The Damned Demon

As they entered the small, dimly lit hall, the only source of light came from flickering candles scattered across an old, worn desk. Behind this desk sat a scrawny lady, her skin a dark shade of orange, almost glowing in the candlelight. Her nose was pointy, giving her an almost caricature-like appearance, and her eyes, a deep, vibrant green, flickered with mischief and knowledge far beyond her seemingly frail frame.

Upon seeing Naida, a sly grin spread across the lady\'s face, her long fingers tapping rhythmically on the wooden surface, "Ah, if it isn\'t the Midnight Wanderer," she crooned, her voice a peculiar mix of rasp and velvet, "And who\'s this? A new apprentice, perhaps?"

Naida responded with a light chuckle, not correcting the lady on her alias, "You could say that, Grendella. We\'re here on specific business. We need access to the hidden chamber."

Grendella\'s eyes shifted to Asher, sizing him up with a glance that felt almost invasive, "You have never brought a friend before, and he seems like a new face. Do you trust him?" she mused aloud, her gaze returning to Naida. "The chamber isn\'t for all eyes. You know that." n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I trust him more than anything," Naida replied, her tone friendly yet firm, making Asher glance at her briefly with a hint of warmth.

Grendella leaned back in her chair, the wood creaking under her slight weight. With a dramatic flourish, she pulled out a large, ancient-looking key from beneath the desk, "Very well," she said, her voice now serious, "I shall add his name to the list. But remember, the chamber only contains things that could kill you. Your friend should be careful about getting too tempted."

Naida nodded, a gesture mirrored by Asher, though he only got more intrigued and curious about what kind of things were present in this chamber.

"Follow me, then," Grendella announced, standing up. Her movements were surprisingly graceful for her appearance, and she led them through a door hidden behind an entrance that Asher hadn\'t noticed before.

As they walked, the corridor twisted and turned, descending deeper into the heart of the building. The air grew cooler, and the silence was almost oppressive, broken only by the sound of their footsteps and the occasional drip of water echoing in the distance.

Finally, they reached a heavy door, its surface etched with symbols that seemed to dance in the candlelight.

Grendella inserted the key, turning it with a loud click that echoed ominously. The door swung open, revealing the hidden chamber beyond, shrouded in darkness and mystery.

With a nod from Grendella, Naida, and Asher stepped forward, crossing the threshold into the unknown.

As the iron door thudded shut behind them, plunging Asher and Naida into this dark chamber, Asher\'s gaze swept across the place they had entered. The air was thick with the scent of ancient parchment and forgotten magic. Shelves, burdened with the weight of countless old and dusty grimoires, parchments, and books, stretched into the dimness, their contents whispering secrets of a bygone eras.

"What is this place really? Everything looks so old," Asher mumbled, his voice a soft intrusion into the silence that enveloped them as he stepped forward, his eyes wide with a mixture of awe and curiosity.

Naida, with the ease of one familiar with such sanctuaries, dusted off a book as she explained, "This place is the 3rd Chamber of Forbidden Past. There are only 3 such chambers in our world, which contain all kinds of old and forbidden arts, grimoires, and secret information on various kingdoms or clans. But each of them can only be accessed with a high price, and you can only buy one item in your entire lifetime."

Asher browsed through the shelves, his fingers brushing against the spines of countless volumes, "The items here look quite precious. I don\'t understand why nobody bothered to plunder this place and take everything for themselves," he mused, the question hanging in the air like a challenge to the silence of the chamber.

Naida\'s response was a soft chuckle, "It isn\'t that simple. The Chambers of Forbidden Past have been maintained for thousands of years by powerful people from every corner of this world. Nobody would dare to be the first one to cause trouble and risk getting destroyed by the rest. But even if someone manages to keep them all at bay, each of the Chambers has a powerful and mysterious self-destruction mechanism if somebody tries to compromise the entire chamber."

"That\'s more sophisticated than I expected. No wonder," Asher mused, his respect for the chamber\'s guardians growing. "But you\'re forgetting one important thing. As that woman outside said, everything here are things most people don\'t want or wouldn\'t dare to use. It\'s called \'Forbidden\' for a reason. So it\'s not worth the resources one would have to give up in hopes of benefiting from an item here at great risk of their life."

Asher nodded as he hummed, "Hmm, that does make sense," He then bobbed his head around and asked, "Now, what should I look for? Isn\'t there any magic arrays to quickly find what we are looking for?"

Naida shook her head, her expression one of mild regret. "All the chambers run on powerful but ancient arrays. So, unfortunately, we have to manually search each item by its name. Look for a grimoire with the title \'Tome of the Nightmare Sword\'."

"Tome of the Forbidden Nightmare Sword? It sounds like a powerful one indeed," Asher remarked, his interest piqued, eyes gleaming with anticipation.

"It is indeed powerful, but well...you will find out," Naida replied, her smile cryptic yet encouraging.

Asher chuckled, shaking his head in mild exasperation. "You are really keeping me in suspense here, huh?"

Naida\'s knowing smile shone through,. "Not as much as you, though. You still haven\'t told me how things went with your queen after you told her about us. Or did you not tell her yet?"

Asher, his hands brushing over the spines of countless grimoires, sighed, the sound heavy with unspoken words, "I was about to tell you once we had a place to talk freely and comfortably. But since you asked now, well..." He paused, his voice trailing off as he recounted the moment he had revealed his relationship with Naida to Rowena. The confession had unfolded in a way that left Naida\'s lips to part and her brows to raise,

Naida\'s reaction was a mix of relief and surprise, her hand resting against her chest as if to calm her racing heart, "That went better than I expected. I didn\'t tell you to not bother you about it, but I was feeling quite guilty and ashamed all along. I was ready for any punishment if she didn\'t want me to get close to you. But it seems as if fate doesn\'t want us to be separate. She must really love you to give in like this."

Asher\'s face mirrored the complexity of his emotions, a stormy sea of guilt, love, and loyalty, "I know she is a better person than I am, and I may not deserve her, but I can\'t stay away from her. She is the reason I am standing here. Otherwise, I could have..." His voice faltered, lost in the unsaid, as his gaze turned distant, wondering how he would have ended up if only hate and anger existed within him.

Naida, observing the conflict within him, offered a warm smile, "I know. She is your world, just like you are already becoming mine."

"Naida..." Asher\'s voice was a whisper, laden with emotions too complex to unravel, the name a confession and a plea all at once.

He felt bad that he couldn\'t call her his own before everyone else yet.

The search for the Tome of the Forbidden Nightmare Sword continued, a task that seemed to anchor Asher to the present, despite the doubts in his heart.

And then, amidst the silence and the secrets, he found it, "Hey. Here it is. Tome of the Forbidden Nightmare Sword," he announced, a spark of triumph in his voice that quickly turned to astonishment as he opened the tome, "What the..." The words died in his throat as his eyes widened in disbelief, staring at the contents that lay before him.

What did he see?