Idle Mage: Humanity's Strongest Backer
Chapter 146 Battle (II)

Ashton could feel the Bone Scythe shivering in mad glee whilst in his hands and it greedily drank the blood of a Cherub.

This was the first 1st Sphere Angel that died under its blade and became a supplement for its growth. Additionally, it isn't just the blood of the angel that got absorbed. In a sense, her Soul was also being devoured by the scythe.

The blood of the Angels, from their own words, was holy and divine. Their very essence is contained in the blood that ran through their veins, so in a sense, if someone or something were to devour their blood, they would also devour their soul.

This is the reason why Ashton's victims couldn't be resurrected by others...

'Hmm...still pretty far from another upgrade I guess.' Ashton mused to himself while casting a short look on his scythe.

He then stared at the ground beneath him and said: "...good thing there's more on the way."

As soon as he finished saying that, the land in front of him exploded, kicking up a large dust cloud that obscured his silhouette.

From there, a group of demons and angels appeared. Looking around frantically.

"Bea!? Bea!? Where are you? Where's the White-Cloaked Reaper?" Neon asked in a distressed manner.

Truly, this one's having the worst day of his life. First, there's the matter about the Dragon Vein and now, the sudden enemy attack. Seriously, they just can't catch a break! And all of this just 'has' to happen when the Apostle and the Sin Demon were away.

It's almost like this was all planned all along!

...well, he doesn't have to know, right? Maybe. Just maybe. It'd be better if they remained ignorant about the truth.

"Stop looking for her." Joel, the other Seraph uttered stiffly. "She's dead."

"What!?" Ulver's eyes widened in disbelief. "You're kidding, right? This is Bea we're talking about!"

"Ulver, her Life Sphere has shattered!" Adul retorted with a pained voice. "That means she's truly dead. I would know, I am a Cherub like her."

"Damn! Damn! Damn!!" Neon cursed angrily, stomping in the air as he pulled his hair out.

How horrible can this get for them? He wondered. Why must things like this happen? They're supposed to be celebrating their last day here. Not feeling despair or mourning for the loss of a comrade.

Some of the Noble Demons snickered not too far away from them. Though, they didn't say a word.

If they're inwardly gloating, that's just due to their natural aversion towards their rivals. Still, even with that in mind, they do feel some form of pity for them. This day is stressful for everybody, and if angels could die, demons definitely could too.

One person from the Noble Demons scanned the battlefield with his senses. Frowning upon the sheer chaos and smoke covering it. As his senses spread out, he came in contact with a figure hidden behind a dust cloud.

The demon's eyes narrowed when he received the feedback.

"...white-cloak and...that scythe!" He exclaimed. His voice was low but it was heard by the others around him.

They all looked at him with questioning gazes but the demon suddenly chilled.

The sensation of being stared down by an apex predator caused his expression to blanch. In his senses, he saw that the person in that white cloak was staring straight into his eyes which held mild amusement in them.

Even behind that mask, the demon could make out the mad grin on that person's face. The demon's pupils dilated when he realized that something was aimed at them.

"Not good! Duck--"

Psssht!

BOOM!!

The others barely reacted to the demon's warnings. That Demon Prince himself was barely able to pull his comrades back to retreat when a shell was launched towards them, causing a stadium-sized explosion to occur, rocking the entire warzone.

One just has to hand to Ashton...he certainly doesn't like wasting time.

In that short lull when the 1st Sphere Angels and Noble Demons arrived, he instantly minimized his presence and took out his rocket launcher, condensing a single shell whilst they wondered about what was going on.

It was amusing to him how there's only a single one from this group who's smart enough to scan the battlefield, instead of yapping. And that guy has to be a demon too...how ironic...

"Shit! What the hell was that about?" A Demon Prince spat while sweating coldly.

He held out both of his hands, casting a technique that erected a barrier that covered him and his comrades, protecting them from the blast.

"That was too fucking close!"

"What the hell?"

"Who did that?"

The other Demon Princes recovered as well after discovering that they were safe.

On the Angels' side, they too managed to stay safe from impact. It was Ulver who made a move.

"Are you guys okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, we are. Thanks." Neon replied after checking out the state of the others.

They all then looked at where that attack came from with solemn expressions on their faces.

It was then that they saw him...

"Hey, guys. What's up?" He greeted them with an amused tone. "How are you doing?"

A person who was wearing a White-Cloak with a hood on stood before them. He wore a mask that hid his facial features, and there was also a tall and wicked-looking scythe that could be seen behind him as he held the rocket launcher that was still emitting smoke from the shell it launched just now.

"You!!" Neon growled like a rabid animal at him. "It's you!! White-Cloaked Reaper!! What did you do to Bea? Answer me!?"

"...that dude just literally told you that her Life Sphere was shattered. What else do you think I did to her? Sent her on a vacation?" Ashton retorted while rolling his eyes.

Neon sputtered and turned wretched in anger. The demons who saw that couldn't help but snort in disdain.

"Neon, get a hold of yourself," Joel advised. "I get it, you're mad. We are too, but now is not the time to let your emotions take over you."

"That's right, Neon," Adul interjected. "This person is capable. He's leading you to a trap, don't fall for it. If you do, we're all dead."

"Wow, camaraderie. How nice." Ashton sneered. "I suppose you all aren't just wings and eyes."

"How dare you!" Ulver roared. His eyes turned full-on red out of sheer anger. "It's because of you that everything is a mess here!"

"No. It's because of 'you guys' that everything's a mess here!" Ashton snapped back. "Seriously, if you guys didn't exist, then would any of this happen? No, right? So that means this is your fault, not mine. I am the one cleaning up your mess! Not the other way around!"

"You!!"

And Angels and Demons were instantly incensed. This person...how infuriating was he...

The reaper was implying his disgust about their existence. How can they accept such an insult?

"Why!? Why did you have to come here and do all of this!" Neon was losing grip of his sanity. His silhouette was flickering, it was as if anytime now he'd revert to his true form.

"We didn't offend you! We did nothing to you! You just have to appear and ruin everything we worked so hard for! How can you be so ruthless!?" Neon howled in grief.

If it were someone else, they might feel moved by the emotions Neon expressed. Unfortunately, he's facing Ashton -- a guy who's aware of all of their schemes and knows the very reason behind this 'grief' they're feeling.

"Ruin everything you worked so hard for?" Ashton sneered. "Please. Spare me the theatrics, you freak."

"Hard work? Do you mean that meaningless display of muscle and brawn you and the demons usually perform in this place? You call that hard work? Bitch, please!"

"You're fooling anybody. I know that the reason why you're crying was that this day was supposed to be the day you all could finally return home. You're just throwing a tantrum after the idea that your stay might be extended because of your uselessness. That's all."

"Don't make it sound like you're doing something meaningful here. In my eyes, all of you are just clowns dancing in front of a bonfire. You all are a joke."

One ruthless remark after another pierced their hearts. There was absolutely no filter whatsoever in Ashton's words.

"Hell, let's include that balding Apostle and that gross Sin Demon. You all are the same. Disgusting creatures that need to be culled. There's no meaning behind your existence. Why don't you obediently sit there and wait for me to kill you, yeah?"

Nobody could endure those words anymore. They didn't even bother replying to him...well, nothing intelligible for the most part at least. They just let out roars of fury and attacked him rabidly.

Ashton sneered and used Blink to evade their attacks. Holding the scythe firmly in his hands, he issued a mighty swing, grunting in the process.

In their eyes, it's as if Ashton turned into a giant. They watched as his scythe cleaved down with a horrified look on their faces because they didn't just feel the threat of death...

They also saw the image of their kind drowning in an endless chasm of the abyss, reaching out to them and calling out their name.