“Damn it. Michael, that guy. Just when I thought he’d help me a bit, he tosses me aside and goes somewhere else?”
Mammon, now left to face Vishnu alone, gritted his teeth as he recalled Michael, who had suddenly disappeared somewhere.
He blocked the beam of scorching energy flying toward him by hurling a massive coin as a makeshift shield.
“Goodness, do you know how much this is worth? Instead of thanking me, he just up and vanishes. These angels, I swear...”
Mammon held pride in being a first-generation Divine Spirit, but even so, he and Vishnu were vastly different, especially when it came to amassing wealth.
It was impossible to lump them together in the same category of first-generation Divine Spirits when they had to face off like this.
“Clicking his tongue, he muttered, “I’m doing this to repay my debt to Satan, but it seems like I might have lost my mind.”
Mammon was infamous for his obsession with money, willing to do anything related to it. His reputation for greed was so widespread that even in the Mixed Realms, Mammon’s attachment to wealth was legendary.
In matters of money, Mammon neither spared nor compromised with anyone, making him a peculiar demon with an unusual sense of fairness.
He would ensure repayment of any money loaned, no matter the cost, and likewise, if he owed, he would return it in full—that was his creed.
Long ago, Mammon had owed a debt to Satan.
Now, fighting like this was ultimately his way of settling that old debt.
“You talk quite a bit for a lord of the Ten Thousand Demons Battlefield.”
Mammon dodged an incoming pillar of light, all the while muttering non-stop.
“If you were in my place, wouldn’t you do the same? Damn it. Now that I’m here, there’s no choice but to fight. Agh! Damn angels! You’ll pay for this!”
“Punishment, is it? You’re speaking rather harshly.”
A wave of scorching heat came from behind him. Startled, Mammon spun around, fearing the arrival of a new enemy.
There stood an angel with flaming wings, looking at him indifferently.
At that moment, Mammon’s hardened expression softened.
“The Flame of God, Uriel. Did you happen to hear what I just said? I may have gone a bit overboard.”
“I didn’t exactly expect anything different from a demon like you.”
“Did you come to help? I could cry from joy.”
*Sigh* “I didn’t particularly want to either.”
Uriel shook her head as she looked at the other angels fiercely fighting elsewhere.
“In times like this, what meaning do concepts like angel or demon, Eden or Pandemonium hold? If we’re fighting for the world, we’re all comrades in arms.”
“Hahaha. Wise choice. Now go hold off that monstrous being for me!”
Vishnu’s brows furrowed as he noticed Uriel’s presence.
“The Archangel Uriel, is it?”
Even Vishnu had heard the rumors about her.
Among the angels of the Great Army of Eden, there was one known to rival Shiva, possessing incredible strength.
The Angel of Battle.
Most would assume that to be Michael, but in reality, it was not.
Instead, the truly formidable angel was one who wielded a blade that burned and destroyed everything in its path.
Uriel was someone who could rival Shiva of Indian mythology.
The sheer destructive power with which they eradicated their enemies was a mirror image of each other.
“Clicking his tongue, he thought, “If only I had Shiva’s support right now.”
Just as Uriel wiped out Sodom and Gomorrah with her feathers,
Shiva erased the cities of iron, silver, and gold with his Trishula.
Destruction upon destruction. Firepower upon firepower. This was what a true battle of strength looked like.
However, Shiva was currently tied up in combat with another Divine Spirit, the formidable Great Sage Heaven’s Equal.
Even without his Ruyi Jingu Bang, Shiva held the upper hand, yet other Divine Spirits also joined the battle, adding to the chaos.
There was not only the Seven Great Saints but also a nameless Divine Spirit emitting an icy chill.
Hoping for assistance would be futile.
“Well, fine. At least this should make this dull fight a bit more entertaining.”
“I don’t see this as entertainment, though.”
Uriel replied coldly to Vishnu’s words, which were tinged with amusement.
Though she wielded flames hotter than anyone, her demeanor was colder than the glaciers of Antarctica.
Vishnu found it fitting.
“Let’s see who’s stronger, then. The greatest firepower of Eden.”
“Thank you for the compliment, Lord of Rigveda.”
In the air, searing flames clashed with blinding white thunder.
Mammon retreated in alarm.
“Where did that damned Mephisto go?!”
Cursing Mephisto, who was nowhere to be seen.
With Hercules’s proclamation, the final arrow aimed to pierce Choi Do-yoon’s heart.
Just then, a dark figure dropped from the air.
The figure appeared before Choi Do-yoon, slicing the last arrow with the sword in his hand.
The split arrow spun in the air before falling insignificantly to the ground.
A black cloak billowed in the air. The one who sliced Hercules’s final arrow wore a strange black helm.
“You... who are you?”
Hercules frowned as he looked at the figure who had thwarted his final attack.
Though the interruption was unexpected, the precision and sharpness of the swordsmanship he had just witnessed were beyond his expectations.
“Well, well. I debated whether to step in or not for quite a while.”
The figure who had deflected Hercules’s arrow.
Former member of the Celestial Corporation’s Poetry Room, Romulaxis.
“But, considering I rarely get chances like this, I thought I should help.”
Disappearing when the Celestial Corporation shut down, he resurfaced only after the Great War began.
“I am Romulaxis, a former Teller from the Celestial Corporation.”
“You... are no ordinary Teller.”
Hercules quickly realized that Romulaxis was different from other Tellers. His keen eye skimmed Romulaxis, noting the characteristics essential to master the quick bloom technique.
Romulaxis introduced himself as a Teller, yet his true identity was far beyond that.
In fact, he was something much stronger...
“A Divine Spirit? But I’ve never heard of such a Divine Spirit existing.”
“Of course not. I’ve hidden my identity since the beginning of the universe. The only one who knows me is my former boss.”
Even as a Divine Spirit, Romulaxis had worked as a Teller and had never revealed his true identity, not even to his superior, Celestina.
Romulaxis had kept his identity hidden for an exceedingly long time, living as another being.
But now, the time had come to end that secrecy.
“You...”
As Hercules looked more closely at Romulaxis, he realized that Romulaxis’s tale bore a striking resemblance to someone else’s.
There was no need for further comparison.
Romulaxis’s story was strikingly similar to that of Choi Do-yoon, the very person he had just saved.
It was as if, if Choi Do-yoon were to progress further, or become a Divine Spirit, he might become just like Romulaxis.
Noticing this, Romulaxis raised his index finger to the front of his helm.
“Shh. It’s unbecoming to thoughtlessly reveal the identity of a hero who arrives at a critical moment.”
“...Is that so?”
Hercules understood that Romulaxis did not want his identity exposed. He had no particular desire to grant an enemy’s wish, but exposing it would be meaningless as well.
The essential point was that he now had one more enemy to face.
“Stand up.”
Romulaxis extended his hand to lift Choi Do-yoon.
“You...”
“You’ve just barely grasped the quick bloom technique, so you can’t properly counter him. Except for that technique, in all other respects, you’re underqualified. And no one knows this better than you do.”
“...So, what do you intend to do?”
“I’m going to help.”
“You? Why?”
“Well, I’m tired of this endlessly repeating world. Though we can’t change anything without defeating Logos, this is the best I can do for now.”
Above all, he had one clear reason to intervene in this fight.
“Still, as the Sword Lord, it would be embarrassing to lose to a mere demigod, wouldn’t it?”
“I can’t understand why that would embarrass you.”
“Well, you don’t have to understand.”
Choi Do-yoon looked suspiciously at this reckless character, wondering if he would actually be of help.
Romulaxis merely shrugged in response.
After all, he had already proven his ability by saving his life moments earlier.
“...Very well. I’ll accept your help for now.”
“Oh. You can accept help from others without any qualms now? Do you have any instinctive aversions, like itching skin?”
“You’re spouting nonsense. Isn’t it natural to accept help when necessary?”
“Is that so? Well, if that’s ‘you now,’ then...”
Let’s fight together.