Nox's eyes snapped open. The open sky stretched above him, cold and indifferent.
Before he could draw a breath, the Abyssal Devourer materialized in front of him. Its fist slammed into his chest like a battering ram, sending him flying backward. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his body smashed into the mountain wall of the ravine. Cracks spiderwebbed through the stone. Rocks rained down around him.
"Damn it—this guy doesn't even give me room to—"
Another punch hammered into his side from nowhere. The world spun. His arms snapped. One leg shattered. He collapsed to the ground, gasping.
A short distance away, Lilith stood frozen in shock, watching the monster approach.
The Devourer unclenched its massive hand, claws gleaming. Lilith lunged with desperate speed, driving her bloodied shard toward its chest.
The creature destroyed the shard in a single brutal motion and stabbed its claw straight through her heart.
Lilith's eyes shot wide with terror. Blood poured from the gaping wound in her chest and bubbled from her mouth. The Devourer flung her aside like discarded trash.
Then it turned back to Nox and roared — a sound of pure rage and wounded pride. This prey had withstood its blows. This prey had survived its punches. This prey had even returned unharmed after being buried and broken.
The strongest demon in the trial would not tolerate the disgrace.
Nox's heart pounded as he stared at the monster. This thing… it's too strong. For both of us.
Everything went black.
Nox's eyes opened again. The same open sky pierced down on him.
This time he was ready.
He countered the exact spot where the Devourer would strike, his blade meeting the incoming fist with a ringing clash. At the same moment, Lilith exploded forward, landing a devastating punch to the creature's side.
The Abyssal Devourer went completely still for a heartbeat.
Then it retaliated. Its claw slashed toward Lilith's throat.
Clang!
Nox batted the claw aside at the last instant, deflecting it just enough for Lilith to twist away. She came up with a fierce uppercut that launched the monster into the air. Nox followed instantly, unleashing a storm of slashes across its obsidian hide.
Most strikes bounced off harmlessly.
But one thin sliver found its mark — almost imperceptible — a hairline crack forming around the Devourer's neck.
We did it. We actually—
The thought never finished.
In a blur too fast to track, the Devourer tore through both of them. Nox's final sight was Lilith's body falling to the ground in pieces.
Everything went black.
The cycle began.
From that moment forward, the Abyssal Devourer was no longer playing.
The hairline crack in its neck had shattered its pride. What had been a casual hunt — toying with its prey, enjoying the slow breaking of their bodies and wills — turned into something far more vicious. Now it fought with full, unrelenting fury from the very first second of every reset. No more holding back. No more amusement. Only pure, murderous intent.
Again.
And again.
And again.
The first hundred deaths were slaughter. The Devourer moved like living death, striking before they could even fully register the open sky above them. Nox barely managed to twitch his sword arm before claws ripped him apart. Lilith fared even worse — most loops she died before she could take a single step.
Two hundred deaths.
Nox's body began to remember the rhythm even under the Devourer's full seriousness. He started blocking the first strike. Sometimes the second. Each brutal death burned the creature's timing, its impossible speed, and its angles deeper into his muscles and mind.
Three hundred deaths.
Lilith's spirit cracked under the endless pain and failure. There's nothing we can do… it's too strong. The thought repeated with every reset. Yet somewhere around her three-hundredth death, a fiercer resolve took hold: I must become stronger. I will not remain weak. My family will not kill me for failing.
Five hundred deaths.
Nox could now reliably block the opening attack every time. Occasionally he forced the monster back a single step before it cut him down. Lilith began to dodge once per loop — a tiny, desperate victory that cost her life immediately after.
Nine hundred and ninety-nine deaths.
Nox's eyes snapped open once more. Black pupils burned with cold rage and a sharp glint of excitement.
He moved the instant consciousness returned.
His blade met the Devourer's claw with a deafening clang. He twisted, driving a powerful kick into its chest. The monster flew backward, crashing into the ground and carving a deep crater beneath its body.
For the first time since the crack had appeared, the Abyssal Devourer was the one forced to recover.
Lilith opened her eyes beside him. She could finally move freely. Her gaze lingered on Nox for a heartbeat — those empty black eyes that looked like they could devour the world. Her cheeks flushed despite the blood and exhaustion.
Nox spoke softly, his voice steady.
"Our turn."
He launched forward.
The Devourer roared and slashed at his face, but after 999 deaths, Nox knew its speed better than his own heartbeat. He dodged cleanly, then unleashed a relentless storm of slashes. The creature tried to counter, but every strike was either parried or evaded. It was driven to the ground, its armored hide cracking further under the barrage as Nox's rage and bloodlust poured out unchecked.
Lilith grabbed a sharp bone from the ground. This will do.
She wanted to join the assault, but there was no opening in Nox's furious onslaught.
Then the sky itself seemed to shake.
An overwhelming wave of bloodlust crashed over them — heavier, darker, and more suffocating than anything the Devourer had shown before. Both Nox and Lilith dropped to their knees. Bones creaked under the pressure. Muscles locked. Pure, primal terror flooded their veins.
The Devourer rose slowly, its armored skin now covered in a web of hairline cracks, eyes blazing with murderous fury. It wanted more than death now. It wanted them to break.
The air grew thicker, crushing. Nox tried to stand, but the bloodlust cracked his bones with every attempt.
A strange, glitching sound tore through the trial:
cCCRk—— ??? Error… Strength returned… Too much for challenge…