Ruto and Haru approached the door to the Phenex estate from opposite directions, both donning their Scale Mail. The two looked at each other, then at the manor, then back at each other.
"Fancy place, eh Haru?" Ruto asked with feigned interest. "It just looks like a haven for assholes."
"Ruto? Why are you here?" Haru questioned, scratching the top of his helmet.
"Whaddaya mean why am I here? I'm here to save Rias' ass like you are. I knew you wouldn't be able to resist so I'm backing you up." Ruto explained testily. He looked again at the estate and scowled.
"There's another that needs saving too." he said. Haru looked at the door, finding that there were two guards watching them intently, following their every movement. The two Emperors walked to the door and predictably, the guards crossed their halberds across the door.
"State your business." the guard on the left said. They both wore very expensive-looking ceremonial armour, with large plumes coming from the tops of the helmets.
Speech skill don't fail me now. Ruto pleaded silently.
"Uh, yeah, hi. We're here as entertainment for Lord Riser and his fiancé Lady Rias. We're re-enacting the battle between the Red and White Dragons as part of the show." Ruto lied smoothly.
The guards eyed them critically, looking at each other then back at the Emperors. "Passes please."
"Oh for fuck sake." Ruto grumbled. He grabbed the two guards by their breastplates and lifted them off the ground, slammed them together and then for good measure, threw them down the long flight of stairs leading to the front door.
"Ruto what the hell!?" Haru cried as he watched the guards tumble down the set of 200 steps. Ruto dusted off his gauntleted hands and turned to the door.
"Passes? I don't need no stinking passes!" he then realised that the doors were actually locked, and that the guards most likely had the keys. He then looked down the stairs to see them all the way at the bottom, one of them slowly starting to get up. Ruto rolled his eyes with an aggravated sigh.
"Ugh, can today get any more annoying?" he asked no one in particular. He flexed his armour's wings and flew down the steps, practically dive-kicking the guard who had just finished standing. He knelt next to the now dazed guard's body and swiped the ring of keys from his belt.
"You know, all of this is starting to feel very, very cliché." Ruto mumbled to himself. Gripping the keys firmly, he checked to see if the other guard was still conscious. He wasn't, but for shits and giggles Ruto kicked him anyway. He flew back up to the door to find that Haru had lost his patience and already broken the door down, leaving a trail of chaos in his wake.
"Oh you fucking asshole!" Ruto seethed. "I swear I'm gonna beat his ass as well as Riser's." he threw the keys aside and flew into the building, twisting and turning around the various corners through the hallways at breakneck speeds.
He found Haru by a map of the building. Yup, it was so expansive and labyrinthine that it had its own map. Haru was reading it, only finding the "You are here" sign to be the only part he understood. It seemed that he wasn't quite familiar with the Devil language and alphabet.
"Oh, gotten lost have you?" Ruto asked scathingly as he approached Haru. His counterpart jumped slightly, thinking that a guard had found him.
"Dude, seriously, don't sneak up on me!" he nearly shouted as he whipped around to see him. Ruto stood next to him and began studying the map.
"Hmm..."
Haru waited for something to follow.
"Hmmmm..."
Still nothing, and then Haru was still waiting, albeit while fidgeting quite a bit.
"Hummm..."
"Holy shit Ruto just say something." Haru said tersely.
"Huh, what?" Ruto snapped to attention and looked at Haru.
"Could you read any of it?" he asked pointing at the map.
"Oh right, that. Uh, sorry dude. I know Devil symbols for magic, not their alphabetical application." he admitted weakly with a goofy "I feel really dumb right now" smile.
"What!? I thought since you stayed in the underworld they would have taught you." Haru said incredulously.
"I was a lousy student. They tried but I was too busy exploring, reading Ajuka's spells and generally being an annoyance to the Devils around my age." Ruto explained, gaining a happy look of nostalgia on his face.
"So then what was all the humming about? Thinking about the girls in dresses?" Haru asked suggestively.
Ruto said nothing, grateful for the fact his helmet covered his face otherwise Haru would see the steamed blush on Ruto's face.
He can never know... but dammit I bet Rossweisse is looking fine as fuck right now.
"Coulda been." he shrugged and looked back at the map, this time looking at the wall lines to determine where to go. He tapped the armour protecting his chin in thought. "Anyways, we should go..." he looked to the left down the hallway and saw a door with no sign on it. It seemed like a grandiose door, so he figured it would lead to the main hall.
"This way." the magician marched confidently towards the door and opened it with Haru following close behind.
"Damn, it's dark in there." Haru commented while poking his head around the door. "You sure this is the way to go?"
"Nope, but we're going anyway." Ruto said nonchalantly and pushed Haru into the room. He generated a ball of white mana in his hand and illuminated the room. He found a light switch on the wall next to the door and flipped it. A ceiling light lit up the room and Ruto extinguished the ball of mana.
Before the two was a long hallway with ceiling lights turning on one at a time until they were all on. Doors on both sides lined the hall. Haru and Ruto looked at each other, both feeling the odd and somewhat eerie atmosphere that suddenly made itself known.
"This isn't creepy at all." Ruto commented dryly. Haru nodded and the two began cautiously making their way through the hallway. A door swung open and startled the two, Ruto jumping and landing in Haru's arms in a bridal carry. They waited for several, agonisingly long moments until they were sure nothing was there.
Ruto pushed himself away from Haru and landed on his feet. He cleared his throat. "That never happened."