Ash drifted through the air like dying snow.
The alley was no longer a street—it was a graveyard of scorched stone and broken bodies. The smell of burnt flesh clung thickly to the air, choking and heavy, mixing with the iron tang of blood. Flames flickered weakly along the walls where Eryndra's magic had carved its mark into the world.
A demon soldier tried to crawl away, its charred limbs dragging uselessly across cracked stone.
It didn't get far.
Eryndra descended from above in a spiraling arc of fire, her body twisting with lethal grace as flames coiled around her leg like a living thing.
"Burn."
Her heel connected.
FWOOM—KRSH!
The demon erupted in a violent explosion of fire, its body disintegrating into ash mid-scream.
Silence followed.
Eryndra landed lightly, one foot sliding slightly across the soot-covered ground. The flames around her faded, leaving only faint embers clinging to her skin before disappearing entirely.
She exhaled, brushing a streak of blood from her cheek with the back of her hand.
"That should be the last of them."
Her voice carried casual confidence—but her eyes were still sharp.
Watching.
Waiting.
Behind her, Reider stood still.
Too still.
His weapon—Eidolon—hung loosely at his side in its blade form, its edge dimly glowing with contained mana. His posture looked relaxed, but there was tension coiled beneath it, like a predator deciding whether to strike.
His gaze swept the alley once.
Twice.
Then stopped.
"No," he said quietly.
Eryndra glanced back.
Reider's eyes had narrowed to slits.
"Someone else is here."
A heartbeat passed.
Then—
BOOM!!
The world shattered.
Something dropped from above with enough force to crater the ground between them. Stone cracked outward in jagged lines as dust exploded into the air, swallowing everything in a thick gray cloud.
Eryndra jumped back instinctively, flames flickering along her arms.
The dust settled.
And then she saw him.
Her eyes widened.
"…Velmorian?!"
He stood tall in the center of the crater, completely unbothered by the destruction around him.
Pale skin. Sharp features. Eyes filled with arrogance and something far uglier beneath it.
Velmorian smiled.
A slow, possessive smile.
"You've grown more beautiful, Eryndra."
Before she could react—
He moved.
Faster than most would track.
His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, fingers tightening painfully as he yanked her toward him.
"I told you we'd meet again."
Eryndra's expression twisted in disgust.
"Let go—!"
She tried to pull away, flames beginning to gather in her palm—
But he was stronger than before.
Stronger than he had any right to be.
Velmorian pulled her closer, his grip tightening, his face lowering toward hers.
"You've been running long enough—"
Then—
SWIIICK—THUNK!!
Everything stopped.
For a second, Velmorian didn't understand what had happened.
Then the pain hit.
His eyes widened.
Slowly… his hands fell.
Not released.
Severed.
Both of them.
Cleanly cut at the wrists.
Blood sprayed violently from the stumps as his body staggered backward.
"AGHHHHHH!!"
He collapsed to his knees, screaming, clutching at nothing as crimson pooled beneath him.
Standing between him and Eryndra—
Reider.
Silent.
Unmoving.
His blade hummed faintly, a thin line of blood sliding off its edge.
His expression was empty.
Cold.
"Touch her again…" he said quietly, his voice flat and devoid of emotion,
"…and I'll make sure you can't crawl either."
Eryndra froze.
Her eyes locked onto him.
"…Reider…"
Velmorian looked up, fury and panic twisting his face.
"She's mine!" he spat, his voice shaking with pain. "She always—!"
"She's mine."
The words cut through everything.
Simple.
Absolute.
No hesitation.
No doubt.
Velmorian's breath caught.
And for the first time—
There was fear in his eyes.
Before he could speak again—
CLAP… CLAP… CLAP…
Slow.
Mocking.
Applause echoed from the shadows.
Both Reider and Eryndra turned.
A figure stepped forward.
Tall. Composed. Armored in elegant black plating that curved like living metal. Twisted horns rose from his head, framing a face that wore a permanent smirk.
A demon lieutenant.
"Well," he said lightly, his tone dripping with amusement. "That was touching. Truly."
His eyes flicked to Reider.
"But your kind rarely finishes the job."
He tilted his head.
"You'll let him live."
Reider didn't respond.
Didn't argue.
Didn't even look at him.
Instead—
He started walking.
Slowly.
Toward Velmorian.
His blade dragged along the ground.
SKRRRRTCH…
Sparks danced along the stone as the metal scraped behind him.
Velmorian began to crawl backward, panic overtaking whatever pride he had left.
"W-wait—!" he stammered. "Wait! I can still be useful!"
Reider didn't stop.
Didn't slow.
"I said…" he murmured,
"…don't…"
Another step.
"…touch…"
Velmorian's breath hitched.
"…her."
The blade moved.
Too fast to see.
SHHHNK!
Silence.
Velmorian's body froze.
Then—
Split.
A clean vertical cut ran through him, from shoulder to waist. His body collapsed in two halves, hitting the ground with a dull—
THUD.
The lieutenant's smirk vanished.
"…You actually did it."
Reider turned.
Finally acknowledging him.
The lieutenant raised his hand, dark energy spiraling into existence as a teleportation sigil formed in the air.
"Unfortunate," he muttered. "I suppose I'll have to report this myself—"
The spell activated.
Mist swallowed him.
Reality began to bend—
Then—
CRACK!
A hand shot through the distortion.
Wrapped around his throat.
And ripped him out.
Eryndra hovered mid-air, flames blazing around her arm as she dragged the lieutenant out of his own teleportation.
"You're not going anywhere."
Reider blinked once.
"…She caught a teleportation?"
The lieutenant thrashed violently, panic flooding his face as the flames burned into his skin.
"LET GO—!"
Eryndra slammed him into the wall.
KRRAK!!
Stone shattered on impact.
"You tried to help him," she said coldly.
"Now you answer to me."
Reider stepped beside her, looking down at the struggling demon.
"Good," he said calmly.
"I had more questions anyway."
They dragged him through the city like a broken thing.
Eryndra held him by the collar, her grip still radiating heat, just enough to keep him in constant pain. Reider walked beside her, silent, his mind already moving ahead.
After a while, he spoke.
"So," he said, glancing at her, "who was that?"
Eryndra didn't answer immediately.
Her jaw tightened slightly.
"Velmorian," she said finally. "High elf. Arrogant bastard."
A pause.
"He always wanted me."
Her voice sharpened.
"I told him no. Repeatedly."
For a brief moment, her eyes darkened—
A flicker of memory.
A younger version of her, fire blazing in her palm as she shoved him back.
"I said no."
Back to the present.
"He joined the demons after that," she continued, scoffing. "Thought power would make me submit."
Reider's expression didn't change.
"Trash," he said simply.
Then, after a beat—
"Should've killed him earlier."
Eryndra smirked slightly.
"Didn't need to," she said. "I figured someone else would eventually."
She glanced at him.
"Didn't expect it to be you."
Reider looked at her.
"You didn't seem surprised."
"I wasn't," she replied.
A small smile tugged at her lips.
"I knew you'd protect me."
Then her expression shifted.
Mischief creeping in.
"And then you said it."
Reider blinked.
"…What?"
Eryndra turned toward him, walking backward slightly now, her grin widening.
"Don't lay a hand on my woman," she repeated sweetly.
Reider froze.
"…I was being protective."
"No take-backs."
She leaned in closer.
"You said it."
A wink.
"You claimed me."
Reider said nothing.
But the faint color rising in his cheeks betrayed him.
Eryndra's grin widened.
"Oh, I can't wait," she whispered.
"To rub this in Vael and Mei's faces."
Reider sighed.
"You're going to make a scene."
"Absolutely."
She laughed softly.
"Mei pretends not to care. Vael pretends she's above it."
A pause.
"They're not."
Reider glanced at her.
"You don't mind?"
Eryndra shrugged.
"They care about you. That's enough."
Then, quieter—
"But I'm still going to win."
The lieutenant groaned weakly.
"…Are you two done—"
THMPF!
Eryndra's fist slammed into his stomach, flames flaring just enough to make him choke.
"Yes," she said cheerfully.
"Stay out of it."
They reached the ruined temple.
Broken pillars. Cracked stone. A place forgotten by time—and perfect for what came next.
Eryndra threw the lieutenant against a pillar.
THUD!
He collapsed, barely able to move.
Reider sat down across from him.
Leaning forward.
Watching.
Like a predator studying prey.
"You're going to tell us everything," he said calmly.
The lieutenant spat blood.
"You're dead," he hissed. "All of you."
Reider smiled.
Cold.
"I know more than you think."
He stood.
Walked forward slowly.
"Talk," he said.
"Or I let her start."
Eryndra cracked her knuckles.
Flames danced along her fingers.
The lieutenant's confidence wavered.
"You don't scare me—"
Reider stepped closer.
"Then let's see if pain does."
From his coat—
He pulled out the crystal.
It pulsed.
Slow.
Heavy.
Alive.
The lieutenant's eyes widened instantly.
"…That… doesn't belong to you."
Reider crouched in front of him.
"You'd be surprised," he said quietly,
"what fits in my hands."
The wind howled through the broken temple.
Firelight flickered.
The crystal pulsed.
And Reider's eyes glowed faintly in the dark.
"Now," he said,
"talk."
Yeah… this chapter?
Reider didn't just kill a man.
He made a statement.
And worse?
He meant every word of it.