It was partially Alexander's fault.
In the original timeline, Alexander didn't exist at all. In this labyrinth, those two unnamed men were meant to die, and while Luciel and Lucifer would experience loss and injury, they weren't supposed to get anywhere near a fatal wound.
This was because Alucard and Commander Huo had more than enough time to save the two of them after killing the clones that attacked them.
The two who died would have died regardless. They couldn't hold out for more than a minute against their opponent, so no matter who tried to save them, their fate was set in stone.
Even in a situation where Alexander stepped in and killed the enemy, they would have died in the near future due to some unavoidable circumstance or another.
Some people's fates were set in stone like that. Those kinds of fates were precisely what the Saint Emperor fought to change, but not even Damien's main body had the power to do so yet.
Still, in the original timeline, they should have lasted at least long enough for Luciel and Lucifer to find an opening to exploit and make distance, giving them a means of survival.
However, Alexander came to the labyrinth.
He hid his presence from them, but the so-called "owner of the labyrinth," who had full control over its every faculty, was more than aware of his presence.
He was an unknown variable, and to account for it, when the group arrived at the final room, he forcefully injected substances into the Nox being's body to raise his strength to an unprecedented level, making it so not just the younger experts, but also Alucard and Commander Huo had trouble dealing with him.
This wasn't a trial that could be overcome with just the help of fate, therefore, Alexander didn't waste any time jumping in and providing aid.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Lucifer and Luciel were holding out surprisingly well. Their combination of light and darkness was similar to when Ruyue and Elena combined Yin and Yang. The effects of their conjoined attack were far better than anything they could produce on their own.
They were handling the singular clone in front of them well enough to survive, but the problem was that another one was approaching from behind.
"Dammit!"
Lucifer yelled in frustration as he constructed a barrier behind them.
"How long can you hold?!"
"Not long. We're screwed," Luciel responded simply.
However, he still fought to his greatest capacity.
"Aaargh, whatever! If we die, we die fighting!"
They weren't kids with weak mentalities. Their characters might've been much less mysterious than they were in the current era, but they were bona fide experts in their own right.
So they fought.
Believing in the barrier Lucifer set up, they put all their attention on the clone before them, hoping to kill it before its twin arrived from the rear.
Unbeknownst to them, said clone would never arrive at all.
'A barrier, huh…isn't that better for me?'
Alexander grinned from the shadows as he realized his actions would be somewhat covered.
Before the second clone could make its move towards new targets once it finished the two unnamed men, he jumped out, his fist charged with extreme power as he punched out.
BOOOOOOOOOM!
Shockwaves spread throughout the room. The floor cracked under the pressure of his feet as he pivoted and pushed even more force into his flying fist.
The Nox clone was struck directly on the jaw. His head snapped to the side with a "CRACK!" as his bones were shattered, and the rest of his body was forced to follow.
'It's troublesome. This guy has a crazy regenerative ability.'
Alexander watched it happen in real-time. The tattoos on the clone's body lit up, and the bloody red aura he possessed dug into his skin to heal him.
'It's a good thing he's split. If this is the regeneration of a clone, the true body would've been an absolute nightmare to kill.
Nevertheless, for Alexander, healing abilities were the least threatening thing in the world.
After all, he'd been practicing to negate exactly that.
Damien saw the future from the Void. He knew what stood at the end of Alexander's growth path, and to prepare for the day he could directly shatter Divinity, he first practiced shattering similar concepts like regeneration, or rather, immortality itself.
Since it was an Authority he himself possessed, he could study the concepts with his main body and transmit the knowledge to his Avatar to help with comprehension.
The lack of space and time in the Void made this incredibly convenient.
"Bastard, you think you've won, don't you?" Alexander said arrogantly.
The Nox clone was currently grinning with a haughty expression, as if begging Alexander to hit him again and see what happened.
Naturally, Alexander obliged.
"Allow me to show you something more terrifying than the guy who gave you these abilities."
He grabbed the Nox clone by both sides of his head and injected mana into his skull.
Through that mana, he showed the clone a vision.
It was an incomprehensible sight.
It was the sight of reality from outside the bounds of existence, precisely what his main body was currently looking at.
That sight…
Perhaps only Damien, and maybe the deceased Saint Emperor, were the only ones who could look at it and keep their minds intact.
The clone had no idea what he'd seen, but even trying to rationalize it a little bit was too much. His mind shattered into a million pieces, and the sentience he possessed was torn to shreds.
"Now then, I think you deserve a little beating."
A mindless Nox was far easier to deal with than an intelligent one.
With Alexander's fists, this kind of creature didn't stand any chance, no matter what its strength level was.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fist after fist, kick after kick, struck that Nox being from every side. His body was thrown around like a rag doll as every single one of his bones was broken from head to toe.
The tattoos on his body flared up as they tried to heal him, however, Alexander's mana property suppressed that power and disallowed its existence.
"Regeneration" was not possible under his jurisdiction.
BOOM!
"How does that feel?"
Alexander grinned as he slammed the Nox clone's broken body into the ground.
"Well, I guess you wouldn't be able to answer regardless, so it's pointless to ask."
He raised his leg into the air and stomped down ferociously.
BOOOOOOM!
His foot crushed the Nox being's head and splattered black ink across the ground. The remaining force dug into the labyrinth itself and further cracked the already broken floor into dust.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
With a few more punches, the Nox being's body was completely obliterated.
'That's the only problem with prioritizing physical abilities.'
When it came to the Nox, he had to do a lot more work than a normal person to prevent their complete regeneration.
'Maybe I should train a law too. Considering this body's origins…maybe fire would be good?'
He shrugged and looked around.
'Ah, right, there was that situation.'
Alucard and Commander Huo were right about finished with their clones, however, Lucifer and Luciel were on their last leg.
'How annoying.'
If the two Supremes were just a second faster, they would've been able to equalize the situation, but that wasn't reality.
So Alexander, beyond any desire of his own, would have to truly show his presence.
Luciel and Lucifer's Nox clone slashed its claw out, breaking through every barrier they'd made thus far.
It continued forward uninhibited by their attacks as its tattoos healed every wound they left on its body, and as its blade-like fingers swept towards Lucifer, Luciel jumped in the way.
"LUCIEL!" Lucifer yelled anxiously.
"GAH!"
Luciel roared in pain as his skin was torn.
He was thrown back into his friend by the force, but even that was lucky.
If the claw touched Lucifer, who'd already taken a wound, he would have died. And if it was even an inch deeper into Luciel's chest, he would have died as well.
'Haa…'
Alexander sighed.
The timing was too coincidental, but he couldn't help it.
He stepped into the ground and pushed off. His body turned into a rocket, and his fist was propelled with absolute speed.
Before the Nox clone could reach the duo again, a flaming red man was in front of them.
"I really didn't want to interfere, so you better give me a proper reward for saving you."
With words that sounded more like those of a common street thug than a hero, he let loose the force in his arm.
And the Nox…
Well, it didn't need to be said what happened to him.
