Evangeline was not acquainted with this person, or better yet, this demon. He had white hair and stood beneath the tree, looking at her with hatred in his eyes.

He had retracted his light to make himself invisible.

"A demon," she whispered.

It would be unwise to let her guard down against one of his kind. Still, she decided to probe him. If she knew about him, she could deduce information and hopefully raise her chances of killing him.

"You know my family name. I didn't realize our greatness had spread all the way to the demon continent."

The young demon walked out slowly, standing before her.

"Yes, the Battle of Dying Suns was hard to forget… You are known to be very flashy. I could see you from a mile away… anyone could."

She lifted her sword, pointing it cautiously, her gaze sharp as she made sure no other demons were hidden in the snow, ready to ambush her.

The Battle of Dying Suns he referred to was a historical event long before she was born, a battle where her grandfather, Damian Brightwater, had slain the demon lord Adramelech.

Her golden eyes narrowed coldly.

"You… are you an Adramelech or related to one?"

He smiled, his horns gleaming as his white hair swayed slightly.

"Good. You caught on… I'm glad you aren't stupid."

Evangeline saw no reason to continue speaking with a demon, but she wanted to catch her breath and read his movements.

The magic orbs around them watched silently, broadcasting the scene to the outside world.

"Is this revenge for the demon lord who was felled in battle?" she asked, her tone carrying a mocking edge.

He shook his head surprisingly.

"On the contrary. Over many centuries, the Brightwaters have been acknowledged as the greatest users of light magic, even more skilled than those of the Sun Continent, and supposedly even the Great Demon Continent."

Evangeline stayed on guard.

"No surprise there. It's in our name. We are the greatest. No one compares."

She frowned coldly.

"Isn't that why the deceased demon lord Adramelech, the previous inheritor of that title, assassinated my grandmother? A shame he died when he went up against an actual master of light magic."

This was Evangeline's attempt to taunt the demon in front of her.

'Ahh come on, Eva, do better. Summon your inner Damon and anger him…'

She tried to motivate herself into provoking him. If she was right and he was an Adramelech, that meant he was a powerful light magic user, and their battles were fast. Losing your cool was a quick way to die.

'What would Damon say…?'

She tried to imagine him scoffing with disdain.

"I once asked my grandfather about that. He said, in no uncertain words, how weak and slow the last demon lord Adramelech was. If anything, to summarize, he said he was nothing… but… a… bum."

She said the last part slowly, just to emphasize her point. She had been there when Damon was giving Leona lessons on—what did he call it again—rage baiting.

From the demon's expression, it had worked.

"Die."

His expression twisted as a sword without a blade appeared in his hand. The hilt glowed with his magic as a blade of light formed, humming in the cold air. His eyes glowed faintly red as he shot toward Evangeline.

Their powerful swords met white and gold light illuminated everything, washing away the blizzard in a brilliant flare. The ground beneath their feet melted, revealing the brown earth beneath the snow.

Evangeline twisted her body slightly, deflecting his blade from her neck with the side of her sword.

"Tsk…" she clicked her tongue, realizing she had failed to cut off his head.

She swung again, her sword slicing through the air as balls of light magic seared and tore the air around his head apart.

He ducked and swung with his fist, trying to punch her after being caught off guard by his own anger.

Evangeline met his strike with her gauntlet, the force pushing her back slightly from the strength of the demon before her.

She kicked forward, swinging down and kicking him into a tree. The impact shattered it, snow and cold winds bursting outward.

He gritted his teeth as Evangeline dashed forward with a boom. Before she could reach him, he waved his hand, the light around them distorted and faded as he blended into it, becoming nearly invisible to the naked eye.

Evangeline paused, trying to adjust to the sudden change. She felt something slicing through the air and lowered her head just in time, the edges of her long hair being cut slightly by his invisible blade.

She flipped backward in the snow, dodging his vicious combo.

Raising her hand, she blasted waves of light magic to give herself breathing room.

She blocked a blade aimed for her neck, barely seeing it at the last moment. The force sent her flying into a tree.

Catching herself, she narrowed her eyes, focusing on the source of his killing intent.

"I can see your footprints in the snow…" she muttered.

She heard flapping sounds as he lifted off into the air. As soon as he did, she sliced upward with [Radiant Blade].

He must have dodged, but that was fine, she had confirmed his position.

Taking a step forward, she jumped into the air. Feeling his gaze on her, she darted down at the last moment, blocking where she predicted his sword would strike. She countered with a backhanded punch from her gauntlet.

He crashed into the snow, reappearing with blood dripping from his nose.

He stood up with a fierce grin, ready to attack again when—

A one-eyed bat flew toward him out of nowhere and whispered something into his ear.

He glanced at Evangeline, then gritted his teeth.

"You got lucky this time… I'll kill you next time."

Waving his hand, he turned invisible and flew away into the air.

Evangeline felt his gaze vanish.

Letting out a sigh of relief, she bit her lip.

"No, you got lucky."

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