🏰 The Royal Chambers – Silence Before the Storm
The Demon King sat alone.
Still recovering.
But his power no longer stormed the air — it simmered now, like coals under water.
He had spoken with his siblings.
He had listened to truth.
But he had not yet faced the two people whose choices defined everything.
The door creaked open.
And they entered.
👑 The Fallen King and Queen
They were not as he remembered.
The once-mighty King now leaned on a cane, skin pale, eyes sunken from years of silence.
The Queen's hands trembled. Her robes were thin. Her crown long since taken.
Both of them… barely alive.
But it wasn't time or age that broke them.
It was guilt.
And the torment Ashura had unleashed on them after he vanished.
Their eyes found his.
And they fell to their knees.
🩸 "We Were Wrong."
They didn't beg.
They didn't justify.
They simply said the words he never thought he'd hear.
"We were wrong."
"Not just about the mark."
"Not just about the prophecy."
"But about you."
"As a child. As our son."
The King could barely keep his head up.
"You were angry. You had every right to be."
"We left you in the dark…"
"And then chained you to it."
Tears spilled from the Queen's eyes.
"We called you a Demon before you ever had the chance to be human."
"We failed you."
"And then you returned… and gave us what we gave you."
😔 He Couldn't Look at Them
The Demon King stared at his hands.
Hands that had destroyed kingdoms.
Hands that had once locked his own parents away.
He remembered the pain.
The betrayal.
The fifteen years they spent beneath his castle.
But now…
He saw something else.
His mother's trembling hands.
His father's broken back.
They look like… her.
They look like him.
Like my family.
🕯 Not Forgiveness — But Understanding
He didn't cry.
But he didn't turn away.
"We were all wrong," he said at last.
"Me. You. The kingdom."
"You were scared."
"And so was I."
"And in our fear… we destroyed everything."
The Queen reached forward, still on her knees.
"We don't ask for your forgiveness."
"Just your truth."
"Who you are… now."
🌓 He Stood
He walked toward them slowly.
Not as a king.
Not as a demon.
But as a man.
He helped them both to their feet.
Their eyes widened — but he didn't say anything.
Only three words:
"I found peace."
Then he stepped past them.
Out into the corridor.
Because peace… still needed protecting.
And he didn't know how much time he had left to return to it.