Waking up from deep sleep, young man opened his eye.

He felt something very uncomfortable on the right side of his face, so he proceeded to take it off.

Now he could clearly see with both of his eyes.

Next to him, lying on the bed was a naked form of someone unfamiliar.

Young man was not sure whether this someone was a man or a woman.

The body shape was lean and skin looked rather soft, but there was nothing that could have indicated this person’s gender.

‘I am not sure if this is a he or a she, maybe I will ask later…By the way, why am I sleeping near this person, and why does he look so scaly? For that matter who is that? More importantly… where am I?’

As he stood up and approached the mirror attached to the wall, young man thought that there was someone behind him when he saw a rather disturbing face looking back at him through the mirror.

Fearful for his life, he looked behind him, yet there was none there.

Relieved that there was none there to ambush him, young man once again gazed upon the mirror.

Looking back at him was a pair of brown orbs, his normal eyes.

Unfortunately, everything else was anything but normal.

Most of the right side of the face, barring the nose area, was skeletal. Right eye had no eyelid.

Touching the right side of his face with his left hand, he confirmed his suspicion; this was no stranger… that was his reflection.

“What is going on?” Nur Finnerman’s hands trembled in fright.

As he looked down at his right hand, he noticed it was covered in bandages.

With a jerk, he pulled off the bandages off of his right hand.

Now, illuminated under the full view of the morning light was a completely skeletal hand.

“What happened to me? No…No…No…This can’t be happening!”

But his skeletal fingers refused to change back.

Terrified, Nur Finnerman ended up backing away a couple of steps. His brown eyes were darting everywhere non-stop as he felt more and more frightened.

But then, he tripped and fell on his back, hitting his head in the process.

His eye closed.

Once again, Nur Finnerman fell into deep sleep.

* * *

“Owww, my head, how did I end up here?”

Dark Lord found himself on the floor, and looking up he saw under-dressed Camilla looking at him with worry filled eyes.

“Milord, are you ok?”

“Aside from a minor pain in the skull, I am fine”

“Milord, your mask…” Camilla picked up the mask on top of the bed and handed it to Dark Lord.

“I didn’t even realize it fell off, thank you, and my hand is exposed as well…How embarrassing…”

“Camilla is happy to be of help, milord.”

Standing up, Dark Lord saw his reflection in the mirror, left eye was glowing crimson red while the right eye was brilliant white.

“Same ugly face as always, huh, at least looking at it in the mirror sobers me up in an instant.” Dark Lord chuckled a little.

Afterwards, Camilla helped Dark Lord with cosmetic means, making sure that his clothing hid every undead part of him.

When the daily act of making sure Runfar’s disguise was perfect, Camilla put his own clothes on, and proceeded to head back to his duties.

“I guess I have to pay a visit to a certain Demon King…Well, at the very least, the Nightmare of Light is gone…”

* * *

As Arin opened her eyes, she found herself in a room surrounded by Demon Lords, two of whom were sleeping in crouching position on the floor, while the other two were sleeping while sitting on a chair and leaning on the table.

Then, Rahat sensed that the Demon King was awake and with a slight shove he ended up waking up the Demon Lord next to him, namely, Kazan.

Soon enough all four Demon Lords were awake, surrounding the bed Arin was currently laying on top of, covered by a blanket.

“It is good to have you back, my king” Kazan’s response was firm and confident, same could not be same for the other Demon Lords.

“I am so glad you are ok, my king!” Temur ended up grabbing Arin’s hand. It was obvious Temur Tang was extremely worried.

“Worry not, my king, the danger has passed” Rahis said confidently.

“Yes, the Knight of Light is no longer nearby” Rahat confirmed his comrade’s statement.

“Is that so? Good…” Arin sighed in relief.

After yesterday’s events, she was scared that she would have to face Knight of Light once again today.

So it was rather relieving to know that was not the case.

“Where is the Dark Lord? And for that matter…where are we? The last thing I remember is being in the streets during the Festival and…” being too pinned to a wall by advances of Knight of Light.

“We are currently inside Dark Lord’s mansion; he brought you on his back, yesterday; while you were unconscious.”

“He did? He he he…” Arin ended up giggling a little from embarrassment.

Just imagining herself being carried by him like a luggage was a rather sensitive topic.

She was sure at some point Dark Lord referred to her as a heavy baggage.

“Speaking of the Dark Lord, we need to find out what he knows, with what happened yesterday, I am sure he knows far more than he lets on.”

Temur was convinced that something did not feel quite right.

“Indeed. Information he possesses might mean the difference between the life and death of our kind….On that topic, did my king make the offer for him yet? After all, the entire reason for us coming here was for that reason, was it not?”

“That was the original objective, but I am sorry, I did not yet have the chance to make him that offer. I was careless”

“It is understandable, no need to blame yourself my king” Kazan assured her.

“Even so, I do not believe someone like him would accept, but gaining any kind of aid from him would be crucial.”

“He is still contracted to you, so, due to that, he must help you in a single endeavor, but after that we will have nothing to hold over his head” Rahat solemnly concluded.

“My king, with all due respect, he already succeeded in freeing you from the clutches of human filth, as such, he already did an unimaginable service to our kind. So wouldn’t it be wiser for us to act without resorting to his aid?”

“Kazan, if anything, coming here convinced me just how clueless we truly are. We even thought it was stroke of luck that the barriers have stopped working…Now that I think of it, just the thought of it is ludicrous…”

“What do you mean, my king? Did the barriers not stop functioning by some miracle?” Temur asked.

“By far not. I do not how, but it was all Dark Lord’s doing.”

For a moment, all four Demon Lords stood in silence, then…

“WHAT?!!” three of them cried out, except Kazan who was smirking proudly. Being told his brother did something amazing felt rather good.

“So the reason Holy Maidens disappeared…” Rahat began.

“Was because of Dark Lord” Arin nodded.

“But that aside, why was the Knight of Light here? If what you are saying is true, then how come Knight of Light did not attack the Dark Lord? Come to think of it, why did he not attack us? It was almost like he was clueless the entire time! Rings of Race change are not strong enough to completely conceal us from his powers, as far as I know about Knight of Light, he should have easily found out we were demons….Was he perhaps testing us or preparing a trap? Maybe he and Dark Lord have made a deal, but in that case why are we still alive? Maybe Knight of Light caught on to the grand plan…” Rahat was getting more and more paranoid.

“I assure you it is nothing as complicated as that.” Arin denied it.

“My King, I don’t quite understand. If he is not setting a trap for us, that would mean he really did not know we were demons, but how can that be?”

“Most likely due to his injury, he is currently not at his full power” Arin stated.

“Injury? Someone like Knight of Light is not likely to be injured by normal means, which means it was an injury inflicted by an enemy, a strong one at that. But who could have done this?” Rahat was more and more confused.

The other three Demon Lords stood there clueless; none could imagine anyone aside from their king who could match the Knight of Light in terms of sheer power.

“It was Dark Lord” their king’s voice calmly answered Rahat’s question.

“WHAAATTT?!!!”

Seeing the three Demon Lords have such a reaction was getting tad bit annoying, but Arin knew that her subordinates deserved to know the truth.

“Aside from the fact that he did it, I know nothing else.”

“But how can this be, my king?” Kazan asked.

“Kazan, you should know better than anyone, after all, you did fight him yourself, what is your assessment of Dark Lord?” Arin’s question now was directed at the crow Demon Lord.

“He is not strong, in terms of physical capacity, he is below Demon Lord Level, but overall…He is more dangerous than all of us, Demon Lords combined. When I faced him, Dark Lord’s power was far below mine, I judged him to be a weakling, and yet…if it was not for my king, I would have lost my life.”

“Ha ha, you, lost against that guy? He is a pathetic excuse for a demon pretending to be a human…” Rahis immediately regretted his words as Kazan grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up.

“I do not care if you address me in derogatory way, but…insult my brother again, you are finished.”

“Kazan! Put him down!”

Other Demon Lords tried to stop Kazan but he didn’t even budge.

“I….am…shhorrry…” Rahis was choking on his words, and then Kazan proceeded to release him.

Rahis fell on the ground, breathing heavily.

“As long as you understand”

Kazan now was acting as if nothing happened.

“To answer your question, my king, my brother…Dark Lord’s is not someone who can be underestimated. Let your guard even for one second and you wouldn’t know what hit you. Knight of Light must have found that out the hard way.”

“It seem so”

Then, they heard a knock on the door, followed by the voice of the maid.

“Dear guests, Master Runfar wishes to speak with the guest named Rin, in private.”

“It’s all right” Arin nodded to the Demon Lords, who reluctantly proceeded to leave the room.

Now, the owner of the mansion proceeded to enter the bedroom she was occupying.

“Well, at least you are looking better than yesterday, Arin”

“I have you to thank for that, Runfar”

Runfar Sevilles, aka Dark Lord, a crow demon, Kazan’s relative, and one of the few who Arin truly respected.

In fact, he may be the only demon who did not address her as his king, and referred to her simply by her name.

Whenever they interacted, it was as equals, not as a king and a subordinate. This fact made Arin able to have somewhat more open conversation with Dark Lord.

“So, what is the real reason you have come to my humble domain?”

“It was to give you an offer”

“An offer, you say?”

“Yes, Dark Lord…would you like to become one of the Demon Lords?”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course”

“No…really…Are you guys really that desperate…”

“There were once more than twenty Demon Lords, now only four remain. So yes, we are desperate.”

“What would I gain from this deal?”

“Power equivalent to that of a hero at the very least, maybe even greater. If you lack anything, it would be power, isn’t that right?”

“You are correct, in terms of power, I am severely lacking. To be honest, at most, I am at the level of an ordinary knight; a Holy Knight level warrior would be enough to finish me off in a one on one fair fight. A chance to have power rivaling that of a hero…it is very tempting…But I will have to refuse. Apologies”

“Worry not, I had a hunch you were going to say that”

“Speaking of power, what exactly is the power of Demon King? I heard many rumors regarding it. Is it referring to the power you wield or is something else entirely?”

“It refers to the power wielded by each Demon King, passed down from one Demon King to the next”

“Passed down?”

“This power is bestowed by previous Demon King to the next wielder.”

“So, is it passed down by blood?”

“Not exactly. The previous Demon King was my father, but had he chosen someone else, I would not have ended up as the next Demon King.”

“What a strange power….I wonder where it originated from?”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you”

“Try me”

“All right…But please keep this a secret from Kazan and the others”

“You have my word”

“The one who gave this power to the first Demon King, was a goddess, Noiluna”

“Noiluna? I am afraid I have never heard of her”

“Not surprising, all the records of her existence are all but completely erased. She was a goddess of the night, Moon, and Darkness. Noiluna was also the only god who did not hate demons or non-humans.”

“Do you know of Solaris?”

“King of Gods, yes, I know of him”

Unbeknownst to Arin, Dark Lord actually met the god in person.

“Noiluna was his equal and opposite, and in terms of might, she might have been even stronger. Where he represented humanity, daylight, and the sun, she represented us, night, and the moon. The only kind being among the gods, the only god that demon-kind used to worship before the time of the Demon King.”

“Unlike gods who hated demons and non-humans, Noiluna loved them, so much that she wanted to protect them from gods who wanted to outright erase them from existence. Knowing that the other gods would hunt her down, making her unable to protect the demon-kind, she entrusted a single demon with a seed of power.”

“She told him ‘I bestow this seed upon thee, use it to protect the demon-kind, and let it grow. When the time comes, bestow it upon the one you deem worthy to succeed you’. With her act of kindness, the First Demon King was born.”

“The other gods hunted her down. In a bloody battle, she fought alone against Solaris, Michael, and Chronos, holding her ground, but eventually, she was defeated. Her ten wings were severed and scattered across the winds and her body was sealed away in netherworld, never to see the light of day ever again. As she was too powerful to kill, the gods chose a far more cruel way to punish her.”

“She was so powerful that not even Chronos could kill her?” Dark Lord asked.

“Yes and even Solaris regarded her as a major threat to his rule.”

“If this happened so long ago, how do you know about it?”

“It is engraved within the Power of Demon King. Once you receive it, the user gains the power, knowledge, experience, and skill of the previous users combined. As such, the next Demon King will always be stronger than the previous one and the user gains the knowledge that otherwise would not have been accessible by ordinary means, through visions.”

“Fascinating”

“It would be rather scandalous if demons were to find out that their king wields a power that originated from a goddess, so…”

“My lips are sealed”

“Thank you”

Then she sadly smiled.

“Considering I wield the power bestowed by Noiluna, it is no surprise I had to face off against the Knight of Light, who was given his power by Solaris, Noiluna’s arch-enemy. Maybe it is just destiny playing its endless game.”

“Usually such games end with all players dead”

“Very true” Arin chuckled.

“I have been meaning to ask you, Dark Lord…What’s up with your mask? I understand human disguise is necessary, but isn’t wearing a half mask going over the top?”

“Judge for yourself” Runfar proceeded to take off his mask.

Arin’s smile immediately was replaced by a look of horror.

“Wh…what… happened… to …you?”

She hesitantly asked.

He proceeded to take off the glove on his right hand, and much to her disbelief, she watched as he moved his skeletal fingers.

“So many things I lost count”

Runfar put the half mask and the glove back on.

Now that Arin knew what he hid underneath his disguises, she couldn’t help but fill a little pity for the Dark Lord.

In such a short time, he lost so much…

What she couldn’t have known was the fact that he lost far more than his flesh…

“Still, what exactly is your final objective within this kingdom?”

“I am afraid I cannot tell you that, since you did refuse my offer. That knowledge is privy only to the Demon Lords”

“As far as I know, you guys have been raiding the places with enslaved demons, to free them, one after another….”

After seeing Arin’s surprised face, Dark Lord continued.

“If anything, instead of conducting raids one after another, sticking together as a large group, I suggest doing multiple simultaneous raids in separate locations, in small groups. If you guys are in large groups, you will attract too much unwanted attention, and small groups are easier to manage. The power of small numbers may be lower, but they can move far quicker. And if you keep raiding places one after another, the humans will eventually see a pattern and will face you head on, which will be detrimental to your cause. But if you strike in multiple locations, humans will not be prepared. Just a food for thought”

“Aaaah” Arin’s mouth was wide open. “Thank you, Dark Lord”

She couldn’t believe just how quickly he came up with a superior strategy to what she had been doing up till now.

He may not be aware of the grand plan, but his wise suggestion could not be ignored.

‘This Dark Lord…he is something else alright…’

* * *

Walking within the yard, admiring the flowers, Runfar and Arin were enjoying the view, with none else in sight.

“By the way, Runfar, what did you do to the Holy Maidens?”

Arin asked from sheer curiosity.

“Well, explanation is a little….I believe it would be better if I just show you. That is, if you want to know the truth”

He offered her his left hand.

Without any hesitation, she took it.

“If anything, I will always welcome the truth”

She didn’t know she would regret it.

They teleported to an underground lair.

Green creatures, of many sizes, were everywhere, and as her eyes adjusted to the places dimly lit by torches, her eyes caught sight of what the those creatures were endlessly humping.

“Women….Human women…” Arin couldn’t help but put her hand on her mouth in shock.

“Goblin Captain, I trust all the preparations went as planned”

“Yes, Milord” one of the larger, more muscular goblins, about two meters in height answered, kneeling in front of Dark Lord.

“There are currently nine main nests, five fake nests, and some more still under construction. Each main nest has around hundred or more human females in it.”

“Excellent. Keep at it”

Now Dark Lord turned to Arin who was trembling all over after looking at the place.

So many women, all of them were alive but unresponsive as goblins had their way with them.

“Well, I suppose it’s time for introductions.”

With smile on his face, he proclaimed.

“Welcome to my goblin factory. In a couple of months, I will have an army of around ten thousand strong, currently I have a little less than a thousand, but they multiply fast…”

“So the Holy Maidens are…”

“They are right here”

Dark Lord pointed at the four women, each with different colored hair, each a servant of one of the Five Great Gods.

As much as she was holding back from overreacting, this sight was too much to take…

* * *

Demon Lords saw Dark Lord teleport away with their king, so they were patiently waiting in the yard.

Then, suddenly, Dark Lord and Demon King appeared out of nowhere.

Arin was breathing heavily.

She fell on her knees and then proceeded to puke on the soil, away from the grass.

“Uhm, my king, are you all right?” Kazan cautiously asked.

All the Demon Lords were not very sure what just happened, what could have caused their king to react in such a way?

After she was done throwing up, Demon King looked in Dark Lord’s direction, still on her knees.

“Are you out of your mind?!!”

“Well, you wanted the truth”

“That is not what I meant! I did not expect that!”

“Truth is always ugly, get over it.”

Imagining the goblin cave again, Arin ended up throwing up yet again.

‘I thought Knight of Light was bad, but Dark Lord may be even worse!’

Demon King, Arin Draco, once thought she saw the worst of the world, so she was prepared to face it.

But this day, she met someone, who was too extreme even by her standards.