The Broken Halo

"Next."

The line moved forward again.

The demon who had pretended to be an Archfiend was dragged away, and nobody said a word.

The mood in the queue changed slightly after that.

Some demons who had been laughing became quiet. Some who had been acting arrogant lowered their heads a little. The Half-Step Greater Demon guard had only punched once, but it was enough to remind everybody that this place was not a market square where they could shout as they liked.

This was the Black Horn Office.

Simon watched calmly as the next few demons were checked.

The process was simple.

The guard would check their heart ranks, ask for identity tokens after, then ask for their names.

When it was finally Simon’s turn, the guard stretched out his hand.

"Your identity token."

Simon took out the black token he had received at Velmora’s gate and gave it to him.

The guard placed the token on a flat black plate beside the crystal pillar. The plate had three small runes carved on it.

He pressed two fingers against the token, and a small amount of demonic energy entered it.

A second later, the token released a faint dark red light.

The runes on the black plate also lit up.

The guard nodded.

"Authentic."

Simon looked at the plate for a second.

The identity token were not just ordinary tokens.

The demonic energy signature he had left in it yesterday was being compared to whatever mark the city guards placed on it at the gate. If the token was fake, stolen, or tampered with, the plate would most likely react differently.

The guard pointed at the crystal pillar.

"Hand."

Simon placed his hand on the pillar.

He gently circulated his demonic energy.

The crystal pillar glowed red, but the glow was unstable.

It brightened for a moment, dimmed the next second, then brightened again. The red light looked like a flame struggling against wind.

The guard frowned.

Several demons behind Simon also noticed the strange reaction and started whispering.

"What’s wrong with him?"

"Doesn’t he know how to circulate his demonic energy properly?"

"Maybe. His energy circulation is extremely poor. He’s an Archfiend but the flow of his demonic energy is terrible."

"And I thought he was talented or something with how cold his expression was."

"What a disappointment."

The guard looked at Simon with a frown. He too had the same thoughts as the other demons watching.

He had never seen an Archfiend that could not properly circulate his or her demonic energy.

Simon could guess what was going through the mind of the guard, but he didn’t bother correcting that mindset.

The guard stared at him for a few seconds.

Then he looked at the demon sitting behind the table close to him.

"Your name."

"Blackmoon."

The demon behind the table wrote it down.

"Blackmoon. Archfiend. Verified." He said with an utterly indifferent tone that was laced with disdain.

He threw a grey token to Simon like he was throwing a piece of garbage.

"Enter."

Simon collected the token and walked through the gate, his expression remained the indifferent and unbothered.

Sonya stepped forward next.

She handed over her identity token before the guard could ask. The guard placed it on the black plate and verified it.

"Authentic."

Sonya placed her hand on the crystal pillar.

The pillar glowed with a bright red light.

The guard looked at her, and his gaze could not help but flicker with a strange light.

"Supreme Archfiend."

Some demons in the line looked over, and some had stunned expressions.

Why was this little brat a Supreme Archfiend?

Sonya smiled faintly after perceiving the stares she was receiving.

"Your Name."

"Honourable Sonya."

The guard, the demon behind the table, and every other demon that heard her words raised their brows in confusion.

"Honourable Sonya?" The guard asked to be sure he didn’t hear wrong.

Sonya nodded with folded arms.

"Yes. Remember it."

The guard and the demon looked at each other with strange expressions, then they both shrugged.

The demon wrote it down and threw her a grey token.

"Enter."

Sonya entered with her chin raised.

Akaza was next.

His identity token was verified, and when he placed his hand on the crystal pillar, the red light was just as bright.

"Supreme Archfiend."

The guard’s eyes flickered once again.

Sensing the auras of Akaza, Sonya, and even Simon was not exactly easy. However, for Sonya and Akaza to both be Supreme Archfiends was a little bit surprising and also good news for Velmora.

And from what he could see.

’Those tattoos... He’s a Martial Demon. And that girl is most likely a Kragh... It’s not everyday that one sees a Martial Demon and a Kragh walking together.’

’Then who is that trash that was walking with them?’

Although it was strange seeing a two powerful demon races moving together, it was not something abnormal.

The guard had heard and seen demons with royal bloodlines come into Velmora, so he wasn’t too shocked or wary.

"Your name."

Akaza responded indifferently.

"Akaza."

The demon behind the table wrote it down and gave him a grey token.

Akaza entered without saying anything.

Beyond the gate was a large compound.

It was wide, open, and strangely empty.

There were no crowds of officials running around. There were no loud announcements. There were no stone platforms, no weapons racks, and no complicated arrays.

Only the Archfiends who had passed the first gate stood around in small groups.

Some looked around with confusion.

Some were silent.

Some were already observing the other demons with hostile gazes.

Simon stood near one side of the compound while Sonya and Akaza stood beside him.

Sonya looked around.

"This is it?"

Akaza folded his arms.

"You really can’t go an entire hour without talking, can’t you?"

Sonya sneered and folded her arms.

"No."

Akaza shook his head and Simon remained quiet.

His gaze were on the walls of the compound instead.

There were guards positioned at different corners. Most of them were Archfiends, but there were also a few Greater Demons among them.

This recruitment was not being handled casually.

More Archfiends entered after them.

Some were alone.

Some came in groups.

Some were clearly confident, while others looked like they were already regretting their decision.

After almost an hour, the Archfiend gate finally closed.

The moment it closed, a heavy aura descended on the compound.

The noisy Archfiends became quiet almost immediately.

A tall demon walked out from the building at the far end of the compound.

He had dark brown skin, two short black horns, and a long scar that ran from the side of his mouth to his neck. His hair was tied behind his head, and he wore simple black armor with the symbol of the Black Horn Office on his chest.

’A two-horned demon.’

Simon’s eyes could not help but flicker with a strange glint.

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