Child of Destiny

...

After the staredown, Mephisto suddenly leaped into the air and started rushing toward a certain direction. He seemed to want Shin to follow him where they could fight to their heart's content, and no one could disturb them.

Shin did not mind. He glanced at his friends before turning to Diablo for a moment. He then disappeared from his current location and appeared a few meters away from Mephisto, who was running ahead of him. He would entrust this place to the others while he dealt with this guy.

Amon finally opened his mouth. "It has been a while, Diablo."

Diablo smirked at those words. "Don't act like you missed me or something, Amon. We both know how much we want to get rid of each other."

Amon shook his head and smiled bitterly. "If not for you betraying the leader and the organization, then we will never be in this situation."

Hearing that, Diablo could not help but feel skeptical and said. "It is not me betraying you guys. It is everyone betraying me and my expectations."

"The current Pandemonium Descendants is completely different from what it used to be. The organization started chasing profits and that twisted ambition while the Pandemonium Troupe turned into a weapon that slaughtered everyone," he added with a bitter tone.

Amon shrugged his shoulders. "Isn't that how everything should be? If you don't have any ambitions, then what are you even doing? And what is the use of the strong force if it is not for slaughtering your enemies."

Diablo shook his head and refused to comment. He would not argue with this guy since there was no point in it. Both knew each other very well, and they understood that neither of them would be convinced with one another.

He stood on his spot silently and waited for Amon to make his move. But to his surprise, the 'Wrath Devil' of the Troupe seemed to be able to hold his rage and remained calm despite that ugly look on his face, which was still full of rage.

"Not making your move? Isn't the reason why you are here because you are expecting me to appear in this place?" said Diablo.

Amon tilted his head to the side before admitting it. "Well, that is for sure. Since you understand us very well, I know for sure that you will be able to predict our move of targeting the very variable that will be the greatest hindrance on our path."

He then paused for a moment before continuing. "Even though I want to crush you right here and now, I can't let it blind my judgment."

"I have to prioritize my mission before anything else," he added while suppressing the burning rage within him. "My job is to keep you here while Mephisto deals with the target."

Diablo raised his brows, slightly surprised. Then he suddenly started grinning s he said with a provoking tone. "What? It seems like you have changed. Is it because of what happened during that time?"

"Now that I think about it, you have suffered quite a lot during that time. It was a pretty devastating loss."

The corner of Amon's mouth suddenly twitched uncomfortably when he heard that. He remembered clearly how one of their most important and biggest operations crumbled because of this very person.

He tried his best to suppress his anger while glaring fiercely at Diablo.

Diablo smirked as he added. "But are you sure that Mephisto will be enough? That guy is not simple as think he is."

"I am sure that even 'Pride' put more importance on this guy. I bet that even he will be wary when facing this particular target."

Amon paused for a moment as he could not refute those words immediately. He knew very well that Shin was not an easy target. Even he, himself, was not confident in taking that guy down, especially now that Shin had achieved the third tier of his class.

But after thinking about Mephistopheles and the special class that he had, Amon shook his head and said. "I may not be able to take on that guy right now, but you should know better than anyone what kind of person Mephisto is."

"Especially with that unreasonable class that he has," he added, emphasizing how troublesome Mephistopheles was.

Diablo raised his brows for a moment and pursed his lips a little before nodding his head. "That is for sure. That is why I find it a pity not to watch their fight."

…

In the meantime, Mephistopheles finally stopped as he found a spot that he was very satisfied with. He briefly nodded his head and mumbled. "This should be perfect."

He then turned around and said. "I thought that you would chicken out and not follow me."

Shin refused to reply and kept silent. He observed the opposing party and tried to gauge the latter's strength.

For some reason, he was getting an uncomfortable feeling from the other party. Even his instincts were telling him not to let his guard down.

It was at that moment when he heard Solus' voice inside his head. "You must be careful of this man, my liege. He is not some an ordinary demon."

Hanzo's voice immediately followed. "I feel the power of evil spirits within him."

Grimrace's growling voice suddenly followed. "He has an aura similar to mine."

"Hmm… his scent is the same as Clown," said Blackie, which Whitie seconded.

"An abomination?" mumbled Shin in shock as he digested their words.

But it was immediately rejected by Vladimir, who corrected it. "Similar yet different."

"He consumed our kind," Astaroth joined in with the words shocked Shin even more.

The other elemental spirits seemed to have agreed with his words. The more they stared at Mephistopheles, the more convinced they became.

Shin, on the other hand, wore a solemn expression on his face. Now, he had to be extra cautious, especially with the heavy tone that his 'Reapers' had.

He then asked with a serious tone. "What does it mean?"

"If he eats your kind, what kind of power does he have?" he added with a heavier tone.

Grimrace thought for a moment before answering. "We may be similar, but there are still some district differences between us."

"I consume the other elementals and the rebirthing place before because I have to sustain myself and keep on living. But this demon seems to treat us as food that he regularly consumes."

"I also consume others to strengthen my powers, but he seems to devour others for their powers," he added with a little uncertainty.

It was at that moment when Hanzo nodded. "About right."

Shin's expression became darker when he heard that and asked. "So, are you telling me that we consume the elemental spirits to get their powers?"

"It seems like it," affirmed Hanzo.

"Then how many elementals does he consume thus far?" asked Shin.

"At least five," answered Solus instantly.

"Does that mean he has five unique abilities from different elemental spirits?" Shin continued to ask as his expression grew more solemn.

Hanzo and Solus nodded as they confirmed his thoughts.

When Shin heard their confirmation, he became more and more cautious as he suddenly felt an unexplainable pressure coming from Mephisto. He now started to understand why he was feeling a dangerous threat coming from the latter.

"Just what kind of class does he have?" he mumbled.

As if hearing those words, Mephistopheles suddenly said. "Are you done talking with those spirit friends of yours? Are you curious about what kind of class I have and which race I belong to?"

"I can tell you the answers so long as you give me a satisfying battle," he added as his face immediately showed his excitement for battle.

Solus then suddenly said. "If I am not wrong, he must have inherited the legacy of an Ancient Demon God. Moreover, he must also have visited the underworld or devildom at least once to gain such powers."

"Now that I think about it. During the Repelling Era, the heroes with transcendent races encountered a certain demon calling himself one of the 'Original Sins'. At that time, that demon has eaten a very powerful abomination in the war, which has given him the powers to devour our kind," said Hanzo, chiming in.

He paused for a moment before continuing. "If I am not wrong, that demon must be from the direct line of that Ancient Demon God."

"And from what I can see, this demon and that descendant must have become one," he added as he squinted his eyes while observing Mephistopheles.

Mephisto seemed to have heard that conversation once again and chuckled. "I must admit that these friends of yours are quite knowledgeable. They may be from that distant era."

He then licked his lips as he continued. "I wonder how they taste and what kind of powers can they give me."

"Should we start already?" he added as the expression on his face was suddenly washed by much impatience.

Shin knitted his brows deeply before mumbling. "Solar Reaper."

Swoosh!

Right after those words left his mouth, Solus, who was staring at Mephistopheles with an unfriendly gaze while in she was in the form of a speck of light, broke free from the others before manifesting behind Shin in her humanoid form.

Seeing her, Mephistopheles' eyes shone with greed as he had gotten the urge of wanting to get her.

Solus glared at him briefly as she turned into a light that fused with the [Yamato], changing its appearance into a more exquisite and special sword.

Boom!

The surrounding air immediately erupted with a powerful explosion that caused a sharp increase in temperature. The surroundings seemed to have become bright red as specks of blazing embers rose from the ground.

Seeing the sudden change in atmosphere, Mephisto suddenly grinned from ear to ear. "Fire! What a coincidence! I happen to have a similar power!"

With that, his crimson air suddenly floated and danced with the hot wind before a pair of blazing wings appeared behind him.

His crimson eyes radiated with a blazing glow as he stared at Shin full of excitement.

"Let's do this!" he shouted as a blazing sword manifested in his hand and disappeared from his current position.

Swoosh!

Shin did the same. He stomped his foot onto the ground and kicked it to propel himself forward.

He suddenly disappeared just like Mephisto before reappearing once again when they were only about two meters away from each other.

Mephisto halted his charge as he swung his sword made of raging fire down, which carried a strong and heavy force that seemed to be crushing the whole world. His swing was like a meteor that was charging straight to the earth, carrying its unstoppable momentum.

'Devil's Advocate Skill: (Reinforced) Blazing Judgement'

Swoosh!

Shin ducked forward as he unsheathed the blazing [Yamato] and swung it horizontally.

Shing!

The tip of the sword drew a beautiful arc in the air, which was suddenly ignited by the holy fire.

'Jade Kirin Scripture: Quick Draw (Fire and Metal Form): Blazing Crescent'

Swoosh!

Bang!

The explosion that was produced by the collision of the swords caused the surrounding air to be ignited and created a storm of fire that revolved around them.

The firestorm formed a spinning tornado around the two while treating them as the center.

Blazing embers flew in the air and surrounded the two as they stared at each other's eyes and maintained the ending posture of their previous moments.

There was a brief pause before both suddenly retracted their arms and adjusted their stances before swinging their swords at each other.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Their arms turned into blurs as blazing sword flashes filled their surroundings.

The blazing sparks and flame embers continued to increase as their swords repeatedly collided with one another and created a series of explosions.

Some of the residual energies from their strikes were sent flying in a random direction, causing the land, trees, and vegetation in the place to get caught in an explosion. The flames that it had spread and burned the surrounding area, turning the whole place into an inferno.

The two paused for a brief moment as they caught their breaths before stomping onto the ground and executing another advanced technique.

Mephisto inhaled deeply as he summoned the power of the fire spirit that he had consumed and channeled it into his sword while swinging.

'Class Fighting Style: Burning Heaven'

The raging flames surrounding his sword became even more violent as he swung the sword horizontally. The blazing sword seemed to have devoured the surrounding flames, making its blade grow larger while approaching its target.

Swoosh!

Shin let go of the sheath with his left hand and let it hang on his waist before holding the [Yamato] with both of his hands and raising it over his head.

He took a deep breath and circulated the mana within his body according to the 'Solar Breathing Technique', increasing their pace and strengthening their flow.

A violent flame enfolded his entire being before flowing toward his sword.

Shriek!

A phoenix seemed to have formed behind him as he swung the sword down, drawing a vertical stroke in front of him.

'Perfected Four Symbol Scripture: Celestial Vermillion Bird – Pheonix Purgatory'

Swoosh!

BOOM!

...…