"Elion!"

Aeron’s voice cut through the raging wind as the shockwave still rolled across the atmosphere around them.

Elion didn’t turn to look at him, though. His eyes stayed locked on the demon, but he answered.

"It’s some kind of berserker skill!" he shouted back over the noise.

He wasn’t sure if this worked the same way, but as far as he knew, berserker skills always traded something in for a temporary burst of power.

"That rise in level... It has to be trading something for a burst of power!"

The aura kept surging, and the pressure kept rising.

"We attack now!" Elion barked. "Before it recovers completely!"

He looked back toward Maya, who was holding tightly onto her staff to brace herself.

"Maya... try firing a spell!"

Maya nodded, not wasting any time; she planted her feet into the ground as mana gathered around her staff, sparks of lightning crackling alongside flickers of flame as she began to conjure her attack.

’Wait... is that a layered spell?’

Elion’s thoughts flickered for just a moment. He had never seen anyone combine two spells like that before. Apart from how difficult it must be, it would require an absurd level of control and a large pool of mana.

’I should practice that later...’

His focus snapped back to the demon, waiting for the moment Maya’s spell would land...

His pupils shrank to pinpricks.

’...It’s not there! Where is it!?

His head snapped toward Maya.

"Shit!"

It was too fast.

The demon appeared in front of her in an instant and slammed into her with brutal force.

Bam!

"Ahhhhh!"

Maya screamed as she was sent flying like a ragdoll, her body tumbling violently across the ground before finally sliding to a stop several metres away.

"Maya!" Zenovia shouted.

She vanished into darkness and reappeared instantly beside her, kneeling at her side.

’I was careless...’ Elion thought, his jaw tightening. He didn’t know why he assumed the demon would remain still until it finished activating whatever skill it was using to boost its power. ’But how did it get past my perception...?’

This was turning out to be a trickier fight than he had thought it would be. But there was no time to think about it.

"Aeron, let’s go!" he shouted, "R-right!" Aeron responded, snapping out of his shock and looking away from Maya and Zenovia.

The two of them moved at once, running side by side and closing in to pinch the demon. Its face twisted into an ugly grin.

’What an ugly bastard...’ Elion thought.

At the same time...

"Mirage."

Two copies of Elion split off from his frame, running on either side, flanking him and Aeron as they advanced quickly. Aeron gave them a brief, curious glance and focused back on the target.

"You take the right, I’ll take the left," Elion said.

His sword flared.

"Flowing Edge."

An ethereal red glow coated the blade as the skill activated. Elion let the illusory constructs move ahead of them.

Just as he had expected, the demon took the bait. Its blades cut through the two figures, only for them to burst into wisps of smoke.

In that instant of confusion, Elion and Aeron struck.

Bam!

Bam!

Two clean hits landed simultaneously, forcing the demon back a few feet.

Elion didn’t stop at just that though.

"Flowing Edge."

The first strike flowed into the next...

Bam!

Then another...

Bam!

And another...

Bam!

Each strike struck heavier than the last.

He roared, using stat conversion to lower his mana stat, pushing his strength stat even higher, and delivered the final blow.

BOOOOM!

The impact knocked the demon off its feet, sending it crashing backward and dislodging two of its swords from its grip.

Elion didn’t hesitate. He followed through instantly, leaving the demon no room to recover whatsoever.

"Frost Edge."

A chilling aura coated his blade, and at the same time....

"Piercing Fang."

His body lunged forward, targeting the demon’s chest where its heart should be. Since it was falling, it was defenceless, leaving it no chance to guard itself against the oncoming deadly strike.

The blade was met with heavy resistance. Elion felt like he was pushing through solid stone, but he forced it in with everything he had, and it gave way.

And when the sword finally plunged through the protective layer of skin, everything else was easy; it was now like a hot knife cutting through butter.

Boom!

The demon hit the ground with a loud bang!

Aeron had stopped moving earlier as he had expected that they would execute a hit-and-run.

But this?

’Is this what separates a good fighter from a great one...?’ he thought as the dust slowly settled.

When it cleared enough for him to see clearly, Elion stood atop the fallen demon, the sword buried deep in its chest and its remaining blades scattered across the ground.

It was dead. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

’I guess he was right...’ Aeron thought.

If it came down to a one-on-one between them later in this trial, he might actually have to settle for a forfeit.

’No, I will fight with everything I have until the very end, even if I lose, my master taught me better.’

He bit his lip.

’Life is so unfair... I hate geniuses.’

He stepped forward slowly, approaching Elion and the demon’s corpse.

Elion slowly pulled the blade free, even though it took a bit of effort. There was a slight resistance, and as the sword came out, thick, coloured blood oozed from the deep wound.

"Good work as always," Aeron said to Elion as he stepped closer.

The demon suddenly roared, getting back up on its feet and knocking Elion off its chest. Aeron froze in shock, and in the next instant, it lunged toward him, all four of its hands shooting toward him.

It all happened too quickly for him to react to it.

"—!"

Shk!

Shk!

Two sharp strikes rang out.

Elion moved before Aeron could even react, appearing behind the demon, plunging his sword into it twice, from the back.

Unlike Aeron, he didn’t look surprised at all.

The demon’s eyes rolled to the back of its head as its body collapsed again.

Bam!

It hit the ground, and this time, it stayed dead. They both stayed still for a few seconds to make sure.

Elion straightened behind it, then glanced at Aeron with a teasing smile. He raised three fingers.

"It had three hearts, not one," he said casually. "Seems like it faked dying the first time. Unfortunately for it... I could still feel that it was alive."

Aeron’s face turned red instantly.

"Why didn’t you say that sooner!?" he shouted, completely embarrassed.

Elion laughed lightly.

"Where’s the fun in that?"

Aeron’s face went through a wide range of emotions. Shock. Embarrassment. Frustration. In the end, he stomped the ground in exasperation.

"Fuck you!"

He raised his middle finger at Elion.

Elion just laughed lightly in response.

Truth be told, he hadn’t been completely certain of what he had sensed earlier, which was why he had stayed standing atop the demon instead of stepping away.

It was just unfortunate for Aeron that the demon had chosen him as its target at that moment.

Elion tilted his head toward the two girls in the distance.

"Let’s go check on Maya."

Aeron’s expression sobered instantly. He nodded.

Maya had taken a brutal, direct hit from the demon. And out of the four of them, she was the worst possible person for the demon to target.

As a pure mage, her physical stats were, without a doubt, the lowest among them.