The cavern shook again.
Not from magic—but from footsteps.
Thousands of them.
Arin could feel their chakra now, raw and rigid, sharpened by doctrine rather than experience. It pressed against his senses like a wall closing in.
Rudra's expression darkened. "They moved faster than I expected."
Nyra drew closer to Arin. "The Order of Purity doesn't come to negotiate."
Outside, voices echoed through the tunnels.
"By decree of the High Synod!"
"Any bearer of demon influence is to be seized or destroyed!"
"Submit and be purified!"
Arin's hands curled into fists.
"So this is how it starts," he muttered. "Humans hunting their own."
Rudra turned sharply. "This started long before you were born. Fear always finds a banner."
The first wave entered the cavern—soldiers in white and gold armor, faces hidden behind carved masks. Seals glowed across their weapons, designed not to kill demons…
…but to erase chakra.
Nyra stiffened. "Those blades sever Links."
Rudra planted his staff. "Then we do not let them touch him."
The commander stepped forward, voice amplified by chakra.
"Arin of the Border Village," he called. "You are accused of harboring demon essence, violating natural law, and threatening the purity of mankind."
Arin stepped out before Rudra could stop him.
"I'm not your enemy," Arin said loudly. "I'm fighting demons."
The commander raised his hand.
"You are the demon," he replied coldly.
The signal dropped.
Arrows of condensed chakra rained down.
Rudra slammed his staff into the ground, erecting a barrier just in time. The impact rattled the cavern walls.
Nyra moved like a shadow—fast, precise. She disarmed two soldiers without killing them, knocking them unconscious with controlled strikes.
"They won't stop," she said. "They never do."
Arin's mark burned.
The Demon Realm felt this.
He could feel eyes turning toward him.
If he fought freely, demons would come.
If he didn't, humans would kill him.
Rudra glanced at Arin. "Choose carefully. Every path leaves a trail."
Arin inhaled slowly.
Then released his chakra.
Not explosively.
Deliberately.
Human chakra layered over demon blood, controlled, refined. His presence changed—not monstrous, not holy.
Balanced.
The soldiers faltered.
"What… is that?" someone whispered.
Arin moved.
He disarmed without killing. Redirected attacks. Used chakra to reinforce his body, taking blows that should have shattered bone.
But one soldier broke formation—lunging with a sealing spear straight at Arin's chest.
Nyra screamed, "Arin—!"
The spear struck.
The mark flared.
Time paused.
For a single heartbeat, the world froze.
Then the spear shattered.
The shockwave threw everyone back.
Arin stood untouched, eyes glowing faintly—not red, not blue.
Something between.
The soldiers stared in terror.
Rudra whispered, horrified, "He touched the threshold…"
The commander backed away slowly.
"This is heresy," he breathed. "This is evolution."
A horn sounded—this one deeper, darker.
From above, the cavern ceiling cracked.
A rift opened.
Heat poured in.
Demons.
Drawn by the mark.
Nyra grabbed Arin's arm. "You see? Both sides will tear the world apart just to claim you."
Arin looked at the terrified soldiers… the approaching demons… and Rudra, wounded but standing.
Then he made a decision.
"We leave," Arin said. "All of us."
Rudra stared. "There's no safe path."
Arin's gaze hardened.
"Then I'll make one."
He raised his hand.
The mark pulsed.
And for the first time—
The mark answered him.
A gateway began to form, unstable, violent, pulling at everything nearby.
The demons roared.
The soldiers panicked.
Nyra looked at Arin in awe—and fear.
"Arin…" she whispered. "If you open that gate…"
Arin met her eyes.
"I won't belong to either side," he said.
"I'll walk between them."
The gateway tore open.
And the world bent toward it.
To be continue...