Jax stood up from the table.

"Hurry up. Looks like this restaurant provides entertainment for food digestion."

Astrid sighed internally.

'Where there's chaos, of course he appears.'

She followed him outside.

The scene that greeted them was brutal.

In front of the restaurant—right where the kebabs had been grilling two men lay on the ground.

Getting beaten.

Astrid recognized them both.

The waiter who had served them. And another demon--older probably the cook. Or the owner.

Five armored demons surrounded them. Kicking. Stomping. Taking turns.

One of the attackers grabbed the owner by his collar.

"How DARE you make us wait!"

He slammed him back into the dirt.

"TEN MINUTES! You made the Black Crown Legion wait TEN FUCKING MINUTES!"

His face twisted with sadistic glee.

"You know what that means, right?"

The owner groveled. Begging.

"Please—please, my lord it wasn't my fault! I made it on time I told HIM to deliver!"

He pointed a trembling finger at the waiter.

"It's all HIS fault!"

The waiter's face went pale.

"I took— I bought— I—"

His words wouldn't form. Panic had seized his throat.

A sword appeared at his neck.

The blade pressed against his skin. One twitch from drawing blood.

"Looks like we found our example, boys."

The soldier grinned.

"This lamb will remind everyone what happens when our terror fades. When our RESPECT is forgotten."

Astrid watched with a heavy heart.

That waiter had been kind to them. He'd brought food for whatever reason.

He didn't deserve this.

'If only someone would help him...'

She glanced at Jax.

His eyes weren't playful.

They were serious. Calculating. Watching the scene with an intensity she rarely saw.

"Professor..."

Her voice was hesitant.

"Don't tell me you're going to step in. To protect them."

Jax's response came loud. Deliberately so.

"Step in? To PROTECT?"

Every head in the vicinity turned toward him.

The soldiers. The victims. The gathered crowd of onlookers.

All eyes on Jax.

"What do you think, Astrid?"

He stepped forward.

"Why would I protect weaklings who can't fight for themselves?"

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

"The moment these people expect rescue—"

His voice cut through the air like a blade.

"—they forfeit the right to survive."

Silence.

Jax's gaze fell on the waiter. The man was crying now. Eyes turned skyward. Praying. Hoping. Waiting for a miracle.

"Those who wait for miracles..."

Jax's voice dropped.

"...die staring at the sky."

He turned to face the crowd. Dozens of demon civilians. Watching. Trembling. Doing nothing.

"Today, it's him."

He pointed at the waiter.

"Tomorrow, it will be one of YOU."

His finger swept across the gathered faces.

"And the funny part?"

A bitter laugh escaped him.

"You'll all WATCH. Just like you're watching now. You'll watch your neighbors die. Your friends. Your families. One by one."

His eyes hardened.

"And why?"

He let the question hang.

"FEAR."

The word echoed off the stone buildings.

"These people—"

He gestured at the soldiers.

"—live off YOUR fear. Their bread comes from YOUR pockets. Their power comes from YOUR obedience. The taxes you pay. The heads you bow. The silence you keep."

He laughed again. Hollow. Mocking.

"You think they earned their position? You think whoever sits at the top DESERVES to be there?"

He shook his head.

"They're there because YOU put them there. Because YOU chose to kneel instead of stand."

His voice rose.

"Power doesn't sit at the top."

He took another step forward.

"Power sits wherever fear is OBEYED."

He pointed at the waiter still on his knees, blade at his throat.

"Look at him. The FEARED one. Begging at someone's feet. Crying. Broken."

Then he gestured at himself.

"And look at me. The FEARLESS one. Standing here. Speaking freely. Looking these guards in the eye without a single shred of terror."

His smile was cold.

"That's the difference between the living and the dead."

One of the soldiers had heard enough.

"You fucking—!"

He lunged at Jax. Sword raised. Murder in his eyes.

Jax didn't dodge.

He drew his blade and met the strike head-on.

CLANG.

The collision sent shockwaves through the air.

But it was the soldier who screamed.

The vibration alone—the sheer force behind Jax's block traveled through the demon's sword, into his arms, through his entire body.

His weapon clattered to the ground.

He fell to his knees, clutching his hands. Crying in agony.

Jax hadn't even moved from his spot.

"See the difference?"

His voice was calm. Almost bored.

"I defeat fear by attacking before it speaks."

He looked down at the whimpering soldier.

"And even if I die here today—"

His smile turned savage.

"—fear will REMEMBER me. It will remember who it crossed. And that memory?"

He sheathed his blade.

"That memory will haunt fear itself. Break it. Destroy it. Long before I die."

He turned back to Astrid.

"So no. I won't save them."

His eyes were cold.

"Because saving is for the living. And these people?"

He gestured at the crowd. At the waiter. At everyone frozen in place.

"They're already dead. Killed by a delusion they call fear."

Silence stretched across the street.

The crowd stood motionless. Processing. Something flickering in their eyes.

A spark.

Rebellion.

Jax could see it. That temporary fire. The kind that made men feel brave until they saw their first casualty.

It would fade. He knew that.

But for now?

He had served his purpose.

A heroic speech. A cool sensation washing over him.

'Maybe they'll build a statue of me. Tell stories to their grandchildren. "The Fearless demon Who Challenged the Black Crown Legion."'

His imagination was running wild.

Behind him, Astrid was slowly backing away.

She knew what came next.

Either Jax died here—unlikely, but possible or he slaughtered these soldiers and became the most wanted man in the Demon Realm.

Neither option was good.

The remaining soldiers released the waiter.

Drew their weapons.

Formed a semicircle around Jax.

"You're dead, you fool."

"We'll make an example of YOU instead."

"The Legion doesn't forgive."

Jax readied himself. Already calculating which one to kill first.

'Let's give them a show they'll never forget. Something that echoes through generations—'

"STOP THIS RUCKUS IMMEDIATELY."

A voice cut through the tension.

Female. Authoritative. Carrying the weight of absolute command.

The soldiers froze mid-step.

All heads turned toward the source.

A carriage stood still at the edge of the commotion. Ornate. Expensive. The kind that screamed nobility.

And in the window—

A face.

Beautiful.

Striking red eyes. Hair white as snow. Horns of pure obsidian black rising elegantly from her forehead.

And behind her shoulders—wings. Devil wings. Folded but visible.

One of the soldiers stammered.

"B-But Lady Nerith this insolent fool dared to—"

"Keep your mouth SHUT."

Her voice was ice.

"You dare question the daughter of the one who MADE you? Who created the Black Crown Legion itself?"

The soldiers went pale.

Complete silence.

Nerith's crimson gaze shifted to Jax.

A smile played on her lips.

"You. Rebellious lunatic."

She gestured lazily toward her carriage.

"Get inside."

Confusion rippled through the crowd.

The soldiers exchanged bewildered glances.

But who should be the most confused person of all?

Wasn't confused at all.

Jax was already moving.

'New amusement acquired.'

As his foot touched the carriage step, a hand grabbed his wrist.

Astrid.

Her eyes screamed warning.

'Don't do this. This is dangerous. She's dangerous.'

Jax patted her hand.

"Chill. I got this."

He climbed inside. Sat down across from Nerith without waiting for permission.

Astrid hesitated. Looked at the soldiers. At the crowd. At the carriage.

Then followed slowly. Taking the seat beside Jax.

The door closed behind them.

Nerith studied Jax with open interest.

He studied her back.

Young. Couldn't be older than twenty. Maybe lower than eighteen.

Her face held an innocence that contrasted sharply with the coldness in her eyes. Like Astrid, in a way. Pretty. Dangerous.

His gaze drifted to her wings.

Devil wings. Elegant. Leathery. Folded against her back but impossible to ignore.

"Enjoying the view?"

Her voice snapped his attention back.

She was smirking.

"I'll be blunt."

She leaned forward.

Her red eyes locked onto his.

"Marry me."

Jax blinked.

"Actually, no. Let me rephrase that."

Her smirk widened.

"You WILL marry me. Today. In a few hours."

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