The light of dusk filtered through the large windows.
The stained glass filtered the light, giving it shades of purple, red, and blue.
In them, mosaics depicted the macabre massacres of the demon king's army, like a trophy glorifying such vile acts.
"I can't believe this," said a voice whose echo resonated throughout the castle. "What the hell does this mean!?" the voice demanded to know with agitation.
The speaker was a woman with dark brown hair and tan skin, wearing light leather armor with silver metal reinforcements on the extremities.
The blue and purple flames of the torches hanging from the dark columns cast dancing shadows as she spoke and scanned the room with her gaze, trying to find something.
"I'm certainly surprised this could happen. I always knew demons had no honor, but I thought they at least had pride," added another voice with a calm and relaxed tone, as if not even what was happening could disturb her.
The woman was also analyzing the room expectantly, as if waiting for something to happen.
Her hair, pink as sakura petals, was tied in a ponytail, while her body was protected by samurai armor in vivid red colors, presenting an image both beautiful and imposing.
"Come on girls, don't let your guard down, maybe it's a trap or something," another voice interrupted then, accompanied by a nervous little laugh.
The speaker was a blond boy with an affable and calm face.
The young man wore golden armor with star-shaped reliefs. A white cape hung from his back with a reddish sun painted on it.
"Pffft, you're too kind Alexander, but Mei and Aleida are right, it's clear the Demon King fled the moment he saw your greatness," affirmed a shrill voice coming from Leonhardt's shoulder, where a woman less than a hand's span tall sat, with green skin and dragonfly wings. "It's so pathetic it's funny! HAHAHAHA"
The fairy mocked, provoking a nervous smile from Leonhardt.
But it was true.
The imposing throne of the demon king was empty, as was the hall.
There was no one waiting for the hero to fight. There was no one to challenge.
What was going on?
"Mmm, I couldn't tell you if anyone's hiding, there's too much azoth in the environment and I can't see anything," said another female voice.
The speaker was Luna, the witch of the night.
She wore a dark blue robe with silver star-shaped embroidery and a pointed hat typical of witches.
Her jet-black hair fell over her shoulders, while her blue eyes analyzed the room. They had a mystical gleam, as if they could see the secrets of any place.
"Tch," Aleida clicked her tongue in annoyance while frowning, the woman had very little patience. "I suppose we'll have to destroy this place, maybe if we make a big enough mess we can flush him out of his hiding spot."
The woman stated while stretching her hand to her back, seeking to grab her axe. Her fingers brushed the axe, and then her body froze, as if she had become a statue of flesh.
"I'm not usually in favor of your impulsive ideas, however, I must say this time your methods might work," Mei responded with a calm expression, her pink eyes shining with determination. There was no greater disrespect than not showing up to a duel, and she intended to make him pay for such an offense.
However, when she looked at Aleida again, she noticed something wasn't right.
"Alei—"
Before finishing her sentence, the warrior's body suddenly fell to the floor, as if she were a puppet whose strings had been cut.
"Aleida!?" Mei insisted again, with an expression of concern on her face, but before she could take a step forward to see what was wrong, she was interrupted.
"Don't move!" the witch of the night ordered, with an expression of fear on her face.
Mei obeyed, remaining still in place like a statue. She didn't know why, but there was something in Luna's voice that froze her blood.
She had fought many times alongside the witch, and generally, Luna always acted carefree, even in the most intense situations.
It was as if she always knew what was going to happen. Something that wasn't far from the truth since Luna was a seer.
However, now she sounded surprised and worried, as if she didn't have everything under control.
"What's wrong Luna? Why did you tell Mei that? Is there a paralysis trap or something?" Alexander asked alertly, while resting his hand on the hilt of his sword.
It had happened a few times in the labyrinth, magical traps with a paralysis spell.
It was common for Aleida to fall into those traps, though thanks to her great magic resistance she was saved.
However, this was the demon king's castle, the traps were very likely of a higher level.
"N-no, it's different. There's something strange around Mei, like elongated sharp needles," the witch said in a worried tone.
She had been born with the magical eyes of the moon, which allowed her to see past, present, and future. There was nothing she couldn't observe.
However, those needles surrounding Mei were almost imperceptible, that was due to the Azoth.
It was like trying to see through thick fog.
"And what am I supposed to do?" Mei asked, uncomfortable. While her attitude was always calm and cold, staying there paralyzed made her feel vulnerable.
Luna took a deep breath while reconsidering. For her, who could always see everything, this situation took her out of her comfort zone.
But she couldn't let that affect her. Her companions trusted her.
"Alright, I'll try to remove them with magic, though first I must eliminate Alei's paralysis—"
The girl couldn't finish her sentence.
Her eyes had landed again on the warrior... a pool of blood had formed beneath her body.
She wasn't paralyzed, she was dead.
"No!" Mei then screamed, she had also realized it.
Her body reacted on its own, ignoring the warning, moving to reach her.
But that was her death sentence. She could feel thousands of blades stabbing into her body, or rather, she had impaled herself on them.
The invisible spikes pierced through her armor and flesh as if it were butter, as if any object were useless against them.
And then came hell. From each spike, thousands more spikes began to grow, as if they had bloomed lethally.
"Mei!" Luna and Alexander shouted in unison.
Both ran toward Mei, but it was Alexander who arrived first, catching her body before it fell to the ground.
"Mei are you okay!?" Alexander said with an expression of horror on his face. "Sylvie quickly!" the boy ordered.
The fairy reacted to the shout, as if she had come out of a trance.
"Right away!" she responded while flying toward Mei, surrounded by a greenish light.
But a strangled scream from Luna forced her to turn around.
A horrible scene showed itself before both of them. An invisible force had lifted the witch and twisted her limbs in an unnatural way.
Like a work of art in bad taste.
Sylvie let out a frightened scream. While Alexander could only watch everything in horror.
What was happening?
His companions were falling one by one and he couldn't do anything about it.
What was causing all this?
The room seemed to spin as his mind processed all of it.
That's when he realized.
All this time, the demon king had been with them.
He simply hadn't noticed in time.