The demon's laughter slithered through the air, thick with amusement. Its presence was suffocating, pressing against my chest like an unseen weight.
Aria stood beside me, gripping Kael's staff. She wasn't a fighter, but she didn't run. Behind us, the tiger-like child trembled, eyes darting between me and the creature before us.
I tightened my grip on my sword. It was all I had.
Would it even matter?
Mira's voice echoed in my mind.
"Ethan, be careful. This one is different."
I didn't need her to tell me.
The air around it was… wrong. Like reality itself warped under its presence. This wasn't the demon Kael had gone after. There were others. And this one—
This one was stronger.
Could I win?
No.
Could I run?
It wouldn't let me.
The demon grinned, revealing jagged fangs glistening with dark ichor. Shadows slithered around its feet, drawn to it like starving creatures to their master. Its clawed hands flexed—razor-sharp talons of pure darkness, long and jagged, as if forged from night itself. They didn't just look deadly. They felt wrong. Like they could rip through my soul just as easily as my flesh.
"Are you the one who's been slaughtering my pets?" Its voice was smooth, laced with dark amusement.
I took my stance, my second sword flaring into existence with a flicker of light. "You call mindless killing fun?"
The demon chuckled. "A human standing against me… and dual-wielding, no less? That's new."
Its voice dropped, a whisper filled with malice.
"They usually run. They usually scream."
Then it moved.
Too fast.
Instinct screamed in my veins. I barely twisted aside. The air where my throat had been split apart with a sharp hiss.
Too close.
I struck back, blades slashing in a sharp arc. Steel met flesh—slicing deep. Dark blood spilled.
For a heartbeat, I thought I had it.
Then the wound closed. Instantly.
The demon glanced down at its unblemished skin. "Huh."
Then it struck.
A crushing force slammed into my ribs.
The world blurred.
I crashed into a crumbling wall, stone and dust raining down as agony flared through my body.
That speed. That regeneration.
I gasped for breath, struggling to rise.
I didn't stand a chance.
This was a demon—the most feared race in this world. And at my current level, I was nothing to it.
"ETHAN!" Aria's voice cut through the haze.
I sucked in a sharp breath. "Take the kid and run!"
She hesitated, gripping the child's trembling hand.
"Now!"
Her lips pressed into a thin line.
"I'll be fine. You believe in me, right?"
She hesitated—then obeyed, pulling the child toward the ruins.
The demon didn't stop her.
Its focus was on me.
"Such strength for a mere human," it mused, tilting its head. "Interesting."
Dark energy pulsed around it, warping the air. The sky dimmed. A weight pressed against my chest, suffocating.
"Humans are fragile things."
It stepped forward.
"Let me remind you of that."
A pulse of darkness exploded outward. The ground cracked, black veins spreading like roots.
Mira's voice rang sharp in my mind.
"Ethan, MOVE!"
Too late.
A clawed hand wrapped around my throat.
Pain flared. My feet left the ground. My windpipe crushed under its grip. My vision blurred. My fingers slackened—my swords slipped from my grasp.
They vanished in a flicker of light.
And then—
"Hey, monster. Let him go."
A familiar voice.
The demon paused. Its grip loosened slightly.
Kael.
The demon turned, curiosity flickering in its crimson eyes. "And who might you be?"
Kael stood tall, cloak shifting in the wind. His expression was unreadable.
"I said—let him go."
The demon smirked. "Alright."
Then, without warning, it hurled me aside.
I hit the ground hard, pain jolting through my ribs.
The demon's attention shifted.
"Now then, who are you?"
Kael's voice was cold. "That doesn't matter. What matters is that you won't be leaving here alive."
The demon laughed. "You think you can kill me? Hah! Bold words from someone who has no idea what he's up against."
The air tensed.
Kael extended his hand.
The staff Aria had carried flew into his grasp. He spun it once, planting it firmly against the ground.
He called his staff. That meant one thing—
This demon was dangerous and he didn't care about his exposure.
Kael's expression darkened.
"You won't get a chance to walk away."
The demon's grin widened. "A staff? Let me guess—you're the prince of the Monkeyfolk?" It chuckled. "And you think you stand a chance?"
Kael didn't answer.
The demon sneered. "I heard you enjoy fighting strong opponents. Well, I'm stronger. So let's have some fun. Because none of you are leaving here alive."
Kael smirked. "Same here. Just don't bore me like the last one."
Then he moved.
His staff blurred—fluid, relentless, like a storm. Each strike carried the force to shatter stone.
The demon barely reacted.
It dodged lazily, deflecting each blow with eerie ease.
When it did take a hit, it only smiled.
It was playing with him.
A sick feeling settled in my stomach.
We were nothing to it.
Kael feinted left, then struck for its ribs.
Too slow.
A clawed hand caught his staff.
Then—CRACK.
The demon twisted, shattering Kael's momentum.
And countered.
A knee slammed into his gut.
Kael's breath exploded from his lungs.
Before he could react, the demon's fist crashed into his chest—BOOM!—sending him flying.
Mira's voice screamed in my mind.
"Ethan, get up! He can't fight this thing alone!"
I clenched my fists.
"But—!"
"You have the skills, Ethan. But if you keep holding back, you'll lose everything and never become the hero you dream of."
She was right.
"If I keep hesitating in battle, thinking my opponent is stronger than me, I won't move forward. My skill grows when I fight. I need to fight back."
Kael groaned, pushing himself from the rubble.
The demon chuckled. "Is that all?"
Kael exhaled, shifting his stance.
Then I saw it.
He wasn't trying to win.
He was stalling.
Kael smirked. "Now, Darius!"
A blur of motion.
A crackling explosion of energy.
Darius.
BOOM.
For the first time—the demon flew.
It crashed into the ruins, dust and rubble swallowing its form.
Kael rolled his shoulders. "Took you long enough, Darius."
Then he turned to me.
"Ethan, we can't take it down alone. We hit it together. Full force. The three of us."
I stared.
My hands clenched.
For the first time—we had landed a blow.
Maybe, just maybe, we could win.
The demon emerged from the rubble—unscathed.
Its smirk was gone.
Its eyes burned with hatred.
The air twisted. Shadows pulsed, deepening into something unnatural.
"So that was your game."
Mira's voice rang sharp.
"Ethan—don't just attack. Make him regret underestimating you."
I exhaled.
A flicker of blue. A glint of steel.
Two swords materialized in my grip.
No more fear.
No more hesitation.
"Let's finish this."
—End of Chapter—