The sky above Xerxes turned a violent, blood-red color. The violet aurora that Arthur had created was being pushed aside by a thick, metallic mist that smelled of iron and old battlefields. High in the atmosphere, a colossal figure descended, riding a chariot pulled by four black stallions whose hooves struck lightning from the clouds.
It was Ares, the War God. Unlike Poseidon, who was graceful and fluid, Ares was a walking mountain of muscle and scarred bronze armor. He held a spear that seemed to be vibrating with the screams of a billion fallen soldiers.
"So, you are the little ant who thinks he can stop the Great Harvest?" Ares's voice didn't just boom; it felt like a physical blow to the chest of every human within five hundred miles.
Arthur stood on the balcony of his throne room, his eyes glowing with a dark violet fire. "I've killed two of your brothers already, Ares. One was made of code, and the other was made of water. I wonder... what are you made of?"
Ares roared, jumping from his chariot and crashing into the Himalayan plateau with enough force to trigger a 9.0 magnitude earthquake. He stood in the crater, his spear glowing red. "I am the God of War! I have seen worlds burn before you were even a thought in the Creator's mind! Your 100x Multiplier is a joke! Witness the 'Infinite Slaughter'!"
Ares swung his spear, and thousands of spectral soldiers—the shadows of every warrior Ares had ever killed—erupted from the ground, charging toward Arthur's palace.
Arthur smiled, a cold, majestic grin. "You brought an army to a Shadow Monarch's house? That's your first mistake."
"100x Multiplier... Monarch's Reclamation!"
Arthur didn't attack. He reached out with his mana and touched the spectral soldiers Ares had summoned. Because of the Multiplier, Arthur's 'Reclamation' was a hundred times stronger than Ares's control. In an instant, the red spectral soldiers turned purple. They stopped their charge, turned around, and pointed their weapons at their own God.
Ares's eyes widened behind his bronze helmet. "What?! You stole my soldiers?!"
"I didn't steal them," Arthur said, appearing in front of Ares in a blur of dark gold light. "I just reminded them who the real King of Shadows is. 100x Multiplier... Concept Cut: Courage!"
Arthur's blade sliced through Ares's aura. He didn't cut the god's armor; he cut his 'Will to Fight'.
Suddenly, the God of War felt something he hadn't felt in an eternity: Fear.