The Archdemon rose a hundred meters above the ground, and that wasn't even its entire body. It seemed unable to fully break free from the seal, and only its torso was visible above the earth. An enormous demon, as described in legends, it dwelled in our world in physical form, not merely as a magical entity. On the one hand, this made it vulnerable to destruction, but on the other, it allowed the demon to conserve its strength while present in our realm. According to the Rector, it could easily resurrect itself in the demon world. The situation had suddenly taken a turn for the worse, and previous concerns were now of little consequence.
"Haha, would you look at that! Your magical assault was enough to breach my prison. I've been waiting for this moment for so long, but still, it's not enough," the demon raised its arms to the sky, and bright flames erupted all around the central square, rising higher and higher until the entire sky was bathed in its glow. "I invite you to my realm; you've earned it."
The flames dissipated, and the familiar landscape of the Academy was gone. The land was parched, and hundreds of demons could be seen on the horizon. The red sky, devoid of moon and sun, was lit only by flashes of flame emanating from the ground.
"So, this is the demon world?" Seleria hesitated as she surveyed the new realm. "I imagined it somewhat differently."
"Hmm, a girl close to the demons," the demon sized up the princess with an evaluating gaze. "You could be useful."
"Oh no, keep your clawed hands away from me; don't think I'll agree to serve you."
"As if you have a choice. Those I deem worthy will have the chance to swear allegiance to me, while the rest will become sacrifices for my resurrection. So, your options are limited."
"Still, I'd rather die fighting you."
"Bold, but foolish. Perhaps someone else wants to save their skin?"
The demon scrutinized the faces of the students who found themselves in the demon world. Only those who were inside the arena seemed to be affected by the demon's spell, suggesting that those who had hidden inside the Guildhouse or were still within the Academy were safe. All the students present had been exhausted by the prolonged battle, and with each passing minute in the demon world, they grew weaker, unwittingly succumbing to its influence.
"Master, I beg you to accept my oath," came the first, albeit rather unexpected, volunteer.
"Brother, what are you doing?" Milena tried to stop him, but Miguel quickly passed by her and knelt before the monster.
What happened next, the fact that the first to pledge allegiance to the demon was the one who should have been the most fervent opponent, caused confusion among the students. But the subsequent events frightened them even more.
"Hoo, you're from the clan of my former devotees. Predictable, but what makes you think I need such useless cultists like you?" the demon spoke with a mocking tone.
"But we..." Miguel visibly nervously fumbled for the right words, "we served you for many centuries."
"You'd better be quiet, brother," Milena involuntarily shook her head, "you're only making it worse."
"It seems your sister inherited all the brains in your family," the demon leaned toward the trembling inquisitor, "the fact that your families once served me means nothing to me. The fact that you've used my power for so many years is also of no consequence. But the fact that you did nothing to free me all this time means something. You think I don't know that deep down you hoped I'd never be released, so you could keep using my power? You forgot that by receiving my power, you gave me a piece of your soul, and I know all your desires and watch the world through you."
"But we couldn't do anything. The Academy was protected."
"You're a terrible liar. You practically controlled Verania, but you still didn't make a single viable attempt to take control of the Academy. You're just a worthless bunch of weaklings, maintaining your authority through my power."
"But, master..."
"Enough!" The demon grabbed Miguel and brought him closer to its face. "You're just a useless bunch of freeloaders, and the first thing I'll do is rid myself of your miserable cult."
The demon clenched its fist, and the sound of Miguel's bones breaking echoed in the air. Then, it tossed the still living Miguel to the edge of the Arena.
"Your sister turned out to be smarter; she didn't immediately give up all her comrades. Well, does anyone else want to speak up? Or do you hope that this church, supposedly fighting demons, will help you?" The demon chuckled with satisfaction. "Or perhaps you, young man, who so skillfully dealt with my golems, would like to join me? I'll even let you choose a couple of slaves to serve you, whom I'll spare. But the rest will still become my meal."
I had already begun to withdraw from the attack after obliterating the last golem, contemplating what to do with this new predicament. Swearing allegiance to the demon and saving one of my comrades. Neither I nor they would agree to such terms, but the demon clearly needed followers; otherwise, it wouldn't have been trying so hard to persuade us. If he were a true ruler of demons, he would have simply summoned his armies and started conquering the world again, but he needed someone to lead them. This meant he couldn't stay here for long, something or someone was hindering him from displaying his full power. At some point, it all came together and made sense.
"Well, why are you silent, young mage? I made you a generous offer, which means I recognized your strength. Or do you prefer to perish with the rest?" The archdemon taunted.
"Enough with your blabbering," I abruptly interrupted the archdemon, catching him off guard. "What do I care if some charlatan acknowledges me or not?"
"What did you say?" The demon began to grow angry, but I didn't care.
"The fearsome archdemon, haunting children since birth, turned out to be this?" I looked at the monster with a gaze full of disdain. "Don't tell me you'll keep pretending to be the lord of hell, magician."
"You must be out of your mind, little human," the demon leaned in so close I could feel its putrid breath, but even that wasn't enough.
"The fearsome Archdemon, commanding armies of demons, who subjugated the summoner's soul and acquired his power to cross over into our world. That's how you were described, but I see something entirely different," I glanced over the crimson horizon where small demons were crowding. "This is no hell; it's merely a demonic barrier you've erected to drain the powers of these poor students. No demon is following you; all these hordes are just golems and gargoyles created by your power. And you couldn't even transfer yourself to the demon world because you lacked the strength to fully break free from the seal."
The demon was already nervously cracking the bones of its fingers, preparing to crush me.
"All I see is a power-hungry human who has subjugated the body and power of the Archdemon. But you didn't gain his knowledge, his influence, or his authority over other demons, did you, Creighton?"
"You talk too much, little human," the demon barely restrained its rage and no longer addressed me as respectfully as before.
"I've been thinking, why would a demon want to take over our world? He already has unlimited power over his own realm, and in the physical world, he'll constantly lose strength. Either he'd have to drain power from his world or weaken until another demon puts an end to him and takes his place. Moreover, none of the great spirits before him displayed ambitions for world domination; they even agreed to serve a mage who only opened the path to our world for them. On the other hand, if a human actually controlled the Archdemon, hungry for power, constantly pursued by others, and now seeking revenge on the whole world, that would be much more logical."
"You've said too much, and now neither you nor anyone else will leave here. I still have to maintain the image of a fearsome lord of demons, you understand," the Archdemon began gathering demonic flames in its hands.
"Wait, I'm not finished," but I rudely interrupted, "If you were a real Archdemon, dealing with you would be very difficult. But if you're just a fake with his power, then it's entirely possible. Escaping from the demon world is unlikely, but your barrier has some significant flaws."
"Oh, really? What are they? You have time until I gather enough magic to turn all of you into ashes with a single strike."
"This barrier is designed to absorb the magic of those inside and give it to the barrier's owner. But it does have certain limits. You couldn't have erected a powerful enough barrier without expending the strength you need to break free. So if we strike the barrier with force far exceeding its capabilities, it will crumble."
"But I created it in a way that none of you could muster enough power to destroy it. Even if these dragonesses join forces, they won't have enough strength."
"Perhaps, but what if someone turns out to be much stronger than you thought?" A mysterious smile adorned my face. I had already recovered from the previous spell and was now holding the black staff with both hands, which, in principle, should have been drained of power. "If someone still hasn't used all their abilities."
"Ha-ha," the Rector, like all the other students, could hear our conversation. "Has he finally decided to get serious? I thought I'd never see that."
"What are you talking about? Creighton is already exhausted!" Katrina scolded the contented old man.
"Do you really think so?" The Rector grinned, "I remember during the entrance exam, he used three quite powerful spells all at once."
"And none of them worked, yes, I remember."
"That doesn't matter. He couldn't give them shape, but he released a lot of magic. And the next day, he was already practicing calmly, of course, secretly from others. Yes, Miss Levris?"
"Huh? You knew?"
"Of course, I always make sure students don't accidentally kill themselves trying to surpass the limits of their bodies. But this young man was never in danger of such a death. No matter how much he trained and how much magic he used, he always recovered quickly."
"But he hardly ever used magic; in this whole year, he only used it occasionally to strengthen his body," Katrina still didn't understand where the Rector was going.
"That's true, but if he had such enormous reserves of magic and could replenish them so quickly, he should have used it, or the magic would have burst out uncontrollably. But he didn't do that, which means he found a way to store it until the right time. What did you feel when you touched his staff?"
"It was like he was trying to suck my soul out of me."
"Yes, and if he's had it all this time, how much could he gather within six months?" Finally, the meaning of the Rector's satisfied grin dawned on the princess.
The old man was right; all I needed to do was to make the black crystal return everything it had absorbed. And I was prepared for this moment.
"There's no magic in you right now, except for what's stored within this heart. So, you'll have to return it all," I spoke to the darkness inside the crystal. It was alive, and it wasn't just uncontrollable power. "Release all your power one last time!"
The staff began to glow, a much brighter and calmer light than when the golem fired. The light started enveloping both the staff and me. I gathered all that power and directed it into an invisible dome that closed over the barrier.
A concentrated beam of pure magical force struck the barrier. It was smaller, but far more potent than the attack of the largest golem, and it fulfilled its role. The impact was too strong for the barrier, and cracks began to spread across it like crimson veins. My magic spread along the barrier, illuminating it with bluish light and simultaneously destroying it. The demon was gaining strength, but I wouldn't let it take the last bit of power from the wounded students behind me.
The barrier fell, and I had expended almost all of my strength on this. Everyone inside sighed with relief, but the demon got what it wanted.
"Ha-ha-ha, you never cease to amaze me. But that was a foolish decision, boy," now the demon had enough power to free itself completely from its prison. It towered over the square, more than two hundred meters tall, and its minions continued to flood the Academy grounds. "Thanks to you, I obtained all the energy I needed, but you understand that I still can't let your comrades escape. So, you wasted your strength in vain."
"Maybe not in vain."
I wasn't as exhausted as after the previous attack because this was still my power. Yet, I preferred to stand, leaning on the staff. I could see that golems were already surrounding the area, and my comrades had no chance of breaking through their ranks now.
"Ragni," I took something out of my pocket and threw it to the dragoness, "You served me well, but now you're free."
A small octagonal crystal landed in the dragoness's hands.
"What is this?"
"It's your way out," I smiled and waved my hand at Ragni, with the dragon tattoo gradually disappearing from her hand, "Shift."
Ragni looked at her hand. Her tattoo was also fading, and the light from it was gathering in the crystal.
"Creighton, what are you doing!?" but the dragoness didn't have time to say anything else. She was covered in a blue glow and vanished. After her, the other students standing nearby also disappeared. Within a minute, only I and the Archdemon remained in the arena.
"Hm? A teleportation magic based not on demon magic? How interesting," the Archdemon looked around with a slightly puzzled expression, "Someone must have dug deep into ancient archives. Ancient magic, similar to the one used to pass through portals to the spirit world."
"Yes, the same magic you used to deceive the lord of Hell, false summoner."
"Hoo, so you even know that? But it only convinces me that I must get rid of you. By the way," the demon turned to the north, "it seems you didn't have enough strength to move them far away. You didn't think I wouldn't notice them so close to here, did you?"
"No, I knew you'd notice, but it won't help you."
"How tiresome you are with your audacity," the demon collected the flames in its hands and infused it into a single fiery sphere, which it hurled towards a solitary building to the north of the main building, "your friends wouldn't be able to escape from here anyway, so don't worry about them."
The demonic flames engulfed our Guild's home and all the surrounding lands, incinerating everything living within.
"I don't have time for this; I still need to deal with one deceiver," the demon said.
"Oh, you still hope to fight me? You can barely stand on your feet, and you don't have enough magic for a single spell. And even if, by some miracle, you manage to defeat this body, I can still be reborn in the demon world. You won't be able to stop that," I replied.
"You are mistaken about something. I have enough magic for one more spell," I declared.
"Really? That's promising. Well then, do me a favor, kill yourself, and preserve that tiny bit of power so I can erase you to dust," the demon taunted.
In a way, the demon was right. I couldn't defeat him in this state, but his arrogance blinded him to some obvious truths, even right under his nose. And that gave me time to prepare for one last spell.
Of course, I couldn't defeat him with any regular magic, and he knew that. However, there was still something I could do. A spell whispered to me by unwelcome guests during the nights, created by my predecessor millennia ago. It was my last resort.
"Demons lurking beneath the earth—Nigrael."