The demons' cries echoed through Hell, fear and awe blending into a single, panicked symphony. Kairo stood tall amid the ruins of the throne room, Bone Blade still humming, crimson aura blazing like a storm.
Then, a voice cut through the chaos — familiar, cold, and echoing like the deepest chasm:
"You fools… you think it was I who fell?"
Every demon froze, heads snapping toward the source. Hades' figure appeared atop the shattered throne, unharmed, aura untouched. But Kairo's crimson eyes narrowed immediately, sensing the subtle difference — something was off.
"I… I saw him… he was gone!" one of the generals stammered. "We all… we all witnessed it!"
A slow, cruel laugh filled the chamber, deep and resonant. "You witnessed what I allowed you to see. That was but a shell, a clone forged in my likeness — a fragment of my will to test the Red-Eyed One."
Kairo's grip tightened on the Bone Blade. His aura flared violently, sending bones spiraling outward in warning.
"So… all that… all the effort…" a trembling demon whispered. "It wasn't even the real Hades?"
The real Hades stepped down from the throne, his light aura intertwining with shadow, eyes gleaming with cold amusement. "Every strike, every crack, every surge of your precious power — it was observed. Every mistake catalogued. And now… we begin the real game."
Even Kairo felt a chill. The clone had fallen, the Abyss seemed conquered — yet the shadow of the real god now loomed larger than ever.
The demons' panic intensified, cries of disbelief echoing through the pits. "Impossible… he survived?!"
"No… it can't be real!"
"The Red-Eyed One… he fought… a shadow?!"
Kairo's crimson aura surged higher, chains coiling, Bone Blade thrumming. A tense silence hung in the chamber — the battlefield now reset. This was no longer merely a battle of skill; it was a confrontation against the true god of Hell himself.