"Wh-what do you mean plan to do with me" Arthur knew this magic signature.
"Well you see boy, after killing most of your city I was weakened a bit." So that's who she was, this woman killed my parents. Arthur wanted to shout at her but realized he might be killed if he did something so foolish in his current predicament. "So coming back to the Demon Realm was quite the hassle. Immediately after coming back, I was attacked by a lowly demon called Ugallu, and this Ugallu was so weak that even in my weakened state I still managed to pluck out his eye before he went running like the dog he is. His eye isn't just any eye though, no no, far from it. This specific eye can mess with time. But Demons cannot steal power from other Demons by simply taking the eye and inserting it into their sockets. Which I have tried and tested believe me, boy, that's when I had the wonderful idea of using a human with high enough physical abilities to withstand the power of the eye and fuse it with them. I would guess a clever boy such as yourself could already guess where I'm going with this."
"You plan to use me as the holder for the eye," Arthur answered the question, more for himself than anyone else since he was struggling to wrap his head around the concept.
"Correct! I see you're still as smart as you were the day you ran from me," Arthur grits his teeth whenever Lilith brings up that day. "and since you have not 1 but 4 Gifts that grant you increased physical capabilities you're a perfect test subject." Arthur didn't know what implanting a demon eye into him meant or what it would do to him but it didn't sound good. Lilith took out a pure black eyeball with a dark green iris and a black pupil. "This is the eye you will live or die by little one. If this works it'll be a huge power boost for the Demons! That all depends on if we can control you after or not though." Lilith was getting on Arthur's nerves with all the talk. "What do you think about getting started?" She asked Arthur like he was just asked to start making dinner. The casual way she said it made it obvious to Arthur that he wasn't the first person they'd tested on.
"How many humans have you tested the eye on?" Arthur asked before he could stop himself.
"Huh? Oh, you should be the 49th I think... I don't remember the exact number." His eyes almost popped out of his sockets with the huge number.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
"And it hasn't succeeded? Sound like a lost cause to me." He was aware that uttering those words could anger Lilith, but he decided to say them anyway.
"Cut out his tongue immediately!" Foreseeing her impending reaction, he deliberately held his features steady, his expression unreadable as he locked his gaze with the Demon Queen. She looked infuriated at his reaction and went ahead and cut it herself. FLETCH. He didn't even scream, only flinching a bit at the pain. "I'm going to make this as painful as possible!" Lilith screamed right in his face, before reaching for some tools.
*** *** ***
The first few weeks were grueling. Luna was pushed to her limits, both physically and magically. The Demon Army was notorious for its rigorous training regime, designed to test the mettle of even the most seasoned warriors. Luna, however, was undeterred. She embraced the challenge with a fierce determination that surprised even the toughest of the Demon Army's veterans.
Her magic, too, was put to the test. Black hole magic was a rare and volatile form of magic, capable of creating voids that could absorb anything in their path. Luna spent countless hours honing her control over her magic, learning to create and dissipate black holes at will. The Demon Army's magic trainers watched in awe as Luna manipulated the very fabric of space, teleporting around the training camp.
As the weeks turned into months, Luna's skills improved exponentially. She became adept at using her black hole magic in combat, using it to absorb enemy attacks and create openings for counterattacks. Her physical strength and endurance also increased, allowing her to withstand the harshest of battles. By the end of the three months, Luna had become a formidable member of the Demon Army. Her black hole magic, once a wild and unpredictable force, was now a finely tuned weapon under her control. Luna's journey was far from over, but she had taken her first steps toward becoming a powerful mage.
She still checked on her mother every day after training and attending to her duties. Luna's mother was living a luxurious life after getting released from slavery and getting funding from the King for her lavish new lifestyle. Luna didn't try to interfere in her mother's fun since she hadn't been so happy in a long time. Her life was perfect right now, training, shopping with her mother, going to restaurants, and repeat. That's been her life for the past three months.
Every few days she saw the two humans who brought the prisoner enter the Demon Castle for a reason she didn't know. This made her think back to the man who was the prisoner, wondering if he was even still alive after being in the torture chamber for so long. He looked awfully weak when he arrived so she concluded that he was most likely dead or on the verge of death.