Marigold had always been one of Elysia's favorites.
It is as stubborn and determined as she is. Even without Luke's warning, she knows she cannot trust demons nor let them intimidate her.
Much less obey a certain Avatar of Pride not to climb those stairs leading to the attic.
Angels, Elysia decided, are far more pleasant company than the demons. They lived up to their reputation as servants of God - their presence, personality, and even disposition about their counterparts were similar to human literature. However, it surprised her that one of them - Simeon, a high-ranking angel - seemed to have an amicable attitude toward the demons, unlike Luke.
"...Never trust a demon." The younger angel had warned her. "Especially when that demon is Lucifer."
Luke did not have to tell her twice. Elysia did not trust the demons one bit. More so if an actual angel told her not to. Another thing that made her situation worse was that she could not put her complete faith in Solomon to side with her. The sorcerer was shady as fuck - she sensed something off about him since day one. Human, but not quite. That is how she would describe the other exchange student from the human realm. That is how he labeled himself.
Since arriving in the Devildom, Elysia had slept facing the door. A part of her warned her it was not enough - the wall against her back does little to protect her from attacks from behind. She had not slept in that position in the past five years. The irrefutable sense of danger brought bad habits up to the surface again, leaving her unable to sleep the necessary hours. Even if she does get a shut-eye, it was light, ready to spring into action at the tiniest hint of disturbance.
...And as she dreaded, sleep did not visit her that night. Elysia had tossed and turned on her bed, even going as far as to pace in her room. She thought of going through today's lectures again, but it would not do her good if her head became overloaded with information. The last thing she wanted was to collapse in a room full of demons. She does not have either angel as classmates in all of her classes.
"...elp…"
Elysia stopped in her tracks. Her body stiffened as a chill ran down her spine. What was that…?
"Help…"
A voice - maybe a ghost, perhaps an insomnia-driven hallucination - pleaded. It sounded oddly close like it came from directly in her head. At the same time, it came far, as if the source was somewhere above her.
Fuck…is she already losing it?
"Someone help me…."
Elysia is now sure she did not imagine it. The voice was coming from the floor above, though the telepathic quality of it felt strange. She thought back to the dollhouse replica of the house she had seen at the entrance hall. From what she could remember, there should be a staircase leading to the attic. She did not know what she expected to find - maybe cursed trinkets that any sensible humans should come in contact with - but for the sake of her last remaining sanity, she would have to venture further into the monsters' den.
Elysia grabbed a shawl from her provided wardrobe and wrapped it over her nightgown. Not her preferred nightwear, by the way, and it just goes to show that the demons here are a bit archaic. She would have to buy something up to the current human trends once she finds a suitable part-time job here.
Once Elysia had ascertained that she was at least half mentally (and psychologically) prepared, she peeked at the corridors and slipped out of her room once she was sure the coast was clear. Lucifer and Leviathan should be the only ones awake by now. Both demons have their hands full with whatever they are doing at this hour, so the brothers should not notice a human snooping around the dorm. There is also half an hour before Beelzebub sneaks out to the kitchen for a midnight snack, so Elysia considers herself safe. For now.
Elysia hurried on her bare steps as the voice led her further into the house. She ended at the staircase leading to the attic as expected, but before she could even step on the first tread.
"Elysia."
Said human nearly jumped out of her skin and whirled around to come face-to-face with the Avatar of Pride himself. The eldest demon brother stood just inches behind her in an imposing figure of authority. Just like him. Like - Elysia hated it, but all she could do was grip the handrail as her heart attempted to break out of her chest.
Lucifer did not seem apologetic at nearly giving the human a heart attack. "Stop right there. You'll go no further." Concern flitted on his face. It was so brief that Elysia thought it was just her imagination. "... That's not a place for humans. It's dangerous. Go back to your room."
Elysia forced down the fear evoked by the demon's presence. She had come this far - she would not let some egotistical bastard order her around. "No."
A part of her wanted to kick herself for pissing off the guy, though she admitted she found sick satisfaction in seeing the exasperation in Lucifer's face. However, that did not last long when the eldest demon brother suddenly laughed, much to her surprise.
"Interesting," Lucifer mused. "I think I'm starting to understand why you were chosen to come here." He shook his head. "But you can't say no. Because I'm not giving you a choice."
The demon stepped beside her and reached an arm to block her way up. "...Now then, back to your room. If you value your life, you'll do as I say."
At that moment, Luke's words echoed in her mind. "...Never trust a demon. Especially when that demon is Lucifer."
Elysia swallowed the lump in her throat. While she wanted to tell the Avatar of Pride off, she knew she was at a disadvantage. She is ill-equipped to face whatever Lucifer kept up there in the attic. She will have to back down for now.
"Fine."
Elysia relented through gritted teeth. She let go of the handrail and adjusted the shawl over her shoulders. She glared at the demon - this is not over - before turning on her heel. Of course, she tried her luck the next night, and lo and behold! Lucifer was already waiting for her by the base of the stairs like some guard dog. It was a tense one-sided confrontation - the fucker even had the nerve to offer her tea while threatening her simultaneously. She had no choice but to retreat again and spent the rest of the night scrambling her head for any ideas to get past Lucifer.
The opportunity came in the form of the Avatar of Greed. While Elysia had been actively ignoring Mammon since that day, the demon was not easily encouraged. He would still escort her outside and talk her ear off, uncaring if she would not respond to his remarks. Annoying would be a generous description. She did not know if he was just following Lucifer's order or if it was his way of getting back at her. If only Elysia were not exhausted after school, she would have kicked the demon off the stairs the first chance she got.
Nevertheless, the guy was the second eldest demon brother and knew the others more than her. Elysia had always been observant, and it did not take long to learn about a few of the demon's quirks, his likes and dislikes, and what ticks him off. She could weaponize them however she likes, but she still must exercise caution as she is dealing with a demon. Still, it was laughably easy. It just took some goading for the Avatar of Greed to spill the beans.
"...Ya' need to get your hands on a vinyl edition copy of the soundtrack for that Tale of the Seven whatsawhosit. If ya' have that, ya' can use it to distract Lucifer, no problem!" Mammon told her. "Don't ask why, 'cause I've got no idea why Lucifer's interested in somethin' like that either. But if ya' wanna climb those stairs, you're gonna have to start by gettin' your hands on that soundtrack."
Elysia could not be happier that the Avatar of Greed proved her right. She had to coerce the demon using their pact to help her get Leviathan to lend the soundtrack. Of course, she half-expected the third eldest demon brother would not easily cave into her request. They might have had a temporary alliance days ago, but that was the extent of their cooperation. However, what surprised her about the whole thing was Solomon coming by to visit the Avatar of Envy.
She had to step back to Mammon's side as the sorcerer bantered casually with the white-haired demon. She kept her mouth shut, keeping a wary eye on her fellow human. Elysia did not realize she was holding her breath until Solomon was finally invited into Leviathan's room. He threw her a mischievous glance as the door shut close behind him, and she was left to wonder if that encounter was coincidental or not.
However, such a thought would have to be mulled for later. If Elysia wanted a chance to climb those stairs, she must get Leviathan to acknowledge her as a 'fellow TSL nerd'. Not that she was looking forward to it, but beggars cannot be choosers.
Elysia was already in literal Hell, so she might as well go through it. She will do it even if she has to marathon the entire DVD series of the goddamn thing in one night. Even if she had to drag Mammon with her to do it, so be it. The demon has little say about the matter, anyway. One word was all she needed to make the second eldest brother bend to her will. Besides, she could tell the other wanted an excuse not to review for the upcoming midterms. She might as well indulge him for a change.
Or reward.
The thought left a bad taste in her mouth. A reward…like a slave. Like a prisoner. If Mammon had noticed her grimace, he did not comment. Neither did she when she caught the Avatar of Greed staring at her during dinner.
Never trust a demon.
Luke had warned her, but Elysia knew better than to do something worse.
Do not get attached to a demon.