Reborn as a Demon Hat [A Monster Evolution Isekai LitRPG]

Artorious felt his limbs go numb as something passed through his veins, dulling every line of power Kaedmon had bestowed upon him – and dulling every Lightborn skill he'd ever used before them.

His eyes met the single crescent eye of the Archon's, and together they beheld the skill that had nullified the power of a God:

Prophet's Pacification (Grade S)

Heretical Skill conceived by the Prophet Jun'Ei. Allows the User to nullify all Skill usage from another user on contact.

Duration: 10 minutes.

HIGHEST GRADE ACHIEVED.

Look at that, Jun, Ethan smiled. You got to be here to screw over Kaedmon one last time. And you probably knew you would be, didn't you?

"Heresy," Artorious spat. "Why am I not surprised?"

The Angel's muscles tightened. His Skills might have been stripped from him temporarily, but his innate strength was still enough to tear into Ethan's form.

But the Archon wasn't about to give him the chance.

He sent both Typhos and Baphomet's heads towards the Angel's arms and clamped their teeth down on them. He saw pain flicker in Artorious' eyes – behind the silver discs of his Angel form, where the man he once was still floated, dimly. He felt the blood of Krea run down his throats, and tried to keep from choking on it.

Meanwhile, Artorious felt himself being slowly, but surely, pushed back.

"C'mon Arty," Ethan groaned. "You didn't think I'd make it that easy for you, did you?"

The Angel clenched his teeth, forcing his every muscle in his body to resist the push of the Archon's gargantuan form.

You know you'll need more than this, Sys told him as he formulated his next move. Even without his Skills, he's still got double your HP, and the maneuverability to avoid most of your attacks.

Ethan knew Sys was right. And with a quick Appraisal of his opponent's HP, he knew that even all the damage he'd done so far was nothing but a scrape to him:

Artorious, Angel of Keadmon (LVL 200)

HP: 4575/5000

…

I'm going to ask you again, Sys murmured in his mind – a voice of caution amidst the sea of raging chaos he could see in Artorious' efforts to grapple with him. Are you sure you can do this alone?

Ethan's thready little smirk never dropped.

"Luckily for me," he said aloud. "I'm never alone."

Artorious' eyes flashed in confusion.

"You've been so fixated on me since the start, eh Arty?" Ethan mused. "And I've been so focused on the fact that, one day, one of us would have to kill the other. Because that's just the way it is, right? Kaedmon's Law. That's the parts we're meant to play. Sacrificial lambs for the order of this world – that's just what we're supposed to be. And that pisses you off just as much as it pisses me off, doesn't it?"

He could swear that, for a moment, something else flashed on the surface of those eyes. A different kind of intelligence to the Lightborn's.

He saw the Angel's feet waver, and the purple light of one portal that was now only a few inches away from them.

And Ethan's smile only grew.

"So let's finish this story the way we started it, Arty," he said.

[Roar]

[Wing Buffet]

[Skitter]

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The [Roar] Ethan summoned issued from Revok's mouth alone. But it was no less powerful. It forced the Angel back, splintering his armor, while [Wing Buffet] launched him through the portal and into whatever Delve lay within. Ethan, meanwhile, wasted no time in following him.

Sanctum was bathed in the electric blue light of his [Skitter] for an instant before it died away, and he followed the Lightborn into the abyss.

***

Fauna groaned as she saw the spectral light of Ethan die away almost as soon as it had appeared.

She tried to keep her eyes open, but the pain of the Lightborn's Implosion was still fresh in her mind, and in her bones. Every single moment was an agony – it had taken all of her mental strength to keep herself conscious to see Ethan hold his own against the Angel himself and protect the throne from his corrupting touch.

But she'd just seen him activate one of the portals towards the Delves – one he'd already been through. As her mind grappled with thoughts of sleep, and of quiet oblivion, she couldn't help but wonder what he was planning.

Ethan, her mind groaned. I used to think I knew you…so well.

But it was true – what Klax had told her way back in Sentinel on the eve of what should have been their greatest triumph: he was a being altogether distinct from them.

And yet…you came back.

This thought grabbed her suddenly – almost with the exact same intensity as the light that suddenly blazed into life just behind her head.

At first, she thought it was some Greycloak that had made it to the city – one of the soldiers they'd missed, perhaps. But then she heard the frantic breathing of a child behind her, and felt the gentle but twitchy hands of a Hopla caress the back of her neck.

"I – I'm sorry. I haven't practiced enough. I haven't…but I'll do my best, Miss Fauna. I'll do my best, for all of you."

That voice…

Feeling began to slowly return to Fauna's body. Her fingers flexed. Her ears twitched. Her hands felt the dirt and gravel that she was lying on and her legs, though bloody and bruised, started to respond to her commands.

But more than that, her mouth began moving of its own accord, and before she knew it, she uttered what she thought – and what she hoped - was the impossible:

"…Mara?"

***

The Festering Den

Delve Grade: F

Layer 1

The Grums native to the Festering Den's swamp level turned abruptly as the portal to their lair suddenly flared and flamed with energy.

Their tiny brains buzzed with excitement at the prospect of more Hybrids or humans to clash with. Ever since that damn hat had been through, they'd had nothing but meagre scraps.

Their tribal leaders commanded even the smallest among them to take up their spears and bows and ready their guerilla fighters stationed beneath the great bog of the first Layer to ready themselves for a collective assault. Their Lord Rachneros might have been taken from them, but at the very least they could still do his memory proud.

But an Angel of Kaedmon flying directly at them wasn't quite what they were expecting.

Artorious crashed into the middle of their large gathering and splattered them across the bog. The little creatures burst apart against the sheer force that had hurled the angel into their realm. Meanwhile, the Grums beneath the bog poked their heads up, saw the Angel recovering himself, and decided right then and there to swim as fast as they could in any direction but his.

And that's when Ethan came charging through the portal and landed right in front of them.

His nostrils flared as he attuned himself to the dank air of the Festering Den again, remembering the first time he'd emerged in this place as a fledgling archon wearing a raven's body. Full of jokes, irreverence, and a complete lack of care for the reality of this world.

Now he strode into the Den like a champion – a dark sentinel ready to take down the hand of God.

The Grums moved out of his way, smelling something distinctive on him. A musk that seemed oddly…familiar.

Ethan, however, was more occupied by the Angel lying across the great bog's length. Slowly, Artorious rose and cracked his neck, flexing his limbs and spreading his wings wide to shake off the excess muck Ethan had thrown him in.

He was on the defensive now, Ethan knew. But still, he could see no fear in his old foe's eyes.

"You always took pleasure in degrading our people," Artorious growled, leveling his blade at him. "It is fitting that you would see your life end in a putrid dump like this."

He doesn't know why I brought him here, Ethan thought with sudden relief. Or at least, he hasn't figured it out yet.

…you don't want him to hurt them anymore, Sys mumbled. And you don't want him to use them as bait. Because you know that if he did…

Ethan grimaced. He knew what Sys was getting at. After all this time, Sys still couldn't see the Hybrids as anything other than useful servants. As he rocketed towards Sanctum, the uppity voice had told him again and again that this was exactly how previous Archons had perished – by putting their relationships first and their duty second.

There was logic to Sys' weariness. Because he had told him that his compassion for his friends was his weakness. And he was right.

But seeing Fauna and the others again mangled like they were…it was all he could do to not rush to their aid immediately. He'd been loathe to ever leave them at all. And no matter which way Sys tried to cut it, the deaths of every Hybrid in Sancttum was on his head. If he'd gone back from the start…

He shook the thought from his mind. He owed the souls of the departed something to atone for the destruction that had been visited upon them – the destruction that had been meant for him.

What he owed them was the fall of the Lightborn. Here, and now.

Alright, Sys acquiesced. But remember – you've got ten – nine – minutes and counting to take him down before his angel skills come back online. I'll be counting. Just fuck him up good before then, would you?

Ethan allowed himself a grin before he let his skillset loose.

Don't you worry, Sys, he thought. Just sit back and enjoy the show. Because now, we're going all-out.