The forest burned.
Ash drifted like snow.
Screams echoed between trees that had stood for centuries—
Now falling in moments.
At the center of the chaos—
He stood.
Liren.
General of Lust.
Tall.
Elegant.
Beautiful in a way that felt wrong.
Eyes like liquid gold.
A smile that didn't belong on a battlefield.
Elven warriors hesitated just looking at him.
Not from fear—
But from something deeper.
Something that made their thoughts… blur.
"…Come now," Liren said softly, stepping forward.
"Why resist?"
An elven soldier dropped his weapon.
Another fell to their knees.
"Wouldn't it be easier… to just give in?"
Kael felt it even from a distance.
That pressure.
That pull.
"…Don't look at him," Kael ordered sharply.
Lira blinked.
"…Why?"
"…Because he will control you."
She looked back at Liren.
Squinted.
"…Pretty."
Kael froze.
"…Lira—"
Too late.
Liren's gaze shifted.
Locked onto her.
And for the first time—
His smile faltered.
"…Oh?"
Something was wrong.
He stepped closer.
Slow.
Curious.
"…You looked directly at me," he murmured.
"…And yet…"
Nothing.
No hesitation.
No charm.
No influence.
"…How interesting."
Lira stared back.
Tilting her head.
"…You shiny."
Silence.
Even Kael didn't know how to respond to that.
Liren chuckled softly.
"…A child?" he said.
"…No… something else."
He extended a hand.
"Come here."
The command carried weight.
Magic.
Authority.
The surviving elves froze.
Even Kael felt his body resist—
But Lira?
"…No."
Flat.
Immediate.
Liren blinked.
"…No?"
"…Kael said no move."
She nodded, completely serious.
"…So no."
Silence.
Then—
Liren laughed.
"…How adorable."
The air shifted.
"…Let's see how long that lasts."
He moved.
Fast.
Faster than the eye could follow—
He appeared in front of her.
A finger reached for her chin.
"Look at me," he whispered.
Lira didn't move.
"…Okay."
She looked.
Nothing happened.
Liren's smile—
Finally cracked.
"…Impossible."
Lira blinked.
"…Now what?"
Kael's voice cut through—
"Lira."
She turned slightly.
"…Yes?"
"…You may act."
Pause.
"…Act?"
"…Fight."
Her eyes lit up.
"…Oh."
A smile spread across her face.
"…Okay."
Liren barely had time to react.
Because Lira moved.
No wind-up.
No stance.
No technique.
Just—
A step.
The ground shattered.
Her hand swung.
Liren raised a barrier instantly—
Layers of magic stacking in front of him—
CRACK.
All of them broke.
At once.
The impact didn't hit him.
It erased the space between them.
Liren's body launched backward—
Through trees.
Through fire.
Through the battlefield itself—
Before crashing into the earth with a force that silenced everything.
For a moment—
No one moved.
No one breathed.
Then—
"…Ow."
Liren stood.
Slowly.
His body… twisted.
Not broken.
But not right.
He smiled.
But this time—
It wasn't calm.
"…Now that," he said softly,
"…was exciting."
The air around him warped.
Darkened.
His aura exploded outward—
Crushing nearby trees into dust.
"Again," he said.
Lira tilted her head.
"…Again?"
"…Yes."
She thought about it.
Then nodded.
"…Okay."
She stepped forward.
The battlefield trembled.
And for the first time—
A Demon General felt it.
Not amusement.
Not curiosity.
But something unfamiliar.
Danger.