Born and raised in darkness. All I see is darkness. I've only ever known darkness.

I was born in a human village off the outskirts of a major demon city. We had never had anything to do with the war, and the demons knew this. One day, a demon general by the name Castreian Asmodeus had visited our little village. We had treated him like royalty. We showed him kindness and treated him to the fullest, this is how we survived until then. But this time was different.

My mother had been one of the most beautiful women in the village, but she had also been kind and humble. My father had died a few years back in a monster hunting mission, so it had always just been me and her.

I was always too small and frail to help out around the house, so my mother had to be the one doing the work as well. I thought I was pathetic. I was supposed to be a man, yet I had to let my hardworking mother do all the work? I wanted to change, but my mother told me that I was fine as I was. Her light was almost blinding, and for the first time, I was content.

Castrean took a liking to my mother. I recall coming home one day, she and Castrean were talking to each other. However, my mother didn't seem to be interested in him. She rejected each advance that he made toward her, and she was trying to make it clear to him that she wanted nothing to do with him.

That's when he got physical.

He had pinned her against the wall and forcefully started stripping her. I rushed in to try and aid her. I wanted to protect my mother. I thought that it was my duty as a man, her son, to keep her from danger. I tried to pull him away, but my tiny frame was no match for that of a demon general. He smacked me away and I went flying across the house. I recall my mother screaming when that happened, but what I recall next was far worse.

He forced himself upon her. Right in front of me. I remember crying a lot. Crying that I couldn't do anything about it. Crying that our village had just allowed this injustice to occur. After that day, Castrean left. We thought that would be the last time we would ever see him, but we were dead wrong.

A week later, he came rolling through with his demon troops, an army of at least a thousand. He had announced that he would now be using our village as a military base against the human forces. At first, there was great resistance on the villagers end. This was one outrageous demand they would not meet. That's what they thought. Castrean ordered the murder of every male in the village, and by the end of the afternoon, it was only I, and the women left.

He killed every male in the village, be it young or old. He slaughtered the elderly, children, and even infants. I figured they left me alive for one of two reasons. One is that Castrean had ordered I be spared to save my mother from grief. Bullshit. The more likely reason is that the shitty demon army couldn't tell me from a girl.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Everyday was hell. Not just for me and my mother, but for every woman in the village. I was young at the time, so I didn't understand what they were doing, but I recognized it was wrong. They suffered and torment I had to witness for years. I had witnessed my mother go from always cheerful and happy, to a bottomless pit of despair. I had thought my love would be enough to keep her sane. I thought I was good enough to make her happy. I was wrong, and one day, despair overtook her and I was alone, for the first time ever.

It didn't take long for Castrean to find out about my mother's death. He was disappointed, not a trace of sadness on his face, but a look as if he lost a fun toy. He turned to me, I remembered those words he spoke as clear as day.

"You'll do."

Fear overcame me. I wondered if I should just end it as my mother had. I stared at my mother's grave for a long time. I remember the thoughts that flowed in and out of my mind.

Why did you leave me?

Did you even love me?

Was I not enough?

Was my love not good?

I'm scared.

What am I going to do now?

I felt like dying. I walked back home and prepared to meet Castrean. I was crying the entire trip to his house, or the house of the former village chief that is. When I arrived, I remember him looking at me with the eyes of a predator. He licked his sharp teeth as he stared down at my small figure in my mother's nightgown.

Before he could do anything with me, he was interrupted by the sounds of bloodcurdling screams coming from the village. Not just the screams of women, as that had been common, but the screams of his own soldiers. It was the Azuran army.

I remember that scene of Castrean running away, scared shitless at the group of elite holy knights. The image of the holy knights bursting through the door and saving me was burned into my mind. It was a beautiful sight, a sight that I had only dreamt of before. It was one of the best days of my life, only overtaken by the day I was able to murder Castrean with my own hands.

Those same demons, the ones that committed such atrocities against humans were being protected? Why was I being punished for doing the right thing? These things aren't people! They're monsters that deserve to be put down!

My mind snapped back to the present.

I was flying in the air. I was dying, becoming corrupted by the dark magic of one of the demons I hated so much. I tried to fly to the Leonhart house. They were the ones who made this assassination possible in the first place, they should take some responsibility for this! I was searching for the house, and I finally came across it. It was a smaller noble home compared to the palace or the duke's house, but it was still large.

I landed in the backyard and collapsed. I started crawling to the back door. I was exerting my full power just to move forward.

Just then, I noticed a kid about four years of age. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, like me, but unlike me, he had a fierce presence that surrounded him. One that terrified me to my very core. I tried to get up and run, but I couldn't.

The kid kneeled down next to my face and took my blindfold off. Ah, this darkness, I can't see at all. After he removed my blindfold, I could no longer see, as it was my eyes. I recall one thing before my mind went blank. The child uttered one sentence.

"You seem interesting."

My mind went blank.

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"What an impressive conclusion my reader!"

A metal eye drone flew through the window of my room. I quickly grabbed it and stuffed it into my messy desk. Plans on different mechanisms flooded out and my floor was covered in papers. "Aww, no fair."

I couldn't keep the papers from falling out due to my tiny hands, but that is what I get for reincarnating at the same time as my reader. I walked over to my bed, exhausted from the battle I had just witnessed. It really had me at the edge of my seat, literally! To see my characters used in such a manner, I couldn't have done any better!

I plopped down on the soft mattress. Perks of writing myself in as an aristocrat, I've been living pretty lavishly, but I know this peace won't last. I have about a good five years until I can meet my reader at the 'geas ceremony'. Until that time, I'll work hard to become strong as well. I held up my notebook and pen and stared at them hard.

"Well, it's not like I have to work that hard…"

End of Prologue Arc