Oxy hovered midair, above the battlefield. The wind howled around him as he looked down at Ken and his mechanical monstrosities with cold amusement.

Ken's face had gone pale, his mouth slack in sheer disbelief. "H-Huh?! Since when could you fly—?!" His voice cracked like cheap glass under pressure.

"And, how did you avoid that last hit? I didn't see you behind the Dragons…"

That puzzled question reached Oxy, who was slowly descending from the heavens.

However, ken seemed to try to appear tough, even in the face of magic as he spoke, "Hmph, you think you can win? Against my Dragons?"

"There are any number of ways to win… but before that…"

Oxy grabbed at his shoulder and pulled off his robe.

"Rejoice, inferior lifeform (human). You have the honor of doing battle with Oxy Annerose, one of servants who serves the Supreme Being, Lord Lucifer the Light-Bringer, Leader of the Angels of Hell."

His equipment was completely different.

The robe fell off with one graceful motion and revealed the armor hiding beneath. It was black, like it had been forged from night itself, each piece a piece covered in silver patterns that shimmered, as if made of pure light.

In place of a helmet, his head was bare, his long hair tied into a ponytail. In his hands he held a staff of gold in laid with silver.

In all honesty, He looked more like a servant than a warrior or a mage.

Ken narrowed his eyes in puzzlement as he saw the maid before him, and when he finally realized what was going on—

"What?!"

—He exclaimed in surprise.

Of course he would have been taken aback when the warrior before him turned into a maid.

Although he was annoyed by his nonsensical get-up, Oxy's serene expression filled ken with a sense of danger. He immediately ordered the Mechanical Dragons to attack. The two Dragons drew close to Oxy with surprising speed, swinging their forepaws, which were made of countless iron. Before they could strike home, Oxy cast a spell.

"[Lesser teleportation]."

"That again!"

Once more, Oxy vanished without a trace.

Ken looked to the sky to look for the missing Oxy as he thought of what had happened earlier. However, it was his pain that told him where Oxy was.

"—Gyaaah!"

Ken's wail resounded throughout the warehouse district. A searing pain pierced Ken's right shoulder, and the pain spread through his body with the pulse of his heartbeat.

A shocked ken looked at the wound, at the sharp blade that protruded from the wound.

"—Gah, gaaaah!"

In the next moment, the blade was savagely withdrawn, and pain washed over him again. The sensation of something scraping his bones filled his body, made worse by the agony that gripped him. Thick blood gushed from the wound, staining his black robe.

Drooling from the intense pain, ken jerked his head back to see what was going on.

All he saw was Oxy, looking at him curiously.

Oxy tilted his head slightly, watching Ken with the detached curiosity of a child observing an insect.

"Did it hurt that much?"

"—!"

Oxy was holding a black-bladed dagger in the hand that was not holding his staff.

Ken was in so much pain that he could not speak. Ken was the sort who was served by and dealt out pain to others. Thus, pain was not a common experience for him, which was why his tolerance for it was so low.

Oily sweat beading on his forehead, Ken issued a neural command to the mechanical Dragons. Oxy fell back, drawing away from the approaching Dragons. The [Fly] spell was faster than the running speed of a normal man.

The two Mechanical Dragons charged into the space left by Oxy.

After hiding in the safe space behind the Mechanical Dragons, ken's calm returned to him, and he finally understood the kind of magic Oxy had used.

That was—

"So it was teleportation magic!"

Oxy hovered mid-air, his golden staff gleaming under the artificial lights of Neo-Tokyo as he surveyed the battlefield with cold amusement. Below him, Ken clutched his bleeding shoulder—his breathing ragged between clenched teeth—while the twin Mechanical Dragons shifted position in mechanical unison, their metal claws carving trenches into concrete with each step.

"Observant." Oxy's voice carried an eerie calmness that didn't match his bloodstained dagger still dripping onto ruined pavement beneath them both.

"Just, who are you."

Despite everything, the existence of magic, real magic, was something he had yet to comprehend.

Ken's voice was a strained whisper, thick with agony even as he struggled to look Oxy in the eyes. But Oxy merely tilted his head, his gaze cool and appraising as he studied the man before him.

"I've said it already, the name of one of Lucifer's servants is Oxy Annerose."

Oxy spoke matter-of-factly, his tone betraying no hint of emotion. It was like explaining the basics to a naïve child. For Ken, who had just been exposed to the reality of magic, this casual ease was utterly surreal.

Ken shuddered as he saw Oxy's cold glare.

He was not trembling in anger, but in fear. Unease welled up within Ken's mind.

The fear came not just from the supernatural, but from the thought that his life was in the hands of a man who could treat him like a mere insect.

"Just, w-who is this Lucifer you speak of!?"

Oxy's expression hardened, his golden eyes narrowing like a predator who'd just heard blasphemy.

"Lord Lucifer is the Supreme Being. The Light-Bringer. The Fallen Star." His voice dripped with reverence, then darkened into warning as he raised his staff. It's glow intensifying into an eerie crimson pulse. "And you will not speak his name with that filthy tongue of yours again."

Ken could only gulp.

"Well, it's about time to wrap this up. As a servant, it would be rude of me to keep Lucifer-sama waiting…"

Ken's mechanical Dragons lurched forward with mechanical precision, their metal claws screeching as they carved through the air. But Oxy didn't even flinch. He simply raised his staff—

"—Why!? My sweat and blood of five years, gone in less than an hour!"

As Ken let out that mournful wail, countless scenes flashed through his mind, as though he were viewing a zoetrope.

Ken Nikishika.

Born in a village on the outskirts of Neo-Tokyo, his mother was a calm, serene woman while his father had a strong body from working in the village. His childhood was mundane.

The reason why he had ended up like this was because he had seen his father's and mother's corpse.

That day — when the setting sun was clearly visible in the sky — Ken panted as he ran home. His mother wanted him back earlier, but he had been late because of small things he could not clearly recall. Looking for pretty stones outside the village, playing at being heroes while wielding sticks, all these

insignificant things had come together and delayed him.

He ran home, afraid that his mother would scold him, but when he got there,

he found his mother collapsed on the ground alongside his father. He could still clearly remember the warmth of his mother's body when he rushed over to touch her.

He thought it was just a joke, but things turned out otherwise.

Ken's parents had already departed this world.

According to the doctor's, they had died because "They had cancer because of the severe amount of micro plastics in their body."

In other words, it was nobody's fault. Nobody was to blame. No. Ken felt

that someone was responsible.

That someone was this world, more specially, the goverment, the organisations, the people who ruled the world.

That day, young Ken made a vow—to claw his way to the top of this rotten world and tear it all down.

That's why he created the Black Snakes, a gang to be powerful, to create a stepping stone for his goal.

Years passed, as he started to grow older, he realised because of his limited time, he wouldn't be able to achieve what he wanted to do.

However, if he abandoned his humanity and became immortal, he might be able to buy himself enough time to eventually destory them all.

That was the conclusion which Ken had arrived at.

He abandoned the Black Snakes he had created and grew all his life, and stepped on the path of using a cult to become immortal. However, there were still obstacles in his way.

One of the way to overcome these obstacles was to gather a massive amount of negative energy — yes, by killing two cities worth of people — to harness the negative energy they would generate.

And then, just as the last step of his wish was nearly granted, another obstacle appeared in his way.

"I spent five years preparing in this city! I've held onto this dream for thirty years! What gives you the right to destroy all of this!? You, who appeared out of nowhere!?"

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

Ken's cry was answered by cold laughter.

"I have no interest in the dreams of inferior lifeforms (you). Although, your so-called effort did manage to make me laugh. Still, I do have some words for you… well done on becoming a stepping stone for Lucifer-sama."

Ken's world shattered.

All of his years of work, effort, and the lives he sacrificed amounted to nothing more than being called a "stepping stone".

"[Purging Fire]."

A roaring, coiling stream of dark fire appeared around the staff which Oxy was holding.

The fire ball was wider than his arms, and they struck the Mechanical Dragons. Their vast black bodies shuddered from the impact. Th blast wrapped around the Mechanical Dragons' body, burning the artificial life that powered their metal bodies.

The end came in an instant.

Under the power of the magical fire, the Mechanical Dragons were torn asunder.

Even though the Mechanical Dragons had been disintegrated, the ball of fire did not disappear. The ball seemed to be searching for their quarry, then they it sprang at its final prey.

Ken vision was obliterated in a sea of darkness.

He had no time to beg for mercy, nor did he have time to scream.

The tears at the corners of his eyes flashed into steam, leaving behind a whispered "mom—" The searing darkness consumed ken, and the fire covered him without mercy.

Ken's body went into full-body seizures, as though he were performing some strange dance where he stood.

The fire penetrated deep into Ken's body and ignited him from the inside. After it had vanished, the smoking Ken collapsed to the ground.

The stench of burning flesh filled the air.

Oxy shrugged, and muttered something to the pile of scorched meat that had once been Ken:

"Even inferior lifeforms (insects) smell good after they've been roasted… I wonder if it would be fine to give him to one of Dark's minions as a present…maybe Hilda."

A mocking smile came over Oxy's face as he mentioned the name of his human-eating colleague.

The warrior spread his arms, as if he were going to hug someone.

"…Now what tricks are you up to? Giving up already?"

"Giving up? Since I've given Oxy his orders, I should wrap things up here as well."

"What? What nonsense are you babbling—? You think you can beat, the great Zero? You're pissing me off."

"I have to say, the ravings of a weakling like yourself are quite impressive."

Zero wanted to retort with, "That would be you, right?" but he suppressed the boiling rage in his metal heart.

The man before him did not have much in the way of combat skills, but he possessed superhuman physical abilities. Therefore, the way he swung his weapons at his whim became an unpredictable attack and defense, and if he was not careful, he might be killed in a single blow.

Zero faked his usual sneer, and taunted him in turn:

"…Forget it. You're right, we should wrap things up quickly."

Sato the warrior simply shrugged.

Zero eyed his stance. There were openings everywhere in his stance, but that could not possibly be all there was to him. It was a trap.

However, Zero had no choice. His words from earlier might have sounded like a joke, but he meant them. He could probably escape from here by borrowing the power of the Mechanical Dragons, but that was only if he did not waste any more time. Though he had come along to avoid the agents of the Black Rose's, he had wasted too much time on playing.

Zero slowly sank into a crouch, strengthening his grip on his stiletto. He had to finish this fight quickly, preferably with a single stroke.

Part of that was because he no longer had time to waste, but it was also because the attacks and parries of the man before her were gradually becoming more and more competent. It would be best to kill him now before he grew to a point where he could no longer do so.

Zero exhaled loudly then he surged forward.

His breathing measured despite the frantic warnings flashing across his augmented vision. Implant stress at 92%, neural dampeners failing, pain receptors forcibly suppressed. He had fought gangs and monsters in Neo-Tokyo's underbelly; this armored fool wouldn't be the one to break him.

"Let me show you what real pride looks like," Zero hissed through bloodied teeth. His cybernetic eye's locked onto Lucifer's helmet's eye slit with predator focus. "You wanna learn how to fight? Fine. Lesson one: legends don't die easy."

The I.C.E.T.A.N roared to life in his spine—its final burst of power frying synapses as he accelerated past human limits into sheer oblivion. The world blurred into streaks of color as Zero lunged forward, stiletto aimed for the gap between Lucifer's helmet and gorget—a killing blow honed by a thousand executions in shadowed alleys.

In this high speed and slow reaction time world, he was aware of everything his opponent did.

He might draw his swords from the ground to attack, or use a martial art, or an unarmed strike, or a hidden weapon… no, he might use a thrown weapon instead.

Zero guessed that there were dozens of tactics his foe could employ, and he was confident that he could defeat each and every one of them.

However, every single one of his guesses fell short of the mark.

—Because his opponent did nothing.

The white warrior stretched out his arms, waiting for the attack.

A shiver ran down his spine. This was the fear of something beyond his imagination, a fear of the unknown. Should he charge bravely forward, or back off and flee?

Those were the only two options left to him.

Zero was cruel and merciless, but he was no fool. In that fraction of a second, he worked out countless possibilities and countermeasures.

In the end, there was only one way forward.

Once he made his decision, the rest was easy. There was no need to hesitate any further. As he recovered the composure of a first-rate fighter, Zero sprinted for Sato's chest — so fast it seemed they were going to embrace each other.

"Die—!"

Using all the muscles in his body Zero thrust his stiletto into the vision slit of Sato's full helm. Then he twisted it, as though intending to cause further damage to the surrounding organs while driving it deeper into his head. All this was to inflict a fatal blow.

Then, he used the cannon on his shoulder to fire a point-blank missile at Sato's covered torso.

The missile was so close it was a guaranteed hit. However, his opponent did not flinched even when the missile pierced his armor. After that, his opponent simply smiled.

His opponent did nothing to avoid it — not parrying it, not evading it, and not blocking it. He simply allowed the missile to smash into his armor. The impact caused a low metallic roar. It sent the warrior stumbling back several paces. This was the first time he had taken a significant blow in this fight.

"I'm not done yet!"

Even faster than before, he drove another stiletto into the full helm's vision slit, and then released another middle aimed straight at Sato's helmet. In his mind, Zero saw Sato's body burning within his armor, and he imagined he could smell his scorched and blackened flesh.

However, Zero's eyes went wide in shock, as he was confronted by an unexpected sight.

"Hm, I see. Well, this is an eyeopener."

Despite having stilettos stabbed through both his eye sockets, Lucifer was still muttering casually to himself. Zero then realized that there had been no blood when she stabbed him.

"No way! Impossible! Why aren't you dead!?"

"Shall I tell you?"

Lucifer said, his armoured hand rising up to remove his helmet.

Lucifer's fingers curled around the edges of his helmet, gripping it with deliberate slowness. Zero's breath hitched—his cybernetic eye twitching, trying to process what was happening even as his stilettos remained buried deep in those empty sockets.

Then—click.

The helmet came off.

And Zero's world fractured into static.

He saw his stilettos floating in mid air, not even touching Lucifer's pale face, and his face was something else entirely.

His crimson eyes stared at Zero with a coldness he'd only ever seen in machines before, horns protruding out of his head as if he was the devil himself.

"Well then, since the truth's out, let's begin… but first, these are in the way."

There was a grinding sound as the Monster pulled out the stilettos which had been stopped mid air and cast them aside. As the creature did this, Zero was struggling to hold his composure. After the two stilettos were drawn out, an evil red light remained in those eye sockets. They looked down on the panting, gasping Zero as he exerted himself.

"Now then, shall we begin?"

Zero— who was on guard against anything his opponent might try to pull ever since he heard the word "begin" — felt himself being drawn nearer to the Monster.

"I..I can't control my body, what're you doing!?"

Lucifer's crimson eyes pulsed with an eerie glow, his voice a dark hum laced with amusement.

"Gravity."

Zero's muscles locked, every augmented joint, every synthetic fiber of his being screaming as an invisible force crushed him to his knees. His cybernetic arm whined under the pressure, pistons groaning like dying beasts as fractures spiderwebbed through reinforced plating. The pavement beneath him cracked in concentric circles from the sheer weight pressing down on him.

"...Gh—! What... kind of bullshit power is this?! You're not even touching me!" Spittle and blood flecked Zero's lips as he snarled through gritted teeth, veins bulging along his temple like live wires about to snap.

Lucifer tilted his head slightly, the way a child observes an ant struggling under a magnifying glass.

"These are in the way."

With a shrug, the white armour which Lucifer was wearing was gone. In its place, were magnificent dark robes which looked like they were crafted by the gods themselves.

"Ahh, It feels so good to be out of that. Even though I'll have to wear this again, Whatever."

Lucifer mumbled to himself, then, turning his attention to Zero.

His voice carried a hint of amusement as he watched Zero struggle against the crushing weight of gravity, his body straining under the impossible force.

Zero glared up through a haze of pain, his augmented body protesting against the unbearable weight. It was as if every bone, every muscle in his body was on the verge of snapping, a testament to the titanic power holding him down.

Lucifer's crimson eyes glowed faintly, the only illumination in the shadows as he spoke.

"I have to admit, this is an enjoyable sight. Did you also feel this warmth in your heart when you killed your victims?"

Lucifer took a single step forward, the air itself seeming to part for him as Zero's body trembled violently, metal joints screeching under the pressure.

"Stop... wasting my damn time," Zero forced through clenched teeth, his augmented spine bending further under invisible chains. "If you're gonna kill me, then just—"

A sickening crack interrupted him, his left arm wrenched backward at an unnatural angle by an unseen force, synthetic ligaments snapping like overstretched wire. A strangled gasp tore from his throat before he could bite it back.

Lucifer sighed as if disappointed by a child's tantrum. "Such arrogance." Another flick of his wrist and Zero's remaining arm twisted sharply behind him with another crunch of breaking metal and bone. The sheer agony would've made a lesser man scream himself hoarse, but not Tokyo's Butcher. Even now, sweat-drenched and trembling in the dirt at this monster's feet… he refused to give that satisfaction.

"You want pride? Then look at yourself." Lucifer tilted Zero's chin up with one clawed finger to force their eyes to meet again—

Zero saw it then: His own reflection mirrored in those crimson irises.

Not as the legend who carved fear into Neo-Tokyo's underworld... But as just another broken insect pinned beneath godlike power.

The realization hit harder than any physical blow. This was not how Zero was meant to die. Not beaten and humbled beneath an untouchable god. His world was one where strength and brutality were laws of nature.

This was wrong.

Wrong!

Zero's cybernetic eye flickered, its crimson lens distorting with static as the last dregs of his pride ignited like a dying star. His breath came in ragged, blood-flecked gasps, yet his lips peeled back into something feral. A laugh tore from his ruined throat, raw and jagged.

"You...pathetic peice of meat." Metal groaned as he forced himself up another inch against the crushing weight of gravity, tendons snapping, synthetic muscles fraying like overstretched wire. "You think breaking my body means you've won—"

Lucifer's fingers twitched, surprise Annoyance? But Zero didn't care. Not when adrenaline and sheer spite were the only things holding his shattered frame together.

However, before he could speak another word, Lucifer grabbed his throat and wrapped himself around him.

Lucifer's arms encircled Zero's body with a slow, almost tender embrace. His clawed fingers threading through Zero's bare bloody scalp, his other arm curling around the ruined curve of Zero's spine as if cradling a lover after battle. The gesture was intimate, possessive even; Lucifer's lips brushed against the shell of Zero's ear in something that could almost be mistaken for affection.

"Shhh…" His whisper was velvet-wrapped steel. "No more struggling now.

But then—pressure.

Relentless, inexorable pressure.

Reinforced ribs splintered first beneath Lucifer's tightening hold with an audible crack, followed by the wet pop of joints dislocating one by one under merciless force.

Collarbones fracturing like dry kindling beneath those deceptively gentle hands as they pressed deeper into broken flesh and shattered augments alike until every gasp from Zero came out strangled between crushed lungs and punctured organs gushing hot copper into his throat.

All while Lucifer nuzzled closer still against him, cheek pressed to temple like this wasn't murder but love.

Zero could clearly see the fate awaiting him. From how the act of breathing wasgetting more and more difficult, the ever-increasing pressure on her belly, his slowly deforming armor, he knew exactly what was going to happen to him.

"Don't bother struggling. Do you think I can't end this quickly just by changing where my arm is pressing? You took your time killing them, so I'm going to take my time killing you as well."

Zero desperately flailed at him.

He tried to push his face away, scratched at him until his nails nearly came off, even tried biting him — but nothing he did worked, and the unbearable pressure kept increasing.

"You fought so well," Lucifer murmured into the shell of Zero's ear, mock praise dripping from every syllable like poisoned honey while crimson leaked between them where their bodies met too close now for anything but death to follow after it.

"Let's go to heaven."

Wings sprouted out from Lucifer's back, and within that same moment, they took off for the skies.

Zero was dragged upward, high into the sky against his will with a force that could not

be stopped. He tried to scream, but even the air in his lungs was forcefully pulled up and out by the sheer force of the sudden movement; as the ground disappeared far below them, Zero could do nothing more than flail helplessly. The only sounds escaping his lips now the feeble gurgles and gasps of a drowning man.

In this moment, even gravity itself seemed completely foreign to him. Gravity, that ever-present companion, had lost all meaning with this newfound sense of weightlessness, only for the sensation to slowly return as he slowed in his ascent.

"Look down, Zero."

Lucifer whispered gently into Zero's ear.

Zero's vision blurred with tears—whether from pain or sheer terror, he didn't know. Below him, Neo-Tokyo sprawled like a circuit board of neon and shadow, its skyscrapers now mere pinpricks of light. The wind howled past his ears as Lucifer's wings beat steadily, holding them suspended in the void between heaven and earth.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Lucifer murmured, his voice velvet-soft as his grip tightened imperceptibly around Zero's broken body. "This is the last thing you'll ever see."

Blood dripped from Zero's lips as he tried to speak—to curse, to beg (he wasn't sure which anymore)—but all that came out was a wet choke.

Lucifer put his hand onto Zero's throat, wrapping it around his neck, as he suddenly tore it apart, and in the last seven seconds of consciousness which Zero had, all he could hear was, "pride is the first thing you swallow before death."

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