Level Up: Voidwalker

Atlas spotted the Achaemenid Princess leave the dungeon, causing him to glance around and soon realize he was inside two prison cells that were inside each other. The one he was in now had enough room for him to sit up, but that's all.

Beyond the bars of his enclosure lay another set made of a foreboding black metal so dark that it absorbed all light, leaving Atlas perplexed. Following that, he looked around the room and found himself in a dark and gloomy one.

'Maybe I'm deep underground? It's a shame they knocked me out,' he thought while glancing around.

That's when he spotted guards patrolling the room. 'They are scared of me this much? It's like they're securing a Demon King,' Atlas mused.

He turned his attention to one of the soldiers and grinned while speaking, ''Where can I go to the toilet? There's no bucket in here.''

The commander stopped walking and stared at him with hatred, but he detected fear in his gaze before the soldier answered, ''Use the floor, devil. We're not cleaning up after you.''

Atlas looked at him, ''Okay when I shit, I'm going to throw it at you, commander. I will dirty your shiny armor.''

''If you even think about it, I will kill you, Dahaka,'' another soldier spoke.

His threat made Atlas laugh as he pulled out some chocolate and started eating, which confused them. The commander barked out, ''Where did that come from, Dahaka? Do you have a storage skill?''

''No comment. Until I get a toilet, I will ignore you until it's time to throw shit at you,'' Atlas replied before pulling out the Monster Compendium he got from Wildwood City back on Echo Isles.

Atlas wanted to discover what monsters called the Zarandar Continent home and soon learned of many monsters, from trolls to slimes. He was getting excited to explore Zarandar but hoped the girls were okay.

When thinking about Amethyst, he remembered the bracelet and pulled it out, only to realize the shackles blocked it. Atlas got angry but soon calmed down as the soldiers started laughing.

''Shut it, humans; once I'm out of here, I will turn you into meat paste,'' Atlas said to the guards' commander.

He was a tall man with a bald head and a black goatee. Atlas hated his face as he spoke: ''I will be the one to put you into the boats and feed you every day, so watch your mouth, Dahaka.''

Atlas was going to speak, but then the emperor said he would put him in the boats, which caused a shiver to run all over his body. He remembered that the Persians from Earth put prisoners between two ships and covered them with honey and milk.

The staff would attract insects and all sorts of creepy crawlers that would eat and lay eggs in the body while the guards kept the prisoner alive. When Atlas thought about this, the thought of such torture scared him.

'No I will unlock level one and get the Void Raptors to escape but how will I remove these shackles?' he mused as the lights went out.

In the pitch-black darkness, Atlas's eyes illuminated the room, revealing even more soldiers pouring in, causing him to think, 'They are scared.'

With a snicker, he took out some chocolate and took a bite before throwing it at one of the soldiers who passed by the cell. It hit his helmet with a tinge, causing the man to get angry, but the commander spoke, ''Ignore the devil. He's trying to annoy us during our rotation.''

Following that, Atlas decided to try to fight the Void Raptor King again and activated the Void Realm. He reappeared in the area while the monster was relaxing and sitting down like a chicken, which made him laugh.

'Why are you laughing, Little One? Do you find me amusing?' the Raptor King's voice rang out in his mind.

Atlas laughed again before waving the monster away, ''It's nothing; let's fight.''

He prepared his weapons as the king charged at him. Atlas dodged the tail swipe this time instead of Void Stepping and rolled to evade the flying claws. Simultaneously, he unleashed several Void Blasts at the creature's ankles.

The spells struck true, eliciting a roar of pain from the Raptor King. This prompted Atlas to press his attack even harder by driving his blade into the monster's leg and casting a Void Bullet through the weapon, causing a chunk of flesh to get blown away.

Atlas tried to use Void Step to escape, but the Raptor King struck him with its tail; he was sent flying across the arena before crashing into the wall with a thud. He fell to the floor while his head spun.

He quickly recovered thanks to Regeneration, only to see the monster limping toward him while speaking, 'You're a pain in the ass Little One, my foot is hanging off.'

'Got you, wait until I bring you down, Mario,' Atlas said while standing up and wiping blood from his lip. ''You will be my escape from the prison I found myself in.'

'Defeat me, I will make sure my children get you out, because of your lack of mana I cannot appear to help,' the Raptor King said while getting close.

Atlas raised his hand and cast several Void Arrows, but his hand was more to the right before following up with a dozen Void Blasts. The spells sliced through the air, but the monsters jumped to the left.

'Dammit!'

He dashed forward, but the Raptor King was ready and swung its claws in his direction. Atlas used Void Step to appear on its back. The monster bucked its giant body, but Atlas stabbed it, running the blade down its side.

Blood rushed out, causing Atlas to slip and crash to the ground below before he understood what had happened. He looked up only to see the Raptor King's foot crush him, which ended his run in the Void Realm.

Atlas came to his little cage as the lights were back on, causing him to glance around and spot the emperor standing at the prison door. He grinned before speaking, ''What do you want? You've got me trapped like a monster, aren't you happy? Or do you like making little boys suffer?''

Cyrus twitched with anger as he snapped, ''You're a monster! You will kill millions on your Great Jihad. Don't think I haven't read the report about the three desert warriors traveling across Aridonia.''

''What does that have to do with me, old man?''

''It proves to me that you're in league with the Devils of the Desert and plan to overthrow me,'' Cyrus said before wrapping a cloak around himself.

Atlas beamed, ''I wasn't planning any Great Jihad, old man, but now I will, and to make it even worse,'' he teased the emperor.

He watched the man's eyes widen, so Atlas twisted the knife, ''She will give me many children who will inherit your throne. Thanks for this wonderful opportunity, father-in-law.''

The emperor sneered at him before turning around and leaving the dungeon, causing Atlas to laugh at the man even more, which rubbed salt in the wound. Once alone, he pulled out his enchanted cloak and wrapped it around himself.

Atlas grew tired and got as comfortable as he could before falling asleep while the guards watched him with strange expressions. When Atlas woke up, the outer cell door opened, causing him to throw the blanket back into his storage and gave the newcomers a shit-eating grin.

The Princess addressed him with a sneer, "Get prepared for tomorrow. You'll be transported to the capital. We'll be traveling by ship to ensure there's no chance of escape."

''Okay, I hope the journey is peaceful,'' Atlas answered.

He could see the woman was getting annoyed and retorted, ''The Boats will show you not to mess with us, Dahaka.''

Atlas looked at her like an idiot, ''You're the one who attacked me! Are you stupid, Princess? I was minding my own business, and your creepy assassins appeared out of nowhere.''

''Shut up, you demon; you would have come for us in no time,'' she commented before turning around and exiting the cell. ''You will be left in the dark until we leave. Hopefully, I can postpone it so you linger here longer.''

He chuckled before teasing the enemy princess, saying, ''That's fine. I like the dark; it's comforting.''

When the woman heard this, she sputtered and didn't know how to reply. Atlas watched her turn to a guard, ''Cut the light and make sure he's in the dark,'' she ordered before leaving.

Atlas found himself perplexed. 'Why is she acting so petty?' he pondered.

With a nonchalant shrug, he withdrew a piece of bread and began to eat as he gazed into the darkness, illuminated only by his eyes. As days passed, Atlas continued attempting to fight the Raptor King, yet each defeat only deepened his growing frustration.

When Atlas was allowed to enter the Void Realm, he did so only to hear the Raptor Kings ringing in his mind, "Little One, you've done brilliantly. I do hope this time you beat me so I'm able to aid you."

He nodded before readying his weapons and charging toward the monster while targeting its ankles. The King Raptor dodged it, but Atlas sent a dozen Void Bullets that connected with its flesh and exploded.

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