The Heavenly Demon of Terror-Chapter 316: The Killing Intent

Samuel's POV

"Damn it," I muttered under my breath, the lingering traces of Ezra's voidfire still fading from the air. He got away... just like that.

No fancy spells. No portal. Just—gone. Like reality itself let him slip through the cracks.

I let the silence settle for a beat, then turned to Henry and Owen with a sharp grin cutting across my face.

"Looks like we've got ourselves a challenge," I said, cracking my knuckles. "So, boys... wanna see who takes him down first?"

Henry raised an eyebrow, arms folded over his chest. "Oh, you're on. But don't come crying when I drag what's left of him back before your sword even finds his shadow."

Owen snorted, brushing dust off his coat. "You two can race all you want. I'm not in it for the competition." He paused, then smirked. "But if I do bring him in first... drinks are on you."

I chuckled, the heat of the moment sparking in my chest like fire catching wind. Yeah... this is what I needed. A goal. A rival. A damn reason to swing with everything I've got.

Roselle, standing behind me, just sighed.

"Boys," she muttered, "he just threatened the entire fabric of reality and your first instinct is to make it a pissing contest."

I threw her a wink. "Gotta keep the morale up somehow, your Darkness."

Nocturne laughed softly beside her, shaking her head. "Let them have their moment. Despair will find them soon enough."

I looked back toward the horizon — where Ezra once stood — and tightened my grip on the hilt strapped to my back.

Game on, bastard.

I looked at Roselle and asked "So what's next because I'm so itching to kill that Ezra."

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Roselle's POV

I watched the fire in Samuel's eyes, the storm gathering behind his smirk like a wolf grinning in thunder. He was already craving the blood of a god, and Ezra had lit a fuse he wouldn't be able to snuff out. Not easily.

But this wasn't about just killing anymore. This was about knowing.

I stepped forward, the hem of my dark cloak whispering against the shattered stones. "What's next?" I echoed, voice cool, calculated. "Next... we find out what Ezra really broke."

Samuel raised a brow. "Besides the seal?"

I nodded slowly. "The seal was a lock, yes. But Ezra... he shattered a doorframe. Something that was meant to never be rebuilt."

Nocturne moved closer, the air around her dimming subtly, her despair crawling along the edge of every shadow. "The Forgotten Gate was only one part of it. There are three others. Each tied to a different aspect of creation: Breath, Memory, and Binding."

Henry's jaw tightened. "Wait—you're saying Ezra's not just breaking in. He's trying to rewrite the rules."

"Exactly," I replied. "And if we don't intervene fast, he won't need armies or monsters. He'll just unmake what holds this realm together — the laws of choice, of soul, of time."

Samuel paced a few steps away, his boots cracking old bone fragments scattered on the altar stones. He turned to face me, eyes narrowed and gleaming.

"Then where do we start?"

I met his gaze. "We start by going to the Hollow Spire. It's the last known location of the Scroll of Binding. If Ezra wants to erase the rules — that's one of the first ones he'll need to snap."

Owen exhaled sharply. "And let me guess... it's guarded by something not thrilled to see visitors?"

Nocturne smirked. "Think less 'guardian' and more 'sentient paradox.' It doesn't kill intruders. It turns their own truths against them."

Samuel's grin never faded. "Sounds like my kind of place." fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

I sighed again, rubbing at my temples.

"Just promise me none of you will try to fight each other inside. That place feeds on conflict."

"Then we're screwed," Henry muttered, glancing at Samuel.

"Definitely," Owen added under his breath.

Samuel walked up beside me, his tone suddenly quieter. "Roselle... you're scared."

I didn't respond immediately. But after a beat, I looked up at him and nodded.

"I am. Because Ezra isn't just trying to unleash something old. He's trying to become it."

And if that happened...

Not even death would recognize this world anymore.

"Then we better kill him first," Samuel said.

And for once, I didn't argue.