Chapter 271 - Step by step

In the silence of his study with the moonlight shining the demon lord of the west, the lord of all vampires, Darius was reading a book. It was an ancient book talking about a past that has nearly been lost in time. 

The ancient book tells of a tale of a being that went against the origin of everything. This being was one who continued to fight despite the overwhelming odds. It was a tale of a being that was similar to the heroes that the current humans had. In fact, based on what the book says he was the prototype of all heroes, the very first hero. One who denies destiny and twists it to his own liking. 

"With his unbeatable strength and an unwavering will, the mighty hero stood in front of his enemies and smiled. That smile of his never disappeared despite all that he lost he continued onward. That smile of his was the sign of death for his enemies. With nothing but one sword at hand the mighty hero faced the armies of the Gods and charged forth. At his back were the people he wished to protect, at his front was the battle he wished to have. In the end, he had nothing more to wish."

After reading that part of that book out loud Darius closed it and turned around. In the cover of darkness stood a man wearing a butler's uniform. 

"That's a paragraph from my favorite book. I found it in an ancient ruin of an ancient human kingdom that was found near my lands. It's about an ancient human hero that fought insurmountable odds. This is of course normal for fairy tales written by humans, but those are usually tall tales for children or written storybooks. Funnily enough, this book isn't written as such, it is written in a history book. It took me a few decades to decipher the words and learn that it was indeed a history book."

Darius looked at the silent figure and smiled as he continued to talk. 

"The humans who wrote this book were far stronger than the humans of today. Their civilization had reached its peak and the Gods didn't like that. They feared the humans would be able to reach them if their progress continued, sent down their armies. In the face of the powerful armies of the Gods, the human weapons were unable to do anything. It was a one-sided massacre the humans stood no chance, that was when a savior appeared. This hero was someone who found joy in battle he fought the armies of the Gods with nothing but a single sword at hand. He enjoyed every bit of battle until he died happily in the battle that broke the path to the realm of the Gods." 

"Don't you think this so called hero resembles that demon called Kretos? It is quite interesting, the more I read this book, and the more I hear about Kretos, the more similarities I find between him and the ancient hero... Well, I guess coincidences do happen from time to time."

Darius smiled as he gestured the silent figure to come closer. The observer who was wearing a butler's uniform stepped forward and bowed. 

"So what have you seen?" 

When the observer heard Darius's question he once again bowed and gave his report. He reported Kretos's success in the underground fighting ring as well as his encounter with his family. After the observer finished reporting all the details Darius couldn't help but laugh. 

"This is quite interesting, he is very much like Kir but with more freedom. Not shackled by family or anything else, victory always by his side, he truly is the same as that hero of old. As expected, with this kind of opponent who has an enormous amount of strength and willpower, little tricks won't work." 

"So how should I proceed my lord?" 

"Just continue to observe him for now. Find out everything about him, his favorite food, how long does he train, what time does he sleep. Find out every mundane thing and report back to me. There's no such thing as a person without a weakness. If he doesn't have one now then we just need to create one for him."

"As you will my lord." The observer bowed his head and disappeared from the room. Once the observer was gone Darius took a stack of playing cards and picked up a joker. He then placed the joker in the middle of his chessboard making the various pawns and knights scatter. 

"Let's have fun Kretos, you and I."

...

After winning battle after battle from city to city the opponents seem to be getting weaker. Based on how the tournament works Kretos still needed to fight a few more before he could meet the demon lord Darius. But even he who loved battle more than anything else was getting irritated by the lack of a challenge. 

'This is getting pretty boring, I thought that the demon lord praised for his cunning would do something extreme, but all he has done are simple petty tricks. Fighting these weaklings is also no longer fun.' 

"I want a real challenge something that would make my blood boil in excitement! I want something that could force me to use all my moves, exhaust all my resources! I want a battle that could shake my very foundations!"

Kretos suddenly shouted in the middle of the ring. The audience and the commentator were stunned into silence, while the opponent who was on the ground was full of rage. Not only did Kretos beat him but Kretos even said it out loud that he was not even an opponent worth mentioning. Those were not his words but that was what he felt Kretos was saying. 

Kretos looked at the commentator and then spoke in a loud enough voice that she and the audience could hear him. 

"This is getting boring, how about I just fight all the remaining fighters in this city all at once." 

Every one of them who heard what Kretos said had their mouths agape. They knew that Kretos was powerful but even he wouldn't be able to stand the combined might of the strongest fighters in the city. Unarmed and without the use of spells even some of the demon lords won't be able to do it. 

"I don't think that is-" The commentator was about to answer but then Kretos raised his hand to stop her from talking. 

"If we're just going to do this one on one and the opponents are of this level then just name me the champion already. But if you want to excite the audience then give them something to watch. Come let me take all the fighters and I'll show you a battle worth watching!" 

The audience was getting excited and they cheered. The commentator was about to answer Kretos by telling him they couldn't do that, but then someone whispered in her ears. When she heard the order of the higher-ups she was surprised. She didn't understand why they would allow this but she had no choice but to follow.

"Since fighter Kretos, wishes to fight every fighter all at once, and our dear audience seems all for it. Our sponsors have allowed to bend the rules for him! So now let us witness if the horned Demon Kretos is really worthy of his moniker the killer of a thousand demons!"