The Demon Monarch System

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"Oh, my damn!" Valac screeched as he braced himself. Although Fuhrer's barrier dissipated most of the attack, it didn't absorb the shock. Almost everyone within the barrier lost their footing when the terrifying attack bombarded the Wrath Blanket.

Fortunately, Fuhrer sacrificed a substantial amount of Ira to fortify the barrier. Otherwise, there was a chance of it shattering because of the sheer force behind Apollo's attack.

As Fuhrer mentioned once before, each Annihilation grew progressively stronger. In fact, it was because of this technique that Fuhrer loathed battle against the Ruthless Queen. 

Since their powers were essentially equal, the Ruthless Queen could erase all of Fuhrer's attacks with a ruthless move. Unless he was willing to expend his entire repertoire of techniques, it was difficult to claim an advantage over the Ruthless Queen.

Especially since she prioritized the power of Aura over Sins. Whereas a powerful demon could neutralize another's Sin, it was challenging to do so with Aura. After all, Aura was a unique principle, and although some demons possessed the same aura, it wasn't identical.

It was based on a demon's innate traits. So, while two demons could possess the same Aura of Destruction, that didn't mean it would produce the same effects.

Meanwhile, after unleashing that earlier strike, Apollo exhaled deeply. Although the usage of the technique accompanied no pain, he noticed something odd. 

'Who was that?' Apollo muttered to himself. During the beginning stage of the technique, he felt a link to a dreadful entity. Though something unknown obscured their presence, Apollo was sure that this individual was familiar.

However, he wasn't sure if the image was from the past or present. All he saw was a scene of utter destruction, including a desolate background with a solitary figure standing in the center of that destruction.

'Could that have been Asteroth? Is this a sign not to fight him?' Apollo thought while taking a seat. He felt a small prick on his neck again as Ouroboros transferred another large portion of Ira to replenish his exhausted reserves.

Still in thought, Apollo scratched Ouroboros scale. 

Suddenly, Fuhrer appeared next to Apollo with a pleased expression, "I suggest you take the time to familiarize yourself with unleashing that technique. For now, you should turn it into your trump card against Asteroth."

"You don't think the Third Annihilation will be enough?"

"If you were an Archdemon, maybe. But as of right now? No. He possesses the means to destroy your nebula. As I said before, Gula is tricky to resolve, but it's not impervious," Fuhrer answered truthfully, which made Apollo nod in response.

Even he knew that although he possessed the Endless Devouring trait, his current nebula had a finite limit. There were two ways to overwhelm. Either feed it more Sin than it could consume, which could also be done by overloading the absorption rate with a ridiculous sin volume in a short time frame, or shatter the nebula with an overbearing force.

Both methods were complicated unless performed by an enemy with the corresponding abilities. In Asteroth's case, the power he revealed inside the tower was more than enough for Fuhrer to draw this conclusion.

Despite how little he could sense, Fuhrer gained a clear understanding once Asteroth blew the wall apart. To go against Asteroth, Apollo would need the Fourth Annihilation. However, until earlier, he was unsure of the best way to provoke the appearance of the technique.

Luckily, Apollo requested a spar, which gave Fuhrer the idea of pushing him into a difficult situation. And, just as he assumed, a true demon thrived amid extreme adversity.

Or, in Apollo's case, he thrived when his desires escaped reason. A hidden trait of his bloodline was the ability to transform emotion into power, or the means to conquer if it was within his capacity. 

"I see," Apollo answered while turning towards the other demons. Most of them looked at him with a reverent expression after experiencing the unfathomable danger of his last attack. 

On the other hand, Typhir was thoroughly surprised as he compared it against his strongest attack in his most powerful state. 'That attack was at least twice as strong as mine. And, it didn't seem like he relied on Gram to accomplish this effect.'

Since the Fourth Annihilation was an aura-based attack and only possible with a select few auras, Gram couldn't amplify the attack outside its base 125%. Still, that additional increase was one of the core reasons Apollo's attack grew so monstrous.

Gram was indeed a spectacular weapon.

Apollo's brows furrowed when he noticed none of the demons were absorbing the Ira in this place. "Did I disturb you all?"

"YUP! It's your fault! So you can't punish us!" Valac blurted. However, he instantly covered his mouth as he witness Apollo's darkening countenance. "N-no… My Lord! Please don't!"

Apollo ignored his plea and swiped his hand upwards. As a demon under Apollo's Adamantine Servitude, Apollo didn't need much aura to control Valac. So, even with his piddling amount of aura left, he drew Valac towards him.

Once Valac floated before Apollo, he smirked. "Repeat that for me? I couldn't hear you clearly."

"I said, My Lord is magnificent. There is no greater," Valac muttered shamelessly. 

However, even Typhir shook his head. "He's done. Everyone, get back to absorbing the Ira."

While the others returned to increasing their purity, Apollo gradually relinquished the aura holding Valac in place. "Sit." 

At first, Valac was surprised by this outcome, but ultimately took a seat next to Apollo with a dubious expression. 'Am I not being punished?'

"I need you to venture to Suprenis," Apollo stated suddenly.

"W-wait what?! I can't go back there right now. What about Tirasha?" Valac complained. Although he overpowered her at first, it was a marginal win. Even he was surprised by Tirasha's potential.

And, now that she was given extra time and resources, Valac wasn't sure just how strong she had grown.

"Oh? Could it be true that you're the household's weakest link them?" Apollo teased, but it stimulated Valac's fury. Although he was shameless on the surface, Valac's lead sin was Superbia. Thus, he couldn't tolerate the blatant insult.

"W-weakest link!?" Valac sputtered with a baffled expression. "I am not! I am not the weakest link!"

"Oh yeah? Then prove it to me. Go to Suprenis and report the current situation back to me," Apollo said again. Although he could order Valac to go, he didn't feel like doing so. Instead, he wanted to test how helpful Valac could be.

Eventually, Valac grumbled and nodded. "I will go."

"Good," Apollo remarked, but then chuckled. "There's no real danger, anyway. I could have let Fuhrer kill her, so she owes me already. You know what to do when you get there. But, if you cause trouble, I'll allow her to retaliate appropriately.

"W-whaaaat? That's not fair. I'm your follower, not her! Be fair, my Lord!" Valac whimpered.

Unfortunately, Apollo ignored his whining. "That is precisely why. Since you are my follower, how can I allow you to cause a mess if you don't possess the power to resolve it alone? Discipline is what you require. So until then, the others are barred from helping you with any matters that you cause."

Valac sulked, but didn't voice any more disagreement. Because, Apollo's words only stated that he couldn't be helped if he was the source of the problem. Therefore, if the issue wasn't a result of his actions, they were free to assist.

"When do I have to leave?" Valac questioned.

"You and Typhir will leave when we return to Firaria," Apollo determined after giving it some thought. 

After hearing his name, Typhir's attention turned towards Apollo.

"Me?"

"Correct. And, you can take this," Apollo said as he handed Gram to Typhir. As long as he possessed this weapon, the chances of these two falling into danger were slim. Besides, if they genuinely experienced risk, there were still three options available to resolve it.

On the other hand, Fuhrer was surprised by this action, "If you give the weapon away, what will you use?"

In response, Apollo merely smiled. 

Aside from tracking Tirasha's movements, Apollo gave these two another task, "While inside Suprenis, I want you two to find Amduscias and gauge his strength."

"Understood," Typhir nodded.

After giving the matter some thought, Apollo turned towards Fuhrer. Then he turned towards Sapphyr and Geneva. 

"You two don't need to absorb the Ira as much as the others. So, spar with Fuhrer and allow him to help you correct your weaknesses," Apollo said.

Both of them nodded, which propelled the household into a period of training.. During that time, the other members of the household inside Ashiraem worked to devise a safe plan.