Chapter 340: Severed and Returned

[Mamveth’s POV]

Far beneath one of the western towers of the Demon Lord Castle was a chamber unlike anything else within the fortress.

The place was strangely clean. No bones had been left scattered across the floor, and the stone walls were free of the old blood and filth that seemed almost unavoidable elsewhere in the castle. Even the usual sight of monsters hanging from rusted chains was nowhere to be found.

Long black tables occupied most of the room, arranged neatly with barely a thing out of place. Strange instruments covered the surfaces, each arranged with great care.

At a glance, the chamber could have passed for the laboratory of some deranged mortal scholar.

Though, that impression did not last long.

Glass containers crowded the shelves along the walls, their contents suspended in cloudy liquid. Preserved organs rested beside severed eyes and pieces of misshapen flesh, while several hearts continued to beat faintly inside their jars.

A few of the smaller specimens were worse; whatever they had once been, most of their bodies were already gone, yet they still twitched weakly in the fluid.

A small metal plate had been fixed beneath every container: numbers, dates, symbols, and short notes covered their surfaces, documenting how the specimen inside had changed over time.

And then, deeper within the laboratory, a second chamber had been sealed behind a wall of thick black glass. It was far less crowded than the main room, yet the few instruments inside looked far more complicated.

Thin crimson threads ran from one end of the chamber to the other, crossing over pieces of ancient bone and strange ritual objects. Several black mirrors stood around a large circle carved into the floor, all of them angled toward its center.

And there, seated alone within the ritual circle, was a demon.

His legs were crossed beneath him while both hands rested loosely upon his knees. Long, wavy green hair spilled around his shoulders, and two curved obsidian horns jutted from either side of his head.

His crimson eyes remained shut.

The ritual had been running for quite some time. But suddenly, every crimson thread inside the chamber snapped taut.

The black mirrors flickered wildly, several runes fractured at once, and the image of the mortal world vanished behind a burst of static.

A moment later, the entire ritual circle flared crimson before abruptly plunging into darkness.

Mamveth’s body convulsed; his crimson eyes snapped open as his back arched sharply, and a ragged gasp ripped from his throat.

"Haa...!"

With his fingers digging hard into his knees, Mamveth kept his head lowered for several seconds, forcing air into his lungs through tightly clenched teeth.

After a while, the tension in his shoulders gradually eased, and the faint trembling in his hands finally subsided.

Then, Mamveth slowly raised his head, his crimson eyes peering through strands of disheveled green hair. The corner of his eye twitched once as he stared at his own reflection in one of the black mirrors.

Then, his lips slowly parted.

"I was... expelled?"

He couldn’t believe it himself. A mere mortal had somehow forcefully ejected his soul from the vessel he had been residing in, someone far weaker than him, nevertheless.

Of course, Ophelia, Julian, and that unknown demon had worked together to make it happen, but still, that scholar had been at the very core of the entire process.

Astounded, Mamveth burst into loud laughter, one hand covering his face. He was baffled, irritated, yet strangely exhilarated. This was the first time something like this had ever happened to him.

He suddenly recalled the scholar’s face with startling clarity, then his voice, but most of all, that peculiar confidence of his.

"What an interesting fella... kukukuku~"

As Mamveth rose to his feet, the amusement on his face gradually faded, replaced by a wary scowl.

From the corner of the chamber, he caught sight of another demon leaning casually against the wall, idly holding the skull of some unknown monster in one hand.

Mamveth’s crimson eyes narrowed.

"Lucifon... why the hell are you here?"

Lucifon finally looked toward him, completely unbothered.

"So you’re finally back?"

Pushing himself away from the wall, Lucifon began walking toward him, "What was all of that about? I never knew you were working on some kind of new experiment."

He casually tossed the skull into the air and caught it again as he walked, "On yourself, nevertheless..." Before long, Lucifon stopped directly in front of him, leaving only a short distance between them.

His gaze settled firmly on Mamveth.

"Tell me the truth, Mamveth... what the hell did you do?"

Still keeping his expression composed, Mamveth stared back at him without the slightest hesitation, "Why should I tell you? You never seemed particularly interested in any of my work before."

Lucifon paused, then glared at him with cold suspicion.

"I have no interest in whatever deranged experiments you occupy yourself with, but the Lord ordered me to bring you before him..."

His eyes narrowed slightly. "And he seemed rather displeased. That is why you have piqued my curiosity, Mamveth."

Lucifon repeated himself, his voice growing firmer.

"So, what did you do?"

Upon hearing that the Dark Lord had personally summoned him, Mamveth’s expression stiffened.

His complexion slowly paled, while his fingers curled slightly at his sides before he quickly forced them still.

For perhaps the first time since Lucifon entered the chamber, Mamveth had nothing to say.

Lucifon waited for a moment, but when Mamveth remained reluctant to answer, he merely gave a dismissive scoff.

"Well, no matter. I will learn of it eventually." His gaze hardened. "It seems all these years have made you forget your place, Mamveth."

He turned away.

"You would do well to remember that no matter what happens within this realm, nothing escapes the Dark Lord’s sight."

As Lucifon walked out of the chamber, his voice echoed behind him.

"Now, come. Do not keep our Lord waiting."

Mamveth was scared out of his damn mind now. He could only wonder what kind of punishment awaited him, because what he had done out of sheer greed could almost be considered an act of sabotaging their plan, even if only a small part of it.

However, what Mamveth didn’t know was that he was not actually being summoned to receive the Dark Lord’s wrath.

The Dark Lord already knew Mamveth’s nature far too well. In fact, this was hardly the first time something like this had happened.

Across countless timelines, Mamveth was bound to give in to his greed sooner or later, so the Dark Lord had simply allowed it to happen.

If that was the case, then what was the real reason behind his summons? Why had Lucifon said that the Dark Lord was displeased?

The answer had nothing to do with the punishment Mamveth was dreading.

Although the Dark Lord had lost much of his memories from the countless regressions, a few broken fragments still remained buried within his mind.

And there were two things he wanted to know.

Since Mamveth had gone to the mortal realm exactly as he remembered would happen... had someone stood in his way and interfered with whatever he had been trying to accomplish?

And was that someone...

A scholar from Velthia’s Academy?

*****

Knock. Knock

The sound came from the tall door of the Chancellor’s chamber, situated at the highest point of the Leviathan.

Ophelia lifted her eyes from the papers in her hands. "Come in," she said calmly, leaning back slightly in her chair.

A moment later, the handle turned and the heavy door slowly swung open.

A young scholar stepped inside, his dark hair slightly disheveled while a pair of dark blue eyes looked straight toward her.

It was none other than Ruvian Castelor.

Most of his injuries had already healed, though faint shadows still lingered beneath his eyes, and the traces of exhaustion on his face had yet to disappear completely.

Ophelia quietly studied him for another moment before setting the papers in her hand down on the desk.

"Take a seat, Scholar Ruvian," she said, gesturing toward the chair across from her. "There are several things we need to discuss."

And indeed, there were...

Ruvian gave a small nod and walked toward the desk without uttering a word. Pulling the chair back, he lowered himself into it before resting both hands loosely over his knees.

"Alright, Scholar Ruvian. I doubt I need to explain why you were summoned here, so let us get straight to the matter."

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[Chapter 340: Severed and Returned]

Plot Points= 275,000