Chapter 105: Fighting Back

“Senior. Forgive my rude appearance.”

Yukeli looked down at the King Class Demon. He could see the pride in its eyes, a pride that bent as it asked for forgiveness. It seemed to think he was its senior.

‘Ah, I do give off faint reverberations of the Law of Wrath because of the Rage Dragon.’ He nodded internally. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the Demon.

BOOM

His arms blurred, too quick to trace as he smashed the Demon to the side, throwing it several hundred meters off into the distance. It crashed down through the farmhouse, sending up shards of wood and stone flung into the air.

“Apologizing won’t make me spare you.” His eyes were cold.

One less Demon in the world was a good thing.

“Ahhh!” His eyes twitched, however, as a shrills scream caught his ears. He turned, staring at the figure of a quivering milkmaid.

A blonde girl standing around five feet tall (152 cm), wearing a pair of worn linens. She had a collection of freckles dotting her face, making her look oddly cute despite the dirt she was covered in. It reminded him of an old friend.

It was unfortunate that he had to kill her.

“I cannot allow anything close to a witness to survive seeing me. My apologies. Blame the chains that are Fate.” His eyes were callous as he leaned down and picked her up by the throat.

The farmer girl clutched at his hand, her voice weak. Her body shook at her panicked movements, desperation filling her eyes as she looked at him with horror.

Yukeli didn’t hesitate. Without a second thought, he clamped down and crushed her throat.

Or, rather, he tried to.

“Another life lost on the journey to perfection, your sacrifice will n-” Yukeli froze, stopping his monologue as he looked down at his right arm.

The milkmaid was still clutched in it, scratching uselessly at his hand.

Her throat was decidedly not crushed.

“What?”

“Die.” His eyes flashed as he put the full force of his strength into the blow, clenching his fist with enough power to crush a metal shield. He felt the energy in his hand surge, trembling.

Once again, she remained unhurt.

Yukeli threw the girl down, assuming a martial stance as he looked at her, on full guard. His eyes studied her every movement, not a single thing she did escaping his vision.

After a moment, however, he paused, confusion filling him.

“You are just a normal mortal. How can you resist me?!” He didn’t understand.

He leapt forward to stand next to her, moving too quickly to be visibly picked out.

“Rumbling Earth: Mountain’s Edge.”

His hand cut down in an arc, the side of it taking on an incredibly sharp concentration of energy. His entire stance seemed abnormally solid, as if nothing in the world could stop him.

WHOOSH

In midair, before his hand could land on the milkmaid, hovering just over her neck, his arm froze.

A gleam of understanding appeared in Yukeli’s eyes. He smiled. A cold, cruel smile.

“You’re awake, huh? And you disapprove of my killing her?” He spoke aloud, talking to seemingly no one.

Abruptly, Dorian’s body exploded with energy, the air around him whipping back and forth as an indescribably ancient and mighty Aura surfaced.

“I AM A GOD! You cannot resist me! You are nothing more than a mortal, a weak human graced by my presence! I HAVE DESTROYED ENTIRE WORLDS! A single life is NOTHING to me!” His words shook the air itself.

The milkmaid trembled on the ground, crying in fear. Yukeli’s arm inched closer, threatening to end her life on the stop.

His right arm trembled, and after a moment, slowly retracted back, away from the milkmaid’s neck.

Yukeli shook his head, dissatisfaction present in his eyes,

“You shouldn’t be able to obstruct me at all. More deviations from my planned future…”

“For what reason? Why would you fight me? You and I, we are one and the same now. Your Fate is tied to mine. Even if you resist now, in the future, you will willingly join with me.” His entire body shook.

“Leaving a witness alive is like asking to be tracked through Fate. There is no reason to spare her. The mission I gave you was to seek perfection in destruction. Not to spare random farmers. By sparing her, you put yourself, and me, in grave danger.”

Dorian’s body shook. Abruptly, words came from his mouth again. Words that carried a different tone, lacking the ancient pain and dissatisfaction of Yukeli.

Words from Dorian himself.

“I do- what- I- w-want. Screw off, ghost. Thi-this is my body.” Dorian’s words were stifled as he spoke, stuttering out a response.

Yukeli frowned. His eyes filled with even more displeasure as he felt Dorian slowly starting to take back over, becoming fully conscious.

“You understand nothing. What would you do if that Demon came back over here? Without me, you would be dead.”

“I- I- I plead the Fifth.” Dorian sputtered out, trying to glare at Yukeli to no avail as he referenced a law from Earth, one about refusing to answer questions. His mind was cluttered, and memories of his life on Earth kept shooting to the forefront, for some odd reason.

Yukeli didn’t understand, but could tell that he was being mocked.

His eyes flashed one last time as he felt his awareness slipping away. He could only temporarily surface, as a remnant part of the darkness that ran flush in Dorian’s soul.

“Fine, ‘Dorian’. Have it your way.” When he said Dorian’s name, he twisted it, making it sound off,

“If you wish to be free of me, continue to the Ascension Ruins on Magmor. Seek the Chamber of Life at the center of the ruins. There, you will obtain what you need to bring back your friend, William.” His voice was full of ancient wisdom as he spoke, mysterious and authoritative. Dorian knew, instinctively, that he was not lying.

“There you will see the answers to all your questions. There you will see the truth.”

“But be warned…” His voice took on a cruel edge, a completely unworried tone, as if he knew everything would fall in his favor,

“You may not like what you find.”

WHOOSH

The darkness in Dorian’s soul fluctuated. Underneath all that darkness, a small light gleamed against it, holding it back from swallowing Dorian’s soul completely. A gleam of light that originated from William’s dormant soul, long ago.

Abruptly, Dorian felt himself completely in control, Yukeli’s presence vanishing.

“Huff-huff.” Dorian closed his eyes and shuddered for a moment before taking a deep breath, his fists clenched. His heart pounded and slowly began to calm, blood pumping in his veins.

“Pl-please don’t kill m-m-me!”

A terrified girl’s voice, so quiet it was almost a whisper, caught Dorian’s attention. The milkmaid that Yukeli had tried to murder.

His eyes flashed darkly,

‘You bastard. I see why you grabbed my soul and made a body now. You just wanted to take it over. It’s probably the same for the other Anomalies, huh? Well, don’t think it’ll be that easy.’

Dorian bent down, holding out his hands,

“I’m not going to hurt-”

“Please!!” The milkmaid’s body shook in terror as she crawled backwards, trembling as Dorian knelt down and got closer. She stared at Dorian, a mix of pure hatred and fear.

Dorian froze and then slowly backed up. His heart was torn as he looked at the girl, feeling her vitriolic hatred of him.

“I am so sorry.” He bowed deeply and then backed away. There was nothing he could do here.

He walked a dozen meters away, his eyes pensive. He turned to look into the distance. A huge plume of smoke could be seen rising into the air. Remnants of the attack that Demon had sent off.

Yukeli had managed to control his body when he was knocked unconscious. Dorian could vaguely remember his actions. He could also feel something now.

A dark presence, leaning on his mind and soul. He looked at his hands, staring at them.

The fading evening light cast his hands into shadow, staining them with darkness. It looked almost as if the darkness was truly a part of him now, the last wavering light of the sun desperately struggling to stay alive.

“I am Dorian…” He muttered, closing his eyes tight.

He stood there for a long moment.

The whimpers of the milkmaid faded away as she made her escape, fleeing. A soft breeze picked up, brushing the air around. The scent of rich earth, fresh wheat, and various animals sailed with the wind.

After a few moments, he opened his eyes and looked down.

‘…’

‘Still naked…’

He sighed and pulled out a change of clothes from his Spatial Ring, tossing them on.

“Lord of Wrath. My humblest apologies.” A voice caught Dorian’s attention. He turned.

It was the Demon Yukeli had fought, the one that wielded a bow. Its outfit was torn, and the scaled humanoid was covered in wounds, blood leaking from his lips. Despite that, his eyes were filled with genuine respect and humbleness, even with the prideful Aura that surrounded it.

Internally, Dorian felt no fear.

All he felt was tired. Pulled into a million directions.

‘…’ His eyes flashed, however, determination filling him.

He had a mission to complete, and a friend to save. That was all that mattered.

And nothing would stop him. He was so close.

He turned to look directly at the Demon. It was time to do what he did best.

“State your name.” His voice took on a grand, ancient tone as he spoke, imitating how Yukeli sounded.

The Demon’s eyes seemed to gleam as it looked at Dorian, its shoulders heaving in relief slightly.

“My name is Leader, Lord. An Inheritor of Pride.” He bowed his head, just slightly.

Dorian nodded, his eyes cool.

“Excellent. Leader, you have passed my test. Your strength is sufficient.” His voice boomed out loud,

“You are to accompany this Godly Demon. A trial of grand destiny awaits, one that will change the Fate of the 30,000 Worlds itself!” He made his plan up as he went along, an idea forming.

“Anywhere your Lordship wants, I shall accompany!” Leader’s voice was full of fervor. Despite his prideful nature, Leader respected strength, first and foremost. Finding an Inheritor of the Seven Great that was stronger than him was a first for Leader.

“Then come.” Dorian said, turning to look in the direction of Oceapal City. He spared a glance for the area where the Nightlord had been before turning away. He could vaguely recall a blurred image of the casino owner fleeing in terror when Yukeli scanned the environment.

“Magmor awaits.”

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

“We’re getting close!” One of Helena’s Blood Trackers called out, looking into the distance. The steam from the constant, jostling Magma Sea clouded their vision.

Magmor was a world that primarily consisted of lava. That said, there were other unique properties to the Exotic World. One of those properties was the thousands of unique ‘Stone Paths’ that crisscrossed over the world.

Floating islands and trails of stone that stood above the magma level, ‘Stone Paths’ were usually somewhat narrow, only a few dozen meters wide, but often tens of thousands of meters long. These paths connected various larger islands to each other and were used to traverse the mostly barren lava ocean.

Flight was nearly impossible due to the deadly currents in wind the Magma Sea spawned.

Helena rubbed her face, wiping away a sheen of sweat. Her eyes were cool as she scanned their surroundings. Behind her, she could hear Trajan and Xaphan bickering, as usual. Probus and Aron were holding up the rear, farther back.

They were journeying on one of those mystical Stone Paths. It was one made of black stone, covered in cracks and jutting rocks. Occasionally they’d pass by Magic Herbs that were heat resistant, sprouting out from cracks and crannies. What Magmor lacked in normal vegetation, it made up for in Magic Herbs.

“Wait! There, right there! We have found our connection! The one that has strong ties to the Shades!” The Blood Tracker waved forward, pointing farther down the Stone Path they were trotting on.

In the distance, they could see a humanoid figure battling against what appeared to be several Magma Giants.

One of the other unique properties of the Exotic World of Magmor were the unique creatures that lived on it. Some purported that most of the beasts living here weren’t actual beasts at all, but creations of magic that had evolved and run rampant.

One of those creatures was a Magma Giant. A vaguely humanoid being made of molten magma and rock, they usually stood anywhere from 10 to 20 meters tall and possessed great strength. They were resistant to many types of attacks and could swim or glide over the Magma Sea at great speed. They were dogged hunters that would not stop a chase until they were killed or lost sight of their target.

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WHOOSH

WHOOSH

Helena watched as the humanoid in the distance threw what appeared to be several swords made of pure light at the giant magma creatures. The blades sank into the exterior of the Magma Giants before coming to halt, having little impact.

BOOM

An explosion of fire blasted out, sending up a huge gout of steam and smoke that rained over the crackling Magma Sea haphazardly.

‘I can’t let our connection die just as we found it.’ Her eyes flashed. A moment later, a robust Aura of Might surrounded her body, greatly enhancing her strength and power.

An Aura that was almost perfected, about to break into the King Class.

After she talked with Dorian, about life and the future, she had had an epiphany of sorts. Her understanding of the Law of Might had jumped, and everything seemed to come clear to her. She was now only a step away from the King Class.

WHOOSH

Helena sailed through the air, her body blurring as she moved forward at extreme speed. In only a couple of split seconds, she managed to cross the distance between herself and their connection.

The Magma Giants were huge and gave off a heavy sensation of heat. Fire ran flush on their skin, wrapping around them like a comfortable dress. They each possessed their own unique Aura of Fire, complementing their powers.

‘Oh? She’s a female too?’ She caught a blurry image of the embattled fighter as the humanoid dodged between punches from the towering Magma Giants.

“Impact Magic: Royal Impact Series Twelve.” She clasped her hands together and ran up to one of the Giants.

“World Waterfall Impact.”

BOOM

The force of a vast, miles wide waterfall slammed into the Giant, throwing it up into the air. An explosion of fire shot out at the collision, one she dodged smoothly by stepping to the right.

Her attack opened up a gap for the humanoid to escape through, one that the girl promptly utilized.

“Thanks!” A hurried yelp sounded off as the girl jumped through the gap, escaping the surrounding Magma Giants. The girl stumbled as she ran, her body shaking from exhaustion.

“Rain Magic: Giant’s Fist!” Trajan’s voice boomed in the background. A moment later, a colossal fist made of water slammed over Helena’s head, knocking the remaining Giants all backwards into the lava.

“Taste my blade, creature!” The gruff voice of the Anomaly Aron cut into the air as the rest of their group caught up and engaged the Giants, making short work of them. Their team consisted of elites among elites, even if some of them were injured. They were a force to be reckoned with and wouldn’t be easily defeated by just anything.

Helena helped the girl to her feet, trying to give her a winning smile.

“Are you alright?”

The girl was petite, with a pair of fox ears and a pretty appearance. She was covered in sweat, her clothes ripped and torn. She looked up at Helena, gratefulness on her face.

“Thank you! I was journeying on my own when I ran into trouble and couldn’t shake them. My preparations weren’t enough. Thank you for saving me!!” She shook her head, her voice deprecating.

“Don’t worry about it.” Helena smiled, a memory rising up,

“It was the right thing to do.”

The two looked at each other.

“My name is Helena, Helena Aurelius.” She held out her hand,

The petite girl took it, and responded with a smile,

“Arial. Arial V’ich.”