Rubble. This was all that was left of what was once called the Overblown Castle. The incredible structure was so exaggerated that one could imagine it just by looking at it. Marshmallow could not believe that it had been reduced to this state.

Marshmallow slid off the Dragon Goat's back in a hurry. He jumped about fifty feet before hitting the ground with a dull thud, but to him, it was like a little hop.

He now had a direct view of what had happened. Most importantly, he could smell the air. Marshmallow had seen similar situations before, his memories of his military service flashed back to him like light in a bulb. The blood was no longer fresh, the digital microorganisms had already begun their work, turning the flesh into rotting mush.

Everything Raven had built was destroyed. As he continued, the vision became more and more gruesome. Mangled bodies piled up everywhere, some so horribly mutilated they were unrecognisable. Only shreds of armour and torn flesh indicated that they had once been human.

Then, just outside the entrance to the lobby, Marshmallow saw them. The bodies of Dam and Samantheye. His friend lay wide-eyed in a final mask of pure terror. The wound he had received had ripped open his entire abdomen, a wound so large that his entire small intestine was visible in a pool of blood now solidified by time. He must have tried to defend himself before he succumbed. He had used his three tails, which now lay lifeless on the ground.

Samantheye's corpse was even worse. Her beautiful face had been reduced to a shapeless mass of bones and battered flesh. Her trusty rifle was a few feet away, and his right hand was still trying to hold it to her, severed from his body.

"Damn... it wasn't supposed to end like this!"

He began to shake with rage and despair. It was just too much.

He fell to his knees. He clenched his fists with all his strength and slammed them to the ground with an impetuous gesture, trying in vain to deal with his bad feelings.

STOMP!

A huge crack appeared in the ground. Marshmallow could hardly believe it. He estimated that he must have been in the Depths of Vesuvietna for three or four days. He and the Dragon Goat had wandered that literally hellish place for a few days before reaching Balor the Immortal. Had BloodLust been able to do all this at the same time that Marshmallow had been sent away?

He had no way of knowing how BloodLust had done it. Whether he had acted alone or had been helped by other Novgovians, the only thing he could be sure of was that if the enemies were able to destroy the entire Overblown Castle, they were not to be underestimated.

But what was really worse was something else, and it was obvious from every angle. BloodLust had acquired ALL of their allies' Unique Skills. Marshmallow was very strong, he was sure that he was many spans above Raven now, but would that be enough to deal with BloodLust?

At that moment, while Marshmallow was still on the ground, curled up in a puddle of tears, a hand rested on his right shoulder.

"It wasn't your fault."

It was the voice of the Dragon Goat, who had taken on a humanoid form. No longer a half-horse, he now looked more like a dragonid with goat-like features in some places, such as horns and tufts of fur protruding from some areas of his skin.

"If I had been there ... it wouldn't have been like this. If I had been there, I might have been able to prevent this disaster. Now it's over. We can no longer resist BloodLust."

The Dragon Goat sighed. Marshmallow was truly broken; he had never seen him in such a state. What could he do to cheer him up?

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

At this point, the Dragon Goat stared at Marshmallow with glowing eyes.

"You dumbass, how about getting out of that pool of tears before your balls get rusty?"

Marshmallow gasped, blinking in confusion.

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me!" the Dragon Goat growled angrily. "You're standing here crying like a pussy while that bastard BloodLust is laughing somewhere.

"I can't help it..." Marshmallow muttered weakly. "I was sent to the Depths of Vesuvietna when it happened."

The Dragon Goat rolled his eyes with an indignant snort. "You're right, of course. But brooding over it now won't bring her back to life. You have to pull yourself together! Come on!"

In an instant, the Dragon Goat kicked at the remains of an armored torso beside him, sending its wreckage flying with a metallic thud. Marshmallow winced, stunned by his traveling companion's new brazenness. After his reincarnation, he seemed much more aggressive and bold.

"Instead of feeling sorry for yourself, you should focus on getting revenge! Grab that piece of dung by the hair and make him swallow his guts!"

Marshmallow gulped as the tears gradually stopped. His eyes darted back and forth between the remains of his friends and the Dragon Goat. "But is too powerful. He's taken everyone's powers."

"So what?" the Dragon Goat insisted, showing the draconic fangs in his mouth. "Don't underestimate my new draconic abilities, and especially don't underestimate your own. Have you forgotten that you destroyed the final boss of the Survivor game all by yourself? Balor and Raven themselves were afraid of Serthar, yet you did it."

At this point, the Dragon Goat took a step closer with an angry, defiant expression on his face. "Look, we only have two options: either you get up and go fight like a real warrior, or I stay here and beat the crap out of you to test my new claws."

At this point, a memory clicked in Marshmallow's mind.

Why had he decided to join the Survivor Game? Obviously it was because he had no choice. But why had he no choice? Because he had always been a loser. He didn't want to be one anymore. He had promised himself that he would change. Breaking down would have meant continuing to be a failure.

This was the reckoning. The final challenge. What would cement his ultimate change.

Then a shiver ran down Marshmallow's spine. It was not fear, but almost... excitement. The outrage of those stinging words ignited a fire within him, a burning determination to prove that he was no longer a failure. The driving force that had allowed him to continue playing the Survivor Game until now.

"No..." Marshmallow growled, slowly getting to his feet. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white, and his eyes were bathed in a new living flame.

"It won't end like this! I will not allow it! We will win, Dragon Goat!"

"Oh, finally!" The Dragon Goat grinned with satisfaction. "You've come to your senses."

Marshmallow began to think, now with a clear mind. "I sense his aura to the north, and another... no. So many dark auras with him. I feel the entire power of Novgovia all gathered in one place."

"What does that mean?" The Dragon Goat asked him curiously.

"It means they have copied us, Dragon," Marshmallow explained. "They did exactly what we did, they all hunkered down in one place, probably in a fortress. And I don't sense any movement. That means they are waiting for us."

"They want us to raid their house!" The Dragon Goat exclaimed in surprise. "Sounds interesting."

Marshmallow had regained his composure after his first moment of despair. He had been left alone, but now he felt he could do it. He was incredibly strong, but he certainly could not take on the entire Novgovian army alone, including BloodLust.

"Dragon Goat, we need a plan," he said resolutely.

"Do you have anything in mind?" the Dragon Goat asked.

"I've thought about it." Marshmallow paced back and forth, furrowing his brow as he thought. "We cannot attack them without a strategy or someone or something to be our ally. In the fortress to the north, I sense exactly 168 auras, all the remaining Novgovians. We will face 168 Novgovians and there are two of us..." He glanced at his right hand, imbued with the power of Necrokinesis. "Three, if we count him, the Super Undead. We are strong, but we need reinforcements."

The Dragon Goat nodded thoughtfully. After his boasting, he realized that they couldn't just break in and kick everyone's ass. That would have been too hard a task, even for them who had won against Serthar.

It was then that Marshmallow remembered something fundamental. He looked up until he saw a figure in the distance. Yes, he was still there, waiting for them.

"Hey! Sage Ezekiel!" Marshmallow shouted with all his might in the direction of the blue-haired satyr. "How about you and the people of Ashenwood help us overthrow Novgovia?"