Like a misty dream, memories of fire searing my skin passed my mind. The scars of betrayal and snow so white it could blind. People mocking me… crowds screaming bloody murder.
I pondered what became of all of them as I sat on my throne of melded bones, playing with a torch as it melted my skin. Pulling the fire away, it didn't take long for the burns to disappear. I repeated this cycle over and over again as if maybe this activity could kill the pain in my heart.
As I was lost in thought, remnants of a shadow whisked by my ear, "Great Abyssal, 'he' has arrived," or so it said, and the ends of my mouth curved up ever so slightly.
Crushing the torch in my hand, its remnants fell to the floor and sunk into the ground. I clenched the armrest of my gruesome seat which overlooked a great hall of dark walls, grand pillars of sculpted wretches, and dark, wooden flooring of imposing composition. The room oozed a heavy darkness that sunk into one's soul. The source holding such tangible dread was the being on the throne. The only contradiction that could counter the darkness was the high, open ceiling that gave way to the breathtaking and forever unchanging night sky.
Like a bell dropping from heaven, the loud, agonizing roar from The Immortal Duke of Dark Rain reverberated throughout the hall. After a series of storm-like banging between what was most definitely the duke's face and the floor, the surroundings became quiet enough to hear a pin drop. I prepared myself, crossing my legs and taking on a menacing pose.
As the door to my throne room slowly opened, a figure devoid of darkness stepped forth. The gentle drift of wind from the outside let his white hair fall softly in front of his golden eyes. The conviction and passion etched in them were enough to pierce a dragon.
And for whatever reason, he was missing his party of five females. It was surprising, but I continued no less due to my definite fate.
Collecting myself to remember my script, I began reciting my last words.
"You're finally here, hero. It was about time."
"Sorry you had to wait so long," he swung his sword up, pointing towards me, "I am Kyle Brimhorn. Oh 'Great Ruler of the Abyss', today is the day you meet your end."
"Your sense of chivalry never ceases to amaze me," I chuckled with much amusement. I quickly snapped my face into a threatening expression, "You must have some balls to challenge me like this. I'll be sure to prepare a fine coffin for your journey back home."
"Quit bullshit and come at me," he provoked by shooting up two fingers and bending them, beckoning my descent.
I unfolded my legs and stood up, pushing my long black hair back. With one snap, my dark dress changed to armor and my hair tied itself together, "Don't tell me what to do, mongrel," I scowled, reaching my hand out towards him. A significantly larger black hand swiftly followed after and swept down to grab the warrior. In one motion, it threw him across the room to plummet into a wall. However, that was only his clone and by the time the shadow hand dissipated, he was already at my throne coming in fast and swinging.
Sensing the incoming danger, I lept off my quickly obliterated seat, "Ha! Destroying my furniture. How rude, hero."
"There is no such thing as rudeness when it comes to fighting to the death, Abyssal."
From the night sky above, a large sword dropped down, leaving a chaotic surge of debris flying about. As the debris masked the room, I shot to strike the hero's legs. The armor protecting him was almost cut through, but he reacted in time and rapidly backed away. The debris just about cleared when I saw him take a stance that was all too familiar to me.
"Those words make me believe you're more of a villain than anything, little hero," I chuckled, taking a relaxed fighting stance.
"I'll be anything if the outcome ends in your demise," he spat.
I smiled condescendingly as I briefly let myself get taken away by my thoughts, 'I will die after 32 moves. Never would I have imagined this day would come. After years of work towards this perfect ending… I hope it was not all in vain.'
The hero shifted as a sign he was about to strike.
Shaking those miscellaneous thoughts out of my head, I readied my resolve to give this act everything I had.
…
An hour passed, and far more than 32 moves were exchanged.
Nothing was going to plan.
'What's happening? Kyle isn't following the story's boss battle fight. He's coming up with attack patterns I've never seen before, as if he's drunk or something. I'm giving him as many openings as I can for him to kill me, so why isn't he dealing the final blow yet?' I thought, bewildered after leaving my neck wide open after a poorly deflected attack and not having it lopped through.
It was aggravating, yet… 'Why is this kind of fun?'
I watched him come back in range with another unique technique. Over the years, I've fought countless monsters to get this position for this exact moment, but I've never had such a fun and exciting fight before. This was just… "So exhilarating!" I mumbled. I could feel my blood boil as I took up my sword to swing harder and harder, taking it upon myself to counter with abilities I'd never tried before.
I stopped leaving openings for the hero and started giving this battle my all. Noticing a shift in his attitude, I laughed and shouted, "It's only been a few hours, has your stamina already been depleted? So the hero didn't amount to as much as I thought, huh?!"
He laughed in return, the fire in his golden eyes burning harder than ever before, "Don't make me laugh! My stamina is far from out. What about you? I think I see some sweat on your head, Abyssal!"
"Please, this is nothing!" I returned, appearing behind him to land a heavy blow on his neck
He blocked it with ease and grinned with endless hubris.
…
An hour turned to hours, hours turned to days, and days turned to months.
We fought day and night, unsuccessful at decreasing each other's unlimited source of energy which was rooted in our constant shots of adrenaline. We came up with new patterns and ways of fighting during the extremely extended fight. It was completely unnecessary, but to make fights even more exciting, we would shout names for our techniques.
Necessities for a normal human such as food, sleep, and water were completely useless at our levels in which we replaced everything with the expansive mana storages contained in our bodies, so we never grew tired and kept on fighting.
We were perfect test subjects for each other. The perfect training partners. In that way, oddly enough, we helped each other grow.
I wondered if things would've been the same with his harem by his side.
…
Two years in the formidable fortress of the Great Abyssal.
"Super-Sonic Hundred Blades Birthed From A Mother Dragon's Eye Sockets!" Kyle shouted seriously, raining exactly a hundred razor-sharp swords of mana on me.
I dodged every one of them with the footwork I'd been developing for three months. I burst out with a roar of laughter, "What kind of name is that? You're fucking crazy!"
Kyle rubbed his nose, "Heh, I win, then."
"In your dreams!" I darted to stab his stomach at the speed of light, "My 'Vomit Swarm from the Otherworldly Latrine Monster' summon will never be topped!"
"That's true, but-" his retort was cut off as he dodged the attack and caught me before I crashed into the wall behind him.
"Ah," he mumbled in surprise.
I was just as surprised, '...Why did he stop me from crashing into the wall?'
Able to get a better view of his face now, he was quite handsome. The story described him as stumpy and average-looking, but he was undoubtedly tall, chiseled, and attractive. Now that I thought about it, after getting to know this guy better these past two years, he seemed like a nice person. Of course, the hero should have that trait, but it felt as though we clicked so well.
I knew he was examining me too.
He must've noticed a piece of my hair that came loose after a few days of fighting because he tucked it behind my ear. After that small gesture, Kyle didn't pull his hand away. Instead, he ran his hand across my cheek.
Perplexed and puzzled, I blushed a little, but I didn't despise the touch. Although he was supposed to be the one who killed me in the end, I couldn't help but get lost in those golden eyes. I took his hand in mine and pressed it to my cheek, "Hero, I don't know why, but I believe I have fallen for you."
"Yeah, me too," Kyle grinned, leaning in to plant a kiss on my lips, which I didn't refuse.
…