With a loud explosion, Roygerd punched down.
The floor shook. As if an explosive had just detonated there, a small crater formed. Unfortunately, he missed his target again. And a shot almost blinded him if he hadn't been fast enough to block it.
Theo ran around the place like he owned it, free and agile, but with inhuman precision and deadly air.
"A strong vessel. I like it!"
After Roygerd, a fat, bald man with strength not far behind his own rushed toward Theo with a battleaxe in hand.
He swung it down, but only managed to cleave the floor.
Then an elemental bolt landed on his right arm, holing it. Unlike Roygerd, who couldn't be damaged by Theo's Gemgun, this fat man seemed weaker.
But something about him was strange. Theo had a premonition about him.
So he shot the man again. This time at the head.
His shot perfectly holed his brain.
However—
The man didn't stop moving.
"Strong vessel, strong vessel, wahahaha!"
The fat man kept yelling that while he chased Theo, swinging his battleaxe.
Roygerd scoffed from the side as he adjusted his necktie.
"You wouldn't be able to kill Tratbone even if you fired your Gemgun until the last shot. He was no ordinary man," said Roygerd before he joined the fray.
Meanwhile, outside the heated fight, Tizmilly and Carole were hastily trying to free Timmy from the shackles.
They didn't have time to carefully look for the key, so Tizmilly used her sword to cut the chains. Carole caught him as he fell.
"Timmy... You... Wh-what have they done to you..."
Carole couldn't hold back her tears after seeing how bad his state was. Dried blood covered his entire body, with scars everywhere. Some from whips, some from knives or something sharp. Tizmilly and Carole could feel the pain just from seeing the scars alone.
The fight intensified. Theo barely evaded a punch from Roygerd when Tratbone came at him from the other side with his battleaxe. Theo countered by shooting his wrist, separating his palm from his arm. It left Tratbone unable to swing his battleaxe properly and he missed Theo completely.
Then Theo kicked him in the face and cast Levitation on him. Duration: 5 seconds. Tratbone could only flail his limbs confusedly as he was thrown into the air and stuck there.
"Let's go, Miss Carole!"
Tizmilly was afraid their presence would only hinder Theo, so she urged Carole.
"O-okay..." Carole nodded and immediately got up with Timmy in her arms.
They avoided every piece of debris and stone produced by Roygerd's punches as they headed toward the exit. Since neither Roygerd nor Tratbone were interested in them, they got out of the room without much trouble.
Leaving Theo alone didn't align with Tizmilly's idealism, but she knew she couldn't do anything to help him in a high-level fight like this at the moment.
_If only I were stronger!_
Tizmilly gave the basement a last glance before following Carole to the kitchen. They had to meet up with the children and get them out quickly before The Rats' members surrounded the place.
_Please... Be safe, Mister Roost!_
She prayed for his safety as she opened the door to the kitchen.
...
_Finally, I can fight without worries._
Theo sighed after he saw Tizmilly and Carole successfully get out of the basement.
He paused to wipe his sweat and check the remaining shots left in his Gemgun.
_8 shots left... I should use one to at least blind one of Roygerd's eyes. Otherwise, this fight will continue until this building collapses and we all die._
Roygerd also paused to control his breathing.
"The winner is set, young one," he muttered, before raising his fists again.
At the same time, Tratbone plummeted from the air after his 5 seconds of floating. His legs sprained after falling from that height, but he stood up like nothing had happened. Or rather, Theo even noticed that the wounds he'd inflicted on him were already starting to close at a visible speed.
Only after seeing that did Theo realize Tratbone's true identity.
"Demon, huh? As expected."
Roygerd took a step forward, but halted after hearing Theo's words. Surprise filled his eyes.
"How?" he asked Theo.
And Theo responded with a shrug.
"I am the Abyss Crusher, so... Well..."
Roygerd's eyelid twitched. He knew the title was certainly something Theo made up on the spot because he didn't want him to know his real name. However, whether his name truly was Abyss Crusher or not was irrelevant now after he'd shown he knew about the existence of Demons.
More precisely, the Half-Demons they had created.
"As expected, I really have to kill you here."
Theo smiled.
"But are you even able to do that?"
They stared at each other in silence.
Only the sound of Tratbone slowly moving toward Theo with his twisted legs could be heard.
Until,
A heartbeat later.
Just as Tratbone raised his battleaxe to cleave Theo, the two launched at each other, leaving Tratbone with only a crushed floor.
Theo and Roygerd met at the center of the room.
Fists thrown, they exchanged pure martial attacks for the first time.
Theo was clearly faster, so he could land his punches while evading all of Roygerd's. But Roygerd's strength was greater. One landed punch could immediately critically wound Theo.
As usual, Theo cast Levitation on Roygerd whenever his punches connected.
Roygerd's huge build didn't help him tank punches like before. He was gradually being pushed back, and his footing was unstable.
But his Magic had greatly enhanced his muscle. Theo's physical attacks couldn't damage him that much, no matter how irritating it was to be on the receiving end in a martial fight like this.
They only distanced themselves after Tratbone joined in with a downward swing, which missed once more.
Theo looked at his reddened knuckles.
"You're so damn tough!" he exclaimed.
Meanwhile, Roygerd was frowning.
"What was that?"
What he meant by 'that', of course, was how Theo pushed him away even though his strength and body weight were clearly superior.
"A magic? Yours?" he asked again.
Theo, of course, wouldn't let him know about his Magic, so he only shrugged in response.
"By the way, that little Demon of yours is irritating. Can I kill it first?" Theo asked him instead of giving Roygerd an answer.
Roygerd entered his fighting stance again.
"Do you think I'll let you?"
Theo grinned.
"Oh, you will. 'Cause that's your only option."
"Nonsense!" Roygerd hollered back.
They launched at each other again. Theo moved like a weightless rocket, while Roygerd moved like a bulldozer.
Both started exchanging punches again. But this time, Theo also started using kicks, while Roygerd started smashing the floor because he always missed, which never failed to force Theo to recoil from him.
However, suddenly, Theo extended an arm holding a Gemgun when their fight was at its peak, aiming it at Roygerd's left eye. Roygerd barely avoided the shot, letting the bolt scorch his cheek instead of his eye.
He avoided fatal damage, but that made him lose balance.
Theo gave him a spinning kick to the jaw in that opening, sending him into the air. He also cast Levitation on him so he wouldn't be able to return to the ground soon. Duration: 1 minute.
Next, Theo shot Tratbone, who was limping toward him, separating his other palm from his arm. Even then, his focus was completely on Theo. He didn't even seem to feel pain.
Possessed Ones.
That was how they were called in the game.
_Children who were sacrificed as vessels to Demons from a young age, eventually turning them into Half-Demons like this..._
In the game, enemies like Tratbone looked cool with their demonic backstories, but when they existed in the real world, Theo could only feel disgust toward people crazy enough to create an abomination like Tratbone.
Theo picked up Tratbone's battleaxe, then cleaved him using his own weapon.
Of course, that also wasn't enough to kill him, or it.
Theo needed to cut it more, and more.
Only after the limbs were sliced into 33 parts did it finally stop regenerating and die for sure.
Theo frowned and sighed at the bloody mess he had made.
_This is why I didn't want to get involved with the main plot of the game..._ He silently lamented his previous decision to kill Tratbone.
Theo threw the battleaxe away.
At the same time, Roygerd returned after figuring out how to move his body while under the influence of Levitation.
His veins bulged to their maximum when he looked at what was left of Tratbone.
"You killed him..." he muttered in a grim voice, as if the matter was life and death to him.
A broken plank fell between them. The mansion was at its limit after enduring their superhuman fight until now. Soon, it would collapse, sealing the history of The Rats tightly into the ground.
Only their crimes and sins would be left behind. All recorded in the documents Theo stored inside his clothes.
Then another plank fell.
The two stared at each other and realized they were both already tired. Not only was their stamina at its limit, but they were also starting to run low on mana.
If they continued the fight, both would die.
Either die by their opponent's hands, or be crushed to death by the collapsing building.
Roygerd didn't mind dying if he could kill Theo, who knew about them, but he knew he couldn't achieve that goal with his current power.
Theo could kill him if he used all his mana to bring him into the sky and let him fall to his death, but he didn't want to die with him.
Both stared into each other's eyes and noticed their opponent's hesitation.
Roygerd was the one who broke the silence.
"They say the world is smaller than you think, and I believe that's true. We'll meet again, kid. And next time, I won't let you go this easily," said Roygerd while readjusting his necktie, before slowly turning around as if he knew Theo wouldn't shoot him, then leaving the room.
Theo sighed after he was completely alone. He activated the safety on his Gemgun, then strapped it to his waist, before using Levitation on himself to fly out of the collapsing mansion.
After Theo got out of the building through the window, the mansion finally couldn't support its weight anymore and started to collapse. The floors fell, planks and stones broke, furniture shattered—leaving nothing but a crumbled building behind.
Floating in the air, Theo looked around and noticed the place was surrounded by the guards of the Dungeon City. Among the guards he saw familiar faces.
Tizmilly, Carole, and that boy named Timmy, Carole's little brother.
And then, the one who had forced the guards to move and also the one The Academy sent to help Theo and his party, Professor Golmind.
_Finally, I can rest easy,_ Theo thought, sighing in relief.