Chapter 102 Chapter 102
He groaned and grumbled something under his breath, but in the end, he cracked and complied. “Okay, fine. You’re too damn stubborn,” he said, running his hand through his dark red hair.
“Then it’s a promise. See you later, Travis, and don’t fall asleep somewhere.”
“Ugh, shut up.”
He took the western trail while she took the eastern one and soon lost sight of him as she disappeared between the trees.
Unbeknownst to her, she would come to regret her decision very soon. The demon prowling the woods had set his sights on her already, watching her from the shadows as she moved on unsuspectingly. She couldn’t see him; he didn’t allow it. Darkness was his element, and hiding in the shadows came as easily to him as breathing.
He watched her amusedly while he thought about how he would kill her. It appeared like she was able to use magic, demon magic at that, and that could only mean one thing. She must have been bonded to a demon before. His lips curled into a snarl as his eyes colored red. Humans like her had to be eradicated—there was no way he would let her live. She was a disgrace to high-class demons like him, and her whole existence irked him.
The question was how he killed her? There were so many options to murder a human that it was very hard to choose. He clicked his tongue annoyedly and watched as she made her way through the dark, rainy forest. She was still oblivious to his presence, her cluelessness amusing him to no end. Chuckling lowly, he followed her like a shadow, the darkness hiding his body.
Maybe he should get it over with soon, before it gets boring. It was more fun if he played with his victims for a bit before killing them. Deciding to show himself, the shadows around him dispersed, and he stepped on the path winding through the trees. His shoes made a noise as he walked, and the human woman stiffened, hearing it. She turned around and stared at him with wide eyes, instantly summoning her magic to protect herself. Ridiculous.
Valerie nearly had a heart attack when she heard a sound behind her, finding herself standing in front of the high-class demon that she had been looking for. She sensed immensely strong magic radiating off his body, and she knew instantly that she was in over her head. Against this demon, she probably wouldn’t stand a chance.
His ruby eyes were glaring at her, filled with hatred and disgust. He curled his lips into a sneer, not hiding his disdain at all. Wearing a black jacket and equally black jeans, he easily melded with the darkness between the trees, so she wasn’t surprised that she hadn’t noticed him earlier. He appeared young, but she knew that looks were deceiving when it came to the true age of a demon.
“Hello, human,” he smirked. His strange grey hair stuck out to her, but her gaze was soon drawn by his entrancing yet sinister eyes that glared at her. “Were you looking for me?”
She gritted her teeth, already hating his arrogance and the haughty tone of his voice. It made her skin crawl. “Maybe,” she replied. “Who are you?”
He tilted his head and stayed quiet, observing her like he was contemplating whether it was even worth the trouble to tell her. Letting out a low chuckle, he smirked. “My name is Zane,” he drawled confidently. “You’re ridiculously stupid, human. What were you thinking, looking for me on your own? Your carelessness is going to be your end.”
As soon as he had spoken, darkness manifested around her body, closing in on her from all sides. It radiated a cold and disturbing aura and made her want to turn and run, but she couldn’t; she was trapped.
By instinct, she willed her magic into existence, letting it swirl around her body. It glimmered, its golden light dispersing the darkness surrounding her. She shone brightly like a beacon in the dark, the blinding light irking Zane, who glared daggers at her.
“A little bit of light magic won’t save you, human,” he growled, using his magic to shoot a wave of shadows at her that she blocked with a swipe of her arm, making a shield appear in front of her. Stopping his overwhelmingly strong magic cost her more effort than she had expected. Doubts formed in her mind, making her wonder if she could even hold him off until Travis arrived. It couldn’t be long until he would notice something was wrong… she prayed that he would find her soon.
Zane was fast and attacked her relentlessly, sending shadows her way that she could barely hold off. When he suddenly approached her, hitting her shield with his bare fists, she lost her focus, and her magic briefly vanished. That was all it took for him to reach her.
He was ruthless when he hit her. A punch to her stomach, another one to her side, had her stumble back. Her human body could not take it, too fragile to withstand his attacks, and her vision disappeared for seconds as pain took over and stole her senses.
She screamed, her knees giving out. Falling to the ground, she clutched her stomach with tears burning in her eyes. Looking up at Zane, seeing his conceited smirk, reminded her of something she had vowed to forget.
The helplessness she experienced and her inability to defend herself made her self-hate return. It was the same as back then. It was the same as all the times she had endured the fits of her ex, Uriel. The memories of the past paralyzed her as an old fear consumed her; her mind went blank. She still wasn’t over it.
In fact, it had only gotten worse after Maxwell had left her. She’d started to see herself as a burden, and the hopelessness in her heart made her want to give up. Glancing at Zane, she contemplated whether she should stop fighting and let it happen. What was the point of trying when she was meant to fail in the end? She was only prolonging her pain.