The sounds of battle had long since faded, replaced by the eerie silence of the desolate lands. Valenor Gaius Marcelo's heart still raced as he urged his horse onward, its hooves pounding against the rocky earth beneath him. The escape had been narrow—far narrower than he dared to admit to himself. His trusted knights had fallen, their sacrifices seared into his soul like a brand, and though he had managed to flee Maharlica's ruin, the demons were still on his trail.
They were relentless.
**His Sage's Eye** pulsed with a steady thrum as Valenor rode, scanning the horizon. The demons had been released from the underworld, and the gods had ensured that they would hunt him down, destroying everything he had ever built. The world, it seemed, was a game, and Valenor had become nothing more than a pawn.
But he would not die quietly.
The vast plains stretched before him, a barren wasteland of cracked earth and shattered rock, the remnants of a land ravaged by the gods' betrayal. The wind howled through the ruins, carrying with it the stench of death and decay. Valenor's thoughts were a blur, consumed by grief and the need for vengeance. He could not allow his knights' deaths to be in vain.
The world was changing. But so would he.
---
The first sign that Valenor was being pursued came as the earth trembled beneath him. He had seen these signs before—the subtle vibrations in the ground, the shifting of air. His **Sage's Eye** flared, revealing the presence of a powerful entity closing in from behind.
Its coming.
As the demon broke through the horizon, Valenor's pulse quickened. The creature was massive, its body towering over the landscape. It was a brute of a demon, its body an amalgamation of stone and flesh, its skin cracked and jagged like the surface of an ancient, dormant volcano. The demon's eyes burned with molten rage, and its movements shook the earth with every step it took.
Valenor's eye narrowed. The **Sage's Eye** revealed the creature's attributes, confirming what he already knew:
Name: Kragoth, Earthshaker
Type: Demon
Class: Rare
HP: 3,000
Mana: 1,200
Special Ability: Earthquake Slam (Deals physical damage to all enemies and ally in a 20-meter radius. Can be used every 3 minutes.)
- **Weakness**: Fire, High-impact physical attacks.
Valenor didn't hesitate. He drew his sword, the blade shimmering in the dying light of the day. As Kragoth raised one massive hand and slammed it into the earth, sending shockwaves rippling toward him, Valenor's horse reared, narrowly avoiding the impact. The ground cracked beneath the creature's strike, creating a chasm that widened with every passing moment.
"Come at me, demon!" Valenor bellowed, his voice filled with fury and defiance.
Kragoth roared, a sound that seemed to shake the very heavens, and lumbered forward, his footfalls causing the earth to tremble. Valenor charged, his body fueled by vengeance. The demon swung its massive fists, and Valenor ducked beneath the strike, his sword cutting through the air with lethal precision. He aimed for the demon's underbelly, striking at the vulnerable soft spot beneath the stone-like skin.
Kragoth bellowed in pain, but its stone form quickly repaired itself, the wound closing as if the creature were made of clay rather than flesh.
Valenor's **Sage's Eye** flared once more, tracking the demon's movements in perfect detail. Kragoth raised his massive arm to strike again, but Valenor was faster. With a leap, he landed on the demon's shoulder, his sword flashing as he drove it deep into the creature's neck. The demon howled in agony, but it was only momentary. The earth-shaking beast shook its head violently, flinging Valenor off.
The fall was brutal, but Valenor managed to roll with the impact, landing on his feet. His body ached, but the fire of revenge burned hot in his chest. He could not allow Kragoth to escape. Not now. Not ever.
The **Sage's Eye** showed him the opening—a flaw in the demon's defense. Kragoth's back was unprotected for just a brief moment as it reared back to strike again. Valenor sprinted toward the demon's spine, his sword raised high. As he reached the demon's back, he jumped, his sword piercing through the stone and flesh with all the strength he could muster.
With a sickening crack, Kragoth's body faltered, and it fell to the ground with an earth-shattering roar. Valenor leapt back, narrowly avoiding the final crushing blow as the demon's enormous form crashed to the earth, the ground trembling beneath him. The demon was dead.
Valenor's body burned with exhaustion, but he did not pause. There was no time. He could feel the other demons coming, could sense their malice growing stronger. He wiped the sweat and blood from his brow and pressed forward.
---
Hours passed, and Valenor's mind became more focused, more attuned to the battle ahead. The **Sage's Eye** pulsed rhythmically, constantly scanning the area for threats. It wasn't long before another demon appeared on the horizon.
A cloud of inky black smoke billowed around the creature, obscuring its form until it drew near. This demon was unlike Kragoth, more ethereal—less physical, more magical. **Nyxaris**, the Nightshade Sorceress, appeared, her eyes glowing with an otherworldly light, her body cloaked in shadows that seemed to devour the very light around her. Her voice, when she spoke, was like the whisper of the wind in the dead of night.
"So, the great Valenor still lives."
Her voice echoed through the empty plains, sending a shiver down Valenor's spine. He could feel her magic coiling around him like a tightening noose. The air grew colder, darker, as she summoned the power of the underworld.
Name: Nyxaris, the Nightshade Sorceress
Type: Demon
Class: Rare
HP: 4,500
Mana: 3,500
Special Ability: Shadow Bind (Roots enemies in place for 10 seconds, rendering them immobile. Can be used every 3 minutes.)
-Weakness: Light magic, physical ranged attacks.
Valenor's **Sage's Eye** showed him the full scale of Nyxaris's power. She was not just another brute force. She was a sorceress—a being of dark magic, and this would not be a fight of physical strength, but of willpower.
"You won't break me, demon" Valenor growled, his sword gleaming as he readied himself.
Nyxaris smirked. "It's not about breaking you, Valenor. It's about destroying what you care about."
With a snap of her fingers, the ground around Valenor erupted in tendrils of darkness. He leapt into the air, but Nyxaris was faster, the shadows reaching up and wrapping around his legs, holding him in place.
"**Shadow Bind,**" Nyxaris intoned, and Valenor felt the weight of the magic slam into him like a vice.
He struggled, his muscles screaming in defiance, but the darkness was too strong. Nyxaris stepped forward, her hands raised in a spell of destruction. Her eyes glowed brighter, and the temperature around him dropped to freezing levels.
"**Nightfall.**"
The air darkened further, and black tendrils of shadow began to swirl around Valenor, searing his skin with cold and pain. He gritted his teeth and forced his body to push past the magic, his **Sage's Eye** revealing a single weakness—a gap in the magic, a brief opening in the storm of shadows.
Valenor focused, drawing on his own strength. With a forceful roar, he broke free of the binds, the shadows dissipating as he broke through them. He swung his sword in a wide arc, its blade glowing with the light of his vengeance. The strike
caught Nyxaris off guard, cutting through the darkness and landing a heavy blow to her side.
She staggered back, surprised by the force of the attack. The **Sage's Eye** showed her vulnerability now—her magical defenses were weak against physical assault.
With a final, furious slash, Valenor drove his sword into Nyxaris's heart, and the sorceress crumpled to the ground, her body dissolving into shadow as she died.
**Two down.**
But there were more to come.
---
Valenor wiped the sweat from his brow and steeled himself. His power was growing, but so were his enemies. His escape from the fall of Maharlica was just the beginning of a greater war—a war against the gods, the demons, and the fate that had been cruelly thrust upon him. His journey for vengeance had only just begun.
And no matter the cost, he would not stop until every last one of them was brought to justice.