Void Visitor

Before he had even finished speaking, the trembling corpse beside him suddenly underwent a mutation. Trekzvis, who had still been somewhat humanoid, seemed to have finally decided to stop being human. The body on the ground arched slightly. Amid swirling black mist, a pair of wings studded with pale bone spurs burst from his back. "Trekzvis's" skin began to turn pale, fangs gradually grew from his mouth, and two long bone spikes protruded from his forehead.

Having finally completed his magnificent transformation, Trekzvis threw back his head and howled. The shockwave of his roar sent the nearby Nathrezim flying. Black radiance flowed around him, and after finishing all that, Trekzvis finally turned his gaze toward Vanidak again.

"Tsk, so dark." Vanidak seemed not to notice the hatred in the other's eyes as he continued, "For some reason, I always feel like I should stay farther away from you whenever there's a loot box to open or something."

Then he tilted his head, gave him an interested once-over, and asked, "So which one are you now? A native of this place, or...?"

As if in answer, Trekzvis rasped, "Void... hungry!"

"Fine, fine, no need to introduce yourself. I think I know who you are." Vanidak curled his lip, assuming a fighting stance as he addressed Trekzvis's corpse. "Long time no see. You've got more tricks now, old friend."

With that, a silver ripple flashed. In the next instant, Vanidak appeared behind Trekzvis, accompanied by an angry shout:

"But don't you think the price was a little too high, you fallen, corrupted bastard!"

"Justice backstab, once more!"

Two blades sprang out from above his arms, about to plunge into the other's body in the next instant. Then, before Vanidak's astonished eyes, the creature shrouded in black aura turned around and used a spear that had appeared from nowhere to block the lethal twin blades.

"Fine, I knew it wouldn't be that easy." Vanidak retreated after his failed strike. "If you went down that easily, that'd be the real problem."

As Vanidak withdrew, the unknown creature spoke again. "I am... darkness. The Void... shall rule all. You cannot stop me, World Soul."

"Whether I can stop you isn't for you to decide." Vanidak replied dismissively, "Put away those boring tricks. Your usual talk of corruption and falling is nowhere near enough to sway me."

With that, silver flames erupted over Vanidak's body as he flashed forward again. Wielding the twin blades on his vambraces, he shouted at his opponent:

"You'll be the next corpse in the gutter!"

While Vanidak and the unknown creature called Darkness were enthusiastically beating each other senseless, the Nathrezim gathered nearby were having a far worse time. The black beam had brought not only the corpse of the First Lord, which had undergone a bizarre mutation. The enormous shadow that had arrived with it had finally landed as well.

After shuddering and contracting for a while, the huge dark-red lump of flesh began to move. Eight long arthropod-like legs extended from its sides, followed by countless eyes emerging all around it. A massive maw full of sharp teeth split open atop its body and let out a thunderous roar.

"H-Heavens... wh-what is that?!" One onlooking soldier pointed tremblingly at the unknown creature. It was not just him; every Nathrezim present was shaking in fear at the sight of it.

A booming voice came from the unknown creature.

"I am a servant of the Void. Weaklings, insects, tremble beneath my master's mighty power! Embrace the Void, or your world shall burn beneath the blazing flames of shadow!"

Before the surrounding Nathrezim could react, countless black motes erupted from the giant mouth. They landed on the ground and transformed into twisted black energy creatures. These ugly things had neither faces nor mouths, their bodies entirely composed of black energy. Five tentacle-like limbs supported them as they moved.

One overly nervous soldier roared and thrust his spear at one of the creatures. Balnazzar, the high mage beside him, had just been about to stop him when the spear passed straight through the monster's body without resistance. Just as the trembling soldier told his companions, "I... I pierced it!" the Shadow Fiend pinned to the ground abruptly turned into black liquid and flowed along the spear into the soldier's body.

Amid the soldier's scream, the man whose body had been invaded by the monster began to change. He grew taller and taller, both hands gradually turning into thick tentacles, until his face finally became a featureless blank. Once the transformation was complete, the newborn monster let out a corrupted voice toward those around him:

"Serve... the master!"

"All soldiers, stay away from those monsters!" Detheroc, another high mage who had recovered his senses, shouted, "Stay away from them! Getting close will let them take over our bodies!"

"Soldiers, tighten the formation!" Kathanatir, the Second Lord who had likewise recovered, shouted:

"Mages and priests, attack from range with magic! Everyone else, establish defensive positions!"

"Do not engage these monsters at close range!"

Following the Second Lord's orders, the initially panicked soldiers finally began to gather together. Though many were still lost during the regrouping and more monsters emerged from their bodies, they eventually managed to form what appeared to be a fairly stable defensive perimeter.

"Second Lord, what should we do?" A bedraggled Tichondrius asked the grim-faced Second Lord beside him from the rear.

"I don't know either, Tichondrius." Watching the black tide barely being held back by their line, Kathanatir shook his head. "This is a disaster, without question. But we still have to hold them back!"

"For our people!"

"Brat's low sweep!"

"Wild Ball Fist!"

"Justice from above!"

"ORA ORA ORA!"

"MUDA MUDA MUDA!"

"Tornado destroys the parking lot!"

"Crow! Sit! Airplane!"

With a strange cry, a silver flash slashed down from above the black monster. In the next moment, Vanidak stood with both feet planted on the monster's shoulders, his sleeve blades crossed as they stabbed into its skull.

Then he kicked off the monster with both feet, performed a backflip, and casually crossed his blades through its chest once more. Having completed that entire ridiculous sequence, Vanidak blew at something nonexistent on his dark blades and muttered to himself:

"This blade is my favorite."

The heavily wounded monster could finally no longer hold itself up and crashed to the ground. Seeing this, Vanidak chuckled. "That's all you've got?"

"I didn't even use my full strength, and you're already down."

Suddenly, Vanidak's eye twitched. In an utterly helpless tone, he said, "Does every boss these days have a second transformation phase? Can't you just let me farm in peace for once? Sigh..."

As Vanidak spoke helplessly, a humanoid black phantom emerged above the fallen creature's body. It spoke to Vanidak, who was looking at it.

"World Soul, your power truly exceeds my expectations. Your twin blades could actually pierce this Void-altered body of mine. What a pleasant surprise."

"But none of this matters. Freed from this shell that bound me, I shall wield my true power."

"Come. Behold my true countenance. All of you, before my true form..."

"Tremble!"

A pillar of black light shot into the sky and gradually spread outward from its point of origin. Then a blast wave swept out, sending the Nathrezim battling the strange creatures nearby flying into the distance.

Vanidak, who had dodged away early, watched from a high point in the distance as the pillar of light gradually contracted. His usually unserious face finally turned grave.

"This bastard is actually releasing his body here. Doesn't he care about this world's limits of endurance?"

"Oh, right. He doesn't need to care. For creatures like them, destruction is exactly what they want."

"But that makes things troublesome for me. What should I do...?"

As Vanidak murmured, the black pillar finally contracted. What came into view was a gigantic body. Its feet alone occupied the entire ritual plaza as it stood upon the earth, its head towering into the clouds. Its entire body seemed to be formed from pure dark energy, and it wore a suit of gray-white armor. The enormous monster that had arrived earlier looked like a toy beside it now.

"World Soul, before my true form, this world is utterly vulnerable. And you shall be defeated by me and become part of my collection!" The massive voice came from the dark giant's face.

Hearing that, Vanidak curled his lip and muttered, "And this is your 'true form'? If we were on your turf, I might've made a tactical retreat already. But now..."

As the surviving Nathrezim around them stared in horror at the black giant, another wave of silver energy surged from above the town. In the next instant, a giant radiating silver light emerged from a silver magic circle and charged rapidly toward the dark giant, accompanied by an angry roar:

"Since you're here, don't be in such a hurry to leave. Let me properly..."

"Cherish you!"

The explosive shockwave generated by the collision of the two giants swiftly reduced the surrounding area to ruins. Amid the survivors' screams and cries, cracks spread through the earth from the center of the battlefield, followed by collapses all around and bursts of lava—a scene of apocalypse.

"My god, why is this happening? What could I possibly have done for you to punish me like this?" A dying civilian pinned beneath the ruins cursed endlessly. "Why are you doing this to us?"

Unable to hear them, Vanidak was beginning to feel that things were going badly. Although he had unleashed part of his Titan power to face this uninvited guest, he was still restraining his strength somewhat, while his opponent was releasing his destructive power without the slightest concern.

He has no regard whatsoever for whether this world survives. Vanidak thought grimly. Maybe I need to change tactics.

After deflecting one of the opponent's attacks, Vanidak took a small leap backward and carefully examined the surroundings. Seemingly having formed a plan, he silently nodded and flashed forward again.

Another violent collision sent both sides apart once more. The dark giant spoke again. "All of this is meaningless, World Soul. Perhaps you can stop me, but look at the creatures of this world. They cannot stop my creations and servants."

Vanidak glanced at the city in turmoil in the distance. The black tide had already poured into it, but he seemed unconcerned as he replied:

"Stop you? No, no, you've got the wrong idea. I don't merely want to stop you."

"Besides, I'm not all that concerned about whether this world lives or dies, because it isn't... my world."

His opponent seemed to sense that something was wrong and tried to move, only to see Vanidak extend his right hand. A ball of silver light appeared in his palm as he continued in a relaxed tone:

"I just can't go against my nature and destroy this world. Now..."

"Let's change battlefields..."

"It's time to enter... the next phase!"

As he spoke, Vanidak crushed the ball of light in his hand. In the next moment, silver motes appeared throughout the surrounding space. They swiftly linked and intertwined, forming a mysterious sphere covered in intricate patterns.

"What?! When did you..."

"Don't be surprised, disgusting bastard. Let's go somewhere else and keep playing."

"And it's time for you to tremble beneath my true power as well..."

"Trash."