God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.-Chapter 863: The Human Condition (2).

Crushing the hard exoskeletal skull of a devil open, Floki grunted as he felt a blade stab into his side.

Gritting his teeth, he pulled back and smashed the butt of his giant war axe into the jaw of the devil behind him, causing it to shriek in pain.

Stumbling back, he clutched at his side as he scanned the danger in front of him with dark eyes.

On a narrow, broken street between two partially destroyed buildings that somehow managed to remain relatively close by, he had encountered this small force of devils.

Steve had told him he would find them here, and his job was to make sure none of them were left standing.

The beastmen that had accompanied him lay at his feet, all of them dead, their corpses still warm.

The battle had been long and gruesome.

The corpses of both devils and humans formed a dark carpet on the ground, the scent of blood heavy in the air.

He had sustained injuries as well, but thankfully, most of the devils had been killed too.

He groaned as he stood up straight.

Wiping the blood off his lips, he threw his enormous shield to the ground.

It crashed into the earth with a heavy bang, splattering bloody mud on his feet and armor.

With a furious roar, he charged forward.

A terrifying cold wave spread forth as he swung his axe.

The first devil dodged, but the second was unable to avoid it completely.

His axe bit into its shoulder.

The feeling of the hard exoskeleton giving way beneath his might filled Floki with dark glee.

His veins pumping with ice-cold ki, he increased the force of his swing, breaking through flesh and bone to cut the devil's arm off completely.

With a furious roar, the devil stabbed a bladed forearm into his chest.

His breastplate caving in, Floki groaned in pain as he stumbled back.

Cackling with dark joy, the devil stretched its bloody stump into the air.

A torrent of malignant miasma swirled around it—telltale signs that it was regenerating a new arm.

Floki's eyes widened.

He waved his axe again, but his wild swing was blocked by the other devil, who had popped out from the side with a vicious grin across its face.

Damn it!

Although he was as strong as a bear, there was no way he could overpower two vicious devils at once.

The cold feeling of the blade in his chest made the cold ki flowing through him seem even colder.

His eyes became frigid.

If he was going to die here, he would make sure to take these bastards with him.

A thick layer of ice began creeping up his arms.

Just then, a bright flash of light blinded him.

Falling to the ground, Floki let out a pained groan.

"Tsk... This is a horrible look for you, Floki. You look like shit. It's only been a month, you know..."

Floki slowly raised his head, a deep scowl on his face.

"Lukas... you bastard," he managed to mutter out.

Standing above Floki and the two fresh corpses of the devils he had engaged in combat with, Lukas flashed a smug sneer.

"Hm? Aren't your words supposed to be 'please' and 'thank you'? Don't be an ingrate, Floki."

Floki groaned as he pushed the corpse off his body.

Seeing this, Lukas sighed. He snapped his fingers.

"Zue. Heal him."

Walking forward, Zue tisked disdainfully as he stretched his hand over Floki's large frame.

"Although your bodies have become strong, you still break so easily."

Floki didn't spare him a glance. Instead, the biting chill of frost he exuded became stronger.

Zue's face paled as he pulled his hands, already covered in a layer of frost, back.

Lukas chuckled, then turned away from them.

His gaze, brimming with a subtle divine light sharp enough to cut through flesh, swept the city.

His eyes scanned the city, piercing through the horizon.

"What a mess. I doubt the gods can save us from this crap."

Floki spat out, "Like they would care about what happens on a broken world like this one."

Lukas chuckled.

"You aren't exactly a pious one, are you?"

Floki sat up. The healing light exuded from Zue's open palms illuminated his face a bit.

He looked up at the dark crimson sky.

"Pluto. They say he is the celestial deity of beasts. He isn't a beast himself, but a beast master."

Floki clenched his fists, a dark flame burning in the depths of his frigid eyes.

"He turned us into beasts, meaning we are part of his flock. Mere livestock or guard dogs meant to serve him. That is what these so-called 'gods' see us as. They are no better than these damned devils."

Lukas went silent for a moment. Then he chuckled.

"I don't think I can argue with that. But like you said, we are just insignificant humans. There isn't anything we can do about it, is there?"

Floki went silent.

Zue muttered, his brows furrowed as he increased his mana output. The terrible gash in Floki's side knitted itself together under the light of his healing spell.

"Recognize the power you've been given is from the god you worship. Be grateful."

Floki remained silent.

Then he turned to Lukas.

"Just the two of you?"

Lukas nodded with a smirk.

"Apparently, Steve was worried about you. He practically begged me to get here as soon as possible."

He glanced down.

"Although... it seems I was a bit too late."

Then he shrugged.

"But you managed to hold out for this long. I have to say I'm impressed."

Zue stood up. Dusting his hands, he walked back to Lukas' side.

"I've healed what I can. You beastmen have good bodies at least. You can handle the rest on your own."

Floki sat up.

The pain that filled him just moments ago had disappeared, leaving behind numbness in some parts of his body.

He clenched his fists as he rose from the ground.

Looking around, he let out a heavy sigh.

"They all died without gravestones, in this hell..."

Lukas shrugged.

"The nature of war. There's no need to feel pity for them too. Who knows. Maybe you might be joining them soon."

Floki picked his axe up and balanced it across his shoulder.

"If that time comes, I'll make sure to drag at least a thousand of these bastards to hell with me."

Lukas grinned as he patted him on the shoulder.

"That's the spirit."

Floki frowned as he brushed his hand aside.

Just as he was about to say something, his expression changed.

He glanced to the side.

Suddenly, the air in his line of sight seemed to crackle and freeze.

Then it shattered.

Dan suddenly appeared. He clicked his tongue.

"How did you notice me?" he couldn't help but ask.

Floki shrugged.

"Call it a beast's instincts."

Dan pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed. Then he glanced around.

"Looks like you're done here. Good. Follow me."

Lukas raised a brow.

"Why?"

Dan answered,

"Steve is calling all squads back to meet at the old intersection."

Floki frowned.

"The one with the water fountain?"

Dan nodded. His expression was a little off.

"From what I can tell, it's something serious."

Floki nodded.

"You all can go ahead. I'll head there once I get all the mana shards out."

Dan frowned. Just as he was about to say something, Lukas clasped his shoulders.

"Hey! W-what are you—" he tried to protest, but Lukas quickly silenced him.

"Alright. Make sure you're quick about it."

Floki gave him a strange look, then nodded.

Once they left, Floki let out a long breath.

It was cold and chilly. Just like the iceberg in his heart.

He had long become desensitized to the killing and bloodshed.

At least, he thought he had.

He glanced down at the puddle of human flesh and bones mixed in with the devil carcasses.

He gripped the hilt of his axe tight.

A terrible chill suffused the air and earth.

The temperature continued to drop until it became so low it could burn.

The puddle of bloody visceral bits and gunk had frozen over.

Even then, Floki could still see the blood-red wisps rising into the sky.

His expression darkened even more.

He let out another frosty sigh.

Then he lifted his axe and let it fall.

The ground crumbled and caved in violently.

All the corpses fell deep into the cracked earth, disappearing into the dark fissure.

Floki stood still in silence, the wind whipping his hair about. It had been a while since he had last groomed himself, so his hair was very long.

Turning around, he walked away, his boots still carrying a residue of frost.

However, the frost was quick to dispel with every breath he took.

He paused for a moment and turned around.

Everywhere he looked, for as far as the eyes could see, there was only death, chaos, and destruction.

There was a deep darkness upon this world—one that could never be dispelled.

This was war.

And from the looks of it, it had only just begun...