Maya had been wrong.
Not entirely. She had been right to consider him the greatest obstacle. Right to fear his growth. Right to prepare more than just herself, Uta, Yaana, and Manfred. But even with all that preparation, she had still underestimated him.
That thought alone made her stomach twist.
She lowered her gaze, breathing through the fire burning in her chest and the humiliation still crawling beneath her skin. She wanted to say sothing, to threaten him, maybe even spit at his feet and remind him that this was not over.
But she was not stupid.
"I understand," she said, the words scraping her throat.
Elion’s smile faded. "Good then, stand."
Maya grit her teeth and tried again.
Her knees trembled beneath her as pain shot up her spine, and the wound across her torso burned sharply when she forced herself upright. For half a second, she nearly collapsed again, but Manfred reached out and caught her by the arm.
She hated that too, and most of all, she hated that Elion saw it; she hated that he said nothing. Sohow, his silence was worse than any mockery he might have otherwise shown her.
Uta staggered close, holding what remained of his ruined shirt against his body. "Maya," he said through gritted teeth, "are we really doing this?"
She glanced at him.
His eyes were furious, but beneath the anger was fear. He knew there was no winning this fight now, but giving up still felt bitter.
"Yes," she said.
Yaana’s gaze remained fixed on Elion, "For so reason, he looks even more beautiful now," she murmured.
Uta turned toward her with rare disgust. "Are you insane?"
"Yes," Yaana said without hesitation.
Elion gave her a flat look, but he made no effort to give the others too much attention. He already felt kind of bad, bullying a pair of kids like that, if they were kids, that is.
Maya ignored them and forced herself to focus.
"The stone is not behind that door," she said in a low voice. "That chamber contains a false core. It’s just simply a powerful formation core designed to fool any greedy bastards who try to steal the real thing."
Elion’s brows twitched, but he didn’t respond to her snide remark. "And the real one?"
"Below the castle."
He looked at the cracked ground beneath them, then back at her.
Maya continued, "The Demon Lord’s territory is built over an older ruin. Much older than this castle. The Philosopher’s Stone is kept in the deepest chamber beneath the foundation, at the centre of the ritual network. The veins you have probably seen throughout the walls and ground all lead there eventually."
Elion’s gaze flicked briefly toward the red veins pulsing faintly through the broken courtyard stone.
"So I was following the right trail."
"Partially," Maya said. "But the obvious paths all lead to traps. This door, the lower ritual chamber, the eastern blood altar, the sealed treasury... are all bait. The real route is hidden behind the corpse pits."
Elion frowned, "The corpse pits." He didn’t like the sound of that,
"Yes."
"That sounds pleasant."
"It isn’t."
"I figured."
Maya pointed with a trembling hand toward the broken western side of the courtyard. "There is a descending passage beyond the third pit. It looks like a drainage collapse. It is not. Follow it down until the air turns cold and the veins stop pulsing red. When they turn gold, you are close."
Elion studied her face carefully.
Maya forced herself not to look away.
"How many guards?" he asked.
"Honestly, I am not sure, but probably not many," she answered. "Most of the strong ones were pulled away, just as you suspected. But the few that remain are not weak, and the chamber itself has failsafes. If you approach carelessly, the chamber will either seal itself or collapse the passage."
Elion tilted his head slightly. "And you know how to pass through?"
"I know the route," Maya said. "Not all the failsafes."
His eyes sharpened.
Maya quickly added, "But I know enough to get you close. The rest..." Her gaze drifted briefly toward Kurogoroshi. "You will probably have to cut through."
Another explosion bood in the distance, making the entire castle shake violently.
Several chunks of broken stone slipped from the ruined wall and crashed into the courtyard. Far above, the red sky flashed white, then gold, then black, as powers far beyond the level of the battle here collided sowhere over the main battlefield.
Elion looked toward the horizon.
"Let’s move."
Maya stiffened. "We?"
Elion looked back at her. "You’re guiding ."
Her expression changed. "That was not part of the agreent."
"You said you would show where it is."
"I can tell you the route."
"You can also lie."
Maya grit her teeth as Elion stepped closer.
"I said I’d let you live," he said. "I didn’t say I’d let you wander off while I follow directions from soone who just tried to kill ."
Uta’s eyes narrowed. "And what happens when we reach the stone?"
"If she has told the truth, you leave."
"And if sothing goes wrong?"
Elion’s gaze turned cold again, "Then sothing goes wrong for you first."
Maya swallowed.
She wanted to refuse. Every part of her wanted to refuse, but what choice did she have? Nothing was going according to plan.
Survival ca first.
"Fine," She said lightly as Elion nodded once.
"Lead the way."
Maya turned slowly, forcing her legs to move despite the weakness still crawling through them. Manfred stepped beside her, his ruined shield hanging uselessly at his side, sword still in hand. Uta and Yaana followed, both limping, both bleeding, both casting wary glances back at Elion.
Elion walked behind them.
The lesser demons near the courtyard entrance parted as they approached, though so growled in confusion when they saw Maya and the others leading Elion rather than attacking him. One of the larger ones took a step forward, raising a jagged cleaver.
Elion just gave it a blank look. That was all it took; the demon froze, slowly lowered its weapon, and backed away.
They passed through the broken courtyard and into a collapsed western corridor, where the walls leaned inward, and the floor had split open in several places.
Red veins pulsed through the stone beneath their feet, all flowing in the sa direction. The air grew hotter at first, thick with blood and sulfur, and then it turned foul.
The corpse pits were close, and Elion slled them before he saw them. The pungent sll of rot, burned flesh, foul blood, and a touch of corrupted mana.
It was nauseating.
The corridor opened into a vast lower chamber where several deep pits had been carved into the ground, filled with bodies. Demon bodies, mostly, though not all of them, were fully recognisable anymore.
So had been drained until only dry skin and bone remained. Others were still fresh, their bodies twitching faintly as the last of their mana was siphoned into the red veins running along the pit walls.
Elion’s expression darkened.
"So this is how he’s powering the ritual."
Maya did not answer.
Uta looked away. Yaana’s smile was gone completely, and even Manfred’s face had hardened.
They might have been on the demon side, but the sight was not pleasant to them either. Not because they pitied the dead demons, perhaps, but because the sight itself would make anyone deeply unsettled.
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