Face Lord Vraelion.

"The barrier is down!" shouts Chula from atop the castle.

How?! The fact of the matter is something has disabled the barrier, and even if you got it working again, it's too late. You can't leave your allies now, however. Not with who's about to enter the battlefield. You turn your face up towards the three dragons, while the Arcane Eye follows the group heading to the Thone Room. Sadly, you don't exactly have a third eye to spy on the roof, though if Chula just yelled from up top, they can't be in immediate danger.

You turn your one eye back as you hear the crackle of magic. The devil mage is facing Mistress Dajy of all people. Her harem is busy taking out the remaining goblins and gremlins, while those who didn't leave to the Throne Room have their hands full with the remaining demofiends, some automatons, and the two other mages. She should be fine. Dajy is certainly one of the most powerful individuals at Castle Phoenix after all. And since you haven't seen Cat in awhile, she's likely back with the others inside, which bodes well for them. A high succubus and a high vampire--surely more deadly and unexpected from even a Demon King's army.

"Malakae!" you call out. "Transform!"

"Gladly!" the dragoness yells cathartically. She's been waiting for this moment. Her feline-like eyes cut sharper than a dagger as sounds of tearing come from the qipao dress she wears. Above, the two smaller dragons soar down first. She squeezes her hands into fists that expand into deadly claws. Her horns grow, wings burst out from the back of her clothing--in a manner of moments, her entire body grows and transforms into a beautiful golden dragon. She leaps off the ground and tackles one of the other dragons instantly to the ground.

After leaping off the first, she digs her claws into the dirt and faces the other head-to-head. They stare each other down.

Then at last, the leader enters the fray--one lord against another. With a deafening crash, Lord Vraelion takes out the majority of the house beneath him. Bricks and wood crumble to the ground, and a moment later, the second floor crashes to the first. When he swings his tail, it destroys the remainder. Everybody's attention immediately shifts as the massive dragon takes up nearly as much room as half the army once did.

The gnolls have been unleashed as well. Their muzzles are long gone, and the feral, hyena-like creatures are running amok. Their claws are deadly, and each wields a crude, curved blade.

Meanwhile, you peer inside the Throne Room through your Arcane Eye.

Laira, Luna, and Dixby have retreated back into the War Room behind the throne. Fava stands in her Alice-like body next to Jelly at the door. Stax, holding a dagger in each hand, bolts forwards at an ALICE nearby. Her first flurry of attacks meets with her opponent's shield, though she manages to use her quick footing and short figure to sneak two slices in across the golem's legs.

The second ALICE marches with several other automatons, from the rolling spheres to two formed cobras. Taiga strikes out at one of the serpents and narrowly misses, though its dodge opens it up for a strike from Summer. Lalarin then tumbles forwards and knocks it upside the head.

Queen Catherine II, dressed once again in her royal crimson garb, stands behind the throne with a sword in her hand. Nearing her is an ALICE.

A chill runs down the ALICE's spine. There's a whisper in her ear. From the dim light of the room comes a creature that thrives in the shadows. Two deadly fangs extend from a pale-fleshed creature of long, dark hair and a dress to match. Cat, the high vampire, sings her teeth into the throat of the ALICE, and while it has no blood, she digs her claws into the golem's shoulders, and with incredible strength, pulls the head right off. After throwing it down, she stomps her foot straight through it. "Attempting to fight us here is foolish," she says.

"You're truly terrifying, yet truly beautiful as well," says the queen.

"You're welcome," the responds the vampiress.

"Ah, yes. Apologies. I should pull back--"

"No. I meant for the blood. It runs strong in your veins. Now raise that sword and fight."

You shut your eyes. As much as you'd like to watch further, this is no time for split attention. You allow the Arcane Eye to drop wherever it may, and you open both of your eyes to stare up towards Lord Vraelion before you--sword still blazing with a tall pink flame.

"Give me back my daughter, you worm." Lord Vraelion growls deep.

"You have no daughter," you reply. Immediately after, you lunge into battle. The first slice misses, and the second grazes one of the dragon's armoured scales. Though just before you continue your ****, you whisper, "Entangle," to place a trap beneath you. Then quickly, you thrust your sword upwards and shout, "Flare Bolt!" to send a blast of magic straight to the chin of the mighty dragon.

It does little to no damage at all, but it does distract him. You pivot swiftly around to his side, and then lunge forwards. The might of your blade stabs deep beneath his wing, causing him to roar out in pain and rage. Before he can knock you off, you withdraw your sword and leap back to the ground, using your Boots of Herbes to drift safely to your feet. Thankfully, with much of the army gone, more of your frontliners are joining the dragon fight, especially Bek, who is more than eager to slay one.

Meanwhile, your eyes catch something happening with Mistress Dajy.

"Hehehe," cackles the devil. His spaded tail swings slowly back and forth like a pendulum. From within his robe, he withdraws something that causes Dajy to gasp. It's a long, black horn, seemingly broken, but it's one she recognizes straight away. The mage has her horn, the one you gifted to Queen Catherine II all that time ago. King Thadius must have given it to him. "The infamous Mistress Dajy. A mighty succubus for certain. But everybody has a weakness. Allow me to introduce you to yours... Bind Demon!"

Dajy turns her eyes back to you. "Kyle! These mages are demon summoners. They're experts on--Gaahh!" She clutches her chest and falls to her knees. Magical bands revolve around her as she seems to be held perfectly in place. She struggles, but there's nothing she can do. The enemy mage has full power over her thanks to the horn he holds.

"Every demon, head to the roof to assist the others!" you command. "Let someone else handle the mages!"

That's Sen-nu, Shivra, Linzeri, Klava, Raleza, Brizi, and Vodrani. All of them pull back.

Lynx hops over to stand beside you with daggers drawn. "After all we've faced, this beast is nothing."

You turn to see a few of your allies assisting Malakae in fighting two dragons at once, though she's doing a great job even without that. Though with everyone so split, only a handful of people are here to help fight such a mighty foe, and Mistress Dajy is in her own danger. Something is still happening on the roof, and there's a fight in the Throne Room. It's so overwhelming. Though after a moment, you take a breath and assess the situation. Right now, you can't win if Lord Vraelion doesn't fall. You need to focus on that and trust everybody to handle themselves.

"Oi, does a dragon only count as one?!" Bek screams with a grin on his face towards Lord Vraelion ahead of the rest. His maul collides with the front knee of the dragon, forcing out a roar as the foot lifts up towards you.

It slams down to the ground, but as this happens, you activate your magic. Tendrils of blue writhe up from the point of impact to grab onto the dragon's foot, and then you use the leg as a ramp up towards the chest. Quickly, you deliver three successful slashes. Before you land, you watch as a Chain Lighting impacts the dragon's face, temporarily blinding the beast. Eva stands not far away with Niki guarding her closely. Behind that, Amara with her staff planted firmly against the front. However, her face is completely flushed. Her lips are pursed, and she's quivering in place.

Koblix lands with a dagger pierced straight through one of the rolling metal spheres. "What's your order, Demon King?"