Is this really a Game?!

'Jared, you haven't been completely honest to me before, have you?'

"What do you mean, Master?"

Reign was currently sitting on a hill overlooking a plain where the stronghold of the demons was located. The stronghold was a giant demonic castle that rose 40 floors up and took an area that was equal to over 10 football fields put together.

The stronghold could house over a thousand demons with ease, and currently, the demons were walking around, seemingly waiting for their leader to come back before giving them orders.

'When we first spoke, you said the snakes, as well as you, were your civilization's greatest achievements, that that was the peak of your technology, but that wasn't completely true, wasn't it?'

Jared showed a solemn expression before he nodded his head.

"Correct, although we are considered to be at the top of what my makers have created, we are not the one that stood at the very top and was called the greatest achievement ever."

'The system, that was the greatest achievement, right?'

"Yes, the system was the greatest achievement my makers ever had, it was something that later became so important and helpful that nobody knew if they could replicate such a thing, even the ones that were directly involved in its creation said that a large part of it was pure luck, they had no idea how they managed to make some parts work as they did."

"The system, to this day, can be considered the greatest feat of technology ever made in the universe."

Jared suddenly stopped talking and stayed silent, and Reign didn't pressure him to say anything else. He knew that Jared wouldn't even tell him this much had it not been for Raziel, who had already told him that the civilization that created Jared was also the one that created the system.

As an AI, Jared was already light years ahead of what almost any other civilization in the universe had, and yet, nobody knew about the civilization that created him. 

'That might be wrong, after all, I have never interacted with any characters that stand at the top of the universe except for Raziel, there are many things I still don't know.' Reign told himself before he shook his head and glanced forward.

Basred was next to him, and Liara and the rest were ready to battle as well. With the artifact with her and the powerful guardians, many of whom were Tier V beings, the battle they were going to take part in would definitely be won by a landslide.

The demons here, as well as those in the regions around this one, still had no idea that their powerful leaders had died yesterday. Thanks to Elyndor, who devoured the very souls of the demons before leaving the planet with the other two powerful monsters, no demon was able to learn anything of what had happened.

"Let's go," Basred said with determination and excitement.

Finally, after decades of fighting against the demons, they were going on the counterattack, they were finally going to fight back and take some territory back.

With renewed determination and powerful resolve, Reign, Basred, and their comrades launched their assault on the demon stronghold. Liara, equipped with the artifact and supported by the guardians, took the lead. Her control over the artifact allowed her to manipulate its abilities with precision, and it granted her a formidable advantage in the battle against the demon forces.

As they advanced towards the stronghold, they encountered waves of demon soldiers, mostly Tier IV and lower, who were no match for the combined might of their group. Reign, now a Tier V Nephilim, unleashed his enhanced abilities, wielding both light and darkness manipulation with devastating efficiency. His strikes were swift and precise, cutting through demon ranks like a scythe through wheat.

Basred, too, displayed remarkable combat prowess, leading their forces with strategic brilliance. His command and tactical skills kept their group organized and coordinated, allowing them to overcome each wave of demons efficiently.

Laura, who had also evolved to Tier V, fought alongside Reign, creating a formidable duo. Her control over demonic energy was exceptional, destroying demon soldiers with ease and creating defensive barriers of demonic energy to protect her comrades.

With each victory, their confidence grew. The demons had not anticipated such a swift and organized counterattack, and the element of surprise was in humanity's favor. Liara continued to manipulate the artifact, using its powers to weaken the stronghold's defenses and disrupt the demons' communication.

Upon taking control of the artifact, she learned that although the main powers of the artifact were the devouring of souls and creating new beings that were loyal to the artifact and its master, she could also use it for offensive and defensive purposes.

The artifact could utilize mana, demonic energy, as well as soul power. She could switch the energy it used at will and use it for different things. With soul power, she could also attack the souls of her enemies and send the souls inside the artifact forward, just like Reign could.

With mana and demonic energy, she could use it in a rudimentary fashion, creating attacks made out of pure mana, pure demonic energy, or even a combination of both. Although such attacks were not as powerful as attacks that a person could unleash by controlling mana or demonic energy, the amount of mana and demonic energy allowed them to be incredibly powerful.

This was an artifact made by a Saint after all, even in its weakened state, it could manipulate and control a lot more energy than a Tier V being.

Inside the demon stronghold, chaos reigned. The demons were in disarray, unable to respond effectively to the sudden assault. Their Tier V leaders had yet to return, leaving the lower-ranking demons to fend for themselves.

Reign, Basred, and the others pushed forward, reaching the outer walls of the stronghold. There, they encountered more formidable resistance. Tier IV demon guards, armed with demonic weapons and armor, as well as their monstrous strength, defended the stronghold's entrance.

Despite the tough opposition, Reign and his comrades simply charged forward, none of them showing an ounce of worry. They had trained for years, honed their abilities, and endured countless battles. Now, as Tier V beings, they were a force to be reckoned with.

Liara continued to manipulate the artifact, destabilizing the stronghold's foundations. Cracks appeared in the walls, and the ground trembled as if protesting against the presence of the demons. The demon guards struggled to maintain their defenses as the very structure they stood on betrayed them.

Basred unleashed a powerful shockwave, shattering the defenses of the demon guards. Reign followed up with a combination of light and darkness manipulation, incapacitating the remaining demons. The outer walls fell, and humanity's forces pressed on.

Inside the stronghold's main chamber, the temporary demon leaders, unaware of the intrusion, discussed their plans for further expansion. A demon suddenly entered the great hall and told them of what was going on, as well as the fact that the humans attacking had multiple Tier V beings in their ranks.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them trembled, and the walls cracked. The demon leaders exchanged worried glances.

Alszenom was sitting next to the highest chair in the main tower. Abalor, the loyal meathead of the demon leader, was sitting next to Alszenom while the other leaders who were taking control of the stronghold when the leader wasn't there, were all in panic.

"Calm down, nothing will come out with us acting like this!" Alszenom shouted as he used his aura to shroud the entire hall, causing the others to go silent.

"The humans are attacking us, and there are many Tier V beings amongst them, humans and beings we have never seen before, how the hell do you expect us to calm down?!" Abalor shouted in fury as he stood up, staring at Alszenom.

"That is right, but as I said, panic will get us nowhere."

"The humans are here, which means that our leader might have perished, of course, there is a possibility that the humans abandoned the artifact and came here to try and take over some territories before the leader takes the artifact, we can't act rashly now."

"Our defenses are powerful, it would take even multiple Tier V beings a couple of hours to break through the barrier shielding the inner parts of the stronghold, so we need to use that time wisely."

Suddenly, Alszenom stood up, as did the others as they felt the barrier dissipate. Alszenom and the rest quickly went to the window, only to see Reign and the others staring at them from the ground.

As the demons stared back at them, they were able to notice just how many Tier V beings were present, as well as Liara, a Tier IV human who was staring at them while an illusion of a large monolith was floating above her.

Alszenom suddenly felt immense danger, but before he could do a thing, the monolith shone a bright light that quickly arrived at them.

With a deafening roar, the demon stronghold's central tower collapsed, sending debris and dust into the air. Liara, having manipulated the artifact's powers to their limit, signaled to Reign and the others that the stronghold was ripe for the taking as all the higher-ups were now dead.