"D-Demonic, block them!"
The demons, frozen stiff like ice, tried to open their demonic energy in haste at the desperate shout.
But
"It's too late, you bastards. [Sink]."
The blizzard that had surrounded the lobby on the first floor collapsed heavily along the shattered floor.
Ice formed, and ice spikes suddenly shot out from everywhere. In a matter of moments, the basement third floor became a hell covered in ice.
The chaos escalated uncontrollably with the screams of demons pierced by icicles.
Elric flew straight towards them.
"Die!"
A demon with a sinister expression raised his claws and swung harshly at Elric, but...
"[Unlock Armament]."
As magic martial arts began to take effect, the Preta sense involuntarily took effect, along with Mind's eye.
'Right diagonal!'
Elric twisted his body vigorously in the direction indicated by the Preta sense in mid-air.
Then the demon's nails barely grazed over Elric's face.
"You extras are all the same."
Upon landing, Elric swept the ground with his right leg.
"Why don't you all have some individuality?"
Again, following the direction indicated by the Preta Sense.
And mixed in with the magic martial arts he had trained while mastering body strengthening art.
Bam!
"Kyaah!"
The demon fell backwards due to Elric's agile movements, which were reminiscent of the beastmen.
The force was so strong that it felt like his thigh bone beneath his knee was shattered horribly, causing excruciating pain.
But his agony didn't last long.
Before that, he lost consciousness.
"Shut up and chew on this to quiet down, will you?"
Phew!
Elric coldly chuckled as he directly shoved an ice arrow into the mouth of the one who had fallen to the ground.
The demon shivered once before...
Crack-
...crumbling like a sandcastle swept away by a wave.
Tss tss tss!
And those grains were all sucked into the shadow summoned by the seal of ferocity.
The consciousness within the seal of ferocity seemed somewhat satisfied.
Once again, it was him who stepped up and devoured.
'But why hasn't the seal absorbed more since earlier?'
For a moment, Elric had such a thought.
Despite killing quite a few demons after entering here, no additional seals had been engraved on his palm or forearm.
While the seal of ferocity did absorb most of the seals and demonic energy, it hadn't consumed them all.
Whether there were certain types necessary for the growth of the seal of ferocity or if it was becoming more selective was becoming apparent.
In that case, the seal that he didn't eat should be engraved as is… but they weren't.
'I'll have to check later.'
Elric quickly scanned his surroundings while pondering whether there might be a connection to his arrangement.
The battle wasn't over yet.
However, the demons on the second basement floor couldn't rashly rush in.
They all seemed intimidated.
Some were sneakily eyeing the spots where the recently deceased had fallen.
'Was that dead guy some kind of executive?'
Somehow, he was a lot stronger than the others.
'Of course, they weren't a match for me.'
Elric was secretly reveling in the rush of adrenaline.
"Aren't you coming? Then..."
That's why Elric was able to detonate the seal of ferocity even more fiercely.
"I'll take you on."
Bang!
Zoom!
He leaped forward, landing heavily on the ground, and shot forward.
"Uh, uh? It's, it's tilting!"
"Aaaargh!"
Cracks spread like spider webs across the ice in an instant. The demons, barely maintaining their balance, all stumbled as they lost their footing on the slippery ice or had their feet trapped in the cracks.
Amidst the chaos and the significant hindrance to their movements...
Puff puff puff!
Ice arrows mercilessly pierced their throats.
The demons' skulls shattered one by one, pouring out blood and brain matter. The once-white and transparent ice patches were now covered with red flowers.
"Protect the vault!"
"Even if you die, stop him, you bastards!"
"Is that it?"
And amidst the chaos, Elric could find the location where the totems were stored, just as he wanted.
There was nothing as accurate as their tearful(?) efforts to run around amidst the confusion to protect the treasure.
In the end, Elric could reach the vault easily by cutting down the obstacles one by one.
"[Burst]."
He effortlessly shattered the tightly closed vault door after freezing it solid.
Inside were over thirty totems, a considerable amount of documents, and a small amount of gold and treasures.
"Bingo."
Elric's lips curled up.
The totems were packed with fragments of seals, as if they had intended to offer them as tribute.
The documents seemed to be orders they had received, and the gold and treasures appeared to be given as expenses.
If the Inspection Bureau saw them, it would be undeniable evidence that would make their eyes bulge.
'Did I look like a fool? Why would I give this away?'
What the Patran and others had done was regrettable, but from the start, the imperial family was a group of people that Elric could never truly appreciate.
They would only praise them as heroes of the Great Demon War or a prestigious magic family when the imperial family needed them, but in reality, they had neglected Elric and his family, even exacerbating their downfall.
'I'll use what I need and sell off what I don't need at a high price.'
As Elric reached out his hand into the vault...
『Keep your promise! Otherwise, I don't think there will be any trade in the future!』Mephisto yelled urgently.
Seeing the intense glare in his eyes, it seemed that throwing all the totems into the seal of ferocity this time would cause big trouble.
'The seal of ferocity has grown quite a lot. It seems like it might even be capable of 'evolution' if fed a bit more... Hm! It's a pity, but I guess there's nothing to be done about it for now.'
Actually, Elric wanted to pretend to make a mistake and see if he could further enhance the seal of ferocity. However, he decided to postpone that thought for later and activated his command.
"[Contain]. And [Be absorbed]"
Elric opened the magic device, the 'Subspace Pouch,' that Augustine had specially given him before leaving and swept the documents and treasures inside while his right hand began to absorb the demonic energy and fragments of seals.
Fwoosh-
Suddenly, as if it had been waiting, shadows plunged into the vault, but...
Thud!
The shadow bounced around the entrance as if it had hit an invisible wall.
What's this...?
As the shadow spread wide apart, the jagged teeth were clearly revealed. Demon King Yu revealed his hostility towards Elric.
But...
"Quiet down and get in, would you?"
Elric growled as if to show that he wouldn't yield to such a creature.
In truth, he hadn't liked the Seal of Ferocity acting on its own without his control.
Even though it was a seal he had acquired and it was rapidly growing, if it became nothing more than a parasite that went against his will, he had thoughts of just removing it.
Of course, Augustine, who wanted to compete with the Demon King Yu, will go on a rampage.
But for Elric, even if he could have a well-developed weapon, if that weapon could threaten him, he would never keep it by his side.
And on the other hand, wasn't he the current head of the Melvinger, who was even called the natural enemy of demons?
What if now, he couldn't even control the consciousness of something as small as a Preta, let alone a demon king?
'That would be truly embarrassing. Even Mephi can not treat me carelessly. Where does a fledgling like you get off trying to mess with me?'
If Mephisto read Elric's thoughts, he would go on a rampage, asking when he did that, but Elric really thought that way.
And after reading Elric's thoughts so clearly, the consciousness of Yu remained silent for a while.
For now, there's no other choice.
Soon, it quietly sank into the shadows and disappeared.
Although there was still a subtle hint of laughter in its tone.
Just that alone was enough for Elric to know that it wouldn't act recklessly anymore.
Tss tss tss -
Thanks to that, the demonic energy and seal fragments from the totems were steadily sucked into his fingertips.
『Hahaha! The demonic energy, the demonic energy is coming in! Finally, I'll be able to steal that seal of that heinous Azazel...! Hm?』
Mephisto, in the midst of bursting with excitement, suddenly stopped speaking and furrowed his brow.
Clearly, he is absorbing the totem at a fast and steady rate... Strangely, nothing was flowing into the seal of original sin.
Then, Mephisto belatedly realized that Elric was staring at him with a wicked grin.
It was the same smile he had shown when he was planning to backstab the Inspection Bureau and the remnants of the demons.
『You! What are you up to now!』
[Hand it over.]
『What!』
[Information about the trigger. Give it to me first, or I won't give you anything.]
『I told you already! You have to give first before this king will give...!』
[That was then, this is now.]
『Are you trying to play tricks on me!』
[If you don't like it, then don't talk.]
『Shit!』
Mephisto had to spew out curses once again.
As always.
He was Elric's sucker.
***
"What? The Inspection Bureau agents found the basement vault?"
Suen Garot was startled by the sudden report brought to him by his subordinates.
"How could they possibly know about that...!"
The basement vault had been cleverly hidden all this time.
Security measures were meticulously implemented.
Those who qualified for entry were either close associates whom he particularly cared for or a few high-ranking executives sent by the organization.
So, even if he eventually handed over the mansion to the Inspection Bureau, the plan was to secretly retrieve it later.
But to think that such a place was being raided!
"We don't have time! We need to evade as soon as possible!"
Suen Garot felt that he should rush to the basement third floor where the vault was located immediately, but he had to gnash his teeth as his subordinate desperately tried to dissuade him.
"A spy! There must have been a spy within the organization! Otherwise, there's no way we'd be exposed like this...!"
"The Inspection Bureau is about to surround the mansion entirely! Please hurry!"
"Damn it!"
If only the person had departed a day earlier from headquarters...!
If that had happened, this tragedy might have been avoided.
But no matter how much regret he harbored, the situation wouldn't change.
He had intended to at least extricate himself from the situation, even if he faced disciplinary action later.
Survival was the priority, even if it meant clinging to a glimmer of hope for the future.
"The Inspection Bureau, the Inspection Bureau! I hate you guys so much! You're despicable! You're hateful! I just want to kill you all, no matter what it takes! Someday! Someday, I'll tear you all apart with my own hands!"
Suen Garot erupted in fury, attempting to leave his seat.
But...
Kwaaang!
A far more violent explosion occurred, causing the entire wall of the room where he was situated to burst open.
From above, five agents swiftly attempted to infiltrate the interior.
Like shadows gliding through darkness, the agents swiftly eliminated the bewildered demons amidst the explosion and reached their target, Suen Garot.
Kwarrreeeng-
However, they had to widen their distance again due to the sudden emergence of demonic energy ripples.
Only one person was able to casually cut it apart and clash with Suen Garot, now transformed into a demon.
Clang!
The agent's sword was blocked by sharp claws.
Recognizing his adversary, Suen Garot twisted his face into a malicious grin.
"...Patran!"
"I heard it was Suen Garot. Was it you, Kaya?"
Beneath his dark mask, Patran's eyes widened noticeably.
"Well done. We can finally catch the rat that kept fleeing."
"Whoever dared to betray the organization and even raided the vault must be nothing but a rat!"
The vault?
Patran cocked his head in confusion at the unfamiliar term but continued, "Well, it doesn't matter. If we cut off all your limbs and interrogate you, you'll spill the beans easily."
With a dismissive attitude, he raised his mana. The edge of his sword glowed sharply.
"I, Patran, will execute the traitor Kaya on behalf of the empire, the imperial family, and His Majesty the Emperor."
"Nonsense! You're the one who will die here!"
Suen Garot, or rather, the demon Kaya, activated the seal, treating Patran as if he were his prey.
Kukuku...!
The clash of mana and demonic energy made the mansion tremble as if it would collapse at any moment.