Gonna Be a Demon King!
Chapter 75: Aura

Chapter 75: Aura

"Pull Mode!"

Her Darkstorm skill activated, dragging the half-giant backwards, giving Xaren just enough room to pull back his blade and hurl the enemy toward her with a gravitational repulsion.

But even as he was pulled toward her, the half-giant didn’t neglect to counter. Spinning around, he brought his sword down, unleashing a powerful aura slash that tore through the air and ground at breakneck speed, forcing Ilya to deactivate her skill and leap aside to evade.

The half-giant landed and rolled back to his feet, but at that moment, Xaren fired a flaming lance at his face, the projectile erupting on impact.

Though the attack itself dealt no damage, the half-giant’s magic resistance couldn’t negate the thick smoke from the explosion, which momentarily clouded his vision.

Xaren capitalized on the opening, slamming his sword into the back of his head and sending him stumbling forward. However, the half-giant had already reinforced his vitals with a thick aura skin the moment his sight was obstructed, causing Xaren’s strike to glance off, though it still shattered the aura skin.

Reacting instantly, the half-giant spun and slashed at Xaren’s side, and though Xaren conjured a Gravity Shield, it failed to withstand the force of the attack and shattered. The blade struck his body, sending him hurtling through the air.

Still, Xaren’s efforts bought Ilya just enough time to down a vitality potion, rapidly mending her fractured ribs and other injuries from the earlier blow to her side.

So when the half-giant pivoted, swinging his sword to strike at Xaren once more, Ilya struck from the opposite direction, activating her skill’s Repel Mode and launching him through the air.

Meanwhile, Xaren, having crashed onto the ground and rolled for what felt like an eternity, forced himself onto one knee.

He looked up to see Ilya narrowly dodging the half-giant’s attacks, unable to find an opening to counter amidst the flurry of strikes.

Xaren’s gaze locked onto the man’s aura skin, noticing it flicker.

’...It’s weakening. He doesn’t have enough aura left to sustain both his Aura Skin and his attacks...’

But Xaren’s demonic energy reserves were running low as well. He didn’t have enough left to both break through what remained of the defence and land a fatal blow in one go.

He considered having Ilya unleash an all-out attack the moment he shattered the aura, but there was a chance that wouldn’t be enough either.

In situations like this, when an opponent’s defences were weakening...

’...a reinforced attack is the best option.’

Normally, Xaren would reinforce his demonic energy with magic power, half-giant’s magic resistance skill would just negate the ’magic’, potentially disrupting the intertwined demonic energy and reducing its effectiveness instead of enhancing it.

That meant he needed something else to reinforce it.

His decision made, Xaren kicked off the ground, dashing toward the half-giant’s back. His blade swung out in a fierce strike, drawing the man’s attention away from Ilya and giving her the breathing space she needed.

The moment the half-giant turned toward Xaren, the demoness quickly backed away, wiping sweat and blood from her brow before hurling several wind bombs at his back.

While the blasts failed to inflict any real damage, the force of the compressed wind repeatedly threw him off balance, making it difficult for him to launch a proper attack on Xaren.

This gave Xaren an advantage, allowing him to focus his strikes on the half-giant’s left side—specifically targeting the stump of his severed arm.

Xaren’s sword clashed against the half-giant’s massive blade, the force of each parry making his arms tremble. He barely had time to breathe between each swing, his reflexes pushed to the limit as he weaved between the towering strikes.

He unleashed flame spears and fireballs that detonated in quick succession, forcing the half-giant to squint through the haze of fire and smoke. The brief obscurity gave Xaren the slimmest openings, allowing him to strike without being instantly countered.

’Alright, Xarenthe, you’ve gotta do it now. If you don’t, you’re dead.’

The half-giant’s mouth opened wide, gathering energy before releasing a searing blast. Xaren barely dodged in time, the heat licking his skin as he twisted away, missing the beam by the thinnest margin.

’You said you wanted to become a Demon King. No way you’re dying to some random-ass angel giant mutant.’

Cracks spread along Xaren’s sword as he parried the half-giant’s strikes, each impact rattling his arms. He countered with his own attacks, and the two locked in a blindingly fast clash, their slashes carving deep trenches into the ground with every collision.

’You have experience, Xaren. You’ve awakened it before.

You know it’s there. It’s been there since you reached Level 100. It’s been slowly building up with each level.’

The half-giant threw a sudden kick toward Xaren’s side, but Xaren reacted quickly, raising a Gravity Shield to block the impact before countering with a strike to the giant’s leg. The half-giant quickly pulled back and brought his massive sword down in a crushing arc.

Before the attack could land, Ilya dashed in from the side, striking the blade’s edge and redirecting its trajectory just enough to make the attack miss.

’Come on, Xaren... You just need to kickstart it...!’

Gritting his teeth, Xaren pulled his sword back and thrust at the half-giant’s side. But the giant leapt away, evading the attack before unleashing a devastating burst of AOE light magic.

A towering pillar of blinding radiance crashed down, consuming the battlefield in its searing glow.

Even as his skin burned from the overwhelming light, Xaren pressed forward, his blood boiling with adrenaline.

The half-giant scowled and swung his sword down, but Xaren sidestepped to the right, narrowly dodging the strike. Without hesitation, he retaliated, his blade coated in demonic energy as he slashed downward toward the giant’s exposed left side.

Cursing, the half-giant reinforced his wristless left arm with a thick aura skin, blocking the attack. But the moment Xaren’s sword clashed against his arm, a violent surge of dark red energy erupted from the blade, completely shattering the giant’s aura skin.

The blade tore deep into his arm, carving through flesh.

The half-giant let out a roar of pain, his body recoiling from the blow. Seizing the moment, Xaren pushed forward, driving the tip of his sword straight for the giant’s chest.

Whether out of pure survival instinct or sheer reflex, the half-giant hastily condensed the last of his remaining aura around his chest, barely managing to stop the blade from piercing through.

The half-giant didn’t give Xaren a chance to press his attack, quickly swinging his right arm and delivering a crushing punch to Xaren’s side.

Xaren coughed up blood, but instead of being sent flying, he used his gravity magic to anchor himself to the ground, reducing the impact so that he was merely pushed a meter to the side.

Ignoring the pain, he lunged forward again, slashing at the half-giant.

Their blades clashed loudly—Xaren’s upward arcing slash met with the half-giant’s powerful downward strike.

The force behind the giant’s swing was overwhelming, pressing down with enough strength to drive Xaren’s feet into the ground.

The cracks on his sword widened rapidly, the blade quickly reaching its limit and exploding into shards of metal that scattered through the air.

Both fighters resisted the instinct to shut their eyes as metal shards flew through the air, their gazes burning as their auras surged.

Reacting instantly, Xaren conjured a Gravity Shield and coated his palms in his dark red aura just as the half-giant reinforced his sword with even more energy.

The massive sword crashed down, slicing cleanly through Xaren’s shield and slamming against his cupped palms just above his shoulder.

What followed was a brutal struggle—Xaren, gripping the blade with all his might, straining to push it back, while the half-giant bore down with brute force, trying to drive it deeper.

Then, in a blur of motion too fast for either of them to register, Ilya appeared. Her sword, wreathed in dense, dark green energy, shot toward the half-giant’s right arm.

In a split-second, the aura protecting it was torn apart, her blade piercing through flesh and bursting out the other side of the half-giant’s upper arm.

Ilya poured every ounce of her magic power into her arms, amplifying her strength, while the dark green energy around her sword flared violently.

Xaren’s eyes widened at Ilya’s sudden appearance—especially at the unmistakable dense green energy enveloping her sword.

But his surprise lasted only a fraction of a second before he amplified the gravity around her blade, adding the extra force needed to drive it deeper.

The sword plunged into the side of the half-giant’s chest, piercing straight into his lung. The entire length of the blade disappeared into his massive torso, pinning his right arm awkwardly against his chest.

A wet, choking gasp escaped him as blood gushed from his mouth.

His grip on the sword pressing down on Xaren naturally weakened, giving Xaren the opening he needed. He shoved the weapon aside and leapt, calling the broken tip of his own shattered blade to his hand with gravitational attraction.

Infusing it with aura, he plunged the fragment deep into the half-giant’s neck.

The jagged blade tore through vital arteries, crimson liquid erupting in a violent spray. The half-giant staggered, his body swaying unsteadily before toppling backwards.

When he hit the ground with a heavy thud, he was a wide-eyed corpse.