Chapter 1461: Eternal Glory [Part 1]

Surtr didn't understand what just happened.

Half a minute ago, he was preparing to unleash another devastating attack to finish off the Half-Elf, so that he could destroy Hestia once and for all.

However, as he was about to gather the Flames of Destruction in his sword, something hard hit his chin, which sent him flying upwards, almost making him drop his sword in the process.

But, before he could fully understand what was happening, he felt a stinging pain on his right cheek, as William's foot found its mark, sending the Fire Giant spiraling towards one of the red portals that led to the Void.

Surtr roared as he forcefully righted himself before his body entered the portal.

He then brandished his sword downwards, in order to attack the Half-Elf who was preparing to strike him from below.

A metallic ring reverberated in the sky as Surtr' Sword, and William's wooden staff clashed against each other, sending a powerful shockwave that spread far and wide.

After that clash, a piece of wood peeled off of the Wooden Staff in the Half-Elf's hands, making Surtr sneer.

'Finally, your weapon has reached its limit and is going to break!' Surtr thought as he unleashed a barrage of full-powered slashes towards the Half-Elf, who shifted to a defensive position.

Each time Surtr's sword made contact with the wooden staff, bright sparks emerged, and pieces of the wood were chipped off its surface.

It was at that moment when the entire world heard a voice that was filled with Divinity and confidence, accompanied by the tolling of a bell.

"I am a Marvel to see and know, for no one has ever been able to see and grip me, and never will, no matter how large his hand, except one man alone. And this man will surpass in skill all those who have come before him, and all who will follow afterward."

William parried, blocked, and deflected Surtr's merciless attack as more pieces of wood scattered in the air.

As the two fought, the voice filled with Divinity and Power continued to speak, as if it wasn't bothered by the two combatants, whose deadly exchanges were splitting the very sky apart.

"The man who will carry me must be more valiant and confident than any other if he is to carry me as purely as he should. I cannot be taken to any vile, or sinful, place. He who would put me in such a place will be the first to regret it, but if he takes proper care of me, he can go everywhere safely."

The two exchanged several more blows before Surtr backed away and raised his sword high before slashing it downwards.

"Die Einherjar!" Surtr roared as he unleashed the Flames of Destruction that he had gathered towards the fighting armies on the ground, for he knew that William would not allow his attack to kill any of his comrades.

Just as he expected, William did reappear in front of the flames he let loose to the world, but this time, the Half-Elf faced his attack fearlessly.

"The man who has me at his side cannot be vanquished as long as he is girded with the belt from which I hang. Let no one be so bold as to remove this belt. No man is authorized to do so now, or in the future. It can be removed only by the hands of a woman, daughter of a king, and Queen."

Behind his back, the images of the Eight Deadly Sins, Heavenly Virtues, his wives and lovers appeared.

Estelle and Princess Sidonie rested their hands over WIlliam's right hand, as the Half-Elf held the wooden staff, and made an unsheathing motion as if he was removing a sword from its scabbard.

When the sword appeared, Estelle and Princess Sidonie let go of the sword's handle, and that role was taken over by Celeste, whose hands overlapped with William's, allowing the Half-Elf to wield the sword in his hands.

William used the sword in his hands to block Surtr's attack, moving backwards ever so slowly as he held the Fire Giant's blow at bay.

The voice filled with Divinity continued to speak, but this time, his tone was no longer solemn, and was replaced by a teasing tone, which made Celeste's image flinch for a brief moment.

"She will replace it with another belt made from the thing on her person that she values the most. And, it is important that the young woman be a virgin for life, both in desire and in deed.

"If she loses her virginity, let her be assured that she will die the most vile death that a woman can suffer. The young woman will call the sword by its rightful name, and me by mine, something no one will be able to do until that time... but I will make an exception this time, so we can skip the dying part..."

If not for the seriousness of the current situation, William might have slapped the sword in his hand silly for saying such ominous things. However, since he was busy fending off the Fire Giant's attack, he just let it slide for the time being.

The sword glowed faintly, and Surtr's attack was nullified, making the God of Destruction look at the Half-Elf in disbelief.

"He who will praise me the most will blame me more in my time of need than he might imagine. And, I will be the most cruel to him, to whom I should be most helpful. This will only happen once, for that is as it should be."

Finally, the sword in William's hand took its true form, shining in a silver radiance, bathing the Half-Elf with the power it possessed.

William slashed his sword towards the Fire Giant, creating a crescent blade that flew towards Surtr, who blocked it with his sword.

However, William's attack was so strong that he was pushed upwards and passed through the red portal that led to the Void.

The Half-Elf also flew towards the red portal and followed his enemy into the Void, for it is the only place where he could unleash the full power of his sword, without fearing his homeworld getting destroyed.

"What you're doing is a sin!" Surtr stated as he faced the Half-Elf in the vastness of space. "Death and Rebirth are two sides of the same coin. What you're doing is breaking the natural cycle of the universe! The world behind you has reached its end, and therefore must be destroyed to give birth to new worlds!"

William hovered in the sky, with the World of Hestia behind him serving as a backdrop.

It was a beautiful blue world, and if someone were to look at it from space, they wouldn't think that it was a world that was about to meet its end.

"What I'm doing is a sin? I'm fine with that," William replied with a devilish smile on his face. "Just like you said earlier. Both of us are playing a role. My role is to kill you and the Gods of Destruction. Your role, on the other hand, is to try and stop me. Very simple, right?"

Surtr growled after hearing the Half-Elf's snarky reply to his statement. Earlier, he had the upper hand in battle, but now, William's power matched his own.

No. They were no longer evenly matched.

The Half-Elf had already surpassed him.

"Yes, my husband is a very sinful man." Princess Sidonie's image appeared behind William and caressed the side of his face lovingly before glancing at the Fire Giant in the distance. "Do you know why? Because he carries the Sins of the World on his shoulders."

William then held the handle of the majestic sword with both hands as he took a fighting stance to finally settle the scores with the God of Destruction, who had killed him, his wives, and destroyed Asgard thousands of years ago.

"Now, Surtr, time for you to feel the Sin of Pride," Superbia said as she rested her hand on the blade of the sword, imbuing the power of her Divinity in it.

"Feel the power of Greed as well!" Lilith stated as she, too, placed her hand on the blade.

The other Sinful Ladies also rested their hand on the blade, channeling the power of their Divinity inside it.

"Lust!"

"Envy!"

"Gluttony!"

"Wrath"

"Sloth!"

Shannon, who was the last of the Eight Deadly Sins, also rested her hand on the blade and shouted her Sin for everyone to hear.

"Despond!"

Half of the blade blazed in dark flames, representing the Eight Deadly Sins of the World.

"Now it's our turn!" Shana shouted as she rested her hand on the sword in William's hand. "By the power of Prudence!"

"Justice!" Ephemera declared, as she followed her sister's action.

"Temperance!" Lira announced.

"Fortitude!"

"Faith!"

"Charity!"

"Chastity!"

The one who placed her hand last on the blade was none other than Cathy, who gave her sisters a playful wink before saying her Virtue.

"Hope!"

The other half of William's sword now burned in white flames. Representing the power of the Heavenly Virtues.

Suddenly, the black and white flames merged together, making the sword in William's hand shine brighter than the sun.

Surtr knew that the moment of truth had come, so he also gathered all of his Divinity, and channeled it to his sword, which went by the name Interitus.

The two exchanged a glance for a few seconds before taking that step to clash against each other, and end their thousand year history, once and for all.