It was a complete mess.

Ethan Wilder, known as the Violent Dragon, led the guild Ragnaf with an unyielding iron grip.

He had cleared countless dungeons deemed impossible to conquer.

The raids led by Ethan Wilder had 91% of success rate, a probability any human could never achieve again, he had amassed both fame and fortune all while protecting the entire humanity.

 "You... scumbags! How dare you pull this crap on me—do you even know who I am?!"

However, today he was not so in a lucky situation. His voice rang out in furious defiance, trembling with rage.

The ground cracked, and the air around him quaked.

Ragnf guild on of the ranking 3rd among the 10 major guild of the world was in a turmoil right now, apart from the explosive dragon the other elite members of the guild were present within the closed dungeon raid of the guild.

Without him, they were the Seven Dragons.

And now, they had betrayed him.

It was unthinkable. Even if all seven of them fought together, they couldn't take him down.

At least, not in a fair fight.

Even an ambush seemed improbable.

Chance and fate had collided, and the traitors had prepared well, simulating the perfect opportunity over and over.

They closed in like a pack of hyenas stalking a lone lion.

They were careful—very careful.

Alright, it was impressive. Their patience and skill deserved some credit.

But they'd made a critical error. They had messed with the wrong person. This was Ethan Wilder, the Explosive Dragon.

"If you had even thought of us as family, just a little…" one of the traitors began.

"Honestly, you're a piece of trash, aren't you?" another interrupted. "Even you can admit that."

"We had no choice, Boss," another muttered.

Their words dripped with false regret, the excuses of traitors.

Ethan Wilder scoffed.

Would they not have betrayed him if he had been kinder? If he had distributed the loot more fairly, would they have been satisfied?

Of course not.

If he'd shown any weakness, they would have turned on him eventually.

Friends? Comrades? Family?

Nonsense. In the end of the world, everyone was alone.

This was a damn miserable situation, and even someone like Ethan Wilder couldn't escape it.

It wasn't the time to rely on stubborn pride or sheer determination.

There were real-world obstacles and crises that brute willpower couldn't overcome.

Life wasn't a shounen manga. There were clear, unbreakable limits.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

Analysing the situation, Ethan Wilder quickly broke it down.

First, his pride and joy, the Apocalyptic Tooth, his cherished weapon had been taken from him.

Moreover, he was trapped by an anti-gravity spell, increasing the pressure on him 100 times.

Second, this was all happening during a raid.

Behind him were the traitorous Seven Dragons who sought his death, and before him stood the triple-S-rank boss, the Chaos Demon.

The Chaos Demon's aggro was locked on him. Unfortunately, he had fallen into the ploy of acting as a tanker for this raid. Third, the boss room's debuff was lethal to him.

The demon boss had unleashed an anti-Divine debuff.

Ethan Wilder's body carried the blessings of the Seven Divine Gods, acquired through the Holy Grail quest.

If he'd known he would be facing a demon boss, he would have dispelled the Holy Grail's effects before entering.

These three factors sealed his defeat.

Despite the odds, his mind raced, habitually analysing the battlefield and calculating the outcome.

"Damn it."

The curse slipped out of his mouth.

It was bleak.

There was no chance of victory. Both his instincts and his reason led to the same conclusion.

But he clung to his last shred of pride, hurling a curse at the traitors.

"When I return, I'll kill every single one of you… not a single one of you bastards will survive…"

Even if it was mostly bluff, it was enough.

Some of the traitors' faces paled with fear.

He had ruled them with terror but nevertheless bestowed them upon new skills, weapons everything which no other ordinary Doomsday Hunter could enjoy.

"At the very least, I won't die by your hands."

Ethan Wilder muttered in a gritty tone, "Ahhhh---!!" he yelled, launching himself against the chaos demon.

The demon grabbed him and swallowed him whole. It was often said that a demon's insides were connected to another dimension.

Once inside the dark void, no one returned.

This was the demon's unique ability: Abyssal Devour.

Bosses ranked S and above usually possessed instant-kill abilities like this.

The dark void disassembled a human's existence.

In that darkness, one's consciousness blurred, and the soul began to dissolve.

Like food digestion, a person would be broken down on a spiritual level and absorbed.

*********

"This isn't the end. I am Ethan Wilder, the Explosive Dragon, the ruler of Ragnaf. They all fear me and follow me. Who can dare erase my will?"

However, only his mind kept him together in the dark void with the sheer amount of willpower he possessed.

But this was a recollection.

He had, indeed, survived and escaped the dark void.

The gods were an alien race that saved humanity from extinction in the 20th century.

They ruled over humanity, living as deities.

Ethan Wilder despised them.

Because the saving of humans had cost, that is to play the game…humans have to play the [God's Game].

Despite their omnipotence, they barely interfered in human affairs, watching from afar and commanding the lowly human species to entertain them.

"They treat us like toys—it's revolting," he thought.

To the gods, humans were mere playthings.

They could kill or resurrect a person with a snap of their fingers.

It may have sounded petty, but when Ethan Wilder called himself the strongest, he meant it in a way that excluded the gods.

The gods were a species whose cognitive abilities were incomprehensible to humans.

They were monsters who had even broken the code of life and death.

During his stay at Chaos Demon's void, a voice reached out to him.

If you become my apostle, I'll pull you out of here.

The self-proclaimed God of Chaos, Isaac, spoke.

For the sake of revenge, Ethan Wilder made a pact with the last being he should have ever turned to.

He, Ethan Wilder, the strongest Raider, betrayed himself and the humans.

He forged a pact with Isaac, the God of Chaos.

And as he endured Isaac's scorn and mockery, gazing up at everything he would need to rebuild from the ground up, he swallowed the stench of the abyss and swore his vengeance.