"My little kitten is in trouble!" Mrs. Ireland, sitting cross-legged at the rim of a volcano, suddenly opened her eyes.
A pair of huge demonic wings, spanning over ten meters, emerged from her back, flapping slowly. The lava and toxic gases spewing from the volcano seemed to hit an invisible barrier around her, dispersing harmlessly to her sides.
Standing beside her was the enigmatic Gamma Master, whose metallic body showed signs of wear and tear. His metallic left arm bore blotchy marks of negative energy corrosion, and nearly half of its fingers were damaged, showing bite marks as if gnawed off by canine teeth - a shocking sight, given the incredible hardness of the metal.
"I've already left him in Felendia. If he's still in danger, then he deserves his fate!" The Gamma Master, opening his eyes and looking towards a blood-red cloud in the distance, spoke in a voice like metal grinding against metal: "On the path to eternal magic, so-called love is the most laughable concept."
Mrs. Ireland turned her cold gaze to the Gamma Master, who seemed oblivious to her piercing look, focusing instead on channeling magical power to extract high-strength metal from the active volcano to repair his body.
"I never expected a lump of metal to understand the preciousness of human emotions," Mrs. Ireland said, closing her eyes with a cold tone.
Unfazed by her scorn, the Gamma Master covered his damaged left arm with the high-strength alloy extracted from the volcano, erasing the marks of negative energy corrosion. "The Gamma Master needs no superfluous emotions!" he declared.
Suddenly, a thunderous roar shook the air from afar. Packed with boundless fury, it quickly approached, revealing a massive figure standing fifteen meters tall - a Cerberus, a three-headed hellhound!
The guardian of the gates of Hell, a divine creature, a deity of the underworld!
Cerberus closed the distance rapidly, leaping hundreds of meters with each bound. In just a few minutes, it arrived at the base of the volcano, its three enormous heads, each a meter wide, ferociously glaring at the two before it. In its three pairs of eyes, one pair was corroded by magic into a bloody mess, the soul-deep pain fueling Cerberus's hatred. It howled, and green saliva dripping from its fierce heads sizzled on the ground, leaving corroded patches.
"To flee or to fight?" The Gamma Master turned to Mrs. Ireland, leaving the choice to the vampire beside him.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
Mrs. Ireland's eyes, filled with murderous intent, looked at Cerberus. She drew her sword, ablaze with blood-red flames, and said bitterly, "It has been chasing us across three planes!"
Mrs. Ireland had completed the adjudication ceremony as per the contract, but, infuriatingly, this guardian of Hell's gate, the divine Cerberus, had interrupted her ritual and led a chase by high-level demons from Hell across three planes!
Being exposed had terrifying consequences. Even the Gamma Master, who had descended into Hell, was affected, becoming a target of Cerberus's pursuit. A target marked by Cerberus, even across planes, could not escape its senses.
"Fight!" Mrs. Ireland snorted coldly, flapping her massive demonic wings to confront the roaring Cerberus. "Blind its remaining four eyes!"
At her words, the magical runes on the Gamma Master's feet shone brightly, and he soared into the air like a meteor, crashing towards the massive body of Cerberus. Simultaneously, ten Gamma rays shot from his fingertips, aiming for the remaining four eyes of Cerberus.
Their time was running out. If they were surrounded and trapped by these high-level demons, they would have no escape!
Facing the fierce onslaught, Cerberus, the formidable guardian of Hell's gate, seemed to suddenly remember its two blinded eyes.
It let out a whimper and, to the surprise of both onlookers, the divine creature turned and howled mournfully, fleeing back in the direction it came from.
Cerberus had arrived swiftly, but its retreat was even swifter. In just a breath's time, it had covered a distance of over a thousand meters and soon vanished from their sight.
The spatial fluctuations around them grew more intense. The silhouettes of high-level demons started appearing on the horizon. After a glance in the direction of Cerberus's escape, the two had no choice but to open another portal to a deeper part of Hell.
They couldn't stay in the same plane for too long, as it would draw the attention of the lords of Hell. Once these true deities noticed them, their situation would become extremely perilous.
As the Gamma Master's deep chanting filled the air, a dark portal gradually appeared in the sky. The two looked back at the approaching demon army and then stepped into the spatial portal.
They must find a way to kill Cerberus to escape this relentless pursuit.
...
In the prime material plane, inside the Felendia laboratory.
With the help of his succubus servant, Felix finally completed the magical rune engraving on the body of the high-level demon.
The continuous outpouring of magic for a whole day and night left Felix feeling exceptionally drained, yet he gritted his teeth and continued with the final soul summoning ritual.
The flesh golem required a controller. Felix had to use the underworld script from the Reaper to summon the escaped demonic soul.
As Felix's low, hoarse chanting began, countless wandering souls were drawn into Felendia.
They circled around him, emitting eerily pitiful screams. Some lost souls even lunged at Felix with their claws, but they were quickly incinerated to ashes by the nether fire floating around him.
While Felix was engaged in the final soul summoning ritual, Lady Elizabeth also received a decree from the royal palace.
It was about discussing the war affairs of the Saturn Empire. Along with her, two other dukes with absolute say in the council were also summoned to the palace.