The air cracked with energy as I charged at Belphegorr, my body moving on sheer instinct. My fist connected with his gut, the force so immense that the wall behind him shattered on impact.
Belphegorr’s eyes bulged as blood spurted from his mouth. He stumbled, his cocky grin replaced by a stunned grimace. "What the—?! What the hell was that punch?" he wheezed, clutching his stomach. "No one’s ever hit me that hard before!"
I didn’t let up. The fury inside me was unrelenting, fueling every swing of my fists.
"This is for Nyxis! For everything you’ve done!"
Each punch landed with a bone-crushing thud, the walls around us crumbling with every blow.
Belphegorr’s surprise quickly turned into rage. "Enough!" he bellowed, wiping the blood from his lips. "You think you’re stronger than me now? Let me show you why I’m a demon general!"
Dark energy surged around him, his aura growing even more menacing. "I’ll crush you with my full power!" he roared, charging straight at me.
But I was ready.
I met his charge head-on, our fists colliding with a thunderous shockwave that shook the room. Sparks flew as we exchanged blow after blow, neither of us giving an inch.
Something had changed within me. My movements felt lighter, my punches sharper. I wasn’t just surviving anymore—I was overpowering him. And for the first time in this battle, I wasn’t relying on chaos energy.
"What’s wrong, Belphegorr?" I taunted, dodging a wild swing. "You’re looking a little tired!"
His eyes narrowed, frustration etched across his face. "Shut up! You shouldn’t even be standing after everything I’ve done to you! What’s suppressing that chaos energy?"
I smirked, delivering a clean uppercut that sent him sprawling backward. "Wouldn’t you like to know?"
The truth was, I didn’t understand it myself. But whatever was happening, it felt right. The chaos energy that had once threatened to consume me was now subdued, controlled. Something deeper was at work, something far more primal.
Belphegorr staggered to his feet, his breaths labored, his confidence shaken.
"This… this isn’t over, you bastard!" he growled, summoning another wave of dark energy.
I cracked my knuckles, a grin spreading across my face. "You’re damn right it’s not. Come on, Belphegorr. Let’s finish this."
The forest surrounding the estate bore the scars of our battle—craters littered the ground, and trees snapped like twigs from the shockwaves of our clash. Each strike sent tremors through the earth, as if the very world recoiled from our fury.
I delivered a devastating punch to Belphegorr’s jaw, the impact echoing like a cannon blast as he was sent hurtling into the distance. He crashed through a cluster of trees, leaving a trail of destruction in his wake.
Panting, I paused to catch my breath, wiping the sweat and blood from my face. As I glanced down, something felt… off. My body felt lighter, more agile. Looking at my arms, I noticed they were lean and toned. My gut—my hated gut—was gone. My once-oversized frame had shrunk, replaced by a more defined physique.
“What the…?” I muttered, running my hands over my chest and arms. My fat body had vanished entirely. A screen popped up in my mind’s eye, its golden letters shining brilliantly.
<hr>
[Status Screen]
Name: Alexander Solheart
Level: 50
Age: 18
Class: Exiled Prince
Mana: 100
Strength: 80
Special Skill: Gluttony [Full Unlocked]
<hr>
My jaw nearly dropped. "Holy crap! My strength jumped massively! Level 80 already? This is insane."
It clicked. This was the full power of Gluttony. Not just a skill—it was a transformation. My chaos energy, the volatile force I had wrestled with for so long, had been suppressed. No longer a raging storm threatening to tear me apart.
“Guess that’s one upside to unlocking it,” I muttered, rolling my shoulders. “But damn, suppressing chaos energy is no small feat. That thing’s been a pain in my ass for ages.”The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Before I could marvel further, Belphegorr’s enraged roar echoed through the forest.
“You insolent worm!” His voice boomed as he emerged from the shattered treeline, his dark aura swirling menacingly around him. His crimson eyes burned with unholy fury, his body battered but far from beaten. “You’ll pay for this humiliation! I’ll grind you into dust!”
I smirked, cracking my knuckles. “You’ve got a lot of bark for someone who’s been eating dirt all fight. Come on, Belphegorr, let’s see what you’ve got left.”
With a guttural scream, he charged at me, his fists glowing with dark energy.
I braced myself, meeting his charge with equal ferocity. Our clash sent shockwaves rippling through the forest, uprooting trees and shaking the earth.
Every punch, every dodge, every blow exchanged pushed me further, but I felt alive—stronger, faster, more capable than ever before. This was it. This was my power.
“You’re nothing but a stepping stone, Belphegorr!” I shouted, delivering a spinning kick to his ribs that sent him crashing into another crater.
He coughed, blood splattering the ground, but he staggered to his feet, his grin as twisted as ever.
“Don’t get cocky, human. This isn’t over!”
“Good,” I replied, raising my fists and feeling the surge of newfound power course through me. “Because I’m just getting started.”
The fight raged on, each blow shaking the very air around us. My fists, now brimming with the raw, overwhelming power of Gluttony, struck with the force of a thunderstorm. Belphegorr matched me blow for blow, his demonic resilience keeping him upright despite the punishment he was taking.
“You’re persistent, I’ll give you that!” I shouted, dodging his heavy claw strike before slamming my knee into his stomach. He grunted, spitting blood, but retaliated with a wild swing that grazed my arm, the dark energy searing my skin.
Belphegorr stumbled back, panting, his aura flickering like a dying flame. His once-proud frame was now battered and bleeding, his movements sluggish. I advanced, unrelenting, delivering a barrage of strikes that cracked the ground beneath him.
“This is for Nyxis!” I roared, landing a brutal uppercut that sent him sprawling.
Belphegorr hit the ground hard, his massive body skidding through the dirt. He tried to rise but fell back to his knees, his strength finally abandoning him. His breaths came in ragged gasps, blood dripping from his lips as he looked up at me with a twisted grin.
“Heh... you think you’ve won?” he wheezed, his voice thick with malice. “You’ve only played into my hands. Your rage, your despair... it makes you no different from me.”
“Shut up!” I barked, raising my fist, but something about his words made me hesitate.
“Do you know what’s funny?” he continued, his tone mocking despite his broken state. “Your precious daughter... she was a means to an end. Her screams, her pain, her tears—they were exquisite. And now? She’s nothing but ash and bone.”
My heart twisted, rage bubbling up like molten lava. “You bastard!”
Belphegorr coughed, spitting more blood, yet his grin widened. “You’re just like me. A monster. Hungry for power. And when you look at what you’ve become, you’ll see the truth: you’re no hero. You’re a glutton. A beast.”
The world seemed to blur around me as his words took root. My fists trembled with fury, my vision darkened. “You don’t deserve to speak her name!”
Without realizing it, I grabbed him by the throat. My jaw tightened, my chest heaved. Then, instinct took over. Gluttony surged within me, demanding more. Demanding him.
“No! Stop! You—” Belphegorr’s words were cut short as I opened my mouth and consumed him. His body dissolved into pure energy, pouring into me like a torrential flood. His power, his memories, his essence—all of it became mine.
The rush of power was intoxicating, overwhelming. My body surged with newfound strength, the demonic aura merging with my own. But with it came the weight of his deeds, his cruelty, his sins.
I fell to my knees, trembling, the euphoria giving way to a crushing sorrow. My hands clenched the dirt as the reality of what I’d done washed over me.
“Nyxis...” I whispered, my voice breaking.
I crawled to her still form, cradling her in my arms. She was so light, so fragile. The power I’d gained, the strength I now wielded—it meant nothing.
Tears streamed down my face as I held her close, rocking back and forth. “I’m so sorry, my little star. I failed you. I couldn’t protect you.”
The forest was silent, save for the crackling remnants of our battle. I sat there, the weight of my grief and guilt pressing down like an unmovable mountain.
And yet, in the silence, I made a vow. A vow to honor her memory, to ensure her sacrifice wasn’t in vain. To destroy the darkness that had taken everything from me.
“Rest now, Nyxis,” I whispered. “Your papa will make this right. I swear it.”
The weight of grief was suffocating me. I knelt by Nyxis'' body, tears blurring my vision. The soft grass beneath me had become a silent witness to my sorrow. Her death had broken something deep inside, and I felt utterly alone.
Suddenly, a brilliant light shone down from the heavens, cutting through the darkness that had settled in my heart. My breath caught in my throat as I instinctively looked up.
There she was, descending from the glowing sky, radiating an aura so pure, so powerful, that it made my chest tighten. A woman, her long hair flowing like the wind, her eyes glowing with an otherworldly serenity. She stepped gently onto the ground, as if the earth itself bowed in reverence to her.
“Alexander,” she spoke softly, her voice like a gentle breeze.
I froze, still in shock, my mind struggling to make sense of this vision. “Who… Who are you?” I managed to stammer.
Her smile was both calming and unearthly. “I am Rhea, Goddess of Nature, Motherhood, and Fertility.”
“Alexander,” she spoke my name like a gentle caress, but I could hardly comprehend the words. Still, the grief in my chest was all-consuming. I was lost in it.
“What do you want from me?” I demanded, barely able to lift my gaze from Nyxis. "Do you want to take her too? She’s dead—I''ll not let you take even her dead body."
The words tasted bitter on my tongue. I had broken my promise to Nyxis. I’d failed to save her daughter. I’d failed her.
Rhea’s eyes softened, her divine presence like a gentle breeze in the storm of my sorrow. “I know, Alexander. She was such a kind soul.”
A wave of anguish hit me again, and I couldn’t stop myself. “What did she do to deserve this? What did I do wrong? I swore to Nyx that I would save her daughter, and now I’ve failed. I couldn’t protect her. I couldn’t save her…” My voice broke, tears spilling freely down my face.
The goddess knelt beside me, her aura embracing the grief I could no longer contain. “You have not failed, Alexander,” she said with certainty. “You still have a chance. I can help you.”
I looked at her, my heart racing with a flicker of hope. “How?” I whispered, barely daring to believe. “How can you help me?”
Her voice was soothing, like the rustling of leaves in a forest after rain. “I can revive her.”
What? I blinked, stunned, my heart pounding in my chest. “What…? Can you really?” I couldn''t believe it. My mind was spinning, trying to make sense of her words. “Wait, how should I trust you? Even if you are a goddess… who knows who would have bad intentions, even in the form of a god?”
Rhea’s gaze remained calm, unwavering. She smiled, and this time, her presence felt even more personal, as if she were speaking directly to the core of my very being. “Do not worry, Alexander. The very Skyrend you hold, the one you called Nyxis, is my daughter too.”
I stared at her, my mind still reeling. “Your daughter?” The words didn’t make sense. “You... what do you mean?”
Rhea stood and held her hands out to me, her smile warm, almost knowing. “Yes. I, Rhea, Goddess of Nature, Motherhood, and Fertility, am also known as the Goddess of Skyrend. Nyxis is my child, Alexander. Just as she was your guardian, she was also mine.”
The world seemed to tilt under my feet. My mind struggled to process this revelation. Nyxis—my protector, my guide—was the daughter of a goddess?