Journey to Become the Zenith

The Final Gamble

"[Abyss Dominion]."

Darkness erupted upward.

Every falling lance entered the expanding sphere—

And dissolved into nothingness.

The entire attack disappeared before touching the ground.

Even Alibaba remained silent for several seconds.

Victor lowered his scythe.

"You’ve lived for over a thousand years."

"I expected something more interesting."

Alibaba’s emerald flames flickered violently.

"...Interesting."

Without warning, dozens of new magic circles appeared behind him.

Unlike before...

None of them attacked immediately.

Victor narrowed his golden eyes.

For the first time since the battle began...

Alibaba wasn’t using ordinary offensive magic.

He was layering spells together.

One after another.

One upon another.

Each magic circle rotated at a different speed.

Different colors.

Different runes.

Different elements of death, frost, darkness, decay, and cursed mana intertwined into a single terrifying formation.

Victor’s smile widened.

"...Finally."

"That’s more like it."

Alibaba slowly raised both skeletal arms.

The battlefield trembled.

The earth beneath them groaned as countless streams of corrupted mana gathered toward the center of the formation.

An enormous altar-like magic circle slowly emerged beneath Victor’s feet.

Ancient symbols glowed one after another.

Even the air itself became heavy.

From the walls of Fantom City, everyone instinctively held their breath.

Although they still couldn’t hear the conversation...

They could clearly feel one thing.

The real battle...

Had only just begun.

"Three."

Alibaba’s emerald flames flickered violently.

Even back then... even when Demon Lord Anos stood at the very peak of his power... I survived a direct encounter with him.

There has to be a way...

Victor remained completely still, the Death Scythe resting lightly against his shoulder. His golden eyes never left Alibaba, as though he were waiting for prey to make its final move.

The battlefield had fallen into absolute silence.

Far away, those standing atop the walls of Fantom City could only see the two figures facing each other.

No one could hear a single word.

Only Victor and Alibaba knew what was happening.

"Four."

Alibaba’s skeletal fingers trembled.

What should I do?

His thoughts raced through countless possibilities.

Fight?

Escape?

Negotiate?

Every option seemed to lead toward the same end.

Death.

Victor slowly raised the Death Scythe.

Its black blade reflected the crimson sunset.

"F—"

"Wait!"

Before Victor could finish counting, Alibaba suddenly raised one skeletal hand.

Victor stopped.

A vicious grin slowly spread across his face.

"Oh?"

"Are you finally willing to fight until the end?"

His fighting spirit surged once more.

The air around him distorted under the pressure alone.

Instead of preparing another spell...

Alibaba slowly lowered himself onto one knee.

He performed an ancient salute.

One that had disappeared thousands of years ago.

It was the formal way demons pledged themselves before their sovereign.

"I want to serve you, my lord."

His voice echoed quietly.

"Surely at this time you would need someone like me as your right-hand man."

"With my ability..."

"...I can become another General Monênàch."

Victor’s smile slowly disappeared.

General Monênàch...

One of the greatest generals from the former Demon Empire.

The Immortal Warrior.

Commander of every undead legion.

A being feared across countless battlefields.

For a brief instant...

Old memories surfaced.

Then—

Victor burst into laughter.

"HAHAHAHAHA!"

The laughter echoed across the ruined battlefield.

"You?"

"The same as Monênàch?"

He pointed the Death Scythe toward Alibaba.

"You’re not even fit to lick his shoes."

"Enough of this farce."

"If you’re not going to do anything..."

"...then die."

Alibaba immediately spoke again.

"I have news about your son."

"I know what happened after the coup."

Victor’s expression remained unchanged.

"I don’t care about that."

"The life of my traitorous son is not something I care about."

"Though..."

"I’m glad he gave me the gift of dying in battle."

"Whatever happened afterward..."

"...is no longer my concern."

Alibaba continued desperately.

"What about the Demon Empire?"

"Aren’t you curious why humans became the rulers of the continent?"

Victor looked almost bored.

"Why should I care?"

"If the demons lost everything..."

"...then they were simply too weak."

"The moment Demon Lord Anos died..."

"...those connections died with him."

His eyes turned cold.

"If that’s all you’re going to say..."

"...then die."

Victor stepped forward.

The Death Scythe slowly rose.

At that exact moment—

Alibaba’s body erupted with mana.

Dozens of magic circles appeared around him.

He immediately began chanting.

Victor stopped.

Then...

He smiled.

That frightening smile.

So that’s it...

You finally decided to fight.

You were simply trying to waste my time.

Hoping the backlash from the dungeon core would arrive before the battle ended.

Victor silently watched him continue chanting.

Alibaba intentionally prolonged every sentence.

He had already completed the spell’s structure.

Yet he continued adding unnecessary verses.

Ancient words.

Meaningless extensions.

Anything to buy another second.

Another heartbeat.

Another chance.

Victor clicked his tongue.

"Unleash it already, Alibaba."

"I already know you’ve finished the spell."

"You’ve gathered enough mana."

"You’ve already completed the spell formula."

"All that’s left..."

"...is activation."

"If you don’t release it now..."

"...prepare to die without a fight."

Alibaba knew he had been exposed.

There was no point delaying any longer.

His emerald flames exploded violently.

"So be it..."

He slammed both skeletal hands together.

"[Eternal Freeze]."

The world instantly changed.

An endless tide of absolute frost spread across the battlefield.

The earth froze solid.

Dead trees shattered into crystal fragments.

The frozen ground expanded farther and farther until even the outskirts near the walls of Fantom City became covered with white frost.

Soldiers standing atop the walls gasped.

Their armor rapidly became coated in ice.

Some collapsed immediately from the unbearable cold.

Others desperately helped the wounded retreat farther back.

Even Ruby and Natalia instinctively circulated their mana just to resist the freezing air.

Videl narrowed her sapphire eyes.

"...Victor."

Lane clenched both fists.

Neither woman could interfere.

They could only watch.

At the center of the battlefield...

An enormous mountain of ice erupted from the earth.

It swallowed Victor whole.

Layer after layer.

The mountain continued growing until it towered over everything nearby.

The battlefield became completely silent.

Alibaba stared at the frozen mountain.

"...It worked."

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