Chapter 630: Mephistopheles
Mephistopheles, god of death, could not swallow the shame. To lose against a human, against both Ryuji Vincenzo and Alan Grigor.
Born a demon, denied the throne of Demon King, he had bent the knee to the first and most arrogant queen, Lilith.
Her son…
The thought seared through him like acid.
From the moment Serena ignored his desperate prayers, from the day she chose a hero over him. All because of the Demon Queen’s twisted dream of peace with humans. His hatred had festered.
Now he was locked within Alan, forced to watch through human eyes.
A filthy, inferior human.
But he had learned everything. The memories, the desires, the weakness they couldn’t hide. He drank them in, choking on the truths he could never see as a god.
“Keep wasting your holy power,” he hissed. “Drain it dry. Then I’ll kill you both—son of the traitor… spawn of that bitch.”
His hatred poured through every fibre of Alan’s being, tainting the aura that clung to the boy’s blade.
***
Clang!
Alan’s blade cut through the air, slicing the afterimage of Ryuji, who stepped on the air and dropped behind him. Blood Reaver howled, the steel blurring downward. Alan spun rapidly, golden aura exploding as he swept his sword to meet the strike.
Clash!
Sparks burst from the power, sending Alan and Ryuji sliding back through the dirt.
“You’re getting slower!”
Ryuji pressed harder, muscles bulging with thick veins, scales half torn now grinding over his shoulders with every clash. His blue eyes glared into Alan’s with a twisted smirk and clenched teeth.
“Hah! But you haven’t knocked me down yet!”
Alan gritted his teeth, boots carving trenches as he slid across the shattered ground. The weight of the axe threatened to bury him, but holy light raged through his arms, flooding the blade with strength.
He’s stronger than before and much faster.
Alan’s pupils dilated, unable to match the arrogant brat who used to make him chuckle, heaving with a tight chest, with all his effort to hold Ryuji back.
“Alan!”
Ryuji roared, twisting Blood Reaver in a brutal circle. Deng! Alan’s guard broke, sparks spraying as he staggered aside, narrowly avoiding the blade that cleaved a deep trench in the earth where he’d stood.
Boom!
The ground split open, dust geysering upward.
“Ryuji!”
Alan tapped the ground, darting through it as golden streaks wrapped his body. Ryuji tracked the movement, eyes narrowing as afterimages split in every direction.
Is this the power of the hero of light?
He gripped Blood Reaver tightly. But he’s not fast enough to fool me.
“Behind!”
Ryuji spun, Blood Reaver carving through the air—clang! Alan’s real blade met it, sparks scattering between them as their faces came within inches. Sweat gleamed on Alan’s brow; fury burned in his golden eyes.
“Brother!” Alan spat the word like a curse. “Why are you so damn strong!?”
Ryuji shoved Alan back, their blades tearing free.”
Behind him, the huge white castle, thousands of demon knights fought against the knights from Grigor, hundreds of them now free of the curse, recovering behind Ciela and the two succubi.
Alan’s eyes opened wide.
“Because I can’t lose anymore, there are things I must protect.” Ryuji’s voice echoed in the plains, a powerful voice that rumbled through the dust.
He watched from below, a painful ache in his chest, a shaking sword, the holy light flickering as if uncertain and caught between two wills.
“I see…” His eyes became clear. “I’m proud of you.”
Golden fire erupted from him, flooding the battlefield with blinding light. Ryuji braced, reinforcing his scales as they absorbed the heat.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Alan’s strikes came in a storm, each swing faster, sharper, desperation bleeding into every blow. Ryuji blocked, parried, and endured with each impact rattling his bones. His left arm burned, the strain crawling up into his shoulder.
He’s losing focus… His power’s slipping.
However, the strikes didn’t stop.
Alan’s blade distorted as it screamed through the air, trembling with each clash. The golden light faded the more he exerted himself.
Ryuji’s claws locked against the axe’s shaft, the shock of every impact rattling through his bones. Alan’s blade shone unevenly, light burning bright then dimming as if draining holy fire with each swing.
He’s pushing himself too far.
But Ryuji saw the gleam in Alan’s eyes, unshaken delight, unyielding determination.
“Don’t you dare hold back!” Alan roared, golden aura snapping to life again, flooding the battlefield with radiance. His strikes came harder, faster, each one aimed at crushing Ryuji’s guard.
Their clashing blades reverberated through the plains.
Ryuji’s grin sharpened as sparks burst between them. “As if I ever would, Alan!”
Blood Reaver carved a savage arc, black steel colliding with holy fury. The impact split the ground open, air shrieking around them.
Alan staggered, knees dipping under the weight, but he didn’t flounder. His chest puffed, yet he pressed forward once again, blade raised.
“You’ve grown strong, Ryuji,” he said between ragged breaths. “Stronger than I ever thought you’d be.”
Ryuji smiled as he shoved him back. “You too, you stubborn man! How did you hide this strength!?”
The battlefield roared with their clash, a fight to prove themselves to each other, to explain their journey, feelings and respect. The air trembled with every strike or brutal swing, carrying their pride and defiance.
***
Eventually, Alan’s sword faltered. The golden edge trembled, light sputtering out as the weight of Blood Reaver crashed against it one final time.
Clang!
The blade spun from his grip, skidding across the ruined stone as Alan dropped to one knee, panting desperately to recover, sweat pouring down his chin.
Ryuji stood over him, his scales steaming with deep cracks, slowly dropping to the ground while gripping Blood Reaver. He struggled to remain straight, also panting, but his grin was fierce, almost boyish.
“I… I finally did it,” Ryuji muttered, voice shaking with disbelief. “I beat you, brother…. Now you’ll let me marry them, right?”
Alan’s eyes widened, he remembered his threat about Anne and Liana… even his sister Alice, that he wouldn’t let Ryuji marry them until he won. “Haha!” Alan raised his head, weary eyes glimmering. For a moment, they flickered, blue to green, then back again. A wry smile touched his lips.
“You’ve surpassed me, Ryuji. I’m proud… Of course, then… hahaha, you can marry them.”
Ryuji stepped closer, lowering Blood Reaver, victory swelling hot in his chest. The ache of inferiority, his worry about being denied marriage to them by Alan fading. Alan’s shadow finally vanished, replaced by a sense of peace.
Alan also exhaled, lowering his guard.
“Ugh…” Ryuji’s right arm throbbed, torn flesh knitting together as his demonic power restored it, finally. “Fighting one armed was annoying.”
That was the opening.
Before Ryuji could react, Alan’s arm twisted unnaturally.
“Wha—” The hand shot forward, spearing through scale and flesh.
Ryuji’s eyes widened as Alan’s arm drove straight into his chest.
***
Ryuji’s grin froze.
A sharp pressure split his chest, then fire seared through his lungs. He coughed, crimson spilling from his mouth in a violent spray. His knees buckled as Alan’s hand twisted deeper, tendrils of black energy tearing through scale and flesh alike.
No… impossible—!
His body convulsed, divine power rushing instinctively to heal the wound, but it clashed against something colder, fouler. Black tendrils spread from the puncture, necrosis devouring him from within. His own regeneration turned against him, the holy spark trying to knit flesh that rotted faster than it could mend.
Ryuji stumbled back, clutching the hole in his chest. Every breath rattled like broken glass. He reached blindly for Blood Reaver, the weapon half-buried in the dirt.
“Alan…?” No…” His hoarse voice cracked, rage boiling through his veins.
Alan rose slowly, his movements no longer his own. His body swayed, then straightened, shoulders rolling back with a disgusting crack. There wasn’t the slightest flicker of holy power anymore.
When his head lifted, his eyes were black voids with green pupils gleaming like venom.
A grin stretched across his face, twisted and sharp as he formed the black scythe once again, twirling it once with each step towards Asmodeus.
“I have to thank you. Demon Lord.”
Ryuji’s heart sank.
He gripped Blood Reaver and dragged the weapon free, and his vision painted red.
Damn it… How could I be so careless?
Mephisto’s voice rumbled from Alan’s mouth, no longer soft or even close to the original. It was dark, deep and disgusting. “If not for your stupid duel with the Hero, his power would have kept me sealed and restrained forever.”
Ryuji spat blood, holding his chest while trying to adjust.
He lifted Blood Reaver, shakily gripping it with both hands, blood pouring from his chest, a hole revealing his lack of heart.
For anyone else, only death awaited them.
“I’ll tear you out, Mephisto!”
The god’s laughter shook the battlefield, echoing like a thousand voices.
“Try, boy. Try and prove you’re worthy of the throne you stole. Human!”