The plan was simple.
Catch the demon off guard and break hypnosis by destroying the mansion.
Now obviously, we couldn't destroy the entire mansion. We didn't have bombs or anything like that, but we did have enough power to destroy the place where the townspeople gathered.
The ballroom.
Jumping down, both Elara and I split going in the direction of the pillars we had memorized.
The sound of footsteps around didn't disappear.
Despite the situation, they didn't stop dancing.
Gathering mana in my arms and summoning Fractus, I swung with all my strength at the pillar.
-CRASH
The pillar fell, crashing down and likely killing a few, but I had no time to regret as I rushed to the next pillar.
-CRASH
Another pillar fell, and the noise came from the opposite side of the ballroom.
'Nice.' I smiled.
Elara had broken a pillar and was likely moving to the next.
I reached the next pillar and once again attempted to swing, but just as I channeled mana...
"HAHAHAHA!!!"
A laugh vibrated through the room, coming from the direction of the throne.
It sent shivers down my spine, but I didn't stop and swung Fractus at the pillar.
-CRASH
-CRASH
This time, Elara broke a pillar, simultaneously causing the ground to shake.
I lost my balance slightly, but quickly composed myself and sprinted in the direction of a window I had memorized.
But...
My body froze.
"That's enough."
I couldn't move...
No.
It felt as though my body refused to move, and even my mana refused to move.
In an instant, the smoke cloud dispersed.
I could see once again.
All around, there were the bodies of those who were dancing sprawled across the floor, unconscious.
Faster than my eyes could perceive, a figure appeared in front of me.
It was the old man.
Or rather... the demon.
'Shit!'
"Why do you interrupt me, youngling?" He spoke with a curious tone.
'Youngling?'
He tilted his head.
"Are you trying to steal my meal?"
I tried to speak, but my mouth wouldn't move.
I noticed Elara frozen on the opposite side of the room.
Following my gaze, the demon's eyes landed on Elara, and the smile on his face widened.
"Ah, yes, her."
"Come, child." He commanded.
Elara's body began to move without her permission, walking straight toward us until she arrived right before the demon.
"Hmm..." The demon stared at Elara for a few seconds before his eyes widened slightly and his smile grew wider...
Too wide.
"Why hello, your highness. Isn't this a surprise?"
"Who would've thought the Southern Duke's precious daughter would end up in my hands?"
'Duke's daughter?!' My eyes widened.
I had learned something new. Elara was a duke's daughter, and not just any duke, the Southern Grand Duke, one of humanity's most powerful figures and one of the five 10-stars.
Elara, on the other hand, didn't look surprised that the demon had recognized her. She was glaring at him with incredible bloodlust.
"Haha," The demon merely chuckled at her gaze. "You will become quite useful."
He waved his hand, and instantly, Elara disappeared. He then shifted his attention toward me.
"Now, youngling, it seems you haven't been educated." He smiled. "But don't worry, I'll teach you a lesson."
My hands began to move despite my desperate protests and wrapped around my head.
Then my hands began to push and pull forcefully in opposite directions.
-Crack
I died.
------
Okay, I won't lie. The plan failed horribly, but just so you don't think Elara and I are complete idiots, I'll give you some context.
Firstly, the smoke bomb. It wasn't just any smoke bomb. It was, as Elara had said, a veil. It completely blocked your sight using intricate mana circles. This means it's a magic smoke bomb, and the only way to get rid of it is to wait its duration out or overpower it with mana.
I had encountered the same device back at the mansion, but this one was better, or rather, more expensive. Which explains why Elara had it, I mean, she is a duke's daughter and basically a princess.
Regardless, the reason we were so confident in the veil was that the one Elara had was so good that it required mana on the 4-star level or up to disperse it.
Yes, 4-star!!
This meant the demon had a power level equivalent to a 4-star or higher, which is obviously way beyond Elara and me.
Other than that, the reason for breaking the mansion down was to destroy the hypnosis on the people.
How does that work?
Well, according to Elara, for a demon of the illusionist class to take control of so many people at once, it needed assistance from an artifact. This, however, only applied if the demon wasn't already strong enough to take control of them with their own power.
That said artifact is similar to a virus that spreads by constantly duplicating itself and moving from person to person. And although it has no consciousness, it does have instinct and is sensitive to loud noise.
This is what breaking the pillars was for. Its noise caused the artifact to retreat to the demon that wielded it, therefore ridding the people of their hypnosis.
And it did work, believe it or not, the reason the people had fainted and fallen to the ground was because of the hypnosis being released, not because of the demon.
He was strong, but not strong enough to control an entire town's population of people with varying powers without help.
This meant the plan worked. The only problem was that the demon was stronger than anticipated.
And lastly, our escape was actually planned, at least to a certain extent. You see, Elara was extremely confident that reinforcements would come very soon and stop the demon before he could catch us.
At the time, I didn't understand her confidence and just trusted her word, but I quickly realised it was because of her identity as the duke's daughter.
Therefore, making her a high priority.
Obviously, Daddy was gonna come and save her.