Lothan stared at the towering building before him.
It stretched high into the night sky, its countless windows glowing like stars.
Beside him stood Aria.
She noticed his expression and smiled.
"First time seeing an apartment building?"
Lothan remained silent.
Everything was his first time.
The roads.
The lights.
The machines.
The enormous city itself.
Aria pushed open the entrance door.
"Come on."
Lothan followed cautiously.
The doors opened automatically.
He immediately stopped walking.
The doors closed.
Then opened again.
Then closed.
Aria blinked.
"What are you doing?"
Lothan stared suspiciously at the door.
"It moves by itself."
For several seconds, Aria simply looked at him.
Then she laughed.
The sound caught him off guard.
No one had laughed around him in a very long time.
"It's automatic."
Lothan frowned.
"I have no idea what that means."
Aria laughed even harder.
For some reason, that irritated him.
A few minutes later, they entered a small apartment.
The room was neat and surprisingly comfortable.
Books lined several shelves.
A couch sat near the window.
Plants decorated the corners.
It felt warm.
Lived in.
Aria placed her bag on a table.
"Make yourself comfortable."
Lothan looked around carefully.
His eyes eventually settled on a television.
The screen suddenly lit up.
Lothan instinctively reached for a weapon he no longer carried.
Aria nearly choked trying not to laugh.
"It's just a television."
The screen displayed moving images.
People speaking.
Music playing.
News reports.
Lothan stared at it in disbelief.
"Magic?"
"No."
"An illusion?"
"No."
"Then what is it?"
Aria rubbed her forehead.
"This might take a while."
Hours passed.
For perhaps the first time in a thousand years, Lothan listened more than he spoke.
Aria explained modern technology.
The internet.
Phones.
Cars.
Computers.
The modern world seemed more unbelievable than any form of magic.
Meanwhile, Aria grew increasingly confused.
Every explanation led to another strange reaction.
"What year is it?" Lothan suddenly asked.
Aria looked surprised.
"2026."
Silence.
Lothan slowly looked out the window.
One thousand years.
The reality felt heavier hearing it spoken aloud.
Aria noticed the sadness in his expression.
"You really don't know much about the world, do you?"
"No."
The answer was honest.
Aria studied him carefully.
There was something unusual about him.
Not dangerous.
Not threatening.
Just... strange.
As though he didn't belong here.
As though he came from another age.
The thought sounded ridiculous.
Yet she couldn't shake it.
Later that evening, Aria opened her laptop.
"If you want to understand the world, maybe this will help."
She typed several words.
A history website appeared.
Lothan's attention immediately sharpened.
The title read:
THE GREAT DEMON WAR
His heartbeat slowed.
For the first time since awakening, he would learn how history remembered him.
Aria began reading.
"The Great Demon War occurred approximately one thousand years ago."
Images filled the screen.
Ancient paintings.
Ruined cities.
Broken battlefields.
"The conflict ended when humanity's greatest champion defeated the Demon of the Abyss."
Lothan's eyes narrowed.
The Hero.
Even now, he remained humanity's savior.
The website displayed a statue.
A monument built in honor of the Hero.
Crowds surrounded it every year.
Celebrating.
Remembering.
Honoring.
Lothan looked away.
History had chosen its hero.
And its villain.
Aria continued scrolling.
Most records described demons as ruthless monsters.
Very few mentioned the kingdom of Nethoria.
Even fewer mentioned peace between humans and demons.
Entire centuries had vanished from history.
Lothan's jaw tightened.
The truth had been buried.
Forgotten.
Or perhaps deliberately erased.
Aria noticed his reaction.
"You seem interested in this."
For a moment, Lothan considered telling her.
The truth.
Who he was.
What he had seen.
What he had lost.
Instead, he simply said:
"History is often incomplete."
Aria looked surprised.
Then she nodded.
"That's true."
For some reason, her answer made him smile slightly.
A very small smile.
But a smile nonetheless.
Later that night, Aria eventually fell asleep on the couch.
The apartment became quiet.
Lothan stood beside the window.
The city stretched endlessly beneath him.
Lights filled the darkness.
Thousands of lives.
Thousands of dreams.
The world had moved forward.
Without him.
Without Nethoria.
Without everything he once loved.
A thousand years had erased nearly every trace of the past.
Yet somehow, standing there, he didn't feel angry.
Not yet.
Only lonely.
Very lonely.
Then something changed.
Lothan's eyes narrowed.
A faint sensation touched his senses.
Weak.
Ancient.
Familiar.
He immediately turned toward the city.
The feeling lasted only a second.
Then vanished.
But he had felt it.
Without question.
Without mistake.
Demonic energy.
His heart skipped a beat.
Impossible.
Every record claimed demons were extinct.
Every history book said their race had vanished after the war.
Yet the presence he sensed could belong to only one thing.
A demon.
Somewhere in the city.
Still alive.
Lothan stepped onto the apartment balcony.
The night wind brushed against his face.
His crimson eyes scanned the distant skyline.
The energy was gone now.
Hidden.
But not erased.
For the first time since awakening, a spark of determination appeared within him.
If demons still existed...
Then perhaps he wasn't alone.
And perhaps the truth about the Great War had not been lost after all.
Far away, hidden among the countless lights of the city, a shadowy figure watched the apartment from a rooftop.
Golden eyes glowed in the darkness.
The figure smiled.
"The Demon of the Abyss has finally awakened."
To be continued...