The Demon Realm.
A few months had passed since Eyghon's passing, and not a peaceful day had gone by within the homeworld of the Outer Demons. In the long dimensional war between Earth and the Demon Realm, there has never been such a major turn of the tides.
Eyghon may have been artificial, but it was a Demon Lord through and through. It was a war machine, a nuclear bomb, an annihilation device, and most importantly… It was one of the Demon Realm's trump cards.
Losing Eyghon had turned the war on its head, and the Outer Demons knew they had to strike back. Using the authority of the Demon Sovereign, the Goddess of Fate, Uriel, had summoned the remaining Demon Lords and ordered them to gather their troops. A military overhaul on the planetary scale soon commenced as every able-bodied Outer Demon was rounded up and forced to join the invading army.
Soon, billions of Outer Demons had been gathered, trained and enhanced by the Demon Lords that commanded them.
Cthulhu, the Matron of the Seas, easily brought together an army of a billion sea creatures. The oceans roared as depraved deformities arose, most of them bearing some semblance to the octopus menace that struck fear into any who dared to gaze at its form.
Baishe, the Serpent of the Skies, wasn't going to fall too far from his brethren. The gigantic sky wyrm roared across the heavens and gathered its entire army within the few weeks it was given. Just like Cthulhu, the Demon Lord had amassed an army close to a billion strong, most of which were monsters that dominated the sky.
These two Demon Lords alone were dangerous enough to bring chaos to the mortal world, yet… They only summoned Demons from the Oceans and the Skies.
Eyghon, who was meant to command the Demons of the Land, had perished, so there was a void in the command. Well, there was a void until the second-ranked Demon Lord herself stepped in.
Uriel, the Goddess of Fate, charmed the remnants of Eyghon's army and brought together a military force the world had never seen before. Two billion strong. An Outer Demon invasion of this size would overrun every Hunter, Vampire, Werewolf, Elf or Oceanid in the known world, regardless of their power levels.
Altogether, the Outer Demons had amassed an astonishing four billion troops, unheard of in the modern world. But make no mistake, it wasn't a coincidence that the Outer Demons could gather so much manpower.
The Demon Sovereign, alongside his most trusted advisor, Uriel, had been preparing for this day for thousands of years. They had carefully bred the best genetics, unified the entire planet, and strengthened their forces through centuries of advanced training…
All for the day, they would eliminate 'him' and liberate their people from their eventual fate.
Standing alone on the peak where the Demon Sovereign's throne stood, Uriel folded her arms behind her back as she looked down at her entire army. Four billion Outer Demons… If only they could transfer all of them through the dimensional walls at once. They could scoop out the man they sought to eliminate and end the war immediately.
Alas, Fate was a cruel thing.
Uriel's 'eyes' could only see fragments of the future, and most of it had been obscured to her. Even now, as she attempted to divine her own destiny, Fate itself was being shrouded by a dark mist that she couldn't see past.
As the Goddess of Fate, that has never happened to her before. Over the past centuries, she could see some semblance of what her future would be like. In fact, the only reason why the Demon Sovereign could unify the planet and expedite his military cause was due to Uriel's unique ability.
Yet… Her own future was now clouded.
An endless long night, a mist that never seemed to dissipate blocked all of her divination powers. Even when she attempted to commune with Fate, she could only see a blank sheet of paper.
There was only one reason for this phenomenon…
'He' was blocking her 'eyes' from seeing Fate.
'He' was involved in her future.
'He' was… becoming stronger.
"Goddess, we are prepared."
Uriel looked back at the ocean that spread out for thousands of miles and right up at the monstrosity that addressed her. With its disgusting tentacles and huge, mesmerising eyes, Cthulhu stared right at Uriel with a reverent face. Behind the Demon Lord were a hundred thousand Demons, each one seemingly stronger than the next. Some measured over a hundred metres in length, while others were slightly smaller.
Yet, all of them possessed an aura that couldn't be disputed. An aura of pure strength and dominance.
"My army is yours."
Uriel then looked up at the sky, where a flying silver great Dragon had flown in with yet another hundred thousand elite Demons. All of them were fierce and battle-hardened, with many seemingly as powerful as A-rank Hunters. Their manoeuvrability in the skies exceeded that of fighter jets, and their physical strength could overpower most tanks.
It was, by far, the greatest aerial force the world had ever seen.
"Thank you, Cthulhu… Baishe… I apologise for making you choose only a hundred thousand Demons. I know that it couldn't have been an easy task."
"It really wasn't," Cthulhu replied with its tentacles flailing about. "Choosing a hundred thousand from a billion isn't an easy feat. Especially since all of my troops are bloodthirsty enough to kill for that spot."
"I agree," Baishe shook its whiskers as well. "However, now that we have gotten the best our planet has to offer, we are certain to eliminate the humans this time."
"No, Baishe… Remember your mission." Uriel chided the flying serpent with a harsh voice. "Our goal isn't extermination, but reconnaissance. Your only mission is to create enough mayhem so that 'he' will appear. Once you find 'him,' contact me immediately."
"I understand," the great Wyrm nodded its head. "However… You don't care if I annihilate the humans in the process, right?"
"... Do as you please."
Uriel didn't decline the horrendous request of the Demon Lord. She knew Baishe still held a grudge from the last time it was forced to retreat. And in all honesty, the Goddess of Fate didn't care if the humans perished. All she wished to do was to fish 'him' out so that she could eliminate their future threat.
"Let's go over the plan one last time." Nonetheless, Uriel continued her briefing with the other two Demon Lords.
"Since we know that 'he' has been born, we'll have no need for the Gates anymore. I'll cause an overflow in them and send a few million through to start the chaos."
"... You're seeking to destroy the Gates we worked so hard to establish?" Baishe let out a stunned gasp with his draconic mouth.
Throughout the years, the Goddess of Fate has always maintained the integrity of the Gates. She would be exceedingly careful when choosing where and when to create one, and she would strictly regulate the number of Outer Demons that would pass through them. This was to ensure that the Gates would never collapse due to an overflow and that there would be a constant link between the two planets.
In fact, there were many times in the past when Uriel herself would chastise the two Demon Lords for using the Gates too much, essentially weakening the bonds between the two realms.
So for her to voluntarily cause an overflow herself… It came as a shock to both Demon Lords.
"We're headed towards the final battle," Uriel said determinedly. "There's no need for us to hold back anymore."
"Hehe, that's music to my ears." Cthulhu eerily chuckled, which sent waves crashing all over the massive oceans.
"I'll command Eyghon's troops to create as much chaos as possible. At the same time, they will conduct surveillance and scan the possible places that 'he' might be. The overflow will last for a week or two at most. Once they're done, and humanity is weakened… I will send the two of you in."
Baishe hissed loudly, sending the clouds over its head flying in different directions. "So when we enter the Gates… We're supposed to find and kill 'him'?"
"That's right… However, I won't be opening any new Gates for the two of you. Only the biggest existing Gates can manage your troops' power and size. So, you'll be entering using the same Gates you've always been using…"
"Hahaha, I see." Cthulhu smiled beneath his disgusting-looking tentacles and said: "So that means I get to see that wretched Vampire bitch again!"
"And I get to have revenge on those assholes who injured my body!" Baishe hissed louder, its eyes glistening with a predatory glint. fre(e)webno(v)el
"Do as you wish, but always remember the main purpose of this invasion." Uriel eyed the two Demon Lords one final time and repeated her final order.
"You have one purpose and one purpose only… Find and kill 'him' before 'he' kills us."
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Uriel watched the two Demon Lords leave through the skies and oceans after her briefing was over with a forlorn expression. Even though she had repeated her orders multiple times, there was no telling if Cthulhu and Baishe would really follow them.
Unlike the Demon Sovereign and Eyghon, Uriel had no control over what those two Demon Lords did. After all, they were ancient creatures, Demons that had lived far longer than herself. Before the Demon Sovereign unified the planet, those two ancient beings battled it out for thousands of years, each vying for supremacy over the other.
Therefore, while they respect the Demon Sovereign and his right-hand advisor, Uriel, they have their own pride and thoughts. Uriel had been warning them about the threat 'he' posed, but whether they fully believed her was another matter altogether.
After all, unlike the Goddess of Fate, they didn't have precognitive abilities. They couldn't see what their fates would be if they allowed that man to live.
Alas, they were Uriel's only pawns right now. Eyghon had perished, and the Demon Sovereign was still busy with his matters. If Uriel wanted any hope of succeeding, she had no choice but to trust those two ticking time bombs.
"Goddess, are you sure I shouldn't participate in this battle?"
While Uriel was contemplating her next move, a blob of dark mass emerged from the shadows. It manifested into a cloaked figure, with its true nature and gender sinisterly hidden. Uriel took one glance at the mysterious Demon before shaking her head:
"No, Thanatos, your Fate doesn't lead you to this battle."
"... Still, I don't trust them to finish the job. I'm far stronger than both of them."
"Yes, you are." Uriel didn't deny the figure's words. "Which is why I've kept you hidden. Hidden from the humans and Fate itself. You're our trump card against 'him', and should the two beasts fail… That's when you step in."
"... Just out of curiosity, Goddess. Have you read my Fate? Do you think 'he' is powerful enough to defeat me?"
"Don't be arrogant, Thanatos!" The Goddess of Fate yelled out. "You're powerful, but never underestimate 'him'. If the two of you fight, there can only be one outcome. His death… or yours."
"His death or mine, huh?" The black hooded figure didn't show his expression, but Uriel could feel a tinge of amusement in his voice. In the end, a bemused voice came out from the darkened hood. (f)reewebnovel.com
"That's funny… Goddess, have you forgotten what I am?"
"Thanatos…"
"I am… death."
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