Cain
Cain retreated. Frankly, if he had taken that attack head-on, there wouldn't have been anything left of him to regenerate, let alone heal.
"F-Fuck...!"
"Is your mouth a sewer?" Rowen sneered, mocking him.
"Shut up, Rowen!"
"I don't want to. Why should I shut up? I'm going to keep talking. Once you're dead, you won't have to listen to me anymore."
"...Fuck. Just die already! Why can't any of you just leave me alone? Why do you always have to get in my way?!"
"Because you're trying to become a Demon King."
You. My brother. The last brother I have left, excluding Kael. Because Cain Balenos is trying to become a Demon King, this whole goddamn mess is happening.
"You should have resisted the corruption."
"...What was I supposed to do when I woke up and found myself like this?!"
"At the very least, you shouldn't have joined hands with a Demon King!"
And above all else...
"Lea resisted corruption for over a thousand years. You've only been dealing with it for a few years, and you're already whining?"
"Pfft, haha. You mean that fallen saintess? I saw what she looked like through Barbatos's memories, and let me tell you, she was a pathetic sight."
"...You just crossed the line."
Sky Slash. Fire Shot. Hell Blade. Stardust. Burst Ice. Burst Flame.
—Simultaneous fire. Layer upon layer, condensed into a high-mass concentration.
The sky filled with stars of blue fire, while the combination of red flames and ice manifested extreme cold and extreme heat.
They all locked onto Cain at once.
Rowen spread his wings toward the open sky where the ceiling had been shattered.
He aimed at Cain, who had dared to touch his reverse scale, and unleashed a Dragon's Breath.
Rumbleeeee! The earth began to shake.
He forcibly extracted life force from the dead land, pulling it up with all his might.
The back of his throat burned. The breath erupted from his mouth, tearing through his swollen throat.
Boom! Cain panicked. He was utterly overwhelmed by a destructive power far greater than he had anticipated.
He leaped. He dissolved into a shadow, rushing toward Rowen.
He wrapped around Rowen's body, hiding his form to constrict him.
But...
"...What do you think you're doing?"
"Agh!" Crack, crunch!
Rowen instantly ripped Cain out of his shadow form and choked him by the throat.
"Don't you know why Abel taught you about shadows?"
"...Cough!"
"And you dumbass. You disappointed Mother."
And this was what he wanted to say most of all:
"Did you really think I couldn't use shadow magic?"
Rowen's right arm, which was gripping Cain, had turned into a violet shadow.
Shadows naturally clump and merge with other shadows. Because of this, it was even easier to locate Cain's true body.
Inside Rowen's mind lay a library of magic containing information from both his past and present lives. He knew the theories and practical applications of almost every spell. Thus, the idea that he couldn't use shadows was utter bullshit.
"Abel worked his ass off teaching me, telling me to at least learn the theory, even though I couldn't put it into practice back then."
—A bit lighter. I must become the shadow, and the shadow must become me.
"Compared to that, you couldn't even catch up to Abel, despite possessing the authority of Greed."
—If you become a perfect shadow, your true body cannot be detected. Why? Because I am the shadow. The shadow is the true body, and I must be the true body of the shadow.
"The fact that you got caught by me, when I haven't even recovered all my past-life strength, is proof of that. You motherfucker."
—I am confident that I will not run away from you, nor will I be caught.
Indeed, Rowen had never once managed to catch Abel. The moment Abel became a shadow was always the moment Rowen lost their spar.
Gripping Cain's neck, Rowen looked out at the floating islands of Pandemonium, heavily shrouded in a dense fog of magi. It was a truly disgusting sight.
"Honestly, I hate you."
"...The feeling is mutual, Rowen."
"But I still thought of you as my brother."
"..."
A silent response. For Rowen, that was more than enough of an answer to make his final decision.
Cain's face was filled with resentment. Tears welled in his eyes as a mixture of self-pity, unfairness, and sheer irritation surged within him.
"I know how you feel. You woke up to find everyone dead, and everyone branded you a murderer."
"...No, you don't know shit."
"Yeah, you're right, you asshole. But even when I try to understand you, this disaster only happened because of your habit of kicking away every single opportunity you're given."
More than that...
"In a situation where I was backed into a corner like that, I was swallowed by hatred and died."
"...."
"That's why I'm telling you this. You made the wrong choice."
What was the point of talking any further? Rowen prepared to plunge the Holy Sword straight into Cain's stomach. But...
"I will not allow that!"
Barbatos's fist tore through the air. Rowen sliced the arm in half, instantly synchronizing with Valenos.
Rumble! The spirit knights cheered toward the contractor of the Spirit King.
"...Valenos. Explain what happened."
"That cowardly bastard tried to kill everyone trapped inside the Shadow Prison."
"Is that why you're exhausted from blocking him?"
"...I will make no excuses. I am sorry."
"It's fine."
No, honestly, it wasn't fine. Barbatos's sudden intervention had caused him to lose his grip on Cain.
Cain clutched his slightly torn abdomen and laughed.
"...I-I survived." Pfft, hahaha. A wicked laugh spilled from his lips. He sneered at Rowen, as if the heavens themselves had chosen him to live.
But the tables hadn't turned. Rowen still had more than enough power—overflowing power, in fact—to deal with him.
At that moment, Barbatos tore open a subspace. A Gate. A portal leading to the human realm.
"...Stop him! Block it! Stop him!" Rowen roared, and the spirit knights surged forward. Rowen ran as well.
However, Barbatos's speed was faster than Rowen's sonic pace. Grabbing Cain by the scruff of his neck, the Demon King hurled him into the Gate.
"Barbatos, what the hell are you—!"
"Live. Survive, and we shall meet again!"
"You motherfucker!" Whoosh! "Dammit!" The Gate snapped shut.
Thump. Thump. Thump. His Core began to thrash wildly.
Hummmm! With a low resonance, black energy surged, threatening to consume him to the very crown of his head.
Cain's body had severed its link with Pandemonium. With that, Mio and the rest of his companions were finally released.
Arahan rushed toward Rowen.
"Young Master! Are you hurt anywhere?!"
"...Arahan. Step back for a moment."
Arahan flinched in surprise. Throughout her life, she had seen Rowen angry, regretful, and sorrowful, but she had never seen him this consumed by pure rage.
Mio and Uba were equally stunned. The sheer pressure Rowen exuded right now vividly recalled the image of Rian Rose from his past life.
Even though his full strength had not yet returned, he radiated the exact same murderous intent.
He had missed his chance. He had lost the opportunity to kill his brother with his own hands and take a step closer to human peace.
"...Hey, Barbatos."
"Pfft, haha. What a spectacular look on your face, Hero."
"Don't think you'll walk away from this alive, just like what my father did to you."
The shattered blade. The fragments of the Holy Sword that had scattered in multiple directions had been used to seal the Demon King's body. Because of this, the Holy Sword's sharpness had actually intensified. The heavily jagged, chipped sections now carried the crushing weight of a battleaxe.
Rowen walked. With every step, a biting frost froze the ground beneath him. Black energy manifested as shadows, exerting a heavy gravitational pull.
Veins bulged prominently on Rowen's forehead. He was absolutely furious at the demon standing before him.
Everything was ruined. Because of this single bastard, their entire plan had gone completely awry.
"...I'm going to kill you."
Those words were meant for everyone. Uba immediately enveloped Rowen in Holy Power and balanced his Yin-Yang energy. He swept his nonexistent hair back, letting his Holy Power flare around his entire body as he roared with fierce battle spirit.
"...Rian. Are you really going to do it?"
"Yeah. If it's now, it'll be enough."
Sirayunsul and Arahan didn't understand what they meant. Lucius, too, was so overwhelmed by Rowen's sheer presence that he couldn't tear his eyes away.
Only Mio. Only the great archmage understood the weight of their exchange.
"Arahan. Can you lend me your chains?"
"...These?"
"Yeah, give them to Uba. You know what that means, right?"
Arahan nodded. She hadn't been trained so poorly as to not understand what it meant to hand her chains over to her master.
Clink... clank... Wrapping the chains of Holy Power around his arms, Uba infused them to the brim with Yin-Yang and Holy Power.
Kabaaaam! Simply by unleashing his suppressed Holy Power, half of the castle was instantly reduced to rubble.
A realm two stages higher than his past life. Behind Uba's back, a Mandala containing the perfect harmony of Yin and Yang energies bloomed.
As for Rowen, his blue flames merged with the black energy of nothingness, blooming into a dark-blue Mandala.
Though his physical prowess had not yet reached his past life's peak, his magic had long since surpassed it.
"...Dark-blue."
"Black, white, and gold..."
Shards of ice swirled around the two of them. Uba's Holy Power resonated deeply with Rowen's Holy Sword.
"We're ending this in one strike."
"...If that is your wish, I shall follow. Rian, you are our leader."
"...Yeah."
Crash! Barbatos didn't know what they were talking about, but he knew he had to stop them. He kicked off the ground and threw a massive fist forward.
He unleashed his authority of Greed. His goal was to scan their powers and make them his own.
But—*Zap!* "Aaaaargh!"
The moment he tried to read Rowen Balenos's information, he was blocked by 'something.' Interference was impossible.
It was something even Rowen himself was unaware of. A restriction left behind by the God of Destiny. A gift and a curse from a certain goddess who had cherished Lea like her own daughter. Reincarnation—a blessing and a curse that prevented him from truly dying.
Because it was bound by divine authority, it was not something Barbatos, who possessed a diametrically opposed nature, could ever hope to perceive.
Barbatos's eyes bloodshot and began to bleed. It felt as though someone had pried his eyelids open and shoved their fingers inside to gouge his eyeballs out. It was undoubtedly divine retribution for his attempted interference.
Toward the idiot who was suddenly throwing a fit and convulsing all on his own, the two heroes swung their weapons.
Barbatos managed to dodge the sword strikes using his beastly instincts, but...
Rattle! Uba wrapped the chains around him, pulled him in with his bulging muscles, and smashed his shiny head straight into the demon's face.
A classic groggy state. Without a moment's delay, Rowen hacked away with his Holy Sword to ensure the demon's soul could never awaken again.
Striking a primordial demon with the Holy Sword in Pandemonium, rather than the human realm, was nothing short of a death sentence.
"...Aaaaaaargh!"
Rowen unleashed all of his pent-up rage. Cain had to die to prevent countless lives from being sacrificed. Just look at the state of him now. Was he not walking the exact same path as Judas had in the past?
Judas would undoubtedly approach Cain. It was an inevitability.
"...Tsk."
Looking at Barbatos's crumbling body, Rowen gestured to Uba. Understanding the silent request, Uba brought his axe down, completely crushing the demon's head.
Splat.
The edge of northern Winterer. This place, shrouded in a biting, freezing chill, was literally called the Land of Extreme Cold.
Crossing the mountains of frost and traversing the extremely perilous snowy plains revealed the body of the King of Extreme Cold, sealed beneath massive pillars.
It appeared half-melted. Although the soul had not yet synchronized, it was waiting for that very moment.
A Gate opened. Someone tumbled down beneath the sealed body of the King of Extreme Cold.
"...Dammit!"
Cain Balenos. He was the tragic second son, corrupted and consumed by the hateful magi.
Barbatos had told him to live. But wasn't that just a ploy to take over his body? Cain had absolutely no intention of giving it up.
He looked around. It was freezing. Seeing the endless expanse of snow, he realized he was in the North.
"...Home."
If he kept walking like this, would he eventually reach Snowfall? His beloved home, the house he had shared with his brother, his father, and his mother.
The moment those thoughts crossed his mind, he felt an overwhelming hatred for his own ash-colored body.
Barbatos's authority of Greed had driven him to crave power. In the beginning, he had only needed a place to hide this body. He had never intended to disappoint his mother.
But what was he supposed to do?! When he had finally opened his eyes, a year had already passed, and he had already fallen, slaughtering countless exorcists.
"...Dammit."
And above all else...
"What the hell is up with that head?" The King of Extreme Cold. The white-haired man was clearly looking down at Cain, a smirk playing on his lips.