Chapter 25 The Smile of the Beast and the Blade of Desire.
The Endless Abyss fell silent.
Not the heavy silence of fear—but the expectant stillness that came after destruction, when even gods waited before breathing again.
Sage and Furnoss had already taken their seats.
Both were fully healed, their wounds erased as if they had never existed. Yet the weight of their clash still lingered in the air, etched into the scorched stone of the arena and the minds of those watching.
Sam stood at the center platform, gaze sweeping across the colosseum.
"The next match," he announced calmly, his voice carrying without effort,
"Beast King versus Horny Valkyrie."
A ripple passed through the spectators.
Meera shifted slightly in her seat. Ruhi leaned forward, eyes wide, sensing that this match would be nothing like the first.
Down below, two figures turned away from the arena and walked toward their respective chambers.
To prepare.
The bell rang.
A deep, resonant sound that rolled across the Endless Abyss like a summons.
From the eastern gate, the first contender stepped out.
Beast King.
The arena stirred in confusion.
Gone was the towering half-beast form that had crushed mountains and ripped through divine armies. What emerged instead was… unexpected.
A slender figure.
A boy, no older than a late teenager.
Light brown hair fell messily across gentle eyes. His frame was lean, almost fragile, clothed simply, without armor or ornament. His steps were unhurried, calm.
If not for the aura—
that deep, steady presence radiating outward—
He could have passed for an ordinary human.
A kind one.
There was no malice in his gaze. No hunger. Only quiet awareness.
The Endless Abyss responded subtly.
The ground steadied beneath his feet. The chaotic energy of the arena softened, as if recognizing something ancient and familiar.
"He looks… harmless," Meera murmured.
Sam did not answer.
Because he knew better.
From the western gate, heels clicked against stone.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Horny Valkyrie stepped into the arena.
Confidence followed her like a shadow.
She held a dagger in each hand—curved blades that shimmered faintly, hungry for motion. Her armor was not designed for protection. It never had been.
It was crafted for impact.
Snow-white skin caught the ambient light of the auroras, unscarred, flawless. Her shoulders were bare, her movements fluid, every step calculated to draw the eye and unsettle the mind.
This was not vanity.
It was warfare.
A faint scent lingered in her wake—not perfume, but something deeper. A subtle pull that whispered temptation and danger in equal measure.
Eyes followed her.
Even gods were not immune.
When she stopped at her mark, she rolled her shoulders once, relaxed, utterly at ease.
Then she looked up.
Straight at Beast King.
For a fraction of a second, his gaze slipped.
Just once.
Then he caught himself.
Centered.
Grounded.
Valkyrie noticed.
Her lips curved into the smallest smile.
Interesting.
The wind picked up, spiraling between them, carrying tension sharp enough to cut.
They stood facing one another.
No taunts.
No theatrics.
Just two beings measuring the space between violence and restraint.
"You look different than I expected," Valkyrie said casually, her voice smooth. "I thought you'd be… bigger."
Beast King tilted his head slightly. "And I thought you'd be louder."
Her smile widened.
"Careful," she replied. "People who underestimate me tend to bleed first."
"I don't underestimate," he said calmly. "I observe."
The air thickened.
Even the auroras above seemed to slow.
Ruhi clutched Meera's sleeve. "Mama… they're scary."
Meera didn't disagree.
Up above, Sam watched intently.
This match was dangerous—not because of raw power, but because of contrast.
One fought with instinct refined into purity.
The other fought with desire sharpened into a blade.
And both knew exactly what the other represented.
Valkyrie twirled one dagger once, lazily. "Try not to break too quickly, Beast King. I hate boring fights."
He met her gaze evenly.
"Try not to lose control," he replied. "It would be… disappointing."
The wind howled.
The ring beneath them pulsed.
Sam raised his hand.
The signal had not yet been given—
But the Endless Abyss was already holding its breath.
When Instinct Devours Desire
The bell rang.
The sound rolled through the Endless Abyss like a verdict.
The moment it faded, Beast King changed.
His expression emptied—no anger, no excitement, no thought. His eyes bled into a deep crimson as something ancient surfaced. Bones shifted. Muscles expanded. His slender human frame tore itself apart and rebuilt, skin hardening into layered hide streaked with yellow and red.
In seconds, the boy was gone.
What stood in his place was a towering beast—horned, massive, radiating feral dominance. A colossal battle axe materialized in his grip, its edge chipped and brutal, forged for slaughter rather than elegance.
Meera's breath caught.
"That… that was the same boy?" she whispered.
Sam nodded once.
"Yes."
The Beast King threw his head back and roared.
The sound shook the arena.
Stone fractured. The sigils beneath the ring flared violently as if struggling to contain the raw force behind that voice. It wasn't rage.
It was instinct.
Across from him, Horny Valkyrie smiled.
Not nervously.
Not cautiously.
Dangerously.
The Beast King lunged.
The ground detonated beneath his feet as he charged, axe swinging in a wide, murderous arc—power meant to cleave mountains.
Valkyrie didn't retreat.
She moved through it.
Using her smaller frame and superior agility, she ran directly up the rotating axe, boots barely touching its surface, momentum carrying her upward. She vaulted off his shoulder—
A flash of white.
Too fast to track.
She landed lightly behind him as blood sprayed across the ring.
A deep gash opened along the Beast King's side.
But before it could even drip—
The wound closed.
Skin sealed. Muscle restored.
Valkyrie's smile vanished.
"Disgusting," she snapped. "You're a walking wall of meat."
She attacked again—this time faster.
A blur of silver and white slashes carved across his legs, torso, neck. She danced around him with lethal grace, every movement sharp, precise, relentless.
Blood flowed freely.
And healed just as fast.
Meera leaned toward Sam, panic creeping into her voice.
"Why isn't he dying?"
"The more damage he takes," Sam replied calmly, "the more his ego destabilizes."
"And?"
"And instability makes him stronger."
On the battlefield, Valkyrie was already feeling it.
Her attacks were landing. Clean. Brutal.
But they weren't ending anything.
"You should be dead by now!" she shouted, launching herself upward and slashing deep across his neck.
Bone flashed.
The crowd inhaled.
Then—
The flesh knitted back together.
The Beast King turned slowly, blood dripping from his chin, eyes burning brighter.
Valkyrie landed, irritation sharp on her face.
"Just die already, pig."
She rushed him again.
This time, the Beast King adapted.
He swung the axe high—deliberately wide.
Valkyrie prepared to dodge—
Too late.
The axe was a feint.
A massive fist crashed forward instead.
The impact was brutal.
Valkyrie crossed her arms just in time, absorbing part of the blow, but the force sent her flying across the arena like a broken blade. She skidded hard, stone exploding beneath her body.
Blood spilled from her mouth.
The Beast King charged to finish it.
Meera stood halfway from her seat.
"Sam—!"
Valkyrie moved.
A backflip carried her into the air.
Mid-motion, her aura ignited.
Light engulfed her form as her short armor dissolved into a flowing, battle-ready cloak. Her twin daggers vanished, replaced by a massive greatsword forged of pale, cold light. Her hair lifted, eyes blazing, presence transforming entirely.
She no longer looked like a warrior.
She looked like a war deity.
"Enough," she screamed, voice echoing through the Abyss.
"Hundred Hands—Thousand Slashes!"
The world fractured.
Blades appeared everywhere.
From every angle. Every direction.
An uncountable storm of strikes descended on the Beast King simultaneously. Flesh tore. Bone shattered. Blood exploded outward as his regeneration struggled to keep pace.
Even Sam stiffened.
That technique…
Unblockable.
The Beast King roared, staggering under the assault.
Valkyrie appeared before him one final time.
Her greatsword fell.
His arm severed cleanly, crashing to the stone.
The Beast King collapsed.
His transformation unraveled, massive form shrinking back into the unconscious, human shape he'd begun with.
Silence swallowed the arena.
Valkyrie landed lightly, her aura fading, cloak dissolving, greatsword vanishing. She returned to her normal form, chest rising slowly as she caught her breath.
She looked down at him coldly.
"Be proud," she said, voice steady but edged with fury.
"You're the only one who's survived that form."
Sam rose.
"The winner of the second match," he announced,
"Horny Valkyrie."
He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
At this rate…
They won't stop at victory.
The Abyss pulsed again.
And the tournament pressed on.