Chapter 102: Prometheus
The manifestation wriggled, body convulsing before it dissolved into mists of grey essence.
Azrael squinted his brows at the sudden change.
He backflipped, creating another gap between himself and Beru.
Beru did not follow. It waited, body stiff as if what was coming was something far beyond it.
Then it appeared.
White flames began to swirl in the sky above both of them, forming into a single shape.
"What is that?" Azrael said, sucking in a cold breath at the sight.
Beru bowed in the being’s presence.
Slowly, the being began to descend.
A scrawny figure wrapped in chains.
Brown hair cascaded down his back, reaching the back of his knees.
His eyes were a soft green that radiated nobility without effort.
Everything about him spoke of power that did not need to announce itself.
’Analyze,’ Azrael activated with a thought.
[Name: Prometheus]
[Being Category: Calamity (Myth from Earth)]
[Tier: 8]
[Skills:
Eternal Punishment: Cannot be permanently killed. Returns to life after one day.
Gift of Growth: As the one who brought fire to humanity and sparked their growth, Prometheus can evolve any being with his flames.
Adaptive Flames: Can conjure any type of flame for any purpose.]
[Weakness: Can only be bound.]
Azrael read the screen with a slightly exasperated sigh.
He had already felt the strange, otherworldly essence radiating from the being. Analyze had only confirmed it.
He was facing a calamity.
One far stronger than him.
"Use the manifestation art," Zareth said again, louder this time and with a predatory edge, as though threatening Azrael directly.
Azrael shook his head after a moment.
"Do not worry."
As he spoke, his calamity token appeared in his hand, and the temperature of the surrounding air dropped immediately.
The being paused as its eyes landed on the token.
"Interesting," it said, finally stopping at the same level as Azrael. "A Calamity Master."
It spoke as though Azrael were an insect it had decided to inspect before dealing with.
And on the surface, that was not far from accurate.
Azrael shook his head at Prometheus’s tone.
His essence swirled outward, pouring into the token.
Two beings materialized instantly.
Achilles and Jack Frost.
As Jack appeared, the surrounding air dropped sharply, crystal flakes beginning to fall from the sky.
His mere presence seemed to shift the natural order of the space around him.
But even as the ice spread, it did not draw near Prometheus.
’I can only sustain both of them for ten minutes while fighting him,’ Azrael noted.
[Should I purchase some potions?]
The system asked, its tone unusually serious.
Prometheus was not one to wait.
His chains lashed out, shooting toward Azrael’s chest.
The tip ignited with blue flames as they closed in.
Azrael sidestepped, narrowly clearing the strike.
His hand shot out, gripping the chain with everything he had.
Essence surged into his grip as he pulled.
Nothing.
Prometheus did not budge, as immovable as a mountain.
A grin spread on his lips as he mirrored Azrael’s move.
The result was entirely different.
Azrael was yanked forward like a ragdoll, his body colliding with Prometheus’s readied fist.
All the air in his lungs was forced out as his body folded inward.
A loud bang echoed from the impact.
Before he could recover, Prometheus’s leg drove into his back, sending him plummeting to the floor like a meteor.
Prometheus did not wait for him to land.
He followed, legs pressed together as he came down directly onto Azrael’s back.
Boom.
Tremors swept through the earth.
The ravines opened earlier expanded into wide chasms with no visible bottom.
The orcs that had been scattered across the earth had long been erased by their earlier collision.
The only things remaining in the surrounding space were ruin and craters stretching further than should have been possible.
In the sky, Achilles and Jack Frost had engaged Beru.
Achilles acted as the fighter, matching Beru blow for blow despite the overwhelming gap between them.
Jack Frost was the ranger.
Every opening that appeared, he filled it with hundreds of ice arrows.
Together, they pushed Beru back slowly.
Outside the dungeon, Abaddon’s gaze thinned as he looked at the calamity on the screen.
His eyes were fixed on Prometheus with a focus that suggested familiarity.
"Lord Abaddon, that is Prometheus," Erebus said.
He knew Abaddon had already seen him. He said it anyway, to break the stillness Abaddon had settled into.
Abaddon nodded slowly.
A memory surfaced. The last time he had fought Prometheus, he had barely escaped with his life.
His gaze softened into something close to a smile after a moment.
"Is this not history repeating itself?" Erebus said with furrowed brows.
Abaddon understood what he meant, but he stayed silent, gesturing subtly for Erebus to hold back.
"This will be a different interpretation of that history," he said.
Erebus was shaken to his core by those words.
Abaddon knew exactly how dangerous Prometheus was, and still he chose to believe in Azrael.
What kind of trust was that?
Noticing Erebus’s expression, Abaddon sighed.
"You know what I have been meaning to tell you about Azrael, right?" He asked.
Erebus nodded slowly.
Abaddon smiled and began to recount everything.
Erebus, even with all his composure, stood with his mouth slightly open as he absorbed it.
By the time it was all laid out before him, his gaze had narrowed to something unreadable.
At this point, he felt Abaddon was not placing nearly enough trust in Azrael.
Everything Azrael already possessed was sufficient to make him the most talented being in the universe.
And that was not an exaggeration.
Erebus’s face gradually returned to calm.
"I know it has been a very long time since I said this," Erebus began.
He paused, letting the weight of what was coming settle between them.
"But you have done really well, Abaddon."
As he spoke, he placed a hand on Abaddon’s shoulder.
Abaddon’s expression faltered.
His mind seemed to leave his body and return all at once.
The cold and stoic mask he always carried was gone.