Death Art

Grey looked at the demon, now transformed. His enormous body was covered in black scales, radiating immense power.

With the slightest movement, he caused ripples in space, making the surroundings tremble.

His four wings looked majestic, and a dark ring appeared above his forehead, adding to his magnificence.

If Grey didn't know this man, he would have thought he was the king of fallen angels.

Damien was one of the few fallen angels with an innate and very dangerous ability.

Damien raised the fearsome spear in his hand, lifting it high into the sky as he declared, "The descent of the devil."

A beam of darkness erupted from the tip of the spear, reaching the heavens. A hole appeared in the sky, dark clouds swirling around it like a whirlpool.

The hole grew larger, and a colossal spear, held by a massive black and purple hand, emerged from it.

Thunder rumbled across the sky. Everyone watched the scene with bated breath.

Grey also looked on, feeling the overwhelming power emanating from above.

"Now, you ant, it's time for you to die," Damien said, targeting Grey with his fearsome skill.

Grey flew into the sky, his expression now serious, a stark contrast to his previous demeanor.

For the first time, Grey was about to unleash his full power. He wondered what the outcome would be.

Am I strong? he asked himself. Yes! he affirmed. He had trained endlessly so that no one in this world could stand in his way or toy with him.

Suspended in the air, his feet anchored to space itself, he utilized the space element and its laws.

His hand moved to his katana, gripping the hilt firmly as he took a stance. A ripple spread out like a stone dropped in still water, mesmerizing everyone who witnessed it.

A burst of aura emanated from Grey. It was the aura of his weapon, his katana.

The aura was so sharp that everyone felt as if a sword was pressed against their necks.

Damien, Aira, and Selene were so shocked that they momentarily forgot about Damien's skill and stared at Grey as if he were a precious diamond.

"T-that is s-sword aura!" Damien stammered in disbelief.

Selene and Aira, who were standing far away, heard him and snapped out of their shock.

"How, Selene? Is that really sword aura?" Aira asked, amazed and confused.

"I don't know how, but yes, it's sword aura," Selene replied, equally amazed.

"But is he really 7 years old, or was I fooled by him?" Aira asked, her voice tinged with sadness.

Selene nodded firmly. "He is 7. I'm sure of it," she said with confidence. 'My system confirms it. Grey couldn't hide anything from it.' she said in her mind.

Aira looked at Selene with a serious gaze. "If he's really 7, as you said, then he's immensely talented. Maybe one of the few," she said.

"Not only that, he's also great at magic, and his understanding of laws is not inferior to that of the best," Selene replied.

"Hmm, no, I think Grey is even better," Aira said thoughtfully. "Maybe he'll be among the greatest in six years."

"Maybe," Selene agreed, glancing towards Damien, one of the generals of the younger generation of fallen angels, like her.

Damien was panicking, not because Grey had become powerful, but because he was able to use weapon aura—something Damien hadn't mastered in over 200 years. Despite being considered a genius in spearmanship, he was bested by a 7-year-old kid. A mere mortal, a human. How could that ant be better than him?

"I have to end him," Damien muttered under his breath, filled with madness and hostility toward Grey.

He now truly wanted to kill Grey.

"I have to remove the restriction device," Damien said, his voice tinged with insanity. "Lord, I am willing to be punished. I have disobeyed your command," he continued, muttering.

He moved his hand and pierced his stomach. Blood splattered on the ground, dark and evil. He withdrew his hand, holding a glowing white orb.

Using a spell on his belly, a dark glow covered the wound, healing it. He crushed the orb, releasing a powerful energy from his body. More darkness and evil energy started to emanate from him. Everyone nearby ran as the black energy filled with evil approached them.

"This..." Aira said, retreating with Selene, increasing the distance between them and the battle.

"He's losing his senses to evil," Aira said with concern.

"That worthless piece of trash, going insane and subdued by evil just from fighting a kid," Selene said with disgust.

Grey kept his eyes on the massive hand above him, knowing he couldn't afford to be careless. If the hand attacked, he had to be ready to defend himself.

Meanwhile, Damien's transformation completed. The dark, purple, venomous substance now covered his entire body, and his shouts of dread echoed across the battlefield.

Grey steadied himself, focusing on the danger above. The massive hand began to move, descending towards him with dark energy crackling in the air. Grey channeled his power into his katana, ready to face the attack head-on.

The giant hand hurled the terrifying spear at an insane speed.

Grey immediately sprang into action.

"Death Art: Blade Annihilation."

Dark energy swirled around Grey's katana. With unimaginable speed, he slashed through the air.

A slash filled with darkness streaked through the air, moving with insane speed and followed by a shockwave that obliterated everything in its path. The earth, the air, the dust, and particles in the atmosphere all vanished upon contact with the slash.

The spear and the slash collided, forming a huge sphere that enveloped both attacks.

No sound was produced by the collision.

Everyone watched the scene, waiting to see the outcome.

Grey, Aira, Selene, and even Damien—despite being controlled by evil—wanted to see the results.

And what they saw left them speechless.

Nothing happened. After the collision, not even a slight ripple spread.

Things became still again. People couldn't understand what was happening. They had just witnessed two massive, powerful attacks collide, and the result was... nothing?

Aira looked toward Damien and saw his mouth wide open. The intensity of his evil energy increased. He was shocked. What had just happened was beyond his comprehension.

"How many secrets is this kid hiding?" Selene said, shock filling her gaze.

"What happened? Tell me too," Aira pleaded, making a puppy face.

"First, tell me what you think about the collision between the attacks," Selene asked.

"Did they cancel each other out?" Aira replied, confused.

"I thought that at first, but..." Selene paused, choosing her words carefully. "You know, it's very, very rare for two attacks of such power to have similar strength and cancel each other out. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

Aira shook her head.

Selene sighed. "What just happened is that Grey's attack completely obliterated Damien's."

Aira's eyes widened. "What you mean is that all that huge amount of energy just vanished?"

"How did he do that?"

Selene shook her head. "It's because, although Damien is stronger than Grey, he can't compare to him in terms of mana. I think even your father can't compare to him."

"Eh? My father? Are you telling the truth?" Aira asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Yeah, I can't fully explain it, but I believe it," Selene said.

Aira was shocked. How much mana does he have? That was the question lingering in her head.

"But having vast amounts of mana doesn't make him almighty," Selene continued. "His understanding, although very high, is still limited by the restrictions of the world and his own perception of it. When he completely understands himself and his power, then he can be called truly strong in the outside world."

"Only then can he challenge those monsters out there in the mainland."

Selene clenched her hand tightly. "And I will be there, competing with them," she said with determination.

She believed this because she had the system, a power system as she had been told by it.

Damien, who had stopped his mutterings, looked at Grey standing calmly in the air.

"Hahahahaha..." Damien began to laugh, starting softly but growing louder and more maniacal. His laughter was eerie and unhinged.

Grey narrowed his eyes, remaining undaunted.

After a while, Damien stopped laughing. He covered his face with his hand and scratched it with his claws as he gazed toward the sky.

"You have given me this opportunity," he said to the heavens. "You have blessed me. Even though we are no longer what we used to be, you still care for us."

"Heaven, I will gratefully accept this gift and destroy everything!" he declared, spreading his arms wide and laughing maniacally. Suddenly, he disappeared.

"Switch," was the only word heard as Damien vanished from his place.

Aira looked around frantically until she spotted Damien reappearing where Grey had been.

"Shatter," Grey's voice echoed, though he was nowhere to be seen.

Boom!

A massive blast erupted. Damien was caught in Grey's trap, a destructive blast attack created with his magic.

The blast was so strong that it's effect reached miles away.

"Is he dead?" Aira asked Selene, looking for answers whether Damien was alive or not, but Selene remained silent.

Selene was watching everything unfold, but her eyes appeared unfocused. She was staring at an interface in front of her, deep in thought.