Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Rumble.

Demonic energy surged across the ground.

With that alone, the sky was dyed red and the earth began to die.

Flutter.

At the source of the magic power stood a demon, flapping six thin, membrane-like wings reminiscent of a bat’s.

He was a being whose ebony hair and massive horns, boasting strength rivaling Adamantium, stood out exceptionally.

He scanned the ground with deep crimson eyes, plotting the total annihilation of his enemies.

Rank 1 in the Demon Realm. Beliat.

He had successfully ended the long struggle in the Demon Realm, a place rife with conspiracies and trickery, with his own hands.

His purpose was neither conquest nor rule.

Only pure destruction.

His mind was filled to the brim with hatred.

I hate it. I want to kill them.

This fierce flame of hatred would not fade until every living thing was slaughtered.

What was needed was struggle, not some mourning for the dead.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Before his eyes, countless demons took to the air, brandishing black spears and unleashing magic in an aerial battle to suppress Beliat alone.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

However, under Beliat’s fists, the demons’ bodies helplessly exploded and vanished into nothingness.

“Kill him! If we don’t eliminate Beliat right now, the Demon Realm will disappear!!!”

At the commander’s desperate order, the demons waiting in the air gathered their magic power and unleashed a vast spell.

The concentrated black magic power rotated violently, absorbing and crushing everything in its vicinity.

Before that immense black hole, Beliat began to concentrate magic power in his right hand.

Twitch.

Wrooooar!

Beliat’s arm muscles expanded rapidly, and a massive sphere of crimson magic power was generated in his hand.

Its size was far greater than the black hole created by the demons on the opposite side.

Beliat smiled coldly and spoke to them.

“From the start, my total magic power far exceeds that of all demons combined. Brats.”

With a sneer, he hurled the crimson sphere toward the black hole…

KABOOM!

The sphere instantly detonated the black hole and moved forward, wiping out every last demon.

“Aaaaaargh! Curse you! Beliat!”

“I resent you! You incarnation of evil!!!”

The demons vanished, leaving behind last words mixed with resentment and rage.

KABOOM!

As if destroying everything wasn’t enough, the crimson sphere fell to the ground, obliterating the village located there.

“…Is it over?”

Having finished his task with a blunt expression, Beliat intended to move toward the place where the last living creatures remained.

But.

Shhhhh.

Contrary to his expectations, even as everything was crumbling into ashes, a single temple remained intact.

“I don’t know which brat it is, but they must be calling me.”

Beliat snorted and then…

Boom!

He smashed through the temple ceiling, entered the interior, and spoke in a sharp tone.

“Is this your doing?”

Shhhhh.

In the center of the temple.

A golden ripple formed there, and a being revealed itself.

Surprisingly, the one who had blocked Beliat’s ferocious power was neither a legion of paladins nor a mighty dragon.

…Brilliant blond hair.

And a boy with golden eyes of the same color, who was quite attractive.

Twitch.

A sudden surge of displeasure rose within Beliat.

It was because of the divine power flowing from the young boy.

“Hey, kid. Are you a god?”

The boy gave a bright smile.

“That’s right. Who do you think I am? Take a guess.”

As soon as he responded playfully…

KABOOOOM!

The condensed crimson magic power from Beliat’s grasp instantly swept over the boy.

Technically, this wasn’t his first struggle against a god.

A god Beliat had encountered before had acted arrogantly only to have their life snuffed out by his hands.

This time would be the same.

No, he thought it would be the same.

“You’re hasty, aren’t you?”

Just then, the boy whispered into Beliat’s ear from right behind him, as if mocking him.

“?!”

Startled, Beliat immediately spun around and threw a punch.

Boom!

But it was a miss again.

His fist, which could crumble even a rocky mountain, was absurdly and easily stopped by two of the boy’s fingers.

“What?!”

Confusion instantly flooded Beliat’s mind.

Unfazed, the boy introduced himself.

“My name is Chait. The God of Time.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. The god who governs time is…”

“In this place, Arianrhod probably governs it. But there are countless gods, and it’s quite common for them to govern the same field. Don’t worry about it.”

Beliat withdrew his hand from Chait, crossed his arms, and asked.

“The Demon Realm is already destroyed. Knowing that, even the gods aren’t intervening in the Demon Realm, so why is a god from another world showing up now?”

Chait straightened his shimmering blond hair and spoke.

“If all the demons disappear, the Demon Realm will truly collapse. So, at the request of the High God, I’ll be in charge of the Demon Realm for a while.”

Beliat spoke with an expression that suggested it was preposterous.

“I am the master of the Demon Realm. No matter what happens, it would be best for you not to interfere.”

At those words, Chait clicked his tongue.

“What are you going to do staying here alone in this mess? You’re an idiot.”

Snap!

Veins popped on Beliat’s forehead at the mocking remark.

“You insignificant lower god…!!”

Rumble.

As he unleashed his rage, a crimson aura flared up across his entire body.

Crack! Boom!

Simultaneously, cracks appeared in the ground of the Demon Realm once more, and the atmosphere fluctuated.

Smirk.

Chait, as if he felt no fear, spoke with a bright smile.

“Beliat. If I don’t stop your rampage, as you’re the strongest in the Demon Realm, this world will break.”

“And you think someone like you can stop me?”

Chait answered with an incredibly radiant expression.

“Yep! And while I’m at it, I’m going to punish you.”

“Don’t mess with me!”

KABOOM!

Beliat let his entire body’s power go wild as he entered combat with Chait.

Beliat’s body transformed into a crimson flash, and Chait’s body into a golden flash, repeatedly expanding and contracting like a rubber band.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

In the aftermath of the violent collision, parts of the temple were broken and collapsed.

Swish swish.

However, as the golden flash circled around, the broken pieces returned to their original places and were restored.

A repetition of destruction and regeneration.

‘He’s certainly worthy of boasting about being the God of Time.’

Feeling a sense of crisis from Chait’s power, Beliat abruptly changed his trajectory, lunged forward, grabbed Chait by the neck, and slammed him into the wall with all his might.

KABOOOOM!

A massive, spiderweb-like crack formed across the entire temple wall.

Chait made a strained expression as if he were in trouble.

“Ah, you’re strong after all. Beliat, if I win, will you grant me one wish?”

“Only if you win, kid.”

Beliat burst into a smirk and then…

Shhhhh.

He concentrated a powerful crimson aura in his palm and injected it directly into Chait’s body.

A cruel technique to explode the entire interior of a body with magic power.

Boom!

But for some reason, it was Beliat’s hand that exploded.

“?!”

What just happened?

He looked back and forth between his own mangled right hand and Chait, who was smiling brightly before him, with an expression of disbelief.

“You promised, so you have to keep it, okay?”

“You. Did you do that on purpose?!”

“In this world, it’s the clever people who win.”

The innocent smile Chait had been wearing until now was replaced by a smile tinged with madness.

From the beginning, Chait had induced Beliat to release his magic power.

“Do you think you can deceive me and survive!!!”

It was a true humiliation.

Shhhhh.

Emitting a roar, Beliat exerted all his strength, causing a red light to emanate from his six wings.

Watching this, Chait clicked his tongue.

“Abusing a big technique so recklessly. You’re really bad at fighting.”

Clang clang clang.

As soon as he finished speaking, golden chains erupted from Chait’s hands, binding Beliat’s body and sealing his power entirely.

“What?!”

Suddenly finding his entire body restrained, Beliat wore an expression of disbelief.

Chait smiled broadly and finished his self-introduction.

“My name is Chait. I am the God of Time who selects a savior to fight against the evil trying to drive the world into chaos, uses RPR to save the world. And I’ve chosen you as that savior.”

“RPR?”

“Hmm… it’s a term that combines Regression, Possession, and Reincarnation.”

“My name is Beliat. I am the evil that drove this Demon Realm to its ruin. You’re choosing someone like me as a savior? You sure can spout such despicable nonsense.”

“Of course, you’re a world-class bad guy.”

Twitch.

Boom!

A frustrated Beliat squeezed out his body’s energy, but Chait’s chains did not break.

Furthermore, before he knew it, Chait was perched on his right shoulder, beginning to lecture him.

“But there’s a clear motive for your anger. The reason you cruelly killed other lives through wrong choices is that you didn’t realize how precious they were. So, from now on, you will be my messenger.”

“I don’t need any of that.”

Right now, he only wanted to shut this arrogant fellow’s mouth, even if it cost him his life.

“You’re having bad thoughts again.”

Swoosh.

Chait brought his index finger toward Beliat’s forehead.

“You. Just how far do you intend to humiliate me…”

Boom!

Before he could finish his sentence, Chait’s finger struck Beliat’s forehead.

At that moment, as Chait’s authority began to shine…

Flutter.

Beliat’s entire body began to vanish, buried in golden light.

“Aaaaaargh!”

Feeling a pain like he had never experienced before, Beliat screamed and grabbed Chait by the collar.

“Chait, you bastard!”

Chait said with a bright smile.

“I’ll be at The Tower the whole time. Come find me whenever you’ve completed your mission. I’ll accept your challenge anytime.”

“Don’t be ridiculous!!”

Beliat struggled somehow to escape from Chait’s authority, but.

Slide!

His body was already scattering as a handful of ash.

* * *

‘…Where is this?’

How long had it been since he lost consciousness?

Opening his eyes, Beliat sat up in bed and checked the mirror in front of him.

The mirror reflected the image of a frail-looking boy in his mid-teens.

Realizing that the boy was indeed himself, Beliat recalled the words Chait had left behind.

‘Possession? Or is it reincarnation? It’s a difficult concept.’

– My name is Chait. I am the God of Time who selects a savior to fight against the evil trying to drive the world into chaos, uses RPR to save the world. And I’ve chosen you as that savior.

If his memory was correct, Chait had definitely settled Beliat’s spirit into this body through one of the three methods: regression, possession, or reincarnation.

‘What a pathetic body.’

There was no muscle at all on the spindly arms.

Judging by the aching all over and the many bruises, the owner of this body must have been in a quite difficult environment.

Swoosh.

As he gently rolled up his sleeve, he saw marks on his right wrist where he had slashed it several times with a blade to commit suicide.

Glancing at his neck, the marks of a rope were clearly visible.

“Are you saying he handed his body over to me because he didn’t want to live?”

Beliat, having vaguely realized the truth, looked at himself in the mirror once more.

Red hair and deep crimson eyes reminiscent of flames.

In terms of appearance alone, he was quite similar to Beliat during his time as the Demon King.

Beliat narrowed his eyes and threw a question to himself in the mirror.

“What is your name?”

It was a sight that would make anyone think he was a madman.

Just then, a certain hunch flashed through Beliat’s mind.

Slide.

Glancing at the table next to the mirror, he saw a single diary made of parchment bound in a thick leather cover.

Caliente Stark.

He thought the owner of the diary was likely the owner of this body.

“Caliente Stark… Is that the name I will live by in this life?”

Beliat, no, Caliente, readily accepted the situation.

After all, he was nothing more than a loser who had been defeated by Chait.

And it was only natural for the loser to comply with the winner’s demands.

‘I’ll be waiting for our reunion. Chait.’

Caliente curled his lips into a faint, bitter smile and began to flip through the book.