Alex was calculating his strategies, running through multiple scenarios in his mind until he finally arrived at the perfect plan.
"Arise," he murmured in a low voice. Beside him, a towering figure took shape—over six feet tall, with a muscular build cloaked in black. The figure's white hair and piercing red eyes cast an unsettling aura, radiating a darkness that seemed to swallow everything around it. Just his presence felt like fire searing through the veins of anyone nearby.
This was Vlad, Alex's first summoned predator. The anticipation of witnessing Vlad's abilities stirred something in Alex as he watched his shadowy ally vanish the moment he received his orders. With his plan now in motion, Alex wasted no time. He transformed the whirling blades around him into a single sword, firmly grasping it as he charged at the blood angels and the madman. In a flash, he appeared before them, his swift arrival greeted by one of the angels attempting to split him in half with a mighty swing. The other angel stood still, watching.
Alex countered the strike, matching the blood angel's speed with his own, and their swords collided, releasing a shockwave that shattered the ground beneath them. With a quick sidestep, Alex launched his own strike, aiming at the angel's chest. His attack was swift, leaving a deep gash in the angel's armor. Wasting no momentum, Alex pressed forward, attempting to sever the angel's arm. But the blood angel wasn't weak. Sensing the threat, the angel gripped his sword with both hands, swinging it down with enough force to send Alex flying several meters, even as he blocked the strike with his own blade.
Meanwhile, the suspended man observing the battle sensed an immediate, lethal threat behind him. A shadow materialized from the darkness—a lightning-fast figure moving with far greater power than Alex himself, for Vlad's abilities were attuned to his unique form. In an instant, he was mere inches from decapitating his prey.
Feeling death's proximity, Morian screamed, disappearing from his spot. The blood angels vanished too, as did the stone beasts and archers, their bodies dissipating into a mist of blood.
Alex looked around, anticipating another assault, but none came. Suddenly, a crimson light descended from the sky, clearing the fog. Emerging from that light was a figure that resembled the man who had been chained to the pillar, yet was vastly transformed. With four bat-like wings, a towering four-meter physique, and two colossal swords, he resembled a demon from the depths of the abyss.
"Little ants, your time has come. You should have never pushed me to this point—why don't you just die already?" His gravelly voice cut through the air, his mere presence pressing down on everyone.
Joanna and Mike looked up at the terrifying monster in the sky, feeling the immense pressure that emanated from him. They had endured countless battles, and neither of them was in good shape now. Mike was drained, and Joanna fared no better. Meanwhile, Terry and Henry were unconscious.
Vlad reappeared at Alex's side, ready to fight. Alex felt exhilarated; far from feeling intimidated, he finally sensed the opportunity he had longed for. Since he'd acquired his powers, he'd been eager to test his limits, and now he had found the perfect opponent.
"For thirty years, I was treated like a slave," Morian's voice thundered. "I worked from dawn till dusk without so much as a word of thanks. And now—this is my reward. The gods granted me this power to make up for all those years. Now, no one can tell me what to do!" His voice shook with fury, yet his words felt less directed at Alex and more at himself.
"So, you think that justifies murdering all these people? Just because you were a victim of labor?" Alex shot back, locking eyes with him.
"Do you think you're invincible now? No—you're just a madman about to meet his end," he continued, his voice laced with contempt. Alex's anger simmered. If Morian had any reasonable motive, he might have been able to understand it. But to slaughter hundreds simply out of bitterness over an oppressed life? To Alex, that reeked of pathetic insanity.
"You're just a boy; you wouldn't understand," Morian spat. "You don't know the despair of being chained to endless debts, of having no dreams, no future. To face a life of drudgery until death just to feed yourself…"