Duskbound-Chapter 126 - Book 2, 47

Hellfire was a known quantity, observed and documented from encounters with demons by hundreds of monster hunters over the years. The color varied but was usually two-toned and never the standard orange-red of a normal fire. Its properties seemed to be linked to the variety of demon conjuring it more than the color, which meant that there were multiple pages of information about specific effects a hunter might need to be prepared to counter.

One thing they universally agreed on was that it clung to whatever it got on. Nearly impossible to smother and able to fuel itself just as well on skin and bones as it could on bark or paper, there'd been more than one account of a hunter slaying a demon, only to succumb to the hellfire left behind. It was a profoundly dangerous substance.

Pretty much everyone who'd had to deal with hellfire agreed it was at its absolute worst when conjured up by a demon with some form of pyrokinesis. Even absent that, it still spread far quicker than normal flames, but something about having the flames actively chase their victims inspired a visceral dread in just about everyone who'd had the misfortune to come across it.

So, of course, that was exactly what Velik had to deal with.

Pevril swept his hands out, and the flames rushed forward at his urging. Velik darted to the side, narrowly escaping immolation for a moment, but he couldn't stop running. Hellfire didn't just chase after him, it spread wide to engulf more and more of the ground. Long arms of it reached out and circled wide, cutting off his escape routes and creating an arena he had no choice but to stand his ground in.

That was a good way to get himself killed. The walls started closing in, growing thicker as they tightened around him. It was possible he could escape, but that assumed Pevril himself did nothing but stand there. Somehow, Velik doubted his opponent would be content to watch him slip out of the noose.

If he couldn't flee, then there was only one choice left: put down the threat.

Pevril grinned at Velik's rush, revealing a mouth full of black and green fangs. Little bursts of fire reached out from between his lips as the grin transitioned into a laugh, and the demon raised clawed hands into a fighter's stance. "Come on then, show me that you're worthy of the title you tricked them into giving you. Or show me that you aren't. Either way, you're going to die."

You talk too much.

This whole fight really drove home how much of a problem his lack of a ranged skill was, but unfortunately, his class just didn't provide that option. Trying to force it would result in picking up a weak skill that wouldn't perform to the level he needed it to, which meant he needed to be creative. He used his spear's [Shape Shifting] to give himself as much reach as possible, then smoothly danced outside Pevril's reach while stabbing at him.

Keeping the claws at bay wasn't an issue. He even sliced open the pebbly, almost reptilian skin a few times to reveal burning blood that sizzled and hissed as it dribbled down Pevril's body. No, the real problem was that every swipe the demon made sent gouts of hellfire into the air. Some of that latched onto Velik's spear, but its powerful enchantments and the fact that it was a legendary-ranked weapon kept Velik somewhat safe.

It took him a moment to figure out why, but once it clicked, he immediately started trying to figure out how to use it to his advantage. When he'd upgraded his weapon with a champion seed, it had gained [Mana Drinker], which drained mana from those it struck. Hellfire, apparently, was fueled by mana. The flames that licked the length of the spear were sputtering out before they could reach him, and that meant Velik had a way in, if he was reckless enough to use it.

Pevril wasn't stupid. He noticed right away that the weapon wasn't being reduced to cinders like it should have been, and Velik had no doubt the demon had a few ideas of his own on what to do about that. Ideas amounted to nothing if there wasn't enough time to do anything with them, though.

Velik slashed his spear through the hellfire swirling around Pevril's body, not even aiming for the demon. He just wanted to confirm he was right before he risked his life literally jumping through flames. As expected, the hellfire caught on the spear and, instead of igniting it or consuming it, quickly dwindled to nothing. Just to be sure, Velik dragged the spearhead across the ground and saw the hellfire extinguished in its wake.

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Perfect.

He had a way to cut through it and a way to remove it if any got on him. The rest was just dealing with a bit of pain and healing himself after the fight was over. If he could keep Pevril alive, so much the better, but the fight had gotten dangerous enough now that it wasn't a priority to him.

Velik leaped forward, skirting a patch of hellfire and letting [Savage Rhythm] take over as he struck Pevril again and again. The demon blocked where he could, but his skin wasn't tough enough to stop the spear from cutting into it, and he lacked a class that lent itself to proper unarmed combat. Velik's speed built up, even as hellfire clung to him, igniting his boots when he stepped in it and spreading up to his leg.

Curtains of flames flashed across the air, forming walls to block Velik's attacks or trying to sweep through him. Always, his spear was moving, cutting through the hellfire, tearing the mana out of it and funneling it into the [Mending] enchantment that kept the spear whole despite the abuse Velik put it through.

[Savage Rhythm] wasn't a skill that lent itself to defense. It wanted unwavering aggression to reach its peak, but unfortunately, Velik couldn't kill hellfire to satiate the skill. It would ramp up a bit when he had the chance to strike at Pevril directly, then bleed away again just as quickly when he was forced to divert his attention to fending off the all-consuming flames Pevril wielded with ease.

Work on the flames, damn you. I'm being aggressive. Every swing is me getting closer to taking this bastard down! That's what you want.

The skill refused to listen though, which meant the bulk of Velik's defense fell to [Apex Hunter] fueling his awareness of the battlefield and [Spear Warden] helping him shape it. The woods behind them were fully aflame now, practically a signal beacon in the middle of the city. That was sure to draw attention soon, but there was no telling who would come running. It could be an ally, but the local forces would accomplish nothing besides adding a body count to the fight if they showed up.

Or it could be an enemy—someone else controlled by an agent of corruption who could tip the odds in Pevril's favor. For the moment, they were equally matched, but Velik had another [Dread Lance] ready to go. He just needed to find the right moment to use it, preferably one in which Pevril was off guard. His demonic form was far quicker than his human one, as evidenced by the fact that despite being struck dozens of times, Pevril had taken nothing more than flesh wounds. Even those had healed up seconds later.

Center mass, right in the chest where the agent is. If Pevril dies, well, sorry, that's how it goes. This thing is too powerful to hold back.

On the other side of the house, the brawl between Phun and the rest of Velik's team was in full swing. Crashes and yelling intermingled, sometimes loud enough that Velik was sure the neighbors had heard it. No one came to investigate, however. Velik had been listening for that, and to keep an ear on the fight. He didn't need Phun ambushing him if the battle circled around the estate.

On the other hand, if the human side of that conflict came out on top, he could use a bit of help subduing Pevril. It was best not to hope for that, though. In his demonic form, Velik's former instructor had already shown off the ability to fly. He could disengage from this fight whenever he wanted, which made it all the more important to end it with a single, decisive blow.

If only I could keep this speed buff up.

Attacking the hellfire directly wasn't doing it. That just wasn't how the skill worked. But Pevril seemed to need his limbs to help him control how he moved it, so maybe there was something there. The next time the demon swung an arm around to bring a curtain of hellfire up, Velik drove forward instead of retreating. Normally, he'd move back a step to give himself room to slice through the flames, but this time, his spear came up from below, stabbing into Pevril's elbow and forcing his arm straight up.

The hellfire flew up into the night with a whoosh, skimming past Velik's head and leaving [Savage Rhythm] intact. Snarling, Pevril snapped his other hand across to grab the spear, but Velik simply turned it at an angle in his hand and sliced deep into Pevril's palm. His speed increased again.

Over and over, the demon tried to send scorching hellfire in Velik's direction. Each time, rather than backing up to give himself room to defend, Velik pushed in, forcing Pevril's hands out at odd angles and ruining his control. Five hits turned into ten, then twenty.

[Savage Rhythm has been folded into Spear Warden.]

[Spear Warden has become Aspect of the Wind Tamer.]

[Aspect of the Wind Tamer set to rank 1.]

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It was only the sudden shift in how his skills reinforced his movement that prompted Velik to check the notification mid-battle. The mere act of thinking about it was enough to fill his mind with the information—no need to read the actual words. Instinctively, he understood what the merged skill did.

All the control over his weapon [Spear Warden] had granted him was still there, but with [Savage Rhythm] a part of it, his speed and precision were greater than ever before. The restriction that had forced him to be recklessly aggressive had been diluted with a greater understanding of the most effective way to win a fight. His speed would still increase as he fought, but the skill would no longer break if he lost bloodletting momentum.

In short, he could now attack and defend without losing his rhythm. And he had the perfect test subject to explore the skill's limits right in front of him.