Hero of Darkness

Chapter 1261: Doomed to be Forgotten

The divine weapon of Darkness finally conceded to Kahn’s coercion without even noticing that both the Hero of Darknesses were in cahoots.

The terrifying being that once controlled and established its supremacy over the other divine weapons had now fallen victim to its own terms and had no other choice but to break its rules, lest it wanted to be forever forgotten.

And now, Kahn had a way to claim his original divine weapon as well as have Amaterasu by his side.

The latter was already an incredibly powerful weapon that could raze down a couple of kilometres of ground with a single attack when it was used by Axel Lobthrox, the Hero of Fire, although he was only a 3rd stage saint back then.

And that unfathomable strength came when he hadn’t even properly mastered it, unlike Kahn, who was now close to almost perfect in his control over Amaterasu.

The divine weapon of Fire was the highest tier of fire, standing even above the Dragonfire and Hellfire in Vantrea.

Kahn could use both of the latter, but none matched the unparalleled destructive power of Amaterasu even now.

On top of it, with his strength as a Beginner 7th-stage saint at this point, he could only feel sad for his enemies if he was ever forced to use it.

Beelzebub, on the other hand… had already proven its capabilities when it was in the hands of Morpheus Constantine.

Though its powers may have been elevated to an absurd degree thanks to the strength it siphoned from other divine weapons and the divine keys of the previous generation of summoned heroes/heroines… the fundamental strength and capabilities to even allow that to happen, already showed how superior it was in the right hands.

However, as stated before… Kahn had no intentions of going around and killing other Heroes for their divine keys and divine weapons as per his plans.

With everything he heard from both Miyamoto Musashi and Morpheus Constantine… he had already found a different path; a path only he could accomplish because of his own strength, divine abilities and enlightenment in the Space Law.

“Good. Let us proceed.” said Kahn with a commanding tone.

Although indignant, Beelzebub began the ritual as multiple dark purple halos of ancient runes appeared in the air, and he started chanting something in an indistinguishable dialect.

After a minute passed, he turned into his war scythe form and before Kahn could react…

Whirl!

Beelzebub instantly whirled and stabbed the tip of its curved blade into Kahn’s heart.

Soon, the entire scythe itself turned into a phantom, and Kahn heard a notification…

[Ding!!

Divine Weapon, Beelzebub, has been linked to the Divine Key, Deathslayer!]

The system alerted Kahn, and soon, a plethora of information started flowing into Kahn’s mind.

This information consisted of all the powers and fighting techniques of Beelzebub, ingrained deep in his mind as if he had been practising them for decades.

It was right then…

[Oho, would you look at that. You have already mastered the War Scythe weapon even before our binding.

And most of the fighting techniques are already at Saint Rank, as well as complement my own style.] spoke Beelzebub with a greedy tone.

“Yes. Master Romulus taught me everything he knew about weapons. Back then, I wondered why he taught me how to fight with a war scythe.

Because I’ve never seen or fought anyone using it before. I guess he was already preparing me for our meeting even without my knowledge.” responded Kahn with a calm tone.

This was another fact he had to accept. Because Romulus Lykaios, the Heavenly King of Fire in the Beast Empire, had taken a whole year to train Kahn when he played the role of Atreus Bellator, his Shadow Disciple in the Nadur Empire.

This was both his and Argos Belmont’s plan to prepare Kahn for the Great War.

And a War Scythe just happened to be one of the weapons Kahn had to learn and master with intense training by slowing time inside the Tablet of Arcana.

[Hmm… Now, throw out that sparkle. You don’t need him.] said Beelzebub out of hidden jealousy.

“Hah! You wish.” said Kahn and signalled Amaterasu to return to his core, aka the divine key.

Both Flamescion and Deathslayer were already merged in his core, so he had no problem housing two different divine weapons inside.

And the best part… it wouldn’t take any excessive load on his body or soul because his Soul Essence was not only more potent, but his reserves were already 3 times those of other summoned heroes.

[Hey, scooch over!] said Amaterasu to Beelzebub.

[What do you mean by ‘scooch over’? This is my seat!] yelled Beelzebub back.

“Huh, they are already bickering. As if Rathnaar wasn’t enough already. Now I have to listen to these two rambling in my mind as well.” said Kahn with a defeated expression.

[Wait! Did you just say ‘Rathnaar’? As in Rathnaar Whittlock?] asked Beelzebub with a surprised tone.

“Yes. You know him?” asked Kahn.

“Know him? I’ve both fought alongside him and even against him during the 6th Heroine of Darkness’ era.

Is that bastard still alive?” elaborated and asked Beelzebub.

“Alive? No, but his half-soul is bound to me.

Just that I lost the connection the moment I entered this realm.

Why? You have a score to settle with him or something?” explained Kahn as he wondered.

[No… He is the only human that I have found both worthy of envy and admiration.

If only he were a chosen hero, this war would’ve ended a thousand years ago already.] declared Beelzebub regrettably.

[Even the 6th Heroine of Darkness once admitted that it should have been Rathnaar who wielded me instead of her back when they fought the Godbeast Behemoth at the common border of the Abyss and Rakos Empire.

That man was only a Peak 9th-stage saint back then, but he held his own and also helped us repel Behemoth.] clarified the divine weapon of darkness.

[What great luck brought you to him and made a soul-oath with Rathnaar?] asked Beelzebub.

“Great luck? More like great peril. I had no other choice but to accept him because I already had his saint core and also had all the noble factions of the Rakos Empire gunning for my head the moment I returned with the Tablet of Arcana, an artifact of an ancient Demi-God.

Besides, I needed his knowledge to survive because by then, I had no information or connection to either Lord Argos or the Cult of Darkborne.

And even there… he tried to scam me and take over my body.” iterated Kahn with an exhausted tone.

[Ha ha ha! That sounds like the Rathnaar I remember.

He tried to pull something like that with the 6th Heroine and almost charmed her so they could get married.

It was I who threatened to leave her if she had agreed. That bastard is both ruthless and cunning.

I would have killed him out of precaution if he wasn’t already so strong.] revealed Beelzebub.

“Guess you will have a great time catching up with a friend then.” said Kahn and his gaze now settled on Morpheus.

******************

“I guess this is it for us.” spoke Kahn with a melancholic tone.

“Yes. I know there’s a part of you that must have hated me for making your life a hell in Vantrea.

I hope you understand that I also had no other choice but to place my bets on my successor in the original timeline.

Even with our regression at different times in the new one… there’s so much we could do to prepare for the Great War.” said Morpheus with an apologetic tone.

“No need to apologise. I understand that your life was way worse than mine and all your actions were taken out of necessity.” responded Kahn because he had already lived as Morpheus.

“After hearing all the secrets, I am content. I shall carry on your mission.” said Kahn firmly as he nodded.

“I reckon the Martial Emperor already gave you a list.” spoke Morpheus with a serious tone.

“Yes. I will meet most of them during the Great War. We could only hope they join our side.” reiterated Kahn.

“Kahn, once you break the seal on the crystal present in Vantrea, which hides this sealed world… This manifestation of my memories will also disappear from the real world, because that power is keeping the hidden realm operating and allowing me to still exist even after my true death.” revealed Morpheus solemnly.

“But do not hold back any more. Now, you have both the knowledge and the divine weapon. You must not fail, no matter what.” he voiced his stance resolutely.

“It is our farewell then.” spoke Morpheus.

Kahn nodded, and soon, Morpheus waved his hand, and the door which allowed Kahn to come inside the throne room appeared in front of him.

Kahn walked inside the blinding white door and disappeared from the hidden realm.

This marked the end of their first and the last time to meet each other.

******************

After Kahn left, Morpheus slowly walked and then sat close to the throne of Heroine of Water.

“It’s over now, my dear Irina. I’m sorry that we could not be together when we were alive.” spoke Morpheus as he faced a skeleton wearing pristine white and blue majestic attire, akin to that of a Queen.

Soon, his eyes were filled with tears as his body slouched, resting his head on the thighs of the corpse.

After a minute, Morpheus raised his head and looked at her with eyes filled with yearning.

“If only I could have found another way to circumvent it all… we could have lived happily in this world.

I committed the sin of killing the only woman I ever loved for the sake of saving everything.

But even then… all I could do was just buy it more time.” he revealed with a voice full of deep regret.

“I hope that Kahn doesn’t have to go through the same pain as me, even if the timeline forces his hand.

That boy has the potential,l but I’m afraid that if he has to make sacrifices as I did… it will break him even before he fights the Demon God.” he said and got up on his feet.

“The old Martial Emperor and the current Kahn are the same person in the end. Their lives have changed, and so have their perspective on morality and life itself.

But inherently, their core values as humans haven’t changed much.

I hope that at least he gets to end this war so no one else has to suffer like us.

As for me and all of my sacrifices…” said the 8th Hero of Darkness as the light inside the realm started turning dim.

Morpheus finally spoke with a somber tone as the hidden realm itself was now bereft of light…

“I’m doomed to be forgotten.”