Kael collapsed to the ground, his breath ragged, chest rising and falling like a man drowning in air.
The flames from the summoning circle had died down, leaving behind scorched earth and twisted stone. Smoke curled upward in thin streams, rising into the night sky like burnt offerings to forgotten gods.
The villagers were gone—either fled or dead. Only silence remained.
And her.
Lilith.
The demon princess hovered above the shattered summoning circle, her wings of black fire folding slowly behind her back. Her silver hair glistened with the embers around them, and her crimson eyes glowed like twin suns.
Kael blinked hard, trying to stay conscious. His body was... wrong. He could feel it shifting beneath his skin—his blood was hot, his bones ached, and his vision flickered with colors that didn't exist.
"What… did you do to me?" he rasped.
Lilith touched down gently, her boots clicking against the stone as she approached him. She knelt again, just like before, but this time… her expression was unreadable.
"A blood pact," she said softly. "A cursed marriage between your kind and mine. It should've killed you."
Kael tried to sit up but pain lanced through his chest.
"Then why didn't it?" he groaned.
She tilted her head, a small smirk tugging at her lips. "Because you're not just human."
Kael stared at her, breathless.
"You have something inside you," she murmured. "Something old. Something broken. And something mine."
He flinched as she pressed a finger to his chest, right above his heart.
A small symbol—like a glowing red sigil—flickered into life on his skin. Twisted lines, infernal and elegant, spiraled around a single point: a blood drop encased in flame.
> The Mark of the Abyss.
Kael's eyes widened. "That wasn't there before…"
"It is now," Lilith whispered. "You're one of us. Half-claimed by the Abyss. That mark is the proof."
He wanted to deny it.
To scream that it was a lie.
But his heart… it beat differently now. Stronger. Louder.
He could hear it echoing in his ears, in sync with the pulse of something not human inside him.
"What does it mean?" he asked, voice barely above a whisper.
Lilith rose to her feet, her shadow casting over him.
"It means you're mine," she said coldly. "And now… the whole world will want you dead."
---
The night was no longer still.
Kael struggled to his feet, one hand pressed against the glowing mark on his chest. Each breath came heavy, his limbs slow like he was moving through water—but his senses were sharper. Too sharp. He could hear the trees breathing. The insects crawling beneath the earth.
Lilith stood a few paces ahead, her gaze fixed on the distance. Her wings were gone now, melted into shadows behind her back, but her aura was still thick—dangerous.
She didn't turn as she spoke.
"They're coming."
Kael blinked. "Who?"
She finally looked back at him.
"The Church."
---
They came like silver ghosts through the trees—armored knights cloaked in white and gold, bearing the holy sigil of the Sanctus Order, the kingdom's most ruthless demon-hunting force.
Six of them. Each one carrying weapons blessed in holy flame. Their eyes glowed faintly with mana sight, scanning the ruins of the summoning site.
"They're tracking me," Lilith said calmly. "Your little village lit a signal fire they never intended to."
Kael's throat tightened. "Can you fight them?"
She smirked.
"I could burn them all to ash," she said with a flick of her wrist. A spark of red fire danced across her fingertips, so hot it hissed against the misty night air.
"But?"
She turned toward him, her eyes sharp.
"But you'll die if I do."
Kael's heart skipped.
"This forest is surrounded by holy seals. Anti-demonic barriers. If I unleash my true power inside them, your human soul will shatter."
"...Because of the bond?" he guessed.
Lilith nodded. "What hurts me now hurts you. We're not just linked—we're balanced. That mark makes you the vessel that grounds me in this world."
Kael clenched his fists.
So if she fought… he'd die with her.
Perfect.
---
The knights were closing in.
One of them raised his hand. "Demonic signature confirmed," he barked. "Spread out. Eliminate the target. Retrieve any corrupted vessels alive."
"Vessels?" Kael muttered.
"They're talking about you," Lilith said flatly. "They'll take you back to the Citadel and cut the mark out of your chest—if you're lucky."
"And if I'm not?"
She smiled sweetly.
"They'll burn your soul at the stake."
Kael swallowed. "Options?"
"Run." Her wings snapped open. "Or trust me."
He hesitated.
Then one of the knights spotted them.
"There! The demon and the host!"
Too late.
They raised their weapons.
And Kael made his choice.
"Do it," he growled. "Whatever it takes—fight."
Lilith's smile turned sharp and wicked.
"As you command, husband."
The holy knights charged.
Their weapons—lances etched with golden runes and swords glowing with divine flame—cut through the air like death itself. The trees around them withered from the sheer force of their sanctified aura.
Kael's legs buckled.
His heart pounded violently against his ribs, the Mark of the Abyss burning on his chest like a brand.
Lilith stepped forward, wings spreading wide once again—full and vast, black flame curling around her figure like a storm given form.
"You dare raise your blades at my consort?" she hissed.
A knight lunged. Fast—faster than Kael could follow.
But Lilith didn't move.
The knight's blade stopped an inch from her face… frozen mid-air. It shook violently before snapping in two with a deafening crack.
Lilith raised a single hand.
Her voice was soft—but it echoed like thunder.
> "Kneel."
The holy knight screamed as black fire wrapped around him. His armor sizzled, melting into his skin as he dropped to his knees, eyes rolled back. His soul was pulled straight from his mouth in a wisp of light and eaten by the flames.
The other knights hesitated.
Lilith didn't.
She was a blur—no, a storm.
One swept upward by her wings. Another slammed into the ground by a wave of infernal gravity. A third turned to strike Kael, only to have his arms torn off by a serpent made of blood and fire.
Kael staggered back, watching it all—terrified and transfixed.
This wasn't magic. This wasn't even battle.
This was a massacre.
And yet… every time Lilith struck, he felt something tug inside him. His pulse accelerated, his veins boiled. Her power—it was tethered to him. He could feel her strength flooding into his body. He could feel it changing him.
One knight broke through, charging Kael with a dagger.
"No!" Lilith screamed, spinning toward him.
But she wouldn't make it in time.
Kael's instincts took over.
His eyes blazed red. The mark on his chest pulsed. His blood—literally his blood—burst from his arm and formed a barrier of flame, deflecting the dagger with a shriek of searing metal.
The knight was thrown back, burned and screaming.
Kael collapsed, panting.
Lilith rushed to his side, kneeling beside him. "You awakened it…" she whispered. "That wasn't me. That was you."
"I… I didn't even think…"
She placed a hand on his chest, feeling the heat of the brand pulsing through his skin. For the first time, her voice trembled.
"Do you know what this means?"
He shook his head, dazed.
She leaned in close. Closer than before.
Her breath brushed his lips. Her gaze locked into his soul.
> "You're more than a vessel now, Kael. You're… becoming mine."
And then, slowly, deliberately, she kissed him again—fiercer this time. Hungrier.
A storm of red light exploded from the circle beneath them. The last remaining knight fled in terror, screaming of a cursed union and the awakening of an ancient threat.
But Lilith didn't care.
And neither did Kael.
In that moment, they were bound—not just by magic.
But by blood.
By fire.
And by something far older than love.
---