High Command: East Gate
Khever Region
Plomux-Central
May 22nd
531st Divine Year
The path to Plomux High Command stretched out before the Gozonian Army. Overhead, the sky was bright blue, promising a bright, sunny day.
The rhythmic sound of the pounding of thousands of hooves filled the air as the Demon Army's forces rode in unison toward their goal: drawing out the Aramisian Army stationed in the region.
Arthur and Evan rode at the vanguard, perched atop their muscular warhorses—Level 750 Creatures, both of them.
Not too far from them, a duo of female Demon Generals Arthur was familiar with chatted with him, and with each giggle, they both threw him flirtatious smiles, their intentions glaringly obvious.
Their conversation came to a close soon after and just as Arthur waved them off, Evan finally asked the question that had been on his mind.
"I'm just asking though…"
Arthur turned to him, eyebrow raised.
"Asking what?"
Evan tilted his head toward the demonesses, who now pretended to be engaged in conversation, though their glances at Arthur betrayed their act.
"…do you have any intentions of responding to their rather obvious advances?"
"Oh, nahh."
Arthur's reply was nonchalant, as if the idea didn't warrant much thought. He glanced around them instead, his sharp eyes sweeping over the endless ranks of demon soldiers around them.
Then, he turned his gaze back to the Lieutenant General leading this Army Corps, a woman named Aravae Magmyar.
Evan had seen her before, during his first week on Aramis when he and Arthur were still dealing with the Serial Killer case on Gozon. (Chapter 863)
Arthur had chosen this location on a whim, quite literally throwing a blind dart at a map of Plomux Central. By chance, it landed on the east. Naturally, Evan followed suit, since he was officially the godslayer's Aide.
To outside observers, however, it appeared as though Arthur and the other Major Generals were leading the charge. This was intentional, as Aravae had concealed her presence, planning to launch a surprise attack on the Aramisian Lieutenant General stationed here.
*RUMRF!
Arthur's warhorse let out a deep grunt, and Arthur leaned forward, gently patting its head to calm it.
"I think it's high time you used your Mask though."
Evan remarked casually, breaking the brief silence and Arthur nodded.
"Hmm? True."
Arthur raised his left hand, summoning his Mask from his subspace and donning it. With the Mask in place, he resumed stroking the horse's head.
"Why do you still use that thing anyway?"
Evan asked, his tone more curious than critical and Arthur didn't lift his hand from the horse as he answered.
"I'm conducting an Experiment on Universal Influence. I want to see how much of the stuff I can gain whilst keeping certain details of myself hidden."
Satisfied with the horse's now calm demeanour, Arthur sat upright in his saddle. He looked at the walls of Plomux Central dominating the horizon as he continued.
"Though it might become useless after the Summit next month though. Next, it'd be up to how much the Race Rulers can limit information from the Interstellar Stage from entering Aramis."
The Gozonian Annual Interstellar Summit.
Evan had heard bits and pieces about it from Alvey, McEnda and Sigesi and from what he heard, it was supposed to happen next month.
It was an occasion where Generals and Soldiers deserving of special merit from all of Gozon's Battlefront Worlds across the Interstellar Stage gathered to report their yearly achievements to the planet's Rulers.
Merits and Awards were given depending on how good the achievements were and Generals were able to make many requests like asking for more troops, and resources or they could even gain the right to draw from the planetary defence budget.
Noble Demons from all across the Galaxy would be in attendance, so Arthur, who wanted to imprint his name into Valmone's history, felt this would be the perfect stage.
Not long after he said that, multiple powerful presences showed up in his perception and he looked up to see numerous figures standing on the walls ahead.
Evan also noticed them and turned his gaze in the same direction, activating his Farsight skill to zoom in on the figures.
His warhorse took a few steps closer, and suddenly Evan was hit with a strange feeling.
'Huh? Is this Resonance? With who...?'
His gaze locked onto the source of that feeling which was one of the figures standing on the walls of Plomux High Command.
'A Hero?'
A moment after he had that thought, his eyes widened in surprise.
'Wait, I can detect Heroes from other planets too?!'
Evan thought Heroes being able to detect each other was a same-planet thing. He didn't expect that it would work with Heroes of other planets too.
Naturally, the other party also noticed him and their reaction was quite...loud. The young man stepped forward and shouted, his voice magically amplified to echo across the battlefield.
[YOU!!!]
He pointed directly at Evan, drawing the attention of many of his fellow Aramisians, who were puzzled by his sudden outburst.
And he gave them an explanation with his next words.
[YOU'RE A HERO OF ANOTHER WORLD, ARE YOU NOT?! WHY ARE YOU NOT DEFENDING YOUR OWN WORLD AND INSTEAD AIDING THESE ACCURSED DEMONS IN INVADING THIS ONE?!]
For a moment, there was silence. Everyone who heard his words exchanged confused glances with those around them, unsure of who he was addressing.
[I'M TALKING TO YOU, MASKED HERO BESIDE THE SILVER SUMMONER!]
When Evan didn't respond, the man added more to his declaration, sending ripples of shock through the nearby Demon Generals.
Their gazes shifted to Evan, their expressions a mix of suspicion and disbelief.
Evan was believed to be a Dragonkin from another world. His arrival coincided with the reinforcements from Gozon, leading most to assume he was one of them.
That he was another world's Hero, however, was a revelation none had anticipated.
Evan, visibly annoyed by the abrupt exposure of his identity, facepalmed and clicked his tongue in irritation. His eyes then moved to the Aramisian Hero responsible for the revelation.
[Would it have killed you to shut your mouth?]
[?!]
The Aramisian Hero was momentarily taken aback by Evan's dismissive tone, but he quickly regained his composure and glared back at the Rogue Hero.
Initially, Evan seemed prepared to dismiss the encounter entirely, but then he felt something—a subtle, almost imperceptible sensation. It wasn't a physical impact, but it mirrored the familiar feeling of an attack rebounding off his defences, too weak to penetrate his durability.
In this case, however, it wasn't his physical durability being tested—it was his Mental Resistance.
His expression darkened instantly, and his sharp gaze snapped back to the Aramisian Hero. Beside him, Arthur noticed the shift and called out to him.
"Evan…"
"I know."
Magic power flowed into Evan's tongue as he questioned the Aramisian Hero.
[You bastard… you just tried to control my mind, didn't you?]
The Aramisian Hero froze, his shock plain in his wide-eyed expression.
While his skill to manipulate minds might work on others, it failed utterly against Evan, who possessed a resistance born from past experiences—and an abiding hatred for such intrusions.
Evan's eyes glowed with light and the symbol of his Mystic Eyes appeared in his irises. He raised his hand and activated a skill that escaped detection by anyone due to his Mystic Eyes' ability to conceal Mimicked Skill activations.
'Gravilife Convergence.'
The skill Eliza had gained from the Cavern of Trials was his selection, and the effects manifested in an instant despite the distance.
The space around the Aramisian Hero warped as a gravitational vortex materialized behind him. Its pull was irresistible, dragging him and several nearby comrades into its epicentre.
They struggled, unleashing their divinities in a futile attempt to counter the overwhelming force, but the gravity was so dense that it distorted their energy.
The ground beneath the vortex cracked open as a massive fist, forged from the magically reinforced stone and metal of the wall, erupted upwards.
It seized the struggling figures in an unrelenting grip, draining their life forces with the subtle but potent influence of the Law of Life.
Evan noticed the law's power being drawn in and was momentarily surprised, but he didn't forget to clench his fist.
His action was the signal for the stone-metal fist-shaped construct to begin crushing the captives in its grasp.
The Aramisian Generals, of course, weren't about to let Evan eliminate their Hero so easily. They moved swiftly to intervene, but someone else acted even faster.
**BOOM!!!
A longsword struck from above, shattering the massive Stone-Metal fist in a single blow. The blade, brimming with the power of the Law of Swords, tore through the gravitational vortex at its core, splitting it cleanly and dispelling it entirely.
Wielding this sword, was a tall man with an imposing presence. His spiked hair stood out, and his armour gleamed with a dark, metallic sheen. Arcane symbols etched across its surface glowed faintly, pulsing with light.
[HERO OR NOT, IT DOESN'T FUCKING MATTER! IF HE'S WITH THE DEMONS, HE'S AN ENEMY.]
The man's gaze shifted to Arthur after he spoke and a crooked grin spread across his face.
[You… you're the one they call 'Silver Demon Summoner,' aren't you? Who's the fool who thought of that title? There's nothing 'Demonic' about you… godslayer!]
The man's voice rang with conviction as he infused his blade with energy and propelled himself through the air at supersonic speed.
Demons in the vicinity scrambled to intercept him, unleashing attacks in a desperate attempt to halt his charge. Yet, he cut through every attack with a single swing of his sword, blazing a path directly to Arthur's position.
With a spin, he cleaved through the fiery breath of Arthur's steed, closing the gap and bringing his blade down in a decisive arc aimed at the godslayer's neck.
But the man knew his strike wouldn't land. After all—
'He's tracking my blade with his eyes!'
Just before his sword made contact, a flash of silver filled his vision, and his blade was forcefully deflected.
Twisting mid-air, the man landed on his feet with an impact so fierce it cracked the ground beneath him, sending shockwaves outward that scattered nearby demons.
He raised his gaze to Arthur and upon narrowing his eyes, the man caught sight of the peculiar, semi-transparent blade Arthur wielded.
'That's… quite an unusual weapon.'
Even as the thought crossed his mind, the battlefield around him had erupted into chaos. The Gozonians and Aramisians clashed in full force, their conflict unfolding in a whirlwind of violence around them.
[I wonder how they mistook you for a Demon when you're clearly a slayer just like me. Except your fangs are primed to kill the divine…]
The crimson-eyed man who had attacked Arthur spoke with a disdainful smirk, his voice steeped in contempt as his aura surged outward. In that instant, Evan felt a wave of lethargy wash over him, his muscles growing heavy and sluggish.
'So this… is what a real dragonslayer feels like.'
No amount of debuff resistance could block the slayer's power. Even Mesarthim's Yellow flames of purification were ineffective. Evan could feel it instinctively.
'I see...His power is affecting my base power. My stat bonuses still work just fine, just that the boosts they give are reduced since most of them scale off my base power.'