Ch-13 < Blanc >

The White Primordial, now fully awakened in Blanche's body, looked out upon the kingdom that had betrayed its pact.

For those who had not violated the ancient pact, the White Primordial was merciful. In an instant, she severed their lives with a swift, painless death—an act of mercy for their loyalty. But for those who had broken the pact and participated in the betrayal, the White Primordial reserved the full extent of her wrath.

Emilia, her father, and the man Blanche had once loved—Guinas—would experience the depths of torment that only a primordial demon could conceive. As the White Primordial took her first step toward the castle where the nobles had gathered to celebrate Blanche's betrothal, her power rippled across the land, her aura dark and suffocating. The very air turned thick with malice.

Inside the royal court, panic spread like wildfire. The nobles who had conspired against Blanche and her mother suddenly found themselves gripped by an overwhelming sense of dread.

They could feel the weight of the primordial's gaze, even though she had not yet arrived. The lights flickered, and the ground trembled beneath their feet. The windows shattered as the lake outside the castle began to boil, the once-crystal waters turning blood red as the White Primordial's fury tainted it.

Guinas stood paralyzed in fear, his once confident demeanor gone. He had used charm and deceit to manipulate the kingdom, but now, he realized his mistake. He had underestimated the ancient forces he had dared to challenge.

"What...what is happening?" Emilia cried, her voice trembling with terror. Her father, the Marquis, stood beside her, pale and shaking.

Before they could react, the doors to the grand hall burst open with a deafening crash. Standing there, bathed in the red glow of the tainted moonlight, was Blanche—or what was left of her.

The White Primordial had fully taken over, and her once kind and gentle face now held an expression of cold, emotionless malice.

In an instant, Guinas's body was wracked with agony. He fell to the floor, screaming as his flesh twisted and contorted. The White Primordial's power tore him apart from the inside, slowly and painfully, every nerve in his body set alight with unbearable pain.

Emilia and her father watched in horror, unable to move, as Guinas's screams echoed throughout the hall.

But the White Primordial was far from finished.

The rest of the nobles who had supported Guinas and the Empire's plans were not spared either. One by one, they were consumed by the White Primordial's fury. Their blood gushed from their bodies, flowing through the castle like rivers. Outside, the lake had become a sea of crimson, completely tainted by the blood of the betrayers.

<>

Meanwhile, at Frost Castle, Kevin stood at the balcony, his senses sharp as he felt a tremendous shift in the flow of mana. The air crackled with an overwhelming presence, something ancient and terrifying. He narrowed his eyes, recognizing the aura instantly.

"White Primordial...she's descended."

Without wasting a moment, Kevin activated his teleportation skill, instantly vanishing from the Frost Castle.

Velzard and Velgrynd, who had been nearby, felt the same surge of power and knew exactly where Kevin had gone. The two dragon sisters exchanged glances.

"He's going after the White Primordial," Velgrynd said, her voice laced with confusion as why Kevin would go there.

" shouldn't we join him," Velzard added, already preparing her own teleportation magic.

Without another word, they followed Kevin, appearing moments later at the blood-soaked shores of the lake near the kingdom of Silberia.

Kevin arrived just as the massacre was reaching its peak. The air was thick with the stench of blood, and the ground was slick with it. The sight was unlike anything Kevin had seen before. The once pristine lake was now a sea of blood, and the kingdom that had once stood in peaceful isolation was now a slaughterhouse.

In the distance, he saw her—the White Primordial now inhabiting her body. She stood at the center of the destruction, her white hair glowing eerily under the blood-red moon. Around her countless tatted and broken body Kay around.

<>

As the crimson sky cast its eerie glow over the blood-soaked battlefield, Kevin silently observed the destruction below. His sharp eyes caught the faint shimmer of magic emanating from a figure standing at the heart of the chaos. Without hesitation, he teleported down, appearing in an instant behind the white-haired beauty.

"The sight here isn't looking good," Kevin's voice broke the silence, calm but laced with subtle authority. His sudden appearance made Blanc's senses flare, and for the first time in centuries, she felt an unease creep up her spine. She hadn't sensed him at all.

Blanc, the White Primordial, leaped back instinctively, her guard up as she examined the silver-haired youth before her. His deep ocean blue eyes glinted in the dim light, exuding a power that far surpassed her own.

"What do you want?" Blanc demanded, her voice sharp, though laced with caution. She could sense the vast strength within him, something far beyond mortal understanding.

Kevin vanished once more, this time reappearing directly in front of her. His fingers gently tilted her chin upward, locking his eyes onto her deep crimson gaze. For a moment, everything stood still—Blanc, a primordial demon feared across realms, found herself frozen in place, unable to move.

Kevin met her gaze without hesitation, his fingers still outstretched from the brief contact. "I'm here to stop you from killing every last citizen in this kingdom," he said calmly, though his tone carried a weight that Blanc couldn't ignore.

Her body remained tense, and she narrowed her eyes. "The contract was with the kingdom as a whole," Blanc replied, her voice steady but with an edge of finality. "They broke it first. I'm simply fulfilling my end of the pact."

Kevin sighed. He had encountered demons before, but Blanc was different. A primordial. For her kind, contracts were sacred. Binding. Absolute. There was no room for mercy once a contract was broken. It wasn't cruelty—it was simply the way of demons.

As Kevin scanned the area, the carnage became clearer. Corpses littered the ground—men, women, and even children. Blood had soaked into the earth, and the once-pristine lake had turned a deep, unnatural red. A knot tightened in his chest, but his face remained composed.

"I saw newborns among the dead," Kevin said quietly, his gaze softening for a moment. "Children who couldn't possibly have known the difference between right and wrong. Do they really deserve this?"

Blanc hesitated, but her resolve remained unshaken. "The contract was with the whole kingdom," she repeated, her voice more rigid now. "There are no exceptions. Not for anyone."

Kevin withdrew his aura, allowing Blanc to move freely once more. He studied her carefully. In a flash, dark energy erupted from Blanc's body as she released a death ray, obliterating everything in its path, including the advancing army of the Eastern Empire. Smoke rose in thick columns from the destruction, the remnants of the attack.

When the smoke finally cleared, Kevin emerged unscathed, as if the blast had never touched him. In one swift motion, he planted a black rod into Blanc's side, instantly disrupting her magicules. She staggered, her body trembling as she struggled to maintain control.

Kevin's hand glowed with holy magic, and Blanc's crimson eyes widened in alarm.

"Stop! Don't harm this body!" Blanc shouted, panic flickering in her eyes. "I concede."

Kevin lowering his hand as the glow faded. "That's better," he replied, his voice soft "You're smarter than most demons."

After some silence , Kevin spoke as Blanc realized that resistance is futile.

"Are you going to name yourself and become a true demon lord, like Guy Crimson?" Kevin asked, tilting his head slightly. There was a hint of curiosity in his voice, but also an understanding of what such a transformation would mean.

Blanc shook her head slowly, her expression thoughtful. "This body is precious," she said, her voice quiet but firm. "I'll be cementing it—making sure it stays as it is right now."

Kevin raised an eyebrow. "That's an odd choice for a demon," he remarked, his tone light, but there was a deeper meaning in his words. For a demon acquiring a physical body was their greatest desire—. "So, whoever this body belonged to… they must have meant a lot to you."

Then, with a shift in his expression, Kevin became serious. "You should stay," he said quietly. "Use the body. She might be happy in this way ".

Blanc froze. His words cut through her like a blade, sharper than she had anticipated. The memories of Blanche flooded her mind—her innocent smile, her laughter, and her final words: Big sis, be happy in your life.

Her chest felt heavy as he experience sadness for first time.Her hands moved to her face, Blanc felt the wetness of tears streaming down her cheeks.

Kevin watched her, his deep ocean-blue eyes filled with an odd mix of understanding and surprise. "So even demons can cry," he said softly, his voice gentle, free from any hint of mockery. "It seems demons are more human than I thought."

Blanc stiffened at his words, quickly wiping the tears from her face as though ashamed of them. "How can a demon be… human?" she asked quietly, her voice strained and uncertain. Her crimson eyes locked onto his, trying to find an answer that made sense. "Humans are just another race—fragile, mortal. We're nothing alike."

Kevin chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You misunderstand what it means to be human," he said, stepping closer, his gaze unwavering. "Being human isn't about being fragile or mortal. It's about emotion. It's about feeling. Compassion, care, the desire to protect what's precious to you. Those things are universal, not bound by race."

Blanc was silent, his words sinking in. She had never thought of it that way. Her whole existence had been defined by power, by strength, by the rules that governed demons—contracts, destruction, chaos. But what Kevin was saying… it was something entirely different. It was almost foreign to her.

"But I was born from darkness," she finally said, her voice quieter, more contemplative. "I was created to destroy, not to care."

Kevin's smile softened, and he reached out, gently lifting her chin so that she had no choice but to meet his gaze. "And yet you cared for Blanche, didn't you? You protected her. You taught her, even though you didn't have to. And now, you're mourning her. You're feeling something right now, aren't you?"

Blanc hesitated, her mind racing. She had cared for Blanche, in her own way. She had protected her, even though she hadn't fully understood why at the time. Now, standing here with Kevin, the reality of it all began to make sense.

"I… did care for her," she admitted, her voice almost a whisper.

Kevin nodded, his eyes never leaving hers. "That's what I mean. It's not about what you are, but who you are. You chose to care. That's what it means to be human—or, in your case, more human than most humans themselves."

Blanc's crimson eyes softened, a flicker of something almost like gratitude flashing in them. "And what if I don't want to care?" she asked, her voice quieter now, vulnerable in a way she hadn't allowed herself to be in centuries.

Kevin smiled again, his expression gentle. "That's a choice too. But from what I've seen, you already do care. You've already shown that you're capable of more than you realize."

Blanc's gaze softened. "You're an odd one.

"Many have said this before". He said and invite her to his home.

"I'll consider it," she replied softly, her voice carrying a new sense of resolve.

As Kevin turned and began to walk away, Blanc stood there, her eyes following him.

"What does he even mean, inviting me to his house?" she mused silently, feeling a surge of unease mixed with curiosity.