The Blazing Exorcist

Rei was already gone.

Hidden deep in the bushes, breath shaky, heart pounding. From there, he could still see everything.

He knew he should run.

Get as far away as possible. But his legs wouldn’t move. A part of him felt it.

Something unbelievable was about to happen.

And he was right.

The demon with claws vanished.

A sharp crack split the air, black smoke bursting where he had been, and then he was already behind Enshin.

Rei’s breath caught.

“Smoke to disappear, classic trick but … this guy is so fast. It really looks like teleportation.”

Claws slashed down in a rapid storm.

One strike.

Then two.

Then more.

Metal screeched against a blade wrapped in fire.

Enshin barely moved . He turned. Parried. Twisted his wrist. Stopping every blow like nothing.

The black-masked demon disappeared again.

Left. Right. Above.

Each time, the exorcist’s blade was already there.

From the bushes, Rei’s eyes widened.

That clawed magician… impressive. But Enshin… he’s on another level. Predicting jumps I can barely see.”

“Is that all?” Enshin said casually, blocking another strike.

“And you?” He glanced toward the red-masked man “Are you planning to just watch?”

The commander chuckled.

“Why rush?” he replied calmly. “A good show should be appreciated.”

The assassin snarled, muscles tensing.

“Tch… like he needs to move. I’m more than enough to tear you apart.”

His claws dug into the ground, impatience dripping from every movement.

Enshin tilted his head.

“Oh really?”

He shoved his blade into his pocket and pulled out several small red spheres .

The black-masked demon stiffened, eyes narrowing, gaze locked on Enshin’s hands.

The exorcist tossed the spheres to the ground.

They exploded in a blinding flash.

The demon raised his arm instinctively, shielding his eyes.

In the same instant, Enshin drew his blade.

Flames surged, wrapping the demon like a fiery lasso.

Rei’s eyes widened.

“Chains… from flames… It can’t be real magic, right? There has to be a trick. Compressed gas? Wires? Some kind of ignition pattern?”

The captive struggled . Smoke curling violently as he tried to teleport.

Nothing.

“What the …?!” the demon growled, panic in his voice.

Enshin smirked, eyes glinting

“Too bad. Your shadow magic? Never stood a chance against my fire.”

“Shit … I’m not done yet” the demon roared, thrashing wildly.

But the fiery lasso held tight.

Unbreakable.

Suddenly a crimson blade shot toward Enshin, slicing past his cheek. 

Startled, he stepped back.

In that split second, his focus slipped.

The shadow demon seized the opening.

Black smoke burst as he vanished toward his ally.

But Enshin was faster.

A sharp pivot. A burst of heat.

The chain snapped back around the demon’s torso, yanking him short.

The assassin spat blood onto the ground.

“Just wait… When I break free, I’ll tear your throat out.”

Enshin didn’t answer or even look at him.

He turned to the red-masked man, a faint smirk curved his lips.

“Oh… finally ready to fight?”.

“I have to protect my comrade,” the commander replied calmly.

His eyes were sharp. Calculating.

Enshin lunged to knock him out, but knives shot up.

One. Two. Three. Circling him like living creatures, then lunging, twisting.

The exorcist blocked. Dodged. Spun.

“Wow…” Rei muttered.

“How is he controlling these knives ? Wires ?Remote control? It’s way too precise.”

He leaned forward, squinting.

Is it just me… or is Enshin moving a little slower?

The exorcist felt it too . Sweat beading on his forehead.

This is bad. I need to finish this battle, fast .

The assassin growled.

“Stop playing with him! Kill him already!”

The red‑masked man laughed softly.

“Ah… my bad. I do enjoy toying with my prey."

The exorcist lunged, trying to close the distance.

But the knives reacted instantly, circling Enshin like hunting beasts, cutting off every angle.

No escape possible.

If I can’t get out… then there’s only one option.

He stopped moving . Completely still. Closed his eyes.

The commander scoffed.

“What? Giving up already?”

The knives shot forward all at once.

Rei froze, hands to his mouth

W-Watch out !

Enshin caught them bare-handed. Palms burned red, steam rising where metal met flesh. Blades trembled violently in his hand.

Rei exhaled sharply. Relief.

At the same time, the red-masked man’s eyes widened

“What the …?”

He flicked his fingers, trying to call the knives back but they didn’t obey. Trapped in Enshin’s hands.

Enshin opened his eyes.

“This joke ends here.”

Daggers melted, dripping into blood. Flames surged higher, devouring it until it vanished.

The commander clicked his tongue.

“Shit… how can an exorcist be this powerful?”

Enshin pulled out more red spheres and threw them toward the red-masked man.

This time, they didn’t flash. They exploded.

BOOM

A deafening roar, followed by sudden, crushing silence.

The shockwave tore through the battlefield, smoke and fire swallowing everything.

Enshin narrowed his eyes.

Did I… hit him?

For a brief moment nothing could be seen.

Then the smoke slowly began to clear.

The red-masked demon stood, blood dripping along his arms, forming a crimson shield around him.

He smiled through the pain.

“You Missed.”

Enshin smiled wryly.

“Are you sure ?”

The commander frowned, his body tensing as he watched Enshin carefully, trying to read his next move.

Enshin pointed a finger toward the ground.

“Watch your feet”

The commander glanced down.

Too late.

The spheres on the ground twisted into chains, wrapping tightly around his legs and arms.

“Shit… a trap?!” the commander hissed, eyes widening.

Like his comrade, he thrashed and twisted, but the chains didn’t move an inch.

The commander chuckled softly.

“Seems I underestimated you… You deserve the title of best exorcist in Tokyo.”

Rei’s eyes widened.

“Wow… they were all incredible. Perfectly mastering misdirection, flawless movement, timing… it felt like real magic. Will I ever reach this level?”

Enshin stepped forward, pulling out sealing talismans from his pocket.

“Game over. I’ll take you to the Bureau. Let’s see what schemes you’ve been plotting for the tournament.”

The demon chief casually sliding his hands into his pockets still trapped in the chains.

“Ah ah… I didn’t want to resort to this, but…”

His smirk widened .

“Guess I have no choice. Time to use my secret card"

Enshin felt it. Something… off.

He stepped back, blade ready, eyes narrowing.

The left pocket of the commander glowed red. One second later the chains binding the demons vanished.

Enshin froze and screamed

“No way…! What did you do?!”

The demon chief smiled calmly

“Don’t worry,” he said, his eyes gleaming. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

Before he could think further, the clawed assassin teleported right in front of him.

CRACK.

Instinctively, Enshin swung his blade, flames licking the edge but it felt… weak. Then vanished .

Rei squinted, confusion written across his face.

“Wait… no way… did he run out of fuel? Now?!”

Enshin gripped his lighter in one hand, the flame flickering weakly, ordinary and unremarkable.

With his other hand, he blocked the clawed assassin’s relentless strikes, each hit sending jolts of pain through his body.

The black-masked claw attacker sneered, eyes glinting with malice.

“So… not so proud without your fire, huh?”

Something was… off.

Exorcists don’t create elements , they control them. That’s why Enshin relied on his lighter.

But now, he couldn’t cast a single fire spell.

No matter how hard he flicking the lighter on and off , nothing happens.

Panic clawed at Enshin.

He didn’t just cancel my spell… he blocked magic itself .

His gaze snapped to the glowing left pocket of the demon chief.

I’m sur he has an artifact in his pocket … if I can grab it, maybe… maybe I can regain control.

But at that exact moment, the clawed attacker teleported.

He swung his blade, but without his magic, it felt… weak.

Pain exploded across Enshin’s chest as the strike landed.

The assassin snarled.

“I told you… I’d rip you apart!”

Enshin stared at the red-masked man . 

“What the…? Didn’t you cancel magic? How can he still teleport?” 

The commander laughed, calm and cruel.

“Why would I cancel our magic? It’s only yours, human. We demon can use it perfectly fine.”

Enshin’s heart raced.

I need to get out of here. Fast.

He darted backward, desperate to escape.

But a transparent red sphere bloomed around him, sealing him in.

“Where do you think you’re going?” the demon commander taunted,eyes gleaming.

He tried to break free. 

Push. Pull. Nothing.

He was trapped

The clawed assassin stepped forward, ready to finish him.

“Wait,”

 the red-masked demon said, voice smooth, unhurried.

“Leave him to me.”

In one swift motion, he conjured a sword of crimson blood.

Enshin’s chest heaved.

“Shit… I’m… dead,” he muttered under his breath.