Return Of The Strongest Player

Gruelling Devil–a subspecies of Devils that roamed around the barbaric areas of Hell, as myths had it. Gruelling Devils were known as the Guard Dogs of Hell, and were the most physically adept.

They had an extreme, barbaric personality and a tendency to sort matters out through gruelling battles that usually resulted in death, hence their name–Gruelling Devils.

However, despite relying mostly on the physical aspect for battle, Gruelling Devils could also wield mana naturally, while the proficiency depended on their lineage. This made them terrifying all-rounders in certain cases.

Although treated as third-class citizens within Hell and unable to enter the innermost parts of the realm, Gruelling Devils were usually more powerful than most regular Devils, naturally. It was only their lack of refinement and conditioning that led them to be weaker in the long run.

Arthur glanced awkwardly at Jimmy–who seemed perturbed by the unusual phenomena. The former knew what the latter was thinking, 'Is the plan going to work, now that we have a different foe than expected?'

The crimson-eyed man stroked his chin. 'Fighting a Gruelling Devil is much different than fighting a regular Devil.'

Once the roars subsided, chunks of the arena split apart like plate tectonics, causing flames to burst and for a cataclysm to occur. Jimmy gritted his teeth, scrapping the plan he made while glancing at his comrades.

"I'll switch with him!" Jimmy shouted. "You guys continue bombarding him. Fuck the plan! We can't defeat a Gruelling Devil with such tactics!"

The others seemed uneasy, but nodded. Jimmy lifted his hair, revealing the Celestial Ametrine Eye in all its glory. He seemed genuinely in pain as a cloak of light engulfed his body, causing it to vanish.

Suddenly, it was as if time stopped.

It was a mere Devil with 200 Beast Marks? Why was it so difficult to maintain one's composure before such an entity?

The players weren't certain, which only made the feeling worse. Their mouths dried up, while a sense of dread filled their minds, forcing their stomachs to do circles and their chest to tighten. It was fear…

Terror, to be precise.

'If Level 2 is so difficult, what about Level 3, 4, or even 5?'

'We win if we simply complete Level 2… But Jimmy and Arthur…' Lisa grumbled internally, gritting her teeth. She was aware that the two would never comply, and would definitely progress through the Levels.

That was if they could survive Level 2.

The objective was to "reach" Level 3. Completing Level 3, 4, and 5 were merely optional. If one completed a certain level, their rankings would revolve around the time that they took. Only if someone completed Level 6 would time be inapplicable.

Her gaze swept across the arena before landing on the crimson-eyed man. 'He won't give up until Level 6… Why the fuck did I have to be in a group with a maniac?'

Unbeknownst to her, Bob had similar thoughts about the matter.

Only Jin-Woo and Jimmy wished to progress and receive a higher score.

As Jimmy teleported, a shadowed existence spawned in his place. Initially confused, the entity quickly adjusted to the situation, realizing it was in the presence of its foes. He banged his chest, releasing shockwaves through a simple motion such as that.

The Gruelling Devil was shaped like a Gorilla, with similar, brown fur and a bare, gray, full chest. His body was beyond impressive, with muscle mass surpassing even the bulkiest of bodybuilders.

It possessed arms like tree trunks, and a torso the size of a modern-day car.

With a horrendous, deranged smile and a face matching the ugliest of Devils, it was safe to say that despite his muscle mass, the Devil was not–in the slightest–attractive. It wielded a halberd that released devastating blows, such as the cataclysm beneath the feet of the players.

"Kill!"

Due to his limited intelligence, the Gruelling Devil was only able to let out a single word before smashing the ground yet again with his halberd.

The edge sunk into the hot, hard floor, and the arena seemed calm for a split second. However, at that moment, the floor burst into cracks that expanded even further, disturbing the balance of the players.

Arthur rushed forward, unsheathing Skofnung.

"Lisa, remain on standby for a secondary attack. Bob, stay with Lisa. Jin-Woo, help me."

Arthur's words reverberated across the arena, and although they had a few qualms, all the players complied to his words. In such a situation, despite Bob's vast sea of experience, Arthur remained the most capable.

Jin-Woo shot towards the Gruelling Devil, while Bob and Lisa prepared a secondary assault.

'I can only wait for Jimmy to return,' Arthur muttered, staring at the tiny silhouette in the distance. However, despite staring at it for a few seconds, the shadow didn't seem to be approaching the battle.

Instead, it seemed to be influenced by the direction of the wind, akin to a flag.

'Why's he moving so much? And why isn't he coming?'

Arthur dispelled such thoughts as the Gruelling Devil's halberd swung down on him. Parrying it gently with his falchion, the crimson-eyed man shot upwards using a sudden force created using mana.

His quick approach stunned the Gruelling Devil, forcing it to try to evade.

However, due to his bulky body, moving with only a few milliseconds to spare was more difficult than it seemed.

'Fuck.'

Despite that, the Gruelling Devil used its terrifying physical abilities to raise one foot, twisting his body.

'It's always these Gruelling Devils,' Arthur gritted his teeth. 'The annoying ones of the bunch.'

Thankfully, following the Gruelling Devil's evasion, Jin-Woo quickly shot forward, impaling the former's left shoulder with a dagger that oozed liquid darkness. The former screamed in pain, swinging at the latter.

Pow!

As a slap collided, Jin-Woo was flung to the side like a broken puppet, releasing a pitiful groan as a few bones in his body broke. Arthur narrowed his eyes, rushing towards the man before removing him from the Gruelling Devil's crosshair.

Dropping him before Bob and Lisa, he shouted, "Cast a healing spell. Fighting a Gruelling Devil with broken bones is a death wish."

Lisa hurriedly nodded, extending her palms as a vibrant, green glow engulfed them.

Arthur released a Blade Wave, applying Sun Energy to Skofnug and igniting Sword Aura. The Gruelling Devil quickly rushed to evade the strike, running forward like a monkey before leaping toward the crimson-eyed man.

"Die!"

His eyes glowed, intensifying the pitch-black color of his pupils. The halberd, collided with Skofnung, destroying Arthur's balance and causing the falchion to release a shriek of pain.

[The Demonic Blade 'Skofnung' protests.]

[The Demonic Blade 'Skofnung releases a blood curdling shriek.]

[The Demonic Blade 'Skofnung advises its user to escape this instant.]

[The Demonic Blade 'Skofnung' ignores its feeling of hatred towards the Devil, attempting to convince its Master to leave.]

Arthur ignored the system messages. He believed Skofnung was aware of his regression… If someone knew of his former life and still advised for him to escape, he should's probably taken the advice.

But where could he run?

On the Thirteenth Floor, one could either win or die.

At least, until one reached the third Level.

Arthur was helpless, and his gaze wandered to Eros, who sat with leaking arrogance. His dominant eyes fell upon the crimson-eyed man, forming an expression of confusion. Eros wondered about the meaning of Arthur's gaze.

But in the end, he simply ignored it, continuing to spectate the battle with much interest.

Arthur clicked his tongue, locking eyes with the Devil. He rushed forward, maintaining eye contact. As he neared the Gruelling Devil, a smirk blossomed upon his face, and he extended his arm.

The Gruelling Devil attempted to evade, but sensing that there wasn't any danger, he simply swung his halberd at the crimson-eyed man, unwilling to move.

Slap!

Arthur's palm collided with the Gruelling Devil's cheek but did absolutely nothing.

Or did it?

[Judgment Regeneration has been used.]

[The Sins and Virtues of the target are being examined.]

[Target has 99% Sin and 1% Virtue.]

[Minor de-buffs are being applied.]

Arthur clicked his tongue. Although minor de-buffs were not too shabby, he was still indignant about the fact that despite having such a tilted axis, the Gruelling Devil's raw power prevented Arthur from applying a massive de-buff.

Although it was a pity, Arthur ignored it.

At the moment, it wasn't worth being saddened.

The Gruelling Devil stared at himself in shock, confused why his power was leaving him. He let out a deafening roar, forming an expression of utter rage while rushing towards Arthur with the intent to kill.

This time, instead of flaunting his physical skill, he raised his arms.

Black and white lightning crackled within the skies, almost causing a downpour. The Gruelling Devil spoke undecipherable words. The roars of lightning only intensified, while the hairs on Arthur's body rose.

Even with [Judgement Regeneration]'s boost, it still was not nearly enough to fully nullify the Gruelling Devil's overwhelming might.