A Demon's Temptation

Gordon fell to the ground, face-first, his body slamming against the wet, filthy road. Pain coursed through him like a wildfire, and he could feel life ebbing away as a pool of blood slowly formed beneath him. Kai stood over him, disappointment etched across his face, the rain still drumming down in a relentless rhythm.

'I… need to escape,' Gordon thought desperately, his mind racing as panic washed over him. But as he lay there, his strength fading, he felt life slipping through his fingers like grains of sand. He struggled to hold on, but it felt futile. The cold embrace of death wrapped around him, and with every labored breath, he felt himself fading, second by second.

And then, a voice echoed in his ear, dark and sinister.

"Do you want power?"

The voice dripped with malevolence, sending chills down his spine. Gordon's lips felt numb, and his blood continued to flow freely, soaking the ground beneath him.

"I can save you."

Promises of power swirled in his mind, tantalizing and impossible to resist. The hatred he felt for Kai surged within him, raw and consuming. Memories flooded back—he had been there from the beginning, one of the loyal servants who helped Markus build the mansion. Markus had treated him well, appointing him as his head butler, but Gordon had always felt like a shadow, never fully acknowledged for his contributions.

Jealousy gnawed at him. He had aspired to be an Adventurer, to carve his own path, but fear of the dungeon had trapped him in a life he never wanted. As Markus's wealth grew, so did Gordon's desire for it. He had settled for the role of a butler, but his longing for power and riches consumed him, fueling his resentment.

"Yes, I want power," he finally answered, his voice a mere whisper.

His body went numb as he succumbed to the darkness, but then something shifted within him.

As Kai walked away, he sensed something unusual about Gordon's body. A surge of foreign energy enveloped him, swirling like a chaotic storm, deep crimson and alive.

"What the hell?" Kai muttered under his breath, astonished. Scales began to protrude from Gordon's skin—crimson scales, each shimmering with raw magic. Twin wings sprouted from his back, and in an instant, Kai recognized the transformation.

"Is he becoming a demon?"

Kai moved forward, propelled by instinct, pushing off the ground in a flash. The air thickened with magic as Gordon was lifted into the air, his eyes flickering open, now a vivid crimson.

'This is very bad,' Kai thought, dread settling in his stomach. Demons weren't introduced until the fifth volume, and even one demon possesses immense destructive power.

Gordon let out a guttural cry that echoed through the streets, his body contorting and transforming into something unrecognizable. Crimson skin replaced his former self, and brown horns sprouted from his forehead. The twin wings stretched wide, giving him the appearance of a creature born from nightmares.

The cry reverberated through the surrounding buildings, shaking the very foundations of the city. Cracks spread through the ground as if the earth itself recoiled from the monstrous transformation.

 "Fuck it," Kai thought, steeling himself as he moved forward with more speed. He appeared in front of the levitating demon, landing a powerful uppercut that sent Gordon flying into the air. The impact expelled wind outward, demonstrating the sheer force packed into the attack.

But this was no longer Gordon. The moment one became a demon, they offered their soul to a fate worse than death. The Demon Lord extended an offer at the moment of death or emotional turmoil, appealing to those at their lowest when they could not resist.

Once the demon seized control, the soul was lost, the body transformed into a mindless creature of destruction, stripped of rationality.

The skies rumbled as Kai inhaled deeply, extending his palm forward. A bolt of lightning snaked through the air, arcing toward the demon. Gordon's crimson eyes widened as the bolt neared, but with a flick of his hand, he swatted it away as if it were nothing more than an insect.

Kai gritted his teeth. Demons had first appeared in Volume 5, and a single demon could devastate large sections of the Imperial City. While they were easily dispatched by the Protagonist since he had a Light Endowment, they posed a significant threat to him. Kai had awakened Lightning magic as his Endowment, but that alone might not be enough.

"Hell," Kai muttered under his breath, feeling the gravity of the situation. He spread his arms wide, letting lightning spark all over his body. His clothes trembled under the force of the energy, and then they split into several bolts of lightning that shot through the air, converging on the demon.

Yet the demon was more powerful than it appeared. The lightning bolts were swatted away as easily as flies, dissipating into the storm above. Kai clenched his fists in frustration.

'My Endowment won't cut it,' he thought, watching the demon advance. He focused, his eyes glowing as he studied the creature's movements. 'But even an Endowment isn't necessary to kill a demon.'

While demons had immense power, they often lacked the intelligence to wield it effectively. Light magic was their primary weakness, but they had many others.

Kai gripped his sword tightly, studying the demon's vulnerabilities as it closed the distance between them. The demon swung its claw, but Kai deftly moved out of the way, letting the claw swipe through empty air.

In a swift counterattack, he slashed at the demon's arm, severing it with a clean cut. The demon let out a howl of pain, and Kai's heart raced with adrenaline.

'Just like all monsters,' they have a core, he reminded himself, recalling what he had learned over countless chapters. After transformation, their brains became orbs, making it easier for the Demon Lord to take control of their bodies.

He had spent hours studying the lore, and he felt confident in his understanding.

Kai's sword began to glow with lightning as he charged forward. He aimed for the demon's head, swinging with all his might and decapitating it in one swift motion. But he couldn't stop there—he needed to destroy the core.

He gripped the sword with both hands, slashing the severed head again and again, tearing it apart and shattering the core hidden within. The demon's form disintegrated into ash, the dark energy dissipating into the stormy night.

Breathing heavily, Kai stepped back, his mind racing. The power he had just witnessed was terrifying, but he had managed to overcome it. Yet he knew this was just the beginning; the threat of the Demon Lord loomed large, and he would need every ounce of strength to face it.

As the storm began to fade, Kai glanced at the remnants of Gordon's transformation. The battle was won, but the cost weighed heavily on his heart.

He couldn't shake the feeling that he hadn't just fought a demon tonight; he had fought someone he once called a friend. The darkness within Gordon had consumed him entirely, leaving only a shell of the man he used to be.

Kai looked up at the fading storm, determination filling his heart. He would not let this be the end.

'Why? Why did the demon lord already make an appearance?' Kai thought, a fire igniting within him, 'It's far too soon,'

The battle might be over, but the war had just begun.