"Great Lord! Is it finished yet? I... I don't know how much longer I can hold on. It feels like my body is on the verge of bursting!" Luwis exclaimed, a note of fear in his voice.
"You're almost there! Just hang on for a couple more minutes, and the inheritance process will be complete," The Goat's reassuring words echoed in Luwis's mind.
"A-alright." Luwis gritted his teeth.
A minute passed.
"Great Lord! Are we entering the final stage? I feel like I'm soaring to the sky, like I'm ascending to heaven!" Luwis's distorted face was filled with excitement and ecstasy.
Meanwhile, the Goat's expression shifted to one of confusion and doubt.
'Ascending to heaven? If there were a correct term to describe the merging process, it should be that the vessel would experience the kind of pain akin to falling into the abyss. Why is this guy talking about ascending to heaven? Has he lost his mind?' The Goat wondered to himself as it looked up and witnessed Luwis's body actually rising, carried by the fierce winds.
'What in the infernal hell is happening?' The Goat stared in bewilderment at the unfolding scene.
When he realized something was amiss, he was too late!
Luwis was already violently propelled into the sky, sky, the force of the ascent shattering the roof and creating a chaotic cascade of debris, leaving behind a trail of ragged holes.
As he ascended, the fierce winds grew more restless, transforming into a tempest that tore at his body like thousands of razor-sharp needles.
It was at this moment that he knew, he fucked up.
"Great Lord! Help me! He—" his desperate cries were abruptly stifled by the howling gales, the winds relentlessly tearing through tendons in his body and reducing his entire body into mincemeat.
'THOSE DAMNED RATS AGAIN!' The Goat boiled with rage upon watching the vessel he had cultivated for more than a year was killed just like that.
It's not just a matter of time. One year is merely a nap for him.
However, finding another vessel requires both a great deal of patience and luck. It took him nearly three hundred years before he could set his sights on Earth directly again.
And now, all of that waiting and hard work has vanished just like that. How could he not be furious?!
The hall had devolved into chaos due to the sudden appearance of the violent tornado.
People who were initially engaged in sex like crazed beasts were now fleeing for their lives, still naked.
The only thing that remained untouched was the altar with the goat horn on its table. It seemed as if an invisible barrier surrounded and protected it from external forces.
'LUWIS IS DEAD! MY VESSEL! MY SUPPOSED INCARNATION! THOSE DAMNED RATS. I WON'T FORGIVE THEM!' The Goat suddenly opened his mouth and let out a shriek.
...
Austin, who had been observing the entire spectacle, clenched his fists in a mix of nervousness and excitement throughout.
Even though his role was just a bystander, he couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement as he watched Eris summon a giant tornado out of nowhere. This time, the tornado appeared even more violent and expansive than when she dealt with Wilston, the Alpha werewolf earlier in the morning. Her tornado's appearance was more menacing than those special effects generated in movies.
But at the same time, he couldn't shake off the worry for his sister. Amidst the debris scattered everywhere, obstructing his vision, he had no idea where she might be. She had gone to the frontline with Eris to confront Asmodeus's projection.
So far, the plan seemed to have been successful, with the person responsible for Satan's Rite supposedly meeting his demise in the violent grasp of Eris's tornado.
"Are you really that worried?" Alysia, who had chosen to stay behind, inquired.
"Why wouldn't I be? Even though she was born as a demon, she only discovered her true identity a few days ago. If you were in my shoes, would you be able to stay calm when your sister has put herself in such a dangerous situation?" Austin responded.
"I don't know. I never had a sibling," Alysia said nonchalantly, shrugging. "Actually, you shouldn't worry so much. The situation isn't as dangerous as you think. Asmodeus's vessel has already been killed. What remains is just his projection stemming from that cursed object. If your sister hadn't volunteered, I would have destroyed that goat horn by now."
"Aren't Asmodeus's projections still a dangerous existence?" Austin sought confirmation.
"Indeed, it is dangerous, but not to the extent that I am unable to deal with it. It would be a different story if he still had his vessel alive and successfully merged with it. In that case, only an existence like an archangel could stop him. But as of now, heh, he thinks too highly of himself if he believes he can fight us," Alysia scoffed.
Just then, she noticed Asmodeus's projection, which had the form of a goat's head, suddenly opened his mouth.
Alysia's eyes abruptly shifted into a serious gaze as she cried out, "Close your eyes and cover your ears!"
Though he didn't grasp the reason behind her order, he promptly followed suit, closing his eyes and covering his ears.
Suddenly, a piercing, eerie shriek that seemed to originate from the deepest pit of hell, echoed loudly in the midnight.
"Meeehh!"
Rumble!
The entire mansion shook vigorously, and the glass windows on the nearby streets shattered.
The noise resembled the ordinary scream made by a goat, yet for those who heard it, an immediate dizziness set in.
It was especially so for those people who were still in the midst of fleeing for their lives from the mansion, naked.
Being the closest to Asmodeus's projection, they suffered the most significant damage.
They felt their throats constrict, struggling for breath as they experienced a choking sensation.
Crimson liquid streamed from their nostrils, eyes, and ears, as if all their capillaries had ruptured simultaneously.
Austin fared better due to his physique surpassing that of a human. Nonetheless, he still felt on the verge of passing out under the piercing shriek.
"Meeehh!"
"Meeehh!"
"Asmodeus has gone mad. He wanted to immediately drain all the energy he had gathered thus far, but for what?" Alysia kept shaking her head to maintain her consciousness. "In any case, I need to stop him now. I must destroy that cursed object of his right away."
As she swayed towards the altar, she noticed Satella had unknowingly appeared just beside the barrier surrounding it.
She then saw Satella pass through the barrier smoothly as if it were nothing and immediately grabbed the horn with her right hand.
The Goat cast a disdainful glance at Satella and sent a message to her mind. 'Arrogant, foolish rat. I don't know what kind of trick you played to pass through my barrier, but do you think my cursed object is something that you can casually touch?'
At this moment, he seemed to notice a familiar aura radiating from Satella.
'You're a demon too? Then why are you trying to stop me? Are you aware of what you're doing? Do you believe my Lord will spare your life once I report this matter?' The Goat threatened.
Despite the threat, Satella remained silent and stared at the horn in her right hand with a slightly lost look.
'HAHAHA! You foolish rat! Your arrogance knows no bounds. Do you honestly believe that a low-rank demon like yourself could interact with an object I personally cursed and emerge unharmed? Brace yourself, for my curse will slowly consume your very being' The Goat wore a smug expression, reveling in its triumph when he noticed Satella looked lost.
"Noisy," Satella murmured under her breath.
'What?'
"I said you're too noisy! As a goat, all you should be doing is eating grass. Stop bothering me with your talk!" Satella said sharply.
'Y-you!' The Goat was taken aback, caught off guard by her insult.
"You consider this thing your cursed object?" Satella sneered at the illusory goat head, casually tossing the horn up and down as if it were a coin. "How ugly and... feeble!"
The goat horn instantly fractured under Satella's grip.
The Goat's expression immediately twisted into horror.
The pink mist surrounding the horn grew agitated, as if losing its support that had maintained its balance. The nearby pink mists, having escaped the mansion and reached the residences, began to follow suit.
The Goat's expression transformed once more into a smug smile. 'HAHAHA! In the end, you're still a foolish rat! Now, those pink mist will turn any humans who inhale them into slaves of lust, causing them unable to live with clear minds again! Even though I failed to descend, I still succeeded in destroying a city! That's still a loss for you!'
In response to the Goat's smug expression, Satella simply closed her eyes. Suddenly, all the mist that had spread outside the mansion started to retreat back into the building, gradually converging and, this time, enveloping her instead of the horn.
Afterward, she began drawing the pink mists into her body. The voluminous pink clouds gradually diminished in size over a minute before being fully absorbed by her tiny body.
After a moment, Satella finally opened her eyes. Beneath her scarlet gaze, a pink hue radiated. She appeared otherworldly beautiful and alluring than ever.
Casting a smile at the Goat, she mouthed, "Thank you for the freebie," before swiftly heading in Austin's direction.
As she passed by Alysia, she quickly whispered, "I'd leave the rest to you," before swiftly dragging the still-stunned Austin along with her.
Meanwhile, inside the mansion, until the Goat's form became increasingly illusory and eventually faded away, it appeared that he still hadn't fully recovered from his shock.