The stench hit first.
Rotting metal. Drunken piss. Smoke. Regret.
The den of prostitution was a decaying concrete beast—a four-story plaza fused with a 20-story service apartment complex that looked like it had given up on life sometime in the '90s. The paint was peeling like dried scabs, neon signs flickered like dying fireflies, and every corner reeked of old sin.
The staircase was a nightmare—a narrow, damp shaft that smelled like a urinal had mated with a sewer. Drunkards slept on the landings. The passerby, none seems surprised or bothered.
The main complex had a busted escalator that hadn't moved in years. Customers stomped their way up to the first and second floors, where the true marketplace began.
This wasn't just prostitution—it was a circus of flesh.
Girls lined up like meat at a butcher shop, flaunting and teasing, voices high and desperate as they called out to every man who passed. The air was thick with cologne, cheap perfume, and sweat. Every few meters, a goon leaned on a wall—arms crossed, eyeing the chaos with the cold detachment of someone who'd seen too many beatdowns to flinch.
Men haggled like they were buying fruit. Some women clung to them like they were the last ship out of hell.
Once a deal was struck, the girls would drag their chosen men to rooms located above the plaza—tiny cubicles of peeling wallpaper and broken ceiling fans. The service apartments above had turned into a vertical hive of sin.
But at the top of it all—hidden on the very top floor of the plaza—was a room unlike anything else.
It didn't belong here.
The scent changed the second the door opened. It wasn't filth—it was seduction. Expensive perfume. Roses and sin.
A soft, pink glow lit the space like a dream you weren't supposed to have. The walls were decorated with tasteful—but unmistakably erotic—portraits of nude women, all curved lines and suggestive eyes. The furniture was modern, minimalist, with a disturbing level of elegance given the setting.
And at the center of it all—behind a sleek black desk—sat the woman who ruled it.
A queen of lust.
She wore crimson silk that clung to every inch of her like a lover. Legs crossed. One heel dangling in the air. Her long fingers rested on the desk, tapping to a beat only she could hear.
Behind her, two men stood shirtless in tight black boxers, giving her a slow, synchronized shoulder massage. Their eyes were glazed—not with drugs, but with obsession. Worship.
She smiled. The kind of smile that broke homes.
Then her brow twitched.
Her hand rose, slow and deliberate, fingers trailing up her chest until they brushed the curve of her exposed cleavage. She tilted her head, lips parting slightly.
"Why... is my heartbeat rising?" Her voice was like warm honey and poison mixed in perfect proportion. "Something… something bad is coming."
The men immediately straightened, concern replacing lust.
"My lady," one said. "Are you alright?"
The other leaned in, almost comically devoted. "My lady should let me make you some honey tea… to calm your heart."
She didn't answer.
Her crimson eyes narrowed.
And far below— A car rolled into the parking lot with a low rumble, headlights slicing through the shadows that draped the plaza like a funeral shroud.
"This is the most fitting prostitution den based on the Hell Order intel and what you described," Samuel muttered, scrolling through his phone. "This place is a hub—packed with foreign women trafficked in for the brothel business. The gangs basically own this entire block."
Danny wrinkled his nose, leaning closer to the grimy car window. The building looked like it belonged in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. "Creepy and nasty doesn't begin to cover it. Are you sure this is the place? I was thinking... I don't know—pink neon motel, classy seduction. This looks like a slum from a zombie movie."
Maya didn't answer.
Instead, she closed her eyes. Her hands moved in a complex pattern—fingers forming signs like a secret language only she understood. Her lips moved too, murmuring softly in an ancient tongue that sounded like whispers from another realm. Then—clap!—she slammed her palms together.
"Merge," she whispered.
And just like that—she vanished from sight.
Before either of the boys could yell or panic, her voice rang through their minds. No echo, no sound—just direct connection.
"Hell Order—activate demon detection mode. Scan for Blissbinders."
A shrill hiss pierced through their consciousness like static ripping across ancient vinyl.
Then it came—the same voice they'd heard the first time the Hell Order fused into them. Deep, divine, mechanical. Timeless.
"Specify target: All Demons or Blissbinders only?"
"Only Blissbinders," Maya commanded. "Also—activate field training mode. Let them handle it themselves tonight."
"Request received. Demon detection and training protocol activated."
Without warning, Danny and Samuel seized—eyes wide, bodies stiff. It felt like being plugged into a supernatural circuit board. Their vision trembled. A deep vibration rumbled through their cores. Then it happened—
A glowing schematic burst to life inside their minds. A floating 3D model of the entire plaza and adjacent apartment complex. Every corner. Every stairwell. Every room.
"Detected: 73 Class-F Blissbinders. 14 Class-E. 4 Class-D. Possibility of 1 to 2 Class-C entities. Caution: High-level spiritual barrier detected at top floor. Risk Level: Elevated."
Color-coded markers blinked across the hologram—each demon's level and position mapped with precise coordinates.
Danny's jaw dropped. "This is like a next-gen game! A full-on augmented psychic battlefield!"
Samuel rotated mentally through the map in awe. "I can feel every room in this building... the layout, the structure—it's all in my head. Like it's always been there. Is this for real?"
SLAP!
Samuel flinched as Danny smacked him across the face.
"OW! What was that for?"
"Reality check. This ain't a dream, man. We're inside the matrix—demon edition. Call it revenge for the slap the other day."
Samuel rubbed his cheek. "You could've just pinched me!"
Then they both froze as Maya's voice echoed again, this time colder.
"I'm not here to hold your hands. Best way to learn how to swim is to toss you in the river and let the monster chase you. I'll be monitoring from within. No intervention. Good luck."
They could feel her detaching, her presence pulling back.
"The Hell Order is fully synced. You'll know how to summon your artifacts instinctively. Don't expect help. Blissbinders are the weakest demon. If you can't handle this, you're worthless. Get drained, die, and I'll just find better hosts."
Her presence vanished.
"Maya?! COACH?! DEMON LADY?!" Danny shouted.
"Damn. She's as brutal as always. Maybe she's the real demon," Samuel muttered—then immediately shuddered, afraid the thought might earn him another upside-down punishment.
Silence.
Nothing.
In the deepest part of their minds, Maya stood in a void cloaked with swirling shadows—embers and ghostly blue wisps dancing in the air like whispers of forgotten souls. A massive screen hovered before her, displaying the boys' location and stats in real-time.
A flame wisp hovered beside her. It pulsed gently, then spoke.
"Are you sure this is wise? Blissbinders are ranked sixth among the most dangerous types of demons. This mission borders recklessness."
Maya didn't answer at first. Her arms were folded, her expression hard.
"They're still too immature. Too playful. To be honest, I don't even believe they're the chosen ones. You could be wrong? They must overcome this hurdle. Only then will I know if they're truly the ones destined to help me reclaim what I've lost."
The flame wisp pulsed again, softly. "The will of the King of Hell could never be wrong."
Maya exhaled slowly. "Then let's see if he was right."
She stepped forward, eyes narrowing.
"I'm seeing glimpses... visions of the future. Something is rising. Darkness thicker than ever before. I need my memories. And a part of me—a fragment—is here. I can feel it calling to me."
She closed her eyes, bracing herself for what was coming.
"And if these idiots die tonight? Then they were never the right choice."
Stay tune for the trial by hellfire!