Chapter 725: True Demonlord [56]

"Must I explain?" 

"What have you done?" 

"The lack of mana in the air must be constraining since a demon needs the constant flow to keep possessing the psyche of a tenuous lady."

"Pointless drivel," it laughed, swapping her voice for a deeper cruder cackle, "-you've won at what, taking away the mana won't do much. The painting, I'll kill and activat-"

"Enough," he thundered, "-look around, foolish demon, the very fabric of this room has been altered. Meanwhile we speak, everyone gets to live and enjoy the soiree. I would be impressed if the expansion was done subtly."

"My realm, tis negated…" it glared forward, "-what are you scheming?" 

"Scheming, I say schemed, the latter's completed. The little mystery's been solved, and the prison released."

"Whatever you say," it smirked, "-I still have this body as a hostage; her memories speak of a fond relation. What would a dagger to her heart do, I wonder?"

"Try," said he nonchalantly, "-I dare you to kill her."

"Don't play games with me boy," resounded akin to an earthquake, "-I'll end this host without a moment's regret."

"Please," he moved closer, "-such posturing for the simple task of dowsing this painting in blood," it hovered atop the palm, "-is the birth really so special?" an amber flame lit on the other hand, "-La Mort, painted by Athena; you have a hostage and so do I, rather, I'd say my hand's better. Your threats would work on one who's emotional," he grinned brazenly, "-alas, foolish demon, the opponent who stands before thee has lost more than most would consider livable. I've gone through worse pains before," a somber aura enveloped his presence, the shadow cast from the fire grew, "-tell me, demon, have thee felt the pain of knowing your daughter was tortured, abused, then killed for the sake of money. Have you felt the pain of losing your family, the whole heritage, on a precious day, have you felt the agony of hopelessness, unable to stand whilst the world crumbles around. Do you have what it takes to start again no matter the consequence, do you have the will to stand, knowing thy prior life has been stained by the blood of the innocent and still endeavor to live normally. Pain," the fire dowsed to suddenly lock around her neck, "-I don't care about human life, if they're worthless, I ought to have them killed," a tinge of red flickered across the white pupils, "-feel it," the oppressive aura flowed along the arms and into the grip, "-share it, share my pain, share the regret, taste, my dear comrade, tis the feeling you would have me feel. Does it not salivate thy mouth, the despair of another's death, the never extinguished flame of hatred, and most of all, the joy of watching the life drain from the suffocation. Try me again," the grip tightened, Loftha's struggle nulled to a surrender, "-how's the hostage holding out for you?"

"-M-M-Monster," a shadow leaped from her to a semi-transparent figure, "-I don't care who you are," it said with arms to the ceiling, "-sucking out the mana is a double-edged sword. The girl's been heavily wounded; I called the bluff," similar entities surged from the stairway into a greater demon. The half-beast, half-human persona stood loudly, "-no mana means I'm weak magically, not physically," it pulled a giant battle-ax from the back, "-she can only be healed using magic, the monster curse isn't one to be trifled with. I say, boy, I've won."

"Oh please," he shuffled along to the immense pressure and ignored her bleeding stomach, "-when I said I've won, I meant it wholeheartedly."

"Foolish pest," it lifted and dropped, *chip,* the blade shattered, "-what have thee done?"

"Here," he moved to the stage and sat along the edge, "-I recommend using a weaker form. Moving around in such a heavy body isn't worth the trouble."

"We're enemies," it yelled, "-why act nonchalant towards us, doth thee not fear death?"

"Death?" he side-glanced, an echo of Death's mark carried in a tinge of red amidst the white stare, "-I say, death and I are cut from the same cloth. Take a seat, tonight's a night of celebration. Tell me, you work for Hades, don't you?"

"Should I answer?" it took on the form of a little kid, braided hair, freckled cheeks, and overly obnoxious glasses.

"I certainly would," *Mana Control: Healing Element Variant: Restoration.*

"So, you did have to heal her," shrugged the demon.

"Goes without saying, an incident tonight would jeopardize the progress. Look at the time, 19:15, the fireworks outside sure is splendid, the sound alone with paints the picture." 

"My name's Kurtio Inns, a high-tier demon serving Demon God Hades' faction."

"My name's Igna Haggard," he lit a cigar, "-let me guess, Kurtio, you were sent here not on orders per Hades' but Lucifer. Tonight's the perfect occasion to take control of the vice-town of Alphia, nothing speaks of liquor, pleasure, and narcotics like Odgawoan, perfect breeding grounds to build an empire. Lucifer's headed to the Empire after destroying Arda. I'm safe to assume, you, Kurtio, are only a pawn in a bigger game. Testing the waters so they say, lady Haruna," he grinned, "-she's the true mastermind, isn't that right, fallen archangel Ashia, the seductress." 

*Clap, clap, clap, clap,* heels coyly entered from the right, "-I'm impressed, Viscount Haggard. Shames me to admit, the game's over, and we've lost," her form shifted through various gender and races till settling on the prior form, "-how's it going, Kurtio."

"Lady Ashia, my lord asked I to look for thee."

"Which, Lucifer or the pesky son of Hades?"

"Both my lady."

"I thought you gave up," she looked onto Igna's puffed smoke, the stage's darker background matched his aura.

"The nature of the game," he exhaled.

"I'm intrigued, how did you figure it out?"

"Looking back, I should have taken notice. The realm's foundation expanded the moment you and I crossed paths, I knew I felt something strange and chose to ignore, afterwards came the representatives of the familias. What thee said,' the three families aren't ruled by the godfather, no, rather, I hold the reins, for now, there's no telling what could happen,' and the favorable introduction as Amsey's niece – considering the Empire and their dubious nature, I thought to dismay the motif of revenge, why would fallen angel act upon human vices, why, is the question," a puff greatened the suspense, "-simple, if the angel was human at first, the explanation would be convenient wouldn't it. Alas, the god of Kreston isn't very friendly, the prior life might have been as an angel; death comes for even the purest of beings, I draw my conclusion from the various observations made earlier tonight. The biggest cues were my advances, my claim to get intimate left a suspicious taste. There, I worked the possible motive of revenge into the picture again," he turned to her, "-am I, or am I not, correct?"

"Yes, it vexes me, but yes, you're right. Me falling from grace was a trial to judge my worth to serve the Lord. No matter the effort I put, a human remains a human, I amassed powers until reaching the rank of Apostle, there, I found a way to accumulate strength from a borrowed realm. At first, I wanted power to prove my worth – after I learned the truth about the trial, the human emotions washed my thoughts asunder. There, my parents sent me to live and study under my uncle, Lord Amsey. He's a great man, far greater than anything I came to witness in Iqeavea, the sterile-like environment of always praying pulled from out under. My father, lord Conla, isn't one for religion, he and uncle Amsey share the same mindset. Imagine the backlash if the word got out. Mother, being the religious lady she was, left father to a life of sisterhood at one of the churches. I wanted to leave that house. Enough about my past, long story short, my purpose for today was to take revenge on those who dared harm my uncle. The four greats of Arda, the underworld family, and most of all, the emperor, a leader who did nothing but sit by as others stole his authority."

"Kill the emperor, satisfy the short-term revenge, and have Kurtio kill everyone else. Plans didn't go smoothly, the foundation suffered alterations from when I interacted with the magical circle. Kurtio, being a servant of the demons, knew about the catalytic properties of a goddess's making – he changed sides, wanting to test and steal the piece. More often, the simplest of ploys have the darkest reach. I toyed, tested my theories, and framed the whole ordeal onto Loftha – making Haruna my ally. After shooting the emperor, you realized the realm locked into a Time loop."

"I know, skip the details about playing me for a fool, I've heard enough. How did you meet the conditions, the emperor has to die, and the painting…"

"Realized it, haven't we?" another puff, "-I lied, dear Haruna, I lied. For the restart, the painting has to come in contact with blood; being the only clear activation condition carried from the magical circle, the one I tampered with. If not for me, at 19:00, when Kurtio is to draw blood, the spell would activate. Somewhere, the catalyst became the switch – ultimately creating an unescapable situation. Here's the fun part, to break the realm, everyone in attendance needed to join together and match their wishes. When I offered to play blackjack, the rules were clear – money and alcohol bind comrades and foe alike, the staple of Odgawoan saved the night." 

"We were played for fools," added Kurtio, "-never once crossed my mind I was activating a large spell."

'What a fearsome man,' she narrowed, '-the switches in personality, the agony, the sense of accomplishment, the familiarity we built, he orchestrated a drama and turned the mastermind into an actor in her own play.'

"Haruna, Kurtio, the night's started. There's no need to sulk, everything has returned to normal.' *Realm Expansion – Release,* "-the fight for revenge is yet to end, Haruna. Fighting tonight won't benefit either party. Your uncle's working hard making allies to rival the four greats, what would an easy death do to the man's wounded pride. Let him struggle and claw up the ladder, as a niece, support him. Kurtio, return to thy master, you were only a pawn, forget what happened and move on. "

"Word of advice," said the greater demon, "-Demon God Hades is here to take what was once his. Believe me, in saying so, he will not return without the possession, take heed heir to death, matters have yet to escalate," *poof* smoke called for his disappearance. 

"I'll head downstairs," said Haruna, "-if my uncle's fighting, I'll do my best to support. Becoming a greater being won't accomplish much," she stood, "-about the offer to get intimate, here's my number – differences aside, I'm not opposed to starting over," chipper giggles headed below.

'A blatant reference to the ordeal,' the cigar extinguished, '-See with thy mind, and thou art to miss what is felt by the heart. Hear with thy ear, and one shall forget the touch, sense with thy skin, and the breeze shall guide the way, in many ways than one, despair follows, the curse of misfortune never left, the curse of restarting always remained, and now, before the lifeless corpse, the truth to the Haggards shall be exposed. The world isn't pretty nor are the enemies, heed this from thy foe, we're present, we know who you are, and trust me, the day of retribution is upon thee. The clock strikes, blood is spilled, the world ends, more specifically, your world ends. Whenever it activated, those same words would play – Amsey's downfall was partly on my account. Was she purely acting on her own or is there another entity pulling the strings? Hard to imagine coincidence to spawn a time-loop prison, anything related to chronology is only known to the god of time. The cynical side of me never wavers, I'd be lost without. Time's 19:45, I should check on the guests.'