The air in Natlan was never still.
Even in moments of silence, heat shimmered like a living thing, bending the light, carrying with it the scent of ash, molten stone, and distant battle. Beneath the towering volcanic ridges and crimson skies, ancient power slept — and sometimes, it stirred.
Jin stood at the center of that restless land.
Before him rose the Wayr Stone.
A colossal monolith of molten-black rock veined with glowing crimson fissures, as if magma itself flowed beneath its surface. Ancient runes spiraled around it, written in a language older than Natlan's tribes, older even than the Archons' current names. The stone pulsed slowly, like a heartbeat — each thrum echoing deep within the soul.
Kachina swallowed hard.
She had stood before danger countless times, her spear always steady, her eyes always sharp — but this was different. This wasn't a battlefield. This was judgment.
Mualani leaned slightly on her hydro-dolphin board, spinning it idly with practiced ease, though her eyes never left Jin.
"Wow… even standing near that thing makes my skin tingle," she muttered, attempting her usual cheer, though her voice carried a rare hint of awe. "Guess this is what it feels like when Natlan really looks at you, huh?"
Kanish crossed his arms, his expression calm but wary. As a warrior of the Shadow-Slash tribe, he understood rituals — understood that some battles were fought without blades.
"This stone doesn't accept lies," he said quietly. "Or hesitation."
Stellali stood closest to Jin.
Her pink hair caught the glow of the Wayr Stone, strands shimmering faintly purple at the edges. Her violet-blue eyes studied Jin not as a healer… but as someone watching a patient walk willingly into a storm.
She exhaled slowly.
"Once this begins," she said, her voice gentle but firm, "the stone will look beyond your body. Beyond your power. It will see what you are."
Jin's crimson eyes remained calm.
Unmoving.
Unshaken.
"I know," he replied.
Behind them, footsteps approached — unhurried, confident, carrying warmth rather than threat.
Mavuika stepped forward.
The Pyro Archon of Natlan stood radiant against the volcanic glow. Her long hair flowed like living flame, shifting from deep red to golden yellow at the tips, as though kissed constantly by the sun. Her skin glowed warmly, and her red eyes — marked with sun-shaped golden pupils — burned with intelligence, resolve, and an unmistakable kindness hardened by centuries of responsibility.
She placed her hands on her hips, tilting her head slightly as she studied Jin.
"Heh… you really don't hesitate," she said with a soft laugh. "Most people tremble when they stand here. Some cry. Some pray."
Her gaze sharpened, glowing brighter.
"But you?"
A smile curved her lips.
"You just stand there like the stone already knows your name."
Jin met her gaze directly.
"The stone already knows what I am," he answered. "A name won't change that."
Mavuika's smile widened — not mocking, not amused — but genuinely impressed.
"Well said."
She turned toward the Wayr Stone and raised one hand. Flames gathered around her palm, not wild or destructive, but controlled — ceremonial. The fire did not burn the ground; instead, it hovered, forming ancient symbols in the air.
"Wayr Stone of Natlan," she declared, her voice resonating with divine authority, echoing across the plateau.
"Witness one who seeks to stand beneath our sun."
The runes on the stone flared brighter.
Heat surged outward like a wave.
Kachina instinctively tightened her grip on her spear.
"Woah—!"
Mualani grinned nervously.
"Okay, yeah, that's definitely hotter than a normal ritual."
The ground trembled — not violently, but deliberately.
The stone responded.
From its surface, a beam of molten-red light shot upward, then split, cascading down around Jin like a pillar of fire… yet it did not burn him.
Instead—
The flames passed through him.
Stellali's eyes widened.
"…It's not rejecting him."
Mavuika's expression turned serious.
"Nor is it accepting him easily."
The fire wrapped around Jin's body, tracing invisible lines across his skin, his soul, his power. Shadows bled outward from him instinctively — dark tendrils reacting to the intrusion, coiling protectively.
The contrast was striking.
Fire and Darkness.
Sun and Void.
Jin closed his eyes.
Within him, something ancient stirred.
Not rage.
Not fear.
Recognition.
The Wayr Stone pulsed faster.
A low, resonant sound echoed — like the grinding of continents.
Then—
A voice.
Not spoken aloud, yet heard by all.
> "NAME."
Kachina gasped.
"I—I heard that in my head—!"
Mualani stiffened.
"Yeah… same here."
Mavuika did not look surprised.
She watched Jin closely.
"Speak," she said. "Not the name you use… but the one that answers when the world calls."
Jin's eyes snapped open.
Crimson light flared — and within it, the white, six-pointed star pupils burned brighter than ever.
"My spiritual name," he said calmly, voice unwavering despite the crushing pressure.
"The one etched into my existence."
Darkness surged.
The shadows around him formed wings for a fleeting second — vast, formless, immense.
"Lucifer."
The moment the name left his lips—
The Wayr Stone erupted.
Flames exploded skyward, spiraling like a solar flare. The runes on the stone shattered and reformed, rewriting themselves violently.
Mualani shielded her eyes.
"Okay—! That's definitely not normal!"
Kanish stepped back half a step, eyes narrowed.
"…That name carries weight."
Stellali's breath caught.
"It's not rejecting it… it's arguing with it."
Mavuika stared at the stone, then at Jin.
For the first time, her smile faded completely.
"…Lucifer," she repeated softly.
The flames condensed.
Then — silence.
The Wayr Stone dimmed, its glow stabilizing into a deep, molten gold rather than red.
A new rune carved itself into the stone's surface.
Not one of Natlan.
Something older.
The ground stilled.
The heat softened.
Mavuika exhaled slowly… then laughed.
A bright, warm laugh that cut through the tension like sunlight after a storm.
"Well then," she said, stepping forward, clapping once.
"Looks like Natlan just gained someone very interesting."
She turned to Jin, eyes blazing with renewed fire and excitement.
"Lucifer or Jin — whichever name you walk under," she declared, "the Wayr Stone has accepted your presence."
She placed a hand over her chest in a warrior's salute.
"From this moment on… you are recognized by Natlan."
Kachina's eyes lit up.
"…So that means—?"
Mavuika grinned.
"It means he fights under our sun."
Mualani beamed.
"Heh! Guess that makes you officially part of the team now, dark-and-mysterious guy."
Stellali finally relaxed, a small smile forming.
"…Just don't make me regret healing you."
Jin looked around at them.
At the land.
At the fire-lit sky.
"…Very well," he said quietly.
"Then I'll burn the Abyss out of Natlan."
And somewhere, far beyond the horizon—
The Abyss stirred in response.
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Heat: Thank you very much for reading.
Now, why is Jin's name Lucifer, and how did Jin pronounce his name in the previous chapter? Lucifer, meaning how did he know his original name? In short, Jin received a blessing from his aunt Tishara, being the daughter of Hades. Jin became known as Lucifer in the underworld. This is what Tishara called him; she gave him this spiritual name.