The Nether stood above all who watched him in a completely new form.

He was about five meters—now bulkier than before, and brimming with more power than they could fathom.

"That Martial Blade God… he really had me running, didn't he?" He muttered, resting his gaze on the next set of heroes who would dare defy this new—better—version of him.

"MASTEEEERRRRR!!!" Ciel squealed in excitement as she rushed over to his side.

Her widened eyes and drawn-out smile clearly depicted how excited she was, and she jumped on him despite the immense amount of Nether that seared her body as a result.

"Haaa… your warmth feels amazing!" She rested more on him.

The Nether patted Ciel, and then removed her from his embrace.

As expected, her contact with him caused her own body to suffer damage. Her clear skin was now afflicted with dark scars, and a sizzling sound came from her burning flesh.

"Avoid contact with me for now, Ciel."

"E-ehhhh? But, master—"

"That is your punishment for your misdeeds. Surely you understand…"

Ciel understood that it was because of her carelessness that the Martial Blade God was able to reach such a height and threaten the plans of her master. She had no choice but to take the blame.

"I understand, master." Upon bowing, she still couldn't help but feel so enamored by the Nether.

Wasn't he so great? Despite the Martial Blade God displayed, it still couldn't stop the Nether. In fact, he had only gotten stronger since then. That was the nature of the invincible master she served.

"Well, I better finish things here. It seems the process of consuming this world was interrupted because of the Martial Blade God, and Aether managed to resist me. I'll have to start all over." The Nether murmured.

With the current power he possessed, he would be able to achieve it within moments—but only if he chose to put his focus on the task. As such, he desired to eliminate any further potential threats.

Looking at the group before him, he could only spot one.

"Kazen… you don't look so good." The Nether grinned.

"Y-you…"

Out of everyone in the group, Kazen was the only one who could still speak. The rest were too overcome by the Nether's pressure that they could not do anything except watch the exchange while awaiting their inevitable demise.

"You look so pale. It seems you won't last much longer in that body of yours."

The Nether stretched out his hand toward Kazen, his smile unfading. He simply enjoyed seeing her painful expression, and watching her suffering.

"What do you have planned for her, master?" Ciel asked with a wide smile. Her master wasn't the only one who felt indignant toward Kazen, after all.

"Just watch."

With a mere flick of his fingers, Kazen screamed violently, and her body hummed with power. Golden energy radiated from her body, and everything converged into a single point.

"You… you… you won't win! You'll never win!" Kazen growled amid her screaming.

Sweat poured all over her face as the golden ball of light slowly escaped her body. The further it left her, the more lifeless she seemed. At this point, she was even struggling to breathe.

"T-there is always… hope…"

The golden ball was yanked out of Kazen—or rather, Aloe—causing the body to fall to the ground instantly.

The golden ball that now floated in the air glimmered so brightly that it was blinding. It slowly drew closer to the Nether, who was grinning menacingly.

"That is… Kazen's soul?"

"Indeed. I'll consume it and destroy it in the most painful, most devastating way possible. She'll never join her comrades in the afterlife, and she'll suffer before she is returned to nothingness." The Nether grinned.

The golden light finally helplessly rested on the Nether's grasp, and black gooey liquids began emanating from his palm, sucking the light in.

In a moment of silence, Kazen's soul was sucked into the Nether's body—doomed for unspeakable torments and unimaginable horror.

A horror that the remaining audience feared.

"What about the rest?" Ciel asked the Nether, her eyes gleaming as she watched the paralyzed allies of Kazen.

"They don't pique my interest. You can kill them for me and… huh…?" The Nether suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

His eyes suddenly widened, and black goo slowly began to fall from them. His body quivered, and the power within him slowly began to get… unstable?

"GAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" His scream pierced the air, and they were enough to send shockwaves flying in all directions.

"M-master, what's wrong?!" Ciel asked, her eyes pleading frantically.

She had no idea what was going on, but the fact that black goo kept descending from the eyes of her master, and he wouldn't stop shaking and screaming showed something. If she had to guess, it would be—

"Unstable… imbalanced. My body… gahhh… Kazen, you bastard!" The Nether growled, overwhelmed by what was happening to him.

Fortunately for them, Ciel knew exactly what was going on.

'His body is experiencing an imbalance due to a reaction in his body. Did Kazen cause this? Yes, that must be why he mentioned her. But how? Damnit! This most likely means one or more Arcanas have been compromised.'

"W-which one? Which Arcana was hit?" Ciel asked in desperation.

"Which one do you think, you fool? Are you retarded? Gahhh! Of course, it's her Arcana!"

Ciel felt ashamed of herself for asking her master such a useless question. Of course, the only Arcana Kazen would have been able to affect was her very own, [The Moon]. Her bond with the Arcana must have manifested once she became one with the Nether.

Was this her plan the whole time? Ciel had no idea. Even she hadn't expected Kazen to make such a move.

She understood one very crucial thing, though…

'If I don't act fast, my master's plans… his new life… they'll be forfeited."

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