Aldrich - ???

Unable to break my eyes away from the Kingdom of Iliya fragmented and broken, a tattered mess of what it once was, I could not help but clench my fist.

Was I not the same? Did I not have everything stolen from me. My wife was torn to shred, my children slaughtered before my eyes, and my Kingdom turned into a hollowed husk. All that made me what I longed to become seemed like a dream that is so close yet so far.

What is the point of life? To know nothing you do is of any relevance. I knew that no matter what I wanted, I could never have it.

Gods, I hate myself. I hate life; I hate death; I hate it all. I just want nothingness.

"Have you zoned out again, my king?" A distant voice said.

Not needing to turn to know it was Soloman, I just stared at the Kingdom, which made my teeth clench, and my heart bleeds, a fury that could only seeth.

"One day at a time," He said, soaring up to me. He said to my rear and gazed out at the Kingdom that devoured life.

Even from here, Iliya seemed so evil. To think that evil bastard still lives here. If the Fool was a powerful being that tricked everyone, then his—

"If I may, my lord, why are you attending Arsene's little gathering?"

"Do you want to go?" I curiously asked, sliding my gaze to meet the archaic eyes of Soloman. Despite being older, than him, he always appeared to be older. But that is to be expected despite his youthful appearance. Solomon's legacy dates back further than I can even remember.

"I'd like to see the Flames of Hellfire." He replied, releasing a joyous laugh.

"Why you're still fascinated by those flames is a mystery to me. Even if you manage to tame those flames, there would be no way for you to use them without burning yourself. Your flames would turn on you the moment you used them."

"That is why I wished for his body as well. Arsene has a body that simply doesn't make sense to possess." he reminded me, gazing out at the palace. "Such a body could finally allow me to possess a power that makes me a supreme being. The Dao of Wisdom is limited."

"It is your imagination that is limited, my friend." Having seen enough, I couldn't help but stare at the rise of the Twin Sun over the land. Slow, yet faster than most people expect the sun to rise. I continued,

"The Dao of Wisdom is the most manipulative Dao to graze the doorsteps of this Fourth Heaven. It is not intelligence that allows a scheme to work, but the ability to understand your enemy. To control another wisdom is to control every aspect of their being, including their thought process."

"But such a thing requires a particular path that I'm not familiar—"

"Then learn, my friend, it doesn't take long to understand dao. The hardest part is incorporating it into your battle prowess. Baphomet is one of the few Paragons able to use one hundred percent of all dao. Even I can't do that. I had to create my version of a particular dao, but even so…."

(A/N: Said long ago)

I paused and shook my head, " Never mind, there's no point. You've already created your dao; you should understand what I'm saying."

"One cannot recreate a mortal dao. But a heavenly dao, but I understand what you're saying, my Lord." Solomon kindly said, but I could hear the annoyance in his voice.

Releasing a long breath, the first rays of starlight came to wash over me, and—

I looked down at the greatsword blacker than the deepest night, tainted by a familiar sinful aura protruding from my chest.

"Aurelia?" I called out, startled by what happened. I turned around to see the smiling Soloman.

Necrotic Qi erupted like a tiny star shattering my heart and a few other organs as I lept away, vomiting a fountain of blood. A poisonous pain raced through my veins, tearing me apart, as I looked up at the face of Soloman shift.

"It's scary how accurate Loki was. The Shadow and the King. A perfect name, don't you think?" He said, revealing the same face as Zantar.

"I must say this has been a trial; you've played your part well, my friend. More than well, we hadn't wished to kill you, but we can't take the risk, with your master being who it is." Zantar sighed, " You weren't supposed to be here."

Paling at the massive blood loss, I struggled out a gasp, with blood staining my teeth, " You son of a bitch."

"I commend you, Aldrich; honestly, we fear you. I personally had been against the idea of splitting my seraphic nature from my Fallen side, but King Balor was right. Planning for the worse did indeed come in handy. Manipulating your mind into missing the fact that there was never a Somoman incarnation before was tricky. Thankfully you were depressed and had lost your way, thanks to the Silver Devil."

"Come out," I coldly uttered, feeling my soul attacked by such pure necrotic qi that I felt my life slipping away. " I know your there, no way Zantar would attack me on his own."

Bellowing laughter, regal as they come, rushed into my ears, followed by an enormous pressure that forced the blood I was desperately trying to hold in to leak. Quickly creating an artificial heart with a bit of the Creation Laws, in a meaningless effort to prolong my life, the void shattered.

Sweat oozed from my brow as I gazed upon the winged being tall and muscular. Glaring at me with his sinful eyes, an expression that reminded me of a derange Aurelia, divinity flared to life within me, trying to combat the merciless Necrotic Qi.

"Give it up, Aldrich. You've lost. Surrender your head to me." Balor coldly said. "When a Fallen splits himself, they end up splitting their power, but in return, their Qi takes on new properties similar to the concept of Eternity. You will die with an injury like that."

"I didn't become who I was by being unable to escape. Do you think I'd make the same mistake with Master Zariel?" I snapped, spewing up a mouthful of blood, and pulled out a talisman forged by the Silver Devils' blood. " We will be seeing each other again."

"Oh? It's fine, your nothing but a dead man walking anyway." Balor indifferently said as everything turned black the moment I activated my talisman.