'Freaking hell,' Zhen Liu cursed as he began to manipulate the squares composing his [Astra]. 'This stuff is way too nasty! We to take cover, now.'

While Dante was descending to the lower levels of the cavern, the Gallop Brothers were getting stun-locked by the falling rain of cursed [Chaos] the bastard had left in his wake.

Zhen Liu, however, could see that this strange rain could be easily blocked with any solid cover. Using a bit of broken mining equipment and his paper cranes, Zhen Liu managed to create some covers to shelter the three horse-like kaijin.

[Bleh! Thank you, War Chief,] Depth Strider said first with a shake of their head.

[Ugh! My skin feels like it's been dragged through several different kinds of mud,] Pegasoar complained.

[You mean shit?] Rail Horn asked.

[Similar textures.]

Once the Gallop Brothers were no longer being affected by the rain, Zhen Liu could feel his body become significantly lighter in the process.

Milord, is now a bad time?

And it was just in time too, because Logos and Pathos had something special in store for Zhen Liu.

'Kind of? I think Dante is about to kill a bunch of people to demoralize the—'

=Oh, don't worry about that. Arbalest is going to run interference at the cost of his life.=

'What the fuck?'

…Wait, seriously?...

"Oh no..."

"It's even more terrible up close and personal like this."

While the remaining rebel warriors did their best to try and assist their fallen comrades and loved ones, many of whom appeared to have dim eyes as if their wills to live just got ripped from their souls, Dante had finally decided to descend to their level and force them to behold all of his vile majesty.

^Ugh! What's that smell?!^

It's like decay mixed with pig shit and sadness!

From the vantage point on the ground, the rebels had seen what kind of monster Dante had become in the past few minutes.

As such, they weren't entirely shocked by the sight of him, his distorted physique, and the myriad of faces that covered his body. However, having his presence this close was an entirely different feeling altogether.

^Bah! Forget the smell, this aura is just...oppressive as all hell!^

^Its like someone's got a blade aimed at my skull!^

^More like a giant hammer...^

The kaijin of the mines always radiated this aura of disgust that made people feel more and more disgusted with the idea of living. Some were able to cope with the pressure; many others could not.

The aura radiating off of Dante at this moment was just like those horrific torturers but significantly more concentrated.

The monster didn't even have to get within spitting distance to make the rebel warriors feel as if the act of breathing was too troublesome of an act to maintain.

Dante just had to simply…stand there. But alas, the false Kaijin Lord wasn't that kind.

The chimeric mess of a Kaijin Lord swept a critical eye over the rebel warriors and the puny slaves that they were protecting with all of their feeble might.

Evidently, the negative emotions Dante was feeling was being amplified by his merged knights.

[What disgusting wretches.]

[We should put them out of their misery.]

[After drowning them in it.]

[Let's just burn them all and listen to their screams.]

[Let's start with the children,] Oizys voice eventually rose out from the chorus. [It's more heart wrenching when they die.]

[Agreed.]

Dante didn't immediately lash out with tentacles made of tar and [Chaos]. Instead, he went through the effort in making crossbow-like structures all over his body and loading them with projectiles.

Dante didn't go through all of this trouble because he thought this was more efficient way of killing his victims.

No, the reason eh went through all of their trouble was so that he could force everyone to watch and give them the faintest sense of hope.

With all the time he was taking in preparing these crossbows, he gave the rebels plenty of time to try and interrupt him.

To try and use their abilities to stop this unfolding tragedy.

"Anyone who can use [Chaos], get up here and help take this bastard out! Or at the very least, prevent him from hurting our loved ones!"

^Right!^

~Die, you bastard!~

A barrage of aether arts, accompanied by a smattering of [Chaos]-based attacks, were fired in Dante's direction with the aim of disrupting his attack but with the hope that somebody would get a lucky shot and pop him in a fatal manner.

Unfortunately, that didn't happen.

Regardless of the nature of these attacks, they all seemed to wash over Dante like rain falling against an oiled umbrella.

In other words, it was useless.

Vut even though it was useless, the warriors kept trying and firing attack after attack in a vain attempt to stop Dante's slaughter.

For all intents and purposes, this was nothing more than a desperate attempt at best in preventing an inevitable death, and that made the despair to follow much more terrible.

Because there was no feeling worse, than realizing one's efforts were all for nothing.

"Keep attacking! Keep firing! Something has to work eventually!"

"It's no use...It's not use!"

[How sad...]

Having entertained these fools for longer than they deserved, Dante finally focused his attacks on his intended targets: the fallen young slaves that were so wrought with despair that killing them would be considered the greatest of mer—

[Hateful Javelin!]

POW!

[OW! WHAT THE FUCK?!]

"Huh? Where did that...what?"

But before any tragedy could play out, a long porcupine quill the size of a javelin suddenly flew right through the barrage of attacks being used by the rebels and nailed Dante right in the face.

The blow was fatal, but the results were rendered moot as part of Dante's fucked-up [Core] merely popped in response.

That stated, everyone was still stunned silent about this turn of events.

Especially when they found out who was it that dealt such a fatal blow.

"What the fuck? Who threw that attack?"

~I...I don't know.~

Wait...why does it feel like someone's coming from behind...what the hell?

[What sort of mockery is this...]

[...]

Stepping through the crowd with a strangely stoic aura to them was a strange kaijin that vaguely resembled a porcupine mixed with several other animals.

Based on the way it was shaped, and the aura it was giving off, this kaijin was clearly one that Dante had made. As such, the rebels couldn't help be bewildered as they processed the fact that this strange kaijin had suddenly decided to harm the man who made them.

Then again, none present were as bewildered as Dante and the kaijin empowering him at this time.

[What the fuck do you think you're doing?] Dante hissed and sneered at his defiant creation.

In response to this display of distaste and disdain, Arbalest didn't flinch or move. He simply stared at his creator and enslaver with a look of utter contempt.

[Is this sudden rebellion an attempt to have the mortals like you or something?] Dante asked with acid dripping with every word. [Or is this your attempt to at convincing the so-called other Kaijin Lord to spare your life. Because I can already tell you that something this desperate won't work in the—.]

[This isn't about them,] Arbalest interrupted. [Well, this isn't just about them. This is about what you've done to them, to me, my fellow beasts, and how it all stemmed from the fact that you're just a miserable human being who wants others to suffer, just because you don't know how to atone for your guilt otherwise!]

[...what?]

"Wait, what?"

Out of everything that could be said in this moment, that was the last thing anyone expected to hear coming from Arbalest.

Not because of who Arbalest was, but because who he was directing these feelings towards.

The hell kind of guilt could a monster like Dante have?

Regardless of what the rebels thought, though, these words worked surprisingly well against Dante.

[What the fuck did you just say to me, you little rodent?] Dante asked while circulating [Chaos], his rage building all the while.

Arbalest, for his part, didn't back down.

In fact, he brought out even more dirty laundry.

[Everytime you made one of us, little bits of your memory, your past, got baked into our being,] Arbalest began to monologue, hiding the fact that he was only able to remember these bits due to the intervention of a certain other Kaijin Lord. [And from these little bits and pieces, I know a lot more about you than what you present to us. Hell, I know more than what you've been telling yourself.]

[...]

Throughout this entire battle, Dante had always presented himself with this air of total confidence. Even when he got frustrated, even when he got pushed against the metaphorical wall, he still had this air of confidence.

But right now, before Arbalest's words...he looked nervous.