CHAPTER 242: SHADOW [2]

The ruined office was quiet, with only the sound of broken glass crunching beneath his boots.

Shadows clung to the corners, jagged beams of moonlight filtering through shattered windows.

The stench of smoke and something far fouler, demonic mana, hung heavy in the air.

A distorted voice broke the silence.

"...I thought I was hiding it well."

The voice was Rael’s, or at least something close to it. But there was no mistaking the twisted cadence. It wasn’t Rael. It was the thing wearing his skin.

The figure spun his scythe lazily, the blade glinting red before deepening into a blackish crimson.

Demonic energy poured off him in waves, thick enough to make most mages collapse to their knees.

But the hooded woman standing in front of him didn’t move. Didn’t even blink.

His voice turned colder, mocking.

"Since you’ve uncovered me..."

His lips stretched into a grin that wasn’t human.

"...you can die here."

The scythe howled through the air, the black red mana twisting violently around it, rattling the broken shelves and cracked walls. But before the weapon could descend, the demon froze.

Something had shifted.

A chill washed over him, the kind that crawled up your spine and clamped onto your neck.

His instincts screamed. His eyes widened, and every nerve in his body fired at once.

He ducked hard, body twisting at an unnatural angle.

SHHK—!

A fountain of thick, black blood sprayed across the ruined floor. He staggered, stunned, eyes dropping to his side.

His right arm was gone.

The severed limb lay on the ground with the scythe still clutched tight in its fingers, a low thud echoing through the broken office.

The demon’s transformation surged to completion, rage fueling it faster.

Black hair spilled over unnaturally pale skin. His eyes burned with bottomless black, veins of crimson threading across them. A jagged horn burst from his forehead, pale at the base but darkening to pitch at the tip.

Even now, his face twisted in disbelief.

The hooded woman’s voice cut through the silence, calm and even.

"As expected of a Count-rank demon."

Her blade darkened, shadows crawling along the edge. She lifted her head, her gaze never leaving him.

"But... that is all you are"

The moment her last word fell, the world shifted.

Darkness spread out from beneath her feet, swallowing the office whole.

The broken walls, the glass, the moonlight... it all vanished, consumed in a suffocating wave of darkness.

The air grew colder, heavier, until only the echo of dripping water remained.

The Viscount-rank demon, Draxxil, stiffened. His bravado slipped as his gaze darted around the endless void.

A flat surface stretched beneath him, black water that rippled with every breath he took. There was no horizon, no ceiling.

....Just emptiness.

His voice cracked with disbelief.

"...A... Domain?"

He turned in frantic circles, but the woman was gone. He could feel her, but he couldn’t see her.

"Where... where is she?"

He grit his teeth, focusing on his arm.

He willed regeneration to begin, demanded it, but nothing happened. His arm remained gone, the stump dripping black blood that hissed against the water below.

Then he realized.

He couldn’t move.

His legs locked, his arms frozen. It felt as though invisible chains held him in place.

"W-what..." His voice trembled. "What is this?"

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Slow footsteps echoed in the emptiness.

He snapped his head toward the sound. Out of the darkness, she emerged.

The hooded figure walked with measured steps, unhurried, like she was taking a stroll through a garden.

The sound of her boots against the rippling surface rang louder, cutting through the silence.

Draxxil’s jaw clenched. His black eyes burned with fury.

"W-who are you?"

The hooded woman didn’t answer.

Instead, her voice came, calm and almost careless.

"Don’t flatter yourself. I don’t need a Domain to deal with someone like you."

Her steps didn’t falter. The distance between them closed with a suffocating stillness.

"This is just faster. I don’t have the luxury of wasting time on pests. And..."

Her tone sharpened, a faint flicker of disgust lining her words,

"...I need to leave before anyone senses your filthy demonic energy."

His rage flared at the word.

"...Pest?"

The word dripped off his tongue with venom, echoing in the darkness. His voice rose, trembling with anger.

"HOW DARE YOU. I AM DRAXXIL. A COUNT OF ABYSS. THE CHILD OF—"

Swish—

Black blood burst from his mouth.

The lower half of his jaw clattered to the ground, cut clean off. His scream came out a wet, gurgling sound.

The woman’s pace didn’t change.

She continued walking toward him, blade dragging lightly against the surface, sending ripples across the black water.

For a moment, she simply looked at him as he struggled, fury blazing in his broken face.

Then, as if in amusement, she allowed the magic holding his regeneration at bay to slip.

His jaw stitched itself back together, flesh crawling and twisting until it reformed. His breaths came out ragged, heavy with rage.

She tilted her head slightly, her voice dropping to something lower. Amused.

"Don’t worry. I let you heal for a reason."

Her blade lifted, shadows curling tighter around it. Her hood dipped, her expression hidden, but her tone carried an edge of cruel delight.

"I want to hear you scream."

The darkness trembled.

"AHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

It echoed endlessly in the Domain, bouncing against the void itself.

The sound of tearing flesh. The crash of water. The hiss of darkness cutting into demonic mana. His roars twisted into shrieks, then into pitiful cries.

The Domain trembled with his suffering.

And then... silence.

——————

The hooded figure stood alone in the ruined office.

The demon’s body was gone, erased from existence as if it had never been there at all.

Only the lingering smell of blood and a faint scorch mark on the floor hinted at what had taken place.

She staggered. Her knees hit the ground, her hand clutching her head.

A sharp pain ran through her skull, forcing her to grit her teeth.

’Still... can’t control it properly.’

Her breaths came uneven, her body trembling from the strain. That brief use of her domain had pushed her far more than she’d wanted.

But it was necessary.

Her hood shifted as she lifted her head, gazing out the shattered window. In the distance, the lights of the city glimmered faintly against the dark horizon.

’If I fought him here without the domain... the noise would have drawn others. It was too risky.’

The thought steadied her.

She forced herself to her feet, blade fading back into nothingness.

’One more down... Now back to ’Solvayne Academy’.’

Her form blurred. Shadows rose up, curling around her frame, swallowing her whole.

The office fell silent again.

By the time the last wisp of darkness faded, she was already gone.

——————