The massive cloud of smoke trembled as a figure shot out of it.
Cadoc slammed onto the ground, his boots dragging across the earth as he struggled to slow himself down. Dust rose around him, and small fragments of rock scattered beneath his feet. He eventually came to a halt, his body leaning forward as he caught himself.
For a moment, he remained still.
Then he slowly straightened.
His right fist had been badly damaged by the previous exchange, but the wound was already closing. Flesh regenerated, bones reformed, and his fingers flexed as though nothing had happened.
Cadoc glanced at his restored hand.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Magnificent"
The smoke from earlier suddenly stirred.
A dark silhouette emerged from within it.
CHAD.
Black flames crawled across his body, licking at his skin and consuming the flesh beneath. Yet, rather than showing any sign of pain, he charged forward with an expression that suggested he still has a lot in him to fight.
The ground cracked beneath his feet.
In the blink of an eye, he crossed the distance between them.
(A heroic orchestral crescendo began to play in the background.)
Cadoc's fist drew back.
Chad raised his sword.
The moment Cadoc entered striking range, Chad swung his blade.
BOOM!
An explosion erupted between them.
The force sent dust and debris flying across the battlefield, swallowing both figures in a thick cloud of smoke.
For several seconds, nothing could be seen.
Then—
A shadow burst out of the smoke.
Chad landed on the ground with his body turned sideways, his sword extended behind him. He slowly raised his head, watching the smoke as it drifted across the battlefield.
Black flames flickered around his body.
But something was wrong.
His breathing had become heavier. His shoulders rose and fell with every breath, and his grip on his sword had tightened to compensate for the weakness creeping into his fingers.
The magic consuming his body was taking its toll.
His strength had diminished.
Not enough to make him harmless, but enough to make every movement more difficult than before.
Chad knew it.
Cadoc knew it, too.
As the smoke finally began to fade, Chad lowered his sword slightly.
"Cadoc."
His voice was quiet, yet firm.
"I will end you."
Cadoc emerged from the smoke, rolling his shoulders as though he had merely been stretching.
A crooked smile spread across his face.
"You're still talking about ending me?"
He tilted his head.
"How amusing."
Without warning, Cadoc raised his leg and drove a powerful kick toward Chad's head.
Chad reacted at the last possible moment.
Soul swap!!
A strange distortion rippled through the space between them.
In an instant, their positions switched.
Cadoc's kick cut through empty air while Chad appeared behind him, his blade already sweeping toward his opponent's back.
Cadoc twisted around.
He raised his forearm and blocked the attack.
CLANG!
The impact sent a sharp vibration through Chad's sword.
Cadoc's smile widened.
"You're getting slower."
Chad said nothing.
Cadoc suddenly drove his fist into Chad's stomach.
The impact folded Chad's body forward.
Before he could recover, another strike sent him flying across the battlefield.
Chad twisted in midair, attempting to regain his balance, but the force of the punch carried him farther than he expected.
His boots scraped against the ground as he landed.
He immediately swung his sword.
Soul swap again.
Their positions switched.
This time, Chad appeared where Cadoc had been standing, while Cadoc was displaced to the opposite side. The demon's boots struck the ground, and he rolled across the dirt before stopping himself with one hand.
For the first time in several exchanges, Cadoc's smile disappeared.
He slowly lifted his head.
"You really are annoying with that ability of yours."
Chad stood silently, his sword hanging at his side.
Cadoc rose to his feet and brushed the dirt from his clothes.
"This is the first time I've encountered someone who can interfere with my fighting style so effectively."
He glanced at Chad.
"You really are as Amazing as they say Chad."
His eyes narrowed.
"But I have to ask,What makes you so confident, Chad?"
Chad raised his head.
"I am not confident."
He said coldly
For a moment, silence settled between them.
Then Cadoc burst out laughing.
"You arrogant bastard!"
His laughter echoed across the ruined battlefield.
"Your barely keeping up with me."
The smile slowly disappeared from his face.
"Tell me something, Chad. Why do you keep fighting when you know you're about to Die?"
Chad's expression remained unchanged.
Cadoc took a step forward.
"Why struggle so desperately when the outcome is already decided? Is it pride? Stubbornness? Or are you simply too foolish to understand your own situation?"
He spread his arms.
"Look at yourself. Your body is failing you, your strength is diminishing, and yet you continue to stand in front of me as though you have some chance of winning."
His eyes sharpened.
"Tell me, Chad. What exactly are you fighting for?"
Chad stared at him for a moment.
Then he answered with a question of his own.
"Tell me something, Cadoc."
His voice carried a strange calmness.
"Why do you fight against the living?"
Cadoc's expression hardened.
Chad continued.
"I understand what you've been through. I understand that you've suffered."
"You understand nothing!"
Cadoc's voice thundered across the battlefield.
"You know nothing about me!"
Chad didn't flinch.
"Oh, I know enough."
He studied Cadoc's face.
"In fact, I know more about you than you think."
A pause followed.
Then Chad spoke the words that changed everything.
"I know your mother."
For the first time since the battle began, Cadoc went completely still.
His expression didn't change immediately.
But something shifted behind his eyes.
For a fraction of a second, the anger vanished from his face, replaced by something fragile and unfamiliar. His lips parted slightly. His gaze faltered, and the corners of his eyes tightened as though he were fighting to suppress an emotion he had buried long ago.
It was brief.
Almost unnoticeable.
Then his usual expression returned.
"You say that to make me weak?"
His voice was colder now.
"Is that it, Chad?"
He clenched his fist.
"Well, I'm not that boy anymore."
"That boy is dead."
Chad lowered his gaze.
"I don't want to kill you, Cadoc."
Cadoc's eyes widened with disbelief.
Then he laughed.
"You can't kill me!"
He spread his arms.
"Can't you see? I am immortal, Chad! I cannot die!"
His laughter echoed across the battlefield, but Chad barely heard it.
Something was happening to him.
His fingers trembled around the hilt of his sword.
What's happening to my body?
He looked down at his hand.
Why is my strength disappearing?
His breathing grew heavier.
Is he right?
For the first time in the battle, Chad allowed himself to consider the possibility that he might not win.
What path have I chosen?
His head slowly lowered.
What am I fighting for?
His hair fell across his face, hiding his eyes.
Cadoc watched him with amusement.
"Already thinking about your life?"
He stepped forward.
"How pathetic."
His lips curled into a sneer.
"Perhaps that's what your brain tells you to do when you're finally forced to accept that you're about to die."
Chad remained silent.
Then his fingers tightened around his sword.
Slowly, he raised his head.
"No."
The word was quiet.
But it carried a conviction that made Cadoc pause.
"I'm fighting for a reason."
Chad adjusted his grip, wrapping his fingers firmly around the hilt despite the weakness spreading through his body.
"I'm fighting to protect the people I love. Every single person I've ever cherished."
His gaze hardened.
"I know I'm not strong enough to protect everyone. I know there are things beyond my abilities."
He took a slow breath.
"But the people I can protect…"
Black flames flickered around his body.
"…I will protect them with everything I have."
His sword rose.
"Even if it costs me everything."
Chad looked directly into Cadoc's eyes.
"Even if I die here."
For a moment, Cadoc said nothing.
Then he scoffed.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
He shook his head.
"What are you talking about, Chad?"
Chad's expression softened into a faint smile.
"Even if I die tomorrow, I'll die with honour."
The instant those words left his mouth, Chad disappeared.
Cadoc's eyes widened.
"What—?"
Chad reappeared directly in front of him.
Cadoc immediately drew his fist back, the surrounding air bending beneath the force gathering around his knuckles.
But before he could strike, Chad vanished again.
He appeared behind Cadoc.
A sharp flash of steel followed.
SHING!
Dark slashes erupted across Cadoc's body.
Cadoc's eyes widened as he looked down at himself.
"He moved faster again?"
Chad stood behind him, holding his sword.
Cadoc turned, preparing to retaliate, but his gaze suddenly dropped to his own arm.
His hand was gone.
Before he could fully comprehend what had happened, Chad stepped away, holding the severed hand alongside the fist he had already struck off during the exchange.
Cadoc stared at him.
For the first time, genuine disbelief crossed his face.
"Alright then Chad die with honor"
His missing hand began to regenerate. Flesh and bone reformed as his magic attempted to restore what had been taken from him.
But Chad had already moved.
He turned his sword in his grip, allowing its edge to catch the faint light filtering through the smoke.
Cadoc slowly raised his newly restored hand.
The expression on his face had changed.
The amusement was gone.
The confidence remained, but now it was accompanied by something else.
Caution.
Chad wasn't just an ordinary fighter
A faint breeze swept across the battlefield.
The smoke drifted away.
Chad stood with his sword lowered, his breathing uneven, his body trembling beneath the strain of his own magic.
Yet his eyes remained fixed on Cadoc.
Then, slowly, he turned the sword until its blade pointed behind him.
Cadoc watched the movement.
"What are you planning?"
Chad didn't answer.
He simply tightened his grip.
And then—
The atmosphere changed.
A deep, rumbling sound rolled across the battlefield.
Behind Chad, the air began to distort. Black flames emerged from the ground, twisting and spiralling upward as though something immense were awakening within them.
Cadoc's expression tightened.
"What is this?"
The flames rose higher.
Their movements became more violent, gathering into enormous shapes that towered behind Chad.
First came a serpent, its long body coiling through the air.
Then a dragon, its vast wings unfolding as dark fire streamed from its jaws.
Finally, an eagle emerged from the flames, spreading its wings as a piercing cry reverberated across the battlefield.
All three creatures burned with the same unnatural darkness.
Their eyes glowed as they hovered behind Chad, their bodies formed entirely from the magic consuming him.
Cadoc stared at the spectacle.
"…Dark flames?"
His breathing slowed.
Then his eyes widened slightly.
"Flame beasts?"
The serpent twisted through the air.
The dragon lowered its head.
The eagle spread its wings.
Chad stood before them, his sword held firmly in his hand.
The sight was overwhelming.
Not because it threatened to destroy the world, but because of the sheer intensity of the power Chad had gathered despite his deteriorating condition.
His body was approaching its limit.
Yet he was still standing.
Still fighting.
Still refusing to surrender.
Cadoc's jaw tightened.
What the hell is he doing?
Chad drew a slow breath.
His fingers trembled around the hilt, but he refused to loosen his grip.
The dark flames surged behind him.
For a brief moment, he closed his eyes.
Then he opened them.
"Cadoc."
His voice was almost gentle.
"If I'm going to die…"
He raised his sword.
"…then you're coming with me."
The battlefield fell silent.
Cadoc immediately shifted his stance.
His right hand extended forward, fingers held together in a narrow, piercing formation.
The air between them trembled.
Neither moved.
Chad stood with his sword raised above his shoulder, the dark-flame creatures gathering behind him.
Cadoc maintained his stance, his gaze fixed on Chad's chest.
They both understood what the next exchange meant.
There would be no hesitation.
No retreat.
Only the final collision between two wills.
Chad's sword began its descent.
And at that exact moment—
A memory surfaced in his mind.
A woman's hand gently touched his face.
The image was brief and indistinct. He could see only her hand and portions of her upper body. Her face remained hidden, obscured by the darkness of the memory.
But he knew that touch.
He knew that voice.
"Chad, my love…"
His sword slowed.
"…Please, don't do it."
A tear slipped down his cheek.
The woman's hand remained against his face, holding him with a tenderness that seemed impossibly distant from the violence surrounding him.
"Please…"
Chad's movements became sluggish.
His raised sword stopped for the smallest fraction of a second.
But against Cadoc, that fraction was enough.
Cadoc's eyes sharpened.
He had seen the opening.
And he wasn't going to waste it.
His extended hand shot forward.
Chad's eyes widened.
He tried to move.
He tried to bring his sword down.
But his body no longer responded quickly enough.
The distance between them vanished.
Then—
SPLASH!
Blood scattered across the screen of Chad's vision.
The dark flames behind him flickered.
The serpent dissolved.
The dragon's wings began to crumble.
The eagle released one final cry before its body disintegrated into fading embers.
Chad's sword remained suspended in his hand for a brief moment.
His eyes slowly widened as he looked down.
Cadoc's hand had pierced through his chest.
Right where his heart lay.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
The battlefield fell silent.
And the last flame began to fade.