Chapter 56 Dies Irae
Chapter 56: Dies Irae
Max spent some time on two things.
Absorbing Zamira\'s memories was one of them.
He didn\'t want to simply add them to his brain, though. He picked the most important information, assimilating parts that would influence his personality and moves.
He understood mana much better than before.
And with that understanding, Max understood how much of a monster he was.
At the same time, Muller Franc\'s team gathered around him. One of them was a healer, his hands on his leader\'s broken arm, healing it to perfection in just a few seconds.
Other buddies formed lines of defenses, ready to sacrifice their lives for their leader.
Of course, such a defense wasn\'t just against Max. Flames and water constantly rained down on them, not letting them focus on a peculiar case known as Max Ei.
And as Max was pretty close, he smiled, feeling proud of his twin dragons and his own strength.
"You control Earth and players with your old buddies. Three dogs that think they will be eternal rules or young dogs again… I couldn\'t really care anymore about your reasons.
But… you know… I hope all of you will come out of your little den, so I can get some experience before killing you all," Max sneered.
Hearing his words, players from Franc\'s side scrunched their faces uglily. They had never seen such blatant disgust and killing intent directed at them. They felt like rat labs, meant solely to give some knowledge to their opponent.
Franc stood up, his wounds healed. Unfortunately, filling mana was too hard, even in better ranked worlds. His mana had plummeted significantly, and he couldn\'t fight freely like before.
Fortunately, his Ultimate Skill was still on, "Hubris will kill you."
Max laughed, "Who says that?"
"We will follow the first formation," Franc whispered, his words reaching everyone\'s ears, and he didn\'t mind that.
Only his people knew what the first formation was anyway.
His team nodded, preparing to clash with Max. They were like players from the fantasy world, having a balanced party of a healer, tank, archer, mage, swordsmen, and even enchanters.
Max and the twins would soon face them.
But as their opponents were all separated, Muller Franc\'s party had to split into three. Standing in the middle, Franc had a healer and enchanter by his side. His archer went with one team to intercept Alice, while the mage and his team focused on Zamira.
Swordsmen crept their way toward Max, the tank leading them.
"First formation… And what it might be?" Max asked, waiting for his opponents with excitement.
And as the swordsmen launched their slashes, Max stopped smiling, reading all their techniques with his Mana Read. He felt the same, known slashes, with many layers adding up slowly.
It meant that all those people would approach him.
Max took a punching pose. His mana dragons growled, waiting for enemies to shrink distance with them.
BANG!
Max\'s dragons reflected all slashes, sparing him from using mana barriers. He then intercepted the first swordsman, whose sword was high. A vertical slash soaked in sharp mana fell onto him.
But as Max simply threw his dragon forward, the slash ended with negative results. The swordsman skipped a few steps back while his other teammates exchanged a few moves with Max.
\'It\'s a pretty generic pattern. What\'s the catch?\' Max thought while comforting all their attempts to kill him. He paid close attention to Muller Franc and his healer and enchanter.
So far, only these two used some of their mana while Franc remained motionless. Healer and enchanted had to focus intensely, for Zamira and Alice were in a different league.
At the same time, Max was quite less oppressive. It was clear he used this battle as a way to build a close combat experience. Because of that, the healer and enchanted had some of their burden lessened.
\'They are good at reflecting attacks and switching positions… Years of experience, huh…\' Max whispered as he kept dancing with his enemies.
He was somewhat used to their moves and techniques by now.
And that was Muller Franc\'s first battle formation.
\'We will give him too much information at once… His brain will soon get overloaded with information,\' Franc whispered inwardly.
It was tough to fight against opponents of the same level, let alone this many of them. In this formation, his people smoothly attacked from various angles, switching positions flawlessly.
His enchanter often increased his people\'s strength, speed, and damage, too. His healer was also blessed with his own buffs, adding more and more information.
Max had to keep an eye on everything, blocking and attacking back. It was pretty too much, particularly for a beginner.
It was impressive how he could keep going with his mana dragons and barriers protecting him.
\'And then, I will add my own power,\' Franc whispered, hiding his killing intent at the bottom of his heart, not letting Max notice his intent.
His gravity mana silently seeped into the bodies of his people. He either added strength to their weapons or changed their gravity. In this way, Franc added abundant power to his people and flexibility.
All at once!
BANG!
\'You will be not able to reflect all of that simultaneously… And once you start bleeding, your demise is-\' Franc\'s inward monologue stopped, for Max blocked everything, even after first formation\'s plan fruited.
He stood with his eyes wide, fixed on Muller Franc. His dragons became somewhat wider, and his mana barriers expanded a little too.
\'How is he still able to fight? His brain should\'ve already fried already…\' Franc uttered without hinting at his former arrogance. He genuinely asked this question. Any normal human would\'ve his brain burning already!
Perhaps, Max\'s non-human bloodline was the cause for his multitasking, for Zamira and Alice were pretty good at it, too.
Nonetheless, as the first formation failed, it was time for the second, wasn\'t it?
But as Max smiled, he parted his lips, shouting to his twins, "Gather around me and protect me! I need one minute!"
The twin dragons instantly dropped all their battles, flying toward Max. Their vast forms wrapped him in a few layers of defense, for their bodies were giant.
Alice whispered, "You haven\'t killed anyone yet? Do you need help?"
Zamira also glanced, concerned about her beloved. It was not a time for gathering experiences or having fun!
But Max did precisely that.
He smiled, "I will catch up to you soon… and go beyond."
As if imitating Muller Franc from before, Max formed a sign. However, his sign was a common praying sign, which was odd.
Nonetheless, Zamira and Alice could tell that something deep started changing within Max. They didn\'t question him, focusing on their enemies.
And as Max and the dragons remained in one position, Muller Franc\'s people gathered around him.
They had lost a few of them, a hit to their pride.
Some of them wanted to escape this place given a chance, but Muller Franc stood with his eyes locked on the dragons.
\'Me… running away in my last years? Laughable,\' he whispered before parting his lips, ordering all his people, "Launch all your strongest skills at the dragons! I don\'t care if they die! We must get that man!"
Loyal people heeded his order immediately. Some doubters took their time, but they eventually pounced at the twins.
In response, the dragons parted their lips. Their most common skill escaped their mouths, bouncing off the players who had been pressing forward with their lives on the line.
And since that was not enough, Alice and Zamira\'s bodies shone in their respective elements, adding more fuel to the battle.
Muller Franc also didn\'t stay idle. He darted forward, his balled hands slamming away all incoming elemental attacks.
The time passed slowly. The dragons didn\'t move, protecting the person they had fallen for. On the other hand, players kept waving their weapons, seemingly in desperation. Their fantasy skills and dreams broke before the draconian might, though.
It didn\'t mean that Alice and Zamira hadn\'t suffered any losses.
But even as their skin peeled off under the barrage of humanity\'s attacks, they still held on, believing in their beloved.
And that was worth it for their future love and strength.
"Enough," Max whispered, his copious mana oozing out of his body. In an instant, a pillar of aqua and black-blue mana expanded toward the sky.
In that pillar, Alice and Zamira\'s forms reverted back to human. They fell gently with their naked bodies, their feet softly touching the ground.
Max opened his eyes as they stood in a daze, glaring at Muller Franc, "You control Earth through your strength and status.
I control mana… through my sheer will," Max whispered, feeling foreign mana entering his mana pillar.
That was… Earth bending to his will.
In Max\'s eyes, shining stars bloomed. Those stars permeated his pillar, too, climbing up to the peak.
And then, something that shook even The Tower happened.
[The Universe Announcement: The Twelfth Fate Star has been formed.]
[The Universe enters the new era.]
"I am mana\'s friend, and I fucking hate you, so you don\'t deserve to wield any mana, you fucking dog," Max laughed, his newest skill finally ready to unleash, "It took some time for me to pour all my mana into this pillar.
But since I have never used all of my mana, that\'s understandable. Now, all of you… May you all rot in hell.
Dies Irae," Max whispered.
His system flashed with a pretty dangerous message.
[You have used your newest skill, Dies Irae(???).]
[You have lost all your mana points.]
The mana pillar expanded in an instant, swallowing everything in the vicinity. Muller Franc, his people, Kiril, and his vile army all had been swathed by it.
They couldn\'t move or react. Their minds flashed with entire memories of their lives, embraced by Max\'s newest skill. From childhood, their mother and father\'s voices, to their teenage days, where they had fallen in love and tasted bitterness for the first time, to their last days… They saw all.
It was as if they saw all of them, for their death was inevitable…
BANG!
After a few minutes, all lives that Max deemed enemies had died without any way of return. They couldn\'t be resurrected, reincarnated, or saved by any other means, for The Fate Star erased them, ushering in a new era and taking their skills for themselves.
Max inhaled the fresh air, for no scum was around him. In fact, he had two naked beauties gazing at him with shock, confusion, and even some fear.
But as he extended his hands for their bare waists, taking them closer with a gentle and wide smile, Alice and Zamira no longer felt fear, even if their beloved was more than just a monster.
Max whispered, "It feels so good."
The twins didn\'t reply.
"It feels so good to have you two… And it feels so good to have one of three enemies dead," Max said, his expression bright as if he had just a blast of a night instead of a blast of killing.
He caressed the girls\' naked bums, though, "For how long you two will stay silent, agape and shocked. You are giving me too much room to fondle your asses.
Hey? Alright, you two are pretty adorable now…" Max laughed.
And then, he squinted his eyes.
It would be nice if they congratulated him or something, wouldn\'t it be?
\'Oh well, I might as well hold onto their naked bodies. No one can see my girls, alright?\' Max thought inwardly, pressing his girls even more against his body, hiding their curves and private parts in this way.
But as he felt it was impossible to hide such voluptuous curves, Max took out some blankets from his inventory.
Of course, nothing stopped him from kneading their asses. He kept doing that until Alice snapped from her stupor, punching Max\'s face.
"Think about the place!" Alice screamed.
Max caressed his cheek, "Be more gentle, girl! I\'ve just regenerated some of my mana… I am so weak now! I need to hold onto you to stand still!"
Zamira sighed, her smile soft, "You still have the strength to fondle our asses, though."
Max grinned, "I will always have strength for my girls."
"Shameless," the twins replied in tandem.
"Should we head back home?"
But as Max asked this question, he suddenly heard the beast\'s roar!
"What now?" he sighed, blaming the world for not letting him have a good time with his twin dragons!