Darkness.

Silence.

Nothing.

I was drifting.

Or perhaps floating.

Honestly, I couldn't tell.

There was no ground beneath me.

No sky above me.

No up.

No down.

Just an endless expanse of black.

Where am I?

I tried to move.

Nothing happened.

I tried again.

Still nothing.

That's when a disturbing thought entered my mind.

Can I even move?

Did I have arms?

Legs?

A body?

I couldn't feel any of them.

In fact, I couldn't feel anything at all.

No warmth.

No cold.

No pain.

No heartbeat.

What is happening?

Am I dead?

But if I was dead, why was I still able to think?

I didn't understand.

I couldn't understand.

I simply…

Existed.

…

When I eventually woke up, I felt the rough and gritty texture of gravel underneath my hands. I was lying face down on the ground. Dirt filled my mouth, leaving behind an awful taste. My limbs felt stiff and barely responsive. With extreme effort, I eventually managed to push myself upright. And when I did, I froze. I looked around—and saw nothing. Whatever place I ended up at was pitch black.

"Mum? Dad? Rai? Anyone?"

No response. Only pure silence.

"Where am I?"

With each passing second, the silence became more and more deafening. Cold air brushed against my skin, sending shivers down my spine. I grabbed my knees and curled into a ball, trying to preserve as much body heat as I had left. My stomach made a loud growl. I didn't know where I was nor where to go. All I could do was wait and hope that somebody would find me here, sooner rather than later. I waited, and waited, and waited, and then...

"How unfortunate."

I yelped and jumped away from the place I was sitting at. Footsteps started circling around me, followed by a man's manic laughter. Then, without warning, the sounds died down and the darkness disappeared. Dozens of torches revealed the room I was in, which looked to be a cave of some sort. Behind me, on top of a small stone platform, stood a massive golden mirror. The intricate leaf patterns definitely made it stand out, but even I could tell the whole thing was completely out of place here. In its reflection, I noticed a pair of bright-green eyes staring amused at me. When I took a closer look, the silhouette of a man appeared right behind me. His pale white skin made a stark contrast with his long red hair. He wore a sleeveless shirt with a red-and-white diamond pattern, paired with black trousers held by leather straps over his shoulders. My instincts warned me not to interact with him. But with nowhere else to go, what was I supposed to do? Frightened, I slowly turned around.

"May I ask you not to stare so intently at me? It is quite rude, after all."

Despite his effort to sound friendly, a wide and creepy smirk spread across his face.

"I'm sorry, mister… do you perhaps know where I am?"

The man raised an eyebrow, as though he hadn't expected my question. He stayed silent for a while before suddenly bursting into laughter.

"Do I know where you are? Of course I do! But whether I choose to tell you… well, that's a different matter entirely."

He gestured dramatically with his hand before adding:
"And thus, the Young Boy remained lost in mystery, unaware of his own fate."

What did he mean by that? My own fate? His weird phrasing confused the heck out of me. Was he trying to make sense, or was he simply toying with me?

"Can you please tell me where I am already?!"

The man's smile abruptly vanished, as did his happy-go-lucky attitude. The change in atmosphere was so great, and so sudden, that my arms and legs began to tremble. And then came his answer.

"Sadly… you have passed away."

At first, his words didn't really register. But when they did, my eyes widened, and I stared at him in disbelief.

"P-Passed away? Y-You mean to say that… I-I'm dead? But h-how could that have—"

My final moments of my previous life came back to me. The helplessness. The fear. And the pain. They were so vivid that I fell to my knees and threw up. Tears rolled down my eyes. I screamed, begged even, that this was all a dream. But deep down, I knew that what was happening wasn't fake.

"This can't be right! This can't be right! This can't be right!"

I started hyperventilating while the world around me turned into a foggy mess. Despite this, the man kept staring motionless at me.

"I fear that it is true. A light quenched too soon, before it could transform into something much brighter. The thought of it makes my heart weep."

From behind his back, the man drew a long, black sword.

"Alas, a true villain must have no sympathy towards others."

He put his sword beside my neck. Any sane person would have tried to escape this situation, yet my body was too tired. My mind had been shattered and I had lost all hope. I simply didn't know what to do anymore.

"Before I take the liberty of killing you a second time, allow me to extend some hospitality. My name is Lucifer. And what is yours?"

"Shako."

In hindsight, I don't know why I answered him. Not that it matters now.

"Well then, Shako… I look forward to our next meeting."

He swung his blade—

—and the world fell into darkness once more.

…

"Wake up! Wake up!"

"…"

"Please—wake up!"

Who… is that? It sounds like… a woman's voice. Is it an angel? Or a demon? Or maybe… just my mind playing tricks on me. She sounds panicked. But why? I felt her hands on my chest as she shook me around. Wait, my chest?

With a sudden jolt, I sat upright. As I did, the person sitting right next to me let out a sharp shriek and moved back. I felt nauseas while my head was throbbing with pain, which is why I didn't notice them at first. Only after the pain had somewhat subsided did I manage to take a closer look at them. At first, I thought I was dreaming. Sitting in front of me was a gorgeous young woman with long white hair. She had an athletic hour-glass figure, with muscular arms and tanned skin. And her bosom was… quite remarkable as well. She wore a sleeveless green top and a pair of black leather pants, and a crystal earring in her left ear. Two leather belts were strapped around her waist, with one carrying a sword. For a moment, the two of us stared frozen at each other.

"So… you are awake now. Thank goodness!"

"W-Who are you?"

Still dazed by her beauty, I struggled to get my words out. She rose to her feet and extended a hand to help me get up.

"My name is Kia Diablo. I found you lying on the ground here when I was wandering around this place."

Wait… now that she mentioned it, why was I lying on the floor? I know that when I got here, everything was pitch black. Then the room lit up and I discovered that golden mirror. And finally, he appeared. Yet there was one question that bothered me the most: "How am I still alive?"

"Uhm, my name is Shako Ikitayashi. Nice to meet you, Kia."

She answered my words with a kind smile.

"So… Shako, what happened to you?"

"I-I don't know. It was pitch black when I got here. I couldn't see, I didn't know what to do, s-so I just sat there and waited… and then he appeared. Behind me! He started running circles around me and then the room lit up. And then there was this giant mirror behind me—"

Instinctively I turned around, only to find that the mirror was gone—just like Lucifer.

"A mirror? There wasn't anything like that here when I arrived."

How was that possible? Had I just imagined it, or did it really disappear? I felt like I was losing my mind. My breathing grew rapid and irregular, causing the world around me to turn into a foggy mess. My heart was thumping violently inside my chest, as if it might explode. I fell to my knees again. The world around me was slowly crumbling down. Then, I felt two hands grab me by my shoulders.

"Shako, please calm down! Here, take a deep breath."

Tears welled up in my eyes, but little by little, I managed to regain my composure.

"I.. I'm sorry!"

"There is no need to apologise," she replied gently.

She put some more distance between us, giving me some space to breathe.

"You claim someone was troubling you. Can you tell me what they looked like?"

"He… had long red hair, and his eyes—they were bright green. He wore this strange sleeveless shirt with a red-and-white diamond pattern, and a pair of black trousers. But… that's not what stood out to me. It… it was his smile. I-I can't explain it, it was just… creepy."

A heavy sigh escaped Kia's lips. Under her breath, I barely caught her whispering, "I knew it… !" So, I asked her: "Do you know him?"

Caught off guard, she flinched slightly, and hesitated before answering.

"Unfortunately, I do. Although, I would rather not speak of him. He is a menace to our people—someone who enjoys belittling and torturing people, especially those who cannot defend themselves."

"I think he mentioned his name was Lucifer."

Kia's expression hardened.

"That is what he calls himself, correct."

So that wasn't his real name? If it wasn't, then who in the hell would choose to bear a name like that? Only someone insane or someone obsessed with the devil would call themselves that… right? Actually, maybe he was both. Either way, one thing was for certain. He had killed me. And somehow… I was still alive. How should I tell Kia this? Would she believe me or would she think I was crazy? I didn't want to tell her, but it felt worse not to.

"Uhm… This might sound crazy to you, Kia, but…"

I took a deep breath and prepared myself for the worst.

"That man—Lucifer… he—he killed me. I don't understand how I'm still alive, or if any of it was real. I—I… "

The words got stuck in my throat. No matter how much I tried to make sense of everything, I couldn't. The tears I had been holding back finally rolled down my cheeks. I cried and cried, wishing that this was all just a bad dream.

"Shako, look at me."

I wiped my eyes and looked into hers.

"I believe you."

"You do?"

She nodded and showed me a gentle smile.

"Fortunately, perhaps, there are many things about this world that even I do not understand. Howbeit, I think it is better to discuss this somewhere more private, do you not agree?"

And then, she asked me something that I had never expected.

"Would you be willing to stay at my place for the night? It might help gather your thoughts."

"A-Are you sure?"

She sighed, almost reluctantly.

"My permission you have, but others… might not be as consenting as I. That said, we will cross that bridge when we get there."

She walked towards the exit and took one of the torches from the wall.

"Shall we?"

I stepped towards her and followed her into the unknown darkness ahead.