Chapter 682: Pandemonium.
"GABRIEL!"
Everyone quickly looked across the battlefield towards Gabriel and saw the angel clutching his chest, which was leaking a very dark miasma.
The seven virtues and the angels looked in horror towards Gabriel; they knew very well what hit Gabriel.
After all, Ariel suffered from the same effect.
Scathach and Vlad didn't miss the cruel smile that appeared on Diablo's face as everyone on the battlefield watched the 'purest' angel in heaven being covered in black energy.
Gabriel's scream reached across the battlefield.
"Gabriel! Answer me!"
"Kekeke, it's finally starting." A nasty laugh was heard. Michael turned his face and saw a 'shadow' with demon wings and a big smile on his face.
"Asmodeus! What did you do!?"
"The will of the demon king." The shadow began to disappear, and Michael didn't even have to react as an explosion of miasma and holy power rose to the heavens.
"AHHHHHH!" The scream that was once 'angelic' started to get more demonic, more evil.
"Gabriel!"
"Michael, pull yourself together! Don't forget where you are!"
Michael looked to the side and saw Cassiel, the virtue of diligence.
"Your brothers need your instructions. Pull yourself together." Cassiel spoke each word with a heavy, determined tone declaring the importance of the situation.
Michael visibly bit his lip and looked out over the battlefield, and only now did he realize that the demons had begun to push back.
His brothers were being killed and pressed again.
Michael made a disgusted face, his wings expanded widely as a halo appeared on his head, and he soared into the heavens.
"Father, give me permission… permission to summon my brother."
[... You have my permission.]
Michael was surprised by his father's much heavier than usual voice, something he had never heard before, but he didn't pay attention to it.
Using his energy as a channel, he spoke:
"Azrael, my brother. Your help proved necessary…" A large golden portal appeared in the sky.
"Let death fall to our enemies."
Michael's energy rose to the heavens, and the portal expanded even more, and soon a light fell across the entire battlefield.
And hundreds of angels started pouring out of the portal, flying toward the demons with determined eyes.
'He got too hasty. We weren't supposed to have summoned our brother's legion of angels now. He was our trump card.' Ariel thought as she dodged the demonic pillars' attacks.
'These idiots, they're just biding their time. Even though they have killing intent, I don't feel like they're really trying.'
Ariel was irritated. Her enemies weren't fighting seriously; they were evasive and fighting in a way that wouldn't risk too much.
Something very different from what she expected.
"Sloth, Envy, you know what to do," Diablo ordered when he saw the pace of war change again.
The woman called Sloth, and the man who was the sin of Envy just nodded, then they walked towards the humanoid monsters and disappeared into a portal they opened.
"Brother, I didn't expect to intervene so soon."
"They infected our brother. We need to eliminate everyone. Your strength is needed." Michael growled as he looked at the man who was covered in black plate armor and a hood covering his features.
Just like the highest level angels, he had 3 pairs of wings, which, unlike normal angels, were translucent and with shades of white and black; it was obvious that even among angels, he was unique.
And there was a reason for that. After all, he was the 'Death' of the biblical pantheon.
He was the jury and the executioner. He was Death.
Azrael, the angel of death, was the only one authorized by the heavenly father to 'accompany' mortals in their final moment.
Azrael looked at Gabriel and narrowed his eyes. He saw that his brother was fighting the 'miasma', but it only took one look for him to know that it was a useless fight and that he would succumb.
He looked out over the battlefield and saw that the virtues were being held by the pillar demons.
Rumble, Rumble.
"Oh? So you are the famous angel of death. I feel honored."
Azrael looked at the 'barbarian' in front of him:
"Thor."
"I wonder if you or my pantheon's 'Death' is the strongest."
Each pantheon was unique, and each pantheon had an entity of 'Death'. Take the Norse pantheon, for example. Hela was both a goddess of death, as well as the queen of hell and, at the same time, a Ruler.
"That is something we will never know." Azrael disappeared in a black beam and emerged in front of the virtues.
"Leave. Find the other opponents." He looked at the pillar rank demons with a cold gaze.
The angels didn't argue. When Azrael said something, you just listened because he only respects and listens to the heavenly father.
Ariel, along with the other Virtues, spread out,
Two virtues and two deadly sins began to fight each other.
Two virtues ascended to heaven towards Lilith and the dragon.
Meanwhile, Ariel and her sister, who was also one of the virtues, ascended to the sky towards Michael and Thor.
She got close enough to hear the two arguing:
"He is corrupting himself, it pains me to say this to an ally, but we need to kill him."
'What?'
"He is my brother!"
"Just like all the other angels."
"Thor…" Michael growled.
The god of thunder maintained a neutral gaze on Michael: "I know what happens when angels become corrupt, they become fallen, and the fallen are prone to attack those who were once their ally."
"You need to make a decision."
"...." Michael bit his lip.
Thor looked away, and he looked at Ariel and her sister:
"I will help the angels as much as I can, but someone needs to take Michael's commanding position, or the casualties on this side will only mount."
"A commander is needed."
Rumble, Rumble.
Thor disappeared and landed in the middle of the battlefield with a rumble of thunder and began clearing out the demons.
Before he could go any further and kill more demons, he sensed something approaching and quickly dodged it.
"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow at the crazed demon.
"If I'm not mistaken, you are Wrath."
"I always wanted to kill a god."
"It won't be today that you will get that wish."
"We'll see."
The two beings collided with each other, and an explosion of power ensued, isolating the two warriors from both armies.
...
Meanwhile, in a place a little far from the main battlefield.
"Our casualties?" Volk asked a white-haired man.
"So far, only 10 werewolves have died, all because of overconfidence." The white-haired man replied.
"Fools, I warned them to only focus on the weaker demons and not risk too much. This war is not ours." Volk growled.
"If I may, My King."
"Why are we fighting this war?"
"Angels are known for their healing abilities."
"...." Just those words were enough for the general with white hair and an impressive mustache to remain silent.
'Fenrir... Is he getting even worse?' It wasn't a surprise that the man knew that, after all, he was Volk's right-hand man.
"I see... In that case, shouldn't we have a bolder attitude?"
"The war is not ours, we are only here to pressure the demons and demonstrate that the angels are not alone, and only if necessary will it be me who will interfere, not my wolves."
'Minimize as many casualties as possible, huh.' The white-haired man could relate to that plan.
A surge of dark power was suddenly felt by everyone.
"My King... The angel has fallen."
"I know, Adam." Volk narrowed his eyes.
Suddenly, he felt a gaze upon him and quickly looked towards its origin above the clouds in the sky and was met with the crimson-red eyes of an old acquaintance.
'Vlad? He is here? Why?' Volk watches Vlad open his mouth, making some gestures with his lips.
When Volk read Vlad's lips and understood what the vampire king meant, Volk's eyes narrowed even further.
'Elder Gods... This got messier than I expected.'
...
The pillar of light was completely corrupted by the miasma, and soon Gabriel's appearance was shown to everyone. He was no longer angelic like before and had become much more demon-like. Even the energy in his body was now pure miasma.
One of the most exalted angels in heaven had fallen, which filled all the hearts of angels with grief and uncertainty.
Unfortunately, everyone did not have time to observe the appearance of the newly fallen angel for a long time because an abrupt change on the battlefield took place.
A 'Crack' in the sky was heard, and Sloth and Envy appeared next to Michael.
"What-."
"Poor angel... So busy... So tired..." Like a lazy weary tune, Sloth spoke.
"You disgusting creature …" Michael started to feel sleepy, but he fought the urge.
"I envy you, Michael… So much power… How about losing some of it temporarily?"
Michael felt his energy reserves falling at an insane rate.
"Yeah ~. just like that." Envy smiled widely.
In that half second that Envy smiled, something 'dark' came out of Envy and went to Michael's body like a parasite.
At the same time as this happened, something appeared behind Ariel and her sister.
"Cough …" Ariel and her sister spit golden blood from their mouths and looked down as their chests were pierced by a dagger.
"You shouldn't let your guard down... Not when an Agares is on the battlefield." The demon's voice was heard close to the two's ears.
"Bastard!" Ariel's eyes gleamed with power, and an aura of holiness rose up, driving the demon away.
"Tsk." Agares disappeared back into his world as he tried to ignore the excruciating pain in his body.
Ariel approached her sister and picked her up.
"Are you well?"
"Y-Yes, just give me a few minutes; the damage was profound."
"Unfortunately, we don't have a few minutes."
"Correct, you don't."
Ariel and her sister felt a shiver down their spines as they looked back to see a giant, familiar demon.
"D-Diablo-."
Diablo's tail slams into the bodies of the two angels, sending them flying several kilometers away.
The bodies of the two when they fell to the ground were completely broken, and they only survived thanks to their constitution as seraphs.
Diablo turned and completely ignored the powerful presences coming his way. He had a dragon, after all.
ROAAAARRR.
A breath was thrown at the angels, as the virtues that were trying to get in Lilith's way simply weren't enough to handle a demonic goddess and an ancient dragon.
By the time the blow happened, Diablo was already in front of Gabriel, who was paralyzed.
'I can't M-Move... Why?'
"That's not something you need to know." Diablo's sharp claw pierced Gabriel's body and pulled out his heart.
"NOOOOO! Brother!" Feeding on anger, a cardinal sin no angel should have,
Michael felt a surge of power in his body that caused the two Deadly Sins to explode into the distance.
Michael flew towards Diablo with vengeance in his eyes.
"The most exalted angel must not fall through anger. It seems that not even angels can stop an emotion as basic as anger." Diablo turned around, the demon's eyes flashed with power, and pure red miasma erupted from his body.
Before Michael could understand what happened, his heart was also pierced and removed.
"H- How …?"
"I don't fight alone, Michael." A cold hand was felt on his neck, and he heard that disgusting laugh again.
"Kekeke, did you really think I just disappeared?"
"My King, can I consume it?"
"Make yourself comfortable. I already have what I need."
Diablo looked at the two hearts beating in front of him.
'The heart containing all the evil of hell, the heart of a fallen angel of the highest order, and the heart of the fairest and holiest angel in existence... The ingredients are complete.' A smile appeared on Diablo's face, and euphoria coursed through his entire body.
All of his plans were for this, for this very moment. Despite the setbacks, he got what he wanted.
Diablo blinked his eyes, and he felt time around him slow down. He turned his head and saw the face of a being covered in lightning with pointed ears and blood-red eyes.
'Vampires.'
Unconsciously, Diablo closed his body and shielded the hearts with his body, and used his miasma to hide the hearts in his body.
But contrary to everything he expected, the woman didn't attack him, she simply walked past him and touched his body while something dark took over his skin, and in the next moment, she disappeared, leaving traces of lightning behind.
Everything happened so fast that nobody could react.
The woman who glowed with the golden power of lightning just flew toward the ground and disappeared into the darkness.
Diablo woke up from his stupor and felt an endless rage when he felt that 'something' stored in his body had disappeared.
'She took the key to hell.'
"Alucard's Allies." He spoke with such disgust and anger that it shocked Agares, who was watching everything with no reaction, a little.
Another portal appeared next to Diablo, and the demon, along with his allies, quickly jumped toward the portal.
The action Diablo just took raised the battlegrounds to an entirely different level.
The elites stopped holding back.
The angels attacked as if they were demonic beasts, and the war turned to pandemonium with no order, only Chaos.
And the one at the forefront of this chaos was a very angry Angel of Death who began to mow down the demons' elites and pillars like a true executioner.
.....
