Kayvaan rolled over without hesitation. As soon as his feet hit the ground, he ejected the spent magazine from his bolt pistol and smoothly slid in a fresh one. Without pausing, he sidestepped swiftly, his hand already reag for the sniper rifle slung across his back. There was o aim—at this range, instind years of battle-honed precision guided him. The sniper rifle barked loudly, its rge-caliber bolt round tearing through the golden lion's thigh with brutal efficy. The shot shattered bone and exploded in the Daemon's hind leg with a violent burst.

  The rifle hit the ground with a metallig as Kayvaan discarded it without a sed gnce. He drew his bat dagger and charged, his movements fluid aless. With a pistol in one hand and the dagger iher, he leaped onto the golden lion’s back, smming the bde deep into its thick hide. The single-molecule edge sliced effortlessly through flesh and bone, embedding itself to the hilt. Kayvaan didn’t stop—he tore the bde free, carving a gruesome wound along the lion's spine. Without hesitation, he jammed the bolt pistol into the exposed flesh and pulled the trigger.

  "Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

  Thirteen explosive rounds detonated deep ihe Daemon's body, sending tremors through its massive frame. The golden lion howled in agony, its fur bristling as it thrashed wildly. Yet, Kayvaan held firm, gripping the dagger's handle like an anchor. Half-kneeling on the lion's back, he remaieady as if he were part of the beast itself, unshaken by its desperate attempts to throw him off. The pistol’s magazine clicked empty. With practiced ease, Kayvaaed it, pulled a fresh one from his belt, and reloaded single-handedly. In one swift motion, he pulled the dagger free and stabbed it into a fresh spot. The bde sliced open anory wound, and once again, thirteen rounds exploded ihe lion’s torso, each shot deepening the Daemon’s anguish.

  The golden lion roared in fury, its mind clouded by pain. Even its Daemonic resilience faltered uhe relentless assault. Still, it refused to succumb eo the torment. Driven by primal instincts, the lion’s body surged with infernal energy. It reared ba its hind legs, its cws swiping blindly at its tormentor. Kayvaa go of the dagger and dropped to the ground, nding lightly behind the creature just as one of its massive paws smmed down, iently driving the embedded dagger deeper into its flesh.

  The lion howled again, the pain unbearable. Kayvaan wasted no time. He discarded the bolt pistol and flexed his hands. The lightning cws ied into his gaus extended with a sharp snikt, crag with blue arcs of energy. With a quick lunge, Kayvaan ducked uhe lion’s belly. His cws found their mark, raking across the soft underbelly in a series of long, deliberate cuts that tore through the Daemon’s thick hide like part.

  The golden lion thrashed harder, its massive form shaking the ground. But Kayvaan moved with the precision of a veteran warrior. He darted around the beast, striking with speed and ferocity. As he slipped out from uhe lion, his cws delivered another brutal series of sshes across its abdomen, leaving the wounds gaping and raw, like an unzipping seam.

  The lion staggered, its Daemonic strength finally faltering. Its glowing eyes widened in disbelief as its insides began to spill out. Iines, shredded ans, and charred remnants of muscle poured from its ravaged body. The lion tried in vain to hold its iines, pawing at them with trembling cws as if it could somehow shove them baside. "How… how is this possible?" the lion gasped, its voice choked with shod fury. It gred at Kayvaan, who stood before it, his armor spattered with gore but his stanshaken. "I am the Golden Lion! My legend has only just begun! How I fall here, at the hands of a mortal? Who are you? Speak your name, human!"

  Kayvaan tilted his head, his expression one of mild irritation. "Why do you Daemons always have to talk so much?" he muttered, shaking the blood off his cws. "You're done. Just die already."

  Kayvaan stopped wasting words and leaped forward like a predator on the hunt. In a single bound, he nded on the golden lion’s thigh, pushing off with force to propel himself onto its massive chest. His cws extended, gleaming in the dim light, and he drove them straight into the daemon’s left atrium. A siing squelch echoed as his cws sank deep into the lion’s chest. With a grim determination, Kayvaan twisted his arms violently, tearing through flesh and bone. Blood sprayed as his cws raked around the lion's ribcage, carving a gaping wound. Using his legs for leverage, he anchored himself into the beast's chest, f his way further into the cavity.

  With one cw still embedded in the daemon’s torso, he reached deeper with the other, pulling aside yers of muscle and sio reveal the beast’s massive, pulsating bck heart. The an throbbed unnaturally, its surface shimmering with a sinister glow. Without hesitation, Kayvaan plunged his cws into it. With a flick of his wrist, the heart was severed from its arteries, ripped out with brutal efficy.

  He kicked off the lion's chest, nding gracefully on the ground with the grotesque heart still beating in his cwed hand. A look of disgust crossed his face. With a flick, he discarded the heart, letting it thud onto the ground. Raising his boot, he stomped down hard. The heart exploded beh his foot in a wet burst, dark ichor spttering everywhere. “Shut up and die quietly,” Kayvaan spat, gring at the daemon.

  The golden lion, trembling in agony and fury, colpsed. Despite its grievous wounds, it gred at Kayvaan, its glowing eyes filled with hatred. “You filthy human,” it growled, its voice a mix e and pain. “This isn’t over. The horror has only just begun. I will return, and when I do—”

  Before it could finish, a single sh out. A projectile tore through the daemon's mouth, obliterating its tongue in a spray of gore. The lion could o garbled, meaningless sounds as its body vulsed. Suddenly, eerie green fmes erupted across its massive form. The fire was unnatural, ing the lion without a single spark to ig.

  Elizabeth approached, her calm demeanor trasting with the chaos. “Impressive,” she remarked, standing beside Kayvaan as they watched the daemon burn. “I was ready to give you fire support, but you mao kill that beast in uwo seds. To be ho, I haven’t seen such skill in a long time.”

  “Kill?” Kayvaan shook his head. “This wasn’t a fight. The battle ehe moment I struck. All we’re doing now is ing up. Tell your people to hurry up—we don’t have time to waste.”

  Elizabeth frowned. “You don’t seem to grasp the gravity of what just happened. You killed a daemon with a true name. Do you have any idea what that means? It will e back for you.”