The fire did not feel like ordinary flames.
It did not simply burn.
It invaded.
The moment it touched Sunny's body, it seeped into him—through skin, through muscle, through bone—like something alive, something hungry. It clawed its way deeper, searching, consuming, devouring everything in its path.
"Aaaargh—!"
His scream tore through the Demon Gate, raw and unrestrained.
The ground beneath him cracked as he writhed, his body convulsing under the assault. The world blurred into streaks of red and black, the edges of his vision trembling violently.
For a moment—
Just a moment—
He thought he was dying.
But even in that chaos…
His mind refused to go silent.
The baby.
Its eyes—
Red.
Burning.
Filled with something that looked like fury.
Sunny's thoughts fractured, struggling to piece together what had just happened.
"…Why…?"
His voice came out broken, barely more than a whisper beneath the roar of flames.
He had carried it.
Protected it.
Even worried about feeding it like it was something fragile… something human.
And yet—
This?
Was this its answer?
A bitter laugh tried to escape his throat, but it dissolved into another cry of pain.
"…Heh… figures…"
Maybe Ava had been right all along.
It wasn't a child.
It was a relic.
Something beyond understanding.
Something that didn't care.
But then—
Something felt… wrong.
Through the haze of pain, Sunny forced his eyes open.
The world was still burning.
But the fire—
It wasn't focused on him.
It was… scattered.
Unstable.
Like it had changed direction mid-flight.
His gaze shifted.
Past the flames.
Toward the wolf.
It was still there.
Not dead.
Not even close.
The nine-tailed beast stood within the fading inferno, its body scorched in places but far from destroyed. Its eyes glowed brighter now, filled with a cruel, intelligent malice.
And its tails—
They were moving.
Controlling.
Guiding.
Sunny's pupils shrank.
"…No…"
The realization struck him like a second blow.
The fire—
Hadn't turned on him.
It had been redirected.
The wolf.
It had taken the force of the attack—
And twisted it.
Bent it.
Sent it straight back at him.
"…Tch…!"
Pain surged again as the flames tightened around his body.
"So it wasn't… the kid…"
A strange mix of relief and anger twisted in his chest.
Relief—
Because the baby hadn't betrayed him.
Anger—
Because he had been fooled.
"Clever… beast…"
The wolf growled lowly, its gaze locked onto him, as if savoring his suffering.
Then—
It moved.
Not like before.
Not a simple lunge.
Its body blurred.
Its steps—
Strange.
Unnatural.
Each movement seemed slightly off, slightly displaced, as if it wasn't fully bound by the same rules as everything else.
Sunny's eyes widened slightly despite the pain.
"…What… is that…?"
The wolf was using something.
A technique.
A pattern.
Its steps twisted around the space between them, closing the distance in an instant.
Claws rose—
Ready to strike.
Sunny's body screamed at him to move.
But he couldn't.
The fire still clung to him, draining his strength, clouding his senses.
"…Damn it…!"
He had been careless.
He had underestimated it.
The wolf's shadow loomed over him.
Its claws descended—
And stopped.
Just inches from his throat.
Sunny's breath hitched.
Not because of mercy.
But because—
The wolf was waiting.
Playing.
Its eyes burned with cruel amusement.
"…You're enjoying this…?" Sunny rasped.
The beast didn't answer.
It didn't need to.
It took a step back.
Then another.
Its strange, shifting movement continuing—
Almost like a distorted version of his own.
Sunny's mind snapped into focus.
"…That… step…"
It wasn't random.
It wasn't instinct.
It was a technique.
And somehow—
It reminded him of something.
"Devil… Dance…"
The words slipped from his lips unconsciously.
The wolf's movement—
It wasn't the same.
But it was close enough.
A corrupted imitation.
A twisted variation.
"…You're copying…?"
Sunny's lips curled slightly despite the pain.
"…Or mocking me…?"
The flames around him began to weaken.
Not because they were fading—
But because he was starting to resist.
Barely.
His breathing slowed.
Forced.
Controlled.
"…Focus…"
The word echoed in his mind.
Pain was still there.
Burning.
Endless.
But pain—
Could be endured.
Sunny closed his eyes.
Not to escape.
But to look deeper.
Into himself.
The world around him faded.
The fire.
The wolf.
The Demon Gate.
All of it—
Distant.
And in its place—
Darkness.
Then—
A vast, endless expanse.
His spirit sea.
It stretched infinitely in every direction, a dark, shifting ocean with no clear boundary. Faint ripples moved across its surface, disturbed by the chaos of his current state.
This was his core.
His foundation.
The source of everything he could become.
"…So this is it…"
He had touched it before.
Briefly.
Unconsciously.
But never like this.
Never with intent.
"…Spirit essence…"
He could feel it.
Faint currents moving beneath the surface.
Weak.
Unrefined.
Uncontrolled.
"…No wonder Ava said I can't use it properly…"
But that didn't matter.
Not now.
He didn't need perfection.
He needed something.
Outside—
The wolf tilted its head slightly.
Watching.
Waiting.
It could feel the shift.
Something was changing.
Sunny's body—
Still burning—
Still bleeding—
But no longer collapsing.
"…Let's see…"
Inside the spirit sea—
He reached.
Not physically.
But with will.
The surface trembled.
Then—
Slowly—
A small portion of the dark ocean responded.
"…Move…"
It resisted.
Heavy.
Sluggish.
Like trying to lift a mountain with bare hands.
But Sunny didn't stop.
"…Move!"
The spirit essence surged—
Just slightly.
A thin stream.
Barely anything.
But enough.
Back in the real world—
Sunny's fingers twitched.
Then—
His arm.
The flames still burned.
But something else appeared beneath them—
A faint, almost invisible layer.
His spirit essence.
"…So this is how…"
It wasn't strong.
Not even close.
But it was his.
The wolf's eyes narrowed.
Now it moved again.
Faster.
More aggressive.
Its strange stepping pattern intensified, closing the distance instantly.
Claws rose—
Aimed directly at Sunny's chest.
"…Not this time…"
Sunny's eyes snapped open.
Sharp.
Focused.
And just as the claws descended—
He moved.
A single step.
Imperfect.
Unstable.
But—
Different.
The attack missed.
By a hair's breadth.
The wolf's eyes widened slightly.
"…Heh…"
Sunny exhaled slowly.
Blood still dripped from his body.
The fire still lingered.
But now—
He was standing.
"Guess… I'm not done yet…"
The wolf growled.
This time—
No amusement.
Only killing intent.
It attacked again.
Faster.
Sharper.
Sunny moved.
Not perfectly.
Not smoothly.
But—
With purpose.
Each step—
A struggle.
Each movement—
A fight against pain.
But he endured.
Because now—
He understood.
Not fully.
Not completely.
But enough.
"Devil Dance…"
The name echoed again.
And this time—
It answered him.
The rhythm returned.
Faint.
Broken.
But real.
The wolf lunged—
And Sunny stepped into the unknown—
As something within him—
Finally began to awaken.
To be continued…