Have you ever thought that we are all just pawns in a grand scheme we can never outrun?
Some say that no matter how fast you move, you can never escape your fate. But here's the funny part: maybe outrunning your fate is your fate. In the end, we're all just dancing in the palms of a bastard called Destiny.
These were the useless, rambling thoughts Ryn had as he stood surrounded by Holy Knights and a Priest who could make people explode with a glance.
A few nobles tried to bolt for the exits. They didn't make it two steps before their bodies detonated in a spray of crimson.
Priest John simply adjusted his white glove, his expression cold.
"If you try to run, you die," the Priest said.
Olivia nudged Ryn's shoulder, her eyes darting toward the exits, but Ryn was elsewhere. He was thinking about death.
Is death the only escape? Probably not. Heaven sounds boring—no novels, no alcohol, no action. Just picnics for eternity. Death is no escape.
Ryn's eyes snapped open. He was back.
He grabbed Olivia's hand and gathered every ounce of strength in his legs.
BOOM!
A massive stomp shattered the marble floor beneath them. As they plummeted into the basement, the chaos broke the tension in the room above, triggering a desperate clash between the auction guards and the Holy Knights.
They hit the basement floor amidst a cloud of dust. Ryn didn't hesitate.
[Transform]
His skin darkened, and his aura turned heavy and oppressive. He couldn't risk his human face being recognized by the knights following them down.
"A-A Demon!" one of the knights stuttered, skidding to a halt.
Ryn shoved the group teleportation scroll into Olivia's hands. "When you reach the cages, use it. Get them out. All of them."
"My Liege, I cannot leave you—"
"I've got this," Ryn said, a sharp, confident smirk crossing his demonic features.
"Go."
She disappeared into the shadows of the dungeon, trusting him completely.
Ryn turned to face the six knights descending upon him. He cracked his neck. He had been wanting to test his new limits.
[Lightning Cloak]
Jagged arcs of red electricity erupted from his body. In a blur of motion, he was in front of the first knight.
[Colossus]
An uppercut caught the man's jaw, launching him into the stone ceiling with enough force to crack the masonry.
Ryn snatched the knight's falling sword out of the air. He wasn't aiming to kill—not all these men were evil, they were just tools of the Church—but he was going to make sure they couldn't stand back up.
Clang! Ding!
He moved like a whirlwind. His Swordsmanship (now C+) allowed him to parry three blades at once, using the red lightning to pulse outward and stun his attackers.
Every time a blade collided with his, a bolt of lightning traced the metal back to the wielder, dropping them to their knees.
"In the name of the Goddess! I shall Slay the demon!" a knight roared, his blade glowing with golden light.
Ryn stomped the ground again. Rocks flew into the air, and with a series of precise kicks, he launched them like cannonballs into the charging squad.
Huff... not bad, Ryn thought, looking at the heap of unconscious armor.
Crash! Boom!
The ceiling above was groaning. The fight upstairs was escalating. Time to go.
[System Shop]
Item: Teleportation Scroll (Single)
Cost: 1,000 Glory Points.
[Yes] / [No]
He hit [Yes], but as the parchment materialized, he remembered Adorn and the Barbarian Cat-girl were still up there.
He couldn't leave his generals behind. He leaped through the hole in the ceiling, back into the main hall.
The scene was a nightmare. The nobles were gone or dead, and the Priest was casually dismantling Adorn and the Cat-girl.
Every time the girl got close, the Priest snapped his fingers, and an explosion sent her flying.
Adorn was firing arrows of flame, but they dispersed into smoke before they could touch the Priest's skin.
His attribute is [Explosion], Ryn realized. He triggers it with a snap. He can't explode what he can't see or reach.
Ryn grabbed a massive stone pillar and hurled it at the Priest's back. "Guys! Over here!"
Adorn and the Cat-girl didn't need to be told twice. They fell back toward Ryn.
"My Lord, leaving so soon?" the Cat-girl panted.
Ryn ignored the question and raised the scroll. But before he could tear it—
BOOM!
The scroll in his hand turned to ash in a localized blast. Priest John was staring directly at Ryn, his eyes narrowed with a terrifying focus.
"I sense a great, dark power within you," the Priest said, walking forward. "I shall not let a threat like you escape."
"Master, hold on tight!" Adorn roared.
The fire-demon's body began to expand and distort. His skin turned to obsidian scales, and wings that spanned the width of the hall unfurled.
Adorn had returned to his True Dragon Form.
He scooped Ryn and the Cat-girl onto his back and burst through the roof, soaring into the safety of the night sky.
Ryn lay back against the warm scales, watching the burning auction house shrink below them.
___________________________________
[Mission Completed: Save the Demons]
Reward: 10,000 Glory Points.
Current Total: 13,000 Glory Points.
___________________________________
"Perfect timing," Ryn muttered, closing his eyes as the wind whipped past. "I'm taking a break for a while."