DEEP in the netherworld, where shadows danced and eerie whispers echoed through the abyss, the castle of Netheria stood tall. Surrounded by thick air and the scent of rust and sulfur, the flickering torches cast an ominous glow on the grotesque statues lining the castle's entrance. Everything about it screams terror.

When the heavy door of the Netheria castle creaked open, revealing the dimly lit foyer where the air hung heavy with the scent of sulfur and decaying flesh. A small, hunched figure emerged from the shadows, its eyes glowing with an eerie crimson light.

"Welcome back, my lord." The figure's voice was a low, raspy sound that seemed to slither through the air like a serpent's hiss. Alongside him, other servants bowed to greet the returning lord of the castle.

The Demon Lord of the South and the lord of the Netheria castle, Caius Azazel Indra Netheria, swept into the room, his obsidian wings trailing behind him like a cloak of darkness. Atop his head, two horns protruded sharply upward, a testament to his formidable power, cutting through the air like menacing obsidian spears while his eyes glowed a fiery red as he surveyed the gloomy interior of his domain.

Caius has been away for quite a while. Since he left, he has been roaming the other realms and feeding on the negative energies. It has long been peaceful in the underworld since new laws and orders were placed during the ascension of the current King of the Underworld. There hasn't been that much to do for Caius. Not that he doesn't have any territory to govern, but wars and blood baths have decreased and tamed down compared to a few hundred years ago when he couldn't even blink without getting a knife under him. However, nowadays, it has been good and surely will get better as they progress, but things have also gotten draggy for Caius.

As someone once called the ruthless warrior of the South, Caius enjoys war and chaos. However, he also values the underworld and the peaceful time, as it gives him time to breathe without shedding blood. On top of that, he respects the current king. Since he met the current king, he knew he would be the one to change their realm. He would lead their land and make the underworld a better place, hence, he went to war with him, overthrowing the previous king, ending territorial disputes in other realms, and placing order in the underworld. Caius trusts the current king and has supported him to this day and age.

For hundreds of years, Caius ruled the southern part of the underworld. It was the prize the king gave him to govern and protect. Caius had established cities for the demons and other creatures living in the southern terrains but made sure to inflict fear and terror in his territory for those who dared to disobey the current laws and order. Slowly, he also expanded his rule and made progress in the lives of the demons under his control, but managing was not his thing. Once he conquered most places in the South, he eventually got bored. He had gotten tired of doing the same things over and over like a routine. As a demon, this is not good. Boredom is a sin. A punishment worse than death.

Not wanting to rot in boredom, Caius sought the king's guidance and was granted passage to the other ally realm. He made contact with other beings through summoning and allowed other creatures to borrow his power in exchange for negative energies, making him more powerful than before whenever he returned to the underworld.

"Rath, how have things been while I was away?" Caius's deep voice rumbled through the chamber, resonating off the stone walls.

Rath has been one of Caius's attendants. They have been serving him since the dawn of time and manage the paperwork in his territory whenever he goes to other realms. He was also left to take care of all the administration and management left by Caius.

"The demons receding on the border continue to resist, my lord. They are growing bolder, and the whispers of rebellion echo through the land." Rath bowed low, his twisted form contorting into an unnatural angle.

Caius let out a low, rumbling growl. "They forget their place. I will remind them of their insignificance." The air crackled with the power that emanated from him, the very atmosphere trembling at his anger.

Rath nodded, their glowing eyes reflecting a mix of fear and reverence. "Shall I prepare the legions, my lord?"

Caius's lips curled into a cruel smile. "No need, Rath. I alone can wipe them out. It's time to show those lowlifes the true meaning of fear," he sneered. As he spread his wings and moved to vanish down the darkened corridor, a loud cry shattered the silence, halting his plan.

Caius furrowed his brow, trying to pinpoint the source of the sound, until Rath found a coocooned like creature entwined between Caius's wings and cape.

"What is that thing?" Caius demanded, puzzled, as Rath unwrapped the creature from their entanglement.

"It is a human child, my lord," Rath replied, awkwardly cradling the baby in their hands.

"Human child?" Caius queried, genuine surprise etched across his countenance as he absorbed Rath's unexpected revelation. The notion of a human child clinging to him in the sinister embrace of the underworld elicited a perplexed frown from the Lord of the South. "How in the world could a human child manage to cling to me?" he inquired, his voice betraying doubt and curiosity.

"I am not sure myself," Rath responded with a furrowed brow. "It seems to have been summoned into existence when you returned to the underworld," he continued, their tone also unsure.

The revelation hung in the air like an enigma, leaving both demons to grapple with the unfathomable nature of the circumstances that had given rise to this unexpected presence.

Caius gazed at the creature at Rath's arm, still bawling its heart out. He couldn't help but notice how tiny it was, small enough that a flick of his finger could easily send it away, flying to the depths of the netherworld. Yet, somehow, the tiny creature had managed to tangle up to his wings and his cape, an impressive feature if Caius was being honest. But, despite his brief journey to the mortal realm to monitor the warring areas and consume evil energies for a mere sixty-six hours, he couldn't recall having contact with anyone other than the mortal who summoned him, an ordinary thief needing assistance at war. Caius was certain that the thief wasn't holding a baby nor had one, considering they were already old and gray, so how?

"What should we do with this thing, my lord?" Rath asked, pointing at the creature who had stopped crying and now staring at them.

"Hm, I could just kill it," Caius responded in a heartbeat. He didn't see the point in keeping the human child. He could return it, but to whom? He didn't have time to search the mortal realm for a tiny being. He would much rather deal with the war in his territory than spend time on useless things.

"That's true," Rath nodded in agreement. "It shouldn't be that much to kill this thing." Rath also believes that a mortal child couldn't survive the harsh environment of the underworld, unlike a necromancer or a seek who had special abilities and was given permission to live alongside demons.

"Then it's decided." Caius moves closer to the child, staring at them. "Tiny human, it was unfortunate, but I have to end your life from here on. But don't worry, as a form of mercy, I will make it quick." The child kept their eyes fixed on Caius, and as he was about to claw them to death, the child closed their eyes as if understanding what was bound to happen and accepting their fate. There was no smell of fear or negative energy emitting out of them, causing Caius to pause at the last second.

"My lord?" Rath frowned.

Caius knew he was no mere ordinary demon. He radiated terror, his very presence enough to send everyone trembling in fear. It was standard for him to sense fear in his prey, as he relished those emotions before their demise. It was no different when facing a mortal. As a great demon, he could sense negative emotions from humans and feed on them, but this tiny being did not emit negative emotions even when facing death. It was as if it didn't have any feelings at all. "Interesting," he mused.

A mortal who doesn't show fear is indeed interesting. When was the last time he met a fearless soul? Has it been five hundred years, or was it a thousand? Regardless, it's been a while since Caius showed interest in something.

"My lord, aren't you going to kill the tiny being?" Rath inquired, still perplexed, as Caius abruptly halted his course.

"I have reconsidered. The tiny human intrigues me," Caius declared, a shift in his demeanour evident, before striding away and leaving the area.

"Intrigue?" Rath was confused, waiting for Caius to get more information. "What do you mean by that, my lord?"

"The tiny human might be entertaining to watch. Let's keep it for now."

The frown was visible on Rath's face, not understanding the purpose of keeping the tiny being. " But my lord, this tiny being wouldn't be able to survive the underworld. If you do not wish to end its existence, would it not be more pragmatic to offer it as sustenance to the other demons?"

"Rath, you know we can't eat humans. They're poison to us. If those positive energy get into our system, we will perish."

Rath bowed his head, realizing the error in his suggestion. "I apologize, my lord. I misspoke."

Humans are indeed poison to demons. Contrary to human belief, demons only eat negative energy from humans. Humans can't be killed that easily unless they are soaked in negative energy, drowned in temptation, corruption and greed by the insistent of a demon, turning their positive energy into negative ones.

If a demon has killed or fed on a mortal soul beaming with positive energy, the demon will perish from the depths of the world immediately. The rule of the underworld had long stated that demons couldn't kill humans unless they were filled with negative energies, fear being the highest form of negativity. If a human was killed while still having a hint of positivity, will to survive and hope, it means that the angels and gods still protect them, or their fate and time have yet to come.

But if the time has come, a demon can go with the reaper to collect the soul, the demon can feed on the remaining negative energy of the human while the reaper will collect the soul of the dead. This only happens to greater demons, as most demons just wait for the negative energy to be distributed to the underworld, like food delivery.

There were more rules in the underworld about mortals and other creatures in the other realm. Ciaus himself continued to gain knowledge about them since the underworld had only started learning about these rules since the previous king had hidden them in the belief that demons have no weakness. Caius believed it was a ridiculous way of thinking, but then again, he couldn't solely fault the previous king, for it is a demon's nature to be ambitious and greedy for their desires.

"Let it be forgotten. Take charge of the tiny being and allocate it to one of the rooms in the castle. Ensure that the other servants are informed."

"I will, my lord."

"Then, I'll leave you to take care of the rest until I come back."

___

CAIUS didn't leave that long, at least that's what he believed, but it seemed like years had gone by, and the inside of his castle was in some sort of turmoil.

What in the hell happened here? He thought before questioning his servants, who were running around up and down as if there had been some crisis. He went up the stairs to the room, following the direction where everyone was flooding in, but he hadn't even reached the doors when the loud cry had already echoed through the halls. "What happened here?" he finally voiced, prompting Rath and the other servants to divert their attention towards him.

"My lord, welcome back," Rath responded, and the rest of the servants bowed their heads immediately. I apologize for this mess."

"Speak." Caius demanded.

"Yes, my lord," Rath bowed before continuing. "The tiny being hasn't stopped crying since we moved it to this empty room, as you ordered. And as you can see, it is still causing chaos. We are trying to mend it but can't figure out what it wants."

There were a variety of things spawned on the floor, from poisonous plants to giant monster bones. In the demon world, these items were considered gold or something of high value, but as his servant said, the tiny beings seemed to have not liked any of it. Strangely enough, even if the tiny human was emitting distress and dissatisfaction, the positive energy still lingered around it as if protecting it from harm.

Really a strange, tiny human. But what is it that you wanted? Caius thought, picking up a random bone pendant and trying to give it to the small being lying on the carpeted floor.

All of a sudden, the baby stopped crying. Everyone gasped, and Caius noticed his cape draped over the tiny human, wrapping it up like a cozy blanket. Now, the tiny one, snug in the cape while holding one of its helms so tightly, looked straight at Caius, who had just stood there still holding a bone pendant midair. The sudden stillness in the room felt strange like some beast silencing the world.

"What a strange creature," Caius whispered, staring back at the child now emitting calm, positive energy. "You could have anything you wanted, yet you chose something you can't have. Do you really like my cape that much?"

The baby stayed silent, just continuing to gaze at Caius as if trying to figure out who he was.

"My lord, what should we do now?" Rath broke the silence.

Caius pondered for a moment, contemplating his decision. He had already chosen to delay any thoughts of ending the tiny being since he couldn't really kill it and since it seemed to provide some form of entertainment for him. Besides, whether Caius finished it now or later made little difference, moreover, he mused, how challenging could it be to care for a human child?

"The Netheria will take care of the little human."