Primus roared and flames burst out of him, his aura pressing down like a furnace. The human Masters flinched but didn’t scatter. They were trained, disciplined, and they closed in with steady steps, cutting off every escape route.
Primus swung his arm, a wave of fire exploding outward and forcing the closest men to retreat. For a second, I thought he might actually push through. His body was battered, ribs cracked, blood dripping from his mouth, but his will was frightening.
The ground trembled, and suddenly thick walls of stone erupted around him. One of the Masters, a heavyset man in iron armor slammed his palms into the ground, raising an earthen dome that swallowed Primus completely.
For a moment, only muffled roars and firelight bled through the cracks.
Then the dome glowed red, veins of molten heat spreading across it. With a deafening explosion, Primus tore free, his flames spiraling into the night.
But the moment he staggered forward, another Master was already waiting. A long spear of steel shot forward and punched clean through his stomach. The sound of metal piercing flesh echoed, and Primus coughed blood, his body jerking from the impact.
Still he didn’t fall. He gripped the spear with burning hands, fire crawling up the shaft, forcing the wielder to release it. His roar thundered across the fort, and with sheer force of will, he ripped the weapon from his body.
That was when the third Master acted. A wave of icy Essence swept across the ground, and in an instant, Primus was encased in a thick layer of frost. His flames dimmed, smothered under the biting cold. For a heartbeat, it looked like he was done.
But again, he defied them. Cracks formed across the ice, and with a violent surge, he shattered it, flames erupting like a second sun.
The Masters tensed, ready for another exchange—yet the earth user stepped forward calmly. In his hands was a massive black-metal hammer, the head pulsing with condensed Essence. He waited for the right moment, then swung.
The hammer crashed against Primus’s skull with a sickening crack. His flames died instantly, his body collapsing to the dirt, motionless except for a faint twitch.
A beat of silence passed before Roland descended from the sky, Lara still in his grasp. He looked down at the broken demon with cold eyes.
"Put him back in a cell," he ordered. "With his daughter."
The Masters obeyed without hesitation, dragging the unconscious Primus away.
Roland didn’t waste a second after giving his order. He clutched the bone fragment tight in one hand, Lara’s small wrist still in the other, and flew back into the fort.
His figure cut through the sky. I tracked him with my perception as he moved quickly toward the teleportation chamber. Moments later, the circle flared again, swallowing him whole as he vanished from the Lamp Fort.
That left the Masters behind. They dragged Primus’s unconscious body, bound in chains now, while Lara stumbled beside them, crying and struggling to reach her father.
They ignored her completely. I stayed hidden on the wall, Essence folded around me. Quietly, I followed them as they carried their prisoners deeper into the fort.
The Masters stopped in front of a heavy door and opened it with a rune-seal. They pushed Primus inside, shackling him again to the cell wall, then shoved Lara in with him before locking the gate shut.
"Stay there, little demon," one of them muttered as the group left.
The footsteps faded until silence returned. Lara immediately rushed to her father’s side, her small hands shaking his arm.
"Papa, wake up," she whispered again and again, tears streaking her cheeks. But Primus didn’t move. His chest rose shallowly, his skin pale beneath the burns and bruises. He was too far gone.
I exhaled softly and let my body melt into the shadows. With a flicker, I used Phantom Dive. My form blurred, sliding through the walls, and I appeared inside the cell. Lara gasped and stumbled back when she saw me, her crimson eyes wide in fear.
"Quiet," I said gently, raising a finger. My voice made her freeze, and she hesitated.
I knelt beside Primus and extended my hand. My finger began to glow faintly green, Essence shifting and shaping under my control. A beam of green light shot out, striking his chest. The effect was immediate.
His body shuddered as the energy spread through him, weaving into his broken flesh and bones. Cuts sealed, burns vanished, the blood on his lips dried away.
Lara stared in awe as her father’s body mended.
Within moments, the demon’s ragged breathing steadied. His eyelids fluttered before opening, crimson eyes glowing dimly in the darkness. He looked around in confusion until they finally fixed on me.
I lowered my hand, the green glow fading. "You’re welcome," I said simply.
Primus’s eyes flicked from me to Lara. In the next instant, he jerked upright, shoving the little girl behind him with a protective motion. His crimson gaze fixed on me, sharp and suspicious.
"Who are you?" he growled, voice low but dangerous.
I didn’t flinch. Instead, I gave him a small smile. "I’m the owner of the beast who crushed you."
He blinked once, confusion flashing across his features before his eyes narrowed like a blade. "Is this another one of Roland’s sick games?"
I shook my head calmly. "No. Roland is a fool. He doesn’t deserve being associated with me. You, on the other hand... you have something that I might need."
Primus didn’t answer right away. He rose to his full height and looked himself over. His hands moved across his chest, his arms, his side. The bruises, burns, and cuts that had nearly killed him were gone.
"My injuries..." he muttered, more to himself than to me. Then his eyes lifted back to me. "They’re healed."
I nodded once. "Yes. Thanks to me. And I can return them just as easily if I want to."
That earned me a long stare. He studied me from head to toe as though trying to peel back my skin and see what sort of creature I really was.
Then, finally, he said, "No thanks. So tell me... what do you want from me?"
I leaned back slightly.
"Nothing much. Just the location of your world. I’ve never been to a demon world before."
His eyes narrowed further, suspicion sharpening into open hostility. "Why do you want to go to a demon world?"
I shrugged lightly, letting the silence stretch for a beat. "Just curious."
He tilted his head. "And you claim to own that beast?"
I nodded without hesitation.
His lip curled, almost into a snarl. "How is that possible? That place was sealed. Even Roland didn’t dare set foot inside. I don’t believe you."