[Instant Storage]

Garett stood from his seat, making his way to the crowds around him.

"I guess that was pretty mean of us, wasn't it? Hahaha..... we gave you a chance to negotiate and you offered us everything..... your lives, your city, and everything else."

Thinning his eyes in a demonic smile, Garett spoke out to the people around him, who stepped back in fear as he approached.

"And yet..... your offer wasn't enough."

Placing his hand on a shivering man, the man disappeared before the eyes of those around him.

"Wha-"

"That man...."

"Gone...."

In an instant the man disappeared before the very eyes of the people, leaving them to only imagine what sort of horrible fate he had suffered.

Garett then touched his finger to the forehead of a woman, and she likewise disappeared.

"Even so, we'll be taking everything. Ah, I suppose we lied, didn't we? Sorry about that, Host of Greed."

Garett walked over to the body, bending down and touching the head and body before they disappeared as well into the darkness.

The people were now frozen stiff.

The demon before them was now going around, randomly slaughtering people.

They never knew who would be next.

Garett walked through the crowd without a care, looking around to see who his next target would be.

Looking around, he saw a man who was holding the hand of his daughter.

Meeting eyes with this man, Garett walked over and held out his hand to touch the man.

"W-wait..... I have..... I have a daughter..... please..... I.... beg you....."

Garett stopped his hand just before it touched the man as a confused expression came across his face.

"What does having a daughter have to do with anything?"

Garett's eyes were ruthless.

The man understood well that there was not a shred of mercy in the demon before him, but even so he spoke instinctively, his words flowing without giving them a thought.

"Would you kill a man right in front of his daughter? I.... I have to provide for her..... please..... spare me...."

The man fell to his knees, begging for his life.

Garett closed his eyes and pulled back his hand, closing his eyes.

"I suppose you have a point there."

As soon as Garett said this, a sense of relief spread through the crowd.

He held some shred of sympathy.

The demon who had overtaken this city had shown mercy.

Bending down, Garett looked into the eyes of the little girl and smiled.

She grabbed the shoulder of her despairing father, hiding behind him with fearful eyes.

"There there..... it's ok."

Holding out his hand, Garett patted the head of the girl.

"See? We're not all that bad."

"I have a daughter as well!!!"

"I also have a son!!!"

"Please spare us!!!!"

The people around Garett began to shout, voicing their own relations.

"I have grandchildren!!!"

"I have a nephew!!!"

Garett continued to smile at the little girl, who came out from the protection of her father with a light smile.

It was at that moment, as Garett pat the head of the smiling girl, that the girl disappeared.

"After all..... if I was completely evil, then I would have killed you in front of your daughter."

The man watched in horror.

His daughter was gone.

In an instant, she disappeared from existence.

"Haha... did you think that having a family would protect you from your fate?"

Garett stood up, his grin that of a million demons.

"It looks like you no longer have a daughter to provide for."

The man's eyes went blank due to an overload of emotions, and Garett grabbed his head, holding it in his hand and squeezing it.

"You're a grown man, aren't you? And you're hiding behind a child?"

With a horrible voice, Garett whispered into the ear of the man, whose eyes went wide.

"Pathetic."

It was then that the man disappeared.

Garett stood up, turning around to all the others.

"Now then.... which ones among you were shouting in a similarly pathetic manner, hiding behind the fact that you have children to care for?"

----

A crimson flash spread throughout the city, connecting the elementals in the area like dots.

Trevor used his own [Speed of Light] skill at that time to transform the three into light such that they could follow Garett's movements, ensuring that the 3 meter radius was not violated.

One by one, in an instant, the people of Volaciophus disappeared from the plane of existence.

Not a single one remained.

"Let's split.", Garett said, looking up to his comrades who were now materializing.

"Indeed.", Trevor replied, and the four once more converted into particles of light before appearing above the volcano.

Garett looked down on the Volcanic city- one in which stood for hundreds, or perhaps even thousands of years.

"Boom."

Holding out a finger, Garett played the role of a conductor, orchestrating a symphony of destruction.

[Equivalent exchange: Energy Transfer]

At that moment, the volcano erupted with an enormous amount of power, magma flowing all around the area.

Entire buildings and the plates which they floated on were engulfed in lava, and the city of flames was no more.

Magma spurted out like a geyser, and the four merely watched as an entire city was reduced to nothing in an instant.

"Four Hosts of Sin have been nullified, and a single Monster King was among them. The one who was classified as a Monster King held a tremendous ability, therefore it was careless of us to attack in such a straightforward manner.", Trevor noted as he watched the fireworks of magma from afar.

"Don't say that. I knew it would end up fine, so I killed her. It's all good."

"Even if you say that, there was no basis for that knowledge."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"I am a basis for knowledge."

Trevor chuckled at Ashley's statement, but could say nothing to reject it.

[Always Right]

This was the skill which had been granted to her oh so long ago, in that cave where they found the spiderlings.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Samantha looked on at the eruption of magma with a light smile, watching peacefully as the destruction ensued.

"Indeed.", Trevor replied, grabbing her hand.

"But not as beautiful as you."

The two watched, hands intertwined, bracelets of human toes adorning each of them, as a scene of destruction and chaos played out in front of them.

"We will create..... even more beautiful scenes of destruction like this.... heheheh...."

Ashley spoke in a grizzled tone, crackling to herself as she watched.

"We will. I can't wait.", Garett stated while frizzling her already messy hair.

"Hehe....."

----

Filled with fear and worry, the people of Iciclaris slumped towards their homes, eyes lowered to the ground.

'What will happen to us?'

'How much longer do we have?'

'The Captain.....'

With grim thoughts and heavy heart, these people could not show the slightest bit of enthusiasm.

Life itself was suffering.

Their hope, their livelihood, their leader had been stripped from them.

All that was left was emptiness.

Yet as these people walked to their homes, they began to float in the air.

"Wha-"

"What's happening!?!??"

"I'm flying..... but not on my own....."

"Something is lifting me!!!"

The people mysteriously began to float up into the air, high into the sky before coming to rest in a large circle.

In the center of the circle were four beings.

Two demons, an elf, and a spirit.

The antiheroes.

"Wha-"

"They.... are back already....."

"We're doomed...."

The people looked at this situation, high in the sky, without the slightest shred of optimism.

It was then, out of some strange black portals that appeared, that hundreds of flame and earth elementals fell from the sky, joining the floating circles of elementals.

Now, elementals of every type had been gathered.

"How many chances have we given you people? Too many to count in my opinion."

The teal succubus spoke with an irritated demeanor, shrugging her shoulders with a sadistic smile.

"But we are extremely generous, so we will give each and every one of you.... one final chance."

With a grin, the woman looked around, grasping the eyes and hearts of the people.

She spoke with a soothing and appealing voice, yet this same voice was terror inducing, as if she was here to consume each and every person before her.

"Do not disappoint us further."

These words were spoken with a harsh tone, yet the succubus gave the people a beautiful smile, as if she was trying to both captivate and terrorize them.

"Indeed. We will grant you one final chance. It has come to my attention that the people of Iciclaris and Volaciophus have a grand history between one another. While in recent years tensions have been low, this has not been the case in the minds of the inhabitants. To put it simply.... you are natural enemies who cannot forget your hatred for one another."

Trevor held his hand to his forehead in disappointment, clicking his tongue.

"For someone to hold a grudge towards one that they have never even met..... truly, disappointing."

Looking forward, Trevor fixed his tie and glared around him, making eye contact with those floating in the air only for a brief moment before they would turn away anxiously.

"Do you people even understand what it means to truly hate someone?"

Trevor spoke with booming tone, his words carrying immense weight behind them.

Chills were sent down the spines of all who heard, causing those who held resentments and grudges towards the people of the opposing city to shake in fear.

"You will accept the very people that you resent. You will live together, in one city, as one people- as our slaves. There are no distinctions among races.... among appearances.... among the births of our people. There is only one distinction among our slaves."

Trevor grinned in a businesslike manner, spreading his arms wide for all to see.

"We highlight individuals for their efforts. If you wish to be above others, then you must first raise yourself above them. Through results."

Shuddering at these words, the flame and earth elementals looked around them in terror.

They believed they had died- some for the second time, yet instead they had been transported into an abyss of darkness.

They felt as if they would go mad for a moment, yet did not.

They had then appeared together as a group, in the middle of Iciclaris before the very people who had 'slaughtered' them.

'Just.....'

'Who are the antiheroes?'

"Now then..... do get along. If you don't, we will send our elites to purge you from this world."

With this statement, The people were lowered to the ground, and the crimson demon placed his hands onto the ice covered streets.

The icy buildings turned into a black brick, which spread out from the point of contact until the entire city had changed.

As if it had withered into a dark fortress, the city was no longer a frozen wasteland.

The snow itself stopped, and the moon in the sky shined through, bathing the city in it's light.

"We cannot have a city of ice for all elementals to live in. Even if it is purely aesthetic, I'd like you all to understand..... that each of you are equally worthless until you prove otherwise."

Garett spoke to the people in a horrible tone, grinning as the city became a demonic landscape.

Ashley looked around at the people, her green eyes ever so lightly touched by the moonlight.

With intrigue, she giggled to herself.

"Hehehe... don't throw away this last chance."

And in that moment, the antiheroes disappeared from the eyes of the people.

They were left alone in this withered city of darkness, told to continue their lives under their absolute overlords.

A single misstep would lead to their deaths, or even worse.

The deaths of those around them.

Their loved ones.

Perhaps even their children.

The elementals of the city of magma understood this well, and those of Iciclaris too understood.

Looking around with concerned expressions, they wondered to themselves.

'What do we do now?'

----

A door which had been padlocked, sealed, and covered in security measures was opened with the flick of the wrist.

Ashley giggled as the four entered the dungeon which lay below, to witness a heartwarming scene.

A mother, a husband, and two children.

Peacefully sitting on a couch, the children sat in the arms of the mother, who was being hugged tightly by the father.

If not for the look of insanity in the eyes of all four of these people, and the dungeon which surrounded them, it would appear heartwarming.

"Your excellencies!! Y'all have come back after such a long time!! I was waiting for you to bring us some new livestock to prepare..... have you brought some for me and my lovely family to work on?"

The braided farmer spoke with a glint of bloodlust in her eyes, petting the children who sat beside her with an unmatched fervency.

"Did you bring more meat, your excellencies?"

"We'd love to help mama prepare something for you...."

The two children spoke with madness, dragging their words as they talked.

"My, you two are such good little things, aren't ya? Always so willing to help out..... makes mama want to cry. She raised such good boys... even when your father was off fighting for us.", the woman stated.

"I'm just glad to be back, darling.", the man replied while holding the woman tighter.

The madness in the eyes of each of the people was beyond comprehension, as if reality itself was foreign to them.

"Unfortunately, the hunt was not..... the most successful. The meat which we obtained is extremely hard and unsuitable for cooking. As sad as I am to say, we will not be consuming any new delicacies tonight."

"What a shame, isn't that right boys?"

The two children nodded.

"However.... there is still plenty of livestock waitin' for us to cook up in the old storage shed. Why don't we go grab some ourselves and fix somethin' up for ya'll?", Bella asked.

"That would be wonderful.", Samantha replied. "You always work so hard, Bella."

Raising a muscle, Bella smiled.

"I wouldn't be where I am if I didn't. I'm just so glad..... that my boys and my husband are back with me."

"Of course. Then, please make something for us. I look forward to what you come up with."

The antiheroes walked past the family with smiles and nods, and Bella stood up, leading her family to the meat shack.

"Time to get to work!"

----

Walking into a new dungeon, the antiheroes passed through a line of cells.

"We're baaaack..."

Ashley spoke in a ghastly tone, hauntingly announcing her arrival with sadism in her voice.

On one side of the cells, a fishman shriveled in fear.

On the other, a snakeman writhed in agony.

"Agh!!! S-stop!!! Why are you doing this!!?!! STOP!!!! How many times do I have to tell you!?!?! WE CAN'T SAVE THE DAMN KID!!!!!!"

"And why do you never trust me!? We have to help him!!! Let's go!!! This won't end until we save him!!"

These words were followed by screams of torment.

"Hey, could you mute him?"

Samantha looked at the snakeman with an annoyed expression.

"Got it."

The spiritual finger waved her hand, flickering her finger in a motion.

In an instant the mouth of the snakeman was closed shut, held together by an unstoppable force.

"Ah, that's more like it. How peaceful."

"Indeed."

Samantha and Trevor agreed as they continued through the cells, reaching an empty set.

"Now then.... I believe it is about time we released our new captives.", Trevor suggested.

Nodding at his suggestion, Garett opened the portal to his inventory, throwing the mangled bodies of three elementals into a opposing cells.

The body of Avarco, the former host of greed was thrown into one cell, and the bodies of Envidia and Evelyn were thrown together into another.

"Now quit your sleeping.", Samantha stated as she held up her hand, flares of yellow light entering the crystalline remains of the three.

Instantly the remains were reanimated and repaired, and the three looked around in confusion.

"Where-!?"

"Do not speak. Merely listen."

Trevor spoke as soon as Envidia began to shout, her flames having returned to her body.

"Listen well, you three. You have lost. You are all losers. Pathetic mortals who tried to defy those above you. You believed that you held power above us, and were thrown into the abyss of death as a result."

As the elven figure before them spoke, the three came to a realization of the magnitude of the four beings before them.

They were anomalies of this world.

Holding power which even Hosts of Sin could not fathom, there was no comparison.

The three reeled back in fear as uncertainty filled their minds.

'Why am I here?'

'Why am I alive?'

'Why are they right there?'

'What happened!?!?'

"As you all likely know, we are currently in the process of world domination, and I dare to say that things are going smoothly. However, I am a reasonable man. I do not wish to simply throw away useful assets. And I consider the three of you to be very useful, if you are to come to the correct conclusion."

With a smirk, Trevor looked to the three.

"To those of you who care, we hold the people of your cities within the palms of our hands. Their lives could be taken at any moment, therefore do not make any rash decisions or statements. And to those of you who do not care, your lives are currently held in the balance."

With a sinister grin, Trevor eyeballed each of the three people, who looked towards him with terror.

"And when we hold your life in the balance..... there is no such thing as an end to suffering. Unmute him, will you?"

"Mhm."

The screams of the snakeman filled the halls of the dungeon, and the three looked at the beings of chaos with eyes wide, terrified of what horrible things had been done to him to make such a man screech in such horrible manner.

"Mute him now. My goodness, his voice annoys me. Ahem.... then I think you all understand well, no? You hold no choice. Become our slaves, and work for us. We will return for your answer."

The three heard footsteps through the hall, which quieted quickly as they heard the shutting sound of a door.

They were left alone, together.

"Thank goodness..... they stopped..... hahahah..... the screams finally stopped....."

From the other cell, the three heard the sound of a man who had been brought to tears.

"I had to listen to that snakeman scream.... day and night..... it wasn't as bad as the torture they gave me, but it was endless... hahahah.... but finally.... he's quiet now...."

The one who spoke was Kota, the fishman in the other cell.

Avarco almost had an urge to laugh, but kept this to himself as he spoke to the others present.

"My..... what a predicament this is... it would look as if we are powerless to do anything."