"Take this, freak!" Bianca and Shelly shouted in unison.
They released the attack.
The combined forces of ice and light magic shot forward, a swirling storm of blinding energy. The imp’s eyes widened in horror. It tried to move, but its body was still sluggish from the cold.
The attack hit.
A deafening explosion rocked the alleyway, sending debris and dust flying. The shockwave from the blast knocked both Bianca and Shelly backward.
When the dust settled, all that remained of the imp was a scorched mark on the ground.
Bianca sat up, wincing as she rubbed her sore arm. "Damn... that took more out of than I thought."
Shelly groaned as she pulled herself upright. "Tell about it. But at least we got the job done."
They locked eyes for a mont. Then, without a word, they both let out exhausted chuckles.
"We make a pretty good team," Bianca admitted.
Shelly huffed. "Don’t get used to it."
Bianca smirked. "Wouldn’t dream of it."
But their mont of relief didn’t last long.
A sudden, cold breeze swept through the alley, carrying with it a sickening, familiar energy.
Bianca stiffened. "That’s—"
Shelly cursed under her breath. "Another one?"
No, it wasn’t just another imp. This was sothing stronger. Sothing much, much worse.
A dark portal began forming a few feet away.
Both Bianca and Shelly stood up, battle-ready.
"Looks like we don’t get a break," Bianca muttered.
Shelly cracked her knuckles. "Good. I was just getting ward up."
______
The world was burning.
At first, the demon attacks were dismissed as isolated incidents—strange, violent creatures appearing in dark alleyways and abandoned places.
But then, the attacks grew. Cities fell under siege, governnts crumbled, and the entire world was plunged into chaos.
There was no way to hide the existence of demons or magic anymore. What had once been secrets carefully guarded by magical societies were now headlines on every surviving news outlet.
Nations tried to fight back, but conventional weapons did little against creatures born of darkness and rage. People died in the thousands. Fear spread faster than fire.
And in the depths of an ancient dungeon, Liam sat in silence.
The only source of light ca from the glowing runes on the walls, and the only sound was his own breathing.
He had lost track of how long he had been trapped there. Days? Weeks? It didn’t matter. Ti blurred together when you had nothing but your own thoughts as company.
But today was different.
A familiar chi echoed in his mind, and a cold, chanical voice filled his head.
[System Notification: The world is falling into ruin. Estimated survival rate: 3%.]
Liam clenched his fists.
"...Yeah. I figured as much."
He had felt it. Even from within the dungeon, he had sensed the growing corruption, the way the air outside thickened with dark energy.
But knowing it for certain, hearing it laid out so plainly, made the reality of the situation settle deep in his gut.
He exhaled sharply and rubbed his temples.
He still couldn’t rember anything. No matter how much he searched his mind, his mories remained a jumbled ss, fragnts of emotions and battle instincts without aning.
He knew he was once the Grand Wizard, the one who had fought these demons before.
But what did that an if he couldn’t rember how to fight them now?
[System Notification: Due to ’Special Circumstances,’ the system is authorized to assist the user one ti.]
Liam’s breath hitched.
"Wait—what?"
The system had never offered to help him directly before.
Its purpose was simply to monitor and guide, not interfere. If it was breaking its own rules, then things were truly at their worst.
[Warning: The proposed thod carries extre risk. The user’s consciousness will be forcibly sent back to relive the final battle of their past life.
Success rate of mory retrieval: 47%.
Risk of permanent psychological damage: 62%.
Risk of complete loss of sanity: 23%.]
Liam swallowed hard. He had expected consequences, but seeing them laid out so plainly sent a shiver down his spine.
Still...
What choice did he have?
If he did nothing, the world would fall. Everyone he knew would die.
"...Do it."
[Final Confirmation: Proceeding with Forced mory Recollection.]
A blinding pain shot through Liam’s skull. His vision blurred, and his body felt like it was being torn apart.
He barely had ti to scream before his consciousness was yanked from the present and thrown into the past.
______
Liam opened his eyes and found himself standing on a battlefield.
No—not a battlefield. A ruined world.
The sky was cracked, stained red with veins of black lightning. The ground beneath him was broken and soaked with blood. Corpses—human, demon, and monstrous things in between—littered the landscape.
And then, there was him.
The man standing in front of him was himself, yet not.
The past Liam stood tall, his golden armor cracked but still shining, his long coat whipping against the wind.
His hair was stained with blood, his sharp eyes glowing with an otherworldly light. He looked exhausted but unwavering.
And before him stood the enemy.
A towering figure of shadow and malice, eyes burning like molten gold. Its presence alone made the air tremble, made the ground rot beneath its feet. This was no re demon. This was the Demon King.
Liam—the past version of him—spoke, his voice steady despite the destruction around him.
"This ends now."
The Demon King laughed, the sound like grinding tal. "You cannot stop , Grand Wizard. Your world is already mine."
The past Liam didn’t waste words. He raised his staff, and magic surged forth—pure, radiant energy that burned away the darkness like fire through dry grass.
The Demon King responded in kind, unleashing a wave of corruption that twisted reality itself.
The battle that followed was unlike anything Liam had ever seen.
It felt like this would never end, and the battle made Liam gasp out in pain and also suspense. This was the battle which had Humanity’s life on line.
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