NOVPUBPerlman once again rested the staff against his back and instructed Nigel.
"Nigel..."
Aitio had been praying that Nigel would help her.
As a Seventh-order warrior of the Demon Race, Nigel possessed formidable physical prowess. If he was willing to help her, he could take a position at the forefront, no matter what, and coordinate with her in combat.
But upon careful consideration of Nigel’s state of mind, she realized that his heart was also filled with uncontrollable anger and even overwhelming confusion.
Aitio felt hopeless.
The synchronized images from District 10 of Purgatory and the banquet hall’s crystal screen continued unabated.
The Curse Spreader in the research lab gently caressed the Magic Guide Book with his slender, distinctly knuckled fingers. He kept turning the pages, which glowed a dark red hue, as he quietly chanted the flashing spells written in ancient Demon Race Script.
Until this moment, the ritual had finally been completed.
The invisible power burst forth from the book like a rising black fog, as if thousands of wailing Undead were shrieking in one’s ears.
...
Meanwhile.
It was nearing four o’clock.
In the midst of a torrential downpour, the night in Floral City Pariel was darker than usual.
From the Countess Rosalinda’s mansion in Pariel District 2 of Asturias.
Countess Rosalinda, wearing a dressing gown, looked out the floor-to-ceiling window, feeling that something was amiss.
A chilling breath was spreading throughout the city.
"The fog is so heavy tonight."
The rain was fierce, as if determined to dissolve all living things into the pitch-black night.
Although a storm warning had been issued, communication on the South Bank seemed to have temporarily failed.
She tried to contact Marquis Rhys of The Senate, but to no avail.
Looking into the distance, the Selina River’s surface was turbulent under the pounding rain, boiling over.
The buildings standing along the riverbank disappeared into the curtain of rain, leaving only blurred silhouettes, becoming mirages of a rainy night.
Unlike North Shore.
The sky above South Bank of Floral City Pariel was covered with dark, heavy clouds, gathering as if summoned, blocking out the last traces of silvery moonlight.
Fierce winds roared through with thunderous bellows, rain poured down in torrents, pummeling the deserted cobblestone streets.
The sky was torn by ominous blood-red lightning, streak after streak of light illuminating half the horizon, casting the dripping crucifix atop the spire of Pariel’s cathedral in a bloody hue.
Thunderclaps deafening, the earth trembled, as cracks spread across brick and tile buildings like giant spiderwebs.
The next second, countless humanoid shadows burst from the buildings of the city, their forms twisted and grotesque, half-human-half-beast. They let out pitiful howls mixed with cackling laughter, their blood-red eyes pulsating with a lust for blood and madness.
These berserk Demon Race beings lost to the Curse rampaged through the rain, smashing the glass showcases of shops along the streets, breaking into homes, dragging terrified children from their beds, and devouring them amidst their screams.
They slashed with their claws at the men, women, and children frantically trying to escape, blood spattering in the rain, pooling into a stench-filled river of blood.
Their screams were piercing, echoing through the thunder.
Fires raged amidst the lightning and thunder, smoke billowing up against the storm, as the entire sky was enveloped in a strange orange glow, slowly spreading across the river to North Shore.
The once-thriving Crystal Orchid Street turned into a hell on earth in an instant. Amongst the ruins, berserk demons danced madly amidst heaps of corpses, battling with the police and Knights.
"The native demons of the North and South Continent are truly foolish, to think they could coexist with humans..."
The mastermind behind all this, holding the Magic Device, strolled leisurely through the ruins and corpses, humming a tune to himself.
He was headed for The Senate.
The city’s Barrier, though straining under the mass outbreak of berserk demons in the district, was beginning to overload.
Even if he wanted to intervene now, he wouldn’t have to worry too much about the attack and suppression effects of the large-scale city defense installations.
Tonight.
Floral City would fall into eternal darkness, never to see dawn again.
...
In District 10 of Poson, at Lord Perlman’s Mansion Banquet Hall.
Aitio looked at the screen, her heart burning with urgency, but just resisting Perlman’s telepathy put her under immense pressure.
She knew what his goal was.
If he could steal the Secret Key of the city’s defense hub from the three Dukes’ mansions and bring them to the central defense hub in District 1 of South Bank, he would be able to shut down the Barrier!
At that point, no one would be able to withstand Perlman and the mysterious, evil Demon disguised as Isatia.
Even though each of the three Dukes had a Seventh-order guardian, the city defense Barrier was now overloaded. That demon from South Bank seemed very strong, and breaking through the guardians’ line of defense to steal the Secret Keys would not be difficult.
Worse yet, Duke Tiffany’s guardian, Nigel, was not even present.
Nigel might even defect.
"Aitio, if you are willing to join us, I promise not to harm Hugh, and when Isatia returns, we will directly hand over the throne to her. I believe that with you, we can work and live together with her. But if you insist on being my enemy, then I’m afraid I’ll have to say goodbye to you today."
Perlman said, looking at Aitio.
"Perlman..."
Aitio knew Perlman’s words were highly seductive; he knew her too well and targeted her potential weaknesses.
But if she truly agreed to Perlman, it would be no different than betraying her sister Isatia!
Just as Aitio braced for the worst-case scenario, prepared for a life-and-death struggle with Perlman.
