"Gladly..."
Ji-Mon's body was a mess, as the Dragon stood tall, ready to strike down and finish the job. As it did, Ji-Mon caught it once more. His mind began to rush through his memories, each push and prod opening a new nostalgic look-back. In one thrust, he was able to recall his first sight of magic, where his Father would use as much energy as possible to raise the very sun, letting it shine down and brighten the sky, its smile forever present. In another, he'd recall his time in schools, acing his academics, bullied for acting as one's teacher's pet. He can remember the spitballs and slams into trash bins, always called as the 'dead geek' whenever he tried to bring himself into any conversation. Nobody gave him such respect, yet in a way, nobody also wanted to listen to his truths. He can recall how the adults idolized him as the model student, letting him be used as display for other schools or even other students, resulting in more mockery.
Even in such despair, basking and burying his face into his pillows and blankets, praying to suffocate so he would never experience such hell, the small glimmer outside would always shine for him, the small light that inevitably became that beautiful sunrise. He'd give out a mighty roar as he brushed through those memories, barraging the dragon down, beating down its body until his hands became bloody and broken, pieces of bone sticking out, his fingers cracked and twisted into a hellish shape. Bathory would try to stop his advances by using the blood to strike back, snaring like serpents around his neck and wrists, biting down and strangling him, as the Toxin Dragon spewed forth its vile breath, wearing his body into a mere, malignant mass. Even in that state, he kept going. He kept punching. He kept hitting. He kept roaring. He could feel his lungs beginning to grow sore, a mighty breath taken in and his anatomy moisturizing itself so he can scream louder.
He can recall the day he met Cupid, whereupon his graduation, he was recommended by some of the most elite Casters to further his progress. He can recall the system of Bounty Hunters, seeing them rise to the top with both academics and strength as their defining factors, always thrown into death matches over and over. He can recall how his body was barely able to keep up in even his first real encounter, facing off against a team of Casters, only on his last legs as he took out the last man's life. Even when he was close to death, he can recall the sun rising and greeting him all the same, basking him in that warm glow, letting it shine and comfort him in such dark moments. The Toxin Dragon, meanwhile, was starting to suffer from the injuries, the ribcage being thoroughly beaten down and bloodied, the organs pierced through, the heart beating faster and faster to keep up its adrenaline. "What the... What kind of Caster ARE YOU!?!" Bathory asked, shocked how he was able to survive for so long, pondering when the last embers from that Artifact would go out.
It wasn't until she saw from that small glimmer deep within Ji-Mon's body that she understood why. The Candle has already gave out... and in it's place was his very heart beating, the blood carrying the flame, the lungs acting as its new furnace. His body has became that Candle.
"Not yet.... NOT YET!!!!" Ji-Mon screamed, his eyes changing color, his blood getting warmer, his life coming back. Even as he split his body apart and let the undead cells fester, it was starting to get back what it lost. That color, that pulse. He was coming back from the Dead, albeit slowly. Almost intentional, not wanting to waste it all at once. His memories flood back one more time, from his fight against Tsukiya, to the time he took training and mastering the very army that was previously at his beck and call. Every achievement, every victory, every loss, it all meant something. He suffered back and forth, the pendulum that acts as his existence. He would feel a small grip, as if someone was watching over him by the shoulder. He could hear the applause from the many people, taking pride once more at the achievement they have brought themselves, taking pride in how he has grown and developed since his early beginnings. Once more, he could see that bright sun, as if it moved itself to smile down upon him.
In that moment, his eyes grew wide. His heart raced. His smile grew with the Sun's. More applause, more praise. Even those that hated him would reluctantly clap alongside, forced to admit that their target, their victim, deserves more than what they achieved. Euphoria incarnate. The World of Man has opened for a new vessel. "To live... Is to DIE!... IS TO LIVE!! TO GROW!!! TO DEVELOP!!! TO BECOME MORE THAN WHAT WE ARE!!! THAT IS THE PRIDE WE TAKE IN, AS HUMANITY'S BEATING HEART!!!!" His voice cracked as he'd see the beauty before him, making Bathory both question and be intimidated by his booming sound, watching as his body spiked up in such a violent burst of energy. She recalled how in one's last moments, the body gives in and gives out extreme levels of dopamine and health, letting the brain reach in peace before they pass on. She'd assume this was the case, only magnified to become its very anatomy, but her theory was crushed as he'd burst his hand through the Dragon's Chest, taking in its heart, crushing it.
That very squeeze began to enact his Magic, a loud cackle out of him as the area began to shift. "I DID IT!! I ACHIEVED IT!!! MY NEXT STEP IN MAGIC ITSELF!!!!!!"
"ZOMBIE!!! MAGIIIIIIIIIIIIIC!!!!"
The land changed around Bathory, her eyes widening as she recognized the Final Gambit. She'd immediately leap away and used the injuries to trail up to the Toxin Dragon's neck, blasting her away just in time to escape the radius, leaving the beast to be by its lonesome, watching from a distance as she forfeits herself away from the battle, the last words being such hysteria and glee echoing forever in her mind.
"RED!!!! DEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATH!!!!!!"