The shop sign gleamed proudly above the freshly scrubbed wooden storefront:
"Crystal Communications – Grand Opening!"
Enia had insisted on the name. "If we call it Demon Phones," she explained dryly, "the humans will scream heresy, the church will burn the shop, and we'll all end up on decorative spikes outside the cathedral. You want sales or stakes?"
Luceris had grudgingly agreed. "Fine. Crystal Communications. Though I liked DemonOS Unlimited."
Now, on launch day, Luceris stood inside the polished little shop with his entourage—Sylas, Caelum, Enia, and the long-suffering butler who had been roped into carrying promotional leaflets. The shelves gleamed with rows of perfect, smooth flame-stone slabs—each cut into the shape of a sleek rectangle, engraved with Luceris's magic code. They looked alien in a world of candles and quills, but beautiful.
It should have been a historic moment.
Except no one came.
The shop was empty.
The five of them stood in silence.
Luceris tapped the counter, golden eyes narrowing. "…Well. This is tragic."
Sylas leaned against the wall, arms folded. "I told you. No one cares about strange glowing rocks from a suspicious new shop."
Caelum sighed. "Maybe if we put up a sign saying 'Free Blood Pudding,' we'd get customers."
Enia, however, was not rattled. She smiled like a shark. "Relax. This is normal. Humans are cautious. They don't flock to new things unless someone rich flaunts it first."
Luceris perked up. "So we find rich humans. Easy."
Enia nodded. "Indeed. But you don't just 'find' them. You lure them. Which means…"
Her golden eyes slid toward Sylas and Caelum, who immediately stiffened.
"…you two are going to a bar."
Sylas's eyes widened. "Excuse me? A bar?"
Caelum frowned. "We don't drink. At least, not in public. And why us?"
Enia placed two boxed smartphones into their hands like a mother packing lunches for schoolchildren. "Because you're both handsome, brooding, and mysterious. Perfect bait. Go sit in a high-class tavern, order a drink, and 'casually' pull these out. Play the game, let the shiny lights draw them in, and wait for the nobles to swarm you."
Sylas's jaw clenched. "You want us to be… living advertisements?"
Luceris smirked from behind the counter. "Yes. Consider it a royal command."
"We refuse," Sylas said flatly.
"Seconded," Caelum added immediately.
Luceris leaned forward, smile turning sharp. "Oh, did I say 'command'? I meant 'punishment if disobeyed.'"
He raised one elegant finger. A ripple of pressure filled the room, his mental power flickering like lightning behind his eyes. A whip of condensed water snapped into existence beside him, its crack echoing through the empty shop.
Sylas's face twitched. "…You wouldn't."
"Try me," Luceris purred.
Caelum groaned. "Why is our king like this?"
"Because I can be," Luceris answered cheerfully, twirling the whip.
Enia clasped her hands together, watching the exchange with the serene expression of a parent watching toddlers argue. "Go on, boys. Make me proud."
Defeated, Sylas and Caelum trudged toward the door, clutching the phones like condemned prisoners dragging chains.
Luceris and Enia stood at the doorway, watching them go with matching expressions of smug satisfaction.
"They look like lambs headed for slaughter," Luceris said.
Enia smiled sweetly. "Yes. But adorable lambs. Perfect for bait."
.
The tavern was called The Gilded Swan, a polished establishment that catered to nobles, merchants, and anyone wealthy enough to afford overpriced wine. Chandeliers sparkled above velvet-lined booths. A bard strummed a lute in the corner.
Sylas and Caelum walked in, both radiating the kind of aloof superiority that made heads turn. Immediately, several women and men glanced their way, intrigued by the pair's striking looks.
"Remember the plan," Caelum muttered. "Sit, drink, play, attract."
Sylas grimaced. "This is humiliating."
They found a table in the center of the lobby and sat. A waiter approached nervously, offering a list of vintage wines.
"Water," Sylas said curtly.
"Juice," Caelum added.
The waiter blinked. "…Juice?"
"Grape," Caelum said firmly.
The waiter shuffled away, confused.
As soon as drinks arrived, Sylas sighed and pulled out the phone. The screen glowed softly in the dim tavern light. Gasps rippled around the room.
"What's that?"
"It lit up!"
"Is that… magic?"
Sylas ignored them, pressing the game app as instructed. Little pixel-like characters appeared on the screen, charging into a dungeon. He tapped a monster, and it exploded with a puff of animated smoke.
The reaction was instant.
The nearest noble nearly fell off his chair. "What sorcery—?!"
A merchant leaned in. "Is that… entertainment? On a stone?"
Caelum, suppressing his pride, pulled out his own device and began playing. Within seconds, he triggered a trap and his character fell into a pit.
The screen flashed: "YOU DIED."
Caelum's eye twitched. "…This game mocks me."
Sylas smirked faintly. "Fitting."
But the crowd was hooked. People abandoned their wine to cluster around their table, peering at the glowing screens.
"Where do you get that?" someone demanded.
"How does it work?"
"Is it… dangerous?"
Sylas sipped his water slowly, pretending to be unbothered. "It's from a new shop. Crystal Communications."
"Crystal Communications," Caelum echoed tonelessly, staring at his screen where his character had just died again.
.
Meanwhile, Enia and Luceris lounged in the shop like parents waiting for their kids' first day of school.
Luceris stretched across the counter lazily. "Do you think they'll cry?"
"Probably," Enia said. "But if they attract enough rich idiots, it's worth it."
Luceris grinned. "If they fail, I'll make them sing duets with me."
Enia smirked. "That's too cruel."
"That's the point," Luceris replied, sipping his juice.
Enia glanced at his juice, "Where did you get that?"
Luceris looked at the glass and then at the butler.
"He gave it to me."
The butler was stared at by Enia, he pulled out another glass of Juice. His Majesty loved drinking fruit juices, so he specially packed some glasses of juice to impress his majesty...
It seems all mermaids like juice.
.
Back in the tavern, the buzz grew louder.
One noblewoman gasped as Sylas cleared a level. "It moves! It moves when you touch it!"
A young merchant leaned over Caelum's shoulder. "Why does it keep saying you're dead? Are you cursed?"
Caelum glared at the screen. "…This game cheats."
Sylas rolled his eyes. "You're just bad at it."
The crowd laughed, delighted. Soon, the two demons were surrounded by half the tavern, all clamoring to know where they could buy the strange devices.
By the time Sylas finally snapped the phone shut and stood to leave, a dozen nobles were demanding directions.
"Crystal Communications!" Caelum barked irritably. "By the east market square!"
And then he shoved through the crowd, muttering curses under his breath. Sylas followed, smug despite his irritation.
Less than an hour later, the once-empty shop was packed wall-to-wall with eager humans. Nobles, merchants, adventurers—all shoving coins at Enia, who smiled radiantly as she rang up sale after sale.
"See?" she told Luceris, sliding gold into a strongbox. "Rich bait works every time."
Luceris smirked as he watched Sylas and Caelum stumble back into the shop, hair mussed, clothes wrinkled from the mob.
"Well done, my little advertisements," he said sweetly. "You've served the cause."
Sylas glared at him like he wanted murder.
Caelum groaned, collapsing into a chair. "…Never again."
Luceris raised his juice in a toast. "To Crystal Communications—the empire's newest addiction."
The shop bells jingled again as more customers rushed in, and Enia's grin widened.
"Welcome, welcome," she purred. "Step right in. Try not to trample each other. There's enough magic for everyone."
The age of smartphones had begun.