Chapter 165 Chapter 165
“You’re not the first to ask me that,” he said and laughed as if it was funny. She curled her lips in distaste. “And just so you know, I’m not the only one who’s on the hunt for people like you and the demon. I would say that my friend is an even larger threat to you. Instead of calling me a monster, you should be glad you met me instead of him.”
“Who are you talking about?” she asked, narrowing her eyes.
“Oh, you wouldn’t know him. He’s a very old demon, and he doesn’t like to show himself in the human world often,” Ethan said. “Goes by the name of Mason.”
She had never heard of that person before, but she vowed to keep the name in mind. Perhaps one of her friends was familiar with him… It sounded like he was dangerous—even more so than the blood mage.
“I’m growing tired of all this talking,” he eventually said. Instantly, Valerie’s fear came back, hitting her hard. She concentrated on keeping up the protective barrier between them.
“Oh, and by the way… It seems like I gave that demon a working distraction,” Ethan laughed. “I figured he’d be here sooner, but no. My spell is giving him a hard time.”
“He will come,” she said stubbornly. “I know it.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure, human. If I kill you before he reaches this room, he’s done for.”
Fed up with all the talking, Ethan summoned his deadly magic and let it gather around his palms. It was black, yet interlaced with flickers of dark red. He hurled it right at her barrier, and she had to admit that the impact was incredibly hard to withstand. He repeated the same motions again and again. She stood no chance against the onslaught of attacks.
The dome broke. Her magic shattered like glass. Tiny shards of light rained down on her and evaporated. Aghast, she stared at him with wide eyes and barely managed to jump out of the way before he got his hands on her. Walking was painful, running even more so, but she wasn’t about to give up.
Gritting her teeth, she evaded another attack. Light gathered around her fists. This man had used cheap tricks to defeat her easily, using her old fear against her. That gave her all the more reason not to go down without a fight. She would prove to him that she wasn’t the easy target he thought her to be.
Surprised by the sudden change in her attitude, Ethan let out a snort. “What’s that, human? You want to suffer a little longer?”
“Shut up,” she hissed. She blocked out the constant throbbing of her back, ignored the blood that soaked her dress. Her priority was to survive, and an injury couldn’t hold her back even if it hurt. She wouldn’t lose her life to this maniac. Now, more than ever, she was grateful to have met Travis and to have practiced her magic with him. If she hadn’t done that, she would now be even easier bait for the mage.
Swirling shadows shot towards her, and she only had a second to evade them. Valerie cursed and gritted her teeth as pain flared in her back. She gathered magic in her hands and aimed it at him. A blindingly bright beam of light flew at Ethan. It momentarily stopped him from getting closer to her, but other than that, it didn’t do much.
He was more experienced than her when it came to magic, and his powers were significantly stronger. She needed to stall until Maxwell arrived. Alone, she stood no chance. Nervousness and fear clouded her mind, and she wondered again why he took so long. Did he really believe that the illusion had been real? Her heart hurt when she remembered how easily he had forgotten about her as soon as the impostor had appeared.
Valerie briefly lost her focus, and that nearly cost her her head. She ducked down fast, and Ethan’s aggressive magic missed her by a hair’s breadth.
“Fuck, it hurts,” she hissed, black spots manifesting in her vision. She could tell that her body wouldn’t endure this for much longer. Desperation began to gnaw at her. The light in her hands dimmed.
“Are you giving up now, human?” Ethan said.
Giving up wasn’t an option for her. It was something she would never do. Maybe she could use her magic once more. Just one more time. But the burning in her hands and her exhaustion were clear warning signs that she was overstepping a boundary.
Suddenly, a loud crash sounded behind her. She flinched yet couldn’t turn around in time. Her surroundings burst with light. Everything turned stark white.
Insane madness crashed into her mind and had her gasp. The emotion was raw and unbridled, catching her off guard. She had never felt anything this overwhelming, this devastating. Boiling fury coursed through her blood. It ripped at the seams of her sanity, fraying them as if they were made of fabric. She could hardly stop the threads from unraveling under the intense pull of the fury she was challenged with.
She should have been scared by this, but the opposite was the case. As soon as she realized who the emotion belonged to and whose magic was enveloping her, she was so relieved she nearly cried.
The bright magic that had poured into the room like a wild vortex slowly receded. Her vision returned as her eyes became used to the light in the basement. Ethan stared at someone behind her, his lips forming a snarl. He’d used his own dark magic to shield himself from the impact, but his hair was singed and part of his clothes burned by the hot light.
“That was only the beginning,” a sinister voice said from behind her. The hollow sounds of footsteps on the concrete ground neared her. “There is more to come.”
Valerie didn’t recall when she had last heard him speak with such contempt in his words, with such pure evil. His hatred burned in her being. It tainted and poisoned her heart, messed with her mind. A lot of willpower was needed in order not to succumb to it.