On The Other Side: I Quit Being Human

Swish!

Mark sweated coldly when Rexorem passed over his nose. Such an instance was not the first time. He had had countless similar situations where he could lose his life if he had moved a little bit slower. His heart pounded so hard that his ears were filled with its beating sound. He was extremely frightened. Pessimistic thoughts filled his head--he wondered when he would die.

Somersaulting backwards, as his feet were in the air, he thrust his Holy Spear at Layland. The spear struck Rexorem in the centre of its blade, doing nothing to Layland--not even pushing him back. The Holy Spear was his strongest weapon. He didn't take it out until his Indigo Grade Sword was destroyed by Layland, which he had thought would be impossible. He had high hopes for it; therefore, seeing it do nothing, just like his sword did, irked him to no end.

When his feet touched the ground, Mark jumped back and kept doing it until he disappeared from Layland's view. He had learnt his lesson. A few minutes ago, he had almost lost his life because he turned his back on Layland. He stopped showing Layland his back whenever he retreated ever since.

Of course, this means nothing to Layland who could easily catch up to the entrapped Hero. Mark could run as fast and far as he wanted but he wouldn't be able to escape--he would forever remain in Layland's clutch for the forest was disconnected from the outside world.

"Fuck! There should be an escape somewhere!" Mark cursed as he parried Rexorem.

"Yes, there is--it is before your eyes, in fact!" Layland responded in glee. "Kill me and you shall see the escape!"

"Fuck!"

Everything that Layland did was frustrating for Mark. The things Layland said, his manner, his movement and every blow he landed terrified Mark as much as they irked him. Mark constantly cursed himself for his helplessness. Thinking about the fact that he used to be the one bullying Layland made him feel bitter and angry.

Was it karma? He mused to himself. The thought made him grit his teeth since he refused to believe such a ridiculous notion. Layland was just lucky that he became a Demon. Had it not been the case, he believed that Layland would just be a nobody in this world.

His thought was very amusing. He didn't believe in karma, believing it was nothing but supernatural nonsense, ignoring the fact that he had been doing things that he used to consider nonsense on Earth.

Swish!

Rexorem whizzed before Mark's stomach, missing it for less than an inch. It was already enough to put a cutting mark on the Blue Grade armour and it made Mark even more worried. Panic began to override his mind, making him agitated. His movement faltered as he failed to decide what to do best in his current predicament.

Biting his lower lip until it bled, he squeezed out every Mana his new heart produced and channelled it into his Holy Spear. The Holy Spear shone brightly, emitting a dangerous amount of Divinity that was enough to make Kruff, who was watching from afar, shrink backwards.

Layland smirked and took a distance. He planted Rexorem in the ground and then generated a Mana Barrier using its Magic Stone. A red ethereal film encapsulated Layland in the next moment. It didn't look extraordinary, nor did it feel dangerous; however, Layland was highly confident in its defence.

"This is your chance, cowardly Hero. Kill this Demon and get out of this place!" Layland riled.

"That's what I am going to do, bitch!"

Mark had decided to bet. He used every Mana he had in his body and fueled a Skill with it. The best-case scenario was him losing some of his limbs or Mana Pool, meanwhile, the worst-case scenario was him triggering his new heart to detonate.

Whichever it would be, he wasn't sure if it would kill Layland. He wanted the former to happen, though, and he dearly hoped that it would be enough to, at least, immobilize Layland.

"[Sin Cleanser]!"

When the name of the Skill was uttered, the golden light encapsulating the Holy Spear became even more radiant. The Divinity was condensed and centralized at the tip of the spear, making it feel and look menacing for any Demons that saw it, bar Layland who was still smirking.

Mark dashed at Layland, spear pointing at Layland. He eliminated the distance between them in less than a second. He immediately thrust his spear as soon as he was before Layland, striking Layland's red Magic Barrier. A loud 'ding' was heard as soon as it made contact with the Barrier. The Barrier's sturdiness made Mark turn solemn, yet he didn't stop pushing.

Whoosh!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The air exploded as Divinity clashed with Demonic Mana. Trees were uprooted and the ground cratered. Despite the damage that the clash caused to the environment, nothing happened yet to both side. Mark was still struggling with breaking Layland's Barrier. This state didn't remain forever, however, since the Barrier was slowly but surely cracking.

The scene brought a huge grin to Mark's face despite his predicament. He could barely feel his body. His insides felt like they had been fried and his nerves were failing him. The reason why he could still grip his spear was that his muscles were locked in that position; therefore, he couldn't hide his glee when he saw that this last-ditch effort of his will bear him a result.

"Fuck you, bitch!"

Crack!

The Barrier shattered and Mark's grin couldn't be wider as he watched the blade of his spear head to Layland's chest. [Sin Cleanser] was a Skill that guaranteed him to strike his opponent's chest and clean everything inside which, in other words, Layland's death was guaranteed.

Swish!

As the blade touched Layland's chest plate, the Divinity swirled and drilled into it. Golden light engulfed Layland, meanwhile, the force of the Divinity threw Mark to the back as he couldn't maintain his hold on his Holy Spear.

As golden light lit up the entire forest, silence descended upon the place; it was so prominent that it was deafening. It was maintained for ten seconds, which was how long the light prevailed. When the light died down and everyone regained their vision, they could finally see Layland's state. Remaining in the same position, he had his chest pierced through by the spear.

Kruff became tense as he looked at Layland. Layland's blood trickled down the hole in his chest, pooling on the ground. The young Demon remained unmoving and Kruff couldn't tell if he was still alive. His Instinct was screaming danger at him--although he didn't want to believe it, it seemed that his junior had perished.

His vision gradually turned black as rage filled his chest. He had lost two of his juniors before his eyes, so his rage toward his incompetent self was insurmountable. He could have intervened and sacrificed himself but he didn't. Gritting his teeth, he prepared to lunge at the immobilized Mark. He soon stopped himself, though, since he heard someone's amused chuckle.

"Ku-Ku-Ku. I didn't expect you to dare to hide your true power from me."

"Ha-Ha..."

A disbelieving chuckle escaped Kruff's mouth. His body loosened up as the junior whom he thought had perished turned out to be alive and kicking.

Layland pulled the Holy Spear out of his chest under Kruff's astonished look and Mark's haunted look. His blood that was left on the blade of the spear turned into vapour and his bleeding stopped as soon as it was pulled out, showing how harmful Divinity was to Demons.

Whoosh!

Layland's Mana Pressure briefly fluctuated before settling down. At the same time, the hole in his chest closed instantaneously. He had just gotten a Power-up from surviving Mark's attack. It was a surprising development for him and the people around him; he didn't expect Mark to be slightly stronger than he was, meanwhile, Kruff and Mark couldn't explain what just happened.

Shrugging nonchalantly, Layland walked over to the limp and desperate Mark. The failed Hero tried his best to crawl away from him, yet to no avail.

Crack!

"AAHHHH!"

Layland stomped on one of Mark's thighs, stopping him in his place. He couldn't help smiling in amusement at Mark's bellow of pain since he thought Mark could no longer feel pain. The Skill Mark had used on him did a lot of damage to his body. At this point, Mark shouldn't be able to feel any more pain but the Hero still did, which was as amusing as it was peculiar for him.

"P-Please, spare me. I am willing to be your slave if you spare me!" Mark shouted as tears came out of the corner of his eyes.

Smiling faintly, Layland crouched down. He hadn't had enough fun, so he was about to start one. Extending his hand, he was about to grasp Mark's head when Kruff shouted urgently. "Retreat!" His Instinct flared and he immediately did what Kruff instructed.

Boom!

A golden halberd struck the ground where he had stood a few milliseconds ago. A frown immediately appeared on his face as he sensed a familiar yet foreign aura coming toward him.

"This is...so, this is why the sense of danger didn't disappear even after I know Layland is alive," Kruff muttered as he looked at the individual that stood before Mark.

Layland kept silent as he observed the person picking up his golden halberd. Long golden hair, a pair of pointed ears, an attractive visage and a lithe but muscular physique--from these characteristics, one could easily tell that the person was a Light Elf.

Confusion riddled the two Demons' faces. 'How did the Light Elf get involved in the war?' they found themselves wondering.