High above the citadel, the throne room was silent save for the low hum of braziers burning with crimson fire. The Demon King sat upon his obsidian throne, one clawed hand resting lightly on the armrest, his eyes half-closed.
Then—he felt it.
The earth itself trembled faintly under his senses, not from natural quakes but from the reverberations of a clash. A storm of mana had erupted far beyond the castle walls—fierce, unstable, raw. His grandson's aura.
For a moment, the corners of his mouth curled. So… they've come again. And he did not hesitate.
But almost as quickly as it surged, the pressure faltered. The storm collapsed into silence. His burning eyes narrowed slightly, the flames in the braziers flickering with his thought.
"…Selene," he rumbled quietly to himself, his voice echoing in the cavernous chamber. "You reached him."
The words were neither disappointment nor relief—merely fact, stated with the weight of certainty. He leaned back into his throne, the shadows of the hall stretching long around him.
He grows stronger with each encounter. Too quickly. The humans are desperate, reckless. They will send more. But she tempers him, reins him back when the blood calls too loudly…
The King's crimson gaze sharpened, a faint glow flaring behind his calm.
"Good. Let her temper him. For now."
The silence of the chamber thickened once more, yet the Demon King's aura still burned faintly, like a predator waiting in the dark.
Because while others feared the storm outside, he knew better.
The true storm was not in the forest.
It was in his bloodline—growing sharper, louder, with every passing day.
✦ The Unknown Arrives
The battlefield had gone still.
The knights' armor clinked as they adjusted their stances. The adventurers shifted nervously, trading uncertain glances. Even the twisted forest seemed to pause—branches no longer creaked, the wind no longer moved.
Then it came.
A presence. Heavy. Crushing. Like the world itself leaned forward to bow in recognition.
Asura's golden eyes snapped upward, his childish grin vanishing. The air thickened, pressing down against his lungs. For the first time since the fight began, his playful demeanor dulled into sharp focus.
"…Someone's here."
The knights stiffened, hands tightening on sword hilts and spear shafts. Sir Serphiel's eyes narrowed, his instincts prickling with the same certainty.
And then—he appeared.
No sound announced him. No ripple of mana flared. He simply was. One heartbeat the clearing was empty, the next a tall figure stood between the broken trees. Cloaked in black that drank the light, his steps were slow, deliberate. His face was shadowed, features too indistinct to place, and yet every inch of him radiated something far more terrifying than mere power.
The knights faltered. Even hardened veterans staggered a half step back.
"Wh-what…?" one muttered, voice cracking.
But Asura, heart pounding in his chest, had already pulled up his system. His eyes flickered with the golden sheen of appraisal, words crawling across his vision as if hesitant to reveal themselves.
Target Analyzed: ???
Name: Unknown (???)
Race: Human (???)
Class: (???)
Age: Unknown
Level: ??? (Unmeasurable)
HP: 1,200,000
MP: 3,500,000
STR: 220,000
VIT: 1,090,000
AGI: 1,120,000
INT: 220,000
LUK: — (Unknown)
⚠ Warning: Target exceeds current analysis level capacity.
Asura's breath caught in his throat. His hand tightened around the hilt of Yamikami no Tsurugi as his pulse thundered. Unmeasurable…? Even my system can't get a read on him…
The knights were shaken too. Sir Serphiel's gauntleted hands twitched, his voice low, almost strangled. "…It can't be. Not him. Not here."
Liora turned to him sharply, confusion etching her face. "Commander… you know who this is?"
Serphiel didn't answer. He couldn't. His eyes burned on the figure, disbelief warring with dread.
The adventurers had gone silent. Randel tightened his grip on his spear, planting his boots firmly against the ground. "This aura… it's worse than the Demon King's rumors."
Lyra gritted her teeth, voice tight. "Who is he?"
But Liora shook her head, swallowing hard. Her instincts screamed even louder than her commander's silence. "Doesn't matter. Look at him. Whatever he is, he's no ordinary man. He's… terrifying."
Asura exhaled slowly. For the first time in a long time, he wasn't smirking. He wasn't mocking. He felt the dangerous itch of instinct, the same one that screamed at him before the Behemoth's roar years ago. His aura flared faintly in response, but the unknown figure's presence crushed it without effort.
And then—Selene was at his side.
Her violet eyes never left the stranger, her posture tense, closer to combat readiness than Asura had ever seen her. Her voice, soft but edged with steel, carried straight into his ears.
"Young master…" she whispered. "…this one's different."
Asura's geta shifted against the dirt. His small frame straightened, golden eyes blazing brighter as the tension snapped taut.
"…Yeah," he murmured back. "I can tell."
The forest groaned around them. The adventurers' banter was gone, the knights' discipline frayed. All that remained was the oppressive silence of predators circling in the dark.
The man—no, the thing—in the cloak finally lifted his head. His eyes glowed faintly from beneath the shadows, unreadable but sharp enough to pierce every soul present.
The game had changed. And for the first time, even Asura wondered if he'd stumbled into something far bigger than himself.
✦ A Mocking Presence
The clearing seemed to shrink as the unknown figure finally spoke. His voice wasn't loud, nor sharp—it was quiet, smooth, almost bored. But the way it slid through the air made every hair on the back of their necks rise.
"…So this is the prince of demons?"
He tilted his head slightly, the faint glow of his eyes cutting across Asura like a scalpel. There was no heat in them, no malice—only an unshakable calm, as if he were staring at a puzzle piece that didn't quite fit.
"I'll admit…" His tone lingered on the edge of a yawn. "…I expected more."
The knights stiffened, some of them instinctively lowering their blades in respect they didn't even understand. Serphiel's grip tightened on his sword, jaw clenched, though he said nothing. Even he dared not interrupt.
The adventurers shifted uneasily, caught between awe and confusion. Kael's mouth opened, but for once no joke came out. Lyra's knuckles whitened on her axe. Eldrin, the older mage, lowered his eyes, the faintest bead of sweat rolling down his temple.
The figure continued, voice steady, casual—like he was commenting on the weather.
"Rumors said you were a genius. That you killed ten knights before most children learn to hold a blade." His gaze swept lazily toward the bloody earth where the earlier battle had scarred the land. "But all I see… is a child playing at being a monster."
Asura's golden eyes narrowed, a sharp grin tugging at his lips despite the weight pressing down on him. His geta tapped lightly against the dirt, a child's tick turned into a metronome of defiance.
"…Funny," Asura said softly. "You sound just like the adventurers did before I broke them."
Selene stepped closer, her presence taut with warning. "Young master—"
The unknown figure cut across her with a chuckle, deep and unhurried. It wasn't cruel, but it was dismissive—like a man humoring a child's tantrum.
"Bold. I like that." His eyes gleamed faintly. "But boldness is not power. And power without wisdom…" He trailed off, almost lazily, as though the end of the sentence wasn't worth wasting breath on.
The silence that followed was suffocating. The knights dared not move. The adventurers didn't breathe.
Asura's grin remained, but his knuckles whitened against Yamikami's hilt. For once, his jokes were silent. Deep down, he knew—this wasn't the same game he had been playing.
This was something else.
Something bigger.
✦ A Direct Question
The silence stretched until Asura finally broke it. His golden eyes fixed on the unknown figure, unblinking, steady. There was no smirk, no quip, no trace of the boy who mocked knights with geta sandals. His voice, though young, carried the weight of steel.
"…Who are you?" His geta tapped once against the stone, the sound sharp as a blade being sheathed. "And why are you here?"
The unknown figure tilted his head, amused by the directness. He studied Asura as one might study an anomaly—something that should not exist, yet stood stubbornly before him. With a sigh, slow and deliberate, he finally answered.
"Why am I here? That's simple." His lips curved faintly, though the smile held no warmth. "I'm here to kill you."
The words hit the clearing like thunder.
Kael's sword belt slipped in his grasp. Lyra's breath caught, her axe clenched so hard the leather groaned. Even Sir Serphiel's calm mask shifted, a flicker of unease breaking through. Liora started to speak, then thought better, her throat tightening.
And then—
DING!
DING!
DING!
Asura's system erupted in violent scarlet across his vision:
[Warning: Detected Entity exceeds maximum system analysis capacity.]
[Warning: Survival probability: 0.0001%.]
[Directive: Flee.]
The pings battered his mind like drumbeats of doom. But Asura's expression didn't falter. His chest tightened, his pulse quickened—but outwardly, he was still. He stood as though carved from obsidian, his gaze never wavering from the figure before him.
"…So that's it," he muttered, voice calm, quiet, almost detached. "The system itself is panicking." His sandal lowered to the earth. "But I'm not."
The words sent a ripple through the adventurers. For once, the boy who treated battle like a game sounded… older. Sharper.
Selene moved before he could say more, her aura exploding outward in a surge of violet flame. Her arm shot out protectively, shielding Asura as her presence pressed against the intruder's like a wall against a tidal wave.
"Young master," she said, her tone ironclad. "Stay behind me. This one… is different."
The unknown figure chuckled lazily, as if entertained by her defiance. He ignored the knights, ignored the adventurers, ignored even the flare of her power. His eyes never left Asura.
"Calm," he murmured, almost approvingly. "No panic. No trembling. Good… very good." His smile sharpened. "But calm won't save you."
The air warped around him, reality bending like glass under too much heat. The ground itself seemed to hum in protest.
And Asura, golden eyes steady, stood unflinching beneath it all. For once, he did not play the clown, did not quip or mock. His silence was the silence of a blade yet unsheathed.
And that, more than anything, unsettled everyone watching.
✦ The Refusal to Run
The ground trembled faintly beneath their feet. Selene's violet aura crackled like wildfire as she planted herself between Asura and the unknown figure, her voice sharp enough to cut through the oppressive silence.
"Young master," she ordered, never taking her eyes off the intruder. "Escape. Now."
Asura's geta tapped once against the black stone, his golden eyes narrowing. "No."
Her head snapped toward him, startled. "What—?"
"I said no," Asura repeated, his tone calm but firm, sharper than his usual playful defiance. "I ran once. From the Behemoth. I hated myself for it. I won't do it again. And I'm not leaving you to fight this monster alone."
The faintest flicker crossed Selene's face—shock, worry, pride all mingled. But there was no time for words. The unknown figure shifted, his mantle swaying as if stirred by an unseen breeze.
"Well said," he drawled, his tone bored, almost mocking. "Stand. Fight. Struggle. It makes no difference."
Asura slid his geta back onto his feet, hands tightening around Yamikami no Tsurugi's hilt—but he didn't draw it. Not yet. He glanced once at Selene, then nodded. "Together."
"Together," she echoed, her dagger gleaming with violet flame.
And then they moved.
✦ A Storm Against Stillness
Selene struck first, her speed a violet blur. Her dagger slashed with enough force to split a mountain stone, violet mana exploding in arcs that carved the earth beneath her. Asura followed immediately, his geta flashing upward in a vicious kick that shattered the air like thunder.
The unknown figure didn't parry. Didn't counter.
He simply leaned back.
Selene's blade missed his throat by a breath. Asura's strike cut nothing but air.
The two demons pressed harder. Selene unleashed a storm of slashes, her movements honed from years of shadow-guard training. Each cut left searing trails of violet light across the battlefield. At the same time, Asura wove between her strikes, Martial Demon Arts flowing like liquid fire. His limbs blurred into strikes, spins, and sweeps, his sandals cracking the stone floor wherever they landed.
The unknown figure moved like smoke. Lazily, almost carelessly, he stepped aside from each blow. Sometimes a tilt of his head, sometimes a half-turn of his shoulders, sometimes nothing more than raising a single finger to redirect the edge of Selene's dagger away.
"As expected," he murmured, yawning mid-motion as he slipped past a synchronized strike. "Raw power, sharp instincts… but you're still children flailing at shadows."
Selene snarled, spinning low to sweep his legs, only for him to step lightly over it as though dancing. Asura lunged forward, Conqueror's Will flaring, his geta smashing into the ground with enough force to erupt stone into the air—
But the unknown figure was already three paces to the left, hands still clasped behind his back.
"You're fast," Asura admitted through clenched teeth, beads of sweat flicking off his brow. "But let's see you dodge this—"
He slammed his hands together, activating Martial Demon Arts. Crimson Flash Barrage.
Golden trails exploded across the battlefield as Asura blurred into a dozen strikes, fists, kicks, and sweeps converging on the target from every angle. Selene joined in, her dagger splitting into three afterimages of violet flame, weaving seamlessly into his rhythm.
For a heartbeat, the clearing was nothing but light, speed, and force.
When it cleared—
The unknown figure stood untouched. Not a thread of his mantle disturbed.
He sighed, brushing invisible dust from his shoulder. "Predictable. Fast, but predictable."
✦ The Push
Selene's breath hitched, frustration bleeding through her calm exterior. "Young master—focus! Don't let him unnerve you!"
"I'm not," Asura replied flatly. His voice was calm, deadly serious. The cheerfulness was gone. His golden eyes glowed, markings flickering faintly across his skin as he forced more mana into his body. "If he won't get hit, then I'll make him."
The air cracked. Armament Willforce seeped across his arm, the obsidian slime-like liquid crawling up from his wrist before hardening into black, unbreakable armor.
Selene's eyes widened slightly. "Young master—"
Asura shot forward. This time, his strikes carried more than speed. Each blow bent the air, crushing it inward as the hardened Willforce turned his limbs into weapons of war.
BOOM!
His fist collided with the ground where the figure had stood, shattering stone outward like an earthquake.
Selene capitalized, her violet aura surging. She leapt high, twisting mid-air, dagger gleaming like a shard of lightning. She came down in a devastating arc—
The unknown figure raised one hand. Just one.
And stopped her blade between two fingers.
Selene's eyes widened, horror flashing across her face as her aura raged uselessly against his grip.
"Pathetic," the figure muttered. With a flick, he sent her flying backward, her body slamming into the ground hard enough to crater it.
"Selene!" Asura roared, fury flaring. He charged, Awakening stirring violently inside him, markings spreading further across his chest and face. His aura lashed out like a storm, shaking the twisted trees.
This time, his strike was faster. Stronger.
The unknown figure smiled faintly. "Better."
He shifted a single step aside, and Asura's obsidian-coated fist cut nothing but air.
But before the boy could recover, a cold hand closed around his throat.
Asura's golden eyes widened as he was lifted effortlessly off the ground. His system screamed warnings across his vision again, crimson text blinding him:
Warning: Vessel at risk of mana collapse.
Warning: Target vastly exceeds host's capacity.
The figure's grip tightened, though not enough to crush. His calm eyes bore into Asura's, unreadable. "Yes," he murmured. "You are interesting. But not nearly enough."
Selene staggered to her feet, blood at the corner of her lips, aura roaring wildly. "Let him go!"
She lunged again, violet flame trailing like a comet—
And the figure released Asura just before her blade struck, stepping lazily back so the two nearly collided.
Asura landed on his feet, coughing, but his eyes still burned, unbroken. He glanced at Selene, then back at the figure. "We're not done."
The figure chuckled low, shaking his head. "That's the spirit. Keep struggling."
✦ The Shattering Blow
The clash had become a storm of light and shadows. Selene's violet aura roared like wildfire, lashing against the crushing stillness of the unknown figure. Her blade blurred, her body darting faster than the eye could follow, her strikes aimed not at victory anymore—but at protection. Every movement screamed one vow: shield him, no matter the cost.
But the unknown figure barely moved. His steps were languid, almost bored, hands never leaving the folds of his mantle. And then—
he finally struck back.
It wasn't a swing. It wasn't even a spell.
It was just a flick of his wrist. A single ripple of mana, precise as a blade.
The world seemed to split.
Selene's eyes widened as the force hit her square across the chest. Her aura shattered like glass under the impact. The sound was sickening—a crack that tore through the clearing. Her body flew backward, crashing into the black stone with a deafening BOOM. Dust and shards of rock erupted around her, blotting her from sight.
"Selene!!"
Asura's scream ripped from his throat raw, high and broken. He bolted forward before the dust even cleared, geta sandals skidding against the ground as he threw himself toward the crumpled figure.
The smoke parted, and his heart nearly stopped.
Selene lay sprawled across the stone, her dagger still clutched weakly in her hand. Her armor was caved in, twisted inward, blood soaking rapidly through the fabric beneath. A jagged wound tore across her abdomen, deep and cruel. Her chest rose and fell shallowly, each breath a struggle. Her violet eyes fluttered, dim, barely able to focus.
Asura's knees hit the ground so hard they bruised, but he didn't feel it. His small hands trembled as he pressed them against the wound, uselessly, desperately. Blood seeped hot between his fingers, slick and endless.
"N-no, no, no, no, no—!" His voice cracked, tears blurring his vision until the world became a haze of red and black. His golden eyes, always so sharp, were wide and frantic. "Don't leave me. Please. Please don't leave me!"
Selene's lips parted faintly. A breath escaped, weak as a dying ember. "…Young… master…"
"Stop talking!" Asura snapped, but the words came out broken, half-choked. His hands pressed harder, trembling violently. "You'll be fine—you have to be fine! You're always fine! You scold me, you nag me, you drag me away when I go too far—you can't stop now, Selene! You can't—"
His voice broke completely. He bent forward, forehead pressing against her bloodied shoulder as tears streamed down his face. His whole body shook with helplessness, with rage, with fear that this time, there was no saving her.
The unknown figure stood only a few paces away, silent, watching. His presence loomed heavy over the clearing, uncaring, almost curious—as if he were waiting to see whether the boy would shatter completely or rise.
Asura didn't even glance at him.
All he saw was Selene. All he felt was the hot blood seeping past his fingers, no matter how tightly he pressed. His small frame hunched over hers like a broken shield, his voice barely a whisper now.
"…Don't leave me. Please. Please don't leave me…"
The clearing was silent but for the sound of Asura's sobs, the drip of blood against black stone, and the faint, fragile breath of the woman who had sworn to protect him.
And for the first time since he'd come to this world, the boy who laughed at monsters and mocked his enemies trembled like a child—powerless before the possibility of losing the one person who had always been by his side.