Lucien stood frozen, his breathing heavy, his body aching from the brutal battle.
It was over.
The demon was gone.
Or so he thought.
Just as he was about to relax, a sinister presence flared up behind him.
Lucien turned sharply—the demon had returned.
But this time… he wasn't attacking.
The demon staggered, his body covered in searing wounds from Lucien's attacks. Dark blood dripped onto the ground. He could barely stand, let alone fight.
Yet, despite his battered state, his glowing red eyes held something dangerous.
Hatred.
"You… have made every demon your enemy," the demon rasped, his voice filled with venomous rage.
Lucien's eyes narrowed.
"The next time we meet, you will regret interfering."
And with that, he vanished into the darkness.
{Demon Lord's Castle – The Shadowed Throne}
Far away, deep within the terrifying depths of the Demon Realm, the wounded demon kneeled before a massive throne.
The throne belonged to Darius Ven'Zarrak, the Demon Minister—one of the highest-ranking demons in the realm.
Before him, powerful demons gathered, their glowing eyes piercing through the darkness.
The wounded demon lowered his head. "My lord, I… I have failed. The child beast has been taken."
Silence.
Then—
CRACK.
In a blur of movement, Darius' claws stabbed straight through the wounded demon's chest.
The demon soldier gasped, his glowing eyes widening in horror.
"You imbecile." Darius' voice was eerily calm, but rage burned beneath every word.
"Do you have any idea how important that beast child was?"
The wounded demon trembled. "I—I—"
CRACK.
With a flick of his wrist, Darius crushed his heart.
The demon soldier's body collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
Darius exhaled sharply, his claws still dripping with blood. "Fool."
Then he turned to the gathered demons.
"The Demon Lord may have been slain by that damned hero and his allies, but our plans have not stopped. That beast child… could have changed everything."
His eyes glowed with cold fury.
"Find the human who took it. And bring me its corpse."
{Back to Lucien – Returning to the Academy}
Lucien barely had time to process the demon's words.
He was exhausted.
Every muscle in his body screamed in pain. His mana was nearly drained.
He didn't have the energy to think about warnings, future battles, or demon enemies.
Right now, his priority was simple: get back to the academy before the test ends.
He glanced at Umbra, now hiding within his shadow. Then at the A-rank monster corpse he had prepared to bring back.
With what little strength he had left, he dragged it toward the teleportation site.
Time was running out.
His vision blurred from exhaustion, but he forced himself forward.
At the very last moment—
He arrived.
The instructors turned as he stumbled in, barely managing to push the A-rank monster forward.
And just like that—
The combat test was over.
Lucien collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily. He made it.
But he had no idea that his true battles were just beginning.
To be continued…