Auforus gripped his pistol, firing relentlessly at Greed, hoping to stun him. But Greed only smirked, summoning even more undead minions with a flick of his wrist. The horde swarmed around them, but Auforus, undeterred, rewrote his pistol into a large katana, its blade gleaming under the sun.
“Really?” Greed chuckled darkly, his smirk widening. In less than a nanosecond, Greed activated his output awakening, catching Auforus off guard. Auforus’ eyes widened in confusion—how could Greed be this fast? The output awakening usually took a moment to activate, but Greed seemed to defy that rule.
Before Auforus could react, Greed’s fist slammed into his stomach with incredible force, launching him high into the sky. Greed followed with a series of brutal punches, his voice echoing through the air.
“Your friends are weak, Auforus!” Greed mocked, each word punctuated by another blow. “Once I’m done with you, I’ll kill them all!”
Auforus crashed into the side of a mountain, the rocks cracking beneath the impact. Greed descended upon him like a predator, throwing more punches, each one driving deeper into Auforus’ battered form. But despite the pain, Auforus smiled through bloodied lips, confusing Greed.
“What’s with that smile?” Greed sneered. “Are you happy to die?”
In that moment, a sharp gunshot rang out. Greed’s eyes widened in shock as he glanced at his arm—Auforus had fired a shot, and in the brief moment of distraction, had managed to pull out his sniper and shoot Greed directly in the chest, sending him flying backward.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Auforus gasped for air, his body aching from the beating, but relief washed over him. Despite everything, he hadn’t screamed during the assault. He knew if he had, the girls—Snow and Afuwafu—would have rushed to him, worried and distracted. He couldn’t afford to let that happen. He glanced down at the trees below, seeing Greed rise once more, his body somehow healing.
“How...?” Auforus muttered, wincing.
Greed, still alive and standing tall, smirked as the souls of the dead he controlled swirled around him, their energy knitting his wounds. He recalled the day he joined the sins, when Wrath had picked him because of the choices he’d made in life. Pride, Lust, and Envy had all greeted him with twisted smiles. He hadn’t minded when they called him by his real name—Luz—because all he wanted was to help people, even if that meant choosing the path of the sins.
Back in the present, Greed closed his eyes, his body giving in to exhaustion. When he awoke just a few minutes later, he found himself bound by ropes. He struggled, screaming in frustration, but Sloth stood over him lazily, holding the ropes in place.
“You lost,” Auforus voice came from nearby, his tone grim.
Auforus stood nearby, now being healed by Snow’s gentle touch, while Greed remained bound and defeated. Luz sighed deeply, his gaze drifting toward the horizon. He knew that if they were going to stop this endless fight, only one opponent remained—Pride. And Pride, they all knew, was something else entirely.
“He’s stronger than the rest of us combined,” Greed murmured, his eyes darkening. “Even if we all face him together... it may not be enough.”