The First Heavenly King’s Return

Such arrogant words caused the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior to pause for an extra second or two, his gaze fixed on Sovenia. Behind his faceplate, his eyes meticulously assessed her combat prowess.

This elf possessed silver hair, golden eyes, and strikingly long legs. A veil obscured half her face, and in her hand, she clutched a silver sword.

Moments ago, she had dispatched three mere grunts with a fiery blade. Now, an undeniable aura of confidence emanated from her entire being.

But what did any of that matter?

The crimson full plate armor adorning his body wasn’t merely worn; it had grown from him. Blessed by the Blood God, this armor was fused with his flesh, making it tougher than any forged steel. Swords could not pierce it, nor axes shatter it.

He towered over her, his height significantly greater. His weight, at least two hundred kilograms, was comprised entirely of muscle and armor.

She, by contrast, weighed perhaps sixty kilograms? It seemed even less.

The longblade in his hands boasted a blade one and a half meters long, wielded with both hands, capable of cleaving a man in two. Her sword, though beautifully crafted of silver-white elven design, was merely a sword, lacking any armor-piercing capabilities.

Four Demon Hounds, the size of calves, with menacing fangs and sharp claws, flanked him. She, however, stood utterly alone.

As for her prior flame attack, he felt he could withstand two such blows without moving, then simply bat her head clean off with a single swipe.

In that fleeting second, his battle instincts screamed a single conclusion: ‘The advantage is mine.’

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior grinned.

“Listen closely, little elf,” he snarled. “Do you truly believe you are Jimi the Cruel? I’m going to sever your legs. Both of them. I’ll preserve them as trophies and hang them on my back, a grim memento of you.”

He raised his longblade, its tip pointing directly at Sovenia’s knee.

“Your head,” he continued, “I will offer to the Blood God. Your body, I will feed to my hounds.”

He took a step forward. The Demon Hounds padded beside him, growling low, their drool dripping onto the ground.

“Do you know?” he said, a cruel glint in his eyes. “Elf flesh is incredibly tender. My dogs will adore it.”

Sovenia, however, did not retreat. Instead, she continued her advance. As a seasoned player, she possessed a ‘victory equation’ so deeply ingrained it had become instinct. A mere glance at her draw pile was enough for her to know that in the next turn, she would inevitably draw every card into her hand.

The victory equation was deceptively simple: the number of cards drawn had to be greater than or equal to the total number of cards in her deck. Currently, her draw pile contained only four cards: [Twin Strike], [Swift Strike+], [Reckless Charge], and [Moonlight Blessing]. These, combined with [Evolve+] and the three cards she would draw next turn, sealed her fate.

With a total draw count of 12 and a deck size of 11, her total draws exceeded her cards. Total Draw Count > Card Count = Victory.

****

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior bellowed, “Attack!”

All four Demon Hounds lunged simultaneously. Their speed was astonishing; their claws gouged deep furrows in the ground, and their fangs glinted menacingly under the moonlight.

Sovenia moved.

The fourth turn began.

She drew three cards: [Moonlight Blessing], [Reckless Charge], [Swift Strike+].

She played [Reckless Charge].

Her entire body accelerated instantly, transforming into a silver flash that streaked directly towards the foremost Demon Hound. The Moonlit Blade, clutched in her hand, reflected the moon’s ethereal glow.

The Demon Hound lunged, its maw gaping, fangs snapping for her throat.

Sovenia executed a direct thrust, piercing the Demon Hound’s skull and emerging from the top of its head.

The Demon Hound’s body froze mid-air. In that very instant of paralysis, Sovenia, with a blink of an eye, played [Moonlight Blessing] to draw three cards. She then drew [Stun], which triggered [Evolve+] for another draw, before playing [Twin Strike] and [Swift Strike+], drawing her entire deck into her hand.

The rustling sound of cards being drawn and shuffled echoed in her mind. With practiced speed, Sovenia played her cards, unleashing a flurry of attacks powered by their inherent might.

To the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s eyes, Sovenia suddenly blurred into an indistinct shadow.

Her sword, now imbued with sudden power, ripped free from the Demon Hound’s head. She unleashed two swift attacks, striking at the two remaining Demon Hounds on either side.

The second Demon Hound, mid-leap, had its throat slit. The third, just as it sprang upwards, had its chest impaled.

Sword light flashed, too rapid to follow. Sovenia’s body moved through the ruins like a cheetah: elegant, swift, and utterly lethal.

As the first Demon Hound’s corpse hit the ground, the other two followed almost simultaneously, joining it in the embrace of death.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s grin faltered. His battle instincts screamed.

‘This is wrong,’ his mind shrieked. ‘This elf’s speed is unnatural, her attack frequency impossible.’

Yet, another part of his intuition assured him: ‘She is still far from killing me. Far from enough.’

He roared, “My hounds!” Gripping his longblade with both hands, he charged Sovenia.

His heavy footsteps made the very ground tremble. The crimson armor reflected an eerie sheen under the moonlight.

Sovenia did not retreat. She met his charge head-on, her unbound silver hair streaming behind her, her face behind the veil utterly devoid of expression.

The distance between them rapidly closed: five meters, three, two.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior raised his longblade high, bringing it down with a furious, full-bodied strike. It was a heavy, overwhelming blow, and by his own sense of distance, this attack would undeniably connect! It would surely shatter Sovenia’s defenses, cleaving her fragile body in two.

Sovenia showed no fear.

She knew that playing cards with draw effects—[Swift Strike+] (draw two cards) and [Reckless Charge] (which, under the effect of [Evolve], allowed [Stun] to draw two cards)—would result in four cards drawn. With only two cards left in her deck, the equation was 2 – 4 = -2.

This meant she could play both [Reckless Charge] and [Swift Strike+] for just one energy, then immediately draw them back into her hand, allowing her to play them repeatedly.

Plugging these parameters into her victory equation yielded an astonishing result: a 1000% chance of triumph.

Sovenia rapidly played [Reckless Charge], [Swift Strike+], [Reckless Charge], [Swift Strike+], [Reckless Charge]…

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior watched, aghast, as the seemingly fragile elf maiden’s body suddenly moved with a speed akin to a spasm.

*Clang! Clang!*

The Moonlit Blade struck his longblade twice in rapid succession, the clash of metal reverberating through the ruins.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s longblade was knocked aside, striking obliquely into the ground.

Then, like a sudden downpour, the Moonlit Blade rained blows upon his weapon-gripping fingers. Upward slashes, horizontal cuts, downward chops… five attacks, all executed in less than a second.

The sword, a tempest of silver light, hammered relentlessly against the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s hands.

His gauntlets should have offered protection, but they could not withstand such a deluge of strikes.

*Snap! Crack! Crunch!*

One by one, the knuckles of his gauntlets shattered.

In a spray of blood and steel, all ten of the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s fingers were severed.

This brutal exchange had unfolded in just the second second of their confrontation.

He let out a horrific shriek. “Aaaargh!”

The longblade flew from his grasp, spinning through the air before embedding itself in the ruins ten meters away.

Her assault complete, Sovenia retreated a single step, holding her sword defensively, its tip angled towards the ground.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior stared down at his hands.

From the stumps of his ten severed fingers, blood gushed like a fountain, dripping onto the earth.

He roared, “I will kill you!” Spreading his arms wide, he lunged at Sovenia. “I’ll tear you apart with my bare hands!”

“Hmph,” Sovenia scoffed.

With her entire deck now in her hand, she could play any card she desired.

Sovenia played [Twin Strike] combined with [Blazing Strike+3].

The Moonlit Blade’s surface instantly became wreathed in fiery red flames. This was no ordinary fire; it was the destructive power transmuted from the free card energy surging from the depths of her soul.

Sovenia met his charge, but just as they were about to clash, she sidestepped, gracefully evading the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s frantic lunge. They passed each other in a blur.

She spun, the Moonlit Blade tracing a vertical silver arc at her side before accurately cleaving into the back of his left knee.

Flames erupted with explosive force.

The crimson plate armor began to melt under the inferno. The bone at his knee carbonized from the intense heat, and his muscles charred to cinders.

With a sickening *snap*, his lower leg separated from his thigh.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s body lost balance, tilting precariously to the left.

Sovenia’s second strike followed instantly. It was another horizontal slash, aimed at the back of his right knee, unleashing the same flames, the same searing heat, the same utter destruction.

*Snap.*

His right lower leg, too, fell away.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s massive body crashed to the ground.

He propped himself up on his hands, his fingerless palms scraping against the rubble, leaving trails of blood.

His voice, hoarse and filled with fury, grated from within his helmet. “I… I will kill you…”

“I will…”

Sovenia stood before him, looking down. Her golden eyes remained utterly devoid of emotion.

“I retract my earlier statement,” she declared.

“In my legion,” she continued, “you would merely be considered… a grunt.”

It was only then that the fourth Demon Hound finally lunged. Not out of fear or hesitation, but because its master’s defeat had been too swift. It sprang from Sovenia’s side, its fangs aiming for her neck.

Sovenia thrust her sword.

The Moonlit Blade pierced through the Demon Hound’s mouth, traversed its brain, and emerged from the back of its skull.

The Demon Hound twitched once in mid-air before Sovenia flung its corpse before the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior stared at the dog’s lifeless form, blood-tears welling in his eyes. “My hounds…”

“My hounds…”

“They died swiftly,” Sovenia stated.

“You will, too.”

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior roared, lunging forward once more.

The fifth turn began.

Sovenia circled around behind the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior.

He tried to turn, but without legs, he could only drag himself across the ground with his fingerless hands.

Sovenia placed a foot on his back. It wasn’t a heavy step, but it was enough to pin him face down.

“You… you cannot kill me…” the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior gasped.

“I am a worshipper of the Blood God… the Blood God will…”

“The Blood God does not care for you,” Sovenia interrupted.

She raised her sword and played [Blazing Strike+3]. Flames once again enveloped the blade, and Sovenia brought it down in a decisive cleave.

The Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s head separated from his body, rolling to the side. It spun a few times on the ground before coming to a stop, his eyes still open within the helmet.

Sovenia sheathed her sword and surveyed the surrounding corpses. Eight in total, a sight that brought her considerable pleasure.

Battle intent surged anew within her. Not the desperate will to survive, but the proactive, exhilarating urge to kill.

Decapitating foes was still the simplest joy.

Sovenia began collecting the heads. She severed each one, stacking them together until the eight skulls formed a small mound.

She crouched, dipped a finger in blood, and drew the Blood God’s emblem on the ground. After arranging the eight heads, she stood and placed her foot squarely on the Blood-Plated Demon Warrior’s skull.

At that moment, a strand of her loose silver hair brushed against her face. She glanced at her reflection, annoyed by how Wawalde had haphazardly tied a blue ribbon around a few locks, making it look incredibly uncomfortable.

With a flick of her head, Sovenia swept her unbound silver hair over her shoulder. Her hands, moving with the practiced grace of a cat grooming itself, skillfully smoothed her hair. Her fingers deftly wove a fishtail braid in less than a minute, finally securing the blue ribbon at the end with a butterfly knot.

As the fishtail braid fell to her waist, swaying gently, the blue ribbon fluttered like a dancing butterfly. Sovenia reached out and patted it.

Only then did she begin to chant the Blood God’s praise, offering the skulls to the Blood God. “Blood for the Blood God, Skulls for the Skull Throne!”

Her voice echoed through the desolate ruins, imbued with majesty and power. She was in high spirits, as if she had returned to her former glory as the First Heavenly King, commanding armies, striking fear into the hearts of her enemies.

She waited. She waited for the Blood God’s gaze, for that familiar surge of power to flood her entire being.

One second.

Five seconds.

Ten seconds.

…

Nothing happened.

The air was dead silent, save for the mournful whisper of the wind. The Blood God was clearly uninterested in the offerings of an elven maiden, or perhaps, simply hadn’t noticed her at all.

Sovenia’s expression froze.

Only then did she remember that she was Sovenia now, not Jimi. She bore none of the Four Gods’ marks, and her soul was no longer linked to those malevolent deities.

An indescribable wave of awkwardness and loss washed over her. She sighed softly, removing her foot from the skull.

However, this emotion lasted only a moment.

She quickly regained her composure. The flames of ambition and battle intent rekindled in her golden eyes.

What if she lacked the Blood God’s aid? She still had herself, and her deck. She would return to the Demon King’s Palace. While the Demon Queen and that ‘Skullcrusher’ clashed in fierce battle, she would seize the opportunity to reclaim her own head, then kill the Demon Queen and usurp her position.

Even if hope was faint, even if her current strength meant she was little more than cannon fodder in a battle of that magnitude, she would still go.

She would rather be blasted into dust on the path to reclaiming her power than remain forever trapped in this frail, pain-sensitive, easily blushing and tearful elven body!

Oh, and that idiot dog, Wawalde.

The mere thought of Wawalde made Sovenia’s deliberately ignored backside ache anew.

If… if she succeeded, reclaimed her strength, eliminated the Demon Queen, and became the new Demon King, she would never allow Wawalde to die easily. She would capture him alive, imprison him, and thoroughly study what exactly went on in that foolish head of his.

And yes. She would absolutely, mercilessly, spank his backside!

At this thought, Sovenia, usually expressionless, wore a somewhat twisted grin. But then, a searing pain from her buttocks made her gasp. Wawalde’s relentless slaps still throbbed faintly.

‘This damned fragile body!’

She rubbed her backside, her face alternating between pale and flushed. Her grand revenge plan was instantly dragged back to humiliating reality by this ill-timed ache.

She glanced west, the direction Wawalde had pointed as an escape route, suggesting she take his mercy and inherit his legacy. ‘Hmph, ridiculous.’

The wild boar emblem on the ground glinted, a relic of Wawalde’s comrades.

Sovenia paused, then walked back to where Wawalde had left her, gathering the relics. She then cast a look towards the Demon King’s Palace.

The battle within the Demon King’s Palace had already stained the blood-red sky with bizarre colors. Explosions roared ceaselessly, and faint roars of colossal beasts mingled with the screams of the dying.

Innumerable demon soldiers surged like a tide from all directions towards the palace. And she, a slender silver figure, was merely one flowing against that current, tiny yet immeasurably resolute.

‘Idiot dog, you had better stay alive,’ she thought. ‘The First Heavenly King will surely repay this humiliation.’

Sovenia endured the pain in her buttocks, clutching her backside as she walked towards the Demon King’s Palace.