"Get out!" Peanut yelled as she shoved against Tuf, trying to push her much bigger brother out of Luna's maternity chamber.
It was the ninth month. The two moons were at their peak above the Velrathis Empire when the silence of the night shattered with Luna's scream. She was in labor.
"I am her mate!" Tuf shouted back, eyes wild with panic. "She needs me!"
"Yes, you're her mate," Peanut snapped, "but you're not the father of the baby. Even father isn't allowed inside, and it's his baby with mother. So to make it fair, no boys allowed. Get out!"
Still, Tuf struggled against her, refusing to leave Luna.
"Fuck you, Nugget!" he howled when their other sister suddenly kicked him in the gut, sending him tumbling out of the chamber.
Nugget gave him the middle finger before pulling the curtains closed with a hard snap.
Inside, Luna clutched the sheets, her face drenched in sweat. Ceres knelt at her side, wiping her forehead while Pixie clutched her hand tightly.
"There's not going to be any complications, right?" Luna asked through gritted teeth, voice shaking from the pain racking her body.
"It's going to be alright, Kitten," Ceres said softly, though her own heart was racing.
This was the worst pain Luna had ever felt. The moment the embryo had been implanted, her magic had formed a protective cocoon around the child. And since then, Luna had lived as if she were a fragile human, without her usual strength, without her regenerative abilities. She had carried this child for nine months with her power subdued, her body straining with every moment.
And now, it was time.
Outside, Tuf paced restlessly, sweat lining his temples. He could feel every ripple of her pain echoing inside him through their bond.
"Cub, please sit down," Caelum said calmly, watching his son unravel.
"I can't," Tuf muttered, his hands trembling uncontrollably.
"Luna can sense your anxiety," Neko interjected. "She's already in pain, and your panic's only making it worse."
"You don't understand what I'm feeling!" Tuf snapped, his eyes wild as they turned to Neko.
"No, I don't," Neko said with one brow raised. "But I do know you're not helping her like this."
Tuf looked at his father, eyes begging for understanding.
"Your brother is right," Caelum said, firm but gentle.
With no choice, Tuf slumped to the floor beside the maternity chamber door, flipping off Neko as he sat, seething.
Two hours passed. Two hours of Luna's screams echoing through the tower.
Then… silence.
Caelum, Tuf, and Neko immediately stood. The hush was too sudden. Too complete.
And then, a cry.
The sharp, bright cry of a newborn.
"Master!" Comet's voice rang out just as Tuf collapsed without warning. Comet barely caught him in time. Simultaneously, Neko went limp, and Seiryu moved swiftly, catching his unconscious form.
"Love! Something's happening!" Ceres shouted as she rushed out of the chamber.
But the moment she saw Caelum, she froze.
He was standing still. His face exposed.
His mask… gone.
Tears streamed down his cheeks.
Because in that moment, he remembered everything.
His true name.
His true self.
"Love… your mask," Ceres whispered, breath catching in her throat. Tears welled in her eyes. She knew what it meant.
The moment their daughter cried, his curse was broken.
He couldn't speak. Couldn't find the words.
So instead, he walked to her, wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her into his chest.
And in that quiet, sacred moment, Caelum, no, Zeus, wept freely, holding the woman he loved more than anything in all the realms.
Because after centuries of sacrifice, of pain and death… he was finally free.
"Love…" Ceres looked at Zeus, his face now fully visible without the mask. For a moment, she felt joy swell in her heart, but her worry overshadowed it. "Something happened."
Her gaze darted back into the maternity chamber. Thankfully, Lyxaria, Lissaen, Delphine, and Arwen were inside with them. Lyxaria and Arwen had caught Nugget and Peanut when the two collapsed. Pixie was in Delphine's arms, and Lissaen was cradling the newborn baby.
Ceres turned her eyes to the hallway outside, and her worry deepened.
Tuf and Neko were both unconscious.
"What's happening?" Ceres asked, her voice tight with anxiety. She thought everything would finally be okay.
"It's alright, love," Zeus said gently. "Our curse has been lifted. Starting today… their lives are no longer tethered to mine."
"What does that mean?" she asked.
"It means," Zeus explained, "they're finally free to live their own lives. They can grow. Their time is no longer suspended. Pixie will no longer be stuck at six, she'll grow now. All of them will. Luna and Tofu will be able to have a child of their own one day."
And as he spoke, slowly, the consciousness returned to Tuf, Neko, Nugget, Peanut, and Pixie.
Only Luna remained asleep, her body still recovering.
"Kitten…" Tuf rushed into the chamber the moment he stirred, kneeling at Luna's side. He gently brushed his hand over her cheek, kissed her lips, and lowered his head to her chest to listen to the steady beat of her heart. Relief flooded his features.
The others remained stunned. They looked down at their hands in awe, feeling, for the first time, time itself moving within them. No longer suspended in an eternal, unnatural stillness… they could feel it now.
"I'm going to grow," Pixie whispered, tears glimmering in her eyes. "I'm not going to be six forever. I'm going to grow…"
Zeus and Ceres stepped away from their embrace and moved toward their children. Zeus gently took Pixie from Delphine's arms, holding her close. Together, they stepped toward Luna's bedside and gathered with the others.
They embraced, together, whole.
The curse was lifted.
They could finally begin to live… a life as normal as a Demon Lord's family could possibly live.
If only Alpha, Orso, Milo, and Vivi were there, it would have been complete.
Hours passed. When Luna finally awoke, her magic had returned to her. She felt renewed, herself once again.
Ceres now held the baby girl in her arms. The child had Ceres's eyes and lips, and Zeus's strong jaw and nose, a perfect blend of the two. Their child. Their miracle.
"What should we call her?" Ceres asked Zeus softly.
They both knew she couldn't be named Lilith, not anymore. That name belonged to the past.
They turned to look at Lissaen, who stiffened at the unspoken question in their eyes.
"I don't know," Lissaen answered, honestly bewildered. "My Lord never told me to name the child."
"What?" Nugget said, blinking. "But wasn't it part of the prophecy? That you would name her?"
"I think there's been a misunderstanding," Lissaen said.
"But the prophecy said," Ceres countered, eyes narrowing thoughtfully, "she must be named, not Lilith, but with a new name… whispered in love by a soul forgotten by the heavens. A soul who once lost everything, and remembers what it means to want nothing."
"Isn't that you?" Ceres asked. "Your history was erased from Solmara. Only the Crimson bloodline and the Holy Beasts remember you."
Lissaen gave a small, bittersweet smile.
"Exactly, Empress. I wasn't forgotten. I was erased. But not entirely, my kin and the Holy Beasts remember me. And… I am a demon. Heaven has nothing to do with me."
"Your Highness… if the prophecy said the name must come from someone forgotten by Heaven… isn't that the third Archangel, Seraphadneel?" Seiryu asked thoughtfully.
Only then did Ceres and Zeus remember, Seiryu was right.
It was Seraphadneel who had given the prophecy to Lucifer. She might be the only one who truly knew the child's new name. But how were they supposed to find her? They didn't even know she had existed until recently.
"Are you sure it has to be Seraphadneel who names her?" Lyxaria asked.
"We don't know," Zeus admitted.
"Because if it's her… then I think I know the name," Lyxaria said, her calm declaration startling everyone in the room. All eyes turned to her.
"But if it's wrong," she continued, "something terrible might happen. We need to be absolutely certain."
"Have you met her? The Archangel Seraphadneel?" Lissaen asked cautiously.
"I think I have," Lyxaria said.
"She wasn't just forgotten by Heaven," Lyxaria explained. "It seems she forgot herself too. She doesn't remember who she is. She doesn't know she's an Archangel."
"Then how can you be sure it's her, if even she doesn't know?" Tuf asked, still seated beside the resting Luna.
"I can't be sure. It's just… a hunch," Lyxaria admitted.
"A hunch?!" everyone in the room said almost in unison, disbelief in their voices.
Lyxaria simply smiled. "Yes. But I always follow my hunches. They've never failed me."
"Give me a moment," Zeus said quietly, and then vanished from the room.
He reappeared in his bedchamber, moving with purpose. From a hidden compartment, he retrieved one of three remaining rings he kept safe, Ceres' wedding bond, and closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, he was standing in the Abyss.
"Show yourself. I know you're already here," Zeus said into the darkness.
A velvet red and black throne shimmered into existence. Sitting upon it was Lucifer.
"Seraphadneel," Zeus began, "was she supposed to name our child?"
Instead of answering, Lucifer smiled, but for the first time, it wasn't mocking. It was real. Soft. Filled with a longing that reached beyond millennia.
"Congratulations on almost completing the deal," Lucifer said.
Zeus scowled. "Answer the question."
"You have eighteen years, Zeus," Lucifer said, ignoring the demand. "Eighteen years to call her your daughter. After that… I will claim my bride." His voice held no threat, only certainty. "Consider seeing Ceres again as my gift to you."
"That's not what I asked!" Zeus roared,
But suddenly, he was back in his bedchamber, standing alone.
"You fucking devil!" Zeus cursed, slamming his fist into the wall.
But Lucifer's silence had been answer enough.
He teleported back to the maternity chamber, where everyone was waiting.
"Love?" Ceres rushed to him, eyes searching his face.
"It's true," Zeus said grimly. "The name must come from Seraphadneel." His eyes turned to Lyxaria. "What name did she give you?"
Lyxaria smiled gently, stepping forward.
"Lilucé Solirae," she said. "It means 'ray of sunshine', because Lord Samael is the Morning Star. And she is his ray. His beloved."
"Lilucé Solirae…" Ceres whispered, holding the baby closer. And at that moment, a glowing mark bloomed on the infant's chest, the Morning Star.
Everyone in the room gasped.
"You really did meet Seraphadneel," Ceres said, awe in her voice.
Lyxaria nodded. "It was Evadne."
Zeus turned sharply. "Evadne? She's Seraphadneel?"
"Her memory is incomplete yet," Lyxaria answered. "But yes. She is the forgotten Archangel."
Zeus stared at her, stunned.
"And not just her," Lyxaria continued softly. "Hades and Casadin are angels too. Warrior angels. That's why they couldn't cross the portal. They would've disintegrated the moment they tried."