"Ray… what should we do? What if she tells everyone?" A delicate, soft voice whispered, laced with helplessness.
"I don't care, Lia! I don't like her," Ray's voice snapped back, deep and frustrated. "My parents didn't understand... You know how clingy she was. Even knowing we were in love, she wouldn't let go. She's nothing but a cheap orphan, a gold digger. Just because my grandpa owed her mother doesn't mean I should marry her."
Lilith stirred, her body stiff and sore as she awoke. Her mind foggy, she tried to piece together where she was. Wasn't I dead? Her eyes snapped open in realization. Didn't that god promise I'd be reborn after saving him? Like a goddess of darkness?
She blinked against the light, her waist aching as she realized she'd been lying on the cold, hard ground. The discomfort pulled her out of her disoriented state. Slowly sitting up, she rubbed her waist, scanning the room with sharp eyes. It was nothing like the grand afterlife she had imagined.
What the heaven? Lilith thought bitterly. Who dares throw me down like this? Her body tensed as the ache in her waist was quickly replaced by something darker—anger. Her eyes gleamed with the same dangerous light that had once made her enemies tremble. The shadows stirred within her, rising like an old friend.
Lilith took in her surroundings—a basic hotel room with dull beige walls and halfway-drawn curtains letting in dim light. A small table in the corner was littered with half-empty coffee cups, and a mirror hung on one side of the room. The centerpiece was a large king-sized bed, covered in perfectly arranged fluffy white sheets and pillows. The room was dull, uninspiring, and felt too weak compared to the world she had once ruled.
Then she heard the voices again.
"No, Rayan, Lili is not a gold digger," Lia said in a pleading tone, her voice soft but defensive. "She's hardworking... Even after knowing I liked you, she still chased after you. But it doesn't matter. We're soul sisters."
Ray snorted. "No, Lia, no. You're the true beauty—kind, inside and out. I can't stand Lilith. She's annoying as f***."
Lilith's eyes darkened with irritation. They have no idea who they're talking about.
As she slowly rose to her feet, her waist still throbbing with a dull ache, Lilith muttered under her breath, "Who dares to hurt me?" Her voice was a low growl, deadly but quiet, carrying a promise of something worse.
When she turned her head, she saw the source of her discomfort. She had been unceremoniously dumped on the floor like discarded luggage. Her gaze shifted to the bed, where she spotted a couple, tangled together in each other's arms, utterly oblivious to her presence.
The man's hands were wrapped tightly around the woman, and Lilith watched with cold detachment as he leaned down, pressing slow kisses to her neck. They were so wrapped up in their little world that they had no idea the devil they had once wronged was awake and watching them.
Lilith's lips curled into a smirk, a dark amusement flashing in her eyes. Of all the places to wake up in, it had to be here. Really? Humans... She let out an exasperated sigh.
"Tsk… I wasn't reborn to watch some lovebirds get cozy," she muttered, rolling her eyes.
She stretched, her muscles stiff from lying on the hard ground.
Lilith, the devil from the World of the Universe, feared across all realms. She had ruled over the Installer World, a advanced place thrust upon her by an Old God who pitied her for saving his life. The so-called "blessing" of rebirth had seemed like a convenient deal at the time, but now, waking up in this weak, backward place, Lilith was starting to think the god had played a cruel joke on her.
Her eyes narrowed as her memory sharpened. This room, this situation, was far beneath her. And then her gaze fell on the couple again. She recognized them instantly from memory—her supposed fiancé, Rayan, and her best friend from university, Lia. The scene before her seemed absurd now, playing out like a bad joke. So, they had thrown her on the ground and continued their little affair?
A wicked grin spread across Lilith's face. How quaint.
Without hesitation, she strode over to the bed, her fingers twitching with mischief. Her eyes flicked to the edge of the bedsheet, and with a sharp pull, she yanked it off, leaving the couple tangled and startled. They barely had time to react before they were wrapped up like helpless insects in a cocoon of fabric.
"What the heck, Lilith?! You're a crazy woman!" Rayan shouted, struggling against the tight fabric. His face was flushed with frustration, his tough act faltering in the face of the dangerous entity he had forgotten.
Lilith crouched down beside the bed, her voice dripping with amusement. "Crazy?" she echoed with a soft chuckle. "Oh, you have no idea."
As she watched them squirm, her so-called "best friend" Lia's wide eyes brimmed with fear. "Lilith, I know you're jealous, but please don't hurt us!" Lia pleaded, her voice trembling as she struggled to free herself.
Lilith blinked, stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Jealous? Of you two?" She shook her head, a smirk tugging at her lips. "Oh, please. If anything, I'm offended you think I'd waste my time on something so trivial."
She straightened up, crossing her arms as she looked down at the two of them, helplessly cocooned in the bed sheets. "This isn't about jealousy, darlings. It's about teaching you just how insignificant your little betrayal is to me."
Her eyes glimmered with the same dangerous power that had once made her a legend among realms. Rayan's bravado crumbled as the weight of her presence bore down on him. "Lilith, wait—what are you going to do?" he stammered, his voice betraying his fear.