Aurelia rushed to her father as he collapsed. She couldn't truly hate him despite everything he had put her through.
Despite everything, he was her father, and while she did want to make him respect her and see her as more than a failure and a defect, it did not make her hatred for him grow.
Aurelia rushed to her collapsed father and, with teary eyes, cried out, "Father! Wake up..."
She shook Avaros with all her might, she wanted to scare him but not cause him to have a heart attack.
In the next moment, the unconscious body of Avaros was enveloped in dark mist, a mist that made Aurelia back off.
"What is happening?!" Aurelia was both confused and scared as she asked the question.
Instinctively, she backed away, getting close to her guardians.
"I do not know. VIP, please stand behind us," Ladios spoke. The archangels did not like what they were seeing.
The Archangel trio drew their weapons, ready to fight.
The mist grew thicker, the screams of Avaros could be heard from the unconscious body, his very soul was in pain.
And yet it only lasted for a moment; after a moment of deafening silence, Avaros rose to his feet, and his form returned to his prime, and yet a mark remained.
"Ah, Chrunus. Thank you, my lord. With this power. I will end the threat to your grand design!" Avaros spoke with mad glee in his eyes, his form gushing out dark mist.
He was clearly not fully there, his mind barely handling the ascension.
"Father! What is wrong?!" Aurelia asked with a worried expression plastered on her face.
"What is wrong?... YOU ARE WRONG! DIE! [Gravity Orb]" Avaros pointed his finger toward Aurelia, and in the next moment, an orb of pure black and purple was launched toward Aurelia at impossible speeds.
Ladios jumped in front and with his whole being blocked the attack, an attack that damaged him heavily and caused him to collapse.
"Ladios!" Aurelia scrambled to help, but she knew she couldn't do anything; her healing was too weak.
"You wanted to end my son, you are a reason my wife died, YOU ARE THE REASON DEMI HUMANS WILL DECLARE WAR ON US!" Avaros screamed, his voice shaking the entire city.
He blamed Aurelia for everything, he blamed her for existing, a failure of his that he must rectify.
"I will erase you and these Demi-Humans, and afterwards..." His cackle filled the air.
"I will kill that Paladin in the most horrific way I can!" Avaros spoke with pure hatred.
The words coming from her father's mouth were unusually cruel and without hidden meanings; he always schemed and planned, and yet now he was focused on one thing and one thing only.
[Armament of Chrunus: Spear], with activation of a skill, a pitch black mist coalesced in king's hand forming a spear.
"Chrunus... He is such kind god that would grant a mere priest power greater than any champion."
"Father, stop this!" Aurelia shouted with tears in her eyes while she was busy trying to heal Ladios, who was severely wounded and yet still alive.
Rayn and Lucious looked at each other with understanding, they would need to sacrifice themselves until [Creator] arrived. As long as the First Star survived, their purpose would have been fulfilled.
[Divine Smite], Rayn and Lucious used their skill simultaneously, a pillar of light descended upon Avaros, and yet they both knew he was unharmed.
"VIP, you must run. This is a being on par with Power!" Ladios gripped Aurelia's arm, his roboticism almost gone as he showed true emotion for the first time.
"No, I will not run again. While you might want me to run and save myself, I promised Cedric I would prove myself worthy, and I won't do that by running." Aurelia steeled herself as she let go of Ladios. Archangel was powerful and would survive.
With a grip, Aurelia unsheathed her blade, Zenith. Her stance was shaky and unsteady.
"Look at you, little whore playing a princess and a hero." King's words stung; she knew he hated her, and yet every time he confirmed it, she felt herself being wounded.
"A nice blade, a gift from your new client, huh?" Avaros mocked her.
'How dare he...' She couldn't expect her father to understand what she felt for her hero, and yet he dared to judge her.
She gripped her blade as she got ready to face her father.
"I will torture you, and only after you beg for sweet release of death will you be healed by the power of Chrunus, only to live through it again for your entire life." Avaros meant these words, his eyes were full of hatred and insanity.
"You will feel what I felt because of you!" He couldn't be convinced; his mind was gone, or perhaps this was what he truly thought.
Aurelia's hand quivered; she was afraid, and yet she refused to run.
Rayn and Lucious stood in front of Aurelia, protecting her with their lives, former enemies that saw the truth and joined Cedric.
"We will stand by you; don't you die on us," Lucious spoke gently, showing compassion to the princess.
Aurelia couldn't help but smile; the Archangels prepared to lay down their lives, even wounded Ladios stood up and stood in front of her.
"I wonder what you offered to these Harpies to lay down their pathetic lives for someone as useless as you? I doubt your body is worth that much." Avaros spoke dismisively.
In a moment, with speed surpassing what the eye could follow, Avaros appeared next to the trio of Archangels.
With a sweeping movement, he used his spear to topple the trio before he thrust the spear into Aurelia's stomach, deliberately avoiding killing her and sending her tumbling back, ruining a collection of rare flowers.
"Agh!" She was knocked back, letting go of her weapon. She couldn't help but grip her wound.
Archangels collected themselves as they struck at the king, and yet their weapons had no effect.
"Oh, how wonderful this is! Aurelia, Princess of Fools, where is that paladin of yours now?" His mocking voice almost sounded like an echo.
"He will come!" Aurelia was sure of it; he had saved her so many times, and she was sure he wouldn't let her die now.
"Such will. Let's see if you can keep that up." He gripped his spear before attacking the wounded Ladios, Piercing Archangel through the neck.
In the next moment, the form of the Archangel turned into dust, leaving only a small glittering gem in its place.
"Ladios! NO! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!" Aurelia screamed as her eyes teared up; she couldn't forgive Avaros for this.
'[Lesser Heal], HUH ITS NOT WORKING?!' The wound the spear made on her couldn't be healed by her spell.
She gritted her teeth in the next moment as she recklessly charged at Avaros.
"You looked so proud of your guardians, and yet they are as useless as my royal guard was." Avaros scoffed; he had no need for guards anymore. He alone was enough to shatter the Demi-Human empire.
"To end your life with your own weapon would be poetic, wouldn't you say?" Avaros spoke condescendingly as he picked up Zenith.
And yet when touching the weapon, his very hand burned.
"WHAT?!" He was forced to drop the blade.
He looked at the Zenith with a worried expression however, he put his thoughts aside, "No matter, I will have my fun."
With a thrust, he charged at Aurelia, his spear aimed so that it would shatter her spine and paralyze her.
However, just as the spear was to hit her, the remaining two Archangels struck Avaros, distracting him just enough for a spear to miss.
"I guess you two need to die too, But first You will stand there and observe what I will do to this whore..." His hateful gaze fell on them.
He prepared his spear again, and yet his whole body froze; his primal instincts screamed at him to run.
"I gave you courtesy enough; I have given you a warning more than any Infidel before you, AND YOU DARE NOT HEED IT?!" The furious voice of the accursed paladin could be heard from every corner, every crevice from the very ground.
'Lucky day, I will kill him in front of Aurelia kukuku.' Avaros smirked. Despite his instincts telling him to run, he knew better. They were merely a remainder of his frail self, Now he was no mere man or a king; no, he was an Apostle of Chrunus; there was nothing he had to fear.