Lust System: Rise of the Primordial Demon

The scent of honeyed pastries and spiced tea filled the sunlit morning room. Evelyn and Emma ate in a comfortable, focused silence, the events of the previous day a heavy but unspoken weight between them along with Lucy who is eating with them.

Elunara picked at a piece of fruit, her gaze distant, clearly preoccupied with matters of state.

A while ago Lucy joined them.

She was different. The usual sharp, dismissive aura that clung to her like a shadow was gone, replaced by a softness that was utterly disarming.

She moved to the table with a light step, a faint, almost dreamy smile playing on her lips. As she sat and served herself, she kept her eyes downcast, but a persistent blush colored her pale demonic cheeks.

Emma and Evelyn exchanged a long, bewildered look. This was not the Lucy they knew.

"Uh… Lucy?" Emma ventured, setting her fork down. "Are you… alright?"

Lucy's head snapped up as if she'd been caught doing something illicit. "Hm? Yeah. I'm fine. Why?" Her voice was a touch too high, the attempt at nonchalance completely transparent.

Evelyn's eyes narrowed, a mischievous grin spreading across her face.

She leaned forward, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. "Don't worry about her, Emma. Maybe she's just happy she finally popped her cherry."

The effect was instantaneous. Lucy's face, already flushed, turned a deep, furious crimson. She shot to her feet so fast her chair screeched back.

"What is wrong with you?!" she sputtered, her composure shattered. Without another word, she turned on her heel knowing that she has finished eating, storming out of the room and muttering about "insufferable" company under her breath.

A small, rare smile touched Elunara's lips as she took a sip of her tea. "She is quite cute like that."

Emma, still processing, could only nod in stunned agreement.

They had just resumed eating when another figure appeared at the doorway. Aeloria, the young elf looking elf with wide, mature eyes, gave a shallow, respectful bow. "My Queen," she greeted.

Elunara gave a single, tired nod of acknowledgment. "Aeloria."

"I do not wish to seem heartless," Aeloria began, her hands clasped tightly in front of her, "but you are supposed to be busy. You have been entertaining these… intruders… for too long. Your duties await."

"I know," Elunara replied, her tone even. "I have finished here. Even my mother has left to attend to matters in the forest. She knows we are done for now."

Aeloria's posture relaxed slightly, a hopeful glint in her eye. "Does that mean the demons will be leaving soon?"

Elunara's gaze was unreadable. "Well, maybe. Maybe not. We will see."

Aeloria said nothing more, but she didn't leave either, simply standing there as a silent, judgmental reminder of neglected responsibilities.

Elunara sighed, a sound of profound weariness. Her brilliant blue ocean eyes lifted from her plate. She stood up.

Emma, seeing her preparing to leave, quickly spoke up. "What about our training?"

Elunara paused, as if she'd momentarily forgotten. "Right. Well, I will try to finish my work as fast as I can." And with that, she swept from the room, Aeloria following closely behind.

Frustrated but determined, the two girls decided not to waste the day. They found a secluded training garden, a place of manicured hedges and ancient, sturdy trees.

Evelyn focused, her brow furrowed in concentration. She held out a hand, palm upward, summoning the earth affinity she was still learning to command. A small rock, no larger than her fist, shuddered and lifted from the soil.

With a grunt of effort, she hurled it at a distant tree. It hit the trunk with a solid thunk, leaving a faint mark before crumbling to dust.

"Not bad," she breathed, wiping her brow and leaning against the tree she'd just assaulted.

Nearby, Emma was having a more difficult time. Water was elusive. She held her hands out, trying to coalesce the moisture in the air into a stable sphere.

It kept wobbling, threatening to splash back into formlessness. "I know it's not easy," she said, answering Evelyn's unspoken thought. "But I've gotta try to at least train myself in the meantime."

She took a steadying breath and decided to try something else. She raised her hand, the Seraphim Bracelet glinting on her wrist.

Perhaps she could use its power as a catalyst. She focused her light magic through it, feeling the relic hum in response. Her hand glowed with a pure, white light. Instead of a water sphere, she formed a compact ball of radiant energy and threw it.

It shot forward and struck the same tree Evelyn had been targeting. This time, the impact wasn't a thunk; it was a sharp crack, and a smoldering, blackened scar was left on the bark.

"Whoa," Evelyn said, pushing off from the tree, her fatigue forgotten. "Emma, that was amazing!"

Emma smiled, a genuine feeling of accomplishment warming her. "Thanks, I just—"

The word died in her throat.

A violent, internal shudder wracked her body. It felt like a crack of lightning had struck her soul. Her knees buckled and she dropped to the soft grass, a silent scream caught in her chest.

She clutched at her heart, her eyes wide with a pain that was not physical, but something far deeper, a fundamental tearing within her very being.

"Emma!" Evelyn cried, rushing to her side. "What's wrong? Did you hurt yourself?" She reached out, but Emma flinched away.

"No, no, no, no," Emma chanted through gritted teeth, her body beginning to tremble uncontrollably.

The pain was intensifying, a pressure building that threatened to shatter her from the inside out. She looked up at Evelyn, her eyes filled with a terrifying panic. "Get out of here."

"What? No, I'm not leaving you!" Evelyn insisted, confused and scared.

"Leave!" Emma screamed, the command laced with agony. "I'm not feeling well and I think I'm— I'm—" She couldn't finish.

A blinding, brilliant white light erupted from her body, so intense it forced Evelyn to stumble backward, shielding her eyes.

The light filled the entire garden, and Evelyn, with her dark elf heritage, felt a searing pain just being near it. She could no longer touch Emma; the energy radiating from her was pure, scorching holiness.

Through the glare, Evelyn saw silhouettes—great, luminous wings unfolding from Emma's back, her figure stretching, growing just a few inches taller, her form shifting.

Remembering the warning, Evelyn turned and ran for the garden's gated entrance. But before she could reach it, a solid wall of the same white light slammed down, blocking her escape. She was trapped.

Terrified, Evelyn turned back. The light around Emma was beginning to fade from a blinding glare to a softer, radiant glow. And the person standing where Emma had fallen was not Emma.

She was a woman, mature and athletic, her form graceful and commanding. Where Emma had an inviting hourglass figure, this woman was built like a warrior-queen.

Her face, once always softened by kindness, was now a mask of cold, emotionless beauty. Her hair seemed spun from light itself, holding a holy luminescence that hurt Evelyn's eyes.

The woman's empty, cold eyes locked onto Evelyn. "Finally!, I'm free!!, I can get rid you and your demon pals." she said. Her voice was melodious but devoid of warmth, like a frozen chime.

She raised a graceful hand. In the air around her, a dozen swords of pure white light materialized. Without another word, they flashed toward Evelyn, intent on piercing her through.

Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut, awaiting the killing blow.

It never came.

A familiar blur of purple-and-black energy erupted in front of her, forming a shimmering barrier. The light swords shattered against it like glass.

The woman's cold composure broke. She cursed, a vile, ancient word that sounded wrong in her holy voice.

"Thalyss!" she spat, the name dripping with a hatred so deep it seemed to curdle the very air. "Why is she still such an annoying flea, even after death?!"

Evelyn, trembling, could only stare at the shield she didn't create, relief and terror warring within her.

The woman's beautiful face twisted into a snarl. Her magnificent golden wings beat once, lifting her off the ground. She raised her hands to the sky, chanting words in a celestial language Evelyn could not comprehend.

A massive, intricate golden magic circle spiraled into existence above them. From its center, a sword descended. It was the most beautiful weapon Evelyn had ever seen, wrought from blue light, white fire, and golden patterns.

The woman caught it effortlessly. Without a moment's hesitation, she shot toward the purple barrier. This time, the divine blade sliced through Thalyss's protection like it was parchment.

"Finally," the woman hissed, her cold eyes locking on Evelyn once more. "Scared of death? You should not have allied yourself with demons." She raised the magnificent sword for a final, clean strike.

The blade began its descent.

A tremendous crash echoed through the garden as the wall of light blocking the entrance exploded inward, shattered into a million motes of fading energy.

The woman froze, her head snapping up to see who had interrupted her.

Two figures stood in the broken doorway.

One was Elunara, her eyes blazing with protective fury, her hands still crackling with the energy she'd used to break the barrier.

But it was the second figure that made the heavenly woman lower her sword, her cold eyes widening in pure, unadulterated shock.

He was the most beautiful demonic creature ever seen. His hair was a cascade of silver-white, his eyes burned with a captivating crimson light, and a pair of elegant horns swept back from his brow. A powerful demon tail swayed slowly behind him. Power radiated from him in waves, a perfect, terrifying contrast to her holy light.

The woman could only breathe one name, a whisper of disbelief. "Caelen…?"

A slow, dangerous smile touched Caelen's lips. His voice, when he spoke, was deep and melodious, beautiful enough to haunt dreams.

"How are you, Velantra?"

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"If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to drop a power stone or add it to your library—it really helps me keep writing!"