Chapter 378 Staring At the Abyss
The dome wavered lightly upon the impact with Eliseus' body. Giving her no time to recover, Velucan appeared before her and thrust his hand into her stomach. Eliseus grinned wider as she spat the blood in her mouth at Velucan. Blinded by the blood, Velucan couldn't defend himself from Eliseus' claws. He hastily retracted his hand to clutch at his lacerated stomach as he made a distance. Eliseus used this chance to headbutt him.
Crack!
Eliseus' nigh indestructible horns put a dent in Velucan's skull, rendering him unconscious. Her face was immediately decorated with a look of pure ecstasy as she pounced on Velucan. Before she could do anything, however, Lemius appeared before her. He kicked her lower jaw, disintegrating it completely.
"We forfeit," he declared as he retreated with Velucan.
They had fulfilled their goal. Further confrontation was unnecessary. Eliseus who had known since the beginning it would be the case clicked her tongue in distaste. She immediately deactivated her Origin, but the hunger remained. Lemius noticed the grimace on Eliseus' face. He cut one of his arms and threw it at Eliseus. Catching it as if it was the most normal thing ever, Eliseus wolfed it down.
No one blinked their eyes at the display. It was their first time for some people, but all of them were already used to Demons' quirkiness. Moreover, Eliseus had never hidden her Origin as Layland did. Although only a small number of people understood what Eliseus' Origin allowed her to do, everyone knew what happened to her must be the prerequisite and aftermath of using her Origin.
Eliseus finished her meal at the same time Lemius' arm completely regrew. She wiped the blood smearing her face and then acted like nothing happened. Her emotionless face stared at Ilschevar as if urging him to conclude the match. Ilschevar remained silent for a few seconds as he was busy staring at Lemius and the unconscious Velucan. The only one conscious of the two didn't bother meeting his gaze, causing him to shake his head faintly.
'He didn't even deliberately try to rope people in but still managed to gain supporters, huh? That kid is a special case indeed,' Ilschevar mused with a tinge of smile on his face. "Winner; Eliseus Frachtus!" Upon his announcement, the three Warriors vacated the Arena. "For the next battle, I summon Layland KIeinhaus, Jovenus Prudeta, Holcio Cefrus, Tiatus, Alvina, and Bacchus Evrius!"
The six Warriors appeared in the Arena in a flash. Unlike during the previous fight, the entire Arena was silent. Everyone could sense the dark mood covering the Arena. Layland wasn't holding back anymore. His killing intent swept the entire Arena like a tsunami. Even the audience broke into a sweat despite being protected by the dome.
"You are going to get them killed," Valeria warned emotionlessly on Ilschevar's side.
"Very confident in your lover, aren't you?" Ilschevar responded with an amused voice. Ilschevar pouted slightly when Valeria didn't respond to his teasing. He was quite disappointed that he couldn't do what Layland could do easily. "You may commence the fight," he declared resoundingly.
Tiatus the Gryphon crossed his arms before throwing them to the side. A Mana blast swept the Arena, leaving raging vermillion fire in its wake. Alvina the Ghoul stretched her arm, causing ten disfigured corpses to rise from the ground. Each of them was emitting a Mana pressure that could rival an Upper Middle-Classed Warlord. Fighting one of them was enough of a nightmare, but Layland had the two at the same time.
As if not wanting to lose, the other Demon King's Generals also flared their Mana. Holcio roared [Indulgence] thus activating his Origin. The feral look that his eyes always bore was amplified. Not far from him, the usually aloof Bacchus had an eager look on his face. He muttered [Narcolepsy] and his eager look was instantly replaced with a drowsy look. His stance showed a lot of openings, but the aura he was emitting brought dread upon those who felt it.
Jovenus was the only one who kept his Mana under control. He was one of the rare Demons who preferred strategic warfare to barbaric warfare. He wanted to see what Layland had in store first before activating his Origin. He had had the misfortune of encountering a Demon with [Thievery] as their Origin. What happened that day still made him sweat. Although the chance of Layland possessing the same Origin was dismal, he still had to be careful.
"Activate your Origin. All of you won't be enough to activate mine," Layland exclaimed, causing the Generals' eyes to widen.
"Arrogance won't save you before us, runt!" Tiatus warned threateningly.
"That was a warning."
Layland's emotionless voice resounded stronger in their left ears, prompting them to turn in the said direction. They were in time to see Jovenus frantically blocking a hand thrust to his throat. His crossed arms were quickly losing out. Blood poured down the ground as Layland's nails cut through them.
Boom!
Holcio shot between Layland and Jovenus, separating the two. He had planned to land a hit on Layland but failed to do so as Layland gracefully dodged his kick. Jovenus used this chance to make a distance and watched as the manic Holcio rushed at Layland. He gulped upon noticing the hint of irritation on Layland's face. They were running on thin ice. If they weren't careful, what happened a decade ago might happen.
Jovenus looked at Ilschevar apprehensively. The Demon King noticed his gaze and then gestured his chin at the fight. He was unconcerned. Jovenus clicked his tongue bitterly. Muttering [Discord], he activated his Origin. It had been some time since he had activated his Origin. The last time would be when he had encountered the thieving bastard.
Boom!
Holcio was sent skidding on the ground with a [Death Blow] to his stomach. He didn't suffer any external injuries, but his viscera were quite damaged, causing him to cough up a mouthful of blood.
"The more you lose your mind, the more you get stronger. Given your Origin's name, I presume you get stronger the more you enjoy your fight which also hampers your ability to think logically. Quite similar to Berserk," Layland stated neutrally. "I am sorry for you to have such a shitty Origin."
"Shut the fuck up and fight!" Holcio exclaimed.
Layland turned to the side and caught Tiatus' greatsword in time. The Gryphon widened his eyes slightly but quickly recovered from his shock upon noticing the blood trickling Layland's gloved hands.
'His skin is not impenetrable,' Tiatus noted mentally. "I am sorry for ruining your fun, General Holcio. I hate to be a bystander."
"Tsk. Don't blame me if you are caught in the crossfire," Holcio shouted in displeasure.
Swish!
The conversation between the two Generals ceased when Layland cut Tiatus' greatsword in two with a sweep of his hand. None of them could believe what they had witnessed. The greatsword was not Tiatus' strongest weapon but still a Green-Grade Relic. It would have been acceptable if Layland had cut it using a higher-grade Relic, but he had done that using his Mana. That feat required an incredible control over a huge amount of Mana which all of them didn't possess.
"I suggest all of you surrender like what Lemius and Velucan did. It will be a great loss for Verniculos to lose all of you," Layland stated threateningly. "I am on my last line already."
The Generals could see it. Layland seemed very eager to slaughter them and bolt out of the Arena. Despite knowing this, none of them wanted to back down. They wanted to see what the Demon King Candidate amounted to.
"Stop with the empty talks and let us see what you can do already, boy," Alvina declared with a smirk.
The Dark Knights that she had summoned rushed at Layland and reached his side in the blink of an eye. As they swung their weapons, Layland disappeared and then reappeared before her with his hand grasping her neck.
"That's not a wise choice, you know," she stated with a mirthful smile on her face.
Grabbing Layland's wrist, she absorbed his life force. Layland didn't look bothered in the slightest and that made her frown. She was sure she was absorbing his life force at a ridiculous rate. Her frown turned into a haunted look in the next second. She writhed as she tried to release herself from Layland's grip to no avail.
Blergh!
Black blood poured out of Alvina's mouth as her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Layland tightened his grip, causing her head to burst like a balloon. Tossing her lifeless body to the side, he turned to the side slightly, blocking Jovenus' strike. Jovenus stared into the abyss in Layland's eyes and cursed inwardly. He was sure the conclusion of the fight would be painful.
"Draw your sword, Layland Kleinhaus," Jovenus roared.
"Fine," Layland easily complied.
Rexorem appeared in Layland's hand and was swiftly swung. Jovenus only registered what happened when his bisected body touched the ground. In the next moment, Layland's foot landed on his face. His eyes widened in horror as Rexorem was descending on his chest. He frantically stabbed Layland's shin with his finger and injected his Mana.
Half of Layland's leg exploded like a bomb, causing him to make a distance. It was the first injury that Layland suffered; a quite grave one. Despite that, Jovenus still widened his eyes in shock. His Origin allowed him to mess with the Mana coursing through his opponent's body. It forced the Mana to destroy the body from the inside the more the victim used Mana.
What happened to Layland means that he was using a ridiculous amount of Mana. His leg shouldn't have exploded that instantly.
'He also managed to limit the effect to only his lower leg. What a terrifying Demon,' Jovenus mused with dread.
Bacchus appeared on Jovenus' side and put his body together. He muttered a thank you at the drowsy Demon when he stood up. They looked at each other before nodding in agreement. They had to assume their True Form to survive. The dome quivered as their Demonic Essence swept the entire Arena.
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