A/N: This is a story based off of the hentai manga "Erona: The Fall of a Beautiful Knight Cursed with the Lewd Mark of an Orc", or "Erona" for short, by Yamada Gogogo.
It's one of the hentai manga that I could enjoy for the story more than anything else. Even if the ending wasn't to my satisfaction, it's actually a testament to the fact that it became less of a stock hentai plot about orcs screwing someone, and more something of a fantasy novel in manga form (dark fantasy, sure, but still).
This is a sequel of sorts coming off of where the epilogue left off on; if one hasn't read the manga, but is still reading this, well, I hope you can enjoy it anyhow.
I have to thank a friend for helping me to start writing this out though, thanks Ck.
"The age of human dominion was fated to end one day."
The wind was howling around them, them within a twister as a woman looked up at the person responsible.
"Yet, there you stand, resistant to change, even when it's hopeless."
"If you're going to side with them, after everything they've done to our kind, I won't allow you to live."
"Your persistence - it is both an admirable quality, and one that regrettably wishes to stick to its beliefs, come Hell or high water."
The time came for her to do what was needed to protect the innocent.
That had been the plan anyways.
She instead found herself with her clothes torn off and chained up in a prison cell.
"Shame that the others got away. At least we got you." A pig like snort bellowed from an orc speaking outside her cell.
"I am going to snap your neck the first chance I get!" She snarled, struggling against the chains binding her.
The knight, to put it lightly, was none too happy about the whole situation, injured and stripped against her will by these vile beasts.
"Save your energy for when I come inside to take you." He replied, taking heavy steps away. "It's no fun if you don't fight back."
As his steps thudded out of the prison cell hall, rain pattered against the walls and the roof, drops of moisture leaking through the aged, cracked ceiling.
Her struggles lasted minutes more, but bore no results, and, with the defiant anger drizzling out of her, she slumped down, eyes growing watery.
Unbeknownst to any of the people present in the building, however, a lone man strode along the muddy path leading up to it, expression resolute as he walked towards it.
Grasping the hilt of his sword, the man closed his eyes and concentrated, activating far-sight magic to confirm if the captured knight was in the building structure, his spell providing a vision of one of the orcs who'd taken the knight prisoner standing over the black haired woman.
"Do you know of this magic, knight?" He asked with a snort, bringing up a dagger. "It's a branding curse tool, to modify you into being a more ideal mate for an orc, such as myself and my compatriots."
She narrowed her eyes up at it, but was silent as the orc started stepping forward.
The man outside, seeing enough, opened his eyes, suddenly charging forward at inhuman speeds amidst the rain, twisting himself around before he was before the door, boots skidding along the mud, magic energy swirling around him, before he launched himself towards the door, wind magic forming a wind-shield barrier as it rammed into the entrance.
There was the sound of the door getting busted off of its hinges, skidding with a ear-splitting hiss in a straight path across the floor, the other two orcs standing inside snapping up as a figure sped inside after it, using his muddied shoes to skid and turn on the ground, the man using his winds to abruptly stop the door, now behind him, next to a wooden chair and table, his free hand taking the seat and chucking it towards one orc's face, him haunching himself up with his remaining inertia to plant his feet against the door as it skidded to a stop, knees bent, before thrusting himself forward towards the other orc at an even greater speed than the chair he'd just thrown.
Wind rushed past his ears, his sword giving a familiar hiss as he unsheathed it mid-lunge, accompanied by the pig-like screech of terror that preceded his blade beheading the monster, body laced with wind magic that he used to blow himself around with his mid-air swing, landing against the ground as his kill slumped onto the floor, dead, the chair just then shattering against his first target's face as it stumbled back, the man rushing forward amidst its cry of pain to drive his sword deep into the other orc's side, right into where its heart lay, his teeth grit as the orc was suddenly engulfed in an intense release of lightning magic, the orc's heart bursting inside of it, before he roughly kicked it off his blade and onto the floor, a hefty swing of his sword making most of the blood that coated it splatter like paint against the floor.
He looked in the direction of the back part of the overrun prison, then rushed into the cell block, wherein the orc he'd monitored before stood at the foot of a cell tens of meters away down the hall, to see what the commotion was about, the human's eyes narrowing as the orc began to reach for a magic item at its belt to utilize, but him picking up his own pace, him standing upon it in the blink of an eye.
Before it could retaliate, the man went about cutting it down, the notions of mercy and hesitation incapable of dulling his assault, the deed being done in three slices, one horizontally across its abdomen, a second diagonally from its hip to its shoulder, and a third horizontally across its eyes, its roar of blinded anguish not stopping him from giving final a hefty ram of his boot into the orc's exposed stomach, sending it toppling onto the floor on its back.
In the ensuing sounds of grunts and death throes as it lay dying under him, the man let loose a breath.
"Filthy orcs." He spat, over its whimpers, before giving a glance into the cell, finding the captured knight inside, shocked at what had just transpired, a familiar marking engraved over her womanhood, a wearied sigh escaping his lips as he sheathed his blade, then walked into the cell.
He pulled his cloak from over his body, taking it inside out to show the dry interior, revealing his lanky yet muscular frame as he draped it over her naked body.
"I'm sorry I didn't make it in time to prevent your being marked by it."
She was visibly startled at seeing the brutal efficiency of the man before her, the sheer emotional whiplash of going from being branded by an orc's magic tool, to her captors being killed, in the span of about fifteen seconds no less, leaving her baffled even as he covered her.
"I — thank you, but — how did you find this place?" She asked, other questions struggling to be asked first as her blue eyes looked up at his.
"The citizenry you helped save came to the first village they could find, asking anyone if they could help. I was there, so I came." He responded.
"They're safe?" She asked, and as he nodded, she felt relief for their sake, before looking to the orc lying on the floor. "Good, but... what is this magic? I thought that orcs couldn't do magic."
"The result of a magic tool, made by a freak of nature among orcs." He answered, standing and walking to where the tool lay on the ground, a furtive stomp on it breaking it apart. "This kind of power really shouldn't exist. Fixing it will be difficult, but the side-effects of it can be difficult."
"I've... really been cursed?" She asked.
"There's a cure for it, but I doubt that you'd want to get the remedy for it now." He sighed, recalling the last time he'd experienced such a thing. "I'll go get the key to unshackle you. Give me a second."
He rose to his feet, turning to the slumped over orc on the floor, still groaning in pain, his gaze hardening as he approached, a hard kick to its side making it roll onto its face, spilling a pool of blood on the ground, it trying to raise its head, but him not allowing it this, stomping his foot hard enough on the back of its head to make its skull fracture, and the floor beneath its head get indented with a tiny crater, the force behind the stomp great, but not enough to crush it outright, him applying healing magic to the orc's skull through his foot, just enough to sustain its life, but not enough to ease its pain.
"Don't play dead, pig. If you want to live, you're going to answer my questions."
The orc whimpered pitifully, saying it would, and he delivered a hard kick to its side that sent it flying back first into a nearby cage, it's body rattling against the metal bars as it laid on its side.
"Where's the key to her shackles?" He asked, in a tone more like an order, and the orc, still in shock over this horrid treatment, karmic and deserved as it was, stuttered.
Taking advantage of its newfound blindness, the swordsman rammed his boot against the metal bars, just above its head, the resounding slam making it jump.
"Where?!" He snarled at it.
In its newfound pathetic tone of voice, it answered, "On the key rack, down the hall," and he stepped away, leaving, then coming back with a key that he promptly used to free the woman from the burden on her wrists.
"What's your name?" He asked her, concern filling his expression as he looked to her.
"...Gabriella." She said, still trying to wrap her head around her new circumstances, eyes flickering between him and the fatally wounded orc.
"Is there anyone else who's been captured? Or are you the only one?" He asked.
"I'm... I'm the only one." She said, holding her head. "Still - What do I even DO with this now? This—this curse?"
He frowned, then answered bluntly.
"In my experience, you would have to have sex with powerful mages, if you can't get the curse to be lifted."
"...Fuck." Gabriella groaned, then yelled. "Fuck. Fuck! It's either fuck to get the curse off, or pray some miracle happens, or-"
"I'm pretty sure a miracle won't be coming." He lamented. "Could you wait for a few moments more? There's something I need to check." He looked behind himself to the orc there.
Too tired and shaken up to really argue, she breathed a deep breath, then nodded in agreement.
"Do what you have to."
The man nodded, then turned to walk to the orc still slumped against the cell bars, breathing weakening.
"Hey, orc. You've answered one of my questions so far." He spoke down to him, standing over it. "The only other one I have is about Lord Geldrolix. Do you know who I'm talking about?"
The orc raised its head, the rising sensation of numb coldness not stopping it from expressing its confusion.
"What would a human like you want with Lord Geldrolix…?"
"Answer me." He ordered, an edge to his tone that made the orc tense.
"W-What do you plan on dong with me, if I tell you?"
"You should be more concerned of what I'll do if you don't tell me what I want to know."
"I-I'll die at this rate anyways. You can't expect me to tell you something like that when I'm on my deathbed?"
"No. I'll just make sure that whatever death you get, it'll be a mercy compared to your last moments."
To accentuate his point, the man lifted, then firmly stomped, his boot square into the orc's chest, breaking its sternum in, only for healing magic to force the broken bones to reform themselves, the orc gasping in desperate breaths.
"P-Please, I'll do anything, just..."
"Answer. My. Question." He reaffirmed his order, and the orc gave a nervous squeal, trails of blood on his bleeding eyes, despite the grunts of pain it emitted.
"T-They moved ahead!" It spoke. "They went on with some orcs to the next village, south of here."
He narrowed his eyes, the man taking out an aged parchment before concentrating.
The screams of helpless villagers mingled with the roars of fires, and the laughter of the sadistic freaks of nature.
Some civilians had been crushed beneath buildings, men, women and girls getting dragged out by some of the younger orcs as a pair overlooked the bedlam they had wrought upon the innocent, one an elder, greyish skinned orc with a scar on his chest, along with a human swordswoman with pink hair and a chain fastened around her neck.
Near them, carted in a wagon, ten women sat with mentally broken euphoria written on their faces, pregnant bellies aching with soon-to-be born orcs, and the pink haired swordswoman looked to the scarred orc.
"This is starting to get a bit dull, waiting for all these orcs to get finished with all these girls. When are WE going to do it Master Geldro?" She asked, and the orc snorted.
"Our Dialdro is the herald of an age to come, Claudia. Now that you're pregnant with our third child, all that remains is for us to continue building the foundation of our empire, one village at a time. There'll be plenty of time to make love, once we find a lodging to settle down in for the night."
Far-sight magic fizzling out with the last traces of the swordwoman's mana dissipating, he opened his eyes, looking down at the orc in front of him.
"You've been truthful. My magic's telling me that they're where you say."
Hope entered the orc's voice.
"So... you'll let me - "
The man thrust a palm towards the orc, and before it could say anything more, a wall of force crushed its head in, breaking the frame of the cell back, making its headd implode, bits scattering into the inside of the cell it lay against, the carcass that remained slumping lifelessly on the floor.
Without sparing another thought to it, he turned to the woman present.
"I don't have the time to escort you home personally. This matter takes higher priority. Have you been here long enough that you aren't in proper fighting condition anymore?"
She looked at the corpse of her captor, then looked down.
"I'm not certain. While they've done little physically, mentally, I'm not in the best of minds. I'm not sure if I'm ready for combat yet."
"Got it." He walked away without another word, striding through the building to the door frame, giving a sharp whistle.
In moments, a horse carrying a few things on its back galloped up to the door, hesitant, the man running a hand along its neck to calm it, before going about pulling a parcel out, bringing it back.
"These are a set of clothes you can put on. Take my horse and head back to the town to the west of here. Tell them that the Savinian Knight of Corvia, Alexis, is headed after the orcs responsible for the attack on your village." He was already turning to the door, after she opened it to confirm his words. "I'll go on alone to cut the rest of them down."
"T-Thank you so much Sir Al— Sir Alexis?!"
The name clicking in her mind, she nearly dropped the parcel, her able to see the uniform of the Savinian Knight order much more easily now that he was in a better lit room.
"Is something wrong?" He asked over his shoulder at her exclamation.
This knight was the one who'd been instrumental in reclaiming the capital of Corvia from the orc king two years prior!
"Lord Geldrolix — he's the orc responsible for all of this?"
"Yes."
"Let me find some spare armor." She began to look around for something of use. "Even if I'm cursed, they won't know if it's covered. I just have to find a sword, and I can assist, at the very least."
He frowned after her, then looked about.
"If you've changed your mind, let me try to get a far sight spell working for you. I doubt that they were thorough enough to actually discard the armor."
He placed his hand over her wrist, mind getting an idea of the general items in the vicinity that were hers, before he stepped away, going to a cell and sliding it open with a rattle.
"Your armor and weapons should be in here. It's best if you use the sword you're most accustomed to, after all. Please try to make it quick though. I have to go on ahead. My horse will let you off at the border of the village; it might seem strange, but he has his role to play in this as well."
He turned to the exit, minding the fact that he'd destroyed the door, before starting to walk out, only to pause again.
"Before I go, I need to know if you need me to use healing magic on you at all." He said over his shoulder.
"I'm not too injured, I assure you."
"Very well."
Quickly, she put her armor on, muttering all the while.
"—can't believe I got this damn curse to deal with now—"
His voice carried itself from the front, however.
"I'm grateful for your help, but given the nature of our opponents, though, I have to ask that you support me by killing all the orcs except for Geldrolix and his concubine." Alexis told her. "If you suddenly feel your mana levels dropping rapidly, try to get out of the town as fast as you can, even if you have to crawl. They have access to magic that can make most people unable to fight back."
"I've heard the rumors. That would definitely explain why I suddenly couldn't fight." She walked after him, in her armor, and seeing her prepared, he climbed onto his horse, reaching a hand to her.
"Come."
She grabbed it, allowing herself to be pulled up. Her sword sat sheathed, and her shield, while battered, was still at the ready.
He looked forward, then began to have his horse start galloping forward, the wind whistling past their ears.
"Unfortunately, I don't know the numbers of orcs they have." Gabriella said. "Do you have any idea how many remain?"
"There were about twenty of them, from what I could see."
"It sounds doable." Gabriella mused. "Should we split their numbers between us?"
"Handle what you can handle." Alexis advised, him taking out a vial of blue liquid from his side pocket, opening it up and going about drinking it, then putting it back where it belonged.
Soon, the horse began to slow down on its own, hooves clopping to a stop as, beyond a set of trees, there was smoke billowing into the sky.
"Alright. Get going." He said to his horse, dismounting and looking to the sound of screams, the horse running off as it flowed with magic, Alexis drawing his sword and moving to run towards the village, eyes narrowed as they passed the trees to see the area half burnt to the ground, many of the orcs in the process of raping the women they had found in the streets.
Upon seeing the orcs doing this, Gabriella quickly drew her short sword, running to go attack the nearest foe.
Since he would be occupied, she quickly stabbed it through its skull, using her other hand to pull the beast out, making short work of the next few nearby ones, who were just becoming aware of her presence.
Compared to Alex, Gabriella wasn't nearly as flashy, but her training was sufficient.
Her blue shield around her was defending her from any minor spells and arrows, and she had already killed 3 orcs by the time any of them bothered to fight.
Alexis, in the meantime, raised his foot, stamping it down as a massive tremor shook the ground as the backlash of his force magic doing this, only for him to charge forward with his great speed, concentrating his magic as he maneuvered himself forward in a series of zig-zagged lunges along the ground that were accentuated by a force pulse, which launched him further through the air, while abruptly formed pillars of the ground shot up to stab through the orcs' genitals and impale seven of them in such a manner that they were hung in the air like flags, before another figure sped forward, drawing their sword as Alex skidded to a stop at the last second, blocking the swing of woman who'd met his charge with her own sword with his weapon, the impact blowing him back several feet before he regained his footing, holding his stance as he looked to her.
"Claudia." He narrowed his eyes, to which the pink haired woman standing before him gave a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Hey Alex." Claudia swung her sword through the air at a blurred speed. "I thought I told you that you weren't enough for me anymore. Why are you here?"
Alex channeled earth magic through his boot, a pillar of earth shooting up beneath Claudia that she leapt backwards from to dodge, Alex thrusting his free hand forward as a wall of force made the upper half of the pillar shoot after her, Claudia slicing through it while spreading her legs, looking to her left flank to find Alex speeding around the pillar to her with lightning bursting in erratic sparks along his blade, him swinging a diagonal slash up at her upon entering striking distance, Claudia taking up her standard fighting position and sliding off the lightning attack by scraping it against her blade, shoving it up and away as the lightning sparked through the air.
He skidded to a stop before her, before they simultaneously concentrated their manas, before Claudia swiped her blade at him, a sharp arc of energy tearing at him while he pumped force magic through his feet, haunching himself up through the air, over it, a split second before she could cleave him in half, him landing on the first pillar he'd made to attack her, making it recede back in the ground in sync with him kneeling just before another arc of energy shot over his head, earth magic rippling through the ground as pillars formed a path that he mentally made, twisting around, then blurring out of sight through a number of coordinated force steps that he made by kicking himself off the next pillar, and the next one after that.
To the untrained, average eye, it seemed as though they all consecutively exploded in the span of a split second after Alex disappeared from sight, but Claudia saw that he traversed the entire distance they'd made between them in less than a second, him blurring past her in such a way that she had to rely on instinct to bring her sword's flat side against her back, hand pressed into the tip for control just before Alex swung his blade towards there, her skidding along the ground before she worked with the inertia and spun around to face him, Claudia smirking, before taking the time to lick up the blood off of her wound.
"Mmm~ You've really gotten crafty, haven't yo — !"
She saw double for a split second, it taking a split second before she repelled the illusion magic, only for her to find Alex right in front of her, palm ramming into her face.
Though he had healing magic lacing his palm, he reversed the effects, to where her body deteriorated from the inside while he invigorated himself, Claudia crying out before a Spatial Transfer occurred, her disappearing from sight, his far sight magic much more potent now that he had her mana inside of him, looking around to find the orc king standing not far behind him, Claudia standing beside Geldrolix, giving a pained glare.
"You're really here, after all this time." Geldrolix chortled, Alex seeing the trace of white, scarred flesh across his chest, the man smirking.
"How's that scar been treating you?" He asked. "I should've aimed for your neck. But I'll fix that."
The orc smirked, chuckling with its booming voice.
"Doubtful. Even if you can use magic, the attack that did this had to have taken a large chunk of your life force out of you. You're at the end of your rope here, boy."
Alex dipped his head, then spread his feet apart.
"All the more reason to cut you both down here."
Geldrolix and Claudia both looked up when they felt a magical pressure come over the village, a barrier forming that started to drain the targets in question, the pair seeming slightly perturbed by it, but not overtly, Alex concentrating once more.
"What is this feeble thing you have?"
"It's everything I'll need." He said, before the mana drain effect of the barrier on them intensified greatly.
Outside, his horse whinnied as it successfully formed the magic seals needed for the barrier.
Then, it paused as it sensed another great power coming towards it.
Power swelling up inside of Alex as it was drained from his enemies, he sped forward while Claudia moved to meet his charge, sword drawn, while she gave a cackle.
"So what?! You think this'll be enough to drag me back?!" She screeched, swinging her sword towards Alex upon entering striking distance, him scraping the blade off-course with his own as he prepared a force thrust, only for Claudia to leap over him at the last second, swinging her sword overhead to bear it down at the back of his skull, only for Alex to redirect his palm and lessen his control stance's stability, blowing himself out of the way as Claudia landed on her feet behind him, him twisting his body to face her as she went on the offensive, delivering swift, brutal attacks to him that drove him back step by step. "NO! NO — IT — WON'T!"
Every word accentuated with a hard swing, Alex grit his teeth, then regained his footing at the moment the woefully out of practice woman let her guard down, a force step enhanced lunge preceding an artificial magic windshield barrier forming around him, him barreling it into her and making her skid along the ground, her eyes widening as Alex closed in for the killing slash, Geldrolix's Spatial Transfer magic teleporting Claudia out of his murderous blade's path of destruction to his blind spot, energy lacing itself in her sword as she swung towards Alex's unprotected back, a pillar of earth shooting upwards to block it, only for Claudia's vision to blur with an another illusion spell, a force palm hurtling a cluster of rock towards Claudia, many hitting her square in the face, her stumbling back dumbly, only for a small pillar to come up under her foot, her stumbling onto her back, a final stomp on the ground by Alex making a sharp pillar of rock impale itself through her body, her screaming out in pain as the bloodied end stuck out of her.
Despite her agony, he spared not a moment, moving forward to finish the deed once and for all, only for his own vision to shift, body becoming heavy.
"Damn it — !" He cursed, falling down on one knee, coughing his own blood up as the effects of burning his soul all those years ago caught up to him in that moment, him clutching at his chest.
His vision began to distort, and he saw Claudia in the same way as she had been before all of this, strong, elegant and dependable, before he shook the vision out of his head.
He looked up to find Geldrolix aiming his own force magic at him, and he forced himself to launch himself back up to the side of the attack, but not enough to spare his leg of the attack, his calf fracturing as he stifled a yell of pain.
'You know what you have to do to succeed.' A deep, knowing voice echoed in the recesses of his mind.
'Shut up!' Alex grit his teeth, speeding along at a run as he ran a circle around the pair despite his injured a small force step taking him just out of the line of fire as Geldrolix repeated his attack repeatedly.
After killing the last orc, Gabriella was breathing heavily.
Fuck. The curse was only just recent but already she felt the pull to give up and let the orcs take her.
Damn it.
With the others far from sight and the mana draining barrier appearing, she reluctantly ran.
Yet, as she reached the very border she got in view of the fight, hesitating.
Did Alex need help?
"What happened, boy? Wasn't this barrier all that you needed to defeat us?" Geldrolix said, aiming ahead of where he was running to to catch him, Alex sliding himself just under the force attack, free hand sliding along the dirt ground, before he used a force palm to send himself up into the air, lightning bursting to life around his sword, him chucking it down at Geldrolix's head, the blade spinning rapidly, arcs of lightning connecting it to his hand as the orc dodged, only for Alex to magnetize the sword and make it spin at a blurred speed back towards the orc as he was mid-dodge, Geldrolix raising his hand and slapping it away to embed it on the ground.
Still using the arcs of lightning as a tether, however, Alex tugged himself down towards Geldrolix, the orc turning around to see him coming, force palm ready in his hand, the orc unable to react in time before Alex, with a hoarse snarl, rammed his palm hard into the orc's scar with his all his strength, the sheer force of the backlash making the entire area shake with an earthquake, Geldrolix roaring out in agony as he was blown back through the air, his aged, yet unhealing, wound reopening as blood gushed onto the ground, Alex himself getting blown back by his own attack and landing on his butt, only to enter a painful, bloody coughing fit as his pain intensified.
Claudia, blown off the pillar from the backlash, landed with a pillar stuck through her body, her grunting as she forced it out the way it came in, then rolled onto her back, using high-tier healing magic to restore herself, free hand scrambling to grasp for her sword.
As Claudia scrambled for her weapon, Alex clutched at his heart, pounding loudly in his eardrums as he reached behind himself, to the porch of a building, and slowly, painstakingly, pushed himself onto his feet, Claudia slowly doing the same as she took up her blade, using the sullied royal sword as a crutch to force herself back up, the damage he'd done to her spinal chord significant even after healing herself.
Breathless, the pair met gazes, the sight of his lover turned enemy making Alex grit his teeth and stand up on his own.
"Oh Alex," she said, taking slow, lumbering steps forward, "poor, stupid Alex. You still don't get it, do you? I belong to Master Geldro now, my soul bonded to his. Nothing, not even killing us, can break that now. Why are you killing yourself getting in his way? He's only trying to show humans who their true masters are — the superior orc race! Why are you trying to take that away from him?! Why are you trying to take ME back to that Hell when you can't even SATISFY ME?!"
Alex wiped the blood on his mouth with his wrist.
"You're pathetic." He spat.
Lightning magic making the electricity spark along his fingers, his sword unstuck itself from the ground, sending his sword spinning back into his hand.
"I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this because it's my duty as a knight." Gripping his saber, he aimed it up at her, then swung it down. "Cutting down monsters who do nothing but cause suffering to the innocent and defenseless."
"Who cares about that?" She asked, strength slowly coming back to her. "You're just making it hard on yourself. If you don't—!"
She screamed in pain as his barrier's mana drain effect intensified greatly, stumbling unevenly on her already unstable balance, before a pillar of earth shot up at a diagonal path, ramming into and breaking her nose, blowing her onto her back.
Before she could recover, four more sharp pillars impaled the back of her elbows and knees, immobilizing her as she cried in pain as he stumbled forward, soon standing over her, only for him to raise his boot and stomp down on her chest, her body pressing harder against the pillars, foot holding her down as the former knight rasped in a breath of pain, her looking up to him, the pain in her eyes clear as day.
He used force magic on her chest, repeatedly, each pulse cracking every last bone in her body, further and further, her screeching out in pain, the embers of his magic and soul left driving him to act with as much wanton sadism as possible on the person who'd wronged so many innocents, forsaken basic morality, in the way she had.
Despite all the power he had, that was all that was left for him at that point, he thought.
He had already destroyed too much of his own soul to have an afterlife, and the person he'd burned it up for in the first place, the very woman he was torturing to death, blatantly cared for nothing but satisfying her cravings.
"I gave it up for YOU." He said, voice low, eyes glassy with rage, grief and regret. "You were EVERYTHING to me."
Despite his emotions, however, he had not forgotten Geldrolix, who, despite sporting less wounds by him, was undoubtedly just as injured and barely able to stand as Claudia was at that moment.
Eyes narrowing, he swiped his hands, a pillar of earth stabbing through Geldrolix's body as well once he tried to get up.
Tone cold, he closed his eyes.
"But that's just another mistake I made." He whispered. "I doubt you even care at this point about what I feel. Either way, you opened my eyes Claudia."
Claudia gazed up at him, finding him having a hollowed out, dead look in his eyes.
"It's my fault that you went down this path, according to you. The least I can do is put you down."
Without any further question, he continued his laborious task of killing Claudia and Geldrolix, him continuously reusing their mana to inflict greater and greater damage on Claudia herself.
But, despite this, she remained alive, though in clear agony, regardless of what he did, and when he eventually decided to leave her broken and battered body in favor of offing Geldrolix, it happened.
A powerful, but untrained, power counteracted his barrier, and as it shattered, he looked up to find a young, black streaked, pink haired, woman with fair skin and long ears flying down to the battlefield, the sight of the orc and woman hurt as they were making her eyes go wide.
"Dial... dro..." Claudia whispered, at the sight of her first born daughter, Geldrolix looking to the first of the new subspecies he and his breeding slave had created.
"Dialdro, please... save your parents from this terrible human." He called. "Save them, for the future of the Dark Elf race!"
Dialdro looked to Alex, who looked back, gripping his sword as tightly as he could as she wordlessly raised her hands to do magic.
"Oh, fuck my life." He muttered. "She was just born a year ago, how is she this old and powerful already?!"
In his psyche, the voice from before spoke.
'As you are, there is no chance for victory whatsoever. Do you STILL plan to reject me?'
'There's just no other choice.' Alex mentally pondered, knowing his soul was dwindling too greatly to take the daughter of his nemeses down.
The voice chuckled lowly, before its influence spread.
He felt his body becoming less within his control than he preferred immediately, like a puppet on strings, and as his eyes glowed, Dialdro felt a chill run up the length of her spine.
"What... What is this pressure I'm feeling?"
The knight standing before her chuckled, then laughed heartily as his body suddenly swelled with power, speaking in a voice that was not his own.
"You should be aware that I am not like other opponents you've faced, little girl. I am a Devil, who's found for himself a vessel worthy of my return to this realm."
Alex's grip tightened, and his blade coated itself in his blood, it curdling into a miasma that mutated the blade further and further, eyes popping up along the metal as the being chuckled, swiping the blade through the air.
In moments, the air became thick with fog, freezing over completely, and, from what Dialdro saw, icy wings formed at Alexis' back, it being far colder than anything she'd ever felt before.
"Let your death be the advent to my return."
This was all Dialdro was able to hear before the Devil-possessed Alex charged.