Betrayed, I Met The Demon Lord

Chapter 91 - Quest In The Burning Dungeon, Part 9

[I sometimes wonder, Magus,] she said, her gaze fixed on Magus's sealed form. His expression, though locked in stone, felt defiant, unyielding.

[Just what is so special about Hellix that you won't bend and serve me already?] Her voice was calm, yet laced with irritation as her fingers lazily toyed with one another.

[He's just some random person. Lucky skills, that's all. But when it comes down to it, he's nothing special. Save yourself the trouble—give up and join me.] Her eyes bore into him, expecting a reaction.

But Magus's expression remained unchanged. Silent. Still. A memory stirred, unbidden, breaking through the quiet.

24 Years Ago

SCORE:

10 - 399

"Come on, dude... It's been three hours. Let's just play something else?" Magus said, chuckling in exasperation as he stared at the screen. Despite his frustration, there was no denying the ego boost from the glaring score difference: 399 rounds, and Van was still losing.

"Nope," came the flat reply from the other side of the computer. "I can still come back from this."

"Pfft... ooookay." Magus snickered, leaning back in his chair. If Van wanted to dig his own grave, so be it.

4 Hours Later

SCORE:

157 - 998

"Bruh," Magus chuckled again, stretching his arms and rubbing his tired eyes. "This is getting sad, man. You've been at this for seven hours."

"I can still come back from this," Van said, his tone as deadpan as before, even as his avatar was obliterated in the next two rounds.

"Come on, weren't you bored yet?" Magus raised an eyebrow as the screen finally displayed the game over screen.

"Nope," Van replied, his voice calm. "I'm like John Wick. So what if I fall from a roof or two? I'll still get back up and kick your ass one day."

Magus snorted, shaking his head. "Right... but not even John Wick fell from a thousand roofs in a row."

"..." Van went silent, clearly processing the jab.

"Because he didn't try falling from a thousand roofs," Van finally shot back, his tone defensive.

Magus burst out laughing. "Hahaha, okay... Now you're doing Naruto scaling, huh?"

"You and your damn anime," Van retorted, narrowing his eyes. "How does that even make sense here?"

"Fuck you, bitch," Magus fired back, his voice playfully exasperated. "You're the one who stopped making sense when you turned John Wick into a masochist jumping off rooftops just because you suck at this game."

"Assfucker bitch," Van muttered under his breath, though the corner of his mouth twitched upward in reluctant amusement.

The present returned in a heartbeat, and Magus chuckled softly at the memory.

[...Something funny?] she asked, her sharp gaze narrowing at Magus's quiet chuckle, her irritation evident as it echoed through his bindings.

[You seem awfully calm,] she continued, stepping closer, her voice laced with both curiosity and contempt. [But you forget who his opponent is.]

She straightened, her posture regal, turning from him with a proud tilt of her head. [Although a creature through and through, he was once known as the Flame Revenant—the Undying. A summoned hero on the verge of godhood, just like you. In fact, the only reason he's doing this is to take the spot you so senselessly reject.]