Night settled heavily over the Forest of Spirits.
The enormous tree kingdom glowed softly beneath moonlight, spirit lanterns drifting through the branches like floating stars. From the outside, everything looked peaceful.
But peace was fragile.
And everyone inside the castle knew it.
After the king publicly announced that Hera would soon inherit the crown, tension spread through the kingdom like wildfire. Servants whispered nervously. Guards tightened patrols. Even the spirits drifting through the halls seemed restless.
The trap had been set.
Now all we could do was wait for someone to spring it.
The original plan had changed slightly after learning more about the royal family. Claus, the king's youngest son and the walking embodiment of disappointment, had a sister named Hetra. Unlike him, she had no interest in power and chose to remain beside Hera under Satre's protection.
Which left me guarding the king alongside Yura and Shina.
Honestly?
I preferred it that way.
The room remained quiet except for the crackling fireplace and the distant rustling of branches outside. I sat near the door with my arms folded, staring at the floor while my thoughts spiraled.
Killing monsters was easy.
Demons?
Simple.
Bandits?
Even easier.
But this…
This was different.
These weren't invaders from another world.
This was family betraying family.
A son plotting to murder his father.
And somehow that disgusted me more than demons ever had.
The sound of metal turning inside the lock snapped me from my thoughts instantly.
Click.
My eyes narrowed.
Only members of the royal family possessed keys to these chambers.
Which meant exactly what I feared.
Internal betrayal.
The door creaked open slowly.
Two figures entered.
The first was Claus.
The second…
Tall.
Lean.
Covered in black armor etched with crimson veins pulsing faintly like living flesh.
Dark magic radiated from him so heavily it almost poisoned the air.
Assassin.
No.
Something worse.
Claus froze the moment he noticed me sitting there.
"…You."
I slowly rose from the chair.
"I really wish I trusted my instincts enough to kill you earlier."
Claus staggered backward slightly before shouting:
"Kill him!"
The armored man lunged instantly.
Fast.
Very fast.
But not fast enough.
I tilted my body sideways, letting his blade graze past my neck before grabbing his wrist and slamming his face directly into the wooden table beside me.
CRACK.
The entire thing shattered.
Claus screamed while scrambling backward like a terrified rat.
"I never thought someone born this privileged could become such pathetic trash," I spat coldly.
The assassin recovered quickly and swung again, but I caught the blade between my palms before driving my knee into his stomach hard enough to launch him backward into Claus.
Both crashed into the wall violently.
I moved instantly afterward, binding them with enchanted rope before they could recover.
By then the others burst into the room.
"What happened?!" Hera shouted.
I dragged Claus forward by his collar before throwing him onto the floor.
"This happened."
The king's expression darkened immediately.
"Hera," I said quietly, "ask him yourself."
She stepped forward slowly, trembling.
"…Brother," she whispered. "Was it really you?"
Claus sneered despite the blood running from his mouth.
"Of course it was."
The room fell silent.
"If Father dies, the throne becomes vulnerable. And once I take power, this weak kingdom finally becomes mine."
The king's face hardened.
"You summoned the demons into the capital…"
Claus grinned wider.
"And I'd do it again."
Yura clenched her fists in anger.
"You sold out your own people?"
"They're tools," Claus hissed. "Nothing more."
Disgusting.
Absolutely disgusting.
But then—
something changed.
Dark mana suddenly exploded from Claus's body violently.
His eyes turned pitch black.
The room temperature plummeted instantly.
"…No," I muttered.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Claus began laughing.
But it wasn't his voice anymore.
"You are too late."
My Dragon Eyes flared instinctively.
And that's when I saw it.
Thousands.
No—
tens of thousands of dark signatures flooding toward the castle from beneath the forest.
My blood ran cold.
"We need to move. NOW!"
The explosion hit before anyone could react.
BOOOOOOM.
The entire castle shook violently as roots splintered apart beneath us. Screams erupted throughout the kingdom while black smoke flooded into the halls.
Demonic mana.
Everywhere.
"Get the king and princesses out!" I shouted immediately.
"But Shiro—!" Yura protested.
"GO!"
Something in my voice made them finally listen.
Good.
Because the thing stepping through the collapsing wall wasn't normal.
It was massive.
Towering nearly fifteen feet tall with crimson skin stretched over monstrous muscle. Four horns curved backward from its skull while black flames leaked from its mouth with every breath.
A Demon General.
The pressure alone made the air feel heavier.
"I," it growled proudly, "am General Varkros of the Four Great Demon Lords."
Wonderful.
Of course they had ranks.
"Tonight," the demon continued, "the Spirit Tree falls."
Lower demons poured into the castle behind him like a living tide.
I stepped forward alone.
"…You're not touching this kingdom."
Varkros laughed.
Tiny mistake.
Huge mistake.
Fire exploded around me instantly.
I slammed both palms downward, sending massive pillars of flame tearing through the incoming horde. Screams echoed while lower demons burned to ash almost instantly.
But Varkros walked through the fire unharmed.
Then punched.
The shockwave alone shattered half the hallway.
I barely dodged using wind magic to launch myself sideways before summoning Edith and Zenith into my hands.
Twin blades.
My favorite language.
I fused them instantly into a spear and hurled it directly toward his skull.
Varkros tilted his head slightly.
The spear missed.
Then split.
Two demonoids burst from the shadows behind him, rushing me simultaneously.
Fast.
Annoyingly fast.
I caught one by the throat before slamming him into the other hard enough to crater the wall beside us.
Still not enough.
They stood again immediately.
Regeneration.
Wonderful.
"I can't keep dragging this out," I muttered.
The hallway behind me exploded apart as Yura, Shina, Satre, and Hera returned despite my orders.
Idiots.
Brave idiots.
"Thought you could handle all the fun alone?" Yura shouted while firing lightning through two demons instantly.
Honestly?
That helped more emotionally than I expected.
But then—
everything changed.
A dark arrow pierced through the battlefield.
Straight into Yura's stomach.
Time stopped.
Her body hit the floor hard.
Blood spread beneath her slowly.
Something inside me snapped instantly.
The world became quiet.
Too quiet.
My heartbeat thundered loudly inside my skull.
And then—
darkness answered me.
Mana exploded violently from my body.
Purple.
Black.
Wild.
Unstable.
Horns erupted from my head while black dragon wings burst outward behind me violently enough to blow demons backward.
My hair darkened completely.
And my Dragon Eyes fully ignited.
The demons froze.
Not from power.
From instinct.
Predators recognizing something worse than themselves.
"Which one of you," I asked softly, my distorted voice echoing unnaturally, "hurt her?"
Even Varkros hesitated.
Big mistake.
I vanished.
Then reappeared directly behind him.
My hand tore straight through his arm before he could react.
Blood sprayed across the shattered hallway.
The Demon General screamed.
I grabbed the severed limb and drove it directly through his chest.
"You hurt," I whispered coldly, "someone important to me."
The remaining demons tried to flee.
None escaped.
I impaled one through the leg with my spear before crushing another's throat with one hand. Dark magic screamed around me violently while the castle shook beneath the pressure pouring from my body.
The last demonoid begged.
Actually begged.
Didn't matter.
I ripped him apart anyway.
Varkros coughed blood while trying desperately to regenerate.
I stepped over him slowly.
"No…" he rasped fearfully. "You're not human…"
"…I know."
I rammed his own severed arm through his throat.
Silence.
Then my eyes slowly turned toward Claus.
He crawled backward desperately.
"N-no… wait—"
I grabbed him by the throat and lifted him effortlessly.
"You sold your kingdom."
His body began aging instantly beneath my grip.
Wrinkles.
Decay.
Dust.
"You betrayed your family."
He screamed.
"You hurt innocent people."
His skin cracked apart.
"And worst of all…"
My grip tightened.
"You hurt someone precious to me."
Claus disintegrated completely into ash.
The castle fell silent afterward.
And then—
I roared.
The sound shook the entire Forest of Spirits.
Trees trembled.
The sky darkened.
Even the spirits fled.
But beneath all the rage…
all the power…
all the destruction…
I felt arms wrapping around me gently.
Yura.
Alive.
Healing magic glowed faintly around her wound while Shina and Satre supported her beside me.
"…Idiot," Yura whispered weakly. "You almost destroyed the whole castle…"
Relief hit me so hard my knees nearly gave out.
The darkness faded slowly afterward.
My wings vanished.
My horns disappeared.
And exhaustion swallowed me whole.
The last thing I felt before collapsing—
was their warmth holding me together before darkness finally claimed me.