The hand's skin was ancient, shriveled, and skeletal, like a blackened, withered branch cloaked in a thin veneer of flesh.
Its bony fingers lifted slightly and beckoned toward Duwei and his companions, urging them to enter. Then, as abruptly as it had appeared, the hand withdrew into the wall.
Duwei was the first to recover his composure. He took two tentative steps forward, raising a hand to touch the rippling wall. The surface felt soft and pliant beneath his fingers, as though he were pressing into water. With a fleeting thought, his hand sank deeper into the wall.
"It seems… we can go through," Duwei said hoarsely.
Behind him, the two girls instinctively clutched each other's hands, standing close for support.
"Should we go in?" Joanna asked, her voice tinged with tension. "What if… they mean us harm?"
The scene was undeniably eerie.
"Staying here is certain death," Duwei replied coolly. He turned to Vivian and beckoned her forward. She immediately moved to his side.
"Do you trust me?"
Vivian nodded emphatically. Duwei took her hand, holding her gaze for a moment before stepping through the wall without hesitation.
Vivian took a deep breath, whispering a silent prayer in her heart: Almighty gods, please watch over poor little Vivian and Duwei… Oh, and my sister too.
Watching the two disappear into the wall, Joanna gritted her teeth and followed after them.
And so it was—Duwei leading Vivian, and Vivian pulling Joanna.
The scene was surreal: three living, breathing people slipping through the wall as though stepping into a dream. The rippling wall shimmered in concentric waves as they entered, gradually returning to its original stillness until it became solid stone once more.
For Duwei and the others, it was like walking into a nightmare.
Darkness enveloped them completely. Not a single glimmer of light, not a whisper of sound. They moved forward by instinct alone, unsure if their direction was correct.
It was likely some form of magic, Duwei thought uneasily. But what if the spell was withdrawn while they were still within the wall? Would they be entombed in stone?
Just as Duwei began to wonder how much longer the suffocating darkness would last, the space before him suddenly opened up, a vast expanse replacing the oppressive blackness.
They had stepped into another cavern, one far larger than the one they had left.
In the center of this enormous chamber stood a figure.
Clad in a robe of inky black, with a towering pointed hat, the figure was unnervingly thin, almost skeletal. What shocked Duwei even more was that the figure's feet did not touch the ground—they hovered a few inches above it.
"Hey! Was it you who brought us here?" Duwei called out, summoning all his courage to speak.
The figure remained silent, raising one spindly hand to beckon them forward with a single curl of its fingers.
The cavern was dimly lit, the air chilling to the bone. The figure, with its floating form and shadowy attire, exuded an aura of dread. Even Duwei couldn't help but feel his throat tighten.
"You are… afraid…"
The voice was ancient, frail, and rasping, as though its owner was clinging to life by the thinnest thread. "Why?"
Taking a deep breath, Duwei gritted his teeth and responded, "Shouldn't we be the ones asking that? Why? Why did you bring us here?"
The figure gave no reply.
Mustered by a sudden surge of defiance, Duwei pressed on. "You must be the master of this place! Our raft was capsized at sea—was that your doing? Or perhaps that sea monster we encountered belongs to you? Maybe… it's even you? And that whirlpool that swept us into the cave—was that your handiwork too? Where are we? Who are you? And why are you targeting us?"There was no immediate response.
Instead, a shrill, jarring laugh echoed through the cavern—"Ke ke ke ke!" Heaven help him, Duwei had never heard such a grating, horrifying sound in all his life.
"Ignorant fools…" came the frail, rasping voice. "You should be grateful I saved you. Without my intervention, it would have devoured you…"
This revelation sent a shiver through Duwei and his companions.
"You're saying… you saved us? What exactly is it?" Duwei's heart raced as he pressed further. "And who are you? Where are we?"
Another bout of that grotesque laughter reverberated around them.
The figure floated closer, halting just a few steps away from the group. Finally, Duwei could make out his face—and it was nothing short of monstrous.
The face was deathly pale, so pallid it bordered on translucence. To their horror, they could see the faint outline of the bones beneath the skin. It was no exaggeration to say that the figure's visage was akin to that of a specter—a sight guaranteed to haunt one's nightmares.
Duwei managed to hold his ground, though the two women behind him turned visibly ashen.
Facing a face as ghastly as a half-decayed skeleton, Duwei found it a remarkable feat that he could keep his voice steady. With a tone tinged with respect, he asked, "May I inquire who you are, and where exactly we are?"
"Can't you think of more meaningful questions?" the figure replied mockingly. Slowly, he raised his skeletal arms, and from beneath the voluminous sleeves, his emaciated hands gestured gracefully.
In an instant, a cascade of starlike light spilled from his palms, illuminating the cavern in a sudden, dazzling brilliance.
The previously barren walls of the cavern shimmered and transformed. Rows of candles appeared, their flames flickering brightly, casting a warm glow that dispelled the oppressive darkness.
As the ethereal light continued to ripple outward, stone tables, chairs, and even intricately carved cabinets materialized around the room. The designs were exquisite, imbued with an elegance that defied explanation. Even the cavern walls sprouted several grand stone doors.
"Please, take a seat, my little guests," the figure said, gesturing to the chairs nearby. "We can take our time to talk."
After a moment's pause, he added thoughtfully, "Ah, but something's still missing…"
Tilting his head, he raised a single finger toward the ceiling. A thin beam of light shot from his fingertip, striking the cavern's apex.
To the group's astonishment, the ceiling began to descend, reshaping itself as it moved downward. The once-arched roof flattened into a smooth surface, from which a stream of golden light emanated. Moments later, the light coalesced into an ornate chandelier adorned with twelve softly glowing flames.
Duwei and his companions stood speechless, utterly mesmerized.
Vivian and Joanna, both talented in magic, exchanged incredulous glances. They were acutely aware of the mastery this display required—it bordered on the divine.
"My little guests, is there anything else you require?" the figure asked, his voice icy and detached.
"…Food. Water," Duwei ventured cautiously. "We haven't eaten properly in days."
The figure chuckled quietly this time, sparing them the agony of his earlier laugh. But even his silent mirth, paired with that skeletal face, was unnerving.
"I'm afraid I cannot grant that," he said with an air of regret, shaking his head. "My magic can conjure anything in this place… except food and water. What you see—the chairs, the tables, the chandelier—are all illusions, deceiving your eyes and your touch. But I cannot trick your stomachs, nor can I quench your thirst."
He sighed, as though genuinely remorseful, though his capabilities had already far exceeded their imaginations.
"Vivian, could you create something like this in an empty room with magic?" Duwei whispered to the timid mage beside him.
Vivian shook her head emphatically. "Even my old teacher couldn't do this!"
Duwei turned to Joanna, who added with a smirk, "What, did you think magicians were gods?"
The figure's voice cut through the air, startling them. "Oh, the little white-haired girl—what did you say? 'Did you think magicians were gods?' Hm… interesting."
Floating closer to Joanna, his tone grew solemn, almost grave. "Then tell me, what do you think a god truly is?"
Joanna instinctively leaned back, her voice trembling as she replied, "A… a god is a god! The creator of all things…"
Before she could finish, the figure erupted in fury.
"Lies!!!"
The word roared through the cavern, reverberating like thunder. Duwei and the others felt their heads spin from the sheer force of his outburst.
The figure's robe swelled unnaturally, billowing as if filled with an otherworldly wind. His skeletal face twisted into a mask of rage, the sight enough to chill their blood.
Duwei hastily interjected, "Then… sir, what do you believe the truth to be?"
The question seemed to soothe the figure, his robes settling as he folded his arms. "The time for that truth… has not yet come," he said cryptically.
Taking a step back, he regarded them with an inscrutable expression. "First, my little guests, you must tell me your names."
"Why?" Joanna asked warily.
"Because it is the bare minimum of respect owed to a host," the figure replied, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
Duwei wasted no time. Standing tall, he declared, "Duwei Rowland, of the Rowland family of the Roland Empire. Son of Count Raymond, Deputy Commander of the Imperial General Staff."
Vivian timidly followed suit, and after a brief hesitation, Joanna muttered her name as well.
"Ah, excellent," the figure said, his tone light with amusement. "A nobleman and two lady mages—far more interesting guests than the last ones."
"And your name?" Duwei asked, offering a polite smile. "Surely a host should show the same courtesy to his guests."
"Me?" The figure's voice dropped an octave, growing colder. "My name is of no consequence. But if you insist…"
He rattled off an impossibly long string of names, each one more arcane and elaborate than the last, leaving the group dizzy with confusion.
Finally, he concluded, "But in truth, I am not the master of this place. I am merely a servant—the most loyal servant of my master."
A servant?
The sheer power he wielded left Duwei and his companions struggling to imagine who could command such a being.
"And… your master is…?" Duwei asked hesitantly, his tone laced with reverence.
The figure smiled faintly, his skeletal visage unsettling in its mirth. "Oh, you know his name. The world knows him by many names in countless tomes… but mortals have one name they call him by above all others…"
He paused, letting the tension build before delivering the answer with a chilling smile:
"Demon."