Maria dreamed.
She dreamed of her family. She dreamed of her father, her mother, her brothers, and her sisters. She dreamed of the days gone by, the gifts her father, the king, brought her on every birthday: all the lovely dresses, glittering jewellery, and toys a young girl could ask for. She dreamed of the care her mother showered upon her whenever she hurt herself, and of the scoldings she received whenever she failed to behave according to proper royal etiquette.
She dreamed of the times she fought with her siblings, of childish arguments and stubborn disagreements, only for them to reconcile soon after, their laughter and affection restoring what had been broken.
Warm memories drifted through her mind like fragments of a brighter age, vivid enough to make her heart ache with longing.
Then the dream changed.
Screams and fire consumed everything.
The vision returned with merciless clarity—the night the palace was breached by rebels. They stormed through its halls, slaughtering guards and servants alike, leaving blood and ruin in their wake. One by one, members of the royal family were hunted down and killed until only she remained.
By some miracle, Maria managed to escape through a secret passage hidden deep within the palace. A handful of loyal guards fled with her, along with one of her dearest friends.
But the revolutionaries followed.
They pursued them relentlessly through the darkness, never far behind.
Then came the moment she could never forget.
An arrow was loosed from the shadows, aimed straight at her heart.
Her friend saw it.
Without a second thought, she threw herself into its path.
The arrow struck true.
A sacrifice made in a single heartbeat.
Maria could still see the shock in her friend's eyes, still see her crumple to the ground as life slipped away. She could still hear her own voice, raw and broken, tearing through the night.
She screamed in the dream.
She woke up.
"Must have been quite a nightmare," Zelda remarked, sitting atop a rock, one foot tapping idly against the ground. "Oh well, at least you're awake now. It's already past noon."
Maria got down from the bed. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and let out a long yawn.
Zelda reached over, retrieved his cloak from the bed, and draped it back over his shoulders.
"There's a bucket of water by the side. Wash your face, and let's get moving. No food for you until sunset—consider it punishment for waking up late and wasting precious time."
"S-sorry."
Maria lowered her hands into the bucket. The water was cool against her skin. She scooped up a handful and splashed it across her face, the chill driving away the lingering remnants of sleep.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she drew in a long breath and slowly exhaled.
"I am ready."
"Move aside, then."
Maria stepped away at once.
Zelda raised his staff and gave it a casual wave. The still-burning campfire vanished first, followed by the nearby rocks they had used as seats. The wooden bowls, cups, bucket, and the makeshift bed disappeared moments later. Even the patches of dead grass beneath them stirred and revived, fresh blades of green spreading across the meadow as though no one had ever been there.
Zelda turned and began to walk, and Maria hurried after him.
They walked for nearly five hours without stopping.
Gradually, the scenery began to change. The rolling meadows gave way to rough, uneven plains of stone. Grass became increasingly scarce, replaced by weathered rock formations and stretches of cracked earth. Craggy outcroppings rose from the ground like the broken teeth of some ancient beast.
The sun hung low upon the horizon now, bathing the land in shades of amber and crimson.
Twilight was fast approaching.
Maria's legs ached, and her feet were beginning to protest the relentless march, but Zelda showed no sign of slowing. His pace remained steady and unchanging, as though the passing hours meant nothing to him.
Then, without warning, he stopped.
Zelda raised his unoccupied hand.
Maria immediately halted as well.
The evening wind swept across the rocky plain, carrying with it the scent of dust and stone.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
"I sense a life presence. A demon," Zelda said, breaking the silence. His grip tightened around his staff.
Maria immediately grew alert.
And soon, the demon revealed itself.
It stood atop a rocky cliff overlooking the plain, its silhouette dark against the fading light of the setting sun.
Maria studied the creature carefully.
It looked vastly different from Zelda.
Where Zelda appeared almost human aside from his horns and pointed ears, this demon possessed a far more bestial appearance.
It stood nearly seven feet tall. A thick lion's mane framed its head, yet its face was grotesque and unnatural, dominated by oversized green lips. Its eyes appeared stitched shut, as though they had been sewn together long ago.
The creature's broad torso resembled that of a boar, covered in coarse bristles and thick muscle. Yet its arms ended in strangely human-like hands, though the fingers were unnaturally long and thin. Behind it, a dragon-like tail swayed lazily through the air.
Despite its monstrous appearance, it wore several layers of robes draped over its massive frame, the dark fabric fluttering gently in the evening wind.
The sight of it sent an involuntary chill down Maria's spine.
This was the first demon she had ever seen besides Zelda.
"Hou! Never thought I would see you again, Zelda Marvoverus, the Last Scholar of Luminar!" the demon remarked. A sneer spread across its face, revealing rows of jagged fangs. Its gaze then shifted toward Maria.
"Oh my... what a tasty-looking human you have behind you. Still alive, still breathing, and still looking completely unarmed."
Maria immediately paled.
The way the demon looked at her made her skin crawl.
The creature's stitched eyes should not have been able to see her.
Yet somehow, she felt as though she were being examined from head to toe.
Zelda raised his staff and pointed it directly at the demon.
"Run along, Clemens," he said flatly. "The human is with me. I have need of her services."
His voice hardened.
"She is not for consumption."
The demon—now revealed to be Clemens—paused and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Hmm. I haven't eaten in days, so no."
A wicked grin spread across his grotesque face.
"Though, if it bothers you that much, I can always add you to the menu instead."
"How about I add you to mine?" Zelda replied without missing a beat.
For a moment, silence hung between them.
Then Clemens burst into laughter.
"Heheheheheheh!"
He clutched his stomach, his massive frame shaking with amusement.
"You? Eat me!?"
His dragon-like tail lashed behind him as he continued laughing.
"Since our last encounter at the Demon King's coronation, I have grown considerably stronger!"
The demon spread his arms wide.
"Seven centuries have passed, Zelda Marvoverus. Surely you don't think I am still the same demon you met back then?"
Zelda gave a faint smirk.
"Only seven."
He shook his head.
"What a fool. Then again, you were never particularly bright to begin with."
The moment those words left his mouth, Clemens' expression twisted with fury.
The amusement vanished instantly.
A vein bulged across his temple as he raised an elongated finger and pointed it directly at Zelda.
"La Fire: Ignite!"
A roaring torrent of flames erupted from his fingertip.
The fire surged across the rocky plain like a blazing river, illuminating the approaching twilight in shades of orange and gold as it raced toward Zelda and Maria.
Maria's eyes widened.
Then, just before the flames could reach them, dozens of glowing triangles materialized in the air.
They assembled themselves into a translucent barrier.
The torrent of fire crashed against it.
The impact sent waves of heat washing across the plain, yet the barrier did not budge.
Instead, the flames split apart and dispersed harmlessly around them, fading into sparks that drifted away upon the evening wind.
Throughout the entire exchange, Zelda never took a single step backward.
"Still relying on that barrier of yours!" Clemens exclaimed. "Why don't you fight like a man!?"
"Why should I?" Zelda replied. "I am no man. I am a demon."
With a casual wave of his staff, Zelda launched a torrent of fire from its tip.
The blazing stream tore across the rocky plain toward Clemens.
The beast-like demon snorted.
With nothing more than his index finger, he sliced through the incoming attack.
The torrent split cleanly in two.
Yet before Clemens could celebrate, the divided flames suddenly curved through the air.
Like hunting serpents, they twisted around him and struck from behind.
Flames erupted across his back.
He can even change the trajectory of his attacks after they've been diverted or split!
Maria stared in astonishment.
She had never heard of such a thing before.
Then again, perhaps it was not as extraordinary as she thought.
Maria had never paid much attention to magic, sorcery, or the scholarly study of such subjects. It was entirely possible that many powerful mages could perform similar feats.
Or perhaps it was an exceptionally rare skill.
Truthfully, she had no idea.
All she knew was that it looked impressive.
"I have changed my mind!" Clemens roared. "I am going to burn you both to death for burning me!"
Clemens raised a finger toward the sky.
Fire began to swirl around his hand.
At first, it was no larger than a small sphere, but it rapidly condensed and expanded, growing larger and larger with each passing second. At the same time, the demon slowly levitated into the air, rising high above the rocky plain.
The world around them was bathed in a blazing yellow glow.
The heat became unbearable.
The ground shimmered beneath the oppressive temperature. Stones cracked, and the sparse patches of grass that clung stubbornly to life ignited into flame.
Maria felt her skin begin to burn.
The air itself seemed to scorch her lungs with every breath.
"Agh!"
She cried out in pain, instinctively raising an arm to shield her face.
"Overdrive."
The word left Zelda's lips calmly.
An instant later, a wave of cold washed over her.
The burning sensation vanished.
Cool air surrounded her body, and the agony that had been spreading across her skin disappeared as though it had never existed.
Maria sucked in a sharp breath.
Relief flooded through her.
"I have removed the heat around us," Zelda explained before returning his attention to Clemens.
His expression remained as composed as ever.
As though the enormous sphere of fire gathering above them was little more than a minor inconvenience.
"Do what you think you must," Zelda said. "I am still going to eat you."
"La Fire: Diving Sun!"
With a furious roar, Clemens thrust his arm forward.
The miniature sun hurtled from the sky.
It descended toward them like a falling star, trailing waves of fire and molten sparks in its wake. The air screamed around it, and the rocky plain trembled beneath its approach.
Maria's heart nearly stopped.
The attack was enormous.
Far larger than anything she had ever imagined a single being could create.
Yet Zelda remained perfectly still.
As the blazing sphere came crashing down upon them, he simply raised his unarmed hand and pointed a finger toward the descending attack.
"Prism Seal."
A small sphere of black energy emerged from his fingertip.
Compared to the massive sun-like construct hurtling toward them, it looked insignificant.
The black sphere drifted forward calmly, almost lazily, as though unconcerned by the overwhelming force bearing down upon it.
Maria watched closely.
The moment the black sphere made contact with the blazing sun, something impossible happened.
The fire stopped.
Then it began to collapse inward.
The black sphere greedily devoured the flames, drawing them into itself like a miniature abyss. Streams of fire twisted and spiraled toward it, vanishing the instant they touched its surface.
The enormous sphere shrank rapidly.
Larger than a house one moment.
The size of a carriage the next.
Then a boulder.
Then a man's head.
Then nothing at all.
Within seconds, the blazing sun had completely vanished.
Not a single spark remained.
Only the tiny black sphere lingered in the air for a brief moment before it, too, disappeared.
Maria stared in stunned silence.
The attack that had seemed capable of reducing the entire plain to molten rock had simply... ceased to exist.
As though Zelda had erased it from the world.