Everyone looked at Ligi. No, was it even Ligi? The demonic sludge surrounded Ligi's whole body. Gotang felt an oppressive pressure on his heart. His chest started aching as he looked at the demon.
'CONGRATULATIONS
Ligi's Demonic Vice has started
500 wp will be awarded.'
+++++++++++++++
CREW
-Ligi
•Power: Shield of Self Preservation
•Stage of Advancement: Infancy
•Quality: Wood
•Skills :
*Vent - Power put into the shield will be reflected
*Expand - The shield can grow up to 1.5x the original size
•*locked*
#Demonic Vice (unrestrained)
•Power: Azrael's Personification
•Stage of Advancement: First Circle
•Skills: (locked)
+++++++++++++++
Bang got a notification in his head. He ignored it as he backed away from the demon in Ligi. His heart was beating fast, unfamiliar with the low grumbling voice of the laugh.
The members of the Defending Tip raised their blades and pointed them at Ligi, quivering, and shaking in fear. This was unlike anything they have ever seen. The orc and the horse were discussed in their headquarters, examining every scenario but this was unprecedented. They feared the unknown.
Resi looked at Ligi with wide eyes. His previous sparring partner was nowhere to be seen. Only a monster, a beast, and, a sinister-looking demon replaced his one and only rival.
Gotang knitted his eyebrows worried for the first time since this entire trip. He was spent, exhausted after using all his skills and even his ultimate to defeat the horse and the oni. He looked around his members, some were trembling as they backed away, some were pointing their shaking swords at the demon. It only told him one thing; they weren't ready.
As a leader, it was his job to evaluate his crew, making sure they were in tiptop condition. They were in fear. They couldn't fight this monstrosity so there was only one solution left; they had to run.
"RUN!"
As soon as their leader uttered those words, they sprinted away without looking back. Resi joined them but he stole glances at his back, slowing down for a second. Bang's first instinct was to run. Ligi was no longer the same person he knew; this was a demon, an uncontrollable brute that will tear him to shreds when given the chance.
Bang heaved a sigh of relief when his system told him to run with the Defending Tip. Gotang stayed behind until everyone was behind him running.
The reddish black-skinned demon roared in anger facing the heavens. Bang felt the shockwaves reaching him instantly; it made him want to throw up. Bang had to suppress his curiosity to look back since he knew it would only slow him down.
He remembered that Gotang was behind him. He slowly turned his head and looked behind at the demon. Thankfully, it didn't prioritize chasing them down. It was currently thrashing around, destroying the trees and the monoliths and everything around it.
Its large wings beat with such force that Bang felt the wind caress his neck as it gave him the creeps. The demon was now hovering in the air with its black eyes mysteriously looking ahead. A monolith lit up and a beam flashed towards the demon.
Bang was glad the monolith finally targeted someone other than them but his smile faded as he saw the demon ignoring the black beam. It hit the demon's skin and disappeared from existence. It didn't affect the demon.
The demon looked towards them and a violet ball started to form in between its horns. Air started to gather around the violet ball as it started to gain volume. Everything got sucked in by the violet ball even them. They felt that advancing further became harder and harder as the vacuum forced them to go backward. Every step became a struggle as they started to slide backward.
Gotang knew he had to something. He turned around and ran towards the Demon as he prepared his sword and jumped. He used the momentum from the violet ball's suction and launched up for his blade to reach the demon.
His blade was on his left hand but his swing was still steady, the force he exerted was the best of his physical limitations. The blade hit the reddish-black skin of the demon creating sparks as the blade slid across the abdomen of the demon. There was no injury, no dent, or no skin-deep cut. The demon was unharmed.
The demon watched Gotang and titled its head. It retracted the violet ball and slowly floated down the ground. Gotang quickly retreated seeing that the demon released its skill.
———————
Ligi woke up from his sleep. The smell of freshly baked bread entered his nose. His eyes immediately opened as he sat up from his bed and rushed downstairs.
"Oh, you're awake? You must have smelled my sourdough bread didn't you?"
Ligi smiled and sat on the chair upright swinging left and right as he hummed, happy, and content at this moment. The door opened and a man in finely combed hair entered the scene.
"Welcome home dear, just in time for breakfast."
The man walked towards the kitchen and hugged the woman's waist as he kissed her on the lips. The man then turned towards Ligi and raised his hands. A warm feeling came on top of Ligi's head as the man rubbed his soft hair, making sure to do it slowly.
"How have you been kiddo? You been taking care of the house?"
Ligi nodded with a smile on his face, proud that his efforts were acknowledged. The man folded his jacket on a chair and sat on the table. The woman came out of the kitchen holding plates in both hands. She placed it on the table and shared it with the people around her.
It was a small table. Just enough for the three of them to hold hands as they looked down and muttered prayers underneath their breaths. After a couple of minutes of silence, a bright voice filled Ligi's ears.
"Eat up Ligi, you still have a lot of room to grow."
Ligi immediately took the bread and broke it into two. The crusty skin of the bread created a crunchy feeling in his mouth. The inside of the bread was chewy and meshed well with the crunchy skin. Ligi closed his eyes as he savored every taste and every texture in his mouth. He felt ecstatic as the sourdough bread tasted sweet.
"You like it that much, Ligi?"
Ligi nodded endlessly as his eyes sparkled towards the woman. They shared the bread, satiated and content with the simple meal.
After that, they cleaned up the crumbs on the table and washed the dishes. Ligi helped the woman as she slathered the dishes with soap. Ligi stood next to her, giving her the dirty plates when she asked for them.
Ligi felt a drop of water in his arm. He looked up and saw the ceiling was wet and water dripped from it. Mold and holes filled the wooden ceiling. Ligi ignored it.
He was happy.
His eyes flashed and a different scenario came to his mind. It was dark, damp, and blood was all over the ground. His arms were reddish black and people were looking at him with disgust, fear, and panic.
"Ligi wake up!!!"
A man shouted at him. He looked familiar, like they went through a lot together, like he almost died and this guy saved him.
The voices sounded muffled as he struggled to get out of this horrible nightmare. He closed his eyes and he was back in his home, his familiar, comfortable, and happy place.
————————
Gotang ran away from the demon. It was looking forward in the horizon, not moving an inch. Gotang used this opportunity to catch up to his group.
They ran away without looking back. Whatever danger there was in the Dreaded Valley, they would take that challenge instead of the demon without a second thought.
The demon moved and dug out a monolith from the ground. It used both its hands and broke the thing in two and took a bite. The monolith was crunched by the demon's sharp teeth and was consumed with pleasure. The demon closed its eyes and enjoyed the monolith's texture.
They ran, gaining distance between them and the demon. On the horizon, they saw a tall pedestal in which a gold shining object was placed, unguarded. Gotang recognized the gold object. It was the object of his dreams. It was the holy grail.
Lobo, Resi, and the other members of the Defending Tip noticed the object in the distance. Lobo almost felt his knees buckle as he saw the end of their journey. His adrenaline allowed him to remain rational.
Everyone was ecstatic. They ran harder than they ever did before. They forgot the demon chasing them and kept their eyes locked on the holy grail, afraid that it would somehow disappear.
Gotang looked at his members and his eyebrows knitted. He could see the greed leak out from their eyes. They were unfocused therefore prone to mistakes that will lead to fatalities in the Dreaded Valley.
"DO NOT GO NEAR THE HOLY GRAIL!!!"
Gotang shouted at his crew members yet they still looked towards the holy grail. He was unsure if they heard him or not which made him anxious.