Chereads / Isekai Fantasy: "The Demon King's Gourmet Tavern" / Chapter 14 - Chapter 14: The Awakening

Chapter 14 - Chapter 14: The Awakening

Victor stood in the heart of the vast chamber, the weight of the object in his hands anchoring him to the present. The air hummed with a strange energy, the walls of the cavern pulsing in rhythm with the heartbeat of the **Eternal Flame Ember**. As his fingers closed around the mysterious artifact, the warmth of the Ember intensified, filling the air with an almost tangible heat. The cavern's very atmosphere seemed to bend and shift around him, as if the world itself was responding to the power he now held.

The object in his hands was ancient, its surface covered in intricate carvings, glowing faintly with a deep, otherworldly light. It seemed both fragile and unyielding, as though it had been waiting for Victor to claim it. And in that moment, he realized that this was no mere object—it was a key, a bridge between the forgotten past and the uncertain future.

With a steady breath, Victor closed his eyes, focusing on the energy flowing through him, the strange connection between the **Eternal Flame Ember** and the artifact. He felt the pulse of power, resonating deep within his chest, the heat of the flame now burning hotter than ever. His mind was flooded with fragments of ancient memories, visions of gods and titans, of worlds long lost to time. He saw the rise and fall of civilizations, the forging of the **Eternal Flame**, and the betrayal that had shattered the gods' dominion.

He saw the truth.

The gods had not abandoned their creation willingly. No, they had been overthrown. A dark force, one that had once been a mere whisper in the corners of the divine realm, had grown too powerful to ignore. It had been the **Eternal Flame** itself—once a symbol of purity and creation—twisted into a weapon, consumed by its own brilliance. And the gods, in their arrogance, had failed to recognize the danger until it was too late.

Victor's heart raced as the visions continued, each one more vivid than the last. He saw the gods fall, one by one, cast down by their own creation. The **Eternal Flame** had turned on them, seeking to consume everything in its path, and in the end, it had been sealed away, hidden from the world for eternity. But now, it had returned—and so had Victor.

His purpose was clear. The gods had tried to control the flame, but they had failed. It was Victor's turn to wield its power, to unlock its true potential and use it to restore balance to the world.

But there was a cost.

As the visions faded, Victor found himself standing at the edge of a vast, blackened landscape, the remnants of a once-glorious realm now nothing more than ash and ruin. A shadow loomed in the distance, a figure silhouetted against the burning horizon. It was not a god, but something far more ancient, far more dangerous. The very air around it seemed to distort, as if the world itself recoiled from its presence.

Victor's hand tightened around the artifact, the pulse of the **Eternal Flame** now thrumming in his veins, urging him forward. He could feel the weight of the decision pressing down on him—he could turn back, return to his former life, but the truth had already been revealed. There was no going back now. His path was set.

The shadow in the distance stirred, and the ground trembled beneath Victor's feet. The figure was moving toward him, its presence undeniable, its power palpable. As it approached, a voice echoed in his mind—a voice that was both familiar and foreign, filled with a cold, unyielding malice.

"Victor," it said, its tone mocking and cruel. "So, you have found the truth. How fitting that the last of the flame-bearers should awaken to this."

Victor's pulse quickened. He knew this voice—it was the same one that had whispered to him in his dreams, the same one that had guided him to the **Eternal Flame Ember**. The voice of the darkness that had once been the flame itself.

The figure stepped into the light, and Victor's breath caught in his throat.

It was a man, tall and imposing, clad in dark armor etched with ancient symbols. His eyes glowed with an eerie, unnatural light, and his smile was cruel, twisted with centuries of hatred and ambition. He was not a god, nor a mortal—he was something else, something far older.

"I am Valthorn," the figure said, his voice carrying the weight of the ages. "The one who forged the **Eternal Flame**. And I have come to reclaim what is mine."

Victor's mind raced. Valthorn—the name echoed in his thoughts, a memory he hadn't realized he possessed. The figure before him had been one of the original creators of the flame, the one who had shaped its power and sought to control it. But somewhere along the way, he had been consumed by his own ambition, his desire for domination.

"You were a god," Victor said, his voice steady despite the chaos swirling in his chest. "But you became something else. Something… darker."

Valthorn's eyes gleamed with a malevolent light. "I was the one who sought to control the flame. I was its master, its creator. But in the end, it was I who was betrayed, just as you will be."

The words hit Victor like a blow to the chest. Betrayal. It was the same word that had haunted him throughout his journey, the same force that had shaped his past, his very creation.

"I will not be your pawn," Victor said, his grip on the artifact tightening. "The flame belongs to me now. I will use it to set things right."

Valthorn's laughter filled the air, a sound so cold and cruel that it seemed to freeze the very atmosphere around them. "Set things right?" he sneered. "There is no right or wrong. There is only power, and I will take it back. The flame will burn again, and the world will burn with it."

Victor's heart pounded in his chest. This was it. The moment he had been waiting for. The **Eternal Flame Ember** hummed in his hand, responding to the challenge that Valthorn posed. There was no turning back now.

Victor stepped forward, the heat of the flame rising within him, a torrent of energy swirling through his veins. The time for questions was over. The time for action had come.

With a roar, he charged, the power of the flame radiating from him, ready to face the darkness and reclaim the destiny that was rightfully his.