Chapter 106: Punching Bag
Naturally, the more uncommon demons had never felt what they were feeling at this moment. It wasn't just a widespread problem; it was the worst of all...
Mass Genocide.
The bodies of those poor demons went completely numb. All they could feel in that situation was... fear. It was everything they could feel—a paralyzing fear, the most primal sensation of all... terror... the unbridled despair incited by a single man.
It wasn't that they hadn't seen cruelty before. In fact, the life of a common demon was simple... They existed amidst cruelty, smelled the stench of evil every day, and they committed evil acts themselves. The outskirts of the demon world saw horrors aplenty—a father killing his own daughter to eat her flesh. But why... why was it so shocking for just one man to explode the heads of a few demons?
Even they didn't know. In truth... no one knew.
The only thing they understood was that this man was a true monster... a monster of the most merciless nature.
At the same time, something began to fall into place... The gazes of the true demons had already shifted to a woman in a red dress, sipping fine wine... Smiling at the display of ridiculous power...
"I really am a great teacher," Sapphire thought, smiling.
When her smile fell upon the massive audience, they only swallowed hard. Yes, their bodies could feel it in every fiber of their souls, and they looked at Vergil, comparing him to the woman. He was like her... a force of nature... They felt like tiny lizards in front of a Dragon God.
That was the comparison.
To these two... the demons here were nothing but small pieces of flesh, meant to be shredded. And all of this happened in mere seconds. Afterward, the bodies of the fallen began to shrivel, turning to mere skin as the blood flowed in rivers on the stands, trickling down towards the smiling man.
"Now that's better," his voice echoed in the ears of every demon there, a playful yet terrifying tone.
The woman, whom they had previously looked at for her beauty, now appeared as a true demoness, her dress, once as white as snow, had transformed into a red as vivid as rose petals.
She looked like a goddess of blood, an imposing and beautiful woman, almost like an ancient deity. Then, from the blood throne, the heads of the fallen demons began to emerge, their terrified faces frozen in their expressions after death...
"Oh~ I love punishing those who look at my wife with malice," Vergil remarked, admiring his gruesome masterpiece.
"You look so beautiful," he commented with a smile. "Ah... Unfortunately, I have to deal with this trash bag. Alright? I'll be right back for you, and we can start our honeymoon," Vergil said, turning away before she could answer...
"Now, let's get straight to the point... Wasn't this supposed to be an apocalypse? Then, come on, golden trash bag," Vergil smirked.
Before Vergil could continue, the man was already in front of him, delivering a punch straight to his face. But instead of dodging, Vergil allowed the punch to land...
KABOOOOMMMM!
The impact of the blow erupted in a wave of energy, raising a curtain of dust and sand that shrouded the arena like a dark veil.
The audience held their breath, the demons present exchanging fearful and fascinated glances, as the sound of the impact echoed through every corner, almost like a demonic thunder.
Vergil, however, remained impassive in the center of the explosion. He didn't take a single step back. Instead, he absorbed the impact, his body upright, almost disdainful. The dust began to settle slowly, revealing his figure still intact, his gaze fixed on his opponent with pure contempt.
Magnus's closed fist rested on Vergil's cheek, but... on the other side, Magnus was panting, his expression a mix of shock and frustration.
He had expected his blow to at least shake Vergil's confidence, but what he saw was the exact opposite.
Vergil kept his provocative smile, his eyes now seeming to glow with insatiable hunger, a desire to reveal even more of the chasm of power that separated the two.
"Learning about himself has really helped his strength grow... At least I don't have to worry about him anymore..." Sapphire thought, watching as he readied himself to strike Magnus.
'Wait, since when do I worry about anyone other than my daughter?' Sapphire thought for a moment before hearing the sounds erupting from the arena...
"You…" Magnus muttered, jumping back to put distance between himself and Vergil.
"Is that all you've got?" Vergil asked with a theatrically disappointed tone, cracking his neck as if he were just warming up. "I expected more from someone who dared to call this confrontation an 'apocalypse.' Honestly, I'm hella disappointed," he mocked, staring down at Magnus.
"I'm gonna have some fun now~" he added playfully, a small, sadistic smile crossing his face; he looked like a kid about to go play with friends.
Vergil's aura vanished, replaced by a green energy that enveloped the battlefield. The smoke began to clear, carried away by a distinctively green wind…
First, he displayed the blood manipulation of the Bael Clan, but now…the crowd gasped in shock.
"S-S-S-S-Sitri Clan? That's air manipulation!" several onlookers shouted as Vergil grinned, forming various swirling whirlwinds.
'That smile… I don't like it one bit…' Magnus thought, standing there frozen, unable to make the first move.
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Vergil's grin widened, showing all of his sharp teeth to the crowd. He inhaled a bit, letting the air fill his lungs, and as he exhaled, he sneered, "Come on, you piece of trash."
Without wasting any more time, Magnus charged toward Vergil with everything he had, desperate to wipe that infuriating grin off his face.
He summoned a fiery sword, its blade narrow and needle-like, aiming for Vergil's eyes, determined to blind him and stab his head over and over again.
"Die, you son of a—!" he roared.
But he'd made a critical error. Phoenix flames were indeed strong… But what happens when the being across from you is the very embodiment of demonic energy?
With flames enveloping his entire hand, Vergil seized Magnus's fiery sword between his fingers, effortlessly siphoning its energy.
The fire in Vergil's hand blazed a deeper, more intense red than Magnus's own; the difference in their concentration of power was unmistakable. Vergil held the stronger flame.
"What the—" Before Magnus could comprehend what was happening, a solid mass of energy struck his face.
At the same time, Vergil, still gripping Magnus's blade, shifted his stance and delivered a calculated blow, channeling a pressurized Sitri Clan Wind…
Wuuuushhh!
An immense blast of concentrated air erupted from his fist, driving straight into Magnus's stomach, with no chance for him to dodge while he was restrained.
The impact was brutal, more intense than anything Magnus had ever experienced, and for the first time… the very air itself shattered his body.
The force of the explosion was so severe that it tore Magnus's body in half, vaporizing everything below his torso, leaving only his upper body.
"Cough!" Magnus spat blood onto the ground, but the assault wasn't over yet.
The effects of Vergil's attack began to show on Magnus's body as it slowly started to fall apart.
"You know, last time, you caught me off guard. Quite the coward, weren't you? I thought someone from a house with the title of Archon would be more… honorable, but I was wrong," Vergil said as he crafted something in his hand.
By manipulating the air and releasing the wind, Vergil figured he could create large-scale release points, making the air itself resemble a blade—or better yet, something like a ninja shuriken. He was doing it again now.
A sphere of demonic energy, surrounded by blades of wind spinning at such a high speed that it emitted an intense noise, like a scream.
"Since you're immortal, I'll make use of that. From now on… I'm the trainer, and you're the punching bag." Vergil said, launching the Wind Shuriken towards Magnus, who was still struggling to regenerate his body…
'Something's wrong! I can't regenerate properly!' Magnus screamed internally before he was struck again… This time… his entire body was shredded.
"What…?" The audience didn't know how to react. They simply couldn't comprehend what had just happened in front of them.
"He… annihilated… the Archon's son?" That was the first question… the second? "Why isn't he… fighting seriously?"
Meanwhile, obviously…
"Very good~" Sapphire seemed pleased as she watched the entire coliseum erupting into chaos.
"Mom… what did you do to my husband?" murmured Katharina, a bit confused… It hadn't even been two days, and he already seemed like a different person…
"I taught him the basics, but this kid… Fufufu~ He's truly different… used my technique with another element," she commented, laughing while watching Magnus's body struggling to regenerate.
"Mom… You overdid it… Again." Katharina could only say that she had seen this attack before and knew just how devastating it was.
"He's really good, using rotation to create an attack like that… I usually avoid fighting, but I'll keep that in mind… could come in handy for some serious damage," added Stella, the woman who had remained silent for a while, enjoying her dessert. She was now also watching the events unfold in the arena.
In another VIP room…
"...Lady Runeas." Victoria didn't know what to say as she saw Runeas's furious expression.
"That woman has created a monster," Runeas said, watching the scene… It was the first time in all her years of life that she was left speechless, unable to describe what she was seeing.
"…" Victoria couldn't help but instinctively nod; there was no denying it… Sapphire had created someone like herself…
"I want him for myself…" Runeas murmured, causing Victoria's eyes to nearly pop out of her head.
"MISS!!!" Victoria cried out in alarm!
"What? Didn't my mother want me to get married? I found someone who doesn't look like a sack of trash with legs." She smiled.