mess composed of melted metal.

Talus could barely lock eyes with him as it tried to move its only remaining limb, which was a broken-bladed arm. "Who… are you?" His body seemed dual, as if someone else was speaking alongside Talus.

"A reaper who has come from that land to take all of the heads of the demon lords. I'm your executor." Kazuma stands next to the broken body of the demon lord. "Talus, for the crimes against this world and its people, I condemned you to death. Any last words?" Kazuma raises his scythe.

The members of his party stand around in silence to witness the judgment of the demon lord. Each one had many things they wanted to say, but none wanted to get in the way of Kazuma's mission. It was now or never, and neither seemed stupid enough to interrupt

"I… won't apologize. I bent the knee…. For my entire life, I served and took shit…I was finally at the top... No matter what you do…. I will be eternal!" Talus chuckled as his eyes seemed proud of his actions.

"We'll see about that!" The reaper swings his scythe as a single and precise slash severs the head of the demon lord.

Purple liquid spills into the ground as the neck loses its head. The liquid spills into the ground like a fountain.

As the head falls onto the floor, its eyes grow dark before silence takes over for a mere second. Then, the team begins to hear Talus's voice.

"No, this can't be! What have you done!? Why can't I hear the others? What happened to the link?"

Screams start to arise all across the room and outside as if the death of a demon lord had a devastating effect on the demon forces.

"Death has come to claim you." A voice that Kazuma and Aqua recognized said.

"No! Don't touch me!" The team heard Talus's voice panic.

"Is time for thy judgment."

"No!"

Silence takes over as Talus's voice disappears. Darkness approaches Talus's head before she falls to her knees; her eyes let the tears flow.

*Prince- Purple Rain*

From the gaping hole, tiny drops of rain begin to fall inside. The rain starts to wash away the disgusting purple liquid that covers the floor.

"He's… death…. Talus is finally dead… Dad…. Major…. Lisbeth…. Guys…. I…. I'm so sorry." Darkness couldn't contain the pain that she had carried for so long as she faced the head of her enemy.

Kazuma kneels beside her as he embraces her. He ignores the pain of his burns as he just comforts his ally in her time of pain.

The rest of the team stands around with similar emotions as they face the embrace of the cold rain.

Outside the spider.

All demons had ceased movements as if the death of Talus had cut the threats that guided their actions. Adventurers and members of the Black Daggers poke the motionless bodies for some reaction, but none were moving, although they had heartbeats.

For the first time since the start of the war, the denizens of this world could sleep in peace, knowing that one of the pillars of their enemies had fallen.

A new morning would arrive with revelations and changes that were bound to affect not only the demons but also the Kazuma and his allies.

The counterattack has just begun.

Demon Lord Hunting List:

Talus, The Spider Aberration- Death.

The next target: Geldas, the Mad Creator.