The women mobbed Nushi and Howl briefly, but it ended quickly. Within minutes they broke away, and Thenia turned to me.
"What are you wanting to make?" The pleasant Demon woman asked.
As she did, I became distracted, watching the kitchen knit itself back together. I had seen many strange things, but this was like watching time run in reverse.
Chunks of debris down to the dust slowly started pulling themselves together. The cracks and seams of each thing sealed up as I watched.
The whole scene made me forget Thenia's question and my hunger until the display was over. Also, watching the shards of glass reform to bottles as the spices stream back into them was oddly satisfying.
"You act as though you have never seen this before? How could you be a Demon Lord and never have witnessed Spatial Reversal Magic?" Peri asked in a slightly condescending tone, but I ignored it.
Nushi spoke, which was nice because I didn't have a good answer to the question. Then I felt a spike in presence come from Nushi that I could even feel like gravity trying to pull me down slightly.
"Zack isn't from this island, but that's not as common as you think. The only one that can use Spatial Magic is Grandmother Noel, both of us had only just met. Regardless, I don't like your tone, Peri. While Zack may not be Doa, that doesn't make him any less of a Demon Lord. You would be wise to remember that," Nushi spoke flatly, but she was causing the women to drop to their knees.
"Nushi, that is enough," I said softly as I walked over to the three Demon women that were now all sitting on the ground.
Each of them was sweating, and there was fear in their eyes. Even Wanda stared at the ground blankly, tears streaming down their faces.
I understood Nushi's point, but I think she is unused to the level of power she controls now. We would have to work on it in the future, but luckily, the women seemed capable of doing worse to each other.
"I… I didn't… I-," I heard Nushi start to say from behind me, but then she cut off.
I turned at her footsteps, starting to leave to see Nushi run outside. Her horns that had been erect dropped back down to the sides of her face as she fled.
I started to head back outside to go after her but then froze in shock as Nushi started to speak again.
"No… What have I done?" Was all Nushi said with Howl still in her arms.
I started moving towards her again, but a pair of red wings burst from Nushi's back.
Before I reached the door, Nushi leapt into the air with Howl. I didn't know where she was going, but I could track her power anywhere on the island.
This was not how I had planned things going. The state of the situation had driven off my hunger for now.
I stood in the hall in which we had entered the house, and I scrubbed a hand over my face.
I had an idea of what would be waiting for me, but my eyes widened when I walked out into the dark, fire-lit streets.
The roads had been filled with roaming Demons minding their own business. Now, the streets were littered with people on their knees or completely passed out.
The radius of effect had stretched out far more significantly than I could have ever imagined. I looked both ways down the street, but people were on the ground for as far as I could see.
Now I understood why Nushi had fled, and I needed to go after her, but I couldn't leave just yet.
I turned around and walked into the houses where the women were still on their knees. As soon as I got back inside, all three of the women tried to speak over the top of each other.
They were trying to apologize, but I didn't really have time for that. I put a hand up to stop them, and the three went deathly quiet.
"I apologize for Nushi's actions, but her words were not wrong, Peri. As much as I would like to have stayed, I need to find Nushi and my pet wolf. If you would still like to join us for our trip, come to the southern beach tomorrow," I explained to the women and then turned back to the door and left.
[View of Wanda, Peri, and Thenia]
The Demon Lord of the island, Zack, walked out of the three women's house, closing the door behind himself. As he did, the women leaned into each other.
All three were still shaking from the terrifying feeling of having thousands of needles forcing them to the ground. The pain and feelings were a small reminder of what it was like back in Gardenia.
"Is that what we really want to go back to?" Peri asked, not attempting to get back up from the kitchen floor.
Thenia knew what Peri meant, but Wanda had been born on the island. She had never met anyone as strong as the two just in their house.
Wanda had understood that Nushi had gotten stronger, but she had never realized the change could be so great. Something else Wanda had noticed was that Nushi's horns had been standing up and not down the side of her head.
Wanda had visited the Keep at the center of the island a couple months ago and many times before this. There were monster girls that came to the castle often.
They were friendly for the most part, and Wanda enjoyed visiting with them. They also had a cook named Lidy that could be very nice and had great food, but she was also scary in her own way.
The times that Wanda had visited, she had seen very little of Nushi, but they had visited. The girl had dark blue skin like her own, which marked her as the lowest level demon.
Nushi had always seemed scared and depressed, rarely coming out of her room. The girl that had just forced them all to their knees was not the one that Wanda remembered.
The force that had poured out of Nushi was even more terrifying than her great-grandmother, Nixi. The very few times Wanda had met the old Demon were those she would not like to remember.
Still, Wanda didn't understand what other parts could be worse than this? The feeling of having your body crushed by countless needles was near the top of her list, but crueler things could be done.
"What do you mean a small part?" Wanda asked, turning to Peri, but Thenia was the one that explained.
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