The demon saw him run into the clearing, and a wide grin appeared on its face.
Astaroth, on the other hand, was less than enthused when he scanned his opponent.
*Demon Reconnaissance Leader*
Level: 60
Grade: Elite (Zone Boss)
HP: 365,550
MP: 55,680
Astaroth looked dejected for a second.
'Any damage I had done to it is now gone. Freaking demons, I swear.'
From the back of his head, he heard Gäap's rebuke.
'Hey. It is not our fault your kind is weak of body. Blame your genes for not blessing you with similar physiques to us demons.'
Astaroth wanted to face-palm so hard right now.
But now was not the time for an internal dispute with a prince of hell. Astaroth already had two minutes of melding with Gäap gone, and time was still ticking.
His next best option was to use the spell he had wanted to try out for a while. The reason he hadn't yet, was that it came with a massive drawback.
Just like his Royal Protection, this spell came with a weakness effect at the end. But its effect was no less useful, although weaker.
The spell he had composed was a copy of the miasma's effect, only purer.
ραndαsΝοvεl.cοm Glancing at it one last time before activating it, Astaroth silently wished he could end this fight before it ended.
*Sublimation: Playing with Aether and its many applications, you have found a way to temporarily boost your body's power through raw power. This comes at the cost of extreme fatigue following the spell's end. Duration: 5 minutes. AP cost: 50 AP. +100% physical capacities for the full duration. Weakness effect: 5-minute duration after spell ends.*
He gained power for five minutes but subsequently lost all ability to fight for the same time. This was definitely a double-sided sword.
He only wondered if the effects of this and Royal Protection could stack.
But that was a test for a later date.
Taking in a deep breath, Astaroth took almost all his mana and converted it to Aether. He had gotten better at this process over the last week, and it happened almost instantly.
Sending the Aether into his body, making sure he pushed into every part, he pushed the Aether into his skin, muscles, nerves, and veins, all the way into his very cells.
His body suddenly started giving off steam, as it was sent into overdrive. He was burning up, but he could feel the change all over his body.
Astaroth felt like he could punch a mountain out of existence right now. Of course, most of that power came from Gäap, but he still felt exhilarated.
Grinning at the demon, who was frothing at the mouth, Astaroth decided he had played enough. It was time to get serious.
His current magic power was not much, so he only used enhancements on himself and his weapon, keeping the rest of his mana to keep his summons fueled up.
Even if his mana regen was high enough to compensate for all of their expenses, he would still rather keep it, in case he needed to blast damage all at once, toward the end of his sublimation.
But for now, he was better off duking it out in melee range. Dashing forward like a bullet out of a gun, Astaroth pierced through the sound barrier in a single step, practically teleporting into the demon's face.
Astaroth had swapped his weapon again, going back to the gauntlets from the beginning. As he reared his arm for a punch, the demon copied his move, and they punched each other's fists.
This was the most powerful fist bump history had ever recorded, and the echo of it was heard miles away, as both contestants skidded backward. Of course, this had not been an equal exchange.
Although Astaroth was pushed back by the force of the impact, his hand was fine. The demon, on the other hand, was far from fine.
His arm, from the hand up to the middle of his biceps, was gone, blood pouring out like a waterfall.
But the demon only grinned, like he couldn't register the pain. His arm regrew out of his bleeding stump, looking like new in a second, and the demon charged at Astaroth again.
The fight was mostly one-sided, in terms of damage, as Astaroth's power was way beyond the demons. But the damned thing wouldn't stay down.
And Astaroth was feeling uneasy about something, too. He was dealing a boatload of damage with every hit, yet the demon was not falling.
Every time he checked its health, it ticked back to full. It was like it was suddenly immortal.
Astaroth punched the demon in the chest, making a hole the size of a soccer ball in it, and the demon barely stumbled backward for a second before stepping forward again.
*24,713!*
He knew this wasn't even ten percent of the demon's health, but he punched at a pace much higher than one hit per second. And yet, he couldn't drop his foe.
'Why won't it die?! My melding with Gäap is almost over, and yet, this freaking demon won't fall!'
The demon prince in question chuckled in the back of his head.
'The overload must have activated a bigger regenerative ability. You hurt it, but it'll never be enough. Erase him.'
'Erase him? I would need to deal fifteen times more damage than now, in a single attack. Unless you have a hidden ability in your sleeve, this isn't happening.'
'Hmm. Maybe not in a single attack. I doubt his regen ticks as often as before, but it is much stronger. If you can hit him with enough attacks in rapid succession, it should work fine.'
Astaroth wanted to strangle the demon prince. He was already hitting as fast as he could. What did the demon take him for, a UFC champion?
But Gäap could hear his thoughts, and it only made him laugh again.
'Fret not. I do have an ability for you. But for you to use it, I will have to take control. For now, I can't teach you this and will have to perform it myself.'
Astaroth was immensely unsure that this was a good idea. Even if Solomon had assured him that the prince had no nefarious intentions, that meant little if he was suddenly completely released.
But he was falling short in the options department. His melding time had less than a minute left, and this fight was going nowhere.
'God dammit. Fine! But if you don't go back into the ring after, I will haunt for fucking eternity!'
'Roahahaha! I wouldn't want that for my worst enemy!'
Astaroth closed his eyes, pulling his consciousness back inside himself, making a protective shell of willpower, just to be sure, and he left control to Gäap.
When his eyes re-opened, they were pitch black, and no trace of his soul remained.
Gäap smiled at the demon leader and cracked his knuckles.
"I get to play with you for a bit. Let us both enjoy this!"
The demon leader suddenly looked hesitant. His instinct was screaming at him to flee.
But he had been fighting this mortal for so long, and it couldn't kill him, so he discarded the feeling.
That was his last mistake.
"Thousand Punctures of the Iron Maiden."
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