Meanwhile, in a rocky terrain twenty miles away from the Dwarven Kingdom.
A column of smoke could be seen from the distance.
Scorching deep-crimson red fire could be seen raging around rocky terrain, a valley with a flowing snake-like river that curves throughout its expanse. It lights up the darkness of the entire place which created this column of inky smoke.
It traveled through the air, spreading the burnt scene throughout a vast radius.
Adorning it was the anguish cries of those engulfed in it.
Due to the extreme heat of the place, the air seems to be vibrating visibly to the naked eye.
One could see that creatures that seemed to crawl from hell, had a unique gleaming mark on the center of their chests. A hardened armor of black charcoal that acted like skin also protected them from the resistance of their victims.
Roving his eyes around the area from a higher ground was a monstrous Demon.
A ten-foot-tall red demon with a sinewy form was standing mightily, delighted with the scene in front of him. Seeing his minions laying waste to this desolated valley that turned out to hide a colony of Fishkins was mesmerizing.
It provides joy that satiated his wicked heart.
On the contrary, it was catastrophic for these Fishkins when the Rastrikan Demons arrived.
Everything that was once their home was destroyed.
Moreover, the presence of the Rastrikan Demons alone took most of them out easily.
Dehydration was their banes since the heat coming from them permeated through the air, and even the very river body itself boiled to the point of bubbling. Most of them, the weaker ones died underwater while the surviving ones deteriorated quickly.
Kneeling behind the monstrous demon was a blue-skinned creature, sweating profusely.
Cleary discernible by his appearance, this creature was unmistakably a Fishkin. Curved fins could be seen on each joint of his body, a mosaic of blue fish scales protected his back, and a set of gills on his neck granted him the ability to breathe underwater.
Judging from the way this Fiskin was looking at the Demon, it seems he knows the Demon.
"Kirzil... Why are you doing this?" the Fishkin asked.
But there was no reaction from Kirzil, ignoring the Fishkin and kept gazing at the slaughter.
Something like this feels surreal for this Fishkin, the situation felt like a fever dream as half an hour ago, the colony was living peacefully without much trouble. "It's not that long ago I considered you as a friend, Krizil. So why...?"
Upon hearing this, Kirzil raised his head to gaze skyward at the broken sky.
He took a brief pause before eventually looking over his shoulder, "Time's changed, Delfin"
"This is mercy. Compared to the death the Ancient Human would offer, the one I offer is swift and painless, way better," Kirzil remarked, he paused for a second to allow those words to settle in Delfin's psyche. Then, a chilling laughter erupted from Kirzil seeing that Delfin bought what he was saying. "I've conveyed such sentiments to others, but in reality, I've been eagerly anticipating this very moment. I've restrained myself all this time, constrained by the Origin's authority. But now... I could indulge in whatever I desire!"
Delfin who desperately wanted a legitimate reason has his face turned completely pale.
It was not a lie that he had a relationship with Kirzil, a peaceful one to boast.
However, hearing those words reignited a suspicion that he had a long time ago. Delfin back then suspected that Kirzil was not what he seemed to be. Almost as if he was not acting like he wanted, was restrained by something, and was forced to have a diplomatic relationship.
Tested over time, that suspicion grew weaker and eventually vanished from his mind.
But it turns out his suspicion was correct all along.
Delfin, an elder among the Fishkin, had existed since the ancient era and had only recently awakened from his deep slumber, thanks to the First Breath. However, the colony was almost instantly assaulted by the Rastrikan Demons, catching him entirely off guard.
Knowing he has a relationship with the top dog, Kirzil intensifies his disbelief.
Now he knows that the hundreds of years of relationship between him and Kirzil was nothing more than a facade, he was never once recognized by Kirzil as a friend. Not a hint of hesitation can be seen in Kirzil's heartless onslaught.
Even worse, he seems to be enjoying slaughtering the Fishkins.
"Do you want to know something, Delfin...?" Kirzil said, turning his body around to face him. "Whenever I talked with you back then, I always thought of killing your people, especially since I have the fire that could suffocate their needs for water"
Upon hearing this, Delfin's expression turned hideous as pushed himself up with his trident.
Clang!
Kirzil's words struck a nerve that made him lose it.
"I hope you haven't forgotten yet, Kirzil. Even your fire couldn't distinguish my water"
Following the words that came out of his mouth, Delfin's aura started to climb higher. Deep-blue water started to circle around him like rings whilst his gaze was fixed on Kirzil, who seemed to find this amusing instead of being alerted.
Both of them have battled countless times in the past, training to become stronger.
In each bout, the two would end in a draw.
No matter how much Kirzil tries, his hellish fire, the Matchless Hadean Pyro that was a new breed of demonic fire element from the combination of the Sin of Wrath and Envy wasn't able to quench the water element that Delfin possessed.
And that goes the other way, Delfin couldn't take out Kirzil's fire no matter what.
However, in the bout the two were about to engage in, there would be a certain victor. Ending in a draw wouldn't satisfy the two of them, and that is precisely what Kirzil wants, to provoke Delfin into attacking him.
"Aquatic Rampage, Shark's Vehemence..."
Swish...
Like a torrential gathering of energy, Delfin's aura rapidly increases to the absolute limit.
Finding that Kirzil only smiled at him mockingly, not taking the confrontation seriously, Delfin's determination surged. He clenched his fist and extended his trident defiantly, assuming his battle stance.
With unwavering resolve, he thrust his trident forward with full force.
"Aquatic Rampage, Sea Dragon Pierce!"
Blast!
Exploding from the concentration of aquatic energy from the trident was a water dragon.
It coiled through the trident before propelling forward, manifesting the form of a water dragon that opens its imposing maw, surging relentlessly toward Kirzil. Its intention was to engulf him, subjecting him to an inexorable deluge that would overwhelm him. 'No going to defend? Then don't blame me for seizing this opportunity to harm you, Kirzil. Even if you managed to destroy the colony, I would at least take you down'
Roar!!
Upon nearing Kirzil, the vicious water dragon unleashed a mighty roar and sped up.
But it was at that moment, a smirk crossed Kirzil's face.
"Delfin, I think you misunderstand..."
Kirzil utters with a rasping tone as the black imposing bastard sword in his hand blazes with flame, he then raises his gaze to meet with Delfin. In an instant, his body moved incredibly fast, harnessing the full extent of his physical attributes.
On the other hand, Delfin saw Kirzil sliced through the water dragon with his sword easily.
In a fraction of a second, he then arrived in front of Delfin.
Delfin's eyes flared in horror when he saw this, and his entire body became stiff from the surprise that he was susceptible to. "I have never taken our fight seriously, not that I'm weak. To make it easier for you to understand... In truth, I was never incapable of defeating you"
Slash!
Like the grim reaper's scythe, Kirzil's bastard sword sliced through him.
Snapping out of his daze, Delfin glanced back and found Kirzil standing on his back. Realizing that their powers were not close, he tried to run away but the lower part of his body wasn't responding to him.
"Eh...?"
But soon enough, his eyes widened seeing the upper half of his body slide to the side.
Delfin tries to keep his body intact, however, it is futile.
Thud!
What Delfin thought would be a hard-fought battle between them to repay the honor lost of the colony that was killed brutally without any specific reason other than thirst ended in one swing of Kirzil's fearsome bastard flaming sword.
No struggle was involved, taking him out was akin to taking out a literal ant with a squash.
Kirzil doesn't even need to use any of his demonic skills.
It was a complete and utterly mundane task for him to take out Delfin, an Elder of the Fishkin.
Upon finishing off the person that he knows the most out of the Fishkin, Kirzil strode over to the upper half of Denzel's corpse before he lifted it up by the head. Taking daunting steps, he then stands at the edge of the cliff before raising Denze's corpse like a trophy.
Roar!!
Letting out a fearsome roar, he attracted the other demons below him.
All of them cheered and let out their own wicked roars at the sight of Kirzil at the very top.
Flames danced mercilessly as these demons' roars fused together into chants of a brutal requiem of wickedness, leaving nothing in its wake as even the ghosts of the fallen were absorbed by their claws. It was a scenery that acts as a testament to the Rastrikan Demons' fearsome nature.
In ruin, the smoldering embers show that the place is scarred, its spirit forever changed.
"Make haste, crawlers! Let's haste to bathe in Dwarves' blood!"
~
Despite the distance between them, Rex's ears perked up.
Pulling back away from the confronting and fragrant scent that lingers on Adhara's neck, he shifted his eyes to the unglazed window before a frown appeared on his face, sensing that trouble was approaching them.
It was obvious what was coming, the haunting whispers already reached him.
Similarly, Adhara also sensed the same thing.
Looking over to Adhara, he gave her a meaningful look before she nodded her head in understanding. Deciding to not linger around, knowing that the Rastrikan Demons were approaching, she then explained the report from the scouts.
A moment later.
Rex listened to the report attentively to make sure that he didn't miss out on a single detail.
However, his smile stretched more the more he listened to the report.
"But something is still puzzling me," Adhara mused, her brow furrowed with uncertainty. "If the Rastrikan Demons harbor bad blood towards the Dwarves, shouldn't they be eager to launch their attack quicker? Why are they even paying attention to the other low-rank races?"
Upon hearing this, Rex leaned back on the sofa with a meaningful smile.
Rex knew exactly what they were thinking, "It's for fear. Knowing that the Dwarves knew they would be coming here, the Rastrikan Demons used this to inflict terror, delaying their arrival to make them restless to the point of despair"
"Delaying will reward them with an even more amusing expression from the Dwarves"
For a section of Demons such as them, this is the most logical answer.
Slaughtering would not be delightful for them if there was no reaction from their victims. On the other hand, strengthening that reaction would make the process more pleasurable, and that is what the Rastrikan Demons craved after being slumbered through thousands of years.
Adhara nodded her head in understanding, she should've known.
Pausing a second to ponder, Rex's eyes then lit up as he had a great idea in his mind.
"Okay, here's the plan. We're going to..."
Knowing the perfect plan to fight the Rastrikan Demons, Rex conveyed his plan to Adhara.
When he finishes, Adhara's eyes jolted open in shock.
"Isn't that too risky, Rex? Did you forget already? These demons are empowered by the Sin of Wrath and Envy. If we do something like that then it would only make them angrier and thus stronger"
"Yes, it will. But it will only make the Demon Lords angrier"
"So are you saying that in order to cut the casualties, you're going to leave the weaker ones to the army while you fight with the angered Demon Lords? Are you expecting me to agree with this?"
Upon seeing Adhara's disagreeing face, Rex chuckled and patted her on the head.
"Relax, I'm only going to fight with two or three of them at most. It will be fine" Rex said, giving her a reassuring smile. But in an instant, he cast his gaze to the side before his expression turned vicious. "I'm also frustrated and in need of letting out some steam, so I'll have them help me with that..."
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l