Second World

Chapter 1274 1274. A Forceful End To The War

?

The instant Hope finished speaking, Fear felt his entire essence being gripped by an invisible hand.

"AARRGGHHH…!!!" A painful shriek escaped Fear's mouth. The other five Gods were shocked. Never did they hear any of them uttering such a sound, much less from pain.

Fear was then flung down to the land far below. Hope followed closely behind. All other five Gods felt an invisible power grabbing them as well and they were forced to follow after Fear and Hope. They were again astounded. They knew Hope was the most powerful among them, but they never imagined the gap to be so wide.

Fear slammed into the ground. His fall caused an earthquake, a shockwave, and a huge dust cloud.

He landed right beside the battlefield where the four armies had been fighting. The tremor caused almost everyone on the ground to fall, while the ones in the air were swept by the shockwave. Everyone stopped fighting then.

Hope descended and his brightness garnered everyone's attention.

"Everyone…," His voice reverberated for miles. Every soldier on the battlefield heard his voice both in their ears and inside their minds.

"I command you to stop fighting."

His voice was gentle, but no one dared to disobey except for the zombie army.

When the zombie soldiers continued their offensive gestures, Hope grunted. These zombie soldiers then burst into piles of broken bones and armor. None were spared.

The others became even more compliant after seeing this. Some even held their breath in fear that they made a wrong move and were interpreted as being disobedient.

Hope continued, "This battle has ended. Both sides are to stay away from one another and no side is permitted to come into conflict for one week. Now, start moving away from each other!"

The soldiers looked at each other before both sides started retreating. Even the champions from the Council of Virtus didn't dare to defy Hope's order. They glared with their vengeful eyes at the cultists who were somehow glad by this ceasefire.

Strah and Korku were especially so. They had been suffering under Pallas and Animus' aggression. When Mihos barged in, they were even more struggling.

However, their relief was replaced by horror when they saw the figure on the ground next to Hope. It was their terrifying God, Fear.

"As for you," Hope looked down at Fear who was still wearing a painful expression on his face. The invisible force that was gripping him didn't let go.

The other Gods had also descended and were now floating not far from the two. Those who had just now aware of these divine beings' presence were extremely shocked by the revelation. They didn't understand why these Gods came to this place. Not just one of them, but all of them!

"You will be punished!" Hope made a grabbing motion at Fear.

A blinding light slammed into Fear from the sky. Upon the impact, Fear uttered another painful howl for the second time today. In fact, for the second time in his entire existence.

Both players and natives were deeply shaken by the howl, especially the members of the Cult of Phobos. They couldn't believe the God they revered so much, act the way a mortal was.

When the light ended, Fear was seen panting on the ground. His state was pitiful.

"I won't kill you, Fear, but it will take you a long time to recover," Hope said.

Fear looked at Hope with mixed emotions, primarily confusion and… fear. He couldn't believe he who held dominion over this emotion could also be subjected to its power.

"Go, and stop interfering with mortals' affairs," Hope said.

"You… You truly letting me go?" Fear asked, his voice quivering.

"Don't make me change my mind," Hope replied.

Fear stood up with much difficulty. He was still looking at Hope with fear in his eyes. Even when he turned around, this feeling didn't disappear. He was afraid Hope would go back on his words and strike him on his back.

Hope didn't do so.

Before leaving, Fear glanced at where the Liguritudum army was. Another emotion gripped his heart. Anger. He then vanished into thin air.

"Brother Hope, why let him go?" Serenity asked.

Hope lifted his hand and signaled for Serenity to be silent. He then turned to Greed.

Greed was still smiling, but inside, he was also restless. He also never expected Hope's power to be this vast.

Hope simply gave Greed a simple nod. He then turned to Pride, who had his head down this entire time.

When Pride sensed Hope's eyes on him, he stammered, "Bro… Brother, I…"

"Stop," Hope uttered. "Ever since you decided to betray me, we are no longer brothers."

Pride looked down again. He stayed silent, waiting for his punishment to come.

"Go."

"What…?" Pride looked up. He didn't believe what he had heard.

"Go! Go and hide somewhere. If you dare cause any disturbance to this world. I will come for you. This is the only time I will show mercy considering we were once brothers."

Hope then turned to Wrath, "That goes for you as well. Don't let me catch you interfering with mortals' affairs."

Unlike the others, Wrath wasn't intimidated by Hope's display. She talked back, "Why are you so stubborn? You know already that our world is fake, we should–"

Her words stopped when a powerful force slammed into her. She reeled back. The energy within her was in turmoil. From that one assault, she knew it was easy for Hope to eliminate her. To eliminate any of them.

She hissed in defiance before she also vanished into thin air.

Pride was still standing there with his head down, even his void face couldn't mask his feeling. He was then also gone without saying any more words.

After Fear, Wrath, and Pride were gone, Hope turned to the other Gods. "Follow me," he said, before adding to Greed, "That includes you."

Hope then disappeared from that place and reappeared somewhere isolated where no one was around. Serenity, Love, and Greed soon appeared next to him.

Once they did, he said to them, "I'm sorry. This will be my last moment. I will be leaving this world to the three of you."