Elis touched Elarion's shoulder, smiling.
"Hello, Master. Did you have fun? I did."
Elarion turned his face away, letting out a small sigh.
"What are you doing here? I thought you were in the hall, enjoying yourself."
Elis's grip tightened around his shoulder, her face twisting into a slight grimace.
"Is toying with this ugly sight more fun than being with me?"
She kicked the furred man's stomach hard, a sickening crack echoing as his ribs broke. Releasing a soft sigh, she turned and walked toward the nearby hut.
"Master, let me tell you two things. First, your emotional magic is kind of annoying. You make them act so simple... like children."
She broke the wooden hut door with a single kick, smiling down at a small girl huddled in the corner, crying.
"And second... you should have introduced me to this beautiful creature earlier."
Elis knelt, hugging the girl gently. She whispered into her ear, and the child instantly fell asleep.
"Sleep, my child."
Elarion smirked, clapping his hands.
"You talked down to me for using Soul Touch, and now you're casting a sleeping spell on a little girl?"
Elis smiled, lifting the girl into her arms as she walked out of the hut.
"I know what you've been through, Master... but you shouldn't make others go through the same pain."
Elarion sighed, grabbing his sword again. In silence, he slashed the furred man into pieces. The man tried to scream, but no sound escaped. Elarion looked down at the scattered remains and laughed loudly.
"How does it feel—to suffer like all the people you once tortured? And one more thing… you're not allowed to die just yet."
He waved mockingly at the shredded body and then ran after Elis.
"Where are you going?"
Elis stopped suddenly. Her body trembled, sensing an overwhelming killing intent in the air. The atmosphere grew heavy. The little girl, still asleep, couldn't feel it—only confusion on Elis's face.
Elarion looked back, smirking, then turned to Elis and whispered:
"Run. I'll buy you two some time. You know where to go, right?"
Elis hesitated for a moment, then nodded and ran from the source of the pressure.
"I trust you, Master."
Elarion turned back toward the fur man's remains—now joined by a tall figure with red eyes and fiery hair, inspecting the body. His horns curved back like a crescent moon.
Elarion bowed, grinning.
"May I ask for your identification?"
The horned man bared his teeth, clenching his fists and shouting:
"What did you do to my maid?! I hope she didn't suffer like these pathetic creatures."
Elarion covered his mouth with one hand, his eyes sparkling with mischief.
"I see... You must be the Demon King." He tilted his head. "What was your name again?"
Rage flashed across the demon's face. He raised his hand high, summoning a massive ball of black fire and hurling it toward Elarion.
Elarion caught it with his bare hand—and it vanished upon contact.
The Demon King chuckled, bowing dramatically. His laughter deepened.
"I am Demon King Morzathun. Be honored that I bow to you." He raised his head and extended his hand again, summoning a smaller, denser inferno of flame.
"Though you won't live to tell anyone about it."
Elarion clapped his hands, smirking as he pointed in the direction Elis had run.
"Now that my partner is far away... I can finally use my full power."
His usual smile faded. He raised both hands, his entire body turning black with surging mana. He began to rise into the air. Every motion of his hands summoned magical radiance—fire, wind, earth, and water. Morzathun dodged each strike while charging his own mana. The ground trembled beneath them.
Elarion whispered:
"There is no mercy, no forgiveness. I am the son of a god, hated by fate and the divine. My mother... a toy of the heavens. I will bring disaster wherever I walk. And you—who play with lives—shall vanish with my regrets and sorrow."
Mana surged above him—bright as a star. Morzathun's aura condensed into a small black sphere, pulsing with deadly power.
Elarion lowered his hand. Morzathun released his attack.
The two spells collided.
Elarion's star-like mana began to descend, overwhelming Morzathun's black sphere, which pierced halfway through before vanishing into nothingness.
Morzathun, eyes wide, tried to conjure a barrier—but it wasn't enough. The force crushed him beneath its weight. His body cracked, blood spurting from open wounds.
"It... hurts. Stop..." he whimpered.
Elarion snapped his fingers. The magic halted. The ground caved in, leaving a massive crater where a city once stood.
He walked slowly to the broken body of the Demon King, who lay as a mangled mass of flesh. Elarion placed a hand on his head and restored his body.
"Let's see your sins."
He lowered his head. A single tear fell—but it turned to blood. His laugh followed, hollow and haunted.
"I should grant you infinite torment for your crimes... but first—"
He hurled Morzathun's head into the sky, then struck it midair with his sword, impaling it.
"Who ordered you to do that to my mother?"
Morzathun coughed blood, but laughed bitterly.
"As if I'd tell a mere human. Which whore was your mother?"
Elarion slashed him repeatedly, then stopped. Morzathun hovered on the brink of death. Elarion healed him, chained him in threads of light, and walked away.
Confused and shocked, Morzathun struggled—but the chains were stronger than anything he'd known. He laughed, bitter and broken.
"Where are you going?" His tone turned sultry. "Son of a whore."
Elarion glanced over his shoulder, smiling. That smile unnerved Morzathun more than the chains.
An hour—or maybe just a moment—later, Elarion returned, dragging Terra by her hair. Her body burned with Elis's earlier curse. She screamed uncontrollably.
He threw her beside Morzathun, chaining her as well.
"I want you two to fight—no magic, no weapons. Just your teeth. Like the beasts you are."
Morzathun chuckled.
"What makes you think we'll do that?"
Elarion stroked Terra's hair gently, smiling.
"If you bite him, I'll lift the curse."
Without hesitation, Terra sank her teeth into Morzathun's cheek, blood gushing from the wound. Elarion laughed, retrieving Elis's sword from her.
Morzathun was speechless. His once-loyal maid had betrayed him.
"What did you do to her?" he asked quietly.
Elarion smirked, ruffling Morzathun's hair like he was a dog.
"Nothing. Just a little Heart Magic. Or was it Soul Touch? Whatever it's called. Those are her true feelings now."
He stepped back with a sigh as Morzathun bit her back. Elarion clapped his hands, laughing.
"That's the spirit. By the way—whoever wins gets to be my pet."