Glenn and Decimius stood back to back, Mana and Aura drawn out in expectation. The walls, floor, and ceiling were covered in these pulsating red lines, the same red that they had managed to perceive earlier.
'...How strange. This whole thing is really strange. But when haven't things been strange with you, Glenn?' Diamanes muttered, confused. Glenn moistened his lips, his muscles tensed up as he waited for a few more seconds. After it became clear that nothing was going to attack them, Glenn and Decimius allowed themselves to relax.
"...Quaenam est haec veneficia?" The orc asked as he glared at the red lines suspiciously.
Glenn shook his head, his hands on his waist, "No idea. Let's go find the bastard from earlier, maybe we'll be able to learn more after we've beat his ass into oblivion..." He trailed off. The orc grinned widely and made his knuckles crack as if he was understanding Glenn's words. The two walked silently through the hallways, following the red lines that were slowly but surely joining into larger pulsating lines. Soon enough, there were only four massive lines, one on each wall, one on the floor, and another on the ceiling.
'Wait, Glenn, shit, you're right! There's a part of me nearby!' Diamanes exclaimed in disbelief.
Glenn blinked, 'Why the hell are you surprised? I already told you, that Devil's Eye guy is the one who captured us.'
Diamanes snorted, 'Sorry, but I'd rather verify this matter myself. You don't know how many copycats tried to take on my style...'
Glenn scoffed, 'Style?' He shook his head and prepared his Mana, a Nitrogen Lance already broiling in his right hand. They soon passed a massive arch and arrived in a large hall with two other hallways connected to it. The red lines were all joining together at the center of the room, where a strange contraption was built. It was a huge ball of that tough dark material that made the whole structure, held in place by four massive clamps connected to the red lines. The contraption was glowing with hundreds of red lines going in seemingly random directions. The Devil's Eye guy was standing in front of said contraption, muttering and grabbing at his hair in frustration. Glenn and Decimius exchanged a glance before dashing at him.
"...No, why won't you listen...Tsk!" The Devil's Eye spat to the side as he swiftly turned on his feet, his purple eyes and face gleaming with a strange, deep magenta hue. His third eye was wide open, the pupil dilated madly. Glenn paused, his heart missing a beat as he felt the access to his Mana being blocked away, exactly like that time with the Divine Intervention: Duel. He fell to one knee and gasped for air as the Devil's Eye man kept on staring at him.
"Who do you think you are? You've spent barely...wait, what?" The Devil's Eye guy frowned, puzzled. Decimius hadn't been affected by whatever was compromising Glenn, and so went on with his attack. He cleaved downward with a massive blade of golden Aura, only to be stopped by the Devil's Eye's bare hand.
"Fuck off, beast," He spat as he punched the orc squarely in the chest. Decimius flew back helplessly and rolled on the floor a few times. He pushed himself up with difficulty, heaving heavily.
Glenn gritted his teeth and reached for his dimensional pouch, pulling out an emergency sword he had taken before their travel to the Ink Dunes.
"I've already experienced losing my Mana more than once," Glenn hissed as he pointed the tip of his blade at the Devil's Eye, "...Ain't no way I'm letting myself be surprised once more. Additionally..." He called on the link to Nelg, feeling it nearby. Somehow, his presence was nearby yet very distant.
"Don't bother calling your weapon, fool," The Devil's Eye hissed. He walked up to Glenn and reached to grab his sword, only for his throat to be pierced cleanly.
"...Should have been a little more careful, fool..." Glenn muttered as he hacked his sword out of the Devil's Eye throat in a...surprising lack of blood. The Devil's Eye kept on staring at Glenn silently, his ripped throat healing itself to the naked eye.
"...You have an interesting body, you know?" He muttered as he slapped Glenn's sword away. The latter could only tighten his hold on the hilt the best he could, almost letting go of the weapon. Somehow, the Devil's Eye was physically stronger than him.
"You possess a part of m—him, which is already a great boon, but you also are blessed by multiple divinities. Onnea and Epinos...Huh, ain't that a surprising combo?" The Devil's Eye cackled as he kicked Glenn and swept him off the floor. Glenn hurriedly caught him and sprung back on his feet. He didn't lose a second and sliced downward at the Devil's Eye, splitting his purple head in two. The Devil's Eye sighed and grabbed Glenn's blade with bare hands, before breaking it in two.
"It doesn't look like you're making the best out of it, though. Your magic is dangerous, but your martial skills..." He grinned and suddenly grabbed Glenn's throat, his head sticking back in one piece right in front of his victim's awed eyes, "They fucking suck."
Glenn forced a smile out as he struggled against the hold, "Cough...Sadly, I'm not really known for my sword skills," He paused and chuckled amidst two coughs, before nodding to the side, "...him, though? I'm not so sure."
The Devil's Eye's head snapped to the side, just in time to see Decimius' massive golden Aura blade fall in his direction. The golden Aura disappeared, making it so that Decimius could only miss his attack. Glenn felt his Mana suddenly return, and without wasting a second pressed both of his hands against the Devil's Eye chest. He gritted his teeth and conjured two Blackholes at the same time, combining them into one of the most destructive spells he had ever created.
"Gravitational Singularity!" Glenn spat out as he pushed with all his Mana, sending as much Mana as he could in the spell.
The Devil's Eye snapped back to Glenn, sealing his Mana once again, but it was too late.
The spell was out of the bag.
The Devil's Eye hurriedly jumped back but the two Blackholes were stuck to his skin, amplifying each other's strength while consuming Glenn's Mana madly. The Devil's Eye lost concentration and focused his third eye on the two Blackholes that were almost about to explode. The Singularity suddenly disappeared, the Devil's Eye grinning widely as he succeeded in getting rid of the spell, only to face another golden blade of Aura rushing for his face.
"ARGH, DAMN IT!" He roared as he suddenly slammed his hands together. A dark hole appeared behind him, a gate to nowhere. It was the only way Glenn could describe what he was seeing beyond that gate. Nothing. The void. Not the void of space, no, it was an emptiness where not even light existed. A place where time itself was dead, where matter couldn't exist.
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Glenn and Decimius fell to their knees, their strength pulled by the Void Gate. The Devil's Eye cursed and kicked both of them in anger, "Shit, I was trying to avoid this exact scenario! Who's going to take responsibility if it bothers the Heart, huh?"
"Tsk!" Glenn pushed himself up, frowning as he felt his connection to Nelg strengthens. Was his sword in that hole? Then...
He needed to win time.
"Heart this, heart that, what the fuck are you talking about!" Glenn yelled as he helped Decimius up.
The Devil's Eye's eyebrows creased as he clicked his tongue, "Well, the Heart? Do you not even know where we are right now?"
Glenn blinked, "Well, I have to admit that I am completely clueless, yes."
The Devil's Eye froze, before laughing widely. He suddenly stopped and dashed up to Glenn and Decimius, grabbing both of them by the throat. Decimius roared as he punched the hell out of the Devil's Eye, crushing half his skull, but it healed back like nothing happened.
"Don't bother..." The Devil's Eye sighed as he dragged them to the contraption at the center of the room. His blood splattered on the dark stone, the red lines' power intensifying. The contraption suddenly pulsed with a powerful thump that resonated in the room. Glenn gritted his teeth as he fought back the best he could against the steel-like clamp, but the Void Gate was sucking away all of his strength, be it Mana or physically.
The Devil's Eye snorted in disbelief as he looked at the contraption, "So it was blood, then. Had I known that a year ago, I might have also got myself another part of my—him."
Glenn coughed, struggling to breathe. The ball-like contraption suddenly opened up, revealing a glowing mass of flesh pulsing with a dark red light. The dark stone moved and wrapped around Glenn's ankles like a living thing, restraining him. He gulped, his eyes widening, too concentrated on the mass of flesh.
He knew what this thing was. He had already met its kind before, and almost died against it.
This was a Heart of Darkness.
"Come on, take the other out too!" The Devil's Eye exclaimed while looking at the Heart. The structure pulsed twice with a dark red hue. Glenn's heart missed a beat.
Was this madman...communicating with the Heart of Darkness?
How? Shit, did that mean that Hearts of Darkness were sentients?
'Uh, Glenn, I don't want to worry you, but your right arm is glowing up like crazy,' Diamanes mentioned casually. Glenn flinched and looked at his right arm, finding it to be glowing with powerful, pale golden light.
"...Onnea?" He muttered in annoyance, "...I already know there's a Heart of Darkness, thank you. Stop glowing."
As he said that, the pale golden light disappeared. Glenn looked down at his ankles, but he knew that the dark stone was impossible to destroy currently. He couldn't use Mana, Decimius couldn't use Aura, and they were both stuck in place. This was the worst.
"...Yeah, yeah, I'll—no, I'll take that idiot's part, and get rid of the one on your toy. How does that sound?" The Devil's Eye crossed his arms in front of the Heart of Darkness, negotiating. The Void Gate behind him was still there, hovering silently as it swallowed all energy in the facility. Glenn winced and tried to call up Nelg. Nelg wasn't a 'common' Soul Weapon, after all. He had sentience.
'Shit, Nelg, you're my only hope right now, so get a move on!' He cursed mentally as the Devil's Eye kept on talking to the Heart of Darkness.
"No? Okay, I won't touch the toy, then. And—Yes, yes, I know. Sorry about that. Couldn't help it with the two insects over there. Thanks for restraining them, by the way."
Decimius roared and punched his restraints weakly, his fists bouncing off helplessly. Glenn gritted his teeth and kept on pulling on his connection with Nelg.
'Come on, come on, come on!'
"So, do we have a deal?" The Devil's Eye suddenly grinned. The Heart of Darkness pulsed powerfully, sending shivers down Glenn and Decimius' back. The Devil's Eye laughed and clenched his hands together.
"Great! 'Kay, still, take out the other so I can take his part. I'll just get rid of it without killing the toy, I swear!" The Devil's Eye implored. The Heart remained silent for a few seconds, before pulsing frantically, the dark red hue intensifying powerfully. The Devil's Eye frowned, confused.
"...What do you mean, others? There are no—" The Void Gate suddenly disappeared as a blade slowly carved through the Devil's Eye, cutting him in half. Glenn gasped as his strength suddenly came back, alongside a familiar weight in his right hand.
"GLENNNNNNN!!!" Nelg cried, "IT WAS SO SCARY IN THERE!!!"
Glenn gritted his teeth and cleaved at his restraints. Nelg effortlessly carved through the black stone, as if he was made to slice through it, 'Sorry, Nelg. I'll make sure to never let you go again, so let's concentrate on taking our revenge, yeah?' He responded as he swiftly freed Decimius too.
The Devil's Eye's two parts slowly stuck back together, "Huh, who might have done this while I was speaking with the Heart?" He said with annoyance, his third eye darting around the room to try and find the culprit. He went to slap both of his hands together once again, but Glenn hurriedly used Gravity Manipulation to stop him, "NO YOU WON'T!" He roared as beads of sweat trickled down his forehead.
Decimius roared with a powerful war cry before charging at the Devil's Eye once more, his golden Aura stronger than ever. The Devil's Eye frowned and forced against the Gravity Manipulation, but Glenn was holding strong. His Mana was getting drained at never-before-seen speed, but thankfully he had a lot now that he was a Fourth Circle.
"...Tsk!" The Devil's Eye gave up on reopening the Dark Gate and instead glared down at Decimius, sealing his Aura once more. The orc didn't stop and grabbed the Devil's Eye, ripping him in two with a beastly roar. He threw each part in two opposite directions. The Devil's Eye groaned, his lower body growing back in an instant. Glenn gasped, Gravity Manipulation starting to take a toll. He gritted his teeth and powered through, conjuring two Blackholes, one in each hand.
'Triple casting?!? Your brain is going to fry, Glenn!' Diamanes warned with an alarmed tone. Glenn grinned as blood flowed out of his nostrils, "Like I have a damn choice!"
The Devil's Eye dusted his bloodied robe off and sighed deeply, "Sorry, sorry, I'll take care of them, just give me a minute. I'll—" The blade that carved through him earlier appeared once again, cutting him in half once more. He grimaced with wrath and suddenly tried to slam his hands together. Glenn coughed, blood suddenly flowing out of his mouth and eyes too. He hurled the Gravity Singularity at the Devil's Eye, sighing in relief as the weight of the spell was lifted off his mental shoulders, and concentrated entirely on restraining him.
The Devil's Eye's gaze snapped to the spell and he hissed in frustration. He glanced at Glenn and sealed his Mana, leaving himself free to slam his hands together. He grinned widely, only for Decimius to suddenly appear and rip both of his arms apart, throwing them far away. His hands glowed with a golden Aura that he used to cauterize the wounds, stopping the regeneration. He jumped back just in time for the Singularity to collide with the Devil's Eye chest, collapsing on itself and ripping him apart.
"ARGH!!!" The Devil's Eye screamed, "YOU DAMNED BEAST!"
He slammed his foot in the orc's chest, sending him flying, but letting Glenn out of his third eye for an instant. Glenn didn't waste the opportunity and surcharged the Gravitational Singularity, making it explode. The shockwave made the entire structure shake as it threw both him and Decimius on their back. The Devil's Eye stumbled on his feet, his face completely melted. Somehow, his three eyes were still in working condition, and his body wasn't entirely destroyed. A streak of red lightning suddenly pierced through the room and past the Devil's Eye. The latter looked down with bloodshot eyes at the big hole in his chest sizzling with red electricity and coughed in frustration.
"...Fuck, there were indeed more..." He muttered before letting himself fall on his back. His body suddenly disappeared into the void, swallowed by a microscopic Void Gate.
Glenn gasped and fell to his knees, all of his orifices bleeding out profusely. Decimius collapsed while heaving with difficulty, his body covered in wounds from all the punches and kicks he endured from the Devil's Hand.
Sahro walked up to Glenn and patted him on the back, "Seems like I arrived at the perfect time," he joked.
Glenn coughed with a smile, "...We could have taken care of him by ourselves, you kill-stealer..."