“What about you?” Yukio asked, her voice trembling.
“I’ll handle this.” Joseph gave her a reassuring nod, though his eyes betrayed the weight of the situation.
As the forcefield began to falter, the kingdom’s witches, mages, alchemists, shamans, thaumaturges, and theurgists combined their strength to fortify the barrier. Sweat poured down their faces as they chanted incantations, their magic straining to withstand the onslaught. Even the XPT within the kingdom hummed loudly, struggling to maintain its integrity.
High above, Ryujin floated serenely, his eyes cold as he surveyed the chaos. His minions—cherubim, seraphim, and thrones—hovered nearby, ready for his command. The kingdom’s defenders, including knights, hunters, knight-hunters, robots, and androids, rallied to meet the oncoming horde of supernatural monsters.
Joseph entered the fray with precision, cutting down monsters with ease. He turned to Yukio, who had hesitated to leave. “Go! Now!”
Reluctantly, Yukio obeyed, retreating to safety with their daughter. Satisfied they were secure, Joseph joined the fight in earnest. As the battle intensified, he called out, “Xiao Xiao, I need you!”
Xiao Xiao, who had been commanding from a distance, signaled a nearby drone. It zoomed to Joseph, encasing him in a sleek technological armor equipped with gadgets and weaponry. Fully suited, Joseph rocketed into the air, heading straight for Ryujin.
However, before he could reach the enemy leader, a seraphim intercepted him. The angel’s blast sent Joseph spiraling to the ground, his armor cracked and sparking. Groaning, Joseph forced himself to his feet, only to find Hikaru Suzuki—a deadly minion of Ryujin—waiting for him.
Their battle was fierce, the clash of their powers shaking the earth. Hikaru’s strikes were relentless, and Joseph struggled to keep up. But just as Hikaru prepared to deliver a fatal blow, Lyra intervened, attacking from behind and slaying Hikaru with a precision strike.
“I told you to watch your back,” Lyra quipped, offering Joseph a hand.
“Noted,” Joseph replied, breathing heavily as she pulled him up.
Elsewhere, Yoshito and Yoshi faced Kensuke Sasaki and Miyu Haru. The empowered minions pushed them to their limits, but after an intense struggle, the brothers emerged victorious.
With the weaker monsters and supernaturals defeated, the group regrouped near the battlefield’s center. Yoshito, Yoshi, Lyra, Joseph, and Xiao Xiao stood side by side, their gazes locked on Ryujin, who still hovered midair.
“Ready?” Yoshito asked, his voice steady.
“Always,” Yoshi replied, gripping his weapon tightly.
Before they could make a move, Ryujin snapped his fingers. A host of angels—seraphim, cherubim, and thrones—descended upon them in a blinding rush. The warriors braced themselves, their resolve unshaken despite the overwhelming odds.
“Here they come!” Xiao Xiao shouted.
“Then let’s give them hell,” Joseph replied, charging forward with renewed determination.
The clash resumed with an explosive force, the defenders of the kingdom fighting not just for their survival but for the very future of their world.
***
The air crackled with tension as the three angels charged toward the group. Lyra, her fiery eyes gleaming with the determination of an archdemon, was the first to move. With a swift, fluid motion, she transformed into her true form, her horns curling and her wings unfurling. The Trident she wielded shimmered with a dark aura, its points crackling with power. Yoshito and Yoshi stood firm beside her, their weapons raised and ready. Together, they met the onslaught of celestial fury with a ferocity that matched the angels' divine wrath.
Keeping them occupied while Joseph and Xiao Xiao broke away to confront Ryujin.
The angels' wings beat furiously, sending gusts of wind whipping through the battlefield. Their strikes were swift and powerful, but Lyra’s movements were even faster, each swing of her Trident cutting through the air with precision and grace. Yoshito’s blades flashed as they clashed against the angels’ glowing weapons, sparks flying. Yoshi’s energy blasts crackled through the air, forcing the angels to dodge and retreat momentarily. But it wasn’t enough to end the fight.
On the other side of the battlefield, Joseph and Xiao Xiao faced Ryujin—an entity of pure malice, whose presence was suffocating. The air around them seemed to distort as he loomed, his power radiating like a dark sun. Joseph launched a flurry of attacks, his every strike infused with the hopes of all who depended on him. Xiao Xiao was no less determined, her weapons flashing with deadly energy. But Ryujin absorbed their assaults with unsettling ease, his laughter ringing out across the field.
Ryujin mocked Joseph's weakness as the supposed savior of the world, taunting his futile attempts. With a sinister smirk, Ryujin revealed his intention to claim Joseph's powers for himself, but not before he uncovered the full extent of Joseph’s abilities.
“Is this the best the so-called savior of the world can do?” Ryujin taunted, his grip tightening around Joseph’s arms. With a twist, he flung Xiao Xiao aside like a ragdoll, her body crashing against the ground with a sickening thud. Ryujin's eyes gleamed with a dark, twisted amusement as he stared down at Joseph, whose struggles grew weaker with every passing moment.
"Pathetic," Ryujin sneered. "You think you have control over your power, but you don’t. That seal on your forehead is nothing more than a leash."
Joseph gritted his teeth, fighting against the growing sense of helplessness. His mind raced, desperate for a way to break free, but Ryujin was already inside it—digging into the deepest recesses of his thoughts, unearthing his darkest fears and greatest vulnerabilities.
"You are weak," Ryujin whispered. "And I will claim your power. I will break you, piece by piece, until there is nothing left."
Joseph’s mind flared with a violent surge of energy, but it was not enough. Ryujin’s grip tightened, and Joseph’s vision blurred. He could feel the weight of his failure pressing down on him, the burden of the world he had been entrusted to save. And yet, as the darkness closed in, a memory flickered—a memory of Yukio, his wife, and their child.
Meanwhile, Xiao Xiao, having regained her composure, rejoined the fray. Her attacks were swift and relentless, but Ryujin’s barriers were impenetrable, each blast deflected with cold, calculated ease. His gaze never wavered from Joseph, his sadistic grin widening as he pushed deeper into his thoughts.
On the other side of the battlefield, Yoshito, Yoshi, and Lyra fought valiantly against the relentless angels. The tide shifted momentarily when one angel, gravely wounded in a fierce clash with Aryl, fell on the brink of death. Seizing this fleeting moment, the remaining angels merged with the fallen, their bodies and essences intertwining to form a single, immensely powerful entity known as Sethrophese. With their combined strength amplified to unprecedented levels, Sethrophese rejoined the battle, unleashing a ferocious and unrelenting assault.
Yoshito, Yoshi, and Lyra fought desperately against the newly formed Sethrophese. They were pushing hard, but the fusion of celestial and demonic power was unlike anything they had encountered. Their attacks began to fall short, and with a final, devastating blow, Sethrophese unleashed a cataclysmic blast of energy that tore through the air.
As Ryujin delved into Joseph’s mind, risking the activation of self-defense mechanisms, he relentlessly sought the secret to Joseph’s power. Amid his probing, Ryujin unearthed a revelation that made his heart race with malevolent joy: Joseph was married and had a child. Recognizing the significance of this vulnerability, Ryujin’s sinister grin widened. This newfound knowledge ignited a dark satisfaction within him, and he wasted no time transmitting it telepathically to Sethrophese.
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Across the battlefield, Yoshito, Yoshi, and Lyra had nearly subdued Sethrophese after an intense and grueling confrontation. However, Ryujin’s transmitted revelation reached Sethrophese just as its strength waned. Seizing this final opportunity, Sethrophese summoned its remaining power into a single, devastating attack, directing it toward Yukio and her child with unrelenting precision.
At that moment, Aryl delivered a decisive blow with her Trident, obliterating Sethrophese in a brilliant flash of energy. However, the entity had already unleashed its final devastating blast, aimed at Yukio and her child. As the energy streaked across the battlefield, Ryujin forced Joseph to watch helplessly, his heart sinking as he realized what was about to happen.
"NO!" Joseph screamed, his voice tearing through the chaos. Time seemed to slow as Yukio acted, shielding their child in a desperate act of love. With unyielding resolve, she threw Josephine to safety just as the energy struck her. The blast consumed Yukio, leaving her charred and broken, the remnants of her strength sacrificed to protect their child.
The explosion rippled outward, its destructive force claiming allies and enemies alike. The ground shook violently as the kingdom trembled under its impact, drawing the attention of all who fought nearby. When the dust settled, Joseph stood frozen, his gaze locked on Yukio’s lifeless form. Her body, a scorched ruin, lay crumpled on the battlefield.
A deafening silence followed before Ryujin’s cruel laughter echoed through the air, cutting through Joseph’s grief like a blade. But the sound was drowned out by the roaring tide of anguish and rage swelling within Joseph.
As his emotions reached a breaking point, an overwhelming surge of energy erupted from him. His markings flickered erratically—half-seal, null, full-seal—his body trembling under the strain. His blue hair and silver eyes shifted between chaotic colors, his once-pristine technological armor fracturing with golden light that pulsed and expanded like living veins.
The ground beneath Joseph cracked and split, the fissures radiating outward as the battlefield quaked under his power. A massive shockwave burst forth, shattering Ryujin’s barrier spell and sending both Ryujin and Xiao Xiao reeling. For a moment, even Ryujin was forced into a defensive stance, his maniacal grin faltering as the sheer magnitude of Joseph’s unleashed power became evident.
"Yes! That’s it!" Ryujin’s voice rose triumphantly, his grin returning with wild glee. "Unleash your rage! Make me pay for what I’ve done to your precious wife!" His laughter echoed maniacally. "The power of the savior is truly extraordinary!"
Joseph’s eyes burned with fury, the raw energy surging through him transforming his grief into a weapon. His pain, his loss, and his hatred fused into an unstoppable force as he stood tall amidst the chaos.
The battlefield trembled under his power, the darkened skies growing even darker as his presence consumed the area. This was no longer a fight for survival; it was the beginning of a reckoning. Joseph, fueled by rage and sorrow, was prepared to destroy anyone who stood in his way. The battle had only just begun.
As Joseph’s rage grew, the energy surrounding him intensified, swelling into a storm of raw, unbridled power. The force that had once been sealed deep within him—hidden away by fear and restraint—now surged forth like an unstoppable tidal wave. He felt it coursing through his veins, an overwhelming might that threatened to consume him completely. But this time, he embraced it. He was no longer afraid, no longer the weak savior that Ryujin had ridiculed.
With a thunderous roar, Joseph's energy erupted, encasing him in a blinding aura of light. The earth beneath his feet cracked and trembled, unable to withstand the sheer magnitude of his unleashed power. His fury found its focus, narrowing on the one person responsible for Yukio’s death.
Ryujin’s grin faltered for a fleeting moment as he sensed the shift in the battlefield's balance. Joseph was no longer a broken victim. He had become the storm.
"I will make you suffer," Joseph growled, his voice low and venomous, even as an unsettling laughter escaped him. The madness within him clawed at his sanity, threatening to take hold, but he welcomed it, using the chaos within as fuel for his vengeance.
Ryujin’s twisted grin returned, his eyes gleaming with a mix of intrigue and mockery. "Yes, that’s it! You’re a creature who dances on the knife’s edge between life and death, between sanity and madness. I can hear the symphony of your inner war—the chorus of screams rising from the pit of hell itself!"
Ryujin's lips curled into a sly smirk as his eyes glinted with unrestrained ambition. "That power," he murmured, his voice a low, velvety whisper that dripped with determination. "I must have it."
Before Ryujin could say more, Joseph charged with immense speed, his fists colliding with devastating force. The shockwaves from each blow tore through the battlefield, sending tremors across the land. The air cracked with each impact, the raw energy of Joseph’s strikes shaking the very fabric of the fight.
Ryujin staggered slightly under the onslaught, his grin fading briefly as he barely managed to catch Joseph's next punch. The collision unleashed another shockwave, forcing Ryujin back a step.
"You think that because you’re the prophesied savior, you can challenge me with your rage?" Ryujin spat, his eyes blazing with anger as he wrestled against Joseph’s strength. With a surge of his own power, Ryujin countered, tossing Joseph aside with enough force to send him careening uncontrollably across the battlefield.
Joseph skidded to a halt, regaining his balance quickly, his aura flaring brighter than ever. The time for mercy had passed.
Yoshito, Yoshi, and Lyra regrouped near Joseph, their earlier triumph over Sethrophese overshadowed by the immense energy emanating from their ally.
“Joseph!” Yoshito called, his voice laced with concern. “You need to focus! This rage—it’s exactly what Ryujin wants!”
Joseph’s head snapped toward Yoshito, his glowing eyes devoid of recognition. His voice, distorted by the energy coursing through him, growled, “He took her from me…”
Lyra stepped forward, her demonic form still present. “Listen to me, Joseph! If you lose control now, you’ll destroy everything—including your daughter!”
Those words pierced through Joseph’s rage like a dagger, momentarily steadying him. He stumbled back, clutching his head as the echoes of his wife’s final scream replayed in his mind.
Meanwhile, Ryujin stood amidst the chaos, arms outstretched as if basking in the storm. “Beautiful! This is the power of a true savior—untamed and unbound!” He smirked, his voice dripping with malice. “But it’s still not enough.”
Xiao Xiao, battered but determined, joined the group, her weapons recharging from the XPT. “We need to act now,” she said firmly. “Joseph’s power is unstable, and Ryujin is only getting stronger by feeding off this energy.”
“Then we hit him together,” Yoshi said, gripping his blade tightly. “All at once. We take him down before Joseph loses himself completely.”
Joseph, now kneeling and gasping for breath, looked up at them. His voice was calmer, but the pain was evident. “I’ll hold him off. Protect my daughter… please.”
“No.” Yoshito placed a hand on Joseph’s shoulder. “We’re in this together. You’re not fighting alone.”
Ryujin’s patience wore thin. With a snap of his fingers, the skies darkened further, and bolts of lightning struck the ground around them. “Enough talk. Show me what you’re capable of!”
The group launched their assault. Yoshito and Yoshi charged in unison, their weapons glowing with enchantments. Lyra leapt into the air, her Trident crackling with hellfire as she aimed for Ryujin’s barriers. Xiao Xiao provided support, sending drones to weaken Ryujin’s defenses while firing precise energy blasts.
Joseph, still brimming with unstable power, rose to his feet. He focused his energy, forming a massive spear of light in his hand. “This is for Yukio,” he whispered before propelling himself forward.
The battle was cataclysmic. Ryujin deflected attacks with calculated precision, his barriers shimmering with divine energy. He retaliated with devastating strikes, forcing the group to dodge and regroup repeatedly.
“You’re persistent,” Ryujin remarked, blocking Yoshito’s sword with a mere gesture. “But persistence won’t save you.”
Yoshito gritted his teeth. “It’s not about saving ourselves. It’s about stopping you.”
Joseph managed to breach Ryujin’s barrier, his spear of light striking true. The impact caused an explosion of energy, sending both Joseph and Ryujin hurtling backward. Ryujin emerged from the blast, visibly injured but still smirking.
“Well done,” he admitted, wiping blood from his mouth. “But you’ll need more than that to kill me.”
Joseph, now on one knee, clutched his side. “We’re just getting started.”
As the battle raged on, the kingdom’s defenders rallied, inspired by the bravery of their leaders. Civilians were evacuated to safety, and the remaining supernatural forces were pushed back. Despite their efforts, the kingdom’s future hung by a thread, and the true test of their resolve was yet to come.
As Yoshito, Yoshi, Lyra, Joseph, and Xiao Xiao combined their attacks simultaneously, they almost gained the upper hand. However, Ryujin unleashed a devastating torrent of dark energy from his body, sending the group hurtling backward in defense. Despite this, Ryujin commended their efforts before revealing his true form, absorbing the souls of his fallen minions to empower himself further.
His true draconic humanoid god form was an almost extraterrestrial terror, divine and horrifying. Various eyes encircled his forehead like a crown, carved into four-pointed stars, each radiating the seven colors of the rainbow as they scanned the battlefield. His six massive wings were sharper than any earthly or lesser divine steel, and his form appeared to be coated in a fusion of holy and unholy armor. He loomed ginormous, his deadly twin tails sharp enough to cleave through anything in their path. His very presence seemed to twist the fabric of space and time effortlessly.
When he exhaled, his breath burned hotter than the Earth's atmosphere, instantly turning the surroundings into a blistering inferno. Yoshito acted swiftly, using his powers to restore the atmosphere to its original state. Standing tall in his overwhelming might, Ryujin—now revealed as Jinn—smirked at his adversaries.
"It's been a while since I've been in my true form," Jinn said, his hoarse and demonic voice reverberating as he gazed at his clenched fist. "Now that you've pushed me this far and forced my hand, I hope you fight better than your parents did when I killed them." His words were followed by a sinister, echoing laugh.
Yoshi and Yoshito froze in shock, their eyes wide as Jinn's revelation hit them like a storm. Yoshi, on the brink of losing control, suppressed his rage and turned away, tears streaming silently down his face. Yoshito, however, could not contain his fury. His true form flickered briefly as he charged at Jinn with blinding speed, his anger unrelenting. Jinn’s smirk widened, ready to face the enraged prince head-on.