As they walked through the city of Uradesh, Valorth easily noticed that the streets were much more crowded than he had ever seen them before.
The reason for this was evident wherever you went. Political activists were posted on the street corners, standing atop whatever objects they could to raise their heights as they spread claims of the crumbling empire of which they were a part.
"Emperor Haide the Second was already a failure of a ruler!" a young man in a brown suit preached to a crowd of at least a fifty. "He demanded further taxes to strengthen the Black Battalion, and yet I hear that even Commander Thomaes was unable to rid our own patron angel from our palace."
The crowd grunted in approval of the man's words, which only made his shout louder.
"If the last Emperor was inadequate, then what do you think Prince Haide the Third could possibly do for us? The fucking coward!"
The cheers grew louder; however, some members of the crowd fled the scene in fear. The words of the political activist were now teetering on the edge of treason, or worse, blasphemy. As Valorth and Adion walked past the scene, they kept their eyes to themselves.
"Why have the City Defenders not done anything to put a stop to the activists?" Valorth muttered curiously.
"Because they're too busy aiding the White Hand. Right now, Prince Haide is putting more effort into preventing demonic presences from entering the empire. After that's safe, I'm sure he will bring a steel fist down onto the rebels," Adion responded.
My predictions were right. With the descent of our patron angel, more have turned away from their faiths and decided to contact the spirits in hell.
Valorth shivered as the pair stepped into a chariot and asked the driver to take them to Redchapel. The old man at the front of the carriage looked back at them with sweat trickling down his forehead.
"IâI can only take you to the neighbouring street," he said with a stutter as he kicked his horse into motion. "I'm sure you can understand."
They both accepted this, as it was a common occurrence. After all, Redchapel was a small area in Uradesh known for its high rates of demonic sightings. However, due to its incredibly impoverished state, the empire had long since neglected the area, only stationing White Hand knights around the outskirts in order to prevent dangers from spreading into the rest of the city.
Those inside Redchapel were often forced to fend for themselves, which was exactly why Adion had decided to take them there. As they arrived at one of the nearby streets that led to the Redchapel District, Valorth and Adion exited the cart to an eerie quiet. Ahead, a group of White Hands clad in their white suits were stationed by what seemed to be a random spot of the pavement. However, Valorth could easily tell that past that point, the city took on a depressing air.
Where buildings were once two-storied and modern in their designs and decorations, the buildings past this point seemed ancient. They stretched higher into the skies and were box-shaped and designed to house many people at once.
The smog of the distant factories seemed to cling to the air more strongly past this point, and the few civilians that still roamed the streets were dressed in dull, baggy clothing rather than the more fashionable suits and dresses of the rest of the city.
"It's like a completely different city," Valorth pointed out as the pair started to head down the roads. As they passed the two members of the White Hand, the men looked at them and drew the symbol of the sword on their chests, wishing them good luck.
"Maybe after the problem of the angels has been sorted, Prince Haide can finally make something of this place," he continued.
Adion flashed his friend a glance and plastered a wide smile on his face. "Until then, they've got us to help them."
Adion's plan had been simple, yet dangerous. With the rise in demonic sightings throughout the city, he wished to head to one of the most dangerous locations in Uradesh and act as their own private force of protectors.
With kitchen knives brought from the tavern they were staying at and now tucked into their old servant suit pockets, they planned to seek out danger in hopes of progressing through battle.
At first, Valorth was hesitant and expressed this to his friend. He only agreed after Adion had accepted that Valorth would be the one deciding which battles would be worth or not worth fighting, assuming they encountered any.
With his hands resting on the knife in his pocket, the pair walked through the district of Redchapel. Despite being a very dangerous location, Redchapel residents were still required to make a living for themselves, which meant that there were still a few stores, taverns and service places spread throughout. The workers inside carried a winter's gloom to them, despite the sun shining above.
---
It took only ten minutes for Valorth to notice a strange presence tugging at their senses. It was faint and seemed to come from far away, but having experienced such a sensation before, Valorth knew exactly what it was.
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"Can you feel that?" Adion asked, struggling to keep the nerves from his voice. He tried to hide it with a smile.
Valorth nodded his head and tightened his grip around the knife. "I can. It's a demonic spirit without a doubt, but it seems to be far away."
"..."
He looked over at Adion, who simply stared at him as though waiting.
Ah, he's waiting for me to make a decision.
After a few more moments of thought, Valorth nodded his head firmly and continued to stride down the street towards the growing dark presence.
...
He tried to keep himself together during his strides; however, he struggled the closer he got towards it. Every civilian that he passed, he glanced an eye towards, wondering if they were its source or could feel it themselves. But besides the gloom of Redchapel, none of them seemed to hold any suspicion.
Then, they finally came to a block of apartments that seemed to have the presence of demons bursting from its stones. It looked like every other building on the street: cracked and grey, with curtains drawn at every window, yet Valorth was certain that whatever was in there was a threat to those around him.
Valorth gulped loudly.
"It's in there, isn't it?" Adion asked, his hand now resting inside his own pocket. "The demon."
"I believe so. Are you prepared?"
"About as prepared as I can be," Adion said, drawing the sword symbol on his chest mockingly. "I've already made a promise to myself that we'll both leave here alive. Fate is with us!"
Valorth nodded his head again. "Good. Once inside, I'll make sure to activate my abilities too. The presence of a demon is strong, but it doesn't feel like anything more than what I've felt before," he said truthfully.
Otherwise, I would've abandoned this mission long ago.
Without wasting any more time, the pair went to open the door into the apartment. But before they entered the hallways, a voice stopped them from a passing lady with black bags under her eyes, wearing a torn dress.
"Be careful in there. I've heard that's where a madman lives," she said before walking away.
Valorth and Adion paused and shared with each other a glance.
What are we getting ourselves into?
---
The corridors of the apartment were darkened, and there were no signs of any human life on either the first or second floors. However, the further the pair climbed up the dimly lit stairs, the stronger the presence of a demon became. They passed three different rooms with quiet steps and their knives drawn before finally coming to a blue door with the number 65 etched onto its wood.
Valorth glanced over at the crouching Adion. "This is it," he whispered.
Adion looked back at him and nodded. "Nice, but what in the heavens do we do next?"
A few moments of uncertainty passed as Valorth pressed his ear to the door and listened. No sounds could be heard coming from the door, despite the feeling of unease.
Creak...
Against his gentle weight, the door suddenly creaked open, and the sound echoed throughout the hallway. Valorth and Adion took a step back, fearful of what might leap from the door, but instead they were met with the dark interior of the apartment house.
Both of their hearts were racing, though Valorth's was of course much faster. He glanced over at Adion, who looked back at him before both nodding their heads. They knew not what demon lurked inside, but now up close, Valorth was certain that it was still no stronger than the Priest he had fought the night before.
Valorth crept inside first, hearing another creak coming from the floorboards beneath him. The interior of the house was small and modest, lacking in furniture and decor. At the end of the corridor was a door slightly opened. There was where they found the source of the demonic presence.
On the bed lay a man, if he could even still be called that. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be sleeping peacefully, but a man with such a body surely could never know peace. His body was a twisted mockery of the human form. The flesh of his body had swollen to the point where his clothing had torn from his body. His muscular legs were twisted backwards like some sort of creature, and its arms had become short and stubby.
The man's jaw had stretched to insane proportions, now looking like the mouth of some sort of reptile. Its bloodshot eyes shot open wide, threatening to fall from their sockets. At the left side of the man's chest was a heart protruding from its bulging chest, with a singular vein running through it.
The left side. It was a man fully corrupted.
Valorth heard Adion retch beside him as he vomited his breakfast onto the floor. The sound was enough to wake the demon.
As its eyes squelched open, Valorth suddenly felt an immense wave of demonic presence wash over him. A strength incomparable to that which he had experienced before. It seemed that due to its resting state, the demon had appeared weaker than it truly was, only now revealing its strength!
Valorth didn't even allow the demon to move before lunging forwards with his knife and thrusting downwards with all his strength. The knife pierced into the neck of the demon, forcing it to let out a screech that shook the air around them.
Before he could pull the knife free, a dark energy seeped from the demon's wound like a tide of waves and crashed into Valorth's being, sending him tumbling backwards into a nearby table stand.
Adion, who seemed frozen, managed to stand his ground. However, his hands shook from the sight of such a beast. It was the first time he had come face to face with a demon, and his body didn't know how to react.
The grotesque demon jumped to its feet towards Adion and opened its giant jaws. A sick stench rolled from its tongue as spittle flew to the ground. It aimed its sharp teeth towards Adion, who was still in a state of fear.
Valorth had to act fast.
Placing his fingers into his mouth and folding his tongue, he blew loudly, producing a whistle that caught the demon's attention. Its eye snapped toward him, and at the same time, the sound of glass shattering echoed throughout the room. Valorth's eyes turned golden as they locked with the demon's. That was when an invisible force seemed to crash into it, sending the demon into a state of immense pain as it was forced to relive its worst memory.
The power had drained Valorth completely, but he still managed to shout at Adion, who still held the knife in his hand.
"Snap out of it and use your weapon!" Valorth shouted. The words seemed to have an effect on his friend.
With a two-handed grip, Adion stumbled forwards and thrust the knife into the demon's eye, sending more blood splattering around the room. The demon let out another scream as it tried to reach its hands up to its eyes, only to find that its arms were too short to do so.
Instead, with its remaining good eye, it glared down at Adion's face, only to find that the young man was still shaking with fear. Valorth cursed beneath his breath. The demon could clearly tell that Adion was much more fearful than he should be.
Taking the opportunity, the demon opened its mouth once more, preparing to clamp down on Adion's head. Before it could, the red-haired man entire demeanour seemed to change. A smile spread across his face and, at the same time, his body seemed to grow ever so slightly, and a faint black fog began to seep from his body.
The fear that had filled Adion's body before seemed to have been washed away.