Chapter 209: War of the Gods (7)

"I guess this is it... heh.”

Tiyo grimly smiled as he tilted the barrel of General.

"Anor, how are you holding up!"

"Not super great..."

Anor answered as he also staggered from expending all his strength. The dead, through the persistent resistance of the expedition force and the power of the gods, all crumbled.

The remaining hostility was directed at Anor, the necromancer who raised the dead, and Tiyo, who massacred the soldiers with his strange weaponry.

They were getting closer and closer.

The General whirred and transformed randomly on its own, clanking in the process. But Tiyo, drained of his strength, couldn’t control it.

"Crockta is..."

In the distance, they saw Crockta dueling with the War God. Flames erupted every time their swords clashed.

"... doing well..."

Being a god, the enemy was overpowering Crockta in terms of sheer strength. But Crockta constantly pushed back, countering the strong attacks of his opponent with extraordinary moves. Ordinary eyes wouldn't have been able to catch their movements.

"Kehehehe."

Tiyo fiddled with the General. It had become an ambiguously shrunken shape that was neither a rifle nor a pistol, reflecting Tiyo's current state.

But Tiyo raised the barrel once again.

"Come at me! This Tiyo will not hide or flee!"

The tiny, roughed-up gnome's roar made the expedition force momentarily step back. Among them were a few nameless lesser gods, but Tiyo's spirit overpowered even them.

"Anorrrrr! Are you ready?"

"R-ready for what?"

"To die, obviously!"

"I'm not ready at all..."

"Excellent! Let’s fight till the very end!"

The expedition force charged. Tiyo rolled to the side to dodge their initial attack and fired the General. The significantly weakened magic energy struck them. Although it wasn’t nearly strong enough to kill them, it was enough to knock them over.

Tiyo pulled something out of his pocket.

It was a dagger.

It flew gracefully toward the fallen enemies, embedding itself in their necks. Blood spurted.

"To witness the knife fighting of the Quantes Defense Force, you guys sure are lucky."

Tiyo, wiping the blood from his face, grinned.

The expedition force, fueled by rage, charged again.

Then, the bodies Tiyo had just slain rose, flailing their arms, blocking the assault. Anor had exerted his power.

But the gods' power disrupted the necromancer's influence over the bodies. The corpses fell back into their eternal rest.

"Eeek! Tiyo! Attack them!"

Anor shouted. Before the enemies could gather themselves again, Tiyo's General struck them again.

"There are too many enemies, and the other orcs are..."

They were now the only ones remaining. All the other orcs were dead. Both sides suffered irreparable damages in this brutal battle, but ultimately, it was the expedition force that managed to survive until the end and wipe out the remnants.

"Damn."

Even more expedition soldiers surrounded Tiyo.

Light blazed from the eyes of the possessed soldiers, aiming to finish off Tiyo and Anor.

"A gnome and a half-breed dark elf... You’ve made a foolish choice to side with the orcs."

One of the gods spoke.

"Especially since the necromancer is of filthy lineage."

"...!"

Anor's face darkened with fury.

"I was skeptical of the rumor that you were conspiring with the Ashen God... but seeing you confirms it. You all deserve to die."

"What the hell are you spewing, you fatherless dickhe..."

Full of rage, Anor was about to curse, which he rarely did.

Then, out of nowhere, a spear made of light from the god's hand flew toward him, aiming for his heart.

“...!”

Anor couldn’t move. He was just staring blankly at the incoming ray of light.

Flash.

A groan.

"Oho..."

"Tiyo!"

Tiyo had pushed Anor aside and was impaled by the light spear instead. It didn’t hit a fatal spot, but it pierced through his abdomen, causing blood to spurt out. Tiyo collapsed, coughing up blood.

"Keheheh... Cough, cough! Kehe, hahaha! Cough!"

Tiyo coughed out blood and laughter at the same time as he glared with his eyes wide open.

"Is this all you've got?"

Tiyo, trembling with shaky legs, forced himself up. Anor tried to stop him, but Tiyo shook off his help.

As Tiyo managed to stand, a look of admiration appeared on the god's face.

"Who are you? I've never seen a gnome like you."

"Me?"

Tiyo lifted his chin. Despite his battered appearance, his face was still filled with confidence.

"I am the son of the great adventurer Hedoro, former captain of the Quantes defense force, and a companion of Crockta and Anor!"

"I see, Tiyo..."

The god nodded at his bold declaration.

"I will remember your name."

And then, he unleashed another spear of light.

It streaked toward Tiyo's heart in a clean, straight line.

It was a stable, direct trajectory.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"Tiyo!" Anor screamed.

Tiyo closed his eyes.

Being born meant you eventually died. What matters is not when you die, but where and how.

And on that, Tiyo didn’t have a single regret.

He died in a place and for a cause worth dying for.

Thus, he could smile in his final moments.

"Adios."

The light spear headed straight for Tiyo's heart.

But it was too straight. Too straight that a single arrow flying in was able to split it down its shaft.

Crack.

The spear shattered.

That single arrow pierced through, hitting a soldier surrounding Tiyo in the abdomen.

".....!"

The soldier spat blood.

But that was not the end.

The arrow began spinning furiously from the soldier's abdomen, creating a whirlwind that soon turned into a storm, sucking in the nearby soldiers. Their bodies were torn to shreds and thrown into the air.

"Kyaaaaaa!"

“What the hell!”

"What is this...?"

Everyone in the vicinity turned to look as they shielded themselves from the flying chunks of flesh.

It was an unbelievable spectacle.

There was a goblin holding a bow.

"A goblin...?"

But the goblin paid them no attention. His gaze was solely fixed on the man who had braced for death, Tiyo.

"Oi, kek!"

Tiyo's eyes widened.

"Y-you...!"

"Son of Hedoro, kek! The captain of the Quantes defence force, kek! Crockta's companion, kek! But why did you leave one out, keeek?"

The goblin grinned, pointing at his own chest.

"Tiyo, the disciple of the legendary goblin archer Kiao!"

The goblin who sought the strongest shot, who could whip up a storm of time and space to sweep away his foes. It was Kiao.

"How did you get here!"

"Why are you complaining, kek? I saved you from dying and the first thing you do is yell at me, kek!"

"I would have survived without you!"

"You thought you were going to die in style, kek! That was hilarious, kek!"

"N-nonsense!"

"Adios, kek? Adios, kek! You think you’re in a movie or something, kek?"

"You bastard!"

As Tiyo and Kiao bickered, the face of the god who had thrown the light spear twisted.

"Where did this bonehead monster come from...!"

But the answer came from behind him.

"Say that again."

The god flinched. A massive shadow loomed over him.

"What did you just say, monster? Take it back!"

The god turned his head.

There stood a gigantic Cyclops with a twisted face, glaring down at him.

"Monsters we are not! Take it back!"

The Cyclops shouted and swung his fist at him. The god barely dodged but had to roll rather ungracefully on the ground.

"Me, Hawk Eye! He, Kiao! Monsters we are not!"

It was Hawk Eye, the giant who once fought alongside Crockta.

The sudden appearance of the masters caused the expedition to panic. Not just Kiao and Hawk Eye, but also a centaur who was no less skilled with the bow than Kiao, a mysterious leech, and an ogre with a terrifying presence. All of them were beings that shouldn’t have been there, yet they were appearing one by one.

"How did you guys..."

"Orcs here! We! Together come!"

The Cyclops pointed in another direction.

There it was.

The northern great tribe of orcs charged, raising dust clouds. As they hit the expedition, the enemies crumbled almost too easily.

The oracle had spread all the way to the north. And hearing it, the friends of Xantimur came down with the great tribe of orcs to help Crockta and his companions.

The tide was turning once again.

"You rats..."

And the faces of the gods watching this scene twisted.

"Taste the true wrath of the gods!"

Their bodies glowed a radiant white, and their powers began to envelop the surroundings. Even the expedition soldiers were being crushed under the pressure, screaming, but they did not care.

Tiyo, Anor, and the masters stepped back, tensing up. They could sense that the gods were truly enraged.

A storm of power blasted from them.

* * *

Kumarak burst into laughter at the sight of orcs he had never seen before joining the fray.

"I have no clue what’s happening, but krrng!”

He looked up at a dwarf standing on his chest, wielding a hammer.

"We will not lose!" Kumarak exclaimed.

Tarthatot, the father of all burrowing creatures, looked down at him with cold eyes.

"It doesn't matter. One thing is certain, you will die at this moment."

"Kekeke! Kill me, krrng! A warrior does not fear death!"

"Today, I finally avenge Almutat."

The dwarf raised his hammer high.

And without hesitation, brought it down with force.

It was a powerful blow that could split just about anyone's head, capable of causing an earthquake with its might.

But just before the hammer could reach Kumarak.

The dwarf felt a murderous intent targeting his neck and heart simultaneously and instinctively twisted his body to dodge backward.

"What the!"

A sharp blade had come up against his neck, barely missing him but still leaving a trace of blood. Tarthatot continued to retreat, but the swift dual swords kept pursuing him.

And the wielder was a dark elf with white hair and black skin.

"I was told that the continent was filled with entertaining opponents. Entertaining, indeed."

He swirled his dual swords, eyeing Tarthatot. A suffocating murderous intent emanated from his body.

"A god, what better opponent could there be?"

"And who are you?"

The dark elf smiled faintly and replied briefly,

"Driden."

With the single-word answer, he vanished. Tarthatot, sensing the blade approaching from behind his head, ducked forward in shock. Then, the blade appeared from the side, stabbing him. It was a relentless sequence of attacks.

Driden, the genius swordsman who had dueled with Crockta, had also descended to the continent with the great tribe.

Tarthatot screamed.

His opponent was now Driden. They shouted and swung their weapons at each other.

"Those are the northern..."

The Goddess of Mercy frowned at the scene.

She was standing not far away, subduing Anya.

She was also wounded with several cuts from Anya’s axe. Although she had healed herself with her divine power, stains of blood marred her clothes.

"We need to go assist them quickly. This is turning into an odd situation."

The orcs from the north were tearing apart the expedition force. The Goddess of Mercy wore a determined expression. She had decided.

Anya smirked.

"Go ahead. To die by the hands of the Goddess of Mercy, what an honor this is."

"..."

The Goddess of Mercy pressed her lips tightly together and exerted her divine power to strangle Anya strongly.

Anya's face turned red, her face paling as she choked.

"Kugh..."

Even in this situation, Anya maintained a mocking smile.

She was never going to submit to her enemy under any circumstances.

And there was one warrior who was impressed by her attitude.

"Even the female orcs of the continent are so spirited!"

The Goddess of Mercy glanced back in surprise.

There stood an old orc holding a massive hammer.

* * *

Wallachwi lay on the ground, barely managing to breathe. He had exhausted all the sorcery he could, but it proved insufficient against the power of the gods.

"Foolish one."

The old man speaking was not in that good of a shape either. Wallachwi's sorcery had partially consumed him into darkness, marring his appearance.

"Did you truly believe you could defeat us?"

"Keh... heh!"

"You keep up that displeasing cackle until the very end."

His face twitched in response.

"Laugh all you want now. You won't be able to in the underworld."

Wallachwi tried to laugh again, but the old man wrapped his hand around his throat, preventing him from laughing anymore.

"Die."

Light burst from the old man’s body, and Wallachwi’s life force was being drained from his.

Wallachwi’s eyes were slowly dimming.

He wanted to laugh one last time.

He had to laugh. As a seeker of the abyss, he faced the endless darkness, aiming to reach its depths.

When one looks into the abyss, the abyss looks back into them. To not be consumed by that unknown darkness or suffocate in its fear, he always had to laugh.

Keh... Heh!

But no sound came out.

How unfortunate.

In that distant place, within unseen pitch darkness, the abyss smacked its lips at him.

As his consciousness began to fade, a sudden loud laughter rang in his ears, waking his mind.

"Kyul kyul kyul kyul kyul kyul!"