Sophie stared out of the window, her face frozen in shock. The sky, once clear, was now swallowed by a thick, unnatural darkness. A crimson glow flickered across the horizon, as though the very fabric of the world was burning. The winds howled outside, carrying with them the sickly scent of sulfur and ash.
Hen stepped beside her, his breath shallow, his mind racing with panic. "This… this isn't right. It can't be happening."
Mia and Pumeo turned toward the window, their bodies rigid. A primal terror settled deep in their bones as the earth beneath them seemed to tremble.
Scarlett, eyes fixed on Mia, moved with terrifying speed. Before anyone could react, she was standing in front of them.
World leaders had already begun scrambling to respond, but it was too late. The invasion had begun, and the world was powerless to stop it.
Scarlett's eyes locked onto Mia, and without hesitation, she lunged. Sophie screamed, her voice full of panic, grabbing Mia and Pumeo, trying to pull them back. "Run!" she shouted, but the words barely left her mouth before Scarlett stopped her cold, freezing them with a single, icy glance.
Hen, heart hammering in his chest, grabbed a gun in desperation, his hands trembling as he aimed it at Scarlett. He pulled the trigger, praying that somehow, this would make a difference.
The bullet hit Scarlett—but it didn't even slow her down. If anything, it enraged her. Her eyes blazed with fury, and before Hen could even blink, she raised her hand. A shockwave rippled outward, the sound of it deafening. Hen's eardrums ruptured in an instant, and he staggered backward, clutching his skull, his world spinning in agony. His body crumpled, falling to the ground, his vision clouded with pain.
Mia's heart raced, her chest tightening. Scarlett's attention shifted back to her. With inhuman speed, Scarlett lunged, grabbing Mia by the arms and lifting her effortlessly into the air. Her voice, dark and cold, whispered in Mia's ear, "I found you."
The words hit Mia like a punch. Found me? Her mind spun in confusion. What does she mean?
But then, the confusion melted away into something fiercer—rage. Mia kicked, her leg slamming into Scarlett's torso with a force so brutal it seemed to shake the very air. Scarlett was thrown back, crashing into the ground with an audible thud. The Hell Army advanced, their mission clear—to claim Mia, to bring her home. But Mia wasn't going anywhere without a fight.
"I am NOT a demon!" she screamed, her voice trembling with a raw, untamed fury that echoed across the battlefield. "You're NOT taking me away!"
For a moment, she stood there, breathing heavily, eyes wild with defiance. Then something caught her attention—a presence.
She turned, her breath catching in her throat as her gaze locked onto the figure standing before her—the Demon King.
A heavy silence descended upon them, thick with tension. Her pulse raced, each beat like a thunderclap in her ears.
The Demon King's voice rumbled like the roar of a storm, deep and undeniable. "You are not just a child of demons. You are my daughter. The princess of Hell. Your name is Primora Chronis."
The Demon Queen, stepping forward with a softer yet no less powerful presence, added, "Your true name, my child... Primora Chronis."
Mia—no, Primora—felt her world tilt. The words hit her like a physical blow. She staggered back, her heart pounding in her chest. Her eyes welled with tears, but she didn't know whether to fight or to fall into her father's embrace. "Dad... you're here?"
For a heartbeat, the chaos around them seemed to freeze, the world narrowing to this fragile moment between father and daughter.
But the silence was broken in an instant.
A thousand nuclear warheads rained down from the sky in a relentless storm of destruction.
The world's last desperate attempt to stop Hell's invasion.
The Demon King's roar echoed, shaking the very ground as he raised his hands high. His power surged outward, forming a massive, impenetrable barrier in a desperate bid to protect everything from the incoming onslaught.
But even as the barrier shimmered with raw energy, the first warhead struck with unimaginable force.
The ground shook violently beneath them. The sky erupted in blinding light, and the world seemed to collapse in on itself.
The Demon King's barrier faltered, cracks appearing as the power of the nuclear explosion pushed against it. His teeth gritted in effort, sweat beading on his brow. With all his strength, he fought to hold the barrier intact—but it was no use.
Some of the warheads were stopped—but not all.
The shockwave from one of the blasts struck Mia's group, throwing them off balance. The Demon King's focus was shattered for a moment, and in that instant, something far darker emerged from the abyss.
Pure, unrelenting darkness.
A force unlike anything they had ever seen.
A demon of pure void.
It called itself… Man.
As the world burned, the Demon King stood, his power surging again as he prepared to face the new threat. Somewhere, in the midst of the chaos, a family lay asleep, unaware that the world they once knew was no more.