The Slayer Ascension: Cursed and Blessed.-Chapter 73: A Demon is Here

Gazel looked at the people before him.

No change in his expression.

No twitch.

No emotion.

"Did someone just mention death?" gazel asked causally.

Even that small words, spoken in his deep voice, landed like a threat.

The Shurals did not answer.

They were too stunned.

Too confused.

Too shaken.

Questions stormed through their minds, but one towered above the rest.

How the hell did a demon get in here?

The Bulwark was layered with arrays. Seals. High tier inscriptions meant to repel cursed beings. Patrol units of high star Shurals guarded the perimeter day and night.

And yet.

A demon had slipped through everything.

Not only slipped through.

It walked straight into their ongoing activity like it owned the place.

What the hell is going on?

"What do you want?" San demanded, though his body trembled slightly.

He stared at the terrifying demon before them.

Gazel pointed at himself.

"What I want?"

His lips curled.

A demonic smile spread across his face, perfectly fitting his current appearance.

"What I want is simple."

The smile widened.

"Your deaths. All of you. Dead."

San's heart skipped.

Rasno's face stiffened.

The bald man, the oldest among them and a two bronze star Shural, quickly reached into his pouch and pulled out a detection device. He raised it toward Gazel.

The device lit up.

Two lights.

He exhaled sharply in relief.

"Guys, calm down. He is just a mid ranked monster. We can handle this."

Just mid ranked.

Rasno's fear twisted into anger.

A damn mid rank demon made him stiffen like prey?

Unacceptable.

During his prime he had killed over four mid rank demons.

Four.

So what was one more?

Rage replaced embarrassment.

He drew his twin daggers and rushed forward with full force.

The blades flashed.

Fast.

Precise.

Deadly.

You underestimated us, demon.

I alone have slaughtered your kind.

The daggers plunged deep into Gazel's chest.

Rasno smiled.

"Now I finish it."

His palm glowed green.

Azura surged into the blades.

The daggers began to glow as well, and the wounds on Gazel's chest shimmered faint green.

Poison.

A lethal one.

"You are finished!" Rasno roared, laughter spilling from his mouth.

This damn demon is doomed.

Then.

Silence.

No scream.

No collapse.

No writhing in pain.

Rasno blinked.

Isn't he supposed to be on the ground by now?

His grip loosened slightly as unease crawled up his spine.

He slowly looked up.

Just in time to see Gazel's red eye flare.

Dread.

Pure.

Overwhelming.

Rasno's heart skipped.

Run.

I need to run.

Now.

He tried to move.

Gazel's hand clamped down on his shoulder.

The grip was brutal.

Bone shattered instantly under the pressure.

Rasno screamed.

Before he could react, Gazel forced him down.

Hard.

His knees slammed into the ground with such force that the bones cracked on impact. Blood pooled beneath him.

The pain was blinding.

But worse than the pain was what came next.

Gazel slowly pulled the daggers out of his own chest.

Calm.

Deliberate.

The green glow faded completely.

Poison.

Useless.

Rasno's mind spiraled.

He is just mid rank.

Right?

How does he have this level of poison resistance?

How?

But those thoughts did not matter anymore.

Reality crushed him.

He was screwed.

Completely.

Gazel looked down at him with an amused smile.

The same kind of smile someone gives a delicious meal placed in front of them before they devour it.

"Please don't eat me! Please!"

Rasno screamed at the top of his lungs, fear crashing over him in violent waves.

Gazel grinned.

"Of course not," he said lightly. "I don't eat filthy beings."

Hope flickered in Rasno's eyes.

For one second.

Then Gazel's hand shot forward and gripped his skull tightly.

"But that doesn't mean I won't kill what I don't eat," Gazel continued, smiling wider. "After all, killing is my hobby."

Sharp claws extended.

They sank into Rasno's head.

Deep.

Too deep.

Rasno's scream turned into something feral.

"Save me! San! Crain! Anyone! Please! I don't want to die!"

He sounded like a madman.

But no one moved.

No one could.

Not against something like this.

The claws dug further. Blood poured from the punctures, warm and thick, sliding down Rasno's face. Pain swallowed him whole.

Then it stopped.

Gazel was merciful.

He ended it fast.

With a brutal yank, he tore Rasno's head clean off his neck.

Blood sprayed into the air.

The body dropped.

The courtyard froze.

And Gazel?

He was smiling.

Like this was the best day of his life.

And maybe it was.

The burning hunger in his stomach eased. The stabbing pain in his gut reduced drastically.

He exhaled in satisfaction.

Then casually tossed Rasno's head aside like trash.

Crain, the bald headed and oldest Shural among them, stood frozen.

He had just watched Rasno get overwhelmed like a child.

No.

He refused to believe it was strength.

Rasno froze.

That was all.

He gave the demon an opening.

"That demon is dangerous!" Crain shouted, snapping himself out of it. "We take him together or we both die!"

He turned to San.

But San stood there, eyes wide, staring at Rasno's headless corpse.

The demon's grin slowly shifted toward them.

"One down," Gazel said softly. "Three more to go."

That did it.

San's shock shattered.

He looked from the smiling demon to the corpse to Crain activating his azura.

"I'll defend!" Crain roared. "You attack!"

San forced himself to breathe.

It's a demon.

Shurals kill demons.

I can do this.

He activated his azura.

Silver lightning sparked violently around his body, crackling and snapping, illuminating him in sharp flashes.

"Now!" Crain shouted.

The ground trembled.

Thick pillars of earth shot upward, forming barriers between them and Gazel.

San moved.

Fast.

Too fast.

He zigzagged between the rising pillars, using them as cover.

In a blink, he appeared beside Gazel.

"Die, you demon!"

His fist shot forward, wrapped in condensed lightning.

It connected.

Clean.

Gazel's head snapped to the side as lightning exploded across his face.

"I hit him!" San thought wildly. "I can do this!"

"More pillars! More cover!" he shouted.

Crain slammed both hands onto the ground. The earth responded instantly. More pillars rose and fell in shifting patterns, turning the battlefield into a maze.

Dust.

Stone.

Lightning flashing through gaps.

Zap.

Zap.

Zap.

San kept moving, striking from blind spots, fists smashing into Gazel's cheeks, ribs, shoulders.

Each hit crackled with power.

Each hit felt solid.

But something felt wrong.

Too easy.

Through the falling dust and shifting earth, through the flashes of silver lightning, Gazel slowly turned his head back into place.

It kept going. Again. Again. Again.

Lightning cracked. Fists slammed. Pillars shifted.

Gazel had nowhere to run.

By the fourteenth strike, San's knuckles were raw and smoking, silver arcs snapping wildly around his arms. The punch smashed into the demon's face clean. Perfect. Just like the others.

But this time… Gazel's head only tilted a little.

Just a little.

San dashed back instantly, boots grinding against the shifting earth. His breath came sharp. Uneven.

The punch landed. I felt it land. So why…

Why does it feel like he's playing with me?

He shook the thought away violently.

No. I'm overthinking. A few more hits. Just a few more. His nervous system will break. Lightning fries everything eventually. We kill him. We avenge Rasno.

Rasno's headless body flashed in his mind.

A fresh wave of fury surged through him.

"There!" Crain shouted from behind the moving pillars. "Opening on your left!"

San moved.

Too fast.

He zigzagged through the rising and collapsing earth, lightning tearing the air apart behind him. In a blink he was beside Gazel again, fist drawn back, thunder screaming in his veins.

"DIE, YOU MONSTER!"

He drove the punch forward.

But this time—

The demon's hand rose casually.

And caught it.

San's fist stopped dead in Gazel's grip.

No tremor. No struggle. Just stopped.

San's eyes widened slowly.

He could see Gazel's face clearly now.

He was smiling.

Not strained.

Not angry.

Smiling.

"My turn," Gazel whispered.

His other fist blurred.

It slammed into San's ribs with a sound like bones being crushed under a hammer.

Crack.

The air exploded out of San's lungs. His body folded sideways midair. Pain shot through him like molten iron, white and blinding.

Another crack.

San ribs shattered completely.

To be continued…

Author's Note:

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