Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

With a golden aura that made the sun pale in comparison, Heracles turned to face Vahn, his previously excited and battle-hungry expression now a visage of pure contempt. Once again he asked, "How long do you need to recover completely...?" From his perspective, it was obvious that Vahn wasn't capable of outputting one-hundred percent of his power. Now that he had decided to follow this path, Heracles wanted to test himself against the herald of the current age. He was fully confident in his own victory but, in order to 'know' for certain he was truly the strongest, Heracles wanted to defeat Vahn when the latter had fought his hardest. Afterward, the surface world would come to know his name once again, ushering in an era where mortals would take back their world, ejecting the errant gods who had interfered in their affairs for far too long...At this point, the 'confidence' Vahn had possessed previously, knowing that he would eventually obtain victory, had been replaced by pure conviction. Without the restraint of his vows, Heracles would be free to wreak havoc as much as he wanted. Though most gods would be able to kill him with their Arcanum, this would depend on them actually being able to hit him. The power and speed that Heracles had displayed wasn't something that most gods, at least in their sealed state, would even be able to respond to. Just as Haruhime had been able to evade Sobek's Arcanum, Heracles would be able to avoid suffering a disadvantage. At the same time, he had the ability to regenerate quickly so, unless it was a direct hit, the chance of him actually being killed was slim. Now, the battle between them had much higher stakes and, given Heracles' current behavior, Vahn didn't imagine the outcome would be pleasant should he fail...In response to Heracles' inquiry, Vahn's cold voice sounded out, "I would need around an hour to recover completely..." Though his energy reserves were holding fast, Vahn's mental energy drained extremely quickly every time he mustered the power of his Azure Dragon form. It was almost to the point that the form was more of a liability than an advantaged and, if not for the fact that Vahn would 'need' the enhanced perception provided by the transformation, he would have returned to normal. He also suspected that Heracles' Innate would counter his [Magia Erebea], making the best options for the coming battle his Zhuque and Azure Dragon transformations...Heracles gave a small nod after hearing Vahn's words before turning his gaze to the side, training it on Jeanne as a thoughtful glimmer flashed across his eyes. After staring at her for a few seconds, Heracles looked to his surroundings, casting his fiery blue eyes across each of the Heroes present within the City before looking toward where Helen was located. For a brief moment, he felt like his battle with Vahn was meaningless and, with nothing being able to stop him, he could simply go and steal away Helen before fleeing. The thought of 'running away', however, caused Heracles' to frown before popping his neck and saying, "I will give you a half hour to recover..."Once again, Heracles looked towards Jeanne before saying, "According to Jeanne, there should be a few powerful people at your home, including a True Dragon. You should ask for their help as, once our battle has completed, I will end up fighting them regardless. Now is your only chance to band together before I break you..." As he mentioned Orario, Heracles glanced towards the Southeast with a vicious look in his eyes. Orario had stood as the veritable center of the world for nearly a thousand years and, with hundreds of gods residing within its walls, it was the first place Heracles intended to destroy. When he was done there, he would then go around bringing ruin to every Kingdom and Country, forcing the world to 'reset' into a natural state once again. He would also destroy Babel Tower, opening the Dungeon to the surface world so that people would no longer live complacent lives that pacified their species for the benefit of the gods...Knowing he needed every second available to him, Vahn sat down on the spot and immediately fell into deep meditation while Jeanne once against placed herself between him and Heracles. The latter gave her a momentary glance before turning his attention towards where Helene was once again, saying, "If the circumstances had been different, you would have made a fine woman, Jeanne. I know Helen would be saddened by your death so, after your 'Liege' falls, I will spare your life. Even if you cannot bless our union, I'm certain Helen's burdens would be eased by your presence..." If not for his unwavering love for Helen, Heracles would have considered making Jeanne his woman. He didn't want to be like his father, having many lovers and tossing them aside, so his pride would not allow him to have affections for anyone other than his first love.Jeanne didn't dignify Heracles' words with a response as, if the person she had sworn to protect died before her, she would have failed as a Knight. She would die with Vahn and, regardless of Heracles' intentions, Jeanne knew that Helen would likely follow soon after. The latter had spent her entire life sought after by others with an extreme amount of possessiveness, with Heracles just being another in a long line. If it came down to it, Helen would take her own life in order to prevent her 'secret' from being exposed, refusing to allow someone like Heracles to benefit from her special power. This was something Helen had confided to Jeanne a long time ago and they were both determined to take the secret to their deaths, if necessary...Unaware that the path he had set himself upon would only end in tragedy, Heracles sat atop the now inert stone structure, watching Vahn below as the minutes counted down. He wondered how many of the Heroes had already noticed his defection and how they would react once the truth was known. From the standpoint of Legend, he had undoubtedly become a 'threat' to the surface world, meaning he would likely have to fight against all of them. The only way around this would be to truly convince them that the vows they had taken were based on false premises or, easier yet, killing Zeus and Hera. They shouldn't know what had happened here and, unless Odin had some means to relay the message to them in a short period of time, there was a chance he would be able to kill them both before they were any wiser regarding the situation.After precisely thirty minutes had passed, without any words exchanged between them, Heracles leaped from his spot with fierce momentum as he barreled towards Jeanne and Vahn. Without any sign of fear and trepidation, Jeanne stood her ground, leaning in with her shoulder to try and intercept Heracles' charge. The latter reached out with his hand, intending to grab Jeanne's collar and toss her aside so he could get to Vahn at her back. He wasn't afraid that Jeanne would be able to deal any serious injuries to him and, true to his word, Heracles intended to spare her for his sister's sake.Against the expectation of both Heroic figures, their intentions were disregarded entirely as Heracles found his path obstructed by a series of resplendent golden chains. At the same time, Vahn's figure tore through the void, appearing behind him as if no time had passed at all, azure lightning covering his entire body. This time it was Vahn's turn to be surprised, however, as Heracles tensed up every muscle in his body, causing him to somehow stop in mid hair as a powerful shockwave resonated outward. He used this opportunity to twist his body, kicking towards Vahn in complete defiance of physics as the latter's perception of the world caused it to lose its light almost entirely.Vahn felt every muscle in his body straining to keep up with the impossible movements he was trying to make and, if not for his ability to tear through Space and Time, it would have truly been an impossible feat. The fact remained that Vahn did indeed have this ability, allowing him to will a link of [Enkidu] to appear from his palm while converging his domain to the absolute limit in hopes of stopping Heracles' attack. As this was occurring, the golden aura around Heracles was slowly building as, even with Vahn's perception of time making the world appear as if it were in a standstill, the mighty Demigod seemed to be accelerating...From Jeanne's perspective, she saw a flash of golden light that was accompanied by a powerful shockwave that tore at the clothing and equipment of her body as she was sent careening away with enough force to smash through the Coliseum's walls, continuing onward for nearly a full kilometer before coming to a stop. Wearing nothing but a tattered dark-blue battledress, a single silver gauntlet, and her silvery greaves, Jeanne climbed to her feet using her bent sword as a support. Even after carving a large swath in the reinforced stone, Jeanne didn't have a single scratch on her body as she quickly made her way back to the Coliseum to see what was going on.Back within the Coliseum, Heracles was caught in the air with his left arm and right leg bound in golden chains while Vahn's entire upper body had completely disappeared. His legs were rooted to the spot while particulates of golden blood were trying to reform before invisible energy tore them apart once again. Even [Enkidu] was trembling slightly, each small movement causing more of the invisible energy to spread out as Heracles gnashed his teeth and tried to break free. Ultimately, he grabbed his own shoulder, ripping away his left arm entirely before twisting his body around and slicing through his own leg. The two abandoned limbs were left bound in the air as Heracles pivoted off his remaining leg before smashing down in a hammer strike.As Heracles' fist descended downward, it was if a powerful gravitational field had formed around his hand, warping Space around it as it smashed towards Vahn's remaining lower body. Even before the blow landed, Vahn's abdomen and legs began to twist and distort under the pressure and, without ever coming into full contact, the wind pressure alone had caused Vahn's remnants to dissipate before the shockwave accompanying the blow transferred into the ground below. A pulse of energy passed through the floor of the arena, causing a 'wave' more than five meters tall to spread outward as the ground below began to sink rapidly before exploding with such phenomenal force that the heavily reinforced foundation of the Coliseum collapsed completely.Jeanne hadn't been able to reenter the Coliseum before a veritable tidal wave of dust and debris spread outward, smashing into her body and causing the remnants of her outfit to disintegrate. Beneath her battledress, however, there were garments that seemed to be made of pure light, protecting Jeanne's dignity as she stood her ground against the blastwave. The moment it had spread out completely, however, Jeanne felt her body pulled forward as the atmosphere imploded with oxygen returning to the void that had been created. Jeanne quickly caught herself and, by the time she was standing once again, there was a pure white dress covering her body that was slowly forming into a more complex design as she pressed forward once again...When the dust had cleared, Heracles found himself in a cavernous pit, looking up into the air where his arm and leg were still restrained. He inspected his wounds, seeing that his blood had formed a protective membrane that was almost gelatinous in nature. Normally, even dismemberment would only be a temporary obstacle in his battles so he had never seen how his body would treat wounds that couldn't be healed. It was a very peculiar feeling and, for the first time in a while, Heracles found no enjoyment from his battle. This wasn't the first time he had been injured but the chains wielded by Vahn were completely outside his expectation, especially since they hadn't dissipated even after he destroyed the latter's body completely.Rolling forward, Heracles came to stand on his sole remaining leg before leaping upward more than a hundred meters without any difficulty. Having only two limbs was very troublesome, but it wasn't enough to remove his battle capabilities. Currently, he wanted to inspect the chains further before trying to extricate his limbs so they could be reattached. If any of the more troublesome Heroes showed up and tried to fight him in his current state, it could potentially prove inconvenient...As if to spite him, Jeanne showed up at this moment and, without any hesitation, leaped through the air as a blade of light formed in her hands. Heracles frowned while punching out, causing a ripple in the void that spread out and passed through Jeanne's body. His rare skill allowed him to transfer his power into any medium, regardless of if it was solid, liquid, gas, or outright intangible. This was how he was able to strike down people with rare abilities that should be a natural counter to his strength, as his attacks simply couldn't be resisted. Jeanne wasn't an exception to this as her momentum had been brought to an instantaneous stop before she was once again sent flying away, this time high towards the sky since Heracles was getting annoyed with her persistence...After sending Jeanne off, Heracles released a snort through his nose before his blazing blue eyes snapped to the left, causing him to turn his head as an arrow appeared out of thin air and smashed into his face. Heracles released a loud bellow as he tore himself away from the powerful gravitational force that had erupted from the arrow, only to find that several more had impacted him from other angles. Even with the intense gravity, however, Heracles was able to struggle free, smashing a few of the gravitational singularities with his own clenched fist as he pivoted around, looking for any sign of the attacker. Part of the flesh on his face had been torn away at this point, revealing an empty eye socket where the eye had been completely pulled free...Standing two kilometers in the air, completely concealing his presence, Vahn was staring forward with his [Khryselakatos] drawn. He was no longer allowing his intent to emanate from his body and instead used his Azure Dragon form to transfer his intent to the Space around Heracles. From their battle, Vahn had realized that Heracles had the ability to 'read' and react to any attack that was directed at him, so long as the intent of the person was focused on him. He was able to trace this intent instinctually, counterattacking with indefensible might. Vahn had been able to determine this from when he willed his [Enkidu] to bind Heracles, even as the latter's attack completely destroyed his upper body and scattered his intent.Now, so long as he didn't direct his intent directly toward Heracles, the Demigod was unable to detect him, allowing Vahn to nock another round of [Yi] arrows before releasing another barrage. His intent was completely separate from his body, appearing 'randomly' around Heracles as each arrow drew a path towards the errant Demigod's blindspots. The fact that he was still able to dodge caused Vahn's heart to shake slightly, especially when Heracles began punching towards where the attacks were emanating from, destroying the arrows before they could land. His body was even beginning to regenerate, albeit slowly, as the energy from his Innate was slowly expunging the ambient Source Energy permeating through his wounds...(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'This is what exposure to Zeus does to people...','You can do it Jeanne, fighto~!','The Strongest is not so easily overcome...')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/mn5xMbE

After only a few rounds of arrows, Heracles was no longer suffering any damage from them whatsoever. His body was moving like a blur as each small ripple within the surrounding void would cause him to strike out with a quick blow that would completely collapse the spatial crack. Then, in response to another wave of arrows, Heracles' singular blue eye blazed with incredible ferocity as he leaped toward an arrow's emergent point and punched it directly. Up in the sky, Vahn's slit-like pupils became paper-thin as he used [Shundo] to evade away from the massive feedback of energy that had nearly destroyed his body once again. Heracles had used his own spatial tunnel as a means to attack, allowing four [Yi] arrows to hit his body in an attempt to flush Vahn out.Almost as soon as he had exited his [Shundo], Vahn's vision was obscured by the grim visage of Heracles' blazing blue eye. His fist was already halfway through the motion of punching into Vahn's face, barely affording the latter the opportunity to pull his [Aegis] out. At the same time, Vahn knew the seemingly indestructible shield wouldn't be enough, choosing to tear through the void instead of using [Shundo]. As expected, Heracles' fist smashed into the ornate Adamantine shield before its structure was almost immediately compromised, fracturing into thousands of tiny fragments that rained down like shrapnel over the surrounding City. Some pieces flew with enough force that entire buildings were collapsed after being impacted by the hypersonic debris.Heracles clicked his tongue when Vahn had evaded him again as he had no way of tracking Vahn when the latter moved through space. His only option was to try and flush out Vahn so that he could strike him down once again, this time permanently. If not for the fact that Orario was thousands of kilometers away, Heracles knew he would have been able to use someone close to Vahn in order to lure him out. Presently, his only option was to use Jeanne but, even after he had attacked her with a half-serious blow, she hadn't been injured. Her immunity to damage was one of the higher forms of immortality he had seen but, like all skills, Heracles knew there had to be a weakness.Upon landing back in the destroyed Coliseum, Heracles noticed that his arm and leg, including the chains that bound them, were now missing. This caused him to snort once again before, much to the skulking Vahn's surprise, he made a 'knife' shape with his hand before stabbing it into his own heart. In an instant, the fiery blue light in Heracles' eyes faded away as his body dropped lifelessly to the ground, becoming completely still moments later. Vahn didn't know what to make of this as, even with his [Eyes of Truth], it genuinely seemed that Heracles had spontaneously killed himself. Instead of moving to inspect the body, however, Vahn produced several links of [Enkidu] and tried to wrap up Heracles' corpse...Before the chains had even managed to flow out of his domain, Heracles' body had exploded with golden light as a massive shockwave swept through the crumbling Coliseum. At the same time, Vahn felt feedback from his [Enkidu] before his Source Energy reserves took a massive hit. Generally, if he tried to bind entities much stronger than him, excluding gods, the amount of energy required would go up exponentially. Whatever Heracles had done ate through twenty percent of his reserves in an instant as, immediately thereafter, the now living Demigod emerged from the golden cloud as he evaded the pursuing chains.Heracles now realized that even his power wasn't enough to deal with these strange golden chains that belonged to Vahn. Even when he struck out with all of his power, causing Space to begin to fracture, the golden spears at the end of the chains had still torn through the obstruction as they tried to ensnare him. For a brief moment, when his fist had made contact with the spearhead, Heracles felt like all of his strength had been 'negated' as the spear penetrated into his fist nearly a full centimeter before he jumped away. He believed this was one of Vahn's 'rare skills' and realized it was going to be more difficult to deal with the latter than he had expected...Currently, both Vahn and Heracles were trying to find out the weakness of the other party, each trying to understand the capabilities of their opponent. Vahn had noticed that, at the moment Heracles' body had become completely devoid of life, a mysterious golden light had erupted from the very center of his body. By the time it had exploded outward, dealing heavy damage to the surroundings, Heracles had been completely healed. Since he still had one of the Demigod's arms and legs in his Inventory, Vahn felt like he must have had an Innate that produced a similar effect to an [Effigy of the Hero]. This was because, not only had Heracles healed, but his strength and speed had increased to the point that even his evasive movements were causing the void to tremble...For several seconds, Vahn had focused on completely erasing his presence, becoming one with the surrounding Space. Previously, this would allow him to even stand amongst a group of skittish animals without causing them to flee, almost as if they couldn't discern him from the trees in the surroundings. Now, with his Azure Dragon transformation, Vahn felt his body 'literally' blending into the surrounding space as even without the [Shadow Visor Mk. 2], he was able to become completely invisible. At this moment, Vahn felt his senses expanding outward, almost as Space itself had become a part of him, instead of the other way around...Since producing more [Enkidu] to pressure Heracles would heavily tax his reserves, Vahn allowed the chains to disperse as his intent was now 'everywhere' within a 200m radius. He could see the front, back, top, and bottom of Heracles all at the same time, giving Vahn the feel as if, for a brief moment, he had become omniscient. He created fluctuations Space a little aways from Heracles, causing the Demigod to immediately leap towards it as another world-rending punch was issued out. At the same time, Vahn equipped his [Mercy] and tried to tear through the void to cut through Heracles' neck. Strangely, instead of tearing through Space directly, Vahn felt himself wave [Mercy] without his intent shifting back to a singular perspective. While Heracles' punch caused a chasm to tear through the walls, extending outward for several hundred meters, Vahn's [Mercy] had passed unnoticed through his neck in an instant.Vahn wasn't entirely sure what was going on, only that it felt like he had become the surrounding Space, no longer having a physical body at all. He could even feel his perception of himself begin to slip away as a haze began to cloud his thoughts. If not for the fact he was able to keep his awareness with his main body, Vahn felt like this technique would have caused his avatar to break down. Even though he was able to keep partial focus, however, Vahn felt extremely absentminded as he tried to will [Enkidu] to bind the fallen Heracles. His [Mercy] had temporarily severed the mana circuits in the Demigod's body, effectively killing him for the second time in their skirmish...This time, Vahn managed to bind Heracles properly, even as the strange golden light attempted to revive him once again. His glazed eyes began shining with a fierce light once again as he struggled to break free from the binding chains. If he had been a normal Human, Heracles might have actually been able to free himself but, with his lineage as a Demigod, this was impossible. Though his raw power was enough to even shatter mountains, it was still restricted by the fact he was only a Tier 3 existence while, even under the restrictions of the record's Laws, [Enkidu] was Tier 5. The only thing he could do was gnaw at the indestructible chains with his teeth, eyes glimmering with the light of madness.Even after capturing Heracles, Vahn felt like it was impossible to even 'think' at the moment, finding his focus escaping him as he fought against the feeling of 'vanishing'. He was trying to use [Will of the Emperor] keep himself from completely slipping away while simultaneously separate himself from the void. Vahn knew that he likely wouldn't get another chance to capture Heracles, at least without an incredible amount of effort. Now that he knew the true effect of [Enkidu], there was a chance that Heracles would completely abandon the fight, resorting to vicious means to gain the upper hand once again.Slowly but surely, Space began to distort in the air above Heracles as the silhouette of a person started to take shape. It took several minutes but, with the passage of time, Vahn felt like he was gaining greater awareness of himself while the 'omniscient' feeling began to fade away. When his body finally took shape once again, he was no longer in his Azure Dragon transformation while his head felt like it had been fragmented into several pieces. Vahn felt an intense and irresistible pain that was only kept at bay by the support of his [Will of the Emperor]. Parts of his body were sagging, almost as if he was unable to maintain his shape, with nearly half his face having descended several centimeters...Vahn pulled out the [Sacred Duplex Nail] from his Inventory and buried it into Heracles' skull, killing him for the third time. Three seconds later, another burst of golden light had emerged from within the Demigod's body, causing Vahn's own figure to distort as he once again struck down with the golden nail. This process continued several times until Vahn's figure had distorted so greatly that his legs had formed into a lump puddle of flesh as his deformed hand brought down the nail for the ninth time. When the golden light emerged from Heracles' body, reviving him for the twelfth time, the force was so powerful that it even managed to shake [Enkidu] a bit. Vahn's on form slumped backward, unable to remain upright after the shockwave passed through him once again.In his current state, Vahn felt like he was controlling his body through a dense and hazy fog as each limb felt like it was several thousand kilometers away. His perception had been shifting back to his main body, allowing him to understand that his avatar had gone too far beyond its limits. At this point, Vahn was essentially remote controlling his avatar as his ego seemed intent on merging back together to escape the unbelievable pain he was experiencing on the other end. Even Vahn's main body was pouring blood out of his seven orifices, completely ignoring the regeneration that should come with his [Magia Erebea].All Vahn could do was grind his teeth with enough force that his molars were fracturing under the pressure, watching as Heracles shimmied out of the loosened [Enkidu]. Right now, the latter's eyes were blazing with such intense ferocity that the blue sky above seemed dark in comparison. He had an expression that could have only belonged to someone that had completely lost their mind as he looked down upon Vahn's sorry form and sneered. As if he were crushing a bug, Heracles continually raised his foot before stepping down on Vahn's body. Even though he could have completely destroyed the latter with a single attack, Heracles was laughing madly as he used a nominal level of power to shatter the deformed bones within Vahn's avatar.After trying everything, including turning into his Zhuque form, Vahn realized there was almost no way to recover the state of his avatar as things stood. He couldn't even use the system functions like his Unit Management and Inventory as even his domain barely extended more than 5m around his body. Vahn could feel his perception begin to fade and knew that his chance of defeating Heracles had slipped through his grasp. Now, if he couldn't transform into his Azure Dragon form and continue the fight with his real body, Heracles would roam freely and cause mass devastation around the Continent. Next time they fought, there was no way the mentally unstable Demigod would fight him directly once again, making it almost impossible to stop him without coming up with several countermeasures...As the impact of his failure was weighing heavily on his heart and mind, Vahn saw through his waning perspective a sight completely outside his ability to fully comprehend. Heracles had raised his foot to step down once again yet, as if time had been brought to a stop, the Demigod became frozen in time as the entire backdrop of reality became completely black. Vahn felt like that one moment had gone on for several seconds before his perception was 'split', matching what was happening to Heracles' body. It was like the world had been divided in two, causing part of it to 'shift' several centimeters in a perfectly bisected line as Heracles' body split into two halves. Vahn even felt like his mind, located back within the Sub-Space of the Hearth Manor, had been split in twine as the last image his avatar saw was what appeared to be a vagrant man from the Far East, fit with a ragged robe and a bamboo hat, walking forward with his sword drawn...Unable to resist the pain that had spread through his mind, Vahn completely blacked out within the Sub-Space orb. His body was quickly collected by Haruhime and Lefiya as they began trying to treat the serious injuries that he had sustained, even though his main body had been nowhere near the conflict. Other than simply 'feeling' as if his mind had been split, Vahn actually had a cleft running the length of his face, creating a visceral scene as the girls desperately tried to stimy the flow of blood and mend his wounds. They were pouring several of the highest quality Elixirs over his body while Lefiya poured the shimmering white liquid from her artifact into his bisected mouth. Haruhime had even forced her [Effigy of the Hero] into his hands, praying that it would allow them to avoid the worst case scenario...Back within the City of Heroes, which had seen much better days, the same Far Eastern man was looking down at the corpse of his former comrade. He had tried to inspect the 'lump' of flesh previously but it had dissolved into motes of light almost immediately after he poked it with his sheath. As a result, the man, Miyamoto Musashi, had shifted his focus to the corpse of Heracles as other residents of the City slowly started showing up. The first to arrive had been Zhou Yu, who had been watching the battle from a fair distance, while, nearly twenty minutes later, Jeanne had finally returned to the mountain after having been flung several hundred kilometers away and being forced to ascend the sheer slopes before she was able to return.Zhou Yu and Musashi had been talking about what had transpired when Jeanne showed up, an expression of incredulity and surprise on her face as she saw Heracles' corpse. She turned her eyes to the two Far Eastern men, asking, "Where is Vahn...?" Her 'rare skill' would have informed her if Vahn had been killed so Jeanne knew he must still be alive. Musashi, however, shrugged lazily as he said, "When I showed up, the only thing I saw was Heracles stomping on a puddle of flesh. Fella had completely lost his mind and had enough bloodlust to drown someone. Aint no coming back from that kind of mindset so I decided to put 'em down. What happened here, lass...?"Musashi had been napping in his own private courtyard, ignoring the thunderous shockwaves and rumbling earth, at least until the shrapnel from Vahn's [Aegis] crashed into his residence. The Sakura Tree he had painstakingly groomed over the last fifty years, even though the climate in the City of Heroes made it exceptionally difficult to cultivate, had been completely destroyed by stray shrapnel. No longer able to continue ignoring the conflict, Musashi had come to seek a reckoning, deciding to hold whoever was fighting accountable. When he saw Heracles stomping on Vahn's avatar, Musashi felt like he had stumbled onto a troublesome situation and decided to put an end to things. Though he understood the flesh pile must have been a person, Musashi didn't really care and just attacked them both without thinking about it further.Jeanne gave a general summary of what had happened, including the fact that Heracles had slain Odin before fighting against Vahn. Zhou Yu showed a surprised expression, even though he had watched the entire event play out from start to finish, while Musashi had a look that practically shouted 'how troublesome'. Once Jeanne had finished recounting things, he pulled down the front of his bamboo hat and said, "I'm going back to the Far East for a bit...need to get a new sapling..." Musashi had never really cared about the affairs of Legend and, now that Odin, the god who had scouted him, was dead, he decided it was a good time to wander for a bit...Feeling helpless as a result of Musashi's actions, Jeanne just shook her head before activating her [Voice of the World] to try and locate Vahn. Strangely, the voice told her that Vahn was no longer in the world, even though her [Fealty of the Knight] told her that he was still alive. Jeanne could only frown as she decided it would be best to descend the mountain and confer with the residents of the Hearth Manor for answers. Before that, however, Jeanne looked out at the various crumbling buildings of the City of Heroes, setting her sights on where Helen should be located. With Heracles dead, there was a chance that any of the Heroes who had fancied her may try and take action. It was even possible that, with the defection of Heracles, Theseus would make a move on his sister...Knowing that things would become even more troublesome if she delayed things, Jeanne decided to try and help Helen flee the City of Heroes. She needed to act before Zeus and Hera returned as, with the death of Heracles, there was no way of knowing how they would act. The latter knew of Helen's secret while Zeus, in his rage, would likely lash out and blame others for Heracles' betrayal. Since Odin would be at the top of the list, there was a fair chance Zeus would vent his frustrations out on the Valkyrie. Jeanne's loyalty now lay with Vahn and, now that Heracles was dead, she wanted to help her friend and try to prevent a tragedy from occurring.With this thought in mind, Jeanne departed for Helen's residence as the sun, which had been hidden by the mountains in the distance, began to crest above the peak. The battle between the Alliance and Rakia's forces had occurred during the twilight hours of the morning and, even though it felt like a lifetime had passed, less than two hours had transpired since then. Now, as if rising to witness the dawn of a new era, the sun's majesty began to cast its rays down upon the ancient City, replacing the solemn and tense atmosphere with a subtle warmth...(A/N: Keep in mind that the next chapter will likely be in around 5-6 hours. Remember, there is usually a two-hour delay between chapters, while these were released together. I hope you enjoyed this micro-arc of sorts (^_^)~!)(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Adaptability and Raw Power','Omniscience isn't something a Tier 3 should possess (o,...,o)~!','Musashi, "...fuck this, I'm out."')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/mn5xMbE

Though there was a cloud of dust and debris obscuring the figure that had leaped into the arena, everyone present was still able to see the man who had descended. With his [Eyes of Truth], Vahn could see a man who stood nearly 200cm tall, possessing fiery red hair that flared backward like a lion's mane. He was wearing the pelt of a red and gold lion tied around his waist, fastened like a belt around his cingulum, a type of dragon-leather belt that was plated with a gold alloy. His calves were covered in fascia comprised of the same material while a pair of open-toed harnessed sandals adorned his feet. This left his upper body bare, displaying clearly defined muscles that, under Vahn's gaze, glistened with a pale golden light. Even someone like Ottar, while being slightly taller than the man before him, would be hard-pressed to match the god-like musculature of the man before him...As if the cloud of dust he himself had created was becoming annoying, the man spontaneously flexed his muscles, causing a shockwave to pulse out from his body as the sound of a thunderclap resonated through the arena. The cloud of dust was dissipated in an instant as the man's stark blue eyes locked on to Vahn, his chin raising slightly as a sneer spread across his face, asking, "So, you killed that whelp Cú Chulainn? Very interesting, hahahahahaha~!" Even as he spoke, there was a great deal of scorn in the man's blazing irises as he began systematically popping his joints and stretching his body. All the while this was going on, Vahn maintained eye-contact, even though his instincts were screaming at him to look away.Before things had developed any further, Jeanne had moved to the front of Vahn with her kite shield raised and sword drawn, her expression pale as she said, "Heracles, if you intend to attack my Liege after he issued a fair challenge, disregarding honor and chivalry, I will be forced to intervene...!" After hearing Vahn mentioned he needed time to recuperate his mental energies, Jeanne was prepared to buy him as much time as possible. Heracles wasn't the type to wait around for the other side to start the fight as, even with his arrogance, he treated every battle seriously. Even now, though his face was filled with contempt, Heracles was making sure his body was properly warmed up before his attack would begin. The moment he was ready, it wouldn't matter if Vahn had prepared himself or not, the battle would have already begun...Heracles' response to Jeanne, while popping his neck, was to begin laughing boisterously before exclaiming in an excited voice, "Very well then! I've always been curious about the limit of your durability, Jeanne. I wonder just how long it will take to 'break' you...? Hahahahaha~!" Almost as soon as his laughter had ended, Heracles leaned forward slightly before his figure had become nothing more than a blur. In the next instant, his fist had slammed into Jeanne's kite shield, causing a golden radiance to erupt outward as she stood her ground without budging in the slightest. It was only after the attack had landed that the shockwave caused by Heracles lunge had erupted outward, causing the stone structure of the arena to emanate a pale glow as powerful formations activated to prevent collateral damage.Seeing his attack stopped, Heracles smiled so widely that each of his pearly white teeth was on full display. Though Jeanne had stopped his attack, there was now the indentation of a fist in her shield as Heracles, still contacting the supposedly indestructible metal, twisted his hips while his muscles expanded noticeably. This time, Jeanne's feet were lifted from the ground by Heracles' pushing motion as her body began to spin in the direction he had twisted his wrist. With five sequential shockwaves spreading outward from her body's acceleration, Jeanne immediately collided with the arena's walls. The glow covering the stone became even more intense as it pulsed outward from the point of contact, preventing the structure from being broken while Jeanne's body smashed heavily against it.Even though the hit contained a monstrous amount of power, enough to distort Jeanne's armor and shatter her kite shield, she was ultimately unscathed as she dropped down to the ground and kicked against the reinforced floor. Moving even faster than when Heracles had attacked her, Jeanne had nigh-instantaneously appeared before Heracles, appearing much smaller than the mountainous man. Regardless of the sheer difference in their size and strength, Jeanne's expression was completely stoic as she thrust her beautiful white blade towards Heracles' throat. Instead of evading, Heracles just raised his chin slightly, exposing his throat completely as Jeanne's blade scraped against his flesh, creating a rain of sparks as it slid across with nothing but a small red line to show for it...Undaunted, Jeanne had shifted her weight in an instant, twisting her body in a lithe and flexible display as she swept her sword in a swift and beautiful arc on the exact same point. This time, Heracles' eyes twitched almost imperceptibly as he leaned his head back instead of trying to take the attack directly. The very tip of Jeanne's blade made contact with the previous mark she had made, cutting into Heracles' flesh and causing fresh blood to trickle from the wound. It had a slight gold hue to it that grew more prominent before, an instant later, the flow had reversed and the wound had been completely healed.Jeanne had already moved well outside of Heracles' attack range, anticipating his counter-attack, but the Demigod just stood there rubbing his neck with a smile on his face. His eyes never left Jeanne as she was moving about, even though her speed was quite a bit faster than his own. The smile on his face became one of moderate intrigue as he said, "You are probably the only woman who could ever cause me to bleed...well done, Jeanne." It was only at this point that Heracles turned his attention away from Jeanne, showing clear disregard that ran counter to his words. Now, his focus was on Vahn as he asked, "How much time do you need to be able to fight at your fullest...?"Vahn had been busy making arrangements back at the Manor, trusting that Jeanne would be able to hold out against Heracles, at least for a short while. His focus had never waned, however, intending to step in at the moment Jeanne was in a dangerous situation. Now that Heracles had ceased his attack, he was more than a little surprised, though not nearly as much as Jeanne and Odin. The latter had appeared on the viewing platform above at some point, wearing golden armor and wielding a three-pronged golden spear. He knew full-well, much like Jeanne, that this type of behavior was out of character for Heracles, causing him to feel more than a little suspicious as he asked, "What are you intending, Heracles...?"Hearing Odin address him, Heracles turned his eyes to meet the onyx-haired god, clear disdain on his face as he answered, "I heard from my father about everything Vahn has accomplished, even laying gods low with utter disregard. When I joined Legend, the three of you promised that I would be able to achieve godhood after training seriously. Now, after nine hundred and fifty years, there aren't even any opponents for me to face. According to that old man, Vahn had developed several ways to help even weaklings rise up and become strong in a short period of time..."Now, Heracles turned his gaze back to Vahn yet continued speaking to Odin, saying, "I'm beginning to grow tired with how things are done around here. I spend days training without any break yet, no matter how much time passes, I cannot break through the threshold of mortality. Since the three of you have failed to keep your promise, all while allowing this 'boy' to do as he pleases, I'm not going to keep playing nice. I know you must have made an agreement to allow Helen, my most precious treasure, to leave this ghost city and live in the lower world. The fact you are pandering to this brat, ignoring the very people who had supported this farce from the beginning, is...infuriating. I will not let what should have been mine from the start fall into the hands of an outsider...!"Because he had been the first-born Demigod that Zeus had sired, Heracles had always been under his father's influence since birth. He had tirelessly trained every single day, all so that he could fight against the progressively stronger monsters that dominated the surface. The entire time, Zeus had been promising that, so long as he kept working hard to be a 'True Hero', never wavering from the path, it would be possible for him to rise to godhood one day. Zeus had even promised that, once he managed to ascend beyond mortality, his blood ties with Helen would no longer be an issue. For nearly eight hundred years, Heracles had protected this precious half-sister of his, all in the hopes that she would one day belong to him while still being pure. He had even avoided relationships with 'lesser' women entirely yet, now that Vahn was beginning to rise up, Heracles knew that Odin would try and push Helen to his side, all so that Legend, this stagnant organization, might grow further...Taking in a deep breath through his nose, Heracles squinted his blazing blue eyes as he asked, "Tell me Vahn...if you defeat me, what do you intend to do? How does being the 'strongest' Hero, even though you are not part of Legend, benefit you...?" As he had been paying close attention to each of Heracles' reactions, Vahn had seen the man's aura wave chaotically for a brief moment. Presently, it was a stable golden coloration while, at the very heart of the sun-like shroud, there was a fiery and wrathful red that was waiting to be unleashed. Even so, Vahn clearly stated, "I will allow Jeanne and Helen to both live freely, instead of being trapped like birds in a cage. If you truly care about your sister, you wouldn't-"In an instant, the gold in Heracles' aura had shifted into a raging and wrathful blood-red color as his blue eyes began emitting a flame-like haze. Now, he turned his attention to Odin, asking, "So, you were willing to let this boy try and kill me, promising my sister to him in exchange...!?" There was an almost 'crazed' look in Heracles' eyes as he glared at Odin, almost as if he was sincerely trying to kill the latter with nothing more than his gaze. In response, Odin's Divine Power flared up as his aura, unlike how it had been suppressed by Vahn's, completely overwhelmed Heracles'.After forcing Heracles to half-kneel under the pressure, Odin's cold voice rang out, saying, "Do not pretend your nature hasn't been a factor in all of this. Even though you have trained hard, your focus had never been completely on reaching godhood. Your unhealthy desire for that sister of yours has clouded your mind and caused you to deviate from the path, just as her presence here has affected the entire City! You may not know it, but I can recount every Hero that has fallen because of your pettiness and arrogance, Heracles, Murderer of Heroes...!"Contrary to expectations, Heracles' expression turned into a cruel sneer that was a mix between glee and something far 'darker'. Suddenly, the sound of metal breaking spread throughout the arena as fragments of blue and gold chains, formed by the World's Laws had erupted from Heracles' body. In the next instant, his figure had vanished, followed by a sound so thunderous that it was as if an entire mountain range had collapsed. Vahn had barely been able to process what was happening and, if not for his perception of time causing the world to slow to a crawl, he would have completely missed the moment when Heracles' fist, carrying insurmountable might, caused the very fabric of space to shatter as it collided with Odin's chest.Without the time to activate his Arcanum at all, Odin's body had been turned into particulates of golden blood that dispersed into the wind before fading away completely. The entire upper section of the Coliseum, where the gods would look down upon the Heroes, had now vanished from the world. Even the wispy white clouds that had been prominent in the sky above had been split in twine, a massive cleft that was still forcing them apart from several thousand meters away. This image cast a backdrop on Heracles, now blazing with a pale gold aura as his hair danced about, now possessing a golden shimmer instead of the red mane of hair that had been present previously...Leaving his back to Vahn and Jeanne, Heracles stared down at his own fist, muttering, "The time of the gods in this world has come to an end. Your method, and the path taken by the only man who had ever been able to rival me, have been correct from the start. I should have known that the gods were full of nothing but hot air...even when they had first descended into 'our' world, they have made nothing but false promises. The purport to give us their 'blessing', exploiting their children for their own selfish reasons, claiming it would help us grow strong. What a farce..."Heracles' vows had been in existence long before Legend had been established as an organization and, with Odin's words having 'betrayed' the terms of their agreement, Heracles had been able to break free from the constraints holding him back. When he fought against Gilgamesh hundreds of years prior, the latter had told him that the gods were the 'shackles' of the world, fearful of the power mortals could wield if they remained 'free'. Even before the gods had descended, mortals had survived for thousands of years, long before even the Spirits had been sent to aid them. Ever since people had become reliant on the power granted to them by others, individual strength became less important while 'cooperation' became the norm. As a result, civilizations began to prosper but, at the same time, the power wielded by individuals had stagnated a great deal, a far cry from that which had been wielding by the Primordial Species, Progenitus...Gilgamesh had claimed that the gods, fearing the potential of mortals, had been trying to weaken them since the very beginning, introducing Spirits into the world to limit their potential. If not for the existence of Great Spirits, introducing things like Magic into the world, the surface would have been dominated by the Progenitus species by now. Instead, there were dozens of different races and, as a result of their various differences, they had been fighting amongst themselves since before recorded history. Back then, Heracles thought these words were simply ridiculous but, now that he had been training hard for more than 950 years, restraining himself while his father traveled around the world and acted as he pleased, the man known as the Strongest had become fed up...(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Insurmountable Might vs. Unbreakable Defense','Breaking free from the gods' restraints...','You either die a Hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the Villain...')https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu &lt;-(p.atreon link)paypal.me/EinlionDiscord Invite: https://discord.gg/mn5xMbE

Chapter 917: Dawn (2/3)