Chapter 2: Lucifer Morningstar

In the dark, cold and lifeless space, Grega aimlessly floated around, while she blankly stared at the void. Her vision was suddenly greeted by the glorious sight of an enormous sphere of demonic energy.

Emanating from the dark crimson sphere was an immense surge of energy and dark light, which illuminated the area of space it currently occupied.

The Sphere resembled a bright sun which illuminates its corresponding solar system, serving as a source of light to all planets that revolved around it.

It was definitely the same sphere of energy Evox previously encountered during his supposed dream. However, unlike before, the Sphere was literally more larger, dense and powerful.

“What..in..the..world is going on here?” She confusedly commented, while gasping in awe.

Her eyes were incredulously fixated on the massive cluster of pure and concentrated Infernal energy.

She could practically feel and visualise the immense chaotic and destructive power that emanated out of it. Her entire existence was shaken to its core, as her body was drenched in sweat and goosebumps.

Each strand of grey hair on her head stood up straight, as if it were being electrified.

“It can’t be”

These words unconsciously flew out of her mouth, as she felt she was being pulled towards the centre of the Infernal Core.

The pull quickly overpowered her self will, causing her to rapidly drift closer to the sphere.

On arrival, Grega could finally see the difference between herself and the entity like Sphere.

She was nothing more than a miniature size pebble.

Gazing deeply into the chaos, her curiosity was piqued to its highest peak, causing her to drift closer and closer. Flares of Infernal energy violently surged out, wickedly colliding with Grega’s body.

Scorching heat and electrifying bolts flew out of the gigantic sphere, gravely impacting Grega’s body, causing her immense pain.

Despite these harsh and inhumane conditions, her gaze was not severed, as she places her full and utmost attention on the innate and raw power, buried deep within the sphere.

Time and time again, her body was directly impacted by massive flares of energy, electrifying bolts and excruciating heat, but for some reason, she ignored her pain and pressed further.

“It… It’s so… Demonic” She commented in awe, pushing closer towards it, extending her left arm.

Immediately her fingertips came in contact with It’s surface, her entire being was electrocuted by pure power, utterly jolting her back to reality, neatly toppling her wooden chair.

This obviously shocked the young couple, as the Spell cast finally came to an end.

“Madam Grega!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Don’t… worry… about me” She stuttered, trying her best to recover from the aftermath.

She forcefully adjusted her chair, returning her attention back to the Little demon, who stoically and sinisterly stared at her.

Obviously, the Lad could tell she literally went into his Subconscious plane.

Presently, Grega’s sense of time was gravely distorted. In Evox’s subconscious plane, she practically dwelled there, in the dark, illusory space for at least a year but in reality, time hadn’t even moved one second.

“I could feel it…” She muttered to herself, completely losing focus.

“I could feel it… The Utter darkness, Chaos…. Destruction” She blurted out, dearly confusing the young couple.

Her slender, and usually weak eyes shone extremely wide, as if she had been visited by a malevolent entity. Her mouth unconsciously dropped in awe, with her gaze fixated directly on the young lad.

If not for her extreme self-esteem, she would have directly fell on her knees, worshipping the Little demon like a god.

In her eyes, Evox wasn’t just a little baby, but an immensely powerful Infernal Entity with a vast amount of Chaotic and Destructive power.

“Madam Grega…. What’s wrong?” Keigus worriedly inquired, noticing how her gaze was completely fixated on Evox.

“It subdued and seduced me with its sheer power”…

“What are you talking about?” Lilith nervously inquired, earnestly staring at the Old and supposedly crazy woman.

“His Source… His Source… His Source!”

“Madam Grega!” Keigus exclaimed, trying his best to wake the old lady from her self-induced trance.

“Huh-Huh-Huh” She Confusedly blurted, finally waking back to reality.

She soon noticed that Keigus was still trying his best to wake her by thoroughly shaking her.

“That’s enough!” She yelled in exasperation, slapping off the young man’s hand.

“Oh… Sorry about that” He promptly apologised, heading back to his seat.

“Madam Grega” Lilith worriedly said, staring intensely at the old lady.

“What’s wrong Lilith?” Grega answered, placing her attention on the nervous young lady.

“Are you…. Are you alright” She inquired with utmost concern.

Hearing her anxious question, Grega couldn’t help but wryly chuckle, while patting her long, silky grey hair.

“I’m fine… I hope” Grega casually replied.

“Alright..” Lilith proceeded, still worried about the wellbeing of the Granny that sat in front of her, “ You were saying something about his Source… Who’s source were you referring to?”.

Almost immediately the question flowed through her ears, her lightened demeanour darkened, as her lips sharply curved down, resembling a bitter frown. Her eyes rapidly returned to its original slender and sharp look, causing her stern gaze to directly pierce right into the young couple souls.

“I’m really sure you’re aware of who I was referring to” She simply replied, shifting her gaze to the young, stoic Demon.

“Is he okay?” Keigus anxiously asked, taking in a deep gulp of saliva.

Following his question was a serene but eerie moment of absolute silence. Their eyes constantly crossed each other, creating a hellish and uneasy environment.

“He is… He is….” Grega repeated twice, trying to build tension.

“He is more than okay!” She euphorically exclaimed, shattering the awkward moment of silence that descended into her Study.

This was obviously not what the Couple expected to hear, as they confusedly stared at each other and then at Madam Grega, simultaneously blurting, “Huh!”

“Evox is alright… His Source is completely fine” ..

“However, they seem to be some abnormalities” She commented, chuckling at the dearly confused Couple.

Hearing this, obviously piqued their interest, causing them to place their entire attention on the Old lady.

Unknown to them, Evox’s interest was also piqued, as one could clearly see the curious expression written on his face.

“My Source… Abnormalities”

“What’s this Source thing anyway?”

These thoughts randomly popped up in his little, but highly developed brain, utterly confusing the young lad.

‘Source’.. The Innate cluster or collection of power and energy that reside within the immaterial plane of any being, either Demon, Human, Spirit or God, not even Magical beasts are exempted.

The Source serves as the origin point of all forms of life. It also serves as the origin of Magic, allowing the host being to channel either its Infernal energy, Arcane/Holy energy, Godly energy or Spiritual energy, utilising it to bend the rules of reality.

The bigger it is, the stronger the supposed being is. However, through steady cultivation, one could progress, thus, causing an enlargement in their Source size.

Once severed or destroyed, the host being is completely and absolutely torn down and destroyed from the inside out.

“What do you mean by abnormalities?” Lilith cautiously asked, tightly embracing her little boy.

“Yeah, I’d like to know…. And would you quit squeezing me!” Evox thought, internally frowning.

“The spell I casted is ‘Gatum’, An Astral-type Magic Spell” …

“Magic?” Evox repeatedly thought, obviously interested about the subject.

“… The spell generally allows me to project my Astral nature or Consciousness into a desired subconscious plane.

I thought, since I couldn’t deduce a reason for Evox’s accelerated condition, how about I enter his Plane of existence and inspect his Source…. But what I saw gravely shocked me” Grega vividly explained.

“What… What did you see?” Both Keigus and Lilith simultaneously inquired, obnoxiously interrupting the old lady’s explanation.

“Could it be that weird glowing sphere thing I saw in that dark place… Could that be my Source?” Evox deeply thought, listening attentively to Grega.

“It was fiercely immense, releasing an absurdly large amount of energy, pulsating throughout his entire subconscious plane. Getting closer towards it, I could clearly feel the utter Chaos and Destruction that emanated from it…” Grega explained, reliving the horrific, yet exhilarating event.

Dearly shocked, the couple was obviously lost of words, as all they could do was stare incredulously at Grega , momentarily shifting their gaze towards their little Stoic Demon.

“His Source is far more stronger than that of most fully mature Demons… I think this might be the reason why he quickly developed the ability to talk” Grega proudly remarked.

“Err… Madam Grega” Lilith nervously said.

“What is it Lilith?” She promptly replied, sensing a hint of confusion from the young lady.

“ You said you felt utter Chaos and Destruction emanating from his source…” Lilith said.

“Can you please explain what you meant by that?” Keigus politely interrupted, accurately completing his wife’s sentence.

Hearing his question, Grega couldn’t help smack her forehead in disappointment, shocking the couple.

“Do I really have to spell everything out for you two?” She grimaced, glaring sharply at them.

Not giving them a chance to reply, she quickly explained, clarifying their thoughts, “ It means that your son’s power is extremely powerful as well as dangerous… It’s far more intense than it supposed to be…” She explained, before she was then interrupted by Lilith’s worried gasp.

She quickly noted and understood their worry, shaking her head in pity, “Don’t worry about anything… Your son Evox is definitely going to grow into being a vastly powerful demon.

Presently, he has the potential to become a Demon Emperor or maybe, he might become The Supposed Demon King”.

Hearing Grega’s calm and reassuring statement, Keigus and Lilith felt an immense sense of relief, finally noting that their boy wasn’t in any form of imminent danger.

Excitedly, Lilith warmly embraced her little Evox, as she proudly said, “My boy is going to be a really strong demon”

“That’s my boy,” Keigus cheerfully remarked.

“Hmm… I’m going to be a really Powerful demon.. Well then, I better not disappoint them” The Lad thought, staring straight at Grega.

“First thing I need to do is… Grow up faster, being this size is excruciatingly annoying” He added.

“Now that’s taken care of, let’s talk about my fee” Grega mischievously added, ruining the warm and wholesome mood.

“Huh?” The couple simultaneously exclaimed in shock.

Noticing their awkward expression, Grega clicked her tongue while sneering at them, “ Did you really think the consultation session was free?” She mischievously questioned.

“I… I… I thought, since then ..” Keigus awkwardly stuttered, caressing his spiky black hair.

“Quit your whining, you owe me Five Silver Quan… If it weren’t for my good history with your family, I would have charged you Ten Silver Quan” The Greedy old lady said, rudely interrupting the young man.

Quan is the formal form of currency used all around Mao. It’s divided into three denominational units and takes either a Circular, Rectangular or Diamond shape, depending on its unit.

The three units are famously known as; Bronze, Silver and Gold with each having a higher value than the last.

Bronze Quan usually comes in a Circular shape, while Silver Quan comes in a Rectangular shape and the latter in a Diamond shape, with exquisite craftsmanship.

The Exchange difference was; Five thousand Bronze Quan to One Silver Quan and Two hundred Silver Quan to One Gold Quan.

Evox’s parents weren’t all that poor, due to the fact that Lilith was an Alchemist and Keigus was a Merchant. It was easy for them to afford a bunch of basic and secondary items and materials required for a rather comfortable life.

However, they were still classified as a Low Class Family, due to the fact that they barely lives below a Thousand Silver Quan.

Despite this, they were rather satisfied with their current life.

As for the greedy old Lady, since she was practically the only practitioner of Abjuration and Advanced Healing Magic, the people of the Village despite not having much money, were forced to comply with her extorting fees.

Actually, disregarding her greedy and Money loving attitude, she was still loved by the villagers due to the countless times where she rescued them from Life threatening situations.

Hearing her awfully extravagant price, the young man instantly choked on his words and saliva. As a Merchant, he clearly knew the value of losing that much money and also, due to his history with Grega, he knew he absolutely had no ability to negotiate with the mischievous lady.

Awkwardly, he moves his eyes towards his wife, seated next to him. Noticing his obnoxious stare, her eyes instantly sunk down, as she tightly embraced her son.

Seriously…

Keigus couldn’t help himself, as his mouth incredulously dropped, causing him to slowly retract his gaze, once again fixating it on the old lady.

“Keigus… Where’s my money?” She retorted, ordering him to quickly pay up.

Hmph…

Finally giving up, he pulled out a palm sized purse made of goatskin. Quickly, he lunged his right hand into it, pulling out five Silver Quans, which the Old lady hurriedly accepted.

Receiving her payment, Grega’s foul and grumpy mood instantly vanished, as she donned a charlatan demeanour, while juggling the rectangular pieces of silver.

Staring at the young couple who were currently arguing with each other, she promptly moved her eyes towards their child, when suddenly, the image of a grotesque man flashes through her eyes, overlapping itself with reality.

The Image was lapped over Evox’s face, making it seem like they were the same being. Coming to an abrupt conclusion, Madam Grega lightly smirked, slightly nodding her head in response to her brilliant deduction.

This awkward display didn’t go unnoticed, as Evox curiously glared at her eyes, still wearing his stoic demeanour.

His Crimson eyes shimmered with curiosity, excitement and Power

“Alright, you two should go.. Before you give a headache” Grega yelled, softly massaging her temples.

“Sorry about that” Lilith quickly apologised, prompting her husband to get up.

“We’ll be on our way” Keigus added.

“Thank you”..

“Don’t mention it” Grega said, with her attention fully fixated on the Silver Quan in her grasp.

“Nothing beats making money” She excitedly thought, as she carefully fondled and inspected the Rectangular pieces.

Finally dismissing the couples, Grega was left alone in her old, dusty looking Study. Surprisingly, she didn’t have any other patients for the day, so she had a lot of free time, which she judiciously used to ponder upon her new discovery.

The Only living beings in her Infirmary were her and her few Helping hands, who were trying to keep themselves busy, anyway they can.

The Memories of the events that recently occurred between her and the young couple’s child, randomly and frequently popped up in her thoughts, causing her to release a bright and warm smile.

Her old shrunken eyes glimmered with hope and relief as she gleefully said, “You’ve finally returned”..

“You’ve returned…. Lucifer Morningstar”