Theo tightened his grip on his large, silver sword as he ran through the empty hallways of the Demon Palace. His leather shoes pounded against the black stone floors as he took deep breaths of dry air. Sweat formed on his brow as it got hotter the further he ran.
Today he was going to end everything. He was going to make his comrades' deaths mean something.
Soon he came across massive, golden doors with runic symbols running across them. Theo knew immediately that the Demon King was inside. The aura and pressure the Demon King gave off was not something he could hide from a swordmaster.
Theo slashed the door open with his sword, it becoming nothing but splinters of wood and sawdust. Stepping inside the black, marble room, Theo's eyes fell on the lone person sitting on a throne of bones in the back of the room.
It was a man who looked to be in his later twenties with an athletic build. Black and red dragon scales covered his arms that ended in claws where his fingers were supposed to be. Large, black dragon horns atop a mop of brown hair, piercing red eyes and a smirk that showed fangs completed the look.
There was no denying that Theo was looking upon the Demon King himself.
"I see the humans finally made a strong one." The Demon King muttered in a bored tone. "Have you come to challenge me?"
Theo didn't answer.
Instead, he raised his sword and got into a battle stance. He wasn't here to talk to the Demon King, but to kill him. Countless knights were dying every second he wasted allowing this monster to live.
"I guess you're mute." The Demon King sighed, getting up from his throne. "But beggars can't be choosers. At least last a minute fighting against me, will you?"
Theo gritted his teeth. He would only need a minute to kill the damn bastard. He charged at the Demon King, bringing his sword down to kill when something flashed, blinding him for a moment.
He was disoriented for a moment before finding himself lying on a wooden floor. Theo quickly got up, looking around to see that he was in a weird place. It seemed like a sitting room, but there was a weird black box on the wall.
A leather couch lay on the opposite end of the small room with a bookshelf next to the black box. The walls were a cream color and the air smelled different too. Like lavender?
Was the Demon King perhaps playing a trick on him? It was the only explanation.
Theo then spotted a large window. He hurried over to it, only to find himself shocked. Instead of a fierce battlefield on a blackened land, he gazed at what seemed to be thousands of square buildings with specks of yellow and white dots.
The night sky barely had any stars despite being a clear sky with no clouds. He heard weird noises and saw people out and about in strange clothing.
It seemed too much to be a trick.
No, he couldn't fall for that. The Demon King was definitely scheming something. He heard the Demon King enjoyed playing mind tricks. This had to be an illusion.
Suddenly, he heard a creaking noise coming from behind him. Theo spun around, sword ready to kill when he found himself staring at a woman. She seemed to be trying to run away, but now was frozen under Theo's gaze.
She was quite small, maybe 5.4 ft and had a strange dress that looked like tunic with weird designs on it. Her brown hair was in a messy bun and she was pale looking.
"Shit!" The woman hissed, a look of fear on her face. "Please don't kill me."
"You think I won't kill you just because you've disguised yourself as a woman, Demon King?" Theo cried out as he edged closer to the woman.
The woman looked beautiful despite the weird clothing, but he wasn't going to be fooled. He knew that everything around him was just an illusion. That the woman was the Demon King.
"Wait what?!" The woman exclaimed in confusion. "Demon King? There is no… oh! You're cosplaying that guy, what's his face… Theodore Galor-something."
"It's Galorfiviel." Theo sighed before pausing.
How did this woman know his full name?!
After the demons had attacked and killed his family and other villagers, Theo had stopped using his real name. No one knew his full name. They were all dead. He had made a vow only to use his name after the Demon King was killed.
"Damn. You are a true fan knowing how to say that name." The woman smirked, forgetting her fear for a moment. "I honestly don't get why fantasy names have to be so damn hard to sa-"
"Hold up." Theo said, lowering his sword. "Fan? What are you talking about? And how do you know my name? What is a fantasy name?"
The woman rolled her dark brown eyes. "You can drop the act. I know you're cosplaying as that character of the book, World's Greatest Mage. The real question should be what you're doing in my apartment?"
Now Theo was completely lost. The woman was using weird words and calling him a character from a book. Saying he was in her apartment? Was this another trick?
Theo tightened his grip on his sword. The Demon King was playing him like a fool, thinking he could distract him. But he wouldn't fall for it. So what if the Demon King knew his full name? He probably got it from Theo's mind.
"Hey?! Put that sword down!" The woman yelled as she raised her hands in surrender. "I didn't mean to offend you."
"Haha! I can see why they call you the Deceiver. I bet you did this to countless brave knights, you coward." Theo exclaimed as he raised his sword. "But today I shall sla-"
A female voice suddenly yelled as a door slammed open, "Samara! Guess who's here!"
Theo turned his head to the side to find himself staring at another woman with shoulder-length blond hair and brown eyes. She was taller, around 5.7 ft and wore black pants, heels and an off-shoulder top. In her hands were two white bags.
The blond-haired woman stared at Theo and frowned. "Samara dear, when I said you should find a man at that comic fest, I meant one to sleep with not reenact scenes from that book you like so much."
"Babe, they could be roleplaying." A male voice stated, as a brown skinned man appeared from behind the blond woman.
He had brown eyes and short, black hair. The man wore black pants and a dress shirt and was also carrying a few white bags.
"Oh you're right!" The blond-haired woman exclaimed, her eyes widening. "Sorry Samara. Get back to whatever you were doing. We're just gonna put these in the kitchen and leave."
She winked before hurrying off with the man to another room. Theo turned to the brown-haired woman, Samara, he guessed, completely confused as to what had just happened.
"Just kill me now please…" Samara cringed, a hand over her face.
Theo sighed and placed his sword in his sheath. It seemed this wasn't an illusion from the Demon King. It was getting too detailed to be one. Could he have been teleported?
They also kept talking about some book and that he was some kind of character. He needed more information. He would hold off killing Samara for now.
"Can I ask where we are?" Theo asked Samara.
"Um… What?" Samara said, raising an eyebrow. "You break into my apartment and you are asking where we are."
"Um… This might be hard to explain but I was fighting the Demon King-" Theo started.
"Again with the Demon King stuff?! Look I don't know who you are but you need to stop acting crazy." Samara growled. "First you break into my home, attack me and start talking nonsense-"
"What?! This man's an intruder?!" The blond-haired woman exclaimed in shock as she and the man reappeared. "Well, fuck someone's dying today. How dare you come here?! Just wait until I get my hands-"
"It wasn't on purpose!" Theo yelled.
All three of them looked at him with a mixture of confusion and anger. Theo wasn't sure where he was but he had a feeling the Demon King had teleported him somewhere far away. Maybe the Eastern Continent.
It would explain the weird clothes and mannerisms.
"Look I was fighting the Demon King and something flashed. Next thing I know, I'm laying on this wooden floor in a strange place." Theo explained. "I'm just as confused as you are."
"Look, that sounds like a nice story." The man growled. "But why not wait until we get the police. You can explain yourself there."
"Look, I can prove it." Theo stated, holding out a hand.
He concentrated all his mana into his hand, deciding he needed to do a big spell. It was the only way he could prove himself. After a few seconds, small lightning began to dance around his hand.
"Look… I'm a swordmaster with some mage abilities." Theo stated, looking up to see that the other three were flabbergasted, jaws dropping on the floor. "It's an ability only I have."
"No way… I'm dreaming." Samara stuttered. "There's no way you're doing magic right now."
"I don't think you're dreaming." The blond-haired woman murmured, pinching herself.
"This guy just isekai'd into your house." The man finished.