In a dark and gloomy castle at the center of the Demon World.
Light steps were ringing out across the large hall of the castle where a single figure walked. The figure had reddish-black wings erupting from his back as his body was wrapped in a sleek black suit. Large glasses covered his piercing blood red eyes as he looked forward emotionlessly.
He was the current highest ranked Ruler of the Demon World, the Tactician, Agares. His power was not the strongest amongst the top ten Rulers, but he still took the second position after Baal because of his Ultimate Skill, Tactician.
Many beings feared the power he carried with it, and they feared more so when he was paired up with Baal on any ventures, as the combination of the two was deadly. But, in the most recent catastrophic venture, Baal had gone and taken many other Rulers on a hunt for a Supreme Treasure while the Tactician had stayed behind to manage things in the Demon World.
Now, this same Tactician was faced with a tumultuous situation where a large number of Rulers had suddenly faced True Death, and worst of all, their strongest ranked Ruler was among them.
Terror was in the hearts of many Demons as they wondered, exactly what enemy had they come across that completely wiped out Baal and so many others? The most terrifying of all was the fact that there was no news from any of the Rulers before their deaths. There were too many unknowns, which caused many of the remaining Rulers to panic.
These past days, many of them were cooped up in the regions they ruled in the Demon Capital as they surrounded themselves with their Legions. They hid in their tightly defended castles as hundreds of thousands of demonkin surrounded them from all sides, hiding until they received some answers from those with the most power at the top.
The Tactician, Agares, had used his authority as the second-ranked Ruler to keep things to a level of calm in the Demon World as he reminded everyone of their power. Even with Baal gone, they still had beings in the top ten who held PHANTASMAL rank power. They still had Rulers with spectacular Unique and Ultimate Skills that they could use best in their home turf.
The other Rulers were calmed and tamed, but Agares himself was thinking completely different thoughts. He knew that something monumental was coming, and he knew that the destruction that Baal had faced would follow them. He walked along the large hall of the castle at the center of the Demon World as he thought of all of this.
He could hear the commanding voice of the Will of the World that told him to rally their forces and prepare, but he knew it was all for naught. His power laid in thinking and planning, while Baal was the brute force that attacked. This brute force almost always never listened to him, the example of the trip to the Lost World where he commanded many Rulers to go being one of them. It was this same trip that resulted in all of their deaths.
Agares sighed as he entered into a veranda that overlooked the gloriously shining Demon Capital that was normally boisterous, but currently quiet as many had closed their doors fearfully. He knew something was coming, and his Ultimate Skill had already shown that he had a possibility of living through it.
This was something that brought slight fear in his heart. His Ultimate SKill showed that he had the possibility of getting through whatever calamity was coming alive, but it showed that many more would be dying.
'Have Baal's aggressive methods of expansions finally caused the destruction I foresaw?'
Many thoughts and what ifs passed through the Ruler's head, but the past was the past, and time continued to move. What mattered was what would happen now. His eyes suddenly turned up as his skills informed him of something, and he looked into the skies of the Demon World to find a shining silver light erupting out. The light reduced and the figure of a golden-haired man with a suit of armor appeared in the clear skies.
A gloriously shining golden trident was floating in his hands as his face swept around the Demon Capital. An expression that seemed to show familiarity was apparent as his gaze traveled around, ultimately landing on the powerful aura of Agares who was looking up from the grandiose castle at the center of the capital.
Another light shined out as beside the golden-haired man, an enormous beast with tremendously long tentacles appeared, creating a large shadow that caused a commotion in the recently quiet capital. This wasn't the end though, as four more PHANTASMAL ranked beings with fearsome power just like it appeared above the skies, their pressure descending down and causing panic to those below.
The figures of more than 20-meter tall Goldfish, Sting Ray, Cassiterite Shark, and the Lava Kaiju appeared in the skies as their eyes looked below them menacingly.
The Demon Capital was large, with the Rulers spread out in many directions, but this appearance of powerful unknown anemones brought them to full attention.
Yet another figure appeared on the already maddeningly powerful stage, but this figure was one that was the most familiar with the Demon World among the recent group of arrivals. It was a voluptuous figure of someone that was barely twenty, wrapped up in a tight black gothic dress as she carried what looked to be an umbrella above her to block the rays of light.
Agares finally had a huge change in expression at the appearance of Barbatos amidst beings that were most definitely their enemies.
The Necromancer of Chaos located Agares the moment she arrived as a sweet smile appeared on her face.
"Big Brother Agares, it has been a while."
The words were light and playful, completely not matching the heavy atmosphere as the Legions around the Demon Capital were actively moving, with the remaining Rulers congregated in the Demon World taking the charge as they prepared for a glorious battle.
"You- Wha-?"
Agares was tongue stricken at the appearance of Barbatos amongst enemy lines as even he couldn't have predicted this. She had always been slightly crazy, but had she gone off the deep end completely? His thoughts were interrupted as the being at hand floated away from the group she came with, leaving behind a few words as she completely ignored the atmosphere and went at her own pace.
"I'm gonna go back to my region for a bit to collect my pets, I lost too many of them in that Lost World. Make sure to finish up your things fast, I'm more curious about the next trip after all this is over."
With these words, her figure flashed away and made a beeline towards a distant area far from the Demon Capital, leaving behind an irritated expression on Noah's face, a dumbfounded expression on Agares's face, and leaving behind a weird atmosphere as some of the forces the Demons had invaded made their way to their World for the first time.