Scarlet

Several seconds pass in silence as I glance between Tar who is still on my shoulder, then at the Gate that’s in the form of a large arc with red, black, and purple energy running through it, and then back at Tar.

“So, did that just happen?” I eventually ask.

“It did,” Tar replies with a nod of his head. “You also forgot about the changeling again.”

Oh. Right.

That guy.

Well, guess he can enjoy his stay in Allen’s office for a little while longer.

“I am starting to pity that poor changeling,” Tar mutters, but I ignore him. Instead I look around my surroundings, finding it barren of any sort of civilization. Which makes me wonder why there’s just an abandoned Gate here.

Did Black just kill everything here? He’s the one who brought me to this Gate, not the others. So did he just pass though and slaughter everything?

I wouldn’t put it past his other personality to do that.

My thoughts pause as I feel some sort of suppressing sensation along with a gaze passing over me. Like someone is looking past this area from far away.

Gramps.

The gaze actually passes by me without stopping, so whatever Black and Purple did worked to the degree that he doesn’t know where I am, assuming he even knows it’s me. Which he probably does.

If I remember correctly, if this is the same protection Amelia and the other Knights used when going to Tartarus, then it makes it so that while he does know the broad area they were in, he didn’t know their exact locations. And he couldn’t confirm their exact locations either. Not without actually sending someone or going himself.

Hopefully he’ll take the hint and not come over here himself. That would be annoying.

I don’t need a doting grandfather on this trip.

“He would probably cry if he heard that,” Tar mutters, but I shake my head.

Nah, he’s the Demon King. He wouldn’t cry from something as small as that. I’m sure of it.

“If you say so,” Tar mutters, sounding like he isn’t sure he believes me.

He better not cry from something like that. If his citizens saw it he’d lose more than a little… okay, maybe he wouldn’t lose any respect. Not considering how they all treat him as if he were a god.

They’d probably just play it off somehow to make him look good while doing it.

Fanatics are terrifying like that after all.

Anyways, I transform into my quadrupedal beast form and immediately begin to run away from the Gate towards the sounds of a city.

Before I start heading towards the Class V Gate, I’ll have to figure out where I am. Then I can make my way there.

And to figure out where I am, I’ll need to enter a city.

The Demon King’s CastleMoments before Scarlet’s Arrival on Tartarus

Arkaz taps his foot as he looks out from his balcony at the army of demons standing in front of his castle. Each and every one of them is a Class III demon or stronger, and each one has sapience enough to stand in a formal line. But despite that, he feels disappointed by the group. Because he knows his beloved granddaughter will just tear through them the moment they enter the battlefield.

I can’t just stop sending lower Class forces to Earth just because most of them will be wiped out, but at the same time, it feels almost like a waste…

The Demon King taps his chin as he considers his options. He could always just send a couple extra Class Vs, specifically an arachnae, to deal with the plagues. And since they can’t deal with it everywhere, Scarlet would still be able to rack up her levels.

His thoughts come to a crashing halt when he feels a familiar mana signature pass through a Gate into Tartarus. One that he hadn’t expected to see for years. And one that has him grinning from ear to ear.

But immediately after sensing it, the mana signature grows hazy. Which makes his grin morph into a frown instead.

Because it’s the same sensation he got from those damnable Knights when they were waltzing around Tartarus while hiding themselves.

So the Black and Purple Knights decided to send Scarlet to Tartarus for some reason while cloaked? The only thing I can think of for her to do here… would be to either recover the Blue Knight’s memories or head to one of the two Class V Gates to cause trouble.

Arkaz taps his chin a few times before turning around, the cape of his armor flying around him in the process as he snaps his fingers once, sending every last member of the army bowing before a massive orb of blood envelops them all and then vanishes. And just seconds later they all reappear next to various different Gates all around the world, ready to be sent to Earth.

I’ll leave Scarlet be for now, but if she stays too long then I will be paying her a visit. If for no other reason than to say hi.

Arkaz very much follows the ideology of letting his children, and in this case grandchildren, do what they please. And if Scarlet wishes to traverse through Tartarus through her plans, then she can do it on her own without his interference. But if she expects him to just completely ignore her and not at least stop by for a visit, then she’s sorely mistaken.

I do wonder if Leon has sensed her as well or not? Probably not. His senses aren’t as strong as mine. Especially not since he’s focused his attention on Blood Runes all this while.

The Demon King begins humming as he walks, a smile decorating his face at the thought of visiting his granddaughter again. A smile that grows even bigger when he realizes he’d be visiting her without Leon knowing.

I can just leave my paperwork to Leon and go visit her in a couple weeks.

He nods his head, his mind set on that plan as he leaves his room and heads towards his office.

For now I’ll do the work he can’t do. Then I’ll leave the rest for him.