The curse

Liam's eyes narrowed.

He hadn't expected that answer.

Not because it was strange—but because it was too close to what he had already been told.

'The true goal of the Crimson Order is to bring the god of darkness into this world… to open this world for the true demon king to claim.'

Liam stayed still, gaze drilling into Jaegel's trembling form.

The leaves around them rustled gently, charred fragments occasionally drifting down from the blackened trees.

Smoke curled faintly in the air, the scent of ash and scorched wood clinging to everything. But he paid none of it any mind.

Because those words—those exact words—rattled something loose in his memory.

He remembered it now.

A moment back when everything had first started.

When the system had just latched onto his soul like a parasite, and he was still adapting to the system.

Back then… Lilith had spoken to him.