LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 58: Chapter 39
In the Marble Palace, Superbia tapped her finger on the armrest of her throne nervously.
The silence was deafening.
After all, there was a curfew in the city in honor of this day. Or well, that's how it would be in the eyes of fools. It was really just in case something happened and the capital was attacked, or to hide from the eyes of any spies.
Therefore, the 'servants' of the Palace were hidden.
Mainly, there were stealthy creatures everywhere, making no sounds, static, camouflaged, or invisible.
Therefore, it was deadly quiet.
Was there a problem with this for Superbia?
Not really. The problem was something else.
She was nervous, not because of the silence, but because of her Lady.
Lady Black Abyss.
She was… On the battlefield.
Sure, she had Miia, Alucard, and Eyesight looking after her, as well as Lady Dont, the f-fool Achernar, and Bachelory were in the Marble Palace alongside her, and Bulldoger, Gandolfo, and Fanrir, as well as the rest of Titania's NPCs were in the Guild Base.
They were properly spread out, ready at any time to go out and help whichever side was attacked. And if the three of them were attacked, then they could properly hold out until one of the sides wins, mainly Titania, and goes to support.
With some trepidation, she stood up from her throne in the Marble Palace.
Not knowing exactly where to go, she began to walk through the halls, trying to calm herself down.
She could sense the countless entities looking after her, as well as the pair of Grand Knights of the Lake, level 90 summons she managed to make permanent with much effort, following close behind her.
She was, as the Supremes spoke, made of wood. This obviously didn't mean she was literally made of wood. It just spoke to how fragile she was.
Superbia wasn't made for physical combat. Well, she could be, but it wasn't her area.
Therefore, just like Queen Dont, she was heavily protected.
Lady Dont, after all, had the two Mercenary NPCs who accompanied her as Lady Nyx, as well as Bachelory in the form of Black Abyss, and Achernar roaming around the palace.
Her thoughts probed, starting to make her count how many white armors she saw as she walked through the halls. It was a little OCD she had when she was nervous. Counting knights.
Of course, if there weren't any, well, she couldn't do much more. A little bonus given to her by her creator, Superb-Camel, gave her a nice touch…
She heard a sudden footstep, like something appearing out of nowhere beside her, and she already knew who it was without even having to look.
"... Achernar." She blurted out automatically. However, upon truly processing who he was, she gritted her teeth and pursed her lips. If it weren't for her skin actually being an exoskeleton, and thus easier to control her expressions, her pale complexion would have taken on a reddish hue.
"Mh… In-… Superbia…" He simply blurted out, and if it weren't for the black scarf covering most of his face, his blush would be visible.
"… What do you want…?" She blurted out without further ado. No tirades, no snorting, no elegant insults…
"Just… W-Well… I came to see you…" He exclaimed, looking to the side, hiding some of his embarrassment.
"...I see. Just for that…?" She asked as her exoskeleton, i.e. her face, remained indifferent. Thanks to her nature as a Moth, she could do so, to her advantage in the realm of showing shame against the Dragonoid.
"...No… But I don't know if we should continue today… The Supreme is far away… You… What do you think?" He asked, somewhat hesitant as well as worried.
"..." Superbia felt a slight chill run down her spine, her wings trembling slightly from the sensation. It wasn't a sensation of fear or uneasiness, it was a sensation of anticipation. But her duty, loyalty, and priority crushed the instinct like it was a cockroach against a giant's foot. "We are currently awaiting news about… Titania and her campaign against Re-Estize. Or news of… Well, the 'Divinity' of the Goddesses Onyx and Morbius…" She spoke in code. After all, the divination defenses were disabled in all of Deorum Regnum.
Achernar seemed to understand this, and he scolded himself for being so stupid and mentioning the 'Supreme' out loud…
"Because of that, we must be alert… 'T-That' will only be a distraction. A nuisance in our duty… I-I understand that your lizard brain only thinks of that, but as a queen, I understand when it's time." She said in an attempt to sound proud and insult Achernar, taking out a fan and using it to hide the lower area of her face.
"If the Queen says so~" Achernar said somewhat amusedly, letting out a light laugh.
Still, he seemed to catch something out of the corner of his eye, walking over to a window and looking out at the horizon.
At the intersection where the earth and sky met, there was something separating them… An intense yellow light that slowly turned orange as it ascended.
"I don't think the sun will rise again with the highest point." Achernar exclaimed in a more serious tone, looking around to try and catch something else.
"… Mm… Indeed." Superbia raised an eyebrow as she could see the same phenomenon as Achernar. "It's possible that it's Titania's ability in her display of superiority over the Kingdom… Mm… We could go to her Maj- Ahem, to Lady Nyx to see if she knows anything about it. Prevention is better than cure, as the Gods say." The Marble Queen murmured, curious as to why Lady Black Abyss would use such a powerful ability against humans, but not so surprised if she wanted to punish them.
But as designed, she was smart. Very smart. And while she was proud too, it could be said that was a facade, and she could tell when it was time to be cautious and make sure of things, and when not.
In any case, it was also a small excuse to at least spend time with her Majesty, Lady Dont.
"Hm… Still, to tease her for t-" He fell silent for a moment as the light intensified for a second before returning to its initial tone, so he remained thinking for several seconds, before the ground began to shake. "An explosion?"
He was confused now… All that power was enough to annihilate both armies perhaps, and it was not something of his Goddess to use so much power…
It was not her thing to go overboard to make her enemies disappear, it was not her thing to abuse her power, nor to show off…
"We must go… I have a bad feeling…" Achernar exclaimed, quickly turning around and lifting Superbia like a princess in his arms.
"H-Hey! W-What do you think you're doing!?" Superbia screamed as her indifferent mask that was her exoskeleton figuratively broke for a moment and a deep red hue covered her pale face.
Superbia thrashed around in Achernar's grip, while the Mercenary NPCs and Superbia's Summons looked at each other, doing nothing.
It wasn't an offensive action against their summoner by the Knights, and the Mercenary NPCs knew that Achernar was one of their summoners' servants, just as Superbia was, so they wouldn't really do much. They were just there to protect against external threats.
Therefore, they just went to do their duty. Follow and protect Superbia.
Sure, Achernar had his own entourage of Mercenary NPCs. Several Konoe Shidan, Goemun, and even a Chiyome. Achernar had no Hanzos with him, as compared to the guard he had, Hanzos were ducks in a sea of monsters. If calling level 80 beings that was possible.
Likewise, Superbia could simply use a skill and literally pierce through Achernar as she was not tied to the physical plane. But between the embarrassing impact of the Dragonoid's action, the lack of any real need to do such a thing, and other factors that further increased the Moth's shame, she didn't do so.
Achernar quickly moved through the halls of the castle, his Goddess Onyx, Queen of Titania and G.O.D.S, was here as well.
If he had this bad feeling, she should have the explanation, that was how the Supremes were. After all, even though all of that was very far away, so far away that even something like [Tsar] shouldn't even be able to be seen at this distance, the amount of light coming from that place, as well as the tremor from the previous explosion… And the fact that he was feeling the temperature rise… It made him worried…
And with all the bodyguards following closely behind them, they arrived at where 'Lady Nyx' was drinking coffee.
…
In the most beautiful garden of the Marble Palace, the Queen's Garden, Dont was placidly sitting with elegance, making sure to have an upright posture.
She hadn't practiced it that much before, but now it was practically mandatory to have perfect etiquette.
And while she was practicing, she was ready for any attack or course of action~
At her side, Bachelory stood. Although one couldn't say that he was Titania's Prime Minister.
After all, physically, superficially, and technically, he wasn't Bachelory. Instead, he was Titania's Sun, Black Abyss•White Flower. With her signature glow, her signature smiling expression, her signature posture, her equipment, everything was exactly the same as the usual Angel.
If one were to compare the real Black Abyss and 'this Black Abyss', they wouldn't find any difference, except for one thing.
First of all, HP and Mana. A Doppelgänger could change its stats based on the form it takes. He could normally have a level 50 strength, but change it to a level 90 one. However, there was one thing that didn't change. HP and Mana. One of the biggest disadvantages of having to change between forms.
For example, if Bachelory changed into a sorcerer, he could use his Mana to use the spells of that sorcerer. However, his Mana would not be that of a level 100 Sorcerer. It would never be, since he already had his predetermined Mana. However, his physical and magical defense values did change. Therefore, receiving a physical attack as a mage would damage his HP, which does not change with the change of form, much more than if he was a tank like Black Abyss.
But of course, by changing into a full warrior, although Bachelory would acquire greater defense, his HP would still be damaged. And although he could take advantage of the lack of Mana use that a warrior had to regenerate it, he still had the disadvantage of fixed HP.
There were several dilemmas with a Doppelgänger, however, if one knew how to properly use the flexibility of a Doppelgänger, it was incredibly powerful.
Therefore, one of the differences between Bachelory and Black Abyss, would be these two values. And second and more importantly, the actual strength.
A Doppelgänger could copy the form, classes, skills, race, and spells of another Player or entity temporarily. However, not 100%. That would be too unfair.
Someone who was a Doppelgänger could only copy a percentage of the copied entity's strength. At low levels as a Doppelgänger, such a copy would reach 60%. Of course, the entity had to be the same level as the Doppelgänger or lower in order to be copied. As a Doppelgänger's racial ability increased, the greater the stat copy became.
It was said that maxing out the Doppelgänger's race over classes would allow the Doppelgänger to copy 100% of a Player, but it was either a myth or something undiscovered yet.
A high-level Doppelgänger like Bachelory, was capable of copying 80% of a Player. Therefore, with this in mind, if Bachelory in the form of Black Abyss were to fist-bump into the real Black Abyss, Bachelory, if not for the copied divine-level equipment, albeit at 80%, still divine, would be dragged back.
Again, a Doppelgänger depended on its flexibility and how it was used. Since, instead of copying Black Abyss against Black Abyss, Bachelory could directly use the form of the former King of Titania, ☆King69Jamon☆, the almost indisputably strongest Player in G.O.D.S.
Or he could go in other builds, like MichiXMichi, or Hanzel, or Habano, etc.
The possibilities were very varied. And in a PvP between two level 100s, everything could make the difference between victory, a tie, and defeat.
Either way, petting a Garden crow, the Headless Guardian's Valor was present. Its lore had things with crows, and the Dullahan themselves also had things with crows, so Dont supposed it was to be expected.
Behind Dont, next to Bachelory, was the Dark Hero Armor. The level 82 tank that Dont couldn't remember his name after all. Bullseye was his name? Nevermind.
She took a sip from her cup of coffee, hating that 'etiquette' kept her from properly drinking her coffee, and instead taking tiny sips from time to time. 'Enjoying' they called her... Motherfuckers.
She wanted Black Abyss to be here so she'd have an excuse to drink her coffee the way she wanted, like when she told her to drink all of Titania's coffee, and encouraged her to do so in good sips... She even brought her croissants~ And patted her and kissed her while she did it~
She smiled fondly at the thought. But something stopped her.
Her senses had been stretched to the max just in case, and she evidently noticed the marks that were undoubtedly Superbia and Achernar, as well as their bodyguards... The ones she could sense at least, were getting closer. Although she felt Superbia very close to Achernar, which was odd, she thought they were on bad terms.
Holding back a sigh, she put the cup down on the table, and looked in the direction of the door they came from.
"My Q-Lady Nyx. Excuse the interruption." Achernar was the one who had to speak, and Dont realized why… Maybe he was playing a practical joke on Superbia by carrying her like a princess all the way here? Anyway, the blushing Moth looked cute, so he let that go instead of asking about it.
"Ahem. Umu." She smiled as she stood up elegantly. "Of course~ Tell me, Lord Achernar~ What do you need from me?" She asked kindly.
"Madam… Lady Titania… The light that can be seen on the horizon in the direction of Katze, the tremor a few minutes ago… The few degrees that the temperature rose…" He said somewhat worriedly.
"Mm? Ah, yes. It could be that she activated her auras. She said she was going to use her 'Talent' against Gazef Stronoff." Dont explained in amusement. It was nice to see Achernar caring so much about Black Abyss. Though honestly, even Dont thought that activating such powerful things that would be visible from the capital of Deorum Regnum was too much… Those should be the strongest auras and effects of Black Abyss.
"B-But… Doesn't the Talent activate her sacred equipment that the Goddesses gave him…? That light, as if it were a new Sun… What is it?" Superbia looked curiously now as well.
"Umu… Well…" Dont grimaced slightly. Black Abyss wasn't supposed to activate something so brilliant… Right?
She sat down, starting to go over Black Abyss's abilities.
She doubted that she activated her ultimate as Urielle against Gazef. And if it was something serious, well, she would have been informed already.
"Well. At the moment it doesn't seem to be anything serious really. When 'Titania' comes back, I can ask her." Dont smiled reassuringly at Achernar, before picking up her cup again, and began to drink more carefreely.
A message request tickled her head, and she accepted it.
(Yes~?)
(M-My Queen! L-Lady Black Abyss is in her Angelic and Solar form! W-What should I d-!?)
Dont ignored the rest as she spat out her coffee.
"Ahk! Cough cough!" She coughed as she cleared the coffee out of her throat… Regrettably. "What!?" Dont frowned.
That wasn't in the plan…
Black Abyss' Angelic form… Considering the Urielle race, it was already too much for all that… But the Solar form…? That thing, as tested on an empty mountain, was brutally hot… It literally turned it into something very similar to a sun…
Did something happen…?
"Er… Ahem. Eyesight… Did something happen to make Black Abyss like this…?"
(A-Am… W-Well, from what I saw, the Super-Level spell that was cast wiped out 250,000 Re-Estize soldiers, and 70,000 Deorum Regnum soldiers… And Gazef Stronoff… It also hit Lady Black Abyss, but it didn't do anything to her, as expected…)
… What?
"Send me there. Now."
(B-But my Lady… A-Alucard and Miia had to withdraw the army and themselves due to the heat and the hyper-heated plasma explosions from the Supreme… S-She doesn't seem to want to listen or accept message requests…)
"It's an order." She said seriously.
Eyesight groaned somewhat worried about having to send her Queen to such a place, but she didn't disobey and opened a [Gate] in front of Dont.
(M-My Queen… B-Be careful… W-We don't want either of you to get hurt…) Eyesight said worriedly.
"L-Lady Nyx?" Achernar asked looking at the [Gate].
"A gate?" Superbia watched as well, raising an eyebrow.
Dont ignored both of them, and changing from her Lady Nyx outfit to her usual gear, entered.
…
The Archarchaeologist laughed in wonder.
After all, Hell did indeed come to Earth.
His spell had not only eradicated most of that huge pile of humans, surely valuable enough to give him 1 or even 2 more levels if he absorbed them all. But it also instantly killed most of those magical beings.
Sure, it also hit the two beings in the middle of both armies, and killed one, or at least finished him off, but the other... The other was the real cherry on the cake~
In a roar like a trumpet of the apocalypse, a brutal temperature appeared, melting the sand and all the surroundings as the temperature rose deadly.
"HAHAHAHAHA! SUFFER MORTALS! SUFFER IN THE NAME OF THE KOMODO! HAHAHAHAHA!" He shouted in wonder, spreading his arms to his sides.
The temperature didn't bother him. He was a high-level demonic being. And as a Demiurge himself, he was immune to fire and heat.
And well, with his Super-Level spell having been cast, the chaos was wonderful~
The survivors... Well, the 50,000 or so surviving humans fled in terror, horrified by both that Angel in the scorching heat, and by the death of 250,000 humans.
On the other hand, the surviving magical beings, mostly large Angelic beings, non-living beings or strong creatures, began to retreat in a more orderly fashion, carrying as many corpses of their fellows as they could.
It was wonderful~
And technically, this wasn't the full potential of the spell. It just seemed strange to him that it was taking so long for the true effect to activate... Maybe it was burdening itself with so many sacrifices?
It didn't matter, the Demiurge, like a monster in robes like strange armor made of sharp spikes bordered by gold, in black and red patterns, covering the entirety of his body, with his mask deformed in perpetual darkness with a glowing red demonic symbol among the darkness, a golden crown deformed into aggressive spikes, as well as thick black gauntlets, but gloves of red, spread his arms out to both sides as he admired his work. The blades sprouting from his back almost like wings made him look more imposing, along with his halo like a deformed divine symbol made of liquid darkness that floated behind his head.
{Infernal Archarcheologist PNG}
His summoning, while not exactly strong... Was able to do something.
The Demiurge blinked under his natural mask warped from his summoning as he saw the Devil of the Big Lie stand between his summoner and something else.
The Demon exploded into motes of darkness and ash as he blocked something.
"Ah." The Archarchaeologist could only say that as he looked at the angelic being in front of him, an expression of pure rage in its eyes like burning suns surrounded by a solar corona, with a few extra eyes shaped like raging flames around its eye sockets.
It was large, very imposing, and several steps, or well, flaps? It floated straight up, its wings not even really moving, it just floated. This continued until the beautiful personified star was face to face with him.
"You... You did it...?" She asked, her voice sounding like multiple angelic voices superimposed on each other.
The Demiurge just stayed silent, tilting his head. Was she talking about bringing Her Majesty's wonderful will to this place? If so.
"Yes! It was I who brought Hell in Her name! I was the one who did it! And I feel nothing but happiness for having fulfilled my role in Her plan!" He said in wonder, like a faithful devotee fulfilling the will of his God, happy and proud of having fulfilled his duty.
Still, none of his passive protective abilities were fast or powerful enough to stop the strong punch that he received in his face, with an overwhelming power that he had never experienced before.
The blow shot him dozens of meters at great speed, before falling into the molten and bubbling sand.
"Well... I know who to kill then..." The Angel exclaimed, raising her hands, from the distance a white halberd came out of the dark liquid and went towards her hand, with a shield appearing in her other hand.
The Archarchaeologist, his mask cracked by the blow, revealing the cluster of physical darkness that formed his flesh, and the reddish energy that formed the outline of his mouth and eyes, stood up with a grunt.
"Hmp. I see. I thought you were part of Her Majesty's will. But it seems I was wrong... Or well. I'll have to teach you your place, heretic." The Demiurge growled in a hiss dragged by malicious shadows. "[Nuclear Hell]"
The spell was activated, and in addition to the red mist that remained as a collateral of the Super-Level spell, a cloud in the shape of countless screaming red souls exploded.
…
Dont stepped through the [Gate], only to blink at the sight of red mist and deep black smoke.
Of course, with her classes as a Shooter, seeing through the smoke was literally child's play. She could do it without effort.
So without a problem she saw how, at the source of all that smoke imbued with demonic energy to the max, and well, radiation and fire, a light like a sun shone furiously.
"Umu… [Nuclear Hell]? But…" She frowned. "No one here should be able to use that spell." She growled.
She frowned as she saw the light like a sun rise through the smoke. She had been on the ground.
Her enhanced senses managed to hear something. A voice she didn't recognize.
"[Maximize Magic: Call Greater Thunder]!" The voice sang, casting a high-level spell that caused, from within the clouds made of radioactive and hellish smoke, a massive and powerful lightning bolt to fall upon the sun, causing a thunderclap so powerful that it made the earth rumble. "[Sharp Rock Field]!" She heard again, and the arena began to tremble.
Dont had to jump reflexively as she saw how, from within the arena, sharp rock spikes sprouted in a large radius, replacing the usual battlefield between Re-Estize and the destroyed Baharuth, in a terrain impossible to move normally, with each rock being as sharp as a sword.
"[Demon Queen's Body: Wings]" She invoked, causing her wings as a Demon Queen to sprout, and keep her in suspension. She recognized the spell. It turned the terrain into a field that did damage on contact. Especially useful for slowing down many entities and damaging them over time, and very efficient against beings unable to fly.
Sure, there were higher level spells than this one that enhanced the effect, like [Sharp Diamond Field], and there was a nice variety of similar spells but with different elements, like [Holy Punish Field].
Again, it was an effect that only affected solid surface, so it didn't work underwater, nor was it as useful against flying entities, or those with resistances to these things.
And with earth element… Mm… Well, Black Abyss could take at least a little damage. Not that much, but a little if she didn't pay attention and absorbed the damage from lots of these spikes. Like the effect of grains of sand that, on their own, were insignificant, but in very large quantities, they were noticeable. But Dont knew that the Paladin could fly… Well, using this spell on an opponent capable of flight wasn't useless either, as it forced her to maintain flight. And the flight controls in Yggdrasil were definitely more complicated than those used on land.
In the New World, however… Well, it could be useful to prevent the opponent from resting, landing, or being knocked down. Although for Black Abyss or Dont, such a thing was not really a problem.
Dont did not know all the spell timings, as she was not a magic user specialized in it, and only had spells thanks to her classes, and they were few indeed.
"[Instant Slash]" She heard the familiar voice, but eerily overlapped with more voices.
But… Even though that was an attack skill, she didn't use it for that, instead, in an instant, Black Abyss disappeared, leaving a slash from where she was, to half the distance she was from her opponent.
Such a movement lasted 0.3 seconds, but it made her invulnerable to damage during that time, so she closed the distance without receiving a single point of damage.
"[Saintess Spear]" She exclaimed, making a thrust forward with her weapon, from which a ghostly form of it extended that struck the presumed cause of all this, and in an instant it retracted, making it appear right in front of Black Abyss, who grabbed it by the neck.
Oh… One of the few things I would never want in a PvP, is for her to grab you…
"Tch! [Eminence of Devil]!" She growled a racial skill that emitted demonic energy upon touch, causing the light on the hand that grabbed it to weaken a little. "[Power of Baphomet]!" And with a buff, the demonic energy doubled its efficiency, causing Black Abyss's hand to smoke as it began to hurt.
However…
The grip didn't weaken, in fact, she pressed down even harder.
"That's it? Why don't you use another Super-Level?" Black Abyss asked wryly, almost making something inside him ring from her grip strength, like bones cracking.
"G-Guh… [Greater Teleportation]." He growled, and disappeared from the Paladin's grip, appearing much farther away as the pair of fiery darkness wings appeared behind him. "[Meteor Fall] [Triple Maximize Magic: Hell Slash] [Hell Typhon]!" He roared as he used spells of good level and power.
At the first spell, from among the infernal and radioactive clouds, a massive rock wrapped in flames appeared, approaching Black Abyss.
The second spell was applied while the Devil made a 'slash' with his hand, causing three slashes of demonic energy and hellfire to shoot out at incredible speed towards the Angel. And the third made a kind of small tornado, or well, typhoon, of pure red fire appear around Black Abyss.
This, combined with a synergy technically only possible in the New World, caused the typhoon to break the sharp ground, and add rock fragments to its damage. Still, they were normal rocks boosted by [Sharp Rock Field], so the damage was minimal from them, even with the hellfire.
Black Abyss ignored the typhoon. It was annoying damage, but not enough to bother. Her divinity kept the damage to a minimum, and her defenses minimized it even further. "[Guard of Faith]" Black Abyss exclaimed, to which her body seemed to freeze.
Of course… Dont had learned something from Black Abyss after many friendly PvPs in Yggdrasil, attacking her with so many skills and/or spells together was stupid… Because she had so many skills that provided immunity to something, resistance, protection, etc, that it was foolish to do so…
The only way to fight her in 1 vs 1 was to attack her, back off a few seconds and do it again with purely individual attacks. Because she could even avoid all the damage from an Ultimate Skill if someone used it too early in the fight. Something that had happened many times, and well, it seemed that that sorcerer clearly didn't know who he was fighting.
Black Abyss could practically be considered a killer of mages and shooters, and a Counter to Players or NPCs with very explosive damage.
Therefore, with just one skill, she was able to avoid all the damage that the Archarchaeologist had caused with the use of three maximized [Hell Slash].
Black Abyss' immunity lasted for 2 seconds at most, so after that time had passed, she instantly shot out from within the destructive typhoon, stopping to look up.
The sky was already red enough due to its own heat, and dark due to the radioactive cloud that was covering everything based on that massive explosion that honestly took away 7% of her HP from the sheer direct hit, but the problem was that meteorite... She couldn't just take one full on, even if she minimized it. It was a level 10 spell with high explosive magic damage and high area-effect fire. Fire didn't matter to Black Abyss as long as it wasn't hellish, wintry or something like that, but explosive did. And while Black Abyss could defend herself quite well from the spell's area-effect damage, it was completely different if one took the meteorite full on, as it concentrated all the damage it caused on the first thing it hit, and then spread that same damage around it.
The Paladin waited for the moment of direct impact, looking with high seriousness at the meteor.
She had rarely done this before, but… The moment the huge burning rock was mere centimeters away from her, she quickly used another skill.
"[Instant Double Slash]!" She instantly became immaterial, leaving two long slashes in the direction of the Archarchaeologist, covering a much greater distance than the first time, and evading the direct impact of the meteorite, which raised thousands of tons of molten sand and rock, causing an intense explosion as the meteor exploded into pellets of red-hot cosmic rock.
The sorcerer knew that his meteorite was unsuccessful when he saw the Paladin in front of him, therefore, he was not going to sit idly by. Although it is not as if Black Abyss would allow him to do anything.
"[Instant Triple Slash]!" She exclaimed, to which a triangle of slashes formed with the target in the middle, causing the slashes to quickly head towards him and hit him with great force, materializing such slashes as wounds on his body.
Of course, Black Abyss did this the instant she appeared. The skill she launched was actually just [Instant Slash], a curious skill, adding one more 'slash' for each use up to 3, where when using [Instant Triple Slash], Black Abyss had a 30% decrease in physical damage for 5 seconds, but a 15% improvement in her agility for 3 seconds.
In itself, it was curious that a tank had her dash combos that assassins and thieves would usually do, but it was part of the 'Surprise Factor' that Black Abyss liked to have. Also, considering that she was an Offensive Tank that specialized in CC, the use of Dash or Teleportation Items were very good and helped her a lot.
However, once again, as soon as Black Abyss appeared, she used the skill, thus, a mere instant later, a series of powerful explosions occurred in all directions of the Paladin, sending her flying back and forth due to the [Aerial Mines]'s magic CC.
On the other hand, the Archaeologist grunted as the explosion of his spells carried him away from Black Abyss.
Thanks to his skill, he healed faster with the demonic energy hovering around his body, but it wasn't like he could heal so quickly from the damage of three hits from a divine physical attacker.
"[Chains of Heaven]" Black Abyss chanted before he got 10 meters away from the enemy, causing them to suddenly have a glowing red chain binding their waists.
The chain connected them, and it didn't seem to stretch more than 10 meters… It was a skill that prevented him from getting away from her, and surely not even Teleportation would work.
The Demiurge clicked his tongue as he spat. "[Fallen Freedom]." The spell activated, and the chains lost their luster as they rusted and disappeared. He quickly used [Silent Magic: Teleportation], disappearing from his spot and avoiding a blow from the Paladin's divinity-clad halberd.
Now. What was the Demon Queen doing in the meantime?
Well, first of all, covering herself.
A mere moment ago, that wretched Devil launched a fucking meteor that not even Black Abyss would dare to take full force on. What would happen to a glass cannon like Dont?
Dont had clicked her tongue as she noticed how the meteor basically exploded into pellets, an effect that, in Yggdrasil, would simply be a visual, but here, it was apparently an additional effect of the spell, penetrating damage, not high-level surely, in different mini-projectiles of fire damage practically… It's not like Dont wanted to find out how much damage it did.
Therefore, somewhat deprived of advancing, she had taken flight to avoid most of the pellets, while dodging as many as she could to minimize the damage.
Fortunately, her speed and agility were high enough to avoid each pellet.
"Tch, if they keep causing so much explosive and in area, it will be dangerous for me to get close." She growled as he looked back at the duo in combat from her cover.
Well, the Shooter just growled as she changed into her Komodo Demon form, and tried to use her enhanced physical resistance to deal with any other shockwaves or strong damage she might suffer.
She was annoying, nothing more, and it's not like the fact that Black Abyss and that thing were moving away helped.
"FUCK. OKEY, NOW." She growled as she came up with a plan. To do so, she returned to her normal form, looking rather irritated that she had basically made two transformations for basically nothing, like an indecisive.
She reached into her inventory, and pulled out her divine weapon, namely, her rifle.
She quickly set it to divine bullets. More specifically, [Nuclear Heaven], the opposite spell to [Nuclear Hell], but with divine element instead of demonic.
Would it hurt her? Surely. But it would heal Black Abyss, damage that Devil, and deal with the demonic energy spread all over the Katze Plains.
She sighed as she aimed, looking for the duo she was fighting, as they were lost sight of for a moment.
Her anti-divination measures activated, and she froze.
…
At the secret base of the Drago- Anti-Player Alliance, consisting of Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Scarlet, at least mainly, they were trying to see through the cloud of black and red that had appeared in the middle of the Katze Plains.
First, that wave of powerful red energy appeared, instantly killing 320,000 living beings…
Then, after such a shock, Titania exploded into fire, light, and fury, confronting the cause of all the disaster.
A monster that boasted of being nothing more and nothing less than a servant of Komodo.
Platinum almost launched itself instantly, but Titania seemed to be handling it well…
Until an explosion of dark and red smoke occurred, with such great power, that the Katze Plains was dyed another color again, at the same time that the sky was covered by black smoke.
Of course, Titania's light could be made out through all the smoke, which spoke volumes about her, as it was certainly difficult to see through it with the Remote Viewing Mirror…
Especially with…
"Come on! Let me see! I swear! If that white ass ends up with even a scar! I swear on my name that I will not forgive that Komodo fascist!" Gold shouted as he tried to see the mirror between, squeezed between Platinum and Silver.
Be that as it may, the fight continued even within the cloud of smoke…
At the moment, that… Demon… Seemed to be even more… Destructive, or more powerful than Komodo itself… Or while Komodo was weak for now… He… Or she as Titania said… Could reach and surpass this level of destruction…
Platinum stood up, ready to activate the teleportation circle.
"Platinum, wait." Silver stopped him.
Tsaindorcus stared at the knight armor intently through his remote armor.
The pair stared at each other, silent.
Gold silently appeared between them.
"Kiss~ Kiss~" He whispered, causing Scarlet to punch him to the ground while Platinum and Silver sighed.
"I'll go with you." The silver armor finally said.
"Fine. I'll activate the-" Platinum nodded, and was about to reach out his hand to the table with the teleportation already ready… But the mirror moved to a random spot from the shock caused by Gold crashing hard into the ground, and the meeting room was engulfed in red flames as the mirror cracked.
…
Superbia, Achernar, and Bachelory were… Nervous. It was the only thing that could be said to describe their state.
Their queen was gone, because something had happened with Lady Black Abyss.
And they couldn't do anything. Not without orders or something that would allow them to leave their place… Eyesight was watching everything, and they were sure that if they were needed for any emergency, they would be called…
But for the moment, they had to maintain their position, defending Deorum Regnum.
"… Tch." Superbia growled as she punched another wall hard, cracking the marble in frustration. Even as a summoner, her physical stats were no joke compared to this world.
She gave a deadly glare with her black compound eyes towards her bodyguards, strongly warning them not to dare remember what they just saw for even a second longer.
On Achernar's part, he looked calm, but he wasn't at all…
He wanted to go to Katze and kill whatever was causing trouble for his Goddesses, and… If his Creator was hurt, he would kill the entire family tree of the one who dared to do so…
But… Queen Dont hadn't given them clear instructions… She just left… Therefore, he didn't know if he would be a hindrance by going, or if she left them here knowing that Deorum Regnum would be safe with them… Or if there was some plan, or something…
Whatever it was… He prayed to the other Supreme Lords that everything would turn out well…
Still, all that shaking he had been feeling, and the explosions he was hearing like faint thunder, clearly wasn't too good considering the distance to that place… Around 2000 kilometers away. Although of course, Achernar had the advantage of having especially sharp senses, both by class and race. Superbia, on the other hand, could only sense faint racial instinct vibes of trouble in the surroundings nearby.
"Is something wrong, Achernar, Superbia?" Lady Black Aby-! No… Bachelory appeared in the guise of the Paladin, with a calm smile.
"Uh… Lady Titania… She seems to be in trouble… Lady Nyx went to help her but… We have no reports yet." Achernar said seriously.
"I know~" Bachelory smiled more widely with the face of Black Abyss.
Superbia frowned, but didn't say anything. If there was anyone truly intelligent in this room right now, with a cool head despite his nerves, it was Bachelory. Superbia, who spent quite a bit of time with the Doppelgänger thanks to work, could say so with great certainty.
"Do you have any idea what it is?" Achernar asked the Prime Minister with a slight trace of a hiss.
"No~" He said with the most frivolous calmness, almost as if he was… Making fun of Achernar…?
This… He hissed at him, like a crocodile to an annoying prey.
"Don't play with me, shapeshifter… I'm not in the mood for clowning…" He exclaimed seriously at him, almost giving him a death glare.
Bachelory chuckled openly, staring with Black Abyss's golden eyes at the Dragonoid.
"Tell me, Achernar~ What happened when the Supreme Ladies fought?" Bachelory asked, making Superbia frown… Were they supposed to speak in code… Or did Eyesight activate the anti-divination defenses?
"… They were separated for a while, but they reconciled better than before." He explained, still not letting up on his annoyance.
"And how did you feel during that time when you were separated~?"
He growled with a hiss, but sighed at the end.
"Bad… I felt bad." He said without much anger.
"And how did you feel when they returned to normal~?"
"… Very happy… What's your point?" He asked, already tired of the game.
"Now~ What happened to you, the 5 Commanders of Titania, when the Supremes were stuck fighting with that Dragon?" He asked with a little more seriousness, looking out a window towards the blue sky.
"What happened…?" Achernar approached Bachelory, his eyes shining with anger.
"You hesitated~" 'Black Abyss' said with a slight chuckle. And he stared at Achernar, starting to walk intimidatingly towards him. "You, the 5 Commanders of Titania, of the strongest beings in the entire Palace, whom the Supreme Lords trusted to give you such positions… You hesitated." He said with an indifferent tone.
Achernar had retreated with each step of Bachelory. The form of his Creator… Although it was an imitation… It was… Intimidating… And right now, he was between the wall and the image of the Angel, who stared at him with her bright eyes, with the faint radiant light around her seeming to be a terrifying shadow of her immense armored figure.
"I DO NOT DOUBT THE SUPREMES!" The Dragonoid sentenced almost like a roar.
"Then why so scared~?" He said, regaining his smile and returning to a frivolous attitude. "There is no reason to doubt the Supreme Lords~ Then there is no need to fear~" He smiled. "We are tools, Achernar, Superbia. Tools that the Supremes forged and use at will. Why does a knife doubt that its owner returns from buying bread~? Why does a crown fear that the head that wears it will roll away for a second without it~? There is something very wise in one of the books in the Library of Curious Fairies. A book that tells of a God leading His people through the desert~ His people doubted their God countless times despite the miracles He caused~ However, this God used His most faithful follower, who hardly doubted Him, to regain the people's faith~" He said with an almost mystical and mysterious tone, approaching the window and looking out.
He was silent for a moment, and laughed, turning around.
"Those people were humans… Why do you, the Commanders, behave like a people of unfaithful humans~?" With an almost disappointed and condescending expression, he pointed again in a certain way…
"No… We are nothing similar… What may seem like doubt, is actually… A huge concern…" Achernar said, already seeming calmer, also looking out that window. "If I had lost my beloved Creator that day… A part of me would have died with her… We are tools, yes, but… What is a tool without someone to use it…? We are nothing without the Supremes." He exclaimed, clenching his fists.
"Fu~" Bachelory laughed again. "Yes~ We are tools~ We are meaningless without those who wield us~ But~ Why do we doubt our owners~? Why does a sword doubt that a knight can wield it~? Why does a hammer doubt that a carpenter can hammer a nail~? I understand your concern, Achernar." He said with a more neutral tone again. "It may not seem like it, but… As much as when the Supremes disappeared from our radar for a moment, as now… I am filled with concern for our Ladies. So much that I could die from the stress."
Achernar looked at Bachelory for a moment, before looking towards the horizon again.
"We will wait." He exclaimed.
"Not only that, Achernar~ Like I said that time~ They are the Supreme Overlords~ Whatever happens~ Whatever happens~ They will triumph~ They will return~ Whether they order us to go, or ask us to stay put~ We will obey, and blindly believe Their will. Because They are absolute~" Bachelory said, before chuckling, and turning away from the window. "I'll go make some coffee for the Supremes when they get back~ See you later, Achernar, Superbia~ Be prepared for anything~" He laughed.
"As always." Achernar exclaimed without moving from his position.
Superbia looked at him silently… She knew that wasn't the last thing he was going to say…
"Of course~ Don't expect the defeat of our Supremes~" He finally laughed, before leaving.
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Name: Infernal Archarcheologist
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