The sewers were dark and the smell of rotten eggs was everywhere. The air seemed heavy and in the silence of the tunnel, their cautious steps echoed like hammer hits on an anvil.
Despite the horrible conditions, prince Amon felt the excitement for the coming battle rise in him. An unstoppable will to blast something to pieces raged inside his veins.
Prince Amon took a deep breath to calm his desire to send a current of explosion magic down the tunnel. He had always had a short temper, precisely why he had joined the army. He needed a place to let out all those pent-up emotions of his. He had no further interest in ascending the throne even if it were to be given to him.
His place was with the empire's army. Protecting the citizens and killing those who tried to destroy the empire's peace. Like those weird monsters that they were hunting now.
His officers were right behind him. And further back were the army's elites. Prince Amon had chosen to take a smaller team into the sewers and deploy the remaining troops around the sewer entrances in case any monsters tried to escape.
The ones with purple eyes were truly dangerous. He had seen with his own eyes how one of those things had grabbed a hoodlum of the streets and forced some fog to enter his orifices. Soon after the hoodlum's eyes had turned red and he also became an abomination.
These creatures couldn't be allowed to spread. If even one of them survived they would have to search the entire empire or risk facing an army of thousands. Prince Amon shivered at the mere thought of such a thing happening.
And he certainly wouldn't let it happen!
The tunnel took a sharp left and they entered the open area where they suspected the best to be.
"Help, is anybody there?"
A sobbing call for help echoed through the room. The voice was that of a female and sounded hoarse like she had been screaming for hours. As the sewer hall was lit up a figure slumped on the ground became visible.
Overtaken by the urge to help a citizen in need, prince Amon threw all caution to the wind and thoughtlessly approached her. His officers wanted to stop him but before they could do so he had reached her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You are safe now. The army is here to kill all monsters."
"And what good has the army ever done me? Did they care when I had to watch my child starve? No, they just came to visit when I started to sell my body!"
The figure turned around to reveal the pretty face of a woman. However, at the color of her eyes, prince Amon's heart nearly stopped. Her eyes were white like those of a blind person but within that white space, both red and purple symbols were swirling around.
The woman smiled seductively before plunging her long, sharp fingernails into prince Amon's chest. From the looks of it, she wasn't experienced in killing people. She had struck prince Amon in the middle of the chest missing both his heart and lungs.
Prince Amon's reaction was lightning fast. His entire body exploded like a bomb and the mysterious woman was blown away. Despite the strength of the explosion the dark fog that quickly surged out of her absorbed most of the force leaving her perfectly fine.
"Self-destruction? How pathetic of you to give up your life just to hurt me. Being naive and stupid doesn't suit you."
"I would gladly give my life for the empire. But for a weakling like you, that isn't necessary."
The woman stared slack-jawed as prince Amon stepped out of the dust cloud caused by his explosion. Apart from the injury she had dealt him, he had no other signs of damage despite having been at the epicenter of the explosion.
"It doesn't matter if you made it out of that explosion alright! Your injury is already contaminated by my dark fog. Not even god can save you now!"
At those words, prince Amon frowned. He could indeed feel a strange power linger on the edges of his wounds preventing him from healing. The wound he had been dealt would be fatal if he couldn't heal. The blood loss alone was bad enough. However, prince Amon wasn't so easily outplayed.
"Not even God can save me? Let's see if you can keep spouting such preposterous lies when Sol himself takes action."
The prince fished out a small amulet with a golden eye out of his armor and pressed it against the wound on his chest. As soon as it touched the strange energy the golden eye became a glaring sun and the energy was blown away.
"Impossible! I'm a dark fog monarch! I am chosen by the dark fog to spread destroy you! You cannot beat me!"
"Keep talking. I'll slay you like the abomination you are!"
"I'm not the abomination here! You are the one who lets the people suffer while you walk around in your pretty uniforms. Your hands are stained with the blood of all those who starved while you were sitting around!"
"My hands are indeed dripping with blood. But not of those who fell prey to the nobles' political games. But whether you call me good or evil, I will gladly kill you to protect the empire."
The glow from the amulet was still gaining brilliance. The darkness in the sewer hall was cleared and a large group of pawns and vessels was revealed. However, the creatures looked to be suffering from the light of the amulet. When it touched them they turned panicky and tried to escape.
Prince Amon's officers and army elites instantly moved to intercept them and a desperate battle began. Only the one who had called herself a monarch seemed to be mostly fine under the light's influence.
"What is that thing? How can that light suppress the dark fog?"