Making a Video Game Company to Get My Waifu - Chapter 34 (Patreon)

"Mother, can you take Bianca and regroup with the rest?" I said absentmindedly, my thought on the current situation.

And how thoroughly pissed off I am.

I stood up, looking as if I was never injured in the first place. Pasiphaë looked at me with relief, but also well earned confusion and intrigued.

This also went into why I was so absolutely fucking infuriated.

I was back to full health, because the Labyrinth decided healing me was it's most urgent priority to ensure I kept up my Noble Phantasm and thus it's Awakening.

How did it do this?

By using it's energy as we are connected.

Where did it get this energy?

From its own structure!

Meaning the time limit of a day, really did shrink down to six hours like I told Percy and Thalia before.

Are the Fates just fucking around with me? Is this some "ironic" hubris thing for my cautiousness to be seen as deception by them? I said "six hours" so they made it so? Weren't they on my side till now? Or was it luck thus far? I seriously don't know which it is, but I do know I can't dillydally around with Atlas any longer. I'm ending him here and now, as quickly as possible. My thoughts were a whirlwind of anger and annoyance, before I settled on the certainty of what I must do. Immediately.

Worst of all. I looked at the golden chains around the Titan's waist bursting with energy here and there. The last chains on him are going to break. It's inevitable at this point. They can't hold his power back indefinitely anymore without the other chains. I have to kill him before that point.

"You will not need help?" Pasiphaë asked.

"I'll manage." I said, not taking my eyes off Atlas who began to climb out of his crater. His arms rapidly regenerating, but I imagine it's costing him energy to burn through as well.

"I need to check on my huntresses and the demigods for injuries. Let's not make this quest a pyrrhic one when it needs not." Artemis said from near us.

I side-eyed her, wondering if she wanted to leave, also as a way so I'd fight alone and either die while weakening Atlas, or we both manage to take each other out. Or maybe that's my bias against her talking.

Regardless, I needed to ask her something, so I manipulated space so my voice wouldn't reach Atlas.

"When you return, do you think you can one-shot Atlas in Divine Form without causing the gold chains to break?" I asked.

Artemis blinked at the question before replying.

"Ambushing him? Easily. Yet those chains...? No. As you can tell they are barely holding, and not for long. The presence of a second Divine Form would cause them to shatter before my strike reaches the loathsome Titan. It is not a guarantee that it would kill him."

"Yeah..." I clicked my tongue in annoyance. "I didn't expect us to be lucky. Go, I'll handle this." I said and began to head toward the titan.

"...Be careful of hubris. It can befell monsters too." Artemis said before turning to leave.

I think that might be the first time she tried being nice to me.

"I'm too angry to care." I said and dashed forward.

Pasiphaë and Artemis left and it was just me and Atlas.

I started overlaying the minotaurs.

1000, 2000.

Son of Poseidon Minotaur. Legacy of Helios Minotaur. Fighter Minotaur.

3000, 7000.

I held those three variants and kept overlaying minotaurs over and over only to empower myself and anything to supplement or empower those three aspects.

12,000. 18,000.

I was back to 100%. The Labyrinth made sure of that at the cost of everything. So I knew my limit from before and knew how many minotaurs to hold without any strain or cost.

20,000 minotaurs overlayed.

It was far before I started to feel a strain, but I think that's enough for supporting the three variants I was holding.

More than that, it wasn't straining in any way I can notice.

So I can just go apeshit without a care.

Atlas' hand grabbed the cliff of his crater as he was about to climb over it, home free.

I manipulated the Labyrinth to flatten the ground by fixing the crater instantly. He stumped as he found himself with something to hold, now half a step falling to solid ground.

Before Atlas could react or regain his balance, he was met with my knee to his face.

My flaming knee, that also hit him with a quake strike. Yeah, a few of the minotaurs learn to deliver vibration quakes via other body limbs, like legs or their skull. That one minotaur who did that was extra stupid. Admittedly his horn strike was extra deadly, in that it made the target explode into gore after impaling them, due to making quake vibrations inside the body.

"GAAH!" Atlas screamed as his nose broke and bled for the umpteenth time. "You cheap shot, worthless—"

Overhand right punch to the face. He started to fall back, only for me to grab his head and knee him in the face again.

Now that he fell back, I pulled my leg back and kicked forward.

Atlas pushed himself back, enough to dodge the kick to his nuts. Then the chain ball around my ankle, that I was so used to, swung forward.

Atlas screamed at the iron ball slamming into his titan balls.

Then I jumped and elbow dropped him in the face. Yeah this was a no mercy run.

He finally regained enough of his wits, or maybe it's his battle instincts, enough to roll to the side.

Labyrinth space manipulated and as he finished his roll, Atlas found himself right back under me.

Elbow to the face.

He shouted and tried to knee me in my side, only for me to manipulate space again to dodge and be away.

The titan quickly moved by pushing away pain for a moment, as he finally managed to get his feet under him, and stand again.

Only to find me right at him, punch aimed at his face again. His right arm came up to block my left hook. Left arm set aside to block the direction of my right arm.

I greeted him with a kick from the left side. The earthquake kick sent vibrations rippling across Atlas's torso and inside his body.

Atlas gritted his teeth, stopping back a shout. His eyes murderous, but mine held murder for him right back. I was done playing. I was done strategizing.

All my effort.

Atlas with a roar that shook the air threw a haymaker at me. He fully threw himself into his Strength Domain.

Is to kill.

Good. That meant he wasn't as durable. I let the punch connect to my side. That hit should have hurt. Shattered my ribs. Something.

This titan.

Yet nothing happened. Because I did this trick before. I transferred the damage to one of my variants, letting it be destroyed instead. I have 53, 000 minotaur variants, and I'm only using 20,000 of them.

Here.

I have 33,000 free lives to use. They regenerate as long as I survive in the end.

His head wasn't protected. I punched with fire and quake delivered by my fist. And just from basic high school physics, I remember fire gets hotter from molecules vibrating faster, and with quake being vibrations?

And.

BOOM!

Now.

Atlas got an explosion to the face.

Then a kidney punch before he could get over his surprise.

BOOM!

"AAAAARGH!" Atlas screamed.

The punches stopped hurting as he focused on his Domain of Endurance, which meant his punches took five to six times to fully kill one of the unused variants.

If there wasn't a ticking clock in all of this, then I would have won this endurance battle against the Titan of Endurance.

Arrogant, maybe. But he was the one accumulating damage.

Over and over, when he threw punches that left him open, I took it. When he defended I wailed on him till he was forced to move, dodge or counter as his arms can't block forever. They would become mincemeat from too many nonstop explosion punches and bomb kicks.

Yet I needed to do more. I needed something that would make even guarding punching for him.

My variants. I'm using them up for defense, what if I use them up for offense?

I noticed a silver light moving down the floors before reaching the bottom one we're in.

Artemis finished checking on the demigods it seems. She was being stealthy, but nothing escapes my notice in the Labyrinth.

She positioned herself a bit too far away, like miles away, but that's probably relatively easy shooting distance for her.

Now she awaits an opening. Alright, I'll provide one.

Me and Atlas had been slugging each other whenever he's not blocking my hits.

After taking another one of his punches, I flinched. Acting like the damage was beginning to get through.

I dashed back to get some distance, and of course Atlas pounds like a hound. A sadistic grin on his face.

I try to block, but his punch to my face lands, and I snap my head back like I'm actually injured.

His arm is extended. The other one was pulled back for another hit. He overplayed himself. Sucker.

I made the space between us expand for a little bit, gathered energy in my leg, kicked forward and shortened the distance.

Then right before the hit connected I grabbed one of the unused variants, and used that essence for power.

The explosion that occurred seemed to bend space from the heat and kinetic impact.

Fire boomed and blasted Atlas back like he got punched by a missile explosion.

He was shocked, screaming and in confusion, and Artemis' arrow was let loose.

It pierced right through his chest and stuck there right where his heart was.

Even after he finished skipping, slamming and rolling on the ground, the arrow stayed in him. Seem like he's now stuck unable to breath right.

"Gaah... damn... bull... Huntress—"

A bunker exploding punch slammed into Atlas' face again.

Then another to his torso.

Then another to his leg by kick.

Then another to his stomach by another kick.

Artemis joined in by my side seamlessly. This wasn't no longer some noble fight.

This was a violent gang beat down via divine thugs.

Because really, what the hell do you call two beings ruthlessly crushing another, without an ounce of clemency or reprieve.

There was no acceptance of a plea. There was nothing but the slaughter of a titan with our fists.

Atlas had pushed us too far, proved to be too far of a tough opponent, and with how much hatred we shared for each other, there was no other outcome but the obliteration of the other.

Atlas blocked a hit by me, a normal enhanced explosion this time, rather than a bunker breaker.

Artemis managed to stab a spear through his weakened leg.

We kept beating him, but I couldn't use the bunker breaker hits with Artemis so close. I have to wait for her to jump back to get space, so the area effect doesn't hit her too.

With both of us here, Atlas stopped caring about the damage he was taking, and started trying to remove the arrow in his heart, blocking his ichor from flowing in his body.

The arrow wouldn't budge. So Atlas started to dig into his chest with his right arm to pull his heart out. He regenerated it before.

"Stop him!" Artemis cried out and grabbed his arm to hold him. He punch her with his left hand, managing to hit her head with how close she was. The Goddess of the Wild didn't let go of his arm.

I grabbed his left arm, but he was still about to dig into his chest with his right.

Artemis began elbowing his right shoulder.

Hit after hit, after hit. Her blood began to gush and spill, from both his chest and his shoulder.

Artemis' eyes and mine met.

"Other arm," I said and no more words were needed.

She let go of his right arm and moved to grab his left and pull it straight back, even try to break it at the elbow.

I raised my leg, gathering power, fire and quake and doing something I didn't dare till now.

Rather than one free variant's essence. I used five.

Atlas' eyes widened. He tried to get up, jump back, but Artemis was holding one arm back, and stepping on the spear in his leg to keep him down. He was too committed to removing the arrow in his chest.

The axe kick came down with a focused force that cause an explosion of light, and split the ground under us, making a chasm.

Atlas' right arm was removed at the shoulder. His heart was visible in his open chest with the arrow in it.

I noticed several things at once.

Percy for some reason was heading down the floors to rejoin the fight, and having an oddly easy time navigating the Labyrinth. Almost like he was being guided by an unseen force, even though no one is there and he was stumbling blind.

Second the golden chains around Atlas' torso had cracks spread all over them. A small golden flake fell off one that didn't fully break.

Idly I thought of the Fates. Of how this Quest was supposed to go in the books, and how Percy was integral to it. Did the Fates really want their version of the story to play out so much?

But more importantly?

Fuck this. Fuck the Fates, and fuck whatever version of how this story was meant to end.

I moved space, getting up back on ground under us, made a giant hill right behind Atlas, while letting the earth swallow his feet to hold him in place.

"Let go of him and get away." I shouted to Artemis, gathered quake, fire and a free minotaur's essence.

I dashed forward and punched Atlas in the chest, a bunker breaking explosion engulfing him, as he screamed and coughed blood.

Artemis didn't let go and the wave of heat and force hit her too.

"KEEP GOING!" She cried out and I did.

I focused on trying to manipulate space so the explosion effect curve away from her, yet I couldn't fully focus on it, as I wanted to ensure Atlas died before Percy arrived.

Space bending explosion rammed into Atlas' body.

Then another. And another. And another. Right, left, punch and kick.

Face punch explosion.

Stomach punch explosion.

Kidney kick explosion.

Chest punch explosion.

Chest kick explosion.

Chest punch explosion.

Crotch kick explosion.

Face punch explosion.

Face punch explosion.

Face punch explosion.

Torso kick explosion.

Chest punch explosion.

I stopped counting, I stopped thinking of how much energy this was taking from me. My arms were blurring delivering punch after punch, a donkey kick in the middle before throwing fists again.

The clicking and clacking of the gold chains breaking and falling was like the sound of a doom clock ticking down, down, down to zero.

I roared, letting the quake flow from my heart, from my chest to arm. Letting my breath heat up in my stomach and flow along the same arm. Letting the essence of ten minotaurs (the most I could dare to unleash on this attack without any backlash) be used, as my right arm glowed like a miniature sun.

"JUMP!" I shouted to Artemis who's eyes widened. The goddess for all my complaints about her, held on till the last second.

As I punched forward, I did two things at once. Focus on ending Atlas, and getting Artemis away to a safe distance.

The last gold chain holding the circle around his waist broke.

I punched Atlas right where his pierced heart was.

Maybe it was because I took a moment to instantly distance Artemis away. Maybe it was that one second were I wasn't looking.

Atlas moved enough for me to hit his chest, rather than his exposed heart.

The world turned white.

Being in the center of the explosion meant I didn't hear the sound.

I only saw Atlas' body be launched breaking through the dense bedrock I formed behind him into a hill. He shattered it as he broke through it like surviving debris.

Winds pushing everything back, while the floor we were in was shaking.

I didn't see where Atlas' body went as I was thrown back from the backlash.

My arm was singed, red and burnt in places, yet was healing as several variants took on the damage, breaking in the process. Yet I will survive and they will return.

Artemis was thrown to one side of the floor. The most damage she seemed to have taken were some bruises. Good. Nothing too bad.

A loud boom of energy and presence washed over us. And above all, annoyingly, it was the laughter. The deranged laughter full of hatred and rage of a titan that thinks he's won.

His Titan Form exploded as it seemed to take over our vision. The true form of a Titan, that seemed more like metaphor given form, and energy overflowing to the point of shining on everything.

First thing I noticed, like I suspected, gods' (or in this case titans') true forms aren't harmful to me. They don't cause me disintegration. So that's one theory down. I'll have to find out if my idea of why later, if I survive.

Two... Atlas' true form was large in a odd way. I could still see his normally large form that I fought till now, but his true form seemed to be large enough to reach the ceiling if he stretched his arm up. As if when he stood, he would always be close to the sky.

An imposition that's part of the world, yet independent to act on it's own. I guess that's what a deity in its natural state was.

Also he was healed. Like fully seemed to heal up before our eyes like a time-lapse video. All our efforts undone by his true form and power.

...Fuck it.

I'm gonna start using minotaur variants even to the point of damaging myself. I'll use a hundred at a time. I have thousands. I can heal afterwards.

"You. All of you have enjoyed your taste of victory and dominance long enough." Atlas' voice wasn't booming so much as echoingly present that you had no choice but to hear it.

Yet something else took my attention. It wasn't Percy three floors up.

It was the silver light moving along the ceiling of the same floor Percy was on.

"I will return back the tender care you've given me, tens of thousands of times. Death will be a distant dream. You will long for the Field of Punishment like they were the sweet dream of Elysium—"

What happened next seemed to occur in slow motion.

Atlas threatened and bragged, pulling his arm back while laughing.

Artemis shining getting ready to use her Divine Form so we can stand an equal chance.

The silver light that I spied three floors up reached a certain point on the ceiling... and then rocketed straight down. It was a blur, even to my insanely sharp perception within the Labyrinth.

The silver light broke through the floor and into the ceiling of the floor, two floors up.

Then did the same to the floor above.

With a bit of 3D modeling of the Labyrinth in my head, I knew the silver light was launching down directly at Atlas' head.

No fucking way. When the hell did Artemis make that fancy ass divine shot bullshit? How did she even plan or time it like that—

The silver light broke through the ceiling, slammed right down onto Atlas' head, and stabbed two silver knives through his ears.

"Got~cha~." Said Annabeth in a sing-song voice, shining with silver aura. "One. Ears."

Also she was not disintegrating in the presence of a titan's true form.

WHAT THE FUCK!?

===

AN: Live footage of Asterios beating Atlas:

Countdown to Annabeth W: 0

IT! IS! HERE!

Next chapter.

Reminder for next chapter:

"Sweet! Now, remember everyone, ears, eyes, nose, mouth and dick. We need to stab Atlas in all those parts!" Bianca said cheerfully.