The demon's eyes locked on Coker.
Glowing. Red. Hungry.
It was twice as tall as any man, its gray skin cracked like old stone. Its claws twitched, and dark smoke curled around its arms like living shadow.
Coker couldn't breathe.
He had never seen a real demon before—no one in the village had. But this thing in front of him?
It didn't belong in their world.
And it was here for him.
"Back away from the boy," the silver-haired girl said.
She stepped forward slowly, daggers glowing brighter with every step.
The demon tilted its head, growling low.
"You are not his guardian…"
The girl didn't blink. "No. I'm his protector."
Then everything moved at once.
The demon leaped forward, claws swinging. The ground cracked under its weight.
But the girl was faster.
She dodged left, flipped forward, and slashed across the demon's arm. One dagger cut clean—the other bounced off.
The demon roared in pain. Black blood sprayed into the air, sizzling as it hit the grass.
Coker stumbled back, heart pounding.
"What the hell is happening?!"
The girl shouted, "Focus! If it touches you, you're dead!"
Dead?!
He turned and ran toward the trees, but the demon's tail whipped around, smashing the ground beside him. Dirt and roots exploded.
Coker hit the ground hard, coughing, his ears ringing.
The girl shouted again, "The mark! Use it!"
"I don't know how!"
The demon came straight for him now, ignoring the girl.
Its claws raised high—aimed right at his chest.
Coker froze.
His body wouldn't move. He wanted to run. He wanted to scream.
But something inside him refused.
No.
Not this time.
The mark on his hand lit up—bright red, like fire behind glass.
Suddenly, the air around him exploded with pressure.
BOOM.
The demon was knocked back, flying into a tree with a loud crash.
The girl landed beside Coker, breathing hard.
"What did you just do?"
"I… I didn't mean to," he said, shaking. "It just… happened."
She looked at him again, more serious this time.
"That wasn't magic. That was something older."
The demon growled and stood up, slower now. Wounded. Angry.
It opened its mouth wide—wider than any mouth should go—and released a deep, echoing sound.
Like a scream from a nightmare.
The girl narrowed her eyes. "He's calling for more."
Coker's heart dropped. "More of those?!"
She gripped her daggers tighter. "We have to end this now."
She rushed in again—spinning, slashing, sliding under its swings.
Coker could barely follow her movements. She was fast—faster than anyone he'd ever seen.
The demon caught her arm mid-attack and threw her hard against a tree. She hit with a painful thud and didn't move for a second.
"Hey!" Coker shouted, running toward her.
The demon turned to finish her off.
"No—!" Coker screamed.
The mark burned again—hotter than ever.
And this time… he didn't fight it.
FLASH.
His body moved on its own.
One step.
Two.
He appeared in front of the demon like a shadow out of nowhere.
His fist glowed red—and before he even understood what he was doing—
he punched the demon straight in the chest.
CRACK.
The blow echoed through the field like thunder.
The demon flew backward—slammed into a tree so hard it snapped in half.
Silence followed.
Then the demon fell.
And it didn't get up.
Coker stood there, shaking, breathing hard.
The red glow on his hand faded slowly.
He looked at it, wide-eyed. "What… what was that…?"
The girl sat up, coughing. "You're learning fast."
He ran over and helped her up. "You okay?"
"Fine," she said, brushing off her coat. "Takes more than a tree to stop me."
Coker stared at her.
"Who are you?"
She looked at him, quiet for a second.
Then said:
"My name is Elira.
I'm part of the Shadowguard.
And you, Coker…
You were supposed to be a myth."
Coker blinked. "A what?"
Elira looked around the forest, her hand near her dagger again.
"We don't have time. More demons will come. Your mark just told the whole underworld exactly where you are."
He felt sick.
"So what do we do?"
She looked him dead in the eyes.
"We run."