CHAPTER 49: A’S ENDGAME 3

"Two days more of this food, and Zeus will crumble," Hadas thought, as he raised his arm.

Hadas’s arm descended like the most discouraging last blow a being could receive. His arm was shrouded in darkness that itself seemed to shatter the movement of Allen’s body.

Then, for a bit less than a second, Hadas flinched. It felt like there were two Allens—one in front and the other behind him—only for his hand to descend and cut through a deforming image that vanished faster than time.

"Too slow," Allen smirked just above Hadas’s shoulders, landing the first blow on his shoulder with lightning-shrouded arms.

But the lightning exploded on touch, laying no single damage other than the rising dark smoke that incensed from the clothing of Hadas.

Hadas did nothing but applaud, although he had still misread Allen’s move. "Teleporting and leaving a very real afterimage. Impressive."

Hadas turned to face Allen, who had begun taking precautions and leaped significantly backwards, smiling in a way his mouth almost extended to his ears.

"I overestimated you. What a cautious mistake," Hadas teased as darkness began spiraling around him like a tornado.

"From now on I won’t move from this spot." Immediately, the darkness exploded, and other beings formed from it—about six of them, all with the same build as Hadas. Nothing different, except not as strong as the original body.

"I expected anything, Hadas," Allen muttered as his eyes scanned each of Hadas’s clones running at him.

"PLEASE! PLEASE! DON’T KILL ME!"

One of the supposed clones rasped, but its limbs kept moving violently at Allen.

"I HAVE CHILDREN! DON’T KILL ME, PLEASE, THEY STILL NEED ME!"

Another cried. Its eyes showed bitterness, but yet its limbs moved against its will.

"PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! I DON’T WANT TO DIE!"

The bitter anguished voices kept on coming, even as they charged in the clothing and body of Hadas, claws outstretched to devour Allen.

Allen’s heart throbbed at the reality before his eyes. "Hadas’s...but human souls," he whispered, decisions knocking hard on his heart as he continued to withdraw.

The first lunged at Allen in such a predictable angle that the ease to counter burned within him—but he hesitated at its pleading voice.

Slash!

"Argggh!" Allen moaned painfully as his attempted punch turned into a defense, ending up with long claws planted deep within his flesh.

Allen leaped backwards again while Hadas laughed deviously far ahead of him.

He slapped himself with his regenerating arm. "They’re dead souls, Allen...they can’t come back to life," he taunted, wiggling his head as if adjusting his mind, while their pleading still continued.

"CREATE," Allen ordered, providing detailed description to his system through thoughts.

[Activating Level 3 Lower Cursed Words]

[Target: Soil]

[Duration: 5 Minutes]

From the dust rose fresh-skinned beings, fashioned in Allen’s own style: two coiled horns, brutal fangs that naturally jutted outside, with the height of 6.7 feet and a humanoid structure but demon-strong skin. They were seven in number, mixed with both genders.

They looked just like living beings created from dust, but one thing was missing that made them stand like frozen figures—a soul.

"OBEY," Allen commanded once again without hesitation, as the souls in Hadas’s clothing kept striking at him while he borrowed easily through their predictable attacks.

[Activating Level 4 Cursed Word]

[Target: Allenies]

[Duration: 4 Minutes, 40 Seconds]

"Exactly the time my Allenies will exist," Allen smirked as the twisted, horned beings of his own creation began moving, eyes glowing pure white.

They moved swiftly, cradling the clones of Hadas on Allen’s will and pinning them tight to the ground. But the clones seemed not to attack them back—just struggling to rise while straining toward Allen.

Allen charged straight at Hadas with quick-moving feet, supported by the 7th Allenie, who happened to be a female under his command.

Hadas’s face went almost pale—not because Allen had restrained his forced allies, but because even though not perfect, Allen had just done one thing he himself could never do and only Zeus could. Something he had envied for a lifetime—Creation.

But when his smile resurfaced, he thought, ’Even that will trigger my stingy brother.’

Allen and the female Allenie flanked Hadas, charging in with a lightning punch. But Hadas’s seriousness doubled, his presence waving across the arena like a silent but disastrous wind.

"I like opponents who Create. Those have been my rivals since the beginning because...I destroy," Hadas smirked, waving his hand in a semi-arc as darkness opened up like a maw consuming the whole arena in front of him.

Allen barely escaped the dark maw by forming his clone in front of him and pulling himself out of range of the disaster, though he made it quick since he didn’t want to reveal the cloning ability just yet.

The whole space in front of him—including his Allenies and Hadas’s allies—was wiped out, or maybe devoured. But when he looked again, none were there.

"Sometimes I have to remind myself I’m fighting a god," Allen murmured as he exhaled heavy breaths.

But it was only the beginning.

---

Elsewhere, below the surface...

Isabell’s breaths were ragged after hours of forcing the goblins into one spot with her light, which felt like continuous needle stings to both their bodies and souls. Meanwhile, both Thessarias wrapped tight chains around them, binding the mound like a bunch of broomsticks.

Woop! Tasha drove her metal baton straight into the head of a goblin attempting to free itself.

"Guess I’m getting a hang of this," she smirked, resting the baton on her shoulder with a sly smile.

"You’re the best person to play that role with your low human strength. You don’t even need to avoid injuries; a hit straight to the head is effective," Thessaria the Original smirked, as the goblin’s head bent downward as if to confirm her words.

"Guess we’re done here," Isabell smirked as she scanned the silent people—both elves and demons—stacked together in the corners. Though freed from torment, the sight of the roaring goblins kept the fear burning in them.

As they turned to leave, the arena sparked with dark wind. When they turned back, the goblins—

They were blending into each other, merging from hundreds into one body and enlarging as they morphed into one.

Isabell, out of them all, stepped back the most. Even her light seemed like a fragment compared to the darkness carried by the still-forming being. A cold shiver ran down her spine as her wings dropped and her confidence was immediately replaced with fear.

When the grotesque morphing was complete, a single goblin stood—robust like a giant, with a head that only contained a maw, and a large eye the size of a human head unblinking on its left chest. Its hands—one protruding as a smashing hammer and the other curved like a crescent moon.

"I did complain things started too easy," Tasha whispered as she stepped back, eyes perplexed at the giant goblin.

"What the hell is that?" a voice resonated from behind.

It was Lilitu—and, like always, backed up by Thalvron.

The goblin roared as if answering them, "I am your worst nightmare." The sheer pressure of the loud shout shook the underground, as if threatening an earthquake.