Death was silent. None had ever gone up against Death and won, yet this youth had. He hadn't won through brute force or some wild display of power; he had simply outsmarted the reaper, surviving the game until the clock ran out. The deal was concluded.
A bright white light emerged from the dome and hovered around Death's hand. "This is the soul you seek. You have proven yourself, and this is your prize," the figure said. As the light passed from his hand to Leon's, the figure turned to leave.
"I commend your effort, young one... but take note: the next time you attempt a duel with me, you will certainly lose," Death warned.
Leon paused, a faint giggle escaping his lips. He turned his head slightly and replied, "I highly doubt that."
The trance faded instantly. Leon stood over the fallen adventurer with the white light pulsing in his palm. He pressed it into the man's chest, and slowly, the adventurer's eyes began to flicker open. By the time the man's eyes were wide and filled with life, Leon had already vanished.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the dungeon, Leo and Lloyd were pushing deeper into the cavern. Suddenly, they came across a Great Bison—a monster on par with an A-Rank adventurer—standing over eight feet tall. It was Leo's first time seeing a monster that large, and a wide, uncontrollable smile spread across his face.
"Don't worry, I've got this," Lloyd said confidently, stepping forward.
The Great Bison let out a deafening roar, sending shockwaves rippling toward the princes. Lloyd reacted instantly, casting a barrier to protect both himself and Leo from the force. As soon as the roar subsided, Lloyd launched himself toward the beast at light speed, landing a heavy punch square on its face. The beast stumbled back, and Lloyd followed up with a barrage of strikes, each one sending shockwaves through the dungeon walls.
The Bison tried to lash out with its horns, but Lloyd dodged the attack with ease, countering with a kick that sent the creature skidding across the floor.
"We don't have all day... playtime is over," Lloyd declared. He stretched his hands toward the fallen beast and began his chant:
"Eternal flames, burn bright: Fireball!"
A gigantic fireball, twice the size of the bison, materialized and roared toward the monster. The attack obliterated everything in its path, reducing the bison to ash and punching a massive hole clean through the other side of the mountain.
"Jeez... that spell took a lot out of me," Lloyd said casually.
Leo watched the devastation, grinning. It was such a "simple" fireball spell, yet the destruction was catastrophic.
Wait, Leo thought, his smile widening. That's the same spell Ryu tried to pull off during the Academy test. His version was pathetic compared to this.
"Hey... hmmm... Lloyd, what if the adventurers we were supposed to save were somewhere behind the bison? Wouldn't that blast have killed them?" Leo asked curiously.
Lloyd instantly panicked. "I... I... I didn't think about that!"
Suddenly, two adventurers collapsed at the side of the room they were in. They had been using a combination of invisibility and stealth spells to hide their presence for over a day. When the bison had walked in on them, they had activated the spells in a blind panic and were too terrified to release them, and since the bison never left the room, they had remained trapped.
They were totally exhausted and partially unconscious. Lloyd quickly cast a healing spell on them, and their energy was completely replenished. They stood up, deeply grateful to the princes for saving their lives. Lloyd led the way, and the party followed to meet up with the others.
Meanwhile, Marcel, Leon, and the lady journeyed deeper into the dungeon until they finally found the last member—the leader of the B-rank adventurer party. He had gone hunting for a meal for his team; since the red bison were the only edible monsters in the dungeon and were as strong as a B-rank adventurer, the hunt hadn't been easy.
He was found bruised and bleeding, dragging a dead bison toward his teammates. The lady called out to him and ran to hug him, crying profusely. He was the only teammate she had left, or so she thought; he believed she was just scared because she thought he had died.
As they all journeyed back, no one bothered to tell him about the supposed death of his teammate. They believed it was better he saw the truth for himself. But as soon as they reached the spot where the body had been, they found the man sitting up, alive and sound.
"Hey guys, where did y'all go? I was slightly scared you'd leave me behind, but I know you guys aren't like that, so I waited and here you are," the man said, trying to stand up.
The lady immediately jumped on him, hugging him tightly and crying. "I thought you were dead! You scared me... I'm so glad you're alive!"
Both Marcel and the captain looked confused. Marcel was absolutely certain the man had died; he couldn't understand how he was suddenly alive and well. The mystery of the situation weighed heavily on his mind until they finally left the dungeon.
Both parties met at the point where they had originally diverted, and the B-rank party thanked the princes before heading off.
As the princes journeyed home in their carriage, Marcel turned toward Leon, the ordeal at the dungeon still weighing heavily on his mind.
"Leon, I know you two study more than anyone, and you must know a lot. Tell me: do you think a resurrection spell is actually possible?" Marcel asked, his eyes locked on Leon.
"Huh... why do you ask?" Lloyd stepped in, sensing the tension.
"I was certain that man was dead," Marcel explained. "But when we returned for the body, he was mysteriously alive. There is no way that was just a coincidence. I need to know if such a spell exists."
Leo looked at Leon. He knew his brother had a hand in it, but he had no intention of exposing him.
"I have come across one before," Leon replied coolly.
"Wait... it actually exists?" Marcel and Lloyd asked simultaneously.
"Technically, yes. It was given the name 'Death Spell,' or its more famous nickname: the Final Gamble," Leon answered.
"Then why isn't it taught? It could save so many lives if people knew about it," Lloyd asked, frustrated.
"It's not that simple," Leon said casually. "The Final Gamble was considered a suicide mission and was totally banned from the archives of all nations due to the nature of the resurrection process."
"And what exactly is that nature?" Marcel pressed.
"As the name implies, it's a final gamble. It's a spell that grants you access to the Death Plane. To save a life, you have to fight Death itself for an hour. If you survive that hour, you earn the right to resurrect a soul. But the problem is, if you die in Death's game, you die for real. Throughout the entire time it existed, not a single soul was ever resurrected. Only lives were lost. It killed over a thousand people without saving one, so it was eventually reclassified as a death spell rather than a resurrection spell."
So that means, Marcel thought to himself, either that man wasn't truly dead, or someone actually possesses the power to challenge Death—and won.
He glanced at the twins. I know these little monsters know about it. The question is, which one of them is crazy enough to try it?
He watched as both princes stared at each other, their expressions neutral, but their eyes dancing with a silent, telepathic connection.
No, Marcel concluded, his heart sinking with a mix of awe and terror. It wasn't just one of them. It was both.
"Tell me... which of you used that resurrection spell?" Marcel asked, his eyes narrowing with newfound certainty.
"Wait... you think they did it?" Lloyd asked, taken aback.
"I am certain they did," Marcel said, turning his gaze toward the princes. "The question is: which one of them did it, or was it both of them?"
"It wasn't me," Leo countered instantly. "I was with Lloyd the entire time. You can ask him; I never left his side."
"Yeah... he was with me the whole time," Lloyd confirmed.
"And I was with you the entire journey, Marcel. I didn't leave at any point," Leon added calmly.
Marcel paused, frustrated. He had seen Leon throughout the mission, which made it nearly impossible to pinpoint when or how he could have performed such a high-level feat.
"Regardless," Marcel said, turning away, "I will let it slide for now. But make no mistake—I will find out exactly what happened."
As soon as they arrived at the palace, the princes headed straight for the library. The moment the doors clicked shut behind them, Leo cast a silent barrier, ensuring not a single word could escape the room.
"Leon," Leo said, turning to his brother, who was lounging casually in a chair. "Why didn't you tell me you knew a resurrection spell?"
"Well, in my past life, it was classified as a death spell, not a resurrection one. I decided to test it on a stranger. After all, what is life without risk? And I won," Leon replied.
"Are you crazy?!" Leo scolded. "Why are you always in such a haste to throw your life away? You used a forbidden curse just to find your sister, and I had to risk everything because I refused to lose you again. But you... you don't care how I feel. You just toss your life aside like it means nothing!"
Leon looked at his brother, his expression softening. He knew Leo's pain; he was well aware of his own habit of rushing into danger for the sake of others without a second thought.
"I know I do reckless things," Leon admitted. "But I can't help it. Maybe it's a lingering hero's instinct from my past life. I think about keeping others safe before I think about my own survival—that is what made me a hero."
"That was what made you a hero then," Leo replied. "But this is a new life, a fresh start. You have people who care about you. We might not be all-powerful yet, but we can achieve so much together. So please, don't go risking your life for nothing. Let's solve these things together, as we always do."
"Alright. I'll try, and I'm sorry for risking my life without considering your feelings," Leon said, bowing his head in apology.
"Argh, it's fine," Leo sighed. "But tell me, how deadly is that spell compared to the Nine-Way Resurrection spell I used to bring you back?"
"It's better—much better," Leon explained. "You don't necessarily need to defeat Death; you just need to outlast it for an hour. The Nine-Way spell requires at least three souls and a massive mana output, which makes it incredibly risky. The Final Gamble is much more efficient overall."
"Really? Alright then—show me how," Leo said, turning toward his brother with a mischievous smile.
[Somewhere in Hell]
The Six Demon Lords were already in motion. The princes' destruction of the Void had caused a catastrophic leak across time and space. The infinite universes were now on the verge of collapse.
The only thing preventing the infinite verses from merging—or obliterating themselves entirely—was a floating artifact known as the Void's Core Box. It existed on a plane beyond space and time and could only stabilize the reality flux for a very short time.
The princes were currently unaware of the destruction they had set in motion, but the demons were already moving to exploit it. If the Core Box were destroyed, the bridge between Hell and the infinite universes would shatter, granting demons unfettered access to every realm. They intended to unleash total chaos before the universes themselves collapsed. This multiversal crisis, ironically, had been ignited by two overpowered princes simply trying to have a "fair" fight.