His vision was dyed blood red.

A voice with no known owner echoed in his head again and again.

[Kill! Kill them all!]

Lucarion lifted his head, breathing heavily.

Beneath the crimson sky,

the magic energy erupting from his own body churned and surged.

[You must cut off their filthy breath! Cleanse these vile creatures with death!]

A groan escaped his mouth.

Even if he covered his ears, the voice only grew louder.

[Show their blood! Tear out their insides and rip them apart!]

In the next moment, against his will, his hand moved.

And with that motion, the magical creatures lying on the ground rose.

With exposed bones, decayed — they were already half corpses.

And yet, obeying Lucarion, they rose at once, joints cracking.

"......seize them."

said Lucarion.

At once, dark blue light flared in the creatures’ eyes.

The voice in his head screamed as if in delight.

[Excellent, servant of death! Servant of the absolute... king of the dead!]

The words "king of the dead" pierced his head, bringing pain.

Clutching his forehead, Lucarion breathed heavily.

Before his eyes, a blood soaked scene came into sharp focus.

"Humans......"

Yes, humans.

Humans who had, by misfortune, stepped into the ravine he had made into his lair.

This place was already soaked with their blood.

Some still desperately clung to life, but there was no hope.

"Kill."

With another short command, the creatures of the abyss launched into the air.

They were different from ordinary creatures.

Even if a spear pierced their hearts,

even if their bodies were split in half,

even if their heads were severed — they continued to move.

"It’s a monster!"

"Run! If you want to live, run!"

Because they do not die.

Because they were the dead brought back to life by Lucarion, who had opened the gates of the underworld.

"Aaaaaah!"

Blood splattered again.

Lucarion’s face darkened with exhaustion.

And at the same time, an unbearable thirst rose within his chest.

[Not enough. You must tear more apart! You must kill more!]

A cursed loss of control.

In the end, that mad surge forced him to stain his hands with filthy blood. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Black scales slowly began to emerge along the skin that still retained the form of a child.

And at that moment, right by his ear, a distant yet familiar voice sounded.

[You are my most precious and beautiful leaf, child.]

The Mother Tree.

That was what Lucarion and the other spirits called the World Tree.

[I know. One day, you will grow and become the greatest shelter for all that lives upon the earth.]

The World Tree was merciful.

As the being that governed all life, it saw everything.

[You are the passage between life and death. A symbol of balance and peace. A witness of harmony.]

Listening to her voice, it felt like anything was possible.

As if all suffering and anxiety passed him by.

But...

[Run!]

With the sensation of his brain being pierced,

the memory of the day the World Tree was split in two surged forth.

[Lucarion, run. If you fall into his hands as well, the world will come to an end!]

Its strong roots had been torn to pieces.

The six branches where the great spirits played had been broken and defiled.

[You must wait for the future. I have a plan. Endure until then. When he takes hold of me, the boundaries of your consciousness will collapse, but...!]

He could barely remember what came after.

What had the World Tree said then?

That Lucarion would fall into madness.

That his sense of self would shatter, and he would become subject to uncontrollable impulses.

And not only him — all spirits under the Tree’s authority would be consumed.

They would cease to be spirits.

They would become monsters that had surrendered their self control to greed.

"In the end......"

Lucarion looked at his hand.

Human skin had already vanished.

The bones had lengthened and twisted, and long, sharp claws had grown from the ends of his fingers.

Magic energy wrapped around his entire body, driving the madness to its limit.

"Astie! No!"

A desperate voice sounded from behind.

When he turned, he saw one of the creatures holding a man.

Lucarion, already having taken on the form of a dragon, murmured:

"A strong human."

This man was the strongest of all those who had entered the ravine today.

And the hardest to kill.

The raging madness in his head flared with fury.

[Kill him! Kill even the child he loves most! Tear the flesh, take the blood!]

He had wanted to find a way not to obey that voice.

That was why he had hidden in the ravine.

But now, it was over.

"......be silent."

Lucarion spread his wings.

One of the creatures drove its sharp claws into Tesetan’s right shoulder.

But the man did not scream.

His shoulder was torn apart, yet he did not even look at the creature.

His gaze was fixed on only one place.

"Waaaah! Waaah—!"

On the child crying on the ground.

Lucarion’s red eyes grew cold.

Feeling the intensified exhaustion from prolonged madness, he lowered his gaze.

And, spreading his wings, he moved toward the source of the crying.

"Waaaah! Aah! Aaaah!"

The child cried desperately.

Eyes tightly shut.

Small hands peeking out from the cloth.

"Astie!"

The child’s father struggled with his last strength.

His right arm was nearly torn off, yet he still writhed.

"No! Not the child!"

[Kill! Crush!]

Lucarion’s heart pounded violently.

Capillaries in his eyes burst, and pain pierced his head again.

"Kiiiiiiiek—!"

A beastly scream burst from his open jaws.

Lucarion raised his claws.

One movement — and life would be extinguished.

He had already given in to madness.

Perhaps now he would lose his reason completely.

'Would that make it easier?'

Since the day the World Tree was split,

he had fled again and again from the hand that pursued him.

To wait for the future the Tree had spoken of.

If he fell into his hands — the world would end.

'I wanted to endure.'

But now he was tired.

He could not go on.

To live while feeling this horrible thirst every moment was impossible.

The claws descended toward the child.

It seemed no one could stop it.

But at that moment—

Kwang—!

An explosive force bursting from the child’s heart hurled Lucarion into the air.

A deep wound split the ground.

Lucarion, crashing into a mound of earth, stared at Astie with red eyes.

"Waaaah! Aaa!"

Golden light flowed around the child’s body.

There was enough of it to cleanse the entire ravine.

But that was not all.

He stood.

And saw his hands returning to a human form.

The black scales vanished, the sharp teeth receded back into his skull.

Lucarion took a step forward.

Another step.

Before him was the child — unharmed, still crying.

"Waaaah!"

On the child’s chest, a pale figure in the shape of a diamond appeared for a moment, then disappeared.

Lucarion drew a short breath.

[You must wait for the future.]

Could that future be today?

[I have a plan.]

Was this that plan?

Lucarion froze, then slowly sank to his knees.

The child stopped crying and looked at him with wide eyes.

A faint groan escaped Lucarion’s lips.

"Lady......?"

The World Tree had been destroyed.

Its roots had rotted away.

Then the world needed a new Tree.

His hands trembled.

When Lucarion bowed his head at Tie’s feet, the creatures of the abyss vanished, and everything around them was dyed in golden light.

Astie.

The name her father called her carved itself into his consciousness.

"My new......."

The child chosen by the World Tree was the one he must ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) serve.

As long as the seed of the World Tree remained within that small chest—

"......fate."

Lucarion had no other choice.