Chapter 106

The demon of hatred's body was reduced to black inky sludge, melting into the ground as a blue-haired and blue-eyed boy emerged from the darkness, staring down the dragon with pure Hatred in his eyes. However, the dragon merely huffed fiery exhales from its snout, deeming him insignificant as it flew into the air once more, leaving Xain to slowly mellow out of his Hatred, which was soon replaced by a sense of melancholy.

"I can't even keep it up," he muttered, frustration and bitterness in his voice. Clenching his fist, he looked up at the dragon. "I can't do anything to you, but I know that someone will. Someone strong will," or at least that's what Xain hoped. The emptiness of his words hung heavy in the air.

Xain closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. "I need to find Zee," he muttered, his voice tinged with desperation. As he turned to leave, something caught his eye.

"What's he doing here?" Xain wondered, a frown creasing his brow as he quickly went over to the unconscious man with messy black hair, who had missed death by a hair's width.

**Back to Zee**

She and Lance watched as the dragon flew back to its spot in the sky. "Did... did it kill the demon?" Zee asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

Lance nodded his head. "It seems likely," he replied, his voice gruff.

"But how did he end up on the opposite side of the mansion?" Zee asked, puzzled. They were on the right side of the mansion, while the dragon had just flown down to the left side.

"I used my wind magic to soften our fall and somewhat flew past the dragon's emergence," Lance explained with a huff of his muzzle. "That's why we are here, and the demon is over there. If I hadn't done that, we both would have died just from the contact with the dragon."

Zee nodded in understanding as she stared at the dragon, her mind racing with thoughts. Suddenly, she remembered something very important. Lance watched with his red, serpent-like eyes as Zee pulled out some sort of device from her pocket.

"What is that?" asked Lance, curiosity evident in his tone.

"Something I should have used long ago," Zee replied cryptically before she pressed a button on the side of the device. "I hope you can help him," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. She knew she was weak and magically spent, much like Lance, to be of reliable help, unlike the one she had finally called for help.

**In the front garden**

The demon cleaved Bilmoth in half with its morphed blade arm, the sound of rending flesh echoing through the garden, only for it to block a slash from behind, courtesy of Bilmoth, who shifted his eyes as he dodged out of the way of a mace. Mar rushed him with a flurry of swings with his mace and slashes from his left claws, the force of his attacks leaving trails in the air. Just as one of Mar's swings was about to hit, Bilmoth's form faded away, his silhouette vanishing like smoke in the wind.

As Mar's swing met empty air, Bilmoth blocked the swing of Orian's saber coming down on him with his own morphed blade arm, the clash of metal ringing out sharply. He then kicked Orian away with a blow to the stomach, which Orian softened using wind magic, the gust swirling around them with a faint howl. In front of Orian's eyes, Bilmoth's form once again faded away.

The crack of a whip was heard as Bilmoth barely managed to roll out of the way of the sharp burst of flame from Mincs's whip, the heat licking the air with a searing intensity. Mincs raised her whip to crack it again, only to widen her eyes as Bilmoth closed the distance unnaturally fast, faster than he had ever moved before, his movements almost blurred with speed.

"You're really annoying," he said, his voice dripping with disdain and malice, before stabbing her through the chest with a swift, merciless strike and kicking her away, sending her tumbling across the ground.

"Lia!" Mar's voice rang out in a mix of worry and shock as Mincs lay bleeding on the ground, her form crumpled and vulnerable amidst the chaos. Panic surged through Mar's mind as he struggled to make sense of the situation. *What happened? That demon wasn't anywhere near her, and she just suddenly started bleeding. So, what happened!?* Mar's thoughts raced with urgency as he stared at Bilmoth, who had been staring at Mincs before shifting his attention to Mar, whose anger boiled over like a raging inferno.

Bilmoth, unfazed by Mar's fury, stood poised and ready to counter the lycan's rage-fueled attack. With a howl of rage, Mar charged toward Bilmoth, his muscles tensed, and his mace gripped tightly in his clawed hand. But before his strike could land, "Bang" Bilmoth's form disappeared from Mar's sight, only to reappear in another spot, barely leaning away as the demon's claw grazed Mar's cheek, leaving a thin trail of blood in its wake.

Crouching down, Bilmoth clicked his tongue in annoyance, wiping the blood from his cheek with his right, suddenly unmorphed arm. "I have worked out how your ability functions," the demon said coldly, its crimson eyes boring into Bilmoth with a chilling intensity. Bilmoth flinched at the coldness in the demon's gaze, but before it could explain further, they all suddenly heard the sound of an engine, the bellowing of steam, and the resonance of electricity.

Zooming in through the main gates of the mansion, a blur of speed cut through the chaos. In a whirlwind of motion, The Fiend made his way into the chaos.