Soon, Yuuta's group came to a stop at the entrance to the main ritual grounds.
The human prisoners continued moving ahead without them. Demon soldiers began separating the chained crowd, pulling men and women away one at a time and leading them toward the hundreds of smaller circles Yuuta had noticed earlier. Even children were separated from the groups and placed within individual formations, despite their crying and desperate attempts to cling to the adults beside them.
"Please! Let my daughter stay with me!"
"Mommy! Mommy!"
"Shut up and move!"
A demon guard pulled a crying child away from her mother, ignoring the woman's desperate attempts to reach her. The surrounding prisoners watched helplessly as the soldiers continued separating them, dragging those who resisted toward the waiting formations.
Yuuta stood silently, his eyes following the child until she disappeared among the crowd.
His fingers slowly curled into fists.
These bastards...
