Hitman with a Badass System

1421 Getting The Agni King

While Elidyr and the others grappled with the fleeting return of Eve, Michael and Gaya, bone-tired but stubbornly pushing forward, finally stumbled onto the sixty-third floor of Nithroel's temple. Their armor, once gleaming symbols of their dedication, now sported a roadmap of their grueling journey – dents, scratches, scorch marks – a testament to the sheer ridiculousness of their trials. They'd wrestled with goddamn vampires, cracked moronic puzzles, and, unbelievably, even cooked for a gaggle of chattering squirrels. A right fucking circus, it had been.

This floor, however, felt different from the rest. A vast, circular chamber opened before them, the walls, floor, and ceiling crafted from a smooth, white stone that seemed to swallow the light, creating an unsettling sense of serenity. And in the chamber's center, a pond shimmered.

Beautiful, yes. Eerily still and silent, reflecting the blankness of the ceiling like a perfect mirror. But both Michael and Gaya had learned not to trust pretty facades in this godforsaken place.

"I'm fucking tired," Gaya declared, collapsing onto the floor, her back against the cool stone, legs stretched out like she'd been strung up and left to dry. "I'd bet a hundred gold pieces a giant, mutated fish is gonna leap out of that pond and try to swallow us whole."

Michael chuckled, leaning against the wall beside her, his gaze fixed on the deceptively tranquil water. "I'll take that bet," he offered. "My money's on some kind of riddle. Or maybe we have to stare into the water and confront our deepest, darkest sins. You know, some tree-hugging bullshit like that."

"Yeah," Gaya snorted, the sound laced with exhaustion. "Sounds exactly like something that tree hugging bitch would pull."

As they sat there, the heavy silence of the chamber pressing in on them, the pond… shifted. The water's surface rippled, disturbed by something unseen.

But no fish broke the surface.

Slowly, gracefully, the water began to rise, coalescing into a silhouette of a woman. She was tall, and slender, with waves of blonde hair cascading down her back. She wore leather armor, worn and scuffed, but radiating strength. Her eyes, one brown, one green, fixed on them, unreadable. And in her hands, she held a bow. A crimson bow that seemed to hum with contained power.

The Agni-King.

"Congratulations," she spoke, her voice a soft, melodic hum that echoed through the chamber. "You have reached the final trial. Only one test remains."

Gaya rolled her eyes so hard Michael thought they might pop out of her skull. "Oh, goody," she muttered. "Another fucking test. Color me thrilled. Is it a riddle this time? A bloody fight? Or do we have to bake a goddamn cake?"

The woman, this spectral echo of Nithroel, simply smiled.

This wasn't the Nithroel they knew, the empress who ruled Awor. This was something else, a fragment, a memory. The Goddess of the Hunt, frozen in time, a guardian of the Agni-King. Even as a sliver of her former self, Michael could feel the raw power radiating from her. But beneath it, he sensed something else, a weariness, a resignation. As if she was tired of the endless godly games, the relentless cycle of conflict and chaos. It was understandable, even relatable. It offered a glimpse into why Nithroel had retreated to the mortal realm and abandoned her divine domain.

Michael broke the heavy silence with a sigh. "Alright, Nithroel. Spill the beans. What's the bloody test?"

Gaya, bracing herself for another nonsensical riddle or some equally absurd challenge, was caught off guard when Nithroel simply posed a question. A straightforward, no-bullshit question.

"Why do you seek the Agni-King?" the shimmering shade of Nithroel inquired, her gaze unwavering on Michael. "What purpose drives you?"

Michael's eyebrow shot up. Not a riddle? No trickery? Just a plain fucking question. He paused, considering the tangled mess of motivations that had dragged him to this point.

He opened his mouth to answer, to lay out his grand plan, but Nithroel raised a hand, silencing him.

"Not you, God of Darkness," she corrected, her voice soft yet firm. "Her. The Goddess of Monsters. I ask you, Gaya. Why do you crave my bow?"

Gaya blinked, surprised as hell. Me? She hadn't seen that coming. Why did she want the damn bow? She actually thought about it, a rare occurrence. It wasn't about power. Not really. She had that in spades. And prestige? Please. She couldn't give a rat's ass about that nonsense.

Then, like a bolt from the blue, it hit her.

Larnia.

Seshat's words echoed in her mind, clear as day. "Where there is will, Gaya… there is life."

The beasts. Her creatures. They needed a home, a safe haven. And Larnia, that desolate wasteland, could be reborn. With the Agni-King, she could make it bloom again.

She needed that bow. Not for herself, but for them, her unruly, terrifying, precious monsters.

"I… need it," Gaya affirmed, her voice solid, locking eyes with Nithroel's. "For them. For the beasts. For the monsters. For the ones who can't bloody well speak for themselves. And for this fucked up place."

A genuine, warm smile softened Nithroel's ethereal features. "Very well," she conceded, her voice gentle yet resonating with formidable power. "You may pass. Go. Retrieve the Agni-King."

And with that, she vanished, dissolving into shimmering motes of light that faded into the pond's still surface. The water rippled for a fleeting moment, then settled, once again a perfect mirror reflecting the empty chamber above.

A low, grinding sound then filled the silence as the pond's water level began to recede. A spiral staircase, carved from the same white stone as the chamber walls, emerged from the diminishing water, winding downwards. Simultaneously, a section of the ceiling above them slid open, revealing a circular aperture bathed in a soft, golden light.

Michael and Gaya exchanged stunned glances, surprise and relief warring on their faces. That was… it? After sixty-three floors of insane trials, relentless battles, and mind-bending puzzles, they'd expected… more. A final boss fight. A cataclysmic showdown.

"Well," Michael stated, breaking the spell, a shrug lifting his shoulders. "Let's go, then."

"That was… suspiciously easy," Gaya remarked, a hint of suspicion clinging to her voice. "Am I the only one who was expecting a giant, fire-breathing something to jump out and try to eat us? Or another bloody riddle?"

Michael chuckled. "It was a different kind of test, Gaya. And you nailed it. You wanted the bow for the right reasons. Not for personal glory, not for more power. But to build something, to fix things, to protect. That's what she wanted to hear."

Gaya sighed, shaking her head in disbelief. "I'm just bloody glad we don't have to fight anything else. Or cook for any more fucking squirrels," she muttered, heading towards the newly revealed staircase. "That whole squirrel-chef situation was seriously fucked up. Even for us."

The staircase deposited them in another chamber, smaller, more intimate than the last. Emerald stone formed the walls, polished to a mirror sheen that reflected the soft, golden light emanating from some unseen source. Intricate carvings depicting scenes of hunters and beasts adorned the walls, the details rendered with breathtaking artistry.

And in the center of the room, resting on a pedestal of white marble, lay the bow.

The Agni-King.

It was magnificent. A masterpiece of divine craftsmanship. Its limbs, curved and graceful, were fashioned from a wood that seemed to shimmer with an inner fire. The string, a cord of pure energy, pulsed with crimson light. Ancient, powerful runes were etched into the bow's surface, their shapes shifting and changing like flames in a hearth.

Even from a distance, Michael and Gaya could feel its power – a raw, untamed energy that hummed in the air, making the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end.

"Well," Gaya breathed, her voice low with awe. "There it is. The Agni-King. Let's grab it and get the fuck out of here before something else jumps out at us."

Michael nodded, his gaze fixed on the bow. "You take it, Gaya," he affirmed. "It's yours. Nithroel's blessing, not mine."

Gaya's heart pounded in her chest as she took a deep breath and approached the pedestal. Her fingers trembled slightly as they closed around the smooth, warm wood of the bow.

But as soon as she touched the bow, a searing, burning agony shot up her arm, making her gasp and recoil as if she'd been branded. The bow was rejecting her. Nithroel was the Goddess of the Hunt; Gaya, the Goddess of Monsters. They were opposites, antithetical. And the bow knew it.

But Gaya was stubborn, and determined. She wouldn't be denied. "Fuck you," she snarled, her voice a low growl, her eyes blazing with fury. She reached out again, her fingers closing around the bow, her grip tightening despite the pain and pulled.

The bow resisted, vibrating in her hand, its power pushing back against her will. But she held on. A primal scream of defiance, determination, and rage tore from her throat.

And then, slowly, gradually, the bow yielded. She lifted it from the pedestal, her arms trembling with the effort, her body shaking with the strain.

Outside, thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed as the storm intensified.

Then, fire.

Flames, not destructive but warm, gentle, and cleansing, erupted from the bow, spreading across Gaya's body, and enveloping her in a cocoon of light. It was a blessing, a gift from Nithroel.

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