Metatron appeared, but he had changed. He had grown taller, standing at three and a half meters. His physique had grown larger, too, making him look far more formidable than before. However, the biggest change of all was his aura. Metatron smirked confidently, and there was an unmistakable air of authority around him now. Even as the son of a demon lord, Metatron lacked both confidence and authority, but that had now changed. His aura now was so different that he was downright intimidating. He was unleashing an aura so intense and powerful enough to rival that of Baroque. It seemed that Metatron had awakened after absorbing the overwhelming amount of demonic power extracted from the Soul Coins. The amount of demonic power he had absorbed from the Soul Coins rivaled the power that Baroque had absorbed from Vernas. Baroque suddenly threw Siegfried far into the distance, as if he were a used ragdoll. Siegfried slammed into a wall. It crumbled down and buried him beneath its rubble. “Kyuu! Owner punk!” Hamchi exclaimed and hurriedly began clearing away the rubble. “Argh... Damn it, that fucking hurt,” Siegfried grimaced and grumbled. He was in bad shape. Considering how brutally Baroque had beaten him, it was a miracle that he was still alive. “Your Majesty!” Metatron called out to him. “You have done more than enough! Please, leave everything to me now!” “Sure,” Siegfried replied with a faint chuckle before opening his Inventory and taking out the Avenger. Then, he used Flying Sword and sent the Avenger flying toward Metatron. Baroque instinctively reached out to snatch the Avenger from midair, but it was futile. Guided by the Flying Sword, the Avenger weaved through the air like a slippery eel and evaded Baroque’s hands before landing directly into Metatron’s hand. The Avenger trembled violently the moment Metatron held it, as if it was overjoyed after finally landing in the hands of its rightful master. At the same time, Metatron’s demonic power and the dark energy contained within the Avenger resonated with one another, unleashing an overwhelming surge of power. Baroque let out a furious, ear-splitting shriek. Though he had lost all reason and had become nothing more than a bloodthirsty beast, his possessive nature was still there. “Brother... You’ve really done it this time, haven’t you? I know you were desperate, but how did you end up as a mere beast?” Metatron said with a mixture of amusement and pity in his voice. With those words, Metatron swung the Avenger. A barrage of razor-sharp blue aura blades sliced through the air and cut through the ranks of the Fifth Domain’s army. In an instant, the demon soldiers of the Fifth Domain were cut into pieces. With just a single swing of the Avenger, an entire army was decimated. Not a single scream was uttered when death descended to claim an entire army. “What was that...? Is he really the same Metatron I know?” Siegfried muttered, shocked by what he had just witnessed. He was in awe after seeing just how powerful Metatron had become. The thought that his subordinate had grown this strong filled him with pride. Just then, Balag’s voice rang out. “Everyone, halt! All demons of the Seventh Domain are to cease fighting this instant! This is now a battle for the throne! No one is to interfere in this duel to determine the true ruler of our domain!” At Balag’s command, Baroque’s royal guards and soldiers lowered their weapons and stepped away from the Demon Bank. “W-What the hell are you doing?! Get back in there and fight for your liege!” Chae Hyung-Seok screamed hysterically. He was thrown into a panic when his forces suddenly obeyed the enemy’s orders. “Erm... Supreme Commander?” Chae Hyung-Seok’s adjutant cautiously approached him and whispered, “Third parties are forbidden from intervening in a duel for the throne. It’s the law of the Demon Realm.” “When two legitimate contenders for the throne duel with their claims on the line, they must be given the opportunity to fight one-on-one. That is the law of the Demon Realm.” “What kind of bullshit is that?!” Chae Hyung-Seok bellowed in outrage. As someone who was not a native of the Demon Realm, this law made absolutely no sense to him. “Shut up and attack! Wipe them all out!” “Erm... Supreme Commander? We cannot win anyway.” “What did you just say?” “The Fifth Domain’s army just got decimated.” “And the elders are still very much alive. Even if we attack, we would be at a huge disadvantage.” The adjutant’s assessment was spot on. With Metatron wiping out the Fifth Domain’s army, the balance of power had completely shifted. At this point, the only way was for Baroque to defeat Metatron and the other traitors by himself. Metatron wielded the relic of the demon lord, the Avenger, while Baroque absorbed the demonic power of Vernas. Both of them had an equal claim to the throne, making them legitimate contenders for the title of the Ruler of the Seventh Domain. Thus, the demons respected their ancient tradition and let the two legitimate contenders fight for the throne. “Hey! Hyung-Seok! Stop whining and come over here! Let’s eat some popcorn together and enjoy the show!” Siegfried called out to him with a grin. “Y-You...!” Chae Hyung-Seok seethed in anger, and his blood pressure spiked dangerously. No matter how much he wanted to rage right now, he had no choice but to calm himself down. “Breathe... Just breathe... Hoo... Haa... Hoo... Haa...” Chae Hyung-Seok took in deep breaths while trying to suppress his rage. “It seems that you need a good beating to come to your senses.” Metatron and Baroque finally clashed, and their battle for the throne had begun. ‘He’s not gonna lose, right?’ Siegfried anxiously watched the battle between Metatron and Baroque. It was not that he did not trust Metatron, but rather, he had experienced Baroque's overwhelming power. Even though Baroque’s transformation was incomplete, he was like some demonic beast from the depths of hell that was unleashed to wreak havoc. He was not sure if anything could defeat such a monster in the first place. However, his worries turned out to be unfounded. After absorbing the demonic powers from eight hundred forty-five million Soul Coins, Metatron was far from weak. On top of that, his strength was amplified by about a hundred fifty percent with the Avenger in his hands. And the result of that was... Metatron did not even have to use the Avenger. He started beating the living hell out of Baroque with his bare hands. Throwing punches was one thing, but he also kicked his shins, stomped on his feet, struck his solar plexus, and smashed his nose. Those watching the fight would describe the one-sided beating as "merciless" or "brutal" rather than "intense." As comical as his attacks appeared, every attack was packed with dense, raw power. The moment Metatron’s fist slammed into Baroque’s back— A deafening explosion echoed as Baroque’s massive figure was driven into the ground, causing a crater to form. The shockwave from the impact rippled outward, damaging everyone nearby and even destroying a few buildings. ‘W-What the hell?! He’s actually that fucking strong?’ Siegfried was dumbfounded by the overwhelming display of power. Metatron had ascended to a level befitting the title of "Demon Lord." Of course, Baroque was not going to go down that easily. “Grwaaaah!” Googlᴇ search novel{f}ire.net Despite being beaten so badly, Baroque roared and tried to resist. The fact that he could put up a resistance after suffering such a bad beating was a testament to his endurance and vitality. His sheer endurance and vitality were undeniably impressive. Unfortunately, Metatron was still stronger than him. “Are you still not going to come to your senses, brother?” Metatron asked while grabbing Baroque’s head with one hand. He repeatedly smashed Baroque’s head into the ground. Ggrrk! Grwaaah! Grrwaa—rrk!” Baroque shrieked in agony and convulsed violently each time his head was smashed into the ground. “Are you still yet to come to your senses?” Metatron pressed Baroque’s face against the ground, holding him in place before pummeling him repeatedly like a piston. Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! “Grwaaak! Grrrrrrk! Grrk! Siegfried watched the fight in amazement when he suddenly noticed something. ‘Hold on... Is that Machine Gun Smash? It looks like it...?’ he thought while staring in disbelief. The way Metatron was pounding Baroque reminded him of his technique. ‘Eh? Wait a second... Earlier just now, was that... Torrential Flower Rain then?’ Now that he thought about it, the move Metatron used to massacre the army of the Fifth Domain looked oddly similar to his Transcendent Torrential Flower Rain. ‘This guy... Is he copying my skills?’ Siegfried wondered. In fact, Metatron was indeed copying his skills. ‘As expected. His Majesty’s skills are quite something,’ Metatron thought while mimicking Machine Gun Smash. He lacked the technical understanding to replicate them perfectly, so it was not exactly the same skill but even a mere imitation packed the same punch as the original one due to the absurd power coursing through him. After the merciless pummeling... “Get! A! GRIP!” Metatron roared, delivering a final punch straight toward Baroque’s face. The amount of energy within the fist was so immense that the space around Metatron’s fist distorted. ‘Eh? Isn’t that Touch of Death?’ Siegfried recognized the skill immediately. That was also another imitation of his skill. ‘This should be similar enough,’ Metatron thought. He recalled seeing Siegfried use Touch of Death before, so he attempted to imitate it by pouring over half of his mana into his fist. As soon as Metatron’s version of Touch of Death landed— A cataclysmic explosion erupted around Baroque. When the dust settled... Shockingly, Baroque was still alive. As expected of someone who had absorbed Demon Lord Vernas’ mana, he was still alive, even after taking a punch with enough force to send a nuclear bomb to shame. [Demon Lord of Vengeance: Baroque] He barely had ten percent HP remaining, and his body was completely in tatters. Baroque, who had succumbed to a demon lord’s powers and transformed into a frenzied beast, was utterly crushed by Metatron. With that, the battle to determine the ruler of the Seventh Domain concluded with Metatron’s overwhelming victory. Now freed from his rampage, Baroque regained his senses and started panicking. He had lost everything. With this defeat, it was clear that no demon in the Seventh Domain would support this claim to the throne. A single loss was all it took to drive his already shaky legitimacy to the ground. Even worse, the rampaging demonic power had ravaged his body from the inside. Even if he managed to survive this ordeal, he would need decades to regain a fraction of his strength. ‘I-Is this how... things will end for me...?’ Baroque despaired. Unfortunately, even despair was a luxury he could no longer afford right now because.. Thud... Thud... Thud... Metatron was walking toward him while tightly gripping their father’s heirloom—Demonic Sword: Avenger.