Hawk heard the report and shook with rage.
The scene shifted. Gorman was already gone. Poor Gorman. He had just lost a heart, and now he had lost his life.
Roland strode toward the palace with his sword over his shoulder, fallen demons littering the ground around him. He was almost upon Silvara and the others.
Silvara was already badly wounded. The warrior before her was on a completely different level. There was no beating him. Weston was equally wounded.
"Your highness, we need to find a way out."
But Roland simply sat down. "Your entire defense has been dismantled. Time to have a little fun."
Every one of them looked eager.
At that same moment, a massive fireball came crashing down on them. With a thunderous impact, Roland glanced over his shoulder. One of his men was on the verge of death. They rushed to treat him. Another second and it would have been too late.
Hawk arrived with murder in his eyes. He stepped in front of Silvara and Weston, shielding them both. "You cowardly, shameless dogs."
Roland let out a quiet laugh. "Finally, a demon worth something." He was getting excited. "Perfect timing. My blade has been hungry for a while."
Hawk's eyes sharpened. This one was dangerous. That deep purple aura was something he couldn't read. He had to end this fast.
Powerful energy erupted from his body. Then he shifted into dragon form, his power spiking dramatically. Strength up one hundred and thirty percent, speed up one hundred and fifty percent, and stamina boosted by a staggering five hundred percent. Duration: ten minutes.
Roland looked like an ant before him.
Just then, the two forces clashed, their weapons meeting in an instant.
The battlefield had descended into complete chaos. The clang of metal on metal and the cries of the fallen filled the air.
Gail was seething. Oh, brilliant. So this is how you all test me.
Ever since Gail was reborn into this body, it had been one impossible turn of events after another. From a nameless foot soldier to the most powerful general in the Dusk Realm. From barely able to fight to completely impossible to kill.
Gail laughed through his frustration. Then the tears actually came. He demanded answers from the heavens. Was he really going to have to become demon king before any of this was over?
Then the sky seemed to answer. A massive thunder dragon descended from above. It was determined to strike down this ungrateful fool. How many people dreamed of being unkillable? And here he was, complaining about it.
But the thunder dragon didn't hit him. It struck the battlefield right in front of him.
Gail went numb. "Are you serious right now? Could you at least aim properly?"
When the thunder dragon faded, both armies that had been fighting across the battlefield were flat on the ground. Gail was confused. Wait, weren't the humans fighting outside the walls? When did they get inside the city?
Then a voice pulled his attention. "Please, I'm begging you. Leave my daughter alone. I'll give you anything."
A soldier let out a vile laugh. "If I'm not going to leave her alone, you'll still be giving me everything anyway."
The little girl struggled desperately in the soldier's grip. The soldier laughed with smug satisfaction. "Ha! Let me go in and have my fun first."
The girl's father screamed for them to let her go, but he was pinned down completely, helpless. Then a sword was driven through his palm.
"To the victor go the spoils."
He never finished the sentence. A fist cut him off. The soldier was sent flying eight hundred meters in an instant.
Gail walked toward him with heavy, deliberate steps. Something felt deeply wrong. No matter how brutal war was, no matter how the saying went, the human military had strict orders against this kind of behavior.
Two soldiers looked at him and sneered. "Another demon with a death wish."
The girl's hands had already been bound behind her back. The two soldiers charged at Gail. Any demon who interrupted their fun had to die. The soldier in the cap was almost on him.
Gail's eyes locked. He threw one punch. Both soldiers were instantly brought to near death, and that was him holding back.
The fallen soldiers bled without stopping. Gail grabbed one by the throat. The soldier wanted to curse him out. One punch. A completely ordinary punch. It had drained both their HP bars. This shirtless demon is absolutely cheating.
Gail loomed over him with murder in his eyes. "Tell me, what legion and unit are you from?"
The soldier answered immediately. "We're the 21st Legion, unit 511."
Another soldier cursed under his breath. Why was a demon asking about their unit number?
The words hit Gail like a bolt of lightning. The 21st Legion, unit 511. That was his army.
He let go of the man's throat. What is going on? Why is this happening?
Seeing Gail distracted, the two soldiers bolted.
Gail couldn't make sense of it. Something was wrong. Something had been wrong this whole time. From the moment he saw the carnage inside the city, Gail had felt it.
Then something clicked. Why did this place feel so strangely familiar? The architecture, the style, the scene unfolding before him. He was sure he had been here before.
Gail felt a jolt inside. It was coming back to him. The battlefield back then had been just as brutal. Human ranged weapons had hammered the demon city without stopping.
That was it. This was the Dusk Realm.
"Mama, they killed Mama."
The voice snapped him back. Father and daughter held each other and wept. The man kept trying to comfort his daughter through his own grief.
A bolt of lightning split the sky above. Rain began to fall against Gail. He looked up and caught sight of Hawk's dragon form.
It all came back to him. Six years ago. He had led an army against a place called the Dusk Realm. And the last one he had defeated was Hawk. In a single move, Hawk had fallen. The victory had come so easily that he had forgotten it entirely.
So he had been reborn into the Dusk Realm, six years in the past. It was six years ago, but he was not the one leading the human forces. What had happened? And where was his original body right now?
The scene shifted to a serene lake. Hana and Gail's former self sat together in silence.
"Gail, the hatred between our races is only going to deepen. You're the only one who's different from all the others. Your war is fought to protect. Theirs is driven by destruction, greed, and brutality. War is a cruel and terrible thing."
Gail's expression darkened. The old unit 511 had been a unit of unshakable conviction and iron discipline. After defeating the dragon back then, he had ordered every demon to be released.
A stark contrast to what he was seeing now.
A child clutched a dagger. His mother kept urging him to run, to leave her and go, no matter what was about to happen to her. All she wanted was for her child to survive. The soldier found her too loud and sent an electric current through her, dropping her to the ground. She went silent immediately.
And this monster of a man was actually one of Gail's former soldiers. He had broken military law and been personally sent to prison by Gail himself. Now he was not only free, he was back to his old ways.
"Well, well. A demon woman still has some charm to her."
Gail's pupils slowly widened. These people were beyond forgiveness.