WorldCrafter - Building My Underground Kingdom

Ben dispersed the domain. Two figures appeared in front of him. One was Apophis, her appearance had changed. She now had long silver hair and eyes as dark as the abyss.

If a normal person looked into her gaze, even for a second, they would lose their will. It was beautiful yet hypnotic. But for Ben, it had no effect. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Beside her stood a strikingly handsome young man with a monocle, who bowed like a butler welcoming his master. "My name is Belial, Sir Ben.

I apologize for my impolite actions earlier, but I simply had to satisfy my curiosity, after all the things Mistress has said about you. Though, it seems she undersold you. You’re strong."

Despite his subservient tone and attitude, Ben could sense the challenge in his eyes. He could feel the intent to fight.

But Ben ignored him. His main focus was Apophis.

He still hadn’t given up on recruiting her to his side. And he still had the upper hand, despite her seal, they were still bonded. "What’s your purpose, Apophis? I heard you released all the daemons."

Apophis smiled flirtatiously and walked over to Ben. Her hand playfully patted his chest. "Straight to business already, Master~? You’ve gotten more muscular and taller since we last met."

Ben frowned, Apophis was trying to deflect the topic. He grasped her hand. "Kyaa~ Master, can’t you wait? Let’s not do it here."

"Cut the crap, Apophis. What’s your purpose? No, honestly, I don’t care. Undo your seal, and I’ll be on my way."

Apophis smiled and moved closer, her lips brushing against Ben’s ear. He could feel her warm breath as she whispered, "No way, Master~ But rather than that, don’t you have a bigger concern?

I know what you’re planning in the Nephirid Kingdom. If anything, my attack here is helping you."

"What concern? A daemon running rampant and freeing other daemons?"

"Doesn’t your world have a saying? ’The enemy of your enemy is your friend.’

Those daemons will be helpful in the fight against the Templar. And for your information, a group of them already came here to this layer."

"What!?" Ben swore in surprise. He was confident in his information-gathering skills. Yet he had heard nothing about this.

Apophis smirked. "They’re intervening in the Nephirid Kingdom directly now. I’m sure the Ash King has already fallen into their clutch."

Now that Ben thought carefully, he realized he hadn’t received any intel on the Ash King. But based on past records, it wasn’t unusual, he often disappeared from the public, preferring to spend time with the Primordial Flame.

"You don’t believe me? Then why not go back and check? Otherwise, there might be nothing left of your kingdom."

Ben glared at Apophis. "How do I know this isn’t a trap? If what you say is true, you wouldn’t waste time here. Come with me."

This time her expression changed, serious now. "Fine. If you want to force me to go with you, then you’ll have to beat me.

But you should know, what comes next will be worse. My goal is for the daemons and Templar to fight each other, not to cooperate."

"What do you mean? Why would they cooperate?"

"Time is a scary thing, Ben. Even for immortal daemons, spending so much time with nothing to do is depressing.

Many of them now just want to return to their world, and they won’t stop at anything to make it happen. That includes cooperating with their enemies."

"That still doesn’t prove what you’re saying isn’t a lie. And you still haven’t told me your real goal."

Knowing Apophis, Ben didn’t believe this was her true objective. The Templar might pose a danger to her too, but she wasn’t the type to go all the way just for that. If anything, her goal would be to raise her strength first.

Then an idea popped into his mind. "I get it now. You want to absorb those daemons while subduing the rest. You want to return to your full power."

Apophis’s expression shifted the moment she heard what Ben said. It wasn’t entirely correct, but very close.

"I knew it. In that case, I’m not going anywhere." True or not, Ben couldn’t let that happen.

If Apophis returned to her full strength, he believed she’d be able to sever the connection between them. If that happened, he would lose a lot of his power. Most of his strongest abilities were fueled by dark aether, and he still hadn’t found a way to generate his own.

Apophis let out a soft sigh, her playful smile fading. "It seems our negotiation has broken down."

In the next instant, her dark aura flared violently. A wave of crushing pressure erupted outward, forcing Ben back several steps.

The ground beneath his feet cracked, and the air around them thickened with oppressive energy. Her body shimmered, then dissolved intothe darkness.

As her voice echoed one last time through the gloom, ."Belial, deal with him."

Belial lowered his head slightly, a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Of course, Mistress."

Without another word, he stepped forward. Before Ben could fully recover his stance, Belial vanished in a blur of motion, then reappeared mid-strike, his fist crashing toward Ben’s chest with supernatural speed.

Ben barely raised his arms in time, Belial’s fist collided with his guard, and the shockwave blasted through the room like a cannon.

Cracks spiderwebbed across the stone floor beneath them. Ben gritted his teeth, skidding back a few meters, boots scraping against the ground. ’He’s strong...’

Belial didn’t let up. His movements were elegant, yet precise. A flurry of blows followed: punches, palm strikes, spinning kicks, each one laced with dark energy that shimmered like black lightning.

Ben responded with brute force. He parried a jab with his forearm and countered with a heavy punch that sent a burst of dark aether rippling forward. The blast tore through Belial’s coat, but the daemon twisted away, avoiding the worst of it.

"You use on authority is very crude," Belial chuckled, his monocle still perfectly in place.