Reborn as the God-Emperor in Marvel

A section of the arena floor was thrust into the air by a surge of lava, billowing black smoke. With lightning speed, the witch effortlessly dodged the falling debris, and in a blink of an eye, she grabbed Solomon and leaped onto the circular walls of the arena.

Solomon was fully aware that in this battle, he could be of little help. The strength of the angel Fortitudo far surpassed anything he could handle at the moment. He understood that he was more of a liability than an asset. Still, Solomon did what he could. He took out the lipstick and handed it to Bayonetta while also tearing open a scroll, casting its magic onto her.

"You're so thoughtful," the witch remarked, blowing Solomon a kiss as she felt the protective magical field surround her. She casually shoved him off the wall, ensuring he was out of harm's way. The fall wasn't high enough to hurt him.

Bayonetta wielded her long blade and gazed at the massive angel clinging to the stone walls like a predatory hawk.

"Come on, featherface!"

Suddenly, the sky above the arena filled with orange-red flames, as if hydrogen mixed with air had been ignited. The bright flash of light was quickly followed by an explosion, tearing apart part of the stone walls that had withstood centuries of time. The entire arena became like a bucket filled with lava, with the stone floor being launched into the sky under immense pressure. Excess molten rock surged out of the arena's exits like rivers, flowing rapidly.

The magic Solomon had cast was perfect for this situation. It was a protective spell designed to resist extreme heat, "Resist Energy: Fire." As a second-tier spell, it was highly efficient, allowing Bayonetta to shrug off most of the lava splashes and fire-related damage.

However, the spell wasn't invincible. Once the damage exceeded the spell's limits, the protection would dissipate. Bayonetta needed to finish the fight quickly—battling in a sea of lava was far from ideal.

This was one of the largest-scale battles Solomon had ever witnessed. He had barely retreated a few steps when he saw Bayonetta leaping from one large airborne stone to another. In a flash, she was atop the angel's massive body. In another blink, she grabbed one of the dragon heads and, with a devastating over-the-shoulder throw, slammed the angel's enormous form into the still-molten lava.

What followed were a series of thunderous crashes. The angel's massive body was repeatedly lifted and smashed into the ground and walls by the witch. Even standing outside the arena, Solomon could feel the tremors through the ground. Suddenly, a deafening wail echoed through the air as the angel's fiery blood sizzled on the lava, releasing clouds of red steam that floated away, only to be dissipated by the hot air.

Solomon had always known Bayonetta was powerful, but he hadn't expected her to be this formidable. Only someone this strong could stand a chance of killing Balder. Solomon didn't want the Supreme Mage to intervene again—the cost would be too great.

When the angel rose into the air again, Solomon was shocked to see that both the red and blue dragon heads, along with their long necks, had been severed. What remained was the inverted stone face, now sporting two gaping, blood-spewing holes where the heads had been. The once-calm marble face was now contorted with rage. Its mouth opened wide, roaring in fury as the ground beneath them began to shake violently. Fortitudo was enraged and began chanting, pushing its powers to the limit.

The tremors grew more intense. A low rumble echoed from deep underground, growing louder as it neared the surface, like the drums of the apocalypse signaling the final judgment.

Then, with a "pop," like the cap of a soda bottle being released, a massive geyser of lava and rock exploded upward, the pressure launching the entire arena skyward. In the blink of an eye, the structure soared into the sky, smashing through the clouds that had gathered unnoticed.

The stone arena disintegrated instantly. Colonnades, stone pillars, walls, and the ancient astrological instruments that had stood together for centuries all said their final goodbyes as they shattered into fragments, smoke, and molten lava, scattering in every direction.

Solomon, reacting immediately, slipped into the mirror dimension. His mastery of Visanti magic had grown, allowing him to enter the dimension faster than ever. Had it not been for this, he might have perished in the first wave of lava and falling stone.

With his keen eyesight, Solomon saw Fortitudo flying backward. A massive black raven appeared in the sky.

As this demon was summoned, the sky turned blood red. At the same time, Solomon's left-hand ring began to heat up. He instinctively understood the identity of this demon and the seals it carried. This was Malphas, the 39th demon of the 72 Pillars, a count who commanded 40 legions. It usually appeared in the form of a raven but could also take human form. Its raspy voice could reveal the desires, thoughts, and actions of the summoner's enemies.

But Malphas could also be summoned by Bayonetta, as part of her contracts. And Fortitudo was now the sacrificial offering to Malphas. The massive raven gripped the angel with its talons and began tearing into its colossal body with a relentless beak.

Out of Solomon's sight, Malphas pecked a massive hole into the angel. But just as the demon was about to descend to the ground, Bayonetta retracted her magic. The black feathers transformed back into her long, dark hair, which flowed back into her body through the summoning circle. At the same time, all the falling debris seemed to be caught by an invisible force and crashed into the wounded angel. The summoning circle reappeared, and countless bloodstained, cold, slimy hands reached out, dragging the angel toward a crimson gate of the abyss.

A dark figure fell from the sky, far faster than the debris. Solomon watched as Bayonetta flew in the direction of the Sunrise and Crescent Valley. He frowned, worried. He couldn't tell if the witch was heading there by chance or on purpose, but there was plenty of evidence to suggest that Balder wanted her to undertake such an adventure.

Yet Balder's full plan remained shrouded in mystery, and Solomon doubted that Luka would uncover anything substantial. In the end, Balder, the Lumen Sage, would personally face Bayonetta. Even if he was her father, it wouldn't change the fact that he was the priest of Jubileus, the holder of the "Right Eye." Both his and Bayonetta's power were essential to the resurrection of Jubileus.

Solomon's job was to ensure that Bayonetta and Balder confronted each other. If that happened, the witch would use the lipstick to kill him. To make sure this could happen, Solomon needed to ensure that Bayonetta's little adventure didn't go awry. Just as Balder was plotting against Bayonetta, the Supreme Mage was scheming against Balder. Solomon didn't need to worry about the details—he just had to follow the plan.

However, after Bayonetta fell into the canyon, Solomon lost track of her. He summoned Pegasus using a small statue. After feeding the pure white horse an apple, Solomon gripped the golden reins and mounted the steed. Passing through a portal, he emerged from the mirror dimension and flew toward the Sunrise and Crescent Valley, where two enormous stone statues stood.

This time, upon arriving in the valley, Solomon encountered many enemies he hadn't seen before. The sky was filled with angels, including swarms of cherubic creatures called Dear and Decorations, as well as angels with razor-sharp metallic wings known as Cachet & Compassion. Although these angels weren't particularly strong, their sheer numbers made them dangerous. If Solomon attempted to fight through them with his magic, it would drain his mental energy completely.

His longest-range cantrip, "Arcane Bolt," could only target one enemy at a time, and these angels were fast. By the time he finished the 2.5-second incantation, they could easily surround and skewer him with their blades.

However, Athena had also given Solomon a shield—Aegis. Seated on Pegasus's back, Solomon raised the shield as he flew over the canyon. He watched as countless small angels turned to stone, raining down like pebbles and creating craters in the rubble-strewn canyon floor below.

In an instant, almost every angel hovering above the valley turned their attention to Solomon. They swarmed toward him, but as they gazed upon Medusa's head, they too turned to stone. Yet, some of the larger angels were slower to petrify, including one of the higher-ranked Thrones, an Inspired angel.

This angel was entirely red, with a long, snake-like body covered in white, striped hairshirts. Its flat, forked tail resembled a serpent's tongue. The Inspired angel's head was snake-like as well, with two massive fangs in its upper jaw and rows of smaller, bone-crushing teeth in its lower jaw. The inside of its mouth was an unsettling dark purple. As usual, its head was protected by a flesh-and-gold helmet, with thin, fin-like wings on either side. A golden adornment resembling entwined snakes extended from the back of its head.

The Inspired angel never touched the ground, constantly gliding through the air. Its goal was to devour those who followed the path of darkness, and its massive mouth was perfect for that task. Even though it had seen Medusa's head, its enormous body wasn't fully petrified, allowing it to

 continue pursuing Solomon for a while.

Had Pegasus not adjusted its flight path, disliking Solomon's lack of riding skill, the mage would have been swallowed whole. But there were too many angels here. After several dangerously close calls, Solomon still faced a sky thick with enemies. If not for Pegasus's remarkable flying abilities, Solomon would never have lasted more than an hour here.

Fortunately, it seemed as though the angels had been given orders. Once Solomon left a particular area, they stopped chasing him, allowing the mage to breathe a sigh of relief. By now, the sun had set, and shadows began to crawl out of the bottomless canyon, like beings greedy for the sunlight, reaching for the warmth that lingered. The slender crescent moon had already appeared above the horizon. Its lower half was stained red by the setting sun, while the upper half was a deep, dark blue. At the junction, the colors blended together, and a few stars, invisible during the day, now began to twinkle.

Suddenly, many of the Inspired angels that had been chasing Solomon turned and began flying westward.

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