"My name is…"
He looked directly into Evan's eyes.
"…DAEMON."
Then he smiled.
"…And gentlemen—
you're in my domain."
The landscape shuddered—data-storms screamed silently across jagged, angular voids, folding like glass mirrors melting in reverse. The Daemon's form loomed—a cascading shape of impossible eyes and inverted geometry, flickering between reality formats like a virus inside a computer.
Mana struggled to stabilize her consciousness, flickering like a corrupted avatar. Sumei choked back panic, her eyes darting, searching for a "logout" button that didn't exist.
"That's right, as this young lady suggests—" he continued, referring to Sumei, who flinched at even his smallest movement.
"—I'm indeed a soul—or you could say, a spirit—trapped in virtual reality for decades, maybe longer. So, gentlemen... got any doubts? Questions?"
Evan didn't answer. He stood perfectly still, like someone who'd seen worse. Locked in stillness.
"Not much of a talker, huh~?" the Daemon purred, his body straightening after another glitch.
His domain shifted with his presence. It was almost impossible to tell what space or time even looked like here.
"Curious. When mortals panic, they scream. When gods panic, they scheme. But you… an immortal mortal…"
He leaned forward, his grin widening with a metallic creak.
"…say nothing at all."
Again, no response.
The Daemon's size suddenly expanded—all of them now stood in his palm, while a smaller version of him appeared before Evan.
"No denial. No resistance. You're listening. That makes you the rarest kind of fool… or the most dangerous kind of friend."
Evan's eyes finally met his.
"…You talk too much," he said quietly.
A pause. Then the Daemon laughed—low, like thunder inside a coffin.
"My, my. We're both quite unlike, yet alike, aren't we?"
He circled Evan like a predator.
"What do you want?" Evan asked.
"You." The Daemon answered without hesitation.
"...Why?"
"To escape, of course!"
Evan narrowed his eyes, but his lips stayed shut.
The Daemon laughed again.
"You feel like something I haven't sensed in centuries. No—centuries of system time. Your soul is… rigid. Sharp. Like tempered steel soaked in blood... and it didn't break."
He hovered closer, glitching in and out of visibility like bad reception.
"So, what do you say? Gimme your body, gentleman~" the Daemon asked, like it was nothing new.
"What if I refuse?"
"Doesn't matter, to be honest. I can trap you here forever. You don't want that, do you?"
"You're asking for a life exchange. You think I'm an idiot?
If there wasn't a catch, you'd have taken me already—like the spoiled brat you're acting like right now."
Evan's words shut him up for a second. The Daemon's smile twitched.
"You're not that easy, huh? Guess I underestimated you. My apologies… but—"
He looked at Evan like a priest might look at a messiah—and a butcher might look at meat.
"—you can't escape either, right?"
He snapped his fingers. Multiple worldlines played out like shattered mirrors—dozens of players who had entered F.C.H., all victims of the Daemon, all brutally slaughtered at his command.
"Choose, Evan: suffer… or surrender~"
Evan's silence cracked.
"...Fine."
Everyone's eyes went wide in shock.
---
A YEAR BEFORE — SANCTUARY OF MORRIN
Morrin Nyviel knelt beside a shallow reflective pool.
Her hair shimmered like black oil. Her eyes—purple as cosmic ink—stared at the surface, watching it ripple unnaturally.
A soul. She had caught one.
A weak one. Freshly dead. Confused. Struggling not to be devoured.
She reached out.
But before she could pull it through the veil, a shadow materialized beside her.
"Negative."
"Don't... it's a weak one, but strong enough to twist your spine, little stepsister," he said flatly.
"You're late," Morrin said, her voice dry but melodic.
"You were early," Negative replied. "And that soul... isn't yours. Not yet. It's still too wild."
"What do you mean?"
"You still don't understand, do you?" Negative's voice crackled like fire underwater.
"Permission isn't about matter or consent. When forming a contract… it's not a handshake."
He knelt beside her, dipping a finger into the pool.
"It's the same as eating. You either pay—or steal."
"So what, spirits can just possess you if they break you down enough?" Morrin asked, frowning.
"Yes," Negative said softly. "That's the catch. They don't ask. They whisper. They tempt. They drain."
He looked at her.
"And if your will breaks before theirs… you become a vessel. A marionette in your own skin."
Morrin's eyes gleamed.
"But if you bait them—"
"Then you gain leverage."
"Fifty-fifty."
"Exactly. You make yourself look vulnerable. Let them try. Let them slip inside..."
He leaned close, his voice low.
"And then… you trap them."
Morrin smiled like someone tasting blood for the first time.
"Like fishing with your own soul."
"Yes. But only if you're strong enough to bite back."
She looked at the soul.
It hovered like a moth in amber. Beautiful. Fractured. Hungry.
"I think I'm ready to hunt a strong soul," Morrin whispered caressing her tattoo.
And from the shadows behind her, something ancient watched.
---
BACK IN THE DAEMON'S DOMAIN
The Daemon laughed at Evan's "Fine."
"I didn't expect you to agree so easily—"
"I didn't say I'd let you take me that easily, did I?" Evan cut in.
The Daemon's laughter died, but not his smile.
"I'll give you a chance to prove yourself."
His eyes were dead serious, but Sumei could sense something else—something deeper. She couldn't name it.
"If you're interested, I'll let you have my body."
"Heh. A challenge, huh?" the Daemon chuckled, glitching inches from Evan's face. Evan didn't flinch.
"So, you're confident I'll fail?"
"No. I never considered that possibility."
The Daemon paused.
Evan continued.
"You agree to the challenge. You want my body—then prove you deserve it.
This has nothing to do with what I think about you."
"Are you..." the Daemon's voice cracked. The realm twisted like an illusion.
"...FEELING PITY FOR ME, human?"
His voice held a thread of anger—suppressed rage that someone like Evan would dare treat him as an equal.
"You… out of all people. You don't fear me. You don't resist.
And yet… you get on my nerves?"
He grinned, flickering between reality and code.
"Are you accepting, or not?" Evan ignored his rant.
The Daemon growled, then answered.
"Alright, human. What is this 'challenge' of yours?"
Evan stepped forward.
"Go through my memories. All of them. Buried deep. My journey. My pain. Live as me."
The Daemon froze. Even his glitches stopped for a second.
Then—laughter.
From every corner of the domain, his voice echoed louder and louder.
Then, silence. He clapped.
"My, my. You're really something, huh?"
"…"
"You want me to live your mortal's life? Just to blend with you? Are you out of your mind?"
No response.
"Fine. If I survive your life, I get your body. That's the deal?"
Evan nodded.
Sumei and Mana huddled together.
"What is Mr. Evan doing? Is he really gonna do this?" Mana whispered.
"This is insane. What's going on with Grandpa?"
"He knows he can't fight something he can't hit. So he's doing what he can… maybe to save us?"
"He's fighting something else instead…"
"Mr. Evan's not thinking straight, is he?"
"Maybe… he just smells like he relates to this Daemon guy."
Evan stood still. The Daemon scanned him for traps.
"No tricks?"
"Says the Joker himself? Shouldn't I be asking if you'll cheat?"
"Geez, you're so strict."
"So. What do you offer?"
"Fine, fine. If I try to escape your memories, I won't just leave your body—I'll give you my powers too. And to secure our deal, we form a contract."
"Fair enough."
The Daemon blinked, confused.
"You're either brave enough to save those girls… or just stupid enough to risk your life for nothing~" he taunted.
Evan didn't respond.
Then, with a glitch and a burst of sound, the Daemon screamed:
"THEN LET'S BEGIN, SHALL WE?"
Evan nodded.
The Daemon's spirit collided with his body.
The night dissolved into nothingness.
True, absolute void.
There was no sky. No ground. No light. Only nothingness.
Standing before the Daemon's core… was a card.
The Joker.
Suddenly—it struck him.
And just like that—
Everything came flooding in.
---
Back in the market VR, Sumei and Mana were still clinging to each other.
Silence.
Then—like a glass window shattered with a hammer—
"FUHAHAHAHA—!"
The Daemon—now in Evan's body—was laughing like a lunatic.
"This body… it's perfect! No glitches, no flickers. Yes—YES!"
Then—
"AGHHH—!"
His head exploded with pain.
Right. He was experiencing everything Evan had lived. Not just memories—but true, total pain.
It wasn't like watching a memory.
It was like being run over by thousands of bison, again and again, in a compressed heartbeat.
He screamed.
The market VR glitched, warped by his agony.
---
BACK IN EVAN'S MIND
In the dark, the Daemon was on his knees—clutching his head.
Evan stood in front of him.
Not cold.
Not angry.
Just… pitying.
"I thought I could leave that body," Evan said quietly.
The Daemon looked up.
In Evan's eyes—he saw it: disappointment. Exhaustion. Pity.
"What… what are you talking about? The hell did you go through?" Daemon growled.
Evan didn't respond directly.
"I've been ready to die for a long time. But for some reason—I can't. I'm stuck here too."
The Daemon went silent.
He saw it now. Evan wasn't trying to be noble. He was just… tired.
"Honestly, I find your goals more admirable than mine," Evan said.
"I'm just looking for answers. You? You want to live. You want to escape. You want something."
He stepped closer.
"We really are unlike… yet alike.
You want to escape and live.
I want to stay and die.
Different goals—same pain."
He looked down at him.
"But I guess you couldn't handle my body on the first try, huh?"
The Daemon didn't respond.
"Wanna try again?"
Still nothing.
Then, finally, the Daemon spoke.
"…No. I understand now. I'm not worthy of your body."
"…"
"But… I still want to escape. I'm not a good person. You can leave me here."
Evan stood still for a moment. Then:
"I'm still open to giving you a second chance."
The Daemon blinked. Evan continued.
"I'm not going to trust you. Or expect loyalty.
But I'll give you a chance to live."
A pause. Then, laughter—broken, tired laughter.
"You're an idiot. Giving me a second chance? After all this?" Daemon said.
"I couldn't even possess you properly. How come?"
"Who's asking you to take over my body? You would've done that already if you could.
But that means… you can stick to a person, right?"
The Daemon squinted. Then grinned.
"Smart for a human… fine. There is a way. With the contract I formed—
You get my powers.
I get access to your body's energy.
Like a parasite."
"Literally?"
"Metaphorically, you idiot."
"Alright. I'm good with that too."
The Daemon paused again.
Then smiled wide—mask flickering back into place.
"You're a strange human."
He extended a glitching hand.
"—Perhaps you are a strange case… at the end of the day."
Evan took his hand.
"Been called worse. 'Strange case' isn't so bad."
---
LIGHT RETURNS
Suddenly—
Light pierced the dark.
The market VR shimmered and shifted. The glitchy purple and pink stripes restructured into bright sky-blue and white.
Sumei and Mana looked up from their huddle.
Evan stood there, back turned to them.
In his hand—
a single card.
The Joker.
He tucked it into his pocket.
"We got more than what we needed," he said flatly.
Mana and Sumei flinched—but forced themselves to speak.
"W-what do you mean? Did you… take over Mr. Evan?" Mana asked, voice trembling.
"…"
"Answer the question, you demon!" Sumei shouted, hiding behind Mana.
"…Brat, that's me," Evan replied flatly.
"…Only Grandpa would call a cute little girl like me a brat. That's definitely Grandpa."
"I'm not your grandpa."
"Definitely Grandpa."
He sighed—already used to her antics.
Sumei, though playful, felt it clearly now.
This was Evan… but stronger. Different.
Not just one soul inside anymore.
There were two.