Chapter 138: Ch 136 - Vanica Zogratis
"Hey everyone! 🎉 Let's give a huge, thunderous welcome to our newest adventurers, Legend Wolfpack Studios and Legend frandley mesidor! With them on board, our journey just got even more exciting and fun!"
🌟 These legends have taken the plunge, joined our exclusive crew, and are now getting all the extra perks and early access on this amazing journey!
Who's ready to follow in his and many others' footsteps? 😉 Don't miss out—there's a whole world waiting for you too!
***********************************
"Aww, you remembered my gift, Loro-chan." Vanica giggled, eyeing the queen of the Heart Kingdom. "Don't worry, I had to leave early last time because of some boring Megicula stuff. But I promise we can have all the fun we want today!"
Lolopechka swallowed hard, her hands trembling as she gripped her staff. She summoned both her courage and righteous anger, meeting Vanica's crazed eyes with a resolute glare. "If I'm the one you want, why did you attack the innocent people of my kingdom? Why spread such wanton death and destruction?!"
"Hmm? Oh that~" Vanica tapped a finger against her cheek in mock thoughtfulness, before her face contorted into a disturbing grin. "I just figured you'd be more into our little fight this way."
"W-What...?" Lolopechka stared at her in disbelief, the color draining from her face.
Vanica spread her hands, giggling maniacally. "Aww, don't you get it? This was the only way to make you fight me seriously! I thought threatening your precious people would really light a fire under you."
The horrifying realization crashed over the queen like a tidal wave. Her eyes went hollow, despair settling like a stone in her gut.
"This...this is all my fault. My people are suffering because of m-"
"DON'T LISTEN TO HER NONSENSE!" A voice boomed across the gardens.
Gadjah, the queen's loyal Spirit Guardian, stepped forward, his face twisted in outrage. "None of this is your fault, my queen!"
He rounded on Vanica, magic crackling around his clenched fists. "YOU MONSTER! What the hell gives you the right to toy with human lives?!"
Vanica looked at him as if seeing him for the first time, one eyebrow arched. "Huh? Why is some no-name extra talking to me?"
"No name?Extra?" Gadjah seethed, his body shaking with barely contained fury. His grimoire floated up, flipping open to a glowing page. Thrusting out a hand, he unleashed a massive bolt of lightning, the air sizzling as it streaked toward the devil host at blinding speed.
But Vanica merely raised a hand, an inky black mana shield materializing effortlessly. She cackled as the lightning splashed harmlessly against it. "Oooh, so scary! You really are pathetically weak though. As if you could ever lay a finger on me."
She made a shooing motion at Gadjah, as if he was an annoying fly. "Now run along, nobody. Loro-chan and I have a playdate, and she doesn't need you hiding her anymore!"
Lolopechka opened her mouth to retort, magic glowing around her hands - but then she froze. Her eyes went wide as she sensed an immense, unfamiliar power materialize behind Vanica.
"So you're the one ruining my good mood with your screeching, bitch?"
An icy voice cut through the air.
Vanica whipped around to see a man in a dark coat standing there, his eyes fixed on her in a frigid glare. She tilted her head. "Oooh? And who might you be-"
BOOM!
Vanica's question transformed into a gurgle as a fist smashed into her face with a sonic boom, sending her rocketing backward in a spray of blood and shattered teeth. She crashed to the ground in a crumpled heap twenty meters away, gasping in pain and shock.
The newcomer cracked his knuckles, sneering down at her in disgust. "Tch. Annoying loudmouth bitch."
He glanced over at the astonished Gadjah and Lolopechka. "You two - get out of here and look after those injured people. I'll handle this cackling hyena."
"But wait, she's-" Lolopechka began to protest, but a cheery voice cut her off.
"Yoohoo~! I'm baaack!"
Vanica sprang to her feet, all signs of injury gone. She dusted off her skirt, grinning from ear to ear. "Loro-chan, you didn't tell me you made such an interesting friend!"
She scrutinized the man, eyes gleaming. "Aha, I get it now. You're the one who broke my little curse, aren't you? And so easily too!"
The man smirked, giving a mocking shrug. "Oh, you mean that pathetic excuse for a spell? Yeah, it was so weak I almost felt sorry for whoever cast it. Truly pitiful."
Something flickered across Vanica's face - uncertainty? Fear?
'What is this?!' She wondered, goosebumps rising on her skin. 'I...I can't sense his presence at all. It's like he's not even there!'
She grinned even wider, but a bead of sweat rolled down her brow. 'His power...it's like nothing I've ever encountered. Incredible...'
The man chuckled, taking a step forward - and vanished. Vanica only had a millisecond to register a whoosh of displaced air before his grinning face was inches from her own.
"Peekaboo."
BOOM!
Another shockwave blasted through the gardens as his fist buried itself in Vanica's gut with horrific force. Her eyes bulged, blood spraying from her mouth as her insides seemed to crumple in on themselves.
But despite the devastating blow, she managed to spin away, flipping acrobatically to land in a crouch some distance away. She coughed, spitting out a glob of blood, but her smile never wavered.
"Yoohoo, over here!" She sang out, waving cheerfully as if they were playing a game of tag.
"Vanica."
"Eh?" The devil host looked around in confusion for a moment, before her eyes glazed over. "Ugh, what do you want, Megicula? I'm kinda in the middle of something here."
Deep in Vanica's mind, the devil's voice echoed, unusually stern. "That man...be careful, Vanica. There's more to him than meets the eye."
"Oh reeeaaally?" Vanica perked up, curiosity piqued. "Sounds like you know something juicy! C'mon, spill it!"
"I...I'm not certain," Megicula admitted, and there was an unsettling note in her voice that Vanica had never heard before - trepidation. "But I can feel my own power resonating with his...how very peculiar."
Vanica blinked. "Resonating? Wait, so is he like, another devil host?"
"Yes," Megicula confirmed. "But the signature is strange, muted. If there is a devil in him, it must be a weak, low-ranking one. However..."
"However...?" Vanica pressed.
"He has some other power. Something...primal. Dangerous. It unsettles even me."
A rare admission for the haughty high-ranking devil.
"Well, isn't that something!" Vanica murmured. "Looks like this little playdate just got a whole lot more fu-"
Her musings evaporated as she felt a breath of warm air on her cheek. Her head snapped to the side and she found herself nose to nose with the mysterious man. He smiled pleasantly.
"Yo."
"Eep!" Vanica yelped, backpedaling frantically to put distance between them. Cold sweat plastered her clothes to her skin.
'H-How? I didn't see him move at all! What insane speed!'
"Hmmm, just as I thought," The man said from behind her.
Vanica spun around so fast she almost fell over. He was examining her with a critical eye, like a sculptor analyzing a block of marble.
"You have an exceptionally punchable face. It just begs for a beating, y'know?" He cracked his knuckles again, grinning savagely.
"Grrrr, you smug son of a bitch!" Vanica snarled, a manic light igniting in her eyes. Inky black blood magic enveloped her hands, extending into vicious curving talons. "I'll rip that cocky look right off your face!"
SWOOSH!
Her blood claws scythed through the air, black mana radiating from the deadly slashes. But the man dodged them with uncanny grace, as if the lethal strikes were merely errant breezes.
Vanica continued her relentless assault, clawing and swiping with blinding speed, yet not a single blow landed.
The man ducked a whistling swipe that would've decapitated a normal human, then thrust his arm forward.
A reddish aura flared around his fist, pulsing with the crystallized will of Supreme King Haki.
"Let me show you what a real attack looks like!"
BOOOM!!
His fist never even made contact. But the shockwave of sheer punching force that erupted from his arm hammered into Vanica like an artillery shell. The phenomenon of Internal Destruction shredded her organs, pulverized her bones, and sent her blasting backward like a ragdoll caught in a hurricane.
CRAAAASH!!
She smashed through the outer palace walls like they were made of cardboard, the ancient stone crumbling around her broken body as she cratered into the courtyard beyond.
The man shook out his hand, an irritated look creasing his brow. For a moment, memories of a certain arrogant Witch Queen and her insufferable smugness flickered through his mind.
"What a pain in my ass..."
"Hee hee...ah ha ha...HAHAHAHA!!"
Insane, discordant laughter echoed through the ruined palace entrance. Bloodied and battered, Vanica rose unsteadily to her feet, her grin stretching wider than should be humanly possible. Her one visible eye had transformed into an alien, cross-pupils orb, radiating manic glee.
"Oooh, we're gonna have SUCH fun, Mystery Man! But I think it's time I stopped playing around." She flexed her fingers, an aura of malevolent power swelling around her.
"Let's kick this up a notch! 50%! RELEASE!"
BOOOM!
A pillar of midnight energy exploded out of Vanica, the shockwave cracking the ground at her feet. She rose into the air as a pair of twisted horns sprouted from her brow and leathery bat wings unfurled from her back. Occult symbols etched themselves across the left side of her body, and her fanged canines elongated into primal tusks.
She cackled madly, flapping her new wings with relish. "Ahhh, much better! You're in for it now, Mr. Hero!"
The man narrowed his eyes, unimpressed by the grotesque transformation. He rested a hand on the hilt of the strange blade sheathed at his waist.
"Before you were just butt-ugly. But now? Whew, you're straight-up hideous. I'm gonna enjoy rearranging your face."
Vanica's grin faltered for just a second, a flicker of uncertainty in her transfigured eye. But she quickly recovered, throwing her head back in mad laughter.
"Bring it, Mystery Man! Show me what you can really do! Because now..." The eldritch symbols on her skin flared with bloody light. "...The kiddie gloves are OFF!"
Thus begins the true battle between the eccentric hunter and the cackling devil host...
--- ✦ ✦ ✦ ---
Hello, dear readers! 🦉
Thank you for being part of this thrilling journey from day one. Your support means everything, and I hope each chapter has sparked excitement and given you some unforgettable moments!
If you've enjoyed my stories and want to help keep this adventure going strong, consider joining my Patreon! For as little as $2, you'll unlock extra chapters, exclusive art, and tons of perks.
🌟 Here's what's available now:
Extra Content Ready for You:
☀️ Wandering in Omniverse: 85 extra chapters!
🌙 My Life in Multiverse: 75 extra chapters!
⭐ The Otherworldly Monarch: 10 extra chapters!
One Piece: The Emperor Luffy: 10 extra chapters!
🤞🏻 JJK: The Cursed Child: 5 extra chapters!
❤️🔥 Asmodeus: A Sinful Tale: 5 extra chapters!
🌏 MHA: A Dark Apostle
♛ A Gangster Paradise
💫 With daily chapters for Wandering in Omniverse and My Life in Multiverse, weekly updates for MHA, and three chapters a week for all others, there's always something to enjoy!
Even if Patreon isn't for you, you can still get early access to chapters by becoming a free member on the platform! Your support, in any form, keeps these stories alive and growing.
Thank you for being a part of this journey. May these stories bring excitement and inspiration to your life, and I look forward to bringing you many more adventures!
🔮 Myth Guild 🦉
Patreon: patreon.com/Myth_Valley
Want to donate directly?
Visit: buymeacoffee.com/myth_valley