-Thud!!
Ash landed on the black, charred ground with controlled grace, his body adjusting instantly as his feet met the surface. Behind him, the portal he had emerged from was already close to stabilizing, its edges trembling as space slowly stitched itself back together.
Before him stretched a vast sea of lava, glowing endlessly, its surface rolling and bubbling like a living thing.
Flat stones had been arranged across it in a deliberate path, clearly meant to allow passage. There was not a single monster in sight, yet smoke rose from every direction, thick and heavy, filling the air with heat and ash.
At the farthest point his eyes could reach, a towering volcano loomed silently.
That was his destination.
Ash did not wait for the demons to arrive. He quickly uncorked another invisibility potion and drank it in one motion before breaking into a run. He leapt from one stone platform to another, his movements smooth and precise, his speed bordering on the unnatural due to his physique.
Within moments, his form blurred, becoming little more than a fleeting distortion in the air.
The lava beneath shone too brightly, erasing any natural shadows along the path. With nowhere to hide, Ash had no choice but to rely entirely on the invisibility potions for concealment.
While Ash moved forward to claim another Elemental sword, Lilith had already reached the heart of the dungeon.
--
Lilith stood before the massive ancient doors, her hands resting against their cold surface. The doors were covered in intricate carvings of war, swords crossing, battles frozen in time, each scene radiating a raw and overwhelming beauty.
The blades carved into the doors were so vivid that they could easily enchant lesser beings at a single glance.
But Lilith was far beyond that.
She was a master enchantress and seductress. Mere artwork could not sway her heart.
"Still," she said softly, her lips curling slightly, "the artist deserves praise."
"Even after who knows how many years, the intent behind this work has not faded in the slightest."
She was genuinely impressed.
From a distance, the doors had not seemed especially remarkable. Yet now that she stood before them, she could no longer deny their presence. The closer she looked, the more depth and meaning revealed itself.
The carvings depicted a brutal war. Knights clad in heavy armor charged forward without hesitation, wielding their swords with everything they possessed. Their enemies were shrouded in thick black mist, white eyes glowing eerily from within, overpowering the knights through sheer presence alone.
Across the entire scene, different elemental knights fought endlessly, their swords clashing against those mist-like beings without rest.
It almost feels as if I am standing on that battlefield myself...
I do not even know what those creatures are, yet this art forces the emotions of knights upon me...
Fear. Resolve. Desperation. Arrogance.
This was not simply art.
It was an expression carved from raw emotion.
Artists of this era were far inferior to those of ancient times, which made encountering such craftsmanship on a door leading to the dungeon boss all the more striking.
"It is a pity," Lilith murmured quietly. "If this were a standalone piece, I would have gifted it to my king."
"He would have loved this."
But, in the very next moment, her aura changed.
The admiration vanished, replaced by cold clarity. The reason she had come here resurfaced with sharp focus.
Lilith pressed both palms firmly against the ancient doors. With only a slight push, they began to open slowly.
Light seeped out from within.
That alone caught her attention.
She had expected darkness beyond the threshold.
But the sight that greeted her from behind the ancient doors caused her eyes to widen, just a little.
It was a vast throne room.
Far larger than even the one the demon prince Orien possessed within the strong hold of the demons, the scale alone made the space feel overwhelming.
There was no roof above. Instead, the sky lay fully open, exposing the chamber to the heavens. Massive pillars of thick stone stood in perfect formation along the pathway, each one carved with brilliant and intricate sculptures that spoke of an age long forgotten.
The path itself led straight toward a colossal throne positioned at the center.
A throne made entirely of swords.
Even the steps rising toward it were formed from countless blades, layered and fused together, their edges dulled by time yet still carrying a quiet menace.
Above, the crimson moon hung high in the sky, bathing the entire chamber in an otherworldly glow. Its light painted the stone and metal in deep red hues, giving the place a frightening, almost sacred brilliance.
Upon the throne, someone was seated.
It was a knight.
Crimson red armor concealed every inch of his body, leaving no skin exposed. Where his eyes should have been, there was only pitch black darkness, like endless pools of abyss staring back at the world.
He sat like an arrogant king, gazing down upon everything beneath him. Both of his hands rested calmly on the pommel of the massive sword planted before him.
That sword felt ancient.
The aura it radiated was chilling, as if it had bathed in the blood of millions and remembered every life it had taken.
The crimson knight stood nearly four meters tall, his presence alone enough to dominate the space. He was enormous, both in size and in pressure.
The moment Lilith stepped fully into the throne room, everything changed.
A heavy aura flooded the chamber, thick with dense killing intent that pressed down from all directions. The crimson knight slowly rose from the throne and began to descend the steps, one deliberate step at a time.
Lilith walked forward as well, her pace unhurried, her movements smooth. Her eyes remained sharp, constantly calculating.
She clicked her tongue softly.
..He is not alive. I cannot control him directly...
That realization stripped away her greatest advantage.
Which meant this battle would have to be fought directly.
..Its a pity, with his power he would have proven a great asset if brought under control, but its not alive, thus I can’t evoke desire in him...
...That pile of stone and metal is around peak Overlord rank, the same as me...
Even if he can’t be controlled, fighting him will be interesting...
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"It has been quite a while since I fought someone of my own caliber," she said calmly, her voice echoing through the chamber. "Let us see what you are made of, aside from stone and metal."
The moment her words left her lips, the crimson knight moved.
In an instant, he lunged toward her, his blade raised high. The distance between them vanished as if it had never existed.
He was upon her.
The sword descended with terrifying force, cleaving the air itself as the pressure behind the strike crushed the ground beneath his feet. The moment the blade came down, Lilith twisted her body aside with fluid grace, the edge grazing past her shoulder and splitting the stone floor behind her like fragile glass.
The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the throne room, swords embedded in the ground trembling as if screaming in response.
Lilith slid sideways, heels scraping against the floor. Her expression remained calm, but her eyes sharpened with focus.
Fast.
Much faster than she had anticipated. Even she barely reacted in time.
The crimson knight did not pause.
His movements flowed without hesitation, his massive body moving with a precision that did not match his size.
He stepped forward and swung again, this time horizontally, the blade cutting through the space where Lilith had been a breath earlier.
She vanished in a burst of pink mist and reappeared several meters away, her form reforming seamlessly.
"Such crude power," she murmured, though her tone carried no mockery.
The knight answered her words with action.
The ground beneath him cracked as a deep crimson glow spread outward from his feet. A domain unfolded.
The air thickened instantly.
The swords embedded across the chamber resonated together, vibrating as if responding to a silent command. A heavy pressure descended, pressing down on everything within the space, as though the weight of countless battles had been layered upon the room.
The crimson knight drove his sword into the ground.
In that instant, his domain fully manifested.
The throne room vanished.
Lilith found herself standing in a vast battlefield of endless swords, all buried point first into blackened soil. Rivers of blood flowed between them, steaming under a crimson sky. Every blade pulsed faintly, resonating with killing intent accumulated over countless wars.
This was not illusion.
This was....Blood Sovereignty.
Every sword within the domain answered the knight’s will. Every drop of blood spilled strengthened him. Every hostile intent was sharpened and reflected back upon its source.
Lilith felt it immediately.
Her body became heavier, the domain acknowledged the knight as its ruler and treated her as an invader.
So this is your world.
Her smile widened, she was finding it even more interesting now.
The knight moved.
The ground erupted as swords launched themselves upward, forming a storm of steel aimed at her from all directions. At the same time, the knight appeared before her, his blade descending with absolute certainty.
Lilith raised her hand.
And her domain bloomed.
The battlefield twisted.
The blood soaked ground turned viscous, moving like liquid desire under her command. The swords hesitated, their trajectories bending unnaturally as the air filled with intoxicating pressure.
This was.....Throne of Desire.
Within her domain, intent itself was influenced. Aggression wavered. Certainty cracked. Even killing intent could be distorted, slowed, and led astray.
The knight’s sword struck her domain and slid aside, not because it lacked strength, but because its purpose was momentarily pulled astray.
Lilith retreated, her heels barely touching the ground as she repositioned.
Within her domain, distance favored her.
Influence favored her.
Control favored her.
But the knight laughed.
Not with sound, but with action.
He cut the blood flowing beneath his feet.
The moment his blade split the river, the blood surged upward and wrapped around him like armor. His presence multiplied, his killing intent condensing into something suffocating.
Blood Sovereignty responded.
Every sword embedded in the battlefield began to rotate, forming massive rings of steel that spun faster and faster. The air screamed as the rings collapsed inward toward Lilith, turning the entire domain into a grinding execution field.
Her eyes narrowed.
So you devour your own domain to overpower mine.
Lilith spread her arms.
Her domain deepened even more. Hers was not like the knight, fully manifested. She was using it cunningly, her specialty was never direct confrontation.
The battlefield dimmed as emotions seeped into them. Longing, obsession, hunger for connection. The spinning swords slowed, their alignment destabilizing as conflicting desires interfered with their intent.
Several shattered midair.
Several were led astray.
Several swords gave up.
Several became lazy.
But the knight did not stop.
He stepped through the collapsing blades, each step fueled by blood spilled within his domain. He appeared before her again, sword already mid swing.
This time, Lilith failed to fully evade.
The blade tore through her shoulder, blood spraying across the battlefield.
The knight grew stronger.
Lilith hissed softly, retreating rapidly as her wound sealed itself due to the fast regeneration of her racial trait.
Looks like I need to become serious...
Her lips curved faintly even in pain.
Two thrones. One battlefield.
The two domains roared louder, reality trembling as the clash escalated beyond restraint.
And neither ruler intended to yield.
****