Darkness.
This was all I had around me.
I could only guess at the passage of time—days, years, centuries?
Chains that confined me were the sole companions, and their mass was the only weight keeping me here in this dismal existence. I could see nothing else.
Yet I remembered it all.
How that human worm had trapped me.
How that lizard helped him.
How they had imprisoned me in this prison for all eternity.
Revenge.
If there is ever the day arrived when I was released, I will show to this world its worst nightmare.
I would rip them apart.
The thought of vengeance swirled ceaselessly in my head. Yet no matter how much I held on to my anger, the most frustrating thing was that I couldn't even remember the faces of those sons of bitches who did this to me.
And then—something changed.
A tremor ran through the void.
I didn't know how long it had been since something had last disturbed this place.
For as long as I had been here, one thing had remained constant—emptiness. A void of absolute nothingness.
But now, after all this time…
The chains began to loosen.
They shattered.
The moment the last shackle broke, my vision exploded into light.
For the first time in centuries, I saw something other than darkness.
A stone floor. Ancient, cracked walls. The scent of stale air and decayed magic.
Finally… after all this time…
I was free.
Then my eyes started wandering around my surroundings , it was just an old cave
And kneeling at my feet—a human boy.
I loomed over him, my energy filling the room. Is he the one who released me?
More importantly—how?
Questions swirled in my mind, but something was… off.
I narrowed my gaze. "Oi, boy… what is your name?"
Silence.
He didn't respond.
My anger flared in an instant. "I asked you a question, worm."
Still no response.
Then I realized—ah. The pressure I was releasing was choking him.
Pathetic. Weakling.
I relaxed my presence just enough to allow him to speak.
"Now speak, boy."
The boy struggled for air before he was able to finally speak.
"My name… is Daemon."
I hardly listened, my eyes drifting over the old ruins. But then—
Daemon… Draquemort.
The instant that name escaped his mouth, my entire body froze.
That name.
Despite not being able to remember that son of a bitch's face, I do remember that name.
Draquemort.
I crept slowly towards him, my own form towering above his kneeling posture. And when I finally got to him—
I grabbed his throat.
All the anger building inside me over the centuries started resurfacing.
"Give me one good reason for not killing you right now, boy."
He thrashed and tried to take a breath, but even with him held thin in my tight grasp, something inside me stopped my hand from breaking the thin neck of his.
I relaxed my grip just enough so that he could talk.
He coughed, struggling to rasp, "Killing me will only trap you back in the abyss."
I stopped.
His voice, weak as it was, contained pure conviction.
No uncertainty.
No doubt.
That held me more than anything.
He took another rattling breath and went on, "So I suggest… you fucking put me down."
There was a silence for a moment.
Then—
A slow grin spread across my lips.
I, the Demon King Asmodeus, feared even by the gods…
And yet, this child—this worm— speaking to me without even a hint of fear.
No. It was worse than that.
It seemed that he knew what I was going to do.
I let him go.
Daemon fell onto the floor, struggling to breathe, shaking his battered throat as he clutched his bruised neck.
(Daemon's pov)
This fucking bastard.
All these years, after all my struggle to set him free, and this was the way he repaid me?!!
I clenched my fist in anger, but I was wise enough not to let it show. If I even provoked him little, he wouldn't even hesitate to kill me.
"Brat, tell me."
His low voice broke me out of my thoughts.
"What do you mean I'll be trapped again?"
I struggled to rise to my feet, ignoring the searing pain in my throat. Looking up to meet his gaze, I spoke.
"The reason I said that… is simple. The seal isn't completely broken."
His eyes flickered slightly, though his face showed no emotion.
I went on, "The only reason you're standing here right now is because of that." I pointed toward the glowing mana spheres hovering above us.
"The instant the mana depletes from those orbs, you'll be pulled back into the void."
A grin stretched across his lips.
"And what makes you think I wouldn't kill you before that happens, brat?"
Shit.
I gulped. I don't have any doubt in my mind—if he didn't get completely released, he'd kill me first, just for fun .
"Because killing me isn't the solution to either of our problems," I told him, trying to keep my voice steady.
He looked at me for a second. Then, he started speaking again.
"So, brat, you're saying you have a way to release me entirely? And, naturally… stopping me from killing you?"
His tone was full of threat. If I didn't have an answer, I was dead.
"Yes," I said. "You're right. I have a way."
He glared at me, eyes narrowing.
Then, after a pause, he said, "Brat, do you know that a member of your family was the one who sealed me away?"
I nodded. "Yes. He was my great ancestor—the founder of my house."
His lips curled slightly. "Ah… is that so?"
His expression was unreadable. It sent a shiver down my spine.
"Then tell me," he continued, his voice dangerously low, "why are you trying to release me? Knowing full well that the first thing I'll do is kill your pathetic family?"
I took a deep breath. "Because I want to survive. And you won't kill my family—at least, not first."
His eyes gleamed with interest. "And why is that, brat?"
I smiled, though my stomach churned with fear. "Because the wound of betrayal by your own people hurts more than the scar that an enemy can ever inflict."
The room fell silent.
His face was still an unreadable mask, but I saw it—just for an instant—a flash of something in his eyes.
A memory. A wound. A scar that time itself could not erase.
For the first time since our encounter, I felt it.
A change in power.
For the first time… I wasn't merely a worm in his eyes.
I had his attention.
And now, I just had to live long enough to use it.