Lucifer: Godless Reawakening

On the palm of the little girl was a black full moon and two stars.

Everyone stared at it grimly before Emma finally breathed out the words, barely audible, "A General-rank."

Kevin—who could never remember the ranks even if his life depended on it—gasped like he'd been stabbed.

"A-A General rank?!"

Among the Devils, there were only four ranks. A single moon marked a common devil—like the Dark Demon who had almost killed Kevin within the depths of the mines. A moon accompanied by one star signified a Ranked-devil, strong enough to eliminate the lower-seated members of the Great Hall with ease.

And then came the General-ranked—two stars beneath a full black moon. Creatures strong enough to rival the Sword Saint himself, capable of commanding over a thousand demons with nothing but their will.

Only Arthur, among all the seated members, had ever defeated a Devil-general alone. His victory was the very reason he held his position.

William remembered his old man once mentioning he had also fought a General-rank—but he'd survived only because he hadn't been alone. He'd had allies at his side, people strong enough to share the burden.

"How is this possible?" Gloria muttered, shock rippling through the quiet clearing. Her eyes glimmered with a fear she rarely showed.

"How can she survive a contract with a General-rank?" she continued, shaking her head.

Contract formation was brutal. An aether-user's body underwent violent changes as the Devil's essence invaded them. If the body, will, or soul wasn't strong enough, they would simply perish—and the Devil would suffer immense backlash.

That was precisely why Devils rarely approached anyone weak. And children under fifteen? They didn't even appear on their radar.

"In the first place," Emma murmured, raising a trembling question, "what kind of power does she possess for a Devil of that rank to approach her?"

Devil contracts never granted blessings. They only injected the contractor with an immense amount of magical essence.

It was like painting over a cracked wall—the surface changed, but the structure beneath remained untouched.

Kevin leaned a little, voice gentle despite his earlier panic. "Can you show us what you can do?"

The little girl flinched, meaning she'd heard him. But instead of responding, she turned in Emma's lap and buried her face into Emma's chest, her tiny hands trembling.

"She is afraid," William said quietly—he had heard the faint whisper of her thoughts.

No one pushed her after that.

Kevin eventually let out a long, helpless breath. "As much as I want to save the kid, I'm nowhere near strong enough to go against a General-rank."

He wasn't lying. Under bad circumstances, he could barely survive against a common devil. In broad daylight, with Emma and the others backing him up, he might be able to hold his ground against a Ranked-devil.

But a General-rank? Impossible. A death sentence.

Gloria lowered her head, her voice soft but hopeless. "We can only give her this half a day of freedom… that's all."

The child's small fingers clutched Emma's shirt tightly, as if she could already sense her fate.

William watched her silently before closing his eyes.

Some things… were simply beyond his control.

…

*Kirk.*

The dry wood snapped as flames slithered through it, splitting it neatly in two.

Two hours had passed since they arrived at the small campsite. The sky overhead had deepened into velvet darkness, pierced only by faint stars and the flickering dance of amber firelight. By now, all three adults—and even the little girl—had drifted into sleep or quiet rest.

William had gone to fetch some snacks from the tent. When he returned, he handed Emma a box of sweetened peanuts, placing it gently beside her.

Emma smiled gratefully as she opened it. The warm, sugary scent spread through the air, making the child's tiny nose twitch. Her lips parted slightly, tempted even in sleep—but she didn't wake. She simply nestled deeper into Emma's lap.

William's voice brushed against Emma's thoughts.

[She is adorable, isn't she?]

Emma blinked, pleasantly surprised by the softness in his tone.

[To think you'd admit that without your tsun side taking over.]

William rolled his eyes.

[I am not shy about my feelings. You just love using that strange word that doesn't exist in any dictionary.]

He had even searched for it. For days.

Nothing. Not a hint of a word called *tsundere.*

But by context alone, he had figured out what she meant—mostly.

Emma chuckled silently.

[Ever since you saw her, your brotherly instincts awakened.]

William leaned back, resting his arms on his raised knees.

[Well… I was never a good brother to my siblings. And honestly, they never treated me like family either. So I don't exactly know what this feeling is.]

[But you want to save her, don't you?]

Emma's sudden question hit him like an arrow.

William stared into the crackling flames, letting the truth settle heavy in his chest.

[We both know it's impossible, Emma. No matter how different I am from others my age, I'm still far from reaching the pinnacle.]

He shook his head.

[Against a General-rank, I'd be toast. And even if I somehow became strong enough, why would the Devil show up to fight? If he had any intention of confronting us, he would've done it while we were being cornered earlier—when no one was paying attention to her.]

He wasn't wrong.

If the Devil wanted the child dead or reclaimed, he had countless opportunities before this.

The fact that he hadn't appeared meant only one thing… his motives were deeper, hidden.

The child was already marked. A lost cause.

Emma's fingers brushed his hand.

[You're sad, Will.]

[Does that make me weak?]

She shook her head, eyes softening.

"It makes you human. And I love that part of you."

Her whisper was barely audible over the wind, yet it hit him harder than any blow.

William's shoulders loosened. He held her gaze quietly, the warmth of her presence easing a weight he hadn't even realized he carried.

He didn't know why, but hearing it from Emma… made it feel acceptable to mourn for a child he had barely met. Acceptable to go against everything he'd been taught about Devils.

All his life he'd been told—never sympathize, never care, never hesitate.

Yet here he was, breaking every rule he had ever followed.

And Emma didn't reject him for it.

If anything, she welcomed that side of him.

How could he not fall for her?

He leaned closer, whispering through the bond:

[Don't make a sound.]

Emma's breath caught faintly, but she didn't move as his lips met hers—gentle, warm, deliberate. She closed her eyes instantly, trusting him completely.

Yet her fingers curled into the grass, giving away the thundering beat of her heart. No matter how many times they kissed, she reacted the same—soft, overwhelmed, trembling.

Their breaths mingled, the subtle sweetness of peanuts and the cooling trace of his mint lingering between them. Their lips locked again, deeper this time, a slow exchange that burned hotter than the fire in front of them.

Their fingers intertwined.

Under the star-filled sky, with embers crackling around them and a sleeping child resting safely in Emma's lap, the world felt quieter. The distance between them dissolved.

In that moment nothing existed for them except for each other.

°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.