Failure

"What I did? That doesn't matter." For the first time in his life, Malik felt that this was finally the day she would meet her end. Year after year of torment and humiliation led him to this place. It was time for the Blood Demoness, Lethia, to leave this world!

"All that matters is this battle... Anything else is to be dealt with afterwards. No matter what, I'm certain one of us will die today."

Lethia's expression quickly returned to her calm demeanor, acting as if the threat before her was nothing. "It seems like the little dog has grown some teeth and is now trying to resist its owner! I'll need to punish you to ensure this doesn't happen again! Don't worry, you'll be given a tighter leash!"

"Let me see how you can enslave and punish me when you're dead!" Holding his sword firmly in his hands, he attacked right away.

His figure disappeared, appearing right next to Lethia, swinging his sword as a strong blood aura enshrouded it, taking the shape of a fang.

This time, he wasn't easily going to let her get the upper hand. If he could harm or possibly kill her before she could attack, that would be for the best.

Boom~

His attack landed on his target! The blood fang covered the entire area, leaving no room for her to evade or block. However, to his dismay, his attack was still blocked! Through the settling dust in the air, two giant claws that manifested from her blood could be seen, blocking his sword.

From the collision, Lethia hadn't moved a single step, and even though he had improved his strength drastically from before, even then, he was pushed back a few steps just from the impact. Malik felt that when it came to raw strength and control of the blood element, he was still lacking compared to Lethia.

"You should've never dared to go against me. This is all you can do, and you think you can kill me with this? When you're in battle but fail to see that you stand no chance, it only shows what a pity your existence is." Lethia scoffed at him, canceling the blood claws that had blocked his sword.

"I won't lie; your strength has improved since the last time I saw you, but it is still not enough. You are still beneath me! It would be best for you to give up!"

Malik grimaced as he clenched his teeth. "Did I not tell you that's enough? I can still win if it's against you!"

His figure disappeared again; this time, he was using his entire strength. His anger had caused him to lose the focus that he had used to hide his strength.

As he appeared behind Lethia, he swung again, a dark blood aura covering his sword. The aura that had covered his sword before couldn't be compared to how it is now. Lethia felt a slight chill run down her spine.

However, her confidence didn't waver even one bit as the sword came closer. Using her mastery over blood, she cut her finger, transforming the droplet of blood that flowed out into a sharp, bloody sword that she used to block the sword of Malik.

Clank~

A metallic sound was heard, followed by a boom that cracked the ground beneath them, sending a powerful aura throughout the surrounding area.

Since Malik had fallen into a furious state, he was no longer consciously holding back his full strength. Neither of them had taken a step back from the impact, appearing to be at equal strength. Malik's dream of rivaling her and one day surpassing her was coming closer, but he wasn't aware of this.

"It seems like all the humiliation has placed you in a berserk state. I'm impressed; you've not only gained the shadow element but have also rivaled me in a collision. Too bad you're not able to intelligently fight; you're forced to recklessly swing that sword around."

"Seeing you in battle in such a state is such a sad reality for me. I would rather have you fight me at your strongest. It won't be as enjoyable to destroy you anymore. But I can still cherish this battle." Another droplet of blood left her finger, falling to the ground and seeping into the ground beneath her.

"I can't have interference... Kill all the undead that choose to interfere." Lethia commanded as the surrounding ground cracked and broke apart!

From every place that the ground broke apart, a being appeared, each formed from the blood of Lethia and taking the form of a hound. They were thousands of bloodhounds!

The blood hounds didn't attack Malik, and they all rushed towards the hundreds of undead that surrounded them, following the orders of Lethia. On the other hand, Leithia and Malik were alone, where they could fight without any worry of interference.

"Finally…" She let out a sigh, realizing that Malik had since disappeared. She couldn't sense him before, and she can't sense him now. She knew this was the work of his shadow element, but there wasn't much she knew about the element; it was her first time fighting against a shadow mage after all.

As soon as Malik appeared out of the shadows, Lethia went to block him, feeling the intense killing intent radiating off his body. Similar to someone who was a berserker, his strength exceeded his previous strength! His anger was empowering him, giving him even more strength at the cost of his mind!

With his increase in strength, he started to push Lethia back slightly. It was only about time until his strength reached another level, diving deep into his berserk state.

The battle moved all through the mine as the two figures disappeared and reappeared all over. The clashing of swords could be heard as if thunder were rumbling through the skies. During this time, Lethia didn't forget to take advantage of Malik's berserk state, casting spells throughout the battle.

With each clash of swords, the ground beneath them shook violently. Cracks spread to each end of the cavern; it was only a matter of time before the cavern collapsed. With the shaking of the ground, Malik lost balance for a moment, giving Lethia the opening she had been waiting for.

In one swift motion, Lethia lunged forward, aiming for her opponent's chest. Having fallen into a berserk state, he had no defense and only used offense against Lethia. He had lost the ability to dodge or block. This was evident as his body was covered in wounds, but they weren't deep enough to hinder his movement too much.

"Argh!" He roared at the top of his lungs, feeling Lethia's blood sword pierce through his heart. Amidst all the pain he felt, he broke out of his berserker state, regaining consciousness.

"You've finally regained consciousness, but it's too late for you now. Your life will end in a matter of seconds. From the very start, you were not my opponent, so how could you be one in a feral state? It's time for you to join them. Become a slave, as everyone who has crossed me has done before, for eternity."

"I won't die without taking you down with me, not when I still have some time." As he coughed up black blood, Malik spoke through his bloody teeth.

With only ten seconds left, Malik used all of the dark energy inside his body.

A pitch-black mist came out of the ground and covered Lethia. Under the mist, Lethia felt as if her speed had slowed down to the point where she could hardly move.

She used her aura to blow away the dark mist, but thanks to Malik using all his energy, it was almost impossible to disperse all of the dark mist in a short matter of time.

One second... There is only one second left before his life ends. He knew he couldn't kill her in such a short amount of time. This was his end; he knew there was nothing he could do when his heart was destroyed.

His skin cracked apart, as if a statue had lost its stability over time. Having lost his heart, his body had lost its ability to function, reaching its limits.

His eyes didn't leave Lethia's face as his body broke apart, fading away into dust and disappearing from this world.

He couldn't believe that after all this time, his life had ended in the hands of the enemy he hated the most in this world. Why was she able to defeat him when he had grown stronger? Could it have been his hastiness to kill her that stopped him from increasing his strength more? He had no idea.

However, even as the last of his face faded away into nothingness, there was a devilish smirk on his lips.