Their breathing echoed in the narrow, dark stone corridor. The faint glow of Kaela's magic in her palm danced along the damp walls, reflecting off old carvings and dried bloodstains. A putrid stench, like rotting corpses left unburied for months, clawed at their noses, making their stomachs churn.
Lucifer covered his nose with a torn cloth, fighting the urge to vomit. "Damn… what is this place? Hell probably smells better than this," he joked weakly, though his eyes still burned with grief.
Kaela didn't answer. Her gaze was hollow, fixed forward as if refusing to look at the shadows of their fallen comrades. She knew if she stopped now, her tears would break free again, and her body would collapse. She would not allow that to happen.
Arthur walked at the front, his massive axe resting on his shoulder, staring fearlessly into the darkness ahead. His tangled red hair was matted with blood, and his eyes glowed red, seething with rage. "We have to keep moving," he muttered. "If we stop, then everyone who just died will have died for nothing."
Kaela could only nod. Her breath trembled, her body was weak, but her spirit stood firm.
The three of them descended the stone stairs deeper and deeper, farther from the surface. In every corner, black candles burned with strange green flames, making the shadows dance as if alive. Occasionally, wailing voices could be heard from cracks in the stone, like the cries of souls long dead but trapped here.
Kaela pulled her cloak tighter around her, shivering. "Did you hear that?" she whispered to Lucifer.
Lucifer sharpened his ears. "…Yeah. It sounds like someone calling."
Arthur nodded slowly, straining to listen. "Ignore it. Focus on the mission. If we let the fear get to us in here, we're done."
Suddenly the cave walls trembled, as if something was moving far below the earth. The rumble shook loose small stones, which clattered off Arthur's helmet.
"The main gate is down there," Kaela said, trying to stay rational. "If they're really preparing a major ritual, its source of magic will be there."
Lucifer looked at her seriously. "And it's up to the three of us to destroy it, right?"
Kaela stared deeply at her two companions. Her tears nearly spilled again, but she held them back. "Yes. Just the three of us."
---
They finally reached a long corridor. Its walls were carved with images of ancient orcs — terrifying, sharp-toothed, with demonic red eyes. The smell of blood grew stronger, mingling with a harsh scent of sulfur.
At the far end of the corridor loomed a ten-meter-high stone gate, guarded by massive statues of winged orc-skulls. From the cracks in the gate, hot air blew out like from the belly of a volcano.
Arthur swallowed hard. "What other monsters are waiting behind that?"
Kaela clenched her fists. "Let's see for ourselves."
Slowly, they pushed the stone gate open. The groaning of ancient iron scraped painfully at their ears. As the gap widened enough to see through, the sight beyond froze them in place.
---
There, stretched out before them, was a colossal chamber with a blood-red domed ceiling. Thousands of orcs stood in ritual circles, raising their weapons while chanting strange incantations. In the center of the circle blazed a massive red magic sigil, and above it stood a towering figure with gray-green skin, horns, and eyes burning like embers.
Azog.
Kaela immediately sensed an evil far more terrifying than Skull.
Azog raised his hand slowly, his voice deep and thunderous, piercing through their chests.
"Humans dare enter my lair?" he hissed, like a whisper of lightning. "I will turn you into rotten meat for my army!"
Lucifer gripped the hilt of his dagger. "Tch, pretty full of yourself," he remarked, though his voice quivered slightly.
Arthur raised his axe. "We're here to close your gate — and to kill you."
Azog laughed. His laughter shook the ground. "Go ahead, little heroes," he sneered.
Then he stretched out his hands, and from the cracked earth, dozens of new undead emerged — larger, faster, with gleaming black bones.
Kaela immediately chanted a spell, forming a massive light shield to block the undead's assault. Lucifer and Arthur charged forward, slashing, stabbing, and kicking anything that came close.
The second battle had begun, crueler and more horrific than the one outside.
The screams of the undead echoed off the stone walls, filling the ritual chamber with a deathly aura. Black-boned corpses moved fast like starving wolves, slashing at the air, charging straight for Kaela, Arthur, and Lucifer.
Kaela focused magic into both hands. Holy blue light flared, piercing the darkness of the room. "Azure Purification Flame!" she shouted, unleashing a wave of blue fire that consumed the front ranks of the undead.
Their bones melted instantly, but a second wave charged even more ferociously.
Arthur held his breath, then leapt forward, swinging his axe. One black-skinned undead was cleaved cleanly in half, yet its pieces still tried to crawl forward, unfazed by pain.
"Damn corpse!" Arthur snarled, kicking the severed body away into the stone wall.
Lucifer, with the agility of a trained E-rank Hunter, spun among the undead, driving his dagger into their skulls. Once, twice, three times. Black blood splattered around him. His red eyes glowed with fury and sadness over the friends they had just lost in the corridor.
"Why can't you just die like normal?!" he shouted in frustration.
Suddenly, from the side, a larger undead lunged at Lucifer, gripping his shoulder. The withered, bony hand clamped down hard, making Lucifer stagger.
Kaela quickly aimed her staff, blasting a beam of holy light straight into the undead's face, turning its head to dust.
"Lucifer! Focus!" Kaela yelled, still panting from the previous spell.
Lucifer nodded, though his shoulder throbbed painfully. "Yeah, yeah, I'm still here!" he yelled back, trying to joke, though blood was seeping through his clothes.
---
From his throne, Azog watched the three of them like a child watching a game. His eyes blazed red, his smile revealing long yellow-green fangs. He raised his hand high, then slammed it to the ground.
At once, the red magic circle on the floor pulsed faster, releasing demonic light that made the undead even stronger.
"Arise, my army!" Azog roared, his voice slicing into their very bones. "Destroy them!!"
The stone walls cracked, and from the gaps emerged even more undead, now mixed with fiery-eyed demon monsters. Their roars were deafening, making their eardrums ring.
Kaela trembled for a moment. Even she, usually so calm, felt fear creeping into her bones.
Arthur stepped forward, holding the line. "We cannot retreat!" he shouted, his voice hammering through Kaela and Lucifer's fear, reviving their resolve. "If we retreat, everyone's sacrifice will mean nothing!"
Lucifer grinned, though blood still dripped from his shoulder. "Yeah, you crazy bastard!" he yelled with a bitter laugh. "I'm in!"
---
Kaela began chanting a long incantation, her hands shaking with the strain of summoning such great power. Silver-white light appeared around her, splitting the air like a storm.
"Holy Nova!!" she screamed.
A wave of light slammed into dozens of undead, destroying them and pushing back the demon monsters a few steps. The ground beneath Kaela's feet quaked, as if about to break from the force of her spell.
Arthur seized the moment, charging into the front ranks of the undead, slashing, slashing, and slashing without pause. His arms were covered in wounds, but his eyes shone with unwavering determination, unwilling to stop for the sake of their fallen friends.
Lucifer moved even faster, slipping between the broken ranks of the undead, driving his dagger into the hearts of any demon monster that got too close. His breath was ragged, but his gaze was sharp.
"We have to get to that altar!" Kaela shouted, pointing to the massive magic circle where Azog stood. "If we don't destroy that circle, they'll never stop rising!"
Arthur nodded. "Let's go!"
The three of them pushed forward, breaking through wave after wave of monsters, until finally they stood only about ten meters from Azog.
---
Azog stood tall, terrifying, his muscles pulsing, a massive iron axe in his hand gleaming with the ritual's flames. He stepped down from the altar slowly, glaring at them like insects.
"So you are the humans who killed Skull?" he hissed, a savage grin spreading across his face.
Arthur raised his axe. "If you want to join Skull, go ahead."
Azog laughed, splitting the air like thunder. "You humans know nothing… today you will be devoured by the darkness!"
And without warning, Azog leapt. The floor cracked under his feet. His massive axe swing nearly cleaved Arthur in two, but the red-haired man barely dodged, though he was blasted away by the force of the wind.
Lucifer lunged to counterattack, stabbing Azog's thigh with his dagger, but the blade bounced off as if hitting stone.
"Shit… he's tough as hell!" he yelled.
Kaela fired a Holy Lance at Azog's chest, but the light only slightly scorched his skin.
Azog swung his hand, slapping Kaela so hard she was thrown against a stone wall. She cried out, blood dripping from her lips.
"Kaela!!" Arthur screamed in panic.
Kaela struggled to get up, fighting the pain. Her eyes still burned with determination. "Don't… don't give up…!"
Lucifer helped Kaela to her feet, breathing heavily, hands shaking from the constant fighting.
"The three of us, Kaela," he whispered. "To the end."
Arthur lifted his axe again, his gaze burning at Azog. "To the end."
Azog moved fast — far too fast for something his size. His giant axe swept sideways, creating a razor-sharp wind that sliced through dozens of undead in its path, proving he didn't care about his own troops as long as his enemies died.
Arthur tried to block it with his axe, but Azog's strength was beyond reason. The clash of metal created an explosive sound, deafening. Arthur was thrown several meters, crashing hard on the stone floor, his axe torn from his grasp.
"Arthur!!" Kaela screamed, rushing to help him.
But Azog gave no time. With huge strides, he grabbed Arthur, clutching his left arm, twisting it the wrong way. The sound of breaking bones cut through the chaos.
Arthur screamed at the top of his lungs, breath stolen by unbearable pain. Blood gushed. Kaela screamed in horror, her eyes widening at Arthur who nearly fainted from the agony.
Azog laughed triumphantly, a mix of brutality and pride. "You are strong, human," he mocked, "but nothing more than rotten meat before me."
Then he swung his axe again, cleanly slicing off Arthur's left arm at the shoulder. The limb flew through the air, blood spraying across the stone floor, splattering on Lucifer's face as he tried to attack from behind.
"ARRGHHH!!!" Arthur screamed until his voice went hoarse, collapsing to his knees in a pool of his own blood.
Kaela fired spell after spell at Azog, but his skin only burned a little, and he seemed to grow even more excited.
"Lucifer, get Arthur out of here!!" Kaela shouted, tears streaming from her eyes.
Lucifer tried to drag Arthur, who was barely conscious. Arthur's body trembled, his face pale, cold sweat mixing with blood that poured from his missing arm.
But Azog did not relent. He spun his axe, slashing at Kaela with frightening speed. Kaela tried to block it with magic, but Azog's power shattered her light shield, slamming into her stomach and throwing her against a stone pillar. She coughed up blood, her breathing ragged.
Lucifer tried stabbing Azog's side again, but the orc-demon grabbed him by the neck and flung him like a ragdoll. Lucifer crashed into a wall, feeling ribs crack, pain tearing through his lungs.
"Ghh… damn… he's so strong…" Lucifer coughed blood, struggling to stand.
Kaela slowly got back to her feet, clutching her wounded belly. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she looked at Arthur, soaked in blood, at Lucifer, limping, and at Azog, standing unbroken like an unstoppable giant.
How can we win? Kaela thought, on the brink of despair.
Azog stepped closer, his voice rumbling. "Look at you, little heroes… even your courage means nothing before me…"
He laughed again, loud, cruel, making the chamber seem even smaller.
Lucifer tried one more attack even though he was barely standing, blood dripping from his mouth. Kaela forced herself to summon more magic, her hands shaking violently from exhaustion. Arthur could only watch, holding back the burning pain from his severed arm, his eyes wet with tears and blood.
"I won't…" Arthur gritted his teeth, enduring the agony. "…let you die… alone…"
Kaela turned to Arthur, tears falling once more. "Arthur…"
Lucifer tried to grin bitterly, though his breath was short. "Don't die… both of you…"
They stood together in a pool of blood, battered and broken, barely standing. Azog raised his axe high, ready to cut down the last shred of their hope.