Chapter 24 : The Devil's favorite toy : part 2

The air was thick with tension, every breath heavy with the weight of impending violence. The silence wasn’t just silence—it was the pause before a storm, the moment of stillness before the world broke. Kurogami stood before them, his dark figure cloaked in an unnatural energy that rippled through the air like a living shadow. His red eyes glinted with cruelty, and a sinister smile danced on his lips like he already knew how this would end. Behind him, the cavern wall smoldered from the earlier attack, casting a hellish glow across the battlefield, painting everything in shades of red and ruin.

Sora stood, barely holding himself up, his hand pressed against his bleeding side. Blood oozed between his fingers, warm and terrifyingly real. Beside him, Mikuya stood tall despite the bruises and cuts—her katana gleaming like a shard of moonlight. Her posture was still, her eyes fixed on the enemy, unwavering.

Kurogami’s voice sliced through the silence. “Let’s begin… shall we?”

In the blink of an eye, he vanished. A whisper of wind, and then he was mid-air, palm extended, dark energy spiraling like a storm from his hand. A blast of black, crackling power surged toward them.

Mikuya’s instincts kicked in. She shoved Sora aside and darted forward, slicing through the blast with her katana. The cursed energy split, howled, and exploded against the walls. The cavern shook, and flaming debris rained down like meteors.

Mikuya didn’t hesitate. She dashed in, her katana a blur, dancing like silver fire. Strike after strike, she moved like a storm—sharp, graceful, unrelenting. But Kurogami parried effortlessly, summoning a blade of jagged energy from thin air. Sparks flew as steel clashed with pure magic. Her strikes were beautiful and deadly—but he was faster. Stronger. And worst of all, he was laughing.

“You’re good,” he sneered, parrying her next blow with ease. “But not good enough.”

With a brutal counter, he struck her square in the chest. The force launched her across the chamber like a ragdoll, slamming her into the stone wall. She dropped to one knee, coughing blood.

Sora’s eyes widened with rage. “I… won’t let you hurt her!”

Flames of cursed energy erupted around him, crackling like wildfire. Glowing marks spread across his skin, and his violet eyes burned with raw fury. His blade ignited with cursed flames.

With a roar, he charged. The cavern lit up as he and Kurogami collided. Blade against blade. Cursed fire against darkness.

Sora fought with desperation, his movements wild and brutal. He landed a hit—Kurogami hissed as black blood spurted from his arm. But it only made him smile wider.

“Finally,” Kurogami whispered. “A real fight.”

Tendrils of darkness erupted from his back, writhing like snakes. Sora slashed one away, but another struck him hard in the gut. He was thrown back, smashing into a stone pillar with a sickening crack.

“Sora!” Mikuya screamed, voice cracking from pain and fury.

Despite her broken ribs, despite the pain, she stood. Blood ran down her face, and her limbs trembled—but she raised her katana again.

Kurogami turned, amused. “Still trying? How adorable.”

He charged. Mikuya met him halfway. Their battle was a dance of death—steel against shadow. She ducked, spun, slashed across his side, drawing more black blood. But he growled and summoned a sphere of crushing force, slamming it into her chest.

She hit the ground hard, blood pouring from her mouth.

“Pathetic,” Kurogami spat, stepping closer. “You fought well, little doll… but it’s over.”

Sora groaned, trying to move, but his body screamed in protest. Blood dripped from his lips.

Kurogami approached him slowly, dark energy crackling in his hands. “You’re still breathing? Fine. Let’s fix that.”

He struck again. Sora was thrown back like a broken puppet, coughing violently.

Mikuya tried to crawl forward. Her voice, barely a whisper: “Sora…”

Kurogami crouched beside her, his breath cold. “You won’t be able to protect him,” he said, voice like poison. “Just like you couldn’t protect your precious big brother, Saito.”

Her breath hitched.

He stood, towering above her broken form. “Yes, I know all about him. The hero who died screaming. And now… you’ll watch Sora die, too.”

He raised his hand, ready to end it.

But something changed.

Mikuya’s eyes widened. A flood of memories surged through her—Saito’s laughter, his protective smile, the warmth of his hand on her head, the promise he made. The world fell quiet. Her pain dulled. The air changed.

Sora blinked through his pain. Something was wrong. Or right. He wasn’t sure.

Kurogami turned.

Mikuya was standing.

Slowly, painfully, impossibly—she rose. Her body shook. Blood dripped from her chin. Her katana trembled in her hand. But she was upright.

Her eyes were different. No longer filled with pain or fear or rage.

They were empty.

A void.

Black as death.

Sora’s heart skipped. “Mikuya…?”

Kurogami took a step back, frowning. “What… is this?”

A pulse rippled from her body—cold, ancient, emotionless. It wasn’t cursed energy. It wasn’t magic.

It was something else.

Something long forgotten.

“You shouldn’t be standing,” Kurogami muttered. “You should be dead.”

But she didn’t answer.

She raised her blade.

And for the first time in his life—

Kurogami felt fear.