"Lord Hades, a one-on-one duel. No objections, right?"
The Ancient Serpent dragged his spear along the ground, circling Hades as he adjusted his stance and angle, speaking casually.
"…Fine."
Hades paused for a moment before nodding. This was the Underworld, his home ground. If he could settle everything cleanly here, the damage could be kept to a minimum. It was worth trying.
Samael's lips split into a sly grin. He turned around and shouted toward the rear.
"You hear that? Lord Hades wants a one-on-one against the three of us!"
Artemis and Hecate both twitched at the corner of their mouths, their expressions instantly darkening.
Hades, who had just steadied his focus and locked onto his opponent, felt his composure slip for a split second. He nearly cursed out loud.
Swish!
In that moment of distraction, Samael stomped forward and lunged, the cross spear tearing through the air.
Boom!
Hades snapped back to his senses and hurriedly raised his sword to block. The overwhelming force slammed into him like a collapsing mountain, sending him flying as his insides churned violently. A thin line of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
"Relax. If I said one-on-one, then it's one-on-one. They may be tied to me by the same rope, and once things are exposed the consequences will be endless, but they absolutely won't interfere. No sneak attacks. No Magecraft from the shadows."
Samael advanced with spear in hand, smiling as he made his promise.
Anyone with half a brain could tell this wasn't reassurance at all. It was a shameless attempt to lure him into a gang beating.
With the advantage of terrain and his status as the God King of the Underworld, Hades might have been able to fight to a stalemate. But forced to keep part of his attention on guarding against sudden attacks from the other two Main Gods, he quickly fell into a losing rhythm under Samael's relentless pressure.
Bang!
After several clashes of spear and sword, Samael seized the opening created by Hades' wavering focus and sent him flying with a sweep of the spear shaft.
By the time Hades bled off the remaining force and regained his footing, he glanced around and saw that all three Underworld Judges were already laid out.
The freed Heroic Spirits and the Argonauts now stared at him, their gazes anything but friendly.
Hum!
Hades released his divine will, issuing a summons in an attempt to call reinforcements and share the pressure.
Yet there was no response from Thanatos, nor from Charon, the ferryman of the Styx. Even Hypnos, who should have been guarding the Elysian Fields, was nowhere to be found.
A bunch of traitorous bastards!
Realizing his subordinates had most likely turned on him, Hades burned with fury. At the same time, a crushing weight settled over his body. He recognized it immediately. That oppressive heaviness that had made him suffer earlier had returned.
Hades clenched his teeth and activated his Helm of Invisibility, shaking off the suppression imposed by that power of fate. As the tearing sound of something rushing toward him arrived in an instant, he raised his sword in an upward slash.
Boom!
Spear and sword collided. Forced to hastily brace against the cross spear, Hades felt his arms go numb from the earth-shaking impact. His body staggered until he dropped to one knee, gripping the sword hilt with both hands as he struggled to halt the downward pressure.
"Why bother?" Samael said, his crimson cross-shaped pupils gazing down at him as he spoke calmly. "Even if Olympus turns completely upside down, it has nothing to do with your Underworld. Zeus isn't worth this level of loyalty. So tell me, where's the key to freeing the Elysian Fields?"
"Shut up!"
Hades knit his brows and let out a cold snort, then whipped his head around and roared in fury.
"Cerberus! What are you waiting for?!"
Rip!
Drip…
Amid the sound of tearing flesh and splattering blood, Hades stiffened and slowly turned his head, staring at the pair of dog heads clamped firmly onto both of his shoulder blades.
At the same time, the central beast's head hung down from above his crown, its tongue lolling as strands of saliva dripped down and splashed across his face.
"Cerberus… you—!"
Struck from behind without warning, Hades' face filled with disbelief, his voice dry and hoarse.
In his rage, the Lord of the Underworld ignored his injuries and forcibly unleashed his divine power, momentarily shaking off the spear pressing into his shoulder. He then twisted his body, swinging the black sword around to stab backward.
"Woof!"
Cerberus reacted instantly. Still biting onto Hades, he flung him violently to the rear. The Lord of the Underworld smashed through who knew how many trees, pavilions, and covered walkways before crashing miserably into the nursery.
Next, the traitor dog that had turned on its master trotted over to Samael with its tongue hanging out. It raised a paw and slapped it against Samael's hand in midair, their timing as perfect as when they had once teamed up to ambush the Hydra.
The big dog's tail wagged furiously, its expression absurdly human as it flashed an ingratiating, shameless grin, clearly fishing for praise.
"Alright. Once this is over, I'll send you up to the surface to run wild."
Samael smiled as he ruffled each of the three dog heads in turn, all of which still carried a faint trace of that sled-dog trio vibe, and made his promise.
Driven half-mad by the unchanging scenery of the Underworld, Cerberus immediately beamed with joy. He curled his tongue and leaned toward Samael, fully prepared to become someone's loyal lapdog.
That was, until the Ancient Serpent darkened his face and delivered a flurry of punches, beating the dead dog flat to the ground where it whimpered obediently.
At that moment, a rustling sound came from the nursery. A battered Hades struggled upright, leaning heavily on his sword.
"This is my final warning," Samael said, casually wiping the edge of his spear, his tone noticeably cooler. "If you're willing to cooperate, the Underworld will remain yours. I might even consider throwing Zeus into Tartarus and ensuring he stays alive."
Killing both Hades and Zeus outright would only heighten the old gods' sense of crisis, which brought Samael little benefit.
But if the other side refused to take the hint, he would have no choice but to use harsher methods.
"So Zeus was right after all," Hades said, forcing himself upright as he leaned on his sword. His gloomy gaze swept across the gathered Heroic Spirits and gods like Hecate, his voice heavy with suppressed fury. "The old gods can't be trusted. And neither can you humans!"
"This thing was never meant to be used on you," he continued coldly. "But you forced my hand!"
Hades lifted his sword and pressed lightly. The death-wreathed edge sliced across his palm, and he reversed his grip, plunging the pitch-black sword of the Underworld straight into the ground.
"You want to know the secret of the Elysian Fields?" he roared as he twisted the hilt. "Then come and witness its true form!"
At once, the divine runes etched into both sides of the blade lit up one after another. Waves of dark violet light rippled across the ground, pulsing outward as the leylines buried deep within the abyss roared to life. Magic circles formed across the surface, and towering pillars of ether erupted skyward, piercing heaven and earth alike.
No—!
Stop him!
Samael's heart hammered with alarm, his pupils shrinking sharply. Abandoning any thought of negotiation, he bent his body into an exaggerated arc and hurled the cross spear with all his might.
At the same time, Artemis, struck by a powerful sense of impending doom, drew her bow and loosed three silver-white arrows in rapid succession. They surged forward in a triangular formation, their gleaming tips aimed straight at Hades' arms and sword.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
A nearly eardrum-shattering clash of metal erupted midair. Artemis' arrows and Samael's thrown spear were all intercepted by stone axes, stone blades, massive swords, and towering shields crashing down from above.
Roar!
Roar!
A thunderous bellow, like countless giant mouths roaring in unison, formed a terrifying soundwave that sent grass and debris flying in all directions.
In the next instant, two giants, each with a hundred arms and dozens of heads of varying sizes, strode out from the ether pillars erupting from deep within the earth. They dragged weapons forged from molten volcanic rock, their hideous forms shaking the ground as they roared in fury.
"Forbidden ground of the gods. Intruders…"
"…die!"
At the same time, muscle-bound Titans, three-headed lions, winged harpies, horned giant wolves, and serpent-tailed women emerged one by one from the ether pillars, forming a line before Hades as a savage aura surged outward.
Two Hecatoncheires, Titans defeated in the war between old and new gods, and Typhon's demonic host!
Recognizing the origins of these monsters and feeling the sheer ferocity radiating from them, Samael's pupils shrank violently.
Because more importantly, without exception, silver-white lightning divine seals had appeared on all of their foreheads.
This trump card…
This was a straight-up royal flush.