Arpious of the Planes

"Ah, this is war," I mutter as my army runs off with me following after.

I gripped my halberd tightly in my hand before raising it above my head, crying out as I felt the magicians of my army grant me buffs.

But suddenly, a chill ran down my spine, and a question immediately came to mind.

"Was the ground always pitch black?" I muttered before the chilling sensation returned... and my face went pale.

…

(Second Commanders POV)

Was the ground always this pitch-black? It's almost like tar, but it takes the shape of grass…

The grass below the entire battlefield turned an eerie pitch black which made my senses go off as if an alarm rang inside my head.

A cold drop of sweat, nearing the levels of cold you would only find in a snowy wasteland, ran down the back of my neck and dripped into my suit of armor.

"EVERYBODY BE CAREFUL!" I shout instinctively, even though this is something I would never do.

You could say I was never the friendly type, which is why the shocked faces of my soldiers were to be expected as this is the first time I've ever worried about them… Though I wasn't really doing that.

I was more worried for myself and the meat shields, which I needed to cut down the numbers in front of me.

I needed a setup for a grand entrance that could give me another accomplishment that I could add to my resume. Maybe even putting me on par with the first commander… which I highly doubt, but it's a step towards achieving my goal.

But nobody would expect this if they didn't have a personality as twisted as mine.

"ORAAAAAAAAAA!" My soldiers screamed as they charged towards their death in the pit of blood awaiting them.

Some didn't even want to move forward but were pushed by bloodthirsty and adrenaline-pumped men behind them towards their brutal and bloody death.

"This is war," I mutter with an extensive smile that I could hardly contain.

But suddenly,

SHING

A blade of red liquid ripped through a chunk of my army, leaving the rest dazed, confused, and scared of what had just happened.

But I saw it… With [Inspect], I identified who did it, and even I had to swallow a significant drop of saliva, which almost got stuck in my throat.

"ORAAAAAAAA!"

Unaware of the danger in front of them, the soldiers behind the dazed ones pushed their comrades forward into a pit of blood.

SHING

Another blade of blood tore through another large chunk of my army, sending limbs and heads flying through the air.

"I need to make my move," I mutter before tapping Blazer, my Mud Unicorn on the stomach twice, signaling for him to charge forward at full speed.

SHING SHING SHING

But just as I charged forward, the legs of my prized Mud Unicorn were cut. She fell to the ground, neighing and crying out in pain.

"W-what the fu-"

SHING

But before I could even twist my face into a shocked expression, the world spun upside down, and blood-red eyes suddenly appeared in front of me.

Plop

…

(Hades POV)

"What an idiot… Charging into Akito despite knowing what he's capable of… Well, that was the bare minimum," I chuckle to myself while sitting on the top of the wooden watch house, which Auntie reinforced with crawler legs.

Auntie had also made a platform on the triangular roof so I could monitor the war easier as not only was the surface scratchy, but I kept slipping off.

"Akito! Are you having fun down there!?" I shout towards Akito, one of the strongest warriors in the kingdom behind myself and my family.

But it seems he couldn't hear me as he didn't even twitch his ear. His smile was so big that I didn't want to interrupt his joyous occasion of going all out.

"Your highness, please give the word for me to step in. My side is getting pushed back right now," Sophia, the second commander requests as just like she said, her side is getting overwhelmed by the insane numbers that the humans utilized.

"Not yet,"

"M-may I ask why?" Sophia responds, shocked by my answer.

"No,"

"O-oh… As you wish,"

If we push back now, we'll get exhausted too quickly, and the repercussions will end up having the entire army wiped out. Even if I use my undead earlier than planned, they'd still get wiped out…

"You're not pressing?" I asked Sophia just as she was about to leave.

"I would never dare,"

"Then did you figure out why that previous question was stupid?"

"S-stupid?" Sophia stutters.

"I was testing you, and you didn't pass,"

"I have failed you, your highness,"

"It's whatever… If you can't make decisions on your own, you're even worse than that dryad commander who is the worst of the worst. The only thing she has that keeps her leading is the strong bond between herself and her soldiers," I explain.

I heard Sophia was Mother's maid before, meaning she was taught only to follow orders, and her previous question from before was a signal of that.

A commander needs to learn to make small and quick decisions on their own… But if they can't do that, then they're trash.

I wasn't even aware of how cold my eyes were, so I was confused as to why Sophia shivered in fear.

"I have learned from my mistakes," Sophia manages to squeeze out before running off.

But I also managed to hear her mutter, something that made me smile.

"He is her son,"

…

(Fourth Commander POV)

I could hardly suppress the fear which began to eat me from the inside out after seeing the Second Commander, the strongest out of all our strength, die with ease.

The sizeable 10-meter blade of thick red liquid, which was shaped into a long blade, cut his head clean off.

HUFF HUFF HUFF HUFF

Please get me out. I want to leave. I heard this was supposed to be an easy war. No, this wasn't even supposed to be a war, so how are we getting slaughtered this quickly.

Only the first army is able to push forward, but it seems the opposing force is gaining their footing back, and the first commander is beginning to panic.

"RAAAAAAAA!" I shout as my body jumps of my horse itself and charges through my own army.

I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die. I'm scared. I don't want to die.

"RAAAAA-"

And my head went flying due to a blade of wind cutting straight through the gaps in my armor and decapitating me without even breaking the other side of my armor.

My body went limp as my last seconds were full of only one thought.

I don't want to die.

…

(First Commander)

"DAMMIT! SOLDIERS CHARGE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING! THEY ARE JUST FUCKING MONSTERS! PLUS, WE OUTNUMBER THEM BY SO MUCH! HOW ARE YOU GETTING PUSHED BACK!" I shout, seething in anger.

I raised my spear to make my first attack as I needed to change the flow of the war in our favor.

SHING

I swung down with my gold longsword wrapped in wind, causing it to create a large blade of wind that cut through a massive chunk of the opposing army.

Smiling, hope began to shine on us until I glanced to the side for only a split second.

The Second Commander had died, and not even a few minutes after, The Fourth Commander had died idiotically.

"SHIT! I'LL DO IT MYSELF!" I shout at the top of my lungs before tapping my Mud Unicorns stomach twice.

It charged forward while I raised my large longsword above my head before swinging down with all my might.

DIE! DIE! DIE! JUST DIE!

My sword created yet another blade of wind that ripped through the air and wiped out another large chunk of monsters who screamed in pain.

"BAHAHAHAHA!"

There was so much adrenaline I was only acting on instinct. It almost felt like an invisible force that controlled my actions, raising my sword above my head over and over again, creating blades of wind that nobody could stop.

"Jörmungandr," I hear a low female voice from behind me say.

Suddenly my vision went dark but it's not like I died. Instead, it felt as if something wrapped around my neck so I began to claw at it with my fingers after dropping my sword.

"GET OFF! GET OFF!" I shouted but it instead came out as muffled screams.

Crack

But as soon as I felt the thing wrapping around my head loosen, my vision turned sideways and a searing pain enveloped my neck.

"Good boy. Very good boy," I hear the same low female voice from before say as my life slips out of my grasp.