Part Two, Section Three: “The World of Asmodeus”
Chapter Seventy-three
Chased by heavy thudding footsteps, we proceed straight down the corridor of the castle. Other than the densely lined dolls, the hallway was sparse and simply constructed, giving it a lonely feel.
“Looks like we’ve found the right place.”
“I wonder if Lord Asmodeus was really trying to hide something here.”
After several minutes of playing tag, we arrived in front of a seemingly formidable and thick door. It gleamed black and appeared to be sturdy. This certainly looked like something important was hidden behind it. Moreover, I strongly sense the presence of people with magic power beyond it. Perhaps, there might be victims of the mysterious disappearances held captive within.
If it was really valuable, one would usually hide it in a less noticeable place, but given the total lack of security like guards at the castle entrance, maybe devils handle such matters differently.
“I’d like to go inside, but I don’t see a key anywhere. Well, of course…”
“Mammon, destroy it.”
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this. But alright, I’ll give it a shot. Dark Matter Cannon…!”
When Mammon released a black mass at the door, another deafening explosion occurred, making me want to cover my ears. But the door remained completely undamaged without a single scratch. It was quite a sturdy door. Even my magic would have trouble destroying it.
“I guess it was impossible after all.”
“Hey, hey, hey! Sister Philia! Don’t tell me you had no expectations from the start!?”
“Yes. My apologies, but I predicted the chances of success were low.”
“The more politely you say it, the more it pisses me off compared to Sister Elsa.”
I felt bad for Mammon, but judging by the door’s appearance, I deduced it was made of the same mineral as the golem. In other words, since Mammon’s magic had no effect on the golem, I figured it would also be futile against this door.
“What now? The golem will arrive soon. Should we search for the key?”
“That’s our only option now. Lord Asmodeus must’ve noticed us, so we gotta hurry.”
The heavy footsteps grew closer and closer, shaking the hallway. The golem would be here shortly. Fortunately, it was slow, so escaping was easy. However, taking too much time might attract Asmodeus.
“Let’s destroy the door. That will be faster.”
“Well, sure, but you saw my magic didn’t even scratch it right, Sister Philia? Or do you have some amazing spell up your sleeve?”
“If that was the case, she’d have just destroyed the golem herself. But, indeed, it’s becoming less and less surprising what Great Saint can do.”
Rather than search for a key with an unknown location, I opted to destroy the door. Finding the key in a short time was unrealistic. There were some risks, but forcing the door open would be quicker.
“I’d like everyone’s cooperation for this…”
I explained to Elsa and Mammon how to break the door. It was like crossing a dangerous bridge; I didn’t have absolute confidence in the safety of this method. In my mind, I estimated around an 80% chance of success.
“Sounds interesting.”
“Anyway, there’s no other option.”
Once I had their understanding of the plan, the three of us faced the door with the golem at our backs.
Seeing it up close, its massive body really was intimidating.
I hope everything goes smoothly…
“Inttudeerr, kiill!”
The golem raised its fist, attempting to strike us. So far, everything was going according to plan. I had anticipated its straightforward movements since it only followed simple commands. We lured it in, narrowly evading the golem’s fist.
The fist struck the door directly… and the thick door Mammon’s magic couldn’t even dent was smashed, granting us entry into the room.
“The golem had a body of the same hard mineral, so I thought utilizing its mass to slam the door would likely shatter it.”
“So the game of tag wasn’t a waste after all.”
Past the thick door were numerous cages held women with magic powers. As expected, the victims of the mysterious disappearances were held captive here. There were around a hundred of them, much more than the reports suggested. This implied that people from beyond the continent might have also been taken in significant numbers.
“What is that coffin? It has an odd aura about it.”
One thing that caught my attention was the aura I sensed from within the coffin at the room’s center. It was not magi power, but it gave me an inexplicable feeling of tightness in my chest.
“Nothing seems particularly strange to me.”
“Rather than worry about that, let’s hurry and unlock the cages. The key is right there, carelessly hanging.”
I see. If neither Elsa nor Mammon felt anything, it seemed like it was just my imagination. Anyway, Elsa was right; the first thing to do was to free the captured women.
“Inttudeerr, kiill, kiill!”
“Oh, be quiet! If that door debris are made of the same mineral—!”
As the golem entered the room and started thrashing about, Elsa used her power to float the door fragments and pelted the golem with them at high speed. I thought Asmodeus would have given order to the golem not to enter this place to avoid damaging anything precious he might have here, but it seemed I was too optimistic.
“Pigaaa!”
Fragments of the same hardness pierced through the joints of the golem’s arms and legs one after another, rendering it immobile. Despite being a life form that didn’t feel pain, the golem seemed to be overwhelmed by this.
“Please help us!”
“Somebody! Please!”
“We’re saved…!”
I, holding the key, tried to insert it into a cage lock. The captured people’s expressions filled with relief.
However…
“For you to come all the way here yourself, that saves me the trouble. How convenient.”
““…!?””
Asmodeus appeared with a wicked grin. After the commotion we caused, I’d abandoned the idea of ambush, but to think he approached without any of us noticing at all… Elsa and Mammon also seemed shocked that Asmodeus got so close without them realizing.
Even so, we must find an opening here and settle this. I steeled my resolve to fight this overwhelmingly powerful foe…
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