The real trump card

In about a minute, the demon seemed to have finished saying what he wanted to say. He then again, put on that confident yet malicious smile. This time he didn't attack by punches but instead held out his two hands.

Just at that moment, pitch black fire started burning on his two hands which then suddenly squirted out towards Aren like a flamethrower.

Now the possession was more than 95% complete and Chauv was showing complete traits of a demon judging by the two horns protruding out from the surface of his head.

The magical attack that he just used were Abyssal Flames. It was different from the spell ''demonic flames'' that Chauv used before. Actually, that spell was just an imitation of the Abyssal Flame that the demons used. Demonic flames only had slight Property of devouring but the real Flames of Abyss also had destruction property along with it.

The pitch black fire coming towards him seemed to be devouring not only light but the wind it passed by too. It was a very troublesome fire as whatever it ate would become its fuel, which would make the fire burn more, and with greater energy. Therefore, Putting out this fire wasn't an easy task if a void area wasn't made around it.

However, Aren didn't have to put out the fire to get his job done. As long as Katty finishes her spell, coupled with his trump card would be enough to kill Chauv, destroying his body which is possessed by the demon. If that thing was as potent as he had heard, then he might even be able to injure the demons main body...

As he thought of his subsequent actions, Aren quickly activated the spell earth armour of his bracelet for the second time. As earth elements started covering his body again, he took out a bottle filled with small amount of white liquid inside and rushed at the demon, while making no attempts at dodging the flames coming at him.

What Aren did was suprising even to the demon. Nevertheless, he was confident in Abyssal Flames. Even he had to be careful when using the fire that burned on the bottom of Abyss, let alone a human. This overconfident brat would surely pay with his life for underestimating this vicious fire.

And as the demon had expected, when the fire hit Aren, it started ''gnawing'' on his armour. In seconds time, Aren was covered by black flames which was quickly eating away the earth elements of his armour.

Yet, he he didn't panic and continued rushing at the demon, paying no heed to the impending crisis he'd have to face, if the armour was gone.

The demon then become suspicious that there must be something he'd failed to notice. Although he knew that his ultimate objective was to kill Katty, he seemed to have neglected her as a weak being.

At that time, Aren was more aggressive, so his attention had been drawn by the enemy before him. Truth to be told, Aren didn't give him an opportunity to divert his attention to any other thing, from the start he initiated his fight.

It was only to let Katty finish chanting the spell and now the time had come. Coming before the demon, still in burning fire, Aren suddenly shouted.

"Milk!"

The demon couldn't understand why Aren shouted this word in the middle of a fight. However, the next moment, his expression turned sour as he realised that he had been submerged in a ball of water, fully restricted by the water elements around him.

There was no time to hesitate.

Aren knew that the ''Water Sphere'' cast by Katty wouldn't be able to hold Chauv who was possessed by a demon for long, so he quickly opened the cap of the bottle, and poured those ten drops of white liquid on the water.

Drip drip drip...

As the drops dripped one by one, the colorless water started turning white.

"Arghhh!..."

Suddenly the demon started crying in agony. Seeing that burn marks had started appearing on Chauv's body, Aren was sure that what the priest told him was true. It really was effective against evil beings.

Holy Water!

This was the trump card he had kept hidden. Before participating in this test, Aren was unsure whether to take the Holy Water that he'd acquired during his stay outside of magicwoods with Lucian, to this test.

It was a precious resource he'd got his hands on with Lucian's help who seemed to have ties with one of the priests of the Holy Light Cathedral. However, nothing was more important than his own life to him, so after some hesitation, he chose to take it with him.

Also, it was no ordinary Holy Water but a grade one Holy Water. It was more potent than the previous grade zero that he had used against undead. To even get 10 drops of it from the Priest, he had to do several ''earnest donations'' and provide ''help'' by spending hundreds of gold coins for the Cathedral.

However, when he saw that it was this effective against the demon before him, who was now being scalded by even the diluted holy water, Aren thought it really was worth the trouble he had gone through.

Finding that the demon was about to be killed, Katty also went forward and met with Aren.

The demon continued roaring and crying until all the holy water was used. After the spell also lost it's effect, Aren and Katty both saw that The apprentice in front of them had burn marks all over his body and was in his last breaths. The demon seemed to have withdrew his spirit as Chauv wasn't being affected by the holy water now.

After the demon withdrew his spirit, the flames which had just reached Aren's black robe after finishing the earth elements all strangely dissappeared. As the flames of Abyss, this fire was dispelled from this world the moment there was no one to sustain its connection with Abyss with their spirit.

Aren continued observing Chauv's body after the flames died down. With the damage done on his body, it might be a miracle if he could live to see the sun of another day. While it might be possible if he could get immediate treatment from the rank 5 bishop but that was just not possible.

"Is he dead?" Katty curiously... well, somewhat fearfully asked. When she didn't hear him saying anything but just open his spellbook, She mustered up her courage and went forward to check herself.

She went near the body of Chauv who had dully fallen to the ground and looked at him from head to toe. Finding out that he wasn't moving, she went to to poke his body with her staff.

However, when she also started hitting him with her staff, Chauv, whom she thought was dead, suddenly lunged at her from the ground.

"I will definitely kill you, brat!" His eyes had tuned bloody red as he attacked her like an animal with his claws, that had yet to revert to human state.

Katty was stunned because of this abrupt attack and was rooted to the ground. Just as Chauv's claws were about reach her neck, Aren's voice rang out from behind her.

''Unpredictable Cards!"

As the voice resounded in the forest, a yellowish-white card quickly materialised between Chauv and Katty. Before even a second could pass, the card turned into several swords formed of light elements. Their tips pointed at Chauv, they rained down on the boy mad with bloodlust.

Only when she saw the claws extended to her neck get cut by the swords did the little girl regain her senses. She quickly ran back to Aren, not daring to stay one second near the barrage of swords.

"Aaa... Ah Aaa!" Being cut by tens of swords at the same time was a horrifying experience in itself, that Chauv couldn't help but let out indistinct cries even in his last moments of death.

Thud!

After the spell lost its effects, his listless body fell to the ground.

Sigh, now he was truly dead. Sighing in relief, he was about to look at the still quivering girl beside him. Withal, as soon as that apprentice died, a red light suddenly shot out from the dead body and entered his right hand.

His hand then immediately started shining with glaringly crimson red light as some pain was also felt by him.

"Ah!" As the painful sensation increased unbearably, Aren crouched down and held his right hand with another one of his. As he endured the pain he felt, he slowly felt a cool feeling coming from one of his finger on his right hand.

The Ring of Necromancy, which usually was just like a normal old accessory on his finger, had started glowing!

Hum~

It started vibrating as it hummed with a sound of metal hitting steel pillars, while giving off rays of greyish-white light. That light coming from the ring seemed to have enveloped the crimson light as the painful feeling also started to recede.

After a minute, the ring again reverted back to how it used to be. His hand also became normal, without the crimson light. However, there was no look of joy on his face. Instead, it had hints of worry and solemnity. He had all the reason to be solemn now.

That was a marking left by a greater mage! It meant that whoever this apprentice was, he was under the watch of a greater mage.

Now that Aren had killed this apprentice, he was marked as the sole killer of Chauv. Although katty was involved too, Aren was the one to finish him off with his spell so the marking, in form of a red light, was only transferred to his hand.

Fortunately, Ring of Necromancy seemed to have a strange attraction with that red light. Due to it reacting in time, Aren was not found out by the Greater Mage. However, with his connection with the Ring, he knew that this type of restraining would only work for about two months. Within that time, he had to find a way to get rid of this marking otherwise, these two months might be the last two months he would ever live.