The Damned Demon

Ray's eyes bulged in horror and disbelief as he stared at the skeletal figure engulfed in ominous green flames standing in the lobby of his building, "H-Hellbringer?" he gasped, his voice barely a whisper.

The mere mention of the name sent shivers down Stacy's spine.

She knew that this terrifying demon had risen through the ranks of the demon world at an unprecedented pace, and was now the new Demon King, feared for his ruthlessness and unfathomable potential.

His name had already entered the Doomsday List of the WHA and any quest he was involved in, he would leave no survivors.

Only the president's daughter had managed to escape from his clutches, and even then, it was by a hair's breadth.

And the sight of the charred remains of the guards and WHA soldiers around the demon's feet was enough to make her wonder in terror if she was going to die today? Was she fated to leave behind her brother?

"How the fuck is this happening?? No quest alarm went off! We should've had a warning!" Ray roared in frustration and fear.

He had already heard news of the fight that went down between Hellbringer and the draconian king. If this skeleton fucker was that ridiculously strong to pulverize the draconian king, then how can he stand a chance?

His face continued to turn ashen as he fumbled for his comms and activated a direct line to the WHA emergency department, "This is Ray! We're under attack by Hellbringer! I repeat, Hellbringer is here! We need all available forces!" But the only response was static. Who the fuck was jamming all communications?? Was somebody helping Hellbringer from inside or outside? Most importantly, where was his guild members in the building? Why weren't they coming down to deal with this demon??

But unbeknownst to him, the offices and rooms on the first and above floors were filled with a chilling, ominous aura. Cold blood seeped out of many rooms, and the walls were covered with frost.

Ray could only guess and hope these WHA soldiers would prove to have some sort of use and at least buy some time until the WHA sent reinforcements.

And so he desperately watched as the WHA soldiers surrounding Hellbringer unleashed a barrage of mana-powered bullets, each one imbued with a radiant light.

The bullets struck the eerie figure, leaving behind cracks in his charred bones, but he remained standing tall, unperturbed by the onslaught. The dark green flames that engulfed him flickered menacingly, as if fueled by the very essence of their attacks. As the bullets bounced off and the guns fell silent, their magazines spent, the WHA soldiers were panting as they glanced at each other in horror. What kind of demon was able to remain standing despite taking all those bullets head-on? Was he even mortal?

"My turn," Before they could reel from their shock, with a single, swift motion of his bony hand, Asher unleashed a ring blade, curving through the air like an emerald serpent.

Screams of agony filled the lobby as the blade sliced through the air, decapitating the soldiers with surgical precision, their headless corpses crumpling to the floor in a gruesome display of his power. Stacy covered her mouth to stifle a scream, her eyes wide with terror as she witnessed the carnage unfolding before her very eyes. Ray's face paled, his heart pounding wildly in his chest, "W-What kind of monster is he…" he stammered, unable to tear his eyes away from the macabre sight below. He had heard of this fucker rumored to be immortal but seeing it in person was just a different and terrifying experience.

With quivering eyes, Stacy saw Hellbringer, as if sensing their fear, kept looking right at them.

She felt an unnatural chill seep into her bones as the demon's hollow sockets seemed to stare straight at them through the elevator doors.

"H-He can see us?" Stacy mumbled in terror as the tint on the elevator glass was no ordinary one and was coated with a special mana film to prevent anyone from peeking inside.

But then they had their eyes widened when Hellbringer, in the blink of an eye, threw his blazing ring blade in their direction. In a panic, Ray instinctively grabbed Stacy, using her as a human shield, and enveloped himself in a thick, shimmering mana barrier. "Let me go!!!" Stacy yelled frantically, fearing for her life.

However, the blade whizzed past her, shattering the elevator's glass.

But before she could let out a sigh of relief, the elevator suddenly began to fall down and crashed on the floor.

"Aaah!" Pain exploded in Stacy's arm upon impact, radiating up her limb as she cradled her fractured forearm.

Since Ray kept using her as a body shield, she slammed onto the floor hard without being able to shield herself.

As the dust settled, Ray scrambled to his feet, his eyes wild with terror upon seeing Hellbringer walking towards him.

Without even bothering to waste a second, he summoned a gust of wind to allow himself to fly out of this hellhole.

But just as he ascended into the air, his eyes widened as a blood-colored, icy spike suddenly shot towards him from nowhere, impaling his leg and pinning him to the ground. "AARGH!" Ray cried out in agony as he dangled helplessly from the spike, his own blood staining the pristine marble floor. Stacy, still on the ground and clutching her injured arm, watched in horror as Hellbringer stalked towards them, his footsteps echoing ominously in the silent lobby. Her heart pounded in her chest, her entire body shaking with fear as his blazing bony jaws opened while looking at her, "Run."

His voice was like thunder that jolted her senses back to reality, and before she knew it, Stacy found herself crawling back before her survival instincts kicked in to allow her legs to run away from here as fast as possible.

She didn't even care to think why this scary demon was letting her leave, and all she could think of was getting out of here.

Unable to contain his rising panic, Ray shouted, "What do you want?! Why are you here?!" Desperation crept into his voice, especially since the icy spear had stabbed into a vital point of his mana circuit, freezing up the entire thing and preventing him from using his mana.

He didn't even have the luxury to wonder who attacked him out of nowhere since Hellbringer was standing just a foot away from him!

"I thought the guildmaster of the Black Knights would be more like a knight. But why do you sound like a filthy sewage rat?" A chilling, gravelly voice emanated from the Hellbringer's charred jaws, his hollow sockets fixated on Ray, "You must have enjoyed the past few years after licking off the blood from the shoes of the WHA." Ray's eyes bulged with terror, and he wondered why this motherfucker was talking to him as if he knew him. But the stinging pain didn't allow him to think about it as he choked out desperately, "L-Look...You can plunder whatever you want from here. Just let me leave, and I swear you won't be disappointed with what you find here."

"AAARGHHH!!"

Ray's cries of agony echoed through the lobby as Asher suddenly and effortlessly yanked him away from the blood-stained spike, tearing his leg off at the thigh, "You are right. I am not going to be disappointed now that I am going to plunder your soul."

Blood rushed to Ray's face under the excruciating pain, horrifyingly staring at his severed limb as blood poured onto the pristine marble. "S-Stop! P-Please let me go! Urghhh..." Ray begged as he remained suspended in the air with Hellbringer clutching his neck, his left foot barely touching the floor.

"Shhh...Stop wailing like a pig when I am barely getting started to punish you for your sins," Asher said, his voice making Ray's balls shrivel in fright.

"W-What sins? I've never offended you!" Ray gasped, his voice shaking with terror and wondered if this demon went mad or was trying to mess with him for fun.

But Hellbringer cocked his head, the bones of his skull creaking ominously.

"Does the name 'Irina' ring a bell?" Asher asked as his voice sent a chill down Ray's spine.

"I-Irina?" Ray mumbled as he suddenly remembered that woman. He unconsciously nodded in fright and wondered what she had to do with this demon.

"You boasted about killing her, right? How did you kill her exactly?" Asher asked as the dark green flames enveloping his bones began to flicker wildly, his voice grating.

"W-Why do you want to know?" Ray asked in trepidation as he was unable to guess why this demon cared about a dead human bitch.

Hellbringer chuckled, a chilling sound that raised goosebumps on Ray's arms, but the next moment Ray's eyes widened as Hellbringer tore off his right arm,

"YAARGHHH!!" A guttural scream tore free from Ray's throat as blood splattered the immediate surroundings, coalescing into a putrid lake on the marble ground below, leaving behind a bloody stump.

How was this fucking demon so strong when he was supposed to be only a low level Soul Devourer?

"This is what happens when you question me instead of answering me," Asher rasped, his dark flames licking at Ray's chin, "Now, I will ask you again. How did you kill her? If you lie, then you will soon be begging me to kill you."

Tears of fear streaming down his face, Ray's voice shook with terror as he confessed in fear, "I-I didn't! It was the Blazing Slayers Guild! I only gave them her location and had my guild members stand guard. Now p-please, let me go..." Ray begged as he grimaced while his skin kept getting burned.