Chapter 27
The strange occurrence was not witnessed by Gazel alone.
The entire world saw it.
For mundane humans, it was a phenomenon that would become legend. Something whispered about in taverns and homes. Mystical. Beautiful. A sight that stole their breath one by one. Speculations spread like wildfire. Some believed the sun and the moon were fusing into one. Others claimed the moon was turning into the sun itself. A few even believed the world was being reforged. Many simply watched in awe, choosing to enjoy the view without questioning it.
That was all it was for the ordinary.
But for the forces beyond them, what was happening in the sky was anything but ordinary. This was an event that could change the fate of the world.
In a dark alley, grotesque sounds of eating echoed.
The alley was pitch black, swallowed by shadow, until the moonlight reached it. The soft glow illuminated the scene, revealing something vile. Several humans lay scattered across the ground. No, they could no longer be called human. Their bodies were torn apart, skulls crushed, limbs ripped away. Some had already been eaten.
Atop one of the corpses crouched the creature responsible.
The demon devoured flesh at an inhuman pace. It looked almost human at first glance, except for its eyes. Pure black. Empty. As if darkness itself stared back. Its back was hunched, its mouth and body soaked in blood, giving it a revolting appearance.
The demon ate happily, until the moonlight changed.
A faint golden glow brushed against him, and his body trembled. His energy dropped sharply. He clenched his fist, then unclenched it. Something was wrong. The moon tonight was wrong. His power was being reduced, not as severely as under the sun, but enough to unsettle him.
Night was when demons hunted. Sunlight weakened them too much, making them easy prey for Shurals on patrol. But this was different. His strength was fading, yet not completely gone.
Before he could process it, he sensed a presence.
A flash.
A young man stood a few steps away, casually biting into a fresh fruit. Dark hair. Porcelain skin. Eyes that gleamed like hornet gemstones. He wore white clothing marked with black stripes, giving him an eerie, almost ethereal presence.
The demon blinked.
He was staring at his own body lying a few meters away.
Headless.
He had been attacked and beheaded in an instant. No pain. No warning. Just death. Fear seized him as his head turned to face the young man. The badge on the man's chest told him everything.
A Shural.
And not a weak one.
The young man chewed his fruit calmly and spoke, his tone relaxed.
"Is it just you, or are all demons this stupid?"
The demon tried to speak, but no words came. His head could barely move. Panic spread as he searched for a way out, any way at all.
Then he forced the words out.
"Don't you notice it?" he said, eyes shifting toward the sky. "The moon. Something is wrong with it tonight."
The young man glanced up. At first, he saw nothing unusual. Then he focused. The soft golden glow surrounding the moon became clear, like a faint sphere of light.
"Oh," he muttered. "That's new."
The demon continued, desperation creeping into his voice.
"The reason you caught me off guard… it's because of the moon. It feels like sunlight. It's draining my power."
The Shural did not respond immediately. His gaze stayed fixed on the moon as he muttered incoherent words under his breath, interest flickering in his silver eyes.
Not long after, the demon realized his mistake.
He had forgotten something important.
He was not dead.
A low fallen like him would not truly die from something as simple as losing his head.
The connection snapped back.
His body moved.
Silent. Nimble. Precise.
It slid across the alley like a shadow with intent, blood dripping but steps unheard. In seconds, it was right behind the Shural who still held the demon's severed head.
The demon grinned.
Tonight would be a satisfying meal.
He gave the command.
The body lunged, claws shooting straight for the Shural's neck while the young man remained distracted, eyes fixed on the moon.
The claws hit.
They passed through.
No resistance. No flesh. Nothing.
The demon froze.
Before the thought could finish forming, he felt it. The connection severed again. This time completely.
Then clarity struck.
His body was gone.
No. Not gone. Destroyed.
Reduced to nothing in less than a second. Maybe less than a breath.
And the worst part was this.
The young man never looked back.
Still staring at the moon.
Understanding crashed down like a blade.
The Shural had moved. Not fast. Beyond fast. So fast that there was no pain, no sensation, no awareness. It happened at a speed the demon could not comprehend, let alone react to.
Fear swallowed him whole.
He no longer had a heart, but something inside him clenched anyway.
Slowly, trembling, he turned his head to face the Shural.
The young man finally shifted his gaze.
For a brief moment, the demon caught the side of his eyes.
They glowed.
A pale silver light flickered within the darkness.
That was when the demon knew.
He was doomed.
The one before him was not just a Shural.
He was that Shural.
The Nightflash.
The fastest of them all.
While most Shurals were weakened at night, unable to fight at full capacity, the Nightflash was different. Many believed his Azura was crafted for the darkness itself, a nightmare designed specifically for demons.
Young. Too young.
Yet countless demons had already fallen by his hand. High ranked. Low ranked. It did not matter.
He was classified as one of the highest threats for a reason.
The demon never wanted this.
He only wanted to hunt, to eat, to survive.
That was all he had ever done.
But luck had run out.
He had crossed paths with one of the most dreadful Shurals in existence.
Panic shattered what little composure he had left.
He screamed.
The sound never traveled far.
In the next second, it ended.
The Nightflash was still eating his apple, one hand relaxed at his side. The other, which had been holding the demon's head, was now empty.
He did not spare the corpse a glance.
Everything he had done had been done on reflex. Without effort. Without thought.
His dark eyes, streaked faintly with silver, returned to the moon once more.
Golden light pulsed unnaturally around it.
He watched it for a few seconds longer.
Then he turned and walked away.
"That is a strange moon," he muttered.
Even as he left, he knew the truth.
It was far more than strange.
And whatever was happening above, he intended to find out.
To be continued.