Pho stood from his throne, his three-meter frame towering even at a distance.

The frost around him intensified, the air itself seeming to crystallize as he moved.

"Kragoth is dead. The pits need a new overseer. Someone strong enough to command respect, brutal enough to maintain discipline, capable enough to handle the slaves without letting them die too quickly."

He descended the steps slowly, each step accompanied by the sound of ice forming beneath his feet.

"But before I give you that position, I need to know if you can back up that confidence. If that fearlessness is genuine or just bravado masking your weakness."

{Oh. Oh no. He wants to fight us. Right now. The demon wants to spar with us.}

Pho reached the bottom of the platform, standing perhaps twenty feet from Jack, his blank white eyes boring into the armored demon who'd dared to challenge him.

"So let's find out," Pho said, his voice carrying certainty that suggested this wasn't really a request.

"You wanted to see which one of us would still be standing. I'm bored. I want to fight someone who isn't afraid to look me in the eyes. Shall we?"

Jack felt Oscar's excitement spike in his mind, the weapon practically vibrating with anticipation after days of being carried around without seeing any action.

This was an opportunity. A chance to test Pho's capabilities, learn his fighting style, and identify weaknesses that could be exploited later.

Intelligence gathering disguised as a sparring match.

But it was also dangerous. Pho was Disaster-rank, possibly high Disaster-rank given how long he'd controlled this territory. One mistake and Jack could die before the real mission even began.

{What are you going to say? This is important! Set the tone!}

Jack met Pho's blank white gaze, his red eyes visible through his visor carrying the same confidence that had made Pho interested in him in the first place.

"About time," Jack said, his flat voice somehow managing to convey both respect and cockiness in equal measure. "I was getting bored killing your soldiers."

Pho's smile widened, genuine amusement mixing with anticipation.

"Good answer."

The Deathfrost Demon raised his hand, and frost gathered in his palm, swirling and coalescing into something solid.

Magic and ice combining, taking shape, forming into a weapon.

Frost swirled in Pho's palm, crystallizing into solid material.

An axe materialized into his hand.

The axe that materialized was massive, easily six feet from blade to base, its head nearly three feet across. The entire weapon was forged from the same pale blue ice that made up Pho's fortress, but this ice carried a density that other things didn't have.

You could tell how heavy it was from how it dug into Pho's neck.

Pho hefted the frost axe with casual ease despite its size, the weapon looking perfectly proportioned in his grip.

He took a practice swing, the blade cutting through the air with a sound like wind over a barren frozen tundra.

"No holding back," Pho said, his blank white eyes fixed on Jack. "I want to see what you're actually capable of."

Jack shifted Oscar in his grip, feeling the weapon's weight and its eager anticipation radiating through their mental connection.

{FINALLY! I thought we'd never get to the stabbing! Quick tactical assessment: he's bigger, stronger, has reach advantage with that axe, and controls ice magic that can turn this whole room into a deathtrap. So basically, we're fighting uphill in a blizzard. I LOVE IT!}

'Demonhand.'

Power flooded Jack's system as the ability activated.

His grip on Oscar tightened, the spear feeling lighter, an extension of his will rather than a separate object.

[Demonhand Activated]

Pho noticed the shift immediately, his smile widening. "You'll need every advantage you can get."

They circled each other slowly, two predators assessing, looking for openings, testing distance and timing.

The throne room stretched around them, pillars of black ice providing obstacles and cover, the frozen floor already slick beneath their feet.

Pho moved first.

The frost axe came around in a horizontal sweep, deceptively fast for such a massive weapon.

Jack dropped low, feeling the blade pass inches above his head, frost crystallizing in its wake.

He thrust upward with Oscar as he came up from the dodge, aiming for Pho's exposed midsection.

The spear's four-bladed tip connected with pale blue skin, and Jack felt the satisfying resistance of piercing flesh.

It wasn't that deep, barely more than a scratch, but first blood was his.

[Damage Dealt: 3,410]

[Enemy HP: 223,590/227,000]]

Pho glanced down at the shallow wound, a single drop of frost-blue blood welling from where Oscar had struck.

His expression showed neither pain nor concern, just curiosity.

"You're faster than you look," Pho observed, already moving into his next attack.

The axe came down in an overhead chop that would have split Jack in half if it connected.

Jack activated Abyssal Steps, reality blurring as he teleported five feet to the left. The axe struck the floor with tremendous force, ice shattering outward in a spider-web pattern.

{Good dodge! Now counter while he's recovering!}

But Pho wasn't recovering.

The moment the axe hit the ground, ice erupted upward in a dozen sharp pillars, each one aimed at where Jack had teleported. Jack threw himself into a roll, Oscar held tight as frozen spikes whistled past his armor.

One caught his shoulder, drawing a line of blood across his arm.

Another clipped his leg, frost spreading across his armor's surface before the enchantments burned it away.

{Okay, he doesn't have recovery time. Noted. New plan. Don't assume he has any weaknesses!}

Jack came up from his roll and immediately went on the offensive.

He spun Oscar overhead, building momentum, then brought the spear down in a powerful overhead strike. Pho blocked with the axe's handle, frost and metal meeting with a sound like breaking glass.

They separated, circled again, and Pho raised his free hand. Ice formed at his fingertips, compressed and shaped into small projectiles.

"Cryo Bullets."

The ice projectiles shot forward like thrown daggers, a dozen frozen rounds fired in rapid succession.

Jack spun Oscar defensively, the spear becoming a blur as he deflected the bullets.

Most shattered against the spinning weapon, but three got through, one hitting his chest, another his thigh, the third grazing his helmet.

Each impact carried a numbing cold that tried to spread through his armor. The enchantments fought it, but Jack could feel the temperature of his body dropping.

{He's testing your defenses. Show him what Oscar can do!}

Jack charged forward, closing the distance in three long strides.

Pho swung the axe horizontally, but Jack ducked under it, used Oscar as a vault pole to launch himself into the air, and came down with a thrust aimed at Pho's head.

The Deathfrost Demon leaned back, the spear's tip missing by inches.

Pho wasted no time on a counterattack.

The axe came around in an uppercut swing that forced Jack to abort his landing and teleport away with Abyssal Steps.

"You move well," Pho said, with genuine appreciation in his voice. "But movement alone won't win fights."

Ice spread across Pho's body, crystallizing into armor that covered his torso, arms, and legs.

The translucent blue plating added bulk to his already massive frame, and when Jack's next strike connected, Oscar bounced off with minimal damage.

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