Ellis once again found himself standing in the middle of darkness. Unlike the void from last time though, this place was slightly different. It felt smaller, more confined. It was unlike the crushing vastness of never-ending infinity.

Where am I?

Just as he wondered to himself, he suddenly felt the pressure lighten. The malevolent entity had loosened his grip.

Ellis suddenly recalled back to what had just happened. The fear came back, although it was now tainted with a bit of peculiarity. Who is this evil looking guy that can apparently rival God? Also, where the hell did he take me?

In the end, what exactly happened? If he could sigh, then Ellis would have sighed a thousand times.

“I just kidnapped you.” As if it could read his mind, the malevolent entity suddenly answered.

You…

“Hahaha, took you right out from that annoying guy’s palms. You should have seen the look on his face. I haven’t felt this good in a long time.” Ellis felt the space around him vibrate. It was laughing.

“…” Ellis did not respond for a long time. He had trouble adjusting to the sudden disparity between the evil being from a while ago, and the evil being currently in front of him. Eventually, he asked one simple question.

Why?

“Well, if I had to say a reason, then it’s because I want you to be my son.”

W-what!? Naturally, Ellis felt flabbergasted. Son, son… I’m not misunderstanding things, am I? By son, do you actually mean the sun? Like a star? Do you want to use my soul as a power source for a new star? Is that it? That has to be it.

“Please call me father from now on.” The evil being answered lightly.

For some reason, those words brought even greater shock to his heart than the epic battle from before.

After a while, Ellis calmed down enough to ask another question. Um, if I may, do you really want me to be your s-son?

“Nn.” The mass of darkness made a motion resembling a nod. “That’s right. This old man wants children. As for why, well…”

With some reluctance, he began to explain his motives.

The evil being/malevolent entity was, in fact, a former god. A long time ago, he was stripped of his divinity due to the machinations of the other gods. As a result, he was sentenced to a life of mortality. Still, even without being a god, he was still a somewhat powerful existence.

Out of anger and spite, he terrorized the mortal world. So much so, that they gave him the moniker of Great Demon King. He was the source of all the scary bedtime stories that parents tell to their children at night, the final boss that often popped up in books and novels, the guy whose name gets cursed at whenever someone stubs their toe. Well, maybe not the last one.

The evil of all evils, the root of catastrophe, the harbinger of suffering. In short, he was a pretty scary fellow.

“I was a bit out of control back then. Please just look at it as the mistakes of a reckless youth.” With a somewhat embarrassed voice, the evil entity spoke.

Ellis once again received a shock. He felt that it was somewhat improper to excuse several millenias worth of terror as little more than a youthful transgression on par with sneaking away from your parents’ house in the middle of the night. Still, he did not have the mind to lecture the evil being.

“Oh yeah, my name’s Alma by the way, so quit referring to me as ‘evil being’. Ah, I would prefer it if you were to call me Father though.”

Come to think of it, I did hear that white fellow scream something along those lines…

The evil being, Alma, continued his story.

As the years passed, his anger eventually faded. In its place, he began to cling to an obsession. He wanted to pass down his lineage to someone. In summary, the Great Demon King really did want children.

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So even gods worry about that sort of thing, huh? Having children and stuff.

“No, they don’t,” Alma responded. “it is because I stopped being a god and became a mortal that I developed such mortal desires. Unfortunately, my body is built differently. No matter how hard I tried, I was unable to mate with any of the mortals around me. I have taken on many children and claimed them as my own, but in the end, it is not the same as passing on my own blood.

“That’s why I took you.”

Me? Ellis asked out loud.

“Yes. If you agree, then you will descend into Lull as a person carrying my lineage.”

Lull? Is that the world I’ll be going to?

“That’s right. Planet Lull. Suffice to say, it is a land of swords and magic. It is a world teeming with monsters, a place where strong individuals are as common as weeds in a garden.”

No matter how you spin it, Lull sounded like a seriously dangerous place. My non-existent enthusiasm just went into the negatives. Still, Ellis could worry about all that later. Right now, there was something else bugging him.

And that, um… white god, he is…

“You catch on quick.” Alma lightly praised. “That white fellow is the resident God that governs over Lull. He was the guy that schemed against me. Coincidentally, he’s also the only surviving God in all of Lull.”

Surviving God… Ellis made a mental note of that fact.

“As for those little white lights you saw back there… I reckon those kids are on their way to becoming heroes.”

Heroes… so it really was like that, huh? That means I would have become a hero had you not taken me away.

“Exactly.” Alma laughed as if it did not concern him. After a few seconds, he suddenly grew quiet. His red eyes stared piercingly into his direction. “I have clung to life all these years just for this single opportunity. I will not force you, but I hope you will acquiesce to this old man’s request.”

“…”

Ellis hesitated for a moment. Eventually, he responded, but if I were to accept your request like this, then wouldn’t that put me on bad terms with that God from before? He might not seem like it to you, but that guy was also pretty scary. Of course, he did not mention the fact that he thought Alma was several times scarier.

Alma lightly chuckled. “Even if you don’t, they would still look at you as someone to persecute. You have already been stolen away by me. Naturally, no matter what you end up doing, whether it’s saving a village or taking a piss, they will assume that it’s all a part of some grand scheme of mine.

You… Ellis bitterly laughed to himself. Old man, you really screwed me over, didn’t you? Not only did this annoying Demon King prevent him from becoming a hero, but he also gave him a pretty scary collection of enemies.

Alma similarly laughed. “So, what will it be?”

Instead of answering, Ellis asked another question. I still don’t understand. How exactly will I become your child? We, we’re not exactly connected by blood.

“That is not for you to worry about. You will naturally understand once you descend into Lull.”

“…”

“Please accept.”

You’re not really giving me much of a choice here, are you? If he still had a head, then Ellis would have surely shaken his head. Then, becoming your child, what does that exactly entail? Do you want me to do something for you down there?

Alma shook his head. “No, I don’t want to impose on your will. I am tired of everything. Just do what you want to do. If you want to aspire to become a hero, then be a hero. If you want to rule the land as Demon King, then be the demon king. I do not care.”

You’re giving me an awful lot of freedom here. It’s almost suspicious.

“That’s right, I am giving you quite a lot of freedom. You could even consider it an apology for taking you. If you had been with that white fellow, then he would have surely worked you to the bone.”

If everything you're saying is true, then I really might have to thank you, but… is there really nothing that you want?

Given the sort of environment he lived in, Ellis was a naturally cautious fellow. He was a proponent of the philosophy that there was no such thing as a free lunch within this world.

He remained silent for a few seconds, before he spoke, “A parent may wish their child success, but they should never impose their own will on their lives. That’s the sort of father I want to be.”

….

Alma suddenly let out a slight chuckle. “If anything, I want my lineage to prosper. Make me a lot of grandkids. If possible, enough to fill up an entire country.”

Hearing his words, a weird feeling overwhelmed Ellis. Rather than a scary or malevolent Demon King, Alma more resembled an old friendly uncle from the neighborhood.

He considered the Demon King’s proposition for a long time. Eventually, Ellis nodded. Or at least, he tried to nod. Half a second later, he said, Alright, since you’ve already gone ahead and messed up my future fantasy life, I might as well just do it.

The red orbs that acted as Alma’s eyes suddenly curved into thin crescents. “Good. Thank you. From now on, you are my son.”

As he spoke, Ellis felt the surroundings shift. The darkness around him grew brighter. He was now distinctly aware of movement. Ellis was moving, no, he was falling.

At the same time, his consciousness grew fainter.

From somewhere far away, he heard the quiet whispers of an old man way past his prime. “Well then, I’ll be sending you on your way now. Don’t disappoint me down there, you hear?”

When he looked up, to his surprise, he saw Alma’s jet clad body breaking apart. White cracks ran up and down the surface of his skin. Pieces separated, while portions of his flesh disintegrated into dust.

One word echoed through his mind.

Death.

Still, Alma himself appeared unbothered. His red eyes narrowed into two thin crescents. As Ellis moved further away, Alma’s figure quickly shrank.

After a while, the last thing he heard was a lonely farewell from the world’s most feared Demon King.

“May you live a happy life.”