6.4

In a particular underground chamber, where the foul stench of rotten flesh was so thick that it filled up every nook and cranny of the chamber in the form of a yellow fog. It in laid many empty cells with metal bar so thick that they were sturdy enough to hold several wild beasts from breaking out.

Most these cells were empty by default, vacant since the many decades that this chamber was built. And those that were not, had lifeless grotesque lumps of meat in them as inmates, the lumps of meat had various parts of their body shackled by thick cuffs of metal as they remained almost stationary in their respective cells.

These grotesques, beings whose faces have become unrecognizable from what was done onto them, oozed dark liquids from the gasping holes that are present on their bodies. They hung onto what little life that they used to have, churned and swiveled their bodies while they let out unintelligible noises for their failed attempt for speech.

From the vague howls that they made, it was certain that they were praying for their deaths to come quick and release them from this hellhole. No longer do they want to be covered by their own excrements, having to survive without food or water, to never see a glimmer of light ever since they were placed in this chamber.

It was hell.

To have their intelligence rendered to nothing but a bug’s while they retained fragmented memories of their past before they were dragged to this place, they might as well be dead than alive.

These grotesque beings used to be beastkin, half-elves, and humans alike, they were the people whose presence was never acknowledged, people who had no families nor any loved ones, people who had nothing of value, people who were deemed not a part of society.

How is it that they ended up in this part of the world where the sun never shines on, to become living pieces of meat, having no control over their own body, and unable to have a single coherent thought?

As for the answer to that…

A loud metallic pang resounded at the entrance door to the underground chamber, an entrance that had not seen any use for the past decades.

In came three figures. Among them, one was blindfolded, his mouth gagged with a piece of cloth and had all his limbs tied up while he wriggled frantically around the shoulders of the thin man who was carrying him.

“Mmmph! Mmppph!”

“Where do I put him?” the man asked to the woman beside him in a humble tone, his face unflinching despite the influx of the foul odor of the chamber, he had frequented places similar to this that such smell no longer bothered him.

“The very end of the room will do. Then, bring out the necessary tools should we decided to use them on him.”

“Mmmph! Gmmph! Hmph!” the person that they were referring to struggled and squirmed more when he overheard their conversation.

“As you wish.”

Obediently following his master’s wishes, he navigated through the room naturally with complete ease under those dark conditions and retrieved the said tools.

The lady had peerless features, she had a face that could be said to be gifted by the heavens, sensual, innocent and alluring, one that many men would very well do anything for to be in her presence for a second longer. One command with her smooth voice was able to move soldiers by the thousands into battle for her sake.

When in public, she was one of the highest ranked figures in Dezarith Empire, the backbone to the nation that she had helped built with the Immortal Emperor. Everyone in the empire respected and idolized her for her undying loyalty and contributions, she was the reason that the empire’s influence expanded past the Eight Great Walls.

However, in contradictory to what her public fame would suggest about the noble character she had, this woman had all the reason to be in this chamber that did not befit her contributions or beauty.

She was the reason for those grotesques who were imprisoned in this very place.

To call her the reason for their hellish existence was an understatement.

In any nation, if there was suffering, the leaders were automatically responsible for allowing it to happen. But when it came down to this woman, that statement was as true as it could get.

She was the one who ordered the capturing the grotesque beings prior to their cursed transformation, used gold to keep the witnesses quiet as she ordered her underlings to drag them into the various underground chambers of hers. She had personally used her powers on them and transform them to the mindless slobs of meat they are now.

She was there at each and every step that lead to their inescapable suffering. The fact that they were the very people of the nation that she had helped to build meant nothing to her. She felt nothing when she commanded their capture not then when they cried and begged for mercy, and certainly not now when they groaned and moaned in fear of her presence.

The grotesques that were accumulation of raw, exposed fleshed did not need anything to survive, they needed no such luxuries. The fact that none of them had died after twenty years of being locked in this underground chamber was proof of their resilience.

She continued to stroll herself to where her underling had prepared their subject for interrogation.

Normally, she wouldn’t use underground chambers such as this to extract information out of individuals, she would leave it up to her many underlings to so. But this person, this particular subject that she had long awaited for his capture, witnessed something that could possibly threaten her efforts in building this empire of hers. She had no choice but to use the nearest underground chamber she had at her disposal.

The grotesques continued to give off peculiar sounds when she moved past them, they were frail attempts to warn the newcomer of his demise, pleaded him to flee as the woman moved to the lone chair where the man was tied to.

“Remove his gag.”

Her underling obeyed and allowed the blindfolded man to speak.

Not soon after a pop came from the man’s mouth, he began to shout with a voice that rattled the dangling chains on a nearby wall.

“You Empire dogs! I will never tell you anything! Just take my life now!”

“How annoying, should I just start drilling one of his wrists before you start interrogating him?” her underling commented.

“That won’t be necessary. This will be quick, I am only here to make sure the rumors were correct, after I am done with him you can have your fun.”

“Who do you think you are? Any moment now, my comrades—”

The woman moved to untie the blindfold that had been restricting his vision. The strip of cloth fell, and the moment his eyes adjusted to the darkness to catch a glimpse of the woman’s face, a sharp inhale could be heard.

“You! Y-you wicked wretch! You are that bastard Emperor’s—”

“[Silence].”

The woman cast a spell on the man and his voice was no longer audible.

“Perhaps it is better if we just break him. That will make things easier,” giving his honest opinion, her underling took out a device that had a rotating handle with pointy screw at the very end of it. If one was to picture it, the torture device resembled to the drilling tools that carpenters used to make holes in thick logs of wood, but this one was specialized for drilling bones instead of wood.

“Kaldor, please. There is no use interrogating a dead person.”

“Understood.”

The woman then turned towards the man who she had [Silence], a tier 6 spell, cast on. “Let’s get to the point, Cerys. Do you remember the incident that you witnessed about 3 months ago?”

Cerys, the man who was tied to the chair, upon hearing the question widened his eyes, but quickly hid his shock with a death glare.

The woman’s lips curved to his reaction, she then snapped her fingers and lifted the magic she placed on him. “You are free to speak.”

“…”

Cerys became unusually quiet. Even with his rage he bore towards this woman and the empire that she served, he knew that the moment he opened his mouth, he would be killed right after.

“Holding your tongue now are you? That is too bad, you might have just lost your chance of ever leaving this place,” the woman shook her head then gestured for Kaldor to begin his torture.

“W-wait!” Cerys shouted. “I need you to guarantee my freedom before I speak. I won’t speak of this incident, you can keep me in under surveillance, all I am asking is for a good life. I know the empire can provide that,” a gulp formed at the base of his throat when he finished.

Cerys knew it that it was a gamble, the fact that he had been caught by the empire meant that he was now their property. But on the slight chance that he could live a full life and be pardoned for all the crimes he committed, he was willing to take it.

It was an impossible request from someone like him, but he knew that this woman had the power to give that to him if she so desperately needed his information.

“That’s ridiculous, you scum, should know your—” Kaldor protested but stopped when the woman raised a hand to him.

“Granted. And as a show of trust, we will now unbind you. Kaldor, if you would,” her words prompted a disatisfied Kaldor to unlock the cuffs that were around Cery’s wrists and ankles.

Clack! Clack!

Cerys heart palpitated, he could not believe that she had accepted his terms, “N-now, bring me a-away from this place, so that we can speak when I—”

“No. You must answer my questions now. Let me ask you, do you remember the incident from 3 months ago?”

“I-I…”

“Let me ask you once more. Do you remember such an incident?”

After hesitating for a moment, he decided to not push his luck any further than he had and answered, “Y-yes.”

“Very well. Kaldor, open the door.”

“Right away,” the thin man hurried to the door and began unlocking it, no longer complaining about the unfair deal that Cerys had struck.

“I c-can go now?”

“Not yet. But with each question I ask that you successfully answer, the path to the utopia you speak of becomes concrete. That is, if you have enough information to warrant that.”

Cerys cursed himself at his straightforward assumptions, of course this woman would use such methods to get what she wanted out of him. He’d be damned if life made it easy for him after all these years of suffering.

But this meant that he was still useful to her, and there existed a chance where he would live the lifestyle that all men like him dreamed off. An affluent life that was filled with women and wine. If he could somehow manage to jump through all of her hoops like a good lap dog, that dream filled with debauchery will become a reality for him.

“Back then, did you happen to witness an individual who possessed black aura, a person who killed those friends of yours?”

Black hair, a loud cry of anger, earthquakes, and a mansion that was on the verge of collapsing on itself, that scene from months ago flashed in his mind. Cerys was there to witness the gruesome display of violence that fated night, he only caught a glimpsed of it before he ran away from the abandoned mansion where he and his fellow friends were looting from.

“Y-yes...”

“Hmm… I guess you are free to go,” the woman said without a care in the world.

Cerys’ jaw dropped, “What? Is that it?”

“You are free to go. I won’t pressure you for more information. However, I won’t be granting you your wishes due to how little you have provided me. This should be satisfactory for you, you are allowed to live and the empire won’t be after you as long you keep your lips tight as you did today.”

“I-I…”

Cerys hesitated a moment before moved towards the open door, his pathway to freedom. Though he could not see the light of day in this place, he was certain that he could get himself out from what seemed to be an underground cave system.

But before he made himself scarce, his mind nudged him to stop in his tracks, urged him to stay.

“A-am I really allowed to leave?”

“Quite certainly.”

“Is there… a way that I can have that d-deal with you…” Cerys tapped his fingers on the rough trousers that he had been wearing, unable to let go of that possibility, the promise that would let him live like a king. “Y-you did say it was possible…”

“I do have one more question. Hmm… How about it? If you have the proper response, I will consider on granting that desire of yours.”

“Yes, I will answer you anything!”

“In that case, were you aware that the person who killed your comrades was in fact, a powerful demon?”

Cerys staggered a few steps away from the woman,“Y-you must be joking r-right? T-there is no way that was a d-demon.”

“Oh, you were not aware of it? Splendid, splendid. This makes things much easier now that I have no loose ends.” A cold grin crawled onto her face, an expression mixed between cruel and kindness formed, “And here I was thinking that you have told your little friends about the nature of the incident. It seems that I have been worried for nothing. Ahahahaha! Splendid! Truly splendid!”

The woman took a step forward and closed the distance between them.

Cerys though not quite understanding her eerie behavior and the weird sounds that were coming from the base of her fingertips, he immediately turned and made a run for it.

Run! Go! Go! She’s going to kill me!

His heart thumped so rapidly that the adrenaline almost burst from his arteries, every fiber of his being screamed at him the longer the woman looked in his direction. Without another word, he fled to the open door for his life.

Cerys recalled the superstition that he often heard among his fellow thieves, the one about the Immortal Emperor’s rise to power. About how the absolute ruler of Dezarith Empire was rumored to be a demon of the highest rank or had close ties with powerful demons.

Now it all made sense.

The rumors among his fellow men, the growing angst of the neighboring countries, the reason that the woman pretended to agree deal with him. Cerys was not the brightest among his friends, but even he could see that this woman was the most horrific creature that he could’ve encountered.

He still had time, he was quick, he would run for the hills and report what he learned in this underground chamber to his friends. He had to report this to—

Bam!

His head slammed into a solid object when he tried to cross the border between this underground chamber and to the cave system on the outside.

“N-no, no, it can’t be…” his fingers twitched hopelessly in air when the scenery of the open door fizzled and revealed a metallic door that was deadlocked.

She never intended to let him go.

“Ahaha…ha… You are all monsters…”

Ka-raaaaak!

Long nails extended from the woman’s right hand had found themselves to their target. The sound of Cerys’ skull being impaled echoed throughout the room silenced the moaning from the grotesques.

The long nails dug deep into the very base of his skull and continued to elongate until the very center of his brain.

“Rejoice, for you shall be serving the emperor with the remainder of your pathetic life. All hail the Immortal Emperor!”

“All hail the Immortal Emperor!” Kaldor who had been maintaining a visual illusion of an opened door in the front echoed.

Cerys first lost his vision. Following that was a series of agony, the pain he felt now made the senseless beatings that he took from his old man when he was a kid look like a tap on the shoulder in comparison.

“Arggkgkk!”

His life would be ending soon.

At the very least, he would no longer have to live in this shithole of a world.

That was what he thought.

Yet the pain never stopped, not when he lost all sensation in his limbs, not when his mouth stopped foaming from the sudden shock, not when liquids from his organs leaked from his eye sockets, and definitely not when he no longer understood what happened.

“Gguraaakk…. Rawgrhhh…”

But it stopped when he was no longer a human and became one of the grotesques.

“Sorry about that, Kaldor. I think I may have damaged his brain too much,” the woman retracted her fingers and wiped away the residue blood that was sticking to her. “I know you wanted to play with him before I turned him to one of them. It seems that my powers grew since I last used them. I hope you can still make do with it, he should feel pain when you smash his fingers.”

“No worries, it is I who is grateful to be shown such a magnificent display of emotional cruelty. To think that you would plant false hope and make him give vital information without an ounce of violence, the pleasure was all mine,” Kaldor bowed his head deeply with an arm placed to his opposite shoulder.

The woman ignored Kaldor’s heartfelt praise and continued, “What of this year’s batch, Kaldor? Are you confident that the hero, Scywell Shatterstep would pledge his alliance towards us with what you have planned in mind?”

“He suspects nothing of his orders to be placed in Moxnet Academy, nor the students will raise suspicion to their upcoming trials. You are sure to receive a batch of excellent pawns to expand the empire’s rule. I personally sought out twenty individuals who I believe would be key to our upcoming assault on the dwarves. All we have to do is to wait four years.”

“Keep in mind that if you do fail…”

“I would be the very first to charge into battle in young Scywell’s place. Yes, I understand that.”

“No, that is not it. You mustn’t fail. I forbid you to, not when we have—” the woman stopped mid-sentence. “Ah, forget my words. I’ve made precautions if you fail. I placed one of my other underlings in that academy of yours, with or without your little curriculum Scywell’s loyalty towards the empire will be concrete.”

“I do apologize of how lowly you think of me. I truly am incompetent.”

Kaldor’s apology were like wind to the woman’s ears.

The woman had a larger plan beyond his imagination, one that she kept to herself. Though the details were unknown to him, the goal was clear. It was to bring the world to her beloved Immortal Emperor’s rule. An ambition that she had made it clear to every single person knew her ‘true’ face.

“Have you had any news regarding the third’s awakening?” the woman asked Kaldor who had his head low.

“No signs of him awakening from his slumber. The vampires have increased the number of undead in their country, it becomes harder to infiltrate their sovereign. His identity was not made known to public, the few who are aware of him are attempting to revive their master.”

“Tsk.”

The woman clicked her tongue sharply at that vague information.

“B-but, we did find out about the fourth,” Kaldor attempted to console his master. “He’s only recently awakened to his powers, he barely has time to grow his powers. Remember? I-in your case…” his voice faltered when he saw the woman’s face.

“Out with it, Kaldor. In my case?”

“I-it took you a few years to learn how to increase your powers.”

“That may be true, but not a moment is to be wasted. Alas, with the appearance of the fourth, we could bait out the second who lies on the other side of the world when his identity is known to us.”

Kaldor got on one knee, “Yes, your Empress. May your vision guide us to eternal glory.”

Her name was Loirmeil Dezarith, the Empress of Dezarith Empire, the Emperor’s most trusted aide and his lover.

Her goal had not changed since the day she embraced her demon nature.

Loirmeil Dezarith who lived on indefinitely had but one wish the day she met the current Immortal Emperor.

She wanted to keep her beloved alive well beyond his what natural lifespan allowed, to amass enough resources to let him achieve godhood, to preserve his image for all of eternity and discard his mortal self.

To let the world worship him.

And may the gods forbid what she had in store for her nation...

For this was her very purpose as the Demon Lord of Ruin.