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The priest immediately attacks Nero with a very basic spell whose strength would be similar to that of a low class being.

"You little sh- aaah"

Nero deviated by being on the alert with this priest, then immediately punched the priest hard in the stomach causing him to bend over and spit saliva from his mouth. Then he kicked the buddhist away from the altar.

In the midst of the dimly lit chamber, a fierce battle erupted. The two sides were on alert to start the ofensive.

With a surge of magic power, the priest began chanting incantations, his voice resonating with an otherworldly authority. As he spoke, a golden chain materialized in his arms, snaking its way towards Nero with remarkable speed and precision. He swung them with expert precision, the chains whirling through the air like vengeful serpents seeking their prey.

Nero deftly dodged the chains and tried to hold one of them, having his palm burned by the light energy emanating from the chain. He quickly lets go of the chain and jumps back to keep distance.

"A devil trying to touch a light spell, what a joke." The priest scoffs at his attempt as he sings another chant.

Simultaneously, condensed spheres of radiant light formed around the priest, poised to be unleashed as devastating projectiles.

The priest then points his hand and all 8 spheres of light fly towards the young devil. Upon reaching its target, a smoke screen rose on the spot.

From the smoke emerged a figure running furiously towards the priest who used swings of his chains in an attempt to stop him. The defense was unsuccessful and immediately the priest received a punch in the middle of the face that made him fly against the wall of the place that broke with the impact.

Nero was standing with some burns caused by the spheres of light and with his abdomen bleeding from the re-opening of his previous wound caused by constant physical exertion.

From the hole in the wall a hand grabs the rest of the wall to support itself and the priest returns to the room.

"You bloody devil, what the fuck do you want in this shitty village!" The priest's voice turned distorted and erratic.

"I have to solve the disappearances in that place, it's a promise I made to someone, and I can't fail to keep it." Nero looks steadily at the priest who is acting strangely.

The priest starts pacing back and forth with his hand rubbing his bald head, and trying to think of a solution to the situation.

"There's only been a few disappearances in this village, why don't you go away and we'll forget about it? A prolonged fight won't do any of us any good. How about I stop kidnapping people, you can say you got the job done without putting any effort." The priest tries to tempt the young devil.

"This will not happen. I will fulfill my promise. A word given in a contract is very important to devils you know?" Nero face the priest calmly.

"Yes, I know very well, that is exactly why you should trust me." The priest speak angry and immediately freezes upon realizing his mistake.

It was then that Nero confirmed the true nature of his adversary. The priest's body was merely a vessel, and the entity controlling him was none other than a stray devil, probably his target in this mission.

"So you really are a devil, to be more specific a stray devil, am I right?" Nero smirks. "That explains a lot."

"So what, I just have to kill you before the information gets out of the village. No one will know about what happened here." The priest's face squirmed into a macabre smile.

The possessed priest sneakily casts a sphere of light towards Nero while talking to him. Nero used his shadow magic to make his shadow rise from the ground and spread out like a thorn to counter the luminous sphere.

The fight intensified as the priest continued to channel his low-class magical abilities. The golden chain lashed out, attempting to bind Nero's limbs and restrict his movements. Yet, Nero utilized his shadow manipulation, teleporting through the darkness to evade the constraints of the chain, frustrating the stray devil's plans.

In a dramatic turn, the possessed priest shifted his focus. Instead of launching all the radiant spheres as offensive projectiles, he flung one high into the air, casting a brilliant luminance across the room. The sudden flood of light disrupted Nero's connection to the shadows, leaving him vulnerable and forcing him to engage in close-quarter combat.

In the confined space of the chamber, the tension rose as the combatants closed in on each other. The possessed priest, now wielding a chain formed from radiant magic, swung it with precision and speed, attempting to ensnare Nero in its glowing links.

Nero's eyes focused and determination etched on his face, he evaded the swirling chain with deft footwork and agile maneuvers. He ducked and weaved, narrowly avoiding its deadly strikes. Sensing an opportunity, he lunged forward, delivering a swift punch towards the priest's torso.

However, the priest's mastery of the chain proved formidable. With a fluid motion, he twirled the chain around his body, creating a protective barrier that deflected Nero's blow. The resounding clash of metal against flesh filled the chamber, the smell of burnt skin could be smelled from this clash.

The priest took the opportunity to push the devil away and then throw one of his chains connecting it to his target's right arm. But when carrying out the attack, he was stunned by the scene he witnessed.

Nero felt a severe burn on his right arm that was enveloped in chains of light magic, but he tried to come up with a solution, there must be something he could do... he tightened his grip on the chain in the palm of his hand feeling tremendous pain until the pain disappeared.

The piece of the chain that Nero was squeezing was subject to a strange phenomenon, instead of being in the glowing color of light magic, it appeared black in color with red markings, but retained properties of light.

"You said a devil holding a light spell was a joke, let's see who is the joke now." Nero then pulls with all his might.

Nero took the opportunity to use all his strength to pull the opponent who was connected to the other end of the chain. Simultaneously he readied his other arm to uppercut the target that was being pulled.

After the first punch he immediately kept close range and landed a flurry of blows. With every strike, the stray devil's influence weakened, its hold over the priest was faltering. In a brief moment of lucidity the priest spoke in a human voice: "You must destroy the sta... silence human." The stray devil regained control shortly thereafter.

Nero, seizing the opportunity, stealthily maneuvered amidst the chaotic battle, inching closer to the grotesque diabolic statue at the center of the altar.

In a unexpected move, Nero disregarded his adversary momentarily, focusing his attention solely on the statue. With a surge of determination, he delivered a powerful punch, shattering the horrendous diabolic figure into fragments. As the statue crumbled, the possessed priest collapsed to the ground, and from the debris emerged a weakened stray devil, its malevolent presence exposed.

"Buddy, you're uglier than I thought." Nero looks with a look of revulsion and the stray devil glares at him.

"How?"

"How what?" Nero tilts his head.

"How did you find out the priest was controled by me?"

"Well I had some hints, first his name should be Xiang Him instead of Xiang Hua. Second, he has a family with names just as peculiar as he is so he is not an orphan. Third you addressed me as Morningstar the fake last name I used with the cops without me introducing myself. Now my turn, how did you do all this? Before you die, don't you want to at least leave your existence in someone's memory?"

"I have a possession skill, but it depends on the devil statue. I don't have much physical strength so I was depending on the Buddhist priest who had greater strength than me and was planning to possess the sacred gear boy. It's a shame that even though I manipulated and weakened his mind, he was able to escape."

"It was a good plan, too bad you drew too much attention."

"It's really a shame. I would have succeeded if it weren't for you." The stray devil takes the opportunity to attack Nero suddenly.

Nero uses shadow teleportation and appears in front of the stray devil using his physical strength to crush his head by powering his stomp with his own demonic energy. "Bye bye ugly guy, until never more."

"Well, I just need to look for the missing people, and deal with them, the priest and Leonardo. I also need to research more about what I did with that chain, it was like I corrupted it, is this the power of the Lucifer bloodline my diary was talking about?" Nero sighs in relief that his troubles are over. "What troublesome work, I'll have to complain to Buddha when I'm done."