Chapter 18: Home Of Lucifer
"When Lucifer died, the unity between devils and fallen angels collapsed instantly."
"Why?" Lucien asked.
"Because power creates greed."
Ryan scoffed softly. "The fallen angels believed Lucifer’s death was their chance to take control of everything."
Nyx continued calmly, "Some devils stayed loyal to Lucifer’s bloodline while others sided with the fallen angels. A war started soon after."
Lucien looked around slowly. "So now both sides claim ownership over this academy."
"Yes," Nyx answered. "To the fallen angels, this academy is still partly theirs because many of their ancestors helped build it alongside Lucifer himself."
Lucien exhaled quietly, the deeper he stepped into this world, the messier everything became.
Then suddenly he remembered something and looked toward Nyx again. "What exactly happened down there earlier?" he asked quietly. "In the ritual chamber."
The atmosphere around the group changed slightly, even Mira glanced toward Nyx briefly.
Nyx remained silent for several seconds before finally speaking.
"The ritual reacted to you abnormally."
"That much I figured out."
"No," she said softly, "you don’t understand." Her blindfolded gaze slowly turned toward him.
"That ritual has existed for centuries. It was created to bind loyal members to Lucifer’s bloodline and awaken their dominion essence properly." Her voice lowered slightly afterward. "But tonight... the ritual didn’t recognize you as ordinary."
Lucien’s expression slowly changed, Nyx continued calmly, "The sanctuary itself reacted to your mana."
"The statues kneeling?" he asked.
"Yes."
Ryan folded his arms afterward. "Those statues were built from ancient dominion stones. They only react to extremely high devil authority."
Lucien blinked once. "Authority?"
Nyx nodded lightly. "Normally the ritual strengthens a person’s connection to dominion energy." Her expression became slightly more serious afterward. "But when your mana entered the ritual circle, something buried beneath the academy awakened with it."
"The horrific sounds?" Lucien muttered. Nobody answered immediately.
Then Sari the non talker finally spoke quietly. "We heard it too."
Nyx slowly continued. "There are ancient things sealed beneath this academy. Things connected to the old era before the war between devils and fallen angels fully began."
"And my mana somehow woke one up?"
"We don’t know," Nyx answered honestly. "That’s the problem."
The wind blew softly across the ruined battlefield afterward while Lucien remained silent.
Then Dahlia suddenly smiled faintly. "Well... at least you’re interesting."
Lucien stared at her for a moment before sighing deeply. "Somehow that sounds more dangerous than reassuring."
_________
The ruined academy grounds slowly began calming down after the fallen angels retreated. Teachers and students moved everywhere, trying to repair destroyed buildings while healing spells lit up the dark night. The tension from the battle still lingered heavily in the atmosphere, but compared to moments ago, things had finally become quieter.
Lucien stood near Nyx and the others while staring at the destroyed battlefield around him. His mind was still replaying everything that had happened tonight.
The ritual, the statues bowing, the fallen angel, everything felt insane and he like it.
Then he suddenly remembered something and turned toward Nyx. "So..." he began slowly, "are we still doing that ritual process thing or not?"
Nyx faced him calmly beneath the moonlight. "No."
Lucien blinked once. "That was quick."
"You refused my blood," she continued calmly, "and after what happened earlier, forcing the ritual again would be dangerous."
Ryan folded his arms nearby. "Very dangerous."
Lucien frowned slightly. "Then how exactly am I joining this little devil family of yours?"
Nyx slowly stepped closer toward him afterward. "There is another method."
The way she said it immediately made Lucien suspicious. "...Why do I feel like I’m about to regret asking that?"
Dahlia smiled mischievously from the side "Because you probably are."
Lucien sighed deeply. "Wonderful."
Nyx raised both hands slowly afterward. "Since the ritual cannot safely bind you anymore, I’ll have to carve the pact directly into your soul energy."
Lucien immediately frowned harder. "That sentence sounded painful."
"It is."
"...And you’re saying it so casually?"
Nyx ignored his complaint completely. "This process will officially recognize you as a member of the Lucifer Household." Her blindfold faced directly toward him afterward. "But because your mana reacted abnormally earlier, the process may hurt more than usual."
Lucien stared at her for several seconds, then sighed dramatically. "Fine."
Dahlia looked genuinely surprised. "That easy?"
"What?" Lucien muttered. "If I overthink it I’ll probably run away."
Ryan snorted quietly while Mira shook her head slightly, Nyx slowly stepped directly in front of him afterward. "Do not resist."
"That sounds ominous."
Then suddenly, she placed both thumbs against his forehead. The moment her fingers touched him....
"AGHHHHHHHHHHH." Pain exploded throughout Lucien’s entire body instantly. Not ordinary pain, it felt like molten fire was being forced directly into his veins while thousands of burning needles stabbed through every nerve inside him simultaneously.
His vision blurred violently, the ground beneath him cracked as dark crimson energy erupted around his body uncontrollably. Lucien’s eyes widened instantly. "What the fu—AAAAAGH!" The pain became worse.
It felt like something was carving symbols directly into his soul itself, his chest burned with pain.
His bones felt like they were shattering apart and reconstructing repeatedly. Every breath became agony, black dominion mana exploded around him while strange markings spread briefly across his skin before vanishing again.
Dahlia’s expression slowly changed while watching him. "...That reaction isn’t normal."
Even Nyx’s expression tightened slightly. Lucien suddenly dropped onto one knee violently while clutching his chest. "HAAA... HAAA..." Sweat poured heavily down his face.
His sclera, which had turned pitch black during the painful process earlier, slowly faded back to white again while his crimson eye remained glowing faintly. His other greenish-blue eye gradually returned to normal too.
Lucien breathed heavily for several seconds before finally looking upward weakly. "That..." he muttered painfully, "...was so fucking painful."
He glared directly at Nyx afterward. "Why the hell didn’t you tell me sooner?!"
Dahlia immediately burst into laughter while Ryan smirked openly this time. Nyx remained perfectly calm. "If I explained it properly beforehand," she answered softly, "you would never have agreed to take the risk."
Lucien stared at her blankly for a moment. "...You manipulative demon."
"A successful one, don’t worry you will become one later." she replied with a smirk on her face.
Lucien groaned while still holding his chest. Even now he could still feel strange heat moving through his body unnaturally.
Then Nyx spoke again. "But it’s complete now." Lucien slowly looked up toward her. "You are officially a member of the Lucifer Household."
The night breeze moved softly through her white hair while she continued calmly.
"Tomorrow is the Dominion Academy examination." A faint smile appeared on her lips afterward. "You made your decision just in time, Lucien."
Lucien clicked his tongue quietly, part of him honestly wanted to use one of his control skills on her right now out of pure annoyance.
Unfortunately, his stronger lecherous skills were not at full level yet, if he completed his missions with three strong devils, then he might level it up to max.
He sighed internally. *Soon.....very soon.*
Then another thought crossed his mind. "Wait," he said while glancing around, "do you people seriously just stay underground all the time?" He frowned slightly afterward. "Don’t you have an actual home?"
Nyx paused briefly. "Oh," she said softly. "Sorry, I do." Dark crimson symbols suddenly appeared beneath everyone’s feet.
Lucien immediately looked downward while the circular formation expanded rapidly across the ground. The air briefly distorted, then instantly...
VWOOOOOSH.
Everything vanished, Lucien felt the strange sensation of his body being pulled through empty space before solid ground suddenly returned beneath his feet again. He slowly raised his head afterward.
And froze, a completely different environment surrounded them now. The air itself felt different here.
Heavier with dominion mana.
Dark crimson lanterns illuminated elegant streets stretching across a massive town built beneath a black and crimson sky.
Beautiful gothic buildings filled the distance while powerful dominion users walked calmly through the streets as though this place existed separately from the normal human world entirely.
And directly in front of them, a gigantic mansion stood proudly at the center of the town.
Massive black gates, silver pillars. Dark crimson roses growing across elegant stone pathways.
The mansion looked ancient, grand, and terrifyingly expensive. Lucien stared upward slowly. "...Okay," he muttered honestly, "this is insane."
Dahlia smiled proudly beside him. "Pretty nice, right?"
Nyx slowly stepped forward while facing the enormous mansion. "This town," she explained calmly, "is where devils usually reside, Baelmoor."
Lucien continued staring around silently. It almost felt unreal. Nyx looked toward the mansion afterward, her expression softening slightly. "This estate once belonged to my father, he was like the king of this town."
The night wind moved gently across the massive grounds while the enormous mansion stood silently before them like a relic from another era.
Then Nyx turned toward him again. "But now..." she said quietly, "...you are part of my family too."
Her blindfold faced directly toward him. "So this is your home now, Lucien."
AN: Thank you for reading this novel up to this point.
I genuinely hope you’re enjoying Lucien’s journey as much as I enjoy writing it. His story is only just beginning, and there are still many mysteries, betrayals, battles, and shocking revelations waiting ahead.
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— Author ^_^
