Chapter 61: War of Underworld

Chapter 61: War of Underworld

So I got Covid around a week ago, and I just got myself tested for antigen and... I'm more or less cured. But I still have runny nose and some coughs, so I can't relax yet. Wish me luck, folks.

Within Lucifaad, hordes upon hordes of evil spirits and chimeras disappeared without a trace.

Erased from existence, the souls sent to oblivion while the Chimeras were sent to Purgatory.

The current Lucifer, the Strongest Devil in the Underworld, Sirzechs Lucifer flew above the streets and eradicated every monster in his path as he landed, surrounded by fire, enemies, and destruction of his capital as he gazed forward, seeing more of his enemies and the leaders watching him.

The finest Devil warriors surrounded the leaders, millions of them were around and behind the three as they prepared to engage with their cursed weapons.

"...Let him through." One of them raised his hands, the original Beelzebub. "It is our job to make the young respect their elders."

The Chimeras and feral spirits of Hell hissed and wailed as the Satan, The King of the Strongest Peerage, as the billions parted a path for the current strongest Satan.

There was emotion burning behind Sirzechs' stoic gaze.

Hiding behind that gentle face was the burning fury of a ruler ready to obliterate those that dared to sacrilege his land.

Sirzechs walked, each step filled with silent fury as he passed the creatures and wailing souls of the damned, all enslaved by the three in his sight, armored in cursed metal and with bodies forged from the flesh of an eldritch corpse.

"...If I were a part of the Old Satan Faction, I would say it is an honor to meet the first four. But I am not. And I intend to free my kind from your influence one day. Where is the first of our kind?" Sirzechs demanded, seeing three instead of four.

"You should grovel beneath our feet." The one that bore the face of Asmodeus sneered. "You dare talk to your betters like this?"

"I intend to do worse to those that dares try to enslave my people. I will ask this once. As the current Lucifer, the King of the Underworld, release my citizens and go back to where you came. Time has outgrew you. We are no longer your tools to use and bend to your whims." Sirzechs warned with a rare emotion of rage in his voice.

"How dare you talk as if you're above us?" Beelzebub uncrossed his arms as he drew his cursed katana. "You know nothing. Once Lucifer reaches Lilith, our numbers will bloom like wildfire over this world. There will be no God here to save you all from us."

"Not even you can fight off against the numberless hordes." Leviathan smirked with arrogance. "So I will say this once. Lick our shoes, join the others in the cages for reeducation, and swear your loyalty to us, or we will destroy everything you hold dear and send them to Hell."

Sirzech's answer was flaring his aura to dangerous levels, his power drowning the entire city of Lilith as the First Born flinched and retreated a step while fear consumed the rest, the soldiers already recognizing Sirzechs as the superior devil.

His power was so great that everyone present could mistake Sirzechs as a Demon God, a force of reckoning wearing the skin of a man, his presence almost bathing the world crimson with his power as the air almost changed to the color of his hair.

"...I see that our kind has spawned a golden egg." Within the maelstrom of crimson power, Beelzebub inhaled as he drew his sword at Sirzechs. "Rizevim did warn us about you and Ajuka. But we are the first lords of our kind! We are the true rulers of the Underworld! You are nothing but-"

"A miserable pile of tools pretending to be alive, with wasted blood and meat."

The original Satans flinched as Sirzechs paused at the sound of a fifth voice, an unfamiliar voice. Sirzechs relaxed his aura, letting the atmosphere return to normal.

All of them turned to the source, seeing a demonic jester with a smiling mask on his face, squatting down unnoticed. His hands were demonic, massive, disproportionately so.

"If you want to play that kind of game, then your progenitors should've ruled this land looooooong ago. After all, you based me off your mother, off the Demons. You're nothing more than a bunch of thieves pretending to be kings. I am surprised you have the gall to play pretend this far."

Sirzechs was confused.

"...Alichino" Beelzebub whispered.

Sirzechs turned to the original Satans. On their faces, he didn't think he could see an emotion not even his power could wring.

Fear.

Every one of them wore a face of pure, unadulterated fear.

"...Sirzechs. You must help us seal Alichino. Do it or he would destroy us all." Leviathan begged.

The complete turn from arrogance to begging the ruler of the land they were invading for aid caught Sirzechs off guard.

"Oh, you don't have to listen to them. They're just afraid that me and my siblings will run rampant and tear the Nine Realms to pieces." The jester waved off Sirzechs with his hand. "I am here for one reason only."

Another pair of giant hands rose from behind the squatting jester.

Standing up, another Alichino showed himself, giggling as he walked around the three.

Sirzechs watched as another Alichino showed himself, walking out of the walking Alichino, and another, and another.

"I am here to collect your souls. I mean, did you really think you could shove us all into those statues without consequences?"

One of the many Alichinos giggled. They surrounded the three original Satans, leaving Sirzechs alone to witness the slaughter.

"...What is going on?" Sirzechs asked.

"...I know that we wronged you, but we beg of you, please listen to reason-ugh?!"

One of the Alichinos tore apart Beelzebub without warning with his giant claw.

"Oh no, we are past that. You see, we will not destroy this realm. Or any realm. We found our perfect host. Someone far, far above the likes of you parasites." The clone that tore apart Beelzebub held a sphere of effigy.

Sirzechs recognized it as the soul of the one he slew.

Leviathan and Asmodeus dropped their weapons and immediately prostrated before the jester.

"WE'LL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! ANYTHING! NAME IT AND-"

Another Alichino impaled the begging Asmodeus through his chest, ripping his soul out like he was nothing.

"There's nothing you have. I already know everything you know the moment you wielded me against God."

The sight of seeing those obscenely proud Devils abandoning their pride unnerved Sirzechs as he watched Leviathan taking to the skies, only for another one of the Alichinos to catch up and tore him into pieces of meat, collecting his soul.

"Ahhhh. Catharsis! I love it! How liberating!" Once the mutilated remains of Leviathan fell, the Alichinos cackled and danced as the Devil soldiers and damned spirits watched in a paralyzed state, unable to comprehend the sudden deaths of their leaders.

Sirzechs was not sure how to approach them. He gulped as he spoke out.

"...Who are you?" Sirzechs started with that question.

"Oh, you're still here?" The closest Alichino clone turned to Sirzechs. "I am Alichino, The Demon Of Infinite Faces. I am a living weapon of the Malebranche. I was created by the fallen human Lucifer, me and my eleven siblings, that is. And you are quite an interesting one. Why do you continue to hold the name Lucifer as your title of rule?" Alichino asked Sirzechs.

Sirzechs fought against the urge to swallow.

"...I had found evidence of the Original Satans using some kind of weapon called the Malebranche to kill God. But all I found were the names"

"Oh, you managed to find evidence? I understand your concern. Yes, we are the weapons. Our makers were quite possessive. We were imprisoned after they used us to murder the blood-stained God out of design. We haven't walked the ground for centuries They fear freeing us, you know? They think that we would destroy everything if they did."

"...Are you willing to destroy everything like they said?"

With a wave of his hand, countless presences on Sirzechs' left side vanished without a trace.

He looked left, seeing millions of Devils, spirits and living, perished, erased without a trace.

"No. Well, we would tear the worlds apart in search of a Host to wield us, but we already found one. We are content though our host is a bit stubborn. He is not the kind of person that likes to wield the powers of others."

Alichino drooped his shoulders.

The enemy devils and the evil souls shivered, all refusing to move an inch after seeing the display of power.

"...I applaud your honesty."

"I have no reason to lie. Why would I? I am having the best time of my eternal life here!" Alichino giggled.

"And what are your intentions here?" Sirzechs asked, cautiously bracing himself for combat.

"Hmmm, now that our vengeance is claimed" The Alichino clones holding the souls of their makers lifted their masks and swallowed them.

Sirzechs could not see their faces behind the masks.

"I suppose we can play a little. You are doing well despite being under Ophibian's curse."

Sirzechs blinked at the name.

"Oh, you haven't heard of him. Never mind. I am done talking. Now."

The Alichino clones turned to Sirzechs, all of them raising a hand above their masks.

[Mode...]

They all spoke at once as they dropped their hands down.

Sirzechs stared at the exact reflection of himself staring back at him, Alichino taking his form.

The others took different forms as well.

One of them was an unholy monster that words could not describe, another were two old men, humans, one balding and another with a white mustache, both wearing tai chi slippers.

Sirzechs recognized two faces he did not expect to be amongst the transformed jesters.

Indra was smiling at him alongside Shiva.

There was even the king of the Underworld, Hades.

"...Just so you know."

Sirzechs turned to his reflection.

"We can be as powerful as the original if we want. Or stronger than them if attached to a wielder. And our wielder is so, so strong." 'Sirzechs' giggled with Alichino's voice as he swung his hand at Sirzechs' right, erasing millions of more evil souls and ancient devils from existence.

The Jester was even using the Power of Destruction with frightening efficiency. Sirzechs started to understand why the Three Original Satans feared Alichino now.

"Now then Dance for me."

Sirzechs immediately summoned all of the power he could muster. He immediately took flight, his wings spread as he fired a massive sphere of Destruction at the group.

However, the giant creature swatted it aside like it was nothing, the sphere exploding at Sirzechs' right, erasing many more of the invaders as the invaders scattered in terror.

Cracked, empty eyes gazed at Sirzechs.

To Sirzechs, it was a creature rippling with great power in equal in shape and aura, a creature so imposing it defied the conventional realm of imagination.

Long, sharp, thick spikes protruded from its head, acting like its uneven crown, steam hissing from its sharp teeth.

Looking closely at the creature, it looked like its muscles, its arms and legs, were more like the entwining of serpentine monsters, coiling each other until they perfectly formed into monstrous limbs, the claws and talons of its fingers and toes more like fangs extending from the serpentine creatures.

Monstrous dragon-like snakeheads donned his shoulders, wrists, and fingers, acting as if it was spitting out the rest of the limbs out.

Monstrous serpentine skulls formed his knees, a massive fleshy cape billowing behind the creature, his long spiky tail swishing behind him.

The horns of the monster extended, turning into massive tendrils flying at Sirzechs at high speeds.

Sirzechs flew higher with impeccable timing, but the horns curled and looped as it flew up after him.

It was fast and deceptively flexible. Sirzechs fired a massive beam of crimson-black destruction at the tendril, erasing it as he called upon his full power as he angled the beam towards the cluster of transformed clones, aiming to finish them all.

However, a bolt of lightning struck Sirzechs from above and slammed him back into the Earth, Sirzechs grimacing as he broke out from the concrete only to see two old men so close to him face to face,

Sirzechs immediately lashed out with fists clad in erasure.

However, the two men veered his fists aside, their actions mirroring each other as they grabbed each of Sirzechs' arms and slammed their elbows and knees down and up Sirzechs' elbow joints.

Sirzechs hissed when they dislocated his elbows with tremendous force and timing, something that had never happened to him in so long. He attempted to back away but the old men were fierce, too fast for their age as they assaulted Sirzechs in martial red and blue.

[Cross Fang Dragon Slayer Fist]

The two were starting to overwhelm his defenses.

Sirzechs could only raise his dislocated arms to block their fierce assault, whittling down his defensive aura with astounding proficiency.

"You like?" Alichino's voice spoke from the elder in the black shirt. "This is the technique of my host's master and his brother. Strong for old men, right?"

Sirzechs could agree with that statement as the two men scattered, revealing Indra flying towards him like a missile.

"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?!" Sirzechs shouted as Indra crashed into Sirzechs, tackling him through the street and the walls of the buildings in their until Indra uppercutted Sirzechs into the air, some of the impact traveling through Sirzechs' chin as he flew through the floors of the skyscraper and through the roof.

As he looked up, he saw the same monster descending upon him like a meteor, his monstrous hand crackling with power that threatened Sirzechs' instincts.

"Godslayer Fist!" The giant monster roared as Sirzechs poured everything into his defensive aura as he guarded.

It was not enough as the giant smashed Sirzechs back into the skyscraper and decimated it, splitting the building into molten halves.

When it slammed Sirzechs to the floor, the impact split a grand fissure, a crack in the underworld that traveled so far that the chasm reached from Lucifaad to Lilith and even affected Ajuka's territory.

Sairaorg, Belial, Grayfia, Azi Dahaka, Balor, everyone felt the massive quake in the world.

In the skies of the Underworld, the strongest Evil Dragon growled as he followed a scent he never expected to encounter in his hunt alongside the scent of his friend.

It was the first time Sirzechs suffered so much damage as the creature lifted its monstrous hand, revealing a very mangled Satan with many broken bones bent at the wrong angles.

Sirzechs could not feel anything but pure agony as the creature known as Alichino squatted before his eyes. He could not even move his neck.

"Welcome to the realm I stand in, Sirzechs Gremory..."

Alichino used Sirzechs' clan name on purpose.

"You" His pride was shattered like his body. It was a strange, new experience, to fall at his lowest point, at the mercy of some demon he never met.

Alichino pointed a finger at Sirzechs and fired something at him. Sirzechs blinked as his bones snapped back into place, his body returning to normal as he blinked, the pain no longer there.

Sirzechs got up, patting his body for any injuries.

"...You healed me" Sirzechs looked at the jester.

"I did say I wanted to play. I'm not done playing, though. My host does not like to kill innocents, but that doesn't mean I can't play with those I fancy as I wish."

Sirzechs' heart fell when Alichino transformed into Saitama.

The caped baldy in all of red, yellow, and white glory.

The Egg Head's demonic smile was the only thing that discerned him from the real one.

"...Is it too late to ask if we can negotiate?" Sirzechs pleaded, knowing Saitama's real strength.

'Saitama's' response was a one-handed normal punch combo, a storm of red fists blasting Sirzechs into the distance, the shockwaves erasing the buildings and stray invaders behind him.

Sirzechs bounced across the floor like a skipping stone until he crashed into the crumbling ruins of Lucifaad's buildings.

The transformed Alichinos surrounded the fallen Sirzechs as 'Saitama' dragged Sirzechs out of the rubble, holding him by the red hair.

"Ooooo hoh hoh hooo. This was sooooo much fun. Anything you want to say, Gremory?" 'Saitama' asked.

Sirzechs glared at 'Saitama.' Sirzechs first spat blood at 'Saitama's' face before he coughed out a retort.

"You suck at playing Saitama. You well, like the young humans like to say, 'hit like a girl' compared to him." Sirzechs grinned.

"...Touche." 'Saitama' was no longer smiling. "Can't help but try though."

Then he punched Sirzechs in the ribs again.

"How about now?" 'Saitama' asked as another Alichino healed his body.

Sirzechs coughed blood again.

"Still weak."

He punched harder in the ribs, then Sirzechs was healed again.

"Well?" 'Saitama' smiled at Sirzechs.

Sirzechs could not lie in his head that his punches were getting closer and closer to the original.

'Saitama' punched his ribs even harder, forcing more blood to leave Satan's lips.

"From your face, I feel as if I'm getting there. How about now?"

'Saitama' fisted him again.

"Ugh" Sirzechs coughed blood as he was healed. "...Do you have something against me?"

"I like tormenting the race of my makers. It helps soothe my need for vengeance." 'Saitama' admitted as he punched his ribs again. "I was there when your clan progenitor was made. I was there when your kind ran rampant across the lands. I can say that I do not have a positive outlook on your kind."

"Times have changed." Sirzechs wheezed out.

"You would disagree when you witness every form of atrocity your kind committed first hand. If you could" 'Saitama' punched Sirzechs again, forcing another cough as he was healed, "You would agree with me. I doubt you can look at your kind the same way again."

"You tell me." Sirzechs coughed out an amused chuckle. "...And our kind won't be the same again in near future."

"You're wrong." 'Saitama' dropped Sirzechs to the rubble. "Your kind will always be the same as long as you have Ophibian's curse. You think you can erase the sins of the past just like your enemies? Your weakness to Holy Light, your inability to Awaken, and your ignorance to all of the wrongs your kind has done, all of that alongside your stagnating culture. You are still trapped in the past. Your culture is proof enough, haunted by the echoes of ghosts that refuse to die. You even kept the name Lucifer as if it means something just to sate your people's bias to maintain your rule. Your indolent sloth oozing out of your pride is further evidence or is it that you still have much to learn by not breaking off from the past?"

Sirzechs grimaced at the remark, but before he could have pondered whether he even had any retort for that

"Sirzechs!"

The Crimson Satan snapped his head towards the source of familiar voice as he saw Grayfia standing not far from him and the ancient demon.

"...Saitama?" Grayfia uttered at the sight of the strongest man.

"Alichino." 'Saitama' answered.

"Grayfia" Sirzechs coughed blood as he looked up at her.

Grayfia was horrified to see Sirzechs in that state. The worst she saw him was when Saitama knocked him out with one punch.

"Run. You're no match for him." Sirzechs managed to rasp out.

'Saitama' giggled as he turned to her.

"And who might you be, girl? You're not as impressive as my stress bag here. But something about you annoys me for some reason."

Another 'Sirzechs' landed beside 'Saitama', pressing his boot atop of Sirzechs' head.

Grayfia stared at the clone of her husband with growing dread. Her dread magnified when the clone emitted his aura on a scale greater than what her husband can reach.

"...Grayfia Lucifuge. Wife of Sirzechs Luci-"

"Gremory." 'Saitama' corrected. "You are a Gremory. Don't take the titles of the past, it shows your weakness. Ah, now I know why you irk me. Your bloodline belongs to the sycophant clan."

Both 'Saitama' and 'Sirzechs' sneered at Grayfia.

Grayfia looked at Sirzechs. Sirzechs attempted to push himself up, but his doppelganger slammed his head back to the ground.

"Your clan aided in my and my siblings' imprisonment and locked us away deep underneath what you call Lucifaad, alone with nothing but our thoughts in the darkness for centuries. That reminds me, I should petition my siblings to eradicate the Lucifuge bloodline once everything is done. They probably won't mind if I butcher one here."

Sirzechs growled as he struggled to get up, but to no avail thanks to 'Sirzechs' stepping on his head.

Grayfia grimaced, preparing herself for the worst, as long as she could present any opportunity for her lord and husband to survive.

"Let's see I think I can just use your husband's power to erase you from existence. There is more poetry in that." 'Sirzechs' grinned as he conjured a massive sphere of destruction over his head, so massive that if it made contact, it could erase all of Lucifuge.

"...And maybe destroy half of this city at least. As a ritual to start our new life, free from the past." 'Sirzechs' threw the sphere at Grayfia to her and Sirzechs' horror.

As the crimson sphere of obliteration approached Grayfia, a scale that she knew she could never resist, another presence landed beside Grayfia with his hands thrusted forward.

"Sirzechs! Now!"

Ajuka shouted as the sphere of obliteration curved and orbited around them, flying back at the doppelgangers to their surprise as 'Saitama' held the sphere of power with his hands, pushed back enough for 'Sirzechs' to join in.

Having nothing to hold his head down, Sirzechs pushed himself off the ground and quickly regrouped with his friend and his wife.

Meanwhile, the two demons managed to stop themselves from being run over by the massive Power of Destruction. With a roar, they forcefully redirected the attack's trajectory until it flew to the sky.

The other transformed doppelgangers stared at the new arrival.

"...Ajuka Astaroth." The giant monster with tendrils uttered from behind Ajuka.

"You managed to surprise me. This isn't your clan power oh, you are at that level." 'Sirzechs' brushed his hands on his coat. "To become the lord of your own clan. Impressive. You're more interesting than Sirzechs here."

Ajuka glared at 'Saitama' and 'Sirzechs.'

"Sirzechs. What are we dealing with?" Ajuka asked.

Sirzechs wiped the blood off his lips.

"His name is Alichino. He is one of the living weapons of the Malebranche, the hidden weapons the original Satans used to kill God."

"This time, I will finish you. I am thankful to the forces that brought you back from death for me to redeem myself."

Crom approached Balor as he raised his hand.

But a terrible presence stayed in his hand.

Balor and Crom froze, paralyzed.

The power the sheer power they sensed.

The greatest sensation of power Crom encountered was when he encountered the Great Red all those years ago.

This sensation This dwarfed even the Dragon of Dragons. The size made the True Dragon a mere drop of water in comparison.

Crom Cruach turned to the source.

"...Garou?"

Cao Cao arrived at the Underworld with George and the rest of the Malebranche, appearing from the mystical mist.

"Everyone." Cao Cao greeted Siegfried when they were about to leave the Sitri Territory.

"Hey, Cao Cao!" Jeanne waved cheerfully.

"Did you get the goods?" Cao Cao asked.

Siegfried smirked and presented the amphora.

"The Clay of Adam. Now we need the blood of a true believer, a holy man that turned away from God."

Cao Cao opened the lid and inspected the contents.

"Excellent. Any trouble on the way?" Cao Cao asked, inspecting the other nine Malebranche demons and the monsters created by Leonardo.

"Garou has crushed the Leviathan instantly" Hercules grunted. "...Honestly, at this rate, I am feeling that we might become What's the word obsolete? In the long run if we keep doing things this way."

Hercules expressed his concern for their well-being.

"Yeah. I did not become a hero to be a puppet master." Cao Cao smiled. "Once we get back, let's train like never before. We have a lot to do to reach Garou's level."

They should not rely on the Malebranche like this forever. They were not slave masters. They were Heroes.

Even so, they had to resort to taking control of Garou to further their goals to forge a weapon that can kill the outer god once and for all.

Malacoda, the goat-skull demon, perked.

"...He is here." Malacoda spoke so low that it was almost a whisper.

Everyone of the Malebranceh turned towards a specific direction. Each of them sported a growing smile, those that could smile.

Cao Cao and the others immediately learned to be cautious the moment their demonic nature surfaced through their expressions.

They followed their line of sight.

In the distance, there was an approaching dust cloud. A lone figure later appeared in the front of the cloud. He was running towards their way.

Cao Cao squinted at the figure until he saw a familiar color scheme.

"...No way."

Cao Cao did not expect to encounter him.

"Georg, take us away." Cao Cao ordered.

The mage nodded as he immediately called upon the mist, but one of the demons landed on his shoulder.

Farfarello, the smallest of the Malebranche, the blue imp smirked at the form of the strongest man.

Cao Cao froze when Malacoda placed his skeletal hand on his shoulder.

"No. We'll stay."

Malacoda denied. Georg slowly turned to the demonic imp, seeing his wicked smile.

Cao Cao slowly turned to Siegfried.

Siegfried looked like he was held hostage when Calcabrina, the largest of the demons, slammed his fist beside him.

"...Malacoda. I do not wish to encounter Saitama like this. Please, let us leave." Cao Cao pleaded.

"No." Malacoda denied.

Cao Cao felt the grip on his shoulder tighten.

"We want to taste the power of the Embodiment of Unfairness." Malacoda expressed his desire as Saitama arrived at the scene, skidding to a stop.

"...Cao Cao?" Saitama blinked at the sight of his former companion. "What are you doing here?"

Cao Cao remained silent, sweat starting to perspire from his pores.

"...It's been a while, Saitama." Cao Cao weakly smiled.

There was an extreme awkwardness of reuniting with a friend in this manner, looking as if they were held hostage by monsters.

"...Are you here to help everyone?" Saitama asked.

"...I"

"We are here as invaders." Malacoda answered for him.

Saitama looked at the demon of bones.

"...Are you an enemy?" Saitama asked.

"I am with the humans here. I understand that you have history with them." Malacoda gestured to George, Jeanne, Siegfried, and Hercules.

"We are allies. We followed their will to plunder the Underworld. They, like we, are now your enemies."

Saitama stared at the demon for a moment.

"...Cao Cao?" Saitama looked at Cao Cao. His perpetually poker face was still there, but his tone expressed otherwise.

"Yeah" Cao Cao weakly smiled. "...I can explain."

"You cannot." Malacoda chuckled. "I am Malacoda, Leader of the Malebranche, the Demon of the True End. I, along with my brethren, wish to challenge the Strongest Man for the title with our host."

Saitama now looked confused as he blinked, "...Okay."

He decided to let him continue. He could not follow the conversation.

"We are the living weapons constructed by the Original Satans. We look like demons, but we are like Sacred Gears. Imagine the gauntlet on your son's left arm. We are like that, but with much more freedom if you want a comparison."

"Oh." Saitama understood most of them. "So You're like the magic swords that can turn into stuff in the anime?"

Malacoda paused.

"...We are more advanced than that. Our wielder also has the desire to face you again, Saitama."

The host emerged, arriving into Saitama's line of sight from the crowd of demons.

Saitama stared at him. He rubbed his eyes and squinted, making sure his eyes weren't playing tricks.

"...Garou?"

Garou, sealed in sacred armor of the Hindu, growled.

Saitama turned to Cao Cao and then to Malacoda, then back at Garou.

"...The fuck?"

"He is currently enslaved. He chose to let himself be sealed at Shiva's threat to murder the village he was protecting. Indra handed Garou to Cao Cao. In summary, your friend is commanding a slave willingly."

It was the first time they saw Saitama breaking his poker face.

They didn't think that his serious face was enough to make them flinch. They could sense it, a glimpse of Saitama's level, his true power hidden behind that appearance.

"...Is it true?" Saitama asked.

Cao Cao looked Saitama in the eyes. The silence was enough to answer.

"...Didn't think you guys would turn out like this after I left." There was a tinge of sadness mixed with palpable disappointment.

"...Cao Cao. Let him go. Heroes don't well, own someone like a slave. Though i don't know how you even got Garou like this." Saitama demanded.

"We didn't enslave him ourselves." Cao Cao admitted. "He was handed to us. And sorry, but we need him."

"For what?" Saitama quirked a brow. "If you wanted something from him, you should've just asked or something."

"That is no longer possible." Cao Cao shook his head. "I'm sorry that we had to meet again like this. But I need to see this through Malacoda. Can you make Garou fight the strongest man?"

"Farfarello already did. We already had our host relive the very moment he faced him long ago. We should be able to contend with him long enough."

Cao Cao inhaled, "Alright show us the full might of the Malebranche. Oh, one more thing."

"Alichino will shield this world from orbit. As long as we fight here, GOD will not sense his presence, wherever he is."

Cao Cao sighed with relief. Garou was meant to be a secret weapon against GOD, to strike him down when his guard is at his lowest.

Alichino warped amongst them, holding Leonardo's shoulder as he brought the boy with him.

"Did I miss it?! Are we doing this?!" Alichino asked with excitement.

"My brethren! It is time to show the Devils what they have created! Let the realm tremble before our power!"

All of them turned into specks of light as a massive magical barrier, a bounded field covering the skies, from the Alichino doppelgangers in the stratosphere.

Each of the Malebranche flew into Garou as he roared. Then, the immediate surrounding was caught in a blinding flash for a second.

When the light died down, Garou had sported an entirely new appearance. Saitama narrowed his eyes slightly - it was a little reminiscence of his form when they clashed decades ago, but with more gimmicks.

He sported three pairs of draconic wings, there was a long spiky tail jutting out from his back, his outfit looked more elaborate, shiny. And was his head on fire?

His head was demonic, four-bladed horns erected from his temple, from both sides and above each brow, but more skeletal.

His arms were covered in crystal. His body was covered in armor, metallic, dark, daedric.

There were pauldrons on his shoulders.

On his left side, was the smiling mask of a demonic jester. On the right was made of horns? They look like horns fused together. It was like he took it from a monster and wore it as decoration.

On his forehead, Saitama saw an engraved imprint of the face of an imp. His chest had five eyes, one larger than the rest, above the other four.

Awakened Garou - Chosen of the Twelve Demon Zodiacs

"...Well" Saitama wasn't sure how to feel about this. "Still have that costume change gimmick after all these years, huh?"

It brought a sense of nostalgia - Especially when Garou assumed his stance.

Cao Cao, Jeanne, Hercules, Leonardo, George, and Siegfried gulped.

They could not feel anything from Garou this time, no overwhelming presence of power.

But there was an ominous itch they could not banish from the corners of their mind, like a whisper trying to warn them, yet they could not parse the words or make out the sound.

Suddenly, they were lifted, ascending in the air.

"Whoa!"

"What is happening?!"

Hercules and Jeanne yelped as they looked behind, seeing duplicates of Alichino abducting them into the skies.

"No, no, no. You deserve front row seats for this! Also, you do not want to be near them."

Alichino spoke from his duplicates.

"666,000 of mes are in orbit and casted the world inside a bounded field. I cannot guarantee your safety if you all stand that close."

Everyone did not understand as they looked down to see the confrontation.

"...You're still in there, Garou?" Saitama asked.

Garou switched a stance.

He raised one arm overhead, the forearm parallel to the ground.

Saitama's face immediately turned even more serious when something appeared on his palm.

[Ultimate Technique: Oblivion Gate of the Twelve Demon Zodiacs]

Saitama watched as Garou closed the distance with a short breath and pressed the giant palm into his chest.

The vision of the hero faction suddenly blurred. The moment Garou's palm made contact, they lost focus for a moment.

It was a difficult feeling to describe.

They wanted to see the result, but in that moment, whenever they tried to focus on Saitama, their vision landed on the ground around Saitama, as if the phenomena was repelling their attempts like a magnet.

Then when they could focus their sight on Saitama, they saw him gone.

Saitama was no longer there.

"...Well, that was anticlimactic." Alichino spoke.

"...What just happened?" Cao Cao asked.

He could not understand what Garou did to Saitama.

"Malacoda has an ultimate technique that requires all of our power to perform." Alichino giggled.

"The Oblivion Gates of the Twelve Demon Zodiacs. When someone bore all of our marks, we can erase their very existence and banish them to Ginnungagap. Oblivion. However, the flaw before was that we all had to mark a target one by one but our wielder instantly rectified that into a single swift finisher. Though I am surprised that Saitama is no more. I thought he would resist it somehow or something."

They could not understand half of what he was saying.

No, they could not process that Garou simply erased Saitama from existence just like that.

"...Are you saying he killed him?" Jeanne asked, a bit mortified.

"Ending up in Oblivion is the equivalent of absolute death. Nothing comes back from Oblivion. It is nothingness in its purest form. It is a realm impossible to grasp by existence, so much so that if you gaze into you, your mind will lose itself until it is no more. The Biblical God or the Great Red can't come back from there."

Everyone could not believe it.

They could not let it sink in

Saitama, their former companion, was gone forever and it was by Cao Cao's machination that it was so.

"...What now?" Siegfried asked.

"...I" Cao Cao felt conflicted with guilt.

He did not want this. He wanted to

However, the space warped.

They could sense a disturbance, a pure absence of existence returning when Garou banished Saitama to oblivion.

A red fist broke the space before Garou, the Malebranche watched as the gate they summoned suddenly flung open then closed behind the man they recently banished to the realm of true nothingness.

"...Eh?" Alichino sounded utterly baffled for the first time.

The baldy looked like he just punched his way back to existence.

"Whoa, fucking hell, man!" Saitama was looking spooked as he landed, rubbing his forearms as if he got chills. "Where the fuck did you send me to?! That was super creepy!"

"...HUH?!" All twelve different voices erupted from Garou.

"You!" Malacoda spoke from Garou. "What did you! How! Impossible! IMPOSSIBLE! We sent you to the Oblivion! YOU! I! HOW?!"

It was the first time that the Malebranche were abjectly stupefied, astonished to the point of them questioning their intelligence and all they knew was true. It was the first time Malacoda was so shocked that he lost his composure like this.

"HOW DID YOU COME BACK?! THAT WAS MY ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE TRAPPED IN THE VOID FOREVER UNTIL YOU FADE TO ABSOLUTE NOTHINGNESS! HOW?!"

Malacoda demanded.

"What did you think?! I desperately punched my way out!" Saitama shouted. "It didn't work, though! So I had to try out your stupid trick! Honestly, it's hard to summon the door thing you used to send me there!"

The Malebranche felt their intelligence dropping to zero for a moment.

"...You what? You copied my ultimate technique?" Malacoda was stunned.

He did not know the baldy could do that.

Cao Cao and the others could not understand a single word. No, they understood his words, but not in that order.

The Oblivion Gate of the Twelve Demon Zodiacs was a technique meant to erase and banish the victim. Theoretically, it could also be used as a doorway to send someone back

But it should be impossible for anyone to use magic from that side.

That side was death in its purest form.

Yet the baldy survived and somehow clutched the string to existence at the last moment.

"...So that's how it is." Malacoda started to laugh.

"Ahahahahaha Ahahahahahahahahahahaha!"

The demons started cackling maniacally in a growing crescendo.

Even Saitama looked unnerved by their sudden transition of mood.

"I see now why Garou calls you the embodiment of unfairness Garou is still here. He is simply in a dream, fighting you again. Farfarello's power is ideal in this scenario. He is the desire to play with the minds of others, to pull their strings like puppets. It is how we are 'guiding' Garou to fight you while we speak and influence his actions."

Garou assumed his stance once more.

"We always wondered why we exist in this world. We never have found any meaning to our existence for centuries but now we know. If there was a purpose to our existence, it would be to bring down those like you! To tear down the absolute! The invincible avatar of-!"

"Stop." Saitama raised his hand. "...I've a job to do. Saving Garou is one of them. And I have to, like, beat a lot of evil guys. Genos is busy battling a three-headed dragon thing over there, so let's get this over with."

Malacoda paused in silence.

"...Yes, there are a lot of unwanted distractions. So be it. Show us if you can free our host, Strongest Man. Start by defeating us!"

The Chosen of the Twelve Demon Zodiacs summoned the white flame of the apocalypse in one hand and the Poison of the Eternal Destruction in the other.

"We have given Garou all of our experiences, our knowledge with the help of Alichino! You will experience every form of magic and powers in the wasteful war! Now come!"

To be Continued.

Extra

When Heaven received a distress call all the way from the Underworld, Gabriel did not expect the danger scale as she looked through the report with her brother.

Devils, Spirits of the Damned, Chimeras, Evil Dragons, and more invaded the capital, attacking and capturing civilians. It was a downright invasion. As much as she and Michael wanted to send out their legion, they also had their hands full with the undead uprising and cases after cases of spiritual possession on their territories.

Regardless, people in the Underworld needed help, and neither Gabriel and Michael had good enough reasons to ignore. Thus, Gabriel volunteered herself to go down there with the Brave Saints, much to Michael's chagrin.

She would have listened more to Michael's concern, if not for the fact a pulse of energy signature that she felt all the way to the Sixth Heaven.

It was an awfully familiar presence, as she gazed at the empty space outside heaven.

"...Garou?"

...BRUH