CHAPTER 239: WHEN THE HELL COMES TOGETHER

[YOU CAN’T DO THAT!]

[HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?]

[WE WON’T LET YOU DIE!!!]

[WE FORBID YOU TO GO THERE!]

Dozens of gods and goddesses began sending him messages, but Atlas paid no attention to any of them. An idea had come to his mind—he had to take a gamble, a dangerous one that could spell his doom.

"I can recover in two days... What happened?" Juliet asked, filled with fear, terrified of what she thought Atlas might want.

"What about everyone else... Aveline, Mother, and all the remaining ancient dragons, the Epsilon Empire Army, and the Church of the Night Pope and his soldiers? How long would it take to teleport them?" Atlas asked.

"A month. At most a month..." Juliet had said.

"Isn’t the barrier still secure?" Atlas had asked.

"Yes," Juliet replied.

"Then get ready, we’re going to war," Atlas responded, turning to Irene and saying, "Go to the teleportation circle, enter the Sun Palace in the capital, and convey these words to my uncle Aether:" He then took a deep breath and spoke:

"Either salvation or destruction. The choice is yours. A month from now, when the full moon appears in the sky, in the middle of the night, we will fight against millions of soldiers as Selene’s Moonlight shines upon us."

Irene shook her head up and down, even though she was afraid, and then left the area.

Meanwhile, Atlas turned to another of the messenger vampires in the throne room and said, "Go to the Great Elf Palace and tell them these words," and then took another deep breath and spoke:

"The Honorable Member of the Elves, the Valuable Child of the Sages, and the Duke of the Empire demands the repayment of your debt. Atlas Shorkeeper, the first Duke of the Fourth Duchy of the Epsilon Empire, summons all elves to war. I want everyone to be ready when Selene’s moonlight shines in the sky at the full moon."

The messenger vampire shook his head and, with his hair standing on end, left the throne room and went to the teleportation circle on the second floor of Shadowfall Palace, which would transport him to the elf palace.

Immediately afterward, another messenger vampire turned and, without pausing for even a second, said, "Go to the Dwarf Empire and convey these words to the Queen of the Mountains," took another deep breath, and then spoke:

"Great Queen of the Dwarves, your friend Atlas Shorekeeper seeks your aid in matters of life and death. When Selene’s Moonlight shines upon us, when the full moon illuminates the sky, we will fight with every soldier at your disposal."

As the messenger vampire made his way to the second floor of Shadowfall Palace, Atlas had no one left to call upon and had taken his seat on the throne.

There was only one thing Atlas understood. He had finally grasped why his conversation with Chaos kept echoing in his mind.

[If this continues, you will die.]

[You have made the moves that lock your fate.]

[While everyone else’s fate is changing, yours is locked.]

And many more.

This brought Lucifer’s words to the forefront.

[When you reach the point where you lose everyone you love and value, you must swallow this pill.]

These words were spoken to Atlas when the time came for him to take action, telling him what he had to do when the moment arrived.

His fate had already been sealed. This war would be the war in which he would die. He had to face a power that even the Sages could not resist, but Atlas had already fought Beelzebub.

He had fought a twelve-day battle with him, a futile one that ended with his defeat, and in his previous life, he had been far weaker than he was now.

He could have succeeded.

"Juliet, the other Ancient Demons... Are any of them dead?" Atlas had asked.

"Three of them. Mammon, Asmodeus, and Leviathan are dead. Satan and Belphegor are severely injured. Both were betrayed by Beelzebub. The only one left who can fight is Beelzebub... unless all of this is just a game," Juliet replied.

Atlas smiled; hope had returned in an instant.

Beelzebub was the demon who tried to steal Lucifer’s sin, "Pride," and merge it with his own sin, "Gluttony"... He was a demon too proud to play games.

He was honorable, proud, and powerful.

The only reason Atlas respected him, despite hating him, was because of that.

At least he was a realistic devil.

In this situation, it was understandable that he would betray others. What Atlas was really curious about was why Juliet hadn’t told Atlas earlier that the other ancient devils had died.

When he asked Juliet this question, she replied, "Because I was worried that you would rush off to save them... I didn’t want to lose you too, when I was already facing the possibility of losing my sisters and brothers."

Still, nothing had changed. Atlas would move forward regardless and carry out the operation he had set his mind on.

A long time had passed. By the middle of the month, when the stars illuminated the sky with their light, Atlas calmly watched Selene’s beautiful moonlight as he gazed up at the sky.

The full moon was at its peak. Millions of soldiers were inside and outside Shorekeeper City.

A vast area spanning tens of kilometers was equipped with a massive teleportation circle. Juliet had worked day and night, refusing to sleep, and had chosen to cling to the unfounded, nearly impossible hope that Atlas had given her. It was the only option, in every sense of the word.

Even a Sage like Juliet didn’t know what to do. The gods and goddesses had tried to help the mortals of the world as much as they could, even if it was too late.

Still, everything now depended on the final outcome.

The number of portals appearing around the world had decreased significantly. It would not be wrong to say that they had decreased dramatically. While it was frightening to say that Beelzebub was planning something, it seemed like a real possibility, and this was naturally the last thing anyone wanted.

Atlas was fixated on the light of the full moon in the sky, constantly thinking about the words Cassandra had spoken to him.

[Whatever you do, I will be by your side. If necessary, I will stand against those I hold most dear, if that is what you desire.]

Dozens of memories kept swirling in his mind, and he tried to make himself as happy and hopeful as possible by thinking about his past friendships and the friendships he had made in this life.

When everything was ready, Atlas immediately turned to look at the emperors, kings, and queens gathered in the Throne Room.

"Please take your places at the head of your troops. We will activate the teleportation circle in five minutes. I will be at the front, together with Juliet. If the Sages die, we will have no chance of winning, so we must do everything in our power."

As soon as he said these words, every noble except Aether and Aelia left the room, and the two of them locked eyes with Atlas.

"Are you sure you want to do this? There’s still time to turn back," Aether asked with great concern.

"Uncle," Atlas said calmly.

"My sister is there, the woman of my life is there, my family is there. Now that we have a chance, with the words of Lucifer and even Chaos weighing heavily on me, I don’t want to miss this enormous opportunity," he said.

With Atlas’ words, Aelia took a few steps forward and said, "But you have another family here."

"I am aware of that, but the moment those barriers fall, everything will turn to ruin. You will suffer in the future, you will die. I don’t want that. It is my natural right to wish for my entire family to live together," Atlas replied.

These words made both Aether and Aelia accept the situation, if not completely.

"Have it your way," Aether said, then took Aelia’s hand and left the throne room.

Only Atlas and Juliet remained in the throne room. Outside Shadowfall Palace, thousands of pure-blooded vampire soldiers stood guard. Irene had been sent directly away from Shorekeeper City, to the capital. In short, Atlas had wanted to protect Irene from any possible danger.

Of course, the city’s own people were also among those who needed protection. Everyone who would not be participating in the war had been taken out of the capital, or more precisely, outside the massive teleportation circle.

This way, when the time came, the vampires assigned to them could bring them back to the city, and the people themselves could be as safe as Irene.

Irene had been sent directly to her family.

However, the time had come.

"Begin," Atlas said suddenly. Of course, he had said this to Juliet.

The moment he said it, Juliet activated the teleportation circle.

A blue light so bright it blinded the eyes shone so brightly that it illuminated even the darkness of the night, and then everyone inside the teleportation circle was teleported to the area where the battle between life and death would take place.

In the blink of an eye, millions of soldiers, thousands of commanders, dozens of kings and queens, two emperors, and an empress had been teleported around the barrier.

The entrance to the exit of hell would be made in a short time.