Chapitre 9: No wonder you're alone
"Well, with that said..." Vergil began, his tone indicating he had something else in mind. "I'm outta here!" With a sly smile, he turned and ran, his footsteps echoing down the hallway as he hurried to exit the building.
However, as soon as he stepped outside, ready to run toward the exit gate, something made him stop immediately. The sky, which should have been clear and open, was now covered by a strange red film, as if a translucent dome had been erected around the area.
"You're not going anywhere, friend... I already said," the exorcist's voice echoed behind him, calm and controlled, as he approached slowly. Vergil felt a chill run down his spine. He had seen something similar before when the Fallen Angel attacked him, but this time... This time he was more aware of the real danger.
"W-What?..." Vergil stammered, his heart racing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing, but fear was there, gripping his mind. The red dome seemed like a prison, and he knew escaping would not be simple.
"Don't you find it funny, demons existing and never being noticed by the outside world?" The exorcist continued, a cold smile on his lips. "It's a simple rule. 'Domain Cube.'" He raised a strange cube in his hand, adorned with runes and arcane symbols that glowed with a sinister light.
"Witches love to sell them. A complete imitation of reality, a battle dimension..." The exorcist explained nonchalantly, as if discussing the weather.
"Inside this dome, no one will notice us. No sound, no sight, no presence will be detected by the outside world. Here, you and I are alone, demon; even if we destroy something inside, it won't affect the outside... Just come, little demon."
"Damn! This guy!" Vergil thought, feeling the fear filling his body...
"I usually like to introduce myself; my name is Leon, an exorcist of the Holy Church." He said as a golden-bladed weapon appeared in his hand...
"Now... Which clan are you from?" Leon asked.
Vergil felt a void in his mind. Clan? He had never heard of a "demon clan."
What did that mean?
How could he answer something he didn't know?
Vergil swallowed hard, his mind spinning in search of an answer.
He was lost, with no clear idea of how to proceed.
"A demon clan? I didn't even know that existed... How the hell am I supposed to answer that?"
"I don't have a clan," he answered, leaving the Exorcist puzzled, "A fugitive demon... how amusing..." He murmured...
But Vergil... was not fleeing... was he? 'No! Of course not!'
"Wait—" Vergil tried to speak, but his words were abruptly cut off. Before he could finish his sentence, Leon moved with impressive speed, his golden blade slicing through the air toward Vergil.
Reflexively, almost automatically, Vergil's body reacted, narrowly dodging, but not in time to avoid the strike completely.
The blade grazed his arm, leaving a deep wound that burned with intense pain.
Vergil looked at the wound, hoping it would heal quickly, as it always did.
But something was wrong.
The wound wouldn't heal; instead, the skin around it was marked by strange burns, as if it had been touched by sacred fire.
"What the hell...?" Vergil murmured, feeling the pulsating pain spread through his arm. The impact of Leon's blade was unlike anything he had ever felt.
"It seems you're not just an ordinary demon," Leon said with a cold smile. "This blade is blessed. It doesn't allow demon wounds to heal easily. But dodging it... Your reflexes are good..."
Vergil felt his body burning with rage, and now... despite the fear... an instinctive trigger had been activated...
"Survival of the fittest," he thought.
His teeth clenched as he tried to understand what was happening to his body.
Every muscle, every fiber, seemed tense, ready to explode into action.
He could feel a growing energy, something beyond his control...
"A battle maniac?" Leon thought, seeing how Vergil seemed to be preparing to fight...
Vergil wasn't in his best state and might not have noticed, but a demonic grin was clearly plastered across his face...
"Are you getting serious now?" Leon taunted, genuinely interested... It was almost impossible for a confused demon like him to be strong. However... he had some inkling...
There wasn't a single newborn demon who could fight him...
"His pressure isn't strong... I think I can play around a bit," Leon thought.
The two were staring each other down, waiting for the other's first move as the tension in the corridor mounted...
Leon stood still as his blade continued to radiate a strange holy energy, and Vergil focused on not losing control... He was trembling with rage at the situation.
"Come on... you're going to fight with everything, right?" Leon murmured, more to himself than to Vergil, who of course heard him clearly...
He could see the man's face in front of him, completely distorted into a mask of hatred and madness with that strange smile...
"A demon without a clan... he shouldn't exude this heat... Demons without clans are demons who haven't received their master's blessing at birth; they abandon their masters and run around uncontrollably... but... this guy... he has a master..." Leon analyzed the mask Vergil showed him, something didn't fit...
"I need to know the power he inherited... if I know that, I can figure out his clan..." He murmured. Studying creatures like Vergil was more than a task; it was a science, a game of power and control.
This thought excited him.
Vergil, on the other hand, had no idea he was being analyzed like an animal in a lab.
For him, every second was a desperate fight for survival, which is why he hadn't moved yet and was staring at him... He needed a plan...
But he couldn't focus, the pain in his arm burned, but it only fueled his fury.
"I can't lose... not now..." He thought, he had a lot more to understand... "Let's go."
Without warning, Vergil charged, his body moving with surprising speed.
His feet barely touched the ground as he launched himself toward Leon, his fist clenched in an arc of pure destruction. He had technique, after all, he knew boxing; combined with raw strength and rage.
It was a gamble.
Leon, however, was faster. With a nearly casual movement, he dodged to the side, letting Vergil's strike hit the air.
The exorcist smiled, clearly entertained.
"How?!" Vergil was confused; he was clearly moving at a speed that the human eye could barely follow... "Don't tell me that..." He thought, looking into the man's eyes, glowing with gold...
"Come on, you can do better than that, demon," Leon taunted, twirling his blade in a movement that seemed more for show than for attack.
He was toying with Vergil, testing his limits, waiting to see how far the young demon could go before breaking him.
"Damn it!" Vergil roared in response, completely ignoring the taunt.
He spun in place, throwing another punch, then another, and another.
Each strike was more powerful than the last, his fists cutting through the air with a speed and force that would make anyone back off.
But not Leon.
He dodged each blow as if it were just another normal day... He was simply... relentless.
He wasn't counterattacking, not yet.
Each dodge was purposeful—studying, analyzing, understanding.
Vergil's blind fury fascinated him, a rare opportunity to see the true potential of a newborn demon.
The corridor began to show the effects of the battle.
Vergil's punches, when not hitting Leon, found their way into the walls and cabinets around.
Metal and concrete gave way under his devastating force.
A particularly powerful strike cracked a pillar, debris falling around them as Vergil continued his relentless assault.
"I can't keep this up!" Vergil, still possessed by rage, was trying to think carefully about how to act, but every time he began to focus, he heard a small joke...
"Really, you're strong, too bad you can't hit." Leon said, although tired and not wanting to do his job, he was having fun.
He wasn't worried at all.
He could see that, although Vergil was strong, he was wasting energy.
"You're fighting like a cornered animal, with no strategy, no control." He commented, smiling; he knew that was the greatest weakness.
"You're starting to annoy me, you know?" Leon said, mocking, dodging a punch that came dangerously close to his head.
With a quick spin, he avoided another blow and pushed Vergil away with a simple shove of his blade.
It wasn't a cut, but the force was enough to make Vergil stagger back, crashing into a cabinet and almost falling.
"Ugh! Damn it!" Vergil gasped, his chest heaving as sweat dripped down his face; he couldn't even speak, his body wasn't responding properly.
He was starting to tire, each wasted blow draining his energy. But he couldn't stop, couldn't retreat.
Every fiber of his being screamed to keep going, to fight until nothing was left.
He gathered all his strength, "I... will... destroy you!" Vergil growled, his words gasping as he prepared for another attack.
Leon didn't respond. He merely watched, his eyes hidden behind the glasses, but his relaxed posture indicated he had already made a decision.
He had seen enough. It was time to show the difference between them, to teach this inexperienced demon what it meant to face an exorcist.
Vergil charged again, but this time, before he could get close, Leon moved. It was a quick, almost imperceptible motion. He slid to the side, and in a second, was behind Vergil. Before the young demon could react, Leon lifted his leg and delivered a brutal kick to Vergil's back.
The impact was devastating. Vergil was hurled forward with tremendous force, his body crashing into a pillar and destroying it completely.
"Urgh!!!" He screamed in pain, feeling his bones protest with the impact, but he had no time to recover.
Leon was on him again, his blade flashing toward Vergil's face.
'!!!'
Vergil barely managed to dodge, but still, the blade grazed his cheek, leaving a superficial cut that burned like fire.
Leon wasn't trying to kill him—not yet. He was enjoying himself, prolonging the fight for his own pleasure.
Vergil knew this, and it only fueled his rage further.
He lunged upward, trying to grab Leon, but the exorcist leaped away with a simple jump, spinning in the air and landing gracefully a few meters away.
"You're pathetic," Leon said, his voice now laden with contempt. "A demon without a clan, without purpose, without control. No wonder you're alone. Who would want someone so weak?"
These words were like poison to Vergil.
Something inside him snapped, a string that had been stretched to its limit finally breaking.
He felt a strange energy coursing through his body... 'Demonic Magic... This... Show me more...' Leon thought, watching as Vergil began to heal with a red energy.
"Come here!" Vergil roared, a sound that wasn't entirely human, and charged with everything he had.
But Leon was ready...
The exorcist blocked the attack with his blade, deflecting the blow with ease, and then countered with a powerful punch that struck Vergil in the stomach.
The force of the blow made the young demon spit blood as his body was thrown backward, crashing through another cabinet and slamming into a wall.
"Bleehehh!" Vergil vomited blood as his body seemed to convulse in pain.
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<Author's Note>
Hey, remember to use your Golden Tickets and Power Stones to help the work reach new heights!
Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone