Axel continued, unbothered by the perilous state of Jaden, "This entire game, it was never for the sake of showcasing the power of the Gold section. But it was the other way around; it is how you handle the overwhelming power of the enemy."
"Just like how the other races overpower us in every possible way. What matters is how you deal with it."
"And you all seem to be almost giving up? Is that all it takes for you to lose your spirit?"
"Would you have given up this easily if a demon were here ready to slaughter every innocent man, woman and child of humanity?"
"Jaden Redmar, Enrick Samartan, Conner Ravenspire, I want you to think of me as a demon, a demon that came to slaughter all of humanity—the ultimate enemy. So, fight with all of your might. Fight me as if you all are ready to die a thousand times over. Show me how far you are willing to go, to save your kind."
There was a moment of intense silence as the fear in everyone’s eyes gave way to shock at his bold statement. Axel became displeased by it. So he announced again,
"I repeat, I am not the runecaster Axel Nomrad at this moment, but a demon, the Doombringer of humanity. So, what will you do?"
Slowly, the expressions of everyone became more determined, filled with a ruthless determination. And the will to fight with their all took over them. Jaden declared thunderously to everyone on the side of Section A.
Just that one word was enough, no speech, no long chain commands, nothing was necessary, nothing to discuss, no plan to devise. Just as Axel said, it wasn’t the most talented runecaster in front of them. But a demon, and there was only one thing to do in front of a demon, which is to kill it.
As soon as that one word seeped into the ears of everyone. A united battle cry of almost 300 seekers filled with all the bloodlust that every single one of them could muster reverberated throughout the grounds of the fortress. The loud battle cries of everyone echoed throughout the chasm of the waterway, creating multiple reverberations that boosted their determination to win even further, even if the cost was their own lives.
They became able to resist the boundless killing intent of the mighty runecaster ... no, the mighty demon hovering in the air right on top of them. And he did look indeed like a demon. There was a slightly noticeable reddish tint in the golden pattern of his runic eyes.
As he reeled in the cacophony of their united battle cry, his demon blood trembled with excitement, and the demon in his mind growled in a monstrous voice, "Yes...kill them all...."
Axel grinned menacingly as he stopped controlling the mana under his foot. With a loud thud, he landed from a height of 6-7 meters. His stats were now high enough that falling down from that height didn’t hurt him in the slightest.
And the moment he landed, countless barges of long-distance attacks headed straight towards him all at once; there was no coordination among the enemy seekers; all that could be seen was pure rage on their faces. From the top of the fortress to the ones on the ground, all of them attacked him at once.
His runic eyes shimmered even brighter as it went into hyperdrive. In just the span of a second, his eyes had scanned through the patterns of countless spells or aura-based attacks, determining the best course of action, with a battle cry of his own. He held the blue water sword in his right hand. And slashed with all of his might.
A long arc of blue water waves went forward in a crescent-like shape; countless attacks were blocked by it, but its power was nowhere enough to block the all-out attack of almost 300 seekers at once. But it didn’t need to be either. Right after that water slash, he switched to the red lightning sword. And shot out a chain of blood-red lightning from it.
This ultimately prevented most of the attacks, but some still managed to land on him. Dust and debris flew everywhere, mixing with residual mana and lingering spells, creating a scene of bloody mayhem.
Everyone waited for a moment after that, as the dust cleared. Slowly but surely, the demon emerged again, his eyes glowing in golden patterns, his clothes torn in many places, but he remained uninjured, primarily. Unscathed, except for some minor scratches and blemishes on his skin.
The sharpshooters who were on the top floor had come down. This wasn’t about defending the fortress anymore. It was something else. Jaden, Connor, and Enrick all came forward, standing at the front. Right then, the one who declared himself to be a demon smiled and said, "My Turn."
This time, the Shadow Blight sword appeared in his hand, which was adorned in grey with two golden rune symbols engraved on it. He dashed forward before the enemies could all attack simultaneously, as he swung the grey sword with all of his might at Enrick, the latter barely managed to block the attack with Conjurer’s Blade. His body was flung backwards, unable to handle the force of it.
He was knocked down multiple times from behind. Enrick’s hand went numb, and he tried to get up as fast as possible but was unable to. As he watched in horror, he saw that Jaden and Conner were also flung out like rag dolls. He was an unstoppable monster that faced so many seekers at once head-on. But something strange started to happen. His vision seemed to darken ever so slightly.
Then, for some unknown reason, Enrick began to think; he started to reflect on all those troubled times, the difficulties of his life as a prince, the estrangement from his mother, and the immense expectations placed upon him. The shit he went through in the trial, how could he give up just like that? With sheer power of will, he got up, gulped down a potion, and rushed forward.
This exact scenario could be seen happening for both Conner and Jaden, and perhaps many more as well. But little did they know that their shadows had taken a different shape than what they were supposed to. And their shadows did not demoralise them, but instead encouraged them. Giving them hope. After all, you will have the greatest despair if you once had the greatest hope. That was how Axel wanted it to play out after all.
The three key individuals mustering all their powers and abilities, even using the runic weapons to their fullest, attacked Axel this time. They remained fighting on the forefront while everyone else was supporting with long-range spells and occasional sneak attacks.
However, suddenly grinning like a madman, Axel held the Torn Light sword in his hands and waved it in the air; the sword itself seemed to dissolve into countless fragments of light. Because of the effects of the shadow blight sword, the area which had darkened previously was now suddenly flooded by countless white pieces of light.
Everyone had to squint their eyes, and the light somehow captured all of their attention immediately. As they looked closer, they could not help but notice the beautiful fireflies, totally made of white starlight, glittering so breathtakingly. The world unknowingly darkened, making the scene look even more attractive, and it just looked so, so beautiful.