Beside the unconscious Lord Armand, the demon that had taken possession of the princess's body reveled in its sinister victory.
"Hahaha… good… good… you've caught on sooner than I expected," it cackled, its laughter echoing through the eerie darkness.
"But does it matter? Even if you know where you are, you'll never break free from here," it taunted arrogantly.
"You'll just break yourself in the end, and you'll become my puppet, much like this puppet of a princess," it added with a cruel, malevolent grin.
Then, with a triumphant and chilling laughter that sent shivers down the spine, the demon declared, "HAAHAAA."
Raising the severed head of Renial high, the demon proudly proclaimed, "With this head of a hero in my hand, I, Cronos de Valefor, wielder of dark dreams, second son of the demon king Valefor, shall become the next demon king!"
Once again, the cavern was filled with its maniacal laughter, creating a haunting symphony of triumph and madness.
"Is this the full extent of your power?" a voice murmured, unimpressed.
"If so, there's no reason for me to linger any longer."
"Who? Where?!" the demon exclaimed, its eyes filled with confusion and fear as it frantically searched for the source of the voice.
"Don't waste your time looking everywhere; I'm right here," the voice calmly stated.
"Huh?" The demon tilted its head in confusion upon seeing Renial's disembodied head still speaking.
"How are you still alive?" the demon demanded, a mix of confusion and irritation tainting its tone.
"I beheaded you to ensure your death. I've never known a hero to return from such a fate; even the mightiest should remain lifeless after losing their head. It's beyond belief!"
"Absurd to you, perhaps," Renial retorted, his voice steady and composed. "But do you think resurrection is a power reserved only for demonspawn like yourself?"
Cronos, visibly affronted, questioned, "What do you mean by calling me a demonspawn?"
"Demonspawn… aren't you?" Renial calmly replied.
Cronos's outrage flared. "Why do you persist in labeling me a demonspawn?"
Renial inquired, "Aren't you the son of Valefor?"
Cronos hesitated, then responded, "Yes, I am."
"In that case, being called a demonspawn isn't inaccurate," Renial remarked.
"Huh?" Cronos mumbled, baffled by Renial's perspective.
Renial grew impatient. "Enough of this nonsense. How do you want to meet your end, demonspawn? The easy way or the hard way? The choice is yours; make it quickly."
"Huh?"
"Did you not hear me? Make your cho—"
"HAAHAAA -HAAHAAA…"
"What choice? Hahah, hah… Me… choose… choose what? Hahaha…" Cronos cackled, his sanity slipping away like a wisp of smoke in the night.
Cronos brought Renial's severed head close to its own face, locking eyes with the lifeless gaze.
A menacing grin stretched across its borrowed visage as it taunted, "Do you think you can defeat me just because you managed to come back to life, huh?" Behind the princess's face, a disturbing madness gleamed.
"Alright, let's play it your way. Mmm… what were your options again? Ah, right! The easy way or the hard way? Let's say I choose the second option—the hard way. Now, what will you do?" Cronos challenged.
"You may have returned, but you are still powerless before me. I can end you again just as easily."
Cronos leaned closer, its voice dripping with dark amusement. "So, at least try to entertain me. Maybe, if you amuse me enough, I'll consider sparing you. What do you say? My deal sounds better, right?"
Renial's lifeless eyes seemed to bear into Cronos's soul, though the demon did not possess one.
A twisted smile curved across the disembodied head's lips, a mockery of life.
"Entertainment, you say?" Renial's voice carried a haunting tone, as if it had glimpsed something beyond the realm of mortal comprehension.
"Very well, demonspawn. I shall entertain you in a way that you shall never forget."
Cronos's amusement turned into uncertainty, but it couldn't back down now. It had made its challenge, and it was bound by the dark game it had initiated.
"Prepare yourself, for you've ventured into a world you can't fathom," Renial intoned ominously.
In front of Cronos, an astonishing transformation began.
Renial's severed head started emitting a radiant light, piercing the cavern's oppressive darkness.
"Aaaaaaa!" Cronos screamed, tossing Renial's head away from him as the brilliant light seared his flesh.
Renial's disembodied head floated in the air, surrounded by an ethereal glow.
Cronos stared in puzzlement as the radiant light began to take the form of a body.
"Too much holy power… how?!" Cronos muttered, grazing his hand over Renial's head.
He watched in amazement as the emitted light slowly coalesced into a pure white-clothed body that floated in the air.
"Now, shall we begin?" Renial's new form stated, the radiance still emanating from him.
Cronos, still reeling from the shock of witnessing this transformation, couldn't help but feel a growing sense of unease.
The presence before him, clad in pure white and radiating with holy energy, was vastly different from the one he had encountered before.
"What… what are you?" Cronos stammered, his confidence waning.
Renial's new form smiled, but it was a smile filled with an eerie tranquility.
"I am the embodiment of retribution, the bringer of justice for all those you have wronged."
Cronos took a step back, fear gnawing at his heart. "This can't be… you were just a body less defeated hero a moment ago."
"Appearances can be deceiving, Cronos," Renial responded, his voice carrying a weight of authority.
"Now, it's time for you to face the consequences of your actions."
With that, Renial's new form moved with an otherworldly grace, launching an attack that Cronos struggled to defend against.
The cavern shook with the force of their confrontation, and the battle between light and darkness raged on.
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A/n: hi guys, hope you are doing well and continue to do well, i just wanted to tell that the story might have been look confusing so if any body has any questions plz leave comment, i will answer it ASAP or DM me on discord. my user name is fire_angel2005