[Yes host. Just like you, those tied to you are also immortals. Unable to be killed. If your immortality is concentrated, then theirs is diluted. They can’t be killed. Their blood acts like diluted elixir, but that’s it. Like I said, a diluted version of your blood.]
"Hah... so those I turn don’t need several hours to transition anymore?" Aaron grinned, his eyes glinting like polished obsidian as his hand pressed firmly against Leo’s shoulder. "An undying army, then. Who in this world could possibly stand in my way now?"
Leo frowned at the sinister curve of Aaron’s smile, but before he could respond, Aaron flicked his wrist and tore reality apart with a rift. The air twisted violently, folding into itself until the gaping tunnel to the underground chamber yawned open once more. On the other side, Endrick still stood in rigid silence, his grotesque army of monsters and chiras looming at his back.
"All right, buddy," Aaron said lightly, as though inviting a friend to a ga, "let’s go have so fun."
They stepped through, shadows and dust curling around their boots as they erged into the cavern. Aaron wasted no ti. His voice rang out, every word dripping with cold compulsion.
"We’re back. All of you—attack Leo with everything you’ve got. Whoever kills him... gets to live."
The monsters stirred, bloodlust ignited by Aaron’s command. anwhile, Aaron simply strolled to the side, finding himself the perfect vantage point as though settling into a theater seat.
"My life’s been a bit too peaceful lately," Leo muttered through clenched teeth, glaring at Aaron. "I almost forgot I had a demon like you as a friend!"
Aaron just smirked, reclining comfortably as though watching a stage play.
Endrick moved first. His body convulsed grotesquely, bones snapping and stretching as his form warped into its full Chira state. The once-human shape lted into a grotesque hybrid of troll bulk, ogre ferocity, arachnid limbs, direwolf snout, and orcish tusks. A walking nightmare of mismatched savagery.
"Eew!" Aaron’s voice rang out from the sidelines, light and mocking. A bag of popcorn appeared inexplicably in his hands, each crunch echoing across the chamber.
"You’re such a jer—" Leo began, but the ground exploded beneath him before he could finish.
Boom!
A massive fist tore through the air where he’d stood. Leo twisted away just in ti, the shockwave cracking stone and rattling loose boulders around him.
The goblins were next. Dozens of them surged forward, shrieking with maddened hunger, crude clubs raised high. They rushed to drown Leo in sheer numbers.
But Leo would not be outdone. Wind howled around him as he shot upward, wings of air unfurling. His hands slashed through the air, and countless blades of wind, each laced with his blood’s scarlet sheen, scythed downward like the executioner’s judgnt.
Screams were cut short. Limbs severed. The goblins were reduced to ragged chunks of flesh, painting the stone red.
Leo landed atop their corpses, but there was no ti to breathe. His instincts scread danger. With an instinctive twist of his body like a serpent recoiling, he narrowly avoided the crushing blow of a silver-furred gorilla Chira. The force of the strike shattered the ground where he had stood.
"I’m so fucked," Leo muttered, eyes wide as his heightened senses picked up another presence behind him—a second gorilla Chira already swinging its massive fist.
He tried to leap clear, but Endrick’s projectile struck first. A jagged boulder hurtled like a cannonball, slamming into him with bone-rattling speed.
Boom!
Leo was hurled across the cavern, colliding with the gorilla Chira mid-air before both of them crashed violently into a stone wall. Dust and rubble rained down around them.
Groaning, Leo forced himself upright, shaking his head to steady the spinning in his vision. He barely got to his feet before the gorilla was on him again, thick arms wrapping around him like iron bands.
"Urgh!" he groaned as the creature squeezed, bones creaking under the pressure. Pain roared through his body. He could feel the Chira’s palms crushing him toward pulp.
"Help... ..." Leo gasped, his voice hoarse with strain, directed toward his so-called friend.
Aaron didn’t even twitch. His gaze was locked on the scene with unnerving calm, as though watching a performance he refused to interrupt.
The Chira squeezed harder. Flesh tore, bones cracked, Leo’s body folding under the monstrous strength. Blood sprayed, his body reduced to mangled ruin.
The system’s voice broke the silence: [Wow. You really just watched your friend die. Are you becoming heartless?]
"Heartless? Don’t be ridiculous," Aaron replied cheerfully, munching popcorn. "He’ll co back to life. I’m just letting him have fun. It’s what friends do."
[So friends inflict pain on each other?]
"Male friends only." Aaron chuckled. "It’s the beauty of having bros." His eyes narrowed, lips twitching into a grin. "Oh. He’s rising already. You weren’t lying about my bloodline being immortal after all."
From the gore-stained ground, Leo’s body stirred. Flesh re-knit, bones set, blood reabsorbed. Within monts he was whole again, golden light flashing in his furious eyes.
"You bastard! You weren’t even sure I’d survive?!" His voice thundered with rage. His fra grew broader, muscles knotting with supernatural power. Golden lupine eyes glowed, sharp fangs protruded, claws extended like curved blades.
The gorilla Chira roared, enraged and confused that its prey still lived. It lunged again, only to be caught mid-charge.
"Get the hell away from !" Leo snarled, voice distorted by his transformation. With a primal wrench, he tore the beast’s jaw in half, splitting its skull with brutal finality.
Blood sprayed across his face. Leo didn’t pause—his form blurred, propelled by wind and fury. He carved through the remaining monsters with terrifying precision, each strike lethal, each movent sharpened by the immortal rage boiling inside him.
Aaron arched a brow, clearly impressed. "Well, that’s new."
The system muttered drily: [He’s died twice in one day. I’d be pissed too if I were him.]
"Right." Aaron smirked, watching as Leo slaughtered the last of them.
---
Leo finally staggered to a halt, chest heaving, shoulders sagging. "Huff... Huff... Huff..." His lungs burned from the exertion, sweat dripping down his temple. Every fiber of his body scread exhaustion—yet, impossibly, it all faded within seconds. His strength returned as though he’d never fought at all.
"That’s enough, Leo. That was impressive," Aaron said smoothly, stepping forward. "I’ll take things from here. At first, I thought of letting you finish big dog Endrick here, but... I’ve decided to handle it myself."
Endrick had lunged at Leo during his mont of rest, but Aaron caught the Chira’s arm in a single motion, stopping him cold. The grip alone spoke of domination.
Aaron tilted his head with a smile. "Fool three tis? Nah. I can’t let my buddy think I’d do that to him."
"Bastard... I was starting to wonder when you’d finally stop playing around," Leo muttered, falling heavily onto his backside.
Aaron’s grin shifted—cold, sharp, predatory. "I had a crazy thought, and I think I’m going to test it out. Don’t worry, Endrick. If this works, you won’t be the only one to share the fate I’ve prepared."
With a flicker of will, Aaron’s command pressed into Endrick. "Stay calm."
The beast’s growl faded instantly, posture relaxing under the compulsion.
Aaron’s smile widened, a villain’s mask painted across his face. "Perfect. Now then, system... tell —how do I curse soone with an eternal life of doom?"
[Just will it, host. Don’t tell ... that’s too cruel. That’s downright nasty.] The system’s voice trembled with disgust, reading Aaron’s thoughts, but Aaron’s grin only grew sharper.
Cruelty suited him just fine.
Reviews
All reviews (0)