Malina's eyes fluttered open, heavy with grogginess and disorientation. The bright white ceiling above her was almost blinding, forcing her to squint as she tried to adjust. She blinked a few times, struggling to clear the fog from her vision.

Slowly, the room began to take shape around her. The sterile, clinical surroundings sharpened, and she tried to sit up, but her limbs felt sluggish and uncooperative. A dull ache pulsed through her head, making her wince as she carefully propped herself up on her elbows.

“What happened? Why do I feel so weak?” she murmured, her voice rasping and frail. She glanced around, her thoughts tangled as she tried to piece together what had happened. “I think I remember now… I was fighting an—”

Her expression hardened, eyes narrowing as a dark realization dawned. Her jaw tightened as the truth sank in. How could she have lost?

She was Malina Urfric Gonzales, the queen of harpies, one of the most powerful monsters in existence. How could she have lost to a delusional man—especially the one who had killed her brother?

How could she live with this shame?

Her hands clenched into fists, tightening until blood dripped onto the floor, only for her regeneration to swiftly heal the wounds. She turned her gaze to the tall, oval mirror beside the bed, staring at her reflection as her anger slowly ebbed, replaced by a deep, lingering sadness.

"It’s been so long since I’ve looked at my original human form in the mirror," she whispered, her voice heavy with the weight of memories.

Malina exhaled deeply, her shoulders sagging under the burden of her thoughts. Life had spiraled into chaos ever since her mother, the former queen, passed away, leaving Malina to inherit the throne as the eldest of three daughters.

“Now, whose room is this, and how did I get here? This isn’t mine—my door and wall were broken by Satan, as far as I remember. Unless someone fixed everything while I was unconscious… Could it be Tamamo-no-Mae?" Malina wondered aloud. "Huh... Why am I even questioning it? It’s obviously her, but where is she?”

The creak of a door opening jolted Malina from her thoughts. Instinctively, she shifted into her disguised human form and raised her guard.

‘Wait a moment… Where is my spear?’

She raised her hand, summoning her weapon. The spear emerged from the other side of the bed, where it had been lying on the floor, hovering briefly before flying into her grasp. Whoever was entering, whether human or monster, would face her wrath. But as the door swung fully open, she saw who it was and relaxed, letting out a breath of relief.

“You finally woke up. I thought you wouldn’t for another two or three hours,” Tamamo-no-Mae said, her voice calm, her human form flawless as ever. “Considering how badly Satan knocked you out, it’s a miracle he didn’t go for the killing blow.” She closed the door behind her. “I thought you were finished when he stabbed you with his hand.”

Tamamo-no-Mae waved her finger, pulling a chair from the table and sitting down. She motioned for Malina to do the same, summoning another chair. “Sit. We have a lot to discuss.”

Malina sat down, her mind still spinning. “Tell me, how are we both still alive?”

“Courtesy of Satan,” Tamamo-no-Mae replied, tightly grasping her kimono. “You lost to him in the fight, and so did I. I couldn’t match his immense power. He would have killed us both without hesitation if I hadn’t accepted his offer.”

“Offer? What kind of offer?” Malina’s tone was thick with suspicion. “Did he ask you to give him your body or something?”

“No…” Tamamo-no-Mae said, her grip on her kimono loosening. “He didn’t seem that type, despite his initial behavior. Instead, his offer was a trade of information—he’d answer my questions, and I’d answer his. We’d try to reach some understanding, or face utter annihilation. And you can guess what I chose.”

“So how did it go? Did you tell him everything about us?”

“Of course not. I’m no fool,” Tamamo-no-Mae replied. “I gave him only brief, surface-level answers. I believe he was doing the same, deliberately keeping things hidden. He’s cunning and sharp; I’m sure he knew I wasn’t being straightforward and was leaving things vague. Yet, he didn’t act on it. It’s not surprising, considering the kind of being he is—he probably has a detailed plan in mind.”

“I hate to admit it, but you’re right,” Malina said, her voice laced with frustration. “That guy is dangerous. He has both brains and brawn. When I stabbed him with my spear, I thought I finally had him. But now that I think about it, he probably let me stab him, just to show that no matter what I do, I could never really harm him. And even if I did, it would be meaningless. I’m sorry, brother… It looks like I won’t be able to avenge you.”

Tamamo-no-Mae leaned forward, her touch light on Malina’s shoulder. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. You can still avenge your brother.”

Malina looked at her friend, confusion clouding her face. “How? What can I even do?”

“By punishing the real culprit,” Tamamo-no-Mae said, leaning back. “Or, I should say, the culprits.”

“Culprits? What do you mean?”

“Listen,” Tamamo-no-Mae began, her tone serious. “During the Q&A with Satan, he mentioned that he killed Albedo after your brother forced himself on a woman who had summoned him for vengeance. But just as Satan was about to deliver the final blow, Albedo said something strange. He claimed he was coerced by someone else, that he was under a spell. He wasn’t able to reveal who was behind it, but he begged Satan to stop them, warning that they were trying to bring the world to ashes.”

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Malina’s heart raced. She could hardly believe what she was hearing. Who had dared to force her brother into such a heinous act? Because of them, her brother was dead.

“Who… tell me… who are they?” Malina demanded, her voice trembling with rage.

“Satanists,” Tamamo-no-Mae answered. “But not the ones here. Satan said the Satanists here belong to a faction called Oh-Satanica, and they’re not connected to Albedo’s case or the other matter Satan is here for.”

“How does he know about this?” Malina pressed, eager to understand where Satan got his information.

“Do you remember the girl Haruki?” Tamamo-no-Mae asked. “The security guard who jumped from the rooftop?”

“From her?”

“Yes. Satan said he learned this information from her after killing her fellow and threatening her in a... seductive way. After that, well, you know what happened.”

“I see…” Malina muttered, the pieces slowly falling into place.

“There’s something else,” Tamamo-no-Mae continued. “Satan asked me to bring something up with you once you woke up.”

“And what is it?”

“Dark Descent.”

“Dark Descent…” Malina repeated, frowning. “I’ve heard that name before, but I can’t recall where.”

“It would be better if you could solve the mystery of this name,” Tamamo-no-Mae advised.

“You’re right,” Malina agreed. “So, where is he now?”

“He’s on the rooftop,” Tamamo-no-Mae replied.

“Rooftop?” Malina echoed.

“Yes. He’s just ‘seeing the view,’ or so he says, but I don’t believe it. He’s probably up there for some other reason. It’s better if we don’t interfere. Oh, and I remember now—he said he wanted us to meet him in his room at midnight. He plans to take us with him to attack the Satanist hideout.”

“And why does he want to do that?” Malina asked, confused. If this so-called Satan claims to be the real Devil, then why does he want to kill the Satanists? Aren’t they his worshippers? This doesn’t make any sense.

“I don’t know, nor do I think we should ask him,” Tamamo-no-Mae said.

Malina glanced at the clock. It was now 7 p.m.—five more hours to go.

***

Elena and Maria sat at the table, quietly eating dinner. The meal consisted of grilled steak with a slightly charred crust, a bowl of fluffy rice, steaming miso soup, crisp fried fish, and a glass of deep purple grape wine.

"I hope Satan finds your daughter soon so I can get you out of my house," Elena said, her voice edged with irritation. "I already hate sharing the same air as you." She took a bite of her steak, savoring its smoky flavor.

"You don’t have to worry. As soon as I find her, I’ll be out of here," Maria replied, her voice tinged with sadness as she took a small bite of her steak.

"That’s better," Elena muttered.

"There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask, if you don’t mind," Maria said after a pause.

"What is it?" Elena asked, glancing at her.

"How did you learn about demon summoning?" Maria asked, her voice curious but cautious.

"Huh? Are you planning to summon a demon to kill me or something?" Elena responded, her tone flat, almost bored. After everything Maria had done to ruin her life, the idea of a demon summoning hardly surprised her.

"What? No, no!" Maria exclaimed, her voice shaking.

"I don’t care what you do; after all, I have the Devil on my side. Anyway, here’s how it went," Elena said calmly. "After I couldn’t get justice through the law, I found myself in a church, and this old man in a trench coat approached me. We talked briefly, and I told him about my problems. I was hesitant at first, but he convinced me, and then he told me about demon summoning." She took another bite of steak, savoring the rich flavors.

"So that old man taught you how to summon a demon?" Maria asked, trying to piece things together.

"Yes, he did. At first, I couldn’t believe it, but I was desperate, so I gave it a try. You know what happened after that," Elena said.

"Did you also... sacrifice children? Like the ones in the news?" Maria asked hesitantly.

"No, I would never!" Elena snapped, her voice sharp. "Why would I sacrifice innocent children for myself? I summoned him using my own blood."

"I see," Maria said quietly. "But if you didn’t need children, why did those Satanists sacrifice them?"

"I don’t know," Elena replied, her voice trailing off.

Maria picked up her glass, taking a slow sip of wine before setting it down. "Elena, do you believe a child can be evil?"

Elena considered the question for a moment before responding, "Yes, children can be evil. I’ve heard of some so twisted that it would be better to… end them, rather than try to fix them."

"Then you might believe me when I say that what I did back then was because of my daughter. She was the one responsible for everything," Maria confessed, her voice trembling.

"What?" Elena's eyes widened. "Are you telling me your daughter is responsible?"

"Yes," Maria whispered, tears streaming down her face. "She’s twisted. She forced me to do all of it. I would have never seduced your husband or turned our family and friends against you with lies and rumors."

"If that's true, how did Selena force you? And why?" Elena asked, struggling to make sense of it.

"Selena is... different. Since the day she was born, no one but me has seen her eyes turn completely black whenever I didn’t do what she wanted. She would tie me to the bed using her powers, break my bones, and then heal them again," Maria said, as painful memories flashed through her mind. "Not only that, she also had the ability to grow penis and sometimes also raped me, penetrating my body and filling my womb as sort of punishment."

Elena didn’t know how to respond. She wasn’t sure whether to believe Maria or not. She decided she would have to confirm it when Satan brought Selena back.

"Was Jarred aware of this?" Elena asked.

"Yes. After you were kicked out of the family and all connections were severed, we lived in constant fear of her," Maria admitted.

"But what problem did your daughter have with me? I was always nice to her when we still had contact," Elena said, confused.

"I don’t know. But even with everything she’s done, I hope she comes back safely. She’s evil, no doubt, but she’s still my daughter. I still love her," Maria said, her voice filled with a mother's longing.

***

Heaven, a place spoken of as the realm of eternal bliss—a paradise where the souls of humans ascend after performing good deeds in the mortal world. But Heaven was not singular; there were many heavens, some small, some vast, and others infinite in size, as numerous as the pantheons of gods on Earth.

Among all the heavens, the most renowned is the one belonging to the Biblical Pantheon, a shining place filled with clouds, white structures, and golden gates—the default image of Heaven in the minds of most humans. Yet, not all heavens look the same.

The Biblical Heaven was infinite in size, divided into seven layers, each more infinite than the last, filled with angels—beings of eldritch forms, adorned with white wings and countless eyes, shapes rendered ethereal after losing their physical forms in the war against the demons.

Lately, turmoil has gripped this Biblical Heaven. For the past two days, they have sensed the presence of a dark force, a familiar aura of a demon, yet not quite. It bore the name Satan, yet it was not. None of them could understand what it truly was. If only God were here in Heaven—but, for reasons unknown, He had left and hidden Himself from everything.

"Inhabitants of Paradise."

A heavy, divine, and calm voice echoed through all of Heaven.

All the angels recognized this voice. It was the voice of Archangel Michael, the strongest angel and the right hand of God, the one who defeated Lucifer when he led a civil war in Heaven to usurp God's throne.

"I doth understand the burden that hath weighed upon thy minds these past two days—the strange anomaly that doth bear the name of Satan, our fallen brother, yet is not he. A demon, yet not a demon. Fret not, for when all Saints have gathered at the Vatican, I shall myself descend and deal with this threat."

Hearing this, the angels whispered among themselves. They could hardly believe that this anomaly was so dangerous that the Archangel himself would need to descend to the mortal plane to confront it.

A low-ranking angel, whose form was that of two wide wings and a giant eye with a halo atop his head, spoke,

"Brother Michael, prithee, forgive mine boldness, yet hast thou discovered aught of this new Satan?"

"Aye, Brother. With Gabriel’s aid, we traced the fleeting and distorted energies left in the wake of this anomaly's arrival. We found that this entity cometh from what mortals would name a parallel world."

"A parallel world? As one of those alternate timelines?" the lower angel inquired.

"Nay, not so. We have communed with our other selves across infinite timelines. This world whence the anomaly doth hail is a true parallel, governed by laws foreign to our own, bearing its own angels and demons, and perchance a version of our Father as well."

This revelation baffled the angels. How could there be another version of their Father? There was only one God who could exist simultaneously in all infinite timelines—how could there be another?

"Not only that, but this is not the first time beings from that world have walked among us,"Michael continued.

The angels were stricken with shock, and murmured with mounting concerns.

"When did these beings cross into our realm, Brother, and why did we not perceive them?"the lower angel asked.

"‘Twas during the second war against the demons. Their presence was cloaked amidst the chaos, but some among us beheld them with our own eyes." Michael did explain. "Dost thou remember the strange beings that fought against both demon and angel, with power enough to wound even me and others of high rank?"

"Art thou speaking of them?" the lower angel inquired.

"Aye, verily. There is even a chance that this Satan may be a version of our own fallen brother. If this be so, it is ill news indeed, for one Satan is enough—we need not twain. Gabriel hath warned me that this new Satan may prove a threat greater than the one sealed within Hell. If we act not swiftly, Heaven itself may fall," Michael declared.