Crushing flags and claiming the Villainess

"Huh...?" Selner jolted.

Turning her eyes toward the window, she felt a very familiar but ominous presence arriving from the distance.

The book from her hand fell to the ground. Her throat turned dry and her eyes trembled.

This presence...how can this be...

Her body moved on instincts.

She couldn't be wrong.

It was him.

The greatest foe that humanity has ever come across.

The being who even threatened the immortal beings.

The threat that never should have appeared.

The Great Demon Lord—Astaroth.

'How can he appear now?! Wasn't there some time left?!'

Selner's mind was in turmoil. There was still more than a year left for the Demon Lord to resurrect. And no event has transpired that could hasten the rebirth.

She has been keeping an eye on the collision between the two sides, that's why—ah.

'Did the battle between the Demon General and Austin get his attention?'

Regardless of the reason, Selner didn't pause even for a moment until she reached the source of the malice.

Her eyes caught the scene of the battlefield.

The frost clung to her body as she approached the clearing where two familiar individuals stood side by side.

She could see a few more people in the background, but her focus was majorly on the prison of ice hanging mid-air.

'So she unlocked the Stasis Lock...' Selner narrowed her eyes—this spell shouldn't have been within the grasp of the little girl yet.

"Selner?" Austin, who caught the levitating figure to be familiar, called out.

The Witch slowly descended to the ground, her attire making it evident to those who don't know her that she is a Council Member.

"Valerie...Austin, are you two alright?" Adam asked as he and Cedric advanced towards the two children.

Austin gave a soft nod, before he directed his eyes toward his father, "What about Sebastian and the other two?"

"I told him to take them away. Don't worry, they are safe." Cedric assured him.

"You knew about the thing?" Valerie suddenly asked the older lady in a stern voice.

Considering how hastily she arrived here, Selner must know something about the Demon.

Austin, hesitantly, asked, "Madame Selner, was it one of the Four Generals?"

"Huh?"

"What...!" Cedric and Adam, who naturally were aware of the Four Generals, couldn't hide their shock upon hearing Austin.

The four infamous Generals were the pawns of the Demon Lord who ruled over the planet a thousand years ago.

They were given different regions to govern, and their cruelty was etched in every history book.

The era of darkness. A period where humans were treated as merely livestock and slaves.

And a being who was previously killed by the renowned Hero Kane, re-appeared a thousand years later?

Except for Austin and Selner, the other three were shocked beyond belief.

The short-haired lady looked at the Orc Lord trapped in the ice prison before she voiced, "Although the presence it holds is similar to a Demon General, he doesn't seem as strong as what I assumed."

Austin frowned but didn't say anything here. However, in his mind, he agreed with her.

This Demon General was quite weaker than its canon counterpart. Although it was still quite stronger than Austin, it didn't live up to its position as the second-strongest General.

"Maybe because of its early awakening?" The Witch thoughtfully muttered as she kept looking at the ice prison.

Valerie was about to ask something, but a sound caught her attention.

*CRACK*

Valerie's eyes parted wide as the ice prison she formed started to crack from within.

Selner also was shocked since she was aware of the strength of the spell she used.

Austin summoned his Shard on instincts and prepared for another battle.

However, only the head of the Orc Lord was liberated from the Ice Prison.

Then—

Its skin rippled.

The thick, red flesh twisted as if something inside was crawling beneath, forcing its way out. The orc's once-monstrous face began to sink inward, its jaw stretching unnaturally, bones snapping and reforming with sickening pops.

Red eyes.

They flickered open—deep, ancient, and burning with malice.

Cedric's breath hitched as he watched the last remnants of the Orc Lord melt away, its coarse features replaced by something far more horrifying.

Long, white hair cascaded down, tangled and ghostly. Its strands shimmered with an eerie glow, swaying though there was no wind. The skin beneath was wrinkled yet unyielding like ancient parchment stretched over something that refused to die. Deep lines marked the face, carved by centuries of hatred.

Selner's knees nearly gave out as the transformation was completed.

And then—

It looked up.

A wave of dread rolled over them, crushing, suffocating. The sheer weight of its presence made the air thick as if the world itself recoiled from this being's return.

Austin clenched his fists, his instincts screaming at him to move, to attack—but his body refused.

This wasn't just a demon.

This was something far worse.

Something that had no right to exist—yet did.

The Demon Lord Astaroth had appeared.

"Ah... how long has it been since I've breathed such fresh air?" His voice was not of this world—low, guttural, and crawling into the bones of those who heard it. A voice that did not simply speak, but commanded silence.

His presence alone was suffocating. It pressed down like an unseen weight, the sheer malice of it making even Valerie—who had faced horrors beyond count—feel something she had never truly felt before. Fear.

Her body refused to move. Her breath hitched. The very Shard in her grasp wavered, flickering like a candle before a storm. This was not an enemy she could fight. This was something beyond her.

"You... how are you here?!" Selner's voice snapped through the paralysis. Her fists clenched, magic crackling around her as she instinctively threw up a barrier. It flickered under Astaroth's mere presence.

The Demon Lord slowly turned his gaze toward her, his crimson eyes gleaming with nothing but disdain.

"Woman, silence." His words were laced with venom, yet spoken with effortless authority. "You are beneath my notice."

Selner gritted her teeth, magic surging, but before she could retaliate, Astaroth's attention shifted.

To Austin.

"Ah… there you are." His lips curled into something resembling a smile, yet there was no warmth—only a predator's amusement. "How fortunate. For the first time in my long existence, I feel inclined to thank the gods."

Austin's blood ran cold. That voice. That knowing tone.

Why…? Why did the Demon Lord speak his name with such familiarity?

Astaroth's eyes gleamed with something dark. "You have changed, haven't you?" He tilted his head as if studying an amusing trick. "You care for the weak now. You even killed one of my foot soldiers… all for her."

His gaze slid toward Valerie, slow and deliberate.

Austin's hands clenched into fists. "What do you want?"

Astaroth's response was a low hum, his eyes shifting skyward as if considering something inconsequential.

Then, he looked down—directly at Austin.

"I could be merciful." His lips curled wider, exposing too many teeth. "I could spare your precious humans. Your friends. Even the ones you love."

A moment passed. Then, he spoke again.

"I will even return to my slumber... if you wish."

The air itself seemed to be still.

And then—

"All you have to do…" His voice dropped lower, silkier, yet crackling with malice. "...is slit your own throat and die like the worthless dog you are—right here, before me."

A deathly silence followed.

And for the first time—Austin felt his heartbeat thunder in his ears.

Amidst the growing silence, Valerie suddenly raised her Shard and thumped the rear end on the ground.

The ice prison started to break under her command, breaking the body of the Orc Lord along with it as well.

**CRACK**

The demon lord grinned, his face fading into darkness, as he voiced,

"Glad to hear that answer....hunting you...will be much more fun."

Once the Catastrophe was silenced, Austin instantly turned toward Selner and said,

"I think you have a few answers to share. And I need to know them. Now."

°°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.