Chapter 1069 Legends
As the white creature landed between the two fighters, the entire ground was upturned by his meteoric landing. The two fighters were pushed back as their attacks diffused, and their vision was blocked by the rising dust cloud.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" exclaimed the figure as he rubbed his butt while rising from the ground, gazing toward the sky. "Although I asked for a quick landing, this is too much!"
"This is what happens when you test her," a figure who suddenly appeared beside the tall Waiga said, his eyes radiating with a yellow-beastly glow. "She is not as lenient as Seika and I."
"I thought she had softened after all this time," said the Waiga as he stretched his arms. "We interrupted a high-profile fight! They must be angry with us!"
As the dust settled, the two fighters finally saw who the newcomers were. A tall white creature belonging to the Waiga race and a feline who had a hood covering his head. They furrowed their brows in confusion when a figure landed from the sky, surrounded by flowing blood.
"You are…!" Jonathan muttered with surprise as he recognized the woman with scarlet eyes and long horns. "What are you doing here?"
"We are the ones asking the questions," said the demonic creature as she glanced at the elf. "Are you going to leave, or do I have to devour you first?"
"If you do devour him, he wouldn't be able to leave," Sarohan said with a shake of his head. "Please excuse her attitude, gentlemen. She is a little hot-headed for her age. She wanted to say this: hand over your belongings or we will kill you!"
"We are not robbing them, idiot," the feline said with a frown as he turned to Jonathan. "You might not know who we are, but we know you. We came here to ask about the man our leader chose. After that, you can continue with your fight."
"Since I'm hot-headed, how about you go around without a head?" Seraphine turned toward the Waiga, her blood turning into a scythe threatening to behead the Waiga, who laughed while backing away.
As the three bickered among themselves, the two fighters stared at the scene with confusion. This group did not just interrupt their fight but also disregarded their existence. Azaphyer was not only humiliated by their words but also enraged by their arrogance.
"Although I wanted to kill Silver Rose, a demon is not a bad tribute to my prince," said the high-elf as his earrings began to glow with azure color, summoning countless storms. "Tell me your name, Demon."
"My name is Seraphine."
"...Seraph?" muttered the high-elf with confusion at the irony of her name. After all, a demon was a creature going against the heavens itself, so it made no sense that they would be named seraph, meaning an angelic being. "That blood is…"
"It seems like you know a little about me," said the demon as her blood covered her body, turning her into her demonic form. "My name is Seraphine, the last Blood Demon. Have we met before, High-Elf?"
"...we have," muttered Azaphyer with a frown. "I visited your world three thousand years ago together with my prince. At that time, your race was revered as the strongest before it betrayed the gods."
"Betrayal is the wrong word," said Seraphine after a pause before she reassumed her human form and sighed. "Given that we met before, I will spare your life. Another wrong word, and I will end your pathetic life."
Azaphyer was silent, not issuing another word before bowing and taking his leave. The entire exchange left them confused as the knight sheathed his sword while looking at the woman with long horns and scarlet eyes.
"A pleasure to see you again," said Jonathan with a smile. "I repeat my invitation for you to join me, but the circumstances have changed. As you can see, we have reached the final arc in this story."
"We met the moment I entered the second floor, and here we meet again as I prepare to leave it," said Seraphine with a smirk. "You seem calmer than when we first met. At least, you are not killing your soldiers just to gain favor."
"I would if that means making the Blood Queen join my side," said Jonathan with a smirk as he watched Seraphine lose hers. "I already knew your identity the moment I saw your art. Blood manipulators are rare, and a demon who can shapeshift must be quite special."
"Even if Seika has chosen to trust you, I can always defy him and take your head," said Seraphine as her blood began multiplying to cover the ground. "Where did you hear that title, and what are your intentions?"
"I heard the title when I was a child," Jonathan explained as he raised his arms in surrender. "There were many legends in my world that spoke about candidates of being the demon king. There was a dragon whose wings were torn by the gods, a giant sealed and dismembered, or a blood queen who lost everything."
"Candidates to be the demon king?" muttered Whisker with confusion as he glanced at Seraphine, who remained silent.
"My lord was one cursed by the gods to be forever doomed," said Jonathan with a smirk as he took off one of his gauntlets and showed them a hole over his forearm. "My forearm has been once devoured by death."
"Such worlds would curse the gods once they realize they have been abandoned," said Seraphine as her blood retreated. "In those worlds, there are legends about a demon king who will rise. However, no one knows their identity."
"We gathered stories about powerful beings that have opposed the gods, and one of them was a blood queen who ruled a world of peace and prosperity. It was said that she was destined to become a god. However, something happened during the ceremony, and she was labeled a demon alongside her race."
"Is he talking about you, Seraphine?" asked Sarohan, the silent woman, but she didn't answer him. Staring at her unusual lack of response, Sarohan sighed and actually ruffled through her hair. His actions surprised the other two as they foresaw his arm getting cut off. "Your past doesn't matter, so don't carry such an expression."
Seraphine stared at him with wide eyes and messy black hair. Her expression could not be read, but given her scarlet eyes, killing intent was not out of the question. Sarohan gave her a thumbs up and a wink.
"If any god comes over, I will handle them!"
"...he is dead," muttered Whisker with a sigh as Sarohan was sent flying, screaming at the top of his lungs. His white figure cut through the battleground before slamming into a boulder. Seraphine combed her hair at the speed of light before turning toward Jonathan.
"Useless tales are just that," said the demon as she got over what the knight said. It seems that also Sarohan was buried into the boulder, his words managed to make her recompose herself. "We both know that I'm not that demon king."
"Indeed, because the one legend that everyone could not forget was not about the blood queen," said Jonathan with a smile as he wore his gauntlets. "In fact, the legends I mentioned earlier were said to become his generals once he became the demon king."
"Who is he?" asked Whisker with narrowing eyes, and the knight turned toward him with a grin. His expression told the feline the answer, as he narrowed his eyes into slits. "Are you talking about him?"
"The man who will become the demon king will not suffer the injustice of the gods, but he will carry every wrath against them. His soul will manifest the countless voices crying for injustice as his body leads them in a war against the gods."
"Did you know about this?" the feline asked Seraphine who remained silent. "Is this the reason that you decided to follow him?"
"He is the sole person capable of going against the gods, my sworn enemies," said Seraphine as she turned toward Whisker with a frown. "He knows why I follow him. You told him yourself that he was the man carrying every wrath against the gods."
The feline was silent as he lowered his head in thought. As silence descended, Sarohan broke it as he climbed out of the rubble, cursing Seraphine for hitting him too hard.
"Our leader spoke of a brilliant and arrogant man he found," said Whisker as he turned toward Jonathan. "Since we lost contact with him, we want to help that man at least until he returns."
"Alexie is training with Azkahar the Wise," said Jonathan with a proud smile. "Even if he does not come back in time to save us, we have already pushed the wheel of fate forward. Our Demon King is being born as we speak."
"You sent him to meet Azkahar?" muttered Seraphine with widened eyes. "It might be too soon for that, human. If he attempts complete control, our entire timeline will collapse."
"What are you talking about?" asked Whisker with a frown as his killing intent turned toward Jonathan. "What have you done to our leader?"
"I did nothing other than make him stronger," said Jonathan with conviction. "Azkahar is the one being capable of helping him at the moment. If you trust him like I do, you will believe that he will overcome this training!"