Volume 2, Chapter 4: Superbia’s Arrogance, Part 2: They are the Worst

Volume 2, Chapter 4: Superbia’s Arrogance, Part 2: They are the Worst

Overrule.

It was the most famous power possessed by Pride Demons.

I think it’s pointless Skill. Something like that shouldn’t be necessary in the first place..

… If you’re truly Pride.

Because even if it didn’t appear to me as a Skill, I had already 『Overruled』 everything.

… Besides oneechan.

Before my eyes, Medea-san slowly toppled over. Within the swirls of the Demon Lords’ mana, the smallest present by far disappeared like the fleeting light of a lone candle.

Even for me, that sudden departure was outside my expectations, and I unintentionally opened my eyes wide to stare at Medea-san’s falling small stature.

A large hole had been opened right in the center of her body. It clearly showed that she had been pierced by something.

The hole itself was wide enough that if I looked through, I thought I might see the world beyond.

After meeting her for once in quite a while, Medea had become quite slackened. I wonder just what sake she was living for anymore. It was too much of a way of life for me to take up. In a way, it was worthy of admiration.

In that sense, I didn’t actually hate Medea-san all that much.

Even if, through her narrow escape it looked like Heard-san was going to kill me… well… Medea-san is… a pitiful Demon. Enough that just thinking about her existence was enough to elevate my power a little. Her being was able to contest for the first and second place of the most trifling Demons I had ever met, and even when her height exceeded mine ever-so-slightly, her chest was even more barren than me. There wasn’t even any comparison between her and oneechan.

That alone was enough for me to forgive everything.

And by forgiving it all, it also signified that I didn’t really give a damn, and that, to me, Medea-san was a genuine, tried and true, worthless existence.

But, even so, there’s always something that comes to mind the moment a Demon I was acquainted with was annihilated.

I let out a small voice so no one would here, as I muttered in a daze.

“Medea-san… how unsightly.”

Not even a dry laugh could escape my mouth. But at the same time, I felt that being dealt with before the conference started was quite suiting of Medea-san’s way of life. To fulfill her role to the death, we have quite a pro here.

… Though that would only be if she did it on purpose.

This is the land of death. Places where Demons gather draw death close to them. When that gets t Demon Lord Level, then that’s not even related to enemy or ally anymore.

Harming others came as simple to them as breathing. That’s why even I’m hiding myself behind Heard-san…

She didn’t get it at all. Even if she was a General class, her behavior full of openings made others want to test their powers on her. As a class even lower than her, I can only saugh scornfully at how ill prepared she was.

As I was simply staring at the scene from Heard-sans back, the sound of the clicking of a tongue entered my ear.

“Tsk…”

The Prideful Kaiser, Heard Lauder.

The Rank One Lord who had served the lone Demon Lord of Sloth lorded over the Demon Lord who remained collapsed over the table.

Before the Lord whose dislodged head had recovered itself at a moment’s notice, his Pride showed not the slightest of waver. His eyes, as if they looking upon garbage, were far different from mine, but they gave more than enough verification that he was Pride all the same.

I’ll bet there’s a bit of his complex towards the great and powerful Leigie-sama mixed into that.

And every time I see that, I think.

That way of life… isn’t it tiring?

A strong killing intent, as if those eyes alone were enough to bring all to ruin, lapped at the air of the conference room.

“Schitol, I believe I told you to stop.”

“? Stop what?”

Face up on the table, the female Demon answered.

The army Heard-san lead in Leigie-sama’s stead was said to boast the greatest fangs among all the Demon Lords.

With that sort of numerical power, the information did tend to gather around there, so I did have some recollection of the name Schitol.

Schitol Tzuchaser.

As a Demon of Avaritia, she held the moniker of the『Collector』. Her Rank was just one above Leigie-sama’s current position, and Leigie-sama aside, she held the least land among those of the Great Demon King’s army.

But that being the case, in what was supposed to be her first round table conference, she picked a fight with her senior Lord of Pride. I guess that’s what makes a Demon Lord.

Of course, it was our first meeting, but seeing her nerve to stand before Heard-san, whose honed magic might even surpass the Great Demon King Kanon-san’s, even if it may be pure recklessness out of ignorance, it was an act worthy of praise.

But that’s all there was to it. She must be all bark, and no bite.

I mean Schitol-san… her appearance is decent, I guess, but her breasts are puny.

Schitol-san leisurely rose.

Her expression seemed to show true confusion, and her black eyes, with the gloss of obsidian, were directed at Heard-san.

With no anger for the one who personally crushed her head, her face was like that of a lost child. The purity of her expression made it all the more repulsing.

I doubt that was really the case, but her face seemed to seriously be wondering why it was that she had received an attack.

But that’s all there was to it. She must be all talk.

I mean Schitol-san… her appearance isn’t bad, but her breasts are much too pitiful.

As her size was just around the level of Medea-san, her worth as a person must be that of a single Medea Luxeliaheart at most. No doubt about it. A useless existence to me.

No need to think about it. The moment we met, with the form her desires made her take on, I was Overruling Schitol-san.

Heard-san furrowed his brow. A proof of his displeasure.

Despite this and that, while the Demon Lord known as Heard Lauder was powerful in body, his mind wasn’t as resolute. He was a warrior. It’s likely that while Leigie-sama was asleep, he had spent his entire life on the battlefield. That devotion to his study that surpassed tens of thousands of years of experience definitely had an impact on his personality.

But his power was truly absurd. As Demon Lords, each and every one of them had a ridiculous amount of strength, but even among that, Heard-san was a cut above the rest.

He was a typical muscle head.

Since he abducted me without telling me anything under the pretense of training, I had always been watching that.

The word patience didn’t exist in his dictionary. For whatever the reason, he had been overly sullen as of late, and his boiling point was getting exceedingly low. His pure physical strength that was, for argument’s sake able to knock down a Lord of Sloth once, was, to Demon Lords that were no match in defense, definitely fatal.

But regardless of being crushed by Leigie-sama afterwards, his Pride didn’t seem to have taken the slightest tumble.

To Heard Lauder, even if she was a former subordinate, the Envy Demon Medea-san was likely nothing but trash.

But to the Lord of Superbia, that wasn’t enough of a reason for him not to eliminate the Demon Lord who didn’t listen to his orders.

His words were the words of Pride. The words of god.

Unable to find satisfaction unless me made any Demon he met prostrate themselves before him, from my point of view, he simply looked like a narrow-minded man worried over all the finer details, but while I couldn’t sympathize, I could understand.

As if to support the thoughts in my mind, without any warning, Heard-san’s figure blurred for a moment.

At about the same time, Medea-san’s body that had been left in the corner of my vision faded away as if it had been an illusion.

In the span of the blink of an eye, Schitol-san’s head and limbs ruptured, and a bright red mist erupted out of her body. All that was left, an obsidian Soul Core the same shade as her eyes let out a dry sound as it rolled desolately across the round table.

His means of attack lay only in his fists. But his incomprehensible attach strength and speed gave off a power much too barbaric to be called Pride. I couldn’t even follow the slightest of it with my eyes.

And those apart from me probably couldn’t follow it either. I saw the Demon Lord who picked up Schitol-san’s disembodied arms swallowing his spit.

He should have been a Demon Lord of Pride as well… now that he’s seen those fists in action, the probability of him ever surpassing Heard-san has become close to zero.

How unsightly. If your heart loses, then there can never be pride. There’s nothing but a slow destruction in store for him.

The old withered tree-like Lord sitting right across from Medea didn’t seem to pay any mind to the ghastly spectacle, nor did he mind the wreckage of Schitol-san showering down on him. With a fed-up tone, he muttered.

“… Phantom Aliquot Dance… That girl… so she was a Luxuria Demon. A living illusion… no wonder it ended so soon.”

“… Dammit Medea… when you’re the substitute for a Demon Lord, for you to send in a phantasm…”

Heard-san’s eyebrows were quite clearly stiff. It was as if his anger was clearly visible. How scary…

Demons Round was also a place for Demon Lords to demonstrate their power. As it is, Superbia already detested those who would taint their pride.

Especially when Medea-san was just a replacement.

Originally, that was Heard-san’s role… no, more than that, while she was attending in place of her own Lord Leigie-sama, for her to submit an illusion of all things, there should be a limit to tomfoolery.

I can do nothing but secretly praise her needlessly high amount of guts.

She really is just a precession of failures. She was ignored by Leigie-sama, beaten left and right by Heard-san, and even after surviving all of that, I could tell from a glance her new slovenly take on life. That girl must be a genius at tragedy.

“Kusu kusu kusu…”

And being thrown around like this by the Lords, how pitiful.

A laugh flows out of me. Just as its name might suggest, those of the Demon Lord Class were strong. If it was just in battle ability, then no matter how many of those of my level you grouped up, there’s no way we’d be able to oppose.

But in exchange for that, they were completely hopeless degenerates.

One of the seated Demon Lords sent his eyes over here.

The pressure I could feel just from that, enough to rock my soul, made my shrink back behind Heard-san.

My instincts informed me of the power gap that surpassed whatever enhancements I could gain with my Overrule Skill, however, it was likely something that, if I were given the time, I could close all too easily.

The only thing I was lacking in was time. Time for me to grow with the desires of my soul as fuel.

Heard-san made a slight gesture of peering over here, but he corrected his field of vision immediately.

Kusu kusu. Right, right. I’m just a weak little girl. If you hit me, I’m sure to die…

It appears that the situation was out of Kanon-sama’s expectations. She scowled a little as she stared at the position Medea-san had disappeared from, but she soon took a deep sigh.

“… Well, so be it. Lize, as his inspector, you will be informing the Lord of Sloth of this matter at a later date.”

“… Understood.”

Receiving the will of the Great Demon King, Leigie-sama’s observer Lize-san offered her affirmation. She wasn’t surrounded by a tense air, and she held an aura you could call grand as she stood upright behind the seat that had become vacant.

They had found common ground. Whatever the case, with Leigie-sama holed up in the Castle of Shadows, perhaps the safest place in the entire Demon World, a large majority of things were unrelated to him.

Continuing on, Kanon-sama’s blood-red pair of eyes glared into the table, as if to pierce a hole into it.

At the one who should have received enough damage to return her body to just its Soul core, the Collecting Demon Lord.

I was swallowing my spit behind Heard, but neither Heard-san nor Kanon-san showed and disarray in their attitudes.

As if it was all a complete natural occurrence, they looked at the Demon Lord who had been reconstructed whole at some point in time.

“Schitol Tzuchaser… Then next time you lay your hands on an allied soldier, I will dispose of you in the name of my Ruin. Know your place.”

“…? What place?”

Her conduct was as if nothing had happened at all.

Schitol-san’s sharp gaze didn’t seem to hold any care for the force that seemed to try to wither her away, as she returned to her seat.

The Pride Demon Lord who still had both his arms stolen tried to stand, but when Heard-san shot a look at him, he silently sat.

To regain control of the area, Kanon-san sent a silent glance around the table.

That burning pressure spread about to suppress the fighting spirit, the instincts, longings these Demon Lords had probed to their depths.

The Great Demon King position didn’t have the qualifications of wisdom or status, or charisma, or talent. It was a spot that came to be by pure power alone, and that display was plenty to demonstrate that fact.

Of the Demon Lords allied to the Great Demon King, there is said to be nineteen in all. But less than half of that number had gathered here.

As if that shameful sight hadn’t ever happened, Kanon-san offered her thanks to the Lords present.

That was the signal of the conference’s start. A weak Demon Lord had no worth. In that sense, even if she may have been an illusion, for her to have been killed before the start, Medea-san had done an insufficient job of filling the role of Leigie-sama’s representative.

“So we’ve all gathered… I thank you for making the journey here. Lords.”

“… Hm, so this is all that’s left. The numbers sure have dwindled.”

Heard-san’s head shook in lament.

The number of Demon Lords wasn’t something that fluctuated so easily.

The race known as Demons was one without a set lifespan, and they get stronger the longer they’ve lived. At Demon Lord Level, their survivability was overwhelmingly higher than other Demons.

“The two that the Devourer, Zebul, ate, and Zebul herself make up a loss of three. The other casualties were Angels. Hm… for them to be annihilated by something on the level of Angels… how deplorable.”

Heard-san sent around an intimidating glare to those present.

It was like he was offering to end them all before they faced defeat from such things.

Heard-san’s way of life was much too severe. I would never be able to imitate it, and I think it’s nothing but stupid.

So please don’t try dragging me into it. No, seriously.

“But we really have faced a considerable decline. It no one beyond Rank Ten is in attendance…”

The old man spoke.

His height wasn’t even half of Heard-san’s, and he was a Demon with a slim stature like a dead tree’s. His frailty made it look as if he would be sent flying with a breath of air.

But his glare held a viscous and sticky darkness.

The ranking system of the Great Demon King’s army wasn’t something based solely on strength.

While it was usually taken as an equivalent, the primary factor that influenced it was that Lord’s service to the army. That’s why compared to those below Rank Ten, the other Demon Lords simply lacked achievements.

They were young.

That doesn’t mean they had lived short lives, but that not too much time had passed since they became Demon Lords.

Fresh Meat.

Even so, it’s quite likely they had lived longer than me, and with that life, they were anniohilated by Angels. What a pointless life.

“Yes, this is Rank Eighteen here.”

“Yep~ Rank Eleven over here.”

“Ho ho ho, my apologies. It looks like not all of them have perished…”

Schitol-san raised her hand, and raised a high pitched, tension-less voice towards the empty seats.

Her lack of nervousness made me feel a little power seeping from my body.

“Hm… facing defeat at but a single Valkyrie, they’ve not the qualifications to be Demon Lords. They were fated to die a dog’s death eventually. There’s no need to pay it any mind.”

“Don’t be like that, Heard Lauder. This time’s enemy is… quite capable. The reason I’ve convened you all is also about that matter.”

On Heard-san’s words, Kanon-san let out a tired sigh.

The Great Demon King had an enemy too great to simply be called treacherous within her midst. Her anger scorched the heavens, and reduced the ground to ash. Always under such an extreme amount of stress, it was said to be only natural that she became the Great Demon King. As I thought, the Ranking system is nothing but garbage.

“Oh?”

Oh Kanon-san’s words, Heard-san’s eyes widened a little.

I noticed a faint fire burning in them.

The light of fighting spirit.

It was because Heard-san was Pride, that the stronger the enemy, the more likely he was to take the initiative.

It was in order to forge his own power, or so he called it, but I do believe that’s a little extreme.

It was likely because he lost to Leigie-sama. I was forgiven as a result, so that’s all fine and dandy, but that doesn’t change how troublesome it is.

Once more, in silence, Kanon-sama looked over all the gathered faces, and spat out words backed by emotions violent enough to make existences quiver.

“A few days ago, at the hands of the Valkyrie in question… Serge Serenade, the Seventh Rank was destroyed.”

“Seventh… Rank…”

It was the first death of a Demon Lord within the top ten.

Even when the death of a Demon Lord was a rare occurrence, it was even rarer for one of the higher ranks to perish.

On that note, the air in the conference room suddenly got heavier.

The old man opened his eyes wide, and scowled at Kanon-sama.

“Oh… Rank Seven… Ciel Afreide, was it? So the Haughty Youngun died…”

“… Hm, I see… it truly seems that she is sufficiently capable. Kanon, I shall approve of your anxiety.”

I’d never met her before, but apparently Heard-san knew her.

Even so, why does his arrogance act up so much whenever Kanon-san is concerned? I’ve not the slightest.

I don’t think there’s a single merit to come of picking a fight with her, you know…

Standing behind me, Heard-san’s one of Heard-san’s inspectors let out a long sigh, as if he had become accustomed to the man’s behavior.

The King in question has probably become accustom to dealing with his Pride as well. She ignored his dauntless wording, and moved on.

“Ciel Afreide was not a weak Lord. At the very least, no matter how many average Angels came at him at a time, he would never be at the risk of defeat.”

A Demon’s power was greatly chipped away in the Heavens where Angels lived.

But in exchange, our Demon Lords were transcendentally strong.

“And, what of it? Kanon-sama, all you’re saying is that a single Demon Lord has died, correct?”

With a bored expression, the balloon-like man sitting beside Kanon-san tried asking.

His swelled ball-like large torso was enough to surpass Heard-san’s height, and at a conspicuously high level, his sorry excuse for a head sent down a look with its white eyes, and colorless pupils.

“Just as you may have heard from your inspectors, on this occasion, where one within the top ten ranks has been killed off, we cannot simply let her violence reign free any longer. It will be a hindrance to my world domination.”

Kanon-san looked around again.

While she looked calm, the inside of the room was filled with a grilling heat, and even when she didn’t look directly at me, I could feel it.

… World domination, is it?

I think that’s just plain idiotic. For those out there, those fools out there, what point is there in gaining command of them?

If you’re going to do something like that, then… right, just skimming the top of the broth sounds best. Get everything under your control, find a way to scoop out nothing but the beautiful substance, and leave the rest of the meal to the wolves.

Kusu kusu…

“Ah~… with the Seventh Rank being killed… does that mean I’m next~?”

Rather than… sitting in a chair, a young lady floating right above it raised a hysteric voice.

I secretly frowned, as I committed her form to memory.

Appearance-wise, she was a slim girl that didn’t seem like much a Demon Lord at all. More than uncertain, her bearing was one where she swayed back and forth in the air.

Hers was an uncomposed voice I couldn’t think of as coming from a Demon.

But she was one I had to be wary of.

I mean, even with that slim figure, how does her chest grow to that size…

Her pale-blue robe-like dress, and deep blue sash were, if memory serves, the traditional clothing of a peculiar province… it did fit the lines of her body quite well, but only her breasts swelled unnaturally from it.

As expected of a Demon Lord…

“There won’t be a next. That’s why we’ve been gathered. Right?”

“Yes, that’s exactly right. Up to now, we let her run free, believing whoever died by her hand was fated to die off either way, but… now that Ciel has been slaughtered, we can no longer postpone the matter. We can’t leave the Angels looking down on us like this…”

A gathering of Demon Lords wasn’t anything that happened all too often.

While her calm composure wasn’t thinkable of one governing Wrath, in truth, in her body, the Great Demon King was seething in rage.

Kanon-san was severe. What’s more, she knew how to use that fact.

“We’ll strike first. Other than that Valkyrie… I’ve also read the report of the skies showing strange movements. Right, Vanity?”

“… Yep.”

A steel-like body apart from Heard’s, wrapped around a mountainous build of a man roared out.

Vanity Seidthroan.

Next to Heard-san, the second strongest Demon of Pride.

Why are all these Prides these shameless masses of muscle…. It’s quite wondrous. It isn’t beautiful in the slightest.

Of course, that metal body over there is also out of the question.

Out. Of. The Question!

“Attacks… came twice. The enemy was five Angels, and ten the next. Our casualties… roughly one hundred.”

With uninterested expressions, the surrounding Lords listened in.

The number of one hundred wasn’t anything great, but it definitely wasn’t small.

But it’s not that we assembled a force, but that one of our forces was assaulted, and faced annihilation. An exception.

Among these Lords who gave their all to pursugin their desires, I doubt there’s really anyone who understands the meaning of those words. All these Lords are idiots.

And Heard-san was the same as always. While he might have known, his lack of interest made his disposition even more ill-natured.

With his arms crossed, he lorded over Vanity-san with a grim expression.

“Hm, have you grown soft? Even if it may have been just a hundred, while you were there, for you to have failed to destroy a measly five Angels…”

“… No… my army’s… the strongest.”

Vanity-shot down the glare with a look that didn’t fall short at all in terms of malice. There was no hesitation in him.

The class of wills between two Demons of Pride caused the air to shake.

As if to blow that away, Kanon-san let out a deep sigh.

“Please don’t make this any more of a pain than it already is. Heard, Vanity… Vanity, I heard that the enemies were of Saint Lord Class, but is that true?”

“Saint Lord…”

That was heaven’s finest. If Demon Lord was a Demon’s highest rank, then that was what took its place in the Angel race.

And at the same time, they were a rare sight to find in the Demon World.

I’ve only ever heard of them, and never seen one for real. No, I doubt even a majority of Demon Lords have ever seen one.

But on the other hand, with the appearance of a Saint Lord, having only a mere one hundred casualties became strange.

They’re supposed to be much higher up there than that Serge something something Valkyrie … and with but a hundred casualties, the Lord was able to repel them? Is Vanity’s Legion strong?

I’ve always been going through bridal training in order to serve Leigie, so I’m none to knowledgeable in that field.

Vanity-san gave his solemn consent.

With just that, the other Demon Lords began to stir. It sems they had finally begun to understand the abnormality of the situation.

The ones that didn’t change were Vanity-san, Heard-san, and Kanon-san. Those three. Those were the only ones who had understood what was going on from the start.

The balloon man sitting beside Kanon-san flailed his arms about as he gave his opinion.

How unsightly. It’s unsightly, but… that man’s Rank Two. That means he was the former Rank One Demon Lord. This world must be at its end.

“So that means… there’s a need for us to divide into two groups. What are your thoughts on the matter, Kanon-sama?”

“Right…”

Kanon-san had likely already reached her conclusion.

No, she likely had done so far before we had gathered.

This was just a dispatch order under the guise of a conference.

“I have no intent to mobilize us all. We still have the duty of crushing the Demon Lords of other territories. Right… two. Two is more than enough.”

“The Angels… I’ll destroy them.”

With fiery sparkling silver eyes, Vanity-san’s gaze pierced through Kanon-san.

That wasn’t… Anger. But his voice like the rumbling of falling thunder definitely had some power behind it.

On that voice, Kanon-san grinned.

“Hu… so be it, Vanity. Swing about your powers as you please.”

“Then on Serge’s matter… I’ll step forth.”

Before another Demon Lord could open their mouth, Heard-san made a declaration.

He had a somewhat unpleasant expression on his face.

It seems both of them had wanted to take on the previous matter. I’m not sure if they were afraid of Heard-san, but Demon Lords had stopped coming to attack our lands altogether, as of late.

Even so, he decided to take the initiative, and go forth to crush his enemies one by one, but they were all too weak for him to feel any resistance, apparently.

The frustration from that is making my training more and more absurd, and I was just at my wit’s end.

It’s impossible, I tell you… to split a mountain with my bare hands…

But could it be that… I’m finally free? I want to return to Leigie-sama’s side already…

I’m actually quite busy. I’ve no time to follow along with Heard-san’s games.

Whether she understood his state or not, Kanon merely nodded once.

“Yes, Heard Lauder. If it’s you, you’d definitely be able to handle it. Her station has already come to light.”

“… You already know Serge’s location?”

“Yeah, a Demon of Envy witnessed a scene of her battle. She’s now but a caged bird to us.”

“Hm… let it be so. At best, she’ll make for a quick snack.”

It didn’t seem the other Lords had any opinions to share.

Of course. Those guys had no incentive. Orders were one thing, but they wouldn’t choose to do something like opposing Kanon-san or Heard-san of their own volition.

Or so I thought, but the ghost girl went right into her fifty cents.

“Hey~ Heard-san. I don’t really have a problem with you going for the Valkyrie or anything, but… if she attacks me, I can kill her, right?”

“Hm… I mind it not, Rank Six. If she had the power to bring ruin to Rank Seven, I can understand your sentiment of wanting to fight her.”

Well I don’t get it at all.

“… No, no, no, no, I just hate it when people like that get in my way, you know~?”

And the ghost girl didn’t seem to get it either.

As if to say the conversation was unexpected, she crossed her arms. She needlessly emphasized her needlessly bulging chest.

How sly… as I thought, this woman is formidable.

“Are those Angels made of nice parts?”

“No clue.”

On the other side, Schitol-san was, of all things, conversing with the Demon Lord whose arms she had stolen about some pointless topic, only to receive a flat out refusal.

How shameless… she really is the worst.

And what’s with this lack of tension discussing out arch nemesis?

Well… just do whatever you want. The ones who’ll pay for your unsightly display here is you guys after all…

In my eyes, I could clearly see the form of these Lords facing destruction at their oen negligence. You reap what you sow.

Kusu kusu…

How unsightly. They’re taking everything in jest. Even if they may call themselves the rulers of Demon-kind, those gathered here are nothing but an extension of those third rate Demons scattered all over the place.

I can’t… even take them into consideration. The one I want to prove myself to is one man alone. Only Leigie-sama. That is the starting point. If I don’t get anywhere with that, my life won’t find its beginning.

For a while, the surroundings were astir, and when a moment of silence finally came about, Vanity spoke up, as if he had just remembered something.

“… Ah, come to think of it… that Devourer… survived, you know?”

The thunderous voice clearly reached my ears.

The hustle and bustle that had been resounding through the room, as if taken by the tide, died down in an instant.

His voice was one thing, but his tone was one where he seemed to be giving a trifling report over something that didn’t matter all too much.

But I did see it by chance.

Standing to the back right of Heard-san, I was in a place where I could pick it up.

That’s why, I may have been the only one to notice it.

For a moment, just a slight moment, Vanity’s eyes were colored in an eerie light.