Lord Shadow

The more defensive the formation, the more it shows its offensive nature, the more that Azief was certain that Hikigaya is in precarious condition right now

It reeks of desperation 

But for the faint hearted, for the weak willed this area would trap them into an eternity of bliss or torture.

But Azief eyes glows blue and all of this illusion is nothing but a breezy wind

He could seal the Time of Hirate and Raymond because they were weaker than him. Their energy could not overpower him. 

But it is different with Hikigaya. In terms of combat, Hikigaya could not beat him. But the auras between them is the same. 

As such, trying to seal Hikigaya time would not work as well as the other two. And instead it would only tire him. So, Azief did not even try. He looks at the opening of the cave.

It is a small opening. 

Only a child could fit in. But as most of thing around the cave, this is also an illusion. 

Azief eyes glows brightly like a star on the night sky as his eyes seems to be able to see through the matrices of illusion formation that was carved onto the entrance gate of the cave.

Instead of small, the entrance of the cave is gigantic. 

It probably had something to do with the expansion of the world causing the entrance gate to the cave become even bigger. 

But the carvings of runes on the entrance gate shows a trace that it had long been carved onto it. 

Probably it has been written even before the expansion of the world

The runes did not dissipate when the world experience the expansion instead it grows with the area.

‘No’ Azief thought to himself. 

It is not runes. Instead of calling it runes, it is a mix of runic-like patterns with squiggly lines and ideographic alphabets that is unlike any of the ideogram of Earth

He looks at the opening entranceway to the cave and how large it is that it could fit two planes stacked together.

The carved characters glows brightly in Azief eyes.

Probably even Hikigaya could not expect that his cave to expands. He could only use illusions to cover up the large entrance.

That words of character must be the base of his illusion formation.

Azief took another step and then he walks through that lines of where it separated between illusion and reality. That line is a demarcation line, forms at the entrance of the entry of the cave.

Anyone who tries to enter it without sufficient qualification or permissions would be muddled and their mind would probably be assaulted by illusion that Hikigaya had set up.

But, as Azief walk through that line, the assault to his psyche did not happen. He possesses both the qualification and he also possess the permission.

He now had entered the cave. Inside the cave, Azief frown become deeper.

‘Hmm’ he mutters to himself. There is no longer any illusion around him 

instead of feeling happy about this, Azief face become warier.

‘It seems it is really worse than I thought. But I could not be in haste’ Azief body is now absorbing energy form the shrouding though his act is not entirely obvious.

the more it is like this, the more Azief become sure that Hikigaya is suffering terrible injuries. 

The aggressive illusion outdid the cave and the no existent illusion inside the cave shows that even his energy is at a decline right now.

To the world, Hikigaya right now is recovering. And that was not wrong. He is trying to recover. 

But unlike other people, they did not understand the Demon King like Azief does. The injury that was inflicted upon Hikigaya might not seem big as no one could see that Hikigaya being hurt physically.

But Azief knows that is not the case. 

Sometimes, a physical injury is better. 

The injury that is inflicted upon Hikigaya is a mental one. 

If not for that, why would he not uses it to contact his people and instead, went into his cave and quickly try to recover. 

He might be able to hide it from Jean, but he would not be able to hide it form Azief.

Demon Kings, especially someone at the level of Balfor Q’un are not easily to be affected by illusion. 

This is because their willpower and their determination is strong. Hikigaya had done almost an impossible thing with his current level. 

he managed to delay the Demon king. And that was enough time for Azief to set up his most powerful attack and slash down his sword to end the Demon King

The illusion was broken by the Demon King and as such the backlash is now ravaging Hikigaya minds. 

The reason why he did not contact his people to help him is probably because he fears that he would lose controls. 

The backlash of mental attack is not like the backlash of a physical attack.

Especially for someone like Hikigaya who meddles with the psyche of living beings. 

The path he walks is different from other people and when the mental backlash reaches him, the backlash on his physical body is not that harmful. But the backlash to his mental sanity is a different story

He enters the cave and he could see rolling hills and deep river valleys and long cave system.

‘It is quite enchanting’ he thought to himself.

It looks like an underground paradise with green moss and walls that glows and exotic trees that Azief had never seen before.

There is towering passageway, mountainous heaps of fallen rock and maze like sprawl.  The types of rocks also vary. 

Azief keep walking as he let his hand trace the walls. The stalactites and the stalagmites is strange and one of a kind. 

Maybe there is others like it but it is clearly different kind of stalactites and stalagmites that is present during before the world expansion

Some of these stalactites glows red, some of them glows blue and the same could be said for the stalagmites. 

Some of them even forms a formation by itself which emanates energies that could be manipulated.

Azief walk deeper to the cave, sensing Hikigaya is on the deepest part of the cave. 

Every once in a while he would see sinkholes, sinking streams and rivers inside the caves. The sinkholes are deep and one could see there is even beast inside those sinkholes.

The rivers on the other had only a little of monster in it and most of them are no carnivorous. The water itself is clear and clean.

There are even trees but unlike the trees on the surface, these trees seem terrifying with sharp branches and hairy fruits.

Some of them are even black like it had been scorched with fire or a trees that had emerge from the underworld of the dead

Some of them however look more normal like the kind of trees that one would see on the surface.

These kinds of normal looking tree usually grows around the streams. The fruits it produced also looks yummy and appears to be edible.

There is even grass that is growing with the speed that is unbelievable. 

It is like one seeing the acceleration of time as one part of the cave which probably is barren and rocky before is transformed into a bed of green

There are of course insects. 

Some of them were small insects. 

There is also some of the big ones. 

Azief encounter a horde of mosquitoes the size of a table. 

Of course, Azief just destroy them the moment they show any indication that they wanted to attack. 

Some of these insects are large but they did not attack, instead they eat the fruits and drink the water streams. 

Those that did not attack him were left alone 

There are some bats the size of small truck hanging on the ceiling of the tall caves.

He walks leisurely and not before long he finally reaches the area where he senses Hikigaya is at

‘He is sure living large’ Azief thought to himself

In the deepest area of the cave is also the largest opening area with large vast clearing. There is an entrance gate. 

The entrance gate had a plaque on top of it. Azief look at it and he smiles. It is written in Japanese but the translation function of the system quickly translates it for him

The Infinite Worlds. 

Azief smiles as he walks inside the entrance gate. 

There is a marble temple on the distance. 

At least it appears like that. Instead it looks more like a palace when one comes near to it. The palace itself is large and vast, white in colors and possess beautiful gardens. 

On the entranceway to the palace, he could see flowers that he had never seen before. It is not an illusion. 

This palace, the gardens, the trees and the grass, the comforting wind and the sweet scent of spring, all of this is not an illusion.

Hikigaya had crafted this palace for himself inside the darkness of these caves. The white marbles shine a light that is not too bright or to dim, just enough to shines the way 

If one looks from afar, it was like the palace is a glowing star, a paradise inside the darkness of these gloomy large cave.

And he smiles

>>>>>