Struggling as a Villain

Was there any instance where a demi-god appeared in the last itinerary? No.

Although the side of Light was quite weaker and lacked strong warriors, the number of apostles remained the same and also, none of the children of those goddesses appeared.

Then why now?

"To balance both sides, Mother decided it was necessary to have me." Levitating before Richard, the small child casually muttered, while keeping his hold firmly on Richard.

"You came into play, you increased your forces, you united the Apostles of Darkness, and expected us to do nothing?" There was an evident scowl on his face as James drew near Richard, "You are foolish, Demon. And because of your leniency, we are here—dominating the darkness and moving toward the inevitable doom of Zulcriz."

With his head hanging low, Richard growled, "You look confident."

"Of course, I am. For I, the almighty Immortal will never kneel before someone like you."

'We will see about that....' His body suddenly pulsed with a strange energy, allowing him to wiggle his body a little. The darkness stored inside his chest, just beside his heart, gave him a sudden rush of adrenaline, allowing Richard to grow an arm once again.

James frowned, raising his hand. He increased his telekinetic hold on the creature; however, the more he gripped, the stronger the force of darkness surged from within. Richard was restlessly moving about, trying to get a single window of break and that would be all he could ask for.

His arms and legs slowly grew at the pace of a snail, but he was content, given the hold of the demi-god was stronger than the strongest telekinesis user Richard had met before.

This being was young. However, his stats probably surpassed every ranking system. He was above any mortal standards, and literal godly essence flowed in his veins.

James' eyes drew sharper, and the veins on his neck protruded as he suddenly raised both of his hands and chopped off the growing arms of Richard.

However, the slight diversion towards brutality was enough window Richard required.

With a sudden roar, Richard's body erupted in a blinding blaze, pushing against James's control. The heat was intense, singeing the air and pushing James to shield his face. Just as Richard broke free, he shot forward, throwing a wave of fire at James.

James leapt back, flinging his hand to send the fiery mass hurtling off course with telekinetic force. The flames swirled, reforming into searing projectiles that Richard launched in rapid succession. James deflected them one by one.

Richard tried to encase James in fire, but the demi-god merely chuckled. With a flick of his wrist, he compressed the flames into a small, floating sphere between his fingers. "You'll need more than fire to touch me."

Richard smirked, "Is that so?" His hands were now gripping a flaming trident, the same one which resisted his command until now.

Richard twirled the trident, letting the flames of hell dance around him, giving an ominous premonition to the Demi-God

'That's a sentinel tool...how did he get that?' James, the son of the Goddess of War, could hear the cries of a weapon if they carried a sentience. And currently, he was slightly petrified hearing the agonizing roar of the trident.

Not taking a chance, James raised both his hands, plucking several-foot-tall trees off the ground and huge chunks of dirt and debris, forming two huge domes.

With a growl, he crossed his arms and threw the huge globes in Richard's direction.

The response was swift, as the flaming human planted the trident on the ground, and instantly, the surface split and flaming lava erupted like a geyser.

The ground shook violently as the geyser of lava erupted, molten rock and flames spraying high into the air. James leapt back, watching as the fiery burst swallowed the domes of earth and trees he had launched. The intense heat warped the air around them, casting an eerie, reddish glow across the battlefield.

Richard raised his trident, flames coiling around it like living serpents. His eyes locked onto James with a fierce intensity, the inferno around him growing stronger, almost feeding off the lava now pooling at his feet. The trident pulsed, its agonizing roar echoing in James's mind, sending a chill down his spine despite his demi-god nature.

With a burst of determination, James shot forward, hands outstretched as he willed the earth itself to rise beneath his feet, launching him high into the air. Massive boulders tore free from the ground, trailing after him as he soared above Richard, then plummeted toward him in a relentless barrage.

Richard spun his trident, channelling the hellfire that surged through the ground. Streams of lava spiralled up, forming a flaming shield that intercepted each boulder, shattering them in midair. But James wasn't done. With a swift flick of his hand, he redirected the broken debris, each piece a dart that shot toward Richard with deadly precision.

Richard was effortlessly parrying all the attacks, now accustomed to the fact that the kid had a whole lot of energy but not battle IQ. He wasn't able to utilize his skills to the very best of his potential.

"Ahhhh!" With a deafening roar, Richard planted the end of the trident on the ground, sending a shockwave throughout the forest, shaking the surface and tearing the sky.

James was thrown away by that force, not able to withstand the heat he covered his face.

The demi-god was frustrated by the heat this mere mortal was producing.

James steadied himself, focusing on the trident. He could feel its dark power—a weapon not meant for mortal hands, now wielded with terrifying skill. "You shouldn't have that," James muttered, his voice hardening. "It's not meant for you."

Richard only grinned, his teeth flashing behind the flames. "Afraid of a little fire, demi-god?"

With his free hand risen, he said, "Then how about this?"

James' eyes couldn't have been any more stretched as he heard the echoes of wars and deaths emerging in Richard's other hand in the form of a golden Bo Staff.

This one was fiercer, the cries of the dead nearly made his ears bleed as the demi-god covered his ears and yelled,

"STOP THIS!! THAT THING IS CURSED!"

Richard's smirk never went down as he drew both his weapons close and, with a burst of flame, merged them.

James' eyes were shot red as he saw those things, the literal symbols of death merging and forming something which never should have existed.

He fell to his knees, unable to withstand the blood lust the being in front of him was carrying. He has never seen something so terrifying before; even those weapons in his mother's arsenal haven't faced as much blood and gore as these two have seen.

Richard stood there indifferently; in his hand, the scythe of the grim Reaper remained steadily standing.

"You boasted your status as a Demi-God, but for what when you are kneeling before a 'worm'?"

James was clutching his head, no longer in his sane mind to respond to that.

Richard heaved a sigh. So the kid was a kid after all.

Holding the scythe over his shoulder, the living flame advanced towards the boy, intending to chop off his head and get done with it.

However, before he could reach James, the sky darkened, clouds swirling violently as thunder rumbled across the battlefield. Richard stopped in his tracks, his flames flickering, feeling a chill he hadn't felt in decades. His hand clenched around the scythe, but his grip faltered as the air grew dense, each breath weighing down on him.

A sudden, blinding crack of lightning split the sky, and from it descended a figure cloaked in shadows and raw power. The very air seemed to bow to them, the earth trembling beneath their feet. Their presence was overwhelming, divine—so intense that Richard's flames began to sputter, struggling to survive under this oppressive aura.

As the goddess's feet touched the ground, thunder boomed once more, shaking the surface. She turned her gaze on Richard, eyes gleaming like molten steel. Richard tried to take a step back, but he found himself paralyzed, the weight of the god's presence rooting him in place.

In a voice that resonated like rolling thunder, the god spoke, "You dare lift a weapon against my kin?"

Richard's flames flared in defiance, but they were dim and frail against the goddess's light. He struggled, forcing himself to speak, but the goddess raised a single hand, and the very flames surrounding Richard were extinguished, snuffed out as though they were nothing more than embers.

It was getting hard to breathe as his eyes turned red and his face pale. This was the first time Richard had ever felt so close to death that even a single movement was harder than those battles he had faced until now.

There was no comparison. No chance of fighting back as Richard saw the Goddess raising her spear with a single hand, thunder wrapping around it, and aiming for Richard's head.

However, before the Goddess could have unleashed her fury,

"Long time no see, Atheris."

Another Immortal descendent, and this one, was standing on Richard's side.

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A/N:- The immortals wouldn't be participating in the war. Thanks for reading.