I could feel the cold steel buried deep in my chest. The Hero's sword… no, the holy sword. The only weapon that could truly kill me.
My vision blurred as I looked at the Hero in front of me, their eyes burning with determination and fear. Behind them stood their party – the mage clutching his staff with trembling hands, the priestess praying under her breath, the rogue glaring at me with hatred. All of them were wounded and exhausted, but their bond… it was strong. Unbreakable.
I let out a weak chuckle, blood dripping from my lips.
"Companions… huh… So that's how you became so strong."
My voice was hoarse, each word scraping my throat like broken glass. I could taste iron, and my legs felt heavy as stone. I glanced at them once more, the party of heroes that defeated the Demon King.
"Sad to say… I never had that kind of relationship."
My strength left me, and I collapsed to my knees. My mind drifted as my life slipped away. Memories flashed before my eyes – my first battle, my first conquest, the betrayal, the endless bloodshed… and how I ended up as the Demon King ruling over the dark lands.
But you know… the truth is, I was never a demon to begin with.
I was a Dragonewt.
After a decade of war between Demons and Dragonewts, we Dragonewts won in the end. Or so we thought.
And now… as everything turns black and my consciousness fades, a single thought burns bright within me:
If I could be born again… would I still choose this path?
But fate is cruel… or perhaps merciful. Because when I open my eyes again—
This time… I am no longer a Dragonewt. I am… human.