"May Ereshkigal condemn your soul."
That was the last word I heard before I felt his axe whipping towards my face.
The world blurred.
The sound of the chain slicing through the air was so sharp that it tore the silence in half.
I barely had enough ti to raise my arm and form a mana barrier.
BOOM!
The impact sent flying through the air, cracking the earth beneath where I'd stood.
My barrier shattered like thin glass, scattering fragnts of blue light.
"Bearable." I muttered, steadying myself midair as my mana flared to absorb the shock.
Anubis stood motionless, chain dragging behind him.
The links scraped the air, leaving faint trails of black smoke.
"You've interfered with the law of return," he said. His tone carried no anger, no emotion. "There is no forgiveness for such defiance."
"Man, shut up."
I let the mana engulf as it provided with the best path to reach him.
The chain-axe shot forward, and faster this ti.
I stepped aside, the blade missing by inches, but the chain coiled like a serpent and ca around again.
I swung my blade and deflected his axe.
'hm?'
But the mont my blade touched the axe, it shattered like glass.
Neplh!
A layer of frost ford, stopping the axe in its track as I moved back.
"You're strong for a mortal," Anubis said, pulling back his weapon. "But you are still… finite."
'Why does he talk so much?'
I wondered as my shoulder blades shifted and a pair of wings unfolded.
I flapped once, the pressure alone bending the trees below as I shot forward like a cot.
Anubis raised his axe, expecting another frontal strike.
He was wrong.
I twisted midair, my wings folding in sharply before I vanished from his sight.
He turned his head slightly — just enough for my knee to smash into the side of his face.
BAM!
The shockwave flattened the ground below, hurling stone and dust outward in a roaring wave.
Anubis stumbled half a step, the chains clattering wildly before he regained balance.
His golden eyes narrowed as a faint trickle of black blood slid down his chin.
"….A fallen?" He muttered, looking confused.
But it didn't last long before he burst towards once again.
Anubis swung his axe in a wide arc; I ducked beneath it, scraping the edge of my blade along his ribs.
His armor cracked slightly but refused to break.
He countered instantly, his chain trying to wrap around my leg.
The frost of Neplh erupted from my fingertips, freezing the chain before it could touch .
Then, from the other hand, Muspelh burst out in fla, engulfing the guardian of death.
Anubis took a step back, finally raising his gaze to as if assessing sothing deeper.
"A fallen with origin energy."
The flas moved over his armor, licking at his cloak until only smoke remained.
Still, he didn't burn.
He simply stood there, studying with those cold, golden eyes that saw far too much.
Mana flared beneath my feet as I pushed forward again, wings slicing through the air.
I sidestepped, sliding along the wave of pressure and striking at his arm — only for my blade to et sothing harder than tal.
Clang!
The sound echoed through the valley as I pulled myself back.
'The fuck is wrong with this thing?'
I clicked my tongue as the jackal stood there without any words.
Slowly, he began to circle around , his eyes never leaving my face.
I began to walk away from him as well.
"....."
Anubis raised his axe-chain and began to fling it around.
Without a word, he rushed towards once again.
I stopped moving as I waited for him to co closer.
And just when he was closest, I summoned Naraka.
The crimson chain hissed and wrapped around my hand while I raised it with one hand.
'…Ah.'
As the weapon of Sabaoth lood over him, Anubis froze.
For the first ti, I saw sothing other than coldness and arrogance in his eyes.
…It was fear.
Before I could strike him down, he moved away on his own.
He didn't even try to defend himself as he just stood there.
I tilted my head, but before I could speak, Inna appeared between us.
And the next instant, I found the new body of Christina in my hand.
I quickly wrapped her with a blanket as Inna and Anubis stared each other down.
"….Innana." Anubis spoke in his cold voice. "It's been so long since I last saw you."
His gaze flickered towards . "And you are still ddling with mortal's affairs."
Inna's expression didn't change, though the air around her rippled faintly.
"The soul you were after has already found a body." She replied calmly. "There is no need for you to stay here."
Anubis didn't respond as he kept on staring at .
He slowly opened his mouth. "…Is that boy…'his' reincarnation?"
"I am not obligated to reply to that." Inna said coldly. "You can go now."
"…Always so stubborn." He spoke. "That's why Ereshkigal doesn't like you despite being your sister."
"...."
Inna didn't say anything as she kept on staring at him.
Anubis never took his gaze away from .
"….I can see how many souls are linked to you, boy." He spoke, staring at . "You are going to kill a lot… irrespective of mortal or god."
I didn't respond as I kept on staring back at him.
He acted like he knew things that were known only to him.
"If you're done prophesying doom, leave," Inna said flatly. "Your presence alone distorts this plane."
Anubis didn't speak as he slowly backed away.
The black mist moved around him, creating a mist-like cloud.
"I will see you in hell, Innana." He left those parting words. "….Ereshkigal is eagerly waiting for the judgnt day."
Silence followed as the only ones who were left here were and Inna and the faintly breathing girl in my arms.
Inna slowly turned back to look at .
She smiled softly. "Let's go ho."
---
[A Day Later.]
"Damn, that's so news."
A boy with long black hair mumbled as he looked at the news on his phone.
The screen depicted a scene and the headline written in bold letters.
'The Concept of Death is Eroding?'
His golden eyes narrowed as he turned to look at the boy standing by his side. "You see this shit, brother-kun?"
Aimar snorted as he looked away from him. "Shut up."
The wind blew as they both stood high on a mountaintop.
Oliver smiled, stretching his body. He put his phone back.
"They are really trying hard to paint Azariah as so big evil," he mumbled softly. "It's so obvious."
Aimar didn't reply as he kept looking around.
Oliver sighed as he wrapped his hand around his brother's shoulder.
"Don't be like that." He said. "We are brothers—."
"Fuck you!" Aimar snapped, pushing him away. "What type of brother imprisons his twin for so long!"
"It was for a valid reason—."
"Why don't you take that reason and shove it up your ass!?"
Aimar barked, raising his bound hands with mana suppressors to flip his middle finger at him.
Oliver just stood there as he shifted his gaze towards the town in front of them.
"…I would have released you much earlier." He spoke softly. "But everyone saw vanishing with Edel's army."
"And now, I am the person who is taking the bla for killing them, right?" Aimar snorted. "Thank you for that, you shitty brother."
Oliver didn't respond imdiately.
He simply let out a quiet breath, his usual smirk fading into sothing more thoughtful.
"You're lucky I can't punch you right now," Aimar muttered, tugging at the enchanted cuffs binding his wrists. "These damn things hurt every ti I try."
"They're supposed to," Oliver said simply, his tone calm. "Otherwise, you'd have killed ten tis over by now."
"You're assuming I'd stop at ten."
Oliver chuckled softly. "That's fair."
Aimar's anger simred just below the surface.
He wanted to remain mad but couldn't bring himself to do so.
"You know," Oliver began after a short silence, "you never asked why—."
"I don't care."
"I think you do," Oliver said, looking out toward the horizon. "Because deep down, you already know the reason."
Aimar scoffed. "Don't play philosopher with ."
"I'm not," Oliver said quietly. "I'm just scared… of what Edel will do to you."
The silence stretched.
For a long mont, the only sound was the soft whistle of the mountain wind.
Then, Aimar looked away, his expression tightening. "You aren't thinking of replacing forever, right?"
Oliver smiled faintly. "I would pass." He said. "I don't want your vampire harem."
"Fuck you." Aimar snapped. "If you wanted to have a harem, do it with your own identity."
"I already have one." Oliver said, puffing his chest proudly. "You know, Lillth can create clones of her own."
[≤Bold of you to assu I will share you even with my own clone.≥]
Lillth's voice echoed in his head, making him chuckle slightly.
'Possessive much?'
"Don't talk about her." Aimar grumbled. "How do you even like that old hag?"
"...."
[≤….Can I kill him?≥]
'Sadly no.'
Oliver let out a sigh as he reached out towards his handcuffs.
With a flick of his finger, he opened them as the cuffs fell on the ground.
Aimar rubbed his hands as he looked at him suspiciously. "…What are you cooking now?"
"Nothing." Oliver spoke, pointing towards the town. "..You see the mansion at the very end?"
"….Yes?"
"Go there." He said softly. "Azariah lives there, stay with him till I kill Edel."
"And how long is that?" Aimar asked. "Ten years—?"
"Two." Oliver cut him off. "One if my plans don't have any bumps."
Aimar turned silent as he kept on staring at his brother.
Oliver smiled as he slowly began to walk back.
"I will see you soon." He said with a smile. "I love you, brother."
"That's gay."
Aimar said, making Oliver chuckle.
But just as he turned to walk away.
"Hey." Aimar called him. "Can I have a hug?"
Oliver turned around and walked towards him. "I thought you would never ask."
He embraced his brother, patting his back as they hugged.
"Hm?"
A spark appeared behind Oliver and Aimar's grip tightened on him.
"You fall for the easiest trick, fucker."
Aimar said before he opened a portal and pushed them both inside.
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