“Now, let’s try this again!”

Krul blasted off the ground engulfed in flames. Miko tracked him as he was about to enter his range. His speed had an explosive increase. He popped up in front of Miko. An explosion followed a lightning-fast punch to the face.

“Not bad.”

Krul’s eyes widened. Miko appeared with Krul’s fist pressing against his face. Despite his facial features being disfigured, he wore a wide grin.

“It’s not bad, but I expected more after the show you just gave us.”

“Doesn’t he feel pain? Why is he smiling like that?”

Miko’s behavior unsettled the audience. He locked eyes with Krul.

“What? No follow-up?”

Krul clenched his fist and hit Miko with a hook. Miko chuckled as blood flowed out his mouth.

“Anything else?”

Krul clenched his teeth. He started raining down punches on Miko’s face.

“Hahahaha!”

He laughed as his head flung back and forth. The dull sound of flesh hitting flesh. The sight of blood flying in the air. Finally, Miko’s never-ending laugh. All these things created a scenery of madness before the audience.

“….What the hell is this?”

Flames danced around the two of them as Krul’s assault intensified. Yet, Miko’s laugh only grew louder.

“…Is this a fight?”

Miko’s laugh grew louder and louder. Some of them couldn’t take it and covered their ears.

However, that didn’t work. Before they knew it, his laugh was echoing in their heads.

“Hahahaha!”

They closed their eyes and gritted their teeth. Miko’s face appeared in their minds. He looked down on them mockingly and laughed at their anguish.

“What the hell?!”

“Get out of my head!”

Their heads felt like they were splitting. Their minds became fuzzy. They were being surrounded by darkness.

“Meadow of Tranquility!

Suddenly, light forced away the darkness, and they were surrounded by flowers.

“Come to your senses!”

“?!”

They opened their eyes. Their minds were clear. They looked around and saw Ecko standing up looking down at them.

“Don’t let yourself be devoured by him! There will be no coming back!”

She looked at the monitor and clicked her tongue. Krul was still relentlessly attacking the laughing Miko. He was breathing heavily and his attacks were beginning to lose power.

“Run, Krul. Run while you still can.”

Miko’s laugh slowly became quieter. His eyes fell on Krul’s face. He didn’t look away even when he was punched in them. After a few seconds, he lifted his hand and caught Krul’s fist.

“Alright, I’ve seen enough of that.”

He dragged Krul towards him. Krul was forced to look at his disfigured face. A pair of bloodshot eyes locked with his own.

“Isn’t there anything else you can show me?”

“Of cou—”

Krul’s words were cut short by a punch to the stomach.

“Either way, it doesn’t matter.”

Miko slowly lifted his body into the air with his fist. Krul struggled for breath as the fist pressed into him.

“It’s my turn now.”

Miko grinned and threw a punch. Cracking sounds reached his ears as Krul’s head was forcibly turnt. With a sonic boom, he was blasted away. He flew through several volcanoes causing them to explode.

“That, was a real punch.”

Miko slowly headed in his direction. An explosion erupted.

“Ahhh!”

Krul flew at him roaring at the top of his lungs. He gathered flames in his palms and fired it. It hit Miko without resistance. He walked out of the fire engulfed in flames.

“Despite the obvious difference in strength, you continue to fight. Is that because of your madness? Do you not feel fear because you’re insane. As an advocate of madness, I’m curious.”

Krul hit him with a flying kick to the chest. Miko was swallowed by an enormous burst of flames.

“Do you believe that if you continue to persevere, you’ll obtain victory? If that’s the case—”

The flames disappeared revealing a scorched Miko. He smiled with charred lips.

“Then, that is true madness.”

Krul looked at him and smiled.

“You’re acting tough, but you don’t fool me.”

He pointed at Miko.

“Just look at you. You’re about to keel over and die!”

“Hm?”

Miko showed confusion.

“Ah.”

And then, realization.

“The reason you’re so relentless is that you believed that you were dealing damages to me.”

Miko burst out laughing. Krul frowned at the sight of walking-corpse laughing at him.

“Well, I guess this is my fault. I played with you too much. Now you’re getting cocky.”

Miko smirked at him.

“Listen, Little God. In this world there are levels.”

A crack appeared on Miko’s chest. The crack spread to the rest of his body. He took a step forward. His skin shattered and a brand new Miko appeared. One without any of the wounds received from all of his battles. He grinned at the shocked Krul.

“And sadly, you’re not on my level.”

“He regenerated?”

“No, he molted.”

Alec answered Karim with a look of shock.

“Just like an animal, he shed his old, battered skin and obtained a new one. Only, he did it in an instant.”

Krul ground his teeth.

“So you can heal, so can I! I’ll just beat you back to death!”

Miko frowned for the first time.

“It seems that you still don’t understand. Madness can be so blinding after all.”

He nodded.

“Alright. I guess it’s time I show you a glimpse of true power.”

He glided his fingers in front of him. Krul rushed at him.

“Like I’ll let you!”

Strange blue symbols appeared in the air, wherever Miko’s finger went.

“Is that runes?!”

“Miko knows Norse Magic?!”

“But it feels a bit different.”

Krul concentrated his flames around his fist. Unfazed, Miko formed a circle of runes in front of him.

“Hell Magic:…”

Krul threw a punch and fired a laser. Miko poked the center of the circle.

“Antenora (Ninth Circle).”

A bright light illuminated the volcanic world.

“………”

Silence fell on the dimension. It was voided of the sound of even the smallest flame.

“……..”

The audience was speechless. The scene in front of them was that bizarre.

“Huh?”

The one who broke that silence was a frowning Miko. In front of him was a world of ice. Whether it was the volcanoes, the lakes of lava, or Krul and his flames, everything was frozen solid. Miko ignored the lump of ice inches away from his face, which was originally a laser, and approached Krul.

“That’s strange. He’s still alive. I intended to freeze even his blood solid and instantly killing him.”

He stared at Krul’s frozen expression.

“There’s no way that this pitiful existence can survive my full power.”

He turned away and looked at his hand.

“Which means that I can’t bring out my full strength.”

He started examining his body. Suddenly, scenes from his first appearance flashed in his mind.

“That’s right. I had different forms back then. How didn’t I realize this? Is there something affecting my mind?”

He looked towards the sky. A strange mark appeared in his eyes. Suddenly, he could see countless magic circles above him.

“I thought being in this artificial space would be the cause…”

He looked away and the mark in his eyes disappeared.

“But there is no such effect.”

(He just instantly analyzed the dimensional system in the arena.)

Cold sweat flowed down Kirika’s cheek. Miko re-examined his body.

“Something is blocking my power….”

He clenched his fists.

“And I don’t like it.”

A crack resounded behind him. The ice trapping Krul cracked. Heat and light flowed out of the cracks. With a boom, the ice exploded and Krul emerged. He was breathing heavily as he glared at the back turned to him. He roared and pounced at his enemy.

“Ahhhhh!”

He slammed his fist in the back of Miko’s head, creating a deafening sound.

“!”

His eyes widened. Miko didn’t flinch. A sigh reached his ears. Miko spun around.

“Don’t you see I’m busy having an existential crisis here?”

Something flickered before Krul’s eyes. He felt a blow to his chin. His vision blurred. A thunderclap could be heard. Krul was blasted off the ground by an uppercut. The ice covering the world shattered. Even the air trembled.

“Hm? Was that my strongest punch today?”

Miko ignored Krul crashing into a lake of lava several kilometers away and looked at his hands again.

“I definitely was able to draw out more of my power than before….Why?”

Images of a dead woman flashed in his head. He didn’t recognize this woman, but he remembered rampaging and trying to destroy the world because of her death. The more he raged, the stronger he became. His strength diminished when the woman was brought back to life.

“I was irritated just now and became stronger…”

He mumbled.

“Could it be that anger is the key?”

Another unfamiliar memory flashed in his mind.

(The fact that you can still think logically, despite the storm of emotions swirling in your heart, is impressive for someone your age. The ability to kill off your emotions and continue to push forward is something your grandfather also had. However, I don’t know if you have the ability to release your suppressed emotions, and use them to grant you explosive strength as he did. Once you release your emotions, can you get them back under control? Or will you be devoured by them?)

Miko furrowed his brow.

“This confirms it. Something is controlling my memories.

(Please be careful, Miko. You’re playing a dangerous game. I’ve seen too many people do what you’re doing, only to get devour by their emotions and break apart….Don’t push yourself too hard.)

“…They’re not only controlling them. They’re sending me messages, or rather orders through them.”

His eyes sharpened.

“They’re telling me to use my current strength to fight…”

This time he saw a memory of himself talking to the woman. For some reason, he was seeing himself from the woman’s point of view. His past self was wearing a frustrated face.

“If I let my anger rule me, then all of my plans will fail and everything I’ve done up until now will be for naught.”

“What rubbish.”

Miko wore a disgusted expression.

“I was curious who was trying to control me...”

His eyes locked with his own.

“To think that it would be myself.”

Memories started flooding in.

(Instead of trying to control your anger why not take it up a notch and bring it to the next level? Instead of letting storm-like anger that destroys indiscriminately rule you, why not fuel your anger and turn it into a calm yet deep rage that swallows everything that comes its way? Bottle your anger and let it grow until the point it can’t be conveyed by simply rampaging around.)

(Become like the ocean, calm and tranquil but also immensely deep. And when it’s time to use that anger, just like a raging ocean swallow up everything that blocks your path until you’re satisfied.)

“Why should I listen to the words of a woman who means nothing to me?”

He stepped towards himself.

“Why wait until later? This world is filled with insolent bastards deserving of our rage. Deserving of the cruelest of deaths. Why waste another second to grant them the end they deserve?”

Images of him smiling with various people flashed in his mind.

“So these people are making you hesitant? Even after everything we’ve been through, you’re still having doubts?”

Miko brought his face closer to his own. He shed his appearance and stood before himself in his Satan Form. The two Mikos stared into each other’s eyes.

“Ah, I remember everything now. My vow, my reason to live, and my reason to die. I will destroy this cursed world. That’s my greatest wish.”

Satan Miko poked himself in the chest.

“It’s yours as well. I know because I am you, the true you. The you who is loyal only to his desires.”

He smirked.

“The motherfucking villain of this story.”

He turned away from himself.

“And as the villain, I’ll do whatever I want, when I want.”

He spread his arms and he returned to reality.

“How about we start by creating rivers of blood and mountains of corpses, just for the fun of it?!”

Power started draining from his body. Miko laughed.

“So you sealed our satanic power? It doesn’t matter. For no one can restrict me, not even myself!”

Memories flashed in his head. These memories consisted of carnage and terror. They show someone kneeling in a lake of blood. They cursed the heavens while the corpses of their loved ones surrounded them. Power started flowing back into Miko’s body.

“That’s right! Don’t forget this rage! Don’t forget the reason why we fight! Don’t forget why we chose this path!”

The current Miko was the strongest he’s been all day. However, it was nowhere near his peak. Something was still preventing him from going all out.

“Keep resisting to the end, huh? Even though it would be a lot easier to let the madness take over.”

He smirked.

“Well, whatever. You and I both know that we’ll fall eventually.”

An eruption occurred in the direction Krul was sent flying. Miko looked in that direction and smiled.

“In the meantime, let’s bring hell upon the world.”