The necklace felt warm in his palm—Alex's necklace. He had just found it near the southern corridor, half-buried beneath the rubble. In his heart pounded. Liam turned to leave, to find his brother, to return what was his.
Then, Liam heard the screams.
"Run! Hellkin!"
"Get out of the way!"
"Baby, this place isn't safe—let's go!"
Panic spread like wildfire. Citizens fled the castle grounds, and amidst the chaos, He spotted Alex and Rex surrounded by a squad of guards. They were shielding him, pushing through the crowd, trying to reach safety. Liam raised the necklace, stepped forward.
"Brothe—"
A deafening blast shook the earth.
Light. Heat. Darkness.
When Liam opened his eyes, the world had changed.
The castle—the home he had known all my life—was gone. Reduced to ashes and stone. Liam ears rang, his vision blurred. The chain around his neck snapped and turned to dust, carried away by the breeze.
But the necklace in his hand remained.
He staggered up, clutching the pendant tightly. "Alex? Alex! Can you hear me?" He called out, his voice cracking in panic. Liam ran to the last place he had seen him. Nothing but charred stone and collapsed walls.
Liam began digging through the debris, blood smearing his fingertips. Then, he found a hand—a man's hand, pale and lifeless, dressed in the uniform of a royal butler.
"Rex..." He whispered.
Tears blurred his vision, but he kept going. "Alex, please... please answer me!"
A voice called out behind me. "Thank the gods, young master!"
Liam turned. It was Max Blackheart—wounded, covered in ash—but alive.
"Where is your brother?" he asked, eyes scanning the destruction. Then he saw his face, the tears streaking in his cheeks. His expression fell. "You have to be strong, Liam. We need to get out of—"
A blade pierced through his back.
Max gasped, blood trickling from his lips. The sword was held by none other than... Niko.
"You can't go anywhere, Max," Niko said coldly.
Max collapsed to his knees, staring in disbelief. "Even you, Niko... you betrayed us? Even with the mana contract?"
Niko's smile was bitter. "The contract was broken. They freed me, Max. And who doesn't like freedom?"
Max's aura flared with fury. He unleashed a wave of mana, forcing Niko to retreat with a graceful leap. "You and Jakes will die for this. The kingdom's army is coming."
But Niko only laughed. "Look up, Max."
Four rays of light streaked through the sky, converging above the ruins of the castle. A massive portal cracked open—its edges burning with infernal energy. From within, demons poured out—wings, claws, horns, and eyes glowing red. They flooded the skies, screaming into the night.
Max turned to Liam, his voice desperate. "Run, Liam! You have to escape. Now!"
He couldn't move. His legs were frozen. Liam stared at the sky as monsters swarmed the kingdom. His heart broke. Everything... everything was falling apart.
But he ran.
Even through the pain, the blood, the fear—Liam ran with everything he had left. Because he had to find his parents. He had to believe they were alive.
Meanwhile, Max and Niko clashed in a storm of steel and magic. The ground shook from their blows. But Niko sneered as they fought. "You know why I hate the Morningstars, Max? Because I was made a shadow for my family's crimes. I thought King Karl was different. But he wasn't. That's why I'll kill them all."
Max's blade sparked as it met Niko's. "So you're targeting the children?"
"No," Niko growled. "I'm targeting you. After I finish with your wife."
Then he summoned a severed head from his storage ring—Venessa's head.
Max's scream shook the battlefield. His mana exploded like a storm, ready to destroy everything. But before he could strike, a dark presence appeared. A demon, massive and winged, descended from the sky. His horns curled like a crown, and his aura was suffocating.
Duke-level. An SS-rank demon.
He struck Max from behind, sending him crashing into the earth. Max lay motionless as the demon lord hovered above. Niko knelt. "My lord."
The demon's voice was like grinding stone. "Good. There's more fighting nearby. Let's go."
But Liam didn't run away. He ran into the ruins, searching for my mother and father.
At the same time, King Karl and Queen Luna stood firm against four Hellkin and Jakes Tully, who now wielded dark power from the Demon Duke. Jakes's strength had grown, but even then, he was nothing against the king's fury.
"They're strong," Luna said, panting, her flames dancing across her hands. "But I know how to end this. We just need to make sure our children are safe."
Karl struck down two enemies with a single punch. "Don't worry. The necklaces will protect them. I sent word to Arthur. He'll give us the signal once they're safe."
But it was a lie.
Arthur returned—not with a message, but with a blade. Luna turned, sensing his mana.
"Did you—" she began.
"Mom!" Liam screamed.
But it was too late.
The sword pierced through her back, and her eyes went wide. She looked at Liam, smiled faintly... and then blood trickled from her lips. She tried to speak, to reassure me.
Arthur struck again. She fell.
"No! Mom!!" Liam shouted, racing toward her, only for a Hellkin to kick him hard in the chest. He hit the ground, vomiting blood, helpless.
The hellkin come to Liam and say " remember kid ... No ..woof woof now" where Liam just grunts.
Jakes appeared behind Liam father. Karl knelt beside Luna's fallen form, still not believing what had happened.
Jakes drove his sword through his back. Then the other Hellkin followed, stabbing the king from all sides. But Karl didn't resist. He just looked at Luna and whispered something only she could hear.
He screamed, tears and snot and blood pouring from me. "Please! Please don't do this! Please!"
Niko approached. His voice was cruel. "Why are you crying, Liam? They're not even your real parents."
"Don't!" Karl coughed, blood spilling from his mouth.
"Why not, Karl?" Niko sneered. "Let him know. His 'mother' who he think his mother used a forbidden soul art on him. That's why he couldn't use mana. That's why he slept for seven years. She did it out of regret, not love."
Liam mind reeled. I stared at them—my dying parents. The truth... or a twisted version of it. I didn't know.
Liam remeber his first day when he open his eyes, his mother hugged him , his father jokes.
Then a black rod pierced through both of them.
"NOOOOO!" Liam screamed until his throat bled. "I'LL KILL YOU! EVEN IF I DESTROY MYSELF, I'LL KILL YOU!!" Than Kaelen make Liam unconscious.
Kaelen, the Hellkin that had once spoken to, stepped forward, sadness in his eyes. "What should we do with him?"
Jakes approached, glancing at the blue necklace in Liam hand. "So Alex must've died in the blast... and this one—" he spat. "I don't care."
Nicolas, the mad doctor, stepped forward. "I'll take him. He's perfect for my experiments."
"You want him?" Jakes laughed. "Then take him. He's not a Morningstar."
Kaelen lifted Liam unconscious body. Than hellkins use there wings to fly and Liam watched from the unconscious eyes as the last of his kingdom burned. Today after coming from the foundation day he saw those rivers the mountain in hsi helicopter now are the demons had taken over. The skies turned black. The rivers ran red. He saw everything... How the demon kill the humans .
Vineta—the kingdom he loved—was now a graveyard of fire and ash.
And as unconsciousness took him.
That night the hole world got a news of 'The Kingdom Vineta got destroyed by the Kraken'.