48 Corruption

As the man finished reciting the gods' names, a dreadful aura descended.

Instead of blue sky, the white clouds that had blanketed the sky had blown away, revealing the boundless cosmos.

The six gods appeared in front of the man, their mountain-sized figures staring down at the man who dared to utter their names.

"Bethel Abraham!"

Leodero grumbled. "Can you give me one good reason why I shouldn't attack you right way, for daring to call our names?"

Bethel Abraham looked at the gods that floated before him, unaffected by their divine gazes and auras.

He then focused on Leodero and reasoned calmly.

"You were all the first to request an audience. So, other than calling your names, how can I hope to catch your attention? Do you expect me to knock on the doors of all your divine kingdoms?"

He stated it with a shrug and a smile on his lips.

"Don't try to be clever around us." As terrifying blots of lightning flashed across Leodero's figure, his voice became indifferent.

Other gods simply stood on the side-lines and looked on in silence.

"Enough!" Aucuces said, while glaring at Leodero. "We're already out of time, Leodero, there must be no more mishaps or chaos."

When Leodero heard Aucuces, he snorted. But the lightning that had flashed across his body had vanished.

Bethel Abraham gazed at the sun god that floated before him, and just by looking at him, he felt the immense authority and power that other possessed.

He even had the feeling that he was looking at a literal sun surrounded by an infinite ocean of light.

His calmness faded, gradually being replaced by solemnity. He was well aware that the sun god he was facing was no ordinary deity. The sun god also gave him a strange and frightening feeling, similar to how he felt when he first met the ancient sun god and Amanises.

Bethel's mind was racing with questions; he'd met Aucuces before, back in the third epoch, but hadn't felt the same way. He didn't know if his sequence level was too low at the time to perceive anything, but he also met the ancient sun god and Amanises not long after.

So he couldn't put his finger on this entire situation, which confused him more.

"Bethel Abraham!" Aucuces said "State your position in the war. Think twice before responding to us though..."

A white spear appeared in his hand, and he looked at the Bethel projection indifferently.

Bethel is not physically present; he would have been a literal fool if he had arrived to meet us in his true body.

"For, you cannot bear the consequences of a wrong choice. As no one has survived being on the wrong side of history. So, Bethel, make a wise choice."

His majestic voice reverberated in the air.

Despite witnessing Aucuces' spear in his hands, Bethel kept his composure. Aucuces' words, or more accurately, threat, resonated in his ears.

"I come in peace." He spoke after a brief silence, as if he had been contemplating. "I will stand alongside you all in the ongoing war and assist Trunsoest when the time comes."

Aucuces put away his spear and said indifferently.

"Bethel, state your demands."

"In the new era, I demand a standing equal to six of you." Bethel stated his demands, with solemnity.

Silence....

Amanises were taken aback by Bethel's demand, and others weren't much better.

"Insolence!"

A tyrannical aura pressed over Bethel, causing him to shudder for a brief period before returning to normal.

"Bethel Abraham, know your place!" Leodero exclaimed, as the entire continent under them quaked, signifying his wrath.

The entire northern continent began to quake more, but Lilith waved her hand just in time to stop it.

"Your power cannot change the facts." Herabergan said in solemn voice. "Your are only king of angels, Bethel Abraham, not a god! You cannot ask for such audacious demands."

Actually, Herabergan can see that after Bethel's bold demand is denied, he would soon follow up with a his actual and true one. It's merely a tried-and-true tactic.

Nonetheless, his first demand was utterly out of his league. Even if another god were there in his place, they would not make such a demand.

On Bethel Abraham's glabella, there was an illusory blue symbol that looked like doors stacked on top of each other, which allowed him to somewhat resist Leodero's tyrannical aura.

Abraham Bethel heard the gods' words but was unmoved by them, focusing entirely on Aucuces.

"No." Aucuces eventually denied his demands.

Bethel wasn't surprised; now he intended to convey Aucuces his true demands.

The Eternal Blazing Sun, on the other hand, smiled as he interpreted him.

"How about this, Bethel Abraham?"

"You can be free from the new empire's order and rules, exactly as you've always desired. You are, nevertheless, still under us. Before leaving for the cosmos, you must notify us at all times. This is the best we can do for you!"

The gods looked at Bethel as their divine aura exploded from them, crushing down on him and exerting great pressure.

As he heard the offer, Bethel fell silent, and the symbol of the door on his glabella darkened due to the aura of six gods pressing on him.

When the sun god interrupted him, he realised he had completely lost his advantage. He is now unable of making counter-demands in this scenario.

'It appears that I have changed a lot without even realizing it...' He thought.

His perception of world completely changed as he travelled through the cosmos and saw the immense civilizations there, as well as the outer gods that prey and rule the cosmos.

So, when he made the first demand, he didn't think much of it because, even if he isn't god, he is close; all he has to do now is finish the ritual. The gods, he reasoned, would not be angered because they could all see the truth.

Bethel's lips pressed together in a thin line as he realised he couldn't take the aura of six gods any longer.

He finally nodded.

"I Accept!"

However, neither Aucuces nor the other gods noticed a weird flash of crimson light over Bethel's blue eyes.

Ironically, even Bethel himself didn't notice anything was wrong...

_______________________

The next day.

Northern Continent, No Man's Land.

The once uninhabited border between the Solomon Empire and the Six Kingdoms is now dyed with fire and blood.

Dark and gloomy clouds blanketed the sky, with scarlet and blue lightning striking each other from time to time.

A mythical war was taking place in the midst of it all, with a towering fire giant slashing at two angles with a sword that was bathing in the fire.

A black-haired woman dressed in an ascetic robe wielded a bone white blade that seemed to radiate pure darkness, her countenance serious as she saw a blazing sword approaching her.

A man dressed in white armour stood next to her, blonde hair and brilliant eyes. He glided close to her with two white wings on his back and a sword that shined with light on his sword.

Lucas, the Angel of Light, and Selena, the Angel of Concealment, were the two angels.

They were facing an angel of red division of empire army, which served the War Angel himself. And, this was just one of the battles across the no man's land.

"Let's attack together!" Lucas shouted, his golden eyes sparkling, indicating that he had no intention of backing down. Selena only replied with a simple nod.

Serena's body faded and entered a concealed state, then she reappeared behind the giant, slashing at him with her bone sword.

Lucas also slashed out his white sword at the massive sword of fire, that was descending towards him.

On the battlefield, a massive sword slash of light and darkness appeared.

Boom!

When the light slash collided with the burning sword, a burst of light and fire erupted across the battlefield, destroying everything in its path.

Meanwhile, the flame giant was completely distracted by the explosion, allowing the slash of the darkness to entirely land on the giant's back.

Roar!

Boom!

The fire giant roared in pain as it crashed to the ground, unable to keep its balance after being attacked by two angels.

While looking at the flaming giant, Selena and Lucas landed on the earth.

The flame giant was hurt but not killed. If they want to slay the flame giant, they had to fully unleash their mythical creature form, exactly like the flame giant, and use all of their strength.

Selena shifted her gaze to Lucas, intending to speak with him about the situation.

Just then....

Before they could even react, a flash of red light emerged out of nowhere and passed through their necks.

Selena's head separated from her neck and plummeted to the ground, gushing blood erupted from the severed neck, splashing all around.

Lucas's face was splashed with crimson blood, and his eyes were filled with terror and dread.

He was too shocked to realise that just as the red light neared his neck, his entire body turned into pure light, saving him from certain death.

"Oh." In the battlefield, an eerie voice echoed. "I never anticipated Aucuces to be so concerned about his angels...."

"It's rather ironic..."

As the voice ended, a man emerged from the red blaze of flames, wielding a crimson sword, the tip of which hung down to the earth.

He was dressed in black armour that seemed to be splashed with blood. He had red hair that resembled fire, looking young and handsome.

The red sword continued to be dragged across the battlefield as the red-haired man marched ahead, causing the earth to be ripped apart with bursts of crimson flames.

Lucas was totally paralysed in terror and the vicious aura emanating from the red-haired man, who grabbed his chin and forced him to gaze straight into the other's crimson eyes.

"Let's see if killing you causes anguish to Aucuces,"

With a crazy smile, the red-haired man said. When he mentioned the name of the Eternal Blazing Sun, though, his eyes glowed with hatred.