[A third-tier purple-grade Cursed Spirit was a foe Fethan had never faced before—but not Lumi. She’d fought everything under the sun as a former elite Demon Slayer. Ricky might’ve been tough, but she’d slain hundreds like him.]

  ‘If I didn’t have to start from scratch, a man-sized roach wouldn’t be a problem.’

  But every slash felt heavier than she expected. These spirits she used to dispatch like weeds now forced her to fight for her life.

  ‘I’ve already used Demon Cleave multiple times. How many more spirit-fueled attacks can I manage? One? Maybe two? Plus one final big move.’

  She calculated her remaining strength. Ricky’s flurry of punches and kicks bruised her spirit form. Even Fethan had nearly passed out from a glancing blow. Lumi, who had taken the brunt of it, was nearly done for.

  Her arm was limp, skin shriveled like a corpse’s. Her once-pink fingertips had turned a necrotic black-purple.

  ‘If I can just land one clean hit… I’ll take his head off.’

  She gritted her teeth and absorbed another crushing kick. Her blade nearly flew from her grip—but she held on.

  ‘A swordsman only lets go when they die,’ her brother’s cold voice echoed.

  ‘That’s right. I won’t drop it—not even in death.’

  “Hey… mind if I lick you?”

  Ricky’s vile voice broke through the chaos. His interest had shifted. After all her resistance, he wanted to savor her.

  “Sorry, but every inch of me is reserved for my future baby daddy. Outsiders don’t get a taste.”

  Ricky didn’t care about consent. The question was a courtesy. His black aura erupted. He pounced.

  The werewolf, limbs broken, could only watch helplessly.

  “Woof! (Lady Boss!)”

  “Haaah…” Lumi gathered all her spirit energy. Just then, a surge of energy flooded into her—filling the void.

  She swung Ninetails. A wave of raw power cleaved through the air.

  Eastern Guardian Sword Style: Technique Three – Demonic Impact Wave.

  “!” Ricky’s expression twisted as the blade wave slammed into him. His six arms blocked, but the power was far beyond anything she’d unleashed before.

  Lumi didn’t understand it either. Her strength had surged.

  “Lumi!” Fethan’s voice rang out. A broken card glowed in his hand.

  [Spirit EXP Card XL]

  A rare item that boosted a spirit’s experience—but instead of leveling her up, Fethan used it to fuel her spirit energy.

  Spirits didn’t gain levels from monsters—they cultivated energy. The EXP card became a temporary battery, and it worked.

  “Sorry I was late.”

  “No, perfect timing!” Lumi gave him a thumbs-up. She didn’t blame him one bit. Though internally, she thought if he’d waited even one more second, she’d be fertilizing the grass.

  Fethan exhaled. He met Lumi’s gaze and spoke solemnly.

  “Lumi, I’m going to use a curse. Do you trust me?”

  “A curse?” Lumi’s expression tensed. As a Demon Slayer, she had always been taught curses were off-limits. Unlike dark arts or hexes, curses didn’t bend to the caster—they consumed them. Everyone who used them eventually went mad.

  But she smiled at him.

  “I trust you. Just like you trust me.”

  Fethan’s last hesitation vanished.

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  He had always believed she’d surpass even her father and brother. He vowed to stand by her no matter what.

  And now, she believed in him just the same.

  “I really am the luckiest man alive.”

  Fethan raised his wand high.

  “When I give the signal, go all in.”

  “Yes, sir~” Lumi smiled. This was their first true battle together—and she’d never forget it.

  “SKREEEE!!” Ricky sprang to his feet, lunging toward Lumi. Fethan was out of spirit energy—no backup from Everland this time.

  Lumi tightened the cloth around her sword grip. This was her last stand.

  Fethan flipped through the pages of Gamo’s dark tome, searching.

  He had a gift: quick learning. His theory scores were always top-tier, even if he couldn’t grow his magic. But now, his dormant potential had found its place.

  “Stella, back up. This spot’s about to get dangerous.”

  A blue-aura Hellhound nuzzled Stella, vowing to protect her. She climbed on its back and fled.

  Fethan took a deep breath.

  “Crazy, huh? A guy who wanted to be a holy mage ends up casting curses. Damn you, Gamo—why are your notes easier to learn than proper magic?”

  He laughed bitterly. His spirit power surged, skyrocketing into the sky.

  Both Lumi and Ricky froze as they felt it—pure subconscious fury, unshackled. His gray aura turned into a smiling face. Demonic laughter echoed across the battlefield.

  Foreign whispers danced in his ears. Rage and buried pain boiled to the surface. His heterochromatic eyes changed—dark floral marks bloomed, and a triangular eye formed on his right hand.

  “Freeze like a corpse.”

  Fethan snapped his wand.

  “Fixare!”

  Curse Spell: Paralysis Hex.

  Ricky, fist mid-swing, froze. He was conscious—but utterly immobile. A Tier 3 cursed spirit, locked in place for several seconds. Unheard of.

  Lumi knew immediately—this was her final chance. There would not be another.

  “Wake up, Ninetails! Don’t you dare sleep now!”

  She funneled everything into her sword. A red fox emblem blazed across the blade. The blue flame turned crimson—like a blooming Black Baccarat rose.

  She charged.

  Foxfire screamed.

  Eastern Guardian Sword Style: Secret Technique One – Red Fox Blaze.

  Ninetails slashed across Ricky’s neck. The fat-covered flesh resisted—but she poured her all into the cut.

  “Break—now! Don’t you dare underestimate a Rank-S Demon Slayer!”

  The crimson flame scorched the wound. Bit by bit, the blade pierced. His head finally separated, spine and veins exposed.

  Ricky’s body moved again after five seconds. That’s all Fixare gave.

  But it was enough.

  Lumi’s whole body throbbed with overexertion. Blood rushed to her cheeks from the adrenaline rush.

  ‘Amazing… this is addictive.’

  ‘Don’t let your guard down,’ Shiel’s voice echoed in her mind.

  ‘The moment you think it’s over—is when you die.’

  Lumi’s strength vanished. She expected the bug to fall dead—but what she saw shattered all logic.

  Its abs opened like a flower. Inside: fangs, a tongue. Six arms wrapped around her—dragging her toward its gaping stomach.

  She saw its heart. Its intestines. Its stomach acid bubbling.

  Its severed head was regrowing—from the neck stump.

  ‘No…’

  ‘I cut its head off…’

  ‘Why isn’t it dead…?!’

  “Awoooo! (Brothers! It’s time!)” The werewolf, limbs twisted, lunged and bit into Ricky’s arm.

  “Woof woof! (Do your duty!)”

  “Woof! (For Everland!)” Hellhounds and Death Rats used the last of their strength to tackle and bite Ricky, pinning him in place.

  Lumi looked up, breath ragged. Fethan had changed—something about him was unrecognizable.

  “Even without a head, it regenerates? Fine. I believe it.”

  Fethan raised his wand again.

  Black flames danced along his arm.

  His gray aura turned pitch-black. Hatred, wrath, malice—all radiated from his eyes.

  The dead wailed like a funeral choir. His cold gaze fell on the beast.

  ‘You’re just meat waiting to die.’

  ‘Welcome to Everland, you degenerate.’

  “Burn until not even your soul remains—Exuro Animam.”

  Fethan spoke the cursed incantation.

  The flames erupted from his arm, alive and writhing.

  Curse Spell: Flame Curse of Annihilation.

  BOOM!

  The black fire consumed Ricky’s regenerating corpse. His soul fought back—but the curse outpaced it. His healing couldn’t keep up.

  ‘No… No… I haven’t… I haven’t even licked yet…’ Ricky thought in despair.

  He turned to ash.

  [Quest Complete: Ricky the Lecherous Roach. Reward: 20 Soul Coins, Tier 3 Cursed Spirit Cleansing Card x1, Monthly Tax Collection Card x1]

  [Congratulations. You have leveled up.]

  “Ugh…” Fethan collapsed. His right arm was scorched—he could still feel it burning.

  The Hellhounds, Death Rats, and the werewolf were all gone—burned to nothing with the spell. Only he and Lumi remained.

  His mana and spirit power were gone.

  But they had won.

  Stella ran toward him, tears in her eyes.

  ‘He won… He actually won…’

  No prayer, no charm, no holy rite had ever saved her family before. This was the first time someone had beaten a cursed spirit—for her.

  “M-Mr. Fethan…”

  She wanted to apologize. She knew he didn’t want to use curses. And yet he’d used the one thing he hated most—to protect her.

  “How are you holding up, Stella?”

  “Huh?”

  “Am I the coolest big brother ever?”

  He smiled, like the man who hadn’t just unleashed a demonic spell. Warm. Familiar.

  Stella nodded so hard her cheeks puffed.

  “Y-yes! The coolest in the whole world!”

  The curse field collapsed with Ricky’s death. Fethan and Stella rushed home to rest.

  Unbeknownst to them, someone had been watching.

  A man with facial tattoos sat in a tree, using binoculars. Even Lumi hadn’t sensed him.

  His green eyes trembled in disbelief.

  He’d seen the book—the one Fethan used to cast his spell.

  “So it was someone messing with my spirits. But to think… I’d get this lucky.”

  He grinned like he’d won the lottery.

  “The Dark Arts Codex… there’s no mistake. That’s his book.”

  The legacy of history’s most terrifying Dark Magus was in the hands of some brat.

  A colossal waste—or a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.