Apocalypse Baby

Alex had been watching closely.

The moment he'd reached for the pendant, the Grim Lord had reacted instantly.

Too fast.

Too defensive.

That reaction wasn't normal.

Which meant one thing.

Those pendants were important.

His mind worked fast.

They had to be linked to the Grim Lord's abilities.

Which meant crushing them would nerf the Grim Lord.

A slow grin stretched across Alex's face.

He straightened up and began walking forward.

Step by step.

By step.

His gaze locked onto the Grim Lord, eyes sharp, calculating.

The towering undead stood firm, but Alex caught it...a flicker of hesitation.

Even if it was just for a second.

Alex tilted his head, smirking.

Then he teased:

"You seem really protective of that chain on your neck."

His eyes flickered toward the pendant. "I didn't take you to be vain."

The Grim Lord's eyes glowed.

A low, guttural voice rumbled:

"Taunt all you want, human. Your end will come soon."

Alex shook his head.

Then muttered,

"Again, with the cheesy dialogue."

The Grim Lord said nothing.

But its stance shifted into caution.

Because now, Alex was aware the pendants were special.

Three pendants.

Each one a key to the Grim Lord's overwhelming power.

The first gave the beast the ability to summon a magic barrier that dismissed any magical attack.

The second gave the beast the ability to summon an endless army of undead, including the special undead players.

The third gave the beast a broken concept of regeneration, wounds vanishing instantly, as if they were never there.

All three were crucial.

If even one was destroyed, the Grim Lord's advantage would crumble.

Grim Lord frowned.

Its grip tightened on its sword, and with a deep growl, it stabbed the ground.

A summoning.

Alex's eyes sharpened.

He knew exactly what that meant—More undead.

And wasn't having that.

FWOOSH!

With a burst of speed, Alex vanished using [Blur.]

In an instant, he reappeared right in front of the Grim Lord.

Grim Lord's eyes widened—

CLANG!

It was forced to stop the summoning and defend itself.

Alex's blade clashed against the Grim Lord's, sparks flying.

Grim Lord growled, shifting its stance.

But Alex didn't let up.

Another strike.

CLANG!

Then another.

CLANG!

More.

Faster.

Relentless.

Each attack forced the Grim Lord to react, its sword barely keeping up.

It wasn't just that Alex was fast.

He was ferocious.

The moment he had realized the importance of those pendants—

Something inside him switched.

The Grim Lord had been an overwhelming wall.

Now e was just a puzzle to break apart.

And Alex was about to rip the pieces apart.

Alex swung his blade with deadly focus, each strike precise and unrelenting, forcing the Grim Lord to stumble backward.

The two clashed in a chaotic dance, their battle tearing apart the landscape.

Rocks shattered beneath their feet. The air vibrated with each impact.

Sparks erupted.

A battle so fierce that Ella and Isla could only watch, unable to intervene.

The Grim Lord growled, its jagged sword whipping through the air, unleashing a storm of rendering strikes.

WHOOSH!

Alex dodged, his movements like a ghost—swift, untouchable.

Then—he was gone.

A blur.

Reappearing right behind the Grim Lord.

The undead ruler whipped around, slashing without hesitation—

But Alex was already ahead of it, using [Petrify]

A pulse of power.

The Grim Lord froze, its entire body locking up for just a second.

Alex grinned.

This was it.

He raised his sword, ready to cut deep—

But—

BOOM!

A sudden blast of energy shot toward him from the side.

An undead mage.

Its timing was insane.

Alex clicked his teeth, his instincts screaming.

He stepped back just as the energy howled past him, exploding into the ground.

Grim Lord moved.

Freed from the effect of Petrify, it snarled, raising a massive foot— Find your next read at My Virtual Library Empire

THUD!

A brutal kick to Alex's chest.

Pain exploded through his ribs.

His body launched backward, skidding across the cracked ground.

But there was no time to breathe.

The Grim Lord leaped forward, its towering form blotting out the sky—

Its blade—raised high.

Searing hot.

Lava dripped from its edge.

Then—

It swung.

BOOOOOOM!

The ground erupted, a shockwave blasting outward, kicking up dust and debris.

Alex was thrown back, his boots skidding against the cracked earth.

He exhaled, steady. Unharmed.

His lungs burned, but not from exhaustion but excitement.

His passive skill, [Vigor Strike], pulsed through his veins, ensuring that he could keep fighting endlessly.

In drawn out melee combat, he was unstoppable.

His lips curled into a grin.

Then—he moved.

A blur, surging forward like a bullet.

The Grim Lord roared, sensing his approach—

It swung.

A miss.

Alex wasn't there.

A feint.

The Grim Lord's eyes widened as it turned—

Alex had vanished from its path.

He reappeared beside Isla, the undead sorcerer.

Her hands glowed, a spell forming.

Too late.

Alex's blade sliced through the air.

SCHLICK!

It pierced her skull, snuffing out the eerie glow in her dead eyes.

Her body collapsed, lifeless.

Then—a flicker.

In an instant, Alex was in front of Ella, the undead druid.

Her eyes widened in shock.

She raised her staff, desperate—

A magic shield, forming.

But Alex was too fast.

She had no chance.

Sure, her long-range magic could unleash destruction, but in close combat?

She was helpless.

Especially against someone like him—a player with insane physical stats.

Alex closed the distance in a blink.

Before she could react, his hand shot out.

He grabbed her by the face.

SLAM!

He drove her into the ground, the impact cracking the earth beneath her.

A sickening crunch.

Bones snapped.

She tried to move, but Alex's boot came down hard.

Right on her bony throat.

CRACK!

Her skull detached, rolling lifelessly across the ground.

All of this—in a single breath.

Alex lifted his gaze, turning toward the Grim Lord.

The beast growled lowly.

Its eyes flickered with rage.

Alex had just annihilated its last support in an instant.

Now—

It was just the two of them.

Alex stepped forward.

Each movement deliberate. Unshaken.

A smirk tugged at his lips.

"Now it's just you and me."

The Grim Lord's frown deepened.

It knew the truth.

Without its minions to distract Alex—

Defeating him would be nearly impossible.

The Grim Lord was filled with desperation.

It raised its massive blade in an attempt to summon gain.

But—

HAAAARGH!

Alex unleashed [Sonic Howl].

A shockwave of sound blasted through the battlefield, slamming into the Grim Lord.

The beast staggered, its summoning interrupted.

Alex didn't waste a second.

He lunged.

As he sprinted, his eyes locked onto two fallen blades—weapons from the undead he had already cut down.

With a swift motion—

He scooped them up mid-run.

Then—

He threw them.

The two blades spun through the air, slicing toward the Grim Lord.

The beast gritted its teeth, recovering just in time.

It whipped its chain blade, preparing to deflect the incoming attack.

CLANG!

The first blade collided, knocked aside.

But—

The second blade stopped.

Right in front of the Grim Lord's face.

Frozen. Suspended in midair.

For a split second—

The beast hesitated.

Its eyes flicked toward the hovering weapon, confusion flashing across its monstrous face.

And in that tiny moment of distraction, Alex blitzed forward.

He shot past the floating blade, his sword whistling through the air, and aimed straight for the Grim Lord's throat.

But...

The beast reacted instantly.

Its chain blade swung up, knocking Alex's sword aside with a bone rattling force.

Then a massive hand clamped around Alex's neck.

The Grim Lord lifted him off the ground, squeezing tight.

"You fool," it growled. "I can read your actions."

Alex, gasping for air, managed a smirk.

"Can you?"

Alex twitched his finger.

A subtle, almost imperceptible motion.

[Minor Telekinesis] activated.

The floating blade shot forward.

Straight into the Grim Lord's eye.

SQUELCH!

The beast roared in agony, and its grip loosened.

With a furious snarl, it let go of Alex.

Alex hit the ground, stumbling backward, gasping for air.

But he didn't stop.

His eyes burned with determination.

With a swift step forward—

He raised his blade, aiming to take the Grim Lord's head off in one clean strike.

But then—

SHRRRKK!

Vines exploded out of the Grim Lord's body like a living trap, lunging at him.

Alex's instincts screamed.

He jumped back—fast.

The vines whipped past where he'd just been, nearly snagging his limbs.

"Dammit."

Alex landed, skidding backward, gripping his sword tighter.

He'd been so close.

So damn close.

But being creative wasn't enough.

The vines retracted, slithering back into the Grim Lord's body as if they had never existed.

With a sickening squelch, the beast yanked the dagger out of its eye socket.

A greenish glow flickered to life—

The wound sealed shut like it had never been there.

Alex narrowed his eyes.

And then he saw it.

One of the pendants on the beast's chain pulsed with a faint light.

Alex's grin returned.

Another discovery.

That pendant was the key to the Grim Lord's insane regeneration.

But just knowing that wasn't enough.

If anything, it was useless unless he figured out how to destroy them.

And he would.