CHAPTER 144: DEMONS’ CONTRACTORS ARE ON THE MOVE! 3

The forest was still, heavy with damp earth and the smell of pine. Only the ragged sound of Sasha’s breathing filled the silence. He held Rin tighter, his heart hammering with his eyes flashing with raw desperation.

The enforcer stepped forward as his boots crunched over twigs. His broad frame looked monstrous in the moonlight, his patched eye gleaming with malice. At his side, his demon’s smoky grin stretched impossibly wide.

"I’ll give you one chance," the enforcer drawled, resting a hand on the hilt of his sword. "Hand him over."

Sasha’s grip on his twin daggers tightened until the leather handles dug into his palms. His lips peeled back in a half-snarl.

"Over my dead body."

"That can be arranged."

The enforcer unsheathed his blade in one smooth motion, the steel whispering in the night. A cold gleam caught the moonlight, promising blood.

Sasha had already placed Rin against the roots of the oak, adjusting the blanket over his unconscious body. He leaned close, whispering so quietly only Rin could hear:

"Don’t worry. I’ll protect you. Even if it kills me."

When he turned, his daggers gleamed with lethal promise. His stance was low, assassin-like, predatory.

The enforcer smirked. "It’s a good thing you’re going to fight back. I hate cowards."

Then he lunged.

.

.

Steel met steel in a blinding clash, sparks scattering through the night. Sasha twisted sideways, blades flashing quickly and precisely. He was smaller, faster, his movements fluid as water. The enforcer, by contrast, was raw power... each swing of his heavy sword forced Sasha back, the shock of impact rattling up his arms.

"You’re fast," the enforcer admitted with a cruel grin, "but speed is worthless if you can’t pierce me."

"Try standing still and we’ll test that," Sasha shot back, spinning low to slash at his legs.

The enforcer blocked with the flat of his blade and shoved, the force sending Sasha stumbling back a step. Sasha caught himself, slid across wet leaves, then darted forward again. His twin daggers struck in a flurry.

Jab, Slash, Stab, Retreat.

The enforcer deflected, twisted, and retaliated with brutal overhead swings that cracked the ground when they missed. The forest echoed with steel, grunts, and the sharp intake of breath.

Sasha’s mind whirled. He had fought stronger men before, but this one... this one fought like a monster who enjoyed it.

A blade cut across his arm, shallow but burning. Sasha hissed, rolling away. His blood dotted the leaves, but he forced his hand steady.

"Bleeding already?" the enforcer taunted. "Isn’t it too soon for that?"

Sasha grinned through clenched teeth.

"Just means I’m warmed up."

The fight resumed. They circled, clashed, broke apart, and collided again. Sasha darted left, ducked low, then sprang up to slash across the enforcer’s chest. The man caught the strike with his gauntlet, sparks flying, and slammed his boot into Sasha’s stomach.

Air whooshed from Sasha’s lungs. He staggered back, but refused to fall. His eyes burned, wild with fury.

"You’re in my way," Sasha growled.

The enforcer chuckled, circling. "I’m the wall you’ll never climb."

.

The fight dragged on, both sides collecting wounds. Sasha’s arm dripped blood, his side burned from a deep gash, but the enforcer’s shoulder now oozed from a dagger strike and his cheek bore a thin red line.

Then it happened.

The enforcer feinted left, grabbed Sasha’s wrist, and ripped one dagger from his hand. In a single fluid motion, he turned and hurled it... straight at Rin, who lay motionless against the oak.

Time slowed.

"No!" Sasha’s scream tore through the forest.

Without thought, he dove, his body slamming into the path of the blade. The dagger buried itself deep into his side with a sickening crunch.

Pain flared white-hot. Blood poured instantly, soaking his tunic. His knees hit the ground beside Rin, but he stayed upright, clutching the hilt to keep it from tearing deeper.

The enforcer sneered.

"Pathetic. You’ll bleed out soon enough."

Sasha spat blood, lips curling in a defiant grin. "Better me than him."

"Let’s see how long you’ll hang on for,"

The fight resumed, harsher, more brutal. Sasha fought with one dagger now, his movements weaker and slower due to blood loss. The enforcer pressed the advantage, every strike pushing Sasha closer to the ground.

Steel rang in Sasha’s ears. He barely ducked a horizontal slash that would have decapitated him, rolled under another swing, and lashed upward to cut the enforcer’s thigh.

The enforcer grunted but retaliated with a savage backhand, his sword’s hilt slamming into Sasha’s jaw. Pain exploded. Sasha staggered, his vision swimming.

"This ends now." The enforcer raised his blade high, preparing the final blow.

Sasha’s demon’s voice slithered through his mind:

"You’re weak. Dying. You can’t save him like this. Let me in. Let me fight with you."

Sasha’s breathing came ragged. His dagger trembled in his hand.

"Do it. Fast. Or Rin dies."

Gritting his teeth, Sasha hissed,

"Fine. Take it."

Dark smoke burst from his body, coiling around his limbs. His veins burned black. Crimson patterns crawled across his skin, glowing faintly. His wounded side no longer throbbed with weakness but pulsed with unnatural power.

The enforcer’s grin widened.

"So you’ve accepted your demon."

And then his own smoke surged, wrapping around him, twisting his body with the same dark blessing. His muscles swelled, his aura sharp and suffocating. His eye glowed faintly red beneath the patch.

The second round began.

.

.

They clashed again, but this time their movements blurred, too fast for human eyes. Trees split under the force of missed blows. Sparks lit the forest floor. The air vibrated with demonic energy.

Sasha’s dagger slashed with impossible speed, his strikes a flurry of shadows. The enforcer countered with monstrous strength, his blade cutting the air with thunderous weight.

Their demons whispered in their ears, urging blood, urging death.

"You should have stayed out of this," the enforcer snarled mid-swing.

"And let you kill him?" Sasha spat back, parrying with a screech of steel. "Over my corpse."

"That can still be arranged."

The enforcer slammed his sword down, forcing Sasha to his knees. But Sasha twisted, rolling behind him, slashing across his back. The man roared, spinning with fury.

Sasha pressed forward, his power flaring. His movements were reckless, his crimson eyes glowing faintly as the demon surged through him. He drove the enforcer back step by step until his dagger kissed the man’s throat.

Chest heaving, Sasha gritted, "It’s over. Say goodbye."

But the enforcer’s lips curled.

"I can’t die yet."

Sasha froze, blade trembling against his skin. "What?"

The enforcer’s grin widened, almost mocking.

"I still have business... with the Vortellions."

The world tilted. Sasha’s breath hitched. "Vortellions...?"

The enforcer chuckled darkly. "I took his heir’s shirt after killing him. Do you think Evan would let you live if he found out you’re the one who killed his son’s murderer? It’s better to let me live now,"

Sasha’s dagger shook, his grip faltering.

But before the enforcer could finish his words...

Both fighters stiffened. A suffocating aura fell over the clearing, heavier than anything they’d ever felt. Fear clawed down their spines, raw and primal.

They turned.

The forest behind them glowed faintly red, the flames of their destruction still licking the trees. But what froze their blood wasn’t the fire.

It was Rin.

.

The blanket lay discarded. His pale body rose slowly from the roots of the oak. His hair, usually a soft white, shimmered faintly gold at the tips. His eyes opened... one crimson, one golden, twin suns burning in the night.

Horns curled from either side of his head, black and jagged. Shadows licked his body, coiling like living smoke.

This was not Rin.

Sasha stumbled back, his dagger slipping from his hand.

"R-Rin...?"

The enforcer’s demon hissed in panic.

"No... no, this power... he’s one of them... royal blood—"

Rin’s lips pulled into a chilling smile. He raised one clawed hand, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone... then reappeared directly between them.

Sasha was shoved aside violently, his back slamming into a burning tree. Demonic power pinned him there, choking and unyielding.

Rin turned on the enforcer, his face half-shadow, half-fire. His clawed hand clamped around the man’s throat and lifted him effortlessly off the ground.

"Repeat it," Rin’s voice was guttural, layered with something inhuman. His golden eye burned. "Repeat what you said about my Lucien."

The enforcer’s sword clattered to the ground. His legs kicked uselessly as Rin’s grip tightened. He gasped, choking, his demon howling in his mind.

"Help! Fuck! Save... me!"

But the smoke began to peel away, slinking back into the shadows. The demon let out a sharp and cruel laugh before vanishing into the void.

"No...! Don’t you dare abandon me!" the enforcer screamed hoarsely.

Rin’s grip only tightened. His voice was low, venomous.

"Speak. Or burn."

The man’s face purpled, veins bulging. He tried to form words, but only broken gasps left his lips.

Rin’s eyes narrowed. With his free hand, he tore at the man’s shirt. The fabric ripped away... and there, clinging to the inner lining, was a torn scrap of cloth.

The shirt was familiar. Lucien’s.

Rin’s chest tightened. The faint but fading smell still carried Lucien’s warmth. His lips curled into a snarl. He pressed it to his face, inhaling, before growling deep in his chest.

"RIN!"

Lirien’s voice cracked through the forest. She landed with assassins behind her, their faces pale with shock.

Her crimson eyes widened when she saw him with horns, claws, and one golden eye burning like a brand.

"No... no, this can’t be..."

"Auntie," Rin drawled, smirking. "You’re late."

Lirien’s jaw tightened, fury masking the fear in her chest.

"Undo it. Now. Drop that form before you doom yourself."

Her assassins shifted uneasily, whispering.

"If you continue like this, you’ll be bound to the demon world forever," Lirien snapped. "Do you understand what that means? Undo it, Rin. Let him go."

But Rin didn’t even turn his head. His grin only widened. Anger had already swallowed him whole.

He raised his clawed hand, fire licking the tips of his fingers. "No.".

The forest glowed red as flames erupted around the enforcer’s body. His screams echoed, high and desperate, until they choked into silence. Flesh sizzled, the stench of burning meat fouling the air.

Rin grinned, wicked, sharp, tilting his head like a predator. He dropped the charred body at his feet, embers scattering.

"Oops," he said softly, almost sing-song. "I made a mistake."

Lirien’s teeth clenched. Her voice dropped low, urgent.

"This is going to take a long time. I’ll have to bring the real Rin back before more problems happen."