The Monster King's Legacy-Chapter 99: The Rotting Demon

A foul wind rolled through the trees as the demon showed its grotesque sight.

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Its gray, skeletal form stood as it spread its bat-like wings lined with jagged bones that curved like cruel blades. Its sunken eyes, bulging and bloodshot, darted between its enemies, its lipless mouth pulling into something resembling an empty grin.

Lance took a step forward, gripping his sword tightly. "Spread out!" he shouted, before turning to Lia, "prepare another spell to attack."

The warriors obeyed, fanning out in a loose formation. Rusak crouched low, his muscles tense, golden fur bristling. Zarra and Rikka seemingly disappeared into the shades and covers, maneuvering for a flank. Rynne readied her spear, her sharp eyes set to track every movement. Dran planted his shield into the ground, anchoring himself. After seeing how much of a defensive and strength build he was, Lance introduced him to a new way of fighting, though, for this enemy, he might not need his shield.

The demon tilted its head, its body jerking as if held together by strings. Then, without warning, it lunged forward, covering the distance between them in an instant.

Lance barely had time to react before the demon’s clawed hand swiped at him. He twisted his body, evading the attack, but even as the claws missed, a trail of blackened mist followed. The very air seemed to corrode the leather of his armor.

Even touching the air around it was dangerous. Somehow, it was as though the demon wasn’t even aiming to land its hit. It was either that, or the demon, for its level of strength, was not built for melee combat, as it was much slower than expected.

Rusak took advantage of the opening, dashing in at blinding speed. He struck with a powerful palm thrust aimed at the demon’s exposed ribcage. The impact landed with a loud crack, sending a ripple through the demon’s body.

For a moment, it seemed like Rusak’s raw power had done some damage, until the demon’s body realigned, the bones in its ribs that appeared to have only shifted moving back as though nothing had happened. Worse, where Rusak had struck, the fur on his hand began to darken, the tips curling as if burnt.

Rusak leaped back, eyes narrowing as he quickly used a finger to shave off the affected fur. "Tch. Even attacking it directly has consequences." He said.

The demon let out a low, guttural sound that came as a hunted chuckle. Its wings folded in front of its body like a shield before snapping open, releasing a thick burst of ashen mist in all directions.

"Fall back!" Lance yelled.

Everyone scattered, barely avoiding the deadly fog.

Just then, Lia also finished preparing spell and extended her staff. A wave of golden light erupted outward, creating a barrier that pushed the mist back. "I can hold it off for a bit, but I can’t keep this up forever!" She said.

Looking at her, Lance realised that she had canceled her attack spell and created one to protect everyone instead. It was a bit inefficient, but it was still equally good as it saved a few warriors who would have been caught by the mist.

Rynne gritted her teeth, understanding how this demon would fight.

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Zarra suddenly appeared behind the demon, moving like a shadow. She lunged a precise attack with her daggers aimed at the base of its wings, aiming to cleave them off.

Surprisingly, as though she had been sensed at the very last moment, the demon reacted instantly. Its wings snapped shut, forming a protective shell around its body. Zarra’s blades scraped against the bony and leather exterior, unable to pierce through. She barely managed to retreat before the demon twisted, lashing out with a long, bony arm. She ducked under the swing and rolled away, rejoining Rikka, who had also been preparing to strike.

"It’s using its wings like armor," Rikka muttered. "If we can’t break through, this is going to be a long fight."

Taking the opportunity while the demon seemed distracted with Zarra, Dran charged forward alongside a couple of other warriors. He slammed his shield into the ground and swung his sword with immense force at the demon. Once again, as though moving on its own, the blade met the demon’s wing. The impact rang out, but the wing held firm.

The demon retaliated with unnatural speed, bringing its wing down in a sweeping strike. Dran raised his shield, barely absorbing the blow before he was sent skidding backward, his feet digging trenches into the dirt while the other warriors charged forward to attack, though, it didn’t amount to much as they still had to retreat once the demon surrounded itself with another cloud of mist.

Lance gritted his teeth. "We need a different approach."

The demon opened its wings again, this time gathering a swirling black energy in its hands. It released another wave of mist, but instead of simply spreading decay, it coiled together into something more solid.

The mist condensed into tendrils of black sludge, writhing like living creatures. They lashed out, striking at anything nearby. One tendril barely missed Rikka as she flipped backward a couple times, taking the chance to hide herself. Another wrapped around an orc’s leg, dragging him into the air before hurling him into the trees. He hit with a sickening crunch, but that was not the worst part, as his leg where the tendril had clenched started to blacken, but surprisingly, it didn’t spread too far as the mist had caused in the first orc..

"Shaman, got any tricks for this?!" Rusak shouted.

Lia’s eyes flickered with determination as she had already been preparing something that was just then ready. She slammed her staff into the ground, and a pulse of green light spread outward on the ground over some distance. The tendrils, on contact with the field within the green field, recoiled backwards, sizzling as they retreated.

The demon hissed, its body trembling. Its eyes bulged even further, the whites overtaken by a sickly black. Its jaw unhinged, and it let out a piercing shriek that sent shivers down everyone’s spines.

Then, it moved again, this time faster as it dashed forward, aiming directly at Lia.

’Not happening!’ Lance thought to himself, rushing in to intercept it, swinging his sword in a wide arc. The blade connected with the demon’s arm, slicing through the thin flesh. But instead of blood, a thick black ooze spilled out. The liquid splattered onto Lance’s blade, immediately corroding the steel.

Lance clicked his tongue, landing a heavy kick on the demon to push it back a few feet, using the force from the kick to jump back, dropping the weapon before the corrosion reached his hand. "It’s blood is acidic?!" He said to himself, the effect was indeed strange. Immediately, another sword was hurled his way, and he caught it.