Abaddon Sheol Province

A place neighbouring Arsalan Province, in fact, it was much bigger than Arsalan geographically.

Abaddon Sheol stretched across the horizon, its vastness swallowing smaller lands like Arsalan whole. This wasn't just a province... it was a living giant, pulsing with the heartbeat of a thriving, ever-growing civilisation.

It was one of the few provinces that had a huge population due to its growth and opportunities. The land was filled with minerals, the surface covered with trees and ghats; it was like a miraculous place for the people living there.

From the sky, towers of light shimmered above bustling cities. Lush ghats lined the valleys, wild with emerald trees and vines that seemed to breathe, their leaves shimmering at dusk.

Many industries, homes, buildings, and new opportunities—everyone came here and settled in this place... It almost looked like it would become its own country.

That many people had lived in it, and even more came to it… yearly, a million people would come to this place just to see the ghats and animals. Tourism was flourishing in this place!

Compared to this, Arsalan, with forests in all four directions surrounding it, paled!

Yet, all this flourishing land disappeared in a single night… when the meteorite struck, killing almost 100 million people who were officially registered and… rare animals and plants!

A true disaster!

Yet,

"This wasn't caused by a meteorite. You've all been told the wrong story. Exactly eighteen years ago, this is where the previous Arcanum Eidolon War happened—and it caused the death of a hundred million people."

When Ophis said that, everyone gasped, almost stumbling as they ran with horrified expressions.

Valra's eyes went wide. "No… That's impossible!" she cried out, breath catching as she dashed forward, "If something like that happened, I would have known! I'm— I'm a mag—"

"Mage?" Ophis interrupted. She shook her head, "The truth has been hidden—not just from the common folk, Valra. Even the mages were left blind. This is the secret of Abaddon Sheol."

Valra's frown deepened as she shook her head in confusion, "I… I don't get it. If it's true, then how come you only knew this?"

Ophis's voice softened, and her gaze turned distant.

"Because eighteen years ago, my elder sister was chosen as the Master in the Arcanum Eidolon War. I remember the day she took me here. She wanted us to see this place before she left for the battlefield. I'll never forget that day, or the day after—when she returned, broken and haunted, alive but shattered, her magic flickering like a dying star.

She failed her mission, and in the end… my father ended her. I watched it all. I-I can't forget."

Her eyes trembled as she clenched her fist furiously.

Everyone turned silent, just then,

"We got Fallens near!" Essa's voice echoed from the top of a building, as she moved following other Fallens, thinking they could handle the situation.

As they flinched and looked up, they saw Nergal running on the street alone. Everyone glanced at each other before Azrael took the rifle and pointed it towards Nergal's back head. She took a breath before,

BANG!!

The gun exploded with a flash of light!

The bullet streaked towards Fallen Nergal, who was trying to keep up with the runaway relic. Just as the bullet was about to hit the back of his head—

TANG!!

Sparks and shadows burst, the bullet ricocheting into the night. Nergal's laughter echoed.

He just blocked with his spiked spear-fial weapon.

He halted his steps before slowly turning back, his cold, ice-blue eyes staring at the incoming people.

"Tsk," Azrael clicked her tongue, eyes narrowing as she adjusted her grip on the rifle. "He seems even sharper than before. What should we do now? According to our plan, Valra was supposed to face him, right?"

That was their plan… except,

"HOOOOO~"

The screams and moans of the monsters behind them echoed through the street—they were closing in.

This was a new variable, one that none of them had prepared for.

"We don't just fight together?" Raphael said, his voice tight and serious, eyes darting between Fallen Nergal and the oncoming horde. "Wouldn't it be smarter? Fighting him alone is madness."

But the thing was… they didn't have time to fight him.

If they focused on Nergal, the other Fallens might grab the relic. Worse, the sticky black monsters chasing them could catch up at any moment.

Leo remembered Essa's Master's words.

"Just provoke him."

He muttered the words, almost to himself.

"What?" Valra glanced at him, confusion flickering across her face.

Leo met her gaze. He wasn't sure why Master insisted Valra was the one who should fight Nergal—the man who could absorb another's mana and twist it into his own power.

But Leo chose to trust in that wisdom. "Valra, can you handle him for a few seconds?"

Valra nodded, flame already curling around her fists, heat shimmering in the air as she stepped forward. The others halted their charge, forming a rough line, guns raised as they fired at the monsters.

"How long do you want us to hold out?" Azrael shouted over the roar, sweat trickling down her brow.

Leo replied, "Just enough to piss him off—and don't get close to him. No matter what!"

Everyone remembered the warning. They nodded, guns started to bark!

Meanwhile, Valra stood before Fallen Nergal, facing him alone.

Nergal's cold stare locked onto her, the edges of his mouth twisting in a cruel smile.

"How pitiful, to throw your life away again," he sneered, swirling his chains in a slow circle, the spikes clinking like the teeth of a beast. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled the spiked sphere toward Valra.

Valra raised her hand, a magic circle springing into existence before her palm. Flames burst forth, a torrent of yellow fire roaring forward like a living serpent. The spell clashed with the incoming sphere, fire crashing against dark iron with a furious shriek.

The yellow flame and the black spiked sphere collided, neither giving an inch, sparks and embers flying between them. Fallen Nergal's eyes widened a fraction—he hadn't expected her strength.

Valra smirked, her body pulsing with energy. "I've been in the hospital for a week, Nergal. Do you know what that means? My mana's been gathering this whole time, waiting for someone like you."

Just then, a streak of white lightning flashed across the battlefield—Leo's sword arced toward Nergal's face. Nergal flinched, yanking his weapon back in time to deflect the blow.

Tang!

Fallen Nergal skidded backwards, boots scraping across the cracked stone. He glared at Leo,

"Pathetic!" Nergal spat, chains rattling. "Trying to sneak in? Ha—"

"Just like you, isn't it… ahaha," Leo suddenly giggled, his voice low and wicked.

Fallen Nergal frowned, the chains rattling around his arm. "You compare me to you? A mere mortal?" His words slithered with contempt as he advanced.

Leo shrugged, stepping sideways on the broken asphalt, a sly smile playing on his lips. "I mean… what could be so different between you and me, Nergal? When I look at you, I just see another man trembling behind all that fake power."

Fallen Nergal's lips curled into a cruel smirk. "I will show you what the difference is between you and—" He lifted his spiked fial weapon with a roar, his muscles straining, bringing it down toward Leo with terrifying, divine force. "—The Mighty God!!"

BOOOMMMM!!!

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