Rise of the Rejected Deity from Chaos-Chapter 145 - 144: The End of the Battle | Twelve Demons Eliminated

The demon's eyes widened in utter dismay as Seiya cleaved through two of the children with clean precision, without a single moment's hesitation. They collapsed to the ground, their sundered bodies mere inches apart, pooling blood that trailed down the shrine stairs.

As soon as Seiya struck down the boys, his sword's tip sank, its weight bearing down heavily. Seiya leapt back, landing on his spot, knowing the demon would retaliate. He re-adjusted his grip around the sword that was getting heavier each passing second—fully aware that Kaeliyus' fatigue was the reason behind it.

Rather than retaliating immediately like Seiya had thought, the demon, however, was struck numb.

Seeing as Seiya hadn't killed any single villager till that point, he had thought Seiya wouldn't kill any human and was only there for them, the demons. So, Seiya's brutality left him numb for a moment.

"You! How dare you cut down one of your own without batting an eye?!" he growled, his face contorted in searing rage. "You didn't even spare a moment to save them—to seek a way out!" His voice thundered through the night, his white hair whipping wildly in the breeze, a glaring contrast against the night.

"Do you know just how many of my hearts you've destroyed?!"

"Yes," Seiya blurted. "Five."

The demon's rage flared beyond control at Seiya's thoughtless response that held no weight behind it, feeling insulted. But before he could do anything, Seiya interjected.

"Besides, what use is there in wasting time searching for a solution that isn't there?" he asked, his voice calm and composed.

"Those children," Seiya continued, his tone unwavering, "you tore out their hearts and replaced them with your own. Likely through one of your abilities. Unlike you demons, humans cannot survive without their hearts. They're merely clinging to existence, sustained by the twisted force of yours."

He fixed his gaze ahead. "You and I both know the children had met their end the moment you ripped their hearts away. What solution is there to seek when they no longer possess their own hearts to live on with?"

"If you're somehow disturbed by how swiftly I cut them down, without taking any moment to find some imagined salvation, then you're but a fool," Seiya declared. "Because even if a way out had existed, I might not have chosen it. Whether I save or condemn is my decision alone—one that depends solely on my mood and my judgment."

A cold finality settled over his words. "As you said yourself, sacrifices are inevitable. So gather what pitiful remnants of your heart remain and face me. Let's end this."

The demon's fury swelled, his indignation deepening. With a sharp turn, he faced the remaining boys, whose half-lidded eyes stared blankly, as if devoid of life—mere husks of their former selves. In a single, swift motion, the demon thrust his tense hand forward, his talon-like nails piercing the boy's chest. Blood smeared his fingers as he tore free the boy's heart.

The boy slumped lifelessly to the ground with a low thud, a gaping wound on his chest, pooling blood beneath him.

In the demon's grasp, the heart pulsated vibrantly, his hand soaked in blood that dropped steadily to the ground. With his other hand, he tore open his own chest, placing the heart back inside. New fibers and muscles grew to reconnect the heart back in place, before he turned to the other boy to carry out the same.

Unable to see, Seiya relied on Kaeliyus. What is he doing?" He asked.

My Lord, he is tearing out his hearts from the children and placing them back inside him.

The demon flung aside the last kid like a mere ragdoll after tearing out his heart. He re-opened a wound on his chest that had healed from the previous opening, and as he placed the remaining heart back inside, he growled.

"I am Kiriza," he snarled, his voice thick with malice. "The last name you'll ever hear before I bring to you, your own grave!"

"Yeah, I know already," Seiya blurted, interrupting the demon's theatrics. "I think one of the demons had mentioned your name. And judging by the surroundings I found you, it wasn't exactly hard to figure out who you were."

He stepped forward, his voice steady and resolute. "Besides, I'd rather end this now than wait for you to bring my own grave to me."

Without another word, Seiya extended his hand, his fingers parting the air as he whispered softly, "Come."

The demon's hearts that he had just implanted back into his own chest, tore out violently, racing toward Seiya at an impeccable speed—leaving behind a gaping wound. The demon's eyes opened wide in shock as it had slipped his mind that Seiya possessed the ability of one his comrades.

"Dammit! I forgot!" he snarled, tensing to move. But before he could act, a woven wall of thick rattan surged up, twisting into a curved barrier that trapped him in a suffocating embrace.

Because Seiya had moved to strike down the children to destroy his heart, rather than summon the hearts from where he stood, it had slipped the demon's mind that Seiya still retained that ability.

The moment the incoming hearts reached Seiya's range, he gracefully swung his sword upward, slicing through one of the hearts with neat precision, while the other fell in his waiting grasp.

The demon's eyes shone with raw fear, widening to the point of hilarity as dread filled him up, cold sweat breaking out on him despite the cold night.

"If you kill me!" he shouted, each breath coming out in desperate gasps. "Your staff will be lost forever within my dimensions!" he threatened, struggling violently to free himself from the trap.

"No, it won't," Seiya responded calmly. "First, your dimensions are infinite, like you said, meaning even you have no true control over them. I know this because if you did, you would have hidden your hearts there, rather than inside the children. You couldn't risk losing them within your own dimension, because even you do not know what truly lies beyond, or whether your hearts would even survive in there."

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"Second," Seiya continued, his voice unwavering, "you cannot fool me. Because I know that death is the solution to everything. It brings an end to all things—even peace to the afflicted. Whatever trick you've played with your ability will be undone the moment you take your last breath."

Seiya's hand closed around the remaining heart, squeezing it. As he did, the woven wall trapping the demon began to dissolve, being drawn into the vastness of his dimensions.

The demon's fear mounted rapidly, his eyes frantic as he clawed at the air, pushing forward with desperation before his dimension could fully consume the wall.

But before he could reach, Seiya crushed the remaining heart in a firm grip without a single moment's hesitation.

"Farewell," Seiya murmured.