Chapter 4: To the Limit

Kadian Helkar's Point of View (A Few Minutes Earlier)

After letting Kurt go off with the demon Afel, I continued meditating to recover as much mana as possible before the two Semi-God ranks arrived.

Just in time. I thought after filling my mana core.

When I opened my eyes, I found a water blade a meter away from me, but I quickly dodged it by wrapping my body in mana.

"I see you're as skilled as Boris said," commented a young voice.

"Not too much, brother, he's just a bit fast," added another voice with a deeper tone.

Looking closer, I noticed two demons with very different appearances. Both were chatting as if they didn't care I was there.

What? Who do they think they are, ignoring me like that? I thought, a bit annoyed.

One of the demons was tall and bulky, while the other was shorter and slender.

"Looks like parasites like you don't know manners," I said, drawing my sword and infusing it with mana. "Talking so freely in front of me."

They glanced at each other for a second before letting out a big sigh.

"You have a bad temper, you know?" said the slender demon with a tired voice. "I'm Ali, and this big guy here is my brother."

Pfff... As if I cared about their names. I sighed, not giving their words any importance before taking a slow step that closed much of the distance between us.

Surprised, the big demon quickly drew a hefty, long sword from his back, while Ali pulled a wand from his right sleeve and pointed it at me immediately.

As I went for Ali, his brother intercepted me, our swords clashing with great force, creating a slight crater beneath us.

Ali didn't waste time when he saw me still, he used that moment to quickly cast with his wand, making the sand beneath my feet grab one of them and hurl me with incredible force until I crashed into a pile of rocks.

In pain, I saw the big demon approaching at an impressive speed, holding his sword with one hand.

Damn, these two together are a real pain. I thought as I healed and created a light sword in my free hand.

Using wind magic, I created a dense dust cloud, completely obscuring the battlefield.

Now! I told myself just before jumping at the big demon.

Confident in knowing where he was even though I couldn't see or hear him, I kept going, maintaining an undetectable mana current in the rune on my back that allowed me to sense them.

This should distract him... I thought as I threw the light sword I had just created. The big demon, seeing the flash of light, turned, giving me enough chance to approach from the side.

With the idea of piercing him with my sword, I moved in confidently, only to be met with his gaze and a slight smile.

Sh*t! They both know detection magic too. I realized as my attack was deflected by a stone cannon from the other demon.

I tried to reposition myself, but the big demon had already launched at me. Damn it! It's inevitable to face him head-on.

Skillfully moving my body, I blocked his attack, but couldn't do anything about an incredible kick that connected with my side.

Wh-what power... I thought as I went flying through the air.

Realizing that their last attack had broken three of my ribs, I tried to accelerate my regeneration with magic, but as I sensed a surge of mana, I saw a massive wave of sand over 30 meters high rising in front of me.

They won't let me recover, I have to be careful with them. I thought annoyed as I saw the huge wave approaching.

Thanks to the humidity in the area due to the rain, I managed to easily freeze Ali's wave with ice magic.

F*ck, don't is a good idea fighting against both of them, I need to separate them. I thought as I dodged several sharp stone spikes coming from the ground.

I need to do fast! Or else Kurt and Aria will also die... I thought worriedly as I noticed them also fighting.

I guess I have no other choice, I'll have to use that technique to get closer and end this as soon as possible. I thought resignedly.

Once I made my decision, I managed to land a strong kick to the muscular demon's head, sending him flying towards his brother.

Ali, seeing his dazed brother's body coming towards him, focused solely on stopping it with magic, giving me enough time to prepare.

Excellent! I need to seize these seconds now. I thought before closing my eyes to focus.

I'll need a lot of mana for this Divine level spell. I thought before gradually drawing almost all the mana from my core. So I hope I only have to use it once, because otherwise, I won't have mana to fight alongside Kurt and Aria.

Since the technique I was about to use defied the nature of the world, like other spells of the same rank, it took time to get it ready. But once my body was prepared, I opened my eyes and found the big demon moving.

Excellent! They separated. I thought as I blocked several purple rays that Ali had launched with my sword.

I'll need to create a small distraction to get close enough before activating my spell. I planned as I gathered some mana at the tips of my fingers.

Once Ali's brother got close enough, I released the mana I had accumulated in my hands.

Burning Soul! I said to myself before managing to create an absurd amount of crimson fire, which quickly shot towards my enemies.

Without hesitation, Ali quickly raised his wand to create a thick stone wall that managed to cover them both.

"Haha, naive." I said quietly as I watched my special spell devour all the mana structuring his spell.

"Back off, brother! That's a Demigod level spell!" Ali shouted to such an extent that I could hear him from where I was.

Before it hit the muscular demon, Ali conjured a gigantic wall of emerald water that caused both spells to collide wildly, creating a huge explosion of vapor that rose in the form of a mushroom cloud, towering above the clouds.

Awesome. I thought as I saw all the vapor and mana particles clouding the area, making it difficult for them to locate me.

With my plan in action, I quickly gathered mana in my legs and started running towards Ali, expecting his brother to intersect me on the way.

"I see you're heading straight to your grave," the muscular demon said a few meters from his brother, from within the surrounding vapor.

I kept running until I had him just a few meters away from me, saying nothing as he swung his large sword with the intent to strike me.

Though I could stop or dodge it, I decided to keep going until his sword was a meter away from me.

"The one heading to his grave is you, idiot! Noukan!" I said, dodging his attack at the last moment.

Once I activated my spell, the entire environment around us lost color and everything came to a complete standstill, both the mist clearing due to the rain and the movements of my enemies.

With time frozen and my enemy immobilized, I positioned myself behind him easily. I don't think I can kill him with just one blow; his body is too resistant and his mana cloak is too dense. It's best to incapacitate him. I thought quickly.

Drawing the spear I had stored earlier with magic, I wrapped it with mana, and with great force, I threw it at his two legs, managing to shatter them.

Not content with that, I enveloped mana in my sword to cut off both arms of the large demon still floating in the air.

I backed away from him and continued on my path towards my main objective before my spell ran out.

Crap! If only I could stay in this state for more than four seconds... I cursed at my incapacity.

My spell broke suddenly with a loud crash, as if a large crystal had been shattered by a blow.

When the world returned to normal, loud screams started behind me. "AAAHHH—"

Deciding to ignore them, I continued on my way until I could see Ali several meters in front of me; he quickly aimed his wand at me, and a red light began to glow at the tip.

He's a Demigod-ranked mage, if I let him cast that spell at this distance, it'll be dangerous... I thought quickly. I guess I have no choice. "Noukan" I said again.

Before giving him the chance to attack me, I conjured my spell again, abruptly silencing his brother's cries that still echoed behind me.

Well... it worked. I said, on the verge of collapsing; my body had suffered serious internal damage from using the same Divine-level spell twice, but deep down, I encouraged myself to stay standing.

I have to keep going. I told myself before continuing to run with all my strength until I had Ali in front of me; clumsily, I raised my sword and delivered a powerful thrust right into his neck before my spell dissipated.

"—HHHH!" The muscular demon's scream continued as I began to breathe heavily.

Ali's head soon fell to the ground, with a surprised expression in his eyes that slowly lost their light. Well, he's dead...

Damn it! No... I can't go on... the pain in my mana heart is serious. I think I pushed my heart too hard... I thought, gasping for breath as I collapsed to the ground in agony.

"Brother, I don't know what that dragon did but it ruined my tatt-" The voice of the great demon fell silent when his gaze met mine instead of his brother's.

So, my attack didn't work against him... I thought tiredly, noticing how the great demon's body remained intact. Damn it! Now I should take advantage of his confusion to attack him... b-but I have no strength left.

Gathering mana with my mana heart, I slowly stood up until I was finally on my feet. Then, I walked a few steps with the silent gaze of the great demon still fixed on me.

"You were looking for your brother, right?" I said, picking up by the hair the decapitated head lying at my feet. "Here, I'll pass it to you," I said with a slight smile before tossing it at his feet.

"You're dead, Kadian." He said in a deeper voice after drawing his sword abruptly.

The rain didn't stop, and the sand was becoming increasingly annoying to walk on, so before making a move, I reflected for a moment to determine what I should do next.

Although I managed to cut off his arms, they regenerated absurdly fast. I thought as I saw the arms and legs I had cut off lying beside him.

Sh*t... With that absurd regeneration, I won't be able to beat him in a direct fight in this state, I need to think of something... I thought as I analyzed my previous fight against him.

From what I noticed, he doesn't seem to be good at magic, if that's the case, I could use Burning Soul just like a few seconds ago. I concluded.

Burning Soul will burn all the mana in his body, causing his internal organs to fail. I thought with that idea in mind as I picked up my sword.

Yes, it's a good plan, but... but the bad thing is that spell is Demigod level, if I fail, I'm sure it will be my end. I thought, after analyzing my mana heart.

Quickly, the great demon enveloped himself in a thick cloak of mana, then lunged at me, managing to get close in less than a second.

He moves faster than before, so he wasn't even fighting seriously until now? I wondered after dodging his first attack by moving to the side with wind magic.

The great demon only followed me with his gaze, then moved his body to position his sword between my ribs.

Damn it, this is dangerous, if he cuts me in two, it would be a very disastrous end. I thought worriedly, feeling the little mana I still had in my mana heart. I'll have to give it my all... or I'll die.

Slowly watching as his attack drew closer without me being able to do anything, I was forced to sacrifice the rest of my defense to survive.

I hope this is enough. I said to myself before gathering all the mana covering my body in the area of impact, managing to survive his powerful thrust.

Ah-h... sh*t... it was worse than I thought. Even though he didn't cut me in two, his sword had managed to break several ribs, and all the bones in my left arm.

The impact sent me flying, causing me to roll uncontrollably through the sand until I stopped several meters away from him, only to vomit a pool of blood onto the sand.

Tha...thankfully I was able to avoid the... the cut. I said, dying on the ground, Sh*t, this is ba-bad. I thought as I felt my consciousness slipping further away from me.

"Trash! How dare you kill my brother!? Now you'll pay..."Said the demon with hatred as he slowly approached my agonizing body.

I have to hold on... I told myself as a breath of encouragement.

Once his feet were beside my head, the demon stopped, gripping my neck firmly until he raised me to eye level, causing my feet to dangle in the air.

Even though he squeezed my neck tightly, I decided to show him a smile, infuriating him even more.

"Bastard!! Die-" He shouted forcefully as he swung his sword towards my neck just before stopping abruptly.

Just in time. I weakly thought as I finished transferring my spell through my neck.

Now, Burning Soul had begun to consume his core, silencing him abruptly. The demon only looked at me with a face of surprise and confusion as he started to bleed from the mouth, weakening his grip.

"M-maybe you're better than me physically." I said weakly with blood in my mouth. "But still... you're very weak against magic without your little brother."

"D-don't be arrogant." Said the great demon as he increased the strength of his grip again.

"I-if I die, you'll come with me." What!? Why the heck won't he die!?

Seeing that my spell was taking too long to take effect, I forced my core to push more mana into my spell to finish off the demon as soon as possible.

With a determined look, the demon swung his sword again towards my neck. I tried to free myself with both hands but it was impossible with my current condition, I twisted until I finally felt the impact and the blood running down my neck.

Since my body didn't have a mana cloak, his sword managed to make a deep cut between my neck and shoulder before the demon fell dead on the sand.

Sh*t! I didn't... didn't think I'd endure... so much. I commented, falling to my knees as I created a puddle of my own blood on the ground.

Damn it... that could have killed me... I thought, without energy or mana. Will... will I survive if I stay still, I just have to wait...

With my consciousness hanging by a thread, I began to think about the people around me, until suddenly Aria's mana disappeared.

"No!" I shouted aloud, snapping back to reality. What the heck happened there?

Just after Aria's mana disappeared, Kurt's rose, to the extent that it could easily be mistaken for someone of Demigod rank.

Kurt is in trouble, I can't stay here waiting for this wound to heal... I thought, lifting my weak body while collecting ambient mana for my core to refine.

Doing this will help me for now, but I have to be properly healed afterwards. I commented as I closed my wounds with the sand from the ground and sealed them by heating it with fire magic.

With my body in tatters, I walked a few meters to pick up my sword and then my spear that were scattered in different parts of the battlefield.

While gathering mana to use in spells, I hurried as fast as I could to where Kurt was fighting.

...

As I approached where Kurt was, I could follow his fight until it was finally coming to an end. Sh*t, I need to hurry!

By the time I arrived, the rain had completely stopped, and from afar, I could confirm the outcome of the battle with Zoe's gaze fixed on me.