500. First Into Battle

They were here.

Levithus raised his head, turning away from the crimson pillar. His long undulating body swished behind him as he approached the edge of the city. Most of Inor had already been consumed by the grand ritual. Every single one of the city’s citizens lay dead, mere husks used to power the merger. The palace had fallen long ago, and the landscape had mostly changed, bringing plateaus and mountains over from the Netherworld to this desecrated land.

An army of [Legions] stood in waiting. A hundred thousand of them. Mostly fodder. And there were ten thousand [Fiends] and [Changelings] accompanying them, with thousands of Archdemons flying overhead.

This mass of Demons— was but a small fraction of the Demon King’s army. Levithus knew that if the true might of Regnorex’s forces marched into the Mortal Realm, there would be nothing any Human, Kobold, or Elf could do to stop the merger.

But there was one component missing. The grand ritual, as it was right now, was still incomplete. Levithus shook his head, chuckling. He stared at an engraving on the ground at his tail. Symbols were etched into the white earth. A preparation for the Human army that had come.

The plan might have been expedited, but this was always part of the plan. And the Primeval Demon smiled as he knew that it was soon time for Regnorex to make his entrance to the Mortal Realm.

[Chthonic Agaros - Lvl. 165]

[Archarachne - Lvl 169]

[Archarachne - Lvl. 166]

[Hellabomination - Lvl. 175]

Four Primeval Demons. There were four Primeval Demons here in Inor. Wild Demons. Creatures akin to monsters— even more savage than Centinels. Each of them were at least a hundred feet tall. The [Archarachnes] were the smallest by far, only a hundred feet tall each, but the widest of them all with legs that spanned longer than its body.

The [Chthonic Agaros] was longer in body length, but didn’t have the same wingspan as those giant spiders. It flew in the air with relatively small wings, about half the length of its own body, but somehow it managed to stay hovering there. It was quite literally ten times the size of a regular [Savage Agarat].

But the largest of them all by far was the [Hellabomination]. It stood there, towering over the [Archarachnes] at its feet. Even when hunched, its head reached the height of the flying [Chthonic Agaros]. It had to be at least five hundred feet tall, with arms that stretched nearly the length of its body, and a pair of bone-like wings that spread out behind it like two long tails.

It almost seemed impossible for those wings to carry the wild Primeval Demon, but I knew from experience, with my [Wings of the Netherworld], that it was very easily possible.

The Human army slowed as they saw this sight. A susurration swept over them— their apprehension evident. They had thought this would be an easy battle. That it would be no different from taking the sub-ritual sites. But they were wrong.

It was going to be the toughest battle yet.

Clayton Skyshredder himself ground to a halt as he took in the [Hellabomination]. It was five whole levels above him— if he really was Level 170 as he said. Helena Warshade, Laux Lionfist, and the rest of the Elite adventurers exchanged an uneasy glance. Everyone was uncertain.

Even ‘Mori Gladius’— or, Belzu— seemed caught off-guard by this. He clearly wasn’t expecting to be faced with an army of wild Demons when he came here. I wondered what he thought was going to be waiting for us. Perhaps he had thought it would be an army of the Demon King’s forces.

And, sure, there were some [Legions] and [Fiends] gathered here. But it was an army that was hardly as formidable as those wild Demons gathered ahead. Also, it wasn’t like there were any other Primeval Demons there except for Levithus… I hoped.

But what was even worse was the fact that these wild Demons— even the wild Primeval Demons— seemed so obedient, standing patiently like guard-dogs over the grand ritual site. They were clearly being controlled by the Archdemons flying around the army of [Legions].

This… was a problem.

The one big advantage we often had when taking over the sub-ritual sites was how disorganized the wild Demons being released out of the portal were. The [Archarachne] at Ertos had unleashed so many [Aranea] that had attacked the [Legions] from behind. And in Lunaris and Wilford, the wild Demons were indiscriminately attacking each other as they attacked us.

So this was going to be even more dangerous than the sub-ritual sites by a vast margin. I glanced down at the Human army. I saw the way they hesitated. Their leaders were in conference, discussing whether they should return with a larger and stronger force to deal with the Demons.

But the Demons didn’t move. They remained stationary, simply waiting for us to attack. I narrowed my eyes for a moment, wondering what their plan was. I closed my eyes and whispered.

“[Manifestation of the Old Gods].”

And my vision of everything expanded. Thanks to [Passive - True Divinity], I could now use my Divine Skills without forcing myself to draw from my Divine Essence. It wasn’t like my Grand Skill which gave me a temporary boost to all my Stats, but I could use my divinity without any consequence.

Just like Mori Gladius. Although, he had [Partial Divinity] or something.

I saw everything with [Manifestation of the Old Gods]. My senses went beyond just what I could see before me. My hearing grew more discerning. I didn’t just hear the clamor and chatter of the Human army, I could make out the individual voices and conversations down below.

“What do we do?”

“We’re all going to die—”

“How are we supposed to take down those Primeval Demons!”

It wasn’t just the common soldier or adventurer who was worried. I overheard Clayton Skyshredder briefly discussing turning back with Helena Warshade via a [Message] spell.

Daniel pursed his lips, and Edithe tightly held onto Hadrian’s hand. The Vampires— Demon Slayers— didn’t look so keen on doing any slaying today. I looked past them. Beyond just the gathering of Humans.

My gaze swept over the hordes of Demons, peering into the heart of the grand ritual itself. A massive figure waited right before the crimson pillar. A long serpentine creature. Levithus himself.

I saw the Primeval Demon standing there, right before a vast inert ritual circle. He was sneering— his gaze fixed onto the approaching Human army. I frowned, seeing the way he just peered at us. I didn’t know what he was planning, but I saw the sigils beneath him. The symbols that clearly were waiting to be activated. He had something planned, and we couldn’t just back down now.

My vision swept back past the wild Primeval Demons, over the army of [Legions, through the murmuring Humans, then back to me. I saw myself floating over the coalition of Humankind. Six wings at my back. [Angel’s Wings].

I was a Lesser God. Someone who had ascended before an audience of a hundred thousand. And my divinity had been witnessed all across the Inoria Empire when my clones took to the skies.

Even if I wasn’t a [Hero], nor was I the Champion of the Human Lands, and neither was I the highest-leveled [Mage], I still saw the way the Human army looked at me. There was some reverence there. After all, most of them had heard my name at this point.

I was Salvos. They might have heard of me after Silvergrove, or they might have heard of me after the Plaguelands. Maybe they heard of me after I left the Bloodied Gulf, or after I defeated Belzu in the Motharis Mountain Range. They might have even only heard of me when I ascended.

But they had heard of me. And I knew that many of them looked up to me literally and figuratively. Whatever Levithus was planning— I couldn’t let it happen. We couldn’t just retreat when we had already come so far. There was no more waiting.

This war ended today.

And I was going to do everything I could to ensure that happened. Even if it meant being the first one to charge into battle. So I flew ahead

Beneath me, heads turned. Faces raised to watch as I shot forward, propelled by my six wings. Clayton Skyshredder narrowed his eyes as I zipped ahead of the army, uncaring that I was alone. He looked almost suspicious of what I was doing. And so did Helena Warshade.

I was pretty sure they thought I was switching sides now. But others were more taken by surprise. My companions, specifically, stared wide-eyed as I fellow ahead.

“Salvos!”

Daniel called out. Edithe glanced around in a panic.

“We need to help her—”

“What is she doing?”

Saffron furrowed her brows. But I soared on. The army of Demons saw me approaching. The Archdemons flying ahead moved to intercept me. [Fiends] down below began to hurl spells my way. The [Hellabomination] moved. The [Archarachnes] shrieked. The [Chthonic Agaros] flew forward.

And as the barrage of magic flew at me, I laughed and raised a hand.

“[My Flames Shall Burn Until Eternity Ends]. [Divine Essence of the Angelic Devil Princess]. [Salvo of Vanity]. And— [The Call of Armageddon].”

I grinned, unleashing a salvo of Skills in a single moment. And as my clones winked into existence around me, I clashed with the army of Demons all by myselves, explosions filling the sky.