Chapter 49

Astaroth swung his sword down onto Azarius's neck, severing his head from his body. Azarius let out a guttural gasp as his ethereal form trembled, transforming into a swirling cloud of dust. The demon king had shown no mercy to his enemies, as Azarius should have anticipated, for surrender was never an option in any battle the demon king had waged. As Azarius's severed head tumbled towards the floor, Astaroth swiftly caught it, lifting it and addressing it with a sinister smile.

"What say you now, Azarius?" Astaroth taunted, his voice echoing through the chamber. "Do you know why I have not destroyed you yet? You may think that your feeble powers would allow you to attack me, but the thousand years you have lived have only given you a false sense of confidence."

Astaroth's laughter reverberated, sending shivers down the spine. In that chilling moment, the room grew colder, as if the very essence of darkness seeped through the walls. Shadows danced and writhed, their eerie presence magnified. "Now, Azarius, you shall tell me who sent you to attack me and why. Know this, I am the master of this realm, and your deceitful lies shall not sway me."

Azarius, trembling under Astaroth's menacing gaze, fought to gather his waning strength. He had underestimated the ancient demon's power, and now he stood on the precipice of his demise. "Master... there is something here... that is... beyond... The..." Suddenly, in a final act of defiance, Azarius unleashed a surge of energy. Light burst forth, dispelling the shadows and engulfing Astaroth in blinding radiance. The demon's furious roars filled the air, his malevolent power waning against the ancient magic invoked by Azarius.

As the blinding radiance subsided, the once-imposing form of Astaroth stood weakened, his demonic aura flickering. Azarius, his body battered and broken, mustered a grim smile amidst the pain. He had managed to injure the indomitable demon, a feat that few had ever accomplished. But his victory was short-lived, for Astaroth's wicked grin slowly formed on his face.

The severed pieces of Azarius' head lay scattered on the floor, a grim testament to the ferocity of the battle. The demon king had not anticipated that Azarius would possess such a powerful spell, capable of inflicting damage upon him. Astaroth's laughter echoed through the chamber, resonating with a sinister delight. "That hurts quite a bit, Azarius," he sneered, his voice dripping with malice. "But it is not enough to kill me, and you never learn, do you? By perishing in my realm, your soul shall be ensnared here forever."

Astaroth chuckled and kicked at the severed remnants of Azarius' head. To his surprise, even the fragments turned to dust. With a malevolent gleam in his eyes, Astaroth clasped his hands together, forming an ancient symbol. Opening his mouth, he chanted a short incantation, and in the next moment, the dust surrounding him began to coalesce into a wispy, ethereal light. The shape of the wisp bore a haunting resemblance to Azarius, the fallen sorcerer.

Astaroth extended his hand, beckoning the spectral manifestation closer. The wispy form drew nearer, its ethereal green glow pulsating with otherworldly energy. A devilish smile played across Astaroth's lips as he reached out to touch the wisp, merging his essence with the remnants of Azarius' power.

In that instant, the chamber trembled, and the air grew thick with a foreboding presence. Unleashing a blood-curdling shriek, the ghostly wisp transformed into a nightmarish specter, an amalgamation of Azarius' dark magic and Astaroth's demonic essence. The room became consumed by an eerie glow as tendrils of darkness snaked through the air, suffocating the light.

Astaroth's malevolent laughter filled the chamber, blending with the anguished cries of the tormented souls trapped within the spectral creature. The unholy fusion had granted him immeasurable power, and with it, the ability to reshape reality itself.

As the malefic entity spread its wicked influence, the boundaries between dimensions blurred. Shadows danced and twisted, distorting the very fabric of existence. Within this nightmarish realm, Azarius's soul remained trapped, forever tormented by the dark forces that had brought about his downfall.

"You dared to believe you could elude your torments, Azarius?" Astaroth's voice echoed with a chilling command. "Now, return to the one who commanded your assault upon me. When you arrive, unleash the full might of your power to obliterate that person, even if it necessitates your demise." Astaroth's words reverberated through the air as the specter obediently soared away, vanishing into the ethereal abyss.

After Astaroth emerged from his realm and materialized in the room of the inn, he found Lalitha waiting anxiously. She had sensed the impending attack and rushed into the room, only to discover that Astaroth had vanished without a trace. "Master Astaroth, what happened?" she exclaimed, her voice trembling with concern.

As the air in the room grew heavy with an otherworldly presence, Astaroth's disembodied voice echoed ominously, resonating from an unseen dimension. "Lalitha, someone knew I am here and has sent Azarius to kill me," he stated, his words infused with a chilling certainty. Astaroth then continues, he knows that Lalitha would not know who is Azarius.

"The altar in the forbidden forest was the tomb of Azarius, the Warden of Ashen Wastes. It was not supposed to appear in this world. The Warden had once been my servant but was banished to a place called Ashen Wastes. He had attempted to betray me when we were both younger. His thirst for ruling the demon world was so great that he misjudged the situation, believing his power and skills surpassed mine. He was dead wrong. His betrayal cost him dearly, reducing him to a powerless being."

Astaroth paused, his mind filled with memories of the demons' uprising under Azarius' leadership, only to be mercilessly crushed by the legions led by Astaroth himself. The battle came to an abrupt end, leaving no room for mercy. "Somehow, someone has granted him new powers and transported him to this world, lying in wait for us in the heart of the forest. The carvings on the ancient stone altar do not appear recent, and the inscriptions are written in the language of Eldoria. I believe there must be a connection between this dimension and Eldoria."

"Do you think this is something the Gatekeeper had planned?" Lalitha asked her master. The stories had been fascinating, but she felt she hadn't been able to keep up with the developments so far. Astaroth pulled out his obsidian sword. "I found this sword shortly after I appeared in this world, and it has been leading me around," he continued, recounting the tale of the Goblin King and how he stumbled upon her.

"Something or someone is orchestrating these events. Whether it's the Gatekeeper or not, I'm not entirely sure at this moment," Astaroth stated, "There have been too many close calls, too many instances where I have felt the weight of unseen eyes upon me."

Astaroth suddenly had a thought, "Has Ezio reported back to you? It has been a long time since we left Yosnad, and the investigation of the fire should have been completed by now."

Lalitha closed her eyes, summoning Ezio in her mind. The connection between her and Ezio had remained intact, despite the vast distance between Yosnad and Sanctavia. It was peculiar that she had forgotten about Ezio and even stranger that he hadn't provided any updates. Initially, he had kept her informed about the reception Nick, whom Astaroth suspected had something to do with the fire, had received.

Ezio materialized from Lalitha's shadows, still in his shadow form. Astaroth fixed his gaze on the assassin and demanded, "What had transpired in Yosnad since we left? Deliver your report."

Ezio's shadowy figure shifted, his voice resonating with an eerie undertone. "Upon receiving the assignment from the master, I have been trailing Nick, the receptionist of the Adventurer's Guild. There was nothing strange in his behaviors and actions, nor has he shown any skills in any form... But there is one thing strange with the guild master, Magnus Ironfist. After both masters left, he immediately took his nephew, Aric, and headed north in the middle of the night as if they were running for their lives..." Ezio continues saying, "There is nothing else that I found in Yosnad."

Astaroth pondered the new information from Ezio, his mind racing with possibilities. "I had always believed that Nick was responsible for the fire, even though he has not displayed any mana. However, I did sense a faint trace of it on him that fateful day when the fire consumed the adventurers' guild building. High-tier mana like that is not easily concealed. And you say the guild master disappeared in the dead of night? That is indeed peculiar."

As Astaroth contemplated, he reached into his cloak and retrieved a letter entrusted to him by Magnus, requesting that he deliver it to Glenda. He had intentionally refrained from reading its contents, but now the situation piqued his curiosity.

Meanwhile, in Yosnad, a spectral being materialized out of thin air within the darkened streets of Ravenspire. It swiftly surveyed its surroundings, following the command it had received to report back to its master, the one who had assigned it the task of eliminating Astaroth. Suddenly, a shrill shriek erupted from the spectral being as it caught sight of a figure blocking its path. The figure, a young man of slender build, raised his hand and unleashed a torrent of blinding white lightning from above, obliterating the spectral entity into countless pieces.