203 Gods And Monsters (1): A Harsh Reality To Accept.

It was unmistakable. No matter how much his very heart tried to deny it, his clear mind immediately put an end to his delusions. The appearance might be different, but the aura was the same through and through. There was no way he would confuse it for another one.

The figure that exuded fierceness yet also an eagerness for battle was the same as the one he remembered.

Lightning coursed around that man's eyes, symbolizing his resolution. Yet around his, only dying embers could be seen, symbolizing his struggles.

Then, it happened.

The man—no. Thor pounced on him faster than any of the opponents he had faced until now, ready to reduce him to nothingness by pure physical strength alone.

Fortunately, despite his mind being out of it, his body knew what to do through instinct alone. His two arms shot forward to meet the redhead's own; meeting in a display of savageness once again.

Seth immediately noticed the differences compared to the earlier exchange. As he grabbed Thor's hands to prevent him from advancing toward his goal, the black-haired man felt the weight of the Thunder God's might.

With their fingers now interlocked, Thor gripped his opponent hard, taking battle delight in seeing him frown. Their height difference also allowed the wielder of Mjölnir to push him down little by little, regardless of the resistance.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he wouldn't stop until he saw the other party kneeling in defeat in front of him.

And yet, since he had a warrior's mentality, and could feel the soul of a warrior as well in his foe, he never took into account the possibility of him simply giving up the contest of strength—something Seth capitalized on. For he was not only a warrior but also a trickster.

The Kingslayer simply stopped his 'tug-of-war' game with Thor, slowly falling on back, and by inertia, taking the redhead down with him.

'It's your chance, Asterios!' The command was clear, and so the instructions were followed. Before the dumbfounded eyes of the Æsir God, white walls of marble were erected all around the buildings as if they were armor. From walls came columns, and from columns came the ceiling.

It all happened almost instantly, yet he didn't get much time to analyze his newly built prison as a knee impacted his chin, shifting his head slightly upward but making no other change before the inevitable law of gravity finally caught up to the two; enough to slam his opponent's back to the now white ground.

Thought the impact was lessened thanks to the sudden shift from his trick that caused Thor to alter his strength involuntary, it still didn't alter the fact that Seth felt the blow, evidenced by the grunt that escaped his lips, which in turn caused him to let go of his opponent. Naturally, with the complicity of said individual.

Otherwise, there was no way he would be able to punch his downed foe.

Lightning crackled around Thor's fist, returning with it the slight grin that had disappeared at the previous trickery. Unceremoniously, he brought it down faster than anyone could blink.

It would have certainly been a success... were he not used to such things from his version from another world.

At the same time that Thor's arm began its descent, Seth's own was already moving equally fast; as if he had seen this movie already and knew how it was going to play out.

The Storm God didn't coat his fist with any of his Authorities, knowing that any reaction with Thor's lightning could make things worse, but he did apply more force than he previously did with his knee.

His aim was true. An impressive feat considering the narrow window for success in both time and space. Seth struck his former friend in the forearm with enough force to deviate the trajectory, managing to make the redhead miss his head by only a few centimeters.

The following sound was like hearing a meteorite impact the ground, but at least it wasn't one of his bones breaking apart. That wasn't to say that all damage was avoided, though. Thor's punch was still something purely destructive in nature, more so after being coated in lightning.

Seth might have avoided having his head caved in, but some of the residual lightning still managed to graze his cheek, cutting into his skin and drawing blood in consequence, not to mention the stinging and burning feeling.

Nevertheless, the black-haired man was aware that he couldn't stop for even a moment to contemplate if he was or was not injured and if those injuries were light or not.

That was why he didn't hesitate in kicking Thor's in the stomach with enough force to get him off of him, making the Thunder God 'levitate' for a moment before a white beam collided with his form, sending him a good distance away from Seth, who looked back from the corner of his eyes to see Khronos with folded arms and a giant clock behind his back, as well as numerous small pocket watches orbiting around him.

"It was about time you did something other than stare at our fight." His tone was accusatory; his gaze unamused. Yet, even so, one with keen observations skills would be able to detect that the Lord of the Desert held little to no expectations for his kin.

"I just wanted to see a good performance. Please don't hold me to it. Besides, I have full trust you will not get killed easily." That was a lie if he ever heard one, but at this point in time, he didn't have the leeway to care.

He had to focus on his battle with Thor, so distractions that weren't worth it instantly became meaningless. Speaking of which, he would admit that he was having an easier time than he initially thought.

Though his mind was still a little out of it, his body responded all the same. He never thought all the mock battles he did with him in the past would come in handy at a time like this. Maybe taking the current fight as a sort of spar with high stakes would be helpful to keep up.

As naive as it sounded, he wanted to win without having to actually assassinate Thor. That didn't mean he wanted to resolve everything in a pacifist way, because he knew it was impossible.

He was a God of Death. He WAS Death. The concept existed in his pantheon only because he killed his brother. Unfortunately, Seth didn't possess the corresponding Authority. His job involved guiding souls to the afterlife and nothing more. If Thor wanted it, he would be able to do it, but forcing the soul to do something it didn't want to was another matter entirely.

If he had the Authority, he would be able to return the Thunder God back to where he came from. His Golden Necropolis was the only thing that could manage that since it was a representation of his feat of creating the concept itself. Unfortunately, the requirements made it impossible. The most glaring one is the necessity of ruins for it to rise. Theoretically, it was possible to achieve it, but that would demand destroying London, which would make the effort to trap the redhead here to prevent any collateral damage to their surrounding be a pointless endeavor.

He was with his back against the wall, and he didn't have the time to come up with a solution. He couldn't do it before with time to spare, much less he would be able to now that he had to pay attention in case his life was threatened.

'Hah... Sometimes I find that having a conscience, no matter how little, can be pretty annoying.' Being able to count the number of friends in his more than two hundred thousand years of life with the fingers of one hand didn't help either.

Seth released an imperceptible sigh as he watched the Æsir God get up as if nothing had happened; 'dusting' the place where Khronos had hit him before as if it was nothing of note. If it was because the previous attack was weak, or his defense was absurdly high, only the redhead knew.

"Is that all?" For the first time since their encounter, Thor spoke. His voice was low, soft, and concise, with a tone resembling sadness, yet also not conveying that emotion at all. What was present, though, was a sense of disappointment. No doubt he expected more.

"Don't get cocky, you drunkard. We are just getting started." The insult came as a surprise to Asterios, who had never heard his Master insult an opponent before, but what confused him was that it didn't seem to have any intent behind it, being seemingly words said to the nothing more than the opponent himself.

The Kingslayer first exhaled, relaxing completely. Secondly, he inhaled deeply until he couldn't do it anymore. And then, finally, before the perplexed look of Thor, he released his breath in the form of a torrent of green mist in his direction.

Seeing the incoming attack, Thor's face immediately changed to one bordering irritation. In part because they were using something that killed him during his life, and also because they were underestimating him if they thought this would pose trouble for him.

He was not afraid of the flamethrower-like attack, nor did it evoke a sense of trauma to prevent him from dealing with it. Once again, his hands protected by two black gloves were coated in lightning. He arched his posture forward with one arm close to his chest and the other extended back.

Without hesitation, as time didn't allow him to, he began to spin to the point where his figure became nothing more than a blur with some recognizable colors like the red of his hair.

His actions, though strange, were able to create a sort of lightning tornado that was easily repelling the poisonous mist, making the black-haired man's effort seem like a joke—which was what honestly Thor took them as.

The proof of that became apparent when after ceasing his movements, what remained of the previous attack was just a dispersing fog, not even being able to stay on the field enough to cause troubles in the long run.

Yet, just as he was about to voice his dissatisfaction, he noticed a single spark fly by the corner of his vision, which quickly made his eyes widen. He wanted to vociferate a curse right at that instant, yet his enemy was faster on the uptake.

"Burn." Those were the last words he heard before his whole surrounding combusted into an explosion that mercilessly engulfed his whole world with a defining sound.

Boom!

Khronos, Asterios, and Seth watched the chain reaction of the blast that filled their vision with serious looks. The Labyrinth was quaking incessantly, but they didn't bother paying attention to it. They were more focused on the aftermath, something that would be revealed to them soon.

After the initial burst, all that was left in their sights was smoke and more smoke. That was until they saw a figure exit the residual cloud in a burst of speed.

Berserker, already expecting something like this, swiftly got in the way with both axes in an 'x' shape, ready to act as a shield. However, despite using his Monstrous Strength A, his defenses meant nothing to the charging God. After a resounding sound when Thor's fist collided with Asterios' weapons, the Minotaur began to be pushed back, even going as far as from lifting him off the ground. If he didn't do something soon, he would be sent flying for sure.

Knowing it wouldn't be enough, he also used his Natural Demon A++ Skill. It was something he didn't like using since it reminded him of his darker times in his prison, but protecting his Master took priority over his own feelings.

With the additional boost in his Parameters of Strength and Endurance his second Skill gave him, Asterios was finally able to stop the charge. Even so, the boost he obtained was temporary, and he couldn't use his Skills in quick succession just because he had an almost unlimited supply of Magical Energy coming from his Master—something that was already being used in reinforcing the Labyrinth.

Much to his worry, though, the red-haired God didn't seem to be bothered by his intervention. In fact, his smile told something completely different. Now it was his time to widen his eyes. He had made a mistake and realized it too late.

He might not be the brightest Servant out there, but he knew some basic things, especially the ones that concerned his weaknesses. And there was one thing that stood out the most after those possessing the characteristics of Monster Slayers, and it was that electricity was something terrible considering his choice of weapon.

...And he would soon know why.

"Gahhh!" A howl of pain escaped his mouth as his body convulsed like it was having a seizure. Lightning, but not just any, Divine Lightning was coursing from Thor's now ragged gloves to his axes and then to him in consequence. He wanted to let go, but his muscles weren't responding. In fact, they seemed to be holding on even more tightly.

The screams were like the finest song of the most beautiful woman to the Æsir God. Nevertheless, that beautiful melody didn't distract him from the overall situation on the battlefield. That's why he wasn't surprised nor alarmed when the black-haired God appeared on his back, ready to launch a sneak attack.

A punch that was going to his head was easily grabbed by his right hand. He then used a burst of power on his left one that was keeping the beast in place, sending him flying into a wall. Not happy with just that, Thor then swung down his fellow God onto the ground.

The surprise did come, however, when, before crashing, the black-haired man used his free arm to support his weight on the white floor, creating some cracks on it due to the weight behind his swing.

He wasn't finished, though, as, in an odd display of dexterity, he grabbed Thor's head with his legs in a semi-triangle choke before rotating the palm supporting his whole body along with his torso, lifting the Thunder God up, and finally ending with him slamming the redhead's back into the ground.

But again, as if it was a cruel joke from fate, the downed warrior, who had released his hold over the black-haired man's wrists, now was holding onto his ankle.

'Tenacious basta—' Seth didn't even have time to curse in his mind before being thrown away like a ragdoll in the same direction Asterios had been.

With nothing on the way now, though, Khronos could freely attack without having to mind hurting his temporary allies.

After getting up, Thor found himself surrounded by numerous clocks tick-tocking like bombs ready to blow up. The hands on the clocks were moving fast, and when they got to the 'XII' symbol, they all released a blinding light before shooting a bombardment of beams at his position.

Naturally, he wouldn't just stay still and wait for them to hit him. Unfortunately for the hammer wielder, that decision was not up to him.

Just when he thought about dodging, he found his body not responding to him. No, it wasn't quite that. It was responding, but it was way slower than usual, so much so that he felt like he was not moving at all.

And so, without being able to do much, multiple beams rained upon him, creating a flurry of blasts and making the Labyrinth tremble once again.

Khronos pushed his glasses up slightly while closing his eyes. 'Too easy. Too easy.'

A big mistake.

The next thing he knew, an elbow was colliding with his face, making him crash against one of the pillars surrounding them.

"You annoying rat." Those were the only words he left to the white-haired God. It was true that Time was annoying to deal with if it had something to hold onto, but Lightning only existed for a moment.

Before the attack hit him, he coated his whole body in it. Since that time stop was affecting only his body and not the area around him, when he gained an 'armor' he became immune for a fraction of a second, but that was enough to avoid the barrage of beams completely.

"What happened? Don't tell me this is your level. Hunting you won't be fine if it is." Now that he was in a state of stillness, the state of his body could be seen properly, and it didn't spell good news for the trio. Aside from some minor scorched marks and some damage to his clothes, he was in the same state as when the fight began.

If they wanted to triumph, there was no other way than to step up their game.