Before Lily could respond I stepped beside her, holding her hand gently.
"Grey..?" she looked at me, to which I replied with a smile "Let me take care of this, Lily"
"Mistress! Are you alright?!" Doppelganger hugged Lily with tears.
"I am perfectly fine, little Nui. What can possibly happen to me when I still have to take care of a sweet Crybaby like you" Lily consoled the crying Doppelganger, who goes by the name Nui.
In the grandeur of the throne room, Tomoki's eyes locked onto me with disdain, his words dripping with condescension. "Just a mere adventurer. You're nothing compared to a hero."
"Let me show you the power of the heroes" he declared.
With a subtle signal, the sound of heavy footsteps was heard marching towards the room.
*boom*
*shatter*
the windows broke and the walls were busted.
from the smoke and dust came the Elite Hidden Army of the Gritonia Empire storming in with a menacing aura surrounding them.
their faces fully concealed by the Helmets as they marched with the eerie grace. With just a glance one could tell that they were cold and ruthless as their spears pointed at us.
"Capture the princess! Kill the rest!" Tomoki's command echoed, and as the soldiers advanced toward me, a wicked smile crept onto my face. At the last moment, they turned, their spears now directed at Tomoki, much to his horror.
"wha?? WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? ATTACK THEM NOT ME"
His desperate shouts to kill us fell on deaf ears, and In front of him, the soldiers' armor transformed. The symbol of Gritonia vanished, replaced by the ominous emblem of the Demon Kingdom.
As the sight of it became clear a cold chill went down the spines of the nobles.
'The DEMONS!' was the only thought in their mind.
The revelation sent shockwaves through the room. Lily and Guinevere looked at me with uncertainty and confusion, while Tomoki, in utter disbelief, roared,
"Demons? The FUCK are they doing here?? Where are my soldiers?!"
Turning to the nearest soldier, I casually remarked, "Took you a while."
A feminine voice replied, "Dealing with the real knights was a bit challenging, Grey." Rona, in disguise, revealed herself along with her hidden soldiers.
She is with her squad that was stationed in the capital.
"And yes it's rolling" she replied before I could ask my next question.
'well this just leaves for her to arri-' Before I could finish my thought a magic circle formed in the now already-filled throne room with multiple people
A woman with her distinctive white bangs, arrived, "Yoo-hoo~ Darling, I finally am here," said cheerfully.
'Perfect, with her here. We can finally move to the final stage'
"You're not hurt are you? and how are the rest??" I asked Sofia as she walked casually amidst the strained atmosphere of the room.
"aww!! I can never get bored of this attention from you, Darling~. Don't worry after absorbing Lancer and with this new sword, they were just ants waiting to be trampled"
"About others, Io and Reft's division wiped them and secured the North, albeit some of our men were injured apart from it there are no casualties" She reported in a serious tone.
I was relieved as everything went according to plan and my speculation was indeed correct
'Demons here can easily conquer half the World if it was not for the plot armor'
Sofia and Zef released their auras, unsettling him. Seeing the powerful and intimidating figures gathered against him, he hastily donned his hero armor.
The armor is said to be blessed by the gods themselves and given to the Champions of the world.
"Kid, really?? Forget about Darling. Hero or not, Do you seriously believe that you can take us both alone " Sofia said trying to make him surrender
"damn it!! damn it!" he cursed and looked at the ceiling and cried out "Please help me! Elders!!" and in response, loud laughs echoed.
"HAHAHAHAHHAA"
"HAHAHAHAHHAA"
"Finally, you accept our deal, kid." was heard as this time the intact ceiling was destroyed.
2 figures clothed in white religious outfits could be seen descending from the hole in the ceiling.
'..priests??'
Two priests, with very expensive robes joined the standoff.
"Finally, you accept our deal, kid." one of them said while the other added "You do realize that after we take care of these trash, half of the Gritonia Empire will belong to the Lorel Union, 'hero.'"
They said mocking Tomoki and declaring their intent to claim half of the Gritonia Empire for the Lorel Union.
Zef, with a worried tone, warned, "Grey-dono, those are two of the ten elders in the Church of Lorel. It's challenging to face even one, let alone two."
to which Sofia added, "Yes Darling, they are not what they seem, and only their 'god' knows the secrets of the Church, the head of a powerful empire."
'Well yes, it is indeed tough especially with Tomoki to be added to the mix' I thought as the tension mounted, but before I could come up with a plan I heard a familiar noise,
[DING]
"Let's quit wasting time and finish this .....DIE!!" they shouted leaping onto Lily standing behind me while the other went for Sofia.
"mistress!!" "Lily!!" both Nui and Guinevere panicked seeing the elder jump at lily, Alas they were too slow.
Elder swiftly soared toward Lily before anyone could react, poised to strike.
*boom*
*humm*
However, a deafening boom reverberated through the air, halting both elders in mid-flight. They now hung suspended, unable to move with a very light humming sound.
"I... can't...move?!?!"
"What...in the.... name of light god is this?!?" They remarked with great difficulty.
They cannot move a single muscle almost as if someone was grabbing them.
when the dust finally settled there was a gaint fu*king hole in place of the throne which had the body of the dead Emperor before.
"Wha-?! Wait! No, no! This is not possible!"
"How could this be?!! You wer- ARGHHH!!!"
The elders' words were cut short by an anguished scream. The grip around them tightened relentlessly.
The Horror in their eyes was clearly visible, not stemming from an impending doom, but from the recognition of the one responsible for it.
*Crack* *Crack*
The unmistakable sound of bones breaking resonated through the room, blending with the elders' agonized cries.
"AARRGHHH!!! NOOO!! CURSE YOU VA-!!!"
*Splash*
In a final, brutal compression, the two powerful priests of The Lorel Union were horrifically squashed before everyone's eyes....like some bugs.
The blood of the two elders rained down the room. I used my qi to shield us from it, but the nobles and Tomoki were drenched, staining them in crimson red.
The once-silent room now buzzed with contemplation as everyone still thinking about what just happened. Amidst the thoughts, the echoing sounds of chains emanated from the depths of the hole.
*Clang* *Clang*
*tiiing*
A resonant *ting* followed, not originating from afar but from close proximity.
Suddenly, a woman emerged, clad in ragged clothes with long, pale white hair. The remnants of broken chains clung to her wrists. She stepped out from behind Tomoki.
"Eh-?"
Before Tomoki could react or see her,
*bam*
She tossed him sideways into the wall. Her cold eyes peered through the bangs of her long hair.
It was her—the one chained in the dungeon. Her breath, once weak, is now stronger than before. It was no longer a dying one.
A smile played on my lips as I saw the system notification of her accepting the contract.
She materialized before me in an instant, presenting the scroll I had left inside the dungeon.
Everyone around me flinched for sec and beads of sweat formed not from the room's warmth but from the sheer, unfiltered fear emanating from her presence.
I opened the scroll and read its details, but my eyes widened. All my suspicions were right.
"It's her-!!"
breaking the silence, Lily's trembling voice rang out,
"...Sister??"