Noctis remembered having woken up out of his stupor after he moved himself aside from Thamana Deuce and panted. Since it was his first time, he might’ve gone a bit wild, but the woman beside him accepted it all, making him feel strange.

Countless thoughts emerged in his mind.

How should he explain this to his parents? How should he explain this to his siblings? It felt so good. He felt like he was in a different world. Was this the reason father looked like he couldn’t have enough women?

Having tasted the kind known as ’women’, he felt like he could actually relate to his father now in terms of experiencing the deed. It enamored him to a great degree, still making him want more.

If it weren’t for the woman having fainted and making him come back to himself, he might still be doing it with no end in sight.

After waiting for her to wake up and cleaning together without uttering a single word while sharing the awkwardness, they returned to the campfire along with the rising of the sun, thoroughly prepared to get berated or grilled by his siblings.

However, what greeted him was a strange sight.

A black-robed man knelt and cried as he extended his hands.

"Ahh... ahhh... what a magnificent deathly wolf beast of the legends..."

This was a sight stranger than a woman throwing herself at him.

Naturally, he was aware of this Great Fiend who was pursuing them for some time. Part of their training was to escape from an Exalt while leaving minimal traces, most of which were just decoys and traps, while still keeping the real one so they could trail him along and practice with real danger present, although the other party took their sweet time finding them.

Mother Nadia and Guardian Rioxys didn’t mention this directly, but he could guess their intentions.

Naturally, he guessed this was only possible with Guardian Rioxys delaying the Great Fiend. Considering it took this long, he could tell that Guardian Rioxys had a great time playing tag with this Great Fiend. As a darkness spirit, Guardian Rioxys would love to scare all lifeforms at the very least, not to mention that she was still a child in terms of mentality, even though she was an adult.

Either way, they were not to make contact with this Great Fiend, since it was possible, since he was just an avatar. There was no telling what he would do after learning who they were.

But now, he knelt and cried? Even going as far as to weep like a child?

"... I can’t... I can’t believe this... the extinct death-attribute wolves, rumored to have been cursed and forsaken by the entire world, have returned...! This form... this aura... You can only be above Emperor-Tier! And that means the Primordial Will of the Deathly Paragon Magical Beast Wolf is still alive and well somehow...!"

The black-robed man’s hand kept shaking and his body quivering as though he was witnessing the glorious moment of his lifetime.

His gaze was affixed on the magnificent beast.

The Deathhowl Revenant Wolf was enormous, but size was never what made immortals or transcendents struggle to comprehend, as they were also capable of enlarging their bodies with techniques. What made his heart pound was the awe-inspiring and fear-inducing appearance.

Her form was filled with a violet-black fur that absorbed light rather than reflected it, and shimmering beneath it were countless runes that glorify the essence of death.

Her ember-crimson mane moved without wind, burning with the defiance of a flame that knew it could not be extinguished since it was probably connected to her soul. The crystalline purplish-crimson horn between her brows glowed with gold-crimson hues. There was no need to say about the pair of black wings and purplish-black tails that, for some reason, were burning like her mane without any form.

Yet, what undid him was her pair of eyes that were like a violet-gold void, blazing with an uncertainty as though staring at them for too long might pull him into the abyss.

The pale-crimson death energy that revolved around her did not rage but drifted slowly in an unbothered manner, making him breathless.

His eyes shimmered as though he had never seen a magnificent lifeform other than this wolf in his life. His expression was filled with satisfaction as though he could die anytime.

Styx and Ragna’s lips twitched.

They were wondering if their mother used the Somber Wake Species Technique that made others cry. It was a remnant species technique from the time when she was a Sunset Mountain Wolf, but as they recalled, this technique could only be used when the sun sets, not when the sun rises, so they wondered if their mother used it at all and if it was even possible to use it at sunrise.

After all, with their mother having become a Mythical-Tier Beast, her species abilities might also show improvement, like how the Three-Tailed Doppelganger Technique was now able to summon three doppelgangers apart from her original self.

In truth, Nadia’s species techniques did improve widely. However, she swore that she didn’t use any technique on this Great Fiend yet, and he already started crying.

"Mmph~"

She harrumphed coldly, causing a surge of pale-crimson death energy shockwave to hit the Great Fiend, causing him to reel back a bit as he was lifted up to his feet and forced to take a few steps back.

He gasped as he saw the magical beast descend.

Deathhowl Revenant Wolf.

However, it was way different, possessing three tails and on top of wings.

This instantly allowed him to know who it was, as this was a characteristic that only one Death Wolf has in this entire galaxy.

"As expected... you’re the Divine Emperor of Death’s Magical Beast Mount, the Nether Springs Death Wolf. To think you evolved into a Deathhowl Revenant Wolf when they had been seen for who knows how long... and... and considering that these youths could use death energy and radiate an aura similar to the Nether Springs Death Wolf..."

The black-robed man sucked in a breath of cold, deathly air.

"How ignorant am I to step into one of the hideouts of the Divine Emperor of Death?"

"Enough. State your intentions."

Nadia stamped her paws on the ground, kicking off a wave of deathly fog shockwave to be released again.

The Great Fiend shook off the probing attack with a wave of his hand, seemingly still concealing his cultivation.

"My intentions?"

He asked, his hands raising to his head before he removed the hood and revealed a head full of white hair, yet he was youthful enough to be considered a eighteen year old. He didn’t seem like an old fart who had his vitality drained by the practice of death energy.

"Let me introduce myself first. My name is Saboath, the youngest Great Fiend, considering that newcomer still isn’t considered a part of the Great Fiend Pit, the loose organization we fit in just to keep ourselves afloat and escape the persecution of the major powers."

Great Fiend Saboath raised his hand and wiped the tears using his sleeves, "Don’t be bothered. I was just deeply moved by the sight of something we thought was lost, but if it’s making a resurgence, I suppose it’s only due to the actions of the Divine Emperor of Death. In truth, I’m a huge sympathizer of the Divine Emperor of Death purely for his ability to use both death and life energy and create reincarnation energy as though it’s second nature to him. I would like to learn from him, but if it’s not possible, I would like to learn from you too."

Nadia narrowed her eyes, "You want my core?"

"Ah! No, no, no!"

Great Fiend Saboath raised his hands and shook them, "I just thought it would be great if I could witness some techniques. I won’t be rude enough to request to see runes, but a glimpse of your energy goes a long way in the advancement of my comprehension of Death Laws."

*Puchi~*

As he spoke, his head abruptly slid off from his neck and fell, causing blood to flow out as a black-robed assassin suddenly appeared from nowhere and beheaded him in a single move without making any sound.

Even those who were witnessing it found it hard to track this newcomer with their sight.

However, Great Fiend Saboath merely caught the falling head and displayed it towards them.

"Persistent! Not a bad quality, but there’s no need for it right now. You can’t kill me." His lips curled, maintaining the same smile.

"...!"

The temperature amidst the rise of the sun dropped a bit illogically, making the three siblings shudder while Thamana Deuce seemed to have already fainted.

"Grandmaster..."

Styx muttered lightly in worry, wanting to go towards the black-robed person who beheaded Great Fiend Saboath. However, she was held back by Ragna.

Master Deathseeker landed on the ground and turned around to shoot a cold look at the Great Fiend. Even with a Exalt Grade Dagger clad in the accursed blood of a sealed Divergent Divine Exalt, he was still unable to assassinate a mere avatar after following and harassing the said avatar for so long?

Could this be the true body of the Great Fiend?