No one said a word. If someone would drop a hairpin, it would resonate like thunder.

Ought, though crowd. …Smells good.

I could smell the different madness in the air as if I were in an all-you-can-eat buffet. Maybe because they were gods, but the smell was even more salivating.

No! Keep yourself together. After, yes, after you are done here, you can think about food.

Feeling a little embarrassed I fixed my coat and started to walk in the direction of the center of the big hall when…

"I challenge you!"

Hmmm?

It was… a cat? With wings?

It was a brown house cat, with white bird wings on its back.

"Did somebody bring a cat?"

My reaction displeased the cat greatly. It hissed at me, while it flapped its wing to float before my face.

"You have no respect for the traditions! You bribed your way to become a god, mocking everyone who fought for this honor!"

"…And?"

I didn't understand the point. Tradition? Respect? Who has time for things like this?

"I challenge you to a duel of Apostles! If you lose you will renounce your place as one of us and suffer for your crimes!"

"What? No! What's wrong with you?"

Who in their right mind would accept something like this? Even I am not that crazy!

I pushed him away and continued to walk to the strange statue that was waiting for me.

"Divine Domain!"

I could hear the shout of the cat, then I was not in the hall anymore.

I was in a Colosseum with sand spread all over the floor.

The seats for the audience were full of, various cats and alike, cheering as if this was a show.

I looked up noticing that the sky was a bright, oil-like color with several yellow moons that were shaped like a paw.

"You really don't have a sense of decoration."

He ignored me or simply didn't hear me.

The cat god flew up several meters into the air and shouted.

"My subjects! Today you shall see a spectacle that you have never seen before! One fight, two Apostles! Who will survive? Who will win? Who is the Strongest? Let's find it out now!"

Finished, he landed back onto the ground looking smug.

"Have fun. I am going back. Cancel contract."

…Nothing.

"…Cancel Contract."

Nothing. I was still in the Colosseum.

I looked at the god, feeling the rage swelling in me.

"What did you do?"

"Nothing really. In my divine domain, no one can leave without my permission."

"Then I will beat that permission out of you! Telekinesis: Pull."

I could feel my power enveloping the cat, but when it was about to activate it dissipated.

"My Divine Domain, Colosseum of the Feline has a very strict rule. Once a game has started no one can break its rules till it's ended."

"…Fine. What's the game?"

"Simple. You and my strongest apostle will fight till the death. The winner will have the right to make the loser do whatever he wants."

…I hate this so much but seems like I have no choice in the matter.

"Alright then."

"Perfect! Lora!"

From the crowd, someone jumped next to him.

It was a woman guessing from her curves, but I couldn't tell more from the brown robe that covered her body.

" Bei, come to me!"

I lifted my coat.

From the darkness, someone came out.

It was Bei, kneeling before me, in her habitual black and white clothing.

"Did you call me, my lord?"

"Yes, I have a mission for you. Do you see that person there?"

I pointed at the cat, not the capped person.

"Yes?"

"I want you to obliterate her."

"As you wish!"

She bowed even deeply.

Smiling, I put my hand on her shoulder and whispered something in her ear.

This is going to be a fun experiment.

*****

"What happened?"

Astera slowly walked to the center of the commotion. The other gods were surrounding a dome of yellow light.

"Who activated his Divine Domain?"

The gods stayed silent, avoiding the gaze of their queen till one of them stepped forward.

It was a tall man, in radiant armor, crafted from sunlight, with hair and eye burning with golden flames.

"my Queen, it was I who ordered Mochica to use it."

"Apollo. Why did you do something like this? Don't you know what is at risk here?"

"It is because I am aware that I did this! That monster threatened the very existence of reality and you were foolish enough to allow it. Now he was about to become one of the most powerful beings in this universe, imagine what could he have done with that kind of power! Before this chaos become any worse, I decided to end it! I have given Mochica's apostle one of my divine artifacts, assuring his victory!"

"You are a fool! Do you realize what have you done?! If we anger him, he might detonate his bombs!"

"Not if we kill him first."

This was the moment that the queen noticed that all gods had their weapons drawn out.

"…This is a rebellion."

"No. This is a rectification of one of your biggest errors. I implore you, please let us do this, no divine blood needs to spill today.

*****

The two gods retreated to their VIP seats, leaving the individuals there.

Around the, a huge magical pressure could be felt, that made the earth and the air vibrate.

"Begin!"

When the cat god started the match, the two apostles jumped at each other.

Bei materialized her spear, while the cloaked individual, lifted its fist, which was covered in a metal gauntlet.

"Spear Technique: Pierce!"

"Cat Attack: Feline Punch!"

When the two attacks collided, a shockwave created a gush of wind that could be felt at the very top of the colosseum.

They pushed themselves away, their weapons shaking a little from the shock.

"Telekinesis: Pull!"

Using her power, she grabbed the apostle and pulled him to her, to make him into a shish kebab.

"[Feline Step.]"

With the grace of a ballerina, she twisted her body away from the spear while landing a kick at Bei's shoulder.

There was not much force behind it so there was no damage.

"[Qi Blade]!"

She let go of her spear and materialized her energy in the shape of two swords.

"Rising Midnight Slashes!"

"[Feline Step]."

The two apostles danced with each other, one attacking like a savage animal, while the other evaded them.

At the VIP seats, the Dealmaker, leaned forward, his arms crossed, whispering a world that no one else heard apart him.

"Use it."

*****

It's too fast I can't keep up.

I could feel the energy cursing through my veins, enhancing my muscles and reflexes, yet it was not enough.

My opponent kept on evading, dogging my strikes as if they were nothing, angering me greatly.

"Dual Sword Technique: Raging Wind."

Pumping even more energy into my body, the speed of my attacks increased drastically, finally allowing me to cur her.

"[Feline Flow]!"

While she moved away, there we several copies appearing around her, making it hard to know where she was exactly.

"You are strong. I will need to fight seriously against you."

The apostle grabbed her cloak and ripped it off from her body.

Boing! Boing!

They were…big.

My adversary was a sort of beast human that I have never seen before. She was mostly a human girl, with brown skin and blond hair, but she had a cattail and two cat ears. Her clothing consisted only of a lain cloth and a bra that seemed to soon snap from her breasts. On her hands, she wore a pair of gauntlets that had ancient-looking writings scrubbed on them.

"Divine Drive."

Before my eyes, her body started to change while her body was covered in a golden ray of light.

Her skin became pall as a corps, with her hair and fur taking a metallic grey color. The gauntlets on her, melted and changed, now reaching her elbows, and ending in sharp claws at her finger.

When the transformation was finished before Bei was a whole new creature.

"Here I go. Feline Technique: Cat Path."

her speed was out of the world. I couldn't react fast enough, she just appeared behind me, with several cuts appearing all over my body.

"Demonification! Demonic Armor!"

The chiles ran through me, with the feeling of an intense release while my body transformed.

It felt good letting go, being stuck in a human form was so cumbersome. Not to mention the healing it provided while I was in this state and the armor, I conjured around myself.

Soon, my entire being was covered by my black coat and elk skull mask.

It's time to kill!

"Spear Technique: Judgment Rose!"

By embedding my spear into the ground, I created several copies of it that protruded out from the sand around me.

"[Feline S-"

Before she could complete her chant one of the spears came out just under her left leg, making her stuck in place.

While screaming in agony, my body moved on her own, throwing my spear at her.

Fighting the pain, the apostle cut the two spears, the one that came at her and the one in her leg, at the same time, before setting herself free.

"Cat Life!"

The wound on her leg healed instantly leaving no scar whatsoever.

So what? I can do that too!

I materialized another spear and aimed it at her.

" Spear Technique: Pierce!"

From the tip of my spear! A beam of energy flew out, which was easily dogged, by jumping several meters up into the air.

Predicable.

I have been training for a decade, combining cultivation with the power my lord gave me. Now I could do things that would be impossible for even grandmasters.

"Spear Technique: Reverse Purple Rain."

By putting a big chunk of energy into it, I made all the spears fly up in the air and detonate with a purple explosion.

This should be it, there is no way that anyone could survive something like this.

But I was wrong. So wrong.

From the cloud caused by my attack, she landed, wounded, but still alive.

"What Are you made of? Just die! Spear Tech-

"[Feline Slash]!"

Her claws grew into a ridiculous size while running in my direction.

"Stop."

Using my power, Domination, she stopped right in her tracks, unable to move.

"Twist. "

From where I stud I could her bones break while her body twisted in various ways. Yet, she didn't scream.

This is odd. A normal person would have already gone insane by the pain alone.

Feeling that something wasn't right I materialized two spears next to me and planted them into the garden.

"Spear Technique: Forest of Judged Roses."

Around her, several spears busted up from the ground, creating a veritable forest of white bones.

When the rumble seemed, there was nothing but silence.

" …"

"…"

"…[Feline Slash]!"

"STOP!"

Just in time

I could feel the edge of her claws at the back of my neck.

I slowly turned around, facing her frozen figure.

" Let's see."

I grabbed one of the spears surrounding us and stabbed it into her head.

I could feel the bone-cracking and the flesh-tearing, but there was no blood. her remaining eye stayed as lively as before.

Fake. This is a fake one!

"…So, you realized it."

On top of a spear, she appeared, liking her arm like a cat.

"This is the power my God gave me, Lavieduchat. I can create a clone of myself the moment I am in deadly danger and appear somewhere else. This is the perfect skill for an adventurer."

A power that allows her to not take damage. It is troublesome but I can still win.

"Spear Technique: Bloomed Purple Forest."

Using the rest reserve of energy, I had in my body, I activated my trump card.

All the spears around us turned bright purple. only to detonate in a flash of blinding light.

I protected myself by expanding my armor into a shield but even I took some damage.

When I couldn't feel anything else I destroyed the barrier looking at e carnage that I created.

The ground was now nothing more than a sheet of glass, that was still blazing red.

On it was several burned corpses laying on it, burned to the point of being unrecognizable.

"Finally. It's—ughh! "

I looked down to my abdomen, seeing a blade coming out of my abdomen.

HOW?! JUST HOW?!

I fell to the ground, bleeding and exhausted, my armor dissipating into thin air.

She appeared behind me. Is this the difference between me and an apostle? My lord…I am sorry…

I closed my eyes accepting death.

It was getting and darker when I felt something.

It was as if something broke inside me, pouring a dark presence all over me.

How dare you lay dead here?! How dare you let that bitch kill you?! How dare you die?! You were given the chance to become the strongest! Act like one! Break everything in you to achieve your goal! And if you can't then leave it to me then!

The darkness enveloped me, with my last memory being a hand with a mouth on its palm.

*****

The spectators were chatting like crazy, not bothered by the fact that if not for the protective barrier that was raised up by a god, they would have died, from that explosion.

At the VIP seats, the two gods were watching the match.

The cat god was laughing while drinking a golden cup, that was being refiled by a woman wearing a cat mask.

Next to him, the infant god, had his arms crossed with a cigarette being placed between the teeth of his mask. He didn't inhale the smoke, he just used it to look cool.

"HAHAHA! I must admit your apostle was strong! She almost killed mine, but she still fell short of my divine protection. It looks like, you will not become one of us after all."

"…Perhaps. The fight is just starting."

"Hmmm?"

As he predicted, a black energy surrounded the corps of Bei. The energy was so dense that it made it impossible to see what was happening to her body, but that was not important. What was is the shape the energy was has taken.

It took the shape of a half-man, half-deer, with multiple sets of mouths running through its body. The monster roared, not with sound, but with waves of energy, shaking the barrier that managed to block the previous blast.

Everyone was in a panic, screaming some even soiled themselves.

Except one.

The infant god leaned forward with the cigarette smoking in his mouth.

"So, it has started."