Darkness swallowed the room.
One second the abandoned building had been filled with the harsh white beams of police flashlights. The next, everything vanished into a suffocating black void.
A chorus of startled shouts erupted.
"What the—?!"
"The lights!"
"My flashlight isn't working!"
The officers' voices echoed through the hollow building as confusion spread among them.
Elena's heart pounded violently against her ribs.
Her eyes strained desperately, but she couldn't see anything. Not the police. Not the walls. Not even her own hands.
The darkness was unnatural.
Too thick.
Too heavy.
It felt alive.
"Elena."
The whisper brushed against her ear again.
She jumped slightly.
Azrael.
Even though she couldn't see him, she could feel his presence behind her. It was like standing beside a quiet storm—dangerous, powerful, and impossible to ignore.
Her voice came out in a shaky whisper.
"You did this?"
"Of course."
His tone was calm, almost bored.
"Humans rely too much on their sight."
The officers were growing more frantic.
"I can't see anything!"
"Stay together!"
"Watch the suspect!"
Elena swallowed nervously.
"They're going to arrest me."
Azrael chuckled softly.
"They would certainly try."
His breath brushed lightly against her neck, sending an unexpected shiver down her spine.
"Unless you allow me to deal with them."
Her stomach tightened.
"You mean… kill them?"
"Yes."
The word was spoken so casually it made her chest feel cold.
Elena quickly shook her head.
"No!"
Azrael fell silent.
Even in the darkness, she could almost feel his gaze settling on her.
"Why not?" he asked.
"They're just doing their job," she said firmly.
"They think I'm guilty."
"But you're not."
"That doesn't mean they deserve to die."
For a moment, there was only silence between them.
Then Azrael sighed quietly.
"Humans."
His tone held a strange mixture of amusement and curiosity.
"You're more merciful than I expected."
"That's called being normal."
He laughed softly.
"In my world, mercy is considered a weakness."
Elena didn't respond.
Instead, she listened to the chaos around them.
The officers were moving cautiously now, their footsteps scraping against the dusty floor.
"Spread out!"
"She must still be here!"
Elena's pulse quickened.
"They'll find me."
Azrael's voice remained calm.
"Not if you move."
Before she could ask what he meant, something suddenly wrapped around her wrist.
His hand.
It was warm.
Unexpectedly warm.
"Don't panic," he murmured.
Then the world shifted.
The air around Elena twisted suddenly, as if space itself had been folded like paper.
Her stomach dropped.
In the blink of an eye—
They were somewhere else.
Elena gasped and stumbled forward, catching herself against a wall.
"What just happened?!"
Her vision slowly adjusted.
They were no longer inside the main room of the abandoned building.
Instead, they stood inside a smaller storage room nearby. Old shelves lined the walls, covered in dust and rusted metal tools.
Through a cracked doorway, Elena could still hear the distant voices of the police searching the other room.
She turned to Azrael, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"You… teleported us?"
He leaned casually against the wall.
"If that's the word you prefer."
"That's impossible."
"For humans, yes."
Elena ran a hand through her damp hair, trying to steady her breathing.
Everything was happening too fast.
First demons.
Now teleportation.
Her mind felt like it was spinning.
Azrael watched her quietly.
"You're handling this remarkably well."
"I'm not handling it well," she muttered.
"I'm just too tired to panic anymore."
A faint smile touched his lips.
"Understandable."
Outside the storage room, the officers' voices grew louder again.
"They're searching the whole building."
Elena's chest tightened.
"They won't stop until they find me."
Azrael studied her carefully.
"Then perhaps it's time you stopped running."
She blinked.
"What?"
"You are innocent," he said simply.
"Yes."
"But the world believes you're guilty."
"That's the problem."
Azrael stepped closer.
"Then change the world's belief."
Elena frowned.
"That's easier said than done."
"Not with my help."
His crimson eyes glowed faintly in the dim room.
"You want revenge."
"I want the truth."
"And revenge will follow."
His words sent a strange chill through her.
"You're very confident."
"I'm very capable."
Elena crossed her arms.
"And what do you get from all this?"
Azrael smiled slowly.
"The price."
"You still haven't told me what that is."
"I will."
"When?"
"When the time is right."
That answer didn't comfort her at all.
Before she could question him further—
A loud crash echoed from the hallway.
The storage room door suddenly burst open.
Flashlights flooded the room with blinding light.
"There she is!"
Elena's heart stopped.
Three officers stood in the doorway, guns raised.
"Don't move!"
Elena instinctively stepped back.
The officers' flashlights swept across the room.
But something strange happened.
They didn't react to Azrael at all.
They were staring directly at Elena.
As if she were alone.
Her eyes widened slightly.
They couldn't see him.
Azrael leaned closer to her ear, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Humans cannot see demons unless I allow it."
The officer in front stepped forward.
"Elena Hart," he said firmly.
"You're under arrest for corporate espionage and fleeing from law enforcement."
Another officer pulled out handcuffs.
Elena's pulse raced.
If they arrested her now…
Everything would be over.
She looked desperately at Azrael.
"What do I do?"
His crimson eyes gleamed with quiet excitement.
"Well…"
His voice lowered to a dangerous whisper.
"You have two choices."
He raised two fingers slowly.
"Option one…"
"You surrender."
The officer moved closer.
"Turn around and put your hands behind your back!"
Azrael lowered one finger.
"Or…"
His smile darkened.
"Option two."
The shadows in the room began to twist again.
Darkness crept slowly across the walls like living smoke.
Azrael's eyes glowed brighter.
"You let a demon protect what belongs to him."
Elena's heart skipped.
"What belongs to him?"
His gaze locked onto hers.
"You."
The shadows surged violently.
The officers suddenly froze.
One of them shouted in panic.
"What is that?!"
Dark tendrils rose from the floor like black flames.
The room trembled.
And Elena realized something terrifying.
Azrael wasn't just scaring them.
He was losing control.
And the shadows were beginning to swallow the entire building.