The Angelic Trio

The Demon King lightly chuckled and asserted, "Don't make me laugh. What have they sent, a brat and three mid-level warriors, and they think they can threaten me in my very own domain?!?"

His voice began to get heavier as, for the first time since Ty's arrival, he stood up from his throne and growled, "You think that I will care if you catch some second-rate Vampire who breaks a contract? Take another step in my domain, and I'll have your bodies hanging at my domain's entrance as an example."

His voice boomed throughout the room, shaking the walls and causing the lights to flicker, shudder, and vibrate into an eerie red.

Ty was shocked as this was the first time since he saw the Demon King's hatred for these people.

Unwavered, the man who stood to the right of Kieran pushed her aside in a shoving manner and unsheathed his 7-foot-long Claymore that hung on his back as he declared, "I am no mid-level warrior! I am the 3rd Division Vice Captain Valerian Blackwell!"

Without giving the Demon King a chance to respond, he continued as his long black hair flowed down his shoulders as he proclaimed, "You are in direct violation of the code for trespassing in the Mortal Realm!"

The Demon King scoffed, "Oh please, some trash vampire collects some damned souls for punishment, and you come barging through my door? Please don't make me laugh and slaughter all of you right now! Tell me what you're really here for, and stop wasting my time, " he demanded.

Anger slowly rose in Valerian's mind, even after standing at 7'1", he had no way to intimidate the Demon King. However, before he could respond, a strong wind kicked up behind him. The oldest-looking member of their group, with a scar running down his face, pushed Valerian out of the way.

Then, in a soft tone, the elderly stated, "You will have to forgive my little brother, Demon King. He can be a bit prideful about his work, even if he's rather messy."

After saying that, he introduced himself, "My name is Aurelius Blackwell, and I reside as Captain of the 7th Division of the Angelic Kingdom. And you are indeed correct; your collection of the damned souls for whatever torture those filthy creatures do is of little concern to us."

He then slowly started walking towards the center of the Demon King's chambers and pushed up his glasses as the green tapestry along his waist continued to waver with his movement. He then placed a hand on the hilt of his blade which was wrapped in purple-black leather.

"Mr. Demon King, you know very well why we are here. Your lackey Mercenary stole more than just some damned souls meant for the labyrinths. However, those 20 other souls are nothing to us and not worth our time. We're here for the Platinum soul Lady Kieran witnessed as your mercenary murdered an innocent mortal."

"So let's cut all the formalities, you have to simply hand over the souls that you've been keeping as a prisoner and then we will be on our way."

The Demon King, fully standing, opened the palm of his right hand, creating a giant portal that stood to his height before he walked through it and lowered his height down to 7'5".

The Demon King was dressed in a black robe with red patterns jetting along the edges, he summoned a short, blank piece of paper that was marked with only a straight red ink at the center of the sheet.

He then declared, his voice was as loud and expansive as ever, "This is more appropriate than talking to some rats. I'd rather not strain myself looking down at the shit stains in my realm much longer."

"I hold no captors," the Demon King then continued. "He is free to leave whenever he desires to. The only thing I was doing was offering him a contract so that he could get back to the Mortal Realm and have his life back. What he does and wants is solely up to him."

The Demon King took a moment of pause, raising his hand in the air and started to pull Ty towards him and the soul floated above his hand.

"You have heard what I said earlier about them and know my thoughts. But in the end, it's your life and you can do whatever you want with it. You know where I stand."

Beneath Ty's surface, anger simmered as he processed the revelations from the Angelic warriors. Their cold, calculated approach for protecting the realms left a bitter taste in his mouth, making him couldn't help but feel a surge of frustration, and he wanted answers.

"Why didn't you call for a backup? Were you afraid that you didn't have enough time?" Ty's voice crackled with indignation as he directed his questions at Kieran.

Aurelius, who was standing beside her, couldn't hide his exasperation. "I have to apologize for her. She's under my division, but since she's just a low B rank and has no business trying to fight a vampire in her state."

Ty, however, was relentless and persisted, "That's not what I asked. If she knew that she had no chance of winning, then why didn't she call for backup? Is it true that any of you could have shown up right away if she were to call for help?"

Kieran remained silent, her head lowered in a mix of shame and frustration. It was Caelum, the third member of the trio, who stepped forward to address Ty's questions. Standing tall at 6'3", he had a commanding presence, and his dark blue hair contrasted sharply with his silver earrings.

"That's correct," Caelum replied calmly and continued, "She could have called for backup, at any moment. However, it was I who strictly forbade her from doing so. She will never be able to get stronger if she continues to rely on others to help her in the midst of battle. And being from the Angelic race, she should never be losing to lower life forms like a pathetic vampire."

Erebos, still wrapped in chains, couldn't help but interject with a jesting tone after being called like that, "I'm still here, you know."

Ignoring the interjection, Caelum continued, "It's our job to protect the mortal realm and all realms from any threats. However, the number of members we have isn't infinite, and if a couple of people die for us to get stronger, then it's the necessary and right step that has to be taken. I, Caelum Blackwell, as the 12th Division Vice Captain, oversee newer souls adapting and becoming warriors for the King."

As Ty absorbed all the information, he found it difficult to contain his growing anger. His very own death was the result of their pursuit of power. Unable to shake the realization that hit him with a great shock and while he hadn't given it a good moment to even think about what this meant, the only thing that came to his thought was to go back to his world.

"I-I Don't care about any of that; I just want to go back to my life and be with Jade again!"

I can just wake back up with this all being nothing but a faint fever dream! Ty's soul cried out, trying to grasp at any option. 

Valerian, making his presence known again, stated while drawing his blade and summoning a dark orange energy hue, "You are never going back to the Mortal Realm. You will come with us to the Celestial Realm, where your soul will be put into the Celestial Pool. And if you are lucky enough, you will have the chance of serving the kingdom and impacting internal peace in the universe," as if what he was doing was the most righteous thing one could do. 

He then proclaimed, "This conversation is pointless, and I refuse to discuss anything with a husk of a soul whose opinions and thoughts don't matter." 

"I will not be going with any of you," Ty screamed out at Valerian's self-righteous proclamations while there was nothing that the guy had to lose, but it was him who would pay for their so-called IMPACTING INTERNAL PEACE. 

Meanwhile, not wanting to give Ty the time to think, Valerian dashed toward his soul, aiming to capture him quickly.