Shin

My mouth formed a thin line as I looked at Quellitrax's avatar, who grinned so hard his face split in half.

"You must be truly desperate, gambling with the soul of a Trueborn Divine?" Quellitrax cackled.

"I knew the risks," I insisted, but I hadn't expected Dante to come into his own as a Nephilim so soon. In the greater multiverse, there were two types of Nephilims: those who could overcome their dualities and reach unachievable heights and those who were limited by them.

Before Axel's integration with Dante's soul, the boy was destined to be the latter, but now it was clear he was the former.

A True Nephilim. A Nascent God. I had to have him.

"What the fun of being as powerful as we are if we can't play with our food a little," I said offhandedly to Quellitrax.

The Eldritch's multiple eyes fixed me with an amused look.

"Would you like another swing at him?" I asked. It would mean forfeiting your fourth turn, but when else will you get a chance like this? He's exhausted and overconfident. Who knows what else he could've developed the next time you run into him?"

"Exactly," Quellitrax laughed. "I knew he was special when I first looked at him, but he's ripening quite well, isn't he? It would be a shame to pluck him too early."

"I could have my claws in him by then."

"At the rate you're going, I doubt it," Quellitrax quipped. "And besides, he despises you even more than me. Power, it seems, has blinded you to the subtleties of manipulation."

My eyes narrowed to slits. "Time will tell, won't it?"

"I suppose," he cackled as he stepped back into the void, and I teleported behind Dante.

Dante

Congratulations: You've killed an Eldritch Homunculus. 5000 Red Orbs.

With the orb of what I'd imaginatively named 'Nephilim energy' floating behind me, I noticed the Quellitrax's platform shudder as a booming laugh rang outwards.

The darkness vanished, and I sensed Shin materialize behind me.

"What did you say about them being the baddest Tarnished in Elden Ring? I'm not impressed."

"You're barely hanging on, and if you hadn't strapped all those bombs to yourself like some god-damned kamikaze…you would've lost."

"Well, I did," I shrugged and slowly circled him. "And you should be happy. I'm growing big and strong like a good little puppet."

"Puppet is too harsh a word," Shin snorted and waved. "I'd be your employer at most, and you would've been my top guy, venturing out into the multiverse, pillaging, kicking ass, and taking names. We could've been glorious if you had a little more vision."

"You forgot to add a lack of common sense and attachment to my free will," I said. "I know a shit deal when I hear it. You're not getting any deeper into my soul."

"I already own you," Shin simply stated. "Claiming your soul is a matter of formality."

His claim rattled me a bit, but I pressed on.

"You might as well kill me," I said, "because you're not getting one more inch in. As you can see, I've worked wonders with the tools you've given me. You said it yourself: I'm your guy in this world, and I have a hunch that I am way stronger than you intended. You need me to fetch your stones and get your Phoenix Fire for whatever galaxy-brained evil plan you've got cooking."

"You can't really think you're the only agent I have on earth, can you?"

His question gave me some pause, but I was not phased. "How many of them stack up to me, though?"

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"Quite a few, actually," he smirked. "They might not have the potential you do, but they're there."

I shook my head. "You're bluffing. Yao would know about them."

"There are several ways to avoid the eyes of your pesky Wizard mentor. Distance is fairly effective. As long as you avoid the major inflection points, there's a lot you can get away with. After all, she can't watch everybody with her Timestone."

"What are you threatening me with, exactly?" I demanded.

"Perpetual pain until you surrender," he said, and I scoffed.

"Bring it on." I was part bluffing, part serious, but I'd endure if that was what it took. The Cosmic burn covering half of my body proved that.

"It's not yourself you should be worried about. It's the planet as a whole," he grinned. "Thanks to your direct intervention, the timeline is in freefall. Anything goes, including the 'coincidental' elimination of some of your closest allies. Maybe I'll start with Clint. Isn't he your only friend? Then, I'll move on to Fury. The planet doesn't stand a chance without him."

This son of a bitch!

"Do you think the One Above All would let you do this, or the Phoenix for that matter!"

"Let me worry about OAA. The Phoenix is invested in Jean and perhaps you. The extended world does not really matter; you'll see."

My lips formed a thin line as I considered his threat before shrugging. "Your funeral. There's a wider universe out there. I'm sure there's another planet where we can settle on. I never wanted to fight the demons and look for an infinity stone. Left to my devices, I'd explore, live my life, and be done with all of this. If you think I'm some bleeding-heart simpleton who'd give up his immortal soul just because he was threatened, you clearly don't know me well."

Shin laughed, shaking his head, and snapped his finger, spawning two chairs behind us. He settled into one and offered the other.

"Don't act all tough. I know you're bone tired."

"And I have enough spite to fuel me for a lifetime."

Shin chuckled. "That was good. I think I'm going to use that. The reason I'm asking you to sit down is that I'm switching tactics. If you won't respond to force, then perhaps compromise," he suggested.

I raised an eyebrow. This had to be some trick.

"No trick," he offered, flicking his finger.

Several notifications flashed before my eyes. My devil Trigger, Simulacrum skill, and Angel Evade skills were back. I was tempted to just portal out of there and be done with the asshole, but he spoke before I could act on my feelings.

"You want your free will, and I want somebody who won't act up, who won't actively try to sabotage me because of some…grievances."

Grievances was right. Shin was a fucking asshole.

"To that end," he began in a magnanimous tone, "I propose we negotiate a ceasefire. You do what you were contracted to do, and I will stop angling to ruin your life and compel you into my service."

I shook my head. "Not good enough. I want you to stop encroaching on my soul completely. That's what it will take for me to consider even working with you in any capacity."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," he said. I've invested way too much in it."

"If it's a question of investment," I said. "What would it take? I'm sure there's some baddie out there willing to trade his soul for interstellar domination."

Shin blinked. "Wait, you're serious, aren't you?" He tapped his chin, leaning back into his chair. "Recruit two individuals with the potential to reach Solar-System levels of power, and I'll stop."

"That's—" I sputtered, "actually reasonable…I conceded." Marvel had no shortage of overpowered people who had the potential for so much more. Magneto, Wanda Maximoff, and even Scott had technically unlimited potential. And of course, if all of the obvious choices failed, I could just gift-wrap him one high-ranking Cambion. Yet, I still had this sinking feeling that this was too convenient. Shin was the type of guy who would double-cross me even after I delivered, so I decided to get myself some protection.

"I'll go on this hunt for you, but in the meantime, I need some incentives. You put Quellitrax on my ass, and in case you haven't noticed, his agents have been getting progressively stronger. I'm not sure I'll be able to stop them the next time they attack. However, if I had…say, a Class unaffected by the soul infection, I'd have the strength and means to operate and grow undisturbed."

Shin narrowed his eyes and chuckled. "You slick motherfucker, but you know what, I'll allow it, but I want you to fetch the Power stone for me."

"Wait! You're after all the stones?"

"Of course I am," Shin said, deadpan, "why else would I have you fetch two of the six?"

My mouth opened and closed a few times before I conceded. It certainly put me on fucking edge, though.

"I was going to space anyways," I shrugged, "but I might have to borrow them for a while before I deliver it. Still have to deal with the demon threat you stuck me with."

"Right," Shin said. "So, we're in agreement?"

"Yeah…about that." We spend the better part of 10 minutes going over the terms in more detail. I didn't want to be robbed of rewards because I renegotiated my deal. I demanded that none be soul corrupting, except those specifically designed to like The Gluttony seed, which had to be highlighted.

I also wanted to be able to buy restoratives like Stims and health potions at no extra soul cost. Of course, he refused but compromised for half the cost.

When it came time to shake on the deal, I threw Shin a curveball by teleporting to the outside world.

My legs felt putty, but I hustled up the mountain until I found Jean.

She nearly blew a gasket when she saw me.

"Oh my god, Dante. What happened?"

"Shin happened," I said. "We're negotiating, and I need you."

"Why?"

"You'll see," I said before yanking her into the Simulacrum.

Jean's eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped, baffled by Shin's appearance and vice versa.

"The guy who's been giving you so much grief is some edgy preteen?"