Thump. Blood began to spill to the floor as Ephilia dropped to the floor, her neck twisted in an inhumane way that it made it difficult to understand where her face could be facing. Such an unexpected turn of events, everything was going so well before, so how could this have happened? Princess Aurelia was long gone after taking a pierce to the heart for Jayce. As for Rucias, she fought the final boss to her death and still failed. Her bones cracked and popped out of place, and she drowned in her own blood that her body began to match her hair. The only people left standing were Jayce and Elijah.
"Jayce, truth be told, I've never more comfortable with anyone but you before. So before I die, promise me to live on, okay?" Elijah spoke, but the ringing in Jayce ears made it difficult to hear him. His heart threatened to beat out of his chest as he watched Elijah pick up the sword Rucias long dropped. With the speed of light, Elijah easily dodged all attacks from the weakened demon and lunged at it with all strength left in his body. In a split of a second, the only sound that echoed through the dark ruins of the old church was the clanging of a sword as Elijah's lifeless body collapsed along side the demon. His body could barely move in fear and exhaustion. Everyone but him already died before they could purify the devil's growing energy. Now, he was the only left to do the job. Perhaps he truly was the chosen one. The only one left to do the job.
The one they fought was the final demon in the area. After this it should be easy to drain the devil's energy. Clutching the purification artifact in his hand that Ephilia had left for them, Jayce strode forward towards the unguarded door. The wooden door was thin and easily moved, compared to how guarded it was by demons, the door lacked any locks or magically barriers. Pushing the door aside, Jayce could barely see the tunnel it lead. He sighed before returning to the room. It was a blood bath, one could barely see the scriptured floor. Ephilia... Rucias... Princess Aurelia, and even Elijah. None of them survived. Jayce walked towards Aurelia's body, his eyes squinted at the poor state the princess was in. What was once a beautiful princess was now an irrecoverable life. He felt around her pockets, and even checked her pouch for any magical accessories that can help him.
"This will do," Jayce slipped off the ring on Aurelia's finger and placed it on his own. Immediately, the ring began to glow a bright light. This ring had been used during one of their adventures in the High Forest. Aurelia had manifested part of her energy within it to make a torch light. It's good that at least this was salvaged. Moving away from her headless body, Jayce when back inside the hidden room and flashed the magic rings glow. The door, pitch dark as it was before, now revealed a bottomless amount of stairs that lead to an underground dungeon. What a long walk.
Despite the devil's energy manifesting into demons around the area, it was fortunate that the stairs that lead to the dungeon lacked any form of life or so. But now that only he survived the quest, what was he going to say to everyone once he got back?
"Help! Is someone there?" A voice snapped him back to reality as he reached the bottom of the stairs. In front of him, a cell stood in place, but what caught his eye wasn't a devil or another demon like he had expected. Inside, a beautiful girl sat helplessly on the cold dirt. Her black and white hair parted down the middle, and her dress revealed her to be working for the Counsel with the cross around her neck. Her pitch black eyes squinted at the light Jayce brought before she realized who had arrived.
"You... Please help me, sir! I can't get out." This girl begged, her hands clung on to the rusty bars. From where he stood, Jayce could see she was in not a good state. Slowly, he stepped towards her. Expecting to finally be free from this cell, the girl smiled brightly, her eyes sparked with hope which immediately dimmed when Jayce pointed a sword at her. "I've lost my comrades to the demons on the way here, I won't be fooled by your tricks."
"No!" Panic struck, she shook her head. "I'm telling the truth. I work for the Counsel, as the Bishops assistant. I know who you are, you are the Chosen one of the Prophecy, correct? I've heard of you during my time here. I've been sent here to maintain the energy the devil releases in the Pits of Hell. Unfortunately, I was careless and got outnumbered by a sudden appearance of multiple demons. I locked myself here so they couldn't reach me but now I can't get out." This Bishop's assistant explained. "The reason why the King and the Counsel know of the Devil's influence growing stronger is because of me. My disappearance is a clear sign of misfortune. You are looking for the devil, correct? He is still trapped down there, the way is still far below. And we may not be sure if there are no more demons with him. Let me go with you!"
It took a lot of convincing but in the end, Jayce believed her. The purification artifact didn't react to her so he concluded her to be telling the truth. If anything were to happen, Jayce had already prepared for the worse. Plus it wouldn't be bad to have a beauty like her by his side. This motivated him quite easily, and in no time he was back in his spirit. Perhaps she was the love interest this entire time.
Back then he fought tooth and nail to win over Rucias heart, and all it took was getting her a stuffed animal. It was always the stoic girls that had more girly interest than they let out on. Jayce voluntarily took a punch to seem cool in front of Ephilia and she worried over him up until her death. Princess Aurelia was the easiest, all he had to do was keep up the act of the perfect main character and she practically threw herself at him.
This girl beside him wasn't half bad.
"The devil's cell is hidden way beneath this old church specifically to keep him away from anyone who passes by the ruins. Unfortunately, like grime, it builds up on walls until it becomes visible to the naked eye. That's how the demons exist." The mysterious girl explained. But Jayce already knew that from what Aurelia told him. He pointed the ring down the long path, it felt like they had been walking for forever. "How far down is this? I'm getting tired already." Jayce complained. At this, the mysterious girl sighed. "Tsk, don't expect me to carry you the entire time."
This irritated Jayce, this cheeky girl. As if he was expecting such a shorty to carry him. But strange, in a long distant dream, he swears he has heard someone say that to him before... That's right, it was Rucias.
"I maybe small but you can trust me to have your back!"
Jayce froze in his tracks, "What?"
The mysterious girl stared at him strangely, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just that... Why did you say that?" Jayce remembers. Those were definitely the first words Ephilia said to him.
The girl smiled. "Such peculiar clothing, it's almost similar to those of nobles but your suit is plain and dull in color. Is this a new trend by nobles?"
Drawing his sword, he pointed it at her. His hands trembling as he gripped on to the holt. Fear rising up the back of his throat. "You, who are you!? Answer me now!" Jayce demanded. In the echoey silence of the dungeon, the girl's joyous laugh resonated through the walls.
"Do you know why god could have sent you here? What could be the purpose of your appearance in our world? What do you represent?" She spoke, in the same mannerism as the Bishop from months ago when they were first dispatched as the Hero's Party. What's wrong with this?! Who is she?!
The girl smiled. "I'll tell you who I am..."
At those words, she parted her lips, opening her mouth wide. It opened wide enough for an entire humans head to enter. Jayce stood frozen, fear keeping him in place as he dropped the useless purification artifact. A long skinny arm emerged out of her mouth and took hold of Jayce face. As her mouth grew more and more vast, more hands pried themselves out and grabbed on to Jayce before they pulled him inside, devouring him whole. Leaving no such remains for the one they called the Chosen One.