La Croix sat on her throne and put herself comfortable, then she created a chain made of pure dark energy and made appear the coffin that was on the haunted mansion.
La Croix: Now, get a good view of La Croix's artistic spectacle! Come, Fernandez and Queen Harpy!
Then the Undead Cursed Sword user and the Undead Queen Harpy came out from the coffin.
Fernandez: I only wish to match sword skills with you… But since I was ordered, I must use sexual techniques-
Marco: Wait a fucking minute… Oi, La Croix, you really want to fight like that?
La Croix: Any problem?
Marco: I am wearing a cursed armor that not even I know how to remove, and you think sexual techniques will work with iron in the middle?
La Croix: ...You are right, you heard him, girls.
Fernandez: Thank you, Master. Bloody Fissure Thunder Thrust!
Then Fernandez rushed as fast as she could to Marco and raised her small sword to him…
Marco: 'Morning Star.'
He calmly unsheathed the Doomblade from his back and attacked Fernandez with the blunt side of the blade, slamming her like a train, she quickly flew at La Croix's left, almost hitting her, but she crashed through the stained glass and fell outside.
The Queen Harpy and La Croix were surprised from how Marco dealt with her, and the Queen Harpy quickly flew around Marco, trying to confuse him, and when she was behind him after 8 or 9 turns, she descended down with her claws, ready to tackle him down.
When her talons attacked Marco, the one that was down was the Queen Harpy, and the bones of her legs were broken, but Marco's armor didn't have even a scratch.
He turned around and rotated his greatsword like it was a kitchen knife, before grabbing it with a reverse hold and slamming the blade on the Queen Harpy's chest, but the Queen Harpy, even if she wasn't in the conditions where she can be considered "Dead", she was unable to move due to the power of the Doomblade.
Then he turned around and crossed his arms, looking at a surprised La Croix.
La Croix: The show was really short, better changing the script… Or we'll trouble the audience.
Marco: Wow… What a big audience…
Marco was the only member of the audience, on La Croix's point of view.
La Croix: We were supposed to show Roza and Queen Lamia, but seeing how fast you ended the show with the previous two, I'll make an exception and send a special member. Come out, Alipheese the Fifteenth.
An overwhelming feeling of pressure and magic exploded from the coffin, and the previous Monster Lord came back from the land of the dead, but Marco was unfazed from everything.
Alipheese 15th: You called me…? I'll destroy them…
Marco: …*Sigh*
Now Marco needed to limit himself, even if the monster in front of him was really strong, if he goes all out he might kill her for real…
Marco: Come!
He unleashed his own dark aura, which exploded in black smoke before it turned into aura.
Alipheese immediately flew at him, trying to tackle Marco in the ground, but Marco punched at her head, making her movements deviate down, she crashed on the floor, making some cracks, but Marco continued with a kick on her chest, sending the former monster lord rolling away.
Alipheese was holding her hands in the ground and stood up, since she was an undead, she can't feel pain, Marco took a deep breath and tried to use a chakra arm, a black hand was created from his armor and threw a fast punch at Alipheese, sending her back to the coffin.
And then, Marco had a theory… Could the Doom Overlord's powers and the Nine Tailed Chakra System being fused together? Even if their compatibility wasn't high enough to use them separately, the system may have fused them together…
He will check later… Marco sighed and turned around to get back his Doomblade, when Alipheese came out from her coffin again and almost attacked Marco, but a small shadow came past Marco's head and impacted with Alipheese, knocking her back.
Marco: Mm? Alice?
The small shadow was the loli Alice, who came out of the labyrinth.
Alpheese: Oho… Who's this?
Alice: ...Marco, I know that you wanted to deal as less damage as possible, and I thank you for that… Now I've resolved myself for this. Leave her to me.
Marco: Alright.
Marco took out the Doomblade and grabbed the Queen Harpy, before throwing her at the coffin, breaking it and sending the Queen Harpy, Queen Scylla, Titania, Queen Lamia, and Roza against a wall.
Alipheese: Haha… Are you finished talking? So you are my opponent?
Alipheese lashes out with a powerful tail attack, aimed right at Alice, who had a serious look and said.
Alice: ...Shall we take this somewhere else? There are too many unnecessary audience members here!
Alice grabbed her mother's tail and directed the blow to the cracked ground, making a huge hole. Still holding onto her tail, Alice dragged her mother down with her into the underground area.
La Croix: Oh my, has the main event already started!? The battle between the Monster Lord and her predecessor! I've been waiting for this for a long time!
Marco just waited for Chrome to come, it wasn't his job to kill La Croix, but hers…
*Ding*
*Special Quest[Successful]: Escort Chrome to La Croix.*
And speaking of the devil, here she is…
Chrome: Shirome…
La Croix: ...What, Chrome? Why did you come here?
Chrome: ...I wanted to ask you one more time. Is my sister Shirome never coming back?
La Croix: I told you already… Shirome is dead. I am La Croix.
Chrome's face saddened, and slowly said.
Chrome: I see…
Then she took a determined expression.
Chrome: Then it's my duty as an Artiste to kill anyone outside our family who use our techniques! La Croix! You have been judged unworthy of our family's secrets!
La Croix: Chrome, do you really think you can do that?
Chrome: Marco… Leave the Cirque du Croix monsters to me.
Marco: Are you sure? It's 4 against 5, if you count your spirits and Frederi-
Titania was almost attacking Marco from behind, before a black chakra arm grabbed her and squeezed her to death.
Marco: Nevermind, 4 against 4…
La Croix: You challenged my orchestra with that rabble? You still have much to learn.
Marco: Where are you looking at?
Marco, with the Doomblade in his right hand, used it to point at La Croix.
La Croix: Do you think to overwhelm me with your skills, Sinner?
La Croix's cold eyes bore holes on Marco.
La Croix: If you think I am weaker than my own slaves, you are sorely mistaken. My own body has been strengthened…
Marco: You can beat me? And who decided that? I am the new Doom Overlord, inferior only to one man in terms of ranks, and superior to any other undead being. At my current strength I could count on a single hand the number of people that can beat me, and my predecessor was one of them.
Marco used Five Headed Dracolich to La Croix, slashing her 5 times in 5 instants, La Croix dodged 3 of them by jumping back the moment before he unleashed the skill, but the last two took out her left arm.
Marco didn't finished here and used the momentum on his steps to tackle La Croix, she was flung back to her throne, but she quickly got up and used a spell of hers.
La Croix: Rotten Hand!
Beside her, a magical circle appeared and a giant skeletal hand appeared, before punching Marco.
He grabbed the hand with a single hand, even if it made him move some inches back, but he managed to stop the attack, surprising La Croix.
She casually looked around and saw Chrome using one of her ghosts entering the body of her undead slaves, surprising her even more, while Frederika was attacking the Queen Lamia.
She then turned her sight at the fight, but Marco wasn't there anymore, before a deep and evil voice came behind her.
Marco: Only those who have the power to look away have the right to do so…
Then she felt a metallic hand grabbing her head and slamming her down, before blocking her movements with his other hand, while the Doomblade was sheathed back on his back.
La Croix: Guh!
Marco: Undeads attacking their superiors… This is something that isn't common…
La Croix: So you knew…
Marco: I am the current Doom Overlord, if I can't recognize an undead after being baptized less than 1 hour ago then I am only a shame.
[Meanwhile]
In the underground, Alipheese and Alice were fighting.
Alipheese: Oooooooh!
Alice: Haaaa!
Their fists, tails, and magical power collided together. Their continuous clashes knocked down nearby pillars and walls. Alice was able to fight only because she was a stronger Monster Lord than the normal one.
Alipheese: Who are you!? How can you compete against me with that tiny body of yours!?
Alice: …
While over their heads there was an one-sided fight, down there both of them going many bruises, and were getting near to the end of their ability to fight.
Alipheese: ...Then I shall end this now!
Summoning all of her remaining power into her fist, Alipheese slowly moved towards Alice. But she only closed her eyes.
Alice: ...Please return to sleep, Mother. I can't bear to see you suffer any longer… I ask thee, eternal time… Reveal my body, yoked in twilight… Return my true body to me!
When she turned back to her own body, she started her counter attack, and shocked Alipheese.
Alice: Haaaa!
Alipheese: It can't be… You're…
Alice dodged to the side and punched with everything she had. Her fist slammed straight into her mother's chest, piercing her body.
Alice: Mother…
She started to get sorrowful at her own actions.
Alice: Forgive me for making you suffer through a second death…
Alipheese: …
And for a moment, Alice had an hallucination of her mother still alive, who was smiling at her…
Alipheese: No… I am happy, Alice. To be able to see you become a fine grown adult… With my own eyes…
Alice: ...Mo… ther…? Mother!!
She panicked and grabbed her mother's shoulders, before blinking and seeing again the rotting corpse she really was, slowly turning in dust, then Alice turned back to her loli body and said slowly.
Alice: It wasn't an illusion… She really did…
She continued to stare at the spot where her mother just was, even after she vanished…
[Back]
Marco: it seems that things ended down there…
Marco couldn't hear anymore the sound of destruction below, and thought that the fight was ended with Alice's victory, meanwhile La Croix, under him, sighed.
Now that even Chrome beaten the rest of her Cirque du Croix, she was truly defeated, and Chrome slowly got near to La Croix, noticing that her abdomen was absent.
Chrome: Sister...
La Croix: You also took control of Roza, Queen Lamia and Queen Scylla? Although I may have been careless, to turn them against me…
Chrome: My sister is already dead… It can't be… That accident?
La Croix: That was my mistake… Don't concern yourself with it.
[SPECIAL QUESTS]
1st. Achieve coexistence between Monsters and Humans
2nd. Kill Illias
3rd. Return to Lucifina's grave
4th. Visit every places in Illias Continent, Sentora and Hellgondo
5th. Make Alice happy
[EVENT QUEST]
1st. Kill Illias
2nd. Save as many people as possible: [27774/???]
3rd. Defeat or Kill Promestein
4th. Defeat or Kill Black Alice
5th. [Optional] Kill as many angels as possible: [88/???]