Riven was without a weapon, and the demonized was already headed for him. It leaped at him and went for a slash. He spotted an opening underneath it and moved.
He jumped and rolled under, dodging the attack just barely. He got up behind the demonized and started running toward his sword.
It turned and chased after Riven, gaining on him very quickly. Noel saw that Riven wouldn’t make it to his sword in time, so he ran toward the sword. He pulled it out and threw it.
Riven caught the sword and turned with a slash. The blade dug into its face, leaving a very deep scar. It let out a painful roar, thrashing its head around.
Noel charged in as well. He took the opportunity and went for an attack to the back of its legs. His sword cut through the tendon, and the demonized went crashing to the ground.
The both of them saw this as their chance to finish it off, but as they charged in, its eyes glowed deep red. It leaped up to its feet and immediately started thrashing around.
The both of them got hit by its hands. They were thrown back with so much force they slammed into the barrier. The demonized had gone berserk as a final resort.
Riven and Noel got on their feet as fast as they could. The demonized immediately locked on Noel and chased after him. Riven came running to flank the demonized.
His entire body screamed in pain—his muscles, his bones—everything yelled at him to stop, but he had to keep pushing.
’One final attack, that’s all I need. My body can’t take more of this,’ Riven thought. He remembered what Quin had done before—one slash, a basic slash, yet immensely powerful.
He had no idea how to do what Quin did, but that wasn’t important now. He had to do something. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath, pulling strength from his feet all the way to his hands.
He slashed. His blade headed for the demonized. Noel was in the process of blocking the demonized’s attack; he was already getting pushed back.
Riven’s attack landed, and though it was a simple downward slash, it carried an unusual speed and power. The sword cut through the flesh without restriction. Twilight glowed as it passed through the flesh.
A deep cut, a very heavy one. The demonized roared in pain. The attack had been a seriously painful one. It swung its hand—Riven blocked—but he was thrown back.
Noel saw the opportunity that was provided. Now that the demonized was struggling in pain, he could finally step in. His feet crackled with lightning. It struck the ground, gathering more and more as he stood there...
He shot forward, half his body covered in lightning. He slashed down without hesitation. His sword cut through its arm, completely cutting it off.
The demonized roared in pain. It fell to the ground, struggling for its life. Noel stood there, his sword ready to cut, but as he looked at it, the image of the girl that had been turned flashed in his head.
Could there be a way to fix her? Could she still be inside there? These questions filled his mind. If he struck now, there was a chance he was killing a young girl that had her whole life ahead of her...
He stared at her savage eyes, and he could swear that for a moment, he saw humanity in her gaze. He saw something that wasn’t a monster.
But reality was harsh, and what was expected was rarely what happened. Because in that state where he stood stunned, it moved. It used its tail out of nowhere and struck.
The sound of something piercing flesh filled the air. Noel stood still, stunned, his eyes wide open as a pool of blood flowed under his feet.
He slowly turned. His gaze landed on Riven, who stood there with a smile on his face, blood dripping from his mouth, and a tail that had gone right through his abdomen.
Noel froze when he saw that. His body couldn’t move. He stared in disbelief. When the demonized had attacked, Riven saw it. He acted on impulse, using his twenty seconds of full power immediately.
He managed to take the blow, but the moment the tail stabbed him, he lost the twenty seconds—he lost all strength.
A loud crack came from above—the barrier shattered—and Quin came from above. He saw Noel standing there and the stabbed Riven. He immediately rushed to them.
Without hesitation, he pulled out his sword and stabbed the demonized in the head, killing it. He rushed to Noel and Riven. He grabbed Riven by the shoulder. Riven’s gaze was already getting fuzzy, his body began getting cold.
The last thing he saw before all turned to black was a notification, though he wasn’t sure what it was. He fell, and Quin caught him.
Quin looked up. He saw the female instructor and immediately yelled to her, "What are you waiting for? He needs healing, now!"
She rushed over, and she looked at his situation, immediately administering healing magic. The soft green glow began healing him up. His body started getting some color back, but it was slow. The bleeding was slowly stopping.
When his situation stabilized, Quin lifted him up and rushed inside. Everyone cleared a path for them.
Noel still stood at the training ground, his eyes blank and his hands trembling.
’If only I had... if only I had done it... if I had killed it... what have I done?’ He shivered, falling to his knees.
Somewhere in the academy, a figure stood in the dark, facing the direction of the fight that had just wrapped up.
It didn’t move even after the demonized was killed. It stood there, watching, and the person in its gaze was none other than Noel.
"Interesting," he said. His voice was a deep and heavy one.