Becoming the Demon Lord: Taming the Demon Queen Begins

"Princess, if this keeps up, we're all going to be wiped out!" Experience more tales on empire

Deep within the haunted house, several ghosts, visibly terrified, gathered in front of Erelyn. It was clear they were scared out of their wits.

Normally, they would follow the princess's orders without question.

But this time, things were different.

While most ghosts aren't usually afraid of other ghosts, during the time the haunted house was open, the eerie atmosphere and sudden scares—thanks to the princess's strange gadgets—were enough to spook even the bravest of them.

But now...

Halfway through their explanation, the ghosts felt a chill run down their spines.

Because the woman who had entered the haunted house had a terrifyingly unshakable composure.

The haunted house was filled with all sorts of scare tactics.

There were ghosts dressed in white, some with props like blood-red tongues hanging down to the floor, and others with long hair that seemed to cover their entire bodies.

And along the path...

Some ghosts hid around corners, others burst out from the walls, and a few even dropped from the ceiling.

These terrifying scenes should have been enough to scare anyone.

Yet, the cold, composed woman seemed completely unfazed.

Not only was she not scared, but her expression didn't even change.

What was even scarier was that, as a Holy Emperor-level fighter, any ghost that suddenly appeared was instantly slapped away by her, flying hundreds of meters with just one hit.

If she hadn't held back a little, they might have been completely obliterated.

So, as the two of them made it through nearly half of the maze, not only had the scare tactics failed miserably, but the ghosts lying in wait had suffered heavy losses, some even questioning their very existence as ghosts after being beaten so badly.

If this continued, it was only a matter of time before they made it through the haunted house without breaking a sweat, leaving the ghosts completely defeated.

"Relax. Just have the ghosts along the way do their jobs. When the time comes, things will change."

To the ghosts' surprise, Erelyn remained calm, her tone and expression carrying a hint of confidence.

"Princess, do you... have a plan to deal with her?"

The ghost was momentarily stunned, clearly a bit skeptical.

But Erelyn's demeanor left him no choice but to believe her.

"I understand, Princess."

Without waiting for a response, the ghost gritted his teeth and reluctantly agreed. After bowing respectfully to Erelyn, he quickly disappeared into the darkness to relay the message to the other ghosts along the path.

...

Meanwhile, Sylvia was slowly making her way deeper into the haunted house.

Even without using her spiritual power, a cold aura seemed to naturally radiate from her.

Her proud, autumn-colored eyes seemed to take in everything around her, and no matter how deep and endless the path ahead seemed, it didn't stir even the slightest ripple in her heart.

Along the way, the ghosts had tried every trick in the book to scare her, but she had effortlessly slapped them all away.

Forget being scared—she didn't even feel a thing.

Timothy, oh Timothy, she thought, your plan was pretty clever, and teaming up with Sister Erelyn was a nice touch, but I'm not like other women!

A faint, smug smile appeared on her cold, proud face.

It was obvious by now that Timothy's plan had completely fallen apart.

Once she made it out of the haunted house and exposed his scheme, this time, victory would be hers!

It had been a long time since she'd managed to turn the tables on Timothy, and even though she appeared calm on the outside, Sylvia was eagerly anticipating her win.

In fact, she could hardly wait to get out of the haunted house as quickly as possible.

"Hmph, how about that? Now you see how strong I am!"

Finally, Sylvia couldn't help but turn to Timothy, a confident smile spreading across her face.

"Yeah, yeah, honey, you're amazing."

In response to Sylvia's playful bragging, Timothy just smiled faintly and gave her a thumbs-up.

Sylvia: "..."

Even though Timothy was complimenting her, she couldn't shake the feeling that... his praise seemed a bit half-hearted?

And, somehow, it felt like he had something else up his sleeve.

But I've already shown my strength and composure throughout this whole thing. Timothy should know better than to keep pushing, right?

Despite everything going smoothly so far, Sylvia couldn't help but feel like something was off.

Just then, from a distant, dark corner, a ghostly figure suddenly burst out of a hidden box.

This ghost had clearly been lying in wait for a while, and its appearance was grotesque—three heads, six arms, and its body covered in crimson bloodstains.

Its long, eerie tongue dragged along the ground, and its voice was a raspy, terrifying screech, like the wail of a ghostly infant, as it lunged toward Sylvia.

"Hissss"

In the pitch-black surroundings, the sudden appearance of this horrifying figure was truly unsettling.

However, Sylvia's cold, calm eyes had already seen through everything.

The ghost was moving fast, but to her, it seemed as slow as a turtle.

Before the ghost could even get close, Sylvia's figure flickered, moving as swiftly as the wind.

"Spare me—"

BAM!

The ghost, mid-flight, panicked, but before it could even finish begging for mercy, Sylvia's palm struck, sending it flying far into the distance.

Accompanied by a chilling gust of wind, no one knew just how far that slap had sent it.

"Hmph, some people never learn. Still trying to scare me, huh?"

Sylvia clapped her hands, clearly satisfied with how good that slap felt.

They were already more than halfway through the haunted house, and nothing so far had posed any real threat. She figured the rest of the journey would be just as easy.

But just as Sylvia let her guard down, she suddenly felt a gust of wind sweep toward her from behind.

In the darkness, Timothy had already locked onto his target and made his move.

In fact, from the moment he exchanged glances with Erelyn before entering the haunted house, he knew that the clever princess was on the same page as him.

Sure, a goddess like Sylvia wouldn't be scared of ghosts. But if she were caught off guard, things could be very different.

So, ever since they entered the haunted house, Timothy had been waiting for the perfect moment to strike and snatch the Snow Lotus.

Sylvia had been so focused up until now that there hadn't been any openings.

But in this brief moment of relaxation, the opportunity finally presented itself.

"Honey, let me show you what a real haunted house feels like," Timothy's voice echoed.

In the next instant, his hand sliced through the air and—just like that—he grabbed the Snow Lotus right off the top of Sylvia's head!