It's been a year since Charlie and I started dating, and things have been going great for us.
Charlie would occasionally visit me during work and would always try to get me to visit the local stores in the human world as a date for us.
And, being a softy for her, I relented, and we would always end up eating in some fancy restaurant or a small, locally owned coffee shop.
But the longer I was with Charlie, the more I realized that I was still weak.
Sure, relative to Hell's standards, I was one of the most powerful Goetia in the family, and I had a legion of demons at my beck and call.
But the problem was, I wasn't the strongest. My father could defeat me without any trouble, and the Sins—or even a lucky schmuck with an angelic weapon—could kill me with ease.
So that's when I decided to get stronger—to protect Charlie and all the people I cared for.
For might controls everything. Without strength, you can't protect anyone—let alone myself.
And so I began training my magic and body to their absolute limit. I would train and learn new magic to widen my specialty so that I'd never be caught off guard. I would train my body until I could no longer move.
The next step was to forge a new weapon for myself, and I decided to make a katana.
It was forged using a thousand demon souls I had collected during the times I was attacked by would-be assassins. The metal was a combination of angelic and demonic steel, and finally, I engraved different sigils to ensure the blade wouldn't rust and would maintain its sharpness.
I call this blade... the Yamato.
It was perfect. It had an unreal sharpness to it, able to cut down anything with ease.
I was almost finished with my preparations. The only thing I needed was to unlock my combat form. This was an ability that all demons have, and it increases every aspect of the demon.
I had yet to unlock mine, though I was very close. The process was straightforward: all I had to do was embrace my demonic urges and feel their power become one with me.
It sounds complicated when you think about it, but to put it in simple terms—I had to embrace my anger and let it out.
And so, I began the process of becoming one with my anger. It was painful. All the pent-up rage was released in one moment, and my blood felt like it was boiling.
But I pushed through anyway, wanting to protect the ones I cared for—and to protect myself.
After a few hours, I finally transformed into my combat form. I became much larger, my wings expanded, my beak grew and hardened into a mask-like form, and my muscles swelled in size.
This was it. I finally did it. With this, I can finally protect all that I care for.
And no one—no demon, no angel, no creature—will ever lay a finger on my family.
And if I need to become stronger—more demonic—so be it. Anything to protect them.