After a brief moment of silence,
"HAHAHAHA!"
Verethragna let out a booming laugh.
"To think that we, as gods, are likened to worthless ants by a mere mortalhow fascinating, how truly fascinating!"
"Hmph, human Are you insulting me?"
Lightning rumbled around Melqart, a reflection of his mounting fury.
Indeed, they had been provokedone might say belittled. And the one most severely offended was, beyond doubt, Athena.
She frowned deeply.
"Human, though I know not why you returned the Gorgoneion to me and helped me reclaim my original forman act for which I should bestow the grace of a goddessyour words are a grave affront to the Goddess of Wisdom. I shall kill you for them."
"Yet these two matters do not conflict."
"Speak now, mortalwhat sort of blessing do you desire?"
Even at her most powerful, Athena remained a goddess of pride. She rewarded and punished fairly. In general, gods seldom do "offsetting merits and demerits," but she clearly offered both in her own manner.
Rei Ao waved her off.
"Before we discuss anything between us, why not let me deal with those two battle fanatics first?"
He saw the two "lights" of mayhem standing off to the side, and they were clearly in his way.
"Oh?"
Verethragna seemed surprised.
"So, child of man, am I to take your words as a declaration of rebellionwar against us gods?"
His eyes shone with anticipation, eager to witness a hero challenging the divine. Nothing could excite him more.
"Rebellion?" Rei Ao let out a small laugh.
"That's a term for those beneath their ruler.
In my case, it's quite the opposite.
Youare the challengers."
"You dare vex me so!"
Melqart's surging rage threatened to be ignited by Rei Ao's words, but then
"?!"
A colossal pressure descended in an instant.
The color of the sky shifted. The shape of the wind and clouds was no longer the Heretic Gods' domain alone.
Where once Rei Ao had stood below, forcing them to look down on him, now he drifted in midair at their same height.
Arms folded across his chest, he hovered calmly, posture straight and steady, like some towering mountain. An overwhelming aura radiated from himso immense that even Verethragna felt stifled.
It was a force more oppressive than Athena's newly restored Triune Godhood.
Rei Ao's deep-blue eyes gleamed with extraordinary confidence. The sheer power emanating from him rolled forth like an invisible tempest, compelling the three gods to take notice.
His gaze swept over Verethragna and Melqart.
"As challengers, I'll give you one shot at your strongest attack."
His voice resonated low and firm, weighing on both their bodies and minds.
Verethragna and Melqart exchanged uneasy glances, astonished.
Never had they encountered a mortal with such a formidable presence.
"Hmph, arrogant human!"
Melqart sneered. "You think you can defeat us?"
Rei Ao offered no answer, his silence conveying quiet certainty. Victory was assured from the start.
Verethragna's eyes glinted thoughtfully.
"I've heard that those who achieve the feat of slaying a god can obtain divine omnipotence and become Demon Kings who reign supreme.
But there's no trace of any divine authority on you, child of man. How odd"
His musing lasted only an instant before battle hunger flared again.
"Well, your identity doesn't matter.
All I know is that you look down on us godsa mortal with the audacity to offend divinity. In a sense, you fit the title of 'hero.'
Very well, have it your way."
Verethragna spread his arms wide, and the power of his Ten Incarnations spread out behind him.
"The wrath of a god is not to be taken lightly. You, who dares offend us, prepare to face my fury!"
On his wheel of incarnations, the White Stallion emblem lit up.
His anger manifested as the fire of the sun!
"Shyaaa!"
Once again, the white horse of the sun galloped forth from the east, dragging searing solar flames across the sky. Brighter and more formidable than before, it no longer targeted Melqart, but streaked instead toward Rei Ao's location.
"And I've no qualms tearing you apart if that's your wish!"
Melqart was clearly at his limit. He had been belittled time and time again. Now he wanted only one thing: to punish this human who dared underestimate the God of Storms.
Boom!!!
He clashed his two divine clubsChaser and Drivertogether. With that, the authority he'd gathered erupted. He didn't even need words. A pure, cataclysmic storm descended, whipping toward Rei Ao with devastating force.
On one side, the sun's White Stallion.
On the other, the annihilating storm.
Rei Ao was caught squarely between the two attackscertainly few beings had ever "enjoyed" such treatment from two enraged gods.
"Careful!"
Erica cried out in panic. Though she wasn't standing at ground zero, she could sense the terror of a god's might even from the safety of the island.
No matter that she knew Rei Ao was strongher heart still pounded with fear.
Athena observed silently. She neither interfered nor considered it worth her intervention. She merely wished to see how Rei Ao would defeat two Heretic Gods before turning to face her. She also wondered what sort of expression Rei Ao would show in such a dire moment.
But she saw nothing.
Rei Ao stood unmoving, arms still crossed, as though all of this had nothing to do with him.
Only when the scorching flames and raging winds were about to reach him did his lips part slightly:
"Freeze."
Just that single wordquiet, yet echoing.
In that instant, time itself seemed to stand still.
A primordial chill seeped into the very souls of everyone present.
"Wh-what?!"
Dashing across the sea toward the Heretic Gods' aura, the "King of Swords," Salvatore Doni, gasped and clutched his chest. From behind his sunglasses, he watched both Heretic Gods unleash their towering powers on a single figure, fully expecting that man to be obliterated.
Yet a freezing aura that stilled everything pervaded the heavens and earth, and the moment the solar horse and savage storm touched that icy power, they became trapped in place, unable to advance any farther.
The horse's body dissolved.
The storm's form shattered.
Then, the freezing energy swiftly spread along the path of their authority, engulfing both the King of Gods and the Invincible Warrior God.
"!!!"
Terror flashed across their faces, giving no time to cry out.
A second later, their bodies plummeted to the earth in unison.
~~~
100 Powerstone Bonus Chapter!
For Every 100 Powerstone = 1 Bonus Chapter! Please Vote for more Chapters!
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
Currently You can Read 200 Chapters Ahead of Others!
Chapter 502: Mother Pandora
Boom!
The sound of something heavy crashing to the ground.
Crack!
The sound of crystalline fragments shattering.
""
Athena looked down at the shattered ice that had been Verethragna and Melqart. For a moment, she was too stunned to speak.
What power is this?
Verethragna and Melqart had just died!
She felt as though her entire being had been frozen by a force colder than the Underworld itself. In the blink of an eye, they had turned to ice and crumbled to pieces on the ground.
At that same moment, having achieved the feat of slaying gods, Rei Ao felt a peculiar tug upon his soul. Because he was already so powerful, he could resist the pull if he wished, but he didn't need to guess to know this was Pandora's summonsa result of completing the "God-slaying" deed.
Rei Ao's brow twitched slightly. He did not immediately respond to the summons. Instead, he turned toward Athena.
"As you can see, I've accomplished the feat of slaying gods. I'm being called to the Netherworld to become a Godslayer. But I'm not particularly interested in being a Godslayer. What does catch my attention, though, is the 'Mother' of Godslayers."
"I plan to check things out there. I assume you won't harm this island or my companions while I'm away?"
""
Athena cast Rei Ao a deep, scrutinizing look.
"Until I fulfill my own agreement with you, I won't act rashly."
"Excellent. That's exactly what I wanted to hear."
Rei Ao grinned.
"Wait for me to return."
Casting a glance at Doni, who had just arrived, he vanished in response to Pandora's summons.
"Rei Ao disappeared!"
Utaha cried out in surprise as his figure vanished from before their eyes.
"No, not disappeared."
Erica swallowed hard.
"The Heretic Gods fell, and he completed a god-slaying feat. Rei Ao is about to become a Godslayer!"
She still felt dazed. She had personally witnessed the birth of the world's seventh Demon King! And it had happened through the instant annihilation of two Heretic Gods.
"I just witnessed history!"
"Tsk, I came at such an inconvenient time."
Salvatore Doni stepped forward, scratching the back of his head in annoyance. He, too, had seen the birth of the seventh Demon King with his own eyes, and had seen how effortlessly that person killed the Heretic Gods. In that single moment, Doni felt a power cold enough to freeze the worlda force that could threaten even him.
Yes, the soon-to-be seventh Demon King possessed truly unimaginable power.
"You're Lord Salvatore Doni, the King of Swords!"
Erica recognized him at once and turned pale. She wondered why the sixth Demon King had come here.
"Heh-yo."
Doni glanced over the three of them.
"So, it looks like you're the new Demon King's retainers."
With no grievance against them, he wasn't looking to cause trouble. But his eyes narrowed at someone else.
"Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, Triune in divinity. You're quite a formidable Heretic God."
He produced a sword out of thin air.
Athena looked at him calmly.
"I sense the aura of a god, the power of a god. You are one who has slain a god."
Recognizing Doni's identity as a Godslayer, Athena did nothing further. She descended to the ground.
"I have a pact with that human known as Rei Ao. I shall fight him once he returns."
Ignoring Doni, who now wore a grave expression, she approached Erica, Utaha, and Eriri.
In a cool voice, she asked, "Youhis retinuewould you share your stories about him?"
While they conversed, Rei Ao closed his eyes and, in that instant, found himself in a vast, desolate world filled with the aura of deaththis was the Netherworld, the gap between the land of the living and the land of the undying.
Here, spirit and consciousness were more crucial than physical substance. It was a realm that had recorded everything that ever happened from the birth of the universe, as well as every possible future event, a realm where the line between fiction and reality was extremely blurred.
Movement here was through the mind, not the feet.
Rei Ao advanced mentally and soon came upon a palace and a young girl with waist-length hairseemingly a "little girl" in appearance. His eyes flickered. He raised a hand in greeting:
"Greetings, Lady Pandora."
Pandora, the beautiful goddesscreated by the deities as a flawless maiden to punish Prometheus for secretly granting mortals the divine fire.
They gave her every talent conceivable: voice, power, artistry, beauty Because Prometheus foresaw the wrath of the gods, they had Pandora (and the jar containing all the world's evils) delivered to Epimetheus"Afterthought," Prometheus's brother.
In the myth, Pandora opened that jar, releasing disasters upon mankind, while the "hope" left by Athena remained sealed at the bottom.
The mythology of this world might be in chaos, but Rei Ao guessed that this aspectPandora as the bearer of hoperemained key.
Possibly that was why all Godslayers are referred to as Epimetheus's childrenPandora's ritual grants those who kill gods the power of the gods themselves.
She was, in a sense, humanity's last hope.
"Oh?"
"My child, you seem to know your 'Mother' quite well."
Pandora bounced up in front of Rei Ao, acting as though they were already well-acquainted. She had pointed elf-like ears and pale-pink hair pulled into two long pigtails behind her, wearing a simple off-the-shoulder white robe.
While the exposed shoulders and slight reveal of skin would normally be seductive on an adult, she appeared in the form of a little girl, so it lacked the usual allure.
Even so, Pandora radiated an extraordinary beautyamong all the women Rei Ao had ever seen, many were arguably more gorgeous in a typical sense, but none possessed the same enthralling charm that stirred something in his heart. This beguiling magic simply exuded from her.
After regarding Rei Ao for a bit, Pandora clapped her hands in delight.
"As expected of my child! And your first time slaying gods, you succeeded twice over!"
"All these yearsthis is the first time someone's done that!"
'God-slayer' refers to those mortals who have accomplished the feat of killing a deity, recognized by the hidden goddess Pandora. And on top of that, it was his first attempt at slaying a godso many "impossibilities." No wonder she brimmed with pride.
Yes, pride. To Pandora, all Godslayers are her "children." She, as the "Mother," finds pride in her children's achievementsnaturally.
~~~
For Every 100 Powerstone = 1 Bonus Chapter! Please Vote for more Chapters!
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
Currently You can Read 200 Chapters Ahead of Others!
Chapter 503: No need for Ritual?
Circling once around Rei Ao, Pandora boasted proudly,
"Indeed, you are my child. Being able to slay two Heretic Gods in a row I'm so proud of you!"
"'Mother'?"
Rei Ao gave a small, wry smile.
"I think it's more fitting to just call you Pandora."
He wasn't in the habit of calling anyone his 'mother.' If anything, he had a habit of turning other people's mothers into his own women.
"Eh?"
Pandora pouted.
"No way! A mother is a mother. You mustn't be disrespectful to your mother, you know?"
She seemed rather insistent on being addressed that way. But Rei Ao remained unmoved, scrutinizing Pandora before him. He spoke frankly,
"Sorry, in front of such a cute, beautiful young lady like you, I really can't bring myself to say 'Mother.'"
"Cute!"
Pandora's eyes lit up.
"Well? Well? Are you captivated by me?"
She poked Rei Ao's midsection with her fingertips, her face brimming with a suggestive smile. Though her small fangs should have looked adorable, they instead evoked the notion of pinning her down. Truly, she was the perfect creation of the gods.
"You are indeed attractive, Pandora. How about becoming my woman?"
