01 - The Demon Lord

Inside an old, abandoned, and crumbling small castle, amidst one of its many dark and lonely corridors dominated by the smell of blood and the noise of countless small insects, an interesting scene was unfolding.

Huff Damn it… Damn mercenaries…

There, dragging himself backward through the corridor, holding only a small sword in his hand, which he desperately and continuously swung toward the shadows, a peculiar man could be seen.

Both of his legs had been completely destroyed, to the point where parts of his shin bones pierced through his skin and pants, exposed to the outside.

In such a situation, completely alone and facing whoever was in front of him, amidst such a terrifying and gloomy scenario, one would imagine that fear would dominate the young man's mind, however, in reality, another emotion consumed him at that moment, rage.

Huff "Damn it… I will have my revenge… I will avenge myself on every one of those bastards… Their deaths will be as terrifying as mine…" the wounded young man muttered to himself.

Unfortunately for him, it truly seemed to be the end of his life. No matter how much he thought or wished, only a true miracle could save him now and give him his chance for revenge.

But what?

Suddenly, hitting his hand against an unexpected wall, the end of the corridor revealed itself to him, and now he couldn't even prolong his life by a few more minutes, as he was doing by crawling backward.

Damn… Is this really the end? On my first mission as a mercenary?

Clap… Clap… Clap…

Emerging from the shadows, clapping slowly and rhythmically, the mysterious figure pursuing the young man finally revealed itself before him.

"You know, I didn't expect your friends to leave you behind so quickly… But then again, that's the obvious cowardly nature of you humans. I was foolish to think anything different would happen tonight." Sigh

Did it speak?

Up until now, the figure had remained silent while pursuing the young man, leading him to see it as just another humanoid monster, devoid of intelligence, acting only on instincts to hunt its prey.

However, that wasn't even the most surprising thing the creature would reveal at that moment. The real shock was its strange, human-like, yet monstrous appearance.

"What the hell are you?" he murmured in astonishment.

A decrepit humanoid body with grayish skin, long black horns, enormous black hair, and striking eyes with purple pupils, dressed in tattered red and gold clothing that seemed to have once belonged to nobility, and so thin that its ribs pressed against its skin.

The figure acted and wore clothes one would typically see on a noble, but its appearance, or rather its ruined body, made it seem more like someone from the lowest peasantry of a kingdom.

"Me? Well, I suppose there's no harm in introducing myself… I am Azgorath Levka, also known by you humans as the thirty-seventh and final Demon Lord." He introduced himself politely and courteously, showing great pride, with even a subtle smile forming on his face.

The young man had no idea how to react to such a revelation, it seemed impossible to be real, but the creature stood before him, and its appearance, at least in part, matched the stories he'd heard in his childhood about the Demon Lords.

A Demon... Lord?

The Demon Lord, noticing the disbelief and confusion in the young man's eyes, began to approach him again, and realizing this, the young man snapped back to his senses and pointed his sword toward the creature once more.

"Don't… Don't even think about it!!! Come closer, and I'll kill you!!!"

The demon, however, ignored the young man's warning and drew even closer, a subtle and eerie smile on its face.

Schunk

The soft, wet sound of flesh being pierced echoed as, intentionally, the demon grabbed the young man's hand and pushed the sword deeper into its own chest.

The young man was utterly confused. What in the world was this Demon Lord doing? Did he want to die all along? Or did he have some plan behind this act?

The answer to these questions was soon revealed when, all at once, the demon pulled the sword out of its chest, creating some distance between them again.

"See? Not a single scratch. I think you should realize by now that I have no reason to lie to you."

Many other monsters and even some people could replicate such a feat depending on the circumstances, however, for some reason, what stood before him dispelled all the young man's doubts and disbelief.

After all, why would he lie to someone he was about to kill? Wait… Why hasn't he killed me yet?

Looking at the demon's face again, the young man immediately realized that it fully understood the questions swirling in his mind, confirming this, the Demon Lord began to speak.

"You know, at first, I was really just going to kill you and absorb your essence like I do with everyone else. But… there's something different about you, and…" The demon looked directly into the young man's eyes with a serious expression. "…this apparent lack of fear toward me, but rather complete hatred for those who abandoned you, has shown me just how peculiar you truly are… Tell me, how about a deal?"

The young man froze for a few moments, not speaking or moving an inch, immersed in his own thoughts as he tried to comprehend the sudden turn of events unfolding before him.

"The deal is simple… Become my heir and restore the glory of my race, or die here uselessly. Make your choice, human." He proposed, offering a handshake to the young man, as a growing smile spread across his face.

To stop being human and… walk the path of a Demon Lord? But…

In all the legends, tales, chronicles, and every kind of story the young man had heard about Demon Lords and demons in general, they were always portrayed as malevolent beings with evil natures and insane goals.

Knowing all this, it was easy to conclude that any human who even had the slightest contact with a demon would be seen as a traitor to their species, imagine, then, one who became the heir to a Demon Lord, how despised and hunted he would be by everyone around him…

…No! To hell with how they'll look at me or anything like that. I've never been treated well in any part of my life as a human, so why not walk the path of power and conquest as a demon? Better to live as a demon than die as a human…

The young man threw the sword in his hand aside and returned the handshake of the Demon Lord in front of him.

"It seems you've made your decision, know that you cannot go back, no matter how much you might wish it."

The young man simply nodded in agreement in response.

"Well, then, now tell me, my newest heir, who are you?"

Huff "I am Zephyr, a novice mercenary… Master Azgorath."

Master, huh? the Demon Lord thought.

"Now that the deal is made, we can begin the inheritance process… Prepare yourself, Zephyr."

Before he could say or do anything, without even giving the young man time to really prepare, Azgorath initiated the inheritance process, reciting indecipherable words that deeply penetrated Zephyr's mind.

The young man fought valiantly to simply keep his eyes open and his consciousness intact, but it became increasingly difficult and exhausting to focus on even these simple tasks.

But… What…

Suddenly, with his eyes almost closing, his last vision was of Azgorath's body, with what seemed like shadows around him being sucked in and swirling around him, his hair and clothes lifting as if a strong wind was blowing upward, and then, little by little, his own body began to disintegrate into small fragments of purple light, heading toward Zephyr's body.

"Wa… Wait—" he tried to call out, seeking to lessen the intensity of the chant to at least stay conscious, but before he could finish his plea, the young man succumbed, passing out on the ground.

…

Cough Cough

As if startled awake, the young man suddenly awoke, finding himself still lying on the ground and slowly starting to rise.

What… happened?

It was hard to think, his head hurt so much that even after fully standing, he kept one hand on his head.

Wait! I'm standing?

Overcome with surprise, Zephyr quickly began to feel his legs, seeing through his torn pants that his legs seemed completely healed, however, upon seeing them, an even stranger fact was revealed at that moment.

…Gray?

With great confusion in his mind, the young man began walking down the corridor, searching for the spot where he remembered seeing a shattered mirror while trying to flee.

Then, finding the mirror, a surreal and surprising vision appeared before him.

Is this… me?

Gray skin, small black horns, and sharp eyes with purple pupils—only his long black hair remained from his previous appearance.

"So, you're finally awake…"

... Who?!!

Startled, Zephyr looked around in all directions, a familiar voice suddenly echoed from none other than his own mind.

"It's me, Azgorath! After you absorbed my powers, only a small fragment of my consciousness remained to connect with you… But anyway, congratulations on your new body, boy! Or should I call you the thirty-eighth Demon Lord, Zephyr Levka?"