Ascension of the Dark Seraph

Leo collapsed.

Dead.

His absence from Lucivar's vision allows him to truly see Malric.

In that instance, their eyes met.

Lucivar profoundly looked through Malric.

Do everything he can to analyze and see the level of pain the poor soul was experiencing.

He's seeing a black veil shrouding Malric's eyes.

One that was visible to others but could solely be understood by Lucivar.

Before his reborn in that dark arena, becoming a sacrifice for the amusement of the strong, this black veil also clouded his eyes. It was the deep and unbridled sense of despair and fear. He tasted it before, and now it was Malric's turn.

Unconsciously, Lucivar had already dropped the heart onto the ground.

A scream could be heard from behind.

Someone was screaming in anguish, calling the name of the recently dead.

But it was muffled.

Almost as if someone had turned the volume of the world down to near mute.

It was the same feeling as back then.

Back when Delilah died in his arms, when he realized the dark truth of the world—a revelation.

Now, another revelation was happening to him.

Unconsciously, the Chaos Constellation was activated, absorbing the raw heart on the ground.

An emerald portal was summoned.

Lucivar watched as Malric's eyes shifted, staring up at the monstrosity that appeared from the portal, a new product birthed from the death of his friend. Its snarl and growl terrified him, causing the black veil to completely envelop his eyeballs.

At such a sight, Lucivar reached for his chest.

His heart was pounding, no, fluttering.

It made him feel like a little girl.

'Like this. Anyone who tries to hinder my path to power will be reduced to this.'

Lucivar promised himself.

Anyone who tries to stand in his way in any shape or form will be punished with despair, pain, and blood.

Nobody who messes with him will go unpunished.

Leo, Malric, and Andrea regretted taking this mission, regretted ever hurting Morriva.

But that doesn't matter.

Obliviousness is not Lucivar's problem.

Lucivar clutched his chest tighter.

He could feel it now.

Each beat originated from his Inner Chamber.

All God statues pulsed, even those who hadn't awakened fully yet.

Acknowledgment.

Something about him made the Gods stand in ovation, euphoria.

Lucivar blinked his eyes and focused back to reality, curious as to what the Gods were applauding for.

Nothing he did seemed to be out of the ordinary here.

But that's exactly where he was wrong.

It hasn't been that long since he left his home village for good.

Enduring the torment of living there day by day to support his mom and brother, adapting to the gazes he was getting from them, from the people, and from even himself, he remembered it all clearly. Pity, disgust, scorn, as if he were not more than a waste of air.

Now, Lucivar could see how Malric hopelessly looked at him.

How scared Andrea looked at him.

How idolizing Nerissa looked at him.

And in that moment, everything fell into place.

He understood what the Gods were applauding him for.

He realized the revelation he was experiencing.

Lucivar came to this part of the world to train and to see what Morriva was doing, and he never intended to commit horrid acts. But when the situation arises, he could easily handle it. Doing something vile is not a chore anymore.

No need for him to plan and contemplate.

It became… effortless.

And that's exactly what the revelation was and why the Gods were applauding him.

Months ago, everyone was still looking down on him.

Months ago, he was still accustoming himself to the act of killing.

Months ago, his heart was still thumping in fear whenever he did something wrong.

Now, that was no longer the case.

Doing evil has become easy, if not natural, for him.

Lucivar grinned from ear to ear.

He now realized how far he had gotten, and that alone was a sensation unlike others.

"I am changing…"

"Devil…"

Malric's breath shortened as a wave of suffocation gripped him tightly, triggered by the sight of Lucivar looming before him. He was smiling—but it was no human smile. His face had become the embodiment of darkness itself, blackened and unholy beyond comprehension.

In that moment, Malric could feel it.

Lucivar, the 'Lucivar' standing in front of him right now, is more wicked than the one from earlier.

"A lot of people had called me that before you, and for a moment, I don't mind…"

Slowly, Lucivar bent his body down a little.

Closing in on Malric to have better and more intimate eye contact.

"But now I realized, it was an insult. The Devil is incapable of doing good because he was made to be evil. He's a false darkness who never tasted the light. Me…?" Lucivar pointed at himself with his index finger. "I am capable of doing good, but I chose not to. That makes me infinitely better than the Devil."

"Don't call me the Devil. I'm more of a fallen angel, no," Lucivar raised a finger. "The Dark Seraph is a lot more fitting. Don't you think so too?"

Ignoring Malric's trembled gaze, Lucivar turned away to face the new monstrosity.

A burly and hunched, towering monster with whips for arms.

On the side, Nerissa noticed changes in Lucivar.

His back arched like a drawn arrow, shoulders squared, and the air around him grew heavier, a lot more commanding. Something fundamental had shifted within him—giving the sense that he could bear the weight of the world on his shoulders without faltering.

In Nerissa's eyes, he's the manliest man she has ever known.

Even more so than Master Tobias, though she wouldn't admit it outright.

"Kill her."

One command from Lucivar, and the monster moved without question.

It shot its whip arm like a bullet, puncturing a gaping hole in Andrea's chest.

Blood instantly splashed out of her mouth, more drizzling down her chin as she stared at Malric.

Her gaze dropped at the gaping hole, then rose to meet Malric's one last time.

Forcefully, she gave him a soft, fleeting smile… and fell.

Malric stood up and ran towards Andrea to catch her.

But at the same time, the monster hacked Malric's legs with its whipping arm and broke them completely.

He squealed like a pig while still trying to reach Andrea, though at a snail's pace.

"Bring him."

Lucivar headed back to the city square with Nerissa following beside him.

Behind, the monster wrapped its whip arm around Malric's leg like a snake, and dragged him away.

Malric tried to struggle, seeing that Andrea was still breathing, but there was no use.

Nothing he does bears any fruit.

Lucivar gazed onward, seeing that Morriva was finishing up with the city and was even gathering the surviving people at the city square to be sacrificed. It was a perfect place for him to make a statement to those who would try to get in the Ordained Mirror Cult's way/

Seeing how much anguish Malric experienced, Morriva blushes.

She knew that Lucivar would value her if she played her hand right, and that was proven to be true now.

Regardless of what was inside Lucivar's mind, the fact stood that he did it because someone hurt her.

And that's more than enough.

"Morriva, make a wooden stake fo-"

Before Lucivar could finish his sentence, the world turned bleak after he made another step.

Everything became dead quiet and mute.

Not the same as the revelation before, this time, it was choking and unsettling.

Lucivar looked at the people Moriva gathered.

All of them had been screaming, begging for mercy, weeping, their cries forming a symphony of despair that refused to end. But now, silence reigned supreme. Not because the fear had passed or their throats were broken, but because they no longer could scream.

Someone halted time, and every one of them was frozen mid-moment, trapped in stillness.

Glancing over his shoulders, he realized that it was the same with the monster and Malric.

Nothing seemed to be visibly moving other than him.

"Lucivar…"

Lucivar glanced to his side, realizing that Nerissa was able to talk.

Her eyes were looking at him, and her body was moving in slow motion.

Seems like her eyes weren't influenced by the time stop while her body was only able to resist a little.

Across from them, Morriva was also in the same boat.

Her eyes could move normally, but her body moved in slow motion, a lot slower than Nerissa's.

"What's going on? Did you do this? My body is moving very slowly!"

"No, it's not me…"

Lucivar shook his head as he took a look around, trying to find the person who was responsible for this.

However, other than them, there was nobody around.

"Oyy, Gandr, Sha, Sirrush! What the heck is going on?"

"…"

Not one of them answered, causing the frown on Lucivar's face to deepen.

But it was then, he felt something staring at him.

Lucivar slowly, stiffly raised his head—and froze.

Above him hovered a glowing golden eye, suspended in the air like a divine sentinel.

He didn't know when it appeared, but it was here now.

It stared down with a chilling gaze that seemed to pierce through skin, bone, and soul.

Even the energy it radiated was beyond powerful—it was ancient, sacred, and invasive.

Something deep inside him stirred, riled by its presence.

It was the blood of a God inside him that was reacting to this eye, recognizing the source of its power, one that Lucivar could recognize as Sutekh's blood. There was no doubt that this symbol was the thing that halted time.

Nothing else could've shackled the world so absolutely other than another God.

Another avatar.

"Horus…"

Lucivar mumbled with an elated smile.

And then, he sensed it—something fast approaching.

Nerissa and Morriva moved instantly.

Though their bodies were locked in place by the frozen world, barely able to move, their powers weren't bound. Power surged from them instinctively. Emerald flame from Morriva and dark blue acid water from Nerissa swirled together in a violent spiral, launching toward the space behind Lucivar in an initial attempt to intercept what was coming.

Lucivar turned in time to see it.

A shining object was tearing through the sky like a divine verdict.

A spear of howling wind that screamed down from the sky, carrying with it the heavens' will.

It moved too fast to track—there was only light, motion, and impact.

Kaboom!

Once the torrent of fire and water met the spear mid-air, the victor was instantly concluded.

Neither element stood a chance as the wind-carved spear sliced through them as if they were mist.

It continued its path straight for Lucivar.

In that instant, Lucivar summoned his wings in a blur of motion.

He folded them tightly around himself.

At the same time, the Protection of the Fragmented Deseret was activated in tandem.

But it wasn't enough.

Crash!

As soon as the spear struck, his body was thrown backward as the impact detonated like thunder.

Lucivar's eyes widened as his feet left the ground—blasted backward, violently flung through the frozen crowd, tearing apart dozens that got in the way. He crashed through the walls of multiple houses as the ground trembled with each impact, until at last, the world swallowed him in dust and ruin.