Just before the blast could engulf them, Love transformed into a colossal sphere of flesh and swallowed the group whole.
But the explosion's purpose had never been to kill them, nor even to injure them. It was a repelling force.
The gigantic mass of flesh was launched backward like a cannonball, and in its wake, a miserable Self-Consumption was left alone with a devil.
His shadow kept attempting to swallow him and regenerate his body, but Ashen did not allow it. His mana acted as a repellent, driving it away like light banishing darkness.
"AAARGHHH—!"
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!"
"MY FLESH—IT WON'T HEAL!"
"NO… NO, NO, NO…"
"WAIT! WAIT! I CAN STILL—"
"PLEASE!"
"SOMEONE, HELP ME!"
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
"I DON'T WANT TO—"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAA—!"
That was the last of his miserable cries before Ashen's mana extinguished his, rendering him no different from his fellow Narkals—a creature that would die the moment its head was separated from the rest of its body.
"Haah… that's another one. Four more to go."
Screeckk—
The spear detached from the corpse with a wet sound as Ashen turned sideways to look at the rest of his foes.
But he didn't have to look far.
One was already hurtling right toward him.
◉◉◉
A moment before Self-Consumption's death, right after the detonation of Shun Morikawa.
...
As they heard the pitiful screams of their fellow cannibalistic Outer God, the four of them looked at each other in dismay.
"He let his other face show…"
They had long since noticed that Ashen had two personalities, with one infinitely more frightening and deadly than the other.
And they addressed that one as "his other face."
They had done their best to avoid it throughout the past year and a half, knowing that its appearance would spell their end if they were caught by it.
"Self-Consumption is probably done for…" Mandate shook his head in pity.
The few seconds it would take them to reach him would be more than enough to end his life, but all of them knew the real reason they weren't rushing back.
They were afraid that if they went to save him, it would simply become their turn.
Either way, they knew Ashen's body wouldn't be able to keep his other personality active for long, so they decided to wait it out.
"You bunch of cowards, what are you doing now…?"
That was what would have happened if Sovereignty hadn't appeared right behind them with an expressionless face.
No one mistook his low voice for anything but rage.
"…A strategic retreat." False Mercy spoke hesitantly.
"Why do you have to retreat in the face of a mortal? Go."
He reached out, his lines catching the distant Reshaping at the end. He caught her by the nape and hurled her straight at their target.
Fwhooooooosh—!
"He is merely using a power beyond what his body can handle. Even if he kills more of you, he will die in the process." He eyed them with clear intent.
"Alright…"
One by one, they followed after the unfortunate Reshaping.
◉◉◉
Old Ashen was about to avoid the collision, but the price of unleashing enough power to kill the creature beneath his feet finally caught up to him.
COUGH—!
His whole body froze for an instant as his heart ached and his limbs burned, but he bulldozed through it all and jumped back.
He was a second too late.
BANG—!
"AHHHH!"
"DIE! DIE! DIE! PLEASE, DIEEEE!"
The thing tackling him wasted no time, plunging its fingers into his shoulder and stomach as it rapidly poured its blood and corrupted mana into the fallen Ashen.
"COUGH—!"
The Old Soul knew that if he exerted any more of his Concepts or called upon his Icon one more time, he could repel his aggressor.
But the cost would be his own life for certain.
That was how badly his last stunt had damaged his body.
'Damn this weak vessel…'
He was dying with frustration, but after everything he had been through, he wasn't ready to die alongside this wretched creature.
'You will have to deal with this. Switch.'
As he felt his consciousness drift away, he used the last of his strength to drive a front kick into the fearful face of Reshaping, launching her backward like a bullet.
Ashen immediately followed with a somersault, catching his spear in the process as he switched back.
But the damage had already been done.
He felt foreign blood rampaging through his body, devouring his own blood and reshaping it into a toxic substance that was killing him.
The corrupted mana was also doing its best to reach his three main veins, attempting to take complete control of his circuits.
"Fuck… cough, cough!"
His vision returned as Sensory Lull released due to his mana going haywire as it desperately tried to resist the invasion.
And what he saw made what little blood remained in his face run cold.
The two-million-strong Pride Army was no more.
Instead, Sovereignty was marching toward him with an endless horde of Narkals.
'First… I have to deal with this blood.'
Ashen knew it was his first priority.
Otherwise, he wouldn't live long enough to worry about the enemies coming toward him.
Somatic Autonomy did its best to counterattack and safeguard his body, but its resistance was futile. Laughable, even.
Reshaping's blood was infused with her will and Concepts, giving it a strange semblance of life as it invaded him.
Ashen could only divert part of his mana into his bloodstream to fight the invasion while desperately watching the approaching enemies.
C'mon…
C'mon…
C'MON…!
.
.
.
Within him…
A pair of eyes opened, and an ancient being stirred behind a seal.
Fool. You have lived a lifetime as a vampire, yet you struggle against this inferior blood? You would allow it to devour you?
I can't stand it.
◉◉
"Hummp!!!"
An electrifying sensation surged through his body. Then, a System message lit up across his retinas.
[You catch a Glimpse of the Concept of Crimson Torpor.]
As if waiting for the announcement, the blood cells that had been helplessly devoured abruptly metamorphosed.
Each cell gained a microscopic golden circle upon its surface.
When the foreign blood attempted to consume one of them, the circle throbbed—
—and consumed it in return.
With every drop of foreign blood devoured, the golden circle etched into the cell shone brighter.
And alongside it, Ashen understood his new Concept on a conscious level.
Crimson Torpor was derivative of Sloth, directed toward the Concept of Blood.
Its essence was simple: Preservation through consumption.
His blood had gained the ability to enter a state of extreme dormancy, allowing his body to survive for years without food, water, or even breathing if necessary. To accomplish this, each blood cell could now store vastly greater quantities of resources, keeping them dormant until they were needed.
But to fill those reserves, his blood had developed another property.
It could consume foreign substances, convert and store them, provided the substance did not exceed the quality of the blood itself.
And Ashen's blood, despite never having become a true vampire, still carried the primordial's blood origin.
So even the corrupted blood of an Outer God could only be helplessly consumed, stored, and eventually converted into something useful.
Ashen finally let out a breath of relief as his blood cells swept through his body, cleansing it of the foreign corruption and turning the foul blood into nourishment.
The corrupted blood was broken down and repurposed according to his body's needs.
Some became oxygen, some became vitality, and the rest was simply stored.
But the mana rampaging inside his body was another matter entirely.
'Stand… down!!'
Mana Imperium flared to life under his desperate will, but it could only keep the foreign mana from interfering with him temporarily.
"Damn it…"
Ashen knew that it was less the Innate Skill's failure and more his own.
His will wasn't sharp enough.
His mind was almost fractured from the constant agony his body was enduring, while his thoughts rattled under the False Mercy's tragic memories that were still convincing him to kill himself even now.
…He was simply too worn out.
"Haah… haah… haah…"
Here they come…
Ashen looked up from beneath his hair bangs as the leader of these Outers leisurely walked toward him.
"How tenacious."
Behind him, monsters and Outer Gods looked at Ashen with various emotions, from fear and caution to hunger and lust.
"How brave."
Parasitic Sovereignty began slowly clapping as he walked forward, even going as far as giving him a congratulatory smile.
But with every clap of his hands, Ashen's temples throbbed in turn.
He felt the memories come to life, as if the tragedies they had grafted into his mind had happened only yesterday.
Then they twisted into even more miserable images, nearly making him keel over and end his own life right there.
He didn't even get the chance to breathe before a sudden, irrational anger flared within his mind.
He wanted to get rid of everything that carried disorder.
The unreasonable impulse intensified until even his own skin began to feel uncomfortable.
'False Mercy's Concepts… and now Mandate…'
Ashen remembered his Twin's words about this Outer God.
He was a parasitic entity capable of integrating everything about the beings he bound himself to.
But knowing that did nothing to change his abysmal position.
With every clap from the other party, Ashen felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into a dark sea, with no chance of ever reaching the surface again.
The simple urge to kill himself was overwhelming.
One simple sweep of his spear, and everything would end.
He truly didn't understand why he was still going.
'Can't I just rest?'
A helpless smile graced his features.
'I can't even activate Sensory Lull.'
Unlike his older Skills, his Mastery of this Path Skill was still immature. Even a disturbance in his own mana was enough to render it inaccessible.
Before he knew it, Parasitic Sovereignty was only a couple of meters away.
"Are you sleepy? It's okay… You can rest."
With that, he vanished and reappeared directly in front of Ashen.
The spear moved on its own, stabbing toward the towering man, but the latter merely shifted his torso by a minuscule fraction, letting the weapon flash harmlessly past him.
Then he casually raised his hand and plunged it into Ashen's chest.
"You have worked hard… It's over now… Let go…"
"Ah…"
Ashen glanced down.
A hole had appeared in his chest. His heart was beating within the man's hand.
"I can rest now…?"
"Yes."
"I se—"
{Wake up.}
"…"
{Rest? What delusions are you swallowing?}
The Twin's voice was plain, as if he were simply living through another ordinary day rather than witnessing the last moments of his life.
{You are tired after only this bit of struggle?}
{Quit whining.}
{Keep going.}
{There's still much to be done.}
Ashen's glazing eyes slowly refocused.
His lips moved softly.
"Hm?" Sovereignty tilted his head. "Any last words? I shall hear them."
He leaned closer.
And what he heard made his expression change.
"Keep going…"
Re-wind!!!
Zzzztss—