The final battle of the [Chosen Round] was raging in full force, and it had already surpassed the scale of any previous fight.
The ground had split apart, the walls of the arena had almost collapsed, and a monstrous giant, summoned by Dren, the [Chosen One of Destruction], now towered over the arena like a walking natural disaster.
Even as chaos raged around him, Alex remained focused. He couldn’t afford to lose this fight.
Not because of pride. Not because he was afraid of dying.
But because if he failed now, the consequences would ripple beyond just himself.
Kaelios had placed his hopes in him.
Everyone outside the arena, those watching from the cities, the survivors in the mortal world, they were depending on him.
And he still hadn’t revealed anything.
Not his wings. Not his [Destiny Shift] skill. Not the truth about his revival.
And he intended to keep it that way.
Which meant he only had one life to work with. One shot. One chance.
And if he made even a single mistake, he’d lose a lot of the edge he currently had.
“DIE. TRASH!”
Dren’s voice thundered across the arena like an explosion, and his warhammer, thick, heavy, jagged at the edges, swung high into the air.
At the same moment, the towering lava golem behind him mirrored his movement, its massive stone arms rising with a deep, groaning rumble.
Heat pulsed from its molten body as thick cracks in the ground glowed a dangerous orange, lava beginning to seep upward with each passing second.
Alex’s eyes narrowed.
This wasn’t just a fight, it was a race against time.
If the lava kept rising, the entire battlefield would soon become a deathtrap.
BOOM!
The golem’s first smash missed Alex by a few meters, but the impact alone sent a shockwave strong enough to make him stagger mid-air.
The floor split further, heat surged up from beneath, and smoke filled the air around them.
Alex landed on his feet but didn’t get a moment of rest.
“SMASH. AGAIN. I. KILL.”
Dren barked his command without hesitation, and the golem roared in response, lifting both of its massive arms this time, its shadow swallowing everything beneath it.
Then…
SLAM!
Both fists came crashing down.
Alex evaded once more, flipping backward, but the power behind the double impact was enough to send him flying through the air like a bullet.
His vision spun, but before he could regain control…
“GOT. YOU.”
A blur of motion.
Dren had leaped from the golem’s shoulder, using the monster’s arm like a ramp to launch himself with terrifying speed.
His warhammer was raised mid-air, already swinging downward.
Alex had no time to dodge, not without using his wings, which he still refused to use.
So instead, he braced for it.
He twisted his body, positioning both arms to the side, trying to soften the blow.
FWASH! BAM!
The collision shook the entire arena.
A thunderclap rang out as Alex was blasted backward like a ragdoll, crashing through broken walls and into the far edge of the battlefield.
Dust exploded around him.
Stone shattered.
His body rolled across the cracked floor until he finally came to a stop.
CRACK! BOOM!
His breath caught in his throat. For a few seconds, he couldn’t move.
His muscles burned, his vision blurred, and an intense pain shot through his arms.
He looked down. Both arms were broken. Completely.
“YOU. WEAK.”
Dren landed with a heavy thud, spinning the warhammer in one hand like it weighed nothing.
His red eyes glowed with manic energy, his bloodstained coat flapping as if even the wind was afraid of him.
Meanwhile, Alex stood up. Slowly. Quietly.
Despite the pain. He didn’t scream.
He just grit his teeth and rose to his feet, his arms hanging uselessly at his sides.
He could already hear the whispers from the other gods watching.
“Kaelios’ Chosen One is done for.”
“His arms are broken? There’s no way he’s fighting like that.”
“I guess the God of Destruction wins this round.”
But Alex didn’t listen.
He didn’t care what they thought.
He could no longer feel his arms, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t fight.
He took a stance. A silent one. A dangerous one.
“YOU. ARE. FOOLISH,” Dren growled, and behind him, the golem leaned forward like a beast ready to pounce.
“TIME. TO. DIE.”
Suddenly, the creature raised one of its arms again, preparing to deliver the final, fatal blow, one that Alex, with his broken arms and damaged body, had no way of escaping.
And then…
FWOOOOOM!
A burst of white light exploded from above, and the sky went from its normal color to a beautiful golden.
Something descended from the sky like a meteor made of divine energy, cutting through the clouds and crashing into the arena between Alex and the golem, who was still attacking.
The dust cleared.
And standing there was a man wreathed in golden light, dressed in white robes that fluttered without wind.
Behind him stretched enormous feathered wings, glowing with pure fate energy.
In his hand was a golden blade that shimmered like the threads of destiny itself.
The [Angel of Destiny] had arrived.
His back was to Alex.
His gaze was locked on the towering golem in front of him.
The golem was still attacking, though, and of course, seeing this attack before him, the [Angel of Destiny] didn’t even hesitate.
Then he raised his blade, pointing it at the monster, and slashed swiftly.
FWOOOOOSH!
In a single smooth motion, the angel swung its sword.
A second passed.
Then…
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
The golem began to split, long lines of golden light running down its massive body like spiderwebs.
A heartbeat later, it collapsed. Completely.
The entire 500-meter giant exploded into thousands of pieces, the lava inside evaporating instantly, the rock shards crumbling into harmless dust.
There wasn’t even an aftershock. Just silence.
The crowd watching from the bleachers had a bit of a reaction to seeing that.
Alex stared at the now-empty battlefield.
The angel turned to him.
[What do you want me to cut, master?]
The golem had only been taken out since it interrupted what it wanted to do, meaning that only right now would Alex use [World Cleaver].
Alex met his gaze without hesitation.
“…Dren.”
The angel nodded.
He turned again, and without another word, vanished.
Dren, still shocked from the golem’s destruction, blinked.
“WHAT—?”
But he didn’t even get to finish his sentence.
FWOOOOOM!
The [Angel of Destiny] appeared behind Dren in a flash, sword glinting with light.
This time, there was no time delay. No suspense.
The moment he swung,
CRACK!
Dren was split in half. No blood. No scream. No struggle. Just an instant end.
The warhammer dropped to the ground with a heavy thud, and both halves of his body disintegrated into fragments of dark energy, fading into nothingness.
Silence fell. A few seconds later, golden text appeared high in the sky for everyone to see.
[FateBreaker, Chosen One of Destiny, has won.]
[Dren has died, meaning he betrayed the God of Destruction. The two shall be erased.]
The energy beams appeared almost instantly after that, golden and crimson streaks of power reaching from the heavens and claiming their two targets.
Now, only five gods remained:
The God of Death. The God of Nightmares. The God of Darkness. The Primordial Goddess. And the God of Destiny.
All others had been eliminated.