The air buzzed with static, the remnants of the portal's magic fading like a dying ember. Nox was gone, swallowed into the unknown. His mother stood frozen for a heartbeat, her mind caught between anguish and rage. Then the emotion erupted inside her, not in words but in action.
Her blade, a masterpiece of silver steel, ignited with a fierce glow as she channeled her mana into it. The Void Scorpion loomed before her, its massive form casting long shadows. Its abyssal eyes narrowed as if recognizing her intent.
She moved first, a blur of motion. Her initial strike was calculated, testing the scorpion's defenses. The blade bit into its armored carapace, sparks flying, but the monster barely flinched. It retaliated with its tail, a spear of void energy slamming toward her. She dodged with supernatural speed, her feet barely touching the ground.
"You will regret this," she muttered under her breath, though her words were almost drowned by the clash of metal and chitin.
With each passing second, her strikes grew faster, sharper, more precise. Her anger was a furnace, and her mana was the fuel. She unleashed a storm of blows, her blade carving through the air like a tempest. The scorpion screeched, lashing out with its pincers, but she ducked and spun, her movements a deadly dance.
The scorpion, sensing her growing strength, let out a guttural roar. Its massive pincers struck like hammers, forcing her to leap back. She landed in a crouch, her eyes blazing with an intensity that matched the swirling aura now surrounding her.
The air around her began to shift. Her mana surged, responding to her fury. The silver glow of her blade deepened to a fiery crimson, tendrils of energy spiraling around her. She clenched her teeth, drawing even more power from within. Her breathing quickened, but her movements grew lighter, faster.
The scorpion hesitated, its abyssal gaze flickering with something almost like uncertainty. It lunged again, its tail striking the ground with explosive force. This time, she didn't dodge. Instead, she met the attack head-on, her blade slicing through the void-imbued stinger. The severed tail crashed to the ground, writhing like a dying serpent.
Void ichor sprayed across the forest floor, sizzling where it landed. The scorpion let out an ear-piercing screech, its form convulsing in fury and pain.
She glanced back at it, her expression cold and unfeeling, as if to say, This pain is just the beginning. Her silence spoke volumes, a quiet promise of the destruction yet to come. Her movements remained calculated, precise, every step exuding control even as her power grew.
But she wasn't finished. She pressed the advantage, her strikes now a whirlwind of light and heat. Her aura expanded, the sheer force of her presence making the ground tremble. With each swing of her blade, the scorpion staggered, its once-mighty form buckling under the onslaught.
Still, the beast was relentless. With a defiant roar, it reared up, its remaining pincer glowing with void energy. It brought the massive claw down in a devastating arc. She raised her blade, intercepting the blow with a clash that sent shockwaves through the forest. The impact forced her to her knees, but she didn't waver.
Instead, she drew on even more power. Her aura flared brighter, now laced with golden threads of light. The ground beneath her cracked, unable to withstand the intensity of her mana. She pushed back against the pincer, her strength now surpassing even her own expectations. With a roar of her own, she forced the scorpion away, sending it crashing into a nearby tree.
For a moment, the forest was still. The scorpion struggled to rise, its movements sluggish. Its abyssal eyes fixed on her, a flicker of hesitation visible in their depths.
She didn't give it a chance to recover. Channeling all her mana into one final attack, she surged forward, her blade a blazing comet of light. The scorpion screeched in defiance, but it was too late. Her strike landed with devastating precision, cleaving through its armored carapace.
The creature let out a final, mournful screech before collapsing, its massive form crashing to the ground. The forest fell silent, the only sound, her ragged breathing.
She stood over the beast, her blade still glowing. Her hands trembled, not from fear or exhaustion, but from the sheer force of the emotions coursing through her.
The fight was over, but her son was still gone. She gazed at the spot where the portal had swallowed Nox, her expression a mixture of triumph and sorrow.
"I'll find you," she whispered, her voice steady but filled with unyielding resolve. "No matter where you are."
The air felt heavy as Nox's body collided with the ground, the impact sending a shockwave of pain through his already battered form. His muscles were still trembling with the adrenaline of the fight, but as he struggled to push himself up, he froze. The ground beneath him was cold, jagged, and unfamiliar, the once-soft earth replaced by cracked, blackened stone.
Nox's breath hitched as he looked up. The sky... it wasn't the same. It wasn't the pale blue he was used to. Instead, it loomed above him, an unnatural, blood-red expanse, swirling ominously like it was bleeding into the horizon. The stench of rotting corpses clung to the air, thick and acrid, making his stomach churn in disgust. It wasn't just the smell; it was the heaviness of the atmosphere, the oppressive weight of the air that seemed to press against his chest. Every breath felt like inhaling decay.
"Where the hell am I?" Nox muttered under his breath, his heart pounding in his chest.
As he tried to push himself to his feet, his vision blurred, and a sudden wave of nausea slammed into him. He stumbled, his legs giving way beneath him, and he collapsed back to the ground. His breath came in shallow, panicked gasps as he struggled to stay conscious. His stomach twisted, and his head swam in a thick fog of dizziness.
Cough. Cough!
A violent coughing fit wracked his body, and blood splattered against the cracked stone beneath him. His heart raced in panic as he looked at the crimson stain on the ground. What the hell is going on?
The air. The air was poisoned. His throat burned as though something was eating away at him from the inside. He could feel the poison spreading through his body, sharp and cold, wrapping around his organs like icy tendrils.
Nox... His mind screamed for him to fight back, but the poison was fast, coursing through his veins quicker than he could process. "Is this the demon realm?" he murmured weakly, his voice hoarse. He had no idea. It had to be. There was no other explanation. But what kind of twisted, decayed place was this?
His body trembled with the realization. I need to figure out how to survive this. No time to think... His breath quickened as the poison gnawed at his body. His thoughts were frenzied, searching for any way to combat this insidious force.
Then, a flicker of clarity. Void magic. His thoughts immediately went to the magic he had tapped into. Void magic, though still new and unstable for him, it had the unique property of nullifying other elements. If it could siphon away the energy of other forces, perhaps it could eradicate the poison coursing through his veins.
He closed his eyes, his breath slowing as he began to focus. Slowly, he called the Void magic to the surface. The familiar coolness spread through his body like a second skin, soothing the fire of panic that had begun to overwhelm him. It was draining, a constant push to keep it circulating, but he could feel it. The poison is being siphoned off... The poison felt like a thick, malignant sludge in his veins, but as he fed the void energy into it, he could sense the poison beginning to break apart. It wasn't immediate, but it was working.
Still, there was a significant problem. The poison wasn't vanishing completely. It lingered just enough that he needed to maintain the flow of mana constantly, an endless effort. The burning sensation in his chest and throat began to subside, but the effort of circulating mana—his own limited supply—was exhausting. Void energy wasn't infinite. And Nox had only so much mana to work with. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to focus through the gnawing fatigue.
He reached for his coat pocket, fumbling in the dim light, his hands shaky. Inside, he found what he was searching for: a small vial of red liquid. The life element—a healing solution he had carried with him just in case. He uncorked it with a quick motion and drank it, the cool, sweet liquid sliding down his throat and providing a temporary balm for his weary body. It wasn't much, but it would help.
Next to the healing vial were three smaller vials filled with blue liquid—the mana drinks he had carefully prepared before setting out on the guild mission. The mana drinks were a necessity for any adventurer, allowing one to replenish their mana reserves quickly. He knew it wouldn't be enough to sustain him for long, but with careful control over his breathing and mana circulation, he could extend his survival.
Will this be enough? The thought lingered in his mind, uncertain and haunting. His mana wasn't a bottomless well. The poison was still fighting back, eating away at his body, and he would need more than just these vials. But as much as he hated the idea, there was no other option.
Well, it's not like I can just sit here thinking about it.
He knew what he had to do.
His senses sharpened as he took a deep breath, focusing once more on his circulation. With the poison slowly waning, he needed to move. The demon realm, or whatever this place was, it was no place to rest. The environment itself felt hostile, like it was conspiring to devour him. His focus wavered, the mana circulation faltering, and the poison burned hotter, a sharp reminder of how close death was.
But there was something more now. The strange, ominous feeling gnawed at him again. It wasn't just the environment—it was something else. He couldn't explain it, but he could feel eyes on him, watching. The air seemed to grow heavier. He wasn't alone.
Focus, Nox. Focus.
He forced himself to stand, stumbling on unsteady legs as he surveyed his surroundings. The sky above was that unsettling, blood-red expanse, and around him was a desolate, barren landscape that stretched endlessly in every direction. The ground was cracked and blackened, littered with skeletal remains of various creatures—some humanoid, some monstrous, others unidentifiable. The air was thick with the acrid scent of death, decay, and rot, the wind carrying faint whispers as though the land itself was alive. The trees, twisted and malformed, were sparse but imposing, their branches gnarled and stretched out like the fingers of some ancient beast.
This place was... wrong. Demon realm was a fitting name, but there was something more to it. Something beyond what he had imagined.
He took a tentative step forward, his legs unsteady, and for the first time, Nox felt the weight of being truly alone. No mother. No allies. Just him, the poison, and whatever dangers lurked in this nightmarish world.
I have to find a way out of here, he thought desperately. But first, I need to survive.
He turned, his eyes scanning the horizon. There was nothing in sight but the vast emptiness and twisted landscape. But somewhere, in the back of his mind, a flicker of determination burned brighter than the pain gnawing at his insides.
"I will survive," Nox muttered to himself, his voice hoarse. "And I'll find a way back."
A part of him knew that this was only the beginning. Whatever had brought him here, whatever had sent the Void Scorpion after him, there was more to this than a simple accident. And Nox, though he was still far from ready, knew that he would have to face it.
And I will rise above it all.
He clenched his fist, feeling the pulse of void magic surge within him, and took his first determined step into the unknown.