"Cure her. Sara ran off desperately after her mother and forgot about her friend. She used what she had and left her behind, that crazy girl..." Simon murmured. Dante looked at Vex. "Go down to the Subterranean. You can teleport to me if you need to talk," Dante said, and she nodded.
"Vex will work hard! I demand payment! Dante's love!" she said, mimicking Eldrax who pouted. "Yes, go quickly before I punish you," Dante sighed, watching Vex smile and vanish completely from the scene as he continued to tend to Akiko's condition.
"Luckily, I'm here..." Dante murmured, observing Akiko, who, despite being healed physically... well, her energy was another story. "She focused on the wounds and forgot to purify her energy. I can't purify it, but..." Dante said, placing his hand over her. A black mist oozed from her pores, mainly from her mouth and nose. "Tsk, disgusting," he muttered as he absorbed the demonic energy.
Quickly, Akiko stopped gasping.
*Cough, Cough.* She began to cough and swiftly turned. "Bleeeh," she vomited.
"Gross," Eldrax remarked. "Eldrax doesn't make messes like this; Eldrax is very clean!" she said, clearly anxious for some reason. "Yes, Eldrax is perfect just the way she is," Dante said, patting her head as he set her on his shoulder. "Wow, so high!" she exclaimed. Well, Dante was over 1.90 meters tall, and she was 1.55 meters tall. It was indeed a significant change.
"You look like a father," Voralith said, laughing at the situation. To her, it was very amusing to see a little dragon acting this way, even knowing she just wanted attention. After all, dragons aren't this silly. Eldrax was just pretending, and Voralith knew this well. But Dante...
well, Dante was a fool when it came to the people he cared about, and now, he was a super fool when he saw Eldrax doing these cute things. "Do I look like a father? That's good. Our children would be beautiful, don't you think, Mei?" Dante asked, almost implying something...
When Voralith heard this... she almost fainted. "C-c-children??" she stuttered, her face completely shocked as she saw Dante chuckle lightly. "So cute," he said, and Voralith turned completely red and immediately looked away. She didn't want to give Dante the satisfaction, especially at this moment when she was teetering between a yes and an absolutely. Hearing this made her even more embarrassed!
"Damn man!" she muttered to herself, noticing he was still paying attention to another woman. "Damn it! Look at me at least!" she screamed inwardly, truly fighting a mental battle within herself.
"Are you okay, Akiko?" Dante asked as the woman caught her breath after vomiting black sludge, or rather, the demonic impurities in her body. Unfortunately, Dante couldn't remove everything completely. He could only extract the energy, and her body would expel the remnants in the safest way possible. "Sara was careless. I'll punish her later. Just rest," he said, but Akiko quickly grabbed his sleeve.
"Go after Sara. I couldn't tell her everything, but there was a demon, a demon stronger than the Empress. He was posing as a human," Akiko said, recovering. "She went to the Subterranean, and knowing her... she went to the forest. Try to find her as quickly as possible.
The Empress is in great danger."
Akiko's words carried more than just concern; they carried a lot of fear. Dante sensed this immediately and expanded his aura throughout the palace. His aura covered not just the palace but the entire royal capital. "Demons, many of them," Dante said, surprised. "There are still battles happening in the Kingdom," he said, looking even more shocked.
"What do you mean! I'm sure I ended the attack on the palace!" Akiko exclaimed. She was the chief of the Empress's royal guard when Nagasawa was not present. "It was my mistake... I should have paid more attention to this. My wives are important not only to me but to their kingdoms as well," Dante said, but then added, "Well, I'll just dominate everything.
I'm eager to meet the woman who is said to hate me so much." Dante said, grinning from ear to ear. "Simon, did you find anything from those bodies?" Dante asked.
"Only some stories from men who were on the brink of death. It seems someone entered in the middle of the day through the main gate and started summoning demons inside the Palace." It was a shallow explanation, but it was all Simon could provide. It was the only relevant information he had. Most of the guards present when the demons were summoned... unfortunately, were no longer with us.
"They killed all the guards, the maids, even children," Akiko murmured. "If it weren't for Sara... I..." She choked back her tears, terrified, sad, and disappointed in herself. She was substituting for an incredible woman and failed in front of her, unable to protect her empress... Akiko saw herself as a failure. "It's okay, I believe they wouldn't blame you, nor those who died.
Don't carry this burden alone, Akiko," Dante said, gently stroking her head before standing up with a serious expression. "Although it's disgusting, I think this is for the best," he said, taking a deep breath and beginning to inhale the air with his mouth. But what he was inhaling... Akiko watched, astonished, not understanding what he was doing. Voralith then tried to explain:
"He's consuming all the demonic energy to cleanse the bodies and keep them as they should be—humans who worked and had their own lives... It's the least he can do to honor the dead," Voralith explained, watching the disgusting substance flow into Dante's body. She knew this was far from a pleasant meal... in fact, it was like eating garbage.
"Ah~" Dante sighed, his voice hoarse. "Even though it's garbage, I gained a lot of extra energy... this person is close to a Demon King." Dante confirmed, and this was real. If he confirmed this, they were not just dealing with a Demon Cult.
"The war in Hell has started to reflect in this world. Something is very wrong with all of this. First, legendary demonic runes of the Apocalypse Knights, now demons invading high-security places... So complicated," Dante murmured. "Isn't it better to contact the Progenitor of Demons? I'm sure Lilith could give a report on what's happening," Voralith said but then noticed Dante's face.
"Seriously? You don't want to talk to her? We're dealing with a huge problem here, you know?" she questioned, seeing Dante toss the communication orb with Lilith. "Did you break it?" she asked. "No, it broke from the other side," Dante revealed.
"Does that mean she..." "No, she's very much alive; I can feel her existence. The ruler's seal hasn't come to me, so she's alive," Dante explained. "Can you two stop talking like we understand everything?!?" Simon interjected, clearly frustrated being the odd one out among two icebergs like Dante and Voralith.
"Ah, family issues, you don't need to worry about that, old man..." Dante said. Dante looked at Simon, a tired smile forming on his lips. "You've always been the most sensible among us, Simon. But sometimes, problems aren't as simple as they seem, so don't worry too much, or your white hair might start falling out."
Simon huffed, crossing his arms. "That's no excuse to leave me in the dark. If we're dealing with high-ranking demons, I need to know what's going on. I'm your strategist with support magic, not a decoration."
Dante sighed and nodded. "We'll clarify this later. First, my wife and my mother-in-law." He glanced at Akiko, still pale but determined, and then at Voralith, who was busy checking the area around them.
"First, Sara," Dante said, shifting his focus to the urgency of the moment. "She's in the forest, and if there's a powerful demon disguised there, we need to find her before it's too late."
Akiko tried to stand but wobbled, her body still weak. "I... I can help. I know Sara well, I can track her easily."
Dante placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, stopping her from moving and making her sit down. "No way, you need to recover and be happy for when my wife returns. You've done more than enough." He turned to Vex, who had reappeared from the Subterranean with a determined look in her eyes.
"Honey, I found the entry point to the forest. I can guide you there, but the path is full of bodies. We can fly over; it's not far from here," Vex said, ready to act. She was genuinely eager for her reward, skipping her usual jokes.
"Perfect," Dante responded. He turned to Eldrax, still perched on his shoulder, and gently placed her on the ground. "Eldrax, you stay here and protect Akiko. Any sign of trouble, you know what to do."
"Yes, dear! Eldrax will burn them all with my firepower!!" Eldrax replied, mimicking a soldier, but this time with a gleam of seriousness in her eyes.
"Protect the area; nothing goes in or out, anything at all, call me with this," Dante said, throwing a magical seal to her. He was already starting to form a plan in his mind.
Voralith, observing the exchange, intervened. "And me? Do I stay here or go with you?"
Dante smiled, "Of course you're coming with me, my cute dragon," he replied, making Voralith smile, satisfied despite being called cute.
"Let's put an end to this mess once and for all. I need to fix this world," Dante said, heading off to find his wife.