The Demon Monarch System

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Since both Typhir and the Iraym decided to catapult the fight towards its end, Typhir picked up Gram. Unlike before, where he stopped to marvel at its power, Typhir simply continued his rush with a thrilled expression.

"Only one of us will remain standing when this all ends!" Typhir bellowed, causing the entire hall to tremble. In his excitement, he unleashed the flood gates to his Ira reserves. Until now, only Anima powered all of Typhir's attacks.

This was all done while keeping Gram in mind. After all, Typhir understood that this was a fight he was incapable of winning without the usage of Gram. Even Apollo understood that. All his bloodline did was bridge the gap in their evolutionary state.

There was still the difference in Sin Purity, and the fact that this Iraym had yet to unleash any terrifying techniques aside from the spear of Ira. However, with the appearance of this armor, it was now a different story.

Now that it operated to its fullest capacity, this Iraym was a genuine threat. 

Though Typhir understood that Apollo wouldn't let him die, that didn't diminish from the fact that he wished to prove his worth as the Leader of the Household. Although it was a minor role, since the state of the household was incomplete, it was still important to Typhir.

In his eyes, the greatest victory would be to receive the position that Fuhrer held with the First Monarch―the right-hand man, otherwise known as the Grand General of the Dominus Army. not only was this the highest title within the household, but it was a role that commanded respect in ancient times.

No matter where Fuhrer went, as long as it didn't involve the 9 Kings of similar strength, Fuhrer was looked at as an object of reverence. Though it paled in comparison to the respect that Monarch received, it was still a shocking sight to witness many innately unruly demons worship someone outside of their leader.

This was the position that Typhir aimed for. And this fight here would be his first step in proving his worth―his ability to claim that right.

Therefore, Typhir let it all loose. His eyes sharpened, and his aura blazed, destroying everything in its wake. According to his earlier assumptions, Typhir felt he could wield this weapon no more than three times, but that was before including his bloodline's properties.

As a bloodline of the Perfected level, the Infernal Destroyer Bloodline was more than enough to deter some of Gram's voracious tendencies. After all, the Infernal Destroyer Bloodline stood at the apex of the bloodlines centered around wrath.

And, as a sword of fury, Gram was a kindred item to Typhir. Therefore, a message appeared within Apollo's view once again, except it differed from the earlier one.

〈System: There is a high affinity between Household Leader and the incomplete armament: Gram, Sword of Fury.〉

〈System: Due to the resonance, the Infernal Destroyer Bloodline has reduced Gram's consumption to 25% of its original value.〉

'Just as I expected. As a berserker, there is no better weapon than a heavy weapon, especially one forged from material found inside Purgatory, the epitome of wrathful places,' Apollo thought to himself while dismissing the notifications before his eyes.

On the other hand, with the consumption experiencing such a drastic reduction, Typhir's original estimation of 3 strikes instantly ballooned to over 10! If he couldn't end the first within 10 strikes, then his current actions were simply biting off more than he could chew.

Granted, it was Apollo who assigned this opponent.

"Arggh!" Typhir roared. Despite being far away, he swung Gram, executing one frightening stroke. Approximately 10 percent of his Ira reserves were drained as an arc of dense Ira hurtled towards the Iraym.

A sense of dread enveloped its mind as the arc closed on its position. Unlike before, where it summoned a single spear to pin Typhir to the wall, the Iraym conjured two―one in each hand. He aimed them at the incoming arc with a sharp thrust.

However, to his surprise, the Iraym was forced back, sliding endlessly as he roared and pushed against the arc. 

All of a sudden, a huge shadow appeared above the Iraym. Expecting Typhir to wait as it dealt with this attack was a foolish belief. While the Iraym tried to resolve the berserk nature of this attack, Typhir leapt high above. 

This time, he funneled twice as much Ira into the strike, condensing the aura of two attacks into one. It was faint, but the outline of a demonic beast appeared around Gram as he lifted it above his head.

"Die!" Typhir roared. He unleashed a downward slash, causing an arc twice the size of the prior one to fly towards the Iraym at astonishing speeds. Because it was held in place, the thought of dodging immediately left its mind. Not only was there no time to do so, but there was also no opportunity, either.

After all, with Gram increasing the power of Typhir's strike by 125%, his first strike rivaled that of an initial Noblesse with no increases from techniques or items. The prospect of skipping an entire realm of power, even if achieved with the help of an item, was simply mind-boggling!

The Iraym's pupil constricted as it watched the arc come within a single meter of its body. Its rage brewed and all of its Ira seethed. A torrential burst of Ira billowed from its body, shattering the arc that held its body in place.

Once that happened, it lifted hands and fortified the Ira used to make its spears. A thick cluster of Hellfire enveloped the outer edges of the spears as it stabbed them towards the incoming arc of frightening power.

It was an immediate contest of strength, but the Iraym's body was forced back a step after experiencing the absurd strength of this attack. This was the strongest attack it faced to date, and it couldn't fathom how this Greater Demon could unleash something like this.

Still, it wasn't going to take this attack sitting down. If it was going to perish, it was going to do with a blaze of glory!

It started drawing upon all sources of strength―bloodline, anima, and Ira―to power the spear in its hands. As a result, it momentarily obtained the power to force the arc back to its initial position. 

But, before it could press the arc any further, an unsettling tremor occurred not too far away.

Typhir landed with a bizarre expression. Part of his body felt like it was falling apart, but because the Iraym had yet to perish, he didn't allow himself to give in to the aftereffects of awakening the 3rd degree of his bloodline just yet.

Slowly, Typhir lifted Gram before him. Wisps of crimson smoke emanated from his body as his stigmata burned through a frightening amount of Ira. The rest was utilized by Gram to condense over 5 strikes worth of Ira into one last stand.

Because of Typhir's stupefying actions, an image akin to some kind of frightening beast appeared behind him. Perhaps it was the original possessor of the bloodline, but from what Apollo saw, this thing seemed to be capable of untold amounts of destruction.

'Is this the manifestation of a bloodline's creator? If so, will I be able to recreate the image of my father?' Apollo wondered. However, he didn't stay focused on this topic for long because this fight was too important to miss.

Finally, Typhir stomped his foot against the ground. He appeared before the Iraym within an instant. Once he did, all of Typhir's aura vanished. All of it remained at the tip of Gram as he smiled.

"The last one standing… is not you," Typhir muttered. In the next instant, Gram stabbed through the Iraym's core. A dreadful hole was burned through its body, as it turned to ash at a rate that allowed it to still speak.

"What… are you all?"

"We're the embodiments of the ancient times. The harbingers of the new era of greatness," Typhir replied. A moment later, he staggered, almost falling over. However, before he fell, Apollo appeared by his side and held his shoulder.

"You've done well. You've shown exactly why I've named you as the leader. I'm sure no one else will want to fight with you after witnessing this display. Am I right?" Apollo questioned with a faint smile as he looked back.

"Oh fucccck no! Are you kidding me? I'm okay!" Valac exclaimed instantly. Similar to his response, the others shook their heads as well.

Meanwhile, the Iraym perish while looking into Apollo's eyes.. There was no anger, it just understood that its sacrifice was an example.