The sky was red. Dozens of winged beings flew in the air, wielding various types of mighty weapons. These winged beings were called the Angel of Heaven. Divine creatures worshipped by many others.
Now, they were all looking at the same object—a horned girl with exotic skin and a scythe in her left hand. She stood atop a giant beast. Her gaze was filled with hatred and vengeance.
"You will be sentenced to death, Lyrith Velzara!" said one of the angels.
Lyrith laughed. She drew her scythe. The weapon's name was Bloodveil Reaper. A weapon that could absorb souls. A terrifying weapon, even for immortal beings like the angels. They knew how dangerous Lyrith was, which was why they were extremely cautious.
Especially since Lyrith had violated the absolute rule—challenging the God. That was an unforgivable sin.
"You deceived everyone. Even me." Lyrith pointed the Bloodveil Reaper at the angels. "I will kill you all and bring down the thrones of those foolish gods."
"Insolent!" The angels looked furious. "Kill her!"
Dozens of angels descended and began attacking Lyrith. A battle between dozens of angels against one Demon and one powerful giant beast.
The battle began. Lyrith was not alone; she was with her companion, the Giant Sandworm. A friend who had been with her for a hundred years. The two fought fiercely against the angels.
The battle was so intense that it caused massive tremors. Explosions destroyed the battleground.
The fight went on for an entire week without pause. Eventually, many angels were killed. Only a few remained, all severely injured. Lyrith and the Giant Sandworm were in the same condition. They were gravely wounded, yet Lyrith still managed a wide smile.
"This will be your end."
She leapt into the air, aiming to kill the remaining angels. The angels panicked, trying to flee.
Lyrith laughed and swung her scythe, but something unexpected happened. Her attack was blocked and her body struck by lightning. She fell to the ground, seriously injured. Her magical energy was depleted. She could no longer move. The Giant Sandworm tried to help.
As the Giant Sandworm began to move, its body was suddenly crushed with immense force. It fell and could not rise again. A figure descended from the sky. Lyrith tried to stand, but she was punched, kicked, and finally had her abdomen pierced by a magical blast from that divine figure.
Lyrith even activated her last defense—Absolute Shield. A barrier that should have been impossible to penetrate.
But the figure walked casually and managed to touch Lyrith's head. Lyrith tried to resist, but at that moment her body vanished. The figure glanced at the Giant Sandworm. "I will take your power."
He touched the Giant Sandworm's head. The Sandworm tried to resist, but was powerless. Half of its strength was taken. Along with that, half of its memories were stolen. It nearly forgot everything—except one thing: that Lyrith was its dearest friend.
The divine figure flew back into the sky. He snapped his fingers and the world exploded. But at the same moment, the world revived again—with a different fate and life.
Everything was reset so that there would never again be a rebel like Lyrith.
***
Alvaric stood still. He was processing what he had just witnessed. A truly extraordinary battle fought by the Demon girl before him. Alvaric stared at Lyrith for a long time. He was confused—who was truly evil between Lyrith and the angels?
He could not judge, for he had only seen a fragment of Lyrith's memory. He had been asked by the Giant Sandworm to release Lyrith's seal. Alvaric was hesitant to do so.
"What will happen if I do it? Will the world be destroyed by her?"
Alvaric remained silent for a long time. He looked over at Niva, lying stiffly. He clenched his fists. His desire to kill Lyrith was immense. Deep down, he wanted to kill her for having killed Niva first.
His mind even created alibis to justify the decision he was about to make. 'This is all for the good of the world.'
"What should I do?" Alvaric thought to himself.
He gripped the Vapperrs Dagger tightly. He inhaled and exhaled slowly. He nodded and finally made his decision. Alvaric walked toward the chains binding Lyrith's hands and feet. He would release her, as he had promised the Giant Sandworm.
But the moment he touched the chain binding Lyrith, his body was struck by lightning and thrown back. His hand was scorched and trembling.
"It's not as easy as I thought."
Alvaric stood up and tried again, but no matter how many times he attempted it, it still didn't work. Alvaric frowned.
He stroked his chin and sat cross-legged near Lyrith.
He tilted his head. Only then did he realize he hadn't been attacked at all since entering Lyrith's prison.
"What if I try attacking her?"
With that crazy idea, Alvaric stood and swung the Crimson Sword Demon. At that very moment, an explosion occurred. His body was thrown far away.
His arms, legs, and half of his face were shattered. He lay there for a long time, waiting for his body to regenerate.
"Why did I do such a stupid thing?"
Alvaric felt like an idiot for hurting himself. He closed his eyes and began to rest.
He was exhausted after fighting for so long.
***
"Are you sure that light came from this direction?" Zurath asked.
He glanced at his subordinate. The monster girl nodded. She explained that a light had appeared in the eastern part of the desert.
From the way his subordinate explained, it seemed to be true. He stroked his chin.
"Let's go in!" Zurath urged.
They opened the entrance to the dungeon. Zurath was not alone—he was accompanied by dozens of his troops.
He knew this dungeon was terrifying. He had entered it once and nearly died. After that, the place became a forbidden area. No one entered the dungeon again.
But this time, he and his troops dared to go in. The light earlier made Zurath curious.
"But I think it's better if we don't go inside," the Monster Girl said, looking frightened. "Didn't you say this place is terrifying? Why should we enter it?"
Zurath turned to her. "I know. But I have to investigate the source of that light. I once saw it, and…" he paused for a long moment. "My wife and child were killed by a strange creature that came out of that light."
The Monster Girl was shocked. "I'm sorry."
She hadn't expected that her master's wife and child's death was connected to that strange light. It had never been told. No one knew.
This explained why Zurath was so interested in the light.
"It's alright," said Zurath. "You didn't know about it. It's only natural you asked."
The Monster Girl nodded. "Thank you."