Chapter 40: The first timeline

The land bore witness to the calamitous battle raging on below.

Monsters spilled endlessly from a large tear in the sky, unleashing the abominable creatures towards the humans.

The sheer number of the monsters was easily three times the amount of the human army yet the humans were somehow pushing them back.

Not just pushing them but overwhelming them.

A shadow danced between the monsters like a herald of death.

Draped in black, cold cyan eyes observed the monsters with predatory focus.

Tyrisa cut through their numbers with frightening ease, her expression blank whilst she wreaked havoc within the monster’s formation.

Her speed was astonishing, she moved like a phantom, appearing and reappearing at different locations faster than any siege weapon could.

Her figure blurred leaving only the kunai glinting with silver radiance.

The blade slashed at the torso of a twin headed ogre causing the enormous figure to trip which disrupted the formation of the monsters.

Some fled while others were flattened by the frame of the wounded ogre.

She propelled herself into the air using a stray humanoid creature as a stepping stone.

Her mana flared wildly surrounding her like a mantle, her lips parted beneath the half mask covering her lower face.

“Soul domain: Phantom moon.”

The world stilled.

Shadows stirred beneath every creature’s feet within a hundred meter radius.

The pale moon grew brighter until it burned like a miniature sun.

Tyrisa moved, her form splitting into endless clones made of shadows.

A sphere of darkness covered her domain, trapping every monster within it while her shadows moved in unison attacking the monsters.

The moon on the other hand began absorbing the shadows of the dead growing brighter and brighter until it resembled a miniature star.

An armor made of shadow manifested into creation, hugging Tyrisa’s frame. It looked like a samurai’s armor which had a large shoulder guard, a mempō, a yodare-kake and a kyahan.

The mempō had an oni design with canines jutting from its frame.

A wakizashi hung by the obi of her armor, while two tantos were clenched firmly within her hands.

Her cyan eyes glowed like pale moons watching every living creature with murderous intent while her body floated high above them and then, she moved.

The shadows followed.

****

On the southern flank of the battlefield, a catalytic battle was taking place.

The battlefield burned in a kaleidoscope of colors.

Gray smoke clouded the air while multicolored flames engulfed the monsters and the landscape.

The earth below bore witness to the fury of the hell witch, Craters littered the ground alongside the corpses of monsters and lesser demons.

High above the ground, a figure watched the spectacle below with cold eyes.

It was Leona Von Astavore, the strongest pyromancer, the hell fire witch, the chaos bringer and the only mage in existence to break through to the demi-god rank.

She looked older than the Leona Azazel remembered, same with Tyrisa, they looked like adults not merely children.

The years had taken away what last bit of childish innocence remained in them, not only them but the rest of the hero cohort too, they all looked to be in their late twenties.

Leona was dressed in a mage’s robe made out of a special purple material embroidered with silver accents.

Her forearms were covered with leather vambraces and gauntlets coated with thin sheets of metal.

Without a word she raised both arms into a stance above her torso.

The space around her palms warped as though she was trying to bend it.

Her lips parted softly.

“Influence.”

A gray mana wrapped around her gauntleted fists, then flowed towards the warped space.

It moved slowly away from her and towards the battlefield below and then…

“Distort.”

The space exploded outward, creating a rift within the space below.

Some monsters rushed forward in murderous frenzy while some intelligent ones tried to flee.

It was useless.

Leona didn’t give them that chance.

A wall of mystic flame surrounded the battlefield, towering over most creatures within its confines.

The flames also had a slow effect so escape was almost impossible.

“Invert.”

The moment those words left her lips, the rift began to spiral inwards, pulling the monsters and crushing them to bits.

Her gaze lingered on the remaining monster and then she smiled.

Despite their vast numbers, they weren’t the predator.

She was.

****

On the Northern flank of the battlefield, there weren’t any monsters.

Only two figures were locked in battle.

It was Elias and Kyle.

The former was clad in a paladin’s armor while the latter was oozing demonic aura, clad in an ominous armor reminiscent of a corrupted knight.

Kyle spoke first, dodging a slash from Elias, his voice was guttural, nothing like the hothead noble who hid behind words.

“Give up Elias, if you do I’ll promise you a painless death… lord Belial is benevolent after all, he shall make good use of your body, don’t worry, the same grace shall be extended to your companions.”

“Funny words coming from a demon, you reek Kyle. You’re promising a painless death? You who had to enter a pact with a demon just to amount to something? It’s not even infuriating it’s laughable at best.” Elias spat.

Kyle’s face morphed into a scowl but then he started laughing.

“Oh Elias, I’m going to enjoy breaking you.”

Elias on the other hand, scoffed but a flicker of emotion crossed his features.

“I shall rid the world of your ridiculous presence.”

No further words were exchanged.

The world stilled for a heartbeat and then, the two brothers moved.

Sol blazed with golden radiance thrumming an aggressive beat while Kyle lashed out with his demonic great sword.

The moment they collided the ground beneath their feet caved in, their auras flared, dividing the sky.

Thus began the calamitous battle of the two brothers.

And somewhere far away from the battlefield, above the clouds, a place untouched by the apocalypse-scale war below, Azazel watched with a pale face.

It was a familiar scene, one every hardcore gamer knew all too well.

It was the prelude to the final battle of the game, World of fallen paragons.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep