Chapter 13

The next day, Liora and Eshara set out from the City of Embers, one following behind the other.

Eshara led the way, glancing around from time to time as if she were judging their direction.

At the same time, she took this as an opportunity to explain to Liora:

"According to the Devils at the scene, although the Soul Devil managed to survive the Demon World’s Punishment, she was on the verge of life and death when she left the arena."

"Originally, everyone believed she’d go into hiding. But recently, many Devils have gone missing, both inside and outside the city."

Following her explanation, Liora quickly understood how the Soul Devil’s traces had been discovered.

In fact, it was partly her fault.

Over the past few days, people had discovered her hunting of the weak Devils. After some investigation by those curious, they found that there were Devils going missing outside the city, too.

Then, following the clues, they roughly pinpointed the Soul Devil’s current location.

It could be said that if Liora hadn’t killed those Devils, none of this would have happened.

The two traveled through the desolate land with surprising speed. Thankfully, as Devils, they did not need to eat or drink, meaning that they didn’t have to waste time on trivial things like searching for food and water.

Before long, only a few hours later, the pair finally arrived at their destination—a massive, trembling volcano.

Its surface was fractured and weeping magma, while the ground around it was scorched black, stripped of any signs of life.

"This is where the Soul Devil is hiding.", Eshara said to Liora, her purple eyes reflecting the lava’s fiery color.

Facing the volcano and feeling the constant tremors of the ground beneath her, Liora couldn’t help but sigh.

"It deserves to be the hiding place of an infamous Devil. Even the atmosphere feels grand and terrifying.", she joked, though her expression remained serious.

She didn’t approach the volcano, but stayed far away, her eyes darting around the seemingly empty, barren land.

But in her senses, this wasteland was not empty at all. If anything, it was the opposite.

Her ability—Void Instinct—activated automatically, constantly reminding her that this land was filled with Devils.

Obviously, she and Eshara were not the first nor the last Devils to arrive.

"Let’s hide first. There’s no need to rush in recklessly.", Liora glanced at Eshara and said, earning a nod of approval in return.

So, the two of them didn’t go any further, instead using their own methods and the complicated landscape to conceal themselves.

A few minutes later, Liora stared at Eshara, who was practically standing next to her, and asked:

"Have you sensed anything from that treasure yet?"

In response, Eshara took out the glowing gem she had shown her yesterday and shook her head.

"There’s no response. Perhaps we’re too far, or perhaps there’s something interfering."

Liora didn’t speak, remaining noncommittal, as her eyes secretly alternated between Eshara and the gem she was holding.

According to Eshara, she had obtained it long ago, and after many trials and experiments, she discovered that it possessed an extraordinary ability: it could sense danger and predict good fortune.

It was exactly because of this ability that Eshara chose to invite her rather than seek help from someone else. In Eshara’s words, she was just following the gem’s guidance.

Liora seemed satisfied with this reason and agreed to her invitation, but no one knew if it was because she truly believed Eshara’s words or for some other reason.

Time passed quickly; in the blink of an eye, several hours were gone.

During this time, more and more Devils arrived. By now, even Liora couldn’t tell just how many were hidden around them.

"With so many Devils gathered here, someone is bound to lose patience and take action. All we have to do is wait.", Liora whispered.

Her words seemed to carry a strange power as the moment she finished speaking, something changed.

The volcano, which was already trembling, suddenly convulsed with a violent force. The magma within it churned like boiling water, and with a thunderous roar, it erupted.

Rivers of molten rock burst from the crater and flowed down the summit, while fresh cracks tore across its surface, spilling more fire with every breath.

The temperature surged within seconds as clouds of ash billowed into the sky, turning the scene into a vision of the apocalypse.

In the distance, Liora was about to flee upon seeing this, when she noticed something.

The magma, although swallowing everything in its path with overwhelming power, ignored a certain area. It was a small hole resembling the mouth of a cave, within which a demonic aura could be sensed.

It would have been difficult to detect this aura if it were not for the volcano’s eruption, but now, being the only place intact, this cave and aura immediately stood out.

"Is this where the Soul Devil is recuperating?", Liora realized.

Just like her, the Devils gathered here also spotted this cave. They didn’t rush in, but stood still, waiting for someone else to make the first move.

After all, no one knew what lay inside the cave.

Time passed by slowly under this strange stalemate, and seconds felt like hours.

Finally, one Devil could no longer hold back. The skin on his back parted, and a pair of wings made of flesh grew out, which flapped and took him to the sky.

Then, he rushed into the cave.

Surprisingly, no Devil took the opportunity to attack him, allowing him to enter the cave completely unimpeded.

A few seconds later, when no sound of fighting nor any movement came from inside, the Devils judged that there should be no danger.

Immediately, hundreds of Devils rushed toward the cave using their own means, whether this was flying, jumping, or burrowing into the ground.

Liora and Eshara joined the crowd as well, and although relatively late, they entered the underground cave with the rest of them.