Ark Chess Player.

"Enough with the nonsense—die!!"

The Kingslayer had no intention of wasting words with Mephisto. Completely forgetting her own injuries, she charged towards Mephisto like an arrow released from a bow. However, Matthias was even faster, instantly transforming into a mist in front of Mephisto, turning into blades of energy—a move he had prepared countless times.

If the Kingslayer were calmer now, she would surely realize that something was wrong. But the Kingslayer is now blinded by rage; she is only thinking about taking Mephisto's life, and everything else is out of her mind.

"Swallow the bitterness of the dead!"

Originium Arts activated with a roar, every inch of her skin seemed to be burning, and the speed of the Kingslayer increased to instantaneous teleportation! She leaped over the thorny net formed by Matthias, and with her still functional right arm, she wielded a sword and unleashed a stunning strike!

At this moment, even if a piece of D32 steel were blocking her way, she could still cut it in two with a single stroke!

The carbon fiber short blade cleaved Mephisto's neck, the blood-red blade piercing through the hard cervical vertebrae. Without the slightest hesitation, the Kingslayer swept the blade across, sending the eternally grotesque head flying from her face!

However, the scene of a pillar of blood shooting into the sky did not appear, and the Kingslayer did not hear Mephistopheles' dying screams; everything was illogical.

"You should have smashed my head."

Mephistopheles' sharp, hoarse laughter rang out.

The headless corpse swayed violently, but instead of falling, it opened its rather expensive-looking Letanian sorcerer's robe. This lingerie, which W jokingly referred to as the Ursus aristocratic sport, now seemed to crack open in a deep abyss, releasing the filthy mud from the other side.

Caught off guard, the regicide was directly hit, and the black mud climbed up her arms and covered her entire body in the blink of an eye!

"Kingslayer, kingslayer, your almond-sized brain hasn't changed a bit over the years. Very well, everything is going according to plan. Thank you for your brilliant cooperation, thank you for the life you sacrificed. I will enjoy it to the fullest."

Mephistopheles' severed head, still able to speak, floated in mid-air, his gold-rimmed glasses still perched on his nose. His once vibrant green eyes had become unusually deep, gleaming with a chilling, eerie light, as if scrutinizing a mere plaything.

"Why do you think I'm targeting the True Wolf Guard you've trained? My real target is you. Even with my Originium Arts and artifacts, which can easily create monsters beyond human limits... the host's frail physique has always been a problem I can't solve. Even in your Guard squad, only four out of seven are usable; three went berserk during the modification process. It's a pity, weakness is a sin, and their value wasn't fully realized. I had no choice but to let the remaining four devour them, after all, waste... is shameful."

Mephisto's head swayed before the Kingslayer, stained with black mud. His gaze swept over the humanoid figure struggling in the filth, and both corners of his mouth curled into a wide grin. He was quite pleased with the Kingslayer's physique; it had managed to retain its original form despite the corrosive influence of the barren Holy Grail, instead of instantly transforming into a monster. This meant that the Kingslayer would become his most powerful puppet, no longer the blood monster formed from the Pumeru Grail.

Mephisto grew increasingly furious. His secret experiments in the upper city of Chernobog had been destroyed by the Rhodes Island doctor. If only he had a little more time, even just one day, he could have recuperated and created an ultimate monster comparable to a deep-sea creature! He wouldn't be wasting time on tiny Lungmen; his goal… was the entire War Empire of Ursus!

"..."

Matthias, who had reformed into human form, stood silently in place, watching the Kingslayer struggling in the black mud. His lifeless eyes suddenly emitted wisps of blue smoke, and even his mist-formed body experienced several seconds of irregular and chaotic movements.

Matthias slowly lowered his head, looking at his semi-transparent, semi-solid body, as the thick fog lingering in the ruins gradually thinned.

"It seems that it wasn't done thoroughly enough back then."

Mephistopheles noticed Matthias's change, and his voice immediately turned cold. His only remaining head floated to the side of Matthias, who was hovering between the two, and he carefully examined him before giving a sinister smile.

"I remember you."

"You were the only one who remained silent."

"While everyone else was angry about the regicide's betrayal, or trying to defend her and arguing endlessly... you remained silent. You kept staring at me, watching me, looking at me... yes, that's the look in your eyes right now."

If Mephistopheles weren't just a head now, he would have reached out and gouged out Matthias's eyes.

He hated that look; it reminded him of a certain obese woman.

The obese woman who called herself "family" looked at him like this as she shoved the Originium down his throat.

Ugh, how annoying.

Mephistopheles' eyes turned cold, and just as he was about to erase Matthias's existence, he suddenly frowned.

"'Hidden' has disappeared? How is that possible? My skeleton soldiers can't have died so easily! This is my life's work!!" Mephisto's eyelids suddenly bulged, and his head swelled up as his thoughts quickly connected with the other skeleton parasites.

"'Hardening' is still there, but something's not right. Could it be that the absorbed damage exceeded the threshold? No, I have to get it back to normal right away. 'All three' statuses are intact and are performing their mission. As for you, 'Atomization'... what made your heart beat again?"

Mephistopheles slowly raised his head and looked at Matthias, who was in a state of semi-realm.

Matthias's lifeless eyes stared calmly ahead, gazing at Mephistopheles and returning his gaze.

"..."

Matthias's hand trembled slightly, a mere tremor that was almost imperceptible without close observation.

Mephistopheles's face turned cold. He realized that his connection with the mist parasite had been severed, and immediately shouted, "Die!"

After the experiments in Upper Chernobog and the nighttime attack on Lungmen launched by the Reunion Movement a few days ago, Mephisto learned that when using the power of the Dungeon Grail, he would always have a backup plan, regardless of the outcome or whether it was controllable.

This is to prevent some test subjects' willpower from exceeding the Grail's control, such as that damned Avenger under W's command... Mephisto once bestowed the power of the Grail upon him, but could not control him at will, because the Avenger's mental strength far surpasses Mephisto's. If Mephisto insists on his submission, then the Avenger will draw his red sword and cut Mephisto in two.

Mephistopheles would never tolerate his toys going against his intentions.

Even if he destroys it himself, he will never let anyone else have the chance to take his toy away!

Thin black lines spilled from Mephistopheles' head, exposed to the air, and immediately began to utter terrifying murmurs. If someone with an unstable mind were present, their head might have exploded, causing a mental breakdown.

These thin threads floated in mid-air, surging towards the defenseless Matthias, whose lifeless eyes seemed to reveal a fleeting resentment.

"I won't let you succeed!!"

Just as Mephistopheles was about to destroy Matthias, a slightly weak yet sharp shout came from afar.

Mephistopheles's will momentarily went awry, a surge of pain and fear erupting in his mind, causing him to howl uncontrollably. The thin black thread stopped just before touching Matthias's eyelashes, the terrifying murmur completely swallowed by peace and tranquility.

"—Sizzle!"

A flash of pitch-black electric arc passed by, and these black lines, which could not be looked at directly, could not be seen, and could not be resisted, immediately retracted as if they had been electrocuted.

Amiya gasped for breath. On her way there, she sensed a powerful malice, an evil aura that seemed ready to devour people alive. This was a level of violence she had never felt before; even the most bloodthirsty Sarkaz could not match this malevolent energy.

"This is... Miss Kingslayer?!"

Amiya gasped in shock, almost failing to recognize the kingslayer.

She sensed that the regicide was in dire straits; its willpower was being eroded by some substance. But her spirit refused to falter, refusing to give the regicide even the slightest chance to succeed. However, if this continued, the regicide would eventually exhaust itself, and that would be her death!

Amiya won't let that happen!

Regardless of her past as a kingslayer, she is now an operator of Rhodes Island.

As the CEO of Rhodes Island, protecting the operators is her responsibility!

"It's you! The rabbit from Rhodes Island!"

Mephistopheles snapped out of his daze, glared at Amiya in the distance, and roared, "Are you trying to ruin my plans again?! 'Harden,' kill her!"

The skeletal parasite, with its intricate, armor-like muscles, suddenly teleported closer, emerging from the thick mist without warning. Almost instantly, it was in front of Amiya, swinging its pillar-like arms, creating crackling sounds as it swung the air.

Amiya deftly dodged a frontal punch with a backflip, then flipped over and over again to dodge the barrage of attacks.

The burly soldier's iron fists attacked with increasing ferocity, and booming sounds exploded in Amiya's ears. She had no choice but to fall to the side, then use her left elbow for support to roll away.

The skeleton soldiers pressed their advantage, attacking Amiya's figure and unleashing a fierce close-quarters combat attack.

Amiya regained her balance with a serious expression. She had narrowly escaped being hit several times, but always managed to dodge with exaggerated dodging techniques and illogical movements. She herself was somewhat puzzled as to why she felt she had seen similar fighting techniques somewhere before, able to anticipate the next move of the armored skeleton parasite and calmly dodge a whole set of close-range punches and kicks.

"……what?"

Amiya instinctively used her mental powers, but she couldn't sense any emotion from the hardened skeleton soldier before her. However, she could perceive a tiny, almost extinguished flame within her mental range, struggling desperately and resisting frantically.

Matthias's thoughts flowed into Amiya's mental world, and she saw it—she saw Matthias's memories.

—She saw Mephistopheles tie Matthias and his comrades to stakes, she saw Mephistopheles humiliate them in front of everyone, she saw Mephistopheles stuff black mud into their mouths, she saw it, she saw… Matthias’s eyes.

Without a trace of sorrow, without anger, without hatred.

Matthias is pitying Mephistopheles.

It's like watching a pathetic person.

Chapter 309 Matthias (4K)

"How tragic, Mephistopheles."

"You are just a part of this land."

"...more like a pawn who thought he could control his own destiny."

Amiya murmured to herself, her hands weaving black threads to block the charging Hardened Skeleton Army soldiers head-on!

"Ding-deng-deng-"

Like a bull crashing through a fence, Amiya's woven net of defenses snapped in two, but more black lines coalesced, binding the hardened skeleton parasite to its spot along the spindle-shaped spatial curve.

The ring on Amiya's left index finger gradually changed from blue to pale red. She couldn't fully unleash her Originium Arts; each time she cast a spell, she had to control the power it contained, preventing it from escaping and distracting her mind. In a sense, Amiya's process of casting spells was a tempering of her mental strength. She would grow stronger in actual combat, but she would also encounter more dangers.

"Matthias, go do what you want to do."

Amiya murmured, her voice overlapping with the voice Matthias remembered.

Invisible ripples spread across Matthias's semi-mist, semi-solid form, and a faint light seemed to emanate from his lifeless eyes. Wisps of blue smoke rose from his empty eye sockets, transforming into blue flames that ignited.

"Don't touch my toys, nobody's allowed!"

Mephisto howled, and unlike Amiya, black lines seeped from a single head. But these filthy creatures, spewing incoherent murmurs, instinctively feared Amiya and were unable to offer any effective resistance.

"How could this be... Hiss, if that's the case, then 'harden' and crush her!"

Mephisto dared not move the barren, primordial black mud of the Holy Grail that was corrupting the Kingslayer, but he was currently only an avatar and unable to use his Originium Arts. Otherwise, with his magic to manipulate the minds of the infected, coupled with the filth contained within the Holy Grail, the Kingslayer would have no chance of resisting.

Rhodes Island's Carter...you must die here today! I don't know what you're capable of, but I won't give you a chance to grow! Mephisto's intuition told him that Amiya possessed an extremely special ability that could counter any dungeon Grail.

"Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!"

The hardened parasite emitted a large amount of mist from its body, and under Mephisto's mental manipulation, it was approaching the edge of a berserk state. Even if it meant sacrificing the entire skeleton army, as long as Amiya could be kept here forever, then Mephisto would have gained something.

As one of the commanders of the Reunion Movement, Mephisto was not lacking in intelligence, and his vision was far-reaching. His strategies were often effective, whether in the siege of Chernobog or the night raid on Lungmen, but... Mephisto met his nemesis.

Lin Lu, whether five years ago or now, has always been stepping on Mephisto's head.

No matter how hard Mephistopheles struggled, he could not glimpse any hope of victory.

"I might not be able to beat that person, but surely I can beat you?!"

A crack appeared in Mephisto's gold-rimmed glasses as he released the armored skeleton soldiers from their restraints, unleashing the corrupted beast completely.

Amidst the fog, undercurrents surge.

The hardened skeleton soldier's lifeless eyes glowed with an orange-yellow light, its head tilted back, emitting a shrill, inhuman scream. Its limbs swelled, and its massive body grew to about two and a half meters tall. Flesh and blood coalesced into hard armor, gleaming with a cold luster.

If the skeleton soldier was a stone man before, now his body is as hard as iron.

The hardened parasite grabbed the black thread with its bare hands and tore it apart so easily, as if it were pulling on fragile silk.

Amiya's binding spell was easily broken, but she showed no sign of weakness, instead revealing a calm and composed smile.

She has successfully awakened Matthias's soul.

Matthias, half-illusory and half-real, staggered and gradually transformed into a solid form, his dark green eyes revealing unwavering determination.

He threw a punch.

Mephistopheles was still immersed in liberating the hardened parasite's mental connection when he snapped back to reality and saw a fist looming larger in his line of sight.

"boom!!"

Matthias's fist struck Mephistopheles's still-mocking face, shattering the gold-rimmed glasses that served as the casting unit, countless fragments embedded in Mephistopheles's flesh. But that wasn't enough; Matthias made his fist ethereal, thick mist seeping into Mephistopheles's nostrils, eyes, mouth, and ears, penetrating directly into his brain, leaving him no chance of escape.

Matthias materialized once more and unleashed a lightning-fast second punch!

Mephistopheles' head instantly shattered into pieces, scattering in all directions and turning into a pile of black sludge.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Thirty miles away from Longmen, there is an abandoned mobile city block.

Mephistopheles clutched his head and howled wildly, falling off the chair with a bloodcurdling scream like a pig being slaughtered. This was the second time he had experienced a mental breakdown. Even though his body hadn't suffered any physical damage, the pain of having his head smashed directly affected his nervous system, making him wish he were dead.

The sensation of Matthias turning into mist still echoed in his consciousness, like the mud from a drain washing over every fold of his brain. This feeling, which would kill most people if they experienced it once, was deeply imprinted in Mephistopheles' soul.

This will become his new nightmare, one he will never forget.

"Lord Mephistopheles, what's wrong—"

The Infected member of the Reunion Movement guarding the door was startled, but he dared not go inside because Mephisto had given prior orders that no one was allowed to enter no matter what happened, or they would be executed on the spot.

"...I'm fine, you may leave."

Mephistopheles gritted his teeth and forced out those words despite the excruciating pain.

Upon hearing this, the guard turned and ran straight back to his original position, terrified that he would become Mephisto's next target. He didn't want to end up like the previous guard, disobeying Mephisto's orders and being... what was it again? Why can't I remember...?

The infected guard stood outside the door, his thoughts drifting away, forgetting many things without realizing it. The Originium crystals on his skin subtly emitted an eerie glow, and without his awareness, the Originium fusion rate gradually increased. It wasn't just him; all twenty guards Mephisto had pre-arranged to stand guard outside the door exhibited the same symptoms. Each of them experienced a slowing of their thinking, and the sites of their Oripathy infection were burning.

Inside the secluded Facility Fourteen, Mephisto knelt on the ground, his upper body tilted back, as faint white particles were drawn into his body from all directions.

Mephisto's Originium Arts, amplified by the Holy Grail, no longer simply bestow life upon the Infected, but can now steal life from them. While many limitations remain—such as the scope and number of recipients, the purity of life extracted, time, and efficiency—they are irrelevant. Divinely granted authority, his power will grow stronger with each Holy Grail he unleashes. One day, he will stand at the pinnacle of the Infected, able to control a person's entire being with a single thought.

At that time, Mephisto will only need to move his finger to completely crush these traitors among the infected on Rhodes Island!