Hero of Darkness

1 HOUR LATER.

In the present moment, the Hero's Party remained motionless and trapped within the suffocating grip of the encircling purple fog.

Argh!

Maximus jolted awake from the torment that had ensnared him, his breath ragged and his body slick with sweat.

He had managed to wrench himself free from the nightmarish hold that had clamped down on his mind.

Huff!

Huff!

With heavy pants, he gradually regained his composure. His eyes swept their surroundings, taking in the frozen scene.

The formidable guardian of this region had ensnared them all in a mental labyrinth, exploiting their deepest fears and vulnerabilities to shatter their resolve.

Amid the chilling tableau lay two lifeless bodies, their blood staining the frozen ground.

The towering figure of Pokawor, the Naga warrior, lay sprawled with his multiple spears piercing his own body.

Nearby, the head of Xavolees, the grizzly bearkin warrior, rested disturbingly close to his severed corpse, the battleaxe used to commit the gruesome act still embedded in the remains of the sixth-stage saint.

"I was late in breaking through that hell." Maximus sighed with a mixture of regret and frustration.

He gazed upon the lifeless bodies of his fallen comrades, the casualties of their mental struggle against the guardian's insidious skills.

The Chaos Element user had honed a technique that targeted their minds, driving them to despair and pushing them to take their own lives.

It was a sinister and terrifying ability, one that bypassed physical confrontation and attacked the very core of their psyche.

The mastery of this technique made Chaos Element users a formidable and dreaded force in the world.

However, only a select few races possessed the ability to wield this element, and among them, even fewer could grasp the intricacies of the second method—the one that targeted the mind.

Maximus recognized the immense danger posed by such abilities. The thought of facing an army of Chaos Element users, where some could enhance their power through killing and others could compel soldiers to commit suicide through mental manipulation, was chilling. The consequences of an entire species mastering these skills would be catastrophic, unleashing chaos and devastation on an unimaginable scale.

"Perhaps that's why the Demon Empire wields such overwhelming power, capable of challenging multiple empires simultaneously." Maximus mused, voicing his thoughts aloud.

He was aware of the ongoing conflict with the formidable Demon Empire, a force composed of the True Demon species, many of whom possessed the potent Chaos Element due to their unique bloodline.

As the Conclave of Heroes drew to a close, Maximus knew that he and his fellow Heroes and Heroines would eventually step onto the grand stage of conflict.

The outcome of the Conclave held immense significance for all the empires that served the divine beings.

With a determined resolve, Maximus employed his Knight skills to cleanse their immediate surroundings, erecting protective barriers to shield his allies from the lingering effects of the guardian's manipulation.

Among the ten members of their group, four had already succumbed to the insidious assaults in the God's Domain, even though they were contending with only the third guardian out of the six.

Maximus recognized the potential danger posed by the guardian's mental manipulations. He fortified his position, ready to intervene should any of his remaining comrades be driven to madness and attempt to harm themselves.

However, he understood the delicate nature of the battle raging within their minds. Interfering directly risked exacerbating the situation, potentially erasing their memories and rationality entirely.

"Where is that damn guardian? I need to finish him." Maximus muttered to himself, his frustration evident in his tone. He was confronted with a crucial decision, torn between two pressing options.

The first choice was to stay behind and safeguard his remaining party members, wary of the possibility that their fragile mental states could drive them to take their own lives.

The second choice was to embark on a quest to locate and confront the guardian responsible for this nightmarish mental landscape, hoping to shatter the illusions that held his comrades captive.

Yet, the second path was fraught with peril. Engaging the guardian could expose them to grave danger, as the foe possessed lethal abilities that could annihilate the entire Hero's Party.

Maximus found himself ensnared in a dilemma, trapped between two unpalatable choices, each with its own dire consequences.

Both paths demanded sacrifice, and as he grappled with his decision, a calm voice resonated through the air, cutting through his inner turmoil.

And right when Maximus was caught in this crucial dilemma, a calm and composed voice landed on his ears...

"Don't worry. I'll find him."

Atreus' eyes slowly opened, his expression composed and focused.

"You're awake!" Maximus, relieved by his awakening, couldn't help but comment.

"Tch! I thought I would be the first one to wake up." With a hint of a disappointed tone, Kahn retorted.

It was as if emerging from the nightmare was a competition, and he seemed almost discontent with being the second to break free from its clutches.

Maximus was quick to assert his determination...

"No, I'll go. It's my responsibility as the leader to handle this." His voice carried a resolute tone, his gaze unwavering.

Atreus' response, however, was just as unwavering...

"No, it's better that I go. My skills as a Brawler make me ill-suited for protecting others.

Besides..." He paused, his tone becoming more determined as he continued...

"I've identified his greatest weakness."

Without further ado, Kahn declared his intention to depart, emphasizing the urgency of the situation. He left swiftly, aware that time was of the essence and that the safety of the party was at stake.

----------------

RAWRRR!!!

In a dimly lit cave, the Chimera's anguished cries echoed, intermingling with the sound of retching as it spewed blood onto the rocky ground.

"What is this madness?!" the Chimera exclaimed, its voice filled with disbelief and horror.

The creature's shock was palpable, a result of the countless tortures it had endured at the hands of Kahn.

The linchpins that he had woven into the nightmares cast upon the Hero's Party had turned the tables in a way the Chimera had never expected.

Maximus had eliminated the specific threat within his own nightmare, causing a relatively minor backlash to the Chimera's skill.

But Kahn, in his characteristic audacity, had taken a vastly different approach.

He had inflicted upon the Chimera a torturous nightmare that left it teetering on the precipice of despair.

Kahn had cleverly turned the tables, employing the equivalent of the UNO reverse card against the Chimera.

The very powers that the Chimera had wielded to torment others had been deftly redirected back upon itself, subjecting it to its own malevolent creations.

Yet, amidst the Chimera's own torment, an even more chilling revelation struck him like a bolt of lightning.

"Why is there another Chosen Hero in the Hero's Party?!" the Chimera exclaimed, his voice a mix of astonishment and fear.

The pain he experienced from the linchpin's backlash paled in comparison to the psychological anguish inflicted by the nightmare limbo.

As the linchpin returned, carrying with it fragments of Kahn's memories, the guardian gained a horrifying insight: Kahn wasn't just any party member, but a Chosen Hero in his own right—the Hero of Darkness.

This revelation shook the guardian's mind to its core, leaving him disoriented and overwhelmed by the implications.

The very foundation of his understanding crumbled as he grappled with the idea that his tormentor was a Chosen Hero as well.

SWOOSH!

In the midst of this turmoil, a swift movement at the cave's entrance caught his attention—an ominous figure had arrived, a Wolfkin standing at an imposing height of three meters.

And at that very moment, an enigmatic figure emerged at the cave's entrance—an imposing 3-meter-tall Wolfkin.

"You! Who are…" the Chimera guardian began, his words cut short.

Slash!

Before he could regain his composure or utter another syllable, a forceful and invisible blade cleaved through him vertically, severing his form into two distinct halves.

Thud!

Thud!

Two equally chopped sides of the body dropped on the ground.

The blood that sprayed on the soil turned the atmosphere inside the cave into that of death. The severed and squirming intestines gave a macabre feeling to this situation.

Even as his brain stopped working and life faded into nothingness…

The Chimera was in utter disbelief, not even realizing how it died.

"Apologies, but I don't have the luxury for idle conversation or some grand monologue." Kahn's voice echoed, his gaze icy and his demeanor relentless.

Kahn did not share any pleasantries with the guardian of this floor and nor did he give the Chimera opponent to use his powers or turn into a Saint like he did with the first 2 guardians.

Kahn had a clear motive from the moment he woke up from the nightmare limbo and it was a matter of most urgency.

"After knowing what you did in those nightmares… I can't have you revealing my true identity." spoke Kahn, his voice turning grim and void of any emotions as he declared the reason why he gave such a quick death to this guardian.

"Your death became imminent the moment you saw my truth."