Late into the night, long after dark…
Here again, in the World Tree. The Demon Lord in the shape of me, sneering. Darkness eternal. I think of Anna, her promise to me… and just like last time… it ain’t so bad.
Actually, I feel a lot better! Maybe it’s all the kissing we’ve done since we left the Cathedral of the First Saint. I dunno, honestly. But I feel better than usual… and not even Arcadia can drag me down! So, I got this.
“Love the new look,” the Demon Lord mocks, lounging cross-legged on the shadowy, snow-swept steps, soulless black eyes drifting over me from top to toe in lazy appraisal. “Really brings out your… well, everything.”
I glance down at the whiteness of my gloved hands, my legs wrapped in stockings. I went to bed in a comfy nightgown, but here I stand, clad in my sacred vestments of white and blue. Guess putting that fancy outfit on back there made it part of my soul, just like Elizabeth.
“I mean it, ‘Hero’. I really do! You’ll be wiping out entire Goblin tribes just from blood loss through their noses. Surely that’s something to be proud of!”
“Hey, it’s okay to be jealous,” I reply smoothly, keeping my smile steady as I meet the Demon Lord’s gaze. “This ensemble is ridiculously comfy... and it looks good on me.”
“Indeed…”
“Hmph. And it ain’t just for show! From where you stand… I’m sure you can feel the Mana of the enchantments in these vestments.”
“I can indeed! How generous of that old ghost to finally deem you worthy of such power. But tell me – why now? Why not before? Could it be that you weren’t back in that previous timeline? Or maybe… just maybe… she preferred to watch you suffer.”
“Who knows? My guess? Back then, I wasn’t strong enough to wear them safely. But here and now… things are different.”
“If only you’d had them the first time we met, one timeline ago…”
“You’d have been in for a world of hurt. Even worse than when I killed you.”
“As I did you, ‘Hero’. And maybe, just maybe…”
“Don’t say it,” I warn, my voice sharp as I raise a finger. “This has been a mostly civil conversation by our standards. Let’s keep it that way.”
The Demon Lord grins, all teeth and malice. It knows it got its point across. Subtle as a hammer. And yeah, I feel my blood heating up. Just a little.
Good grief – that bastard’s pissing me off again. Once more, I think of Anna – her warm smile, her voice… those words she whispered to me – and I hold on to them like a prayer against evil. It’s… not so bad. Mostly.
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“That said…” the Demon Lord continues. “It was about time your Paladin did to you what you should’ve done to her ages ago. I’m impressed, actually. Shocked, even!”
“I was gonna do it eventually…” I answer, frowning slightly. “It was only a matter of time, the way things were going. I’m just glad she feels the same way I do.”
“Sometime between now and the end of all worlds, I presume? Well, at least the Order of Selene managed to instil some manner of mortal courage into her! That almost makes a decade of religious brainwashing and blind zealotry seem worthwhile…”
“Fuck you.”
“Oh? So much for polite conversation, ‘Hero’.”
“Hey, you started it.”
“By speaking the truth about those you serve?” the Demon Lord asks slyly, inky shadows spilling onto the steps as it shrugs. “Eh, it happens. Anyway, after she kissed you…”
“Don’t say it.”
“You could’ve fucked her!”
“Shit. It’s almost like I didn’t warn ya.”
“Believe me… she gave you those eyes, ‘Hero’. You know the ones. The ‘fuck me’ eyes. Even by mortal standards, you’re not that dense… are you?”
“And how do you know this, ‘genius’?”
“I’ve only seen such eyes from some of my worshippers…” the Demon Lord explains, its grin turning wicked and vicious, almost drunk with perverse delight. “Only the truly faithful. The ones who would die for me and mine. Who would serve me wholly, unquestioningly… with utter devotion of mind, body… and soul.”
“Yeah, sure. And I almost feel bad for them,” I remark flatly, thinking of the bloodied altars, the desperate prayers echoing in dungeons and places of evil where demons had been summoned in the last timeline. “I’ve seen what you and yours do to your ‘faithful’.”
“Oh yes! Don’t remind me – it makes me feel… nostalgic.”
“Hmph. You’re one fucked up fuck, y’know that?”
“Takes one to know one, yes?” the Demon Lord offers, feigning patience. “You know, you shouldn’t argue with reflections of yourself. Because I know what you know. And I also know what you know but don’t want to know. Deep down… where you refuse to look.”
“If that’s true, you’d know I’d rather be asleep,” I say dryly, rolling my eyes. “Instead of wasting time on this… idiocy.”
“Oh? But I do so enjoy our little exchanges.”
“That makes one of us. Good for you.”
“As I said before…”
“I know. What was it again?” I cut in, waving a hand. “Oh, right. ‘We are as one’. Good grief, you’ve said that line so many times already.”
“Deny it all you want… deep down, you know. We know.”
“Anything else?” I ask sarcastically, crossing my arms. “Big day ahead. Gotta sleep.”
“Just one more thing…” the Demon Lord muses, baring its teeth. “I do hope your Paladin doesn’t need to use that spell of hers before you return to me… to us. After all, the world is changing, all thanks to us. You’ve noticed, haven’t you?”
I roll my eyes again. “Geez… that’s so fucking considerate of you. I really, really appreciate the thought. And yes, I’ve noticed it. Not that it matters in the grand scheme of things – it’s not gonna change what happens in the end – me killing you with her by my side.”
“You’d best not fail us…” the Demon Lord adds, its evil grin unwavering. “I’m counting on you… and your Paladin.”
“Fuck you for thinking I’m doing this for you,” I say, voice steady as the darkness shatters around me. “I’m doing this for this world and the ones I love.”
And then I wake up. Back to reality… torn from the abyss to the waking world as I know it.
The ceiling above is dark and familiar. The sheets are soft and warm. I close my eyes, trying to find sleep again… but my mind is already running. I’m thinking about Divine Intervention. About Anna. About Arcadia. And above all… the long crusade of my Prophecy ahead of us, across the mainland Nisha, that awaits across the Silent Sea.
It’s coming. Soon.