Chapter 3: The First Chains
The stranger's words lingered in the air, light yet heavy, teasing yet indifferent.
"The one who just saved your sorry ass."
Raviel's teeth clenched. His pride flared, but his body betrayed him. No quick retort. No biting insult. Just the dull, burning ache spreading through his ribs.
Weakness.
His fists curled, nails digging into his palms as he struggled to sit up. Every movement felt slow, as if his own body was resisting him. His once effortless grace—the power that made the very ground tremble—was gone.
The stranger, unbothered, crouched before him, studying him with an expression that was neither hostile nor friendly. Just… amused.
"You look pissed," he observed, resting his forearm on his knee.
Raviel glared at him. "Wouldn't you be, if you woke up to a world of filth with no idea how you got here?"
"Depends." The stranger smirked. "Are you saying this place is beneath you?"
Raviel scoffed, rolling his shoulders with a wince. "Of course it is."
The man's golden eyes gleamed. "Then that makes two of us."
Silence settled between them. A heavy, unspoken weight pressing down.
The stranger studied him again, as if searching for something. Then, with a slight tilt of his head, he asked, "So… who exactly are you?"
Raviel's jaw tightened. He opened his mouth, prepared to answer as he always had—
"I am Raviel Azrathoth, Crown Prince of the Abyss, heir to the Demon Throne, son of the Great Devourer."
The words never came.
He swallowed. A chill ran through his spine.
His father was gone.
The Abyss had fallen.
He was nothing now.
The words that once carried power, that once shook realms, meant nothing here.
Raviel gritted his teeth.
"...Raviel."
The stranger's gaze flickered, as if he noticed something, but he didn't push. He simply nodded. "Horizon."
Raviel frowned. "What?"
"My name," the man said, standing. "Since we're sharing."
Raviel eyed him warily. "Horizon?"
"Yeah," the man said with a smirk. "Like the thing you can never reach."
Raviel had never heard of him. In the Abyss, he had known the names of every major force, from demon lords to fallen gods. Yet this man—this Horizon—was completely unfamiliar.
A nobody.
Yet…
His presence was different.
That speed. That precision. The way he killed that beast with a single stroke. This was no ordinary man.
"Well," Horizon said, stretching, "as fun as this has been, I should get moving." He turned, stepping over the monster's corpse. "If you want to stay here and get eaten by the next one, be my guest."
Raviel narrowed his eyes.
Stay here? Alone? Like some lost animal?
Pathetic.
Pushing through the pain, he forced himself to stand. His legs shook, but he bit back the weakness, keeping his back straight.
Horizon glanced over his shoulder. A flicker of approval crossed his face.
"Figured you'd follow."
Raviel scowled. "I never said I was."
"Right." Horizon's smirk widened. "You're just walking in the same direction as me for no reason."
Raviel hated him already.
But for now…
He had no choice.
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