The battlefield slowly quieted.

The thunder of their clash had ended, but the scars it left behind were everywhere.

Half the clearing had collapsed inward from repeated impacts. Broken trees lay scattered like fallen spears. The ancient stone disk that once anchored the stronghold had split into jagged fragments buried beneath layers of dirt and shattered bone.

And the captain... no longer existed.

Luton finished the last traces of its meal and retracted into a calmer form beside Damien.

The slime pulsed once, its surface shimmering faintly as it digested the immense demonic essence it had just consumed, shrinking slowly.

Damien remained kneeling in the center of the devastation.

Breathing.

Slow.

Painful.

His ribs protested with every inhale. His right shoulder felt like molten iron had been poured into the joint. Blood had dried across his arms and chest, forming dark streaks over torn skin.

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

Still alive.

Barely.

He closed his eyes briefly and began drawing in the surrounding magic essence.

The forest was saturated with it.

Battle always left residue — fragments of essence leaking from broken cores, destroyed bodies, and the aftermath of high-level combat.

Normally he would absorb it slowly.

Now he needed it faster.

Luton moved slightly closer as if understanding his condition.

The slime spread out across the broken ground, collecting stray cores and fragments of essence Damien had not yet noticed. Every piece was gathered and either devoured or stored within its Universal Space.

Nearby, Fenrir prowled through the battlefield. It had just returned from the hunt Damien sent it on.

The white wolf tore through fallen demons with ruthless efficiency, ripping open bodies and extracting the cores within before devouring them whole. Its crimson eyes glowed faintly in the dim forest light.

Each crunch of bone echoed softly through the ruined clearing.

Damien ignored it.

His focus was inward.

The gathered magic essence slowly stabilized his body, but the damage was severe. Healing himself would take time.

Too much time.

He exhaled slowly.

"Summon Lin."

The air shimmered.

Silver light bloomed beside him like moonlight spilling through water.

From it stepped the Nine Tailed Fox.

Lin landed lightly on the cracked ground, her white fur glowing softly with natural mana. Her elegant tails swayed behind her like drifting silk threads.

Her golden eyes immediately locked onto Damien.

Concern flickered through them.

Damien huffed weakly. "Don’t worry about how I look right now. I’ve looked worse."

She circled him once, observing the damage.

Cracked ribs.

Internal bleeding.

Torn muscle.

"Barely."

She sat before him and raised one paw.

Soft light gathered around it.

Healing magic.

Pure.

Refined.

The light spread across Damien’s body like warm water flowing over stone. It seeped through skin and bone, knitting fractured ribs back together, sealing torn vessels, calming internal bleeding.

The pain didn’t vanish.

But it retreated.

Gradually.

The stabbing pressure in his chest softened first.

Then the burning in his shoulder faded.

His breathing steadied.

Lin continued the process patiently, weaving healing essence through his body with practiced precision.

Luton remained nearby, silent and watchful.

Fenrir continued feeding until every usable core on the battlefield was gone.

By the time Lin finished, the forest had grown darker.

Evening had settled over the ruins of the eastern stronghold.

Damien flexed his fingers slowly.

Better.

Not perfect.

But stable.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Lin flicked one of her tails as though she was saying... "Try not to nearly die again."

"I’ll keep it in mind." Damien replied with a smirk.

Fenrir finally returned, licking dark blood from its fangs. It sat beside Damien, its large frame radiating quiet satisfaction.

The wolf had eaten well.

Luton pulsed once, confirming that most of the remaining corpses had already been stored or devoured.

The battlefield was now mostly empty.

Damien leaned back against a broken slab of stone.

His body still demanded rest.

And for once, he listened.

"You two keep watch," he murmured.

Fenrir settled beside him like a living wall of muscle and fur.

Luton spread itself in a quiet circle around the area.

Lin curled her tails around herself nearby.

Three summons.

Three guardians.

For the first time since the battle began, Damien allowed his eyes to close.

Sleep came almost instantly.

Deep.

Heavy.

Well earned.

Hours passed and the night deepened.

The forest remained strangely quiet.

Creatures that normally roamed these lands avoided the ruined clearing completely.

The lingering aura of the captain’s death still saturated the area.

Predators sensed it.

And stayed away.

Even the wind moved carefully through the broken trees.

Fenrir remained awake the entire night, crimson eyes scanning the darkness.

Luton occasionally shifted across the ground, devouring any curious creature foolish enough to wander too close.

None of them ever reached Damien.

By the time the first light of dawn filtered through the shattered canopy—he woke up.

His body felt different.

Sore.

But functional.

Lin was already watching him as he rose up.

He stood slowly, testing his ribs.

They held.

Not perfect.

But solid enough.

Damien nodded.

He had been thinking of leaving the moment his eyes opened. He couldn’t afford to stay your longer than he already had.

Even if no demon had escaped the battle, the destruction of a stronghold would not remain unnoticed.

Demons organized themselves through more than sight alone.

Patrols.

Scouts.

Essence markers. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Something would eventually detect that an entire command outpost had vanished.

And when they did, they would investigate.

Soon.

He stretched his shoulders once.

Time to move.

"Good work," he told Fenrir quietly.

The wolf snorted and looked pleased with itself.

Lin dissolved into light as Damien dismissed her.

Fenrir vanished a moment later, returning to the summoning space after finishing its feast.

Only Luton remained.

The slime hopped lightly onto Damien’s shoulder.

He glanced once at the battlefield.

The eastern stronghold was gone.

Flattened.

Erased.

A captain devoured.

An entire command structure destroyed.

The demons would not ignore that.

Which meant they would send scouts.

Possibly even another captain.

Damien smirked faintly.

Let them search.

He raised his hand.

"Summon Aquila."

A powerful surge of wind exploded outward as the massive griffin materialized beside him.

The creature spread its wings, golden feathers glinting under the morning light.

Aquila lowered its body slightly so Damien could mount.

He climbed onto its back while Luton settled comfortably beside him.

The griffin beat its wings once.

Twice.

The air roared around them.

Then they launched skyward.

The ruined battlefield shrank rapidly beneath them.

From above, the destruction looked even worse — an enormous scar carved into the forest.

No one would miss it.

Damien guided Aquila higher into the sky.

Far above the treetops.

He didn’t intend to stay anywhere near the eastern stronghold now.

Not when the other demon bases would soon begin searching.

The griffin accelerated across the endless green sea of trees.

Wind rushed past his face.

Below them, the Forest of Twin Disasters stretched endlessly toward the horizon.

Somewhere within it, two more captains waited.

And something ancient slept beneath the earth.

Damien’s eyes narrowed slightly.

He would deal with them.

One step at a time.

But first, he needed to create a distance.

The griffin soared deeper into the skies as Damien left the destroyed stronghold far behind.