Smoke and dark steam poured from Fenrir's body as he shook himself, bones cracking softly beneath silver fur. Divine light flickered beneath the soot, refusing to fade.
Fenrir lifted his head and stared straight at the demon.
Valzaha.
"…Tch," Fenrir growled. "I knew you were strong."
He exhaled slowly, steam rolling from his jaws.
"But this fight?" Fenrir said grimly. "It won't be easy."
Valzaha sneered.
Fenrir continued, voice steady but heavy.
"My master—Rowan—is stronger than you. Even now."
"But he's used a huge portion of his mana already. Even if he wakes up…"
Fenrir's eyes narrowed.
"…it won't be easy for him."
Then he smiled—sharp, confident.
"But one thing is certain."
He took a step forward.
"You will lose."
Valzaha's aura exploded.
"How dare you!" Valzaha roared. "You think I'll lose to a human kid?!"
Dark energy wrapped around his limbs like living smoke.
"Die!"
Valzaha charged.
The ground shattered beneath his feet.
Fenrir opened his jaws.
The sky trembled.
"—devour Sky."
The air screamed as Fenrir lunged forward, space itself distorting around his fangs. The two closed the distance in an instant—divine light and demonic darkness colliding head-on.
Fenrir's eyes sharpened.
He stared through space.
A black-edged distortion formed before him.
"Void Slash."
The slash cut forward—silent, absolute—erasing everything in its path.
Valzaha thrust his arm forward, dark energy condensing into a killing strike—
And then—
His attack vanished.
Gone.
Erased.
The void nearly swallowed his arm with it.
Valzaha's eyes widened.
He leapt back at the last second, landing hard and skidding across the ground.
"…What was that?" Valzaha snarled, staring at his intact arm.
"It nearly erased me."
Fenrir straightened.
"I expect nothing less from a high-ranking demon," Fenrir said calmly.
"You sensed it in time."
The pressure around them spiked.
The sky—once morning blue—turned blood-red, clouds warping as if the world itself was recoiling.
"If this were night," Fenrir continued, claws digging into stone,
"You might have had the advantage."
Valzaha raised both arms.
Dark energy surged wildly.
Then—
Twenty blasts.
They erupted at once, tearing through the air like screaming meteors.
Fenrir moved.
Not backward.
Sideways.
He ran laterally in sharp, fluid bursts—each blast missing by inches, detonating behind him and shredding the ground into molten craters.
The courtyard vanished under explosions.
Dust, flame, and pressure consumed everything.
"You have underestimated me a bit too much," Valzaha said calmly.
"I think it's time I end this."
Fenrir bared his fangs.
"Well, maybe," Fenrir replied, steady despite the crushing pressure.
"But I'm not going down easily."
His eyes burned with resolve.
"I will protect my master—even if it costs me my life."
Then—
Valzaha vanished.
Fenrir's pupils shrank.
In his vision—nothing.
In his senses—nothing.
It was as if Valzaha had been banished from existence.
"…What?" Fenrir muttered.
"He's moving at an impossible speed… I couldn't even track him."
Before Fenrir could react—
Valzaha was right in front of him.
"What the hell—!" Fenrir snarled, instantly leaping backward to create distance.
Valzaha raised both hands.
His aura erupted.
Red and black demonic energy poured from his body, warping the air. The pressure intensified violently, crushing the garden beneath it.
Valzaha screamed.
Multiple compressed demonic blasts fired toward Fenrir.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
Fenrir ran.
Explosions tore through the castle garden. Walls collapsed. The ground shattered. Knights already pinned by pressure fell lifeless, unable to breathe.
Fenrir clenched his teeth.
"He's still getting stronger…"
He stopped, turned, and fired a blast toward Valzaha.
Valzaha raised one hand—and slammed it upward.
The attack flew into the sky and detonated harmlessly.
Fenrir froze.
"…He deflected it like nothing."
Valzaha stared at him coldly.
"I don't have time for you," Valzaha said.
"I'm going to meet the one you call your master."
His eyes narrowed.
"And I will kill him."
"Black Arm of Calamity."
Valzaha sliced his arm with condensed demonic mana. Darkness compressed and fired as a destructive beam.
It struck Fenrir's leg.
Regeneration activated.
Another beam fired.
Again—regeneration.
Fenrir summoned a high-tier green magical shield.
The next beam shattered it instantly.
Fenrir's eyes widened.
"…Impossible."
Valzaha raised both arms.
Condensed demonic beams rained down relentlessly, tearing into Fenrir's body. His regeneration struggled to keep pace.
Fenrir tried to move—
His body wouldn't respond.
Pressure pinned him in place.
"…Not now," Fenrir whispered.
"I have to buy time…"
His claws dug into the ruined earth.
"…Until my master wakes up."
Fenrir forced himself to stand.
Even as his body screamed.