The Baby Isn’t Yours

Due to the war between the Fairy Army and the demons, the capital of Akan hadn’t seen night for over ten days.

The bright light emitted by the fairies dispelled the darkness of the night as they fiercely resisted the magical attacks.

Fortunately, it was a relief that the capital of Akan was empty due to the terrifying rumors about the palace.

Even the remaining people were able to seek refuge inside the forest, thanks to the consideration of the Fairy Army.

“Fairy Lord! Why are you helping us?”

Furiosa, who took care of the wounded and humans, was grabbed fearlessly by a curious child.

Looking into the eyes of the child, which contained both fear and admiration, Furiosa smiled slightly.

“We also know the pain of losing family.”

He gently stroked the child’s head.

“Our enemy is not us.”

He raised his head and looked towards the direction of the royal palace where the battle was taking place.

Furiosa, who had a strong power of protection and defense rather than offense, didn’t take the forefront, but his parents, siblings, and friends were there in front of him.

Although he was worried that they might get hurt, he didn’t think for a moment that they would be defeated.

Still, he couldn’t suppress his anxious heart.

He thought of Gaia and Kalia, who were fighting alone in the Rojas Empire.

Those children must be fighting their own battles well.

May they achieve a thorough victory so that this tragedy doesn’t repeat itself.

“…Alright, let’s go inside. The smoke is getting thicker.”

Furiosa comforted the children and pushed them into the depths of the forest.

And in that moment.

Boom!

A loud noise echoed from the Akan palace.

“…!”

He quickly turned his head and saw that the top half of the sharpest pinnacle of the Akan palace had been blown away, and white smoke was billowing.

The palace was on fire.

* * *

Belgian Arcrotes was a high-ranking demon even within the Demon Realm.

When he was most powerful, he was ranked among the Five Nobles of the Demon King, but now he had been pushed back and barely maintained his twelfth position.

Demons who couldn’t forget their past glory often became blinded by greed and ambition.

The closer he got to the Demon King, the more notorious he became in the Demon Realm, his power grew stronger, and the number of slaves he could command increased significantly.

That’s why Belgian took the lead in the invasion of the human realm this time.

If he succeeded in this, it was only a matter of time before he returned to the ranks of the Five Nobles.

Perhaps he could even enter the ranks of the Three Nobles.

“…Damn, I should have been more cautious.”

But whether it was a rebound or a downfall, the current situation wasn’t favorable at all.

Despite preparing for nearly ten years, it all crumbled in an instant.

If he had known he would suffer such a thorough defeat, he would have withdrawn his foot in the middle…

Now, even the pocket watch that connected to the Demon Realm was gone, and he couldn’t return to the Demon Realm as he pleased.

Clearly, what should have been in Lirik’s vault had disappeared in an instant.

Someone deliberately took it.

‘It must be that bitch’s doing. That filthy warlock. Did she take his pocket watch to save the prince? …No, but maybe it’s a blessing in disguise. If it’s not there, I can continue to resurrect without being annihilated.’

If he could just avoid the Fairy Army that was chasing him right in front of his eyes, there was still a possibility of recovery.

Belgian turned over a corpse.

He waited for the careless footsteps of the approaching Fairy Army to pass by.

Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

Several heavy footsteps were steadily and quickly climbing up the tower.

Belgian disguised himself as if he were dead and concealed his demonic magic as much as possible.

As if he didn’t exist at all, thoroughly…

Buried between the corpses of the chimeras and the lesser demons, he erased his presence.

If he moved hastily here or opened a gate, the Fairy King would undoubtedly pursue him.

Due to the dense purification light surrounding the castle, it wasn’t easy to open a gate.

Using too much demonic power to summon the demons made it difficult to escape, but it helped to conceal the presence of a higher-ranking demon.

‘If luck is on my side, I might survive…’

In the darkness, Belgian waited for the heavy footsteps coming up rapidly to pass by.

The vast waiting room of the fallen tower, where the demons had already died once.

Deep in the pile of corpses beneath the central pillar of the waiting room, Belgian hid his body.

It was the moment when the approaching footsteps finally passed the waiting room.

Someone who was approaching the end abruptly stopped and called out to the advancing Kalexia.

“Father.”

“Why are you here, Tokan?”

“For some reason… I can see magic here.”

Startle.

Belgian tried not to show surprise, but upon hearing the sound that precisely pointed out Belgian’s location, he became stiff.

‘…Damn, how did he know?’

With that remark, the footsteps that had moved away sounded closer again.

‘So it turned out like this. I’m screwed if I hide and try to escape. In that case… I’ll have to pretend to be dead for a while and then resurrect, even if it takes some time.’

Belgian quickly assessed the situation and swiftly stood up, revealing his true form.

Then, looking at the golden eyes staring intently at him, he smiled bitterly and spoke.

“There was someone with divine insight. Unluckily, it seems.”

Belgian shed his cumbersome physical form and revealed his true appearance.

To convincingly pretend to be dead and stimulate them, he had to provoke them to a certain extent.

He looked at the Fairy King’s tribe approaching with a dark mist-like magic flowing around him.

“So, you’re the one they call the demon.”

“Hehe. Do we need to talk? Come at me. Arrogant creatures.”

Hastily provoking them, Kalexia adjusted his spear.

Hoa and Nua rushed forward from his sides.

“Attack!”

Magic, spread like a net, tried to pressure them, but it was in vain.

The light emanating from Kalexia dispelled the magic, and an ice sword attacked Belgian.

Using the corpses to resist their attacks, Belgian was pierced through the chest by Kalexia’s spear at the right moment.

Pwoong!

Kalexia’s spear, filled with the power of light, pierced Belgian’s chest accurately.

Feeling the agony of his heart exploding, Belgian smiled inwardly.

‘It’s over.’

Bleeding black blood infused with condensed demonic magic, Belgian slowly crumbled.

With dilated pupils, as if expressing frustration and disbelief, he staged a desperate death.

Then, Kalexia, who had been gazing intently at that sight, suddenly let out a mocking laugh.

“How strange. The demon who caused us such trouble can’t possibly be this weak…”

As he reached out his hand, the Spear of Protection that had pierced through Belgian’s chest returned to his hand.

Belgian tried not to flinch and simply narrowed his eyes.

Even if that guy knew something, the magical artifact wasn’t here anyway.

So there was no need to be afraid… but strangely, he felt uneasy.

“Perhaps… do you believe in this?”

“…!”

Swish.

A pocket watch emerged from Kalexia’s bosom.

Something that shouldn’t be there was in his hand.

Belgian’s expression, which had remained calm until then, crumbled.

Kaxia lifted the spear, with Belgian’s blood staining its triumphant tip, as it pierced through his heart.

Belgian’s complexion twisted.

If he destroyed the pocket watch stained with his blood using the bloodstained sword, he would be forever annihilated.

The end.

It was truly complete annihilation.

Becoming gray dust, an existence that didn’t exist in this world or the other.

Belgian became frantic and abruptly stood up.

“No, it can’t be!”

Pulling magic from his entire body, he desperately caused it to explode.

Boom! Bang! Kwaaang!

Boom!

Black smoke and demonic magic burst forth and extended towards Kalexia.

The gaseous form soon destroyed the glass-like sharp thorns and venomous fumes, shattering the ceiling of the chamber.

The intensity was so grim that the head of the spire was completely blown off.

Rumble!

Crash!

The tower collapsed. The surroundings trembled.

Smoke billowed from various places.

There were also places where sparks flew and flames ignited.

Through the smoke of the heinous explosion, magic rushed towards Kalexia.

However, Kalexia’s spear was faster.

“Return to oblivion forever.”

Belgian’s pocket watch, which was floating in the air, was completely destroyed by the tip of Kalexia’s spear.

Crack, shatter!

The shattered pieces of the pocket watch, stained with Belgian’s blood, scattered apart.

At the same time, the fragments of the pocket watch turned into gray dust and dispersed.

“No, nooo!!!”

Even Belgian’s scream, as if being torn apart, disappeared like dust.

Kalexia witnessed Belgian’s fingertips, which had come dangerously close, vanishing into dust.

“Father.”

Tokan and Nua, who were watching that scene blankly, swallowed their dry saliva and looked at Kalexia.

Kalexia closed and opened his parched pupils.

The demon was annihilated.

Now, what remained was the mad doctor who was more cruel than a demon.

Soon, above his head, Kalexia’s white hawk soared up with a screeching sound.

It was the bird he had given to Leah.

“Let’s go. Leah and Ganini seem to have found that insane doctor.”

“That insane doctor? Oh no! Hurry, Father!”

“Let’s go quickly.”

They turned their bodies towards the eastern wing basement, where Leah and Ganini were heading, in a hurry.

* * *

When Belgian hid himself in the highest place, Lirik was crouching in the lowest place.

The royal palace was nothing short of a living hell.

Already, the palace was filled with the stench of blood, littered with the corpses of chimeras and demons.

Flesh and blood splattered, leaving red stains everywhere.

Lirik passed through his laboratory, where dozens of bodies were hanging upside down like butchered meat, and descended further into the depths of the underground.

If he continued down this path, he would reach an underground passage.

There, several hundred chimeras that hadn’t yet emerged were asleep.

Hastily moving his feet, Lirik scratched his right arm.

His right arm, where the contract with the demon Belgian was made.

The contract’s inscription had disappeared, leaving only a scar from a burn.

If the contract’s inscription disappeared, it meant the superior demon Belgian had died.

In this world!

If even that demon had died, then there was no doubt that someone like Lirik, who was powerless, would undoubtedly die as well.

“No, no. How did I survive…! What kind of person am I…!”

If there was one human who had reached the realm of gods, it would undoubtedly be him.

“Rebirth of life! Achieving that is what makes a great doctor, and that is me!”

He chewed his lips anxiously and opened the entrance to the underground tunnel.

Several chimeras that looked like corpses came into view.

A nauseating smell mixed with the stench of blood from the corpses.

He took a deep breath of it and drew out a dagger.

“What kind of person am I…! Did you think I would be defeated so easily? Hmph… no chance!”

His fingertips trembled.

Although he had dissected the bodies of fairies and monsters, it was the first time he had stabbed his own body with a knife.

Gulp.

He swallowed his dry saliva.

Then, with the well-sharpened tip of the sword, he plunged it into his own heart.

“Ggh!”

Hot blood gushed out like a fountain.

From the blood scattered in the dark and cold place, white steam rose like a ghostly apparition.

Sinking down and sitting, Lirik chuckled softly and mumbled.

“Go… Go.”

His face contorted in pain, forcing a smile, and it looked eerie.

At the same time, the more than a thousand chimeras crouched there began to wriggle.

“My children… help… the prince… Rojas… to destruction…”

Lirik’s knees gave way, and his body collapsed onto the cold floor.

With his cheek pressed against the ground, Lirik slowly died, his lips curling up.

The blood from his heart, dripping and trickling, turned black.

The black blood spread wide and thin, creating a massive black hole.

The chimeras, with their heads raised, all rushed into that black void.

Boom!

At that moment, the door to the underground warehouse burst open, and Leah rushed in.