(This has to be a joke! What in the world are those monsters?!)
Ramiel was running for her life through a city that had transformed into a living hell.
As expected, the demon race had attacked. That much had fallen within her predictions, but several massive—and potentially fatal—miscalculations had unraveled everything else.
First and foremost, the demons invading the city were far stronger and far more grotesque than she had ever imagined.
They captured the city's monsters and tore into them, devouring them alive one after another. Demons possessed no natural instinct to consume other species. Whatever these creatures were, they had to be something entirely different.
Sensing multiple presences closing in from behind, she looked up just as another demon plummeted toward her from a nearby rooftop.
"Damn it!"
She swung the longsword gripped in her left hand, cleaving the demon horizontally through the neck. An instant later, a smaller demon pounced from her blind spot.
(Already?!)
Spinning on her heel, she brought her blade down with everything she had.
The creature split cleanly down the center, but from behind its collapsing halves, another demon lunged forward with a spear.
"Mere low-class vermin... Do not take me lightly!"
Parrying the spear with her left hand, she lunged forward, severing its head as they crossed paths.
It was absurd. Every single one of these demons possessed strength easily on par with a holy knight of the Ares Army.
Individually, they posed little threat to someone of Ramiel's caliber. But that held true only in a one-on-one fight. Swarming in such overwhelming numbers, they inevitably forced her onto the back foot.
(Is this what Tetor meant when he told me to get out?!)
That brought her to the second miscalculation. Her Cloak of Invisibility had no effect whatsoever against these unnaturally powerful demons; they spotted her the instant she crossed their paths. Worse yet, no matter how many times she tried to activate her Ring of Return, the artifact remained completely unresponsive.
(Neutralizing divine power? There's no way ordinary demons could ever pull that off!)
There was no longer any room for doubt. That grotesque fly monster was present in this city. In all likelihood, these demons had been warped through special modifications granted by that very Fly God.
To elevate mere winged pests to the level of Ares Army holy knights... This had spiraled far beyond the scope of any solo reconnaissance mission.
Regardless, escaping this nightmare took absolute priority.
The city gates were finally within arm's reach.
(I made it! Once I clear that wall, I'm home free!)
If her instincts were correct, the failure of her teleportation was due to a specialized barrier encompassing the city. The moment she broke past its perimeter, she should have no trouble returning to Ares Palace.
Those hopes were instantly shattered when a spherical object slammed into the ground right before her.
It bounced several times across the pavement before arms, legs, and a head suddenly sprouted from its round torso. Humming a bizarre, tuneless melody, the creature broke into a sickening, writhing dance.
"Ain't no runnin' away, ya know? Total waste of breath~♪ No need to worry, though! Your final stop's already set~♬ The prime picks go straight to the ritual pyre~♪ And all the scrap not fit for the altar ends up in our bellies, entire~♩ That's just the thrifty way of our Demon King Army~♪"
The instant the dance stopped, the dharma-shaped demon materialized directly in front of her.
"—?!"
Swallowing her scream, she arched backward to dodge, but a violent shockwave slammed into her midsection.
Through her fading consciousness, she watched the spherical demon rumble toward her, shaking the earth with every step.
That thing was an aberration. It could no longer even be considered a demon. She knew with absolute certainty that falling into its grasp meant a fate far worse than death. The sheer terror of that realization made the blood run cold in her veins.
"Help..."
She desperately tried to cry out, but the only thing that spilled past her lips was a mouthful of blood.
(I should have listened to him...)
Consumed by overwhelming terror and regret...
(Forgive me... Lord Ares...)
With a final, silent apology to her master, Ramiel's consciousness snapped into darkness.