The morning air was crisp—cool, sharp, and strangely refreshing. I tilted my head back, closed my eyes, and breathed in slowly. For a moment, my mind was quiet. Quieter than it had ever been. And I couldn't understand how unleashing my hate and vengeance could feel this good.
It was good. But somehow, with every step forward in that direction, it feels like I'm losing pieces of myself. Like I'm betraying who I was and freeing who I'd always despised—all at once. As if invisible hands are pulling me apart from every direction.
Somewhere along the way, I abandoned my principles. I'm slipping deeper into madness. And yet, it feels surreal—like I'm sinking into a dream I don't want to wake from. I unleash my darkness, then come back to myself and wonder what I've become. But I don't turn back. I keep walking into it.
And somehow, this path makes me feel alive.
I opened my eyes to find Demonia standing behind me like a sentinel, silent and watchful. Surreal. I like it. Theo was staring—his expression unreadable, but something in his eyes felt off. He stepped closer and asked in a hushed voice, "Was it you?"
I tilted my head, puzzled by the question.
"What did you do that night?" he rephrased, louder this time, his voice tight. His shoulders were tense, fists clenched at his sides.
"Hmmm," I hummed, feigning confusion. "I don't know what you're talking about," I replied, keeping my voice calm, almost bored.
His eyes narrowed. "YOU," he hissed. "I knew something was wrong the moment I didn't find you in your room that night. I knew you did something. What did you do?"
I stared at him, expression blank, feigning confusion.
He grabbed my sword, stepped closer, and lunged—swinging at me like a maniac .
The blade stopped mid-air, and confusion—then fear—started showing on his features when he couldn't move it. Demonia stood behind me, clapping her two fists around the sword.
"Wh... what is this?" he hesitated, his confidence began to falter. He tried to move backwards, but all of his body was locked under her magic. Curiosity at this point was gnawing at me, and anticipation was rising to my head so fast I could barely think straight. I wanted—no, I needed—to know why Demonia's power hadn't worked on him before. It didn't make sense. It was supposed to work. It always worked.
Why not him?
His eyes widened when he saw the smile on my face and realized I was up to no good. I walked slowly around him, studying him—his posture, the way he gripped the sword, and how his eyes glimmered with effort, trying to summon his power as I took the sword from his hands."Remember, Theo?" I said, voice calm but laced with something cold. "That's mine."
I pretended to swing at him and stopped just before I touched him, and it made me laugh—thrilled, drunk on anticipation. It was like toying with his mind, and I enjoyed it. The way he flinched, the way his breath caught—it was almost too easy and too fun.
I raised my hand and formed a ring of fire around us, then kept circling him, pretending to contemplate my sword.
"You! You knew all this time how to use your power?". I could tell he was shaking with fear with that knowledge.
I passed my finger along the sword's edge until it drew blood. Then I leaned in and pressed it to his throat. He gulped—and it was probably really painful as I pushed hard.
"So, tell me, what were you saying again?" I singsonged.
"H... How?" he stammered, voice cracking with fear.
Oh, come on. I'm not that scary.
"How?" I repeated, tilting my head. "Is that really all you've got in this state?"
He didn't answer. Just stared at me like he was seeing something he hadn't expected.
When I noticed the way his composure began to crack—his breath uneven, his eyes darting—I leaned closer, voice dropping. "I won't kill you... under one condition."
When his eyes gave a hint of anger. The fire hissed louder, tightening around us.
"Anything. Anything," he said quickly, his voice trembling,
I couldn't resist smiling, it was so fun "Swear loyalty to me".
He hesitated. Just for a second. But it was enough so I made the flames surge higher.
"I, Theodorus Georgios," he said, voice low, almost choking on the words. "I swear loyalty to you."
So Demonia let him go. He nearly fell on his face, stumbling forward. And when I turned my back to him, he tried to attack me. I stepped to the side, letting him swing past me and nearly collapse again.
When he got fed up, his eyes glimmered—and then he tried to use his Alchemy on me. His right hand began to glow, forming circles upon circles, layered with symbols between them. The magic twisted and pulsed, shaping itself into a sword—sky blue, translucent, and humming with unstable energy.
"Not quite the man of honour, aren't you?" I said with a crooked grin, voice tilting into something sharp and amused.
"Demonia," I commanded.