The Seven Deadly Sins

The Demon Clan and Goddess Clan Maintain a Prolonged Stalemate

Led by the Demon King and the Supreme Deity respectively, the Demon Clan and Goddess Clan maintained an uneasy equilibrium for ages, their roughly equal power preventing all-out war. This balance would eventually shatter, setting the stage for the Holy War.

Meliodas, Leader of the Ten Commandments, Falls in Love with the Goddess Elizabeth and Defects

Meliodas, leader of the Ten Commandments and holder of the Commandment of Love, falls in love with Elizabeth, daughter of the Supreme Deity. After killing two of his Ten Commandments brethren, he defects with Elizabeth—directly igniting the Holy War.

The Goddess Clan Unites Other Races to Form Stigma Against the Demon Clan

Led by the Four Archangel Ludociel, the Goddess Clan rallies the Fairy, Giant, and Human clans into the alliance known as Stigma and launches an all-out Holy War against the Demon Clan. Meliodas and Elizabeth fight on Stigma's side.

The Supreme Deity and Demon King Curse Meliodas with Eternal Life and Elizabeth with Perpetual Reincarnation

Cornered by the Demon King and the Supreme Deity during the Holy War, Meliodas and Elizabeth are killed. The Demon King curses Meliodas with Eternal Life — revival after each death, at the cost of his emotions — while the Supreme Deity curses Elizabeth with Perpetual Reincarnation, binding her to human lives that end three days after she recovers her memories.

— The curse details are revealed around volumes 25–28. The Elizabeth in the main story is the 107th reincarnation.

The Goddess Clan Seals the Demon Clan in the Coffin of Eternal Darkness and Fades from the World

Unable to deliver a killing blow, the Goddess Clan uses the Coffin of Eternal Darkness to seal the entire Demon Clan. The act costs them their physical forms, causing the Goddess Clan to vanish from Britannia. The Ten Commandments are sealed with the rest, keeping the Demon Clan absent for three millennia.

Holy Knight Commander Zaratras Is Assassinated; the Seven Deadly Sins Are Framed

On the morning of Liones Kingdom's founding celebration, Holy Knight Commander Zaratras is murdered in a conspiracy by his brother Dreyfus and Hendrickson. The Seven Deadly Sins are framed for the killing and scattered across the realm.

Princess Elizabeth Meets Meliodas at the Traveling Tavern Boar Hat and Asks Him to Reassemble the Seven Deadly Sins

Princess Elizabeth, third princess of Liones, escapes the Holy Knights' occupation and encounters Meliodas, proprietor of the traveling tavern Boar Hat. Together they set out to reassemble the Seven Deadly Sins to save the kingdom. The spirit pig Hawk joins them.

— Vol. 1, Ch. 1 opening.

Ban Is Freed from Baste Dungeon; Diane and King Rejoin the Seven Deadly Sins

Meliodas and Elizabeth rescue Ban, the Sin of Greed, from Baste Dungeon. During their ongoing journey, Diane the Sin of Envy and King the Sin of Sloth also reunite with the group, advancing the reformation of the Seven Deadly Sins.

Gowther the Sin of Lust and Merlin the Sin of Gluttony Join, Completing the Seven Deadly Sins

Gowther the Sin of Lust — a magical doll created by the Ten Commandments' Gowther — and Merlin the Sin of Gluttony join the party, reuniting the Seven Deadly Sins for the first time in a decade. The final member, Escanor the Sin of Pride, rejoins somewhat later.

The Seven Deadly Sins Storm the Capital of Liones and Defeat the True Villain Hendrickson

The Seven Deadly Sins storm the capital of Liones and clash with Hendrickson, the Holy Knight Commander empowered by demonic blood. Meliodas defeats him with Revenge Counter, liberating the kingdom. The Seven Deadly Sins are hailed as heroes.

Immediately After Hendrickson's Defeat, the Sealed Ten Commandments Revive and Invade Britannia

Hendrickson's use of the fragments of the Coffin of Eternal Darkness breaks the seal on the Ten Commandments, reviving all ten elite Demon Clan warriors in Britannia. They unleash their Commandments across the land, causing catastrophic destruction.

Escanor, the Last Sin of Pride, Joins; the Seven Deadly Sins Reach Full Strength

Escanor, the final Sin of Pride, rejoins the Seven Deadly Sins. A human holy knight with a unique constitution — all-powerful during the day, powerless at night — he hosts the grace of the sun, Sunshine.

Defeated by the Ten Commandments, Meliodas Dies and Falls into Purgatory; His Emotionless Body Is Seized by the Demons

Meliodas is killed during fierce battles with the Ten Commandments. Per his curse, his soul descends to Purgatory while his emotionless body is seized by the Demon Clan. The Demon King separates Meliodas's emotions from his body, imprisoning them in Purgatory.

Meliodas Revealed as the Demon King's Son and Former Leader of the Ten Commandments; the 3,000-Year Curse on Him and Elizabeth Is Disclosed

It is revealed that Meliodas is the Demon King's eldest son and the former leader of the Ten Commandments, and that Elizabeth is the Supreme Deity's daughter who has reincarnated 107 times over 3,000 years. The full nature of their curses and their past in the Holy War are disclosed to their companions.

The Immortal Ban Dives into Purgatory and Retrieves Meliodas's Emotions

Ban the Sin of Greed, whose immortal body cannot die, dives into Purgatory where time flows abnormally. After roughly sixty years of combat there, he retrieves Meliodas's emotions, aided in part by Wild — Hawk's brother.

Escanor Burns His Life Force with The One Ultimate to Corner the Demon King, Then Dies

Facing the Demon King who has possessed a body, Escanor activates The One Ultimate, releasing all his magical power at the cost of his own life. Before burning out, he confesses his long-held love to Merlin.

Meliodas and Elizabeth Destroy the Demon King Who Has Taken Zeldris's Body

The Demon King takes possession of his son Zeldris's body and manifests on the surface. Meliodas, having escaped Purgatory and gained power equal to his father, joins with Elizabeth — who has reclaimed her goddess power — to destroy the Demon King with their combined technique, Kamigui (God-Devouring).

Meliodas Breaks the Curses After Defeating the Demon King; Elizabeth Is Finally Freed from Perpetual Reincarnation

After defeating the Demon King and recovering his full magical power, Meliodas shatters both the curse of Eternal Life binding him and the curse of Perpetual Reincarnation binding Elizabeth. The three-thousand-year cycle of tragedy comes to an end.

Merlin Resurrects Arthur with the Power of Chaos; Both Disappear from Britannia

Merlin's true purpose was to awaken Arthur as the King of Chaos, a power surpassing even the Demon and Goddess Clans. Arthur awakens and vanishes from Britannia alongside Merlin, their destination unknown.

Meliodas and Elizabeth Marry; Meliodas Is Crowned New King of Liones; Companions Set Out on New Paths

Freed from their curses, Meliodas and Elizabeth marry and Meliodas is crowned king of Liones. Ban and Elaine also wed and have a son, Lancelot. Diane and King return to the Fairy King's Forest. Each member of the Seven Deadly Sins sets off on a new path. In time, Meliodas and Elizabeth's son Tristan is born.

— Vol. 41 (final volume) epilogue. Tristan is a main character in the sequel Four Knights of the Apocalypse.