Infernal Entity: Evolving With My Demonic System-Chapter 76: Interdimensional Portal

< [System rebooting...] >

< [Host is awakening] >

Axel woke up with a sharp breath.

White light entered his eyes. Not blinding or harsh, but just... there. The ceiling above him was unfamiliar but painfully recognizable at the same time.

"Infirmary... again," Axel muttered.

The memories from what happened came rushing in, and one of the last few things he remembered was his HP dropping all the way down to zero.

Axel pushed himself upright immediately, ignoring the dull ache in his chest, and opened up the system interface, navigating his way to his stats.

< [Stats] >

< [HP: 20 / 20] >

< [Strength: 23] >

< [Speed: 23] >

< [Agility: 23] >

< [Intelligence: 200] >

< [Resistance: 20] >

< [Infernal Core (Lv. 2): 10%] >

He stared at it. Specifically at his HP. He was at full health now, luckily.

"Hell..." He breathed. "I almost died."

Everything else looked normal too. He leaned his back against the bed and gave a short, humorless laugh.

"Again," he said quietly. "I’m always waking up like this."

First time was Dane Cornwall, then Luke, and then Luke again.

His eyes drifted around the room, and that was when he noticed that something was off about the infirmary. It looked different.

The walls were darker. The equipment looked different, more compact, and the door was now on the left side of the room, not the right side as it should have been. It wasn’t the same place he had woken up in after his first fight with Luke.

"Don’t tell me they renovated..." Axel muttered. "Renovation takes months... don’t tell me I’ve been out for months!"

He sat up straighter. "How long was I out this time?" he asked no one in particular.

Before the thought could spiral further, the door opened and Kinsey Kit stepped inside.

She froze for half a second when she saw him sitting up, then her shoulders relaxed visibly.

"You’re awake," she said, relief clear in her voice.

Axel looked straight at her. "How long was I out?" Axel asked immediately, no formalities.

"Uh... an hour."

"...That’s it?"

"Yes," Kinsey replied. "The healers stabilized you quickly. You didn’t take lasting damage."

Axel frowned, because an hour didn’t make sense. He had been sure he crossed a line this time. He literally hit rock bottom with his HP.

"What happened after I passed out?" Axel asked.

Kinsey hesitated for a while. From an omniscient view, it was obvious she was choosing her words carefully. Not to lie, but to soften the truth.

"Luke was about to kill you," she said honestly. "He didn’t stop. Luckily, the coordinators rushed the cage and restrained him before he could finish it."

All of a sudden, Axel found himself so close to death again.

For a brief moment, he was back there. On the floor, being weak, waiting for a killing blow. Just like when Kaze stood over him.

It was all the same, nothing but helplessness.

"I almost died again," Axel said, clenching his fists. His voice sounded calm on the outside, but something dangerous moved beneath it.

"All because I wasn’t strong enough."

Axel’s breathing started changing. His posture stiffened, and his breathing grew faster.

"Axel..." Kinsey called out. "Calm down."

"I am calm," he replied.

"No. You’re not. Young demons are emotionally unstable, and you can easily get angry, and anger pushes corruption. Please, don’t lose control now."

"Well maybe I wanna be corrupt!" Axel barked.

She stepped closer and spoke with a soft voice. "You could do something stupid."

"Kinsey, I said I’m calm," he repeated.

And this time, it was true. His anger did not explode. It settled. He swung his legs off the bed and stood up.

"I won’t lose control," he said. "Not here."

Axel went for the door and opened it. The two Apex guards who worked for Dasha were already there waiting.

One of them inclined his head slightly. "Asha would like to see you," he said.

That name stuck for a second, and Axel glanced at Kinsey with a confused look. "Asha?"

"Yeah, that’s what some of them call her."

"Fine," he said. "Let’s go."

As he stepped into the hallway, the truth finally clicked. From his surroundings, he could now tell that this was not the academy infirmary he always woke up in.

"We’re still underground?" he whispered.

"Yes, we are. You don’t seriously expect us to take you up after you almost died, did you?" one of the guards asked.

---

Dasha welcomed Axel with a bright smile the moment he stepped into the room.

"Ah! There he is," she said cheerfully. "Our rising star."

Axel slowed his steps, with confusion written plainly on his face. Dasha stood at the center of the room, with her hands clasped behind her back.

"I don’t know what you’re smiling about," Axel said. "I got my ass kicked in there."

"That’s not how everyone else saw it," she replied. "You held your ground against Luke Fern when he went crazy."

"Yeah... and almost died."

"Yes," Dasha said. "But you didn’t. Do you know how many people last more than a minute against a Fern? Very few. Do you know how many do it while dampened?"

Axel stayed quiet. From an outside view, it was clear Dasha was not praising his strength alone. She was praising his value.

"Speaking of which, he used his abilities. That shouldn’t have been possible. There was a dampener during our fight, right?" Axel asked curiously.

"There was," Dasha agreed. "And it worked. Just not completely."

Axel looked up. "So what happened?"

"Some abilities are too volatile to fully suppress with standard dampeners," Dasha explained calmly. "Pyrokinesis is one of them. It leaks, especially when the user loses control."

Axel hesitated before asking his next question. "What happened to Luke afterwards?"

"He has been banned from the underground pits indefinitely," Dasha answered.

"He almost killed me," Axel said.

"And that is why he lost," Dasha replied. "The moment he used his ability openly, the fight was voided."

Axel’s eyes widened a fraction. "Meaning?"

"Meaning you won," Dasha said.

Before Axel could respond, his device vibrated sharply in his pocket. He pulled it out immediately, only to be greeted by his payment.

< [CNT Received: 10,000] >

Axel’s eyes grew wide, and the CNT symbol flashed inside his pupils.

He smirked. "That’s what I’m talking about..."

Seeing Axel’s smirk, Dasha already knew the answer. From her point of view, Axel was exactly the kind of fighter she liked. He was a bit reckless, desperate, and hungry. Hunger made people profitable.

Dasha was one of the top managers in the underground fighting pits. Over the years, she had built a massive following. People trusted her judgment. If she backed a fighter up, bets poured in. Money followed, and power followed after that.

After the Orion Prince’s humiliating defeat, she had moved fast by taking control of the fighter who had beaten him. That single decision paid off immediately.

Axel Vaelon, known underground as the Red Imp, had gained recognition. After surviving a fight against Luke Fern, that recognition turned into obsession.

People talked, and they liked him quite a bit.

"The Red Imp who stood against a Fern."

That sentence alone carried weight in the underground.

Dasha had made a lot of money from Axel. Axel knew that much. He was not stupid. If she could pay him ten thousand CNT without hesitation, then the amount she made for herself had to be far higher. But he didn’t mind as long as he was making good money and getting closer to completing his task.

< [Greed Task Progress: 11,000 / 100,000] >

A slow smile formed on his face.

He was moving forward. Slowly, but steadily. In time, he would finish this task and move on to the next one. He imagined what ten thousand CNT could buy. Mythic shards. Maybe several. Just thinking about it made his chest feel warm.

Dasha watched his expression carefully.

"Now that you’ve proven yourself," she said, "it’s time to move on to the next phase of our contract."

"Next phase?"

"Yes," Dasha replied calmly.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small remote. Without saying anything else, she pressed a button.

A section of the wall shifted, and a door slid open silently.

Axel’s eyes narrowed. He was sure that door hadn’t been there before. Or if it was, it had been hidden well on purpose.

Which meant whatever was behind it was not meant for just anyone.

Dasha walked forward and stepped inside the newly revealed room. She stopped and looked back at Axel.

"Your girlfriend can come too," she said casually. "As long as you trust her."

Kinsey stiffened at the word, but she didn’t argue. She simply followed.

Axel stepped through the doorway, and on the other side, the room was wide and dim. At its center stood a massive circular structure. It was tall, metallic, and faintly glowing along its edges.

Axel and Kinsey froze together. They recognized that circular structure immediately.

"Hold on a second... Is that an interdimensional portal?"