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"I haven’t heard of that title for a while now. But yes, I’ve been called like that before a few times.”
“Haha~ what can I say? A fucking honor.”
He bowed mockingly while laughing at the old man, unafraid of whatever consequences there might be.
At this point, what could happen? Die? Get tortured all his life? Or be sent in another dimension? Whatever it might be, at this point, Darius has already accepted all types of punishments he might receive, not caring in the slightest. However, there was one simple question still viable in his mind.
“Why?”
With a frown, he still asked the old man, adding so many questions in just one word, making the old man smile at Darius.
“Why what? Why am I here as a simple janitor? Why do I know about you? Or… why I’ve never made a move when the world got destroyed by your hand, [Demon Lord] Darius?”
“…”
After talking about his past life, Darius wasn’t even surprised. After all, he was talking with a being akin to a god. It was only obvious for him to find this out by reading his mind, his aura, and his very being with the sight of a god.
“If you could give me an explanation for all that, I would appreciate it.”
Darius smirked as he said that, but the old man didn’t mind his mean behavior in the slightest. Rather, he found him refreshing.
“I can tell you everything, but I’m afraid this is not the time for this. All I wish for you to know is that I fully agree with your actual goals.”
“… What?”
This statement from the old man made Darius’ whole body shudder for a moment.
“What do you mean you agree…? Aren’t you the [Devil] of this cult? It's very God? Or, did you misunderstand something? I’m actually for destroying it, you know?”
“Yes, I am aware. And I'd very much like to see you try.”
“You... just what is your goal?"
Darius frowned confused, but then a purple glow flashed through the old man's eyes—a similar glow that resembled his own but was much stronger—Darius freezing in place the moment he made eye contact.
"My goal? Does it matter?"
The Devil asked with a grin, and Darius frowned, understanding that, since the old man was under the miasma's influence, no matter the reason, it was nothing good. Seeing him so quiet, the old man grinned again and calmly answered,
"Well, if you want an answer so much, then just think of me being too bored.
“So... is simply for fun. You want a challenge."
Darius smirked, and the old man smiled as well, his eyes glowing once again, reaching out to Darius with a satisfied look.
"See? I knew Mr. Darius would understand us. After all, who else but the one who almost became a [Devil] himself could find out what I wish for in just a few seconds?"
Hearing this, Darius’ eyes turned sharp as more feelings swirled inside of him.
“You said us...? Who else is there beside you?”
"No, no. Mister Darius. I believe I already told you this is not the time? After all, I didn't bring you here just to have a chat."
"!?!"
Darius' mind turned blank after hearing this, but he then tried to regain his thoughts as, probably, it wasn't what he first thought.
He meant the base... He might have pulled some strings to bring me into this base, not the world. Darius, calm down...
He sighed, but then another voice resounded in his own mind.
[No no. I was meaning about this world. Darius Dura, you are the character I brought here personally.]
Turning back to the old man with urgent eyes, he saw him staring at him with a mocking gaze after just speaking with him telepathically, as if finding joy in his pain. something that made Darius' suppressed emotions and frozen heart suddenly erupt like a volcano.
"You...!"
He took out his knife, and with a strong step that almost ripped the soles of his already old boots, Darius dashed in with the deadliest killing intent he could ever muster, freezing the air everywhere around him while his eyes flashed with a purple glow. Even the miasma glove used to hold the knife was now flashing strongly as a deadly purple electric aura covered the blade to further enchant its destructive power.
"Stop."
With one word from the unknown old man, Darius' knife's tip stopped a few centimeters away from his eye. Furious, Darius further intensified the aura with the intent to elongate the tip and reach into his eye. But even then, other than turning brighter and more intense in power, the aura did not change its form, as the old man's power influenced not just the physical but the energies controlled by Darius as well.
"How quick to violence! Tsk, tsk. Youngsters these days really don't know how to keep a conversation going. Is that why you're still single?"
"You fucker..."
Mist escaped through his gritted teeth as he forced his own body to function past the normal limits, his veins all over his body bulging while his body's temperature skyrocketed to abnormal levels. The glow in his eyes also turned more intense, now glowing as strongly as the old man's, using everything in his power to move his body and have his blade reach the devil with no results.
"So you brought me here... I don't know how, nor do I care. But I will make you pay for this. I will cut your head, pull out your heart through your neck, and eat it as I continue to pull out the rest of your insides! Dogs and rats will feast on your guts, while I'll make a vest of your skin and a cup of your skull. The rest of the body will be placed on a stake at the base's entrance to be eaten by the monstrous birds; all of this while I'll laugh at your miserable and deserving death as I wear the vest and drink from your skull."
"My~ Hoho. Even I felt a chill down my back. Is that your demonic side talking right now? And, a stake? Who are you? Vlad the Impaler?"
The old man chuckled amused while moving around the frozen Darius. However, seeing that he was only laughing at him, Darius tried to calm down, and while still furious, he asked through gritted teeth.
"Why..."
"Why what? Again asking me this?"
"Why me? Why did you bring me here? What the hell made you select me? From over 8 billion people!"
"Ohohoho~! Why you, eh? Hmm~..."
The old man walked around him, scratching his beard as if he were thinking about it deeply. He suddenly opened his eyes and turned to Darius, only to grin widely.
"I chose randomly, and you happened to be the winner among those over 8 billion humans! Good job, Mr. Darius. You ended up as the winner of the transmigration event into a post-apocalyptic world that stands to explode! Aren't you happy?"
"...."
Darius saw this coming, but even then, it still made his breath rush, his killing intent reaching a point where it could kill a weaker human being with just his glare.
"Woah, how scary."
The old man stepped back and chuckled on his own, and Darius roared, already unable to suppress his rage.
"You chose me at random for what?! To have fun, huh? Fine, I'll show you fun, you bastard! I'll massacre the Demonic Cult down to the last one and kill your family right in front of your eyes! I'll make it so you'll have to eat their organs while laughing, you funky fucker-"
"Alright, that's enough of you."
The old man snapped his fingers, and Darius' mouth got shut tight as if on its own.
"Now now. I already told you, right? If you could fight the cult, that would be great. I would even support you in some areas if needed. Just stop cursing me. My, how unpleasant..."
Darius continued to glare murderously at him, and the old man couldn't help smiling at his threatening eyes, shrugging his shoulders.
"Hey. You believe I brought you here to have someone to make fun of? Maybe that too. But let me tell you: Even if the heroes were to be left alone after the goddess unites the six parallel worlds and has them join forces, the cult will still continue to hold the greatest authority. As the man who created it, I can't help but feel proud of it. But they're a bit... too efficient. After all, what's the fun in playing a game if there's no challenge? We can't win that easily, and I can't really deal with it myself either... for personal reasons. So that's why I had numerous tries where I had random people who played that game I created, summoned them into this world, and saw if they could do anything at all. In the end, they either died like losers, got corrupted and turned into a low-ranked zombie, or turned weak and locked themselves up somewhere depressed, dying from either some calamity or sickness. However, you? You also did many mistakes, but the way you evolved made you a true diamond through dirt. I never expected to see the birth of a [Demon Lord] in just 4 years. And from a simple human! I was amazed!"
The Devil turned back to Darius with sparks of admiration in his eyes, but then sadness overwhelmed him as he sighed.
"You had all the traits to grow even stronger than that, and although the cult would've taken over the world, it would've done so in a much funnier way than I could ever think of... If not for you suddenly dying at the hands of the heroes, Ah... how sad I was when the tale of the greatest Demon Lord I've seen suddenly ended at the hands of some brats with super powers."
Darius sneered, disgusted with the old man, but the Devil continued either way as he glanced at Darius with a knowing smile.
"So, although this is not the right time, let me tell you this... I made sure to bring your consciousness back to the past, curious what you will do now. But I never expected for you to not only regain your sanity but also keep a strand of darkness within. A strand that could help you in the future to get past the title of [Demon Lord] and reach [Devil]! Ah, just thinking about it gives me goosebumps!"
What is this old fuck talking about...?
Seeing him monolog on his own made Darius' rage subside, and stare at him like at some crazy old buffoon. And the elder heard his thoughts, pointing his finger right at his forehead.
"Why don't I show you directly rather than continue talking by myself, yes? Here. I'm doing you a favor."
A sharp sudden pain as if his brain exploded made Darius suddenly lose consciousness, falling limp on the ground in front of the old man.
"... Ah. You're awakening now?"
Shortly after, his miasma crystal started shining as miasma swirled around him. His fingers twitched at first and a sudden wave of miasma got released from within his body. Slowly, Darius got back up as a dangerous aura surrounded his whole body, his eyes completely purple.
"... Old bastard. Just what is the meaning of this?"
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"Call me by my name, you brat. Since we're both evils, you obviously know my name."
"... Lucian."
.
.
Gah! Haah, haah, haah!...
Darius woke up as sweat filled his whole body, breathing roughly and quickly getting up.
…Where… am I?
He looked around and observed how he was inside a white space. Everything was white, blindingly white at that.
What a disgusting view. Almost maddening.
?!
Darius turned around and saw how the white space suddenly ended right behind him, turning into complete darkness as if he just crossed a barrier. He later observed how the whole space was actually cut in half between bright white with a warm feeling, and a pitch-black darkness, giving off a cold and eerie feeling.
Inside that darkness, two sharp purple eyes glowed. After making two steps closer, the light from the white side of the space illuminated the other person’s face and Darius was finally able to tell who it was… It was himself, but while wearing the clothes of the [Demon Lord] of his past self. In shorter terms, he was the past Darius.
With a cynical smile Darius gazed around and shook his head disapprovingly,
I expected for our meeting to be a little more dramatic, not forced upon us by a bored old bastard. Now look at us. Face to face, when you're yet to fully get rid of your inner demons.
Behind the demonic Darius, more other silhouettes appeared, not showing their faces but only the ragged bodies of able men, elderly, women, and children, all of whom had different injuries with ragged clothes on. Darius was unable to tell their expressions, but he could see how their mouths were moving, seemingly saying- no. Shouting and screaming something at him, perhaps words of blame and contempt.
Oh, and here I was just talking about them... I advise you not to listen to them.
He chuckled amused while advasing, but Darius was simply too confused and surprised by everything that happened, staring at the weird creatures as if hypnotized.
Although faintly, Darius was able to hear the multitude of voices, and the closer he moved, the louder the voices became, and more bodies seemed to appear behind the past Darius.
Feeling his heart shake the closer he got, Darius felt a sense of dread and danger, quickly stepping back. As he did so, the voices muted while the bodies started disappearing as if engulfed by the dark, except for the demonic Darius; his voice and appearance remaining as visible as before no matter how far away Darius moved.
You’re afraid of what you’ve become? Haha~ didn't that old bastard tell you? If you wish to reach the next level, you have to accept me. Or, wait. Did he leave it to me to explain?
Past Darius continued to mock him but Darius frowned as he sighed and opened his mouth,
So to understand… this is inside my head… or my heart? And you're a representation of all my sins, which I can’t forgive, am I right? Is that why you said I have to accept you?
You might be smart, but even if you know the answers to your questions, nothing will change if you don’t have the guts to do what you must do.
….
Instinctively, Darius knew what he needed to do so he could make peace within his mind. He looked at the past Darius once again and wanted to go towards him. But just as he made the first steps, the voices resounded again while the bodies appeared again, this time bloodied and with gruesome injuries all over, making Darius freeze in place terrified.
He wasn’t afraid of the blood and gore, but of the fact that his sense of danger suddenly screamed more than never before, as if telling him that, once he went to that side, there won’t ever be room for return.
Heh, see? I told you. Intellect that’s not backed by courage is nothing more than empty smoke. Why would it matter if you have your answers if you don’t have the guts to implement them?
Darius gritted his teeth while sweating profoundly, wanting to take another step forward, but the fears simply held him in place, unable to move.
-----!!!!
The voices became louder and more distorted, while the bodies appeared uglier and more grotesque, now the shape of their mouths being more visible than ever as they shouted and screamed at him, most probably with hate and fury. The collective feelings from every single body that appeared more and more behind the past persona, made Darius unable to advance and barely hold his ground, his feet trembling uncontrollably.
Fuck…!
He gritted his teeth but couldn’t move; his feet were stuck two steps away from entering the other side. His past self looked at him already bored and said simply,
How pathetic. It’s hard to simply accept your own mistakes and start anew, isn’t it?
Wouldn’t anyone falter at the idea of embracing their darker side?
Falter? Of course. But you’re literally trembling in your boots. How’s that anything other than pathetic?
If you are that tough, then why not be the one to step forward?
?!
Irritated by his past self's rude remarks, Darius blurted out a sentence that baffled not only the other Darius, but even himself, wondering just where he got that idea.
At first surprised, the past self made a sinister smile while his sharp gaze flashed with a dangerous purple glint.
Are you sure you want this? Haha~! You will surely be sorry!
What? W-what do you-…!
The past Darius then lightly stepped over the barrier and into the light, baffling Darius as he looked at his hand for a handshake.
W-what!
You might find it hard to accept me. But I have no problem accepting you, you moron.
-WOSH!-
!!!
The half-white, half-dark space has now turned into complete darkness, and the shock of it made Darius lose consciousness.
.
-FWOSH!-
"I didn't think you'd trick him into giving you his body."
Lucian sighed troubled after seeing how suddenly another tornado of miasma formed around the two. However, after understanding what happened, his face turned serious, glaring at Darius and speaking in a deep voice.
"Why are you out of your space?”
No longer kneeling on the ground, Darius was now standing tall in his combat costume with his mask on, his sharp and dangerous eyes flashing with an obvious purple light, looking at his own hands as if getting accustomed to his own body.
Hearing Lucian's remarks, Darius smiled as if he had heard the most ridiculous question.
“Out of my space? Everywhere I go, it’s my space. So you don’t need to worry about me.”
His gaze made it seem as if he were the ruler of that place, as if he were above everyone, and that wasn’t just out of arrogance but as if it were an undeniable fact. A truth that he simply had no reason to negate. And he was able to feel that in his bones with all his being.
Lucian sighed at him and shook his head, speaking lightly,
“This is not your world anymore. The heroes killed you for doing your part. Leave this world to the original owner of that body. I find him much more amusing to watch.”
“But it’s still me, though? I’m still Darius, aren’t I?”
“You know the meanings of my words, and I won’t repeat myself. Leave now. The reason I had him meet you was simply to show him what I meant by inner darkness. But I never expected for you to suddenly come out. You're really shameless.”
“My~ aren’t you a harsh one? Besides, he's the one who told me to step forward. Why is it suddenly my fault?"
He stretched his neck by tilting it till it made a cracking sound, then glared at Lucian, the miasma around him starting to vibrate as Darius’ aura became stronger and stronger, his battle-spirit more and more obvious.
“But anyway, I understand your words, Lucian. But do you truly think this weak version of me would be able to pull off the duty that has been placed on him? He already had it hard against a Boss-ranked dragon. If it was me, one shot would’ve been more than enough.”
The clouds started spinning, and lightning flashed more and more constantly, as if the sky were ready to fall on top of the whole base. The wind was also blowing threateningly. Lightning and flames flashed around his hands, especially around his gloves that had the two crystals inside. His power was growing by the second, and he was already compared to a mid-boss-tier monster, reaching its peak and soon passing over to the field boss-tier.
With a wide grin and dreadful purple eyes, Darius breathed relaxed, feeling the power under his control with great satisfaction.
“What do you think? Won’t it be a better idea to leave it all to me? Just relax your old bones and let your junior finish what you started, old man. I'll make sure to be more amusing than that weak-ass.”
Darius took a step forward and left deep footprints on the concrete road, walking towards Lucian and lightly patting his shoulder.
However, Lucian was unshaken as he grabbed Darius’ wrist and, in a deep voice, ordered:
“Just get back. You wasted your chance.”
“?!”
Darius understood his words, and while gritting his teeth, he reached for a palm-strike while condensing a large amount of energy in his left palm. In less than a second, a sphere of blinding blue lightning as big as a bowling ball was formed that had enough destructive force to blow up a two-story building. With swift moves, Darius pushed the sphere towards Lucian's head, but just before it could touch his head, the sphere simply disappeared, and far over the base’s walls, a sudden purple flash lit up the sky, disappearing the next moment.
Darius wasn’t surprised by this since he knew already that Lucian had the ability to play with space and time, but he didn’t give up to free himself from Lucian's grasp as he strongly stepped, wishing to squash Lucian's foot. But the old man didn’t even move, and after Darius stepped on him, the ground cracked and collapsed under the weight, but his foot was still whole and without a problem.
“What the fuck…?”
This time even the demonic Darius was baffled, his will to fight slowly cooling down while staring at Lucian as if looking at an oddity. Seeing this, Lucian chuckled and released Darius, shrugging his shoulders while asking,
“Now do you understand the difference between us? Why don’t you just give the weaker version a chance before you try anything yourself, hm? On your own, you won't be able to do much anyway.”
“...”
Having years of experience in battle, Darius already knew that he had no chance against him. He knew from the very beginning, but he still wanted to at least give the old man a piece of his mind, giving him at least a light bruise. But even that he wasn’t able to do, even after putting his all into that one step. He still had many more other cards up his sleeves, but concluding from this exchange, he already knew that it would either be nullified like the lightning sphere, or straight out blocked like the step, dealing no damage.
“Sigh~ damn old monster. Whatever, do what you want… Shit, next time maybe you get to explain everything to him before doing such bullshit, yeah?”
“Thank you, and I apologize. I didn’t expect him to suddenly give you his authority. I will explain more the moment he wakes up.”
“You won’t have to wait, then.”
“Hmm… maybe.”
Lucian placed his thumb on Darius’ forehead once again and after he closed his eyes, the eerie energy diminished more and more until it disappeared, while the gloves also calmed down, turning off completely. The wind calmed down, the swirl in the sky disappeared slowly, and the concentrated miasma quickly cleared off as Lucian pushed it away outside the base’s walls.
After sealing back the 2nd ego of Darius, Lucian waited beside him in case he were to collapse, expecting for him to just lose consciousness and fall asleep.
“Ugh!”
However, after staggering for a moment, Darius woke up immediately with a strong headache, holding his head and trying not to puke from the dizziness he was feeling.
“I-… I’m back…?”
“I’m surprised. I expected you to fall unconscious and sleep for a day. Glad to see you so energetic.”
“… Old bastard, the heck did you do?”
After seeing Lucian's smiling face and blue eyes the first thing after waking up, Darius understood that something most probably happened. Underneath his feet he was able to feel uneven ground, observing multiple cracks and even foot stamps, wondering just what the heck happened after he fell into darkness.
“Your other side woke up in your place. And from what I understood, it was you who told him to do so.”
“What?”
He turned back to Lucian and while massaging his throbbing temples, he sighed and remembered what happened inside the half-white, half black space. With conflicted feelings, he gazed at Lucian and after thinking for a bit, he decided to just explain everything. After all, if Lucian had any desire, he could've finished him with a flicker of his finger.
“I… he mocked me for not being able to reach him. So I simply told him to come to me if he so wanted to get closer.”
“Tsk, tsk. You youngsters are really... Darius, because of your trauma, the ego got split in two, and another Darius was born. Born from all your guilt and your inability to forgive yourself. Although he’s a creation of madness and self-loathing, he’s more sane and reasonable than expected. Perhaps because of your high intelligence.”
“Yeah… so high that I’m screwing myself over again and again… Ugh, my head…”
“We are mortals and bound to make mistakes, large or small. And intelligence is based on how much we learn from mistakes, not how few we make. After all, no one was born experienced.”
"... Why are you suddenly so friendly? Where did your scummy character go?"
"Since your killing intent also disappeared, he decided to retreat."
"Huh? He?"
Darius raised an eyebrow in confusion, and the old man sighed with an amused smile.
"Just like you, I also have a demonic side. However, I was able to come to terms with mine and accept it. After doing so, rather than having me get influenced by his ego, the demonic side got influenced by my ego and turned peaceful... With some lingering effects here and there."
Lucian sighed troubledly as Darius just recalled the nasty character he showed a while ago.
So to understand, him being the [Devil] is because of his demonic side...? Now that he's in control, has he decided to separate from the cult or...?
Darius was extremely curious, but even after asking, Lucian simply shook his head, saying that it wasn't yet his time to know.
“Don't bother yourself with useless details now. What you must learn now is how to control that demon. What you saw inside yourself it’s exactly what you’re imagining. The white side it’s the part of you that just wants to let go of all the self-blame and guilt, and get over it all. While the black side it’s the complete opposite. The fact that you can’t step into the dark and take over it, means you’re still unable to fully grasp your mistakes, accept them, and forgive them.”
“I… feel my heart get torn the moment I hear those voices. It’s such a foreign pain that just makes me sick in the stomach and almost throw up. It’s maddening.”
Darius shook his head tired, and Lucian nodded while gazing down, understanding that feeling way too well.
“This is your cross, Darius. You must learn to conquer your own mind. Your own heart. And you can do that only by forgiving yourself and letting go. If not, then it will happen what happened now… The other side will take over and destroy everything you tried to build.”
“… Didn’t he say he'd do it in my stead?”
“A good tool will help the craftsman build anything. A broken tool will just make it worse and even harm the craftsman. Your mind and heart are the tools. And an alter ego separated from the main ego won’t be able to build anything; just destroy.”
“Yeah… As for what your bastard side did to me was…”
"Yes, he was a bit hasty... He should've just explained it calmly rather than shown you directly. However, if this is a good or a bad thing, I guess It depends on how you will deal with your inner demons from now on.”
“I’ll do what I can... For now, let us talk about some other things.”
“I’m at your service.”
Understanding that there’s nothing he can do right now about himself, Darius decided to change the subject. Lucian lightly bowing his head as he was ready to answer.
Surprisingly enough, the humane side of the [Devil] was more cooperative than he ever expected, thinking that maybe he could put aside his hatred for now and collaborate with him, at least until he was sure enough he could face against the Cult.