Under the cover of the night sky, the forest was alive with the sounds of critters and animals scurrying about. In the middle of this dark forest, a campfire burned. Two young men sat on opposite sides of the fire. Jeremiah and Raymond both looked exhausted, their eyes heavy and their bodies pushed to the edge.
"Jeremiah, get some sleep. I'll keep watch first," Raymond suggested.
"Sleep around you? As if. I would never give you the chance to kill me," Jeremiah replied aggressively.
This crazy bastard. It's bad enough that he doesn't trust me, but now I'm afraid to sleep because he might kill me out of paranoia, Raymond thought as he rested his face in his hands.
The two continued to sit in silence until both eventually slipped into sleep. The fire soon died out, and darkness enveloped them. Hours later, Raymond awoke to total darkness. Before he could move, he froze—terrified by the sensation of heavy breathing against the back of his neck. The breath was warm and powerful; whatever was behind him had to be massive.
Shit! Shit! Shit! What's behind me? I need to get out of this position and alert Jeremiah. Wait—I can't see anything. How will I know where Jeremiah is? This is one hell of a predicament. I have no choice but to act as if I'm alone. My only option is to kill whatever this is, Raymond resolved.
In the next moment, Raymond moved as fast as he could, grabbing the hilt of his sword. As he did, three huge claws dug into his back, piercing his light leather armor. He leapt forward and rolled to create distance between himself and the beast.
"JEREMIAH!" Raymond shouted.
Jeremiah woke to total darkness.
"Wait—what's happening?" Jeremiah asked groggily.
"Well, we're in immediate danger, for starters," Raymond replied. Jeremiah stood and raised his hand.
"We can't fight in total darkness," Jeremiah said as he began forming a ball of fire. It grew until it was a meter in diameter, illuminating the area like a miniature sun. The creature revealed itself: a Jagon, a six-legged, tiger-like beast, 23 feet long and weighing around 1,600 pounds (725 kg).
Raymond activated holy time and blitzed the creature, slicing the tendons in its front legs and slashing its underbelly. As the beast roared in pain, Jeremiah leapt above it and drove the fireball into its back, burning it alive.
The two stood side by side, watching the flaming carcass.
"I'll sleep first. You keep watch," Jeremiah said, lying down on the ground.
"No problem," Raymond replied with a smile.
A week ago
Raymond swung a wooden sword, twisting and turning his body in different styles. A golden aura enveloped him—he was in holy time. Sweat drenched him, pooling on the ground. He swung down, breathing heavily, as the aura began to fade.
"Maintain it!" Cranel shouted. Raymond screamed, exerting more magic, and the aura flared wildly before calming again to surround his body. He resumed swinging.
"Good work, Raymond. How are we doing over ther—" Cranel stopped mid-sentence, speechless. Jeremiah stood with both hands raised, a fireball fifty meters in diameter hovering above him.
Incredible. That's an exceptionally high-level output for a boy of nineteen. Jeremiah is truly something, Cranel thought.
"Jeremiah, good work. Release it now—point it upward," Cranel instructed.
"Father, I have a better idea," Jeremiah said. Slowly, he condensed the fireball until it was the size of a golf ball. The concentrated heat burned his hands, but he launched it skyward, where it exploded.
There's no way in hell I'll ever defeat Jeremiah at this level, Raymond thought, watching the blast.
Present day
Sleeping in a tree, Ukobathan was awakened by the sound of fighting nearby. He saw a distant light—it looked like something burning. He hurriedly woke Lenen.
"Brother, I need you to magically review all life forms within a 100-kilometer radius," Ukobathan said, clearly on edge.
"Why? What could possibly warrant that kind of magic now?" Lenen asked. But when he saw his brother's face, he realized something dire was happening. He sat down, spreading his magic thinly across the land. In this form, his magic could detect everything it touched, while remaining undetectable. Slowly, he extended it until it reached 100 kilometers. Then he felt them. A cold shiver ran down his spine.
"What is it, brother?" Ukobathan asked anxiously.
"Humans. They feel like exorcists—not very strong, though. Only two. About 28 kilometers east. One is asleep, the other keeping watch," Lenen said nervously.
"We'll hit them fast and strong. Kill both—hopefully one while he sleeps," Ukobathan said coldly.
"Uko, I see no need to kill them. They seem unaware of us," Lenen protested.
"For now, we deal with this before it becomes a problem. Remember what I said, brother—I need you. I need you to kill for me," Ukobathan insisted.
"Yes, brother," Lenen replied, staring in the direction of the two humans.
The forest grew quiet, the silence deafening. It was as if nature itself sensed something sinister was about to occur. The demon brothers stood atop a tree above the warriors' camp. Their red, piercing eyes glowed in the night as they stalked their prey. Ukobathan broke off a branch, infused it with demonic energy, and hurled it with deadly force.
"One down," Ukobathan said confidently.
But just before the branch pierced Raymond's head, a flash of golden aura appeared, shocking the demon brothers. In the next instant, Raymond dodged the branch and caught it midair. He looked up to see two figures with glowing red eyes standing atop a massive tree.
"Jeremiah. Get up," Raymond said firmly.