At the moment when only two torches were left burning, and death seemed inevitable, I asked to the demon slayer.

"Guts, why don't you use fire spells?" - I asked.

"What?" - The swordsman stared blankly at me, unaware of his own talents.

"What?" - Isidro roared, standing just centimeters away from the red goo, unable to retreat even a millimeter.

"Your body is attuned to magic. Try to imagine yourself creating fire" - I began teaching this baboon how to use the 'equipment' he was given.

Vritras' body had 'built-in' spells, and if Guts had just taken a minute to think about his abilities, he could have understood how to use them. But since he only knew how to swing a sword and used his brain only to weigh down his head when smashing through walls, he couldn't figure it out on his own.

Guts immediately directed all his 'inner strength' towards creating fire, almost burning everyone whom he intended to protect.

"Be careful!" - Isidro shouted. - "Aaaah! I'm burning!"

Fortunately, the fire on the poor guy's backside was quickly extinguished, and Guts, now accustomed to his power, was able to direct his flames to burn only the demons. After that, everyone present here, except for me and Casca, began to wonder, "Who is this Guts anyway?". Being able to explain his swordsmanship and inhuman strength was one thing, but controlling fire was beyond human capabilities, and the closest 'analog' was the late Mozgus. Guts, by the way, also wondered about this, but at least he knew that the reason for his power was the red stone in his chest and one annoying elf.

Meanwhile, the sacrifice ritual reached its climax. All the victims died, and their dying pleas opened a portal to the Spirit World. The accumulated energy erupted, tearing through the fabric of reality and making the impossible possible. The spirit of Griffith, now known as Femto, returned to the world of the living and took on flesh. The Apostle, who had been preparing the ritual all this time, guiding the events, willingly sacrificed himself and became the 'egg' that was supposed to give birth to the new God - the Hawk of Light, destined to rule his kingdom by Fate itself. In other words, it was Griffith's desire to wear the crown that drove him to sacrifice all his friends.

And the final act of this ritual was the shout of the Sacrifice, filled with a sincere desire to see his enemy... to kill him, although the latter was insignificant.

"Griffith!!!" - Guts roared with all the power of his inhuman lungs.

At that moment, the obsession lifted, and the leaning Tower of Conviction collapsed to the ground, burying the last survivors. The morning sun suddenly illuminated the surroundings, and all the demons disappeared without a trace. The long-prepared resurrection ritual was complete.

The members of our small company gradually recovered from the shock of the cursed night and scattered in different directions in search of survivors. Surprisingly, a couple of prostitutes who were associated with Guts and Casca managed to survive. Their proximity to the Sacrifice played a role here. From the demons' perspective, the energy of the Brand marked those who should never be touched under any circumstances, so even a faint echo of it became the reason for their salvation, although for the ignorant crowd, it all seemed like mere luck. However, out of tens of thousands of people, only these two were 'lucky', which meant it was not just a coincidence.

Finally, gathered in the courtyard of the fortress, the survivors were almost ready to begin celebrating their salvation when a new calamity appeared. A crowd of Kushan Empire warriors, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, surrounded them, and the leader of the squad began to ponder out loud who should be captured for interrogation and who could be killed right there.

"You've got to be kidding!" - Isidro shouted. - "It would be a disaster if we couldn't survive after this cursed night!"

"Attention! Capture them all," - the squad commander declared loudly. - "They must be alive and unharmed. Be careful with the man with the giant sword. Well, as long as he still has his arms and legs."

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"Are you really going to let them get away with such insolence?" - I asked Guts.

"Never crossed my mind," he replied, drawing his sword. And then... a miracle happened. Another one. Guts, who had instantly accelerated, rushed at the enemies, crushing them into mincemeat with his sword. If he were an ordinary person, at most, a dozen or so opponents would have died. But now he was Vritras and fully aware of the limits of his power. And so... within three seconds, all the Kushans lost their heads, not even realizing what was happening. This included their commander and four of his bodyguards, who considered themselves super-elite invincible fighters. But against the true power of the fusion of magic and technology, they were like ants.

“What?... What just happened?” - Farnese exclaimed, looking around. She felt as if she had returned to a world filled with demons. All these people around her suddenly exploded into bloody splatters, and their mutilated corpses fell to the ground.

“Nothing special.” - I replied. – “Just a little exercise in clearing the area quickly. I will rate it as a three plus.”

“Out of how many?” - Guts asked, shaking the blood off his blade.

“Out of a hundred, of course.” - I teased him. – “But don't worry, I'll turn you into a true demon slayer. They'll weep bloody tears at the mere mention of your name. And by the way, right now you'll be taking another exam. Don't hold back!”

After my words, the ground shook, and breaking through the fortress walls, the Immortal Zodd emerged from the rubble. He was considered one of the strongest apostles and had encountered Guts before. Ignoring the pathetic humans, the monster moved forward towards the rising sun. And a few seconds later, the Skull Knight appeared on the fortress wall, his horse standing on the parapet, also looking towards the east.

Casting a glance at them, Guts also looked in that direction and saw... Griffith. His naked body stood amidst the scattered stones, his blue hair fluttering in the gentle breeze. He looked like a true king, gazing at our company as if we were insignificant insects unworthy of his attention.

The people froze, unconsciously shocked by the spiritual power of the reborn apostle. But Vritras... all this show had no effect on Vritras. While I responded with equal disdain in my gaze, Guts instantly fell into a state of battle frenzy. All these years, every time he killed demons and apostles, he dreamed of this moment. If he still had a human brain, Guts would have been paralyzed, succumbing to the influence of demonic magic and his own homoerotic fantasies. But now, instead of a brain, he only had filler in his head, and his mind worked through magic and the instructions I had embedded.

His consciousness instantly switched to combat mode, mobilizing all the resources of his immortal body, and then Guts, moving at supersonic speed, charged towards Griffith with one single intention - to destroy him and make him pay for everything he had done.

The immortal Zodd widened his eyes in horror and tried to stop the unexpectedly agile Sacrifice, but his immortality lasted only for a second, during which Guts chopped him into pieces. Thus ended the life of the "greatest of the apostles."

Griffith tried to dodge, use magic, or find any weapon, but he didn't even have time to blink before the sword, glowing with otherworldly light, made three swift movements, severing his hands and legs. The helpless torso fell to the ground, and fear appeared in the eyes of the apostle who had come to this world to rule it.

"Youuu!!! Because of you, they all died!" - Guts roared, desperately trying to express his overwhelming emotions in words. - "Because of you, they were all devoured alive. And so..."

At that moment, the Black Swordsman was largely under the influence of the demon that had infiltrated into his soul. So? his next action surprised even me. With his bare hand, he pierced Griffith's chest, ripped out his heart, and then, right in front of the stunned "god," he threw the heart into his own mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it, glancing at the emotions on the victim's face.

The predator and the prey switched places, and finally, Griffith realized that all of this was not a dream but a cruel and relentless reality. Panicking, he used all his spiritual powers and... escaped back to the spirit world from which he had so laboriously emerged.

"A-a-a-a-a-a-a!!!" - Guts roared, seeing that his enemy had disappeared, leaving him only his limbs and the partially digested heart as compensation. - "Where did he go? Where is he?"

His eyes, filled with magic, scanned the surroundings but couldn't find a trace of the fugitive.

"I think he returned to the spiritual world," - I explained the situation to Guts. "Apostles are resilient creatures, so he can easily survive without a heart, let alone limbs. Moreover, Griffith escaped from here in his physical body, so he can definitely come back."

"Griffith!!! Come back, you bastard, and let me kill you!!!" - Guts shouted, but of course, no one was in a hurry to obey that order.

After that escape, I felt a huge sense of relief. If Guts had killed Griffith right now and here, it would have been much more difficult for me to carry out my plan. Honestly, I had certain hopes for the Immortal Zodd, but in the reality, he died a completely useless death. But all's well that ends well. Guts is alive, Casca is alive, and Griffith is almost alive. Now all that's left is to enflame the sparks of smoldering hatred and ignite a fire that will make the Sacrifice follow its intended path. Of course, much of this situation is beyond my control, but all I can do is rely on the will of the gods... no fuck, on the will of Azathoth and follow the currents of Fate.