He took a step forward, finding himself face to face with the mage who was trying to invoke a new spell, and delivered a sharp blow to his solar plexus. The air abruptly left the student’s lungs, making him spit out his saliva.

Without giving him time to recover, Kaiser placed his finger on his forehead, injecting a dose of aura that instantly cleansed the demonic energy.

At the same moment, the other possessed was already leaping at him. Turning on himself in a small jump, Kaiser released a powerful circular kick, sending him crashing violently against a rocky wall. Advancing slowly toward the inert body, Kaiser placed his hand on the unconscious student, dissipating the demonic corruption with the same efficiency.

" And that’s four ", he murmured as he scanned the surroundings, looking for his next target.

In an instant, he disappeared again. While the possessed continued to sow chaos among the students’ ranks, Kaiser suddenly emerged right in the middle of a bloody confrontation.

A possessed was about to slit the throat of a terrified comrade. Kaiser caught him off guard, seizing the individual by the back of the head before slamming him face-first against the ground with brute force. The skull hit the stone with a sinister crack. Without losing a second, he infused his Mystic Arts, breaking the demonic hold.

" And that’s sixteen. " Kaiser straightened up slowly. In a short time, he had subdued and saved sixteen people. " Ahhh. " He let out a long sigh of weariness.

While Kaiser was exorcising the possessed, on Jezabel’s side, she was facing a silhouette whose energy clearly distinguished itself from the other possessed. The power emanating from this individual dangerously approached rank A, or even beyond.

Jezabel, her hands haloed with an orange glow, retreated with agility. She could have ended her opponent’s life definitively by releasing the full power of her fire magic, but her intention remained to capture and save the host, not to incinerate him.

However, the possessed did not share these scruples. The student’s body, distorted by veins pulsing with electric blue, contracted brutally before triggering a lightning attack. A blinding discharge shot straight toward her.

Kaiser interposed himself, deflecting the electric arc with a movement of his reinforced forearm. He did not seem at all disturbed by the tension still crackling around him. His eyes fixed on the possessed.

" Tell me ", began Kaiser, his casual voice piercing the tumult, " you have already taken over the body, haven’t you? "

The possessed froze, an inhuman smile stretching his lips to an unnatural joint. His eyes, once clear, were now drowned in viscous darkness.

" How did you notice? " asked the demon in a double voice, where the student’s timbre mixed with a guttural growl.

" Your demonic energy is much denser than that of the vulgar larvae I just swept away ", he replied.

" I see ", He tilted his head to the side. " I am a demon from the Belzebu faction... "

" Not interested in who you are ", Kaiser cut in sharply.

Without giving the entity time to finish its presentation, Kaiser rushed forward. However, the demon reacted quickly. A new electric discharge struck the ground at Kaiser’s feet, forcing him to stop his progression abruptly and retreat a few steps.

Kaiser seized the handle of his katana. With a movement, he swung the blade, releasing a sharp shockwave. The compressed air crescent flew toward the possessed. The latter did not try to dodge. He joined his hands and a barrier of lightning materialized in front of him, intercepting the attack. The shock produced a shrill whistle.

Kaiser granted his opponent no second of respite. He leaped, covering the distance in a fraction of a second. His katana slammed violently on the demon’s left flank. The blade was stopped dead by the crackling lightning shield at the point of contact. The friction of metal against pure energy filled the air with an unbearable frying sound.

" This body is really practical ", remarked the demon while observing Kaiser struggle against his defense. " Even the fire woman didn’t manage to bring it down. So what do you hope for, human? "

" You’re overestimating yourself a bit too much ", replied Kaiser.

He put more force into his arms, and the power of the blow increased radically. Under the brutal push, the lightning barrier began to give way, cracks of light appearing where the steel edge was sinking in.

Seeing his protection crumbling, the demon showed the first trace of panic. His features contracted, but it was too late. The barrier broke, leaving the entity totally vulnerable. Terror marked the possessed’s face.

Without losing an instant, Kaiser projected his knee forward. The impact at the sternum level was so powerful that it lifted the demon’s body off the ground, instantly cutting off his breath.

While the possessed was still floating in the air, Kaiser pivoted on himself in a perfect rotation movement. His foot struck violently the opponent’s thorax. The spinning kick sent the demon crashing several meters further against a massive rocky wall.

The rock cracked under the shock, raising a thick cloud of dust and stone debris. Kaiser began walking calmly toward the pile of rubble.

The possessed tried painfully to get up, his limbs trembling with uncontrollable spasms. Realizing that he was physically outclassed, the demon drew on his last reserves of mana. He began to project a multitude of lightning arrows and concentrated energy balls in a desperate attempt to slow the predator’s advance.

Kaiser continued his walk without slowing down. He dodged each projectile, simply tilting his head or shifting a shoulder a few centimeters.

" Stop resisting ", he said in a voice devoid of emotion. " You are the last one. "

Suddenly realizing that he was alone facing this man, the demon lost all composure. His panic became palpable, a black sweat beading on his forehead.

" Die! " he shouted in a final surge of rage.

Kaiser’s expression turned to pure exasperation. He moved to find himself instantly face to face with the demon. His hand closed on the possessed’s face, stifling his cry. With a movement, he violently slammed the back of his skull against the rocky wall.

The impact was such that the possessed’s eyes rolled back immediately. The body became limp. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

< Mystic Arts: Dissipation >

Kaiser delicately pressed the tip of his index finger on the student’s forehead.

Immediately, the demonic energy that saturated the victim’s mana circles began to evaporate. A viscous black wave escaped from the body with a hiss before dissipating totally.

He finally released the body, which slid inert onto the dusty ground. Kaiser took out a cigarette, lit it and exhaled a puff of smoke.

" And that’s thirty ", he murmured while observing the now silent camp.

...