Let's Hug and Fly Together!

Cien saw Asmodeus approaching with a long sword made of mana.

"CIEENNNN!!!"

"Uh, sorry… But, do I know you?"

Cien hesitated, running backward while occasionally shooting his magic arrows. Explosions occurred one after another.

However, Asmodeus easily dealt with them. Cien became despondent because his arrows had no effect.

But honestly, he was slightly surprised because one misfired shot that just a regular Hellteak arrow had managed to injure the demon's eye.

So, Cien retrieved a regular Hellteak arrow. He shot it towards Asmodeus, but it was easily blocked by the black mana sword.

"...well, of course."

Swoosh!

"!"

Asmodeus instantly closed in. He thrust his sword, but Cien managed to evade at the last second.

Cien leaped to the side, once again grabbing a regular arrow and swiftly shooting it while running around Asmodeus.

Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!

Two arrows missed the demon, but the third one struck Asmodeus's thigh.

"Arrgh! How can this hurt?"

"...?"

Cien didn't understand what the demon meant.

All he knew at the moment was that he had only three arrows left. Two regular arrows and one poisoned arrow.

'The poison won't affect Asmodeus.'

Cien thought to himself as he moved away, but the demon quickly chased after him.

Asmodeus successfully caught up to Cien, then gripped his neck, intending to burn Cien.

"Aaargh!"

With all his strength, Cien grabbed an arrow from his quiver and plunged it into the demon's neck, causing it to grimace in pain. Cien fell to the ground, coughing.

"You!!!" Asmodeus growled.

"Yes, me! So what?! Why are you so angry with me?!" Cien retorted.

Swing! Swoosh!

Asmodeus attacked again with his sword, unleashing several magical spells aimed at Cien. Strangely, none of these attacks could reach the man with the large wooden box.

This only served to infuriate Asmodeus further.

Cien began to grow tired, not just because of Asmodeus but also due to the never-ending sandstorm.

He fired his last two arrows, but unfortunately it flew off into a different direction.

"..."

Feeling stupid, he discarded his bow and swiftly moved to avoid Asmodeus' attack—a blast of black dragon fire.

It was massive and terrifying.

Cien, who panicked, tried to run away, but the dragon's mouth was already behind him.

A split second before the dragon could devour Cien, a large sand wall successfully protected him.

"Haa... haa... haa... I thought I was going to die."

"Cough!"

Cien turned to his side and saw a dying young man lying not far from him. The young man continued to cough up blood.

"Are you alright?"

"No! But I can't die yet!"

The determined young man began reciting a high-level magic incantation. Suddenly, a large magic circle appeared on the surface of the sand.

Cien, observing this, estimated that the magic might be Rank 10 or even higher.

Cien looked back at the man beside him, realizing that he was Prince Hanibal.

'Hmm, he will die if he uses this magic. His body won't be able to handle it.'

Cien approached then kicked the young man's face, interrupting his incantation process midway.

Bak!

"Cough! What are you doing?!"

"Saving your life."

"Are you insane?! Asmodeus will kill everyone!"

"You are still needed, Hanibal. As for dealing with Asmodeus, I can't kill him, but I will banish him from Mandora. This will buy you time to prepare for another confrontation with him in the future."

"... What are you talking about?"

Cien just smiled without replying. He then looked at Asmodeus, who seemed frustrated as his attack failed again.

"You damn monster."

Cien activated all the Mana Cores in his left glove, preparing a Rank 10 magic spell.

A large red magic circle instantly appeared, aiming at Asmodeus. Both the demon and Hanibal were taken aback.

"[Tongue of Fire.]"

SWOOOSH!

A gigantic flames gushed towards the Demon General.

The massive flames merged with the swirling sandstorm, creating a terrifying scene resembling a painting of doomsday.

Though the sight of the attack was terrifying, Cien was sure that Asmodeus wouldn't die from it.

"Spear."

Cien said as he tapped the coffin.

A slender hand emerged, throwing a spear.

"!"

Cien, being experienced in such situations, leaped and caught the spear mid-air, before it flew off because of the storm.

"Can't you just stop throwing them?"

"No! The sand. Get in. It's horrible."

"..."

Cien then turned towards Hanibal. "Can you stop this sandstorm? Do you realize how annoying this is?!"

"...this is not me."

"Eh? I don't think Asmodeus has Sand Magic."

"This is a natural phenomenon."

"...oh, well of course. Sigh, damn!"

Cien turned back to Asmodeus, who had managed to defend against his attack. And yes, the demon was completely unharmed.

"I hope this is the last time I face a monster like him. Lily, get ready! We're going to fly!"

"Hm. How?"

Cien didn't answer, he immediately sprinted towards Asmodeus, who seemed to have started reciting an incantation again.

For Cien, the Demon General was still not serious in the fight.

Asmodeus was still fighting using only magic. However, based on what he saw in his status, Asmodeus was most skilled in close combat.

As long as Asmodeus underestimated his opponents, this was the perfect time for Cien to take him away from Mandora.

Before Asmodeus could finish his incantation, Cien intended to disrupt it.

"[Dragon Might]."

ROARRR!

The roar of a dragon instantly echoed, leaving everyone who heard it stunned. Including Asmodeus, who was halted in his incantation due to the stun effect.

"What is this?!"

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Cien moved closer, "Yo, HELA! I know you're watching! I won't use my powers to escape from here! I will die!"

Cien approached Asmodeus and leaped, thrusting his spear towards the still petrified Asmodeus.

"Queen of Blood, [Drain]!"

Stab!

The spear successfully pierced Asmodeus's chest and began sucking the demon's blood.

However, just a few seconds later, the Demon General managed to break free from the stun.

Asmodeus pulled out the Crimsonagin from his chest and yanked it, causing Cien to be pulled along, then he choked the human again.

"That's enough of your games, Cien..."

"Argh, hehe… it's intriguing how my name can be remembered by you."

Bak!

Asmodeus kicked Cien, sending him flying far away.

"Cough! Haa... haaa... are you okay, Lily?"

"Fine. But. Dizzy."

Cien then looked up, seeing Asmodeus in front of him.

Cien smiled, gripping Crimsonagin tightly. He was attempting to call Hela again, a gamble he had to win.

"Hela! Seems like you're about to lose your only entertainment!"

Cien's words made Asmodeus frown.

"Who are you talking to?"

"Heh, an absolute figure," he smirked.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Suddenly, the sound of metal scraping resonated throughout the battlefield.

No, it wasn't the sound of metal scraping, but chains!

The sound of chains could be heard almost all over Kastia, where a long chain stretched across the sky from Death Valley to Cien's location.

A chain rooted in Cien's heart became visible, connected to the chain seemingly bound to the sky.

Asmodeus, who witnessed the sudden appearance of the chain, was startled.

His body instantly trembled at the sight of the chain. It was a black chain with a dense aura of Death.

The dreadful presence he had felt from Cien before in the auction, now he knew where it came from.

'The chains!'

"I knew you were there," Cien murmured, receiving an unexpected response.

<How dare you command me, human!>

"!"

Cien was shocked to hear the firm voice of a mature woman inside his mind.

From the tone of her voice, there was an undeniable authority that made Cien tremble upon hearing it.

<Just this once. I will save that little life of yours.>

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The sound of the chain reverberated through the sky again. Cien suddenly felt pulled by the chain connected to him.

"Thank you, Hela."

Cien uttered, immediately thrusting his spear back into Asmodeus' heart.

This time, Cien even tightly hugged the demon so they could fly together.

"What are you doing?!"

"Just shut up! We will leave from here. Together!"

"Do you think you can do that?!"

"No. But she can."

Cien said, as the aura of Hela in the chains began to emanate, causing Asmodeus to feel suffocated and weak.

He wanted to unleash his power, but all the magic within him seemed sealed.

"This! What's happening? What have you done?!"

"Not me. It's Hela. You, as demons, should know about her."

"!!!"

Asmodeus immediately understood what was happening. The eerie presence of Cien, the aura that weakened him, the terrifying chains in the sky.

Everything was the result of Hela's power, the Cataclysmic Dragon.

The dragon that said it served as the source of all black magic.

"This is impossible. Hela has long been gone, only remnants of her energy exist in this world! No! Her existence itself should be already forgotten by now!"

"Hahaha! I hope so too."

"You—"

Swooosh!

Suddenly, Cien was pulled by the chains hanging from the sky.

With great speed, Cien flew swiftly while carrying Asmodeus in his embrace.

"Aaaaaaaa!!!"

Cien was drawn to the sky and directed towards Death Valley in the northwest of Kastia.

The flying speed was incredibly fast, making Cien feel like they had exceeded the speed of sound.

Who knows? maybe it was just his perception.

One thing was certain, though; Cien started to feel nauseous as everything blurred before his eyes, and his stomach churned like it was in a mixer.

Amidst the flight, Cien glanced below and saw nothing but a sea of clouds. He continued to gaze at the clouds, wondering where he was now.

When the white sea of clouds vanished, revealing a dark and ominous land, Cien knew that beneath him lay the Abyss.

With his energy depleted and the air thinning, Cien let go of his embrace, causing the weakened Asmodeus to fall from thousands of meters in the sky.

"YOU BASTARDDDDDDD!"

Cien could hear Asmodeus' cursing shout.

Cien chuckled, then invoked the magic spell in his right Fire Glove.

Once again, a large red magic circle appeared in the sky.

Asmodeus, who was falling and struggling to regain control over himself as the influence of Hela began to fade, had yet to regain control over his mana.

Before the Demon General could succeed, the large magical circle emerged and unleashed a gigantic burst of fire towards him.

Without a way to defend himself, Asmodeus was consumed by the flames.

What became of the Demon General? Whether lived or died, was unknown at this moment.

He should be dead.

However, Cien was certain that the Demon General couldn't die so easily.

Besides, Cien could check on him through his cellphone's friend list.

Well, it has to wait though. After they (Cien and Lilinette) landed safely.

That is… If they survived! Cien began to doubt… he glanced to the ground, thousand of meters below.

'Gulp! So high…'

.

.

.

"Aaaaaaaaah!"

Swooosh!

And so, Cien's journey in Ashur came to an end.