Demonic Devourer's Development

Chapter 168 - An Enemy Within

'Pest, if I die, after all, avenge me!'

'How am I supposed to do that?! Don't give me impossible orders!'

I dismissed Pest's complaints. My focus was on Goddess of Wizards, not on voices in my head. I had to get to her before she used her spells on me again.

My wings beat so fast and so loudly that the noise they created drowned out the whistle of wind in my ears. I charged at a straight line, intent on getting to the Goddess of Wizards before she cast another spell, even if it made me an easy target. Hopeless attempt, with how much space was between us—just meters, but in a fight like that, every fraction of a second mattered.

'Done with the first spell! Don't you dare pull me to the early grave before I finish the rest!' Pest's voice sounded in my head again. It was accompanied by a powerful surge of strength within me. In an instant, I found in myself to fly half as faster as I was before.

It all summed up: the surprise from my earlier words, from the sudden burst of speed I showed, the disturbing and frightening sight of my open jaws. Goddess of Wizards faltered. For just a brief moment, her concentration slipped. Just a moment too long spent on reaching the right page with her magic. Too long for her, just enough for me.

I reached for her shining magic shield with my teeth and bit down, leaving a wide hole from which cracks and ripples spread to the rest of the magic construction. Alarm flared in the eyes and mind of the bitch goddess. She knew, and now I too, that I didn't just broke the shield's integrity—together with its material components, I ate some of the intangible magic lace that was the spell.

If I just left a hole with a weapon in the shield, it would've restored itself—like Pest's magic armour did. But what I did would unravel the entire structure in a blink of an eye…

Which was enough time for Goddess of Wizards to throw me back with another spell. She already picked one that was perfect for throwing me several dozens meter away and smashing like a bug, and concentrated on finding the right page in her book.

I reached with my hand into the hole in her shield, intent on not letting her, but she didn't stand still on the spot, either. With surprising agility, she jumped away from me, leaving a trail of flaking away magic. I followed, but even though the hole in her shield widened with every moment, the angle wasn't right, and I was just too slow to reach for the bitch's throat in time.

It was in the very last possible moment before her spell would be finished she felt a surge of magic power coming from the least expected source—within herself. A spell in its finishing stages, almost ready to take a corporeal form.

For Goddess of Wizards, it was like finding out your own hand attacking you. If there was a realisation of what was going on, it was in the back of her head, where I couldn't hear it. But I knew what was going on, and I knew that Willorio's curse was on my side!

And the shock gave me just enough time to throw a volley of wind blades at the woman.

Her reflexes still worked well enough that she raised her book in defence. It wasn't a simple book from simple paper, and powerful enchantments were woven into it. The wind blades shattered on its cover, leaving only a layer of rime. Of course… the book wasn't that big of a shield. Not big enough to protect Goddess of Wizards' entire body, that's for sure.

A wind blade cut into her shoulder, and another one hit her hip. For a fraction of a moment, I was elated, until I saw that they only cut the top layers of the woman's clothes. They were stronger than a typical armour!

My attack, just like my defence, still wasn't high enough for a god. Just barely so, and for the rest I had to wriggle to the best of my ability and more.

"What?!" Goddess of Wizards exclaimed, jumping away from me again. "What's that?"

Her face was turned towards me, but she wasn't looking at me. She reached for the spell that gathered around her, but was too late to break it, and in the next moment it exploded in a torrent of fire that surrounded her in a blazing column.

'That's for all our kind and for Willorio, you traitorous scum!' A disembodied voice of Willorio's curse appeared in Goddess of Wizards' head. I still couldn't hear the curse's thoughts, but it appeared that I could hear what they wanted to say to their hosts.

Why did it call her traitor?

I didn't have time to ponder these questions. The fire burned Goddess of Wizards, but it wasn't going to kill her—these were her thoughts, not mine. The heat of it wasn't strong enough to burn divine flesh to death… which made me wonder how different gods were from humans on a purely physical level.

I was going to find out. Willorio's curse gave me the window of opportunity I needed. With my molten body, I didn't have to fear fire myself, even though it certainly would've boiled my blood without it.

Goddess of Wizards expelled a surge of magical power, breaking the fire spell. What was left of it hit me like a blast of wind—strong enough to be felt, but not strong enough to stop my advance. By the time I reached her, she had another spell falling from her fingertips already.

A sweeping wave of luminous energy, something I had no words to describe, but Goddess of Wizards thought of as just 'force'.. I hit it head-first just a breath away from the goddess. So close to getting her, to tearing her throat out with my teeth…