A flash of memory hits—me back, collapsing in the park, a wave of dizziness the moment was due when I looked into his eyes.

Now, those eyes don’t affect me the same way, but his gaze is cold and sharp, making my stomach twist.

"Azazel," I murmur softly, the name slipping from my lips before I even realize it. I can’t remember exactly where I know him from, but something about him stirs a faint, hazy memory, buried somewhere in my mind.

A smirk spreads across his face. "Ah, so you do remember. Good, then let’s keep this chat short."

My instincts scream that I shouldn’t be alone with him. But if his presence sparks something—some flicker of recognition—maybe I’ll finally remember why I fainted that day.

“Doctor! Maria! Joseph” I shout on instinct. No one answers. It’s just Azazel, standing there

“Someone?” I asked again

“Useless,” he mutters. “I’ve frozen time in this building.”

Frozen… time? My mind scrambles, piecing together fragments of that day. His face made me remember an important piece of information

“Oh! You’re the stalker!” I blurt out, the realization hitting me like a slap.

“Yes, I am the—” His eyes widen as if catching himself mid-mistake, and he freezes, meeting my gaze.

“No, listen—” he tries to explain, but I cut in before he can gather his thoughts.

“That would explain how you found me here. You’ve got stalker skills!” I say, crossing my arms trying to smooth my mood.

“No, I am not—well, technically, I am—but not that kind of stalker,” he says, gesturing wildly with his arms as if trying to deflect.

A smirk stretches across his face, amused by the whole ordeal. “Never mind that. Didn’t you hear me? I froze time. It’s just us. Shouldn’t you be more concerned about that?”

“Huh? Sure... What did you do to Maria and Joseph?” I asked, my voice steady.

“I told you—I froze time. No one can move except us, ” he repeats with a mocking grin.

“Shh, this will take longer than expected,” he says, his face slipping back into that cold stare again.

I cross my arms, glaring. “And you actually expect me to believe that you can stop time?” I said with a mocking face

He lifts his chin, proud. “Yeah, I can see why you’d doubt it, but I am, in fact, a demon lord.”

"You?"

"Yes"

I stare at him, then burst into laughter. "A demon lord? You? Right—must be all that bleach finally getting to your brain."

"What?"

"because your hair is gray"

His eyes narrow, and he takes a breath trying to maintain compose. and he coughs “Yes, I am a demon lord, with my skills It was easy to find you” then he growls. “so you should watch your mouth.”

His growl sound so realistic, he is really good at acting but at the same time, its so funny.

Now that I remember him as the stalker, I feel braver and stand a little taller. “So, you’re a demon lord? Are you sure you’re not just an otaku?”

“Otaku?” he scoffs. “How else do you explain collapsing in the park?”

My eyes narrow. “You! You must have drugged me!” Before I knew it, I slapped him. He looks stunned, like he can’t believe what just happened.

...

...

A quiet silent appeared in the room

“Did… did you just slap me?” His voice wobbles in shock, then hardens. “When would I have had the chance to drug you?”

I shrug, holding my ground. “You tell me.”

His mouth opens, then closes as he tries to save face, his cheeks coloring. “I didn’t need to drug you,” he mutters

I raise an eyebrow. “Wow, you can actually react. I thought you were made of stone.”

He straightens, muttering, “Huh..This avatar is making me act strange, is like affecting my intelligence somehow I am becoming dumber. I can’t waste time. Straight to the point, I am here for a reason

Avatar,

Reason…

Time… Sounds like a fantasy plot for me.

“Then say what you came here to say,” I asked, looking at him with a fierce face, trying to figure out his next move.

He sighs, looking at me like he’s figured me out. “You act so confident, but I know the truth about you. I saw how you are around that guy, Joseph. You’re practically timid. But with me?” He smirks, eyes glinting. “It’s like you’re ready to rip me apart.”

“That’s normal!” I protest, feeling my cheeks flush. “Joseph is a gentleman! How am I supposed to act brave in front of a guy like him?” My eyes widen, and I grip his shirt tightly, the words tumbling out faster than I can stop them. “What are you making me say? You’re not a psychologist! Stop pretending you can read my mind!” I shake his shirt in frustration.

“Sto—p!” he stammered, clearly caught off guard by my outburst.

“Wait—how do you even know about me and Joseph? I never saw you around. Don’t tell me you can turn invisible now?” My voice drips with sarcasm.

“That would be illogical,” he says, rolling his eyes like I’m the unreasonable one. “I might be the Demon Lord, King of Hell, the Lord of the Underworld, but this body is human. I can’t make transformations like that.”

I look at him with annoyance and disgust. “You know I was just joking, right? I expected a normal answer.”

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

He sighs. “If you wanted funny answers, you should’ve asked. I might not be invisible, but I have abilities far above the human average.” He points upwards. “I was in the air ducts, watching and hearing from above for a while”

I blink, processing. “The air ducts? Are you serious?”

“Yes, I can see better than most people, so it was no problem, besides I didn’t want to be around other humans. I wanted to find you alone.”

I groan, exasperated. “You know you’re going to end up with zero friends if you keep talking like this, right? We’re in a hospital. I can literally get you some help, is not too late for anyone.”

He sighs again, visibly annoyed now. “Maybe I’ll show you.” He strides toward the hospital window, throwing it open. My stomach drops. This isn’t the first, second, or even third floor—this feels way high up.

I yank him back by the shirt, panic flooding me. “Wait—are you crazy?! What are you trying to do?!”

“Joseph! Someone, help!” I call out, my voice rising in alarm.

He doesn’t even flinch. “I told you, time’s frozen for them. No one’s coming.”

“Stop with your nonsense! How do you expect me to believe such a thing?”

“I’ll jump from this height,” he says matter-of-factly, like he’s talking about taking a stroll. “I’ll return without any scratch as as a prove to you.”

“WHAT?!” I practically screech. “That makes no sense! Stop! You’ll really get hurt! Why are you going this far to make me believe it?” I hold into him trying to stop him

He meets my gaze, surprisingly serious. “I told you, I need a favor. And I need you to listen to me. Besides, if I don’t tell you the truth about me. I’ll have to keep making up excuses, and that’s exhausting.”

I think for a moment and I gave up in the demand

“Fine, I’ll listen. So stop with the whim” Feeling how his body stop with my answer given

“I need advice on how to be a low, disgusting human,” he says.

I smile

I stand correctly

Clean the dust from my pants

When I approached enough I slapped him instinctively, not holding back.

“Talk to me nicely, please!”

He glares at me, rubbing his cheek.

“What was that for?” he growls.

“‘Low, disgusting human’? Seriously? Are you even trying to be nice?”

He raises an eyebrow. “I thought humans liked honesty.”

I can’t believe this guy—he’s clueless, rude, and still somehow committed to his ‘demon lord’ act. “Fine. Why do you want to be a human, anyway?” Just saying it makes me cringe a little.

“To make it short, I want to conquer the heart of a human. You know—the one I was… observing.”

“Ohhh, so you want to be normal.” I flash him a big thumbs-up. “Got it! I, Elysia, will personally help you learn how to be normal.”

“Normal? No, I want—”

“Shh,” I cut him off, pressing a finger gently to his lips. “Trust me, I know exactly what you mean.”

He blinks, clearly caught off-guard.

“Okay…”

He scoffs, still looking way too serious for someone asking for romance advice.

“Shouldn’t you be more excited? Or maybe have some kind of sparkle in your eyes? You look far too unimpressed for someone who is in love. Maybe if you looked more in love and less like a scowling statue, I’d take it seriously. Aren’t you supposed to be… I don’t know, nervous?”

“Huh? Just help me, and don’t ask so many questions!” he snaps. “As a demon lord, I don’t exactly know what humans like, I don’t like to be wrong but even I admit I only know the bad side of humanity and not the good side. So I’d rather confirm my doubts with someone who actually lives the low human life like you to show me all the ropes.”

My eyebrow twitches, and I feel a pulse of anger simmering. “Care to repeat that last part?”

He stiffens, the ice-cold stare of his dimming just slightly. “N-nothing. Forget it.”

But by the look on his face, he knows full well he’s pushing his luck.

This is still weird but I do not feel any threat from him at least he looks normal to me except for the part where he believes himself to be a demon lord.

“And why me, out of all people? What makes you think I can show you all the ropes? And please, please don’t tell me it’s because you don’t have more friends,” I say, half-joking.

“I don’t have more friends,” he replies, dead serious.

I sigh. “But seriously, I can help you blend in a bit more, but dude that girl, seriously?, you’re not even a student! How old are you?”

“I don’t think you’d even be able to pronounce how old I am,” he says with an annoyingly straight face.

“Okay, fine. But you know she’s a student, Azazel! And you—” I glance over his well-built, brooding figure, which looks suspiciously like he’s in his twenties. “You should be looking for someone closer to your age. Come on, it’s not that hard.”

He raises an eyebrow, looking genuinely stumped. “A difference of ten, one hundred, or even one thousand years means nothing to me.”

I stifle a laugh and try to keep things simple for his...demon logic. “If you want to be more human—” I roll my eyes, “and find, let’s say, your ‘other half,’ they should be closer to your age. And, you know, close to your heart.”

“Close to my heart? Like a female doctor?” he asks, looking adorably clueless.

“No” I responded

“Does any female from the morgue count?”

I can’t help but shake my head. “I mean someone who actually makes you feel things.” I gesture wildly with my hands, trying to convey the mystery of love. “You’ll know—you’ll get butterflies in your stomach, or your heart will skip a beat! Trust me, you’ll just know.” At least that's what people say.

He considers this for a moment, nodding thoughtfully. “So, if finding love has these requirements...then I suppose I’ll set my sights on another girl.”

“Azazel!” I groan. “Love isn’t a mission; it just happens naturally!” I smile encouragingly.

“How will I know?”

“ I don’t know, it just feel different I guess”

“I understand, now “ He looked at me for a moment

He keeps staring

Is becoming uncomfortable

why is he keep staring without saying a word

“I love you,” he says, deadpan.

“Wh-what?” I stumble back, feeling my face flush at his abruptness. So out of place.

“Now say it back,” he demands, his expression still as stoic as ever, which only makes my blush disappear quickly.

“I don’t think you’re feeling anything for me... besides annoyance.”

He pauses, considering, then shrugs. “Yeah, you’re probably right. But I’ve decided to make you my new target—it feels... appropriate. You’ll be my guinea pig for all this research.”

I move to slap him, but he catches my hand mid-swing.

“Nope. No more of that.” His grip is surprisingly strong, and it stings.

“Let go! You’re hurting me,” I snap, pulling my arm back as he releases it.

“Apologies. I wouldn’t want to harm my guinea pig.” His eyes gleam with a hint of mischief as he steps back toward the door.

“Wait, you can’t just—” I guess he can be serious if he wants to

“See you tomorrow at your apartment, guinea pig,” he says, already halfway out.

“But—” I have to go work tomorrow and clear this mistake with my boss, but Azazel quickly leaves the room.

I rush to stop him, colliding headfirst into someone else. “Joseph!” I blurt, regaining my balance.

“Stop that guy! The one with gray hair!” I say frantically, turning to point, but... Azazel is gone. The hospital is suddenly bustling and alive again, as if nothing unusual happened.

“Who?” Joseph looks around, bewildered. There’s no sign of Azazel anywhere.

Scratching my head, I feel a mix of frustration and confusion. Either Azazel is crazier than I thought, or this coma has left me with some very strange after effects...