Swarms of  ugly creatures ran through the thick foliage of the woods in the demon world as they laughed and mocked the god of Reikai and the other creatures from that world.

"Fools! All of them!" a brown-skinned monster with seven horns on his scaly head cried out as he snickered loudly into the air.

"How weak are they?" another one asked, his slimy tail wiggling. "They didn't even see us!"

"With my superiority, we pushed through." a youkai with a humanoid shape but with purple skin bragged as he smirked with delight.

"Braggart!" the brown-skinned one shouted. "I was the one who did all the work. You two are nothing but pawns."

No one answered however as they came face to face with three S-class youkais. They stopped, the puple-skinned being clutching the loot, grinning widely.

"Good." a deep voice commented as he eyed their loot. "You actually managed to get it."

"Like you said, Koji-sama." the purple-skinned creature said with a smile.

"Give it to me!" a woman's voice commanded.

"Payment first, pretty lady." the brown-skinned one told the female youkai with a glint in his eye.

"Nothing but fools." the woman said as a fast ki attack escaped her fingers.

The three thieves couldn't say anything else much less do anything to react to the speedy ki attack. They froze as cold ice numbed them, crushing their bones, ceasing their blood-flow and making them as stiff as statues.

The woman youkai smirked at her work and kicked the three numb figures, making them fall to the ground and breaking them to nothing but shards of glass.

"Cruel." the deep voice commented with a smile to the woman.

Another figure went by their sides. "Let's get the artifact and go. There are more preparations to be done."

The woman ignored the new being as she stared at the fastly melting ice. The ice seeped into the ground quickly, blood and other youkai fluids coloring the rich soil into an undescribable shade and filling the air with a stench nastier than any cesspool they've ever had the unpleasant opportunity to pass by.

"Let's get out of here." the deep voice suggested, covering his nose. He moved away as the other two followed.

"Stealing an artifact from the Reikai?" the deep voice then said in amusement. "Fair lady, you really go to extensive lengths, ne?"

The woman smiled, a deep, dark smile. "Anything for the child."