Clash.
Sparks flew as spear met hand.
Tarn's new weapon — jagged, pulsing, born of flame and vengeance — screamed in his grip.
It wanted blood.
The Hunter didn't flinch.
She moved like water, smooth and merciless.Her strikes came faster now.Sharper.
But Tarn was different.
Every second he held that spear…
He changed.
Faster. Stronger.But not just that.
Meaner.
His movements got wild.Uncontrolled.Almost… savage.
She landed a strike —cut deep across his cheek.
Black blood hissed onto the stone.
Tarn didn't even blink.
He grinned.
"More."
He launched forward, dragging the spear behind like a beast on a chain.
It struck — and the air shattered.
The Hunter blocked again, but this time…
She staggered.
Only a step.
But it was the first time.
Tarn pressed.
Slash. Slam. Roar.
The spear warped, changed shape between swings.It became whatever he needed it to be.
A blade.A hammer.A chain.
It devoured his mana with every hit.And not just mana.
Something deeper.Something he didn't notice right away.
The Hunter leapt back.
Paused.
Her breathing was slow.
Tarn stood, shoulders rising and falling.Eyes glowing red.Spear twitching in his hand.
Then — the weapon spoke.
Not with words.
With feeling.
Hunger.
Not enough.
More.
Tarn stepped forward.
The Hunter readied herself for the final blow.
But then—
His leg buckled.
He dropped to one knee.
Chest heaving.Sweat pouring.
The spear was draining him.Not just mana.
Life.
The weapon shrieked, pissed that he was weakening.
It wanted a full vessel.
It wanted a killer, not a corpse.
Tarn growled.
"Not… yet…"
He stabbed the weapon into the ground.
Forced it to stop.
The Hunter hesitated.
She could've struck.
Could've finished it.
But she didn't.
She stared.
Almost curious.
"You're not just a god anymore," she said quietly.
"You're something worse."
And with that—
She vanished into the mist.
Tarn collapsed on the temple floor.
Breathing hard.
The black spear lay beside him, twitching like a living thing.
He looked at his hands.
Veins blackened.Skin hotter than fire.
He'd won the fight.
But something inside him whispered…
You lost more than you think.