Chapter 381 - 381: Mercy

"I will say this only once Cyrus… You are like a brother to me, but if you dare try to harm those who I have chosen to protect… I won't hesitate to cut you down!" Derik said with his killing intentions spread across the empire.

Even then Cyrus remained unfazed and gazed at Derik for a short time while pondering on what to do next. While killing Francis, Ahika and Diana are important to him, he wouldn't be able to do it with Derik standing in his way. As powerful as Derik maybe, Life magic will always be his bane so, in a one versus one fight, his chances of winning will always be higher. The problem now is, if they should fight here and the battle gets serious where they both go at each other without holding anything back, chances are the continent itself may be destroyed as a result of their battle.

Cyrus knew Derik was well aware of this but still chose to stand in his way, so the question is why?

"Puf!" Cyrus let out a deep breath and the divine golden broadsword in his hands vanished alongside the pair of golden wings.

"I know just like me, you really want to kill those bastards…. So what stopped you? Why do you choose to die at my hands instead?" Cyrus wrapped his hands around his chest while saying the last part with a mocking smile on his face.

Seeing that Cyrus had let go of his weapon, the bone armor on Derik vanished as well alongside the death scythe. He ignored Cyrus's questions at first slowly pushing his hair back with his hands before turning his attention to Cyrus.

"Die at your hands… according to my records, we have fought four times in the past and if I am not wrong I have won three out of four!" Derik sneered causing Cyrus's face to turn red in shame.

He too tried to recall, and when he remembered their first battle at castle black outside the walls, where he was defeated by Derik, he felt more ashamed. They also fought when he was trying to escape from Gerald before they made it to the moonlight forest. At that time, Derik did not only fight against Cyrus but also every other member of their team guardian and still won. When he also came to kill the old king Robert, Derik also battled Cyrus and the other members of team guardian and won! The only time Derik had lost to Cyrus was after clearing the dungeon and receiving the creator's treasures, all four kingdoms ganged up on him and with Cyrus's help, they were able to deliver a powerful blow that left Derik crippled for more than half a decade!

"This time will be different!" Cyrus looked away in shame, causing Derik to laugh hard.

"It's okay, it's okay… Concerning Francis and Diana… You know killing them will give me great joy since we lost so many people who served us well because of their actions and even to this day I regret not being able to protect them… But now, I'm not thinking about the past or the present but the future! After our breakthrough into the demigod realm and we are forced to leave this realm, who will protect what we have built? Francis and Diana may be our enemies but we all have one thing in common, we love this empire, we love this world and we will do anything to protect it… they may act against us because they perceive us as a threat and feel insecure but in the end, they are still here… Fighting to protect what we built…" Derik spoke slowly to give Cyrus some time to ponder on his words.

"I know, I know but!" Cyrus was clearly struggling with Derik's words. 

Not because they were false or because he completely agreed with Derik, but because those words were true and no matter how much he tried to deny it, he just couldn't.

"And when we leave, who will protect everything we have worked hard to create? Who will protect we love and care about from the invaders? I am really sorry but we can't afford to lose these people… we will spare their lives in exchange for their services!" Derik said with a sly smile on his face.

............���...............…..

After a few moments of consideration, Cyrus had no choice but to agree. The empire had always depended solely on him and Derik for protection in the past, and now they are gone, the strength of the empire will surely reduce, and the various invaders will surely attack once again. In fact, the only reason why the invaders hadn't attacked in the past was simply that they had heard of Derik and Cyrus, the duo who controls life and death. Unlike Francis and Diana, they didn't dare attack while they were away but instead, they chose to gather their strength and prepare for the inevitable confrontation with them.

It didn't take long for the news of the total destruction of two settlements spread across the continent and even the world. The Death mage and the Life mage who they have been scared of had finally returned, easily destroying two settlements in a day. 

At first, fear spread across the other invaders on the continent but when they received news about Derik and Cyrus battle against the orc overseer, the fear turned to despair as these people couldn't think of a way to fend of two men capable of taking on a demigod and returning unscathed?

Initially, these invaders began entertaining thoughts of leaving the continent entirely but the final piece of news they received finally calmed them down.

The life mage and the death mage are going through a transition into the demigod realm. While they can still fight in this condition, they can't use their full strength so they will most likely avoid combat if necessary! During this period these invaders have no reason to fear since they were sure Derik and Cyrus will not attack them and after the breakthrough, they will be forced to leave this realm, leaving behind a weak and defenseless empire!