Chapter 366: Off with his red
The Red King’s throne exploded as his body crashed through it. He bounced a few times when he hit the ground, before rolling to a defeated halt and simply remaining there in a slump.
He was completely ruined. He had previously been mad that just the tip of his horn had been cut off, but now one of them had been broken entirely while another had been ripped off and shoved through his stomach.
One of his arms was broken, and he had stopped feeling his feet a few minutes ago. Black, sizzling blood oozed from the dozens of gashes and cuts across his crimson skin as the regal outfit that had made him seem above his barbarian counterpart was in utter tatters.
Meanwhile, the Barbarian in question was barely harmed, and was looking at his most fearsome enemy not with rage or a sense of justice, but with pity.
At a certain point Blue had simply stopped fighting. He had come here for revenge and justice for what had happened to his people, to teach this cruel king a lesson for all of his crimes and to take his throne.
But now the throne was no more and this... this was just depressing. Even he had to admit they were being a little overzealous with how much they were beating him.
They could have ended it ten minutes ago, after they broke his ribs with a single punch. But instead they just kept going, as if finding entertainment in his torture.
The two women in question, the true demons in the room even in the minds of those with horns, stepped over the broken throne. The axe, which had shrunk along with its owner, was casually slung over the shoulder of the shorter one.
Belladonna twirled the axe in her hand, disliking the feeling of such an oversized and unwieldy weapon. She would much prefer her fists to such a thing, it was definitely much better, although they did have some advantages.
She looked over the broken and useless body before her. He didn’t even lift his head or look up. He simply laid there in a crumpled pile like a discarded and unwanted doll, his mind just as broken as his body.
"Looks like you were right, there really is no third phase." Belladonna muttered with a disappointed sigh.
"I’m still not convinced this was the second phase. It felt far too easy... But oh well, if that’s how he is, we might as well just finish this. Do you want the honours?"
"Please, this one is definitely all you. You earned this one after that performance." Belladonna laughed, casually tossing the axe to Lilith like it wasn’t a powerful relic she had sacrificed nearly life and literal limb to get.
Blue’s heart sank at the way they treated it, but he did not speak up. He too had shrunk down and ever since he had been simply treated like a disposable piece of furniture.
The scrying skull flew over, getting the perfect angle as Lilith stood by Red’s side and lifted the axe high above her head. She waited for a moment, to see if something better would happen, before sighing again and dropping the blade like a well trained executioner.
It cleaved through flesh and bone, before biting into the stone.
It was also at that very moment that the stream cut out, much to the disappointment and anger of those who had been watching. They spammed the chat, demanding to see more and to witness the loot that was received. They were acting as if they were owed a look at the loot for coming to witness such a fight, as if sitting there and watching was a herculean ordeal.
The only ones who didn’t argue were the guild members. They were disappointed too, as they hoped that these ’noobs’ would be stupid enough to show their loot as they were to show the intricate details of a previously unknown boss fight.
But they couldn’t get everything they wanted. Besides, if they really wanted the loot then they could simply kill them and take it.
They did know who they were looking for now, after all. In fact it wasn’t just the guilds who had such thoughts, as plenty of players logged on and rushed to the area of the dungeon, hoping to be the ones that got the kill.
Naturally it would be simple, as after that kind of fight they would definitely have exhausted all of their mana, right?
As for the group in question, they gathered round as the broken fragments of the King’s throne, and his body, dissolved into a golden dust that swirled together to form three dazzling chests. However when the chests manifested, they could not hide a small hint of disappointment.
"Only three? The last time we got four." Lilith muttered, pulling the axe from the ground and resting it on her shoulder. Unlike Belladonna who felt the weapon was annoying, Lilith felt that this axe simply felt right in her hands, as if it had always belonged to her and this king had simply been borrowing it from her.
Strangely, she could almost say that the axe felt the same way, as the longer she held it the more it adjusted to her grip ever so slightly from the fragments slowly rearranging themselves beneath her hand.
"Yeah, it does kinda suck. I thought we were going to get more loot since this was the first clear. Is that not how it’s supposed to work?" Belladonna asked, since even now she was still the MMO rookie.
"Usually, it is." Saige said, "And usually there is an announcement of some kind, but I haven’t seen that either. But then again, this isn’t entirely the usual situation. Plus, you did get the bonus stuff in the vault back there after taking out the golden guy, so maybe that is it?"
"Maybe..." She muttered in further disappointment, before a condescending scoff drew their attention to the wall.
"That was no King’s Vault." The Blue Skinned Demon chuckled, as he stood by the wall with his arms puffed out, head held high and arms crossed over his chest. The smug smile on his face was just begging to be asked questions that only he knew the answer to, so he could show off his knowledge.
Unfortunately, the question that was asked was;
"Oh... You’re still here?"
Blue’s demeanour deflated immediately. His smile melting as his brow flattened into annoyance. Thankfully, the druid was clueless enough to ask a proper question befitting of him.
"What do you mean that isn’t the vault? It had gold and a guardian and everything. How is that not a vault?"
"That dear boy," Blue answered, the smirk creeping back onto his face, "Was a treasury. Not a vault."
"What’s the difference?" Figg asked again
"The difference is that a treasury is meant for treasure to be displayed, whilst a vault is hidden and protected. For a vault is where that wretched King kept all of his most valuable relics." Blue said as he sauntered over to what remained of the throne.
He raised his sword, spreading a chill over the pile of stone that had not been converted into a chest, and froze it solid. A swift punch shattered the frozen rock, which collapsed into a fine dust that filtered down a small, stone carved staircase hidden beneath the throne.
"Now why don’t we actually take a look at the vault?"