The battle began with a whisper.
A wave of dark aura rippled from the demon—slow, heavy, suffocating. It wasn't the shock of fear or the heat of rage—it was stillness, like the very concept of motion was being crushed under invisible weight.
The aura spread across the village like a fog of pure laziness.
Muscles slackened. Minds dulled. Even thoughts became slow and slippery, like trying to run through mud.
Marcus sat down without realizing it.
Bam yawned mid-spell and forgot what he was casting.
Kain's staff dropped slightly as his knees trembled.
And Bob, already panting, blinked twice. "Why… do I feel like lying down?"
"It's Aura Domination!" the doll shouted. "It isn't ordinary aura. It is fused with Sloth. Sloth doesn't just radiate energy—it infects you. It touches your will. If you don't resist it now, your body will obey it automatically!"
Even Derek staggered, his sword drooping for just a second.
The demon floated forward with sickening calm. One hand raised, conjuring a dark spear of shadow magic, aimed straight at Bob.
It fired—
And the moment it struck, Gluttony pulsed inside Bob's chest.
A brilliant orange glow burst out, swallowing the dark energy whole.
Bob gasped, standing straighter.
"…What the hell?" he muttered. "That felt like food."
The aura around him intensified—his muscles tightened, his hammer surged with power, and even his shield shimmered with orange light.
The doll's stitched jaw dropped. "He… absorbed it? That's it! Gluttony consumes power, not just food. Energy becomes fuel."
Bob's face broke into a grin.
"Buddy," he said, hammer rising, "you're so fucked."
Bob charged, breaking through the aura fog like a battering ram of raw defiance.
The demon's void-like smile twitched—recognition flaring in its ghostly eyes.
"Ah. Gluttony. Still breathing… still hungry."
The demon's voice became cold.
"Then let me set you free."
Bob didn't flinch. "Come do it."
The others rallied behind him.
Bam threw fireballs that pulsed white-hot, striking true even through the aura's resistance.
Kain's ice spells locked the demon's limbs mid-swipe.
Marcus's bolts, enchanted for mana disruption, ripped through the demon's smoky form, slowing it down.
But it was Bob who fought like a juggernaut—absorbing shadow magic with every clash, growing stronger as Gluttony drank in the enemy's power.
The demon faltered.
And that's when Derek stepped forward.
He closed his eyes.
One deep breath.
His hand tightened on the black hilt of Excalibur.
The runes along the sword began to glow—dark blue, cold and searing, pulsing with a resonance that made the air hum.
The aura of Sloth couldn't pull him down—because he was already moving.
He raised the sword high.
The very air around him vibrated—space itself seemed to tighten as Excalibur responded to his call.
The demon turned, sensing it.
"No… This energy…"
It backed away, voice sharp and shaken.
"I know this… Excalibur. The blade that cut fate. That cannot be… How is it in your hand?!"
Derek opened his eyes.
No rage. No pride.
Just purpose.
And he struck.
The sword came down like a falling star, the runes igniting, the dark blue aura forming a wave of pure willpower.
The demon screamed—not in pain, but in disbelief.
And then it was gone.
Split. Scattered. Banished.
Sloth's aura dissolved instantly. The fog lifted. The villagers stirred.
And silence returned—not lazy, but earned.
The team stood, breathless.
Bob dropped to one knee. "That was awesome. Tiring. But awesome."
Bam exhaled. "Another sin down."
The doll climbed back onto Bob's shoulder, arms folded.
"Five remain," he said.
Derek wiped his blade clean as the blue glow faded.
But in his grip, Excalibur still pulsed, quiet and watching.