Emotions overwhelmed Asher's heart from within; his expression remained nonchalant and indifferent, hiding the complexity coursing through him. Extending his feet forward, he creased his eyebrows slightly. The murderous intent hadn't vanished from his indifferent complexion, still reeking out with a ferocious might.
The Shadow Demon had its robe head, dress, and arm sleeves severed off, indicating he was the very man that Asher had killed previously. Heaving a sigh, Asher took a step forward; with each step, his crimson-dyed blade swang in coordination with his arm. His blood-stained complexion had somewhat dimmed under the shadowy darkness that had enveloped the battlefield.
Instantly, the winds bellowed as he vanished, leaving behind a trail of torn-apart air that was visible to the eye. The Shadow Demon took a step to the left while twisting his hips slightly, dodging Asher's thrust.
'This battle might be my loss.' He cursed from within before jumping to the side. A black blade had impaled the land beneath from where he stood previously. Without hesitation, the Shadow demon rushed towards Asher before plucking up his blade from the sand.
Asher's eyes suddenly became much sharper as he replied through the same course of action. Heaving a sigh, he burst forward while spinning his blade to the side. Sparks flew in the air as their blades clashed against each other; the air was visibly torn apart from their exchanges. With each blow he received, Asher felt his bones crack just from the impact.
However, his mind remained blank in contrast. His entire focus was on the battle, each blow, each wound, each gash. All of them meant nothing to him if it meant the man before him would die.
Each time he would give his opponent a thrust, he would have to take a chop as well. Their blades trembled under their clash. Asher, with creased eyebrows, twisted his torso before using his left foot on the ground to leap in the air. Extending his arm, he tilted his wrist, and so did the blade as well.
Through such actions, he just dodged a thrust while bringing a slash of his own. The winds bellowed as the shadow demon dodged the blade in a fraction of a second before delivering a kick at a flashing speed.
Asher's expression distorted in pain before blood splattered through his mouth. His grip on the blade became visibly lightened; his eyes were on the verge of leaving their sockets.
'Curse the heavens!' He thought that he was about to behead the Shadow Demon, only to be outsmarted by it. As he fell to the ground, he gritted his teeth before mustering all of his remaining strength to stand up.
With a gloomy expression, he held the blade with both of his hands. With a maniacal stare, he rushed towards the Shadow Demon that stood still. Now that the headdress had been ripped off, the Demon's or rather the body's face had come into view.
The body had black hair and pure grey eyes that were boundless. His nose was petite. A pale complexion covered his face; for some reason, his lips were trembling uncontrollably.
Followed by the trembling of the lips, the head of the possessed body shook itself as if trying to control the man. A deep scar was present on his left cheek. Clearly indicating the man was not someone to be trifled with.
'To think the demon has his memories.' He thought with a deep stare at the man's face. An inexplicable feeling rose within him as he stared at it. Shaking his head, he lurched towards the demon ahead.
Just as Asher did so, the man's lips opened into an 'o' before leaving out a vicious screech that forced him to immediately halt and cover his ears, but to no use.
'So this damned bastard can speak as well.' Apparently, from what the demon was saying in his screech, it was a human language. A language that he had heard rumours about but never was able to learn it. He only remembered a single word for such, and that was...
"SAFRON!" The screech echoed through the world. It was to such a degree that Asher wondered if the soldiers behind them would halt their battle just to cover their ears.
'Safron, the language of the Ancient Babylon.' He thought before appearing behind the Demon. The Demon immediately moved to the left and bent its waist, expecting the attack to be coming from the right.
'As expected.'
Blood splattered as Asher slashed the Demon's back. Blood started to drip just as a deep gash appeared on his back. Before the abomination could regain his senses, he immediately went ahead for another slash, this time going straight for the throat.
A black blade suddenly manifested itself in front of him. Sparks flew in the air as both of their blades trembled upon colliding. The demon had feigned that he was stunned before, and if Asher hadn't gone for another attack, he was certain that he would be the one dead right now.
'I can't treat him as an animal. He is on par if not smarter, than humans. Caution might be the way here.' Asher didn't have any ideas on how to beat the Shadow Demon; suddenly, his eyes widened.
'How could I even forget that!' He had completely forgotten the prowess of the panels from before. The ablaze text that was suspended in the air before him, was the key here!
The corners of his lips curved slightly as the information came upon him like a divine revelation. Gripping his blade with a firm and straightened back, he closed his eyes for a moment.
At that moment, he threw all of his thoughts out of him. An eerie silence echoed through him. In an instant, he opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by darkness.
As he took a breath, he realized there was no air here, yet, he felt he could survive here no matter the case.
'Where am I?' He took a step forward; a mushy sound echoed, blending in with the silence eventually. The land beneath was wet and muddy; he couldn't see what it was that made the ground muddy, but nonetheless, he continued to move forward.
Eventually, his intuition suddenly flared up, telling him to stop. Obeying to his instincts, he halted. Suddenly, a wind brushed against his skin roughly. His indifferent expression remained still, hiding his complex inexplicable emotions beneath.
'Why does this place feel... A mystery?' He couldn't muster up the words to describe the feeling from within. Nothing made sense here, as if time was reality and reality was time, space was nothing, and nothing was space. A paradoxical way of thinking.