Slayers - Volume 6 - Chapter 4

4: The Darkness Stirs, the Deathmatch Ends

Hraaaagh! The lesser demons’ howl kicked off our battle. Their screeching conjured countless Flare Arrows ahead of their horde—in other words, all around us and the cabin! There had to be hundreds of them!

Ba-ba-ba-bwoosh!

Holy freakin’ crap! While launching into a spell chant, I tackled Gourry into the cabin! Not a moment later...

“Wind!”

The instant I finished erecting a wind barrier inside—Ker-crash!—the cabin’s exterior was awash with flame.

“What?!” Abel cried out from within the safety of the cabin and my barrier.

The demons had unleashed their Flare Arrow barrage on us. If we hadn’t had both my wind barrier and the cabin to shield us, the scalding heat from the blast would have steamed us alive.

“Let’s go, Gourry!” I called, dropping the barrier and moving into my next chant.

“Right!” Gourry rallied, drawing the Sword of Light and charging back outside.

We had escaped the lesser demons’ first attack, but we would remain sitting ducks until we thinned their numbers some (preferably before they unleashed their second attack!). If we couldn’t manage that, we’d be stuck on the defensive indefinitely.

“Dam Blas!” Fwoom! I blasted open a hole in the wall opposite the flame-wreathed cabin’s door. “Abel! I’m going out the front to draw the demons’ attention! Take your father and hide in the forest!”

I didn’t even wait for his response—I was already out the door and chanting my next spell!

As expected, Zel and Amelia were both fine; they’d probably cast a twofold wind barrier to save themselves from the heat and flames, and they were now fighting alongside Gourry. I couldn’t see Raltark and Xellos anywhere, but it was hard to imagine either of them had come to any harm.

“Lighting!” After reciting my amplification chant, I tossed my light spell high into the air. Naturally, being the super-charged version, it was as bright as the midsummer sun... Well, okay, not quite that bright, but it was more than enough to fight by. It also cast some nice shadows along the ground.

I began another amplification chant, but the Lighting spell I’d just conjured was kind of like a beacon screaming, “Hey, over here!” A dozen or so lesser demons accordingly set their sights on me.

Graaagh! They howled up another Flare Arrow barrage!

J-Jeez, boys, can’t you give a girl a minute?!

I wasn’t gonna finish my spell in time! The flaming projectiles were already coming at me! I quickly dashed to get away, but there were too freakin’ many! I couldn’t dodge them all! But—

Fwish!

Just as they were about to hit me, the Flare Arrows vanished into thin air.

Wuh?

“That one’s on the house... But don’t count on it a second time,” called Xellos’s voice from somewhere nearby.

I didn’t have time to search him out, but I was grateful for the reprieve. Before my corporeal demon buddies could unleash a third barrage, I completed my spell!

“Dis Fang!”

My shadow on the ground, courtesy of Lighting, took the shape of innumerable dragon maws that snapped at the shadows of the lesser demons around me.

The result—Kraaaaah!—was a ghastly death rattle as black blood began spurting from their bodies... precisely where my shadowy dragons had champed their shadows. 

“Hah!” Zel cried.

Vrm! He must have infused his broadsword with magic, because a single strike readily cut through a lesser demon’s stomach.

Scraaah! Another demon nearby let out an angry howl, conjuring more Flare Arrows. But while the barrage summoned by a horde of his kin was a deadly force to be reckoned with, a single specimen could hardly produce enough to be a real threat. Experienced sorcerers knew how to stagger their Flare Arrows against a single target to make them harder to dodge, but these suckers’ attacks were simplistic at best. Their bolts still packed a wallop and there were plenty of them, to be sure. But for an experienced combatant who knew how to keep their cool and pay attention, they weren’t all that hard to avoid.

Zel read the timing of the incoming arrows and dashed forward while chanting a spell. He easily darted through them and closed the distance to his target in a second—but was forced to stop short as a swarm of dark bullets came flying at him! Duguld had entered the fray!

“I’ll finish you this time, chimera child!” he pronounced as he charged at Zel.

“Elemekia Flame!” Zel cried, unleashing the spell he’d been chanting. It was an enhanced version of the Elemekia Lance, which did no physical damage but was powerful enough to flay a human’s spirit in one blast.

“Tch!” Duguld clicked his tongue sharply as he dodged. Not even he wanted to take an Elemekia Flame head-on!

The spell went on to hit the lesser demon that had been standing behind him instead. Its body trembled, then collapsed with ground-shaking force and lay still. Meanwhile, Duguld charged again. Zel had just readied his sword to meet him when...

Kraaah! A lesser demon unleashed a new volley of fire from behind Duguld! It shot forward indiscriminately, but simple Flare Arrows posed no threat to a pure demon like Duguld. He simply continued charging forward with the arrows at his back. But then, just before he reached his target, he sprang to the side! The fiery arrows behind him surged forward at Zel!

Zel leaped to the side after Duguld, but he was a hair too late. A single arrow of flame brushed by his left arm, turning the sleeve of his coat to ash. He then immediately had to contend with another storm of dark bullets from Duguld. He was completely on the defensive.

“Let us end this!” Duguld cried as the bullets that surrounded him coalesced in his hand. In an instant, they took the form of a black sword.

Shing! The very air trembled when Duguld’s dark blade met Zel’s magically infused broadsword. The two remained locked together, pitting strength against strength...

But, as if it had been waiting for this moment, a lesser demon on the sidelines conjured a mass of Flare Arrows.

Crap! There’s no way Zel can dodge those right now!

It almost seemed as if the twisted being smiled slightly, and just then... Vwoosh! A ray of light streaked through the air, and its head went flying!

Attaboy, Gourry! One shot from his Sword of Light had cleanly decapitated the interloping demon.

As for Gourry, he seemed to have his hands full with the lesser demons himself. When he’d first leaped out of the cabin, he was dispatching them left and right—sometimes slicing through them with the Sword of Light, and sometimes shooting its blade from the hilt. That led a growing number of opponents, however, to concentrate their fire on him.

Their attacks weren’t particularly coordinated, mind you, but there were an awful lot of them. Gourry was still managing to dodge or deflect each incoming arrow with the Sword of Light, but he was so occupied that he was hard pressed for opportunities to counterattack. Whenever he fired the Sword of Light’s blade, there was a momentary but very real delay before it could manifest again. And one single defenseless second could mean the difference between life and death under this kind of fire. He’d managed to get off a shot to save Zel during a brief interlude between demon attacks, but such lucky breaks were few and far between.

“Argh!” Gourry cried out in panic as he knocked away another wave of fiery arrows.

Amelia didn’t have as many lesser demons on her tail, but she was busy contending with a bigger problem...

“Heh heh heh... We meet again,” Guduza hissed, her red slit of a mouth curling into the shape of a smile. Opposite her, Amelia was already chanting a spell. “I won’t fail to kill you this time, child...”

Guduza’s hair rippled. Simultaneously, the lesser demons around her unleashed a volley of Flare Arrows. Amelia dodged them all easily without dropping her chant. (This was around the time I was incanting my amplified light spell, if you’re wondering.)

The smile carved into Guduza’s face deepened. As it did, her hair elongated and disappeared into her shadow on the ground. What happened next was a repeat of the last time they’d fought—the demon’s tendrils snaked up out of Amelia’s shadow and twined around her legs. The main difference this time? The gaggle of lesser demons, of course!

“Take her, all of you!” Guduza called.

Graaagh! The lesser demons howled in response. Dozens of magical arrows appeared midair and rained down on the restrained Amelia.

Vroosh! The arrows all exploded in flame, and poor Amelia was... perfectly unharmed and chanting her next spell already?!

“A defense spell?!” Guduza gasped in surprise.

Amelia was originally a shrine maiden, so of course she knew defensive and recovery magic like the back of her hand. As long as she got her spell off in time, she’d have no trouble fending off a few measly lesser demon Flare Arrows.

“Curse you!” Guduza railed.

Her hair furiously slithered up Amelia’s leg, but in that instant, Amelia finished her spell...

“Elemekia Lance!”

And she was targeting... her own feet? No, Guduza’s hair! There was no way the demon could avoid it, and the spell blasted away her dark locks!

“Hyeek!” Guduza cried in shock as she quickly withdrew her hair from the shadow.

Even if her hair was as disposable as a lizard’s tail, it was still part of her demonic body. It would’ve been one thing for her to sever it herself, but for it to be damaged while still attached to her... that had to hurt.

“Brat!” Guduza shrieked in rage.

Amelia ignored her and continued her chant while dashing straight at the demon!

“What are you fools doing?! Finish the girl off at once!” Guduza barked, ordering the lesser demons to conjure another wave of flaming arrows.

“Vis Farank!” Amelia shouted, incanting a spell I didn’t recognize.

At the same time, the lesser demons’ flaming arrows shot toward her. These guys were real one-trick ponies, but said one trick was still a serious threat in numbers like this. There was no way for Amelia to dodge them all! Would her defensive spell from earlier save her again?!

No, this was different! Amelia dodged most of the incoming arrows, and those she couldn’t dodge, she blocked with her left palm! Vwim! Their flames were extinguished like they had never been there.

Ah, of course! Amelia’s spell likely functioned on the same principle as Zel’s magic-infused sword—she was channeling magic power directly into her hands!

And with the spell still going, she kept closing the distance to Guduza!

“Foolish human!” the demon cried, her long, black hair streaming toward Amelia as if blown by the wind.

Vrrmmm... vrrmmm... Guduza’s outstretched hair trembled and thrummed like insect wings. The next instant...

Vrum! The vibrations became a magical shockwave that was rushing right for Amelia!

Crash! Four lesser demons fell to the ground, shaking the earth below. My shadow dragons had torn through spirit and flesh alike. And with their prey slain, they now slowly receded into my shadow.

Okay, four baddies down! It was a little more than a drop in the bucket, but it still didn’t do much to turn the tides of battle. If anything, it painted a bullseye on my forehead, because a few other demons turned to me at once.

Not good... If I ran into the woods, I could break their line of sight on me. But on the other hand, if they just started firing indiscriminately because of it, I might end up walled in by fire and unable to escape. So while chanting a spell, I spun around and flew into the still-burning cabin instead. It hadn’t collapsed yet, but it was one heck of an inferno inside. The superheated air scorched my skin.

I ran straight through the cabin and out the hole the Lanzards had used to escape. This was a pretty simple diversion, but I figured it’d be enough to fool the less-than-brilliant lesser demons. As soon as I was outside and flying into the treeline...

Vwoosh! A massive tongue of fire rose up and brought the whole cabin down. The demons who’d seen me dash into it had launched their flaming arrows at the burning building. Seeing this, I spun around again and ran back toward the fray.

“Blast Ash!” Frmmm! There was a rumbling sound that I could feel in my very gut, and two more lesser demons turned to black dust in an instant.

Six down! Between me and the gang, that made about fourteen defeated in total. We were certainly mowing ’em down, but there were still over half of the original numbers remaining. A full-power Dragon Slave could have put an easy end to things, but that would’ve caught Gourry and the others in the blast too. That left me no choice but to target the suckers one by one.

Okay, what spell should I throw at ’em next?

Just as I was about to begin my next chant, I sensed someone behind me and whipped around. It was Abel, who was standing there glassy-eyed.

“What are you—?!” I grabbed his hand and pulled him deep into the underbrush. It was clear something had happened, but not even I was gutsy enough to stand around talking with lesser demons chucking spells willy-nilly. “What happened? Where’s your father?!”

“We tried to run into the forest... but a demon threw a fire arrow at us... Dad pushed me away and told me to run... I haven’t seen him since! I’ve been searching all over, but...”

Great! As if I don’t have enough to worry about...

“Your dad’s okay! I promise!” I said, completely baselessly. “Once the battle’s over, we’ll look for him together! For now, stay put!”

There, I picked up a new chant and went to rejoin the battle. The moment I came out of the underbrush, however, I found myself face-to-face with a lesser demon. Ack!

“Dynast Breath!” I incanted, freezing and shattering the monstrous creature instantly.

The blade in Duguld’s hand was changing color, going from a deep black to gray. His dark sword, an amalgamation of his shadowy bullets, apparently wasn’t as powerful as Gourry’s Sword of Light or my Ragna Blade, so the constant clashing with Zel’s enchanted sword was rapidly stripping it of its power. That said, Zel’s magical sword seemed to be degrading at a similar pace, so victory would come down to whoever’s weapon lasted longer. But it seemed Duguld had no interest in a war of attrition...

“You lose, chimera child!” he declared, producing another dozen bullets around his body!

If he unleashed those at this range, Zel wouldn’t be able to dodge! Yet the next moment... it was Duguld leaping back with a scream. I looked and saw a dagger buried deep in his body, almost to the hilt.

“Gwaaagh! Gaaagh!” he wailed and writhed as he yanked it out with his right hand and tossed it aside in disgust.

Obviously, no mere dagger was enough to harm a pure demon... Zel must have cast his spell a second time, infusing the hidden blade in his left hand while fending off Duguld with his right. He then thrust it in when he had the chance.

Not about to miss the opening he’d created, Zel leaped at Duguld. A lesser demon moved to intercept him, but Zel seemed to have accounted for that. He confidently sliced through the creature, changed direction, and slaughtered another on the way.

“Absurd chimera!” Duguld shouted angrily, his voice tinged with pain. “How dare you... How dare you do this to me?!”

But Zelgadis laughed off his words: “For someone who looks down on children and chimeras, you’re very predictable. Shallow fool.”

“How dare you?! This time, I’ll kill you for sure!”

“Many have said that to me... and no one’s ever managed to follow through,” Zelgadis scoffed as he began a chant.

Despite the demon’s blustering, the blow must have done him considerable damage. Duguld’s movements seemed sluggish and uncertain now.

“Tch...” The pure demon clicked his tongue softly and leaped back toward a lesser demon. “That... That certainly did hurt, but...”

Duguld then quietly raised his right hand and—Bwush!—speared it through the lesser demon’s chest as it wailed a nasty death rattle.

What the?!

“Heh... heh heh...” Duguld let out a low laugh as the creature’s black blood sprayed his body. “Ahh... that hit the spot... Such anger and fear...”

Holy crap! Demons drew their power from the negative emotions of living beings. So to heal himself, Duguld had killed one of his minions in order to feed off its distress and despair. Even if it was corporeal, fundamentally unlike a pure demon like him... didn’t that still basically amount to cannibalism?

“Now...” Thus recovered from Zel’s blow, Duguld summoned more dark bullets around him. “I let my guard down just now, but next time...”

Zelgadis drew back swiftly as he continued his chant. Wait, that spell...

“A Ra Tilt?!” Duguld exclaimed, also seeming to recognize it.

Vwip... Duguld’s body sank to the earth, leaving his bullets of darkness hanging in the air. This was the same tactic Guduza had used against Amelia—the “lizard’s tail” maneuver that left a fragment of their astral form as a decoy while their main body escaped.

By the time Zel finished his chant, Duguld’s true form had already disappeared into the ground. That forced him to find a new target. He could probably finish off Duguld if he waited for him to reappear, but the lesser demons weren’t exactly going to let him stand around and do that. Also, now that the chant was complete, he couldn’t hold on to it forever.

For a minute, Zel glanced over at Amelia, who was currently locked in close combat with Guduza. Ra Tilt was a single-target spell, of course, but there was no telling what might happen to someone touched by the blue pillar of light once fired. So, left with little other choice, Zel turned and released the Ra Tilt on a nearby lesser demon.

Vwoosh! Swallowed by a column of blue light, the lesser demon slumped immediately to the ground. It felt like a waste of a spell, but I guess it was better than nothing...

Then, as if he’d planned for this, Duguld leaped out from the forest underbrush. Had he reappeared in the forest and lain in wait for Zel to unleash his spell?!

“It was all for nothing, chimera child!”

Duguld was already armed with a fresh swarm of bullets. Meanwhile, Zel had just fired off a spell, and the magic he’d infused his sword with was almost spent! With no recourse, he leaped away from the demon, chanting all the while.

“You can’t escape!” Duguld cried, letting his black bullets fly.

“Hah!” Amelia shouted out.

She then used the magic in her right hand to repel Guduza’s incoming shockwave. Bwoosh! Two invisible powers collided, causing the wind to swirl and howl. And when it died down...

“Ngh...” Amelia groaned. It seemed she hadn’t offset Guduza’s attack entirely. Her legs were trembling a little.

“Pin the girl down!” Guduza cried as she rushed toward Amelia.

Responding to her command, the lesser demons nearby fired Flare Arrows to cut off Amelia’s escape routes. Herded by the flaming arrows behind her, Amelia was forced to charge at Guduza again, still chanting.

Not good... Stopping the earlier magical shockwave would have extinguished the magic infused in her hands, meaning that she was now charging in with no way to attack Guduza—and worse yet, no way to defend! Amelia must have realized that, because right before she reached Guduza, she leaped to the side!

Guduza seemed to anticipate this move, however, for her black tendrils ensnared Amelia as she jumped!

“You won’t get away this time!” she hissed.

One of her locks was wrapped around Amelia’s neck! Was she going to strangle her to keep her from casting?!

Yet before the tressed garrote could completely cut off her windpipe, Amelia cast her eyes away in a sidelong glance at something. Guduza, curious as to what, likewise turned that way... to see Zelgadis searching out a target for his primed Ra Tilt after Duguld had disappeared.

Recognizing the danger of the attack, Guduza seized up in fear. Zel, however, quickly turned away and unleashed the spell on a lesser demon instead. Relieved, Guduza turned back to her target...

But that was all the time Amelia had needed to finish her spell: “Vis Farank!”

“No!” Guduza cried, yet it was too late.

Bwoom!

“Graaah!” The demon let out a shrill wail as Amelia slammed a magic-infused fist into her stomach, but such a blow wasn’t enough to kill her. “You...”

Enraged by the attack, Guduza tightened her hair around Amelia’s neck. Amelia gasped for air with a pained expression—but that didn’t stop her from brandishing her fist again! Wham!

“Graaah!” Guduza wailed louder as her fury grew and her locks coiled tighter.

Pop! Amelia’s right knee snapped. Guduza cracked a slight grin—which Amelia promptly smashed in with her fist!

“Hreek!” the demon yowled.

It would be no exaggeration to say Guduza’s face was her true self. A blow directly to it was apparently so painful that she immediately released Amelia, who swiftly leaped back.

My girl was in a bad way herself, though. She slumped to her knees, gasping for breath.

Seeing its chance, one of the lesser demons turned toward her and...

Slash!

In that instant, its upper body was liberated from its lower half by Gourry’s Sword of Light.

“Gaav Flare!” Vwoom! The red streak I fired finished off another two lesser demons.

That made... nineteen total! We were whittling them down pretty nicely, with Gourry being our real MVP. He’d picked up the pace, shaving down the demons’ numbers and breaking up their flaming arrow barrages.

Situations like this really made me appreciate how skilled Gourry was. He was steadily dishing it out to the enemy while still managing to cover for his allies. At this rate, it was only a matter of time until all the lesser demons were destroyed, but Zel and Amelia were still locked in hard fights, and an even greater concern hung over me...

Brr! A chill ran up my spine, sending me leaping backward from where I stood. I then turned back around toward the forest... Soon, with a rustle of leaves, a black-clad figure appeared.

What?!

“Zuma!”

Dude’s got impeccable timing, doesn’t he?! At least, now that he was here, I didn’t have to worry about him showing up... I quickly launched into a spell. To be honest, I was way more scared of this one guy than a hundred lesser demons!

Whoosh! Zuma sprinted forward, cutting through the grass. He was coming straight for me!

“Fireball!” I incanted. Zuma easily dodged the ball of light I threw. But the moment it sailed by him, I snapped my fingers! “Break!”

Fwoom! The ball of light burst, casting crimson flame everywhere. This was my modified version of the spell, and I was sure I’d nailed him good with it.

Nevertheless, Zuma had once taken a Fireball from me undaunted... Dude must’ve had some powerful defensive spells in his arsenal. Meaning, of course, there was no guarantee my Fireball special had finished him off.

So instead of letting my guard down, I began chanting my next spell—one he wouldn’t be able to block! And, just as I expected, a dark silhouette emerged from the flames a second later, bolting straight toward me!

I’d only just begun my chant. I had no choice but to leap back, pull out the knife I used for Shadow Snap, and throw it at Zuma. I was hoping he might mistake the spell I was incanting for a Shadow Snap and stop, but... He didn’t just ignore it; he actually picked up speed!

He then snatched the knife I’d thrown out of the air and tossed it back at me! Right at my freaking head!

Shocked, I dropped low. I shouldn’t have let it rattle me like that, though; it made me lose my balance and tumble backward.

Fwish! At least the knife passed safely over my head, but now I had to get back on my feet! I couldn’t just sit around on my butt with Zuma speeding at me! I had my spell, but...

Ugh, it’s not ready yet!

I was going to have to risk kicking him or something! I was liable to end up with a broken foot for my trouble, but there was no way in hell I could shake him if I tried to run. Even if it was a losing battle, I was gonna have to put up my dukes!

But just as I steeled my nerve, Zuma stopped in his tracks. A flash passed in front of his eyes—the Sword of Light! Zuma quietly turned his gaze on its wielder...

“It’s been a while,” Gourry said, the Sword of Light at his side. Naturally, Zuma had no reply. “Lina, you take care of the demons! I’ll hold him off!”

“Got it!” I called, standing up.

Yeah, call me coward if you want, but I couldn’t see any reason to stand on pride here. I was just gonna trip Gourry up if I stuck around. So, while chanting a spell, I set my sights on the remaining lesser demons instead.

With the Sword of Light in one hand, Gourry slowly inched closer to the assassin. He definitely had the advantage in this matchup. Zuma’s typical moves—parrying blades and catching them with both hands to snap them in two—wouldn’t work against the Sword of Light. Zuma had magic on his side, but no time to chant while dodging Gourry.

“Hah!” the blond lug cried, running straight for the assassin.

Zuma leaped back instantly and shouted, “Flare Arrow!” Right on cue, close to twenty bolts of flame appeared in front of him and shot toward Gourry!

“More fire arrows?!” Gourry complained, but readily evaded or blocked them all without losing speed.

Zuma then charged forward to meet him, as if following the arrows. The two fighters crossed paths. Gourry swung the Sword of Light, and...

Crackle!

Zuma, unbelievably enough, stopped the strike with his left palm! Like Amelia, he must’ve channeled magic power into his hand to use as a shield, but damn!

When did he learn that spell?!

While blocking with his left palm, Zuma thrust his right out at Gourry!

“Tch!” Gourry, wary of the attack, quickly sprang back to escape it.

The two fighters, now some distance apart, squared off once more.

Kicking up dust, Zel slid behind the lesser demon that had fallen nearby. Pop-pop-pop! A second later, Duguld’s dark bullets peppered the corpse with holes.

“Fool! You think you can hide from me?!” Duguld cried and leaped at him. He bounded over the demon’s body to attack Zelgadis from above, but...

Vrsh! A silver flash tore through the air between them!

“Graaagh!” Duguld cried out as he fell to the ground.

That same instant, Zel stood up from behind the lesser demon. He must have renewed his spell, because the broadsword in his hand was again aglow with crimson light.

“You’re the fool here!” he spat, dashing at Duguld.

Zwoosh! Zelgadis slashed at the demon’s torso just as he got to his feet.

“Graaagh!” Duguld screamed again, but didn’t fall this time. “Gngh...”

With groans of agony, he instead pulled a protruding dagger from his breast... Another magic-infused one, most likely.

“Did you think I only had one dagger? I can’t believe you fell for the same trick twice... For all your big talk, you demons really are simple!” Zel scoffed, throwing all the demon’s mockery back in his face.

It would be hard for Duguld to make a comeback given his current position. Almost all of the lesser demons were dead now, and the remaining ones were currently concentrated on me. He wouldn’t be able to heal himself the same way again.

“Damn you... Damn you!” But the pure demon hadn’t yet lost his will to fight. “I’ll kill you! I will kill you!” he howled, taking off in a spring with his cape flapping behind him.

Amelia stood up shakily, muttering a chant. She didn’t look steady on her feet at all.

“I’ll... finish you now...” Guduza wheezed.

Both of them were seriously worse for wear, but Amelia charged again! Guduza’s hair rippled!

“Vis Farank!” Amelia incanted, channeling magic into her hands for a third time.

Frshh! Guduza’s hair snatched one of her infused hands. Their respective magics fought each other, causing some of Guduza’s hair to shrivel.

“Graah!” the demon shrieked, yet she forced her hair to wrap further around Amelia. Perhaps she was prepared to take some damage if it meant depleting the magic in Amelia’s hands?

Her hair eventually wound its way around Amelia’s entire body. But rather than giving up, my girl began chanting her next spell.

“I wonder what would happen if I unleashed the magic from my hair right now,” Guduza mused with a small laugh. Even Amelia was taken aback by the suggestion. “This will be my first time trying it!”

Vrmm!

The demon’s tendrils thrummed again like an insect’s wings. Amelia wordlessly jerked back, and...

“Graaaaaaaah!” Guduza wailed with a deathly clamor, for protruding from her head was now... Duguld’s right hand! “D... Duguld...”

As she hissed her compatriot’s name, her black tresses went limp and melted into darkness. Amelia, mustering her will, began chanting her next spell even as she slumped to the ground.

“Do pardon me, but I really must kill that pathetic little chimera now!” Duguld said, his voice oozing hatred. “So, Guduza, I’m afraid this means... I’ll be borrowing what power you have remaining!”

Holy crap! This guy didn’t just prey on lesser demons! He was gonna consume Guduza too?! I guess Zel had really gotten his goat!

“D... Damn you...” Guduza tried to curse the demon she’d assumed was an ally, but her voice quickly faded on the wind.

Shff... Her face crumbled into motes of black ash that were summarily blown away.

“Not enough...” Duguld’s body lurched to the side. He then cast his gaze toward Zelgadis. “I still don’t have... enough power!”

Zel really must have done a number on him earlier, because even after devouring the weakened Guduza, the pure demon wasn’t completely revived. And in his compromised state, an attack came from behind...

“Elemekia Lance!”

“Gah!” Duguld screamed, turning around. “You... Damn... you!”

The spell was none other than Amelia’s doing, and—Slash!—it was quickly followed up by a strike across the demon’s back from Zel!

“...!”

That one did it. Duguld didn’t even have time to let out a final howl as his body turned to black sand, which fell into a pile on the ground.

“I think that does it...” Zel remarked.

“Yeah. For us, anyway,” Amelia replied with a small smile.

Whoosh! Zuma leaped up into the air! Gourry fired a blast from the Sword of Light at the high-flying assassin, but Zuma used the magic concentrated in his left hand to knock it away. He then thrust his right hand out in a counterattack.

“Ngh!” Gourry reformed his brilliant blade just in time to deflect the blow.

“Dark Mist!” Zuma hissed, unleashing his next spell.

Dang! I didn’t even catch him chanting that one!

Zuma’s magic shrouded the area in darkness. It had no offensive power, but it reduced visibility to zero. Gourry disappeared into the umbra for a moment... then immediately leaped out of it with his sword at the ready to meet the assassin.

But what came at him next wasn’t Zuma! Voosh! It was a magical shockwave speeding toward his flank!

After using Dark Mist to escape Gourry’s sight, Zuma had somehow changed course midair and struck from the side. Perhaps hearing the roar of the wind, or maybe just on instinct, Gourry pegged the incoming attack and slashed at it!

Vrrsh! A high cry echoed out of the air. The Sword of Light had easily bisected Zuma’s magical shockwave.

Zuma charged regardless. Gourry readied the Sword of Light, but just before Zuma entered melee range... he swung his right hand in a sweeping gesture.

Another magic shockwave?!

“What?!” Gourry gasped.

He was too close to dodge it. With no other choice, he sliced through this one with the Sword of Light too.

But Zuma took advantage of the distraction and charged in! Was he going to block Gourry’s sword with one hand and attack with the other again? Realizing that was likely the case, Gourry twisted his hand holding the sword ninety degrees and fired the blade at Zuma point blank. Either his aim was off or Zuma had anticipated the move, however, because the spry assassin twisted lightly to dodge the attack by a hair’s breadth.

Zuma then reached out for Gourry’s neck with his right hand, but Gourry retreated a bit and retaliated with a kick to Zuma’s gut. The assassin leaped back and landed without a single grunt or complaint.

“Flare Arrow!” Now that he’d finished Duguld, Zelgadis had been waiting for a chance to jump in—and he took the opportunity to fire a spell from the sidelines. Not even Zuma would be able to dodge this! No, instead...

Crash! With a sweep of his right hand, Zuma extinguished the incoming flaming arrows!

“Impossible!” Zel cried in shock, freezing to a halt.

“Out of my way!” Zuma cried, releasing a magic shockwave from his right hand that hit Zel straight on!

No way!

“Ngh!” Zelgadis was blown back.

At this point, I’d just about polished off the last of the lesser demons.

“Amelia! Heal Zel up!” I advised while working on a chant of my own.

I turned toward where Zuma and Gourry were still duking it out. Amelia and Zel had both taken quite a beating already. Neither one of them was in any condition to contend with the assassin.

But his attack patterns... They look a little like...

One way or another, I was gonna have to lend a hand myself! After Gourry and Zuma took some distance from each other, I unleashed my spell.

“Zellas Bullid!”

This was a little number I’d cooked up recently that required the talismans to use. Its power was roughly on par with my Dynast Blas and Ragna Blast... and, yup, it even worked on demons. It was single-target only, but what really set it apart was that its movement could be controlled at will. In other words, it couldn’t be dodged or blocked. Not by any human, at least.

Responding to my words of power, the ray of light that appeared at my fingertips streaked toward Zuma. Sensing something, the assassin reflexively moved to dodge. But responding to my thoughts instantaneously, the beam of light changed course to pursue! Gourry, wary of being used as an enemy shield, leaped away from Zuma.

Meanwhile, the assassin chanted a spell under his breath. It had a familiar ring to it.

I knew it! Cold sweat beaded all over my body. At the same time, seeming to finish his spell, Zuma stopped in his tracks. The ray of light I shot at him struck...

Kriiing! And it let out a sharp whine as it shattered to pieces. Zuma stood there in its wake, unfazed.

He’d blocked it... and so easily...

“Zuma... You...” I said, my voice harsh. “You fused with Seigram, didn’t you?!”

“Yes...” came a voice from beneath the assassin’s cloth mask. It was clearly that of the faceless demon. “I had lost most of my power, and this man had lost both of his arms—all to the two of you. I sensed his consciousness and made him an offer... ‘Do you wish to regain what you lost?’”

At last, it all made sense. Why, when we crossed swords in Vezendi, “Seigram the Faceless” had been wearing his mask again. Why he’d fled just because it was broken... It was to conceal his identity as Zuma. This also explained why Zuma had been doing such uncharacteristic things, and why Seigram’s attack patterns had changed.

“I swore I’d finish you someday,” the assassin hissed in Seigram’s voice. “That’s what I told you when we last parted ways. But the damage inflicted by that sword is slow to recover... And so I fused with this man at the cost of my demonic form.”

He’d abandoned his demonic nature just to get revenge on me and Gourry?!

“Then what? You used Raltark as a go-between to call some of your demon buddies and challenge us to another fight? What exactly is their game, huh?”

“That’s more than you need to know. You’re going to die soon anyway,” he said, this time in Zuma’s voice.

He was coming! Zuma flew across the ground, headed our way. Gourry moved to intercept him.

We had to be careful here! Zuma didn’t need casting time unless it was a big spell. I, meanwhile, began chanting anew.

Zuma’s first target was Gourry. Not even this demon-assassin fusion could handle both Gourry’s Sword of Light and my magic at the same time. He released another magic shockwave, but Gourry sliced right through it. He then leaped into the air and threw a second one down at Gourry from above.

“Gwuh?!”

Surprised, Gourry positioned the Sword of Light above him, but the angle was awkward and it took all he had to block the incoming attack. Zuma dove down upon him and, just as they collided, a ball of magic appeared in his left hand that extended toward the Sword of Light!

Now’s my chance!

“Elemekia Lance!” I incanted, hurling my magic javelin. Not even Zuma could dodge this time. That sucker nailed him head-on!

Still, it wasn’t enough to stop him. Crackle! His magic and Gourry’s brilliant blade collided. Zuma used their fulcrum to pivot, shifting his momentum into a kick aimed at Gourry!

“What?!” Gourry leaped back in a panic. Zuma’s kick had grazed his chest...

Or so I thought. But a dull crack rang out, and Gourry’s breastplate split open! Had he done it with his claws?!

“No!” Gourry cried in shock.

The sundered breastplate only slowed him down for a second, but that was all Zuma needed. Wham! Another magic shockwave hit Gourry dead on and sent him flying back.

“Gourry!”

Perhaps hearing my voice, he moved ever so slightly. It seemed like he was trying to get up, but the damage he’d taken must have been severe. All he could do was writhe.

Zuma, on the other hand, wasn’t down for the count, though my Elemekia Lance must have done a number on him too. He looked unsteady on his feet.

“I’ll finish this now,” he whispered... but was that the assassin’s voice or the demon’s?

“Stop!” came a cry from the forest, halting me and Zuma from leaping at each other.

Argh! Why did you have to come out now?!

“Please... enough...” Abel appeared before us, speaking in a whisper. Zuma stared at him silently. “Please... enough already! Why do you have to kill them?”

After a long pause, Zuma turned his gaze from Abel back to me.

“Tell me, Dad!” he continued.

Huh? Abel’s choice of words made my mind go blank. “Dad”? Wait...

There, the assassin looked back to Abel once more.

“How... How did you know?” he asked in the livid voice of Laddock Lanzard.

“Because... you’re my father! Aren’t you?!” Abel cried on the verge of tears.

Laddock—now the demon-fused Zuma—simply averted his gaze without a word.

I should’ve known! Using a target as bait to call us out, taking hostages... None of that was Zuma’s style, but this explained everything. He’d used himself as bait, taken himself hostage! He’d even written that threatening letter to himself. And once he finished me off, he surely planned to go back to his “normal” life, blustering around about how he’d merely been a pawn in the whole affair. The reason he’d been so short with us from the start was to mask his deeper hatred for us.

It also seemed Abel had vaguely intuited that Laddock was working as a killer on the side. That was why he’d come down on us so hard in an attempt to drive us away from the house.

“Pray, Abel...” the assassin said in his father’s voice. “Pray that Lina Inverse wins... If she doesn’t, I will have to kill you...”

“Why?” The question came from me this time. “Why can’t you just be a merchant and live an honest life? Why do you have to sneak around in the shadows as Zuma the assassin?”

“I wish... I wish I knew,” he replied with a slight shake of his head. “Anything I tried to say would simply be an excuse. This is the only way I know how to live. That’s all...”

I felt goosebumps rise all over my skin. I quickly started chanting a spell.

“Let’s begin,” he said once more in the cold voice of an assassin.

I broke into a mad dash toward Gourry. Zuma had demonstrated that normal spells had no effect on him. He could even block more powerful ones with his human magic techniques and demonic capacity. I wasn’t totally sure a Dragon Slave would do the trick at this point, seeing as how that didn’t work against the last human-demon fusion I’d fought.

That meant there was only one way to win this: to finish things in close combat before Zuma recovered from my Elemekia Lance. In other words, the odds were against me.

“The Sword of Light?! I don’t think so!” he cried out, moving to block my way. He was significantly slower now, but he was still considerably fleet of foot.

Ugh! I’ll just have to risk it! I’d already finished my chant.

“Ragna Blade!” I shouted, manifesting a blade of darkness in my hand! Seigram and Zuma shouldn’t know this move! If it hit...

“What?!” he cried in shock, producing magic in both palms and blocking my blade of darkness with his left!

Not good! I knew his next move. If he thrust his right hand at me now, I genuinely didn’t think I could dodge it. But...

“Gwaaagh!” Zuma was the one who suddenly withdrew, screaming in pain.

My black blade had cut through the magic he’d conjured in his palm—and his hand right along with it! It seemed he’d never expected my spell to have such power. And, if I’m being honest, neither had I. Was my Ragna Blade actually stronger than the Sword of Light?!

Whoosh! Zuma twisted around and rushed along the ground. He was... He was going for Gourry!

No way! You’ve gotta be kidding me! Is he after...

I quickly gave chase, but I didn’t stand a chance of catching up to him. Zuma was almost instantly on top of Gourry, who was trying to pick himself up.

Whump! Gourry took a kick to the side and went rolling with a groan. Zuma then crouched down... Would I reach them in time?! I leaped forward, bringing my dark sword down on the assassin’s back!

Fweeeeen! A shrill cry rang through the air. Indeed, Zuma had just barely managed to block my black blade... with the Sword of Light in his right hand!

Naturally, fueled by the capacity of a demon, the Sword of Light was still blindingly strong. A blade of light produced by darkness, and a blade of darkness produced by man... They struggled against each other.

Which of us was forced to withdraw first? I couldn’t say for sure, but Zuma and I both took our distance and stared each other down. His left hand was worthless now, and he was probably pretty spent... But my Ragna Blade was also draining my magic at a frightening pace. Every moment we stood here, I could feel my exhaustion mounting. If this went on for too long, I was done for.

“I’ll finish this... with my next strike!” I declared.

“Just try it!” Zuma responded.

With that, I ran! I ran with my black blade held high. Zuma rushed forward to meet me. He heaved the Sword of Light aloft... and then he stopped.

Slash! When he did, my blade of darkness sliced through the assassin’s stomach.

“Dad!” Abel cried and ran over to Zuma... no, to Laddock Lanzard as he collapsed on the ground. “Dad! Dad!” he shouted as he shook his father’s body.

I dismissed my blade of darkness and glanced at the two of them. At last, the man’s eyes opened slightly.

“Dad!” Abel shouted again.

“Laugh at me... Lina Inverse...” But the voice that came from his father’s mouth was that of Seigram the Faceless. “I fused with a human to defeat you two... and in the end... this human heart was my undoing...”

That’s right... When I sliced through him with my Ragna Blade, it wasn’t me he was looking at. It was his son, Abel Lanzard. What was Laddock thinking in that moment? It was too late to ask.

“Go ahead... laugh,” he said once more before his arms fell limply at his side.

Abel looked at me accusingly, but said nothing. All I could do was bow my head.

Following that, we escorted Abel back to Vezendi City. He spent most of the trip in silence, but from the fragments of conversation he did offer up...

Apparently Laddock had genuinely loved traveling. But at some point, Abel had started to sense something strange was afoot with his father. That was probably when it had all started... When Laddock first took the name Zuma and stepped into the darkness as an assassin.

Why had he done it? We would never know.

He’d allegedly met Raltark on a business trip and brought the old butler home with him not long ago. That had only increased Abel’s suspicions, but before he could question his father about it... we showed up and the rest was history.

Abel disappeared into the crowds of Vezendi once we reached the city gate. He’d solemnly offered to pay us for services rendered, but I’d turned him down. I wish I could tell you why.

“You think he’ll be okay?” Amelia whispered.

“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” I responded confidently.

“But I have to ask...” Zel chimed in with a sidelong glance at Xellos. “Just what were you doing this whole time?!”

Yep, the mysterious priest was still rolling with us.

“Oh, well... hahaha.” Xellos scratched at his head and dodged the question with a laugh.

“In that battle, too, you didn’t show up until the fighting was over...”

“Well... I was struck by one of those lesser demons, and I fell unconscious in the bushes. Hahaha.”

“Unbelievable...”

Zel seemed to let it go there, so I was guessing I was the only one who’d heard Xellos’s voice when he saved me at the beginning of the fight.

“By the way, Lina,” Gourry piped up, “what happened to that Raltark guy?”

“Dunno,” I answered bluntly. We’d lost sight of him in the chaos and hadn’t seen him since.

“You don’t know? You mean...”

“I’m sure he’ll come after us again eventually, whether we like it or not. But more importantly...” I said, trying to make myself sound cheerful. “Let’s get back on our way to Dils!”