Ch 78: Why Phobio's couldn't joined the battle with Zass

As Phobio's prepared his plan to attack the kingdom of Ingrasya and retrieve the Exodus Wand, also known as Hina, he paused. The call festival for the Demonlord gathering demanded his presence. Summoning a dark miasma, Phobio's addressed Zass with a stern warning, "Don't do anything stupid, Zass, while I'm gone."

"Yes, master," Zass replied, bowing deeply. As Phobio's disappeared into the swirling miasma, Zass's face twisted into a hellish grin. "Hell, I'll kill all the people in the kingdom," he muttered with a sinister laugh.

The air around Zass crackled with dark energy, and with a sudden burst of power, he teleported to Ingrasya. As he hovered menacingly in the sky, the wind howled around him, carrying the faint smell of sulfur and burning wood. Below, the kingdom of Ingrasya lay peaceful and unsuspecting, unaware of the impending doom that loomed above.

The sky darkened with Zass's arrival, casting an ominous shadow over the city. His presence filled the air with a palpable sense of dread, a cold chill that crept into the bones of those below. The faint crackle of electricity and the low hum of his dark energy were the only sounds that accompanied him as he surveyed his target.

The kingdom's vibrant colors seemed to dull under the weight of Zass's malevolent gaze. His eyes gleamed with anticipation, reflecting the fear and chaos he was about to unleash. The taste of impending destruction was almost sweet on his tongue, fueling his twisted desire for carnage.

As he hovered, a faint, acrid smell wafted up from the city below, mingling with the scent of his own dark magic. Zass took a deep breath, savoring the aroma of fear and chaos that would soon consume Ingrasya. "Let the fun begin," he whispered to himself, his voice barely audible over the crackling energy that surrounded him.

Meanwhile, Phobio's arrived at the meeting call festival, the gathering of the 12 Demonlords, including himself. The room was a grand hall filled with dark, ornate decorations. The air was thick with the mingling scents of incense and brimstone, creating a heady atmosphere of power and menace. Phobio's stepped forward, his voice echoing in the vast space, "What is this meeting about?" His tone was impatient, betraying his desire to finish quickly.

A female Demonlord, lounging languidly on a throne-like seat, glanced at Phobio's with a sly grin. Her voice was smooth and mocking, "Relax, don't complicate things." She leaned forward, her eyes gleaming with curiosity. "Are you in a hurry, Phobio? Or is there something you're hiding from us that's waiting to be revealed?"

Phobio's met her gaze with a sharp retort, "Nothing. I have nothing to hide." The room was filled with the low murmurs of the other Demonlords, their discussions continuing unabated.

The female Demonlord smiled, satisfied for the moment, "Good."

As the discussions droned on, Phobio's thoughts wandered, and his heart pounded with unease. He thought, *I hope they will not discover that the goddess's daughter has been reborn in this world as the Exodus Wand. If they discover it, I am a goner.*

One of the higher Demonlords, a towering figure with a voice like rolling thunder, turned his attention to Phobio's. "What are you preoccupied about? Hmm? What's on your mind?"

Phobio's felt a bead of sweat trickle down his temple. "Nothing, master. There is nothing to fret about."

The higher Demonlord's eyes narrowed. "Then why are you not listening to our meeting?"

Phobio's quickly replied, "It's because I need a bit of a time out." Without waiting for a response, he hurriedly excused himself, feeling the intense gazes of the other Demonlords on his back.

In the hallway, the air was cooler, but Phobio's was still sweating bullets. He opened a miasma mirror, the swirling dark energy forming a window to Ingrasya. Through it, he saw Zass fighting, with Hina and the hero Benimaru almost losing hope. Phobio's clenched his fists, *What is Zass thinking, fighting on his own?*

Instead of anger, a calculating smile spread across Phobio's face. He spoke into the miasma mirror, his voice calm and commanding, "Good. If you retrieve that Exodus Wand for me, I will promote you to be my right hand."

In the image, Zass's eyes widened with joy. He bowed deeply, his voice trembling with gratitude, "Yes, master." The scene in the mirror showed Zass standing on the ground, brimming with newfound determination. The weight of Phobio's promise seemed to energize him, his dark aura flaring with intensity.

The sky above Ingrasya was darkening further as Zass prepared for the final assault, the miasma mirror capturing the eerie, electric tension of the moment.

As the miasma mirror for looming disappeared, Phobio thought, *Sheesh, that was quick.* He composed himself and returned to the meeting room, trying to mask his anxiety.

"I'm okay now," Phobio announced, attempting to sound nonchalant.

The higher Demonlord, whose presence seemed to darken the room, responded, "Good, good." He leaned forward, his eyes boring into Phobio. "I remember last time you needed our power to create an impenetrable dark barrier to cage Goddess Carrion. You requested it like a damsel in distress. Sounded fishy. You said we must pool our power. Why?"

Phobio's felt sweat trickle down his spine as he stood under the intense scrutiny. He forced a smile and said, "It's because I love to have fun caging Goddess Carrion. He is fun to watch."

The higher Demonlord's eyes narrowed. "Huh, that's it? You wasted our power to imprison the goddess for fun?"

Another Demonlord, with a voice dripping with disdain, added, "What an incompetence. You made us use our power for nothing. What a loser you are, Phobio."

The girl Demonlord, reclining and cleaning her toenail with a bored expression, chimed in, "Come to think of it, yeah. We didn't get any benefits from it. Just a waste of our null power."

Phobio's felt a wave of embarrassment and anger wash over him. The room seemed to grow hotter, the air thicker. The disdain and mockery were palpable, cutting through him like a knife. He could feel the eyes of the other Demonlords on him, judging and deriding him.

The higher Demonlord's gaze was particularly piercing, his presence dominating the room. Phobio's skin prickled under the scrutiny. The mocking laughter of the other Demonlords felt like sharp needles against his pride.

As the girl Demonlord continued to clean her toenail, the scraping sound was almost unbearably loud in the tense silence that followed her words. Phobio's heart pounded in his chest, and he struggled to maintain his composure. The shadows in the room seemed to close in on him, amplifying his sense of isolation and vulnerability.

Phobio's thoughts raced. *They can't discover the truth about the Exodus Wand,* he thought desperately. The weight of his secret felt like a noose tightening around his neck.

In a voice that betrayed none of his inner turmoil, Phobio's said, "I assure you, it was all in good fun. No harm done."

But he could tell by the looks on their faces that they were not convinced. The meeting continued, but Phobio's mind was elsewhere, his thoughts consumed by the looming threat of discovery and the precariousness of his position.

After the festival meeting concluded, Phobio returned to his Demonlord realm, the weight of the meeting still lingering in his mind. He quickly opened a miasma mirror for looming over Ingrasya, a sinister portal that allowed him to survey the battlefield from the sky. As the dark clouds swirled and parted, he peered through the mirror, eager to see the results of Zass's assault.

"So, how does it go?" he muttered to himself, expecting to see victory.

What greeted his eyes instead was a scene of utter devastation. Hina stood amidst the ruins, a dark aura swirling around her, her power palpable even through the mirror. Zass was nowhere to be seen, only a faint pile of ash marking where he had once stood. Phobio's eyes widened in shock and rage.

"How dare you kill my subordinate!" he bellowed, his voice echoing through the mirror. In a fit of rage, he unleashed a devastating crimson lightning strike, a bolt of energy so powerful it could reduce mountains to dust. The sky lit up with its furious glow as it hurtled towards Hina.

Hina, however, barely flinched. With a casual flick of her wrist, she deflected the lightning strike as if it were nothing more than a minor inconvenience. The energy dissipated harmlessly into the air.

"Is that all you got?" she taunted, her voice dripping with contempt. "You call yourself a Demonlord? If you are that weak..." Her eyes glowed an ominous red, and a sinister grin spread across her face.

Phobio's anger turned to dread as he watched Hina leap towards the sky, her speed blurring reality itself. She slashed through the mirror, her energy cutting through the miasma like a hot knife through butter. The mirror shattered, and the connection was severed.

"No! My left-hand minion is gone!" Phobio roared, his voice shaking with a mix of fury and desperation. He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms as he seethed with rage. "Next time, if I encounter her, I will grab her heart core directly. Forget that Exodus girl, I will tear her heart out myself!" His maniacal laughter echoed through his dark chamber, a twisted symphony of madness and revenge.

The smell of sulfur and brimstone filled the air as Phobio's rage simmered, the heat of his anger almost palpable. His voice, filled with venom, reverberated through the darkness, a chilling promise of the vengeance to come.