Before Violet's arrival
Arkanis moved through the streets at an unhurried pace, crimson robes whispering against the stone as veinblood cherubs drifted behind him in silent formation. Nilus walked at his side, glancing toward the distant coliseum before finally voicing the question that had been gnawing at him.
"Could you not simply destroy the entire coliseum, my lord?"
Arkanis did not stop walking, only turning his head slightly to regard Nilus with a sideways glance. "I could," he replied calmly. "If it were ordinary. But it is not." His gaze shifted forward, settling on the massive structure looming ahead. "There is powerful magic protecting its interior. The outer walls would offer no resistance, but the arena itself…" He paused, eyes narrowing. "It is wrapped in one of the strongest earth affinities I have ever felt. Likely sustained through some form of Equivalent Exchange. That is why I cannot simply erase it."
He lifted a hand, gesturing toward the coliseum as he slowed to a stop. "Speaking of magic," he continued evenly, "I can sense several competent practitioners nearby. One of them is right there."
Arkanis pointed his staff toward a nearby building. A fireball erupted from its head, streaking across the street before slamming into the structure. The impact detonated in a violent bloom of flame, the explosion consuming the four-story building in seconds as stone and fire roared outward.
"And the others are emerging right—"
He cut himself off, turning sharply as he raised his staff. A fire arrow struck its shaft and dissipated harmlessly.
"Now."
He and the surrounding demons followed the arrow's path to see Clara standing in the street, her fire bow drawn, her eyes flicking briefly toward the burning ruins with visible concern.
"Good thing you chose fire," a voice said coolly. Amara stepped out from the wreckage, completely unharmed, her fire barrier shimmering faintly around her. "Otherwise I might have been troubled."
"You are a very bad man, you know," Annabel added as she emerged from another building, arms crossed, her gaze sharp. "Making Zeva cry like that?"
Above them, Samwell hovered high in the air, magic holding him aloft as he glared down at Arkanis and the demons below. "Let us see what kind of magic you demons really use," he said coldly, "and I will show you how worthless it is compared to mine."
Arkanis took them in one by one, expression unreadable beneath his hood. "Fighting fire with fire," he remarked. "A sensible choice, if you lack an extinguisher."
He raised one hand and made a subtle motion. Nilus and the veinblood cherubs hesitated, then obeyed, retreating and floating back to what Arkanis clearly deemed a safe distance. Nilus glanced back once before withdrawing fully.
"What is this?" Samwell asked, eyes narrowing further. "You plan to fight all of us alone?"
"I do," Arkanis replied without hesitation. "There is no reason for them to risk their lives when I am all that is needed to defeat you."
The street grew taut with tension as the four of them held their ground, eyes locked on the Demon Lord. Magic gathered, stances tightened, every one of them weighing the same question—who would strike first, them or him.
Annabel made the decision.
A massive shard of jagged ice tore free from the air and hurtled toward Arkanis at full speed. He did not move. Just before impact, the ice detonated into a violent burst of steam, the heat blooming outward and swallowing the space in front of him.
"Obstructing my view?" Arkanis remarked calmly. "A good idea."
He raised one palm, wind magic compressing inward as he condensed the billowing steam into a dense, swirling mass in his hand. In the middle of the motion, he heard the sharp, rapid clatter of bolts—Clara's repeating fire shots streaking through the haze—while shadows crawled up from beneath his feet, dragging at his movement.
"A nice combination," he observed.
He finished condensing the steam, then spun his staff lightly between his fingers. The shaft flicked and turned with surgical precision, deflecting and outright negating every incoming fire bolt. In the same motion, he hurled the compressed steam forward.
Amara, who had been lining up a finishing strike with her superheated needle, was forced to halt as the steam burst across her vision, blinding her at the critical moment.
Arkanis tapped his foot against the stone.
The street responded.
Stone warped and clung upward, locking around Clara's legs from the waist down and pinning her in place mid-step. She staggered, forced to stop as the ground itself held her fast.
Annabel did not hesitate. She unleashed another spell—curved blades of wind laced with the burning heat of her soul flame, slicing forward in a lethal arc.
Arkanis tapped his staff once against the ground.
He vanished.
He reappeared directly behind Annabel. Before she could fully turn, his palm struck her square in the back. The impact sent her flying, her body crashing through the side of a building in a spray of shattered stone and dust.
Arkanis lifted his gaze.
Samwell was already descending, his body faintly aglow from layered light magic, power reinforcing his frame as he came down with a crushing kick. Arkanis backstepped, the blow smashing into the street where he had been standing a moment earlier. Samwell followed immediately, twisting and hurling a shadow bolt, which the Demon Lord simply leaned to avoid.
"A shadow bolt?" Arkanis said flatly. "How archaic."
Heat flared behind him.
He turned, raising a single hand as Amara's superheated needle shot toward him. Gravity folded inward around his fingers, crushing the needle midair into a warped lump that dissipated into the air.
Samwell was already on him again.
Enhanced by both light magic and enhancements, Samwell drove forward with his fists. A right hook—dodged. A left to the body—caught and blocked cleanly by the staff. A follow-up kick—sidestepped with minimal movement.
"You are moving near the speed of sound right now," Arkanis said, sounding critical. "Which is quite slow if you intend to hit me."
Wind compressed violently into his palm. He stepped in and struck Samwell square in the chest.
The concussive blast sent Samwell rocketing upward, coughing violently as he was thrown high into the air.
*He didn't even enhance himself!?* Samwell realized in shock as he tumbled. *Is he so far above me physically that even with two layers of magical enhancements he can still hurt me without trying!?*
Amara reappeared beside Clara in a flash of heat. "Get out of this already!" she snapped, placing a hand against the stone binding her.
The street softened and melted away, freeing Clara's legs.
"I cannot use fire magic the same way you do!" Clara snapped back as she staggered free, already forming a spear of fire in her hands.
"Clearly," Amara muttered, eyes narrowed on Arkanis. "Ugh, he is blocking or avoiding everything. Even if I summoned my phoenixes, I do not think they would be able to do anything."
Arkanis regarded the two of them for a moment, head tilting slightly. "You are sisters?" he asked.
They blinked.
"No!" both answered at the same time.
"But you two are—" Arkanis was cut off mid-sentence as he twisted aside just as the spot he had been occupying was torn apart by a jagged bolt of lightning. Stone and debris scattered violently, and when the crackling light faded, a new figure had appeared where he had just stood.
"Fuck it," Ercale said, lightning still crackling faintly around him as he glared at Arkanis. "Since she hasn't healed yet, and I know the ape will yell at me for letting these morons get killed, I'll deal with you early."
He leveled his gaze, expression hard.
"Come on. Let us finish our fight. I will not run this time."