At the sight of Satan and Abaddon lying defeated, Lucifer's face twisted with a mixture of rage and disgust. For the first time since the siege began, the Sin of Pride could not contain his bloodlust. His eyes burned with contempt, his aura spilling across the battlefield like a suffocating storm.
"Distasteful. How… distasteful," Lucifer whispered, his voice venomous.
"My lord?" Barbatos asked, straining to catch his words.
Lucifer's tone sharpened, cold and commanding. "Barbatos, retrieve Satan. The rest of you — prepare yourselves. We will erase this city from human history."
"Yes, my lord," Barbatos replied with a grin before vanishing into the chaos.
Mammon scoffed, his voice trembling beneath false bravado. "Sounds like you are commanding us, Lucifer. Remember, we are equ—"
"Enough!" Lucifer's roar silenced him instantly. "Left to your own devices, you achieve nothing. What did I expect from you demons? Now you will follow every order I give, or you will be erased with Tarth. Agreed?"
Beelzebub laughed at the threat, his grin wicked. Belphegor shook his head, disinterested, while Asmodeus smiled slyly. Mammon trembled, his mask of arrogance cracking.
"We've never had a problem following you, Sin of Pride," Beelzebub, Belphegor, and Asmodeus said in unison.
Lucifer's gaze locked onto Mammon. "And you, Sin of Greed? Do you question my absolute authority?"
Mammon's voice broke. "N-No, my lord! I could never! I am your loyal servant!"
Lucifer's eyes narrowed. "How sad."
In a single motion, he swung his hand. Mammon's head separated cleanly from his body, rolling across the ground.
"There is no place for weakness or cowardice in our ranks. The princes are an unyielding force of power," Lucifer declared. The remaining princes grinned, their bloodlust ignited.
Cranel sat heavily beside Satan's broken body, his own wounds severe. "I can still hear your heartbeat faintly. You're one tough bastard," he muttered.
Barbatos appeared before him, silent and imposing. Cranel didn't bother to rise. "Here to finish what he couldn't?" he asked.
"Not at all. I am here to retrieve Lord Satan before you end his life," Barbatos replied calmly.
"Wouldn't you want to kill a threat to your kind?" Cranel retorted.
Barbatos chuckled. "Not to be disrespectful, but you have little to no magic left. Your muscles are strained, your body broken. Killing you now would bring me no honor. You are no threat." He hefted Satan onto his shoulder.
Cranel chuckled, shaking his head. "Human, I respect your power," Barbatos said before vanishing.
At the gate, Lenen, Adriano, and Raymond clashed with Valefor. Raymond staggered, blood pouring from his abdomen, his breaths ragged. Lenen and Adriano bore scratches and bruises but still stood firm.
"I never expected you'd be idiotic enough to betray our kind," Valefor sneered.
"Don't you dare lump me in with you monsters," Lenen spat, his aura flaring viciously.
Adriano glanced at Raymond. "Friend, you should retreat. We'll handle this."
Raymond shook his head, struggling to stand. "And leave you with these monsters? Never."
"You'd be leaving them with me," Adriano said with a grin.
Valefor snarled. "What is this false confidence?"
"No false confidence," Adriano replied, demonic energy leaking from him. "Just the certainty that your luck will run out."
Elsewhere, Elliot fought furiously, Lilith's voice echoing in his mind. Azazel will soon enter the battle. We need to leave. The princes' attention will be drawn.
"Shit. Then they'll have to chase me!" Elliot roared, channeling Lilith's demonic magic. His attributes surged to monstrous heights. With one swipe, dozens of demons fell, the ground cracking beneath him. Dust rose, and the battlefield froze in awe.
But awe turned to fear as ancient demonic energy radiated from him.
"Is he the enemy?" a soldier whispered.
"That magic… it's similar to the princes," a demon muttered in terror.
Valefor's voice trembled. "Whose magic is that?!"
Beelzebub's body tensed. "Lucifer."
Lucifer's eyes narrowed. "Lilith has made her presence known."
"Orders?" Asmodeus asked eagerly.
"We must stop her before she reaches the springs. Go now!" Lucifer commanded. The princes moved as one, their power shaking the battlefield.
"Eddard! Adriano! I'm heading for the springs! I know I'm asking the impossible but—" Elliot shouted.
"We know!" Eddard cut him off, leaping to the top of the wall. Adriano smiled at Lenen. "Can I trust you to deal with this? I must fight the strongest beings."
Lenen nodded. Adriano patted his shoulder before stepping outside the gate. "Ready, Eddard!"
"Of course. Here we hold them!" Eddard shouted, staring down the approaching princes.
Off in the distance, Hamza reached Cranel.
"Cranel, seems you and I can't continue," Hamza said jokingly.
Cranel chuckled. "We exerted ourselves. The final act of the war is upon us, but we may miss it. Jeremiah and Raymond… I entrust the rest to them."
Hamza's eyes blazed. "Nonsense! As long as we breathe, we fight on!"
Cranel laughed, his crimson eyes gleaming. "Then let us kill some more, my friend." He rose, battered but unbroken, standing beside Hamza as the war's final act began.