The sky above the Demon General's fortress was a wound in the heavens—black clouds swirling, faint red light bleeding through like fire under glass.The air was thick with the stench of sulfur and blood. Bones littered the path.No birds. No sound. Only the rumble of thunder that heralded Arabella's arrival.
Three of her Arch Mage Generals stood beside her, each cloaked in dark blue and silver robes, staffs humming with restrained power.Behind them—three hundred mages, formation tight, expressions unflinching.
"Is this the place, Commander?" one general asked, voice low.
Arabella nodded, eyes fixed on the obsidian fortress ahead. The Demon General's banner fluttered—a crimson eye surrounded by black flame.
"Three years this filth has sent monsters to the human lands," Arabella said softly. "Let's end that."
They advanced. The ground trembled with every step. The mages began their incantations, forming a protective barrier of layered mana that shimmered faintly in the dim light.
From the fortress, the air shook with a monstrous roar.Gates opened.Waves of demons poured forth—Lesser, Standard, and Elite—their claws scraping the earth, eyes burning with hatred.
"Form lines!" Arabella commanded.
Rows shifted instantly. Thirty squads formed—a perfect grid. Each team of ten synchronized their spells.
"Fire barrage—NOW!"
Hundreds of fire lances shot forward, cutting through the horde like rain through fog.Demons screamed, their bodies bursting into ash, but the ground continued to quake as more emerged.
A towering Elite Demon leapt into the air, wings stretching wide, and slammed into the front lines.Arabella's eyes flashed gold.Her staff rose, and a circle of runes appeared beneath the creature.
"[Lightning Bind]."
A spear of thunder tore through the sky, striking the demon mid-roar. Its body convulsed, then exploded in a shower of black blood.
But there were more—too many.
"Generals!" Arabella called.
The three stepped forward, channeling their mana."[Arcane Cataclysm]!" one shouted, and an orb of pure energy detonated among the demons, turning fifty of them into dust.
"[Frozen Tomb]!" another roared, freezing an entire column of monsters solid before shattering them with a swing of her staff.
"[Meteor Surge]!" the third general's spell tore through the sky—dozens of flaming stones falling like divine judgment.
The battlefield was chaos. Screams and explosions filled the air, yet the mages held formation—unyielding, unstoppable.
Then, a dark shadow loomed above the fortress.From the tallest tower, the Demon General appeared—massive, horned, cloaked in writhing darkness. His crimson armor pulsed with demonic energy, and a black blade hummed in his hand.
"So," his voice rumbled, deep as thunder. "Another group of insects seeking death."
Arabella stared up at him. Her eyes glowed faintly blue as the storm thickened above."Demons should learn to kneel."
The Demon General laughed, voice echoing across the land. "Try."
He leapt from the tower, crashing into the ground like a meteor, creating a crater that swallowed fifty meters of soil. The shockwave sent several mages tumbling backward.
Arabella stood her ground.
"Fall back!" she ordered, and the mages retreated into formation again, stabilizing the perimeter.
The Demon General raised his sword. Dark energy gathered around him, spiraling into the sky. "You dare defy me, human witch?"
Arabella lifted her staff. The world darkened.
"[Tempest Awakening]."
Thunder screamed. The heavens broke open.
Bolts of lightning cascaded down like a thousand whips, striking the demons and shattering the earth.Winds roared with such fury that the fortress walls cracked.Rain turned to blades.
The Demon General snarled, raising a dark barrier—but Arabella pointed her staff forward.
"[Chain of the Storm]."
A lightning chain erupted, wrapping around his limbs.His eyes widened. "Impossible—!"
Arabella took a step forward, her power surging, her cloak dancing in the tempest.
"This is the judgment of the sky."
A sigil appeared above the Demon General—a giant circle of golden runes spinning faster and faster.
"[Heaven's Wrath]!"
Lightning condensed into a single, blinding spear that pierced through his chest, exploding into radiant destruction. The shockwave leveled half the fortress.
The mages shielded themselves as debris flew.When the light faded, smoke rose from the ruined stronghold. The Demon General's armor was shattered, his body scorched, one horn broken—but he was still alive.
He roared and swung his blade, cutting through the ground itself. "I am not so easily destroyed!"
Arabella's expression didn't waver.Her generals raised their staffs. "Let's finish this."
Together, they cast: [Arcane Amplification].
Their power merged with Arabella's storm, doubling, tripling its intensity. The clouds above glowed white-hot, thunder booming like the heart of a god.
Arabella's voice echoed across the ruined land."Fall, Demon General."
The final bolt struck—a column of divine lightning descending from the heavens, engulfing the demon entirely. His scream tore through the storm… and then silence.
Nothing remained but dust and molten stone.
The battlefield was quiet.Hundreds of mages stood, panting, drenched in rain and sweat.Arabella lowered her staff slowly, her eyes softening.
"Report," she said.
A general approached. "Minimal casualties. Forty injured, none dead."
Arabella nodded. "Good. Gather the cores. We'll deliver proof to the Vanguard."
As the mages began to collect the demon's remains, the sky above cleared. The sun broke through, light reflecting off shattered armor and wet earth.
Arabella looked toward the horizon—the capital barely visible beyond the forest.Her voice was calm, steady, filled with quiet pride.
"Mission complete. Let's go home."