Later that night.

Time soon passed, and the whole elf empire was in a jovial mood. On the orders of the queen, food and alcohol were declared free throughout the whole land.

As for the reason? Aelinor claimed that it was to celebrate their win against Charron.

However, the real reason was to give Damien and the others one night of fun before their journey began.

Now, amidst all the laughter and cheers in the kingdom, a faint silhouette sat at the foot of he world tree, a bottle of alcohol in hand, her eyes slightly blurry.

"Hey Lyra, what's on your mind? The others are dancing and having fun"

"Heck, Isabelle and Leona are having an eating competition as we speak. I'm sure that's more fun than sitting here alone"

Sitting down beside her, Damien had a slight smile on his face as he handed her a plate of food from the palace.

"Lyra, in the original novel, you were always one who kept your thoughts in your heart"

"Desperate for companionship, desperate for validation, however, now that's going to change"

"But this time, I'm not letting you go down that path full of loneliness and betrayal!"

Recalling her tragic plot, among all the people he planned to recruit, apart from Isabelle, Lyra was the one he paid most attention to.

To avoid her going down the wrong path, he was willing to do his best.

But Lyra, seeing the uninvited guest, didn't face him; rather, she just took another swing of her alcohol and spoke into the air.

"Hey, Voss kid, do you know? Right now, even though I've gotten stronger, I feel it's no use"

"Humans have already started to act and capture us. Our one ally, your father, is gone, and the queen had to sacrifice her life span in the last battle"

"Adding to the elf soldiers sacrificed in the last battle against the undead, we can't stand another fight!"

"The way things are going, we'll either all be enslaved, captured or destroyed!"

"Could it be the elves are going to end?"

Taking a gulp, tears welled in her eyes.

Her lips quivered in the moonlight, and her pointed ears drooped slightly.

Looking at her like this, Damien didn't know what to say.

Everything she said was indeed correct; if something wasn't done, the current elf empire's destruction was only a matter of time.

A matter which everyone knew, but silently chose not to mention.

Thinking of this, Damien remained silent

"Lyra…." he spoke, but words refused to come out of his mouth.

For the first time in a long time, he didn't know what to say.

"It's alright, Kid, no need to push yourself, it's not like you're responsible for any of this"

"I'm already grateful as it is for helping us as much as you did"

"If I asked for any more, I wouldn't feel right with myself,, said Lyra, trying to take more alcohol; unfortunately, her bottle was already empty.

"Alright, it seems like I'm out of alcohol, Kid, go back and have fun with the others"

"At your age, you should be worrying more about having fun than wars; let the adults take care of the big things"

Standing up unsteadily, she prepared to take her leave; however, her words just now had unknowingly sparked something in Damien.

"Lyra!"

"What do you mean by have fun! Do you really expect me to have fun in a situation like this!?"

Yelling angrily, Damien stood up.

"My father and mother are gone"

"My whole family disappeared, gone, poof! All before I could even react"

"My very existence, wanted by the empire, and you tell me to let the adults handle it? All the adults I know are gone!!"

Unable to contain his emotions, all the stress he had accumulated over the past six months seemed to explode.

Despite being a transmigrator, despite having a system, everything seemed to be falling apart.

Despite his constant smiles and hardworking appearance, beneath that lay a scared, doubtful appearance filled with doubt.

A voice constantly asking, 'Can a villain really be the protagonist?' 'Can an outsider really survive in such a harsh world?'

With such thoughts and pressure, how dare he be a kid, how dare he have fun!

In a moment of excitement, he grabbed Lyra's shoulder and held her close. The moonlight reflected both their shadows, bringing a silver hue to the surroundings.

"Lyra, the cause of all this is because we're weak!"

"Even if we got stronger during these six months, we're still weak, so we can't even touch the hair of the queen once she uses mana"

"We're so weak that the humans don't pay any heed to your existence, so they capture your kind with ease"

Taking a pause, Damien's breath landed on Lyra's face, making her heart beat slightly faster.

"However, we don't always have to be weak!"

"Join me, Leona and Lyra as we leave the elf empire tomorrow"

"Follow us to get strong, so strong that neither man nor god dare oppose us!"

"Lyra, no one stands in the beginning, not me, not you and not even God, but I promise if you follow me! One day you will stand in the sky!"

Saying this, Damien did not know if he was talking to her or himself; however, one thing that was for sure was that he was unwilling to give up.

Even if everything ended for nought and he lost his life in the process, just like the original Daminen, he would at least die fighting.

So with this in mind, he brought out a blue gem from his pocket.

"Swallow this, Lyra, although this would put you under my command, but it will awaken a new latent ability for you"

"Just like Isabelle, who awakened her demon blood and could easily kill third orders without any practice, this gem can be your first step in getting stronger"

"However, for that I'll need you to believe in me" Taking a pause, Damien looked deeply into Lyra's eyes.

"So let me ask you one more time, Lyra of the elves, will you believe in me?"

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