Page 145 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

The demon lets out another wail that’s followed by a pungent smell of putrefaction.

“Ew!” Mine shields his nose.

“I have this handled. Stand back.”

Mindful of using the little energy I have carefully, I don’t summon my ice sword. Instead, I use the long bone and only freeze the end of it, making a sharp, spear-like head.

Just as the demon rushes forward, mouth wide open and ready to chew us out, I stab the bone in between his upper and lower jaw, digging the spear-like head into the roof of its mouth. It wobbles back, letting out a loud wail of pain. Before it can recover and charge again at us, I call back my makeshift weapon. As my fingers wrap around the middle of the weapon, the ice from the spear-like head flows down, enveloping the entire body of the bone and turning it into the perfect cold and deadly weapon.

I grab it tightly, letting out a sigh of satisfaction at the familiar icy feel. It’s so cold, the air itself is pebbled with ice crystals all around me. Yet for the first time in months, the cold is welcoming. It’s a part of me, no longer the enemy.

My body hums with pleasure at this little burst of power, and perhaps it’s rather cliché of me to say this, but I don’t think I’ve ever appreciated my spiritual energy as much as I do now, knowing how it is to live without it.

I don’t get to dwell much on the nostalgia of it, though, as the demon quickly recovers in the process, growing even more spikes around its body and emitting more foul gases.

“Gross,” Mine mutters.

A glance back reveals him sitting quite relaxed a distance away, arms across his chest, back against the wall. I blink. That is rather…odd of him. This is anascendeddemon, not just a regular one. I doubt Mine would have seen one in his lifetime and, well, remain alive. They are that vicious with living beings as well. But based on his countenance and the way he’s cheering me on, you’d think he’s just a spectator watching a show.

“Go, Minnie! Show him you’re thebestestgoddess in the whole universe.”

My lips fight against a smile.

“I’m theonlygoddess you’ve met.” I roll my eyes.

“So? That just makes you the standard and I shall judge all other gods and goddesses compared to you.”

The demon roars. I turn back my attention to him. His body is straining as more foul energy oozes out from within.

“I don’t think he likes not being the center of attention,” Mine says.

“He’s trying to ascend again,” I mutter.

Mine sobers up. “If he does… Tommy will be gone, no?”

I nod tightly.

“I’ll get you more magical objects,” he suddenly says and rushes toward one of the wings of the castle, leaving me alone with the demon.

I sigh. He could have just said he was afraid. I wouldn’t have judged him. He’s just a human, after all. Alas, there’s no time to think about Mine’s display of bravery—or lack of.

The demon’s back splits open and spike-like tentacles come out from his skin. There are three of them, all coming toward me. Still concerned about conserving energy, I use my body tododge them, leaning backward when one aims for my head and sideways when the other two try to hit my body.

Pressing hard on the ball of my left foot, I propel myself in the air and jump behind him, using my makeshift icicle to sever one of the tentacles. The demon cries out in pain, but my victory is short-lived when two more tentacles appear from the same spot.

Damn it!

He’s ascending fast. He’s probably consuming the leftover souls at an alarming rate so he can reach the next level.

A demon of this level wouldn’t be a problem when I’m at my normal capacity. But like this…

With each use of my icicle, each movement of my body, I can feel the borrowed energy seep out of me. I have only a few movements left before I’ll be out, so I need to think about this strategically. There’s also the added worry that I might not act in time to save Tommy’s soul.

As the tentacles reach for me once more, I jump up and imbue the rest of my energy into the tip of the icicle. Getting in front of the demon, I rotate my body around to evade the tentacles while I mentally attempt to identify the demon’s core where his energy is stored. If I manage to land a powerful blow to its core, I can end him quickly. But I only have one chance before I’ll be depleted of energy.

But just as the tip of my icicle hits him in the chest, it disintegrates.

My eyes widen.

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