On a battlefield littered with the corpses of the Goddess Clan, Demon Clan, Vampires, Fairies, Giants, Humans, Undead, and countless others, three factions clashed in a war that would reshape the fate of the world itself.
Amidst the carnage, Cocytus stepped forward, his presence heralded by an overwhelming chill that blanketed the land in ice. Frost crept across the shattered earth, freezing blood and bone alike.
"This won't be like last time, Meliodas. I will not shame the Supreme Ones again," Cocytus declared, his deep voice echoing across the frozen field.
Meliodas narrowed his eyes, his expression hardening as he studied the warrior before him—a foe he had defeated three thousand years ago. But this time was different. Cocytus was stronger now. Far stronger.
But Cocytus wasn't alone. Standing beside him were Shalltear, Demiurge, and the other floor guardians of Nazarick—each radiating power, their presence enough to make even the strongest warriors hesitate. Together, they formed one of the three dominant forces on this battlefield.
Opposite them stood the remnants of the Demon King's army. Though smaller in number, their resolve was unshaken. At their head stood Zeldris, his expression cold and focused as he led what remained of their once-great legion.
Behind Meliodas, the Seven Deadly Sins took position, battered but unyielding. Alongside them stood scattered survivors—those strong or lucky enough to endure until now—and behind them, the proud remnants of the Goddess Clan, their auras glowing with divine light as they prepared for one final stand.
Just as all three factions prepared to charge, an unexpected silence swept over the battlefield. Every warrior paused, their momentum halted by the overwhelming pressure that suddenly blanketed the land.
From the horizon, two figures calmly stepped onto the blood-soaked field. One was an undead skeleton, his presence radiating a sovereign authority over both life and death. His aura was so suffocatingly potent that it made even the strongest warriors feel as though, with a mere thought, he could end their existence.
Beside him walked a figure no one could mistake—clad in a pristine white suit, eyes a piercing and brilliant blue, and a height that dwarfed most of the warriors present. It was Rex. His mere appearance turned awe into fear, and pride into silence.
But with their appearance, two other figures emerged—one cloaked in darkness, radiating raw malice: the Demon King himself. The other shone with blinding divinity, her presence pure and commanding: the Supreme Goddess. Their arrival marked the final chapter of an age-old struggle. The end of the war, as it was… had truly begun.
This was the climax of the Holy War. The victor would seize control of the world itself, rewriting history to cast their side as the righteous heroes.
But how did it come to this? How did the world spiral into a war where gods, demons, and legends collided?
To answer that, we must go back, far back in time, back to when the Holy War first began. In a quiet human village, far from the chaos of kingdoms and gods, life moved peacefully. That is, until the sky shimmered… and the illusion of a massive tomb began to take form in the sky above.
From that illusion, Cocytus stepped forth into the world of the Seven Deadly Sins. Towering and imposing, two of his hands gripped a gleaming silver halberd, while the other two wielded a mace shrouded in black light that pulsed with eerie energy. The sheer cold radiating from his presence swept across the village like a tidal wave. Nearby buildings groaned as frost rapidly consumed their walls, and humans who stood too close were instantly frozen solid, turned a pale, deathly blue in an instant.
"I am Cocytus, sword of the Supreme Ones!" he roared, his voice echoing across the village with divine weight. "I have come to offer this world to them. This village shall be the first of many!"
Yet, behind that declaration of dominance, a flicker of concern stirred within him. His strength, once unshakable, had drastically diminished. Though he remained formidable, he now stood at a power level rivaled by a level one player in Yggdrasil.
One should also understand that, thanks to Rex, even after they ascended to godhood and reached the level of World Enemies, they continued to grow stronger by slaying the guild's passive monster spawns. It was as if entering this new world had triggered a system reset, leveling them back to square one, while still retaining all their skills and spells. Though technically at level one, their godlike abilities still placed them far above ordinary mortals.
"A-a demon!!" the humans screamed in terror. Panic erupted through the village as they scattered in all directions, fleeing with everything they had. Cocytus stood silently for a moment, watching them run.
A part of him considered letting them go… but then again, how could he willingly let free experience escape? No matter his level, experience points were still valuable, and letting that slip through his fingers? Unthinkable. His current stats may have been reset, but all the tools of destruction remained intact.
So, he raised his palm and froze the air itself, forming razor-sharp ice spikes that launched forward at blinding speed. The icy projectiles pierced through the fleeing humans with brutal efficiency, ending their lives in an instant.
But death wasn't the end. Within moments, the bodies stirred—then rose. The once-living villagers now stood again, their eyes hollow, their movements unnatural. They had been reanimated as frost zombies, silent and obedient under Cocytus' command.
This wasn't some power gained through divine ascension or a blessing of his own making—it was a gift the Supreme One himself granted: Ainz Ooal Gown. Through Ainz's magic, Cocytus had been given authority over death by ice. Those he slew with frost didn't return as mere mindless undead, but as Wights, though Cocytus preferred to call them frost undead.
Those who died by Cocytus' hand would rise again—stronger, faster, more durable than they were in life. It was a resurrection that mirrored the dark power of Ainz himself. And since this was Ainz's unique ability, the undead born through it carried unwavering loyalty—not to Cocytus, but to Ainz Ooal Gown. That didn't bother Cocytus in the slightest. In fact, it was exactly as he preferred it. Ainz's will was absolute.
"Kill them all," Cocytus commanded coldly.
As his new army surged forward, Cocytus summoned his status window, curious to see his current level. With the carnage he'd just unleashed, it felt like a little of his strength had returned—like he had leveled up.
But then he froze. His eyes locked onto the screen, staring at the number displayed before him.
[Level: 12 {40 sealed}]
"What's going on? My original level was 130, so why does it say 40 was my peak? And even then, I have the stats of a level 2, yet it claims I'm level 12?" Cocytus muttered, confused and frustrated as he stared at the unfamiliar numbers in his status window.
He clenched his fist but forced himself to focus. Now wasn't the time to dwell on inconsistencies. He had more important matters at hand—namely, bringing the guild, Ainz Ooal Gown, into this world.
As for why it was Cocytus who crossed into this realm instead of the others? That was simple. Rex and Ainz were far too powerful. This realm had outright rejected them.
But Cocytus was different. While his potential was immense, most of his power came through magic and his mastery of weapons rather than raw, overwhelming force. He was a weapon master, one who used magic in support, not dominance. That made him the only viable candidate for the initial incursion.
With every human death, their corpses rose again— as loyal undead under Cocytus' command. Reborn stronger than they were in life, they turned against their own kind with brutal efficiency. In no time, the entire village was painted red, every human turned into an obedient servant of ice and death.
Once the carnage ended, the undead returned to Cocytus' side, their blank eyes awaiting further orders.
Without wasting time, Cocytus commanded them to begin constructing a summoning circle around the illusion of Nazarick. Their limbs moved with eerie precision, drawing ancient runes and etching powerful symbols into the frozen earth.
Meanwhile, Cocytus retrieved a ring—a relic bestowed upon him by Rex himself. Reverently, he walked to the center of the growing circle and placed the ring in its heart, knowing that this single artifact would serve as the anchor for what was to come.
The ring suddenly began to expand, glowing with an eerie brilliance as it lifted from the ground. Cocytus quickly stepped back, his eyes fixed on the spectacle before him. The ring shimmered, shifting into raw energy that fused seamlessly with the illusion of Nazarick. The air around the summoning circle grew heavy, crackling with magic as the first signs of the guild's arrival took shape.
Cocytus narrowed his eyes. The change in atmosphere was subtle, but unmistakable—the guild was coming. Though the process would take time, the link had been successfully forged. Nazarick would soon enter this world.
He stood still, content to wait in silence. But peace never lasted long. Cocytus' gaze slowly turned toward the distant sky, his attention drawn to a new presence. From the far reaches of the horizon, he felt a dark, violent aura approaching at high speed—one that could only belong to a demon.
"It sensed that shift… which means others likely did as well," Cocytus muttered, his voice low as he tightened his grip around his three weapons. The atmosphere crackled around him as he prepared for battle.
He reached into his storage and pulled out a sleek pair of enchanted glasses—an item Rex had gifted him before sending him into this world. When worn, they revealed the levels and basic information of those within sight. The lenses lit up as the approaching figure came into view.
[Name: Blue Demon
Race: Demon
Level: 40]
"Level 40?" Cocytus murmured in disbelief. "It's moving faster than I did at level 130…"
The demon streaked across the sky like a falling star, thousands of times faster than the speed of sound. At such velocity, it was already upon him.
Without hesitation, Cocytus began chanting, calling forth every enhancement spell, every buff he could muster. His aura surged, the cold around him freezing the earth solid, as he prepared for a battle that would test even his god-forged limits… or so one might think.
At blinding speed, the Blue Demon—its form resembling a humanoid bird cloaked in sapphire feathers—appeared before Cocytus, claws raised to strike. But at the final moment, it froze mid-motion, its body locking up as a chilling wave washed over it. An invisible force radiated from Cocytus, like a wall of deathly stillness.
Without hesitation, Cocytus surged forward, one of his weapons piercing straight through the demon's eye and into its brain.
"Good," Cocytus said coldly, yanking his blade free as the corpse crumpled to the ground. "I can still use all of my skills."
The ability he had just relied on was a racial skill—Domain of Absolute Zero—a passive defense that activated the moment any harm approached. It didn't merely slow time; it froze it entirely. Anything that dared to threaten him would be struck by the abyssal cold of absolute zero…
It was undeniably overpowered, but not without its limitations. The effectiveness of Domain of Absolute Zero depended heavily on the resistance of the target. Specifically, how long an enemy remained frozen was determined not by their durability, level, or magic defense, but by their immunity to cold-based attacks.
Naturally, such power came at a cost. Each activation drained Cocytus of a significant portion of his mana. In this case, it had consumed 40% of his current MP. It would have been even more taxing had he not possessed the authority of a Vermin God, a title that granted him unparalleled mastery over ice. This divine mastery drastically reduced the cost, allowing him to wield absolute cold with surprising efficiency.
Fortunately for Cocytus, the demon lacked any serious cold immunity. Against such an enemy, Absolute Zero—the pinnacle of ice magic—was as lethal as it was instant.
Cocytus stood silently, watching as the Blue Demon's body twitched—an attempt at resurrection. But it was futile. Though Cocytus possessed the ability to raise the dead, he was still too weak in this world to reanimate something of that caliber. The soul had slipped beyond his reach.