As Nox rushed at the Fire Monarch to kill him, the Fire Monarch thought he had blocked the strike.

The Fire Monarch, completely unscathed by the blow, laughed at Nox. "You can't even scratch me, and you think you can defeat me?"

But as he said this, his arms and legs were suddenly severed from his body. Nox swiftly moved in, cutting off his head and bringing it back to Leo.

Nox, holding the Fire Monarch’s head, said, "I defeated him, boss."

Leo praised him, "Well done. Let's get going now."

Lilith, standing there in shock, couldn't believe that the Fire Monarch, a terror who had caused so much destruction, had fallen to a human warrior. She sighed, "Karma always catches up with you. This is the fate you created."

As Lilith was still processing what had happened, Leo shouted, "Are you coming or not?"

Lilith smiled at Leo. "I'm coming, master."

As they left in triumph, cries of pain and suffering still echoed throughout the town.

Meanwhile, Lucien Dravenhart, Duke of the Dravenhart family, lay dead, his head severed by an elite demon warrior. The Dravenhart warriors, having lost morale, were being massacred by the demons. News of this reached the demon general and Kael Dravenhart. The demon general smiled with satisfaction. "The peace ends here. From now on, Emberfall is under the control of the Netherreach Empire."

When Kael heard this, he lost all will to fight. "Just kill me already. I have no reason to live."

As Kael knelt, ready to die, a memory from his past flashed before him: a time when he lived a peaceful life with his parents and beautiful older sister in the outskirts of town. But that peace was shattered one awful night when bandits broke into their home. Kael’s parents were killed before his eyes, and the emotional toll broke him.

Kael had picked up a sword his father used for hunting and rushed at the bandits to protect his sister. But the bandits knocked him down with a single blow. Dazed and bleeding, he watched helplessly as the bandits advanced on his sister. Though she fought them off briefly, their anger overwhelmed her, and she was killed in front of him.

Enraged, Kael had grabbed the sword again, rushing the bandits with all his strength. He managed to wound one of them, but he was a child, and the bandits knocked him down once more. Just as they were about to kill him, a figure appeared at the door.

In the moonlight, Kael saw Lucien Dravenhart, the Duke himself. The bandits, now wary, drew their swords, but they were too slow. Lucien killed every one of them with a single strike. It was the first time Kael had seen a nobleman in person.

Lucien approached Kael and lifted him up. "From now on, you’ll live with me."

Kael, having no family left, nodded.

As they left, Kael glanced back at his family's graves and vowed, "I will become the strongest warrior."

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Now, remembering that vow, Kael rose to his feet and attacked the demon general. The sound of their swords clashing echoed loudly, as if it could be heard in both heaven and hell.

Meanwhile, Leo and his group entered the tunnel. Hearing the sword clashes, Leo remarked, "We need to leave quickly before the demons find us."

But just as he said that, a new system quest appeared:

System: "Kill every demon in the town and free the people from their suffering."

Leo sighed in disappointment but accepted the quest. As he turned to tell Lilith and Nox about the change in plans, a half-demon, half-dragon appeared.

System: "Dragons are considered a noble race and usually avoid empire conflicts. However, demons have attacked them, taking many female dragons as prisoners. Dragon blood is superior to demon blood, and a pure-blood demon-dragon hybrid can only be born from a demon king and a dragon queen."

The creature roared, and every demon that had been fighting humans stopped and rushed toward the half-dragon, half-demon.

Elsewhere in town, Verrath heard the roar. "Why is the demon king interfering in the battle for this small town?"

Verrath shouted to the demon general, "Finish him quickly! We need to go to where that roar came from."

The demon general, smiling, said, "Thank you for the fight, but I must go now."

He struck Kael, sending his head flying. With the Dravenhart family defeated, it seemed Emberfall would fall to the demons—until Verrath and the demon general rushed to the roar's source.

Leo ordered Nox and Lilith to handle the gathering demons.

Nox drew his sword, and with one swing, half of the demons disappeared.

Lilith pulled out her staff and summoned a blue, divine fire capable of burning both heaven and hell—a sign of her demon blood awakening.

System: "Demons gain skills by defeating other demons of equal or higher rank."

Leo, watching, thought, "I have a powerful ally."

As Leo engaged the demi-dragon, it crashed to the ground, but victory was far from certain.

With the remaining demons defeated, Lilith and Nox rushed to support Leo. They gathered their energy to strike the demi-dragon together, releasing an attack so powerful it could wipe out a town.

But before the blow landed, the demon general threw himself in front of the demi-dragon and absorbed the attack. His skin burned away, revealing his bones, but to everyone’s shock, he regenerated at a terrifying speed—even Verrath was astonished by the demon general's ability.

The demon general, having fully healed, said, "Look who it is—the Queen of Ice, Lilith."

Lilith scowled. "You haven’t changed, Healing Demon, Azen."

Azen grinned. "At least you still remember my name."

Leo, confused, asked, "Who is he?"

Lilith responded, "He’s my husband."

Everyone was shocked, even the demons, as this was a secret no one— not even the demon king—knew.

Verrath was surprised. "When did you marry her?"

Azen, looking at the moon, replied, "It was an unexpected night. We met, fell in love, and—"

"Stop! Don’t say any more!" Lilith interrupted, embarrassed.

Before they could continue, the demi-dragon growled, signaling the demons to attack.

Azen unsheathed his sword and, in one swift motion, sliced the demi-dragon in half.

He sighed. "Now I’ve made an enemy of the demon king. I guess I have to stick with you, my love."

Lilith, annoyed, responded, "Don’t call me that."

Leo, unfazed, asked Azen, "Do you want to join my army?"

Azen nodded. "Can I bring my demon warriors with me?"

Leo, pleased, said, "Bring as many as you have."

Verrath, worried about the consequences of returning to the Netherreach Empire, stepped forward. "Can I join you as well?"

Leo smiled. "Sure. Bring some demons—and dragons too, if you can."

Standing atop the Dravenhart mansion, Leo declared loudly, "My army has defeated the demons. From now on, Emberfall is under my rule, and this town will be renamed as the capital of an independent country."

The townspeople, emerging from their hiding places, were shocked by the news but accepted it, knowing they had no choice.

Leo then turned to Nox. "Rebuild the mansion."

Nox replied, "Yes, boss."

Leo sat down in a chair. "Lilith, go and bring back Malgrim and the others."

System: "Congratulations, host, for completing the quest."

Leo said, "Give me the rewards."