Newly Summoned Demoness - Chapter 59 – Bloody Desserts (Patreon)

As Hester finished his proclamation, Elania felt a wave of dread wash over her.

She counted six city guardsmen. Ranolf and his two artificers had artifice wands she recognized to be like Yolani’s combat wand in one hand, and shackles with arcane looking glyphs glowing on them in the other.

Those were definitely some type of slave tool, probably meant to bind and control her.

Yolani looked shocked, emerald-green eyes darting between the advancing guards and the artificers. “You can’t do this,” she protested, her voice ringing out clear and defiant despite the escalating situation.

Hester stood back as he watched the others move forward, his grin only widening at the protest. “Oh, but I can,” he retorted smugly. “And I will.”

Ranolf leveled a serious gaze at Yolani. “Regardless of your skill, Young Aetherhart, you’re outmatched here. I have my two best combat artificers with me. You can’t best all three of us, even if you have the advantage.”

His eyes flickered to Elania. “Submit, Demon. It won’t harm you to change masters. I’ll see that you’re cared for.”

“I’m not a dog,” Elania spat at him. That just hardened the look on the man’s face.

Yolani looked at her with a frown. “I won’t let them take you.”

Elania glanced between the incoming guards and Yolani, then frowned. “I can run, if you want to surrender to the law…or…”

Yolani reached over and put her hand on Elania’s shoulder. “No.” The fierce gaze caught Elania by surprise. “This is my home. He’s taken my father. He’s got the Magister around his finger somehow. I won’t win this in a court. I’m going to fight.”

Elania blinked. Her math said it wasn’t good. The guards had drawn their weapons. Seven against two… three? She glanced at Henri, who had an ashen expression on his face.

Yolani let out a tense breath. “You don’t have to fight, Elania. You can go if you want.”

Shaking her head, Elania made her decision. “No. I’m your bodyguard, remember? I’m with you.”

Yolani turned to Henri. “Are you with us?”

Henri swallowed visibility. “Yolani… I can’t. The warrant is valid. You need to surrender…”

The black-haired girl pursed her lips and turned away. “Just don’t interfere. I don’t want to have to hurt you.”

He backed away towards the nearest building.

Yolani’s hand pulled two wands off her belt, then held them at her side.

Following the other girl’s lead, Elania drew her two Vorpal Daggers. “What’s the plan?”

“Guard me from the ones who come up close,” Yolani ordered.

Ranolf attacked first. He leveled his wand at Elania, and a thick glob of lightning launched itself at her, causing her to skid to a halt as she positioned herself in front of Yolani.

It only made it halfway to her, Yolani leveling her own wand at the projectile. A metal rod erupted from the ground in front of it, discharging the lightning into the ground harmlessly.

The counterattack was swift, Yolani leveling her other wand at her shop. A massive metal spear erupted from the wall, skewering one of the guards from behind, bursting open his chest in a spray of blood that launched itself a dozen meters across the street.

That wasn’t the end, though. The spear writhed like a tentacle, turning and streaking straight for Ranolf. He reacted instantly, leveling his own wand at the attack. The metal appendage suddenly locked in place and then shattered onto the ground, broken.

The five remaining guards rushed forward. One leveled a firearm at Elania, but the weapon suddenly flipped out of his hands, spiraling through the air as Yolani reacted.

Elania grit her teeth as she suddenly tugged on her mana shard. She’d already been at max [Power], but she drew two hundred extra units anyway, pushing herself well over her limit. The burning fire in her core leant her extra speed, and she darted into the path of a swordsman dashing toward Yolani.

He stopped short and swung at her, but she ducked under it and slashed back with her [Vorpral Dagger]. The strike was shallow, but it sliced through his armor with a hiss, leaving a line of blood seeping into cloth. He pulled back for another strike before beginning to scream.

Ouch. Maybe Marcus had some type of resistance to the blade that had protected him. The guard obviously did not. The man dropped to the ground and began to writhe in agony. Holy shit.

The shock almost made her miss the spearman stabbing at her back. Spinning around, she sidestepped the blow, then deflected another strike with her dagger while backpedaling. He was trying to drive her away from Yolani so his three allies could work their way around freely.

In the background, she saw Yolani exchanging blasts of energy between herself and the three Artificers. She was dual wielding her wands while they were just using one, and the other girl was forced to dance around to avoid the strikes.

Being outnumbered was bad. They were going to get worn down like that. Elania’s eyes slid back to the spearman, assessing his weapon.

He stabbed at her again, but this time, she didn’t dodge. Instead, she thrust herself into it. His eyes widened in shock as she grabbed the weapon and slid down it faster than he could back pedal. [Vorpal Dagger] slammed into the socket of his eye, slaying him instantly.

[You have slain Guard - Human - Lvl 176]

[You have lost 113 Karma.]

[For slaying a being over 50 levels higher than you, extra experience is rewarded.]

[You have gained multiple levels!]

[Absorb the lingering Power from Guard - Human - Lvl 176?]

Yes, please.

[Your body has reached the limit of its capacity for Power!]

[Find a stronger body or reduce your current Power!]

[Your body has exceeded the limit of its capacity for Power!]

[Your body is experiencing thermal degradation!]

[You have gained a rank in Martial Bladesmanship, Negotiation, and Mobility!]

[Your body is slightly adapting.]

[Due to your high Power, [Regeneration] is enhanced!]

The sudden influx of power was too much. Golden light from the man’s soul danced around her. She’d only drained a hundred points, forcing her body’s performance higher, and her experience fighting Marcus told her that people were easily worth hundreds of points.

Ripping the spear out of her chest, she hurled it at one guard charging Yolani, dumping all the excess [Power] she was holding onto.

Yellow light burst into existence. It was less a spear throw and a massive energy discharge that curled up the cobblestone and surrounded the man, incinerating him as the energy smashed him into the nearby building.

[You have slain Guard - Human - Lvl 156]

[You have lost 11 Karma.]

[For slaying a being over 50 levels higher than you, extra experience is rewarded.]

[You have gained multiple levels!]

Holy shit, Yolani hadn’t been kidding. The amount of discharge went up exponentially the more power she dumped into the attack.

If she’d channeled that through her body instead of the spear, she’d have blasted herself, too.

One of the artificers turned away from striking Yolani and targeted her. A lance of ice flashed through the air, and Elania dived to the side to dodge it. Another one followed rapidly, changing course to track her.

A slash with her dagger shattered it, but the shards that erupted bit into her. Another strike came, a flying brick. She kicked it, shattering it into dust.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted one of the guards reaching Yolani. He swung his sword at her, but she raised her wand to counter, the tip meeting the blade.

Both the weapon and her wand exploded dramatically, the blast back shaped toward the guard, sending him hurling through the air over the nearby buildings in a high arc.

A blast from Ranolf caught her in the side as she struggled to pull another wand.

As soon as Yolani was knocked off her feet, all three artificers turned toward Elania at once.

A fusillade of magic flashed toward her. It was impossible to dodge, so she flared her [Power] liberally to punch the magical projectiles away. They deflected in every direction, smashing into buildings and roofs all around the street. In the distance, Elania realized there were scores of people screaming as they ran away.

How much fucking power did the artificers have in their stupid wands? Her [Power] gauge was dropping rapidly, and Elania dived toward the writhing guard. He had curled up in a ball and gone still, but he wasn’t dead yet. She fixed that with a sharp blow to the side of the skull.

[You have slain Guard - Human - Lvl 126]

[You have lost 51 Karma.]

[For slaying a being over 50 levels higher than you, extra experience is rewarded.]

[You have gained multiple levels!]

[Absorb the lingering Power from Guard - Human - Lvl 126?]

The surge of power rebounded her struggle against the projectiles.

[You have gained a rank in Martial Bladesmanship and Mobility!]

Suddenly, a lance of light flashed through the air and impaled one of the artificers in the chest, knocking him back. Jewelry and his robes suddenly flared red and exploded, leaving him half naked, but he jumped back on his feet almost immediately.

A shout to the side drew Elania’s attention. Yolani was struggling with the guard, who had a dagger she was barely holding at bay.

Fuck. She’d messed up and missed the last guard!

Jumping toward the struggle, the three artificers leveled their wands together at her. A solid chunk of purple light slammed into her chest, locking her in place. Suddenly air was unavailable, her entire body felt like it was on fire.

That was because it had punched a basketball size hole through her torso, and her heart, lungs, and ribcage were missing.

[Crisis Management S+ active ability has activated. Remaining time: 6 seconds.]

It was cause for concern, but she felt calm. Time seemed to slow. The beam wasn’t just pure energy, but a solid construction of some metal, impaled into the ground behind her like a massive spear.

It was solid all the way back to the artificers… and it connected her to the three wands in her attacker’s hands.

She could feel the constructs…or maybe it was their mana shards.

Their capacities were absolutely puny. How had they wielded so much potent magic with so little [Power] available to them?

The way they connected to her, it would be trivial to yank that power out and drain the combat wands.

That was the wrong direction. Elania sucked down half the remaining [Power] in her mana shard and shoved it back into the wands.

The small shards in the wands lit up like miniature stars before shattering in their owner’s faces. The man who Yolani had blasted off his defensive warding was decapitated instantly.

[You have slain Artificer - Human - Lvl 193]

[You have lost 27 Karma.]

Flames flared up around the other artificer as his wardings burned before the force slammed him into the wall of the shop with a sickening crunch.

[You have slain Artificer - Human - Lvl 142]

[You have lost 53 Karma.]

[For slaying beings over 50 levels higher than you, extra experience is rewarded.]

[You have gained multiple levels!]

In front of Ranolf, a green circle flashed into existence that deflected the explosion into the ground, but even he staggered backwards.

Whatever the artificers had impaled her with didn’t disappear. She grabbed it with her fists and punched at it, trying to break it, but it was solid and rang with each blow. [System] messages flooded her vision enough to disorient her.

Fuck. Ranolf was getting back onto his feet. Yolani was…

Her last option clicked into place. Elania closed her eyes and remembered what it was like to hunt.

The sudden change was disorienting as she hit the ground, but she recovered quickly, rolling onto her paws. Ranolf didn’t see the movement, and she pulsed her [Power] into [Stealth] which turned her form into a blurred mist.

Elania glanced behind her to check on her partner and was surprised. Yolani was on the ground, scrambling to get on her feet, the guard impaled from behind on the length of Henri’s sword. As soon as she was on her feet, she reached for a wand, but a lightning bolt from Ranolf rushing forward blasted her hand away.

“You’ve done enough already. You’ll pay for this with your lives,” the master artificer spat at the two.

Yolani’s hand inched slowly toward a wand, but he gestured with his wand. “Aht! If you move, I’ll impale the both of you now. You aren’t fast enough to draw before I can cast.”

Elania slinked forward on her belly from behind. When she was in range, she leapt with a roar. The old man still had the slave collar in his hand, but all he saw before she ripped out his throat was her [Darkwalker] teeth.

Human blood filled her senses. It tasted good. She smashed her paw on the old man’s exposed spine, severing it as she swallowed the chunk of flesh she had torn out.

[You have slain Master Artificer - Human - Lvl 276]

[You have gained 153 Karma.]

[For slaying a being over 50 levels higher than you, extra experience is rewarded.]

[You have gained multiple levels!]

[Absorb the lingering Power from Master Artificer - Human - Lvl 276?]

Instinctually, she knew it would be too much power and she wouldn’t get more flesh, but she took it anyway.

Golden fire wreathed around her. It hurt. It hurt a lot. But she was strong. She could withstand it. She had use for it.

[You have gained a rank in Negotiation, Bribery, and Intimidation!]

[You have gained the skills Artifice, Enhanced Mana Sensing, and Elemental Affinity!]

Loping over to her abandoned clothes, she clawed her boot and touched her mana shard. The excess energy flowed freely into it, restoring some of the drained [Power].

Not having hands was difficult. What if she used [Power]?

Telekinesis was possible. At a cost. Her purse opened. Important things went inside. Daggers. Mana Shard. Her new bra. No room for anything else. Grabbing the pack in her mouth, she ran back toward Emerald Eyes.

The male beside flared panic and leveled his weapon at her, but she ignored his posturing.

Emerald Eyes stared back into hers. “E…Elania?”

Elania let out a loud purr and nuzzled up against Yolani’s leg.

“That’s Elania?” Henri asked weakly. “She’s…big.”

“Are you alright?” Yolani asked.

Elania let out another purr, but then a small noise echoed nearby, causing her ear to twitch. Leaving her bag with Emerald Eyes, she bounded toward the sound.

There was still one enemy left. The one who had hurt Emerald Eyes the most and caused all the catastrophe.

Hester hid in a trench of torn stone, his hands holding onto his bald head to hide it. When her shadow passed over him, he looked up and shrieked. She reached forward and raked his chest with her claws. He was weak. Not a fighter. A talker. His ability was poisoned words.

Easy prey. Not hers, though.

She bit down hard on his shoulder, blood filling her mouth again. Elania dragged him out of the hole and then turned toward emerald eyes, carrying her catch to her partner and deposited the bleeding piece of meat in front of her feet.

Emerald Eyes looked down at him for a moment, her eyes radiating her emotions.

The poisoned words came. Pleading. Mercy. Offerings. Elania hissed at him.

“You’re too dangerous to leave alive,” Yolani declared. She leveled her wand at his head and suddenly a thin bolt of blue lanced through his skull.

It was over.

Yolani’s hand covered the side of her face. Elania could tell she was in pain. Mentally and physically.

“You have to go. The guard will be here in minutes,” Henri said.

That was bad. Sniffing Hester’s corpse, she took a chunk of meat and swallowed it before absorbing him. There was no reason to leave waste behind. Even if he tasted icky, and she was already regretting the fatty bite she had swallowed.

[You have gained a rank in Negotiation and Bribery!]

Yolani let out a tense breath. “I need to get—”

“No! You need to go now! Both of you! There’s an entire reaction platoon coming!” Henri shouted.

Elania sniffed the air and then picked up her bag with her teeth. But where would they run?

Yolani pointed toward the shop. “Into the shop. There’s an escape. I need things.”

Henri nodded. “Alright. I can’t come with you. They would track me.”

Yolani looked to the ground and nodded. “Thank you.”

Henri pushed her gently. “Go. Hurry.”

They fled.