Lord Of Beasts

Elara’s vision spun.

Pain exploded through her stomach after tumbling across the endless darkness, every muscle in her body screaming in protest. The impact alone should have shattered her ribs, and yet the pain vanished shortly after it had arrived.

Not because she had healed, but because none of it had been real.

This place wasn’t reality, but a mental space that was completely under the control of the Blood Demon. Crimson energy flowed through her body as she glared at the scarlet reflection across from her.

It had its hands behind its back, almost looking disappointed that a single punch had taken so much out of her.

"To start the lesson, we will be focusing on my Instant Displacement, which you have been misusing."

Its hoarse voice echoed endlessly throughout the empty world.

"You brute-force the technique with overwhelming mana while trying to replicate what I was able to do while using your body."

The Blood Demon sighed.

"You have made my teleportation slower and more draining than it needs to be. What’s the point of immediate movement if the activation isn’t instant? It’s like having a dull blade; you might as well wield a hammer."

Before Elara could even respond, the demon disappeared.

She instinctively spun, expecting it to appear behind her, which she was right about.

But that didn’t mean she could react fast enough.

A heel smashed into her back.

BOOM!

She flew through the darkness like a cannonball before crashing headfirst into the invisible floor.

The Blood Demon calmly appeared beside where she had landed.

"Even with only a quarter of the energy available to you..."

Its body blurred again.

"I can still..."

Blink!

Another kick.

"outperform you."

Blink!

A punch.

Blink!

An elbow.

Blink!

A knee to the stomach.

Every strike landed before Elara even realised the demon had moved. She wasn’t fighting an opponent, but merely chasing after an afterimage.

Again and again, she was launched through the endless black world, her body twisting unnaturally before each injury vanished moments later. She would have been dead a hundred times over if this had been reality.

Instead, she was instantly restored.

Only the memory of the pain remained, and that was the worst part.

"You react after I move."

Kick.

"You’re supposed to decide where you’re going before you gather mana."

Punch.

"You waste energy by flooding your entire body."

Elbow.

"And, worst of all..."

The Blood Demon appeared directly in front of her.

"You hesitate and overthink too much."

Its fist buried itself in her stomach, and Elara folded around the blow before flying backwards once again.

She gasped for breath, her mind racing.

Between every helpless beating, she was observing the mana that flowed through the crimson figure she was facing. It was almost visible in its fluid-like form, similar to how Dave could perceive mana with his eyes.

She could see it move, and every single time the Blood Demon teleported, its mana moved first. It was only for a fraction of a second, but it wasn’t actually instant, which was theoretically impossible in reality.

What she noticed was that it wasn’t an uncontrolled burst of energy.

The mana flowed only where it needed to, like countless tiny rivers flowing through perfectly carved channels.

’That’s...’

She smiled, channelling her inner Ethan.

’So that’s how it does it.’

The mana didn’t explode outward.

It flushed through the body in one seamless motion before dragging space itself along with it. There wasn’t a moment of hesitation or any wasted movement, just everything happening as one.

The demon appeared again.

But this time, Elara was also able to move.

Just as the fist made contact with her, she also blinked away before enduring the entire impact of the strike.

The Blood Demon’s lips curled upward.

"Oh? You’re starting to get it."

But then it simply picked up the pace further somehow, blinking around her and attacking.

Again.

Again.

Again.

Every exchange ended with Elara being thrown across the darkness.

Yet each time, she lasted a little longer and was slowly catching up to the speed of the Blood Demon. Her flow of mana became smoother and her movements sharper as she stopped trying to flood herself with power.

Instead, she copied the pathways she was observing in real time.

One concentrated pulse that allowed for instant movement across a plane, that’s what it came down to.

’It’s my turn.’

Once she was able to keep up with her foe, she also went in for a strike.

The Blood Demon caught her punch effortlessly.

"Not bad."

It smiled manically.

"As expected of my host."

Elara picked things up unbelievably quickly, something Ethan had noticed. And now that they were on even ground in terms of Instant Displacement, their battle transformed into one centred around hand-to-hand combat.

At first, she wildly swung her fists, relying entirely upon overwhelming crimson energy.

Now, her movements were becoming smaller and sharper.

She no longer threw punches out of anger after being struck, but because they were the shortest path to striking her target. Elara was even experimenting with other strikes, mimicking her opponent’s kicks.

The Blood Demon effortlessly dismantled every combination.

"Too wide."

Smack.

"You telegraphed that."

Kick.

"Balance."

Throw.

"Footwork."

Punch.

Every mistake earned another brutal lesson, but each time made her stronger.

Eventually, just like the gap in their teleportation, their difference in combat prowess also vanished.

The Blood Demon blinked.

Elara followed.

It vanished again.

She matched it.

Crimson bursts illuminated the endless darkness as both figures disappeared and reappeared dozens of times every second.

Fists collided, shockwaves echoed, and for the first time...

The Blood Demon actually had to block.

"Better."

Its smile widened.

"Much better."

Then everything changed.

The Blood Demon raised one hand, and crimson chains erupted from the darkness. Elara barely crossed her arms before they wrapped around her body, tightening around her instantly.

Crunch!

The immense pressure crushed her bones as she cried out.

But once again, the injuries vanished soon after the chains disappeared with a mere flick of a finger from the Blood Demon. It paused, almost as if to give her a moment to gather herself, then it formed an even more powerful attack.

Dozens of crimson blades materialised around it, shooting forward without warning.

Elara desperately teleported, but conjured weapons followed her wherever she appeared. She was always a split second too slow, several blades slicing her arms, another cutting across her leg.

Her body hit the floor, and her pain tolerance was far from that of lunatics Kaela and Ethan.

But it soon restored itself, as she gritted her teeth and rose back to her feet.

Each time she learnt something new and barely managed to keep up with the Blood Demon despite wielding much more power than it, the crimson entity would reveal something newer. This time, it was something that she hadn’t been able to replicate.

And this began her second lesson...