The skies above Olympus were fractured glass, lightning still crawling along their edges. But Megumi was gone.
The mountain summit faded beneath his feet as he streaked through the sky, a comet of black and white light. His wings flared wide, trailing embers and feathers. The black halo above his head pulsed with power, but his expression was hollow.
He didn't know where he was going. Only that he needed answers.
Hours Later – Demon Realm
The sky here was a burning red, swirling with clouds shaped like beasts and wings. Mountains twisted toward the heavens, their peaks glowing with molten lava. And in the center of it all, carved into the largest peak like a fortress of shadows and bone, was the citadel of Leonidas—the Demon King.
Megumi landed with a crack of thunder.
The guards at the black gate instinctively bowed, their eyes flicking to the halo above his head. Whispers followed him as he passed. The Fallen King walks… He survived Olympus…
But he ignored them.
He climbed the obsidian stairs until he reached the Grand Chamber, where Leonidas stood alone, staring into a basin of shifting flame.
The Demon King didn't turn as Megumi entered.
"I felt the storm in Olympus," Leonidas said, voice calm. "I felt when your power surged… and when the gods fell."
Megumi walked to the center of the room and dropped to one knee.
"I didn't come for praise," he said. "I came for answers."
Leonidas finally turned. His ancient eyes studied the boy—no, the being—before him. "You've changed."
"I had to."
Leonidas approached. "You defeated gods, Megumi. Even Erebus, the Voidborn. But you still doubt yourself."
Megumi's fists clenched. "Because it didn't feel like a victory. It felt like a warning."
Leonidas raised a brow. "To them?"
"No," Megumi whispered. "To me."
He stood. "Every time I fight… I lose a piece of myself. Chloe. Ava. Even you. I keep wondering—how long before I forget why I'm doing any of this?"
Leonidas walked past him, toward the massive throne carved from obsidian. He sat slowly, then gestured to a circle of glowing symbols etched into the floor.
"Sit," he said. "Let us speak not as king and heir, but as two beings shaped by pain."
Megumi sat across from him, and the chamber darkened. The symbols around them flared gently.
"I once believed power was the answer to every wound," Leonidas began. "That if I could strike hard enough, raise enough armies, no one could ever take from me again."
He closed his eyes. "But I was wrong."
Megumi's voice was low. "What did they take from you?"
Leonidas didn't speak at first. Then: "My daughter."
Megumi looked up.
"She was the last piece of light I had. And when a celestial warlord took her, I broke the sky in half. I razed realms. I became this."
He gestured to himself. "And in the end… I could not bring her back."
Megumi's breath caught.
Leonidas leaned forward. "Do you see? Power is not the answer. It is the consequence. You did not win at Olympus. You endured it. But you are still standing. That matters more."
The chamber fell silent.
Then Leonidas continued. "But the question now is—what do you stand for?"
Megumi looked down at his hands. "I don't know anymore."
"Then you must find out," Leonidas said. "Before the final war begins."
Megumi frowned. "What war?"
Leonidas rose. "Lythic is not idle. He's seen what you've become. And now he fears you."
Megumi looked up sharply.
"That fear will make him desperate," Leonidas said. "And desperation will make him cruel."
He turned to the flames in the basin, and a vision shimmered into view—Ava, walking through a city street alone. Behind her, hidden in the shadows, a figure watched.
"Asmodeus," Megumi growled.
Leonidas nodded. "They're testing the waters. Seeking ways to break you."
Megumi stood. "They won't."
Leonidas faced him. "Are you sure? They already took your sister. What if they take her too?"
The flame flickered out. Silence.
Megumi's wings unfolded slowly.
"I won't let them," he said. "I'll tear the world apart before I let them take her."
Leonidas stepped closer, eyes serious. "Then train. You've tapped into the power of the Fallen King—but you haven't mastered it."
Megumi looked up. "What does that mean?"
"It means there is a deeper level to your power. One that only awakens under complete emotional convergence. When your reason, rage, and remorse unite."
Megumi clenched his fists. "And if I don't unlock it in time?"
Leonidas turned toward the citadel's towering window. "Then the next time you fight Lythic… you will die."
Later – Training Grounds
The training grounds in the demon realm were brutal—a canyon of shifting gravity, obsidian spires, and screaming winds. Megumi stood alone in its center, eyes closed.
He remembered Chloe. Her final scream.
He remembered Ava. The way she whispered, "Come back to me."
He remembered the gods. The fear in their eyes.
His aura began to rise.
From above, Leonidas watched.
"Now," he whispered. "Begin."
Megumi's eyes snapped open—and his training began