Cyril stared unflinchingly at the demon through the yellow barrier.
"Are you the only archdemon here?"
Cosmas casually shook his head. "Of course not. I am not that brave."
He then pointed at the fire tornado in the distance.
"Over there is another one. A brutish one that doesn't discriminate when he fights, so don't go near."
"And you are gentle then?"
In this moment the tornado slowly dissipated, revealing the scene within.
A large humanoid, about two humans tall, stood at the center, hands on his hips, and laughed heartily.
Even though the distance was not small, Cyril still managed to pick up that loud, booming laughter.
On top of the figure's head were two prominent buffalo horns.
His explosive muscles were practically bulging, highlighted to an inhuman degree.
In front of him were two knights, their exhausted figures completely overshadowed by the archdemon.
"Alcaeus," Cosmas covered his face with a palm. "He is quite insufferable at times, but what can I do? We are on the same side at the end of the day."
As the demon with buffalo horns laughed, one of the knights dashed forward, leaving only a blur, and struck with his sword.
Alcaeus reacted quickly by shoving his hands into the ground below him and tearing a piece of metal, using it as a makeshift shield to meet the attack.
The other knight joined in as well, and both of them attacked the archdemon through coordinated movements.
Alcaeus managed to keep up, relying entirely on brute strength and speed alone.
"Excuse me," Rose muttered after a moment of observing.
"Mhm?" Cosmas turned around wearing a polite smile.
"What is it that demons want?"
"Your Empire's complete destruction."
Although still smiling, Cosmas's stance became sharper, as if physically denying any other probing in that direction.
Rose tensed up, hesitating for a brief moment.
"...Then, can you tell us what the difference is between your body and that of a human? Do you still need to eat, sleep, and excrete waste?"
Silence settled after her words, and Cosmas's face became blank.
"She is braver than I thought."
Her scientific curiosity is more powerful than any fear she might feel.
"...Yes. Biological needs are not something you can escape."
"He actually answered!?"
"Truly?" Richard joined in, "How much food do you usually require?"
Vigilantly standing in place, Richard and Rose began asking question after question about the archdemon's biological structure, and most were answered.
"What is this?" Rhamn tilted her head with a frown.
"How come this guy is so friendly?"
Cyril blankly stared at their scientific conversation and glanced at Myra leaning on his shoulder.
Her eyes were aimed at the ground, her head hung low. She didn't react in any way, though Cyril heard her heart beating louder than usual.
"Are you alright?"
Myra only hummed in response, her gaze glued to the ground.
"Since she likes the ground so much, drop her already. Aren't you tired?"
Cyril shot Rhamn a sidelong glance, and she only scoffed.
At this moment the guards finally killed the last ghoul and turned their attention to a group of humanoids nearby.
"...!"
They ran closer, interrupting the discussion Rose and Richard were having.
In the process the guards noticed a figure with an unobvious horn atop its head.
"An Archdemon!"
All of them raised their weapons at the ready.
They warily eyed not only the demon but also the humans near him.
"They won't misunderstand, right?"
Cosmas turned his attention to them, to which the guards tensed up even more.
"Tsk," The archdemon raised his arm and waved it, as if shooing some flies away.
A giant circle appeared at waist-level where the group of guards stood, engulfing all of them.
A brief scream erupted as their upper bodies were severed and fell into the circle, disappearing instantly.
The circle vanished the next moment, leaving only the lower halves, which soon dropped limp to the ground.
As Cyril and the rest watched on in silence, nearby came plopping sounds of something hitting the floor.
"Gods..." Richard exhaled with a frown returning to his face. Rose tensed up again, the spark in her eyes disappearing.
The missing upper halves returned with the red rain, falling through another circle high in the air nearby.
They dropped to the ground, below them a puddle of red liquid formed.
"So weak and yet so foolish." Cosmas shook his head while spreading his arms to the side, as if describing a nuisance.
"...He is a demon after all." Myra whispered close to Cyril, her voice full of hatred.
These words echoed in Cyril's head as he stared at the cruel scene.
Cosmas smiled widely. "Don't be so shocked."
"What else should I have done? We are enemies, that's all there is to this."
Both Rose and Richard stopped asking any more questions.
The silence continued, and eventually the archdemon awkwardly shrugged.
"I've spent enough time here, thank you for entertaining me." He bowed politely.
"May we meet again some day!"
Before they even had the time to blink, he was gone from this place.
Thinking of something, Cyril turned to look in the direction of the other archdemon, focusing on his hearing as best he could.
"I'll enhance it further!" Rhamn exclaimed, and soon, even the action from that far away rang clearer in his ears.
The towering brute's eyes were glazed over as he flailed his huge arms wildly.
One of the knights was engaging him while the other was biding their time.
The next moment Cosmas appeared right behind the waiting knight, hitting him on the shoulder in the chopping motion.
Without encountering any resistance, his palm went through his shoulder, severing the arm.
As the human screamed while clutching his shoulder, Cosmas turned towards his ally.
"Alcaeus, it's time to go."
The archdemon with buffalo horns hit the surprised knight in front of him, sending him flying into the distance.
"Haha, you really pick the worst times. It was only starting to get good."
"That's too bad... Here," Cosmas dismissively replied and created a door made of light in front of him.
Alcaeus turned to look at the knight he hit, reluctance in his eyes, then sighed and walked through the door, disappearing behind it.
Cosmas shook his head, then suddenly flinched.
"Time is really up, huh." He muttered while gazing at the sky and went through the door.
The next second a lightning bolt hit the ground he was standing at, its booming sound deafening Cyril for a moment as he clutched his head in pain.
"What's wrong?"
Ignoring Myra's concerned voice, Cyril quickly shook off the pain and focused on the scene.
Where the lightning landed, there now stood a middle-aged man dressed in an extravagant white coat. He had blond hair, and his lifeless blue eyes scanned the scene.
His sight momentarily paused on the injured knights before moving towards the group of students nearby.
Why is he here?
Cyril's blue eyes grew colder as he frowned.
"Who- I see."
Rhamn quickly wanted to say something but changed her mind.
"Who is that?" Myra asked, sending Cyril a confused look.
Richard relaxed his body, the yellow barrier fading around the group.
"It's over..."
Rose's face became better as well, though she soon flinched as the pain from her injured hand captured her attention.
The man in white switched his attention to them.
Making a few seemingly short steps, he was suddenly right in front of the group.
"Visit me."
Leaving these words, the man turned away, his body turning into lightning as he disappeared.
Rose, who briefly forgot about her pain again, Richard, and Myra all gazed at Cyril silently, to whom the man seemed to talk.
"...Let's go, we need to see a healer."
Cyril turned around without answering them and headed into the Tower, still supporting Myra on the way.
The butterfly on Myra's arm looked at Richard and Rose behind, twitching her antennae defensively.
"That's true. We need to go."
Rose sent one last look at the smoke visible out in the city. No more demons flew in the sky, however, the damage was done.
"We learn to fight that." She ominously mumbled and headed after Cyril.