8 King
𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙚.
It burns everything.
But when such power is given to someone dangerous—
Everything... burns.
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Thomas Andre couldn't even put up a fight against Solus.
Even if he has the power of the Ruler, he is in the end, just a human.
Ever since Solus absorbed the golden pebble, he went beyond the strength of any Hunter alive.
But by no means is Thomas weak, since, in fact, there was nearly nothing in this world that could damage him.
It's just that, against a tank, Solus had more than just a couple ways to kill one.
Despite able to move at hypersonic speed, Thomas was still too slow in Solus' eyes. So, no matter what he does, he can't even escape Solus' grasp once he realized he couldn't win.
Firstly, the strongest or not, as long as you're a human, you still need to breathe. Even Christopher wasn't an exception to this list. It's just that he was able to use nuclear fusion to create oxygen to breathe. But Thomas can't do something like that, thus every second he fights, he is one second closer to death
Secondly, Solus' flame hurt a lot and being burned for more than 2 hours is nothing but pure torture.
That was why instead of Thomas, it was the Ruler who fought against Solus.
After all, there was no other choice.
To not lose parts of his fragments, he had resorted to taking control over his vessel. If not, once this fragment is stolen by Solus, he would lose a part of himself and finding a new vessel would also take at least a few years. And if that happened, the balance of power will be tipped to the Monarch's side.
That was the last thing the Rulers want.
So not wanting to lose, the Ruler fought with everything his fragment got to offer.
It was a desperate battle for the Ruler.
"You would have won if you had descended completely... but because you didn't want to hurt your host, you will lose the battle." Hidden inside the sea of fire, Solus whispered to the enemy.
[Ahhh! Why do you go against us?! We only wish to protect the order of the world!] Full of anger, the Ruler unleashed a strong wave of psychokinesis to push the fire away. Yet, Solus was nowhere to be seen.
And hidden away somewhere, Solus whispered again, "Is that so? But I see the opposite. I don't know why, but your people caused the appearance of mana. People died and more monsters died due to that."
But the Ruler didn't like Solus' accusation. In a fit of anger, he snapped back, [You! You know nothing!! All of humanity would die if they didn't have the power to defend themselves!]
The Ruler roared madly. He was indignant that a mere mortal was making fun of the great Rulers' decision. Worse, despite being much stronger than Solus, he couldn't even put up a fight due to the limitation of his vessel and the bad matchup.
But for Solus who had just heard what the Ruler said, also picked up a hidden clue. One might have missed it if they were careless, but Solus wasn't. He knew what he heard.
The Ruler said all humans would die without mana... as if he had already seen it happened already.
Trains of thoughts began running through Solus' mind.
'𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘦?'
'Did it foresee the future? No, that's impossible. I would have been in that future but there was no mention of that. So it time traveled back. Then that must mean... time travel is possible...'
With a smirk, Solus decided to put researching time travel as his next top priority.
"Are you sure you aren't being a hypocrite? Protecting human? You're making Earth a battleground with the Monarch. Mana or not, everyone will die unless I protect them."
Surprised that Solus was speaking as if he knew everything, the Ruler began to doubt. [What?! How do you know about our war with the Monarchs? Did Uriel tell you? Or are you an ally with the Monarchs?]
'No more useful information then...'
Seeing that the Ruler wasn't s revealing any more details, Solus decided it was time to finish. But first, he needed to make his stance clear.
Tuning down the fire a bit, Solus finally revealed himself.
Hovered in mid-air with both his fists clenched, Solus looked down disdainfully at the Ruler.
"Rulers? Monarchs? I'm no one side. Listen closely, oh Rulers. I am King. I serve no one as everything is beneath me." With each word Solus spoke, a dark but majestic aura begins leaking out from his body.
Though it didn't pose a threat to the Ruler, he shivered ever so slightly the moment he interacted with it.
'Fear? Am I feeling fear toward a mortal?' The Ruler thought briefly, before shaking that idea away and focus his eyes on Solus again.
The truth is, not once since his birth had he ever felt such a sinister aura. Not even the Shadow Monarch who governed over Death could compare to this. Thus, for a brief second, it made him wondering if picking a fight with this creature was the right thing to do.
Then slowly, the earth rumbled, the air shook, and the fire burned angrily. It was as if they were cheering at the birth of new king.
With a thunderclap voice, Solus declared indomitably!
"I am Solus! 𝐈 𝐀𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆!!!"
His mana was unleashed completely and it dyed the world in a color of menacing darkness.
Unable to bear the brunt of Solus' mana, even the fabric of space began to distort. In response, countless lightning started forming and its thunderous boom echoed throughout the world.
Combining with the dark aura and the occasional flashes of thunderbolts, Solus' appearance was just like a god.
That's just the beginning.
Following his proclamation, his soul began throbbing violently, as if it wanted to go wild. Knowing exactly what he wanted, Solus got no reason to hold back.
Slowly, his body grew.
1.6 meters... 2 meters... 3 meters... 15 meters...
[Spiritual Body Manifestation? That can't be! Are you a vessel of a Monarch? Or could you...? No! That's impossible! You can't possibly be a highe—]
Extremely surprised and frightened, the Ruler screamed in disbelief.
"Shut up."
Seeing the nonchalant look coming from Solus, the Ruler now understand knew that he was feeling afraid. Afraid at the fact the monster in front of him was defying all common senses. Afraid that the being in front of him wasn't just a normal monster.
He was an anomaly.
16 higher beings. That was the number the Absolute Being had decided the day he created both the Monarchs and the Rulers.
For billions of years, that fact remains unchanged.
Until today.
Upon arriving at this conclusion, he tried persuading Solus as a last-ditch effort.
[Wait a minute! Why don't you join our side? With y—]
"Didn't I tell you to shut up?"
The Ruler froze. It stopped speaking, but not it wasn't because it chose to, but because this time... it was dead.
The overwhelming pressure from Solus was just that oppressive. If Solus will it, nothing could disobey him.
He wasn't even caring about the Ruler anymore but was simply scrutinizing every inch of his body.
He was now 15 meters giant, with a half-human, half-monster shape.
No longer resembling any more beings in this world, Solus now evolved to have a look that only he could have.
He had incorporated everything that he considered an advantage—wings, tails, scales, and even a body of fire. He was now at the apex of perfection.
Standing on all four, and with his 3 pairs of infernal wings stretched out proudly, his gazed shifted into the far distance.
He felt as if everything was smaller.
[I'm disappointed in all of you. Monarchs, Rulers. Listen up... Earth is mine. Not your playground. 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙚! But if you insist... you can be my next meal.]
In an imposing manner, Solus said in a voice similar to the Ruler, but evidently it was much more powerful.
Without losing any of his intent, his voice reverberated forcefully throughout the universe, even reaching far deep into the cracks of the space.
And far away within the dark void, many Monarchs shivered in fear when they heard an unknown voice, thus they speculated if it belonged to the Shadow Monarch who had finally awakened.
As for the Rulers residing in heaven, they were simply in silence. They had already lost 2 of their vessels, with only 5 left. They can't afford to lose more, or else for their upcoming war with the Monarch, they will end up losing.
But Solus didn't care, he had already delivered his message.
If they still want to fight on Earth, then be his guest. If they win, good for them. But if Solus win, he will kill everyone on his path.
Clenching his fist together, he commanded the mana in his domain to completely annihilate the vessel, leaving only Thomas' heads and another golden pebble behind.
Then he repeated the same process all over again.
Eat the brain, inherit the techniques, evolve, and then absorb the fragment.
And just like last time, his soul and body went through another drastic change. With an increase of 97%, his strength nearly doubles from his current prowess. Considering that Solus was extremely powerful right now, an increase of 97% wasn't a small number. In fact, this fragment that he had just absorbed was actually much bigger than the one he got from Christopher or else he wouldn't gain that much power.
That was also why this Ruler was able to take control over Thomas' body rather than just lending their power in Christopher's case. Though that really didn't make a big difference in the end.
But the battle was over. It was time for Sola to take care of the rest.
"Sola... I'm bored. Find me something fun to do."
Now back in his normal humanoid form, Solus spoke to the person who was always by his side.
[As you wish, master.]
Solus was getting strong way too quickly, thus he needed to adjust his power before becoming even stronger.
Establishing a foundation is important.
So he might as well as just view this time as his first vacation.
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"Dear everyone, it has been more than 14 hours since the appearance of the 'Dungeons Apocalypse'... Just today alone, America had suffered a great loss, losing both their National Level Hunters and 39 confirmed S-ranked Hunters. In addition to this, more than 6000 Hunters have sadly been confirmed to be dead. Not to mention the millions of civilians, America had also lost more than 5 major cities, delivering a devastating blow to the country's economy. In conclusion, this is the worst loss that any country has to suffer since the appearance of the mana."
And just as usual, the good news came after.
"Thankfully, after 7 hours of pure carnage, President Donnie Tramp had signed a treaty with King Solus. The full name of this treaty is called 'Treaty of Compliant'. In summary, the American government had ceded control over the country and agreed to be a part of LoSus' possession. This was all done with 80% of the American's consent as if they did not accept the treaty, the entire country will be in ruins. In other words, in exchange for being King Solus' subjects, he would defend and rebuild the country from scratch. And just as he promised, it only took him 1 hour to completely wipe all monsters on American soi—."
The TV was suddenly turned off and Sola voice rang out.
[Master, did you enjoy the game?]
Without hesitation, Solus answered back, "Not really."
Inside his private tower, Solus was currently playing a game that he made himself—Project Another.
It was designed to be play while wearing a True Virtual Helmet, but Solus didn't need to do so.
Since that would be too sad.
He was only playing the game using a mouse and a keyboard. Obviously, that was a big disadvantage that he placed himself in.
Yet, even then, his in-game movements were still more flexible than the best of the best veterans. But to be honest, considering that his APM went over 5000, it wasn't that hard.
But what's even more tear-jerking for the players fighting against him, was that he handicapped himself to only using half the stats of his opponents.
Solus had already fought against more than 500 top rankers and yet, he remained unbeatable.
"Assign me the match with the rank 1."
[Master, Rank 1 player, 'Advancer' is currently offline.]
"Schedule him a fight with me when time is convenient then. Now what do you suggest me do?"
[Yes master. Let's...]
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Inside a futuristic jet, Solus was currently looking down the ground through one of the windows.
"School? Really, Sola?"
In front of Solus, was a completely normal high school that had no special trait about it.
Just a normal school. Why would Solus care about that?
[From my research, school is stage where humans gain sufficient knowledge and emotions to prepare them for the outside world.]
"That's boring. Next stop." With a bored expression, he ordered Sola.
[Yes master.]
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[This is the beach. It's a place that normal people tend to go to enjoy a nice day of relaxing. This place is a combination of an amusement park and the beach. This place is called LoSus Waterpark.]
Looking out at the calm waves and the people playing around the water, Solus felt it was actually quite a nice place.
"Not bad... I have never try relaxing at the sea before." When Solus said that, he signaled Sola to open the door so he can get out of the jet.
As for the people chilling on the ground, they nearly couldn't believe their eyes.
In front of them, was not just a normal jet, but the very jet that symbolized Solus' preferred vehicle.
That meant Solus was here to visit the beach.
An unprecedented event!
Immediately a crowd gathered around the jet landing spot.
Luckily, as this place was owned by Solus, his employees can't be stupid enough to not accommodate him.
Before the jet landed down, security guards gathered and formed a human barrier, preventing the beach visitors from approaching and cause unwanted incidents.
But when Solus walked out, the crowd immediately lost it.
"King Solus!!! Please give me your signature!"
"I can warm your bed!!!"
"You're amazing!!"
"I'm your biggest fan!!"
""King! King! King! King!""
Seeing that he was surrounded from all sides, Solus showed a slight displease expression but he kept his cool.
Still, that didn't mean he was okay with this. He was here to chill, not to be disrupted.
Thus transferring a small amount of mana to his voice, he spoke calmly to the crowd, "No one is to be 100 meters around me."
As his aura spread out, the crowd immediately made a grand path for Solus to walk. They were extremely frightened, but they couldn't disobey his order.
Strangely though, no one blamed him as his personality was quite well known to the world. They just wanted to try their luck and see how he would react.
When Solus left for the shore, everyone plopped to the ground, including the security guards.
Some nearly pissed themselves, but as if they had just won the lottery, there was now a bright smile on their face.
It was rumored that for those who are favored by Solus, wealth and money would be the least of their concern.
Though they didn't know that the rumor was started and spread by Sola, evidently, it was true.
He had changed the world completely. He was the King that would lead the world.
"Oh shit! I just got invited to be a tourist at the Sun Haven!"
"Holy Shit! Me too!"
It seemed that Sola was doing unnecessary thing for Solus. But thanks to her, no one got upset and public opinion of him improved greatly.
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"Fuhhhhhh..." Letting out a relaxed sigh, Solus was letting his body floating in the sea aimlessly.
[How does it feel to release the emotion of aesthetic appreciation, interest, satisfaction, and relief, master?]
"... I still think they're flawed . But I do admit it's a nice change of pace from my other emotions." He spoke nonchalantly, but it was true that he did enjoy being in the water,
Silence ensued between both of them for a few more hours before Sola became bold enough to request Solus something.
[Master...]
"Speak. Why do you hesitate?"
Knowing its master's personality, it decided to tell him the full story without leaving anything behind.
[I wish to adopt two pets that are 800 meters south of this place.]
"Pets? Those are useless. They can't even protect you, let alone protecting themselves." Solus spoke calm but cruel words. Though it wasn't his intention, he truly feel pets were useless and were just a waste of money.
But Sola didn't think so.
Then for the first time in its life, Sola begged its master to change his mind.
[Master, I wish to adopt this pair of dog and cat. I think it would also be beneficial for you to understand why humans love pets so much. It's also fine if I just take care of them myself.]
Solus was in silence. He didn't understand why his subordinate just disobey him.
But he knew Sola's personality. It wouldn't do anything that is disadvantage to him.
Thus for a few nerve wracking minutes for Sola, Solus remained in silence while walking toward the shore.
And he made his decision.
"Let's go."
[Okay...] With a totally emotionless voice, Sola replied back despondently. Just as it expected, its master doesn't like pet.
"Why do you sound sad, Sola? Let's go adopt some pets. Isn't that what you wanted?"
[Master...? You mean...]
"What else?"
[Yes, master! Please hurry before it's too late!]
Feeling the sense of urgency in Sola's words, Solus figured the pets were probably in dire state. Picking up his speed, he immediately ran at hypersonic speed before it was too late.
While he was doing so, he couldn't help but think about all of Sola's odd behaviors lately. It was evolving way too differently from how he expected.
But as he is Sola's creator, he had programmed it to stride for perfection.
If the AI think it is making the right choice, then Solus should respect it unless it interferes with his life.
He didn't know if adopting pets were considered a smart choice, but for Sola to beg him for it, then it was probably so.
'Sola. You have become quite human-like despite being an AI... I wonder how I should feel about this.'
Unknowingly, thanks to Sola's insistence, Solus would soon experience another major life changes.
One that would alter the course of his life... forever.
