Damian hadn't exactly planned on getting his car flipped that day. Then again, neither had the driver, by the look of it.
The vehicle had tumbled down the small hill and smashed into a tree. The left side was crushed in, the windows shattered.
He was hanging upside down. His head had slammed against something during the fall, and blood was trickling down his face.
Nothing fatal, though.
His endurance had increased recently — and that was the only reason he'd gotten through the crash in one piece. If it had been a regular person in his place, things would've looked a lot worse.
As for his driver... well, she had already kicked the door off its hinges.
She climbed over the side of the wreck, ripped open the opposite door, and grabbed Damian by the arm.
Next thing he knew, he was slung over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and she was jumping her way back up to the road — with surprising ease.
The height she covered in just a few seconds was ridiculous.
She might be impossible to talk to, but Damian had to admit — she was good at her job. Really good.
Once they were back on the road, they saw what had attacked the car.
A demon.
But not just any demon — this one was clearly high-rank. Its appearance was more humanoid than most, but still monstrous.
Purple skin. Horns curling from its head. Razor-sharp claws. Two massive black wings folded behind its back. And its feet were twisted, more beast than man.
"Well, well," the demon said, its voice low and chilling. "You actually survived. I'm impressed."
The driver motioned for Damian to back off. This wasn't a fight he could be part of.
Honestly, she was starting to think it might've been smarter to just leave him inside the car.
"What do you want?" she asked.
She was confused. The whole time she'd been working with the other cleaner — the one on the morning shift — nothing like this had ever happened.
But now, the moment her partner changed and she started working with Damian, they got ambushed by a demon?
It was way too suspicious.
Damian was thinking the same thing. For some reason, it really felt like the demon was here because of him.
He tried to stay calm. When the woman told him to take a few steps back, he didn't move.
The demon's eyes weren't on her — they were locked onto him.
"You really think you can beat me in a fight?" the demon said, voice low and cold. "I only attack when I'm sure I'll win."
Even after hearing that, the woman didn't flinch. She was more than ready to fight.
In fact, she activated her mana right then and there — and the temperature around them shot up instantly.
It was like she'd turned into a walking bonfire.
Damian noticed two flaming gauntlets form around her hands.
But that wasn't the only change. Her body grew more muscular, and her hair started lifting, almost as if gravity didn't apply to her anymore.
Her appearance wasn't the only thing that changed — Damian could feel it. Her mana had surged, growing way stronger in a matter of seconds.
And he wasn't the only one who noticed. Even the demon seemed surprised.
"Well, I wasn't expecting that," it said with a smirk.
Still, it didn't look worried. If anything, it looked like it was enjoying itself.
The woman didn't waste time. She charged straight at the demon, leapt into the air, and went for the attack.
She spun midair and aimed a kick at him. It wasn't just a regular kick — flames burst out around her leg, boosting both the speed and power of the strike.
The demon blocked with both arms, but the force sent it flying.
She didn't let up for a second. She dashed after him and unleashed a flurry of punches.
Each one carried her fire element, so even the blocked hits were doing damage. The demon's arms were starting to burn.
"Not bad," the demon said. "But now it's my turn to play."
Without warning, it stopped blocking.
It left its chest wide open, inviting the next punch.
The woman didn't hesitate — she struck clean, right in the middle of its chest.
But instead of landing a solid blow, the impact bounced back.
All the force from her punch was reflected — sent right back into her body. She was thrown backward like a ragdoll.
Even the fire from her attack had been reflected. But thanks to her high fire resistance, that part didn't do any extra damage.
"Pretty cool, huh?" the demon laughed. "Now the real fight begins."
She didn't charge in again.
Instead, she got back on her feet and stared at the demon, trying to figure it out. She had no idea if it could reflect multiple attacks — and going in without thinking might be a big mistake.
The tension hung thick in the air. Luckily for both of them, the demon didn't move forward. It seemed like they were respecting each other's strength.
"Are you here because of me, or because of him?" the woman finally asked.
Damian's stomach tightened. If the demon said it was after him, how could he explain? To everyone else, he was just a cleaner without any power, someone who didn't have connections with other demons.
But the demon said something else.
"You don't need to know why I'm here," it said.
It frowned, then looked away. Without warning, it took off, using its wings to speed away and disappear into the nearby forest.
About thirty seconds later, three cars showed up with backup — other hunters from the company.
They quickly checked on Damian and the woman. Nataly was there with them too.
"You okay?" Nataly asked. "We got a notification about your car being attacked and came as fast as we could."
The demon had been a little dumb attacking their car like that, but it probably didn't have many options.
"We're fine," the woman said. "We got hit by a high-rank demon."
"Tell me everything," Nataly said, already ready to listen.
Meanwhile, one of the hunters cleaned Damian's wound and wrapped it up to make sure he'd be okay.
"Thanks," Damian said quietly.
He was lost in thought. The demon who had become his business partner had said no demons would be after him anymore, but that clearly wasn't the case.
"I'll have to call him later," Damian thought.
With the backup, they moved to the crime scene they were going to earlier to continue the investigation. They couldn't top the work.
But when they arrived... well, things were way worse than they expected.
The hunters who'd gone in first were all dead. Their bodies were torn apart, scattered through the forest.