.
The ballroom reeked of blood and smoke. My broken arm screamed with every movement, but I forced myself to keep swinging. Amanda's fire burned hot beside me, her mana nearly drained, yet her eyes blazed with the same fury as her flames.
We had carried Sammy and Talia to safety, their bodies trembling from mana exhaustion. Now it was just us and the few students still standing. But the horror was only deepening.
The dead weren't staying dead.
I froze as I saw one of our classmates — his skin splitting, eyes glowing red. The demon bite had twisted him, reshaping his body into something monstrous. His scream was no longer human.
My blade faltered. "Amanda… it's them. Our own people."
Her voice cut through me, sharp and merciless. "Rudra, we need to kill them now. They're no longer human. If you hesitate, they'll tear you apart."
The words stabbed deeper than any claw, but I knew she was right.
I roared, forcing myself forward. My blade cleaved through the twisted form of the boy I once knew. Black ichor sprayed, his body collapsing into ash. My stomach churned, bile rising, but there was no time to grieve. Another came, then another.
Amanda's fire surged, engulfing three at once. Their shrieks echoed, but she didn't flinch. "Focus, Rudra! Don't think — just fight!"
We fought back to back, blades and fire carving through the nightmare. Students screamed, demons shrieked, the ballroom became hell itself.
Slowly, we began to falter. My body was bruised and battered, every nerve screaming. Amanda was barely standing, her mana reserves scraped to the bone. The demons sensed it — they began to toy with us, circling, striking from every side, their guttural sounds twisting into something that sounded like laughter.
I staggered, blood dripping from my lip, Amanda's flames sputtering. Just as despair clawed at us, half the demons were blown apart in a single instant. The shockwave rattled the hall.
A hand landed on my shoulder. Headmaster Alex.
"Hello, my students," he said, his voice heavy with sorrow. "You've held the threat down bravely, but I see how much we've lost. Rest now. I'll take care of the rest."
"Where have you been all this time?" I asked, breath ragged.
"I was transferring the royal family to safety," he replied.
Amanda nodded. "Then please… go."
"Find a safe place and rest," he said firmly, before dashing into the fray.
---
We returned to the cave where Sammy and Talia rested. The walls had crumbled into a hollow shelter, dim and quiet compared to the carnage outside. They were asleep, leaning against each other, their faces calm despite the chaos.
For a moment, it was peace.
"We should probably sit down and take some rest," I muttered.
"Yeah… let's do that," Amanda replied softly.
We sat together. My fractured arm throbbed, and Amanda tore a strip from her gown. I flushed, but she ignored it, wrapping the cloth tightly around my arm and supporting it against my neck. Her hands were steady, her face unreadable.
"Rudra," she said suddenly, her voice flat. "You knew about the attack before it happened. Tell me… are you working with them?"
Her blank expression cut deeper than any wound.
I sighed, staring at her. "You remember when we met Lord Vishnu, and he removed you from the chamber? He told me then… I've inherited his power. That's why I can't use elemental magic. He gave me a system — like a game — to track my stats, to prepare my body for each power I inherit. Otherwise, it would destroy me."
Amanda's grip loosened. She tied the cloth firmly, her eyes softer now.
We lay side by side on the cold stone floor. Sammy and Talia stirred, waking to see us together. They snickered.
"What's so funny?" I asked.
"Nothing," Talia said quickly. "Just… what's the situation outside?"
"Bad," I admitted. "Hundreds of students died and turned into demons. We had to kill them. Headmaster Alex is handling the rest."
Silence fell, heavy and suffocating. Amanda broke it. "We've rested enough. Let's go help him."
---
We returned to the ballroom. Alex stood among the corpses of demons, his blade dripping, his face grim.
"Yo, Alex, you good?" Sammy asked, his voice shameless despite the carnage.
"Yes," Alex replied. "And you?"
"We're fine… apart from Rudra's broken arm."
Relief flickered for a moment. But then — horror.
A clawed hand burst through Alex's stomach. Blood sprayed. We froze, paralyzed.
Alex's voice rose, ragged. "Get away! This demon… it's at least B‑Rank. You can't handle it!"
He was tossed aside, bleeding, unconscious.
The demon stepped forward, towering, its presence suffocating. Its voice was a rasp that chilled the marrow.
"Hello, children. I am Dolomir. The almighty has commanded me to kill you."
It moved into a fighting stance, shadows writhing around its body.
Amanda's flames flickered to life. I raised my blade, broken arm hanging useless. Sammy and Talia steadied themselves, water and ice swirling weakly at their fingertips.
We were exhausted, battered, half‑broken. But Dolomir was here. And there was no choice left.
We had to fight