Concussive blasts of momentum infused atmosphere whipped across spectators. No longer a massive plasma ball, the newly formed ball of fire carried itself into the sky fueled by its own heat. As it elevated high into the atmosphere, the reduced air pressure expanded the flames into a mushroom dispersing what latent energy remained. Excited by the massive degree of energy dumped into it, the sky sparked with ricocheting streaks of lightning that hopped between gaps of flame and smoke. Beneath the spectacle, the shielding magic dissolved like an ice sheet under a torch dropping reflective particles across the terrain.

Progressing under that mystic rain, the obsidian carriage continued without issue. The entire assault appeared to have been ignored as the vehicle hadn't stopped even once during the assault. Aria tapped Mr. Redmon to stop protecting her as she watched the remnants of the magic. Not just her but the entirety of team Satyr and Mr. Redmon were unable to remove their eyes from the scene. She raised herself from the ground while enduring the still rampant winds. Her expression was taunt and with Mr. Redmon standing beside her, she spoke her mind without a hint of falsehood.

"I heard it was no problem but...this is insane..."

"Yeah...", Mr. Redmon responded in a daze.

The two understood it was to be an impressive sight, but hearing about something and seeing it were just too disparate to comprehend without experiencing it. They continued to watch as the carriage approached the Northern most rampart. The wall which was still under reconstruction received an exorbitant degree of damage from the assault. Sections of the wall had given out in their entirety leaving massive disconnected, semi continuous, chunks.

Interestingly, the repairs of the rampart were in the dissection stage. The 400 tonnes of granite had been moved to another location until the damaged sections of the wall were removed. Prior to the behemoths invasion, Aria issued orders to remove the damaged segments of the wall before any reconstruction began, but they failed to accomplish it in time. Despite what should have been a horrific result though, Aria held a wry smile at the result. Yes. As if planned, the Northern most rampant was erased and they didn't lose any of the original materials.

Rolling through one of the new massive gaps in the destroyed structure, the obsidian carriage looked to be headed for the Northern gate. Steeling herself, Aria issued orders.

"Mr. Redmon, order everyone to stand down. Open the Northern gate. Do not resist..."

"Is that fine?", Kelvin forced himself to ask despite his eyes remaining locked onto the dissipating fireball.

"Could you fight that?"

"No...I don't think I could..."

It wasn't just Kelvin, nor was it only all of team Satyr, but everyone in Profectus City who witnessed the collision of magics held the same expression of someone subjugated. Mr. Redmon followed up on Aria's orders and dropped the city's defense to the North. He continued to maintain defenses at other gates, but even he knew tricks would be useless against such an unstoppable power. With a defeated voice, Aria declared to her surroundings.

"I imagine it's time to meet our new master...May I ask you to join me, team Satyr?"

Aria emitted a drained laughed at the exasperated expression the team returned her, but continued regardless. She turned her back to the golden ball of fire still penetrating the sky and proceeded to descend the rampart stairs. Behind her, Mr. Redmon followed stirring the others into action as well. Despite the display of power, neither Kelvin nor his team appeared to back off from fear. Though the undeniable glint of fear resided in their eyes, something similar to an inflexible will contended against the fear and drove them into action.

As they were already on the inner Northern rampart, their walk took hardly ten minutes to reach the city gate. Standing below it, their collective gazes focused on the black carriage nearing them. At his signal, the steel bars protecting the city withdrew into the upper section of the gate, opening the entrance for the vehicle. Though it approached, the carriage halted its movement before entering Profectus City. Despite the ability to fit four wagons side by side, the gate seemed too small for the visitor.

Behemoths pulling the carriage dropped to their stomach as if to rest and their controller leaped from their position. Its graceful landing flowed straight into an elegant stride. The silver lined obsidian Knight approached the gate and upon recognizing the group at the other side, called out.

"I am Primis, guard of the almighty Demon Lord! You will let us enter or be destroyed! My liege has allowed your first transgression...They will not allow another!"

***

"I am Primis, guard of the almighty Demon Lord! You will let us enter or be destroyed! My liege has allowed your first transgression...They will not allow another!"

I felt I recognized that voice, but such things were to be expected, after all...I was complicit in this. I was never told who would play what part, but the plan had already been explained to me.

[Even so...]

My gaze drifted to the lightning storm wrapping around the fire ball acting as a backdrop to the obsidian Knight. From the voice alone I could tell it was a male wearing the armor, but it was somehow distorted. Stepping forward, I raised my voice to respond to the Knight.

"I am Countess Sugimoto, Mayor of Profectus City! We will not resist!"

The words of surrender left my mouth all too easily, but there was no choice. The display of power earlier was enough to defend my and the other defenders of Profectus against future criticisms, so I didn't feel the need to negotiate. What's about to happen will change the world and Profectus City will be at the center of it. Part of that change includes the independence of Profectus City from Klasika, Naoki, Azmodius, and Gilphriya. Those countries would never allow such a key location to become independent though. If we issued such a notice without proper preparation, Profectus would certainly be reconquered and put under new management.

Internally, we have already isolated ourselves from those nations, but we haven't yet been recognized as independent. In order to be recognized as legitimate without enacting a blatant rebellion, certain conditions must be cleared.

The first is that Profectus must become partially self-sufficient. Our reliance upon other nations to provide resources to Profectus is dangerous. As recent events have proven, they're unreliable. Coming across Lady Topazia, who accepts payment in the form of raw and refined resources satisfied the first requirement. Though she's a linchpin as the only supplier, that's only temporary for now. As trade picks up and Profectus develops its own exports, further suppliers will naturally visit Profectus City and bring business. Her ability to deliver and hold to contracts have been proven repeatedly. It's enough to bank on her temporarily.

The second condition is power. Without the ability to enforce border protection and defenses, Profectus City will fall to the first power to overwhelm it. In our case, we don't have to worry so much about that due to our abnormal defensive strength to begin with but even so, we require a backer capable of acting as a deterrent. Empress Fardom fulfills that condition spectacularly. Though she forced this idea onto us, her backing makes it possible and her will was delivered with pristine clarity after Hiiro, in more round about terms, declared war with Klasika over their treatment.

Finally, Profectus City requires a legitimate reason to exist. Even if all other conditions were satisfied, nations could just forbid travelers and merchants from interacting with Profectus City. Such a tactic would force the city to collapse from the inside. Until now, that legitimacy was provided by us being on the front line in the battle against the Demons, but such a thing as deteriorated over the course of time. Less aggressive assaults chipped away at that reason until it became nothing more than text in a history book without any weight.

In order to fulfill that final condition, I surrendered Profectus City to this overpowered enemy. No one would complain about a single city falling after the entire world was thrown into chaos, nor would they complain about its resurrection. I felt my face contort into a wry smile. Whatever hesitation I had about this plan...It's far too late to second guess now. I've come to far to call it off now. In the end, the results of today will determine if I have an eye for people or not. Will I be betrayed and cast into hell, or will this unexpected bridge connect to a future different from the repeated wars littered throughout history books?

Only time will tell. With the last ounce of hesitation driven from my disposition, I took a bow and welcomed the creature that alighted the carriage into town.

***

"I am Countess Sugimoto, Mayor of Profectus City! We will not resist!"

I couldn't believe my ears. The mayor of Profectus City just surrendered without a fight...Well, not that I could blame her. Anyone capable of blocking a full powered assault from Zeena shouldn't be trifled with. My eyes locked onto the carriage. Its door opened and a familiar creature alighted by herself. I was surprised at the lack of escorts initially, but after reconsidering the situation, I changed my perspective. While true that she lacked escorts up close, in reality, weren't the behemoths surrounding us her escorts?

Such thoughts idled through my mind as I watched her pass the two behemoth-cum-steeds attached to the carriage. I glanced to my side at George and Silas hoping to read their thoughts, but they must have been as shocked as me.

[Hey Silas, your mouth is hanging open you know?]

The creature stood no more than three meters from me. Her silver hair laid flat against her body walking the curves of her dress before flaying out near her waist. The nostalgic appearance of those azure eyes lined with green froze me in place. The overbearing regal pressure that once froze me on our first encounter paralyzed me once more. The Knight escorting resembled her with his helmet. The horns that reached for the sky before plummeting down matched her crescent horns as if they were shaped from the same mold. She carried two large feathered wings that sprouted from her waist. The black feathers covering them matched the carriage and Knight to perfection. Without a doubt, this woman was Lapis Lazuli Fardom, the creature that emerged from the abyss right before us.

"Countess Sugimoto, am I to understand that Profectus City has surrendered to me?"

"Yes."

"Good. It is always a joy when one can avoid excessive bloodshed."

She raised her hand to the sky and snapped her finger. No sound reverberated. No magic spilled from her form. Nothing happened, it appeared as if it were a normal snap and yet the surroundings went deadly silent. The repetitive impact inducing thumps and sounds of rock grinding against rock halted as if the world froze over. I turned my sights to the behemoths only to find them frozen mid-step. Their eerie states being stuck mid locomotion drove in the power of this creature to everyone here.

"This follower asks for our conqueror's name.", Countess Sugimoto spoke the phrase of a subject beside me knitting my brows together.

"Such a thing is useless in repetition. I am not here to covet your worthless city anyhow."

"What? Then...why?"

I watched the two converse, but I could tell something was off. The conversation content fit the situation and yet...it lacked the essential tension you'd typically see between an overwhelming power and a conquered. At first, I thought Countess Sugimoto had steeled herself, but that wouldn't explain neither the smooth exchange nor odd tones lacking stress and fear. Such a sight filled me with curiosity and rather that switch brought back a particular memory.

["I am a wicked being. My mere existence will be a threat to you in the future. We may lounge around and exchange pleasantries as we are now, but make no mistake, I am something that will harm you in the coming future."]

Those words she spoke didn't feel hollow...If I were take into account the showmanship she showed...

[Are they working together?!]

The thought was nigh impossible, but it solved the problem of the exchange perfectly.

"I do not need such a small chunk of land. I am only here to deliver a message. Take me to a location that symbolizes Profectus City. I want something that is recognizable to the world."

"That's...I understand...Please follow me."

Countess Sugimoto led the woman woman with a placid expression. Escorted by her Knight, the woman followed in confidence, surrounded by the glares of the citizens. I motioned too my team to follow behind them, mostly as security for the woman herself. From the glares directed at her, it wouldn't be strange if-.

"HAaaaaaaaaa!"

"Shit! George!"

As I feared, from the crowd, a man unable to differentiate the degree of strength between him and his opponent rushed with a crimson dagger drawn. I called to George to step in, but he didn't even budge from his spot. Confused, I returned my attention to the rushing man, but the fight had already ended. The man dropped to the ground in silence and beside him was the obsidian Knight, resheathing his sword.

[Are they really working together...?]

I couldn't help but question my theory after seeing the saddened expression spread across the Countesses face. The woman motioned with her hands for the Countess to continue and the group moved on from the man who lay moaning in an expanding pool of his blood. I motioned to Zeena, transmitting my thoughts through sight alone, and continued to follow the group. She broke off and started casting magic on the man, but I returned my attention to the current state of affairs. I looked at the road we were on and overlaid it onto a mental map of Profectus City.

If we assume the Countess picked a direct path to the symbol, then our destination should be...the main shopping district? No...That makes more sense. Those who visit Profectus know of its rampart walls, but have they ever seen it? It's doubtful. Unless they participated in war, most of the visitors to Profectus are merchants. The central shopping district and its massive central fountain would be enough to show the city was captured...

My thoughts terrified me. Every logical leap I took, the worse the situation was predicted. Primarily, 'show who' came to mind. She wanted a location that symbolized Profectus, but why. Normally one uses a recognizable object as proof of subjugation. In the world of adventurers, such a thing was second nature, but could the same be said for Cities? Suppose we arrive at the fountain, what then? Who would she show it to? I didn't have the answers. Her power was too immense for me to properly measure and it seemed to have needlessly excessive applications.

The defensive shielding blocked a full powered downburst from Zeena and her ability to transmit her presence through mana infused into the atmosphere could only be a portion. She could change her appearance at will and assuming the rumors of the last fight are even remotely true, her offensive capabilities are abnormal as well. Is this something I could defeat if I went all out? My hand unconsciously moved to the companion orb resting in my pocket. How many would die if I tried here? Could it even kill her?

Such thoughts ended abruptly as we reached our destination. The central fountain sprayed its water as if it were a normal day, yet the roads were empty. What hustle and bustle that use to flow through was replaced with the same eerie silence since moments before. I caught Countess Sugimoto and the creature exchange looks as if to speak through their eyes. Was that normal? Is she just saying they arrived? I couldn't tell yet. Taking action, the woman split off from her escort and moved to the center of the plaza. Her body lifted from the ground with her wings spread and from her small body, an enormous amount of mana spilled out.

My body shivered from the absurd concentrations surrounding me. I couldn't help but become distrustful of my otherwise reliable eyes that gazed upon impossibly concentrated blue mana rolling off her body like fog. She motioned with a hand gesture and the released mana converged into a sphere before her. Impacts from outside the city reached me and my eyes scanned the surroundings in haste. Every behemoth that was frozen had fallen to the ground. Some took a knee while others appeared to dig into the ground a little. On each of them, the orb embedded into their body started to glow and from it, a stream of light shot into the sky. What I saw answered my questions from earlier. I now know who she wanted to show.

***

"Fall back! Fall back!", King Naoki issued his orders after receiving notice that the city was properly evacuated.

He and his team had been fighting against the lumbering giants from the hole, but only just. Unable to destroy them with any sort of efficiency, he instead chose to knock the beasts back into the sink hole they came from. The hole that had widened enough to consume his entire palace was surrounded by his army, volunteers, and the Isamu City knights. They used their navy that was still moored at the port to launch attacks at the Western side of the hole, blowing the beasts that climbed from that side back into the black depths.

In his mind, the King's thoughts revolved around his Queen who had yet to return from her task and the reports of other holes similar in type that started cropping up across Naoki. He feared not only for his citizens, but for the world itself. The Demons who were trapped on the continent were no longer trapped. That thought alone drove his sanity to the edge.

His troops started pulling back and the moored boats started their swim to sea releasing the behemoths from what pressure they once provided. Without a hindrance, each beast climbed from the hole and meandered where ever it pleased. Anger roused in him as he fled the site, but he halted his steps upon a strange event. The creatures he had been watching stopped. They didn't slow down, nor did they plant their feet to halt. Rather they froze in place mid motion as if trapped in an invisible amber.

Perhaps his men noticed the change as well for they too stopped their run. They all looked around at each other, exchanging glances of confusion. King Naoki knew he couldn't evacuate anymore now that the behemoths started acting strange. Desperate for intelligence on the creatures, he signaled for his men to group up around a nearby behemoth that escaped their initial net. It had made its way near the perimeter of Isamu, but remained alone in its travels thanks to their efforts.

Sounding the beast, King Naoki signaled one of his Knights to attack the creature. Nodding his head, the man collected his courage and rushed forward, sword in hand. Knowing their weakness, he lined the sword with a layer of water type magic and upon his downward slice, the leg of the creature that had been frozen mid air sheered off and fell to the ground. The monstrous beast neither flinched nor reacted to the attack and in confusion, the cautious Knight drew back.

Kin Naoki was about to issue further orders, but a glow emanating from the large orb-like eye of the sand octopus like creature interrupted him. It increased its glow and in fear of the creature self destructing, the King moved to issue orders of retreat once more. Before he could run, light pulsed from the orb into the sky and from it, a mirage of massive scale distorted the atmosphere. If it were just that one distortion, he could have come to terms with it, but as he turned his head to the surroundings, he saw the distortions far into the distance, outside Isamu city walls. His fear spiked once more after realizing the behemoths weren't limited to inside Isamu. His fear laden eyes reached for the closest mirage and to his surprise, the scene of a familiar location revealed itself in clarity.

***

The behemoth lumbered across the ground with its log-like leg smashing against the base of King Gilphriya's residence. The reverberations of the tree reached him and his Queen for the umpteenth time knocking them off balance and sending them tumbling. He managed to discover the weakness of the creatures, but their sheer numbers prevented him from applying any realistic strategy. He hoped to draw the behemoths away from the capital Erlan by baiting them, but they seemed to ignore most interactions with his forces.

In fact, though the beasts swarmed the forest floor, he had yet to receive any reports of deaths by them. That's not to say the beasts were harmless though as their massive size trampled farms and diverted rivers. The King predicted towards the future of his lands and could only see hardship over the horizon. Previously solid hills lost their erosion control due to the behemoths tilling and aerating the ground making them susceptible to landslide. Rivers that settled into standard paths were diverted into softer terrain gouging the ground.

As he calculated the secondary and tertiary effects of the behemoths, he couldn't help but get light headed. The floor below him lurched once more registering another impact. For a moment, he thought he reached his stress limit as his surroundings brightened but no matter how long he waited, there was no accompanying dizziness.

"My King, look at that!"

He diverted her thoughts and pushed his awareness towards the beasts under the railings once more. The creatures were still and their orbs were glowing brightly. Withing the dark shadows of the forest floor, the hundreds of orbs attached to the beasts seemed like stars twinkling. Each of those stars grew in brightness until they reached critical and released a burst of light into the forest canopy. Though he expected it to be an attack of some sort, the King found himself mesmerized by the hundreds of distortions appearing in the air. Inside each window like distortion, he found the same scene; A scenic fountain spraying water.

Within the image, the fountain was surrounded by a plethora of persons. To his surprise, he found a familiar figure amongst the crowd. Locking eyes with his Queen, they communicated without words and returned to the window. Beyond doubt, the figure was Zeena Halflight. Such a presence could only mean the scene was of Profectus City. They remained locked onto the scene as a woman with wings levitated into view. Her appearance unlike anything they had ever seen before.

***

Demon Lord Arakis Nul Dieth kept a curious eye on the distortion in the air. He couldn't identify the woman on the scene, but his instincts pushed an excited emotion he hadn't felt in ages to the surface. His smiling figure invoked a magic raising the chunk of ground he stood on high into the sky. He invoked a magic further and constructed a throne to sit on. Landing beside him, General Zannon and Larkis took their spots while maintaining their attention of the screen. From his side, General Zannon heard the clear question from his Lord.

"Is that the woman who beat you?"

"No, my liege."

"Ooh? Then do you recognize her?"

"I'm afraid not. The woman who fought me was of the Fairy species."

"I wonder where these beings are arriving from...", the Demon Lord muttered under his breath with a hint of excitement.

He couldn't tell how powerful the creature descending inside the distortion was, but he could estimate it considering the vast number of distortions surrounding him. Though he didn't recognize the scenery behind the woman, he could feel the pulse of her mana signature even from where he sat. The tingling sensation that rode his spine narrowed his serpentine eyes in glee. He dragged his eyes across the woman taking in every detail. He could tell she didn't share any traits familiar to the Demon species, yet he couldn't identify her horns, wings or eyes either. The mystery floating before him broke his focus as it started talking. His eyes moved to the sneering woman who held a twisted face full of arrogance and contempt.

His face further stretched crescent at the beautiful sight and in a moment of intoxicating, eager, willfulness, he opened his ears to listen with interest.

***

"Attention, world. Hear my edict. I am Lapis Lazuli Fardom, the one true evil and as of this moment, your only overlord.

Yes. From this day. From this moment. This world, belongs to me!

But I am sure you cannot believe such an edict. How could you? Spoiled by lethargy, you fool yourselves willfully. Tricked by incompetents in power who ignored my very arrival, your leaders chose to deny information about me to you. They writhed in fear of my power, choosing to disregard my expansion and maintain a useless war against a fake enemy. In pity, let me elucidate the truth to you sheep in lieu of those failures. I present the first land conquered by my hands and her previous leader."

The distortion warps onto a young woman with blond hair. Her figure was calm, but it was obvious her expression was forced and her pale complexion suggested she was under duress. She stepped forward and while displaying her utmost dignity, announced herself.

"I am Countess Aria Sugimoto. Mayor of forward defense post Profectus City...", she seemed to hesitate speaking.

Descending into view Lapis dropped to the ground and wrapped her arm around the girl. She warped her expression into a threatening sneer and rose her hand up. With a snap of her fingers, a woman teleported into existence beside her full of confusion.

"Continue."

"...I will not."

"Oh, I see...then.", Lapis finished while directing her gaze to the woman on stage.

Her smile curved further.

"My beloved Knight, slaughter her."

On screen, an obsidian Knight flickered into view beside the woman and drew its sword. There was no hesitation as the sword arced down and sheered the woman's arm from her body. Grasping her shoulder, she fell to the ground screaming as blood pooled around her. Lapis released a loud chuckle and turned her attention to the Countess. Her monotone voice transmitted with epic clarity through the distortions.

"Oh my. It seems my Knight has terrible skills. This may take a while if you do not hurry. Now. Continue."

"...I will not!", the Countess held a look of pity at the woman screaming, but stood her ground.

"How about a leg this time?", Lapis expressed her opinion with a disappointed exhale.

Another scream exploded from the woman as the sword dug into her thigh. Unlike her arm, the sword failed to cut clean through instead stabbing directly into it and tear a chunk out with its flat edge. Her guttural cries were the only sound that transmitted across the world. The audience on site covered their mouths, unable to speak up in fear and in disgust at the scene. Lapis tip toed around the Countess as if to dance and leaned on her other shoulder. She grasped her chin with her hand and forced her to face the woman.

"He has such terrible skills, does he not? What a shame to tear the meat and skin rather than cut. I am sure that woman will die now because of you, but who knows, she may still be saved...Continue."

"..."

"Continue!", Lapis shouted at the woman.

She moved to her front and wrapped her hand around her neck. Lifting her into the air, she tightened her grasp until the Countess started struggling and gasping for air. The world watched as the Countess refused to obey the woman drawing a disappointed grin. Directing her voice to her Knight, Lapis ordered.

"Kill her."

The Knight's sword sliced repeatedly across the woman drawing screams from her. It gave her a slow death, excising chunks of limbs and working its way to her torso. Segments of lopped off foot, calf, thigh, hand, wrist, and bicep splattered across the ground. Drawing a final arc, the woman's head left her torso and landed inside the fountain. Her flowing violet hair stained red by the blood. As if to disgrace the corpse, the Knight drew power into his leg and stomped on the stomach of the corpse smashing its core and ejecting spurts of blood from the open wounds.

"Continue?", Lapis asked the woman in a soft voice.

The Countess paled, but remained firm in her choice. As if disgusted by that decision, Lapis relaxed her grip dropping the woman to the ground. She raised a hand once more and snapped her fingers once again. Landing onto the mutilated corpse, three men tried to ascertain their position. Lapis turned to the audience and raised her voice.

"It would appear this woman is against me! How interesting. Well, this is a once in a lifetime event, so how about we play a game before continuing? I will kill every citizen of Profectus City in front of her until this City is abandoned. Shall we take bets? Shall we guess the number? How long do you think it takes?", she asked her final question and directed her eyes at the Obsidian Knight.

In a swift movement, his sword arced scraping the ground as it dug through the ankles of each man. Unable to grasp what happened to them, the men screamed in pain and terror. Each tried to crawl from the mutilated corpse on their knees and behind them, the Knight followed with sluggish steps. Stealing their hands in his next strike, the men fell to their sides curling into a ball.

Dancing circles around Aria, Lapis squealed in delight.

"Hehehe! Sure looks like that hurt! What do you think Countess? Your silence is killing them you know!?"

The Countess was unable to tear her eyes away from the men being butchered live. Cries and whimpers escaped the audience and yet the world could only see the Countess with tears flowing as she observed each attack remove another chunk from the men. The men finally lost their heads just as the woman did. Their lifeless bodies fell to the ground with a sickening slap that forced even the Countess to look away. As if disappointed at her resistance, Lapis held a thoughtful face before it turned to delight once more.

"Oh I see! I picked the wrong targets! Well then, let us remove these useless slabs of meat for the next level!"

She invoked a magic and the corpses ignited into flames. Flesh, bone, and blood reduced itself to ashes and with another snap of her wrists, the audiences widened their eyes in pity and despair. Countess Sugimoto looked to the two figured summoned on stage. Their figures dressed in chains and slave clothes, two beastmen children were hugging each other while looking around in confusion. As if to answer the question for anyone who failed to register the creatures, Lapis gloated before the Countess.

"Will you still not hold out? Sure, you may be Human and they may be Beastmen, but you would not let two innocent children die, now would you...?", her sneering face closed distance with the Countess until her cheek rubbed against hers.

"I...I-"

"Kill them.", Lapis interrupted the Countess as if she lost interest.

The Obsidian Knight walked up to the two and upon placing his hand on his sword, the Countess screamed out to interrupt.

"I'll talk! I'll talk! Don't hurt them!!! Please!"

Her words were useless as the sword was in mid swing. Despite the swing though, the sound of two children crying still registered. In front of the children, a man with short hair had drawn his sword and rushed to intercept the slash as fast as he could. His struggling figure was silently cheered on by the viewers and yet his form collapsed as the Knight overpowered him and launched his body into a building. Intercepting the body, a Beastman slid into the trajectory and caught the man mid flight, skidding to a stop and helping him back to his feet. Lapis showed an overly dissatisfied face and moved to the children herself. As she reached out, the Countess screamed once more.

"Please!!! I'll talk! I swear!"

"*sigh*...Well, whatever. It is only a child or two. Continue.", she moved from the children while giving a listless response.

Standing from her spot, Countess Sugimoto crushed what resistance she held after a final glance at the children.

"I'm Countess Aria Sugimoto, Mayor of frontier defense Profectus City. I'm the only survivor of Profectus City's aristocratic governing body...We've been at war for the past twenty years against this woman, Lapis Lazuli Fardom, the Demon Lord. I was ordered by representatives of every nation to cover up our fight against the Demon Lord and lay blame to the Demons. While it's true we are also in contact with the Demon species, it's only at the level of territorial disputes. Almost all of our efforts have been directed at this person...and we were defeated today...", she concluded her statement with a chagrin expression.

Demonstrating exceedingly good balance and nimbleness, Lapis flickered to the side of the Countess and hugged her with a devilish smile.

"Well, there you have it! You see, I am bored of fighting a lackluster battle and so I thought...'Why not just win it?' My pets have spread across the world. Everyone is watching this. Elves, Elementals, Beastmen, Humans and Fairies. Oh, and Demons. I almost forgot about your straw man. *sigh* I never did enjoy being compared to those idiots. You two can fight all you want, but everything belongs to me after all, so why even fight?"

"Lies! I fought the Demons!", the man who interfered once already yelled at Lapis.

"Of course you did. I left both of you alone after all. Territorial disputes are common things for intelligent species to fight over, but I have become bored with such games."

"Games?! You think slaughtering people is a game?!"

"No need to raise your voice child of Humans. But I see...Is this how you creatures feel? I only know of stomping your existence from my sight."

"We wont let you!"

"We? Who is 'we'? You are weak, child.", Lapis sneered while speaking in monotone.

Kneading mana, Lapis overlaid her imagination onto the young man and invoked her magic. His limbs extended in all directions as if they were being pulled upon and his body lifted into the air. Lapis waved her finger and his stretched body moved closer to her.

"You. Why do you resist me? I will destroy everything related to you and your species on whim. Why do you test the boundaries? Do you think the Humans I incinerated earlier were fakes?", as she spoke, Lapis invoked another magic an drew the head with violet hair out of the fountain.

It accelerated towards her and she timed the trajectory to grasp it into her palm. Holding the remnants of the corpse to the man, she continued.

"Is this fake, child? You overstep your bounds. But I see now...This world is filled with unruly children like you...You would rather die than prosper under my thumb...I see...I see.", she mumbled to herself in a gradual lowering tone.

Lapis placed her hand to the chest of the man levitating in front of her and invoked a magic blowing his body across the scene once more. The beastman moved to catch him again but was unable to hold his balance and ended up puncturing the building behind him in tandem.

"I see...I see. I see!", Lapis yelled to the crowd as if she stumbled across an idea.

"You children are so very misbehaved. You deny my rule...fine. I accept your challenge. If you are so stubborn, then I will offer you have chance. I will offer you ten years. Ten years to settle your debts. Ten years to lament your mistakes. Ten years time to properly complain to me. If you cannot do it, I will erase you. I have no need for children who misbehave. I can just create new children to replace you. Let us make this fun though. There is no one on this planet capable of harming me at this moment. You are all pitiful in that sense, I understand. Thus, I open my zones up to you."

Replacing the stage she stood on, a series of structures similar to caves, potholes, and ruins appeared on screen. The structures were in disparate environments hinting at their unique states.

"What you see are my zones I have created. My obedient children came from these. From now on, they will be open to you. Use them as you please in order to prepare yourself. I warn you though, my children are durable and you have only seen the start of them. To those who believe they are ready to complain, I will accept you at my home."

The distortion warps onto an obsidian building that reaches to the sky. It was nestled inside a basin atop a crystalline lake and from its center, spiraling bridges reach to the riverbank.

"The right to appear before me is simple. I will place my children at certain depths in this special zone. If you destroy them and reach me, I will grant you a trial with our lives on the line. If ten years pass and I am not entertained at least once, I will destroy every, single, one, of you. Now then! You have questions, I am sure. I do not care! My children have already infected this world and spread themselves far. I will order them to stand down for now. I expect an excited response from you fools."

Lapis turned as if to leave the scene before slowing to a stop once more. She turned around and glanced at both the Countess and the two men who managed to pull themselves from the wreckage of the building. She took a moment to remain silent as if considering the situation before walking back up to the Countess.

"You. What did you say you name was again."

"C-Countess Aria Sugimoto."

"Aria then. You created this situation along with that man and so you will rule Profectus City. I will not allow you to run and I will not give back what I have already conquered. Do what you want with it...Child. What is your name?"

"Kelvin Belmore.", he squeezed out his name while struggling to breathe from the previous impact.

"Kelvin. You will remain in Profectus City. As punishment for setting the world on a dead end path, you are limited to my home's zone only."

Satisfied with herself, Lapis turned her head to the audience once more.

"I repeat myself once more for the fools too stupid to remember. You, as a 'collective group', have ten years to surpass your pitiful boundaries and meet me. I will destroy every single one of you and raze this planet if not. Do try to entertain me..."

Lapis moved from the screen towards her Obsidian Knight.

"Oh yes, I forgot one thing. I have a few superior children you will have to meet before me. This child is one of them, say hi.", Lapis motioned and the Knight drew his sword.

It took only a single swing, but the ground fractured around him under the pressure of the swing. Lapis smiled as he returned his sword to its sheath.

"I am off then! Enjoy your last ten years!", her final words reverberated across the scene as her figure disappeared.

***

Dissipating with the light breeze, Arakis watched as the mirage peeled away until its entire existence became questionable. His face was a mix of curiosity and anger. The woman in the illusion insulted him and the Demons without holding back. It was undeniable. Holding back his rage though was the even stronger curiosity.

"There were too many lies. What's that woman thinking?"

He mumbled it to himself, but his Generals both caught the utterances.

"Is there a reason the Fairy and her are named the same?", General Zannon asked while suspecting the answer.

"They're the same person. That's the most likely answer anyhow."

Arakis motioned with his hand while answering and the platform they rested on descended to the ground. He was lost in thought evaluating the show and a smile crept across his face as it dawned on him. He slowly linked together the lies relevant to the Demons and tested them against his hypothesis. The results drew a chuckle from him and yet he continued, taking that hypothesis and predicted into the future with it. The results astounded him and his chuckling grew louder until he was holding his side from the pain.

Amazed at the unusual outburst, his Generals exchanged glances at each other exchanging questions through their eyes. As if to answer their obedient silence, Arakis collected himself and returned to walking. His destination once again, Profectus City. As he walked, he discussed his thoughts with his Generals.

"That woman...is planning on using us as pawns in her game."

"Pawns?"

"Yes. She used you as a messenger to attract the attention of leadership in Relictus. Naturally, one of three out comes would happen depending on my disposition and policies. If I was still a laissez faire King, then representatives would have been sent to establish communications with the new power and she would have had to deal with ambassadors inviting her into Relictus. Had I been aggressive and domineering, odds are a few selective Generals would have been dispatched to destroy her. Finally, the result we have here. I, myself, took an interest in the creature capable of defeating my General and as a King who values his personnel, the odds were high I wouldn't send an army, but rather capable individuals to accompany myself to handle her."

"That's to say...I was bait for you?", Zannon questioned his own take on his Lord's opinion.

"Exactly. She used you as a method to judge me and the Demons. If you take that into consideration, the fact I can sense her mana signature from here most likely means she expects me and already knows I'm on my way...This woman...She shattered the notion of 'Good' and 'Evil' to that ridiculous alliance. I don't know what her end goal is, but she manage to open up the potential for negotiation between us and them by creating a common enemy."

"That...That's! That makes no sense! She's obviously hostile against us and them. That's suicide for her."

"Certainly. Something else is going on behind the scenes. My heart's fluttering at the thought. The arena was declared and now the world is focused on Profectus...Zannon, Larkis. Let's pick up our pace. Elkune has turned around by now after seeing that mirage. I'm sure we will see her soon."

""Yes!""

***

Appearing in mid air, four distortions in space rippled tearing the air itself apart. Four bodies emerged from the rifts touching the polished obsidian floor. Within the group, two of the four started fiddling with a series of chains and bracelets that restrained them. It took only a moment before the symbols of dominance fell from their wrists and necks. Lapis approached the two Beastmen and knelt down beside them.

"Thank you for helping me. I am sorry it went off script towards the end, but that man seemed to lose control over his emotions."

"No, it's fine. We agreed to it after all. Right Shino?"

"Mmmm.", the young Beastman nodded in agreement while rubbing his wrists.

Maria adjusted her position to face Lapis and peered into the azure eyes that gazed upon her and her brother. She felt nothing sinister from those eyes and found them similar to the eyes of her savior, Topazia. Her curiosity grew stronger than her sense of wariness.

"Lapis...Lapis why did you lie?"

Surprised by the blunt question, Lapis' eyes expanded somewhat. She took a moment to think about how to explain it to a fifteen year old. When her thoughts coalesced on a proper answer, she peered into the girl's gaze.

"Right now, the adults are misunderstanding something precious. I have taken up the role to correct their mistakes."

"Something precious?"

"Yes. Something precious."

Sensing the foreboding aura behind those words, Maria thought back to the plaza and the speech Lapis spewed. She couldn't help but follow up once more after considering it.

"Will you hurt more people?"

"Yes. I will kill tens of thousands. Will you still help me? You can still turn back. You and your brother's face is known now, but I do not think anyone will harm you. Rather, they may pity you and give you shelter."

Maria considered it and turned her attention to her brother who was playing with the shackles on the ground. Without returning her attention, she questioned.

"Did that misunderstanding kill our parents?"

"Yes. It was not the direct cause, but it fueled the motivations of the crusaders.", Lapis responded without a single moment of hesitation.

"Then we'll help you. I don't want that to happen again."

Lapis extended her hands to the children with an innocent grin plastered across her. Each child took her hand and was pulled to their feet.

"Then it is time we get to work. The gears of conspiracy have already rotated. Please get rest and then take your positions."

The children nodded their heads and ran off to their rooms to change outfits. Ziro approached Lapis and the obsidian Knight from the side.

"How was Profectus after we left?"

"This one observed both the initial reactions and the following actions. After Master teleported away, Team Satyr engaged Countess Sugimoto. They assisted with reassuring citizens and controlling what fear spread through the populace. The town returned to minimal functionality, but this one doesn't expect full recovery for two to three weeks. The golems on each hillside appear to be a source of stress for them."

"That makes sense...Should I have removed them? No. They serve as good reminders...What happened to that man after they regained control?"

"Sir Hiiro met with Countess Sugimoto and Mr. Redmon to discuss the encounter. This one believes he suspects Master was lying, but it doesn't seem like he can pinpoint what or why. This one suspects the meeting with Countess Sugimoto was to confirm his suspicions. They used the inner chamber for discussions though, this one wasn't able to listen in due to the Elf's magic and the Beastman's senses."

"They are certainly skilled...That is fine though. Prepare yourself to assist Shino and Maria. They will need your power to control our inbound visitors."

"This one understands."

Zirco moved in controlled steps towards the bedrooms of the children leaving behind Lapis and her Knight. Turning to the Knight, Lapis smiled brightly.

"So, how did it feel to represent the right hand of evil?"

Hiiro removed the helmet latched onto him and returned the light smile.

"It was interesting. I didn't expect that Kelvin guy to interrupt my swing. It could've been dangerous for the kids.", his expression darkened somewhat towards the end conveying his feelings on the matter.

"It would have been fine. His sword or my barrier. You needed to only be stopped. The means mattered little."

"Speaking of, where'd you get those corpses? They looked and sounded alive to me. I felt like I was cutting down a live person too. It was creepy."

"I came across free corpses while getting revenge for the children. I was going to use some of Marquess Tabor's men, but their bodies are starting to rot. This took less effort. Oh, Aria was a fantastic actress! What did you think?"

"Yeah, I was surprised...I'm pretty sure she was actually terrified though. It's hard to fake that and when you think about it, you did kinda force her position to play inside this entire quagmire. I'm sure she was worried about being betrayed or something similar..."

"Oh...That is true. Maybe I should present her a gift of some sort as an apology?"

"No...I think you should leave her alone for now. That poor girl looks like she aged ten years during that entire play. Maybe give her a bonus as Topazia?"

"That sounds reasonable. I will do just that...Are you ready for the next phase Hiiro? Many people will die. Are you prepared?"

"Idiot. It's too late to ask me that. Who's your first target?"

"Azmodius."

"The Fairies, huh? Will it work?"

"If they intend to survive, it will. Oh yes! I heard something interesting from an ambassador of Azmodius. Queen Dazzlevine appears to be traveling to Profectus City. It fits into our plan unexpectedly."

"What about the Demon Lord?"

"They are nearing as well. I am excited to meet. I ask you to be by my side during that meeting. I expect it will end poorly for me."

The odd tone drew an arc on Hiiro's eyebrow.

"Are they stronger than you?"

"I do not know. I feel a perplexing kinship with them...It is hard to predict if they will move as predicted. Speaking of, what of the Elementals matter?"

"Yeah...I couldn't find them. I popped out of one of your zones in their region, but I couldn't find any of em."

"That is troubling. If we do not hear anything of them, we will move on them after Azmodius."

"Sounds good...I'm going to take a bath and get some rest then. I'll see you in a bit."

Hopping after him, Lapis grabbed his arm and moved beside him matching pace. Ignoring his curious glare, she took control of the situation.

"A bath does sound pleasant! Let us go!"

"What?! Lapis!?", Hiiro exclaimed while being dragged by the arm.

Giving into her spoiled nature, his surrendered expression was caveatted with a wry smile.