Damon seethed with an overwhelming mixture of fury and disgust. Fury simmered within him at those sons-of-bitches for cowardly outright killing him, while disgust gnawed at his core for his own helplessness in failing to defend himself.
'I'll kill them!' he thought fiercely, rage toward life surging through his heart like a burning flame.
Yet, amidst this anger, an even deeper emotion took hold—regret. Regret for not being able to finishAll's Hell, for not seeing it through to its end.
Suddenly, he was overwhelmed once more with self-disgust, a disgust that his existence was tied solely to a book, his only reason for living.
"Wait... what?" Damon finally uttered aloud, momentarily setting aside his self-reproach. He was certain he had died; being shot in the head tends to do that to a person.
So, how could he still think? He opened his eyes—or at least he tried to. Whether open or closed, all Damon could perceive was an endless, all-encompassing void that stretched infinitely in every direction.
He attempted to look at his body, only to realize he had no physical form. Damon was bewildered, searching for understanding in this strange, featureless emptiness.
However, as he lingered in this stunned state, something extraordinary began to unfold within the seemingly barren void.
Pinpricks of brilliant white light started to appear around him, initially tiny and faint, but gradually growing in size and luminance. Soon, it felt as though thousands of stars had blossomed into existence beside him, each shining with radiant glows.
Damon gazed in awe at this celestial display, for it was the most beautiful sight he had ever witnessed in his life.
As the radiant stars settled into rhythmic pulse, a shape began to form where his chest should have been.
Delicately, wisps of starlight began to attach themselves to this emerging form, shaping it into a swirling vortex—spinning and pulling in matter from the surrounding stars.
Before long, every visible star had connected to this swirling vortex, which started to siphon their bodies, feeding its growth.
Finally, once all the stars had been consumed, Damon saw the vortex gradually morph into a corporeal form—a body—taking shape from the divine brilliance of the stars and their light.
His body suddenly blazed with a radiant, pure white light, illuminating the void until Damon was forced to close his eyes.
Despite his confusion, Damon immediately understood his situation. He had read enough webnovels to recognize the signs of reincarnation, and a surge of joy washed over him.
He would never shy away from another chance at life, especially now that he had discovered his fear of death firsthand.
A few seconds later, the darkness returned. However, the main difference this time was that he had a body once more!
Damon's eyes snapped open, and he found himself sprawled naked on a bed within a sparsely decorated room. The bed dominated the space, flanked by a modest cabinet, a small table, and a mirror.
Nearby, an opening led to a compact bathroom, while another door on the wall seemed to be the exit.
As he sat up, Damon glanced at his pale hands, a wild sense of exhilaration bubbling inside him—he was alive! And remarkably, even after rebirth, he was still human!
He chuckled, breaking into laughter. "Hahahaha!" he threw his head back, feeling a surge of joy.
He slid off the bed and approached the mirror, eager to scrutinize his new reflection.
Questions raced through his mind: Was he destined to be a hero, a villain, or a mere side character? And what world had he awakened in?
"Imagine I'm in All's Hell," he mused with a grin. "I'd die from happiness!"
He stared into the mirror, heart pounding. The face staring back was striking—tall, at 6 feet 3 inches, with smooth, pale skin, pure white hair, and eyes that gleamed a vivid, captivating purple.
Most intriguing of all, a fleeting sense of familiarity washed over him—he felt as if he recognized the man's face.
If his intuition was right, he had reincarnated as Orion de Valois—the heir to the Valois family, the celebrated Star Sovereign, and the fated Final Villain of All's Hell!
"Woohoo!" Damon shouted, raising his fist triumphantly to the sky.
Out of all the people Damon could have reincarnated as, he ended up being him! His favorite character, even more than the protagonist; the strongest character, again, more than the protagonist; the heir to a legendary family; and the Final Villain!
Damon approached the sleek desk, where a modern phone lay, scanning his face to unlock it. Sitting down in the chair, he glanced at the flood of notifications, voicemails, and missed calls—all from the same number.
They read:
"Orion, are you okay? I'm really worried about you. Please respond."
"Orion, you'd better respond before I lose my patience!"
"Orion, if you don't call back soon, I'm coming to find you myself!"
But it was the final voicemail that sent a chill down his spine. In a deathly quiet, threatening tone, the woman said, "I'm coming to get you, Orion. I'm going to make you feel pain so intense you'll cry like a baby. Be there in ten."
The voicemail arrived just ten minutes ago, and a few seconds later, everything changed. Suddenly, the entire building shuddered violently, lights flickering erratically. The tremors intensified until, without warning, they abruptly ceased.
Damon's eyes widened in shock as something astonishing occurred. The wall with the exit door disappeared into thin air—not cracked or shattered, but completely vanished.
The entire eastern wing of the hotel had been obliterated, revealing the world beyond. Damon's jaw dropped so low that it almost touched the ground.
'Damn,' he thought. 'That's real power.'
Suddenly, a voice, soothing yet terrifying, drifted through the air. "Did you think you could run from me, Orion?"
Damon's heart pounded. He didn't expect to meet her so soon, but it made sense—he knew exactly who floated there in the sky.
Outside where the hotel once stood, a breathtaking woman hovered. Her flowing black and gold robes shimmered, her green hair cascading around her. A luminous green glow surrounded her, and green wings stretched from her back— causing her to resemble an angelic figure.
She was Lyrae de Valois, the Verdant Death, matriarch of the Valois family, and mother of Orion de Valois!