I Died and Became a Noble's Heir

Chapter 161: 4v2

The four demons split their formation instantly.

Three of them broke away from Jack, their forms blurring with speed as they converged on Kyren.

The reanimated demon raised his light blade, hollow eyes tracking the incoming threats with an eerie calm.

That left the fastest demon, the one with 190 Agility, facing Jack alone.

The demon grinned, its sharp teeth gleaming in the blue Aethrium light. ”The others will handle your pet. You’re mine, Soul Warden.”

It looked like he blinked out of sight.

Jack barely had time to raise his Lightning Spear before the demon closed the distance. Claws raked across the spear’s shaft, the impact sending vibrations up Jack’s arms. The demon’s speed was overwhelming, each strike coming faster than Jack could fully process.

Claws came in fast as Jack used the shaft of his spear to parry.

He twisted away, using his spear to create distance, but the demon was already there, pressing the advantage with relentless aggression.

Another strike. This one almost caught his shoulder, the strike was so fast that it caused some of Jack’s blood in his shoulder to fly in the air.

’Too fast,’ Jack thought, his mind racing. ’I can’t match this speed.’

The demon lunged again, and Jack deliberately gave ground, letting himself be pushed backward.

One step. Two. Three. He moved toward where the mining demons had clustered, their glowing eyes watching the fight with a mixture of fear and fascination.

The fastest demon followed, confident in its speed advantage, not recognizing the tactical retreat for what it was.

Jack’s back hit the crowd of miners.

He activated Tunder Mantle.

Blue lightning exploded across his body in crackling sheets of energy. The air around him ionized, and every hair on the mining demons’ bodies stood on end as static electricity filled the space.

Then Jack activated Static Orbs.

Twenty spheres of condensed lightning materialized around him, each one invisible to normal sight but radiating deadly potential. They orbited Jack, waiting for targets to enter their range.

The mining demons screamed.

The ones closest to Jack took the full brunt of the Static Orbs’ effect. Lightning arced from the invisible spheres, striking demon flesh with devastating precision. Fifteen lesser demons caught in the initial blast convulsed as electricity coursed through their bodies.

[-3,093 HP] appeared above each of their heads.

[Enemy Killed]

[Enemy Killed]

[Enemy Killed]

The notifications came rapid-fire as the lesser demons’ health bars depleted. They were weak, probably Level 20-25 at most, and Jack’s lightning magic tore through them like paper.

[Crimson Recovery Activated]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 1/10]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 2/10]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 3/10]

The stacks built quickly as more mining demons died, their bodies unable to withstand the concentrated lightning. Jack felt warmth flood through him as his Crimson Recovery ring activated, restoring health with each kill.

[+1% HP per second for 4 seconds]

[+1% HP per second for 4 seconds]

[+1% HP per second for 4 seconds]

The effects stacked, multiple instances running simultaneously. Jack’s health began climbing back up, erasing the damage the fastest demon had dealt.

More miners died. The Static Orbs didn’t discriminate, striking anything within range that registered as hostile. The cavern filled with the smell of burning demon flesh and ozone.

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 7/10]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 8/10]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 9/10]

[Sanguine Accelerator: Stack 10/10]

[Effect Activated: Convert 10% of magic damage to lifesteal]

[Effect Activated: +10% movement speed]

Jack grinned as power surged through his body. His muscles felt lighter, faster, as if someone had removed invisible weights from his limbs.

Combined with his Thunder Mantle’s existing speed boost, he was suddenly much more dangerous.

His total Agility had jumped from 135 to 176. Still not as fast as the demon with 190, but close enough that the gap was no longer insurmountable.

The fastest demon’s eyes widened as it registered the change. ”What...”

Jack didn’t give it time to finish. He activated Lightning Step, closing the distance in a burst of speed that left afterimages.

His Lightning Spear thrust forward, the blade wreathed in crackling blue energy.

The demon barely dodged, twisting its body with that supernatural Agility.

But now it was on the defensive, forced to react instead of dictate the pace.

Jack pressed his advantage, his spear becoming a blur of strikes.

Each thrust was faster than the last, each movement more precise. The demon blocked and dodged, its claws deflecting the spear’s blade, but Jack could see it struggling to maintain the rhythm.

’Not so confident now, are you?’ Jack thought.

Across the cavern, Kyren was engaged in his own battle.

The three nightmare demons had surrounded him, attacking from multiple angles with coordinated precision. But Kyren moved like water, his light blade flowing from one defensive position to another with minimal wasted motion.

His technique was flawless. Every parry redirected energy. Every counter-strike targeted vital points. This wasn’t just skill, this was mastery refined over decades or centuries.

One demon lunged from Kyren’s left. The light blade swept up, catching the demon’s claws and redirecting them past Kyren’s head. In the same motion, Kyren pivoted and slashed across the demon’s exposed ribs.

[-4,123 HP]

Light energy seared the wound, and the demon screamed. Before it could recover, Kyren’s blade found its throat, silencing the scream permanently.

[Solar Flare]

The demon’s head exploded in a burst of radiant energy. Two down. Three remaining.

But the other two demons attacking Kyren were learning.

They spread further apart, forcing him to choose which threat to prioritize.

When Kyren moved to engage one, the other would strike from behind, landing hits that his reanimated body absorbed without flinching.

Kyren didn’t feel pain. Didn’t tire. But damage accumulated nonetheless.

His hollow eyes tracked both demons with perfect awareness, calculating angles and timing.

Jack meanwhile was fully engaged with the fastest demon.

Their exchange had devolved into a high-speed duel that neither could fully dominate. Jack’s enhanced Agility let him keep pace, but the demon’s natural speed still gave it fractional advantages that added up over time.

[-523 HP]

Claws raked across Jack’s leg. He retaliated with a spear thrust that caught the demon’s shoulder.

[-1,399 HP]

The lifesteal activated, draining health from the demon and converting it to healing.

Jack felt the wound on his leg close slightly, accelerated regeneration fueled by stolen vitality.

They circled each other, both breathing hard, both bleeding from multiple wounds. The demon’s confidence had evaporated, replaced by wary respect for an opponent who refused to die.

”You’re tougher than Pho said,” the demon admitted, its voice carrying grudging admiration. ”But tough doesn’t mean unkillable.”

It lunged again, claws extended for a killing blow aimed at Jack’s throat.

Jack activated Static Field.

The invisible field of electrical energy expanded outward from his position. Everything within that zone suddenly felt like it was moving through thick syrup as the electricity interfered with nerve signals and muscle function.

[Static Field: -40% movement speed to all enemies]

The demon’s lunge became a crawl. Its supernatural speed reduced to merely fast as the Static Field disrupted its enhanced reflexes.

Its eyes widened in shock as it realized it couldn’t move at its normal pace.

”Now,” Jack said coldly.