Each new arrival became either a player in his elaborate sports fantasies or ammunition for increasingly creative projectile exercises.
"Good job, Aether! I will make sure they give you the Ballon d'Or after we are done!"
After the hat-trick, Aether moved on to another game.
"TRAMPOLINE SPECIAL!" Aetherion called out next.
The void dragon created a localised gravity field that bounced demons between invisible barriers, turning them into living pinballs in a physics-defying arcade game.
"This is the best invention ever!"
Dave Webb had reached Level 3 after his third demon kill.
[You have slain a Level 3 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 2 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
Janet had become their unofficial squad leader, her military background adapting rapidly to the warfare.
[You have slain a Level 4 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 3 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 2 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have levelled up to Level 4]
"Stay in formation!" she commanded. "Watch your spacing! Don't get cocky just because they're pre-injured!"
Professional discipline despite enhanced abilities.
The battlefield had become something far more than a place of war; it had become a training ground where once-ordinary employees were now transforming into capable fighters, honed by experience, camaraderie, and the guidance of something greater.
Overhead, a small, cute dragon soared, ferrying them forward like a myth made real, carrying them toward the final stages of the unfolding apocalypse.
To anyone else, it might have looked surreal or even ridiculous.But to Arthur, it was oddly poetic.
It reminded him of a wish he'd made a few months long ago, when he first stepped into Armageddon. Back then, wide-eyed and untested, he had laughed and half-joked to the system:"Give me a dragon to carry me to the end."
He didn't get Aether. Instead, he got Neko—a lazy, nap-loving primordial cat who refused to fight, ignored his orders, and yawned in the face of danger.
He used to complain about her constantly, wondering why his first summon had to be so indifferent and useless. But standing here now, watching Aether playing with the demons like toys, he couldn't help but smile at how far things had come.
In truth, Neko had never needed to fight.
Her presence alone had shaped his journey in ways he only came to understand much later.
The moment he copied her talent—her rare, otherworldly SSS-rank Luck—his fate had been sealed.
Not by brute force, but by fortunate twists, narrow survivals, and impossible encounters that always tilted just barely in his favour.
Looking back, Arthur realised something simple but humbling:He had been a brat. Complaining about what he didn't have, blind to what he'd been given.
Now, he stood among allies he had raised, on a battlefield forged by their efforts, with a dragon soaring through the sky above and the lazy cat still sleeping in his pocket, as untouchable as ever.
And still, deep down, he wouldn't have had it any other way.
Aether's voice woke him up from his momentary reminiscence.
"TORNADO TOSS!" Aetherion announced from above.
The newly arrived demons were caught by Aether's spell, spinning them into what seemed like a tornado formation before depositing them in neat rows for easy harvesting.
"Master! I made demon dominos! Want to see them fall down?"
David and Sarah had formed an effective partnership, protecting each other from some demons that tried to slowly attack them, despite their heavy injuries.
[You have slain a Level 4 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 3 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have levelled up to Level 3] - David
[You have levelled up to Level 3] - Sarah
"We're getting good at this!" Sarah laughed, wiping blood away.
Transferable skills. Who knew?
The portals above pulsed with increasing frequency, dimensional energy building as more creatures attempted passage. But the stream of low-level demons remained constant, providing endless opportunities for both training and entertainment.
Sustainable power leveling.
"PRECISION PLACEMENT!" Aetherion called out, demonstrating a new technique.
Three demons landed in perfect formation, arranged like bowling pins with mathematical precision.
"Strike incoming!" the dragon announced before launching a fourth demon like a bowling ball.
Perfect strike. All pins scattered with satisfying impact.
"STRIKE! New high score!"
Athletic achievement in creative violence.
Marcus Webb had reached Level 4, his enhanced capabilities now approaching superhuman levels. His rifle shots found targets with mechanical precision.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
[You have slain a Level 2 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 4 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 3 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have leveled up to Level 5]
"This is incredible!" he shouted to Arthur on the rooftop. "I feel like I could take on anything!"
Confidence building through success.
Janet Morrison had become their killing machine, her enhanced reflexes and legendary blade creating a symphony of destruction.
SLICE! SLICE! SLICE! SLICE! SLICE!
[You have slain a Level 4 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
[You have slain a Level 3 Lesser Demon (Epic-Rank)]
Above them, Aetherion continued his elaborate games as fresh demons provided endless entertainment.
"SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING!" he announced, creating an aerial formation that guided demons through its funny movements.
"Look, Master! They're dancing! Well, sort of dancing. More like screaming and flailing, but it's very funny!"
The battlefield had become a perfect symbiosis, Aetherion's creative genius providing the setup while human awakeners handled execution. Each participant gained exactly what they needed: the dragon got entertainment, the humans gained power, and the demons got thoroughly defeated and humiliated.
Gates watched quietly from the sidelines, his mouth twitched subtly as he observed Aetherion at play.
"Aether is really enjoying himself," he muttered, a hint of bemusement in his voice.
"He's trying out all kinds of games on those demons—testing their limits, toying with them like a child would with his new toys."
Had Gates not known the demons' dark hearts and sinister intentions, he might have even felt pity for their plight.
But instead, he only felt satisfaction watching them suffer.