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Hey everyone! I sincerely apologize for the lack of updates lately. I had to travel to my village to attend a wedding and was away from the city for the past few weeks. Because of that, I couldn't upload any new chapters.
But I'm back now—and fully recharged! I'll be updating regularly again, and I truly appreciate your patience and continued support during this time.
To make it up to you, here are the next two chapters in advance. I hope you enjoy them!
Thank you again for sticking with me. Your support means everything.
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While Rudra and Arthur clashed above, shaking the very foundations of the underworld, a clone of Rudra moved in silence—deep, far below, into a level of the prison hidden even from most demons. A place whispered about in cursed tongues.
His footsteps echoed over blood-soaked stone. Behind him, a trail of demon corpses stretched into the darkness, their twisted limbs twitching in death.
Then he stopped.
A massive iron door stood before him. Without hesitation, he phased through the thick metal—and froze.
What lay beyond wasn't a prison. It was a nightmare.
The air reeked of blood, bile, and despair. Dozens of women—naked, bruised, and chained to the walls—screamed and sobbed. Some were unconscious, murmuring deliriously, while others trembled as demons hovered near them. On the far end of the room, corpses of women lay lifeless, stomachs torn open, blood pooled beneath them. Something had clawed its way out.
Rudra's expression turned cold.
"…Fucking hell," he muttered.
His Rinnegan flared. The entire room trembled as every demon was pulled away from their victims, limbs flailing helplessly.
"Chibaku Tensei," he intoned.
A black sphere formed above them, pulling the demons in like ragdolls. Their bodies collided mid-air, crushed into a grotesque ball of limbs and shrieks. With a final twitch, the sphere exploded in a rain of blood and bone, splattering the chamber.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Rudra stepped forward, his eyes scanning the women. When he moved toward them, panic erupted.
"N-No! Please don't hurt us!"
"Don't kill my daughter! I'll do what you say!"
"We'll listen! Just don't hurt our families!"
Rudra stopped, eyebrows furrowing. They weren't fully conscious—trapped between reality and some mental prison.
"They… they think I'm one of them," he said, almost to himself.
He knelt beside one of the women, gently cupping her face. "You're safe now."
But she kept sobbing, unhearing.
With a sigh, he activated his Sharingan and looked directly into her eyes.
A flood of memories surged into him—images of normal lives shattered, abductions, rituals, forced births. The girl's pain, fear, and hopelessness pierced even his hardened soul.
He exhaled slowly. "You've suffered enough."
He began unchaining them, one by one, laying each woman gently on the cold floor. He worked silently, methodically, whispering soft reassurances they couldn't hear.
"Just rest… I'll fix this."
As he finished the last set of chains, he stood up, muttering, "Maybe I should handle whoever's running this pit myself."
But then he shrugged, his voice dry, bitter. "Guess I'll do what the main body would've done."
As Rudra clone walked deeper into the corridor, preparing to eliminate whatever filth lay ahead, he suddenly stopped.
Something caught his eye.
His head snapped to the right, toward a pile of corpses near the wall—just another stack of victims in this cursed place. But one figure among them made his heart skip a beat.
Blonde hair. Both eye missing.
He stared for a moment, expression unreadable.
"...Cecile," he murmured.
Slowly, he walked over. She was lying half-buried beneath other bodies, her lifeless face partially covered in dried blood. He recognized her immediately—the girl from Salice Town. The first one he had ever slept with. A brief connection, barely more than a night, but enough to leave a mark in his memory.
Every man remembers the woman who took his virginity—etched not just in flesh, but in something deeper, something that lingers even when everything else is gone.
He knelt beside her and, with casual care, lifted her into his arms. Her body was cold and limp, but he didn't flinch. He laid her across his lap and lightly brushed a strand of hair from her cheek.
"So, you ended up here too."
He stared at her face—searching, perhaps, for some sign of life, even though he already knew the truth. There was a dull ache in his chest, nothing more. No grief. No tears.
"I should probably feel more," he said to himself quietly.
He stroked her hair once, then stopped.
After a moment, he laid her body down gently on the ground and stood.
"I'll come back and take you from this dump," he said with a faint, almost tired smile. "Just wait here."
With that, Rudra clone turned away, his eyes already fixed on the deeper path ahead. Whatever was responsible for this place still lived.
And he had work to do.
****
Back to the fight between Rudra and Arthur
The shattered throne room echoed with the clash of steel. Yamato met Rebellion in rapid strikes, their blades humming through the stale air like thunder about to break. Neither Rudra nor Arthur was going all out—just probing, feinting, teasing the storm that was sure to come.
Arthur scoffed, pushing against Rudra's blade. "If this is your best, you might as well hand over Yamato now—before I turn you into a cautionary tale."
Rudra grinned, parrying with ease. "Wow. That line was so edgy I nearly cut myself. Do all old guys rehearse their monologues in front of a mirror?"
Arthur narrowed his eyes. "Watch that mouth, Subject 69."
Without another word, Arthur whipped out a pistol and started blasting. Bullets zipped through the air, each glowing faintly with demonic energy.
Rudra ducked and weaved through the volley with exaggerated ease. "Damn, gramps! Ever heard of talking through your issues instead of reenacting an action movie?"
He vanished mid-step.
A split second later, he reappeared in front of Arthur with a smirk and whispered, "Judgement Cut."
A flash of light—then slashes erupted in every direction like a blender of death. Arthur's body was launched across the room, slamming into his broken throne with a thunderous crack.
Rudra exhaled, stretching his neck. "Well, that was underwhelming. I expected a final boss, not a warm-up."
He turned to leave.
Then he stopped.
A pulse of power surged behind him—dark, immense, hungry. The air grew heavy, thick with demonic pressure.
He sighed. "You've got to be kidding me…"
System chimed. Boss has entered Phase Two! Please scream responsibly.
Rudra facepalmed. "This system is way too cheerful about me getting murdered."
Stone shattered as Arthur rose, now transformed. Wings of shadow burst from his back, horns curled from his forehead, and his once-human eyes glowed red with Sparda's wrath.
"Now... witness the true might of Sparda!" he roared.
Rudra turned slowly, unimpressed. "Great. He hit puberty mid-battle."
Arthur lunged, fist crackling with energy. Rudra blocked the punch with Yamato, the force sending a shockwave through the room. Their weapons clashed again, sparks flying as Rudra flipped back, landing gracefully.
"Alright," Rudra muttered, cracking his knuckles. "Demon form, dramatic speech, and cheap bullet spam. i'll give you 7/10."
He readied his blade, smirking.
"Round two, let's dance—bitch."
The floor cracked beneath their feet.
Arthur shot forward like a cannonball, Rebellion raised high, shadow-wings splitting the air behind him. Rudra met him halfway, Yamato flashing in a blue arc—steel screamed against steel as their blades collided, the impact sending shockwaves through the ruined throne room.
Rudra's feet slid back across shattered stone. He grinned.
Arthur snarled, eyes glowing with infernal power. "Stop smiling."
He drove a knee into Rudra's ribs, then spun low—tail whipping out of nowhere. Rudra caught it with one hand, sparks flying as claws scraped against his palm. Without flinching, he wrenched the tail sideways and delivered a brutal elbow into Arthur's jaw.
Bone cracked.
Arthur staggered, but spun with the momentum, slashing horizontally. Rudra ducked, his coat torn as the blade grazed his shoulder. He countered with a reverse draw slash—Judgement Cut—and time fractured for a heartbeat.
Purple slashes bloomed in the air like lightning bolts.
Arthur roared as one caught his wing, tearing a ragged line through flesh and bone. He retaliated by unleashing a beam of demonic energy from his palm—crimson, unstable, pulsing with rage.
Rudra blurred out of sight and reappeared behind Arthur mid-air.
"Got you."
He plunged Yamato down.
Arthur twisted at the last second, Rebellion catching the blow. The sheer force drove both of them crashing into the floor, rubble exploding outward.
They hit the ground like a meteor strike.
Rudra rolled to his feet first, panting, coat scorched, blood leaking from his lip.
Arthur roared and summoned a wave of darkness that turned the air black. Tendrils lashed out from every angle, slamming toward Rudra like a cage of spears. He spun, cutting through the dark tendrils mid-flip, but one slammed into his side and sent him crashing through a stone pillar.
He emerged from the rubble coughing dust, cloak torn.
"Okay…" Rudra spat blood, then smiled. "Time to stop playing."
His chakra surged, the ground shattering beneath him. Aura exploded outward—blue and violet flames rising around him like a second skin. The Rinnegan and Sharingan both ignited like twin suns.
Arthur's eyes narrowed. "Fine."
He tore off his own coat, revealing a body carved in infernal runes. The power of Sparda poured from his pores like liquid shadow. Horns extended. Wings flared. His blade burned crimson.
They charged.
A single heartbeat.
Then—impact.
Blade met blade in a blinding clash. Sparks. Steel. Fury. Their movements blurred, strikes so fast the air cracked behind them. Each swing was a sonic boom. Each block a tremor.
Rudra kicked Arthur into the air. Teleported above him. Slammed Yamato down.
Arthur caught it. Twisted. Threw Rudra to the ground like a comet.
The castle shook.
As dust cleared, both warriors stood—bloodied, breathing hard, but grinning like devils.
"Round three," Rudra muttered, spinning Yamato once.
Arthur raised Rebellion.
"Let's finish this."
Rudra glanced down at his unsheathed blade, coated with blood and cracks of dark energy humming along the edge. He exhaled, the battlefield silent for a heartbeat.
"…Let's try this."
Without hesitation, he reversed his grip—and plunged Yamato into his own stomach.
A shockwave burst from the point of impact. Black and violet energy spiraled violently as demonic glyphs erupted across Rudra's body. His eyes snapped open—pure white fire blazing in both the Sharingan and Rinnegan.
His coat shredded. His aura ignited.
From the crater, Rudra emerged transformed—horns curled from his temples, spectral wings unfolded, and his voice rumbled with unnatural calm.
"This... is Demon Trigger."
Arthur's eyes widened, lips curling into a savage grin.