Chapter 269 Ares' Awakening



Maya's heart pounded in her chest as she watched her comrades fall one by one, their headless bodies now lying lifeless on the ground.

With panic setting in, she readied her sword, her eyes darting frantically around in search of any sign of the unknown attacker responsible for the massacre.

"What is happening?" she muttered under her breath, her eyes darting around in search of any sign of the culprit.

With each passing moment, their numbers dwindled, until the smoke cleared and Maya caught sight of the person behind the slaughter.

!?

Her heart skipped a beat as she stumbled backward in disbelief. "T-There's no way... how can he still move?" she stuttered, her eyes wide with fear. It was the first time in a very long time that she felt such intense fear.

In front of her stood Ares, suspended in the air with white wings extending from his back. His hair shone white, and his eyes glimmered like fierce blue lightning in the darkness, and Maya felt a chill run down her spine from the intense aura he was emitting.

Her instincts screamed at her to run for her life, to get as far away from this dangerous and unpredictable being as possible. She knew that if she didn't, she too would become one of the fallen.

Suddenly, Ares raised his right hand and a bolt of lightning crackled to life in his palm.

Shrieeek— Shrieeek

Without warning, he hurled the lightning bolt toward Maya's remaining comrades, and a deafening explosion followed, wiping them all out in an instant.

BOOM!—

The ground shook as the lightning struck, sending shockwaves rippling through the earth. Maya stumbled backward, barely managing to keep her footing, as a huge crater was left in the aftermath.

Ares raised his hand again and moved it forward, and in an instant, lightning began to fall from the sky all around the maze, causing explosions that reduced it to nothing but smoke and debris.

BOOM!— BOOM!— BOOM!—

Ares descended slowly, his eyes never leaving Maya's trembling form. She brandished her sword in a futile attempt to protect herself, but she knew deep down that she was no match for this powerful being.

"This monster, what happened to him? Did he get possessed or something?" Maya muttered.

Beads of sweat formed on her forehead as she desperately tried to come up with a plan to save herself.

As Ares approached her, a sword made of lightning materialized in his hand, emitting a high-pitched screech.

"W-Wait! I was just following orders," she pleaded, desperate to save her own life. "It was your brother who commissioned your assassination. He promised to join our Organization and help us gain influence in your kingdom. He is the real bastard who planned all this."

Her words fell on deaf ears as Ares continued to advance towards her, his gaze cold and unyielding.

"I-If you give me a chance," she continued, "I will bring his head to you."

As Maya pleaded for her life, Ares' sword crackled with lightning.

Swish—

In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of her, his movements too fast for Maya to react. With one swift movement, his lightning sword pierced her heart, sending searing pain throughout her body.

SWASH!—

!!

"URGH!" Maya gasped in pain, blood spilling out of her mouth as she struggled to stay upright. But Ares pushed his sword in deeper, his eyes filled with a cold fury.

Swash—

"Just die, bitch!" he hissed in her ear, the electricity in his sword intensifying. "I don't need someone like you to deal with him."

As suddenly as the attack began, it ended. Ares let go of Maya's lifeless body, watching as it fell to the ground with a thud.

Thud!—

He stood alone in the center of the wreckage, surrounded by the carnage he had wrought.

Looking up at the dark clouds, Ares closed his eyes, feeling his hair and wings return to their natural black color. The wings soon disappeared altogether, leaving Ares standing alone in the aftermath of the devastation he had caused.

The strain on his body suddenly became too much, and he lost consciousness.

Just as he was about to hit the ground, someone appeared and caught him. "You can rest now, Ares," Elaine murmured, cradling Ares in her arms.

Elaine took a moment to survey the destruction Ares had caused. The entire area had been reduced to a wasteland. She had been lucky enough to arrive in time to witness Ares's transformation and his defeat of all the Shadow Organization members in an instant.

Elaine was surprised by what she was seeing as she had never seen anyone control lightning like that, not even Helena.

[One of them got away.] her constellation's message appeared before her.

"...Yes, I know. I saw him create a portal and flee," Elaine replied, still holding Ares close to her.

She noticed that Ares's wounds were already starting to regenerate on their own.

"Regeneration, huh?" Elaine muttered to herself with a grin, before picking up the unconscious Ares and moving towards Maya's body.

She looked down at her with disdain before stepping on her hand with her high heels.

"You're still alive, huh?" she said with a cold smirk. "Get up before I kill you myself."

Maya made no response at first, but as Elaine added more pressure, she suddenly screamed in agony.

"Ahhhhh!"

"Shut it, you bitch!" Elaine snapped, kicking her in the face.

Thwack—

Maya groaned in pain, holding her bleeding nose. "H-How did you know I was still alive?" she asked.

"I saw you redirect the attack inflicted on you toward someone else," Elaine spoke, her voice cold and unyielding. "That's quite a useful ability - using others as your meat shield."

"....."

Maya fell silent, acknowledging Elaine's sharp observation.

"...As expected from someone in the top 12 strongest," she said with a wry smile as she tried to get back on her feet.

But before she could even stand, with a sudden, swift kick to the face, Elaine sent Maya tumbling to the ground once more.

Thwack—

"Urgh! What was that for?" Maya screamed in pain, holding her mouth. "We don't have any grudges against each other. Why don't you let me go, and I'll owe you a favor in the future?"

Elaine chuckled coldly. "No grudges, you say? How funny," she said, glaring at Maya with ferocious eyes. "You dared to try to kill my man, and you have the audacity to say we don't have any grudges?"

As she spoke, a yellow beam shot out of nowhere and pierced Maya's palm, restricting her to the ground.

Swash—

!?

"Ahhh!" Maya's screams echoed through the desolate wasteland.

"Y-Your man?" Maya cried, tears streaming down her face as she writhed in pain. "W-Wait, we had no idea about that. If we had known he was with you, we would never have tried to kill him."

Maya screamed in agony as the yellow beam pierced her palm, and her bones became visible through the charred flesh.

She cursed the Shadow Organization for lying to her about Ares's supposed lack of any connections, and silently swore revenge against the informant who had misled her.

'Those bastards!' Maya screamed inwardly, tears streaming down her face as she gritted her teeth in pain. 'They said he had no one except Mika. If I make it out of here alive, I'll kill that damn informant.'

She knew that if the Shadow Organization had known about Ares' relationship with Elaine beforehand, they would have never taken this mission. And if she had known, she never would have accepted it herself.

Elaine ignored Maya's pleading and demanded to see her ability in action. "Why don't you use that ability of yours? I'm curious to see how it works," she said with a wicked grin.

Maya recoiled in fear and desperation, "I-I have already used it twice today. I don't have any mana left to activate it again, Argh." she gasped, her hand still impaled by the yellow beam.

Maya winced as the pain in her hand intensified. "P-Please," she begged, her voice shaking. "I'll do anything. I'll be your servant for life. Just don't kill me."

Elaine's face twisted with disgust. "You deserve to die for laying a finger on my Ares," she spat.

And suddenly several swords made of yellow energy materialized behind Elaine, pointing menacingly at Maya.

!?

The defeated woman tried to inch away from the deadly blades, "I-I'm sorry! Please, I didn't know."

With a swift motion, Elaine sliced through the air, and the swords followed suit, cleaving through Maya's body.

Swish— Swish— Swish

"N-Nooo! Urghh!" Maya screamed, her body wracked with agony as she succumbed to her wounds.

***