"The greatest victory is not in defeating your enemies, but in making them believe they are in control."
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(POV: Aiden Arceid)
I leaned back on my chair, my fingers rhythmically tapping the wooden table as I gazed out into the horizon.
It was a 'normal' day, dare I call it... at least in the capital city, it was.
I was sitting in my office, the familiar books lying around... the familiar smell hitting my nose… it was so… peaceful.
Gentle, filtered sunlight creeped in through the windows on the wall... at a time which was all but gentle.
The people assigned to combat the growing demons were fighting tirelessly in the frontlines, while others were assigned to help evacuate the citizens from areas of risk.
However, my mind was focused on only a few, two of these 'few' being Sukuna and Ren.
I had placed them on the same team, which would lead to a faster growth in their power.
Since I, obviously, wouldn't want a boring fight, would I?
I chuckled a little… a dark, hollow chuckle reverberating in the silence of the room.
I got up from my chair, which rolled back a little, making a muffled sound on the carpet.
I slowly walked to the window, the sunlight making me squint my eyes as I looked at the edges of the city.
People were working… working on building huge walls surrounding the city, made completely of mana stone 34, to prevent demons from entering it.
I smirked at this… none of this was my doing. Ever since the demon invasion started, I had made sure to mingle in the business of humans as less as possible… just to see how they would fend against a threat of extinction.
My gaze travelled up into the sky. Clouds were floating in the silents blue river like fluffy boats, the contrast between them and the chaos on the ground was almost poetic.
I pulled out a phone from my pocket, my smirk only widening in anticipation of future events.
Fiddling with my phone for a moment, I called a certain person, putting it next to my ear as I waited for him to pick up the call.
A beep resonated next to my ear.
"Hello?" A voice came from the other side, deep and empty, as if it was a robot that was speaking.
"Zekuth…" My voice was commanding. When giving orders to a subordinate, one must be authoritative. "I have a job for you… your last one."
I could almost feel his eyes light up in joy at my statement.
It was clear that he did not like working under me… but he had vowed to do so, and according to his family's tradition… breaking one's word was the gravest sin one could possibly commit.
"What is it?" He asked, a glimmer of hope in his voice as he listened in anticipation.
My smirk widened even more, the air around me growing heavy. "Kill Eva Helion."
The line was silent for a moment, as if he was weighing his options... or maybe, just readying himself for the job.
There was an almost imperceptible sigh before his voice came from the other side. "Understood."
I immediately cut the call, the smirk slowly fading away as I fiddled with the phone, dialing a different number.
Putting it next to my ear again, a beep rang out. He had picked the call up faster than I expected. "It has been quite a while, Garu."
A gruff, almost beastlike voice came from the other side, playing in my ears like a bass from an instrument. "It has, sir."
He is as boring as always, it seems.
I walked around in the room, my footsteps muffled by the carpet. "How is the training proceeding?"
Garu was quite a mentally-ill individual, which made him easy to control. He was the head of a certain 'experiment' I was doing.
"It's proceedi… planned." His voice was slightly unstable, maybe some problem with the connection, since he usually is underground.
"Good, but I need you to add something to it," I said, pausing a bit before continuing. "Incite hate in their minds against Ryomen Sukuna… make them think he is the one causing them the pain."
Anyone would figure it out by now… I was running experiments on humans… trying to mold them into things useful to me.
Almost all of them were children… after all, if one doesn't mold clay quickly, it will harden too much.
"Understood." His response was simple, straightforward, just as it usually was.
"How is the boy with the sealing doing?" I asked, my lips curling up slightly. The boy I had my eyes on the most… it was to be made sure that he is safe and growing… since he would undeniably be a huge player in the future.
"His training is proceeding smoothly," Garu replied, his tone steady and unchanging.
A muffled scream reached my ears through the phone… it seemed like the scream of a little girl, probably being 'molded' at that time… that was Garu's job, after all.
I didn't pay the noise any mind, as I went on to the next subject.
"I suppose none has achieved UI?" I asked. My lips curling up further in anticipation.
There was a long pause on the line. The only sound audible being the distant screams of the girl, which slowly died down as she lost strength to make sounds.
"One is close," Garu finally said, his voice still indifferent.
My eyes widened in excitement, my footsteps suddenly halting as a huge, almost wicked smile formed on my face. "How so?"
"The soul only partially merges," he said, as if merely talking about the weather.
I cut the call, the smile on my face slowly dying down as I turned, looking out of the window at the beautiful scenery.
UI, as I named it… Ultra instinct… or Ultimate Mastery, or True Instinct… the pinnacle of strength, at least according to what I know.
There have only ever been two people (to my knowledge) who have been able to reach this plane… me, and Ryomen Sukuna.
Not the Sukuna now… but the one centuries ago, who was possibly his ancestor.
I chuckled loudly… echoing in the confines of the room. "UI, huh?"
UI was the point when one succeeded in merging their soul with their body… at which point, their movements would rely solely on instinct… bordering perfection.
I raised my hand, putting it on the glass as I looked at the people working tirelessly on building the wall, a wicked grin on my face.
"I wonder…" My dark voice reverberated in the room, bouncing off the walls. "…will you be able to achieve UI, Sukuna?"
The possible descendent of my biggest rival… it will be extremely amusing if he is able to achieve UI… our fight then would be, perhaps, the most fun one yet.
I was left in the room alone, the air around me crackling with energy, my grin unwavering.
Meanwhile, far away, the teams were tirelessly fighting demons on the frontlines of the humans' resistance against the invasion.
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(POV: Ryomen Sukuna)
The smirk on my face didn't fade as I stared at Ren, our eyes locked on to each other.
The air between us seemed to be crackling with energy as we both turned to my left, a demon coming into view, running at us with a steady pace.
I stepped forward, my expression unchanging as I got ready to attack.
The demon looked like a human… almost too much like a human. It was actually quite uncanny, and unbelievable too that these… things were completely different life forms.
I turned back to Ren, my smirk only widening as I simply raised my hand.
Dismantle.
The invisible slash went through the air like it was cutting the world itself, going through the demon like a knife through butter.
The demon fell, its body divided into two equal halves, its organs falling out as blood pooled beneath it.
Nyra and Lucian, standing farther away, had noticeable reactions to this.
Nyra was quite disturbed, looking away with disgust and a hint of fear in her eyes.
Lucian… however, seemed to be quite calm, comparatively. He got a little pale, but his eyes didn't leave the corpse, as if he was used to the view.
"Good job," Ren said, clapping as his eyes met mine, a competitive smirk on his face as he stepped forward, his hands gabbing the hilt of his sword. "Now, it's my turn."
My eyes widened as he seemingly disappeared from his place… no, he moved too fast for my eyes to follow.
A gust of wind hit me, a ripple in the air responding to his unreal speed.
I could only see glimpses of him… a blur of his figure, as he navigated his way through the battlefield… this was a first.
My eyes tried to follow him, but by the time my eyes caught his figure, he was gone… appearing some place far away.
He stopped in front of a demon… a female demon with her clothes burned, standing there with her body fully exposed.
I smirked, my eyes glinting with anticipation… how will he handle this demon who looks like she came straight out of Devilman?
He bent down, planting his foot firmly behind him as he grabbed the hilt of his sheathed sword tightly, a small smile on his face.
His body tensed for a moment… a moment that felt like it didn't even happen.
The ground beneath him cracked, the air around him shooting out at his speed.
Before I could notice, he was standing behind the demon, his sword unsheathed, and his other hand in his pocket.
The demon blinked, confused. It tried to turn around, the predatory grin still on its face, but it couldn't… it was dead,
Countless lines appeared on the demon's body like a net, blood sprayed from the cuts like a red fountain.
The demon's body fell, divided into countless cubes, her blood shooting out with force, dripping onto the ground.
"You shouldn't walk around naked, there's children here," Ren said, a smug smile on his face as he sheathed his sword, turning to me.
A huge, almost maniacal grin formed on my face as I stepped forward too, my eyes burning with competition.
Our eyes met, and in a seemingly wordless conversation, we knew what to do.
We shot off together in opposite directions, killing demons like they were pigs in a slaughterhouse.
The battlefield was filled with the motionless, diced corpses of countless creatures, their blood being soaked into the soil, staining it red.
The sky seemed to get darker the longer this went on, as if responding to our brutal actions.
Nyra and Lucian were playing their part well too.
Nyra was applying subtle illusions on the demons as she stood far away, confusing them. Even though the illusions were not much… at the time of battle, the little things have the biggest effect.
Lucian appeared from the shadows of the demons using his ability, slitting their throat, trying to give them a painless death.
The demons were slowly being culled… but one thing was clear… Ren and I were not working together.
It was like a silent agreement between us, to not interfere in each other's fun.
I could feel his eyes on me, observing my moves, and so was I observing his.
His swordsmanship was practiced, almost beautiful, I would say. His strikes had a certain finesse that even the most skilled would struggle to replicate.
His strength too, was off the charts, which when combined with his skill of the sword, made him one to be afraid of.
His moves, however, were predictable, as if he was following a textbook for fighting… it lacked randomness.
His strength was what caught one's eye, but his flaws were easily spotted too.
Hours passed, the streets littered with the remains of demons, their rotting organs splattered on the sidewalks.
Each day, fewer and fewer of them showed up to fight. The frontlines were growing quieter… almost too quiet.
"Good work today," Eleanor said, her voice the same as every day, though it seemed she had softened up a bit with us.
Her clothes were stained with blood… she was having 'fun' alone, killing demons while we fought somewhere else.
As she talked to Nyra, Lucian, and Ren, I sat in the corner, looking at a demon through the window.
Its limbs were cut off, a trail of blood following it as it tried to crawl away, a deep, unsettling gurgle escaping its lips.
I couldn't help but feel a sense of dread grip my heart… a feeling of unease.
The demon's movement grew slower, before ceasing at once… it was dead.
The demons were dying off, but it didn't feel right. I was killing them… each day, less and less came to fight… we were winning, right?
I looked out into the sky, the setting sun calming me down a little, reminding me of my time with Eva.
I wonder how she's doing…
The remnants of the city were covered by an orange glow, and I couldn't shake off this feeling that we weren't the ones in control.
I could feel it… something bigger was coming.