"HOW DARE YOU?!" A voice, rumbling with rage, echoed out. It sounded both distant and close at the same time.
The Sir's soul, having just left the cursed Hell, froze in place, gripped by a deep terror.
It was a natural reaction—the way prey freezes when it senses a predator watching.
The Sir knew this feeling well. He had made thousands of enemies feel it, but now he was the helpless one. It seemed as if he were a simple ant, its shell slowly eclipsed by something huge and impossible to understand, like a hand coming down.
He obediently froze in place. His instincts urged him to submit to fate.
Resist? Run? It was meaningless.
Everything had already been decided.
He was finished, finally and completely.
Yet, at that moment, a flash of defiance from his will to survive pushed him to act. He ran without looking back, making one last attempt to save himself.
"LIVE! I WANT TO LIVE!"
The Sir set his own soul ablaze just as it entered the cycle of reincarnation.
He knew this reckless act would have consequences later. But he also knew that without action, there would be no future at all.
His existence would be erased from the world. No redemption, no reincarnation, not even everlasting torment. If this blow struck him, he would vanish from the multiverse forever. Even his memory would be gone.
Unfortunately, his desperate attempt had been doomed from the very beginning.
"AAAAAH!" — the Sir howled in pain as he clearly felt his deep essence called into question.
The blow tore his soul apart in an instant. All thoughts and feelings vanished, replaced by unbearable pain. It stabbed every part of him, worse than the deepest torments of Hell—the same Hell he had tried so hard to escape.
Of the being named the Sir, only a tiny thread of consciousness remained, flung by inertia into the endless void.
The last piece of his soul, formed by terror and the will to survive, held one command: "To survive. To escape to the edge of the world. Never look back. Do anything, anything at all. Just to live…"
Aware of nothing around him, he drifted through the vast void until he was drawn into a kaleidoscope of glowing points.
The rest of the Master's soul, a tiny entity, like a naive child, guided by the instinct of survival, reached out to the brightest spark.
At that moment, a flash of blinding light shredded everything apart: darkness, silence, space, and even time.
=========
The creature drifted through a dark abyss of shattered memories. It was faintly aware that it existed, but it didn't know who it was or what it might become.
"I… I… I am…" The thought triggered deep inside its mind and then faded, leaving only a weak echo.
His body felt squeezed from every side. Was he even a body? It seemed more like a lump of flesh, hanging by a cord.
Thick, impenetrable darkness surrounded him. A heavy, gel-like substance kept it from moving. The substance appeared to breathe with him, tightening and loosening, as if trying to blend with his odd body.
His mind scattered and faded into the darkness. Only instinct was left—helpless and ancient. The last piece of the Sir's soul had lost all awareness. He could feel, but not think.
He had a wild blend of panic and fear that wouldn't go away.
Time dragged on with excruciating slowness — or perhaps it had stopped altogether.
He hoped something would change. Perhaps some of light would come back, even merely a faint glimmer, but it was useless. The darkness stayed the same — endless and uncaring.
Suddenly, something warm and soft slid over his body. The touch was careful and gentle, but in the darkness it felt terrifying. It seemed as if some strange creature was licking him, tasting his skin.
He wanted to turn and see what it was, but the darkness gripped him tight, giving him no opportunity to escape.
His fear and uncertainty peaked. Everything inside him twisted with terror. In a flood of despair, the last piece of his soul did the only thing it could—it pretended to be dead, as if it didn't exist. The warm touches returned, growing more and increasingly insistent.
After what seemed like forever, he tried to move again—and this time, he managed it. He was amazed.
Only now did he notOnly then did he notice that the small lump of flesh trapping him was changing. Arms and legs were slowly forming, and even a head had appeared. Thinking got a bit easier, but it was still hard…
A strange, unclear sound came from far away, like a call. The voice was soft and almost gentle, but it appeared both too close and incredibly far at once.
Again…
The piece of a soul that had lost its mind still remembered what it meant to be afraid. The voice frightened it more than anything — a voice coming from somewhere far away, but at the same time right beside it… For him, such a voice remained a living nightmare.
But nothing happened.
Then, silence returned.
As time passed, he calmed down. Sometimes he felt gentle touches from the neighbor, and other times he heard the soft, far-off voice.
Fear slowly receded. The darkness no longer seemed hostile. It seemed as if it were embracing him. "He" almost relaxed. Nearly believed that everything was fine.
But…
A desperat scream broke thet silence. His body was squeezed tight,like it was trappedt in a vise. The heat and moisturedisappeared at once, replaced by choking panic.
The situation demanded firm action.
"Run." The last bit of his will came alive again.
He gathered his strength and twisted around. In front of him, a faint light shone—barely visible, but desperately wanted.
He charged toward it, as if something intense inside was pushing him forward.
The walls around him squeezed and loosened, pushing him toward freedom. Muffled cries got louder and closer, but he couldn't understand them. All that was important escaping, breaking free, and breathing.
He felt it at last—a sense of weightlessness and freedom.
It had a bit strange, as if he had gained something big but lost something important at the same time.
He didn't have time to think deeply. Reality demanded his attention.
The suffocating pressure had not vanished, and the light proved far too bright—so bright it burned his eyes even through tightly shut lids.
It hurt! The Great Devil perceived a sharp sting on his backside that almost made him cry, but at the same time, he took his first breath.
For a moment, anger rose inside him. Who would dare treat the Lord of Hell like this? But the anger dissipated quickly as he was wrapped in something warm, soft, and incredibly fluffy.
It wasn't threatening or harsh. It simply loved him.
It was wonderful, like floating in the clouds surrounded by softness. The comfort was so strong that he wanted to see what was giving it to him.
His eyelids felt heavy as lead, but he forced them open and froze.
A beautiful woman, about thirty years old, looked at him with sky-blue eyes, as if she wanted to remember his face forever.
She was unimaginably beautiful.
Her face looked like a work of art made by nature. Silvery-white hair fell in soft waves, shimmering in the light like strands of moonlit silk. And for the smile on her full lips, a righteous man would have renounced every vow and plunged into madness.
That smile was just for him—tender, joyful, loving, and sincere.
He wished he could disappear into that smile completely.
He didn't know who she was, but he felt drawn to her. One look from her made his stomach flutter. Was this love at first sight?
He wanted to speak, but from his unruly-looking mouth came something between a moan and a cry:
"Maaaaaa…"
The sound was almost unintelligible, yet it was enough for her. Her smile grew even more tender. She carefully held him to herself and brought her lips close for a kiss. When they touched his forehead, a wave of bliss spread through his body, as if he had become weightless.
"So big. So soft. So nice." He still dreamed of those full lips when the tender voice brought him back to reality.
"Fufufu, has mommy put another little angel to sleep? No, no, dear, you need to eat first. You want to grow big and healthy, just like your older sister, don't you?"
He watched her in silence, not understanding the words, but totally captivated by her sound.
As if his silence was an answer, the beautiful woman reclined back a bit and lowered her dress.
A large, pale pink mound appeared in front of the baby, giving off mild warmth. At the top was a small, inviting pink spot that attracted him.
It's too beautiful to beIt was almost too beautiful to believe, and too hard to resist.
He wanted badly to extend and take what he wanted, but his hands wouldn't move. Then the woman gently brought the inviting spot to his mouth. As soon as his lips touched her skin, the world appeared to stop.
"THERE IT IS! LIFE!" he exulted.
"Well, well, my dear," the beauty said with a tender smile, "it seems you truly are hungry. My little boy is far bolder than his older sister. Fufufu. Mommy likes that. I'm sure you'll grow up big and strong."
The child didn't know what the beautiful woman was saying. He only knew her speech was lovely, and her milk tasted warm and sweet. What else could anyone want to be happy?
But someone else interrupted the peaceful moment.
Another tiny child was feeding at a similar spot.
"What a heretic! How dare he?!"
The devil sensed a rival. A wave of anger, jealousy, and possessiveness swept over him. He kicked out, trying to push away the bold intruder.
But the space between them was too great to cross.
"Fufufu… What a possessive little one you are…" The melodious voice pealed again, like the ringing of silver bells. "Don't worry, my dear, your older sister won't take your milk. This lady will make sure to remain impartial…"
He didn't understand the words, but a small trace of comprehension flickered deep inside him.
"The beautiful woman is my mother, and next to her—my little sister."
With this realization, his last bits of reason faded away. His will, memories, and pride as the great devil slowly disappeared, such as smoke in the wind. Only a warm, light, almost human calm was left in his chest.
The baby's eyes closed.
And with this final movement, the Sir vanished. Only a child remained, quietly asleep in his mother's arms.
Before slipping into oblivion forever, he heard the soothing voice once more:"Welcome to the world, my little ones."