[ 12th Floor ]
" ADRIAN!!! " Ignis yells as he burns many of Adrian Waterson's followers before they even start their attack.
" Wow, someone is too excited over here... "
" It seems your fire is heating up each time you see me, Ignis... " Adrian says, seeing the monstrous form of Ignis that burns hot as hell.
" I must say the Balrog's fire really suits you, I knew that if it found you, it will somehow be fused with yours at some time, just as I hoped. "
" But still... "
" It doesn't mean that I and the ones who joined the banquet... "
" Didn't prepare for this! " Adrian says as he clicks his finger, raising up the burned followers of his as they transformed into a more Deviant form.
* Transforming Deviant Screech *
* Transforming Deviant Roar *
* Transforming Deviant Yell *
Adrian's followers transformed into more devious and monstrous forms, slowly extinguishing the fire from Ignis as they demonized themselves, deviating the form of their bodies to a more monstrous posture.
" Monsters... " Ignis says, being the crazy person he is, he didn't care about anything aside from battle hence there's no one in the Hunter Association who wants him in their guild, for he had no other need for everything aside from fighting monsters.
As he sees them attacking him with their monstrous forms, Ignis immediately charges in, fully bursting his flames onto his enemies, destroying them with his fire while Adrian is just chilling there, enjoying the view.
" Wow, he never changed... " Adrian says, knowing Ignis for a long time.
" I guess this what happens if you're all brawns and no brains, huh? " Adrian asks which made him smirk as he sees Ignis killing all of his monstrous followers that also eat the [Arch-Deviant Fruit] in the Deviant Banquet Adrian made on the Top Floor of the Abyss Tower.
The [Arch-Deviant Fruit], empowers Adrian's followers that he offered power behind the scenes, where he used all of his statuses as a high-rank Hunter to influence those easily-stirred people to follow him on his personal quest inside this Tower, a quest that he already planned with some people he knew for a long time.
" You're just going to waste them, dear? " the other A Rank Hunter, Flolial Flora asks him, asks him if it was wise to just throw the 'followers' into Ignis's fiery wrath.
" Let them, after all, if they succeed in biting him, they will get a reward for themselves. " Adrian says, reminding Flolial about the demonic physiology. The demons and their monstrous subspecies and cunning followers were given one of the main demonic features from the demons which are...
" 'Cannibalism'... "
" You remember that if we, who had a demonic trait on our body will get stronger when we consume another 'demonic being' right? " Adrian asks Flolial while he looks at the battle where Ignis seems to have no problem dealing with the hoards of Adrian's followers.
" Oh, that! " Flolial responds as she recounts it.
" So you're actually telling them to Hunt Ignis and take the rewards for themselves, is that what you ordered? "
" Precisely, after all, if they successfully take him down... "
" Then they would definitely gain the 'Balrog's traits that Ignis absorbed earlier on the 11th Floor! " Adrian answers Flolial with his statement.
" Besides... " Adrian then summons his wine glass from his arms, as it just appeared there from whatever abilities he used.
" Shall we, watch them trying? " Adrian then gives one wine glass to Flolial as they cheered, watching from the sidelines.
" Krahahahaha!!! "
" You lot are so idiots to charge me!!! "
" My fire will f**king burn your asses up into cinders!!! " Ignis says in his fiery form, he burns those who confront him, making some of them try to get away but were immediately burned by him while trying to escape.
" Oh, what's the matter, weaklings!!! "
" Do you want to return to your boss, for protection!!!? "
" Don't even bother!!! " Ignis burns those who tried to escape the confrontation and retreats.
" You boss won't even save you from me, trust me! " Ignis fires a fireball into the one that escapes as the monstrous person escapes towards Adrian's location but was immediately dead as the fireball lands on him.
As it lands, the fireball bursts so hard, it shocks the other monstrous followers that see it, but at that moment, as the smoke dissipates, it can be seen that Flolial shielded both Adrian and herself, with her Plant ability, to protect and heal them both from injuries.
" Flolial, you b##ch!!! " Ignis yelled at Flolial who protected Adrian from his fire.
" You're really that hooked with Waterson, didn't you!? " Ignis asks Flolial, teasing her for clinging to Adrian too much.
As she does that, Adrian tells Flolial to calm down as he will then prepare for the next phase of the entertainment.
" Don't waste your energy, Flolial. "
" I'm still alright... " he says to her, showing that her healing doesn't work not because it fails but because there's nothing to heal from him in the first place.
" Even if you didn't protect me, I would still be unharmed... " Adrian says as he appreciated what Flolial did to him and asks her to chill off.
As he told her to chill, Adrian then walks past the dead followers' bodies and approaches Ignis.
" It's been a long time, you face me yourself. " Ignis says to him.
" How long is it, Adrian...? "
" Was it those years ago before you create your 'guild'!? " Ignis asks as Adrian just smirked at him and says.
" You misunderstand something, Ignis... " Adrian says as he began to show off his level to Ignis.
" You seemed to be under the impression that I need 'followers' and 'guilds' to fight for me in order to achieve my own goal. " Adrian says as he then transforms his hands.
" Those monstrous hands, I've seen that one before... " Ignis says as he remembers something.
" Isn't that? "
" Yes, it's one of my guild's 'Sharks' members, my executioners. " Adrian says as he then activates the transformed hand ability, to prepare for the next phase of the fight.
...
[ 6th Floor. ]
" Hmpph...! "
" What is it, Raiden? " Inquisitor Kara asks Raiden as he awakens from his sleep.
" This feeling... "
" I've felt it before... " Raiden says as he looks up.
" Hmmph... "
" Do you feel it, Battle Maiden? " Raiden asks the Battle Maiden, asking her if she feels it too.
" I do, it seems Waterson is not weak as I thought earlier. "
" He wasn't... " Raiden says while still looking up.
" For the 'Son of Water' was never meant to be a weakling, originally... "
" What do you mean, by that? " Kara asks Raiden responds by looking at her.
" Don't you get it, I was on his side before, remember? "
" I'm one of his guild's 'Shark' members that execute many of his enemies in the Association. " Raiden says which made Kara shocked.
" You should've known of it, Kara... "
" About all of it regarding him... "
" You're an Inquisitor Inspector, are you not? " Raiden asks Kara which made Battle Maiden sighs.
" So what's your point? "
" I listen to your words and found nothing worth listening for, just some endless unimportant facts unneeded to be heard. " Battle Maiden interrupts him, telling Raiden to just explain things bluntly.
" You should know! " Raiden replies as he then says.
" For I will tell you Adrian's whole story, from the beginning... " Raiden tells them.