At least the kid was alright.

Not that it mattered to her, really, it was more simply to spite the demon possessing the woman that she hadn't actually achieved anything. Then again, maybe she was fully aware of that fact...

Dripping with gore, Elizstrazia scowled.

"I'll tear that thing apart," the scale demon half-snarled.

Before she could press onward in hopes of pursuing the possessed woman, however, a blessed weapon was abruptly careening through the air towards her.

A blessed weapon---!

Anger.

White hot fury raged through the girl's heart at the mere sight of the thing.

It wasn't as if she recognized it. It wasn't as if she knew the wielder.

Rather, it was rage at the thought of what it stood for.

The halberd bit through empty air, as Elizstrazia hurled herself backwards through the air, her clawed feet grinding rents into the tile below, her lowered position dragging her nails through it as well.

Before she could lurch forward and retaliate, it seemed as if Katherine stepped in to try and angrily put at stop to the attack with words rather than violence.

The petite white-haired girl glared in the direction of her attacker, her crimson eyes burning as she slowly straightened.

"She's right, you know," she commented, cocking her head to one side, "We're not here to work with that idiot. But hey, if you want to scrap, that's fine by me!"

She leaned forward, her grin coming across more like baring her teeth, the sharp points glinting in her mouth.

Tearing apart someone who represented those bastards at the Church was hardly a negative in her eyes.

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

Location
Havershel Estate

---

@Click This@AzureKnight

“Tch.” The Lord scowled, hand still on the blade at his side as he took moments to weigh his options. “Fine. If it will make this go smoother, but first…this annoyance.” While Lucrecia made sure to avoid a killing blow, Havershel did not. The creature moved, opening its large mouth in an attempt to seemingly eat the maid, even as knives impaled themselves in its almost transparent flesh, the knives not bothering it at all.

A quick flick of his wrist, the blade in his hand making a sweeping upwards cut.

Lucrecia would feel a sharp sting on her cheek as something moving incredibly fast cut her just as the demonic maids head went flying.

“Now then. Allow me to properly introduce myself this time. Silxtratch Camio. Demon noble, seat sixty-ninth of the seventy two families. Ninth noble of the Blood Clan. And those creatures that are now running amok in my manor and have absconded with my wife are pests I decided to give shelter to out of mercy.” A clack as the blade was sheathed. “As for their goals, it is likely simple. Use my wife as a blood sacrifice to bring back that worthless creature in that idol. Fool as I was, I bought it as a sign of good will, but alas, I suppose demonic animals such as them can not shake their instincts. Is that enough information or are you going to ask more inane questions?”

“Bzzt-did I hear that right? Lulu, did I hear that right? Fucks sake-” Myrilla hissed. “That explains a lot…though this also poses a good opportunity. If we let them free that beast then re-seal it…or perhaps weaken it enough so we can…shall we say, forcefully relocate the demon…” Myrilla grumbled over Lucrecias earpiece. “Ngh, whatever you decide to do, we need to inform the other team. Since I’m technically not here, you need to do that Lulu.”

“If you do, then I suggest we walk and talk before she reaches my private collection. Once that damnable Xrael manages to get her claws back in this world then we’ll have more than a few ugly lizards to worry about.”

If either Lucrecia or Polina brushed up on their demon lore, they’d know the name Silxtratch was one of the lesser ranking demon nobles. Still, they were quite powerful as a noble and it also explained his ease of dealing with those knives and other metal implements. The family was known for its ability to manipulate metals with relative ease.

---

@VitaVitaAR@Pyromania99

“What-”

“Madeline, please I told you I think they’re with the Maison.”

“...Tch.” The halberd wielding woman growled, spinning the weapon in hand before resting it on her shoulder. “I heard the maison got itself a demon guard dog, but I didn’t think it’d be a scale demon of all things. What happened to that so called pride of yours that you’d let a human order you around.”

“Madeline! We don’t need more enemies right now! Especially the Maison!”

“...right, sure Cassandre.”

“Cardinal Cassandre to you as long as you have that attitude, Madeline.”

“...Cardinal.”

“I apologize for this one's overzealousness, miss demon. I am Cassandre Marcien. We can have more introductions later once we resolve this issue. If our information is the same, then Lord Havershel is in none other than Silxtratch Camio, one of the seventy two demonic nobles. We don’t know what his goal here, but we went to see his wife. We determined she’s possessed, but we don’t know by who or what, but we assume he’s trying to bring someone else here from Naraheim using her as a sacrifice.”

“This kid his son?”

“Do not kill him, Madeline. Even if he is a demon we can not recklessly take a life.”

“Hmph.”

"I see. Well, I suppose that means we'll have to prevent the beautiful woman from getting sarcrificed, won't we." Katherine mentioned, motioning for her teammates to follow her after the possessed woman's trail. "Feel free to join, Cardinal. If you wish. Our goals aline for the moment at the very least. What do you think Lyssa? Eliz?" Katherine asked, leaving to hunt for the possessed wife.

"... Tch."

Eyes narrowed, Elizstrazia folded her arms. In all honesty, she was somewhat disappointed that there wasn't a fight. She'd have loved an oppportunity to crush a church representative. But, deep down, she supposed that it wouldn't be suitable for their duty. And she wanted to crush that demon possessing the woman almost as much at the moment.

Besides, it was an excellent way to show off her superiority and resplendence.

"It's simple, church dog, I think even you might be able to understand it," she replied with a scowl, "We made a deal, and in exchange I'm going to show them all just how much better I am at their job."

Her lips parted into a grin.

"Afraid I'll show you up? Hmm? A scale demon is bound to be superior to anyone else, after all," continued Elizstrazia, "Really, why don't you watch as I do your job for you?"

Even if it wasn't in a fight, she was still going to prove her superiority.

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

Farisian Maid

---

Polina struggled to suppress a wince as Lord Havershel executed the hapless demon maid. Nonetheless, it was warranted. She hadn’t even been aware Axolotl –demon maid versions or not—were able to open their mouths that wide. It was a little disconcerting.

The Farisian maid had her mild suspicions, but she was still taken aback when the man introduced himself as a demon lord. That… changed a lot of things. It certainly explained the man’s vices that Polina so disliked, and the way he hard-countered any of her avenues of attack. Of course, she wasn’t the church, and even with an introduction like that, she was hardly going to attack. Not without hearing a proper explanation, at least.

And really, what a doozy it was.

“I have so many questions,” was Polina’s simple reply, but for lack of time and information, she accepted his offer to walk and talk after giving Lulu a look. She wasn’t the best demonologist, but she knew the name, at least.

“Well, I suppose we can drop the pretense… Since our intelligence is apparently so flawed, who is your wife, and the demons that have kidnapped her? And what's your relationship with that demon in the idol?” Polina didn’t mention his wife’s request, though she wondered what happened to the maid that had approached them.

Nonetheless, she had a to frown a little despite needing to ask. It grated her on a professional level that they’d come in with a seriously incomplete picture on the situation, and even more so that she had to ask what was ostensibly still an enemy to fill them in.

_{@Rune_Alchemist@Click This}

---

Havershel Estate

---

Lucrecia winced slightly at the sudden slash that brushed on her cheek, it happened so fast that she didn't even feel it at first. The demon maid she had rescued earlier was now useless to them, it's lifeless head rolling across the floor. Having now fully introducing himself proper, The lord was actually a lesser ranking demon in disguise this whole time. Lucrecia couldn't say that she was surprised, given everything that's led up to this.

"I suppose that's why none of our physical attacks phased you much. How typical of your kind to use your spouse as a sacrifice, for a monster that doesn't seem very grateful anyway." She said, wiping the blood on her cheek.

She then turn to Polina. "Polina, as much as it pains me to say it, the cazzo is right. Things have taken a turn for the worst. I'll go on ahead and meet up with the other team and inform them of the situation. Silxtratch, you said your name was? I guess it'd be within our best interest to work with you for now, but if you try anything, you'll end up just like that demon maid you decapitated..." She warned.

With that, Lucrecia began making her way toward the wife's chambers, determined to see this through. Not to mention to fulfill her bargain to Myrilla.

Location
Havershel Estate

---

@Click This@AzureKnight

“There isn’t one.” Camio replied gruffly. “When Xrael was sealed-” However, the moment Lucrecia spoke, he stopped, his demeanor changing from one of cold indifference to what can only be described as pure hatred. Polina didn’t get a moment to consider what had happened as she felt a sharp pain in her gut as she was subsequently launched from the room, launched across the hallway and slamming into the far hallway. Something felt broken, maybe a rib.

“How dare you.” Where she had been standing, Camio was now standing. His eyes were now completely red. Feathers were sprouting on various parts of his skin now, and his hands had turned into what seemed to be avian like claws. The sound of fabric ripping accompanied his voice as he spoke. “I am many things. I’ve killed. Eaten humans. Tortured them. Done things that would condemn me to an eternity of suffering should the church to be believed. I am by your measure, a reprehensible being.” Stepping forward, the tiles under Camio’s feet cracked. “But I would never, under any circumstance…put my wife in danger. My sweet, fragile Marie does not deserve such a fate…I have been more than courteous to you maids, but that ends now. I’ll have your head on my dinner table!”

The blade at his side was drawn, and he charged towards Lucrecia, an ear-shattering screech following.

---

@VitaVitaAR@Pyromania99

“I won’t respond to your provoking you harlot-!” In the direction of Polina and Lucrecia, all the maids and even the two members of the church could feel it. A dark, foreboding presence along with a massive increase of magical energy that silenced Madeline’s words. Something, or someone had gotten loose. A small smile was plastered on Lyssa’s lips, though it wasn’t one of her usual mirth as her pink hair turned towards the direction of the other events going on.

“Cassandre!”

Cassandre didn’t respond immediately, and instead simply looked towards the source of the imposing power.

“...Cardinal Cassandre!”

“Madeline…is that Havershel? He’s showing his true colors now, is he?” The clergywoman sighed. “We can’t possibly handle two demon nobles at the same time. At this rate…” She turned towards the group of maids. “I would have offered our assistance, but we need to subdue Havershel.”

“Aw, and I was hoping to get to spend more time with Maddie.”

“...Madeline.”

“Hey, you must be pretty strong to wave that thing around, huh maddie?”

“MADELINE. And yes, I am the strongest paladin in the church.”

“Bzzzt-! This is Viatrix. Infiltration team I’ve received information you may want to hear. Havershel is a demon noble by the name of Camio. According to the party team, he didn’t plan any of this. Seems he simply got the relic as a whim after he took in some of Xrael’s wayward demons.”

“...Eh, so that’s how it is…Got it Vivi.” Lyssa turned to Cassandre and Madeline, quickly relaying the information to them.

“...I see, thank you miss Lyssa. We’ll keep that in mind when dealing with him. As it stands now though, we may have to…put him down. I’ll take the child somewhere safe. Madeline, go on ahead.” A nod, and Madeline rushed back down the hallway as Cassandre picked up the child and headed off towards one of the safer looking rooms.

For Lyssa, Katherine, and Eliz, the path forward was easy enough…though they hadn’t a clue where the private collection was still, but the possessed woman's path was not hard to follow for either of the three. Down a flight of stairs again, and across a hallway but that would mean getting through what seemed to be five of the Axolotl servants now.

_{@Rune_Alchemist@Click This}

---

Havershel Estate

---

Lucrecia certainly didn't expect the situation to escalate to this degree...

It seems her last comment struck quite the nerve with the head of the household. "Funny, I did not think your kind was capable of love for another. Although, I believe our views on courtesy differ considerably.!" She responded. Her words confident, Lucrecia still had to consider the situation she was now in. Her usual means of combat proved ineffective at her current adversary, and she would now be forced to use an alternative means of attack she is rather unfamiliar with.

She would have to think quickly and methodically. Polina, unfortunately, had been completely thrown out of the room, so counting on backup was for now out of the option. It was just her and Silxtratch, and while he was a lesser noble he was still a force to be reckoned with. For now, she'd have to find an opening and use whatever means necessary to her advantage.

She would attempt to use the remains of the burnt mattress from earlier to work in her favor. She would hopefully be able to dodge his forward charge, then kick the bedding his way as a distraction. Then, having created an opening, she would shoot a well-placed salvo of ember straight in his mouth. Having understood that physical weapons do very little to him, magic was her best bet at the current moment.

The church-goers being gone was a nice breeze comparatively for Katherine. She never did like their type. Her adoptive mother didn't have a great respect for them while the firbolg was growing up so it must have rubbed off on her. Regardless, there were these amphibian-like creatures in the way now.

"Not that I think any of you would like to listen to me, but stand aside and I'll put you out of your misery in a more peaceful way. Just enough shots to make it near instant. Otherwise~" The maid's dolls lined up, quickly aiming their rifles at the five axolotl. "This will be a lot more painful for you." With that, she pointed forward as if ordering her soldiers to open fire, aiming for the more vital parts of these axolotls. She fully expected her two teammates to be right behind her and ready to help finish off these things.

"Wait, so his dumb ass is a victim in all of this, too?"

She couldn't help it. That news almost immediately lightened her mood, her lips spreading to expose her sharp teeth in a wide grin. For the moment, her animosity towards the church agents took a back seat, as she couldn't help but restrain her laughter.

"Not just hiring a demon, but helping one out, huh? That must be news to you!" she declared, wiping at tear from her eye and clutching at her stomach, "Ah, ah, alright. Let's do this. Even if we have to kill him to do it."

It was only to be expected that Eliztrazia didn't care very much about the demon noble or the rest of his family.

But she did care about how hilarious the situation was. A demon picked up by a demon-slaying organization, only for their first mission to turn out to be helping a demon?

Well, it wasn't like there weren't other reasons this was funny, too, but for now that was chief in her mind.

Plus she still wanted to tear the guts out of the one possessing the demon's wife.

She tore down the hall and the stairs with little heed for the demon maids ahead. After all, why should she care? They were trash, weren't they?

The nearest of the monstrous maids she leaped onto to tackle it to the ground, slamming its body down beneath her before it could. Equally swiftly, Elizstrazia sunk her razor teeth into its neck and pulled sharply, ripping open its throat and feeling the heat of its blood spurting across her face. The taste on her tongue wasn't particularly pleasant in her opinion, so she swiftly spat it out, rising in the very same motion she brought her clawed foot down to crush its skull into the tiles.

The warmth spraying across her leg and thigh meant that she'd killed it nice and fast.

"Out of the way, trash!"

The gaping maw of the next one never reached her, as she brought her clawed hand slicing through the air and seized its skull in the same motion, tearing its had from its neck and tossing it across the room.

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

Farisian Maid

---

Lucrecia, you absolute idiot!

Polina liked to stir the pot a little sometimes, occasionally risking her own health and wellbeing for the success of her undercover antics. But well, this—she could tell that the demon noble was genuine. He was speaking from the heart. And Polina was quite sure that she had just blundered into giving one of the most grievous insults one could give to a family man.

The Farisian maid immediately turned on Lucrecia, fast enough for her dress to swish—but she was too late. “Lulu, apologize—”

Polina was immediately punted from the room, too fast for her to properly track before she slammed against the side of a wall on the other side of the hallway. She barely had time to adjust to not break her neck against the surface, but she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen nonetheless. Something had clearly broken, and cried out in pain.

She had to worry about that later. Wincing, she picked herself back up together to stand, but there was little she could do to properly intervene. Nonetheless, if she could talk the man down, somehow… they could perhaps salvage the situation. They did not need a three-way battle right now. If the church jumped in without a clue, it might even become a four-way clusterfuck, and that sort of thing wasn’t as amusing when you were involved in it instead of looking in on a mess from the outside.

Polina tried to make her way back to the fighting. “Ngh… Stop this… senseless fighting! She misspoke… it’s a misunderstanding! A three or four-way fight is not what we need when we should be cooperating!” Using as much energy as she could muster, she called out as loud as possible, hoping the demon wasn’t seeing enough red to drown out all reason.

Location
Havershel Estate

---

@Click This@AzureKnight

Unfortunately for Polina, red was all Camio was seeing now.

Her words fell on deaf ears as the demon lord’s vision was filled with nothing but fury as he beelined for Lucrecia.

The maid was barely able to avoid the lunge, the edge of his blade missing her neck by inches, a deep, guttural almost chirping like noise came from him in turn, his body continuing to lose more and more its human guise as more and more rage overcame the demon lord as he turned just in time to see the mattress being kicked towards him. Yet, just as before it proved to be nothing more than a distraction as it would be sliced in half - but not by his blade this time.

“PATHETIC, MAID!”

He screeched, as from his back now extended a set of two wings made of distinctly metallic feathers with more sprouting across his body just as the ball of fire was lobbed towards him, yet this time he made no effort to avoid, taking the blow and powering through, a clawed hand that was now as big as Lucrecia’s head, reaching to grab her.

“-Bzzzt. Viatrix to ground team, Viatrix to ground team. We’re bringing in the Clemantis! We’ll be there to provide backup and assistance soon! Lady Fiore has finished securing and dealing with the exhibition hall! She’ll be heading there soon!”

---

@VitaVitaAR@Pyromania99

The squishy amphibious looking demons were little match for the maids. The dolls made their formation, a little doll that had a small commander hat would raise its hand and signal - waving its arm forward as the dolls firearms would loose a barrage of bullets towards the demons. The creatures though, were for the most part seemingly undeterred by it, the bullets ripping through their apparently gelatinous insides, their viscous clear blood pooling on the ground under them as they advanced…only for Eliz to take advantage of the brief stalling.

It was simple for her, really.

Rip and tear, until they were shredded into pieces. It was an odd sight, then, that Lyssa was only a few places over. She didn’t have her gauntlets but she still seemed just fine engaging in fisticuffs.

“Ehehe, aw man you guys are slooow~” The pink haired, blood spattered maid laughed, grabbing one of the creatures by the fronds on its face, proceeding to slam it into the floor and ripping it out of its face, earning a shriek before she slammed her foot onto its neck and proceeded to repeatedly slam its skull into the ground.

It was short work for the maids.

“-Bzzt! This is Bernadette.” The maids would be greeted by Bernadette’s sleepy voice, Viatrix complaining in the background about having the comms taken. “The Clemantis’ sensors are detecting something underground…a spike in magical activity. It's likely where our target is.”

“Thank you Detty.” There was a small huff as the comms were taken back from Bernadette. “If these scans are correct then there is likely a tunnel or vault under you. Oh and Lyssa, you may want to be prepared for a present.”

“Present…? Is it a mountain of crepes?“

"Fufu, even better, I think. You three will be on your own for a bit, so do your best!"

"A tunnel or vault? Guess that's where we need to be." Katherine calmly mentioned as all the carnage is going on around her. Her dolls were more than capable of turning these demons to mincemeat in due time but Lyssa and Eliz just expedited the process more than a little bit. "Thanks for the support Bernadette." Katherine continued to mention with a smile as she moved forward toward Lyssa and Eliz with her small column of dolls behind her. "Scout out where the entry-way to this tunnel or vault are dears. If you find any more of these demons report back with due haste. Lyssa, Eliz, shall we?" The firbolg smiled, walking forward. "Unless you two could break through the floor and get us there much faster."

Farisian Maid

---

“Oh, for the love of--!”

Unfortunately, disgruntled squawking from Polina was just an ineffective as her entreaties for the enraged demon to see reason. But from the way she saw him continue to transform, she knew that attempting to persuade him with words was a lost cause. Keeping to this same track was probably just going to get Lucrecia, herself, or the other maids killed.

Her problem still remained, however. She was not equipped to fight Camio at any reasonable effect, and she was injured to boot.

Thankfully, Viatrix came through, promising imminent reinforcement. But at this rate, soon might not be enough to save Lucrecia.

Polina moved to follow the fight from a distance, but she remained disengaged without any way to influence their fight. She had drawn her sword once more, but she wasn’t suicidal.

“Polina here. Soon isn’t enough! What is your ETA? We’re not going to last at this rate,” she winced, both from the pain in her ribs, and from the way Camio was bullying his way through Lucrecia.

"Underground?"

Clear, viscous blood dribbled down Elizstrazia's chin as she leaned back, tilting her head. Underground, huh...

Her grin returned, her sharp teeth gleaming like polished steel.

"Then we'll need a nice quick path right to the bitch, huh?"

Scale demons were beautiful and refined. The greatest and most resplendent demons, at least as far as the maid herself was concerned. But there was one ability that made them stand even higher.

One power that she possessed that no-one else could ever reach.

She could see them. The existence of floor beneath her feet, not just in this moment, but the moment before and after. The uncountable instants between one second and the next.

The very flow of time itself.

"It's about time I showed you just what I can do, so get ready to stand back and weep!" she declared, raising one clawed foot. In that very instant, she reached out and grasped them. Elizstrazia pulled those instants together. She dragged them into one location, the imperceptible moments that existed apart from one another were now being forced to occur simultaneously.

It simply wasn't possible.

It wasn't possible for one object to exist in the exact same place and time in multiple instants. It was the same principle as shaking hands with your past self.

A localized paradox that reality could not reconcile.

"Time-"

The scale demon brought her foot slamming down.

"-Crush!"

Click.

The air itself warped and twisted inwards. No-not there air, but something impossible to comprehend. It was as if reality was twisting towards a single point, beneath Elizstrazia's foot.

Click.

Steadily, a high-pitched whine grew in volume from her position. As it grew, it deepened, an unnatural sound rippling its way across the ears of everyone present like a distorted roll of thunder.

Click.

The floor exploded.

It was not an explosion caused by any outpouring of heat and flames. It was not caused by any natural force at all. The rim of the hole that had been torn into it was perfectly circular, smooth, almost as if it had been cut by an impossibly sharp blade.

And yet it had been shattered to pieces, carving a path all the way down to the underground.

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

_{@Rune_Alchemist@Click This}

---

Havershel Estate

---

"Tch!"

Lucrecia clicked her tongue; Nothing the accented maid did had barely scratched Silxtratch, her tactics only serving to further anger the demon Lord. As his ire grew, with it came more drastic changes to his physiology. At this point, he really did look the part, gone his handsome and sharp features on display during the ball. She had barely dodged the lord's slash, a bit of blood had dripped from the small cut on her neck.

Unfortunately, her gambit didn't work either, as with a larger and more developed claw he powered straight through Lucrecia's fire burst. The bed was now split cleanly in half, laying on opposite sides of the floor. Lucrecia's vision was blocked out by the menacing appendage speeding toward her.

She didn't have time to think, only act. She didn't even pay any attention to Polina who was observing from the sidelines. In an attempt to gain some distance between them. Lucrecia charge a large chunk of blaze in her dual pistols, and aimed them at the ground below them. She hoped that the blast generated would at least be enough to knocked them away from each other.

She may be a bit cinged from the blast, but it likely wouldn't be worse than the alternative.

Location
Havershel Estate

---

@Click This@AzureKnight

“She’s having to fight her way through some lesser demons! ETA Is one Minute!” Viatrix responded over the coms. “The Clemantis is heading there full speed as well! A full complement of maids and Leoniya and I will be on sight in roughly ten!”

The explosion charged in her pistols was weaker than likely intended, but the ensuing blaze was enough to cause Camio to take a swift leap backwards, and give Lucrecia a small bit of distance, the two of them now standing on either side of the room. One of Camio’s wings flicked off some embers, and it seemed for the most part now, his visage had stopped changing.

He was easily standing at least eight feet tall now on a comparatively lanky body. His shoes had been ripped to shreds, avian talons replacing his legs, while similar claws now served as his hands. His body and torso were still very much human, though his hair had been replaced with a long mane of steel feathers similar to the ones that made up his wings and a now apparent tail.

“WEAK.” A deep, chirping laugh. “Is that the best you can do maid! You’re not making this any fun! You’re metal weapons are useless! And your magic is that of a childs, my SON could do better!” He charged towards Lucrecia again, closing the distance swiftly but instead of using the blade, one of his wings made a sharp cutting motion towards her, slicing through every piece of furniture cleanly in its way and aiming for her neck.

“You there, stand back!” Something, though, would catch Polina’s attention. It was the two members of the church from earlier. Cassandre and Madeline. Cassandre, of which, was carrying an unconscious boy in her arms. “We have a rough understanding of the situation, Madeline-”

Madeline didn’t wait for permission, already charging towards Camio with her halberd, the blessed aiming for the demons wing.

“Merde…I do wish she’d listen sometimes…ah...you are Lady Fiore's guest. Please, get to safety this is no place for you.”

---

@VitaVitaAR@Pyromania99

“Eh? Lizzy you can’t just-weh!” Lyssa barely managed to take a few steps back out of the explosion range, ending up falling and holding onto Eliz’s leg as the time-distortion warped the area in front of them…and then the floor just fell. Fell into rubble and pieces as the intersection of time collapsed in the present, sending it to the floor.

Some of Katherine’s dolls ended up peeking over the edge of the sinkhole...and one promptly shoved the other in, earning it to flip the other one off as it fell to the ground, hitting the ground with a little 'squee' noise.

Below, the floor had collapsed, filling the hallway below with rubble. It seemed the floor below led to a stairway.

“Jeez, Liz.” Lyssa said, still holding onto Eliz’ leg…one of her hands definitely holding onto the demons butt. “I’m jealous. If I did something like that I’d get in suuuper trouble, eheheh~” Before Liz could really respond to where Lyssa’s hand definitely was groping, there was the sound of something crashing through the roof, slamming into the rubble below and causing the floor to further collapse. Lyssa’s eyes lit up instantly.

“Wah! My gauntlets!” Lyssa shouted, bounding down the hole and grabbing them. “Well…I can’t say these are strictly better than crepes…she could have sent some too…” The maid grumbled, suiting up and locking the implements of fisticuffs around her arms. “Buuuut I do love beating the absolute shit out of things, so…eheheh. It’ll do~! Come on move your cute soft butt Liz we gotta go!”

Without letting the demon have a rebuttal, Lyssa sped happily down the hallway

And soon the group would find themselves standing in what was an ostentatious art gallery. A number of displays had been knocked over, along with…the possessed lady of the house standing in front of a small display, off to the side.

Upon noticing them, she swiftly turned. A blade in her hand swiftly moved to her neck.

“Ah-ah. Another step forward and I kill this woman.” The demon sneered. An idol that seemed similar to the fodder demons they had fought were in her hand. “How about instead…we talk for a bit.”

Katherine watched in awe as Eliz did something very.... Special. Time crush? What the hell did that even mean in context? Whatever it truly meant, she did not want to experience it first hand. It seemed to have some unpalatable consequences. "Well. Good work then, Eliz." The firbolg mentioned scratching the back of her head. That was easier than expected, truthfully. She watched as one doll pushed the other off the new hole in the ground and, immediately after Lyssa's gauntlets fell in, she slapped that one doll over the top of the head. "Don't knock your sister into holes."

After she jumped in the hole, falling to the the next level followed by her dolls. She used the same wind magic she did after being thrown off the airship prior to carefully hit the ground level as well as her dolls. Once down there, she checked on the one that fell to make sure there were no damages on it. It was mostly fine so she turned and followed after Lyssa with her squad of gun-toting dolls. After a short saunter down the hall, the group found themselves in front of the demon-possessed mother. "Talk? I'm not sure what we have to talk about, demon." She pulled out her pistol and aimed at the woman, her dolls lining up and ready fire at a moments notice." She considered trying to shoot the idol out of the woman's hand though figured that she would only be marginably successful. "Perhaps you want to discuss a surrender?" She asked with a smirk before quickly looking around the room, seeing if there was anything out of place or perhaps something to take advantage of.

_{@Rune_Alchemist@Click This}

---

Havershel Estate

---

Shit!

Lucrecia made a mental swear. Her gambit did its main job, which was to separate her from the not-so-lordly lord. However, she wasn't stupid. She understood that none of her attacks up to this point had so much as tickled the demon. She clicked her tongue again at his sneering taunts, knowing there was some truth in his words.

Sorry Polina, looks like I messed up...

Unfortunately, their friend was beyond reasoning with, all he wanted was blood now. He charged at Lucrecia with great speed, his serated and lanky body covering the distance within a few moments. Lucrecia channeled fire through her blades and prepared to meet when...

Lucrecia turned to see that the two church officials had found their way here. The warrior maiden, Madeline, had ignored Cassandre's words and charged straight for Camio with her weapon. Rather reckless, but Lucrecia certainly wasn't in a position to critique. At the very least, Madeline would be better equip to deal with him then the Maison team was.

Farisian Maid

---

“Understood,” Polina replied tersely, feeling the pain from every word she spoke. She really needed to get her chest looked at. And certainly not in a lewd way. One minute was not enough when seconds was likely what Lucrecia really had. Truly, the other maid’s misfortune had been of her own design, but it still didn’t sit right with Polina that the maid was going to get diced up for an unfortunate remark… and even more so that Polina was utterly unable to do anything about it.

If she had been in uniform, she likely would have had some type of trinket stashed away to make difference, but an elegant, if slightly skimpy party dress left little in the way of weapons aside from the sword and few knives she had tucked away.

Thankfully, she was surprised to find some unexpected reinforcements, even if she didn’t particularly like it. “Great, the church,” she muttered, before grimacing and regretting the extra words.

She decided to nod at Cassandre in acknowledgment by way of initial reply. “He’s on… our side… nominally, if he weren’t seeing red,” she cautioned as she leaned on her sword. She held onto the vain hope that all parties would see reason and restraint.