CHAPTER 41: CHAPTER 41 - SKILL ISSUE

To his left, Rupert surged forward, a seething black fireball crackling in his grasp, while to his right, Lordrick brandished his blade, its edge drenched in pulsing purple energy, oozing malice and destruction.

Perhaps, it was the intoxicating rush of their newfound power, but they lunged at Zion with full confidence, certain he would falter and fall before them. That certainty shattered in an instant—confusion and dread took hold as Zion seized Rupert’s fireball with his bare hand and met Lordrick’s blade with one of his own, forged seamlessly from pure mana.

Although Lordrick now uses demonic energy, Zion could still feel the holy power surging in the man’s body, meaning that even with demonic energy, his connection to his god wasn’t shut off.

"Never in your useless life think that you can beat me with a power you borrowed from a species condemned to the depths of the underworld"

Zion parried Lordrick’s blade with a swift, calculated strike, sending him off balance. Before Lordrick could regain his footing, Zion drove his foot into his chest with crushing force, launching him backward. The impact sent Lordrick crashing into the wall with a thunderous BOOM, the stone trembling from the sheer power of the blow.

Zion crushed the fireball in Rupert’s hand as if snuffing out a mere spark, then seized his arm and yanked him forward. In one swift motion, he drove a brutal kick into Rupert’s side, sending him hurtling into a nearby metal cage. The impact rang out with a metallic clang as the bars bent inward from the sheer force.

"AAKKK! YOU BASTARD!" Black lightning crackled in Rupert’s hand as he gathered his power, hoping to incinerate Zion in a single, devastating strike. But before he could unleash it, Zion raised two fingers, and in a blink, a dagger of pure light mana materialized and shot forward, piercing straight through Rupert’s hand. His spell fizzled into nothing, replaced by a sharp cry of pain as the searing energy burned through flesh and bone.

"Don’t you know it’s wrong to turn your back on an enemy?! Lordrick lept from the shadows, his sword pulsing with demonic energy, and sliced down at Zion with full force. However, once his blade touched Zion’s mana field, it was instantly deflected.

"And you truly believe that shouting to announce your presence was a wise choice?" Zion asked, a smirk playing on his lips. Without waiting for an answer, he drove his fist into Lordrick’s gut—his strength amplified by a glowing rune on his skin. The impact sent a shockwave rippling through the air, bending Lordrick’s body around the devastating blow.

Jenea was stunned. Her eyes were still wide at Lordrick’s betrayal and disrespect to their God Arion. She felt anger, angry that a follower of their church could ever side with demons. Christen was also upset, but more so at the thought of the Magic tower losing influence because one of their members was working with demons.

Just then, the ground shook beneath them, stone and rubble crumbling under the constant shifting of the earth. A hand sprouted from the ground, death, and horror filling the air, and dozens more hands followed suit.

Out from the ground were demonic creatures summoned from the depths of the underworld.

Rupert let out a wild laugh, his voice a mix of anger and exhilaration. "Hah! How do you like that?!" he shouted, eyes burning with intensity. "Let’s see if you can handle these guys!"

Around Zion, a horde of fifty grotesque, zombie-like creatures materialized, their bodies pulsating with dark, demonic energy. They shuffled forward with unnatural, jerky movements, low growls rumbling from their throats. But when the moment came to strike, they surged with unexpected speed, their overwhelming strength taking Zion by surprise as they closed in on him.

But that’s all that it did, catch him off guard. After blocking a few attacks, he pushed them all off him in a burst of mana, frying some in the process. As if he were a lightning bolt, he zipped around, killing every Zombie in sight until all that was left was blood and guts splattered around the stone floor.

"H-How?!" Rupert asked, his expression going white.

Zion laughed, "It’s simple, you’re weak."

"Don’t you mock me!" Rupert lunged at him, Lordrick following along. But Zion wasn’t interested in playing with them any longer.

In the blink of an eye, Zion kicked Lordrick out of the way, knocking him back. Rupert Bombarded Zion with a barrage of demonic energy but they were all parried and Zion sliced off his arms before impaling Rupert in the throat.

"DIE!" With one final attempt, Lordrick thrusted his blade at Zion’s back, but it broke on contact. With that, all his confidence left his body and all that was left was fear and confusion.

"How? How is this possible?!" He yelled with blood trailing down his mouth.

"Skill issue." Zion thrusted his hand into Lordricks chest, crushing his heart and watching as he died in front of him.

"Stop being shocked and let’s get those people out of here." Zion urged

"Right!" They all agreed, snapping out of their trance

"Woah! That was amazing! As expected from the guy who is currently on our list of threats. Don’t take that as a compliment though, you’re at the very bottom considering how weak you are."

Zion paid no attention to the Demon in the background and continued to gather everyone here. He saw Nicole and other people from each faction. Some were thankful, others were scared, and a few were already broken, wishing to die as the horrors they suffered still lingered in their minds.

"That’s everyone!" Patricia confirmed. There were in total 30 people here. If there were more, then they either died or were turned into monsters.

Zion nodded "Let’s go." He put both the bodies of Lordrick and Rupert in his storage ring.

"What? You’re leaving already? But I didn’t get to have any fun." Appearing before them with a surge of demonic energy was the demon who was speaking from another room.

This demon was of a different build than Olzak—lean and wiry, lacking wings or a tail. His hair, dark purple with white tips, cascaded like shadowed silk, and his eyes glowed in two distinct shades of purple, intense and otherworldly. Dressed in a sharp business suit, he gripped a bident with an air of unsettling authority.

While the power he radiated didn’t feel as intense as Olzak’s, Zion still knew he was a mid-rank demon, and the chances of him winning against such a foe were non-existent.

"Z-Z-Zion?! T-That’s a demon!" Crystal instinctually hugged Zion’s arm, hoping to feel safe in his presence.

Dylan and Jenea were sweating buckets, their bodies trembling with fear and suffocating from the overwhelming power the demon gave off. Patricia was no different, but she at least pretended to be okay.

"You’re strong, human. I wonder if the demon seed will work on you." The demon smiled

"Demon seed?" Zion questioned, but the demon didn’t entertain his question.

"Sorry, but I can’t let you go. It’s a shame really, I was hoping to have a bit more fun, but you’re stronger than the information let on, so I can’t take any chances. I’m sure you understand." The demon smirked and then lunged at everyone.

Patricia and Dylan reluctantly drew their swords while Crystal and Jenea prepared spells to help everyone out.

But Zion only smiled. After his encounter with Olzak, he made sure to prepare in case he came across not only a demon but someone he couldn’t beat.

Activating on his chest was the rune of displacement and intertwining. The rune of displacement acts as teleportation but only with two specific locations while the rune of intertwining links two objects.

Zion linked his mana with everyone and activated both runes. Together, they allowed not only him but everyone there to teleport back to the academy safe and sound.

"See you later, bitch!" With a smirk, he stuck out his middle finger and then vanished from the area.

The demon stood there in awe. One moment, everyone was right in front of him, and then the next, they vanished with a bright light engulfing the entire cave. "I am so fired."