The surrounding air thickened as an eerie sensation crept over her. It was as if unseen eyes were watching her every move, and a whispering murmur filled the air, growing louder and more distinct with each passing second. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and her heart pounded in her chest.
Finally, the portal showed signs of closing. It did not only slowly close, but the demons entering the portal decreased, giving ti for Lucas and Belisarius to take a breather.
As the portal began to show signs of closing, the demons trying to force their way through grew more frantic. The swirling vortex diminished, and the monstrous forms attempting to breach the gateway were repelled with a violent force, sending them tumbling back into their own realm.
"Stay vigilant," Belisarius warned, wiping sweat from his brow. "This may not be over yet. We need to ensure that the portal is completely sealed."
Rosalind nodded. She knew that the portal was not fully closed yet. Anything could happen at this ti. Slowly, Rosalind watched as the portal beca smaller and smaller, the demons becoming lesser and lesser. Then, out of nowhere, Rosalind felt sothing react inside her.
It was that heavy feeling of losing sothing, of grief.
Naturally, she imdiately chose to ignore it.
The next thing she knew, Lucas was already standing next to her, holding her in his arms.
"We need to get out of this place…" Lucas said.
"Wait…" Rosalind held his arm. She frowned just as the last remnant of the black portal disappeared. "Did you see that?" she asked before looking at Lucas. "Did you see the eye?" She was almost certain it was staring at her.
"No. We need to leave. Belisarius will do the rest."
However, just as Lucas finished talking, Martin Lux and Dorothy arrived with the knights.
"Your grace…." Martin Lux looked at Lucas and Rosalind. "May I invite you inside?" Martin then looked at Rosalind. "Along with everyone else?"
"Yes," Rosalind answered. "We are going inside." That eye earlier left her a little anxious. She did not have any idea what was going to happen next.
Soon enough, they found themselves in a lavishly decorated room with the Emperor and so other nobles.
Seeing them walk in, everyone turned silent and turned their attention to the two of them.
Belisarius was still outside and, clearly, the man had no intention of coming in. Belisarius did not even spare Martin and Dorothy a glance.
"Your grace, I did not expect to see your royal self in Aster. Please…. Please make yourselves comfortable. I apologize for not being able to give the Duke a proper welco. As you can see, the current event is simply sothing I cannot control."
Lucas let Rosalind sit before he sat next to her.
"I do not want to beat around the bush, your grace. I — Everyone in this room wanted to ask about that— portal-like thing. We have never seen anything like that in the past," the Emperor asked.
"It is true," Lucas began, "Those are indeed portals, but I would rather discuss this once the representatives from other empires arrive."
"We have no ti for any of this," Martin spoke. "Those things—whatever they are, are scarier than anything I have ever seen. Those things are not from this world! They must be the demons from history!"
Almost imdiately, the nobles sitting at the table erupted. Many of them started talking, yelling, and shouting, hoping to get their point across. The uncertainty hung in the air, making it almost hard to breathe.
anwhile, Dorothy could not help but glare at Rosalind, who was sitting next to the Duke with a different face. She could not seem to understand why the woman was giving her goosebumps. It was as if she was a high-ranking demon who occupied that body.
When Dorothy first saw Rosalind earlier, she imdiately recognized her as the wife of the Duke. However, sothing else was inside her. Sothing sinister.
When she first saw her, she thought it was but a coincidence. The portal just opened, and perhaps the demonic energy of the portal sohow affected Rosalind. It turns out she was wrong.
Even now that the portal was gone, Rosalind was different. She was no longer that woman that Dorothy knew before. As if on cue, Rosalind turned and looked at Dorothy. Then she gave Dorothy a smile.
For so reason, this made Dorothy shiver. She glared at Rosalind, then she turned her head away.
A part of her, the one inside her, was scared to even look at the woman! However, she was almost certain that Rosalind was not a demon. Did Rosalind absorb so demonic energy? That is impossible. Only the dark lord is capable of doing that. Even if the dark lord decided to teach his wife, not many humans are capable of doing that.
Even if they wanted to, they would not be able to use the demonic energy!
Right now, Dorothy could see Rosalind as a dark cloud looming a few feet away from her. She could only lower her head. The worst thing was the fact that she did not even know what she was dealing with.
"Your Grace, what do you an by the other empires? What does this have to do with them?" Martin Lux asked.
"Just like Aster, the other empires also experienced the sa phenona," Lucas uttered. "The continent is currently in chaos. I suggest that you take care of your people before you ask more questions. Summon the other families. In three days, I will be coming back to see everyone."
"Your grace—"
"Please… can you tell us anything else? Those creatures…." The Emperor asked. "I have read annals about demons and I—"
"They are demons that should not belong on this continent. The Annals that the seven families have been hiding should contain so materials about this matter," Lucas said.
"Your grace, what annals?" Martin frowned. "I don't—"
"You should know what I am talking about, your blessedness. Pretending would not do you any good."
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