“You’re so predictable.” Demon Lord Aberis laughed.

I struggled to lift my head, looking at an army of soldiers lining up. They were all Osterians, covered in heavy armor and swords. There were at least two dozen Knights, surrounding every exit to the courtyard. Aberis stood calmly among them, that same insolent grin on his face as if he had everything under control.

“Do not listen to him!” Alysia cried out. “This man is not the king! He’s been possessed!”

“No one will listen to you.” The king shrugged. “This will be less painful for both of you if you stop struggling.”

“So, I can die?” Alysia snarled.

The king chuckled. “You will be serving your nation. Once I gained the power, we will sweep across Aberis. The Ost Republic will rule the south, and one day we will sweep across the Imperial Cloud Meadow and even the demon land will fall!”

“And we’ll be serving under a demon!”

“What’s wrong with that? Did the Osterians not serve under Demon Lord Aberis once before? If it wasn’t for Princess Xin’s betrayal, your people would have only continued to have power under me. Xin… mother… has paid the price. Furthermore, I am Osterian myself now. Why would I not lead our people to glory? We are the strongest race. We are the greatest race. It is time the world comes to realize this.”

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His words were tempting to any Osterian. He was right. Back in the days, the Osterians were treated well under the demonic rule. Now, all the demons were gone, and Demon Lord Aberis was now reborn as an Osterian. He had no reason not to help the Osterians. He would help them by driving them into war after war, but he would also share power and wealth as they enslaved all of the other races. This Aberis might have been different, but he was also still the same. He was as clever as always.

“R-really?” Alysia started to hesitantly walk toward him.

He smiled. “Of course. You will be a hero to the Osterian people. Those human kings pushed us from our rightful place of power and forced us to cower down here. We can rise. All it will take is a single sacrifice.

“I see now…” Alysia’s attack came suddenly.

She pulled out a blade from her ring and then closed the distance between her brother and herself. She sliced down with the blade. Throughout all of this, he barely reacted, his smile remaining plastered on his face. A blade met hers, and Alysia was thrown back, hitting the wall of a building behind them. Standing in front of the Demon Lord was her husband, General Nova.

“I’m sorry, wife. I can’t allow you to do that. It’s time I brought you under proper charge. Allowing you to run around on me and disrespect me so, how can I call myself a man and allow this to continue without putting you in your place.”

“N-Nova… he’s… he’s the Demon Lord! You have to…” Alysia’s words slowed as she could see they did not affect the general.

“I told you that Deek managed to brainwash her. He has many strange abilities. He is a trickster.” The king explained.

“Yes, my lord.” General Nova stepped forward and pointed his spear at me. “Deek Deekson. You cheated to win our first match. Then, when you lost the prize, you decided to steal my bride. You are a coward. I hereby sentence you to death by my blade!”