I stumbled back, my breath catching in my throat as Sedeus took a step forward. His movements were almost casual, as if he hadn’t just effortlessly ended a life. My mind raced, sifting through spells, strategies, anything that might give me an edge, but everything felt insignificant in the face of his overwhelming presence.

  Still, he didn’t attack, and against my better judgment, I unleashed a Lightning Bolt at him. The crackling energy surged forward, but he sidestepped it effortlessly, as if it were nothing more than a child’s toy. In the next heartbeat, he was beside me, his speed defying even my Slow Time spell. My world slowed, but he moved through it like a predator through water, fluid and unstoppable. His fist connected with my face before I could react, the impact sending me flying. I crashed into a bookshelf, the wood splintering under the force, books tumbling down around me in a chaotic rain. Pain exploded across my jaw, and I tasted blood. My vision blurred, but I forced myself to focus.

  I rolled to my feet, my heart pounding in my chest, and fired a combo of spells—Black Hole, Quicksand, Lightning—anything I could think of. He dodged them all with an almost lazy grace, his movements so quick they were little more than a blur. One of my lightning bolts grazed his shoulder, leaving a scorch mark on his skin, but it healed almost instantly, the flesh knitting itself back together before my eyes.

  Desperation clawed at me, and I activated my Slow Time spell again, trying to buy myself a few precious seconds. But even in the slowed world, Sedeus moved with unsettling speed. I could see the individual muscles in his body flexing as he closed the distance between us, his eyes locked onto mine with a predatory focus.

  I summoned a Chaos Orb, the swirling mass of energy forming in my hand, but before I could release it, Sedeus was on me. His hand wrapped around my wrist, his grip like iron, and he squeezed. The orb dissipated, the energy fizzling out as pain shot up my arm. I tried to pull free, but it was like fighting against a mountain.

  “You’re stronger than the others,” Sedeus said, his voice low and calm, as if we were having a casual conversation. “But it’s not enough.”

  He backhanded me, the force of the blow sending me crashing to the ground. I tasted blood in my mouth, and my vision swam, but I forced myself back to my feet.

  I poured energy into my Mana Shield, and I felt it become stronger. He struck again, his fist connecting with my ribs, the force lifting me off my feet and sending me crashing to the ground. Pain exploded through my side, and I gasped for air, my vision swimming. I rolled to the side just as his foot came down where my head had been, the ground cracking beneath the force of his strike. I stared in disbelief as he stepped closer, his smile widening.

  “You can’t win,” he said, his voice almost gentle. “But I admire your persistence.”

  He was so much faster than me that it was terrifying; I stood virtually no chance against him. I had to fight smart, or he would wise up and just pin me to the ground, inflicting real damage instead of merely throwing me around like a rag doll.

  Plus, he seemed to become more lucid by the second.

  If landing magical damage on him was impossible, my only hope was to inflict emotional damage instead. Maybe I had the right idea at the start before Corvin interrupted. But I needed something to trigger him back into his stupor.

  You would think coming up with something when my life was on the line would be easy, but I had already taken some blows to the head, which didn’t help me at all.

  But Sedeus wasn’t giving me time to think. He was a whirlwind of motion, his attacks relentless, his speed overwhelming. I summoned a black hole in front of him, but he sidestepped it, barely slowing him down. I tried to slow him down again with a Quicksand, but he was on me before I could complete the spell, his hand closing around my throat.

  I struggled, clawing at his grip, but it was like trying to bend steel. His fingers tightened, cutting off my air even through Mana Shield, and I felt a surge of panic. This was it. I was going to die here, just like Corvin. But as my vision began to darken, I realized this was also an opportunity.

  Musterin whatever strength I had left, I unleashed a chaos bolt at his side. He released me, and I fell to the ground, gasping for air.

  I expected a scream, but it must have been a weaker version of the spell. Even so, he clutched his side, the wound remaining open. He kept looking at the wound, clearly confused about why it wasn’t healing.

  It gave me precious moments to catch my breath and let blood rush back to my brain. His astonishment didn’t last long, though. The wild, crazed look in his eyes faded, replaced by something more calculating, almost inquisitive. The pain must have triggered something in him, snapping him back to clarity.

  “You can’t be a simple assassin,” he said, his voice low and measured. “Where did you get this spell?”

  This was it—my chance to strike back, not just physically, but emotionally. “She taught me,” I said, my voice steady, surprising even myself with the confidence in it. “Trained me to defeat you.”

  Unfortunately, he smiled. Not the cold, empty smile from before, but a real one, reaching his eyes. “I’m lucid now,” he said, almost amused. “But nice try.” His gaze flicked to the door, as if he could hear the commotion outside.

  “I see you brought friends,” he said, his tone casual, as if we were discussing the weather. “Guess there’s no point in talking anymore.” With that, he moved to attack me.

  Fortunately for me, his wound seemed to slow him down. He was still fast, but now he was almost at my level—which wasn’t saying much, given the state I was in. My body was a patchwork of bruises, and my neck throbbed with every heartbeat, sending flashes of pain through me with every pulse.

  I focused on avoiding his grabs, weaving and dodging as best I could. My spells, which had been useless before, now had a chance to land. A trapped leg here, a slight imbalance there, I managed to connect with a few hits, each one a small victory. But it wasn’t enough.

  He had self-healing, and I didn’t. The longer the fight dragged on, the clearer it became that I was losing. I coughed blood after every deep breath, and as I concentrated on maintaining my Mana Shield, my legs began to shake. At first, it was slight, but it only got worse as the fight continued.

  He, on the other hand, looked better and better with each passing moment. The only sign of injury was the wound on his abdomen, still visible. I was running out of time, and we both knew it.

  The Chaos Bolt was my only hope, but it was just too slow, especially now that he was fighting strategically. I almost wished he’d grab me by the neck again and start monologuing like some overconfident villain. At least then I’d have a moment to breathe. But no, his attacks were relentless, methodical, and they were wearing me down fast. Desperation clawed at me, and I even screamed for help a few times, knowing full well that his guards might show up instead of my people. But what else could I do? I was running out of options.

  I tried making a break for the door, hoping to escape into the throne room where I might find some advantage, but he saw through the plan immediately, cutting me off with ease. His movements were still too fast, even slowed by his wound.

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  Then there was the portal. It was the nuclear option, bandoning everything and everyone to save myself. And yeah, between my life and staying here to die, I’d choose me every time. The problem was, the portal spell was the slowest of all, requiring intense focus and time I didn’t have. I needed a plan, and I needed it quick.

  I pivoted the fight, maneuvering us toward the bed. Maybe the sight of her would buy me a second or two, just enough to start the summoning. I dodged another grab, throwing myself onto the bed and landing near her lifeless form. He followed, leaping onto the bed and ripping the drapes down in one swift motion.

  “You’re just going to step over her body like it’s nothing?” I asked, my voice strained but sharp.

  He hesitated, his eyes flicking to her for just a second. It was all I needed. I began concentrating on the portal, pouring every ounce of focus into the spell. But he was on me before I could complete it, his fist slamming into my side and breaking my concentration. The portal fizzled out before it could fully form.

  “She is immaterial,” he said coldly, his fists beginning to glow a deep, ominous red. The light illuminated his face, making him look even more terrifying than before. “I will find her sooner or later and kill the real one.”

  I didn’t know what the change in color meant, but the first hit that connected didn’t have the same raw power as before. For a moment, I thought that was a good thing until I realized the blows were causing some kind of internal bleeding that bypassed my Mana Shield entirely. I coughed up more blood, and a creeping weakness spread through my body. I was falling apart, and fast.

  This was it. The moment of truth. I had one last idea, a desperate gamble that had worked once before in the arena. Maybe, just maybe, I’d get lucky again. I started pretending to lose energy faster than I actually was. Over the course of a minute, I stopped attacking altogether, focusing only on defense. I overacted my coughs, making them louder and more frequent, and after a particularly clumsy dash, I fell to one knee, struggling to rise. He took the bait, attacking and knocking me to the ground.

  I braced myself for a barrage of hits, but instead, he stepped back, keeping his distance. “I’m thousands of years old,” he said, his voice dripping with disdain. “You really think I’d fall for your little trick?”

  “Would’ve been nice,” I whispered, blood pooling in my mouth.

  By now, even if he left me alone, I probably couldn’t portal out. My body was too broken, my energy too drained. The only option left was to buy time. Every extra second alive could provide an opening for some miracle to happen. Not that I believed in miracles, but what else did I have?

  “You’ve won,” I struggled to say, my voice barely above a whisper. “It was just my luck to find you on your good day.”

  Instead of responding, he blinked to me in an instant, his leg striking my head with brutal force. The impact sent me crashing into the wall, my vision swimming as pain exploded through my skull. I slumped to the ground, barely able to move, my body screaming in protest.

  Just as I began to resign myself to my inevitable demise, I saw a shadow in the corner of my eye, emerging from the corridor. Sedeus must have seen it too, because his eyes darted across the room, and for the briefest moment, I could have sworn I saw fear flicker across his face. Then he disappeared in a blur of blue light, moving faster than I could track.

  Whatever—or whoever—had entered moved just as fast as us. Without the energy to activate my Slow Time spell, they were nothing more than a blur of motion to me. But the newcomer was faster. In one of the rare moments they slowed down, I saw a spear impale Sedeus, the tip bursting through his chest. He roared in anger, breaking the shaft and continuing to fight with the spear still lodged inside him. Hope flared within me. I didn’t know if he was actually losing, but at least he was on the defensive now.

  As I lay there, too weak to move, I could only watch the battle unfold. Gradually, I began to catch glimpses of the newcomer. Their silhouette was smaller than Sedeus’s—a woman, perhaps. The long black hair I spotted seemed to confirm it. She moved with deadly precision, a dagger now in her hands, and it connected again and again, each strike slowing him down further. But she wasn’t unscathed. His fists had switched back to the yellow glow they’d had initially, and she took a few hits, though she seemed to shrug them off—for now.

  Then, in a sudden and decisive move, she trapped him. A shimmering web of energy erupted from her hands, wrapping around Sedeus and pinning him in place. He struggled, his muscles straining against the bonds, but for the first time, he couldn’t break free. The woman turned to me, her piercing eyes locking onto mine.

  “Tiberius,” she said, her voice calm but commanding. “Hit him with the spell that injured him. Now.”

  I stared at her, stunned. It was Bendis. My mind raced with questions, but there was no time for answers. Sedeus was already beginning to break free from her restraints.

  Summoning the last of my strength, I raised my hand, focusing on the Chaos Bolt. My body trembled with the effort, but I managed to fire it. The bolt surged forward, a swirling mass of raw energy, and struck Sedeus square in the chest.

  He cried out, the sound reverberating through the room as the Chaos Bolt struck him. His body convulsed, the energy consuming his flesh and the glowing restraints Bendis had placed on him. For a moment, it seemed as though it might not be sufficient, but suddenly, his chest caved in, and Sedeus collapsed, his body falling to the ground.

  I fell back, gasping for air, my vision blurring as the room spun around me. Bendis stood over Sedeus, her expression one of pure jubilation, a stark contrast to the cold, calculating demeanor I’d always associated with her. For a moment, she just stared at his fallen form, as if she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing. Then she turned to me, her eyes softening just slightly, though the triumphant grin never left her face.

  “I can’t believe it actually worked,” she said, her voice tinged with disbelief and a hint of pride. “I knew you had something to counter him.” She paused, her tone shifting to something calmer, almost soothing. “Rest, Tiberius,” she said. “It’s over.”

  All I wanted to do was collapse and sleep it off, but even with Sedeus dead, I knew we weren’t out of danger. The sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor, and moments later, Amra entered the room. She stopped abruptly at the sight of the former demi-god’s lifeless body, her expression unreadable. She stood motionless, as if she wasn’t ready to believe it was truly over. Or maybe she regretted not being the one to deliver the final blow.

  “He’s dead?” she finally asked, her voice quiet, almost disbelieving.

  Bendis, surprisingly, remained silent, her gaze distant, as if lost in thought. Struggling to stay conscious, I forced myself to answer, more to draw Amra’s attention to me than anything else. “Yes, he’s dead,” I managed to say, my voice weak and raspy. The side effects of the Chaos Bolt had left me in an even worse state than before, if that was possible.

  Amra turned to look at me, her eyes widening as she took in my pitiful condition. She shook her head and knelt beside me, her hands glowing with the familiar warmth of a healing spell. “This should help,” she said, “But we need to hurry. More guards have arrived, and soon we’ll be overwhelmed. There aren’t many of us left.”

  I didn’t care about the future, about the guards, or about anything else. All I wanted was the comforting warmth of the healing spell and the instant relief it promised. For a brief moment, I felt the energy flow into me, soothing the pain. But just as quickly, the sensation vanished. Confused, I opened my eyes to see why she had stopped—only to find a dagger protruding from her neck. Her body crumpled to the floor, lifeless.

  I raised my eyes, my vision swimming, to see Bendis standing behind her, her features calm and collected, as if she hadn’t just murdered someone in cold blood. “What did you do?” I managed to croak out, my voice barely audible.

  She smiled, a chilling, almost playful expression. “Well, she wanted to heal you. We can’t have that, can we?” she said, her tone light, as if she were discussing the weather.

  Betrayed. Again. I would have laughed if I had any energy left. But why? Even that question made me want to laugh. Here I was, on the brink of death, and the most pressing matter on my mind was finding some sense of closure in her betrayal. How pathetic.

  The sound of more footsteps reached my ears, and whatever faint hope I might have still clung to disappeared as Sedeus’s personal guards entered the room. They moved to surround Bendis, their weapons drawn. I didn’t know if it made me feel better, but I hoped she would die here today, alongside me.

  Instead of attacking, though, the guards hesitated, their eyes falling on the corpse of their former master. Come on, I thought bitterly. They had to have some desire to avenge him. But no one moved.

  “Jarin,” Bendis said, her gaze locking onto one of the guards. She knew him by name. Of course she did. “I’ve killed him. You serve me now, or you die.”

  The pieces clicked into place in my mind, and I felt like a fool. How could I have been so stupid? In retrospect, it all made sense, even the little things, like why she hadn’t taken the bracer for herself. She had been playing me from the very beginning.

  “Do I start killing,” Bendis continued, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “or are you going to take a knee?”

  Jarin hesitated for a moment, then dropped to one knee. The others followed suit, one by one. I couldn’t believe it. I was the idiot who had done her dirty work, the pawn she had manipulated so easily. Why hadn’t I just killed her in that damn sewer? I had to be the guy who tried not to kill people, and now it had cost me everything.

  Bendis walked over to me, her expression softening for a moment. “For what it’s worth,” she said, her voice carrying a surprising amount of genuine emotion, “I’m truly sorry you have to die.” I could almost believe her. Almost. “But that spell of yours makes you too dangerous to be left alive.”