The Emperor of Inferno

Seven days.

After seven days, the twelve members of Avalon began their battle in hell. That’s what players call it. But the real name of this place is Inferno.

The place is filled with miasma, a substance that continuously drains the health points of those within it. A repugnant scent of rotting corpses, mixed with other vile scents linger in the air. Insides-twisting enough to make anyone want to throw up.

The walls and the ground are seemingly made of flesh. Bare flesh with the faces of the damned being mixed into it – desperately screaming for them to be saved. If touched, and it also feels disgusting, the screams will turn into ear-deafening screeches.

This is why nobody likes venturing Inferno. There are as many weak monsters in this plane as there are in Purgatorio and Paraiso. But the difference is that, the atmosphere here in Inferno makes anyone feel like they have actually descended into literal hell. The domain of the demons where all are tortured justly. Paying for their sins for all eternity within perpetual hellfire. And within this same space, the members of Avalon are engaging in battle.

“Attack!”

Arthur pressed forward along with the other members of Avalon. Since he is a sword saint, there is something about his weapon that is different. [Michael] his greatsword, is a holy weapon. With it comes the attribute of having a higher amount of damage when fighting against anything that is deemed unholy. The farther from holiness a target is, the greater the damage. Hence in hell, no other sword could be more lethal than his.

The sword saint swung the greatsword, releasing a wave of horizontal light towards the direction of the crawling ghouls. Horrid creatures resembling humans. Walking on all fours with rotting flesh, sharpened claws and teeth. These creatures are considered to be part of the weakest in hell. Hence, Arthur’s attack did not leave even a trace of the shadow of the ghouls – completely destroyed from the attack. Not that it matters because more ghouls keep on spawning. From the ground, the walls, and the ceiling.

“What are you guys doing?” Arthur asked his other allies through voice chat. “These bastards are spawning everywhere!”

“What do you think? We’re trying to hold them back as well.” The necromancer, Lich, replied.

The summoner created an army of the dead. One made of shadows and darkness – making these stronger than regular summons which necromancers are capable of. These clashed with the ghouls; allowing Arthur to back away for the time being.

“What took you so long?” Arthur snapped.

“The real question here is why did you dash forward?” Is the sharp reply of Morgause. The red-haired witch came forward – a look of annoyance written on her face.

“Merlin’s plan was specific. He told us not to kill the ghouls since there would just be more spawning all over the place. That’s why we need to rely on summons and on blocking the path of these monsters. But you just had to ignore all of that and plunge into the fray.”

They all know the reason for this. It’s because of the [Faye] – small creatures which work as video recording devices in Requiem. Something brought about by Arthur’s father who paid a considerable sum for Avalon’s current adventure to be broadcasted live.

As such, they cannot allow Merlin to outshine them toto much. Merlin will still do most of the work as he has always done. But they need to provide their fair share of effort for the cameras. And as for Arthur well, it goes without saying that he needs to show off. All for the sake of making sure that he won’t disappoint his father. Because if he doesn’t, it would bring consequences beyond what he can handle.

“Would you mind shutting the fuck up?” Arthur snapped back at Morgause.

“God I can’t believe I’m engaged to a dimwit like you.” The witch said in reply.

“The fuck did you say?”

The group doesn’t need to worry about the sounds which the cameras would be able to pick up. These are far away because they cannot be afforded to be destroyed. There is no other source of information other than these after all. That’s why these two can say whatever they want without the fear of getting heard. And they’re not showing any signs of stopping anytime soon as well. Thankfully, the ghouls are there to remind them of what they need to do.

The monsters suddenly popped out from the ceiling and from the floor. Directly on the position where the other members of Avalon are at. This caught them by surprise because they didn’t expect something like this to happen. As such, the ghouls are able to land a hits on them. Wounding Arthur, Morgause, and five other members of Avalon.

A terrified look could be seen on the faces of the guild members. Not because of the surprise attack but because of the real threat – Arthur and Morgause.

“BASTARDS!” The sword saint and the blood witch screamed in unison as they launched a powerful combination spell.

Multiple swords of light and spears of blood appeared out of thin air. Piercing every ghoul within sight. This merely gave the ghouls an opportunity to spawn from all the flesh-like walls, ground, and ceiling once more. But this only became a minor nuisance.

The swords and spears also stuck out from the walls and every flesh-like part of this level of Inferno – Making their allies run for their lives. This is a bit too late as the spell used by the hot-blooded duo is close to hitting these same allies. Thankfully Merlin came just in time to contain the situation. Erecting a barrier that protected the other members while Arthur and Morgause continued to let lose. Their storm of attacks not showing any sign of stopping anytime soon.

“This was not part of the plan.” Merlin sighed.

“Just make them stop already.” Claire, one of their allies, added – making Merlin glare at this same person who made an instinctive step back.

“W-What?” Claire asked.

“Fine.” Is the only word that came out of Merlin’s lips as he proceeded to following the instruction.

Merlin is basically a dog of the whole group. It isn’t just Arthur that he needs to listen to. He needs to listen to every member of Avalon. With a hierarchy of orders where Arthur is at the top of.

Hence, he has no other choice but to follow Claire – snapping his fingers as a blizzard blew unto the whole area. Within seconds, the walls, ground, and ceiling have all been frozen solid. No more wailing nor screaming could be heard and, more importantly, the ghouls are left frozen as well. Not a single one spared.

This is the attack that Merlin has been preparing; the reason why he isn’t able to join in on the battle. And as his allies looked at his handiwork, a single word immediately popped up on their heads.

Monster.

This being who’s given the title as King of Requiem is a monster. A beast hiding under human skin. They know this isn’t real because they’ve all seen Merlin in real life. Yet this Merlin within Requiem, no matter how much they try to think about it, feels like an entirely different person.

“This floor is finished.” Merlin said in a flat tone. “You did enough work and so did the guys on the other side. We can proceed.”

This is how Merlin usually speaks with his allies. He can’t talk to them as if they are close but, he also can’t he also can’t be too polite. Even though the [Faye] cannot hear his words and broadcast it, his movements would give away hints of his real relationship – with his allies. As soon as the world finds out – his life will end.

“Meet up with me on the next floor.” Merlin said as he stomped on the frozen ground, breaking it as the deeper part of Inferno showed. With gargoyles and banshees flying around the place.

“This time, follow the plan.” Are his last words as he descended.

“Cocky bastard.” Claire said right away.

“Don’t worry.” Gerald said; the other member of Avalon who is there. “This is the last time we have to put up with him.”

The group continued their descent. The ghouls they have just finished fighting are on the third floor. Every level of Inferno pits them against stronger enemies. Hell serpents. Bloodhounds. Dread Knights. Vampires. The Four Horsemen. They passed through all of these enemies before reaching their destination.

Each and every time, it’s Merlin who decided how the fight would end. Casting his strongest spells – he continued taking down enemies. Until it reached a point where they came face to face against the main enemy. The Emperor of Inferno –  Azazel.

[Monster Name: Azazel]

[Title: Emperor of Inferno]

[Monster Class: Demon Lord]

[Level: 100+++]

A six-foot-three demon. With horns sticking out of its forehead and hair of pitch-black darkness tied to a high ponytail. The tip seemingly dipped in the color of blood. The same color as the creature’s eyes. With pupils resembling that of a reptile – a predator.

The demon wears a long robe having the same color as his hair. With intricate designs that resemble the monsters Avalon faced in hell. All bathed in the same blood-like color of Azazel’s hair tip and eyes.

The monster is simply siting on his throne. Yet the amount of pressure it exudes is enough to make Merlin’s allies feel their bodies getting heavier.

“This is it. Stick to the – ”

Merlin isn’t even able to finish his sentence because Arthur dove right in. The second-in-command has been waiting for this all along. In his mind, he thinks that if he’s able to defeat Azazel alone, then he would gain the full approval of his father.

This is not out of arrogance but because he has [Michael]. His holy weapon would be able to deal a huge amount of damage to a [Demon Lord] because of the sword’s attribute. He can already picture it, a slash unto the neck of the Demon Lord which would end its life right away. The shock written on everyone’s faces, even Merlin’s – especially Merlin’s. Yet all he got is a burning feeling on his chest. A stab from a sword.

“W-What…”

The sword attacked him from behind. Casted from a magic circle. The rest of them saw it but had no time to react to it. This is how quick the spell was casted and, what makes it even more terrifying is the fact that Azazel didn’t even need to lift a single finger to do this. There is no motion pattern meaning one other thing – there is no guide that Avalon can use to understand when this attack will come.

“Idiot.” Merlin muttered as Arthur’s health points rapidly decreased.

A cold shudder consumed the sword Saint. Normally an attack would mean nothing. But this is Azazel. The creature who deletes players upon killing them. And without his character, it wouldn’t take too long for his father to disown him.

He screamed from the top of his lungs; enough for even the [Faye] to hear it. A pathetic cry for help. This put the other members into action right away. Disregarding the plans of Merlin. All because of another source of fear.

If Arthur dies, it isn’t just Merlin who’s going to get into trouble. All of them will. Although all of them are wealthy, there is one thing that is true, Arthur is the son of the President of the World Government. And if anything happens to him, then that would mean trouble for everyone.

Merlin watched them all rush into danger. He sighed because he already knows what will happen next. Azazel, a monster that has gone beyond the normal level cap, with status points that overshadow any of the past boss monsters that Avalon has faced, this monster will delete all of them.

“I can’t have you idiots dying on me so…” Merlin’s spellbook appeared on top of his right hand. The pages continuously flipping on its own until it stopped on the skill needed to be used; casting:

“Aegis.” A miniature version of the guild’s barrier covered Merlin’s allies. Even Arthur who is on the brink of character deletion has been saved for now.

“Heal Arthur!” Is the next thing that Merlin commanded.

He doesn’t usually raise his voice so it makes this instance special. Everyone heard him and their high priestess moved into action right away. All because, other than Merlin, none of them knows what to do.

“Attack him!” Is the next order Merlin gave – making the first move as he hurled fireballs towards Azazel. Explosions followed soon after. Taking away the sight of Azazel as the boss monster is now within a sea of smoke. An opportunity which Merlin’s allies didn’t allow to pass as they began to launch their attacks.

Azazel’s the same however. A horde of ghouls came rushing out of the field of smoke along with gargoyles and long ranged attacks by banshees. This took Merlin’s allies by surprise. But that is all that it could do as his allies are still within the effects of his aegis. All of the attacks of the monsters simply bounced from the shield. Allowing Merlin’s allies to cast their abilities.

A thousand shadow soldiers. A hundred tamed monsters. These came as back-up fighting against the creatures summoned by Azazel. Then followed continuous streaks of lightning from the magic circle directly above the boss monster. Chained by tremors that split the ground into multiple pieces. Some parts getting lifted while others fell down.

Out of his came lava that burned everything it touched. Charing all the unfortunate monsters within its searing heat. Then came beams of light and other powerful attacks. This would look like a grand follow up of spells but, in Merlin’s eyes, it is nothing but a big heap of mess.

There is no coordination at all and the execution is as poor as could be. There are spells that would be good to mix together but his allies aren’t using this at all. They are merely using their strongest spells while hoping that it would work.

The great sage sighed – the fifth he has made ever since they began this mission. He dislikes the fighting style of his guild members. But it is also thanks to this that he can end the battle without much notice going to him. The chaos will wipe away the fact that he will singlehandedly kill the most powerful boss to ever exist within this game. And he does this through quick execution.

He snapped his fingers, teleporting all of his allies back to where he is. On his free hand is a small tongue of black flame. And within that split second that his allies have been taken out of harm’s way, he casted:

“Hades.”

Flames stronger than anything he has ever created filled the entirety of the battlefield. Everything is burned in flames that swallow all light and darkness – not a single thing spared. The monsters of Azazel crawled and rolled while screaming in pain; desperately trying to take away the flames. But how can they do this when everything is engulfed within the same black flames.

“This is going to be the end of it.” Merlin said as he looked at the vast horizon. His allies not even able to move or speak. Petrified by what they are witnessing.

“I-Is he dead?” Arthur asked, the first to break free from this seeming spell.

“No. He’s still alive.” Merlin said. “But I doubt he’d be able to live through something like this.”

“I see.”

A stab.

Merlin felt cold steel hitting his back. It’s a small knife, he’s sure. But he does not know who committed the act. All he knows is that his barrier is bypassed by this attack. Even causing his body complete paralysis. Preventing him from casting any spell to save his life.

“HAHAHAHAHA!” Arthur bellowed in laughter, followed by the other members of Avalon.

“This is the last time we’ll be needing you Merlin. With Azazel defeated, nobody would ever question the guild’s power ever again.” Morgause said.

Merlin saw this coming. He knows that one day his guildmates will betray and abandon him. But it’s not like he can do anything about it. There’s no escaping them and the hell they have caged him in. They didn’t kill him. No. He died the day he was born.

“Don’t worry, after Azazel finishes you off, we’ll make sure to get rid of you in the real world as well.” Arthur said, stepping on the face of the Emperor of Requiem.

The next thing Merlin knew, his body has been sent flying. The world swirled around him and when it stopped, he’s already face to face with Azazel. Burning from the spell that he has casted and a single stab is all it took for Merlin’s character to vanish into a hundred particles.

…

…

…

[You have died.]

[…]

[World’s End will take its true form…]

[…]

[World’s End has acknowledged you as its Lord.]

[Requiem will now commence…]