A light gust of wind blew through the trees of the Dark Jade Forest. A metallic drone hovered like a butterfly among the trees, finishing its flight by attaching itself to Soundwave's chest, who found himself standing on a small hill. The squad consisted of him as captain, Conrad as second in command, and three nameless thugs as armed escort.

  "Hmph! No sign of the orcs today either. Where the hell are they?"

  Conrad snorted, approaching his taller colleague and surveying the landscape. Soundwave simply shook his head, then turned on his heels and began walking toward another part of the forest. The area was mostly wooded, but at that precise point, a sort of desert, or dune, began, where the Orc villages should have been. Technically, the structures were there, but not their inhabitants.

  "Where do you think they went?"

  Asked the robot in the green raincoat, following his brother.

  "Where the hell they are?"

  Being theoretically mute, Soundwave used Conrad's voice to answer the latter's question. His voice box had been irreparably damaged, so he could only express himself that way, or with gestures if he wished.

  "You don't know either, huh?"

  The detective laughed, adjusting his hat.

  "For me they ran away..."

  One of Conrad's three henchmen commented. They were successful Shockwave experiments, biological weapons that served as bodyguards for the raincoat-wearing robot. He had nicknamed them Mister X, Mister Y, and Mister Z. They weren't particularly intelligent, but were excellent meat shields capable of throwing a few punches if needed.

  "Possible. After all, the land here isn't very fertile. It's practically a mini-desert inside the forest. They must be moving in search of food and water. I'm surprised they've survived this far. How can anyone live in these conditions?"

  Conrad concluded, believing there was nothing more to say. He was used to searching for people, not monsters or packs of beasts, so he had decided to return to his master everything he had found so far. As the various robots followed Soundwave, he stopped suddenly, attracted by some moving bushes.

  "Did you hear anything?"

  "Heard anything."

  Soundwave turned his screen-face toward the bushes, taking a few steps toward them with disarming ease, perhaps because Conrad and his henchmen were ready to fire on anyone hiding there. Once he reached the bushes, he released two electrified tentacles from his belly, ready to paralyze anyone spying on them.

  "Squeak! Squeak!"

  A squirrel emerged from the bushes, gave the robot a quick look, and then scurried away in fear. Seeing this, the drone withdrew its tentacles and returned to the others. It had all been for nothing.

  "False alarm?"

  Conrad asked, lowering his rifle. Soundwave nodded wordlessly, as always, then displayed some data on his screen. Suddenly, a white portal appeared before them. It was the signal that their task was complete.

  "Let's go back to the tower, the Absolute Lord will be happy with the information!"

  The drone commented, entering the portal after Soundwave, closely followed by his henchmen.

  "Squeak! Squeak!"

  Once the portal closed, a pair of squirrels approached the spot where the robots had disappeared. They seemed intent on pointing them out to some figure hidden behind the trees. How he had avoided the two robots remained a mystery.

  "The Absolute Lord? What does it want from the forest?"

  One of the little animals squeaked again, as if to answer the mysterious woman's question.

  “You're right. Those beings weren't natural. I have to warn Trinity..."

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The seventeenth floor of Fear Tower was the realm of Shaco, the demon of Chaos and utter madness. It was no surprise, then, that it was a giant circus tent. The company even had a name: "Pale Moon". Obviously, the clown hadn't given the area that name—he'd simply found a cool name lying around and plagiarized it without a shred of respect.

  A cold wind blew through the eternal night of the plane, as if it were a mountain. The white moon loomed over the perpetual night, illuminating everything without the need for a connection to the sun. Yes, physics wasn't something that applied to the floors of Fear Tower. In the distance, the large Pale Moon circus tent was visible. It was enormous, brightly colored, and several wagons nearby, filled with show animals. From the outside, the tent's shape resembled a classic jester's hat, with its three peaks and different colors on each side. A fresh gust of cold billowed out Almodeus's robes as he walked.

  “There's a breeze this evening...”

  The Absolute Lord told casually, and even slightly ironically, to his wife. Almodeus was immune to the cold, so he had no problem in that environment. The same could be said for the woman, who possessed a high resistance to the cold element. It wasn't complete, but it allowed her to walk under that night sky with only a light jacket as her only protection.

  “Yeah! It still seems strange to me that we're on a floor of the Fear Tower.”

  C replied, looking around. She'd lived in that tower for decades, yet she was always amazed by how each floor felt like a separate dimension. Take the one they were on for example: it was a sort of mountain forest, with the famous tent at the center. There were large, sturdy pine trees, an artificial moon and stars, and even a soundtrack that adapted to the environment and the emotions of the listener. At that moment, the soundtrack was similar to the moment when the monster stalks you in horror movies, without you even knowing it.

  “Are you sure you're not cold?”

  Almodeus asked, leaning slightly towards his wife.

  “No, don't worry. I'm weak to many things, but not to the cold.”

  The woman replied with a smile so candid that it would have melted the snow, if it had been present.

  “If you say so, I'll trust you...”

  Almodeus muttered. It was natural for him to be worried; the ice element had many effects, such as slowing or damage over time that could be fatal in the long run. Technically, there should have been guards, but this was Shaco we were talking about—imagine if he'd created a defense system for his floor!

  To his credit, however, it had to be said that few could have escaped that place without the clown's permission. He was a level 100 Chaotic Demon, after all. It was then that Almodeus remembered the great invasion that had occurred a few centuries ago.

  Has more than five hundred years already passed? How time flies.

  It had been a brutal battle that the Absolute Lord hadn't even witnessed. He had left to settle some matters in another part of Hell, and Heaven had taken advantage of the situation to launch a full-scale attack. Over five hundred thousand Level 100 beings had attacked the Fear Tower while its master was away. Heaven had even allied itself with some demons and demihumans from Hell to reach that terrifying number of soldiers.

  The battle was fierce and devastating. Hirashi, Nikusa, and the Esoterica were not yet their allies, and Almodea had not yet been born, so the Fear Tower's strength was exponentially reduced compared to now, especially considering the absence of Almodeus himself.

  Despite all these negative factors, the tower defended itself admirably. The underground levels were ignored, but many of the upper levels were conquered. The three led by the Terror Trio managed to halt the enemy's advance, decimating that fearsome army. However, the bulk of the attacking forces were exterminated on the nineteenth floor. No one knew what was inside, as only Almodeus was allowed to enter it.

  The tower can defend itself from almost anything, but we must be careful of its weak links.

  The demon shifted his gaze to his wife. It would be pointless to lie and say he wasn't worried about her safety. If there was one way to anger Almodeus, it would surely be to touch his family. If she died, he...

  No...

  He pushed the repugnant thought from his mind and continued forward. It was then that he reached into his jacket's inside pocket with his right hand, grasping something inside. It was a small object for a human hand, and it seemed even more insignificant in the palm of a colossus like him.

  “Honey, I have something for you.”

  “Huh?”

  The woman looked at the object her husband had just handed her. It was a small black ring with a crimson ruby that shone like a radiant sun. A small red "A" was visible above the gem, as if it imbued it with power.

  “Are you trying to ask me to propose? You want to marry me after you said we didn’t need a wedding to declare ourselves husband and wife, he he.”

  The woman stated amusedly, putting the ring on her finger and looking at it with interest.

  “Of course not. You know I love you without the need for a human ceremony.”

  Almodeus replied.

  "Now that you're going out without me more often, I want to prevent anything bad from happening to you. I trust Hirashi, but she won't always be able to be there, especially now that we have to begin the conquest of the Dark Jade Forest. Frederica isn't a bad replacement, but she'll still be Hardshell's personal maid. There are other replacements, but we have to be extremely cautious."

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  He explained, rubbing C's head. He didn't want to say out loud that his wife was weak, but—objectively speaking—she was, compared to most of the monsters in Fear Tower. Between demons, Shockwave's bioweapons, and beings like Almodea, C truly ranked near the bottom of the list of strengths. Not that it was a problem; she was an emotional support woman with great intelligence.

  “What powers does this ring have? Is it from your memorabilia room?”

  The woman asked, knowing how jealous her husband was of her collection of unique, magical objects. It was a true hobby for him.

  “No, I created this one myself. It grants you increased mana and health regeneration, as well as immunity to instant death and mind control spells. There's also supposed to be a teleportation mode that will bring you back here. However, this last feature is still a prototype. I haven't had much time to test it, sorry, love.”

  “You don't have to apologize. I'll take it as an anniversary gift, even though it's actually over a year away.”

  C laughed lightly and noted how the ring suited her. She wasn't a woman who loved jewelry or trinkets, but it was a gift from her husband, so she couldn't help but be happy about it.

  “I like it! Thanks, darling. Now...can you bend down for a second?”

  “Huh? Okay, fine.”

  Almodeus leaned toward his wife, who took the opportunity to plant a kiss on his right cheek. The height difference would have made it impossible to do so without one of them crouching or standing up. A light blush appeared on both cheeks.

  “Ugh, I'm not good at this. I never know what to say...”

  “It's okay, love. I just want to have some private time with you later, before I have to go back to playing the rich lady of a foreign kingdom in the Empire.”

  “I can make some time this evening, if that's okay with you...”

  “I'm in! I got a new rope and I have something new to try. Oh, and I have a new position to show you, and—”

  Before C could start saying everything she wanted to do with him that evening, she was interrupted by a cough from the other, visibly embarrassed.

  "There's no need to spoil the surprise. Tell me this evening, we have other things to do now."

  It's not at the level of Almodea, but C isn't joking either in terms of openness on an intimate level...

  Almodeus had almost no sense of libido, so he couldn't understand why his wife was so excited about private affairs in the evening. He wasn't a sexual expert at all. Despite his confusion, the Absolute Lord was still happy to hear his beloved's happiness—though he didn't quite understand the reason behind such enthusiasm.

  “Um...Let's go. We're here.”

  He declared sibilantly, approaching the circus ticket booth. It was obviously empty—who the hell would want to pay to see Shaco? Shaco! They were talking about a madman who made madmen look sane, reintegrable into society.

  As soon as they passed the empty booth, the background music changed slightly, shifting to a lower, more mysterious tone. It could have been intimidating, but the two demons advanced fearlessly, with a disarming calm.

  “Be careful, darling. This place might be full of traps- knowing Shaco.”

  “Of course. If I'm not mistaken, this is where Shockwave's less manageable experiments are sent, right?”

  “Exactly. Maybe I’ll run into an old acquaintance of ours.”

  “Honey, I know this is a little out of context, but I wanted to ask you something about Talia.”

  “You mean that demi-human you always keep with you as a servant?”

  “Exactly. Can you give her something like this ring? I've grown quite fond of that girl, and I'd like to keep her from getting hurt. She's grown a bit lately and put on some muscle, thanks to my care. I'd like to keep her from getting injured, especially when she's guarding me.”

  “She is guarding you?”

  “It seems she wants to repay me for my kindness. Smaug taught her the basics of swordsmanship, but she's still a little girl.”

  “I'll think about it.”

  Almodeus simply replied. Honestly, he cared little for the demihuman girl, but she seemed to have become someone important to C. He couldn't disappoint his wife.

  If we get too attached to the beings of this world, it will be increasingly difficult to return home, if that is what we want.

  It was a thought that had been plaguing his mind for a long time. However, becoming too attached to someone native to that world would make it difficult to separate from them in the future. At first, he feared that only Almodea was open enough to approach others in this way, but C was also becoming close to someone, and the same could happen to other members of the Fear Tower.

  “Getting back to the main topic, we need to talk to Shaco about his mission.”

  “Are you sure you want to send him?”

  C was extremely doubtful and made it clear in her question. Shaco was literally a ticking time bomb. Nocturn would have been a better choice, but he was currently on another mission at Sergio's suggestion. Recalling him would have been a terrible strategic move.

  “Welco...me to the Pale Mo...on Circus.”

  It was then that a short figure approached them, dressed in a jester's outfit made of fabric with various stitch marks. Unlike Shaco, who was dressed in red, she wore light colors, like blue and white. She had a tearful mask covering her face, but she immediately removed it when she recognized the person she was welcoming into the tent. She revealed a young face, similar to that of a girl in her mid-teens, with large silver eyes and silvery hair.

  “Forgi...ve me. It’s an honor to ha...ve you here, Lord Almo…deus and Lady C. We weren’t…expecting you.”

  The young woman immediately bowed her head, continuing to speak in her candid voice, which nevertheless seemed broken, or rather cut, as if there were an interference – the same thing that happens when someone talk on the phone in areas with poor signal.

  “Don’t worry, Sein.”

  The Absolute Lord reassured her. The girl was actually a demon doll and her name was Sein, also known as Murder Pierrot or Sewing Clown. Shaco had found her and decided to take her on as his apprentice, and she had since become second-in-command of the seventeenth floor. Although, truth be told, since Shaco didn't care about managing his area, it all fell on the girl, but she didn't seem to take it badly at all.

  “You a...re alw...ays mer...ciful, Lord Almodeus.”

  “Not at all.”

  He answered coldly.

  “Listen...Where is your boss?”

  “You me...an Master Shaco? I hon...estly don't kn...ow, he co...uld be any...where in this tent.”

  The girl couldn't be blamed for that response. From the outside, the circus looked enormous, but inside, it was practically larger than a metropolis. Another sign that the Fear Tower's floors didn't follow the laws of physics.

  “You’re great at finding it.”

  C stated, smiling warmly.

  “Think about it. Where could it be, hypothetically speaking?”

  “I thi...nk it co...uld be in the can...non room.”

  “We can try there, then.”

  Almodeus declared, motioning for the girl to lead the way. It didn't take them long to reach the room the girl had indicated, and in the meantime she had summoned a small teddy bear. She struggled to speak normally, but when she communicated through her familiars, the words came out normally. The only reason she didn't use that method all the time was because Shaco seemed to like her clipped speech, so Sein had adapted to not using a familiar.

  "Here we are, master and mistress. I ask you to be careful, the cannons can fire without warning."

  The girl pulled back the curtain that served as a door to the room and let the two demons in. Despite their name, silence reigned supreme. As could be seen, the room was filled with cannons used in various shows. Each was loaded with a massive amount of dynamite. A single spark would set off an explosion powerful enough to knock down a ten-story building.

  “Yes...it's here, I can feel it.”

  Sein declared confidently. Somehow, she seemed to be very close to Shaco and could always find him. Almodeus himself had no idea how she did it. That said, Sein was still a level 80 demon doll, capable of eliminating hordes of enemies with ease—and she wasn't even in her slaughter form, which would have been scary to watch.

  “Can you get it out in the open?”

  “Certainly, Lord Almodeus.”

  After receiving permission, Sein positioned himself in the center of the room. His teddy bear rose even higher, so that his voice could be heard throughout the area.

  “Master Shaco, please come. Lord Almodeus and Lady C have come to visit you.”

  She got no response. It was extremely rude, considering they were hosting the ruler of the Fear Tower himself and his consort in their area. They weren't talking about a mere subordinate, but the boss himself. It was then that Sein sighed and decided to use her secret weapon.

  “If you come out I'll tell you a joke about penguins...”

  “Uh Ah Uh! Penguin jokes, my only weakness!”

  A shrill voice came from one of the cannons. Without warning, that same cannon fired, unignited. Shaco's figure emerged from the barrel and, with a couple of somersaults, landed in front of Sein in an eccentric and impressive manner.

  “Always fabulous, Master Shaco.”

  The girl declared, clapping her hands. She had a look of admiration on her face. She was one of the few who didn't see Shaco simply as a crazy idiot, but felt genuine respect for the clown demon, and had decided to serve him on her own initiative. Almodeus himself couldn't understand why Sein was so happy to serve such a chaotic idiot.

  “Thank you, thank you! You're always so good with compliments, Sein! Anyway...”

  The clown turned to the two guests, maintaining his usual toothless smile.

  “So? What do you want, boss?”

  It wasn't a way to refer to a superior, but Shaco was anything but respectful of authority. Despite his obvious dismay, the clown remained as smiling as ever.

  “We're here to talk to you about your mission. You know... that thing about the orcs that's crucial to my plan? Does that mean anything to you? Rings a bell? Anxy should have told you about it.”

  “Oh, yes! My sister warned me, but I wasn't very interested.”

  The clown replied, scratching his ear with his pinky. It was clear he didn't care about the Dark Jade. That was Shaco's nature; he only cared about his own entertainment.

  “I gave you a task, Shaco. Don't disappoint me.”

  Almodeus stated coldly, leaving no room for refusal.

  “I can take care of it, so Master Shaco doesn’t waste his precious time.”

  Sein butted in, smiling slightly, as if she had something on her mind.

  “Plus, there's a lot of paperwork to fill out, and-“

  “Huh?! What paperwork?!”

  “Don't you know, Master Shaco? Dozens of forms have arrived to fill out.”

  Sein urged him, raising an explanatory finger. The clown found himself caught between two rocks: filling out the paperwork or obeying Almodeus's order. Of the two, the former was certainly the more boring.

  “Let’s say I go on this mission, okay? Are you up for the paperwork, Sein?”

  “Certainly, Master Shaco. I'll take care of the paperwork.”

  “Perfect! Good girl!”

  The clown declared proudly, as if he had done something exceptional.

  She screwed him...This girl is almost scary.

  Although Sein seemed submissive to her master, she was extremely capable of turning things around to her liking. She was extremely intelligent, but often remained in the background, preferring to watch Shaco at work. She was considered a fan of the clown.

  “Remember not to use excessive force. You can kill, but not to much. You must subdue the orcs, if possible.”

  “Yes, yes!”

  “What will I do with you? Umpf! Let’s go C. And as for you, Shaco—remember, operations begin next Monday.”

  “How boring you are!”

  Almodeus sighed at this response and headed toward the tent's exit, followed by his wife. Alone with Sein, Shaco turned to the girl and her familiar, raising a nonexistent eyebrow.

  “Hey, Sein...and that penguin joke you were talking about earlier? You know it, right?”

  “Exactly. I'll tell you right away...”

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Arriving in the previous room, Almodeus and C each let out a sigh; talking to Shaco was always exhausting. It was then that they turned when they heard a noise, like that of a bouncing ball. They noticed two clown demons chatting among themselves. One was tall and lanky, intent on juggling some fiery spheres with his bare hands, as if nothing were happening. The second, however, was short and plump—and instead of juggling, he was standing on a small purple balloon.

  “Good morning, Lord Almodeus! What brings you to our humble tent?”

  The tall one, called Jester Lord, asked amusedly. The other, Jester Confit, simply observed the scene, laughing in the background. The two had bowed slightly, showing respect for the master of the Fear Tower.

  “We came to talk to your boss. What are you doing?”

  “We’re preparing our act for Master Shaco’s next show!”

  Confit replied, rolling on his little ball.

  “Ah, yes! We have an old acquaintance of yours as an assistant!”

  Jester Lord snapped his fingers. In response to the gesture, a hunched figure approached them. Its arms were shackled with heavy manacles, preventing it from moving its spindly limbs easily. The figure's skin was dark gray, covered in sharp spines. The creature's face was distorted, with a mouth lined with sharp teeth and a sort of iron helmet fused to the top of its head, obscuring its eyes.

  “And this disgrace is, or rather... who is?”

  C asked, looking at the monster in disgust. She'd guessed from the shape of her body that it was female, but she doubted the mind of such a creature was intact enough to ask it questions and get sensible answers.

  “We call her Iron Maiden.”

  Jester Lord responded, throwing a fireball at her. The attack damaged the creature, which let out a shriek of pain, but it didn't counterattack—it remained motionless, as if awaiting orders. It was Almodeus who responded, emerging from the tent.

  “This is what remains of Camille, after Shockwave subjected her to his special treatment. We gained information and transformed that stupid girl who dared to harm our little Almodea. Letting her die would have been too merciful…”

  Camille's soul was still screaming from within the Iron Maiden's body. She remained conscious, but a second personality had been created within her mind—one completely subservient to the Absolute Lord.

  “Are you sure it wasn’t excessive?”

  C asked, following her husband towards the exit of the floor.

  “Anyone who dares to stand in my way will be destroyed. This is the consequence of facing fear thinking they can win.”

  Almodeus replied, his tone cold and devoid of any sign of remorse or even pity