Kaida, Easton.
A peaceful village slumbered under the soft blush of dawn.
Until—
"DEMONS!! DEMONS ARE ATTACKING!!"
A bloodcurdling scream tore through the air, shattering the silence.
Panic erupted like wildfire. Villagers scattered in all directions, tripping over baskets, doors, even each other.
From the rear of the village—
BOOM!!
A house exploded in a burst of flame and wood.
A grotesque demon emerged from the debris—an oozing, shapeless mass of pulsating flesh. Its single eye darted around hungrily, while its gaping maw stretched open in a twisted grin.
It shrieked.
And then charged.
Screams rose. People ran, wept, prayed.
The demon plowed through huts and shacks like paper, flinging debris in its wake, surging toward the center of the village.
***
A dimly lit room sat not far from the chaos.
Thin curtains swayed on either side of the window, letting in rays of morning light.
In the middle of the room, a large bed creaked.
On it lay a woman, next to nude, lazily wrapped in nothing but a sheet. She stretched, revealing smooth skin glistening with sweat.
Across the bed, a man stood, bare-chested, with only a towel slung around his waist. His head was half-bald, and he looked to be in his fifties.
"What's taking you so long?" the woman purred.
"Arrgh," the man groaned, grinning as he climbed onto the bed beside her. "I'm going to take you to heaven today."
He whispered it low, like a vow.
The woman giggled, curling close.
But then—she paused.
"Hm?" he asked.
"...Did you hear that?" she said, eyes drifting toward the window.
The man tilted his head, frowning.
They went still.
Silence.
"...Guess I imagined it," she said, chuckling. "Thought I heard someone screaming."
"Probably just the villagers. They scream over spilled milk," he replied, chuckling.
"I still can't believe the village chief took a liking to me," she whispered.
"Ohohoh, since you set foot in this village, I haven't been able to take my eyes off you!" he declared.
"Don't flatter me," she giggled.
Smooch.
Their lips met, and just as things were about to heat up—
"AAAAAARGHH!!"
They both froze.
A scream—real, close, and gut-wrenching.
"...Was that—?" she started.
"DEMON!!"
"HUH?!"
Both of them sprang up, eyes wide in panic.
BOOOM!!
A force slammed into the house, and the walls instantly caved in.
Wood splintered, dust exploded into the air, and the entire room blew apart.
The woman screamed, shielding herself.
Through the settling dust, the demon towered into view, its single eye glowing red, drool oozing from its maw.
She lay frozen—half-covered, breath ragged, heart thundering in her ears.
Grab.
"Eeeek!!" she shrieked, feeling a cold hand on her leg.
She looked down.
The village chief was sprawled at her feet—what remained of him. Half his body was gone, blood smeared across his face like paint, and yet... somehow, he was still conscious.
"...M-Marianna…" he groaned.
His eyes locked onto hers, and for a second, he looked more demon than man.
"GYAAAH!!" she screamed, frantically peeling his fingers off her leg like they were worms.
And before the demon could even blink—
She was gone.
Gone as in poof, vanished. Nothing but a trace of perfume remained.
The demon ravaged the village like a living storm. Fire danced wildly across rooftops, smoke spiraled into the sky, and the air was filled with the cries of the helpless.
Amid the chaos, a small girl ran for her life, her breaths ragged, legs barely carrying her forward.
"Ah… ah…" she panted, weaving through the terrified crowd.
But fate was cruel.
Someone bumped into her from behind. Then another. She lost balance—
Thud!
Her foot caught a stone. She fell flat, her tiny palms scraping the ground.
Behind her, the earth trembled.
BOOM… BOOM…
The demon approached—
A hulking, grotesque mass of flesh with one huge, bloodshot eye and a gaping, toothy maw.
Its breath steamed like hot fog, its footfalls sending cracks through the ground.
She turned, paralyzed, her pupils trembling.
The demon loomed over her. A low gurgle rumbled from its throat, thick saliva drooling onto the ground. It bent forward, studying her with a curious hunger… then slowly lifted its colossal foot.
Time slowed.
The foot came down—
Until—
"Oi!"
A voice cut through the air.
The demon paused mid-stomp and turned its head.
Behind it stood a man—young, maybe in his early twenties, with wild, black hair that covered half his face. He wore a wrinkled white shirt, barely hanging on, a loose black tie, trousers full of holes, and shoes that had clearly seen better decades.
He looked like a disaster.
"Yo, I'm—" he began.
WHAM!
The demon swung its arm without warning. A clean hit. Blood exploded from the impact.
The girl covered her mouth in horror.
"Ah…!" she gasped.
But then—
Shrieeek!!
The demon recoiled, shrieking in pain.
"You're supposed to listen to the hero's speech first, you damn meatball!" the man shouted, standing tall in the crater the blow had left.
Blood dripped from his face, but in his hands were two massive swords—each blade glowing with a deep, fiery red edge. Their hilts shimmered with golden lattice and tiny gems, each glinting like stars.
"Good grief," he sighed, "did your mama never teach you any manners?"
The demon snarled, its palm torn and bleeding. It tried to regenerate.
"You want more?" the man said with a smirk.
BOOM!
The battle exploded into motion.
The demon launched its left arm like a cannon—
CLANG!!
"Hah!" the man laughed as he sliced the entire limb clean off.
The beast roared and swung its other arm—
Swoosh! Gone.
"Too slow!" the man yelled, flashing a grin.
He dashed forward—air splitting behind him as he leapt into the sky, blades outstretched.
"I'm gonna turn you into mincemeat!"
The demon opened its maw wide, aiming to swallow him mid-air, but—
SLASH!!
One sword tore through its mouth in a crimson spray.
The demon's eyes bulged in shock.
"Oi, oi, oi!!" the man shouted, raining down slashes like a storm.
SWISH! SLASH! SWOOSH!
His blades moved faster than the eye could follow, cutting through flesh, bone, and sinew like butter.
The girl watched, frozen, her eyes wide with pure horror.
It was a massacre. Blood splattered everywhere. Organs hit the ground. Chunks of flesh flung into the fire.
She trembled violently.
Then—
"Pluuu…"
She puked.
Right there. Her stomach couldn't take it.
The man, meanwhile, showed no sign of stopping. He laughed madly as he carved the demon apart.
When the carnage finally ended, the demon was in pieces—unrecognizable, like someone had taken a butcher's cleaver to a mountain of meat.
"Hahaha… Nothing better than dicing demons!" he said with a bloody grin.
His entire body was soaked in gore.
He turned to the girl, raising a hand to help.
But to her, his grin was the stuff of nightmares.
"EEEEEK!!"
She bolted.
"Eh?!" the man blinked. "W-Wait… I was just being the hero…"
She disappeared into the alley.
The man sighed, scratching his head.
"Good grief... no one appreciates a good entrance anymore."
He turned away, flicking the blood from his swords before vanishing into the smoke.
"…Now where the hell did Alpha wander off to?"
***
TBC