Adventuring as a way to become God.

In the shadowy chaos of the battlefield, two figures darted through the darkness, their clash igniting brief flashes of light as sword met fan. One was the striking demon, summoned by Quaiesse, clad in gleaming light armour that caught the occasional glimmer of moonlight. Fiery red wings unfurled from his back, beating furiously as sweat streaked down his chiselled features. His eyes, though filled with determination, betrayed a mixture of fear and awe as they locked onto his opponent.

Opposing him was Akeno, Lemon's loyal servant and one of Nazaric's top NPCs. Her movements were fluid, almost hypnotic, and her expression, calm and composed. The fiery rage that had burned in her gaze earlier was replaced by a chilling focus. Her outfit, however, marred by dust and torn in places, failed to diminish her commanding presence and only accentuated her lethal elegance.

The two combatants closed the gap, their momentary reprieve shattered as they lunged with renewed intensity. Akeno, with her ceremonial fan in hand, swept it from the side, a current of crackling lightning flowing through its arc and extending its reach. The demon, anticipating her strike, raised his sword to meet it.

But just before the clash, a fireball shot toward Akeno from the side. Her eyes flicked to the incoming threat, and with a fluid shift redirected her swing, her movements carrying an elegance akin to a Kagura dancer, her form weaving through the air with unyielding poise. The fan snapped open as she swung it toward the fireball, summoning a burst of [Windblade]. The razor-sharp gust tore through the flames, dispersing the attack and turning its momentum toward the caster.

Even as the fireball dissolved into embers, Akeno's performance continued unbroken, pivoting seamlessly and, dodging a retaliatory sword slash with the grace of the wind itself, her flowing movements bringing her back into the relentless exchange with the Demon.

She's already had such interactions with these two opponents multiple times in the last few minutes, as evidenced by the cut-off vines and charred earth dotting the battlefield.

'I really want to quickly end this stalemate already, we are just wasting time right now.' Akeno thought, blocking another sword strike.

'The problem here is that barrier. I really can't do anything from the front. I have thrown several 7-tier spells but as I thought, it was repelled. Though it seems, unlike a typical barrier, this one does not go all the way around its target, which means it is like a wall rather than a dome. The best evidence is from the way these two are not allowing me to change the way I face their summoner.' She intercepts yet another fireball while cutting the vines that suddenly appear from her side. 'The problem is this, I can't just kill these two while fighting them close-range. This is frustrating, I am a mid-range magician. I shouldn't be fighting a dogfight with a swordsman while dodging snipping from another magician. Where is that stupid oaf? When she gets here...'

Akeno's inner ramblings suddenly halted as she lost her ground. As her body tilted forward in the air, she quickly realised what had happened.

The ground she was about to step on had vanished. 'What in the heavens?' A confused look plastering on her as nature's law took her under the hole.

She falls silently for several seconds, her face a mask of impassiveness as she waits for her flight spell to activate. But the sound of creaking wood coming from her hand tells a different story.

*Ha fuuu*. 'Calm down Akeno, you have been losing your cool a lot lately. What would Master Lemon think if he saw you getting frustrated over some insects trap *Haaa fuuu*. Good, now let's look around.'

Sufficiently calming down her anger, Akeno starts looking inside the hole.

"Its size is about 10 feet in diameter, and it is a relatively small hole, but I can not see the bottom of it. This is too deep to be just a normal trap. And this chilling sensation." She said to herself as she quickens the activation of her spell in respond to this feeling

"It is getting harder to breathe as well. A gas attack? Did that spirit isolated it when we were fighting?"

A creeping dread began to gnaw at her, an instinctive warning urging her to flee immediately. The unease only grew more as the spell finally took effect, halting her descent. Her breath hitched as she quickly snapped her gaze upward, only to witness the light from the entrance above fading, shrinking as though time was rewinding itself to seal her.

'Dame it, those annoying insects'. Even as grumbling thought exits her lips, Akeno hurriedly shot upward.

In the next moment as her figure zoomed up the hole, her gaze caught a fleeting red glow for a mere fraction of a second. Just as quickly, her mind finally registered its significance, piecing together the grim reality of the trap she had stumbled into.

But that realization came a moment too late. Before she could react, an intense orange light erupted around her, swallowing her whole.

***************************************************

Quaiesse stood frozen, awe-struck by the unfolding results of the first phase of his plan. Beads of cold sweat traced down his temples. He had used every ounce of knowledge bestowed by the blessing into this moment, and now, the fruits of his labour were igniting before his eyes.

First, he had silently duged a hole below the battlefield, one deep enough to seem endless while using concealed magic as if his life depended on it and it was. Then, he and [] extracted oxygen from the air—a volatile and highly combustible element. This was a tightrope process between not making the raven hair suspect something and concentrating enough to separate a single element from the rest. The outcome was more than he hoped however seeing from the giant column of orange piller that exploded from the hole.

That said, although he understood the knowledge, the utilisation of it in a practical manner using magic was too much for a summoner like him. Fortunately for him, he had summoned the [Wardwyn] and it also received the same blessing from Divine Chant, making the feasibility of this plan just that much higher.

Quaiesse struggled to reconcile the sheer absurdity of the revelation before him. The very substance fueling this devastating trap was the same element essential for his every breath.

Thinking of this, a strained chuckle naturally escaped his lips, bitter and tinged with disbelief. 'If I brought this knowledge back to the theocracy, it would upend everything we believe about the world, wouldn't it?' The thought lingered, half-formed yet undeniably haunting. It was as though he had glimpsed a fragment of divine truth, one far too vast and cruelly ironic for mortal understanding.

Quaiesse's awe was short-lived as the blazing light dimmed, revealing the aftermath of the devastation. The ground surrounding the epicentre had been vitrified, glistening like molten glass, while the once-narrow hole had expanded into a massive crater, its edges jagged and raw as if the explosion had clawed its way out.

The clearest evidence of the trap's power, however, was the figure violently flung from the crater. Her form was almost unrecognizable—her right arm reduced to a charred stump, and her body riddled with burn marks that marred her once-pristine elegance. Her face, once a testament to transcendental beauty, now revealed a grotesque patchwork of pulsing muscle and scorched flesh as she lay where she landed still like a puppet that had his string burned.

"Is she dead?" Quaiesse mumbled at seeing the body lying still. But like a bad omen that was waiting to be spoken, the green light of healing started to eminent from the half-burned body.

"Damn this monster!" Quaiesse barked, his voice laced with suppressed panic as he bolted past the barrier. "You lot, we're moving to the next phase!". He knew the risk he was taking; a single misstep now would render all his efforts worthless. But there was no time to hesitate—the stakes were too high, and the line between victory and annihilation had never been thinner.

Quaiesse nears the body and sees that her superficial burns have already healed, and as if a timer is attached to his neck activates an ice spell aiming at her head.

Akeno already noticing his action by his footsteps, rolled over, barely avoiding the ice. Her laboured breaths came out as seething hisses, her face twisted with rare, unrestrained fury. "Ha...ha... How dare you," she snarled, her voice trembling with rage. "How dare you damage this body, a gift from my God... I will never forgive you insects."

Her words suddenly devolved into a chilling laugh, her eyes alight with vengeful contempt. "Kill? No... Killing you would be a mercy. I'll skin you alive instead, roast your flesh, then feed it to you."

With a defiant growl, she planted her remaining hand against the scorched earth, forcing her battered body upright just as a blade whistled toward her from the side. Her movements, though weakened, remained impossibly swift as she evaded the strike with a sudden twist.

"I've had enough of your pestering, demon!" Akeno's rage crackled the air, her focus snapping to the stunned demon. In an instant, a surge of lightning erupted from her fingertips, arcing toward him with blinding speed. The demon, caught off guard, had no time to dodge and was struck directly, the force of the impact hurling him backwards like a rag doll.

As the brilliant flash faded, Akeno's gaze shifted back to the battlefield—just in time to be blindsided. Quaiesse, seizing her momentary distraction, slammed into her with all his strength.

Surprise flickered across Akeno's face, her composure breaking for a split second. She had anticipated an attack, bracing herself for spells and preparing countermeasures for every possible magical assault. But a physical tackle? That had never crossed her mind.

"You creten, how dare you touch me."

"Well, I apologise. I am usually more tactful when handling a lady, but I can't say that with you. Take it as an action done out of desperation." Quaiesse said faining a jesting tone. He tightens his arms around her shoulder, pushing her down more with his whole body.

Suddenly a sharp pain pierced his left abdomen as he felt a rush of blood pool inside his mouth. Fighting through the mind-numbing pain, he glances down only to widen his eyes, less from the pain but more out of stock.

"If you're so eager to touch me, allow me to be a proper lady and return your feelings, but...," Akeno said, her eyes narrowing into crescent slivers, her voice a chilling melody, hauntingly sweet like a celestial harp.

For a fleeting moment, the ethereal quality of her tone could distract even the most vigilant observer—just enough to miss the grim reality of her hand inside his body.

A soft, taunting; *fufu* escaped her lips, laced with cruel amusement. "I was programmed to be tat sadistic. Hope you can handle me," she whispered, her voice a velvety threat. Her eyes that momentary returned to her usual playfulness, burned with cold contempt, a chilling contrast to the heat of her sadistic intent. As she spoke, the hand buried inside him began to pulse with magical energy, glowing faintly as she activated a spell.

Quaiesse, sensing her intent, instinctively tried to shove her away, but it was already too late. The first wave of his agony came—a mind-numbing surge of pain, scrambling his brain's attempt to command his body to retreat. His muscles rebelled, locking in violent spasms as every nerve misfired. The human body, fragile against electricity, requires only a meagre 10-20 milliamps to stun it into paralysis. But this was far beyond comprehension. A surge equivalent to a lightning strike—ranging between 100 million to 1 billion volts—coursed through him. Protective spells, layered buffs, and defences collapsed under the overwhelming force, offering no sanctuary. His body convulsed uncontrollably, locked in a tetanic seizure as if the very essence of his being had been hijacked, held captive in agonizing rigidity.

But the worst part was the stench of burning flesh. This stench refused to let his mind fall silent, jolting his blanking consciousness again and again from the sweet release of this pain.

'Aaaaaaaaa, IIIII want….to….nOOO….tHe planD MuTs…' As the seconds stretch to minutes and hours in his mind, Quaiesse consciousness slowly remembers his purpose, yes he knew this might happen, he knew this might be the last action he ever performed, but despite that he took it, he is scared, he was reluctant, he wanted to kick his past self for even taking this mission, but, but, he is still a member of the Black scriptures, the guardian of humanity, and if his sacrifice, his death can take away this monster in human skin, then what was to hesitate.

'If...I…StOppp....her….here….CaPtain…. ReaCh…hom..saf..r' Quaiesse can hear his heart thumping like the bells from home, slow and methodic, like a lullaby shooing one to sleep. 'Strange did it sound this melodic and seral before. Who knew heartbeats could be this comforting. Oh ya, before I forget, I must finish my last task'.

Quaiesse's stiff limbs began to crack audibly, like the brittle surface of parched earth breaking under strain, as Akeno pried his hands away from her with deliberate force. Just as she prepared to cast him aside, her world was suddenly ensnared in crimson chains, their jagged links coiling around her form and slamming her to the ground along with the body.

"What…? Where did these come from?" Akeno hissed, her voice laced with irritation and disbelief. She hadn't expected an answer—after all, no one alive was near enough to speak. But to her surprise, a voice rasped back, weak and dry as rustling leaves carried on the wind.

"Hehehe… it's a surprise isn't it, these chains. It is called the [Chains of contract]. You see those demons are nasty basters, they even had this kind of contingency plan if their contractor broke the contact between them. *Cough Cough Haaa* You see, I promised to sacrifice my body to that demon when I die. But he seems to have deemed that would be impossible if my plan succeeds, so he is going to take the next best thing, my soul. But *hehe*, thanks to that, you are also trapped with me till the extraction of my soul is complete, and that will be more than enough time".

"What are you talking about?" Akeno said, her voice maintained a calm facade. Her hand remained buried in Quaiesse's torso, now effectively trapped by the crimson chains binding her in place. She began channelling a wind spell, though her composed demeanour masked a growing frustration.

'Damn it,' she thought, struggling against the chains' oppressive energy. 'I can't even activate anything. What is this? Are the chains disrupting my spells? If only I could free my hand, I'd tear this ridiculous thing apart.'

Her fingers twitched, trying to dislodge themselves, but the unyielding grip of the chains only tightened, leaving her options increasingly limited.

"*Cough Cough* ahh, hehe. Don't even bother, it will be *haa haa*… useless, *Cough*". Quaiesse's words were rewarded with another mixing of his inners by Akeno.

"Hehe, now let's finish this. I will be taking you with me."

Akeno's stirring reply was cut off when the air around them started to blur. From inside, like a phantom opening the curtains of an opera, a giant full-plated Oger steps out, its body emanating a suffocating presence.

Akneo's eyes widen in shock, her jaws almost dropping. 'Wha… this absolute presence. Is this thing before me also a Player…..No that's impossible. I don't sense that much power from it, then how…. No, this overwhelming presence is….not from the beast but from behind him.'

"I see now, that's how it is. This must be from that woman in the back. I do not know how you acquire such a powerful aura, but I can only call your move stupid, it will be nothing but a curse. You willingly painted a target on yourself and with the level of strength in your possession, you will be nothing but an air balloon that will burst with the slightest touch."

Akeno's mad revelation was met with a grating yet unnervingly calm voice.

"Yes, your conjecture is correct."

From behind the towering orc, DC emerged, her steps slow and deliberate. The woman who had once radiated saintly beauty just hours ago now stood a hollow shell of her former self—her ethereal grace stripped away, leaving behind a gaunt figure of pale skin stretched over brittle bones. Her eyes, though still shimmering faintly with a distant light, were devoid of warmth, as if life had drained from her with each passing moment.

"The aura emanating from me is nothing but a mere sham that can only bring misfortune to me. But, if that is the price I had to pay to bring me here, then I will accept the price."

Divine Chant gave a long sigh as she finished. She was exhausted physically, mentally and spiritually. She closed her eyes reflecting on all she had lost in just these few hours, her beauty, her power, her friend, her love, and by the end, she was certain her life would end as well. She wanted to do more for her Captain but, she was too weak, humans were too weak to stand up and face the monsters of this world.

'I would probably scold myself for becoming this weak-minded in the past. I would say I should have instead drawn this fight out more to glim into my foe's strengths and created a more efficient countermeasure instead of agreeing to such a self-destructive plan. But after seeing these monsters, I couldn't see us surviving any longer. *Hehe* Guess I understand how Quaiesse felt when he thought this plan up. I only hope Captain succeeds in bringing the news of such beings to our homeland. We will need the power of all of humanity if we are to survive…..and now I will do my part as well'

"Let us end our meeting monster. It was a most unpleasant experience" Divine Chant said, looking down on Akeno. Akeno too looks up at her with scorn-filled eyes as she still struggles to break the chains around her.

"It seems you think you have won because I am blinded by these chains. But rest assured, I will tear your heart out and feed it to you once the bug behind me dies after losing his soul"

Divine Chant sneered at Akeno, her wrinkled face twisting into something grotesque and malicious to deliver the expression. "I don't doubt it," she hissed, venom dripping from her words. "But unfortunately for you, your life ends here. Now—[Die and Scatter]."