AGHHHHHHHHHHH!


    A wicked scream left my throat as my past and present fused together. A tidal wave of agony crashed my mind. My vision blurred, twisting in a red haze as my mana—once controlled –erupted into a violent, colossal crimson storm.


    DEATH


    I knew this feeling well. I had died before. I know what it feels like for the soul to be torn apart from the body, my breath stolen, my life crushed beneath deaths feet.


    And now, it was back. My old friend, welcoming me into his cold embrace.


    My eyes burned as blood streamed from my eyes. My hands trembled –but not with fear. No. Something inside me wanted out. Something corrupted.


    CLANG!


    Before I could think, my body moved on its own. Instinct? No—something deeper—took over, stopping Schutz’s massive blade just inches from Elnora. Sparks exploded as metal screamed against my mana. My arms buckled the weight of his attack, but I refused to break.


    My vision sharpened, and a voice—no, A WILL—surged up from the abyss of my soul.


    PROTECT THEM.


    Not just Elnora. All Of Them.


    MY SQUADMATES! MY PARTY!


    “I WON’T ALLOW IT!”


    A force detonated from my core, a blast of chaos, unfiltered mana erupted outward like a shock wave. BOOM! The dungeons walls cracked as Schutz was sent flying, his massive frame skidding across the stone floor, carving deep trenches in his wake.


    I don’t care if my power gets exposed.


    I don’t care if they find out who I really am.


    I WON’T LET THEM DIE.


    NOT.


    AGAIN.


    My mana flooded my body, igniting every fiber of my body. My mana-sword materialized in my hand—a jagged blade, it’s edges unstable, seething with raw energy.


    For a moment, a different shape flickered within my vision—a rifle. Cold steel. My past life’s weapon. My old self reached through time whispering to me.


    A sharp pain burned through my chest—phantom pain. The memory of a bullet, the strong reminder of my last breath.


    I exhaled and accepted it.


    DEATH.


    My companion. My shadow. My unshackled power.


    A dark, glowing sigil—a reaper’s mark—etched itself into my right hand. My thoughts blurred into a single, violent command.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    KILL.


    KILL.


    KILL.


    Schutz growled, slamming his broadsword into the stone to halt his momentum. Dust and debris swirled him as he straightened, his breath ragged.


    Then, he laughed.


    “How mirthful!” He tore his blade from the ground, standing tall, unshaken. But there was something now—something entirely new. Entertained.


    He gazed upon me, upon the sheer, suffocating wave of mana I released that was slowly suffocating the dungeon.


    His fingers tightened around his broadsword.


    “W-what are you truly? You can’t be human.”


    The dungeon rumbled under our coiling force. The air itself felt heavier. Cracks webbed along the walls; the dungeon struggled to pick their new master.


    His helmet shined as he exhaled, raising his broadsword.


    I vanished.


    And in the next instant—I was upon him.


    I grasped his helmet and MANGLED IT.


    The force sent him plummeting through the dungeon, crashing through hundreds of floors.


    BOOOOOMM!


    The stone shattered beneath him as I yelled. The impact sending trembles through the dungeon. A thick, choking cloud of dust rose into the dungeon. For a moment, silence.


    Then—he emerged. His helmet half broken.


    “The gall..” he muttered, rolling his shoulders, his bones popping back into place.


    He spat blood to the side and chuckled.


    FINE.


    Then, he uttered the words.


    “Auge um Auge”


    BOOM!


    A maelstrom of power exploded from his body. His mana spiraled out of control, its raw intensity matching mine. The dungeon shook, the stone cracking, the air screaming under the weight of our mana.


    Above, I could sense Elnora somehow moving in the mana weaving healing magic, trying to revive the others.


    Down here, it was just death.


    A battlefield.


    A chessboard.


    Where only one could leave alive.


    Schutz ripped off his helmet and tossed it aside, the metal clanking against the stone. His eyes—blood-red, just like mine.


    Not a demon. Not a beast. But a human.


    We locked eyes, two monsters in human skin, our bodies coiled like a spring-loaded blades.


    No words.


    Just understanding.


    Slowly, we stepped back, swords in hand, circling like wolves. Murder burned in our gazes.


    Then—


    FLASH!


    We clashed, swords meeting in a violent expression of sparks. BOOM! A shockwave cracked the floor below us. Strike. Parry. Counter. Lunge. A symphony of battle rang through the dungeon as we exchanged merciless blows.


    Schutz’s grin split wide opened as our blades locked. His laughter rumbled like a war drum.


    “I HAVENT FOUGHT A FOE LIKE YOU IN A MILLENNIA!”


    Another clash.


    Another explosion of force.


    I felt the weight of his sword through my bones.


    They ached.


    His voice rose again, wild and unchained.


    “TELL ME YOUR NAME!”


    “Ryn.” I muttered, my eyes not leaving him.


    His eyes burned brighter.


    “HAHAHAHAH! MAY THESE HALLS ETCH OUR BATTLE IN HISTORY, RYN!”


    We rushed in again. Blades a blur, mana-steel singing, our mana screaming. The air hummed with our power, the dungeon trembling beneath our feet.


    “OCHS”


    Schutz mana coiled around his blade like a raging serpent. His sword struck—precisely-hitting my rotator cuff.


    AGH!


    Pain flared, but I didn’t stop.


    I lunged forward, head butting him. A sickening CRACK! Echoed as his head snapped back.


    My mana ignited, surging into my blade.


    “KATZBALGER”


    Wind roared around my blade, an unstoppable tempest of slashes.


    Strike.


    Strike.


    STRIKE.


    My sword bit into his joints, tearing through ligaments. Blood sprayed, but Schutz only gritted his teeth and chuckled.


    He refused to fall.


    So, did I.


    Our blades crashed again.


    Again.


    AGAIN.


    We cut.


    We bled.


    Each blow a hair’s breadth from death.


    “AGHHHHHHHHH.”


    I screamed.


    “AGHHHHHHHHH.”


    He screamed back.


    Pain becoming meaningless. A battle of sheer will.


    My mind fractured—vision flashing.


    Old comrades.


    Fallen brothers.


    My new friends.


    Yes—MY FRIENDS.


    The people I refused to lose.


    My hand shook from agony.


    But compared to the hell I had endured, the abuse, the betrayal, the hatred of the world…


    THIS PAIN IS NOTHING!


    I roared, driving my blade against Schutz’s.


    “THE PAIN I’VE FELT CANNOT BE COMPARED TO THIS!”


    Schutz’s grin widened, blood dripping from his lips.


    “HAHAHA YES! SHOW ME YOUR TENACITY!”


    And so, we fought.


    Not as men.


    But as monsters.