As the victory ceremony began, Sero took a moment to gather his thoughts and compose himself. He smiled politely at the cheering crowd, feeling a mixture of pride and nervousness wash over him. The lights of the stage shone down on him, making his heart race even faster. He glanced over at Liam, who was still glaring at him from his seat beside Elena.
Seeing the Demonic Enforcer so filled with spite strangely made Sero feel smug. He focused his attention back on the host, who was announcing the start of the interview. The interviewer, a tall, statuesque woman with long flowing blonde hair and a confident presence, smiled at Sero as he stepped up to the podium.
"So, Sero, you've just achieved something no other A-rank has ever done before- you won the tournament against all odds. But, I think in your case, you're now an officially recognized S-rank."
The interviewer's words sent a shiver of excitement down Sero's spine. He nodded, trying to contain his smile. "Yes, it's a huge honor. I still can't believe I made it this far."
As they continued to talk about the tournament and his journey to becoming an S-rank, Sero felt a strange sense of detachment from the situation. It was almost as if he was watching himself from afar. He could see the interviewer's lips moving, but the words didn't seem to register until after a brief pause. He forced himself to focus, not wanting to appear unprepared or disinterested.
"So, the biggest question that I believe is on everyone's mind is: What exactly does your Scholar class do?" The interviewer asked, her eyes burning with curiosity.
However, before Sero could reply, an explosion boomed in the distance, causing the crowd to gasp and look back in alarm. Sero quickly realized that the explosion had come from the hospital.
"That's... that's not good," he muttered, his heart sinking.
Immediately, the officials moved to address the situation, calling for medical teams and security personnel. One of them stepped up to Sero and the interviewer. "You two need to come with us. We need to get you to safety."
Sero nodded, his heart racing. "What's going on?"
Gregor suddenly appeared next to them, his expression grim. "We don't know yet, but it seems that the hospital is under attack. Enzo and the others are already on their way there."
"Fuck!" Sero realized that Casey was at the hospital. "We gotta go there too!"
"No, you need to stay with Luna and keep her safe," the Conqueror shook his head. "This place is secure, since Liam and Elena have remained here. I've informed the other Janitors to aid the ones responding."
"But-"
"Sero, please heed my orders," Gregor said, his voice firm but calm. "Your presence at the hospital would only put you in harm's way. You need to stay here and protect Luna. The rest of us will handle this."
"You're going, too?" Sero asked, unable to contain the excitement building within him at the idea of seeing the Conqueror in action.
"Yes, but I need you to stay here and protect Luna," Gregor repeated, his expression unyielding. "You are also an S-rank now, remember? You have a responsibility to her and the citizens here."
Sero clenched his fists, feeling frustrated and powerless. But he knew that the Conqueror was right. He had to trust that Gregor and the others would handle the situation at the hospital.
As Gregor left, Luna stumbled up on stage, frantically searching for Sero. "Sero, what's going on? I heard an explosion!" she cried, her eyes filled with fear. Sero hurried over to her, trying to calm her down.
"Hey, it's ok, we're safe here," Sero calmly said, noting how Elena began to take charge of the situation. "The others are going to deal with whatever's happening over at the hospital."
"Isn't that where Casey is?"
"Y-yeah," Sero stammered, his heart still racing. "But we don't know what's going on. We just have to wait here for now and hope everything's alright." He glanced around, looking for a way to distract her, to take her mind off the danger. He spotted Liam, still sitting in his chair. Despite looking calm, he could tell the Demonic Enforcer was just on edge as he was, scanning the crowd for any threats.
"Come on, let's go backstage," Sero said, taking Luna by the hand and leading her behind the curtains, where more officials were scrambling to deal with the situation. He could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, but he tried his best to keep a calm demeanor for Luna's sake. He tried calling out to Aphiel, but for some reason, the goddess wasn't responding at all.
As they found a place to hide, Sero saw Liam walk past the curtains, wielding his Order staff. They locked eyes, a slight apprehension in the Demonic Enforcer's face.
"What are you doing?" Sero called out to him, confused as to why his weapon was out.
"You're an S-rank, now, aren't you? You really don't feel that huge fucking energy?" Liam scowled at him.
"Uh... what do you mean?" Sero asked, confused. He glanced around, wondering if he was missing something. Slowly, he began to notice the energy that Liam was talking about. In the distance, more explosions resounded, but here at the stage in front of the stadium, Sero sensed a growing strength from the crowd.
Elena burst out from the curtains, her two snakes slithering around her. She looked anxious, glancing from Sero to Liam. "You guys feeling that, too?"
Sero nodded, his heart pounding in his chest. The energy was growing stronger, and it was almost overwhelming. "What do you think it is?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
"I don't care what it is," Liam began to swing his golden staff around. "I've been feeling pretty shitty after the tournament, so hopefully it's something I can vent my frustration out on."
Sero glanced at Luna, who looked frightened by the prospect of another fight. "Hey, Luna, don't worry. I'm going to stay right here with you." He left out the part that he didn't particularly want to get involved with whatever was going to happen.
"You're going to remain here?" Elena asked him, a slight disbelief in her eyes.
Sero nodded, feeling a mixture of shame and defiance. "I can't really get into too much detail, but I need to protect Luna. I'll also protect the citizens, so you two can focus on whatever that energy is."
Elena looked disappointed but didn't push it further. Instead, she turned to Liam. "Alright, let's go. We'll deal with whatever this is together." The two of them walked out front, Elena leading the way with her snakes slithering behind her. Sero felt a pang of guilt as they left, but he knew he couldn't abandon Luna.
He felt the energy from Elena's alligator and knew she had summoned it to help him protect the citizens. He hoped that whatever was going on would end soon, and that he could find out what happened to Casey and the others. In the meantime, he focused on keeping Luna safe. The succubus seemed to be calming down now that they were away from the main action, her hands no longer shaking as she gripped the edge of his shirt.
As they waited, Sero began to feel a sinister presence creeping up on them. The energy in the air seemed to grow heavier and more oppressive with each passing moment. He glanced around, trying to discern the source of the danger, but all he could see were officials and civilians running around in a panic while Liam and Elena attempted to find the source of the energy.
"Oh my god..." Luna whispered, suddenly clutching Sero's arm tightly. "It's so powerful."
"What? What are you talking about-"
"Champion, be careful!" Aphiel's voice suddenly screamed in his thoughts.
With a jolt, Sero realized that some of the citizens scattered about were channeling energy towards the sky, their arms raised as if they were in a trance. The wicked energy from before wasn't from a single entity. It was coming from them.
"What the..." Sero wondered how he didn't notice the strange behavior earlier. 'What are they doing?"
"You need to stop them!" Aphiel cried out in his thoughts again, a note of panic in her voice. "The energy they're channeling... they're causing an outbreak!"
"What?!" Sero quickly rose to his feet, but paused when he saw Luna trembling beside him. "Luna, stay here. I need you to stay safe. Understand?" He gave her a reassuring smile before turning back to the citizens channeling their energy. He saw Liam and Elena up ahead, unaware of what was happening around them.
"Hey-" Sero's shout was cut short as a thundering crack boomed around them. In front of the stage, a massive black portal ringed with silver flames ripped open, brutally ripping apart the citizens that were unfortunate enough to be caught near it. The ones who had been channeling their energy all collapsed, their bodies a pale color as if their lives were sapped from them.
"No!" Sero shouted, his heart pounding in his chest. He dashed towards the portal, not caring about his own safety as he felt the urge to stop whatever was happening. "Elena, Liam!" he yelled, his voice barely audible over the wailing of the citizens.
Liam and Elena were already into position, bracing themselves for whatever was going to come out of the massive portal. The alligator familiar in front of them hissed at the rip in space, swishing its massive tail back and forth.
"Whatever this is, I'll stop it myself," Liam said, his voice firm and arrogant. Elena glared at him, but she knew there was no time to argue. They both prepared to face whatever emerged from the portal. Sero ran up behind them, his mana sword conjured and his dragon pups summoned.
Before he joined them, an immense despair and dread crashed over him, rooting him in place. His muscles tensed, his breath caught in his throat as the portal seemed to pulsate with an unholy energy. The air around them crackled with power, and the very earth trembled beneath their feet. The silence was deafening, broken only by the frantic cries of the citizens in the distance.
Due to the size of the portal, Sero was expecting a massive creature to come forth. Instead, a swirling cloud of darkness erupted from it, spreading outwards in all directions. It seemed to absorb the energy from the portal, growing larger and more malevolent with each passing moment. The cloud coalesced into a smaller shape, taking a humanoid form. In fact, as it completed its formation, Sero realized that it was a woman. Her skin was an unearthly shade of blue, almost like liquid nitrogen, and her long, flowing white hair drifted about her shoulders like tendrils of mist. Her eyes, two swirling pools of darkness, seemed to stare straight into the souls of everyone who gazed upon her. She was naked, but she seemed to glow with an unholy light that cast long shadows across the ground.
Against his better judgement, Sero did think she was attractive, but that feeling was quickly squashed when he felt the wicked energy radiating off of her. It was like she was a living embodiment of despair and hopelessness. He gripped his sword tightly, steeling himself for the fight ahead.
Liam and Elena exchanged a glance before charging forward together, the Demonic Enforcer apparently putting aside his pride in the moment. The woman seemed to smile at them, her lips curling into a cruel sneer. "Ah, children," she said, her voice like the rustling of dead leaves. "So eager to die."
Sero never encountered one before, but he instinctively knew that the creature in front of them was easily an S-rank boss monster.
Even if Liam and Elena realized the same thing, they didn't stop their charge, as opposed to Sero, who remained frozen in place. The woman seemed to expect their attack, as she raised a hand, palm outward. A wave of darkness erupted from her hand, but Liam nullified it with his Pacify, whereas Elena immediately conjured a full-sized Jawlock, the dragon familiar roaring forth as it blocked the attack.
Liam dashed forward, his staff raised high, but the woman merely waved her hand again, sending a wave of despair coursing through him. He stumbled back, but gritted his teeth as he covered himself in an aura of demonic lightning and flames, activating Provoke. Elena had merged with Jawlock and used Synchronization, boosting her strength as she summoned a legion of ghostly reptiles to her call.
Sero shivered, watching the two S-ranks go full power from the start. The woman, however, merely smiled, her expression unreadable. She raised a hand and pointed at Liam, who was still trying to close the distance between them. A beam of pure darkness shot from her finger, piercing through the air. As Liam swung his staff to deflect it, the beam passed right through his weapon, hitting him in the chest.
It looked like the attack did nothing to Liam, as there were no signs of damage or the like as the Demonic Enforcer frowned. A second later, he dropped to his knees, his will to fight vanishing as a glassy look of despair spread across his face.
"No!" Elena cried out as she watched Liam fall before the woman's unholy power. She tried to rush forward to help him, but the woman merely pointed her finger at her, and another beam of darkness shot forth. Elena managed to dodge the attack, but the rippling shockwave from the beam sent her flying backwards, landing heavily on the ground several yards away.
Shocked at how easily the creature was holding her own against the S-ranks, Sero didn't realize he had copied the beam skill.
'Dominate' was a skill that stripped away the will of those it hit, forcing them to submit to the caster's control.
Sero watched as the creature sent another beam screeching towards Elena, directly hitting the Scaletamer and placing her under the effects. Finally, the creature turned towards Sero, a wicked smile playing across her lips.
"You're next."