Demonic Po*nstar System

Chapter 288: Mother and Son

The air tore open with a series of deep, resonant cracks as spells bloomed one after another. From them, her forces poured out, creating a stampede of armored wraiths, six-winged shades wielding spectral spears, and skeletal beasts the size of carriages whose claws left burning furrows in the stone. Legion after legion, until the throne room felt like it was buckling under the sheer volume of bodies.

“Rip it open,” she commanded with a voice that was as sharp as a whip. “Everywhere. I want it bleeding from a million wounds at once.”

Her minions obeyed without hesitation, rushing toward the Heart in a frenzied tide. Tendrils whipped out to meet them, tearing through lines, but the damage mounted quickly. Sword slashes, spear thrusts, and claw swipes cut into the pulsing mass, spraying its dark ichor across the silk-woven floor.

Sasha and the rest joined the assault without missing a beat.

Kaiden watched the chaos build before glancing back over his shoulder, looking at his lovers.

“The others seem to be more interested in slaying whatever that is.”

“Fine with me. It creeps me the heck out.” Luna shrugged.

“Yes… And I have a score to settle with a certain woman,” Aria murmured ominously while staring at the still-seated countess.

The boss monster’s amusement was clear for all to see.

“You seem very certain of your victory.”

“Your baby is being butchered like the fat pig it is, and you’re nothing but a cowardly bitch. Go on, transform into that form of yours that’s somehow even more hideous than the current one and break your eggs or whatever. Release your spider mutts.”

They’ve killed hundreds of them already, so Luna felt very confident due to them having learned how to combat those creatures with great efficiency. She wasn’t alone.

The Storm Valkyrie’s response earned her a strong glare. But soon, the furious expression melted back into a smile. It was one of those infuriating, smug little ones that made it seem as if she were the only one in on the joke.

“You know…” she purred while running a finger along the armrest of her throne, “people can say many things about me. That I’m manipulative. That I’m cruel. That I am, perhaps, a touch sinful.”

She gestured toward the looming bulk of the Heart. “But no one can say I’m a bad parent.” Her smile deepened just as her eyes slid back to Luna. “I raised my darling to have respect. Discipline. Not… that terrible bark of yours.” She tilted her head. “I suppose it’s hard to learn manners when no one bothered to teach them. Tell me, do you even have parents? Or were you raised by a tribe of ogres?”

“Okay, this bitch is dead.”

That was the only thing Luna said before drawing her [Stormblade]. However, Luna was not hotheaded enough to go berserk just from this. Instead, she began circling the woman, looking for the best spot to attack from.

Seeing that the time for talk was over, the Countess’s expression froze for a heartbeat. Then the thing inside her stirred.

Nyx and Luna instantly reacted by making a move of their own, intending to finish the woman.

However, they were too late. The monster’s hand moved with far too much speed.

Just over her heart, where a living woman’s would have beat, the alien object pulsed once. As her fingers brushed over it, it began shining brightly.

The same hunger pang that had hit them before lashed out again in an invisible wave of gnawing emptiness.

But this time… it failed. The invisible jaws that once sought to devour their life essence slammed into a wall; Kaiden’s blood exchange, the mingling of paragon sin-blood and monster ichor, was akin to an impenetrable barrier. The pang shuddered and dissipated, leaving only a faint whisper of its hunger behind.

However, instead of panicking at the failure of her move, the countess rose from the throne. Luna’s sword penetrated her stomach, and Nyx’s daggers etched deep into her throat and skull.

The air shifted.

It wasn’t just a ripple but a suffocating pressure, a dark tide rolling out from her in every direction. Luna’s blade and Nyx’s daggers stayed embedded for a fraction of a second longer before the Countess’s flesh moved. The muscle writhed, twisting around the intruding steel like a living trap, then pushed them out with a wet, sucking noise.

Her hand clenched over the alien Heart embedded in her chest. The black veins radiating from it began moving swiftly outward, racing under her pale skin like roots clawing through soil.

The glow intensified until it was painful to look at, and the sound of the Heart’s *badump…* *badump…* echoed not only through the chamber, but inside their very skulls as well.

A ragged, guttural scream tore from her throat. Half agony, half ecstasy as her body began to split apart. She did not undergo the same transformation as before. It was vastly different.

Her humanoid shape warped with her limbs stretching unnaturally thin, the flesh tearing in strips before knitting back together with cords of glistening black sinew.

Bone erupted from her spine, curling over her shoulders. The Countess’s face elongated, her jaw unhinging to reveal rows of needle-like fangs nested behind the first, each glistening with venom. A second set of smaller, spider-like limbs sprouted from her sides, flexing and twitching with a sickening *clack clack clack.*

She was taller now, towering over them. Her silhouette became a horrific blend of spider and skeletal noblewoman.

When she finally spoke, her voice was doubled. One layer was her own, but the other was a deeper, inhuman rumble.

“My beloved child has shared his strength with me,” she crooned, her tone dripping with malice. “Now you’ll see what I can really do. You’ll regret underestimating me, just like everyone else in my county did!”

Just at the same time, a scream coming from a voice they knew all too well sounded. It was a voice of utter agony.

The final stretch of the dungeon was facing major problems. Millions of people watched Valhalla’s Sinners’ broadcast with bated breath, awaiting to see how the end of this unbelievable dungeon undertaking would play out.

Should Kaiden and co win, they’d receive a whole new level of respect from their fans and the globe in general.