The damp moss on the forest floor muffled their footsteps as Zack and Celia moved cautiously through the dark woods. Twigs snapped and leaves rustled all around them. The air was heavy, and the silence—broken by every small sound—felt suffocating.

  Two pairs of glowing, round red demon eyes appeared ahead of them, hovering in the darkness between the trees.

  “That one’s mine,” Zack whispered, his hand tightening around the dagger. “The one to the right… that one’s yours.”

  Celia nodded, slightly impressed by Zack’s sharp awareness. A sword appeared in her hand.

  Zack burst forward like an arrow. Adrenaline surged through his veins. With fast, fluid movements, he drove the dagger into the creature’s head again and again. At the same time, Celia engaged the other demon. With precise, practiced strikes, she pierced it until the creature dissolved into a cloud of pitch-black smoke.

  Zack turned and saw that the demon before him had collapsed as well. A wave of relief washed through his body.

  But it didn’t last.

  A deep, distorted voice echoed through the forest.

  “Hmmm… what are these two little prey doing here?”

  From the shadows stepped a demon larger than the first two. Zack immediately noticed that its eyes were not red—but bright, glowing yellow.

  Celia’s eyes narrowed. “Tch… a B-rank,” she muttered. “They’re far more dangerous. Stay alert.”

  The demon laughed and leapt into the trees in a single motion. It moved with unnatural speed through the branches, hurling broken limbs at them while its laughter rang through the woods. Celia grabbed her bow and fired two arrows. Both struck true, piercing its heart.

  “Three more solid hits and it’s done!” she shouted.

  Zack sprinted after the demon and vaulted onto higher ground. With all his strength, he drove his dagger into its chest. The demon recoiled—but in its rage, it lashed out, raking its claws across Zack’s right arm. Flesh tore open. Blood spilled instantly.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  The demon grinned—until it saw that Zack didn’t falter.

  “Hm… the two of you together are just as troublesome as that energetic woman,” the demon laughed coldly. “A shame your end will be so unremarkable.”

  The words hit Zack harder than the blow.

  Does he mean Gina?!

  Rage exploded inside him—hot and violent. Fear and exhaustion vanished, consumed by a single, overwhelming fury. The wound on his arm burned as if fire lived beneath his skin, but the anger burned hotter. He ignored the pain and charged.

  The dagger became an extension of his body—a whirlwind of steel. He slashed and stabbed, cutting into the demon’s dark flesh. It was a true battle. Zack felt the demon’s strikes and the burning pain, but adrenaline drowned everything out.

  He heard Celia’s sword cleave through air. The sharp twang of her bowstring. Her voice—fierce, commanding—pushed him onward.

  The demon laughed once more, a hollow, brittle sound, and struck back.

  But Zack was faster.

  He plunged the dagger deep into the creature’s torso. At the same moment, Celia released her second arrow. It pierced straight through the demon’s heart.

  The demon collapsed.

  With a final, weak groan, it dissolved into a cloud of black smoke—like a candle being snuffed out. The tension in the air vanished instantly, replaced by a deep, unsettling silence.

  Zack looked down at his bleeding arm. The pain he had ignored came crashing back. The glow of victory faded as a harsh realisation took its place.

  He looked at Celia as she wiped her blade clean and slid it back into its sheath. Her expression was calm, her eyes alert.

  If she hadn’t been there—if her bow hadn’t been so precise—he wouldn’t have survived. Rage and a dagger wouldn’t have been enough.

  He nodded to her. A silent acknowledgment. Respect. Gratitude.

  They had survived this together.

  As Celia wrapped his arm with bandages taken expertly from her pack, she met his gaze for a brief moment. Intense. Honest. Zack held her eyes, and something in his expression made her flush slightly. She quickly looked away and focused on the bandage.

  He’s grown so fast, she thought. From a rookie to a fighter—in just hours. He has potential.

  She tied the bandage tight. “You lost a lot of blood,” she said firmly. “You can’t keep fighting like this—ignoring pain. And I’ve used four arrows. I only have six left. If we run into another B-rank, it’ll be difficult.”

  Zack barely seemed to hear her. He stared at his bandaged arm, determination burning in his eyes.

  “You’re right,” he said. “But no matter what happens—I’ll kill every demon.”

  His voice sounded stronger. Older.

  Celia blushed again and allowed herself a small, tender smile. A rare moment of warmth in the darkness of the forest.

  Then it shattered.

  A distant, agonised scream tore through the trees.

  “That’s Gina!” Zack shouted, panic flooding his voice. He sprang up, pain forgotten. “We have to go—now!”

  They ran.

  Branches whipped at their faces, moss made their footing treacherous, but Gina’s scream guided them like a compass. Fear hammered in their chests.

  They burst into a clearing bathed in pale moonlight.

  Gina lay at its centre—broken. Her clothes were torn and soaked in blood. Her leg bent at an unnatural angle. Her face was pale, twisted in terror and pain.

  Towering over her stood three massive figures. Three B-rank demons. Their glowing yellow eyes watched her like predators toying with prey.

  “GINA!” Zack screamed.

  She looked up, tears streaking through the dirt on her face.

  “No—no—why are you here?!” she cried. “Run! Get away!”

  Celia scanned the demons, dread flooding her. “She’s not a fighter,” she whispered. “She’s trained to lure demons—not face them. She might handle a C-rank… but three B-ranks?”

  Her voice trembled. “We don’t stand a chance.”

  The demons laughed.

  Time slowed.

  Celia felt something ancient stir within her—a power she had buried for years.

  If we don’t unleash it now… she dies.

  A faint blue glow began to pulse from her hands.

  The demons turned—eyes widening.

  They were not prepared for what was coming.

  How did this chapter make you feel?