The world became a crimson haze, and through it I saw only targets. Lucida—the great Heroine of the past—was nothing but an annoying insect to me now. Every time she tried to rise on her regenerating legs, I shattered them with a thought. The crack of bone was the only music I wanted to hear. I could feel the Demon King’s power flooding this small body, tearing it apart from the inside—but I didn’t care.

  I started toward the city. Every movement I made birthed a shockwave. Lucida made one last attempt to attack, but I simply swatted her away like a fly. A brutal surge of mana launched her into the sky for kilometers, breaking whatever remained intact in her divine body.

  The black vortex behind me rose all the way to the clouds, blotting out the sun. From above I saw people and small animals scattering in panic, like ants.

  A meter from my face, he suddenly appeared.

  Merlin.

  “A-ha-ha-ha!” My voice sounded unnatural—split in two, layered with the low roar of the Abyss. “Look what you’ve become, Merlin! A frail, pathetic old man…”

  Merlin didn’t answer. He struck with pure mana, trying to bind me. I only lazily flicked my hand, and the greatest mage of the age was slammed into the earth hard enough to carve out a crater. Blood sprayed from his mouth, and I only laughed.

  “This world is full of horror!” I shouted as I entered the first village on the outskirts of the city. “I’ll free it from pain… by destroying everything!”

  The first house exploded into splinters from my mere presence.

  And then I felt it.

  From behind—at impossible speed—something sharp was coming. I spun and caught the shaft in my hand a millimeter from my eye.

  A spear.

  Her spear.

  “Riza?..” I looked up. The girl hovered high in the sky, dark wings spread wide, her face twisted with grief and resolve. “So you… you too… you betrayed me?”

  I lifted my hand to knock her out of the sky—

  And something inside me snapped.

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  “Kh—!” I doubled over.

  Blood poured from my nose and mouth in a thick, hot stream. The child’s body couldn’t take it. Vessels burst, mana burned nerves. I felt my consciousness sliding into cold emptiness.

  The last thing I saw before I collapsed into the mud, utterly unconscious, was a huge winged shadow slowly descending toward me through the smoke-choked sky.

  Silence fell instantly. The black vortex dispersed, leaving behind only a scorched strip of earth and ruined houses. Merlin, breathing hard, tried to climb out of the crater. Far away in the forest, Lucida was slowly knitting her shattered spine back together.

  Riza drifted down beside my motionless body. Her hands were shaking. She saw the blood that had soaked my clothes…

  I opened my eyes. The world rocked with the heavy rhythm of a horse’s gait. My arms and legs were cinched tight with elven rope.

  Again… I thought dully. This is becoming a nice tradition: waking up tied up.

  My head was splitting. Flashbacks stabbed from inside: the crack of Lucida’s bones, Merlin’s terrified face, my own laughter that hadn’t been mine… and Riza. Her spear aimed at me.

  I turned my head. Up front in the saddle sat Elvindor, guiding the horse with focused calm. And to the left—literally inches away—rode Lucida. Her eyes were locked on the road, but I could feel the wave of icy fury coming off her.

  “You… you survived that?” I rasped. “And you don’t even want to finish me off right now? That hurt like hell.”

  Lucida snapped her head toward me. Her eyes flared silver.

  “It wasn’t just painful,” she ground out. “It felt like I was shoved through a stone crusher and spat into the abyss. Every joint, every tendon… Your regeneration becomes a curse when you’re being broken endlessly.”

  She adjusted the reins. Her voice calmed a fraction, though her hand still gripped her sword hilt.

  “Elvindor stopped me. He explained it was the seal. That you weren’t in control. That’s the only reason your head is still on your shoulders. But don’t think I’ll forget this. I decided to escort you… to make sure you don’t turn into that monster again.”

  I lifted my head toward the sky. “Riza!” I shouted—but my voice broke.

  The girl hovered high in the clouds. She didn’t land, didn’t even flinch toward me—she just kept following us like a shadow.

  “You scared her half to death, Zenhald,” Lucida said quietly. “When you collapsed, she caught you in the air. She cried while carrying you in her arms to the forest’s edge. And then the elves came out. They gave us this rope. Said it wasn’t their first time ‘subduing mad gods.’”

  I smiled bitterly. “Well then… nice to meet you again. My name is Zenhald. The real me… or whatever’s left of him.”

  “Lucida,” she replied shortly.

  And then, somewhere deep inside my being, the Darkness stirred again. Rage flared in a sudden pulse—my eyes flickered red for a couple seconds, and I felt the overwhelming urge to tear these bindings apart and smash everything in my path. I clenched my teeth until they creaked, forcing myself to breathe evenly.

  Easy. Fewer sudden movements.

  The rope around my wrists suddenly warmed.

  Elven magic sensed my anger and activated. A heavy, irresistible drowsiness crashed over me. My eyelids turned to lead.

  Clever… I thought as sleep took me. They didn’t just tie me up. They’re putting the monster to sleep…