He stepped through the shattered doorway like he owned the place.
Wings tattered, armor cracked, horns spiraling like blades.
But it was his eyes that held me still—like coals pulled straight from the heart of a dying star.
This was no low-tier Hellspawn.
This thing had power. Age. Rage.It wasn't hunting me for sport.
It was on a mission.
And it had knelt before me.
"Forgive me," the demon growled again, rising slowly. "But I cannot allow you to live."
I didn't think.
Didn't hesitate.
The fire responded before I did.
Flames erupted around me, wild and blinding. The wooden floor beneath my feet splintered, blackening instantly. The walls screamed as heat warped the air.
The demon shielded his face with one wing. "You awaken fast. Just like your father."
My fists clenched. "You knew him?"
"I served him." His voice echoed like a cavern full of knives. "I bled for him. I would've died for him."
"Then why—"
"Because I saw what he became."His tone sharpened into something bitter. "He loved the mortal world too much. Loved your mother too much. He became weak."
I didn't even realize I was moving until I slammed into him.
The collision shook the room.
We crashed through the wall, landing hard on the street outside. People screamed and scattered as if the sky itself had cracked open.
I didn't care. The fire didn't care.
This wasn't about hiding anymore.
It was about survival.
We fought.
And I use that word lightly.
This was more like two elements colliding—storm and flame.
He was fast. Strong. Every strike shook the ground.
But I burned.
I moved on instinct, flame guiding every dodge, every counter.
A punch to the ribs. Fire across the jaw. My foot caught his wing—exploded it.
He roared and blasted me back with a surge of black energy, sending me skidding across asphalt.
Then—
A blur of silver.
Aria dropped from above, blades drawn, sigils glowing around her like a divine storm.
"You're not killing him," she said flatly.
The demon snarled. "And you would protect the child of your enemy?"
Aria didn't answer.
She attacked.
They clashed like lightning.
Steel met shadow. Runes met raw rage.
But the demon was no ordinary opponent.
He caught Aria mid-spin, flung her into a lamppost, and shattered the base. She hit the ground hard, coughing blood.
"Aria!" I shouted, rage burning through me like a second sun.
The demon turned to me, breathing heavy.
"You are a threat to all thrones. Your father would never have let you live this long."
He raised his hand—energy gathering, dark and endless.
"I will correct his mistake."
Then—
The fire stopped listening.
And it became me.
My vision blurred.
My body lifted.
And the world around me exploded in light.
Not just any fire.
This… was something else.
It howled. It shrieked. It sang.
It wasn't destruction.
It was judgment.
The ground melted beneath me. The air rippled with divine fury. Cars nearby liquefied. Trees burst into embers.
The demon froze.
"Impossible…"
He tried to move—but the fire gripped him. Dragged him forward.
"You carry it," he whispered. "The King's Flame… The Last Fire."
"I carry what he left me," I said, my voice not entirely my own.
"And what's that?"
"His will."
I reached forward—and the fire obeyed.
The demon screamed as he burned.
But not like the weak.
Like something ancient being undone.
When the fire faded, only ashes remained—blown away by the wind, like whispers.
I dropped to my knees.
The flames receded.
And the silence after was louder than the battle.
Aria staggered over, blood on her lips, eyes wide.
"That wasn't just Hellfire," she whispered. "That was… royal essence."
I looked at her, trembling. "What the hell does that even mean?"
"It means," she said, voice shaking, "you're not just Lucifer's heir."
She knelt before me, blade pointed to the ground.
"You are Hell's trueborn King."
I wanted to laugh. Cry. Scream.
Instead, I stood.
Because I knew—deep down—I couldn't go back now.
Not to school. Not to normal. Not to pretending.
We returned home—what was left of it.
Mom stood in the ruined doorway. Her eyes red. Her body trembling.
"You used it," she whispered.
"I didn't have a choice."
"I know," she said. "But now the world will come for you. Heaven. Hell. Everything in between."
"Let them."
She walked over and embraced me.
And in that moment, for the first time in days…
I let myself be a son.
Just for a second.
Later that night, Aria sat with me in silence.
No weapons. No armor. Just her—eyes thoughtful, hair falling like silk across her shoulder.
"Why did you protect me?" I asked.
She looked away. "I was ordered to watch. Not interfere. If you died before awakening… the Thrones would have been pleased."
"But you broke the rules."
"I did."
"…Why?"
She turned back slowly, something soft flickering in her usually sharp gaze.
"Because I saw you fight for people. For your mother. For me."
A pause.
"And because, maybe… I believe you'll be better than him."
I didn't say anything.
I just sat there.
Next to the angel who was supposed to kill me.
With fire in my blood.
And the shadow of a crown above my head.