Demonic Human (2)

It was only a fleeting moment, but in that brief instant, I saw it. My own blood, geysering toward the heavens, rising higher than the rain falling from them.

Just as the torrential downpour showed no signs of stopping, the blood pouring from my pierced abdomen refused to cease. My mind grew hazy. Surprisingly, I didn't feel much pain. No, actually, it probably hurt like absolute hell, but my fading consciousness was just numbing the sensation.

I couldn't hear a thing. Only a high-pitched, ringing tinnitus echoed in my ears. Looking at Forne Gillette, the bastard seemed to be laughing uproariously. But his voice didn't reach me. I tried to stand, but my body refused to budge. When I opened my mouth, a wet cough hacked out, spraying a burst of blood.

"...Damn it."

I had a bottle of the Spring Water of Life in my pocket. But I didn't even have the strength to pull it out and drink it. With trembling fingers, I summoned the Special Shop floating in the air and began scrolling down. I remembered catching a glimpse of a recovery package when I was searching for packages earlier.

Just then, Forne Gillette stepped forward and ground his boot into my head.

"Haha, hahahaha! To think the great Hound would be groveling so miserably! I've never felt such pure ecstasy in my entire life! How incredibly refreshing. Winston, Lutera, and even the Crown Prince! I'll turn every last one of them into corpses rotting on the ground, just like you."

Now that Forne Gillette was closer, his voice finally broke through the ringing. His inferiority complex and jealousy were practically piercing the heavens.

"Why are your fingers twitching like that? What are you trying to do, you piece of trash?!"

Forne Gillette repeatedly stomped on my head. But it didn't hurt. The gaping hole in my abdomen was far more agonizing. He could have crushed my skull and killed me right then and there. But he didn't. For one reason, and one reason only: to feed his shattered ego.

That is the one mistake you should never have made. The worst choice of your life.

Fighting to keep my consciousness from slipping away, I scrolled down with my trembling finger. And there it was.

Purchase.

The moment I finalized the purchase, the gaping hole in my abdomen—through which the ground below had been clearly visible—began to knit itself back together.

"What! You... what did you do?! How?!"

Forne Gillette panicked. Seeing me rapidly heal, he instantly bared his razor-sharp claws and swung them toward my neck. However—

Grab.

Pushing myself up from the ground, I caught his incoming wrist in a vice grip. I was already mostly healed.

"You son of a bitch. That hurt like absolute hell."

I squeezed his wrist even tighter, intending to crush his bones to splinters. Forne Gillette shrieked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in agony.

"Aaargh! You... you bastard!"

He struggled desperately to wrench his wrist free, but my grip wouldn't budge. Ultimately, he used the long, sharp claws of his other hand to sever his own wrist.

"Pant, pant..."

I brushed myself off and stood up, watching Forne Gillette wheeze with a ragged, metallic rasp. Regenerating both arms and now his wrist must have drained a massive amount of his energy.

"...Flowing Water Sword."

I fell into my stance once more. I focused my vision entirely on the red lines tracing Forne Gillette's movements. I wouldn't miss them this time.

"Whew... of course you wouldn't go down easily. Fine, then. Let's see this through to the end."

Forne Gillette's protruding shoulder blades swiveled to point directly at me.

"Let's see you block this!"

Thwip-thwip-thwip!

Bone fragments as sharp as awls began to rain down from his shoulder blades in a wild barrage. Countless red lines filled my vision. I tried to whip up a gale, but Aeterna couldn't deflect his bone shards with wind alone. Drawing fluid, water-like arcs with my blade, I sliced and parried the bone fragments one by one. I twisted my body to dodge the shards I couldn't block, and even deflected some back at him to counterattack.

"Tsk, you persistent bastard!"

The volley of bone shards grew denser, their speed accelerating. In a situation like this, every split second counted. Pouring every ounce of my concentration into surviving each passing moment, I deflected and dodged. One step, two steps, three steps. I slowly began to close the distance.

It wasn't easy. The closer I got, the harder it became to block or deflect them. The sheer velocity of the projectiles was suffocating.

"Arrogant brat!"

Forne Gillette fired a massive cluster of bone shards all at once. If he was going to bundle them together, I was more than happy to oblige.

"Flowing Water Sword: Full Moon."

Aeterna traced a perfect, luminous circle, erasing the volley of bone shards in a single stroke. Now, it was my turn.

Dash!

I closed the gap in the blink of an eye.

Clang!

His elongated claws clashed against my blade, letting out a fierce, metallic shriek. His claws, which I had hoped to sever easily, were far tougher than I anticipated.

"Haha! Foolish!"

His shoulder blades swiveled toward me once more.

"Shoot..."

Just as I found myself in a tight spot—

"Ice Magazine!"

A barrage of massive ice blocks rained down on Forne Gillette. He looked up at the sky and snarled.

"Ugh, Winston Arcadia!!"

I had always found Winston incredibly annoying, but right now, he was the best supporting actor I could have asked for. To think he'd help me after all the grief I'd given him—I was so grateful I could have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cried.

"Young Lord Arcadia!"

"What on earth happened here?"

"Lady Verdia and Lady Merian have been kidnapped."

Winston shouted urgently.

"Seri! Where is Seri?!"

"I freed her from the bindings in the classroom. She should regain consciousness soon."

As Winston and I exchanged words, Forne Gillette roared.

"How dare you chat idly right in front of me!"

A pitch-black magic circle was already forming in his hand. It wasn't simple dark-attribute magic. It was the abyss itself.

"Abyss Apocalypse!"

Massive, pitch-black magic circles manifested beneath our feet and above our heads. If this hits, we die instantly. Every survival instinct I had was screaming at me.

"Damn it, Hound! Grab my hand!"

I grabbed Winston's hand. And then—

"Teleport!"

We warped into the sky, successfully escaping the range of the abyssal magic.

"You can use Teleport too?"

"Do not look down on a 5-Circle mage. I am not some lowlife consumed by Corruption like you."

Winston, who had always seemed like an arrogant prick, looked incredibly badass right now. Is this what it means to be one of the male leads? He wasn't a main character for nothing.

"Don't daze off! Our opponent is a Demonic Human!"

"I know!"

Winston began supporting me with his ice magic. Thanks to the torrential rain, his ice spells were significantly empowered.

"Ice Ager!"

"Flowing Water Sword: Crescent Moon!"

Slash!

I aimed for his neck, but Forne Gillette leaped into the air, throwing off my trajectory. The blade sliced into his shoulder instead, but I still managed to sever his arm. Just then, a massive block of Winston's ice slammed into him.

"Did we get him?"

"Ah!"

I instantly regretted thinking Winston was cool, even for a second. How could he utter the ultimate jinx?!

Crack, boom!

The ice shattered, and Forne Gillette roared once more.

"You bastards!"

His severed arm regenerated as pitch-black magic circles began to form around him.

"Abyss Chain!"

Iron chains tipped with spearheads shot out from the magic circles, hurtling toward us.

"Young Lord Arcadia, keep attacking! I'll handle the defense!"

"Understood. Ice Partisan!"

As ice tridents flew forward, I deflected the incoming black chains. There were so many of them that no matter how many I cut down, they just kept coming.

"Don't you have any stronger magic?!"

"That takes too long to cast!"

"Leave it to me and cast your strongest spell! I'll buy you time!"

Winston nodded with a grim, resolute expression and drew a massive, sky-blue magic circle. He then began to recite a lengthy incantation.

"It's useless! Abyss Chain: Pearl Abyss!"

Black spears and a dark sphere that practically screamed "lethal" shot toward us simultaneously. But unfortunately for him, cutting down magic was my specialty. After all, I could see their entire trajectories mapped out in red lines.

I deflected the black spears and sliced the dark sphere in half. However, the severed sphere burst, releasing a thick, stale gas. A dark-red cloud, denser than anything I'd seen before, billowed out. Dangerous.

"Young Lord Arcadia! Hold your breath!"

"What do you mean by... *cough!*"

It was poison. And an incredibly lethal one at that.

"Young Lord Arcadia!"

"Haha! How do you like my magic? I told you I gave up the spear, didn't I? Why would I ever use a weapon like a spear when I possess power like this!"

Forne Gillette began drawing even more magic circles. This was a massive crisis. Winston, whom I thought would be a huge help, was down from the gas, and this Demonic Human was far stronger than I had anticipated.

"Aeterna!"

Boom!

A violent gale whipped up around us, shielding us. This would buy us a brief moment. Seizing the opportunity, I pulled the Spring Water of Life from my pocket and poured it down Winston's throat.

"*Cough!*"

Winston hacked, spitting up a dark, murky liquid.

"Once you've gathered your senses, finish that spell. I'll handle the gas."

Forne Gillette's spells continued to rain down on us.

"Hahahahaha!"

But this time, he was mixing in bone shards as well. I blew away the black gas with Aeterna's gale while deflecting the black spears and bone fragments. And then—

"Darkness Haze!"

Whoosh!

A thick shroud of pitch-black fog swallowed the entire area. Now, everyone within its range was completely blinded. It was a simple 1-Circle spell, but because I had infused it with a massive amount of mana, he wouldn't be able to dispel it easily. In the absolute darkness where nothing could be seen, a distinct, glowing red mass stood out. It was Forne Gillette. I lunged toward that red mass.

"Flowing Water Sword: Full Moon!"

The brilliant light of the full moon pierced the darkness. As I slashed diagonally through Forne Gillette, he sprayed blood so dark it was practically black. I exhaled sharply. Before a single drop of his blood could hit the ground, I sliced through him once more.

"Aaargh!"

Thud!

Forne Gillette, who had been hovering in the air, crashed heavily to the ground.

"Young Lord Arcadia! Are you ready yet?!"

"It is ready! Blizzard Arrow!"

A longbow made of solid ice materialized in Winston's hands, and a brilliant, glowing blue ice arrow shot forward.

"Argh!"

The arrow struck Forne Gillette dead center between ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his eyes, and frost rapidly spread across his body, freezing him solid.

"Do you think... do you think I will die like this?!"

Despite being sliced diagonally and frozen, Forne Gillette was already regenerating. But it was too late. My blade was faster than his regeneration.

Slash!

My pure white blade severed his neck. Forne Gillette's life force was tenacious, but it was far too dull compared to my Aura.

Thud, roll...

Forne Gillette's severed head rolled to a stop right at my feet.

"You... you bastard..."

"Your suffocating inferiority and jealousy corrupted you. I don't know if there is a next life, but if there is, don't let your emotions consume you again."

Thrust!

I drove my sword straight through the center of his forehead.

"I... I..."

Forne Gillette's head and body dissolved into black ash, scattering into the wind.

"Whew..."

It had been a brief clash, but it felt like an eternity. How much time had passed? Thirty minutes? An hour? I couldn't tell. My mind was too exhausted to keep track.

"You were fighting a monster like that all by yourself?"

"If you hadn't shown up, Young Lord Arcadia, it would have been quite difficult. Though I still would have won."

Flick.

I flicked the foul blood of Forne Gillette off Aeterna and sheathed it.

"More importantly, we need to make sure the ladies are safe."

"Right. Grab my hand. It is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that broken window over there, correct?"

The moment I took his hand, Winston cast Teleport.

"Mica!"

Micaris's breathing was shallow. That bastard... Seri Verdia was completely unharmed, so why was Micaris in such a terrible state? Did she try to fight back? It would be just like her to do so. But now wasn't the time to ponder. I quickly tried to feed Micaris the Spring Water of Life.

"Please, please swallow it! Mica! Swallow!"

Was it because she was unconscious? No matter how much I pressed the bottle to her lips, the liquid just spilled back out.

"...I guess I have no choice."

I took a mouthful of the Spring Water of Life and fed it to Mica, mouth-to-mouth.