Little Tyrant Doesn't Want to Meet with a Bad End

Others might have perceived Lukas to be an ordinary human, but through the Crown Origin Attribute, Roel saw something different. He saw a man cloaked in a thin layer of darkness, with something reminiscent of a second heart lodged in his core, constantly gathering mana.

Each time his ‘second heart’ beat, the aura of madness around him would pulsate.

“Is this the reason you’re so vigilant of me, Lukas Ackermann?” Roel asked.

“…” Lukas didn’t answer.

His hand continued to grip the scepter in front of him, and his expression showed no hint of fear. However, his ‘second heart’ began to violently contract, signaling that he had begun.

Seeing that, Roel chose not to bother with words anymore. He knew that the ‘second heart’ was in fact a Fallen Brand, and it was concrete proof that Lukas had been colluding with the Fallens. It was also the reason Lukas was able to get here and covet Sia’s Scepter.

The situation was clear; Roel had no need to waste his time on communicating. Lukas was an enemy he absolutely needed to vanquish, and the soldiers outside were still locked in a terrible battle with the Fallens.

He didn’t want to waste even a second on someone undeserving. His body began to glow, as he gathered his mana in preparation to attack.

Lukas suddenly spoke up. “Remnant of the Ardes, aren’t you afraid of damaging the divine scepter by fighting here?”

“It’s sturdier than you think. It was constructed by Charles and Carolyn. What a desperate attempt to stall for time. So it must not have been long since you arrived too, right?”

“…” Lukas didn’t answer.

That clued Roel in on the current situation.

Lukas might have arrived at the imperial capital ahead of them, but he had been struggling to absorb the mana inside Sia’s Scepter, possibly because he wasn’t a true Fallen. Even so, Lukas would only continue to grow stronger if given time to do as he pleased.

Thus, Roel made up his mind to quickly end this battle.

On the other hand, Lukas wasn’t pleased about the situation. While he had grown much stronger from absorbing the mana inside Sia’s Scepter, he still wasn’t confident in going up against a member of the Kingmaker Clan.

Had Roel arrived a few days later, even if it still wasn’t enough time for him to fully absorb the unimaginable power harnessed inside Sia’s Scepter, it should have at least been enough for him to become the strongest human. Unfortunately, there was no ‘what if’ in the world.

“Grandar!” Roel called out, and a humongous skeleton giant manifested in the Abyss.

Knowing a battle was inevitable, Lukas narrowed his eyes, as huge swathes of black fog cloaked his body. Using his Fallen Brand as a medium, he steadily drew out the thousand years of mana accumulated inside Sia’s Scepter via physical contact, causing his mana to surge.

He tore open a void, and over a thousand magic swords whizzed out like shooting stars.

These thousand magic swords had appeared so close that even Grandar was unable to properly defend against them. Even so, Roel remained unfazed.

He channeled his mana into his Crown’s Stones and unleashed six different types of powers into the surroundings, ranging from a massive outpour of searing lava and a frost aura that encased space to a pale yellow wind that disintegrated the swords.

The sheer destructive prowess of the Six Calamities devoured all of the shooting stars.

“Your ability resembles Charles’, but there’s a stark difference.” Roel eyed Lukas after unraveling the latter’s first wave of attack. “Your power is more inclined to spatial manipulation. You’re unable to become the true master of those weapons, nor to recreate legendary weapons from history.”

“Indeed, but that doesn’t matter anymore. I have the strongest weapon in hand now,” Lukas replied as he tightened his grip around Sia’s Scepter.

An immense amount of mana flurried around him and expanded. He channeled this mana into his Kingdom Origin Attribute, and for the first time, Sia’s Scepter glowed and transformed into a weapon to be used by a human.

Roel felt immense pressure.

Sia’s Scepter was a symbol of Sia’s authority, and it rested reverently in a divine temple in the ancient era. It would only be raised in times of war, and first-generation gods would immediately rush over from their respective domains to serve as Sia’s fiercely loyal warriors.

It should have been a divine tool to suppress evil, but it had now become a tool for the Fallens.

Divine avatars of the gods who had served Sia emerged from the light of Sia’s Scepter, but under the distortion of the Savior’s madness, they possessed none of the justice and wisdom they ought to have embodied. They were more like mindless zombies, but there was no doubt they were powerful.

These divine avatars were not nearly as powerful as their true selves, but they were still Origin Level 1 transcendents. As more of them appeared, the pressure they exerted stacked up to the point where Roel could hardly withstand it.

The ancient gods Roel had contracted with sensed the familiar auras and turned their attention to the outside world.

“This is…” Edavia murmured in astonishment.

“This is bad! You need to get out of there right away!” Peytra exclaimed.

However, Roel stood his ground. He first looked at the adversaries, followed by the pitch-black ceiling above him. He knew there was nowhere for him or humankind to retreat to. It was do-or-die.

Lukas had gone all out right from the start because he wasn’t making good progress absorbing the Savior’s mana. He desperately needed to either kill or chase Roel away so as to buy more time to reach godhood.

If Roel retreated right now, it was likely he would be no match for Lukas the next time they met. Thus, he made up his mind to defeat Lukas right now.

Meanwhile, Lukas continued to summon more divine avatars through Sia’s Scepter. The divine avatars resonated together, as they joined their powers to weave a massive spell.

“It’s a Divine Forbidden Spell! You mustn’t let them complete the spell!” Peytra exclaimed in horror.

Roel’s eyes widened at the words ‘Divine Forbidden Spell’. He knew he needed to act right away, or else this would be the end.

Divine Forbidden Spells were a higher class of army spells that required the channeling of multiple gods to pull off. Such spells were so potent that they had once destroyed an entire race. Should the divine avatars successfully channel their spell, not only Roel but even his lovers fighting above would be obliterated from the face of the world.

Without any hesitation, he unleashed the full extent of his powers. His Crown Origin Attribute glowed with incredible fervor, as his Crown’s Stones emanated brilliant lights that fused into one. His black hair grew longer and turned white, whereas his eyes blazed with golden flames.

The great power of Sia-fication flowed through Roel and permeated Grandar’s body, shrouding the skeleton giant in holy light.

“A Divine Forbidden Spell? That’s formidable, but it’d be awfully naive if you think you can shake me off with just this, Lukas. After trampling on so many innocent lives, do you think I’d allow you to escape judgment and get your way?” Roel sneered with seething rage.

From birth, Lukas Ackermann was already entitled to the greatest privileges humankind had to offer. He had reaped all of the benefits of being human, yet he had no qualms turning his back on his kind. He massacred his loyal subjects just so he could teleport to the imperial capital. Even now, he was trying to rob humankind’s only hope of survival for his own selfish motive.

What Lukas had done was unforgivable. Nothing in the world could liberate him from his sins. For that, he absolutely had to die.

The power of the Divine Forbidden Spell continued to swell.

Lukas remained concealed inside his black fog, not paying any heed to Roel. The divine avatars guarded him as they mumbled esoteric chants, channeling all of their mana into a single spell.

On the other hand, Grandar’s humongous body had turned holy white. A crown fragment drifted from the sky and transformed into a golden crown on his head. A sunset plain manifested in the Abyss, as countless giant warriors roared contemptuously at Lukas.

Grandar finally raised his head to face the divine avatars before him, and without any hesitation, he hurled his fist forth.

At the same time, the Divine Forbidden Spell channeled by the divine avatars finally unleashed a blinding flash of primordial light that instantaneously enveloped everything in the Abyss. This was a spell that harnessed the powers of the twelve first-generation main gods, and its name was ‘Absolute Judgment’.

Absolute Judgment was one of the greatest spells in the ancient era, as well as the origin of army spells. The judgment passed by the twelve main gods compelled absolute obedience from the masses.

Even a god would have disintegrated before Absolute Judgment.

Yet, Roel calmly stared at incoming Absolute Judgment, not intimidated by its terrifying prowess. No matter how powerful Absolute Judgment was, this was merely a weakened version cast by a bunch of fake gods. A true god like Grandar would never fear something like that.

The burst of primordial light violently gushed at Grandar, as if a rapid stream trying to wash away an obstinate boulder, but someone who had defeated even the supreme Savior in the ancient era would never submit to a bunch of fake gods.

With devastating lightning and flames concentrated at the fore of his fist, Grandar finally released his punch, unleashing a catastrophic force that tore through even the primordial light.

The divine avatars initially thought little of the Giant Sovereign, who had only come into existence countless years after their era, but shock and horror filled their faces now that they were faced with his fist of absolute might.

Lukas, who stood amidst the divine avatars’ protection, couldn’t believe what was happening, but it was too late for him to do anything.

With his almighty strength brought to greater heights through Roel’s enhancements, Grandar tore through the Divine Forbidden Spell and reduced all of the summoned divine avatars to dust.

Boom!

An explosion broke out in the underground temple. The surroundings shook, and dust fell from the ceiling.

With the disintegration of the divine avatars, the light of Sia’s Scepter dimmed. Lukas kneeled on the ground with a pale face, having overexerted himself.

“It’s over now,” Roel calmly proclaimed.

He raised his hand to slay the overambitious emperor once and for all, but just as he was about to make his move, there was a sudden change in the situation.

“How disappointing. You hardly lasted more than a moment,” a voice suddenly echoed in the Abyss.

For the first time, Lukas’ impassiveness shattered to reveal a look of disbelief.

Through the Crown Origin Attribute, Roel noticed a hint of instability in Lukas’ Fallen Brand. Without any warning, the Savior’s mana suddenly gushed out of Lukas’ body, and along with it, a familiar figure came into view.

Roel immediately heightened his vigilance. It was his long-time nemesis—the Collector.

…