Fuck!!!

I held my tongue as blood spewed out from my mouth. I could hear the concerned cries of my four wives echoing while my body was gradually falling apart. Most of my allies, Matriarch Innocence, Sirius Moonreaver, General Enzo and Eminence Veralyn, leapt to my aid as they attempted to separate me from the dastardly Demon.

Biting down on my lip, I teleported myself far away, seeking refuge next to the safest place I knew.

"B-Brother! Y-You're hurt!"

"Jin! Hold on! Let me heal you!"

Irina and Rosa were the first to react. Irina moved forward to block me from the Demon of Death while Rosa channelled life essence from the World Tree into my wounds. My mind was getting a little hazy, but at the same time, my thoughts had never been so clear.

I'd severely underestimated the Demon that descended from the massive Gate.

I'd never encountered an opponent I couldn't defeat throughout my journey. In the past, even though I was overwhelmed by ancient Vampires like Matriarch Innocence or Sirius Moonreaver, I could feasibly devise a plan to beat them. Even more recently, I'd never thought I would lose to Cthulhu or Baishe, even though they were Demon Lords with thousands of years behind them.

But I had become complacent.

Just because there wasn't anyone capable of matching me thus far, it didn't mean there wouldn't be in the future.

The Demon I was facing… What in the world is he?

None of my magic worked. My signature meteor strike was a joke to it. The Purple Martial God that decimated my opponents thus far was rendered obsolete. Even non-tangible magic, like my destruction beam, had no effect on that monster.

It was as if… It was built to counter me completely.

"J-Jin, are you okay?"

Ysabelle asked with a stammer in her voice. She raised her sword in preparation to receive the Outer Demon should it continue its assault, but her eyes couldn't decide between being on guard or watching my wounds.

The two injuries I'd gotten from the Demonic being didn't seem to heal, even with my superior healing factor and over-abundance of life essence. My right arm wouldn't regrow, no matter how much healing power Rosa added to it while the hole in my chest gradually grew.

Every time I poured life essence into the injuries, the dark mist surrounding them started eating it all up. Like an insatiable parasite, the black, unholy power blocked my healing and was even on the verge of eating me whole.

If nothing was done, it was only a matter of time before my entire existence was devoured by the Demon's power.

"F-Fuck… W-What s-should we do?!" Lilith yelled out with panic in her voice. She was the only one who saw the resemblance between the black goo and black mist; she knew how annoyingly powerful that substance was. "J-Jin, s-should we run?"

"... Yes, let's run away."

The one that answered Lilith wasn't me, but the woman who desperately held onto my hands while pouring in healing and life essence.

"That Demon… Is the embodiment of Death."

"D-Death?"

"Yes," Rosa continued to explain, her expression getting grimmer by the second. "I am connected with the World Tree, so I'm sensitive to its power. If the World Tree embodies all of life, that monster is an abomination with the power of Death. It's our counter, our only weakness."

Rosa bravely looked straight at the monster while examining all of its details.

The four powerful Vampires that attacked the Demon in my stead, were doing an excellent job of distracting the black-cloaked monster. With the power of the Winter Sovereign Aspect, Matriarch Innocence created an endless Winter with an ice prison to contain the Demon.

Sirius Moonreaver, while the youngest and technically the weakest, could hold his own with the Moonreaver's prized weapon, the Stardevourer. Containing the memories of every ancient Vampire who had once wielded the glorious weapon, Sirius could create an array of lightning and dimensional magic to trap the Demon in place.

General Enzo and Eminence Veralyn weren't slacking either. Using their signature powers, they forced the Demon to create black mist to defend itself, slowly but surely chipping away at its massive magic power ocean.

But alas, just as I was, the four experts were outclassed.

With one swing of its scythe, the Demon broke free of its restraints and clawed its way through the seasoned professionals. The four elite Vampires did their best to slow the monster down, but its power was inevitable.

Against certain Death, no magic, shield, or immortal Vampire could stop it. Ploughing through the defences as if they weren't there, the Demon charged right at me to inflict more pain and suffering onto my body.

"Tch, brace yourselves!!!"

With one shout, I grabbed all of my four wives and teleported us in the opposite direction. The Demon's scythe didn't touch any of our flesh and instead sliced the ornate cathedral I'd created in half, and the black mist that came out from the Demon disintegrated the rest out of existence.

My heart almost stopped at that moment.

What if I were a little too late? None of us would have been able to survive that deadly slash, and I would have lost the ones I loved the most.

"The power of Death…"

How terrifying.

With one movement, that Demon could end all of life and creation. Compared to the enemies I'd usually faced, this was the most overpowered foe.

"J-Jin, we need to run!" Rosa emphasised once again.

The Goddess of nature shook wildly, her soft white hands turning cold as ice. This was the first time I'd ever seen Rosa this afraid. She wasn't scared of dying or the annihilation of the World Tree… Rosa was afraid of losing me.

But alas… I couldn't accept her plea.

"No, we can't run."

"J-Jin!"

"Even if we run, it's useless," I sighed. "This Demon can spread Death. If we hide in the Valter Realm, he'll spread Death until nothing remains. We'll be trapped in the Valter Realm for the rest of time, with no place to run or hide."

"T-Then let's do that!" Lilith exploded with exceeding fervour. "Fuck this planet and everyone on it! If we're safe… If you're safe, that's all that matters!"

"Y-Yeah, your safety is the most important! We can hide there for eternity as long as you're alive!" Ysabelle added with tears in her eyes.

How touching… These girls were willing to sacrifice the entire world to keep me safe. No, I would have done the same for them too. But unfortunately, that wasn't the only reason I couldn't run.

"Girls… Even if we did that, my wounds wouldn't get better."

I glanced at my two injuries and felt my power slowly wilting away. My severed arm had yet to recover, and the hole in my chest was gradually enlarging. The only thing stopping its spread was my life essence, and Rosa's healing magic backed up by the World Tree.

In time, my entire body would be engulfed by the black mist, and I would cease to exist.

"I have, at best, fifteen minutes left."

"DON'T SAY THAT!!!"

"FUCK!!! THAT FUCKING OUTER DEMON!!!"

Irina's rage exceeded its normal threshold, and she was ready to act.

"No… Not again… Must we watch helplessly as you pass away?!"

Ysabelle held her head as the past trauma arose in her mind. Rosa's face had become entirely ashen as her world came crumbling down.

That's right… This scene was similar to the past.

An Outer Demon attacked me to the verge of death. With no one to rely on, the four girls sacrificed a piece of their souls to protect me and keep me from fading to the afterlife. They'd watched over me, nurtured me, loved me… All as I forgot who they were.

… I'm not going to let that happen again.

… I'm not going to let them suffer.

Not anymore.

From the day I've revived as a Vampire, from the day I'd become a Progenitor, and on this day… The day when I become their husband. I was going to take destiny into my own hands. I will not let history repeat itself.

"Girls… Listen closely. I have a plan."

"What plan?!"

"During these few months, I've experimented with different spells. With my four rings and the unique powers, they gave me. And I've come up with one hypothesis. I can cast a dangerous spell with my Spacetime and Life rings. A spell that transcends all the laws of nature."

Truth be told, I didn't want to cast this spell. I didn't even attempt to test the hypothesis. It would be, without a doubt, the most powerful spell that I'll ever cast. But, the repercussions would be severe.

I could even… potentially lose my four lovers.

Alas, I had no choice now.

If I died here, I would be letting them down even more. I must stop this Demon, even if it means signing a contract with the devil.

"So girls… Help me buy some time to cast this spell. And the moment I complete it… please stay as far away from me as possible."

"W-What is this spell?"

"I don't have the time to explain everything! P-Please!"

I coughed out a few mouthfuls of blood as I felt the black mist in my chest spreading and reaching closer and closer to my heart. I was on the verge of collapsing, but my mind had never been more clear.

"P-Promise me! When I cast the spell, the four of you will run far away!"

"O-Okay! We promise!"

Affirming that the four have agreed to my outlandish request, I prayed inwardly to my heart. My body was about to disintegrate through the Demon's power of Death while my soul desperately fought off the black mist that corroded me from the inside out.

But at that moment, I ignored all of those troubles.

I poured all my attention and energy into the two rings representing Spacetime and Life. All of my remaining magic power, the essence of the World Tree, the Faith Energy I'd acquired and all of my Progenitor's power… They were all poured into those two rings.

And as if resonating with my prayers, the two rings were illuminated with the brightest glow one could ever hope to see. It was as if two stars had appeared on my fingers, and the world responded in kind. Earthquakes beyond any in history shook the planet while the skies split apart. Every form of energy was spiralling into one place as they were absorbed by the whirlpool of cosmic radiance.

The spell… It succeeded.

I didn't think it would have gone this smoothly.

At this point, everyone's eyes were on me.

My four lovers, Matriarch Innocence, Sirius Moonreaver, General Enzo, Eminence Veralyn… And most importantly…

The Demon of Death.

Perhaps it finally felt a sense of urgency after experiencing my excess energy and attempted to stop me once and for all. Its scythe was swung, breaking free of all the restraints that it was under. Flying over at breakneck speeds, the Demon aimed for my neck to end my existence.

But before it could finally draw blood, Lilith raised her fingers and warped us away to evade that strike.

I'm sorry, Demon… That was your last chance.

You shouldn't have played with your food. You should have ended me when you had the chance. Now, it's too late.

Because from now on, you'll be facing a greater threat than me.

The two stars on my fingers were absorbed into my soul, causing a pillar of incredibly radiant light to erupt from my core. The pillar pierced the sky and spread all throughout the galaxy. And at its peak, a magical clock descended down. It continued to fall rapidly until it was just a few hundred metres above my head. Before long, the clock will slam down on my soul, and my consciousness will fade away. So before that happens.

I turned my gaze back to my four lovers. Catching their eyes, I whispered the only thing I wanted them to do:

"Run."