My world-tree system-Chapter 41 - 40: On a knife-edge

Känn, her hands trembling, pressed with all her strength against the gaping wound in Lorie’s stomach. The blood flowed in torrents, slipping through her fingers like sand. Her face was livid, her lips barely parted to whisper words of encouragement, but he could see the truth.

She wasn’t going to make it.

- ’Fucking hell, hold on!’ he hissed through his teeth, panic knotting his stomach. ’You’re not going to die now, do you hear me?’

She half opened her eyes.

Her breathing was shallow, shaky.

- ’Känn...’ Her voice was just a whisper. ’I think... I’m going to-’

- ’Shut up!’ he barked. ’You’re not going to die, do you hear me?’

- Shut your mouth, Kähn, even if you’re half dead you won’t tell me to shut up.

He channelled his meagre magical strength once more, pushing it through the gaping wound to slow the bleeding, but the warmth of his power clashed with something.

The magic of the General of Hell.

A corrosive force that devoured her healing even before it reached Lorie’s flesh.

Shit.

Shit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

He needed more time.

The others had to beat him.

But a few metres away from him, the fight was already coming to an end.

- ’Ghrrr-!’

Giovanni’s body crashed into a tree, mowed down by a monstrous blow from the General of Hell. His back hit the bark hard before he fell to the ground with a thud, unconscious.

- Giovanni!’ shouted Känn.

There was no reply.

As for Yänn, he was lying further away, a deep gash along his torso. He wasn’t moving.

They were finished.

The General of Hell was far too strong.

His imposing silhouette stood out against the darkness of the forest, his obsidian armour tinged with the blood of the elves. He advanced slowly, savouring his victory.

- Pitiful,’ he said dismissively.

He turned his scarlet gaze on Köflik, the last man standing.

The latter was gasping for breath, his body trembling with pain. His left arm hung limply, dislocated. He was struggling to hold his sword.

He was the last bastion.

And he was going to lose.

The general looked at him for a moment before smiling evilly.

- ’You’d better run, elf.’

Köflik didn’t answer.

- ’Look at them.’

The demon turned his head slowly towards Känn and Lorie.

- ’They’re in agony. You are alone. Your blows don’t even reach me. If you stay on your feet, you’ll die for nothing.’

Köflik tightened his grip.

There was silence.

Then the demon raised an eyebrow, amused.

- ’Well.’

His foot sank into the ground and he disappeared.

Köflik didn’t even see the blow coming.

A brutal shock.

A monstrous fist crashed into his ribcage, sending a shockwave through his entire body.

He felt his ribs shatter.

His body went flying.

His sword flew out of his hand as he was thrown like a rag doll.

He hit the ground hard, skidding for several metres before coming to a halt with a sinister crack.

Everything became a blur.

The pain was unbearable.

He gasped, spitting out a spray of blood.

This was the end.

He struggled to raise his head, seeing the demon approaching, its gigantic shadow silhouetted against the bloody glow of the sky.

- ’It’s over.’

No.

Not like this.

Not right now.

He had to get up.

He had to fight.

But his body wouldn’t move.

And as he felt death approaching...

Something inside him snapped. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

An invisible thread, a lock. His mind emptied of all doubt.

And he understood.

This was no longer a battle of brute strength. It was no longer a question of power.

It was his blade. His intention.

A sword does not cut with strength, but with will.

Köflik raised his trembling arm.

His bloodied fingers closed around the hilt of his sword.

The general paused for a moment.

- ’Tsk, still standing?’

Köflik exhaled slowly.

His gaze hardened.

And suddenly...

A presence emerged from him. Subtle. First a simple vibration, almost imperceptible. Then an invisible blade. A sharp force that rippled around him, splitting the air.

The Intent of the Blade.

His sword glowed briefly, a pulse of power emanating from it.

The demon raised an eyebrow.

- ’What the...’

Then Köflik attacked.

His body slammed into the enemy.

His blade split the air.

And for the first time...

The demon recoiled.

A trickle of blood ran down his side.

The General of Hell lowered his gaze.

He had just been hit.

He was stunned for a moment.

Then... he smiled.

- Hahaha... interesting.’

Köflik gasped, exhausted.

- SHIT, even after all this, even after I’d managed to form my blade intention, even after all this...

Before he could make the slightest movement, a monstrous fist slammed into him.

CRAC.

The impact was terrible.

His body flew up again, striking a tree trunk with unheard-of violence.

He collapsed to the ground.

Köflik stopped moving.

The general approached slowly, lifting his foot to crush his head.

- ’Nice try.’

The demon suddenly froze.

A cold shiver ran down his spine.

He looked up but saw nothing.

Behind him, something suddenly glowed.

Golden tattoos that gleamed with an ominous glow.

Kähn’s eyes widened.

- Here you are at last...’

And just then, an icy voice echoed through the night.

- ’Get out of here.’

A terrible blast swept across the clearing.

Foster had arrived.

Silence had suddenly fallen.

An unnatural, oppressive silence.

Känn, who was still kneeling beside Lorie, slowly raised his head.

His gaze swept over the scene, still blurred by shock and exhaustion. Everything seemed to stand still.

The General of Hell was about to crush Köflik under his foot, his cruel smile still etched on his face...

But something was wrong.

A shiver ran down Känn’s spine. His instincts were screaming.

Someone was...

Something was there.

Right behind the demon.

He hadn’t heard it coming.

He hadn’t felt anything.

An icy whisper escaped his trembling lips.

- ’Foster...’

The hellish general squinted.

- ’Huh?’

Then he felt the air vibrate.

But it was too late.

A brutal shock.

A lightning kick crashed into his back.

BANG.

The impact was so violent that the demon’s massive body was catapulted forward, crushing several metres of ground beneath its own mass before colliding with a tree trunk, shattering the bark in a shower of splinters.

The world spun.

The general coughed, shaken, stunned.

- ’What the...’

His back was burning. A single blow... and he’d been sent flying like a toy.

He grunted, sitting up as best he could.

- ’What the-’

He stopped dead in his tracks.

His gaze fell on him.

On what he was holding in his hand.

His heart missed a beat.

A figure stood there, in the middle of the carnage.

His bare feet crunched against the torn earth. His muscular torso was covered in pulsating veins of golden light, weaving themselves into sinuous, ancient patterns.

Luminous tattoos ran the length of his body.

But it was her eyes that struck him with terror.

They no longer had pupils.

Just pure energy, an incandescent, inhuman golden glow.

And in his right hand...

he held a head.

His twin’s.

The decapitated demon’s face was still frozen in a grin of horror. His lips moved faintly, as if he were still trying to speak...

He was alive.

For he was not dead.

Time seemed to stop.

One second of absolute silence.

And then...

- ’You.’

Foster tossed his head.

It rolled across the floor, coming to rest at the feet of the still crouching general.

The demon didn’t dare move.

He’d never felt like this before.

A predator was staring at him.

Foster’s incandescent gaze locked with his.

His tattoos burned with an ancestral glow.

The air froze.

Then he spoke.

- It’s your turn.