[email protected]/jelopy_jelopy for 100+ more chapters
Hyakinthos swung his glowing sword.
The magic flared red and hot.
Elias didn't step back.
He simply tilted his head.
The blade missed his ear by an inch.
"Stand still!"
Hyakinthos yelled.
He swung again, faster this time.
Elias blocked it with the wooden pole.
"You swing too wide,"
Elias said.
"You rely on magic, not your arms."
Hyakinthos growled.
He changed his stance.
He tried a fast, sneaky thrust.
Elias's body shifted automatically.
His Adaptivity was a broken power.
His muscles remembered every attack.
If a move failed once, it would never hit him again.
He adapted to the speed, the angle, and the magic.
Elias tapped Hyakinthos's wrist with the blunt end of his naginata.
The glowing sword dropped to the dirt.
"How?"
Hyakinthos gasped, holding his bruised hand.
"You are a Level 2!"
Hyakinthos screamed.
"You can't be faster than me! I am Level 3!"
"Levels are just numbers,"
Elias said.
"My teacher didn't care about numbers."
Hyakinthos picked up his sword with his left hand.
He signaled the rest of his men.
"Attack him together! Don't let him breathe!"
The men rushed in.
They threw nets, spears, and magic all at once.
Elias moved.
His Adaptivity analyzed everything in a split second.
A net fell exactly where he just stood.
A spear hit the empty ground.
A fireball hit the spear.
Elias walked right through the chaos.
He hit one man in the neck.
He tripped another.
Nothing they threw at him worked.
He destroyed them completely.
He wasn't even trying.
He looked completely bored.
"He isn't even sweating,"
Bell said from the back.
Bell lowered his knife.
"We don't need to do anything."
Welf leaned on his heavy sword and sighed.
"I feel completely useless right now. But I am okay with that."
Dee tossed another piece of popcorn into her mouth.
"Just enjoy the show,"
She told them.
"He is just playing with them."
Back in the Gods' room, Apollo gripped the window ledge.
His knuckles were entirely white.
"Stop this!"
Apollo screamed.
He turned around to face the large room.
"He is cheating! Hestia is cheating!"
The room was silent for a moment.
Then, Loki laughed.
It was a loud, mocking laugh.
"Are you blind, Apollo?"
Loki asked, pointing a finger at him.
"Where is the cheat? I don't see any illegal magic items."
"He is a Level 2!"
Apollo shouted.
Spit flew from his mouth.
"A Level 2 can't dodge magic like that! A Level 2 can't beat a hundred men alone! He must have a hidden falna! Or a cursed weapon!"
Hermes shook his head slowly.
"You are just upset because you are losing, Apollo. Accept it."
"No!"
Apollo walked into the center of the room.
He pointed his finger at the ceiling.
"I demand a Guild inspection! Stop the game right now! They broke the rules!"
Ouranos, the head of the Guild, spoke through a magic crystal in the corner of the room.
His voice was deep and heavy.
"There is no cheating,"
Ouranos stated calmly.
"The crystal sensors show no illegal items. He is only using his own body and a simple weapon. The game continues."
"You are all against me!"
Apollo cried out.
"He is unnatural! Look at him! He is adapting to everything! No human can do that!"
None of the Gods or Goddesses listened to him anymore.
Finn crossed his arms and looked at Apollo.
"That is his skill,"
Finn explained.
"He learns instantly. Your men keep doing the same things. He already knows how to beat them. It is over."
Ais watched the screen closely.
"He is perfect,"
She said softly.
Tiona nodded eagerly.
"Apollo's kids look like slow turtles next to him. This is the best fight ever!"
Apollo fell to his knees on the soft carpet.
He grabbed his own hair.
"My beautiful children... My pride... He is ruining everything!"
Down on the battlefield, Elias knocked Hyakinthos to the ground for the fifth time.
The captain's bright armor was cracked and broken.
His face was covered in dirt, sweat, and blood.
He tried to stand up, but his legs shook too much.
"Why..."
Hyakinthos coughed.
"Why can't I hit you?"
"Because you stopped learning,"
Elias answered.
He looked around the battlefield.
There were still about fifty men standing.
But they were backing away in fear.
They dropped their weapons.
They were entirely broken.
Their spirit was gone.
Elias let out a long breath.
"This is getting boring,"
Elias said to himself.
"It is time I ended this farce."
He looked up at the sky, right at the magic mirrors.
He knew the Gods were watching.
He knew the whole city was watching.
"I should probably make this look good,"
Elias muttered.
"Just to send a message so nobody bothers us again."
He held his naginata with both hands.
He widened his stance and lowered his center of gravity.
He closed his eyes and thought of the Land of Shadows.
He thought of his master, Scathach.
She had taught him many things.
Most of them were too deadly to use here.
But there was one ultimate technique.
It was a spear strike meant to pierce through anything.
The God Slaying Spear.
He wouldn't use its full power.
He just wanted to break the castle behind the army.
"Bell,"
Elias called out without looking back.
"Yes, Elias?"
Bell answered quickly.
"Cover your ears."
Bell, Welf, and Lili quickly covered their ears with their hands.
Dee just put on a pair of fluffy pink earmuffs she pulled out of nowhere.
Elias took a deep breath.
The air around him suddenly changed.
It felt incredibly heavy.
The ground under his feet started to crack and splinter.
Red energy began to swirl around the wooden pole.
The curved blade glowed with a terrifying, dark crimson light.
The remaining Apollo members fell to their knees.
The pressure in the air was too heavy.
It was hard to breathe.
"What is that?"
Hyakinthos whispered in horror.
"A grand show,"
Elias said.
Up in the viewing room, the Gods stopped talking.
Loki dropped her cup.
It shattered on the floor, spilling expensive wine everywhere.
Finn stood up from his chair in shock.
His eyes were wide open.
Ais pressed both her hands against the glass.
"That aura..."
Hermes whispered, his smile completely gone.
"That isn't normal magic. That is..."
"Divine,"
A minor god said, shaking in his boots.
"No... it feels like it can kill us,"
Another god muttered, taking a step back from the screen.
Far away on the city rooftop, Ryu held her breath.
Her green eyes were glued to the magic mirror.
The red light reflected in her eyes.
"What kind of power is that?"
Ryu asked the wind.
She felt a shiver go down her spine.
It was beautiful, but it was deadly.
Elias pulled his right arm back.
The red energy formed a massive spear of light around his naginata.
He aimed not at the men, but at the massive stone castle behind them.
The castle was Apollo's base and the symbol of their power.
"Pierce,"
Elias said softly.
He threw his arms forward.
He didn't let go of the weapon.
He just thrust it into the air.
A beam of pure, deep red energy shot out from the blade.
It roared like an angry dragon.
The sound deafened the entire battlefield.
The red beam flew right over the heads of the Apollo Familia.
They screamed and flattened themselves against the dirt.
The beam hit the front gate of the castle.
There was no loud explosion.
There was only a blinding red light.
The stone melted instantly.
The metal gates vanished into thin air.
The red beam tore straight through the thick walls.
It went right through the main hall.
It blasted out the back of the fortress, leaving a perfectly round hole.
For a second, nothing happened.
Then, the top half of the castle slowly slid off its base.
With a loud, rumbling crash, the entire structure collapsed.
It turned into a massive pile of dust and rubble.
The wind slowly blew the dust away.
Absolute silence fell over the ruins.
Elias lowered his naginata.
The red light faded away into nothing.
The wood was slightly warm, but totally fine.
He looked at the destroyed castle.
Then he looked down at Hyakinthos.
Hyakinthos was crying.
He couldn't speak.
He just stared at the smoking rubble of his home.
"I think we won,"
Elias said calmly.
He put his weapon on his back.
He turned around and walked back to his friends.
"GGEZ"