I could feel Mephisto's bloodlust across the courtyard. He was now barely trying to mask who he was. I could see the fleshy mask he was wearing start to literally melt and bubble away.
"Gross…" I muttered as parts of his fake face started to fall off and land on the ground. Bright red skin was visible underneath. "Make sure you both stay close to me," I said to Heather and Kunou. If he was exposing himself so blatantly, then he was preparing to fight me.
"Maybe we should just go?" Heather suggested. "The Ancient One told me never to mess with this guy."
I shook my head. There was no way I was missing an opportunity like this. Not only was I merely facing a weaker avatar, but this would give me some insight on how the real Mephisto fights if I have to face him someday.
On top of that…
[Quest Initiated: Slay the Avatar of Mephisto!]
→Reward: Level UP X 2!
… I didn't want to miss out on two easy level-ups! And speaking of easy level-ups…
I conjured a small Lightspear and hurled it at the still unconscious Issei nearby! It pierced right through his head and killed him instantly. The quest demanded that he had to die to be completed after all.
[You have Leveled UP X3!]
[Layla of the Fallen: Angel of Hope, Death's Favored]
[Level: 54]
[Sacred Gears: Purger of Darkness, Orb of Anywhere]
[HP: 13000]
[MP: 9800]
[Faith Energy: 3]
[Vigor: 800]
[Strength: 140]
[Intelligence: 980]
[Luck: 100]
[Skills: Observe 4, Angelic Mastery 4, Acting 4, Light Manipulation 7, HP to MP Conversion, Mana Burst, Senjutsu 1, Six Paths, Susanoo 1]
[Perks: Never Tell Me the Odds, Lucky Shot, Mana Replenisher]
[Drawbacks: Sin of Lust]
[Available Free Stat Points: 80]
[Skill Up Point: 0]
I now had 80 Free Stat Points to spend. I put 20 into Intelligence to get it to 1000. I also put 50 in Luck and 10 in Strength.
[For reaching 1000 Intelligence you have unlocked the perk: Mana Furnace!]
→Mana Furnace: You live and breathe Mana! Mana now regenerates 3 times as fast!
[Error!! Error!!]
[A skill has been detected that has the same effect already!]
→The perk Mana Regeneration has fused with the skill Senjutsu!
→Senjutsu has reached level 2! I now regenerate 5 MP every second!
"Father! Are you alright!?"
"What's going on?"
"That damn Fallen has done something to Father!"
The surrounding Angels screamed out! I didn't have time to go over all the benefits I just got before they were all summoning Lightspears and charging at me! Albeit, they were moving very slowly compared to Angels from my own universe. I raised my hand and was about to blast them all away and test out my new Deva Path!
"Stop!" Mephisto called out loudly! All the Angels halted in place. They glared hatefully at me, but made no further moves to attack.
"Father?" One of them questioned. They were shocked at how horrible he looked all of a sudden! His skin was melting off of him!
Mephisto laughed. "Yes, I am your father! Tell me, children. Do you all love me?" Mephisto asked.
"Of course we do!"
"We love you, Father!"
"We could never love anyone more!"
All of the Angels stopped to proclaim their love for Mephisto. I was disgusted at their declarations and their sheer stupidity. Mephisto must have gotten rid of all the smarter Angels and just kept around these idiots to entertain himself.
He grinned at me before he spoke again. "Do you all pledge your souls to me?" Mephisto asked all of the Angels.
My eyes widened at his question. I shouted loudly! "Wait you idiots! Don't answer that!"
It was too late, though!
"Of course I do, father!"
"My soul is yours forever!"
"Mine too!" "And Mine!" "Yes. Of course!"
Right after they all pledged their souls, the fake skin over Mephisto's form finally dropped off him completely. Exposed underneath was the avatar of the evil deity. His eyes glowed fiery red, his hair was pitch black, his ears were pointed, and his skin was bright red. He was once again cackling loudly.
"Father?" One of the Angels asked in confusion upon seeing Mephisto's true form. "What has happened to you?"
"I'm not your father you stupid whore! He's been dead for a long time! I've loved having you as my loyal followers though! I'll especially love torturing you all for all eternity now that your souls are mine!"
The dawning horror of realization appeared on all of the Angels' faces. I grimaced as I knew that I couldn't save them at this point. Not without going into Mephisto's domain and actually killing him there.
Until then, their souls would belong to him.
Mephisto waved his clawed hands and all of the human vessels surrounding us slumped to the ground unconscious or dead. White orbs of light started floating above the bodies. They all turned and rushed towards Mephisto. He opened his mouth wide, and over a dozen Angelic souls were sucked down into his stomach!
He let out a loud belch as he licked his lips and grinned wickedly at the three witnesses. "That really hit the spot! And it gave me the boost I'm going to need for this!"
A wave of power erupted out of Mephisto and started blanketing the area in a foul miasma. I countered the miasma by releasing my own Light Energy into the surroundings as well to stave it off.
"He feels so much stronger!" Kunou exclaimed.
I used [Observe] on him again. His level had gone up quite a bit!
[Mephisto - Level 62]
"This world might suppress the strength of beings like myself, in higher realms, but there's always ways to get around that! Devouring the souls of the world's inhabitants is the simplest method!" Mephisto bragged as he started walking towards my group. He soon became wreathed in fire, and the ground beneath him started to boil everywhere he stepped.
XXX
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