Deus Necros

Chapter 612: But A Mere Stain

She howled. Not in anger this time, but in raw, unfamiliar pain. It was the sound of something realizing too late that it could still suffer.

The bruising, injuries, burns and the sheer humiliation was too much for the Usurper. One who lived its entire life refusing death, and refusing that anything above itself existed.

Unlike the immune body she had once possessed, the angelic origin that had shielded her from such sensations, the [Living Vessel] offered no such mercy. It could grow stronger with time, become sturdier, mightier, but it was not there yet. It could not compare to the Exoskin she had abandoned. Regret burned clearly in her eyes as pain wracked her, the realization dawning that she had given up something irreplaceable. She had believed Wrath would be her salvation, only to find it incompatible, devouring her from within.

“Quite the conundrum, isn’t it,” Ludwig taunted, lifting one hand behind him with deliberate ease.

The mace, [Nightbreaker], responded instantly. It tore free from where it had been embedded in the ground, rising as if pulled by an unseen cord before flying into Ludwig’s waiting arm. The weight of it settled comfortably in his grasp. Despite the comically massive size of the weapon that was bigger than Ludwig himself.

Envy shuddered and stumbled forward, chains creaking as she strained. “You can’t use that! COME TO ME!” Her eyes were losing focus, pupils dilating as the transformation into Wrath accelerated, swallowing whatever remained of her restraint.

The mace vibrated for a brief second, a low hum passing through its haft, but it refused to move. It remained firmly in Ludwig’s hand.

“Ah, what a shame,” Ludwig said lightly. This time, his gaze shifted past Envy, as if addressing something deeper. “It never liked you, as it seems.”

“I SAID COME TO ME!”

The mace vibrated again, more forcefully this time. Ludwig’s grip tightened, undead strength flaring effortlessly. The resistance barely registered.

“Like I said, it doesn’t listen to you anymore,” Ludwig continued, his tone almost amused. “Or had you hoped that once you become Wrath you’d take it back? Let me guess. Did you fully consume Envy?”

“I AM ENVY!” she howled, the words tearing free as both personalities clawed for dominance.

“What a shame,” Ludwig said. “It isn’t enough.” He launched himself forward, the mace swinging with brutal precision. “Prince, here you go!”

The blow landed squarely in Envy’s chest. The impact sent a shock through her entire being, lifting her off her feet and hurling her backward toward the prince.

“The fuck are you doing?!” Tull shouted, sword already rising as he saw the deadly Usurper flying toward them.

“Good job!” Alex called out without hesitation. “[Thunder God’s Decree!].”

The half hovering prince’s eyes blazed with pure gold as he completed the long cast. Electricity crackled around his body, hair lifting as static charged the air. The sky above responded instantly.

“RAIJIN!” The word echoed and the world went silent for a breath.

A lightning bolt the size of a building tore down from the blood stained heavens. It roared as it fell, incandescent and furious, obliterating land and body alike when it struck. The ground shattered, exploding outward in a violent collapse of nature’s power.

Wrath’s already damaged body, Envy’s ruined form, absorbed the full force of it. Millions of volts crashed into her, arcs of electricity crawling over what remained as the smell of ozone filled the air.

“Nice! Max output, [Limit Break]” Ludwig said. He was already moving, leaping high above the downed, electrified body. While his own was fueled with remnant of rage, but the unbridled power of his inflated undead muscles. He brought the mace down with such force that his earlier blows felt like mere warmups in comparison.

The impact made the ground bulge and ripple outward like waves across water. Dirt and stone surged away from the point of impact. When that wave struck the riverbed, the river itself exploded outward, water and souls alike thrown violently into the air.

The shockwave reached Tull, Red, and the prince, the ground beneath them bounding and heaving until it could no longer contain the force. It finally gave way, erupting outward in a wide circle of devastation.

“Ah, it feels much better to no longer be fettered by muscle,” Ludwig remarked calmly as Envy’s face was completely crushed beneath the mace. Bones and blood were all that remained visible, yet no notification appeared. No sign of her death.

“Should I do more?” Ludwig tilted his head slightly, raising the mace once again.

“BEGON!”

The word did not come from a mouth. There was none left. It was as if the concept itself spoke, forcing reality to carry its voice. Ludwig’s body was shoved back several steps, boots scraping against broken ground.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance, irritation flashing across his features. He had been about to finish it properly.

“Mere bugs dare!” She rose again, body reconstructing even as she stood. Flesh and bone knit together unnaturally. “I swear I’ll grind your kingdoms! I’ll break your bones and tear apart your veins! I’ll drink blood from your skulls and extinct entire generations of your kind! THIS I SWEA—”

“SHUT UP!” Ludwig interrupted with a one handed bitch slap, only this hand had a mace the size of a giant boulder. Slamming the Nightbreaker into her side. The reconstruction shattered instantly, half formed flesh tearing apart. Only half her face had finished rebuilding when Ludwig struck her again, smashing it to ruin.

“You talk too much, even for someone without a mouth damn…” Ludwig said flatly as he approached, mace resting heavy in his grip.

“Ludwig, she is dangerous…” The Knight King warned, his voice steady but tense.

The hulking mass of Undead Knighthood stirred behind them, armor clanking as they shifted. They did not seem content to stand idle while Ludwig claimed the entirety of the battle.

“When have we ever fought something that wasn’t dangerous?” Ludwig replied. He took a few measured steps toward Envy, unhurried. “It’ll be like this from now on. Until the end of these Usurpers.” He glanced back briefly, eyes cold and resolved. “How long are we going to worry and shy away from taking them down?”

He placed the shaft of his mace on his right shoulder and continued forward, posture relaxed despite the devastation around him. “Time to rid the world of another stain,” he said quietly. “So I wonder how her hope feels right now?”