Reborn as a Demon Hat [A Monster Evolution Isekai LitRPG]

184. The [Angel] and the [Archon] pt. 4


[Storm of Revok]

[Twilight Edge]

[Spectral Snipe]

Ethan let three attacks fly towards Artorious at lightning speed – forcing the angel on the defensive. The Lightborn spun to avoid the infernal lance of fire from the first attack and managed to block the second with a skillful parry. Before Etthan's eyes the dark energy of Twilight Edge sizzled away, repelled by the divine light of the Angel's blade. Spectral snipe, however, was another matter. The angel saw the thread of electric light coming and spun to slice right through it.

But he didn't know that Ethan had applied a new upgrade.

Spectral Snipe (Grade A)

[Flexible Fire] Unlocked!

Your command over the spectral energies inside you is strong enough that you can direct it wherever you will.

Spectral Snipe's line of fire can now be changed to bend round corners, twist, or spiral as suits your purposes.

The very same upgrade that had ruined Ranok's final stand at Sentinel Bay similarly broke through the Lightborn's defences. At the moment when the spectral bullet would have broken against Artorious' blade, Ethan curved the attack and it looped right round the Lightborn's arm, ran up his left shoulder and hit him square between the eyes in a headshot that Ethan's old gamer self would have been proud of.

And he wasn't about to let up there.

The Lightborn staggered back, clutching at the open wound carved into his face, and only dimly managed to catch sight of the blue blur of power that was racing towards him, splitting the great bog of the Festering Den apart as it did so.

[Skitter]

[Cry of Baphomet]

Ethan's [Sonic Skitter] brought him within striking range of the Lightborn while Baphomet's ability sent wreaths of scintillating lightning right into the Lightborn's eyes. The Angel staggered back, swung his blade wide to try and intercept the Archon's next move, and found that, instead, Ethan's claws had met his steel and held it at bay.

The two of them grappled again in the middle of the bog, much to the dismay of the terrified Grums.

"This…is it?" Artorious sneered. "Come, Archon. Throw everything against me. I want to watch!"

Ethan's low growl was monstrous.

Eight minutes left! Sys informed him.

"Fine!" he shouted. "See if you can stand up to this!"

From behind, Artorious felt movement through the air. He tried to turn, but Ethan's [Roar] stopped him from moving out of the way of the ten spirit blades that were traveling towards them.

He felt them all impale his back, searing through his wings and cutting into the soft flesh of his enhanced body. Once again, he snarled at the Archon's usage of Arms of the Vigil against him.

But equally, he knew that Ethan thought it would lay him low.

And that wasn't happening.

Fuck, Ethan thought. Alright – try this.

[Ice Barrage]

[Wing-Buffet]

In an attempt to disarm the angel and strike at his heart, Ethan channeled Ice Barrage through a Wing Buffet, counting on the % disarm chance to work with the % chance to freeze Arty in place. From what he could remember of his innate resistances, neither of those things could just be easily shrugged off by the angel.

Stolen story; please report.

He watched the Lightborn go flying back, ice crystals piercing his every limb and forcing his blade to clatter to the wet ground of the bog.

Alright – now!

He summoned up three [Thorn Whips], taking advantage of its Cat o' Thorn Tails upgrade, and grabbed the Lightborn's arms and neck, forcing him down into the muck while he took to the skies with another [Wing Buffet].

Within the artificial skies of the bog, Ethan stared down the Lightborn and met his silver eyes.

Is this really what you want, Arty?

Who cares!? Sys roared. Do it!

[Blade of the Sword Saint]

[Thorn Storm]

The natural energies of Argwyll swirled around his body, manifesting into an armada of spiked thorns that surrounded him, ready to be propelled right into the Lightborn. At the same time, Ethan channeled Ranok's signature skill, using it to detach each Onixian claw from his right paw and ready them to fly, each as an individual blade, towards his foe. It would be death from above the likes of which few beings on Argwyll would be able to withstand.

And Ethan saw the Angel's lips move as he watched what was coming for him.

A prayer, maybe? A cry for help?

The surrounding Grums scattered as they saw the display. But a few of them remained in their bog they called home, spellbound by the sight of two demigods duking it out before them.

One of those Demigods, however, hesitated.

Is this really what you want, Arty?

Who cares!? Sys roared. Do it!

With a flash, and no other thoughts but clenching victory here, Ethan sent the storm towards Arty. In moments the Lightborn felt the piercing strength of a thousand thorns scrape into his bloodstream, each one causing lacerations that would have felled a mortal ten times over. Then came the five Onixia coated nails of the Archon – each one a fragment of Greybane, the only blade in history which was forged from the blood of a Greycloak.

Ethan watched the dark waters of the bog spew and swirl as his attack landed. He watched the Lightborn's form become shrouded in darkness as every single thorn and blade struck true, coating him in a black shroud of death.

And for a moment there was nothing but silence.

Silence that seemed to drag on for far, far too long. During which time Ethan felt no twinge of energy. No gain of Spirit Cores.

Come on, he thought. Surely…

Suddenly, a flash of silver sparkled within the blackened form of the Lightborn.

His eyes had just opened, and nothing but pure willpower shone through them.

With a heave of strength that sent waves of the bog hurtling towards the Grums that still remained on the field, Artorious burst out of the thorn prison and shrugged off every single spindle that had pierced him. His wings arched up, unfettered, though Ethan could see the many perforations that covered their feathered surface.

And then Ethan saw the impossible: Artorious looked down at the Onxia claws embedded in his chest and simply prized each one from his body with his bare hands, not caring at all about the rivers of silver blood flowing down his fingers or the holes in his body.

"I thought you would have learned from our last encounter, Archon."

Five minutes! Sys raged. Ethan – it's now or never. You have to-

But Ethan ignored Sys' concerned voice. Instead, he Appraised the rising angel and saw what he was afraid of:

Artorious, Angel of Keadmon (LVL 200)

HP: 3000/5000

Even with everything he could throw at him, the Angel was barely even breaking a sweat.

He activated the [Returnal] property of [Blade of the Sword Saint], forcing his claws to boomerang right back to him and clip into his nails. He was going to need him for his next gambit.

Artorious didn't attempt to stop the retraction. In fact, he seemed to show no emotion at all.

"You think that deactivating my skills will save you," he sighed. "You, and all of your servants out there, believe that you have some little trick that will stop Keadmon's Law. Or bend it to fit your own desires. But you still don't understand, do you?"

He looked up at Ethan with the kind of patronizing pity that a teacher might give an unruly student – one who they hated to their core, but who they knew would be mollified by such pity more than a display of anger.

"You aren't fighting against Greycloaks," he continued. "You aren't fighting against humans. You aren't even really fighting against me at all right now, Ethan. No – what you are all attempting to resist is fate itself. And you can't. None of us can. No matter how hard we try."

Four minutes! Sys screamed. Don't let him preach! He's almost halfway dead! Just keep up the pressure. Keep it up!

Ethan snarled. He knew the odds were slim – that they were becoming slimmer by the second.

But – fuck it – he didn't come this far to just roll over and die.

[Barkskin]

[Dive]

He encased his body in the power of the Drytchling Prime's Barkskin, knowing that it would add some extra weight to the already hulking Revok, and then hurled his entire mass right at Artorious.

In response, the Lightborn didn't even grab his blade. He simply squared his shoulders, cracked his neck, and looked up at the descending Archon.

"I had to learn that truth once," he said – more to himself than to his approaching foe. "No matter what we do, we can't break the Law. It's a dream many have had before you. And it is always a lie born of nothing but fear. Most come to realize that in time. But it seems that you still need a lesson in how this world works."

He flexed his fingers, lowered his wings, and made ready to meet the Archon face-on.

"I'm your lesson, Archon. Prepare yourself."

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