Is loving her a poison destined to lead him to ruin?
In ancient times, when the high faerie lords tried to conquer all realms and demand worship as 'gods', they faced resistance from Astara, the demon realm.
A prophecy foretold the creation of two souls: one with accurate insight and compassion, the other with overwhelming strength and immortality. These souls, bound by duty, would inhabit an Astaran man and woman, and together, they would put the high faerie lords and their entire foundation to ruin, ending the era of the faeries.
To avoid that prophecy, the leader of the faeries sent the girl with the power of insight to another world through a portal as a baby. But to his surprise, his son entered the portal, landing in that world with her.
Darkness emanating from him mirrored the abyss of night and starlight, yet his heart never enlightened as it did now, in an endless space surrounded by stars. It was an era when skilled gamers thrived, and some succeeded in Esports. One in particular was the prince of a tyrannical tribe, trapped in the mortal realm since ancient times, all while avoiding the one thing that could ruin everything: romance.
Alone, floating among shadows, black energy swirled around and dissipated until it unveiled the pale skin of a young man. Hair as dark as midnight reached his thighs, resting against the silver pattern of a long black robe. The armor hugging his waist blended with the environment, tracing the line of his broad torso.
Long lashes fluttered, revealing eyes like those of a siren. The stars reflected in his pale green irises like a shimmering pond admiring the obsidian sky, branding their glow onto his gaze.
His chiseled neck stretched, exposing the smooth line of bare collarbone. He surveyed the area—a place so dark and empty, with nothing but stars and the aurora borealis. Yet a scoff escaped before the whispers, "I'm still here."
The rise and fall of his chest. The lack of rhythm in trembling hands. Gritting teeth. Sneer. The volume of a deep, smooth voice increased with each word.
"Am I truly unable to return to my realm? Am I supposed to believe that this... is beyond me? That the throne is out of my reach, when it's just one portal away? No... No, this isn't how this ends. Not like this." Doubt wriggled up his spine like a serpent, wrapping around his neck. "If I fail to go back to Parishahr, my goal will slip through my fingers."
Gaze lifting, fist clenching beneath the armor of sapphire and silver molded into a pool of onyx—yet a smirk twisted on his full lips.
"One that will bring the demons to their knees... And when I take what's rightfully mine, I'll make them kneel before my kind—faces in the dirt, day and night—and make them suffer the same mockery I was forced to watch while I could do nothing—trapped in here while everything happened."
A memory pierced his thoughts—the image of demons breaching the palace, the final view of his home before darkness swallowed him whole, severing the last link between him and his world afterward.
It was all... gone.
In a chill of loss, the pit of his stomach sank, pulling down the strings of his heart.
'But what if my powers do return fully, and I succeed in going back... but find nothing there? My realm, my throne... gone... What if I lose everything I have now... by returning? What then?' It hit like a hammer to the chest. Jaw clenching, a sharp exhale through the nose. "But if I give up on the throne, I'll lose everything I am. Just like they failed to—"
Hollow in his chest filled up as if with bricks, stuffing his heart, but beneath it, something far darker and fiercer burned—slow and steady.
He refused to let go. He had to understand. Had to know why he endured the pain of humiliation—why his people, the Paries, considered the superior race, had failed to crush these... pests called the Astarans. If they died, then maybe they deserved to be wiped out. Or perhaps death was better than staying a joke, a laughingstock among the living. The very word 'weakness' made his skin crawl, especially when it came to his tribe.
How he longed for the day of his return and retaliation—like a desert yearning for rain.
How he wished his last memory of his home had been something other than humiliating—something that showed his people, who represented him in some way, as invincible. But no, the most painful memory was not the invasion itself. Alas, it was something far more dreadful. Something personal.
He recalled the words—those haunting words of a man from his world, a long time ago, all while trapped in the abyss, with only a spheric metaphysical window between them, the man's eyes staring back into his own:
"For far too long, I have awaited your return since you were little, and once you do, Astara will pay. You are the strongest in the realms of the living, Ningshun, but do not let this blind you to what may cause your downfall. Beware of your weakness."
'Weakness... How laughable, coming from my father's right-hand man.' Ningshun let out a low scoff as he shook the thought away. 'It will never be triggered in the first place. Ever.' But the man's voice continued to nag at him, drilling into his mind.
"Never fall in love with someone other than a Pari. It will consume you, tear down your defenses, and weaken you until you are left with nothing—completely powerless and an easy target for the Astarans. You cannot reclaim the throne and carry forth your legacy if you are... dead."
The memory hit him bitter, like a punch in the gut. The nerve.
Ningshun still had not determined whether this was the joke of the century or if the man had deluded himself into underestimating him. The idea that the only person their people counted on to return and demolish their enemies could truly fall for something as stupid as not only falling in love, but also with someone other than his kind... Talk about doubling the absurdity of that statement.
"Poor bastard was so paranoid and afraid that I'd fall for it." Dark, amused smile twisted his lips, followed by deep, smooth chuckles. "Guess starving for a woman's attention... must've driven him mad."
Low growls and distant howls reached his ears, but he did not bother looking—unworthy of thought.
"Love... is for anyone who can't keep their useless desires in check. Not for someone like me: someone with a true vision." He raised his hand, staring at it as if deep in thought. "And besides..."
Without blinking, turquoise shimmers unfurled from his palms, rising like starlight coming to life, conjuring two long blades in each hand.
A gigantic, monstrous creature charged at him with a vicious roar, its claws aiming for his throat. Its skin covered in thick, blackened scales, and those eyes—the haunting red eyes of a predator. The beast, its twisted horns curling inward and jutting from its skull, opened its mouth, baring rough, saw-like teeth, ready to rip its prey apart.
Ningshun did not flinch. It was beneath him—nothing more than an insect to crush beneath his heel.
Eyes glowing, a black line formed around Ningshun's eyelids, tracing the shape of his eyes and the sharp angles at the outer corners. His upper canines grew into two sharp fangs, touched by the breeze from his mouth.
Swift, without hesitation, the left sword pierced the creature's chest. The monster twitched. Then, spinning in a full circle with grace, the sword in his right hand slashed the beast in half—from top to bottom—silencing the shrieks of the collapsing beast. Vaporized.
The glowing eyes narrowed into a threatening stare before returning to their normal state, followed by the drop of his gaze—cold, distant, and almost... bored. "Nothing, no one, can make me lose focus—especially not... that," he continued.
With a single arch of his fingers, the swords vanished into nothingness, except for the aura, radiating teal shimmers from within and around him like a waterfall defying gravity.
"Since I can't go back to my world now, I might as well return to the mortal realm."
Sighing in a lying position and stretching arms, Ningshun stared into the distance. Mind wandering... until it hit. Something clicked.
A name crossed his thoughts: someone who had piqued his interest in the mortal realm. He tilted his head slightly with a flash of amusement in his eyes as he replayed the moment he first saw her in-game. Her skill was intriguing—there was something more to her.
The corners of his mouth lifted in amusement—mischievous and knowing. "Matian Meilin... This should be interesting." Grinning wider, he replayed the day of testing each candidate on his secret account for the new Jungler position on the Esports team. 'Either Meilin is ridiculously lucky, or she's got something to hide. No way she's reading her opponents like that every single time.' He chuckled. 'Doesn't matter. I'll meet her tomorrow anyway... But why wait?'
His aquamarine aura formed ethereal avian wings, like the union of darkness and moonlight. See-through feathers moved and rippled, as though the world bent around him to his command, even as he barely moved. Black wings, yet their tips shone in a turquoise hue, like iridescent blue-green. Magnetic, like the moon, as if darkness would reel you in while the light blinded you in the process.
A hurricane of shimmering shadows surrounded him, and he vanished, teleported out of the abyss with a single thought:
'I'll figure out this rookie for myself.'
From darkness, he emerged into the light.
The small town sprawled below him, with people walking the streets unaware of Ningshun's arrival—shadows spreading their wings around him before vanishing. He gazed down at the world moving beneath him, invisible, above the apartment where Meilin lived. Yet the horizon beckoned him, enticing his gaze as if it longed to capture the dreamy eyes of a long-lost lover... with a piercing glare.
Ningshun hissed. The blinding, setting sun cast a warm glow over the icy hue of his green irises, forcing him to squint and raise an arm to shield them before dropping his gaze—blinking at a strange yet familiar sight.
Below, a faint blue light arced in a dome around the apartment, the buzzing almost impossible to hear.
Eyes flew open as if something had ripped them apart from within, the intensity of his focus piercing. "That's..."
The closer he got, the louder the buzzing became.
"My power... in the mortal realm?" Ningshun dropped to a low whisper, his aura flaring from within like swirling slivers of blue. "But how? Unless..."
Electricity crackled around the surface as he came so close that he almost sensed the response.
But just as quickly, the dome shrank, collapsing into a single, bright room within the building—Meilin's residence.
His gaze darkened. Could his assumption be true?
"Interesting." Ningshun closed his eyes, lips curling into a taunting smirk. "But stolen power never obeys a thief... and neither do I."
In the blink of an eye, his vortex whisked him away again.
He could feel it—the rush flowing through his veins after searching for the rest of his powers for so long. Faster, faster—faster. It was close, so close, almost within his grasp, as if his power called to him, yearning for him to claim it as his.
'What the—' Ningshun stopped dead. His breath caught, and a dry, rasping sound escaped his throat. Speechless—for what he witnessed had changed everything.
"Ah, finally," she groaned as she pulled her shirt over her head. "Stupid, stupid bra!"
In the next chapter, Ningshun faces a difficult decision due to a dilemma. What conflicts will disrupt his comfort zone?
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Copyright © 2023 by Aurora Luxi
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, filmed, animated, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
All rights reserved.
The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.
Demon King's Love has been rewritten and revamped from an earlier iteration by Aurora Luxi.
Copyright © 2022 (previous version), 2023 (latest version) by Aurora Luxi
Cover design copyright © 2023 by Aurora Luxi
ISBN: 9798223752325
AuroraLuxi.com/Demon-Kings-Love
I praise God for being the unbreakable pillar in my life during the most challenging times and for providing me with ideas for a story.
ns13.59.1.209da2
然後按「加至主畫面」