Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Warned by the whooshing sounds, Kai barely managed to dodge the fiery streaks aimed at him. He jumped, twisting his body to land neatly to face his opponents.
Quickly he unsheathed his sword ready for combat. To mortals, his sword was finely crafted and beautiful with runes running down the sharp steel but still ordinary. However, the long blade glowed green to non-human eyes. The weapon was enchanted by powerful Sect magic. It was could hurt demons even when they were in their vaporous forms.
"Ahhhh, you missed him you stupid Bug," growled the Bull at the Firebug. He had paused in his rampage when Kai showed up.
"So what?" retorted the Firebug. "The fun is just starting."
"Well, Well, Well. Look who decided to show up?"
"It's the demon hunter who is about to die," cawed the Crow crackling loudly.
The black Crow rushed him, but Kai held firm, stepping aside at the last minute to smack him as he flew past. The crow crashed into a nearby wall and the Bull laughed raucously.
"Hahaha, looks like he knows how to have some fun too. He might be even faster than you Crow."
Kai did not wait. As expected, the Bull charged him after laughing at the Crow. He was mad for being caught and confined in a small gourd. But the wary human was ready for him. Kai jumped out of the way and sliced the Bull on his muscled shoulder. An ugly cut appeared on his shaggy hide. He bellowed in pain as colored motes escaped his wound.
"RAWRRR!!"
The Firebug shrieked at Kai pointing her long fingers at him. Fire shot out to hit the stone pavement where he stood just a moment ago. It burned black, soot marking the spot. The demon hunter countered by throwing a dagger at her but missed. It cluttered harmlessly behind her.
"Aarrrrghh!" yelled Kai.
The Crow attacked him when he was distracted. It was fast, swooping in to claw at his face before taking off again. Kai's left cheek dripped with blood from three parallel lines. The deep gouges stung but the demon hunter ignored the pain to focus on the fight.
"Almost!" cawed the Crow in glee. "Next time I'll get your eye!"
"Kai!!" shouted Lifen who had returned. "Catch!" she called out tossing him a gourd.
Catching the gourd deftly, Kai unstopped it and cried out an incantation directed at the Crow. The flying demon froze in mid-flight disintegrating into black mist. It was sucked into the open mouth of the gourd which Kai swiftly sealed.
"One down, two to go!"
"I always knew the Crow was stupid," sneered the Firebug. She raised her hands to blast the demon hunter. "Die human!"
"No one kills MY human!" shrieked Lifen jumping in between them. Crystal clear dew shot out from her hands to douse the Firebug's attack.
"What?" exclaimed the Firebug. "Why are you helping him?"
"He's the only one who can release me."
"Release you? What are you talking about? You're already out aren't you? That means you're free like us," said the confused Firebug.
"No, my case is different and also ..."
"What now silly Flower? Don't tell me you've fallen in love with the pretty human."
"Not at all. I just want to clear my name so that they will leave me alone in the future."
"Pffttt!" she sniffed rudely. "I don't care about that. I'm going to burn him to a crisp for trapping me in that dark smelly bottle."
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Demon In A Painting
Fantasy**RUNNER UP** THE IMMORTALS' CONQUEST 2022 It was so easy to be misunderstood and villainized when you're a demon, even one as nice and harmless as Lifen. As if that was not enough, she was captured and bound into a painting! The temporary bind beca...
