Gabriel used the Summoning to call forth a little extra help for the battle. However, as soon as the Infernal King came out of the Summoning Formation, Gabriel saw him glaring at him.
The Infernal King couldn't believe that he was back here again. However, this time he didn't think about attacking Gabriel. He had already realized that it was already useless after his experience of last time.
"What... Now?"
He was sure that if he was called here again, then it could be that Gabriel needed help again.
"You can speak?" Gabriel exclaimed in shock. He used to think that the Infernal King couldn't speak, only to find him speaking now.
The Infernal King frowned, sending the aura of death nearby. He gazed at the Shield of the Undead. Through the shield, he was also able to see a barrage of attacks that were coming in their direction.
"Alright. I called you here because I need your help again." Since the Infernal King didn't look like he wanted to answer, Gabriel decided to move on.
He informed the Infernal King about the kind of help he needed. He also told the Infernal King as to where he was and what his goal was here.
After hearing everything, the Infernal King raised his head, looking up. A tower with a hundred floors that had beings like this? This place was quite intriguing even for him since the aura of this place wasn't as disgusting to him as the aura outside.
He felt much more comfortable here than he felt in Gabriel's room.
Even though he understood what kind of help Gabriel needed, he was also slightly upset. He had things to do as well in the Realm of Undead, but Gabriel kept calling him here. It was twice now. He wondered just how long it was going to go on like this. He had to find a way.
"After you help me get to the top floor, I will send you back," Gabriel chimed in, seeing the uncertainty. "Moreover, you won't need to fight much either. I'll be fighting alone as long as I don't need you. So you can just be a backup."
Hearing the same line as before, the Infernal King rubbed the back of his neck, raising his head.
"I won't help." Ultimately, the Infernal King refused to help.
"What?" Gabriel wasn't expecting this response. "Why not?"
He could force the Infernal King even now, but forcing him was going to consume a lot of his spiritual strength, which defeated the entire purpose of calling the Infernal King here. One of the reasons he called the Infernal King here was because he wanted to save his Spiritual Strength for the higher floors.
The Infernal King just glared back in response. He didn't like talking much, especially with the ones who he didn't respect, but it looked as if he had to explain in words for Gabriel to understand.
"You keep calling me here when you need my help. Why should I be your servant? You aren't worthy," the Infernal King answered. "Even if I help you this time and you send me back, you'll just call me back again the next time you need my help."
If it were just about helping, he would've helped once or twice, but if it was going to be regular, he hated the thought. He wasn't going to work for anyone else!
"You aren't a slave...," Gabriel responded, understanding why the Infernal King was angry. If he were in its place, he would've been angry as well. "If you were a slave, why would I ask you to help? I would've just commanded you?"
"You are my first Summon. I don't want to have you as my slave. I want to have you as a friend and as a partner. Believe it or not, but you're the only one who I can trust in this entire world," he further explained.
Even though he was working with Eliana, he didn't trust her entirely either. He knew that in the world, anyone could betray anyone for their benefit. That's why he had prepared some things, in case she ever tried to betray him.
There was only one person who he could trust at this point, and it was the Infernal King since there was only the Infernal King who could never betray him.
Because of the Summoning Contract, the Infernal King couldn't attack him. He couldn't work with others to kill him as well. The contact placed a lot of restrictions on him, which made Gabriel feel safe with the Infernal King.
He started talking like a friend in a calm tone, but he knew that with a gentle tone, some authority was also needed.
"If I wanted to treat you like a slave, I could've just commanded you, and you would have no choice but to follow my commands because of the contract!"
"Still, I won't take away your free will. I will leave the decision to you. If you don't want to help me, I won't force you."
The Infernal King heard Gabriel. For some reason, he could feel that Gabriel actually was being genuine. He still remembered that when Gabriel had commanded him to stay in the room, no matter what he tried, he couldn't leave. So it wasn't a lie when Gabriel said that he could force him. Despite that, he was asking.
Gabriel took a deep breath. "If you don't want to help, stay behind. It might be hard, but I'll take care of things myself."
Gabriel held the Staff of Necromancy firmly.
He left the Shield of Undead for the Infernal King as he stepped out of the protection. He started running in toward the Headless Mage.
The Infernal King watched Gabriel advance ahead without any backup. Instead of forcing him, he was going alone.
The barrage of attacks that were coming to the Shield of Undead shifted to Gabriel, who dodged the attacks as much as he could. The attacks that he couldn't Dodge, he sliced with the Sword of Ulien, which not only cut the attacks in half but also absorbed some of the strength of the attacks.
The biggest problem was still the hidden formations on the ground, which he needed to avoid. He needed to focus on two sides simultaneously.
Boom~
A formation exploded right under Gabriel as soon as his foot landed on the ground. The energy explosion sent Gabriel flying. As soon as Gabriel sensed the explosion, he cast a shield of light around him, along with the Minor Healing. He landed on the ground, but as he was about to stand up, he saw another attack of the Headless Mage coming at him.
He rolled to the side, barely avoiding the attack, but another attack came. The attacks were just endless.
He kept rolling on the ground, avoiding the attacks. The attacks were enough to leave a crater on the ground.
As Gabriel avoided the attacks, he prepared to cast another Shield of Undead to get some time to stand up, but as he was about to cast a shield, a flaming shield appeared before him, protecting him from the coming attacks…
