Volume 1. Chapter 59

Ken continued shouting outside the Pur family’s house, his voice cutting through the night air, echoing with sharp provocation. He sounded like a man on the edge of madness — or perhaps like someone purposely trying to push the boundaries of his unseen enemy’s patience.

“Hey, demon! Are you seriously scared of one ordinary mortal?!” he bellowed, stepping closer to the house. “I’m already in your illusion! Are you such a coward you can’t even show your face? Hahaha, this is pathetic! I’ve never seen a demon this pitiful!”

Inside the living room, Lily heard his words. She smiled inwardly.

“Ken, as always…” she thought, glancing sideways at Kiki, who stood beside her, visibly tense.

But her attention suddenly shifted. Something was off — something very wrong with Julie. The little girl’s body began to ripple, as if something unnatural moved beneath her skin. Her once-innocent face twisted unnaturally, her eyes rolled back, and her mouth contorted into a grotesque grin that made everyone in the room instinctively recoil.

“Julie?” Kiki whispered, stepping toward her sister — but Lily swiftly stopped her, throwing out an arm.

Meanwhile, Ken’s taunting voice echoed from outside:

“Hahaha! What’s wrong, demon? Too scared to show your true face? Or do you just prefer hiding behind children? What a disgrace!”

At those words, Julie’s body began to change. Her limbs stretched, her skin darkened, and from her back burst long, smoke-like wings. A deep, guttural growl erupted from her throat, reverberating through the house. Before everyone’s shocked eyes, the demon cast aside Julie’s form and emerged in his true shape.

“He was inside her… all this time…” Lily realized, her fists clenched tight.

Outside, the world changed violently. The wind howled as if the earth itself cried in pain, storm clouds boiled across the sky, and the temperature dropped in an instant. Day turned to night in mere seconds, and darkness swallowed the surroundings.

“You wretched human!” the demon bellowed, stepping out of the house like a storm incarnate, dragging Lily, Kiki, and her family outside with him as if the darkness itself was forcing them into the open. Anna and Rudolf grabbed their daughters, trembling from fear and cold.

“How dare you!” the demon roared, locking eyes with Ken. His voice shook the ground. “I’ll turn you into dust!”

He raised his hands, and the air exploded into a whirlwind. From this violent storm, a flock of black birds burst forth, their eyes burning red as they streaked toward Ken, followed by a surge of freezing wind threatening to turn everything to ice.

Ken stood still, watching the approaching chaos. His face was calm, but his eyes blazed with determination. As the birds closed in, he suddenly pulled something from inside his coat.

The Alarayn flower.

The moment it touched his hand, a brilliant shield of warm light enveloped Ken. The birds, inches from him, ignited and vanished, disintegrating into clouds of black ash. The freezing wind slammed into the light — and dispersed like smoke, unable to pass through.

The flower’s glow intensified, flaring red and casting light into the choking darkness. The demon froze. His body trembled, and for the first time, his voice cracked with fear.

“How… How do you have that flower?!” he rasped.

Ken tilted his head slightly, a smirk playing at his lips.

“Did you really think I came here empty-handed?” he said, his voice a perfect blend of mockery and confidence. “Hahaha! You’re even dumber than I thought.”

He started laughing — loud, raw, and victorious.

Lily, standing nearby, couldn’t look away. Her heart raced faster than ever before.

“Ken… you’re incredible,” she thought again.

But this time, her feelings were more than awe — they were tangled with a strange, overwhelming pride for this reckless, brilliant fool who somehow always found a way.