Controlled by Ruan's will, the demon attacked with a precision it hadn't shown before.
Aiden and Maya fell back, dodging the enemy's strikes, which had grown unnervingly agile.
'Damn it, it's way stronger now,' Aiden thought. 'It's not just acting on instinct anymore—it's fighting like a trained human.'
Maya landed a knife slash to the demon's abdomen, but it retaliated with a brutal strike to her face, sending her sprawling to the ground.
"Maya!" Aiden shouted, his rage surging as his aura flared denser.
Aiden stopped retreating and unleashed a barrage of punches at the demon, heedless of the damage its flames might inflict on his body.
"What's wrong, Aiden?!" Ruan taunted, laughing. "Not smiling so much now, are you?"
"You're next, Ruan!" Aiden shot back.
"Why keep fighting? Surrender, and I'll at least make your death quick."
"I'm not dying here."
"Doesn't matter what you think. You'll burn, and I won't give you a chance to say your last words."
Ruan's taunts fueled Aiden's fury, each word amplifying the power of his blows, which slowly forced the demon to stagger back.
"Attack all you want—you'll only wear yourself out!" Ruan jeered. "Go, my minion! Let your flames consume your foe completely!"
The demon obeyed its master, spreading its flames and unleashing a searing wave of heat across the area.
Ruan laughed, convinced victory was his.
But in his arrogance, Ruan didn't see the arrow flying toward him. It struck the gem, dislodging it from the wooden scepter it was set in.
The gem sailed far from Ruan's reach, leaving him stunned and causing the demon to halt its assault on Aiden.
"What the hell?" Ruan spat, turning toward the direction the arrow came from.
"I told you, Ruan," Serena said from a distance, her bow at the ready. "I won't let you kill anyone."
"Serena, you damn traitor!" Ruan roared. "I'm sick of you. I should've gotten rid of you sooner. Once I'm done with these losers, you're next—"
His complaints were cut short as he sensed Aiden closing in, the demon hot on Aiden's heels, roaring with unrestrained fury.
"This ends now, Ruan!" Aiden shouted, reaching Ruan and positioning himself behind him.
"Idiot, get away from me!"
Aiden's last-second strategy paid off. The demon, fully succumbed to its instincts, drove a claw through Ruan's chest, making him cough up a lethal spray of blood.
The demon swiftly tossed Ruan's lifeless body aside and, its flames surging wildly, advanced on Aiden, intent on making him its next victim.
'I have to use all my power,' Aiden thought. 'I don't care if the fire tears me apart—it's now or never.'
But as Aiden braced to charge headlong into the demon's flames, the creature froze, its fire slowly fading.
Aiden looked into the distance and saw Lyra holding the gem, the one who had stopped the demon in its tracks.
"Now, Aiden!"
Lyra's shout sent Aiden's heart racing. He intensified his aura's density, channeling every ounce of energy into one fist.
"Die, demon!"
Aiden drove his fist through the demon's chest, piercing it clean through as flames erupted around its body once more.