The crimson moon hung over the Black Citadel, casting twisted shadows over the demon city below.
Within the throne room, Clone #2—the current Demon Lord—sat draped in dark robes, surrounded by flame-eyed generals and whispering cultists.
But something was wrong.
> He no longer heard Malveth's voice in his dreams.
---
A Shiver in the Soul
For years, the clone believed in one thing: order through fear.
He executed it flawlessly.
Cities fell.
Enemies knelt.
Children were gathered, trained, and shaped into perfect weapons for Malveth's dream.
But now…
Now he hesitated.
He woke up at night sweating, haunted by dreams of being someone else.
Someone… gentler.
Someone surrounded by light, not fire.
And then—
> He dreamed of Serian.
---
A Crack Appears
In the training grounds, the children called him Lord Savior.
They bowed, they bled, they killed—for him.
But when a boy asked,
> "Will you protect us forever?"
The Demon Lord paused.
> "...I will."
But the words tasted wrong in his mouth.
Not because they were a lie—
but because they sounded too real.
---
Orders, Broken
Malveth had sent him a command:
> "Wait for my word before moving on Vernas."
But the Demon Lord ignored it.
He rallied a strike unit.
He marched toward Vernas.
He didn't know why.
> "There's something there. Someone."
His soldiers asked who. He didn't answer.
Because even he didn't understand.
---
The Meeting Begins
At the city's edge, hidden beneath cloaks, the Demon Lord waited in the fog.
And from the other side of the ruined archway—
Serian arrived. Alone.
Two heroes.
Two monsters.
Two halves of something once whole.
Neither knew the truth.
But as their eyes met—
Something ancient stirred.
Something deeper than memory.
---