The air in the Underworld was like stones, dense and suffocating.
Daniel had trouble breathing.
Each inhale felt as if his lungs were filling with gravel.
“This place… is as bad as… I expected…”
The Underworld was drowned in a perpetual night.
The sky looming above was an endless expanse of pitch black, void of stars or moonlight.
Jagged rock formations jutted from the ground, casting faint, distorted shadows in the dim glow of Daniel’s flickering flame.
He had to create fire just to see his surroundings.
Yet the light barely extended beyond a few meters.
It was as if the darkness itself was devouring the flames.
The oppressive silence pressed in on him, broken only by the occasional distant echo of something moving beyond sight.
Daniel raised his head.
His brow furrowed deeply.
He scanned the sky but found only that same endless void.
“It feels like someone is staring at me from the sky.”
Since he couldn’t see much, he decided to move cautiously.
Each step echoed faintly, swallowed quickly by the abyss.
Daniel’s first impression of the Underworld was simple: 10/10, will never come here again.
His fear only grew when he sensed a terrifying presence moving toward him.
The air grew heavier with each heartbeat.
Suddenly, a figure emerged from the shadows.
A woman with golden locks and blood-red eyes.
Her lips curled into a constant smile, revealing sharp fangs like a vampire’s.
“I’m Paimon le Noir, 3rd rank Grim Reaper and the Grand Duchess of the Underworld. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”
She curtsied, the motion elegant yet unnatural, like a doll mimicking human gestures.
Despite her unparalleled beauty, Daniel felt no lust.
Instead, he was calm.
Too calm.
“Who are you?” Daniel asked.
“As I’ve said, I’m Paimon le Noir, a Grim Reaper.”
Her smile was unsettling.
It was too perfect.
Daniel’s mind screamed at him to run or fight.
Every instinct in his body warned him of danger.
Yet his body refused to budge, as if bound by invisible chains.
It knew, instinctively.
The woman before him could destroy Earth with the flick of a finger.
She could crush a thousand Typhaon with ease.
It was impossible to run away from her.
Daniel was at her mercy.
‘I need to activate the Spell—’
“Please, calm down. I’m not here to harm you.”
She appeared beside Daniel suddenly and wiped his sweat with her handkerchief.
The damp fabric brushed his forehead gently.
Daniel didn’t realize, but he had been huffing.
His back was drenched with sweat.
His heartbeat slowed as the figure before him radiated calm.
“Fear not,” Paimon smiled. “You are the Chosen of the Second Prince. You are the guest of the Underworld.”
From that day on, Daniel was treated like royalty.
He could eat what he wanted, from golden fruits to exotic dishes served on silver platters.
He could go where he wanted, exploring vast halls with towering arches and crystal-clear fountains.
The Grim Reaper, Paimon, fulfilled all his wishes without question.
Daniel didn’t understand the reason for such grand treatment.
“Hey, what do they mean I carry the aura of their Second Prince and thus I’m his chosen? Did you do something?” he whispered to the System.
Though pleased with the royal treatment, Daniel had no idea why he was called the Chosen of the Second Prince.
Neo, within him, of course, understood what they meant.
He was the Second Prince of the Underworld.
His elder brother, Henry, was the First Prince.
Although Paimon couldn’t sense Neo’s intent within Daniel, she could sense the presence of Neo.
Thus, they assumed Neo had sent Daniel in his place.
[Rest easy, host.]
[You aren’t a fraud. You are the actual Chosen of the Second Prince.]
“…?”
Daniel blinked, confused.
The System remained silent, refusing to clarify further.
Daniel embraced the luxurious lifestyle since thinking wasn’t taking him anywhere.
He spent his days lavishly, playing around in the palace gardens filled with midnight roses and silver lilies.
When a few weeks remained before the Angel’s arrival, he finally got to business.
“I want to meet the Monarch,” Daniel said firmly.
“Pardon?” Paimon replied, tilting her head in surprise.
The two sat on opposite seats in a lounge adorned with velvet upholstery and arcane symbols etched into the marble floor.
A child named Barbatos, dressed in a simple black tunic, served them tea on a golden tray.
His pale face was emotionless as he carefully placed the cups before them.
“An entity from the cosmos is about to arrive in our world. It will come through the World Core.”
Daniel’s voice was steady yet laced with unease.
“Since the World Core is inside the palace of the Monarch, we need to go there and do something about the World Core.”
Daniel continued.
“Typhaon somehow managed to open a portal inside the World Core.
“I know the world’s consciousness hates letting people near its Core, but maybe we can do something if we work together with Monarch.”
Paimon maintained her ever-present smile.
Though her crimson eyes glinted with something sharp.
She shifted her gaze toward Barbatos.
The child flinched.
His pale hands trembled.
Daniel wasn’t supposed to know the location of the World Core.
The Underworld existed within Earth, and the World Core was at the center of the Underworld, deep within the Monarch’s palace.
It was a closely guarded secret, known only to the high ranking Grim Reapers.
Barbatos treated Daniel like an older brother.
That was why he revealed the information to him.
“Barbatos,” Paimon called out to him.
The echo of her words made the Barbatos feel colder.
“I understand you saw the dreams of meeting the Second Prince in another timeline, and since Daniel is sent by him, you want to help Daniel.
“But you shouldn’t break rules like this. Not even for the Prince.”
“Sorry…”
Barbatos lowered his head.
His eyes were filled with guilt.
His mastery of the mimicked time element was high.
Thanks to it, he had seen visions—dreams—of Neo arriving in the Underworld after traveling into the past.