I looked at the old man. His eyes were narrow and sharp, watching me in silence. I stared back, thoughts racing. Each second dragged as his gaze drilled into me. We stood there in a silent duel, trading nothing but pressure.

  “...Yes?” I finally asked, before the silence finished chewing me up.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” the old man said. “I thought I had already finished my sentence. I was waiting for you to answer…” He forced a smile, his face folding in on itself. “Old age, you know.”

  My eye twitched. I had been bracing for a revelation or some kind of life altering truth. And in the end, it turned out he had just lost his place mid thought.

  “Ahem,” he cleared his throat, finally serious. “I was about to say, young lord, that I know Lady Aoi is the dragon from the mountain.”

  He raised a calm hand before I could panic. “Relax, young lord. Your secret is safe with me.”

  “But... how did you know that?” I asked, every muscle tight.

  “Her mana, of course,” he said. “She doesn’t seem very interested in hiding her overwhelming power.”

  My stomach dropped. Right. Damn it. I’d been so busy sleeping like a corpse that I forgot to drain the extra mana Aoi kept pumping out. But what did it matter. Sooner or later, the old man would find out anyway.

  “Yeah, but—”

  “I understand you very well, young lord,” he said quickly. “It's fine. Not everyone needs to know everything, and there is no reason to create chaos over nothing.”

  “Right.” I nodded a bit too fast. “That’s… exactly why!”

  “I only wanted to say this,” he said with a small, proud smile. “Gaining two such powerful serv— I mean, friends... in such a short time is truly impressive. And if our old lord is watching you from somewhere, I’m sure he’s proud of you as well.”

  If that grumpy man was watching me from somewhere, the same one who rubbed his forehead like I was his next migraine every time we talked, then this was pure torture for him. And if someone was forcing him to watch, even worse. This wasn't an afterlife anymore. It was a custom made hell. Just for him.

  “Ah, thanks, but I’m nowhere near his level… worse than that, actually,” I said, heading for the door. “But better if this stays between us. And if there’s nothing else, then I—”

  “Of course, young lord. That’s all.”

  “Fine then. Good night.”

  “Good night, young lord. Rest well.”

  I stepped out and ran straight into Aoi and Midori, who were eavesdropping. We almost kissed, against our will. They yelped and jumped back. I shot them my deadliest glare, grabbed them both by the backs, and dragged them along with me.

  "Looks like the senile goat knew from the start, didn’t he?” Midori muttered.

  “You better not call him like that,” I sighed. “I don’t know since when he knew, but yeah, he knows. And come on, your case wasn't that different either. He just... knows.”

  “That’s fine by me. But if he tries to tell anyone, then I’ll…” Aoi acted it out with her hands. “…grab his horns like this and snap—”

  “Okay, okay! No need for that, really.”

  I stepped into my room and grabbed the handle to close the door. “Good ni—”

  Midori shoved the door open with her hand. Then they both walked in, and Aoi closed the door behind them.

  “Okay, what do you want now?”

  “This public speech of yours, obviously,” Midori said.

  “And that idea about going to the human lands,” Aoi added. “I thought you’d just ignore that incompetent goddess and—”

  “Come on, don’t be kids. You both know why I have to do this,” I said, already tired, turning to Midori. “Especially you.”

  I walked over and dropped onto the bed. “And it’s not just some duty anymore. I want to go there too. For a few reasons…”

  “Going there isn’t a problem for me,” Midori said. “But what are these 'reasons'?”

  “First, the missing believers,” I said. “Then the Royal Academy library. I need real information about this world and its magic. And honestly, since I got here, all I’ve seen are demons and monsters.”

  Both stiffened at once, then glared at me like I’d just insulted their ancestors.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “No, wait, I didn't mean like that,” I said, waving my hands. “Please, don’t misunderstand. I just... I don’t know. Something inside me keeps telling me I should go there. That’s all.”

  “Then we go,” Midori said and sat next to me. “Both of us.”

  “That snail meant all three of us, right?” Aoi said as she sat down beside me.

  “And,” she added lazily, in the most annoying way possible, tracing a finger along my shoulder, “if you leave me here alone, the mana I leak will wipe out all these poor demons in a single day.”

  “So you finally admit you’re a mana spewing mutt. Fine by me. I’ll hold the leash and lock you in a cage—”

  “Oh, right,” I said, pressing my hand over Midori’s mouth. “I almost forgot.”

  I stopped her before it turned into another hair pulling war. Then I released my domain and drew in Aoi’s extra mana.

  “Fine then,” I said with a sigh. I pushed at their backs with all my strength. They didn't move, standing there like two very stubborn rocks.

  “Go ahead,” I added, still pushing with all my strength. “I need my sleep, and tomorrow is going to be a busy day.”

  After a lot of pulling and sweating, I dragged them outside while they kept throwing death stares at each other. I slammed the door and leaned on it, cold sweat running down my back, half expecting it to burst open. When their steps finally faded, I let out a weak breath and fell onto the bed.

  The next morning, I woke to the sound of a crowd already gathered, and the old man talking away with full energy. I got up and walked to the window, then looked down from above. Midori and Aoi stood there, chests puffed out with pride, while the old man proudly told the crowd about my so called heroic exploits.

  “…I can’t even finish telling you how generous and courageous our lord is, but the green lands around you and the abundance of spring already make it clear that…”

  I realized it at once. If I didn't rush downstairs and shut that delusional old man up, he would keep praising me until people stopped kneeling and started smashing their faces on the ground.

  I had only two choices. I could die of embarrassment up here, or go down and take control of the disaster. I chose survival. I rushed downstairs, stepped in front of the old man, and opened my mouth to speak, but the crowd exploded before I could say a single word.

  “Long live the Young Lord! Long live the Young Lord!”

  I flailed my arms like I was trying to land a crashing airship, meant to stop them, but it did absolutely nothing.

  “Stop!” The old man shouted at the crowd, all furious. “Is that what I told you to say?! You will say Long live the Great Young Lord.”

  “Long Live the Great—”

  “Enough!” I yelled, on the verge of tears. The word ripped out of my chest, raw and sharp, soaked in pure shame. My voice echoed all around us, then cracked.

  “Really, thank you. But that’s enough.”

  When they finally went quiet and started staring at me with curious, excited eyes, a small knot formed in my stomach. Damn it. I could cross mountains and fight dragons, but put me in front of a group of people and I still froze like a scared little kid about to wet himself.

  “Well…” I said, sucking a deep breath. “I hope the old man already told you the details of our journey. And I’m glad to see you all again, you know, alive.”

  I forced a stiff, awkward smile. One more second and my face would have cramped forever.

  “Then, uh… let me explain why I gathered you today,” I said. “I’ll be staying in the Celestial Empire for a while.” I felt the crowd’s faces fall, so I added quickly, “But I can teleport, after all. I’ll come and go often, I guess…”

  I paused and checked the crowd, trying to read the mood. They were tense, confused. It took them a moment to swallow the news.

  “It won't take long,” I added. “But I have to do this. Anyway… another important thing is that you can now safely return to your homeland. I wish you the best in rebuilding the Demon Kingdom.”

  Somehow, my hand shot up on its own. For a brief, terrible moment, I felt like a general rallying an army before battle. Totally unplanned. Completely accidental.

  “Yaaay!” the crowd shouted together. “Long live the Great Young Lord! Long live—”

  Cold sweat ran down my back as I turned and went inside. I caught a glimpse of the old man whipping the crowd like an orchestra, but I ignored it, for my sanity. The battle was over. I survived untouched, pride mostly intact. At least until the next one.

  “Oh, young lord,” the old man called after me.

  I stopped and waited. After what felt like a few endless seconds, he finally caught up and placed a hand on my back.

  “There are things we need to discuss before you leave. Especially about the berserk you asked—”

  “Oh right,” I said. “I’d come to you about that.”

  “Fine,” he said, guiding me toward the library. “This way, then.”

  We moved to the library and sat down. The old man looked at me in the eyes, dead serious. “I don’t know how many times you’ve gone berserk so far, young lord, but—”

  “I’m not sure of the exact number,” I cut him off. “But close to ten, I think.”

  “That’s far too many,” he said, then nodded to himself. “But for young lord’s stress-filled life, it’s… fairly reasonable.”

  He stroked his beard and stared ahead, silent as he gathered his thoughts.

  “First, young lord, you must understand this. Berserk wasn't something we demons always had. Or rather… not before we became demons.”

  “What do you mean by ‘not before’?”

  “Even if we are considered eternal enemies now, young lord, demons and elves share the same ancestor. Very few people are interested in this truth anymore, though.”

  “...What?!” I almost shouted.

  “Yes,” he continued. “According to legend, our ancestor once met an evil spirit. They say it was Lucifer himself. A deal was made, a dirty trade. And in return, berserk, what we later called a curse, was passed down to us.”

  “So your entire race is just… cursed?” I asked. "But, no one ever tried to remove it?”

  “Many demons have tried,” he said. “From clueless beginners to true masters. Yet, none of them succeeded. And when you remember that this curse became the spark of the World War… it almost feels like that evil planned everything from the start.”

  A knot formed in my throat, and my lungs refused to let a proper breath through. I paused and looked ahead. The old man was staring the same way, lost in thought, a mix of sorrow and anger in his gaze.

  “Okay… so, from what I understand,” I said slowly, my voice tight, “you were elves, then cursed because of some greedy ancestor and some evil spirit or whatever, and turned into demons. And now… ugh, this is just too much to take in at once.”

  “I see, my lord,” he said. “The weight of the past still presses on me, too. That’s why, for now, let us set all of this aside. I only told you so you wouldn't mistake the temporary power berserk gives you for a friend. It is a curse, and likely your worst enemy.”

  “I got that much..." I muttered, my face twisting with regret even as I pictured the berserk moments I’d lived through.

  “I’m glad to hear that,” the old man said. Then he leaned closer. “If you wish, I would like to explain the three stages of berserk. Fury, Frenzy, and Ferality.” His eyes locked onto mine. “Especially the last one. There is no coming back from that.”