Hugo

When I opened my eyes, I was somewhere else entirely.

Huh? This… this isn’t the battlefield…

I was now inside some kind of room, about ten meters in length and width. The walls were decorated with paintings while the floor was covered with a luxurious-looking red carpet.

Instantly I realized where I was.

This is the insides of the floating fortress, isn’t it? So that spell was a teleportation spell?

My gaze landed on one of the paintings. It was the drawing of some sort of a shadow creature with a screaming human face as its face.

Damn, what a grotesque painting.

In fact, looking at the other paintings, they were all sorts of grotesque as well. One painting portrayed a mother eating her own baby. Another portrayed a battlefield full of melting, rotting flesh zombies.

I know art can get really creepy sometimes but sheesh, I don't think I'd want to meet the painter of these drawings.

I then gave myself a look over. Good. Everything seems to be in place.

Time to explore this place. The others are probably teleported here too so I better get to them fast before anything happens to them.

"Boom Cannon!"

I fired the spell at the nearby wall, hoping it would just destroy it into pieces. But, all I got was a crater with more walls behind it.

The place is a lot more durable than it looks. Just how thick is that wall? I don’t want to waste mana spamming the spell.

Well, let's hope this place isn't a labyrinth or else I'd be screwed.

Finding the only door in the room, I made my way outside.

***

Felicia

No… nonononononono!

Felicia bit her thumb, shuffling back and forth inside the hallway she was now in, still in denial of her current situation.

They’d been had.

The trap wasn't for the ogres.

The trap was for them. Hugo and his entourage exclusively.

They're going to pick us off one by one! No doubt about it! We have to regroup immediately!

But this place… it's a maze! And the walls brimmed with anti-magic charms! Milord won't be able to break them with ease! Not to mention that he needed to conserve his mana too!

Her legs took her to an intersection. Three paths she could choose—west, east, or north.

Argh, does it even matter? They all look the same!

Taking the west one, she continued her fast walk through the seemingly endless series of corridors—her breasts bouncing every step she took. Her dress was never designed to accommodate fast movement like that. As such, she was giving quite the display of her luxurious bosom, if there was anyone to watch.

Unfortunately, there was someone watching her.

He was none other than the pig prince himself.

"He…hehehehehe…"

"What an amazing chest… smaller than that idiot fairy perhaps but still big enough for me to play with… hehe…”

The truth was, he was right there all along, walking beside her. She simply didn't notice.

Why you might ask? Simple. Because he was wearing a Robe of Notice-Me-Not.

Ooh, I have to thank Aunt Taran for these robes! I can do all sorts of fun things with it, hehe!

Boing… boing… boing… boing…

Drooling at the hypnotizing sight, he decided to make his move the next time she stopped in her tracks.

"Now! Come here, my beautiful pair of melons!"

From behind, he reached forward with both hands and gave her breasts a squeeze.

"Ooooo! This size! This firmness! Ooohhh I'm in heaven now!"

He wasn't scared at all of her retaliating against him. After all, no matter what he did, she would never acknowledge her existence.

Yes, that included violating her as well.

He failed to get that carnal pleasure from his supposed wife—the half-fairy bitch. Could you imagine it?! She actually turned him into a plant! How dare she! If not for Aunt Selene he would still be there unable to move, stuck watching her fly around, only able to peek at her panties from a distance!

So now, this supposed friend of hers must pay for her insolence!

Felicia stood there, not responding in the slightest to the pair of green arms playing with her chest. Her expression looked strained, however, almost as if she knew something was wrong.

"Hmm, no reaction at all, huh… That’s a shame… I want to hear the moans…” He gave her two nipples a pinch.

…Nothing. She didn’t even blink.

“Damn it. This robe is too good. I can't get turned on like this!"

Like any good orcs, he wanted to hear the screams of their mate as he had his way on them.

“...Fine. Let’s just get to the main course. Let’s see how your pretty human womb stays against my orc d*ck.” He smiled lecherously.

He moved to her front and knelt down, admiring the silky crimson panties the woman wore to cover her sweet spot.

Ooooo, a red thong! What a lewd old hag!

In his book, any girl that's more than 20 years old in the looks department can never compete with the younger ones. But, he'd make an exception this time, just because of how hot she was.

Without any hesitation, he slid his hand into the large slit on her dress, pulling down her red panties in one fell move.

"Bleeerghhh!"

A rain of warm and sticky fluid fell on top of his head.

The hag had just puked on him.

"You… you bitch!"

His hand flew, hitting her right on the cheek. The force was enough to send her flying to the wall.

"HOW DARE YOU PUKE ON ME! I'M THE MIGHTY—"

He never got to finish his sentence.

For Felicia had decapitated his head.

***

Sherry

"Grr, you coward! You're trying to pick us off one by one, aren't you? No wonder you weren't with your soldiers! You just stood here and fired those magics of yours from the safety of your pretty little fortress!"

Sherry was not pleased, to put it simply. She was supposed to stay at Hugo's side, protecting him. And now they had been separated thanks to whatever trickery that cowardly Demon Lord had employed!

It wasn't because she thought he was weak or anything. After all, even after all her training back in her village, and the training she did on the road, she was still no match for him. He was just far too clever for her to overcome.

But, she was supposed to be his wife. And an Izurdian wife is supposed to protect their husband.

"Aahhhh!"

Sherry kicked the wall near her, creating a crack on its hard surface.

She was now stuck inside some kind of a tunnel, with black walls, ceiling, and floor. It was certainly not a region of the fortress she had ever been in.

She was tempted to just unleash her full power and bring the entire place down. But she might just end up killing Hugo or others.

She had no choice. She just had to play their game for now.

And when they appeared to ambush her…

I'll cut off their heads! That'll show them not to mess with an Izurd!

***

Myrilla

…Wonderful. Where am I now?

Is this the fortress? It's the fortress, isn't it? It must be.

Teleportation magic… either they possess Ancient technology or something more fey in nature. And judging by the sensation I felt, I assume it was the latter.

Her eyes scanned the room she was now in. She seemed to be in a tower of some sort, judging by its verticality. There were multiple windows in the tall cylindrical wall, most likely leading outside. As for what was in the middle, there were nothing but pillars of varying length and sizes, made out of the same obsidian the wall was made out of, with the largest supporting the round platform located quite far above her.

What an odd room. You have to fly to get around.

Still, for a wind mage like me, it wouldn't be a problem.

Suddenly, a woman jumped down from the round platform, stopping just slightly above Myrilla, flapping her wings so she would hover in place.

A harpy.

"Ah, a challenger! Welcome, welcome! My name is Astra Naturia! And it seems I will be your opponent on this fortuitous day!"

Myrilla didn't say anything to the harpy's introduction. She simply gave her usual cold stare to the bird woman.

"This is your husband's doing, isn't it?" She narrowed her eyes. "Bringing me here? And I assume you brought the others as well?"

"Of course!" She laughed, her laughter sounding like the ringing of bells. "This is Darling's grand plan! He wants to judge the worthiness of Hugo Greenwood and his entourage!"

Myrilla focused her mind, reaching out to the harpy's brain.

And she found the memory of their strategy meeting from last night.

.***

"You're going to bring them here inside the fortress?" The harpy asked. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"No. It's better than facing them out in the open. Split them up and pick them off one by one."

"But remember." Another woman spoke. She was the elf mage. "The spell is not perfect. They will be scattered inside the fortress with us unable to decide where exactly they will end up."

"Everyone will search for them," the demon lord continued. "And kill them where they stand. With the exception of the man named Hugo and the girl named Sherry. I wish for her to join our forces."

"And if they refuse, you'd just absorb their power." The elf smirked. “After all, you’ll need all the power you can get if you are to become the Demon God.”

***

"Heeyyy! You're reading my mind, aren't you, you naughty Nerthusian? Ooh, how rude! I won't let you!"

Myrilla's mind quickly returned to reality as she noticed the feathers coming her way. She managed to cast a quick wind spell before they could land, blowing away the feathers back at her.

Unfortunately, the harpy was just too fast for such a weak wind spell as she dodged every single feather sent to her way with ease.

"How dare you send my own beautiful feathers back at me?! I will show you why I'm not just your ordinary harpy!"

The bird lady screeched, flying away back to the platform she fell from.

She's retreating?

No, not retreating. It's the perfect spot for her to—

"Laaaa lalalalalala!"

The demoness didn't hesitate. She used another wind spell to puncture her own eardrums.

The Doomsinger… Bewitched many men to their deaths by her song…

I'm not a man but it would be foolish for me to not protect myself, in a chance that her song can affect me as well.

It's fine. As a demon, they will grow back after all.

Now, should I flee? Or should I fight?

Her eyes glanced across the room. It didn't take long until she saw a door.

…No. I should fight. It would be too dangerous to let her be. If she were to meet Hugo, he wouldn’t be able to resist her song.

And so, using her Wind Spell, she flew upwards, chasing after the harpy.

“What?! You’re not—you’re not charmed at all by my song? I know it’s half as effective to a woman but you should still feel its effect!”

“H-hold on, those blood coming out of your ears… did you seriously just puncture your own eardrums? You—you can’t do that! That’s cheating!”

Myrilla didn’t bother responding (she couldn’t hear her voice but she still could read her mind). She instead summoned her wind constructs to her side before ordering them to tear the harpy to shreds.

“You… you think you can win just because you can deaf yourself? How arrogant! I was chosen as the wife of the Great and Wise Balthazar as a reason, you know!”

With a screech, she dissolved the constructs Myrilla had created. And not only that, she sent her flying backwards as well, pushing her away from the sheer vibrations the noise produced.

Thankfully, Myrilla stopped herself before she crashed into the pillar by blowing a wind behind her.

If she hadn’t wounded her eardrums earlier, they would’ve burst here for sure.

“Kraaahhhhh!”

The harpy flew forward, sending more ear-rupturing screeches towards the mind-reading demoness. Recognizing the danger, Myrilla dived down, narrowly dodging her attack.

She looked up and saw the pillar collapsing. That would’ve been her if she was slower for but a moment.

She’s fast! At this rate, I won’t be able to keep up!

And that sound attack! Tch, it’s loud enough to actually leave scratches all over my body! A direct hit would be fatal!

Think, Myrilla. There has to be a way to outwit her advantages. You might not be as strong as him but you’re still an S-rank adventurer with more than a hundred years of experience!

She knew perfectly well that she was outclassed by Hugo. His power was now far beyond hers. When the ogres dubbed her a Demon Lord, she could see him being one. Especially after she saw his fight with Quania.

The boy was beyond a genius. He had a talent to be one of the strongest mages that had ever existed if he kept polishing his skill every single day, like he had done so far. And it was her duty to nurture that talent until he could truly reach his full potential.

And so, it was also her duty to take this mutant harpy down.

Using the aid of Wind Boost, she landed safely on the floor. Immediately she ran towards the nearest pillar, hiding away from the harpy.

"Hmm? Where did you go? Hey, come back here! Don't tell me you've run away!"

And then, she began chanting her spell, whispering the words under her breath.

"O wind! Listen to my call! Blast my enemies out of the sky! Grand Tornado!”

Normally, the Master-level spell would have the radius of a mile long. But, she had learned to concentrate the power of the tornado generated, compressing the size to a much smaller one, while increasing its power and speed by a factor of two, three, or even more—she didn’t know the exact number. Whatever it was, it should be enough to take down this harpy.

However, since she shared the same room as her, she might just end up being swallowed by the spell as well. But it was a risk she was willing to take.

This was a technique she learned from Hugo. Just like she taught him how to create her wind automatas, so did he teach her how to tweak her spells—create her own spell variants not written in any spellbook she had come across.

Hugo Greenwood… I should’ve called you Master… Not the other way around… You are a far more brilliant magician than I am…

The tornado slowly formed from the tip of her staff. Her black dress fluttered wildly from the gathering wind, along with her silver hair.

"There you are! Now you will—"

Before the harpy could finish her sentence, she was already swallowed by the spell.

"Gyaaahhhh!"

A bloodcurdling scream filled the room. The harpy’s body flew around like a ragdoll, hitting the walls over and over—the now violent air swatting her like a fly over and over.

Myrilla, knowing perfectly well she would be sucked in if she stayed where she stood, quickly made her way to the nearest wall. She conjured her wind automatas once more, this time giving the order to keep her in place.

Now, I just have to make it to the door!

Carefully, while still going as fast as she could, the demoness mage walked towards it. She could feel the tornado sucking her in, with only the wind automatas keeping her in place. They too were tornadoes, with the difference that they were far less powerful and human-shaped, so they could counter the tornado she had cast by spinning in a different direction and wrapping themselves around her body.

She opened the door. Quickly, she slid in. She was now in a hallway of some sort.

I have to search for him. At once. If the succubus gets to him while he’s on his own…

***

Theo

…Wait, haven’t I been here before?

Oh no… I’m lost, aren’t I?

The brown-haired boy stopped in his tracks. His gaze was wary and fearful and his grip on his sword tightened to the point that his palm turned white. His heart was beating rapidly and sweat had made his white shirt cling to his body.

…No, don’t give up yet, Theo. What will Master Hugo say if you give up by just being lost? And Master Sherry will no doubt say that I’m weak again…

He still remembered when he gave up after just a hundred push-ups. The demoness gave him an earful, saying that he wouldn’t be able to protect Tama if he was that weak.

He could say nothing in return. He was weak. He knew that perfectly well. Especially compared to her and her boyfriend.

That’s right… I have to get to Tama… she must be in this place too somewhere…

And Mother too… I have to protect her too… That’s my job as his son!

Gathering his resolve, he resumed his running throughout the maze-like hallways.

Wait, that’s… that’s a door! Finally!

Overjoyed that he finally found an exit, he opened the door at the end of the corridor he was running without hesitation.

Only to find a dining room. With a girl sitting on it, sipping a cup of tea.

“Oh. A visitor.” The girl said. “Finally. I was wondering when I will get to do something.”

The girl was a demon. He could see that right away, from the pair of horns resting on her head. Her hair was bright pink, reaching down to her shoulders, and her clothes were some sort of a regal-looking black dress with gold trimmings.

His heart skipped a beat. Not because of her cuteness or anything, which she certainly had a lot of, but because of the fact that she was a demon.

She could be the enemy!

He quickly slammed the door before booking it out of there.

Only to find that after running for several minutes, he was back at where the door was before.

W-what? Why am I here again?

“How rude. I just want to talk, you know. I won’t hurt you.”

He jumped, his heart nearly leaping out of his chest.

For the girl from before was standing behind him, giggling at his facial reaction.

Putting a hand over her flat chest, she began her introduction.

“I am Gretchel Naturia, The Tenth Wife of the Demon Lord of Wisdom.”

“And I am here to test you, follower of Hugo Greenwood.”