“What do you mean this was a distraction?” Svend asked as he cradled Cyra’s unconscious body.

I clenched my fist in frustration as I examined Cyra’s injuries. “These wounds are bad, but if you hurry to the city now, they will not be fatal. If they wanted to kill her in that attack, they would have all aimed for her vitals, used their corruptive energy, or poisoned her, but they did not. The Demons are forcing you to make a choice.”

“To stop the Demons or save my wife,” Svend mumbled as he held Cyra tight, “I am sorry Wren but I cannot help you.”

“I know,” I replied firmly as I stood up and looked towards the floating island far into the distance. If there was anything worth this risk from the Demons, it was the Preateritum remnant. It was the one place Berith could not see. The only way we could truly threaten her foresight.

I felt fire burn in my chest as fury built up within me. My family was still inside Dragon’s Nest. If anything happened to them because of my mistake, I would never be able to forgive myself.

“How many of the crystals containing Cyra’s power have you moved to Dragon’s nest?” I asked coldly.

“About half,” Svend replied.

“Then, go. Save Cyra. I will handle whatever the Demons have planned.”

Svend looked conflicted for a second but seeing Cyra’s rapidly deteriorating state, he turned away and flew off at a speed I could not match. I could not blame him for his choice. I would have done the same if it was one of my family that was injured.

“Can you still fight?” I asked Sigmund.

The man was covered in injuries. Blood flowed freely from every inch of his body. It was clear he was in a bad state as well but despite this, he stood firmly. “I will do everything in my power to protect your family.”

“Good, you and Sylvie follow me. Nox, you cannot fly, so, stay here and clear any remaining Demonkin. Burn this corrupted forest to the ground before it spreads.”

Nox growled in protest but there was little he could do for now. Carrying a second creature would drain too much energy. My domain wrapped around me, lifting me off the ground, and carrying me towards the distant floating island with all the speed I could manage. Still, it would take me several minutes to fly that far. Worry and fear for my family consumed my thoughts but I remained firm and used that emotion the push my speed even more.

“Do you know what we might face in there?” Sigmund asked calmly as he flew close behind me.

“Assuming Irene was telling the truth and Berith is remaining in the capital, there are still two Demons unaccounted for. The first has a talent that emits a dull red light. looking at the light causes extreme nausea and vertigo. Closing your eyes helps slightly but fighting with your eyes closed is not an easy feat. The second Demon has a talent very similar to Donte’s. He can control the wind and air to create a variety of destructive attacks and invisible blades that are difficult to track.”

“How do they compare to the Demon I fought before?”

“In pure physical combat, the one you fought is the strongest among Envy’s seven Demons. These two tend to rely heavily on their innate talents to fight. The wind user especially likes to fight at range. If you can close in on him, you might have the advantage.”

“Understood,” Sigmund replied as he rested his hand on the hilt of his blade.

The two of us pushed our speed to the limits until we landed on the floating island. As we landed my eyes were immediately drawn to the destroyed door leading inside. It had been sliced apart as if by thousands of small blades.

I rushed up to the remains of the door but was forced to pause by what I saw beyond. The ceiling in the main hall of Dragon’s Nest had always looked like a brewing storm but now that storm had come alive. Thick black clouds danced with snakes of lightning and completely blocked my entrance into the building. While I was confident in the defensive capabilities of my domain, I was still hesitant to step into such a defense.

“Mare, can you hear me, let me pass,” I called out hopefully.

There was a slight pause but after a few seconds, the clouds began to clear. I was finally able to see inside but what I saw was not the home I was familiar with. It was a frozen hellscape. Thick walls of ice completely filled the room. All of them had been shattered into broken fragments by an immense force. What little furniture we had managed to gather during our time in Kala was now smoldering charcoal with a few fires still burning on a few of the larger pieces. The walls and floors were covered in cracks and black scorch marks, the sure signs of explosions.

My heart jumped in my chest as I saw the results of my family’s fierce defense. My only solace was that there were no bodies that I could see. It gave me hope that my family was still alive.

At the far end of the room, the damage was the most intense. I saw the door leading to the core of the remnant on the ground, utterly demolished.

“Sylvie, go to the room below mine and start bringing as many of Cyra’s crystals as you can,” I commanded as I ran towards the busted door as fast as I could.

Sylvie whistled in understanding as she ignited into a golden phoenix. She flew off like a meteor, moving as fast as she could.

In the hallway beyond the ruined door, I saw the first of the bloodstains splattered across the floor as well as more damage similar to the main entrance. At the far end of the hall, I saw the bodies of two stallions leaking green flames. Mordere and Mitis had done everything in their power to hold off the Demons but they had not stood a chance. Mordere was cut in half at the waist and Mitis’s chest was completely caved in. Neither of the two was capable of moving anymore as their bodies slowly drained of the energy that gave them life.

Fear and fury battled within me as I ran with all my might. I burst into the core room of Dragon's Nest ready to kill.

My eyes burned with rage as I spotted my family struggling in a last stand against the two Demons. Blood soaked my dad’s leg and I counted more than a dozen wounds on Donte but to my endless relief, they were all still alive.

A thick blue light radiated from the core in the center of the room. It wrapped around my family, protecting them from the corruptive domain of the Demons and shielding them from most of the attacks that rained down around them. As I entered the room, that same blue light wrapped around me as well. It acted as a second domain armor, allowing me to fight without draining as much energy on resisting the Demons.

Despite the protection of Dragon’s Nest, it was clear my family was not in a good situation. The fact they had lasted this long was a testament to how strong they had become. Unfortunately, it was not enough to face two Demons simultaneously.

My dad acted as the family’s shield. He conjured pillars of ice throughout the room that intervened whenever anyone about to take a hit from the demons. The ice shattered under a single hit from the Demons but it did weaken the power of the blow enough that the blue energy could resist the rest.

Donte was facing off against the other wind Demon but he was clearly outmatched. He threw a wind blade at the Demon, only for it to fade away before it could even get close. His only advantage was that he could sense the invisible blades of wind the demon tossed in his direction. He was doing his best to avoid the countless invisible blades but many still struck him. If not for the blue energy from the core he would have been bisected long ago.

My mom was struggling to fight the second demon. The blue energy did very little to prevent his innate talent. She was stumbling as if drunk as the Demon radiated a sickly red light. It was only thanks to her own innate talent allowing her to move in the blink of an eye that she had not been crushed under the weight of the Demon’s attacks.

Charly probably had it the easiest out of the family. He stood behind everyone else, firing his crossbow whenever he saw an opportunity. Explosions shook the room and many bolts got close to the Demons. However, he had yet to deal any damage.

The two Demons were completely unharmed despite my family’s fierce resistance. They looked like two cats playing with cornered mice. They appeared to be relishing more in the desperation of my family than trying to quickly finish them off.

I had not bothered to memorize the names of these two Demons in my previous encounters with them but I recognized them both. The wind Demon had a look that reminded me of a classic con artist. He wore a finely tailored suit and had greasy slicked back hair, topped by two inhuman curved horns. The second Demon meanwhile looked like an incredibly seductive woman. Her ample figure would have been the dream of any man if not for the razor-sharp teeth that filled her mouth and the large bat-like wings on her back.

I took in the situation of the room in an instant as I immediately charged towards the seductive woman. I closed my left eye and flared the blue flames in my right to life as I charged the Demon. I was not hoping the blue flame would do much to the woman through her domain. Instead, I was placing my bets that the flame stored in my eye would be able to weaken the effects of her talent. My hunch proved correct. I felt slightly nauseous looking at her but I was not completely debilitated like my mom.

Meanwhile, Sigmund launched himself at the wind Demon. The ring of his blade sang through the room as he unsheathed his sword. The Demon frowned but barely even looked in his direction as an explosion of air blew the swordsman back.

“It seems we have run out of time for our game. Destroy the core.” The Demon said with a tug that straightened out his suit.

The Demoness gave a seductive smile as she used her domain to block the explosion I threw out. “How weak you have become, Aurielle,” she said as she turned toward the core in the center of the room, “To think, I once feared you.”

I slashed out with a whip of flames but this attack was also stopped by the Demon’s domain. This was nothing like my clash with Aym with his domain already failing and covered in severe injuries. This was a Demon at full strength. I was not even strong enough to be considered a bug to her as I was now.

The Demon completely ignored my barrage of attacks as she slowly walked towards the center of the room. My mom, Dad, and Charly all attacked her as well but she shrugged off all the attacks with a confident grin.

“No!” Donte shouted as she raised her hand to strike the core. His momentary lack of focus allowed the wind Demon to land a solid hit. Donte was thrown backwards across the room in a shower of blood. The blue light around his body dimmed significantly as he collapsed motionlessly to the ground.

I threw everything I could think of at the Demon in front of me but nothing was able to stop her. With force enough to crack a mountain, the Demon brought her fist down on the core. A thunderous boom echoed through the room.

Everyone paused as they looked towards the core. It was completely unharmed despite the monstrous strength of the Demon. There was not even a crack on its surface.

The Demoness growled as she prepared to strike the core again but her eyes widened in fear as she realized she could not move her arm. The blue light in the room faded to purple as disembodied laughter filled the room like bells ringing out in joy.

“It has been a long time since someone willingly jumped into my jaws. If you wish to be devoured so badly, who am I to refuse such a delicious meal.”

Before the Demon could even respond, four large spikes grew out of the core.

The spikes effortlessly pierced the defense that none of us could and ripped into the flesh of the Demon’s arm. This was nothing like the small needles that appeared when Donte took control of the remnant. It was violent and brutal, latching onto the arm of the Demon like the jaws of a vicious beast.

“What… What is this!” the Demon cried out in panic as she beat against the crystal encasing her arm but the moment her free hand touched the crystal it too became stuck. Within just a couple of seconds, the seductive beauty started to look as if she was aging centuries. Her hair turned white, her body shriveled, and her skin sagged.