While enjoying some tea with desserts, I was able to learn more about Erika's mother. It seems she had participated in the wars against the Demon Armies, and had even gone into a Demon Tower herself, the nearest Demon Tower from here, the Fifth Demon Tower which is located within the Ever Lake City.
Visiting Demon Towers was more dangerous than Dungeons and involved whole squadrons of people of over twenty and more.
Demon Towers are Sealed currently, but as their Seals weaken, their floors open up, filled with demons coming straight from the Realm of Hell. Each Tower represents a certain sin, involving an Archdemon. There are Seven Towers for all seven sins. The nearest Tower is the Tower of Gluttony, whose ruler is Beelzebub.
Obviously so, the Cult we've been dealing for so many years now is also the Cult of Beelzebub, which has seeped their venom within the royal families of several Kingdoms, including the Kingdom where I was born, Goldsand, one of the biggest Nations of this continent, taking over 30% of the continent's territory with many divided duchies.
They're the ones behind Erika's death, and also behind the Demon Gate we had to dealt years back, and also the same Sect Erdrich's Mother and the Necromancer belonged to. Both of them were manipulated to join them, as they had hard pasts filled with hardships and suffering.
It seems these cults like to pick up those that had been abandoned the most, those that have been wronged, even. Using pretexts such as revenge to make them loyal to them, even when their truest of intentions is to let the demons invade the world and make humanity and all other races extinct as a result.
I can tell they were probably given offers such as high positions within the demon army, or something like that. Beelzebub is a tricky fly. My previous life had to fight him back then, and obviously, I've completed his Tower of Gluttony over a dozen times now, as they had popped around the Universe and the many zones my previous life governed.
The Tower of Gluttony always changes a bit, but most of its mechanic and floors remain the same. In some months, I'll make sure to go explore it and, if possible, destroy it. Perhaps not even the ancient Hero Allen had discovered this but… Demon Towers can be destroyed, as long as the Demonic Tower Core is found and then shattered using a specific technique.
But for now, I'll leave such plans for later.
"Woow! Mama's so awesome! You're not only an amazing teacher respected around here, but you've also conquered a floors inside of that tower?!" Erika pointed at the red tower in the distance. It was incredibly far away from here, yet it was so big anybody could see it, even from back on our town.
"Fufu, that's right." Cattalina said pridefully, she liked to be admired by her daughter. "I am also a Duchess of a nearby duchy, it is not as big of a city as this one, but I go back there every two months to check on things. My assistants and my niece take care of the place when I'm off, but I use artifacts to keep on contact with them all the time."
"Woow… S-So you own a little kingdom!" Said Erika.
"Well, that's not exactly what it is…" Her mother sighed. "But talking about it, if you're here, you could be my heir right away and you could one day own that place, making you a very prestigious noble."
"M-Me? A noble…" Erika was surprised of such a thing. "Wait, there's a niece?" Erika asked.
"Well yes, aside from the rather… aggressive royal family where I belong, there's also your father's family. The daughter of his big sister has been living with me for years now back in my duchy. Your aunt… she passed away due to a disease that affected her home. Her daughter was studying abroad back then, so she was not affected, thankfully.
She had nobody else, so I quickly decided to adopt her and make her my future heir. The girl is a very hardworking person, I know you'll get along." Her mother smiled back.
"I-I see… An Aunt I never knew… I hope I can get along with her daughter. I'll do my best!" Erika said while smiling innocently.
Mother and daughter were talking too much and too fast, I had little time to talk about a topic myself, and I honestly didn't want to interrupt their good time together. I felt slightly out of place here, to be honest, maybe I shouldn't had come. However, Erika was too nervous, so she really needed me here.
However, now that she had composed herself, she seems completely relaxed. I guess my presence wasn't as necessary as she believed…
Just five minutes ago, I felt stares from afar. Thanks to my heightened senses due to a combination of factors such as my Physique, Psyche, and my Mana and Spiritual Energy, I was able to easily detect presences directed towards me in a malicious or evil intent.
And I felt several eyes, around eight of them. Probably four people, staring at us from afar. Cattalina seemed completely clueless about them, and so was Erika. I guess I had to scratch the idea they were Cattalina's guards or something.
"Saphira, Hendrick, go investigate for now."
I quickly summoned the two of them, as they emerged from within my shadows. Both utilized Stealth Abilities, especially Saphira, who enveloped Hendrick around with her soul.
"Okay, papa! I'll be right back!"
"Very well, my lord. Hopefully we find some new test subjects."
Their shadows flew away, meddling with the rest of the shadows across the city, as they flew towards the area where I detected the presences of those spying on us.
In just a few seconds, I found them quite easily.
It was indeed four people, wearing black clothes magically enchanted, and red marks on their hands…