El froze the moment he arrived at the center of the Heart Kingdom palace grounds alongside Mimosa.
Blood soaked the once-green garden, even the fountains running red. Bodies—some dead, others barely breathing—were scattered across the battlefield. The Spirit Guardians and Kirsch lay collapsed nearby, their bodies riddled with holes as if pierced countless times.
⚔️ [Mission Interface]
Mission: Demon Strikes
Rank: S
Time Limit: None
Objective: Defeat Vanica Zogratis.
Failure: None
Rewards:
• S-Rank Card
• A-Rank Card
• Xeni Coins ???
Ignoring the mission window he started at Gaja and Undine who stood facing the single enemy.
Gaja swayed slightly, clutching his bleeding stomach. Behind him, Lolopechka lay unconscious, her abdomen stained crimson while strange black curse runes flickered across her abdomen.
El's chest tightened.
He remembered the information Nacht had shared about the three strongest devils of the Spade Kingdom. One of them wielded two attributes—Curse Magic and Blood Magic.
"…Vanica Zogratis," El muttered, appearing beside Gaja as Mimosa rushed to Lolopechka's side.
"I've been trying to contact you for half an hour," Gaja said through clenched teeth. He didn't finish the sentence, but his hand pressed harder against his wound.
El understood.
He was the Heart Kingdom's only spatial mage. If he had been here, he could have evacuated Lolopechka before the curse took hold.
But he had been in the Spade Kingdom, and the strong magic region between the two lands had distorted the communication. The warning had come too late.
A lazy voice echoed across the ruined grounds.
"Oh? What's a kid doing here?"
Vanica lounged atop a floating throne made of hardened blood, smiling as if this were nothing more than entertainment.
To El, the carefree pressure she exuded felt suffocating—ominous in a way that made his instincts scream. It wasn't an exaggeration to say she alone had reduced the Heart Kingdom's forces to this state.
"Take Lolopechka and leave," Gaja said quietly. "Her objective is to capture her."
El turned slightly, ready to move until vanica's voice dropped, cold but amused.
"I placed a curse on your queen. I can track her or make her go BOOM from the ends of the world if I want." Her eyes shifted toward El. "How long do you think you can run from me, little El?"
The way she said his name made the air grow heavier.
"You're prey reserved for that mage decan," she continued casually. "But nobody said I can't play with you a little."
Her throne drifted forward.
El quickly understood that running would be pointless. If Nacht's information was accurate, Zenon was the greatest spatial mage on the continent. They could track him eventually.
If he retreated now, nothing would change.
El moved instantly.
A sword flashed into his hand as he vanished, reappearing behind her in a blink. He aimed a precise strike, taking advantage of what seemed like an opening.
But the moment his vision cleared, a blood spike pierced through the exact space where his head had appeared.
El abandoned the attack mid-motion, vanishing again and reappearing beside Gaja. A sharp sting spread across his cheek. A thin line of blood ran down his face.
He hadn't even seen her prepare the attack.
"I can't keep up with her speed…" he murmured.
For the first time in his life, El faced an opponent he wasn't certain he could outmaneuver.
Vanica tilted her head, grinning wider.
"Did you really think someone like you could fight me? That's almost insulting."
The blood beneath her throne rippled violently.
Ten massive beasts rose from it—each nearly six meters tall. Their bodies were formed of hardened crimson, claws curved and razor-sharp, maws dripping with liquid blood.
El's eyes narrowed.
The contract symbol with Dryad on El's hand began to shine.
From the far end of the ruined garden, a figure stepped out from the trunk of a tree—the Dryad of Elysia. She looked around, clearly startled at being summoned so abruptly through their contract but understood her reason for being here.
"Plant Recovery Magic: Mother Earth's Embrace…"
Flowers erupted from the blood-soaked earth in a sweeping wave. The red-stained ground transformed into a vast field of blooming life. The metallic scent of blood faded, replaced by the fragrance of fresh petals.
Anyone who still had even a sliver of life left felt their wounds close at a visible pace. The injured were gently lowered into a deep, restorative sleep as vines and blossoms wrapped around them protectively.
Within moments, Dryad had healed the surrounding mages—Kirsch, the Spirit Guardians, Gaja, even Undine. Lolopechka's bleeding slowed, though the curse marks still flickered ominously.
But not everyone rose.
Many bodies remained still.
Too far gone.
Some of them were faces El recognized—people he had passed daily, exchanged greetings with, trained beside.
His jaw tightened.
"Wowww… I liked the blood field more," Vanica said lightly, looking around at the transformed garden. "But this isn't bad either. Hey, forest spirit—how about coming with me?"
"Forest spirit?" Dryad snapped. "I am the Great Spirit Dry—"
"That's enough, Dryad," El cut in quietly. "Not everyone is healed. Please take the wounded and leave."
Dryad glanced at him, then at Vanica, and understood. She began gathering the unconscious mages within layers of protective vines.
El stepped forward.
"And you like to talk," he said calmly, eyes fixed on Vanica. "Then answer this."
A white card materialized in his hand—the one he had earned two years ago after defeating the Ancient Demon.
"If I kill you here… will my sister's curse disappear? Or do I need to keep you alive and force you to undo it?"
For a brief second silence enveloped the surrounding as even Gaja stared at him in disbelief.
[Let me answer that, Vanica…]
The voice did not belong to her but it echoed from the same place she stood.
Vanica's expression twisted in irritation. Slowly, she lifted her eyepatch.
An all-black eye with a crimson pupil stared down at El.
A chill ran through everyone present.
The blooming flowers around them withered instantly under that gaze. Frost-like decay spread across the petals. Those who had just regained enough strength to breath began crawling away, instinct screaming at them to create distance.
[The answer is no]
The voice was calm.
[Until you kill me… the curse will not disappear]
"El…" Gaja muttered under his breath.
El didn't look away.
"You're Megicula," he said steadily. "The Queen of Curses."
He had studied about demons and ancient war. Her name appeared again and again in forbidden records.
"But how did you manifest here?" he continued. "You're sealed in the lowest level of the underworld. A contract alone shouldn't allow partial incarnation."
For a split second—
The red pupil narrowed.
[You are unusually informed for a human.]
A faint ripple of irritation passed through the voice.
[Whatever you do here, Vanica… make sure that boy dies]
The black eye slowly vanished as Vanica lowered the eyepatch back into place.
Then she smiled.
"Ready for round two?"
She looked toward Gaja—and the mages who now stood again, restored by Dryad's magic.
"All Guardians," Gaja commanded, his voice firm despite the blood running down his side. "Take Queen Lolopechka and retreat. Protect her with your lives. Also evacuate the injured and citizens toward the Clover Kingdom border—but do not cross it."
He knew they would only become liabilities if they stayed. Worse—this time they might get cursed or die.
"Why the Clover Kingdom?" El asked, confused.
"You weren't the only one I called for help," Gaja replied, lightning beginning to gather around his body.
Vanica's grin widened.
"Not on my watch."
She vanished in a blur of red, shooting toward El—but a massive bolt of lightning intercepted her mid-charge, forcing her back.
In that instant, El used Instant Transmission.
He reappeared in the distance, standing atop a rising white pillar of earth overlooking the blood beast advancing toward him.
Something changed.
The air around him felt different.
Blue, arrow-like markings surfaced across his skin, visible beneath his hairline and along his hands, likely spreading across his body beneath his clothes. His eyes had lost their earlier strain. They were steady now. Serene.
The mana around him felt… unnaturally balanced.
"I cannot free you from your violent nature," El said quietly, voice carrying across the battlefield. "But I will separate the demon clinging to your soul, Vanica Zogratis."
Gaja rose into the air, lightning flaring.
Six blood monsters surged toward El.
Without opening his eyes, El raised both hands and clenched his fists.
The earth answered.
Dozens of massive stone spikes erupted upward with precise timing, impaling the creatures mid-charge and pinning them in place.
El's breathing remained slow.
He absorbed the knowledge flooding his mind from the [Avatar Aang Peak Card], letting instinct guide his motions rather than thoughts.
"What have you done?" Gaja muttered, stunned seeing El use elemental magic.
El lifted into the air toward Vanica no visible mana surge, no chant but simple body moments.
Stone armor layered over him. Multiple stone clones rose from the ground, surrounding Vanica and attacking from all directions.
Water lashes, pillars of flame, compressed air blades, and crushing stone strikes rained down on her in rapid succession.
El's eyes remained calm.
He tracked her movements not through sight—but through Ki, synchronizing with the earth beneath him. Her blood magic was faster now, sharper, empowered by devil energy—but his composure allowed him to match it.
"Don't lower your guard!" Gaja shouted, blasting apart a blood hound that had broken away earlier and advanced toward the evacuating citizens. "She has more tricks up her sleeves!"
Vanica's laughter echoed through the chaos.
"So you can handle me at thirty percent?" she said, brushing blood from her cheek. "How cute."
Her mana spiked violently.
"What about now?"
The pressure intensified as she raised her devil's power to forty percent.
The air grew colder. The ground trembled.
A supercharged bolt of lightning fell from the sky—called down by Gaja—but with her enhanced speed, Vanica twisted away avoiding it.
El moved using Instant Transmission.
El appeared directly beneath the descending bolt.
The lightning struck him.
For a split second, his body trembled under the impact—but instead of resisting, he absorbed it. The current traveled from his raised hand, through his arm, across his chest, into his heart and let-out through the other hand.
He vanished again, reappearing in front of Vanica mid-motion.
At point-blank range, he discharged the full redirected lightning blast straight into her face.
The explosion sent both of them flying in opposite directions.
Vanica, bearing the burnt of attack at her face, crashed hard across the shattered garden, smoke rising from her body.
Only Undine, El, and Gaja remained on the battlefield.
While countering Vanica's blood spells, providing support to El and Gaja, Undine manipulated the surrounding water sources—fountains, rivers, projecting the battle across the Heart Kingdom. The citizens watched through rippling surfaces as their guardians stood against the devil host.
[Curse-Warding Magic: Enhanced Regeneration]
"This won't be enough to stop her…" Gaja said, appearing beside El as they watched Vanica's charred, smoking body regenerate at a visible rate.
Burned flesh stitched together. Broken bones reset. Skin reformed flawlessly.
"Oh myyyy—hahahahaha!" Vanica's laughter rang out, echoing across the kingdom even without Undine's broadcast. "I didn't think you had it in you to push me this far in a single day!"
Her strength spiked once again.
[Devil Union: 45%]
El's heart skipped.
Cold sweat coated his skin.
He didn't blink, focusing entirely on vanica in the distance but the next second, vanica was in front of him.
Her foot slammed into his stomach with overwhelming force.
The impact folded him midair and sent him flying like a ragdoll, crashing through a distant tree in an explosion of splinters.
"El…?" Mimosa whispered, watching through the water projection.
Kirsch, barely conscious beside her, clenched his fists helplessly.
Gaja lunged, lightning spear aimed at Vanica's back but she twisted, and his attack missed. A wave of blood struck him in return, hurling him across the ruined courtyard.
Smoke rose from the shattered tree where he had crashed.
Then El reappeared in the sky.
He was holding his side, broken ribs grinding under the movement. Blood trailed from his mouth. His upper clothes had been torn apart by the impact, revealing the blue arrow-like tattoos beneath his skin.
Then they began to glow.
The air around him shifted again—this time Angry.
***
In the final moment before impact, El had slowed his fall with Air Bending. Using Instant Transmission, he reappeared midair.
El narrowed his eyes.
This won't work.
The situation has worsened much more, below him, nearly a hundred blood monsters—each over six meters tall—rose from the crimson lake. Vanica directed them toward Gaja, Undine, the evacuating citizens… and Lolopechka.
At the same time, her gaze never left El.
"No more holding back."
[Used 2,000 Xeni Coins to Enter the Avatar State]
A faint bitterness flickered through him.
He couldn't even last five minutes in base form.
But this wasn't about pride.
If he didn't go all out here, people would die.
And if he ran he wouldn't be able to look at himself again.
El closed his eyes.
When he opened them.
They glowed pure white.
The tattoos across his body shone brilliantly, mana around him becoming vast, tranquil, overwhelming.
"You weren't fighting me seriously, were you?" Vanica called out, grinning wildly. "Come on—show me more love, little El! I can feel it, our battle will be legendary!"