Chapter 16: Ritual Gone Wrong pt2
Lucien stood inside the center of the massive ritual circle while the crimson markings beneath his feet glowed brighter with every passing second.
The air inside the chamber had become incredibly heavy, dominion mana flooding the atmosphere so densely that even breathing felt strange. Yet the others around him looked perfectly calm, as though this amount of pressure was normal to them.
Nyx stood a few steps ahead near the black altar, her white hair flowing softly behind her while the floating crimson flames reflected against her blindfold.
Around the chamber, enormous obsidian pillars stretched endlessly upward into darkness while ancient devil statues surrounded the ritual hall like silent guardians watching everything unfold.
Lucien looked around slowly before speaking. "You people seriously built this place underneath a school?"
Ryan folded his arms with a lazy expression. "You expected devils to meet in classrooms?"
"I expected something less... cult-like."
Dahlia laughed softly from the side while Riley smiled. "You’ll get used to it," Riley said calmly.
"I hope so."
Mira’s eyes narrowed slightly while Ryan snorted quietly beside her.
Nyx ignored them entirely and slowly raised one hand. Instantly, the ritual symbols beneath Lucien started moving like flowing liquid. Crimson lines spread across the black floor while ancient runes slowly appeared around the outer edges of the chamber.
Lucien looked downward immediately. "Alright... now that looks insane."
"This is an ancient covenant ritual," Nyx explained calmly. "Not ordinary magic."
Lucien stared at the glowing symbols cautiously. "You know, normal people usually explain dangerous things before starting them."
"You agreed already."
"...That’s not the point."
Nyx stepped slightly closer toward him afterward. "Place your hand over the center seal."
Lucien looked toward the dark crimson symbol directly beneath him before sighing deeply. "If I die during this, I’m haunting every single one of you till I die."
"You won’t die," Nyx answered calmly.
"That somehow isn’t reassuring enough."
Dahlia shook her head while smiling faintly. "Relax, Lucien."
"Easy for you to say. You’re not the one standing inside the demon summoning circle."
"It’s not a summoning circle," Ryan corrected.
"That somehow sounds worse."
Mira rolled her eyes in frustration because of his complaints. After several seconds of hesitation, Lucien finally crouched slightly and placed his palm against the glowing center symbol, the reaction was immediate.
BOOOOOOM.
The entire chamber shook violently as terrifying dominion mana exploded outward from the ritual circle. The floating crimson flames distorted wildly while black wind swept through the sanctuary, Lucien’s eyes widened instantly.
Dark energy suddenly burst upward around his body like smoke rising from beneath the floor itself. "What the hell?!" he shouted while instinctively trying to pull his hand away.
He couldn’t move it, the ritual had locked onto him completely.
"Nyx..." Ryan said quietly from the side, his expression changing slightly. "That amount of energy isn’t normal."
Lucien immediately looked toward them. "What do you mean not normal?!"
Nobody answered, then glowing symbols beneath him began changing rapidly. They were red, black, and then dark gold.
The moment the third color appeared, the entire chamber became silent. Even Mira’s cold expression changed slightly.
Lucien noticed the atmosphere instantly. "Why are all of you suddenly looking at me like I’m about to explode?"
Nyx lowered her blindfolded gaze toward the ritual circle beneath him. "That shouldn’t be possible," she whispered quietly.
Lucien blinked. "Okay, that’s definitely not something I wanted to hear during a ritual."
Then suddenly, sounds of cracks and slight roar started, they were distant at first. Almost impossible to hear clearly.
Lucien froze immediately. "...Did anyone else hear that?"
Riley’s expression paled slightly while Ryan stepped backward from the ritual circle instinctively. The sounds slowly became louder.
"What the hell is that sound?" he asked again, this time more seriously.
The chamber trembled violently once more before dark crimson mana burst from Lucien’s body uncontrollably.
CRAAACK.
Large fractures spread across the obsidian floor beneath him while the ancient runes around the sanctuary began rearranging themselves.
Dahlia’s eyes widened slightly. "The symbols are changing." Everyone immediately looked downward.
The original covenant markings were disappearing. Replacing themselves with ancient symbols none of them recognized.
Symbols older than ordinary devil language, then something massive slowly formed behind Lucien.
Black energy gathered together violently before taking the shape of gigantic wings made entirely from darkness and ancient runes.
The pressure alone became monstrous, Riley stumbled backward while Mira immediately released dominion mana around herself defensively.
Even Ryan cursed quietly under his breath. "What kind of monster did we just bring in here?"
Lucien slowly turned his head and finally saw the massive shadow behind him. "...Nope," he muttered immediately. "Absolutely not. Someone explain why I suddenly have nightmare wings behind me."
Everyone ignored his question, since their attention was all on the big beast, because even Nyx herself looked confused now.
Then another loud crack echoed through the chamber. One of the enormous devil statues surrounding the sanctuary suddenly split apart before slowly lowering itself.
Another statue followed, then another. One after another, the ancient statues began kneeling toward Lucien. The entire room became silent afterward.
Lucien stared blankly at the kneeling statues before looking back toward the others. "...Why are they bowing?"
Mira answered quietly this time. "Ancient devil sanctuaries only react that way toward one existence."
Lucien frowned. "And what existence is that supposed to mean?" Before anyone could answer.
BOOOOOOOM.
The giant chamber doors exploded open violently, a blood-covered servant stumbled inside while breathing heavily.
"Lady Nyx!"
Everyone immediately turned toward him, the servant collapsed onto one knee, trembling visibly. "The academy is under attack!"
Ryan’s expression darkened instantly. "Who attacked?"
The servant swallowed hard before answering shakily. "Fallen angels..."
The atmosphere inside the chamber changed immediately. "How many?" Dahlia asked sharply.
The servant’s face paled completely. "...Seven Transcendent-Demon have appeared above the academy."
