Location: The Demon Realm Colosseum - Semi-Finals
Event: Raiden vs. General Chaos
Atmosphere: Heavy with Killing Intent
The sun hung low over the Demon Capital, casting long shadows across the arena. The crowd was screaming, but there was an undercurrent of tension. Soldiers were moving nervously in the aisles.
Announcer: "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! SCUM AND VILLAINY! It is time for the Semi-Finals! In the red corner, the man who eats armor, poison, and dignity - RAIDEN! In the blue corner, the creeping shadow, the bandage-wrapped nightmare - GENERAL CHAOS!"
Raiden walked out, stretching his arms. He wasn't wearing armor. He was wearing a loose shirt and pants, looking like he just woke up from a nap.
Zest stood at the tunnel entrance, holding a towel and a water bottle. "Do not play with your food, Master."
"I won't," Raiden yawned. "He looks dry anyway."
Opposite him, Chaos floated into the arena. He was a humanoid figure wrapped entirely in ancient, spell-inscribed bandages. Dark, purple miasma leaked from the gaps.
"Raiden..." Chaos hissed, his voice sounding like tearing paper. "You are an error in the world's design. I shall erase you."
"Begin!"
Chaos didn't charge. He raised his arms. The bandages unraveled, shooting across the arena like hundreds of spears.
"Thousand-Year Bindings: Tomb of the Phantasm."
The bandages swarmed Raiden from all sides, wrapping around his limbs, neck, and torso. They tightened instantly, glowing with sealing magic.
"Caught," Chaos whispered. "These bindings drain life force and seal movement. You will wither and die."
Raiden stood there, looking like a mummy.
He sniffed the bandages covering his nose.
"Smells like mothballs."
"What?"
"And dust."
Raiden's mouth, covered by cloth, opened.
[Gluttony: Noodle Mode]
SLURP.
Raiden inhaled. The bandage wrapped around his face was sucked into his mouth. He kept sucking.
The bandages connected to his arms, legs, and torso were pulled toward his jaw.
It looked like a man eating a never-ending plate of spaghetti.
Slurp. Slurp. Gulp.
Chaos watched in horror as his primary weapon was consumed at high speed.
"Stop! Those are cursed artifacts from the ancient era!"
"Needs sauce," Raiden complained, swallowing the last yard of cloth. "Very dry. High fiber, though."
Raiden burped. A cloud of ancient dust puffed out.
Chaos panicked. His true form - a skeleton made of shadow - was revealed as his wrappings were eaten.
"You... you monster! Take this! Void Sphere!"
Chaos gathered negative energy into a massive black ball of nothingness. It was a miniature black hole designed to delete matter.
He threw it at Raiden.
"Void?" Raiden didn't dodge. He stepped forward.
"I am the Void."
Raiden punched the sphere.
[Heavenly Dragon Art: Gluttony Impact]
His fist didn't just hit the sphere; it absorbed it on contact. The black hole collapsed into Raiden's knuckles, turning into pure kinetic energy.
BOOM.
Raiden's fist continued forward, connecting with Chaos's skeletal face.
The impact shattered the shadow form. Chaos flew backward, bouncing off the barrier, his body scattering into mist.
"Winner!" Raiden raised his hand. "Check please."
Before the referee could call the match, the ground shook.
KA-BOOM.
Explosions erupted not in the arena, but in the city outside. Smoke plumes rose from the Royal Palace.
The magical barrier surrounding the arena flickered and died.
A holographic projection appeared in the sky. It was massive, covering the sun.
Ramsus, the masked brother of Leohart.
"Citizens of the Demon Realm! Hear me!"
Ramsus's voice boomed.
"Leohart is unfit to rule! He invites outsiders! He mocks our traditions! Today, the Rebellion begins! I, Ramsus, claim the throne!"
At that signal, half the soldiers in the stadium turned their weapons on the loyalists.
"Death to Leohart! Glory to Ramsus!"
Chaos, who was reforming his misty body, laughed weakly.
"It begins... You are trapped, Raiden. The arena is surrounded by ten thousand elite rebel troops."
Raiden looked around.
Panic in the stands. Mio and Basara were back-to-back, fighting off rebel soldiers. Leohart was on the royal balcony, casually kicking assassins off the ledge.
Raiden sighed.
"I win the match, and the prize gets canceled?"
He looked at Chaos.
"You knew about this."
"Of course," Chaos sneered. "I was the distraction. Now, prepare to die under the weight of an army!"
Raiden cracked his knuckles. The sound was loud enough to be heard over the screams.
"Zest."
Zest appeared at his side instantly, dual combat knives drawn. "Master. Orders?"
"Go protect Mio and the others. Don't let anyone touch my laundry."
"Understood."
Raiden turned to face the open gates of the arena, where thousands of rebel soldiers were pouring in, led by armored tanks and war beasts.
Raiden took a deep breath.
He reached into his pocket (which miraculously survived) and pulled out a microphone he had stolen from the announcer's desk.
Tapping the mic.
"Testing. One, two."
The sound echoed across the battlefield. The rebel army paused, confused.
"Attention, Rebel Army," Raiden spoke calmly. "You are trespassing on my fighting stage."
He dropped the mic.
His aura exploded.
It wasn't just the Purple Gluttony. It was mixed with the Gold of Lust and the Black Lightning of Indra.
A pillar of tricolor energy pierced the sky, clearing the smoke.
"I am currently very annoyed. So, I'm going to skip the formalities."
Raiden's jaw unhinged.
Behind him, the spectral image of the Abyssal Heavenly Dragon materialized. It was the size of the entire stadium. Its mouth was wide enough to swallow the sky.
"ITADAKIMASU (Let's Eat)."
Scene 6: The All-You-Can-Eat Buffet
The Rebel Commander pointed his sword. "Fire! Kill the Dragon!"
Hundreds of magic spells, arrows, and cannon shells flew at Raiden.
Raiden didn't move. The Dragon Avatar behind him lunged.
[Heavenly Dragon Secret Art: Gluttony - World Swallowing Formation]
The spectral dragon head swept across the battlefield.
It didn't bite. It inhaled.
The spells? Eaten.
The arrows? Eaten.
The tanks? Eaten.
The soldiers?
thousands of them were lifted off their feet by the suction force.
"HELP! I DON'T WANT TO BE LUNCH!"
"HOLD ONTO SOMETHING!"
It was futile.
Raiden ate the entire vanguard battalion. Two thousand demons, their weapons, and their vehicles vanished into the purple void.
Gulp.
Raiden rubbed his stomach.
"Metal. Meat. Magic. A balanced diet."
The remaining eight thousand rebels froze. They looked at the empty space where their comrades used to be.
They looked at Raiden, who was picking a spear tip out of his teeth.
"Who's next?" Raiden asked.
The rebels were terrified, but they were elites. They regrouped.
"Don't get close! Use long-range bombardment!"
Raiden sighed. "Still noisy."
He switched gears. The Purple Aura receded, replaced by a blinding Golden Light.
[Unique Skill: Lust]
[Technique: Mass Charm - The Tyrant's Charisma]
Raiden walked toward the army. He spread his arms.
He didn't look like a monster anymore. To the demons, he looked like the ideal leader. The perfect King. The being they had always wanted to serve.
"Why fight for a coward in a mask?" Raiden's voice was smooth, echoing in their minds.
"Ramsus hides. I stand in front. Join me. I have dental plans and better food."
The rebel soldiers lowered their weapons.
"He... he's so cool..." one demon whispered.
"He ate a tank... that's so manly..." a female ogre swooned.
"Maybe he's the true Demon Lord?"
Clang. Clang.
Weapons dropped.
Thousands of rebels fell to their knees, swayed by the absolute dominance of the Asmodeus power.
"WE SURRENDER! WE SERVE THE DRAGON KING!"
Raiden nodded.
"Good. Now go attack the guys wearing masks. They annoy me."
"YES, MY LORD!"
The army turned around and charged back toward the city, attacking Ramsus's remaining loyalists.
Location: The Royal Balcony
Leohart watched the scene, a massive grin on his face.
"He ate the vanguard and seduced the rear guard. Unbelievable."
Ramsus, appearing on a flying battleship above the arena, was trembling with rage.
"He... he turned my army against me in five minutes?!"
Leohart jumped up to the railing.
"Yo, Brother! Your coup is a flop! The glutton ate your revolution!"
Ramsus slammed his fist on the console.
"Prepare the Main Cannon. If I can't rule this city, I will turn it to ash! Target the Dragon!"
Down in the arena, Raiden looked up at the battleship.
His stomach growled.
"A flying ship?"
Raiden licked his lips.
"I've never eaten a boat before. I wonder if it tastes like chicken?"
[System Alert]
[Target Lock: Ramsus's Flagship]
[Hunger Level: Rising]
Raiden crouched. The ground cracked as he prepared to jump.
"Mio! Basara! Keep the small fries off me! I'm going to get takeout!"