I'm The Devil-Chapter 354: "I’ll Kill Him."

The laughter slowly faded.

Their arms loosened. One by one, they stepped back, giving him space. Bastet flicked his coat lightly and muttered something about it needing a wash. Aphrodite gave his hand a last squeeze. Leto brushed a stray strand of silver hair behind his ear before turning toward the fountain again. Hestia was already helping the servants bring food, acting like it was just another night in Devil's Peak.

It wasn't.

The halls felt warmer. Quieter in a different way.

Lucifer stayed standing, hands now shoved in his coat pockets, gaze following the fluttering of Bastet's robe as she walked off. There was this strange ache in his chest—not pain, not regret. Just something that hummed softly. Something old.

He sighed and tilted his head back, letting the ceiling's starlight touch his face.

And that's when he noticed him.

Nezha.

Still by the wall. Still quiet. Still watching.

Lucifer's eyes softened.

The boy hadn't moved when the others rushed in. Hadn't spoken. Just stood there like he was carved into the stone. A statue of guilt.

Now, slowly, Nezha stepped forward.

His boots made no sound. His face was blank. But his eyes…

They wavered.

And then broke.

He stopped just short of Lucifer.

"I…"

The words caught in his throat. He looked away, then looked back up. His jaw tightened. His hands trembled. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"I thought it was my fault."

Lucifer didn't speak yet.

Nezha kept going, voice cracking, tears starting to slip down his cheeks.

"I… I was the last one you spoke to. That day. Before you went in. I knew something was off. I felt it. But I didn't stop you. I didn't—"

He swallowed hard.

"I should've tried harder. Should've done something. You were gone for years, Lucifer. Everyone else moved on, but I couldn't. I kept thinking... if I had just—if I had—"

His voice broke completely.

"I'm sorry."

The words fell out of him like blood from a wound. Raw. Wet. Helpless.

Lucifer stepped forward. He didn't pull Nezha into a hug. He didn't force closeness. He just reached up and placed a hand gently on the boy's shoulder.

"Nezha," he said, quiet and low.

The boy looked up.

"It wasn't your fault."

"But—"

"No," Lucifer said. His tone was firmer now, but still calm. "Look at me."

Nezha did. Barely.

Lucifer's eyes were steady. Not glowing. Not flaring with divine fire. Just… steady.

"What happened wasn't on you. It wasn't chance. It wasn't timing. It was choice."

He exhaled slowly.

"My brother," he said, the word carrying a heavier weight than anything else in the room. "Michael. He planned it. He knew where I'd be. He wanted me gone."

Nezha's breath hitched.

"He trapped you?"

Lucifer nodded once.

"In the Outer Void. A place where time and reality barely hold together. Where even thoughts can betray you. He made sure no one could hear me scream."

Nezha's knees buckled slightly, but he didn't fall. Just gritted his teeth and wiped his face.

"I didn't know."

"I know you didn't."

"I should've known."

"No."

Lucifer's hand moved to Nezha's head, resting gently like an older brother might. His voice dropped even softer.

"You were young. And kind. And real. That's why I brought you before with me. Not because you were responsible… but because you were the only one who made me feel human before I went out to die."

Nezha's eyes widened.

Lucifer shrugged lightly.

"I didn't think I'd come back. Maybe part of me didn't want to. I was tired. Tired of holding back, tired of holding them back. So when I walked out that day, I accepted it. But you…"

He smiled faintly.

"You were the last good thing I saw."

Nezha's lip trembled.

Lucifer let the silence breathe. Let the air stretch between them until it stopped shaking.

"Do you hate him?" Nezha asked quietly.

Lucifer didn't answer right away. He took a breath. Looked away.

"No," he said finally. "I pity him."

"Why?"

"Because he thought the world would be better without me."

Lucifer looked back down at Nezha.

"And it wasn't."

That broke the tension.

Nezha gave a shaky laugh, the kind that came between sobs. He wiped his face again, this time with the sleeve of his coat.

"I waited, you know," he said. "Every day, I asked them. Aphrodite, Athena, even Wukong. 'Did you hear anything? Any signs? Any dreams?' They all told me the same thing."

Lucifer tilted his head. "What?"

"They said you weren't dead, just lost."

Lucifer nodded slowly.

"Close enough."

Nezha rubbed his eyes. "I punched Wukong once. For saying it so casually."

Lucifer laughed.

"You punched Wukong?"

"Knocked out two of his teeth."

Lucifer whistled. "He must've been pissed."

"He laughed. Said it was the first real hit he'd taken in years."

Lucifer smiled.

"I missed this."

Nezha looked at him.

"Did it hurt?"

Lucifer knew what he meant. Not the betrayal. Not the trap.

The place.

"Every second."

Nezha's jaw clenched.

"But I'm back," Lucifer added. "And so are you. And that's all that matters."

Nezha let out a long breath.

"I'll kill him," he whispered.

"No," Lucifer said calmly. "You'll watch."

Nezha blinked. "What?"

Lucifer turned, slowly starting to walk toward the inner chambers of the Peak.

"You'll watch what I do next."

He glanced over his shoulder.

"And when it's done, you'll understand why he should've left me in the Void."

Nezha followed.

And somewhere above, the clouds twisted again.

The storm wasn't over.

It had only just returned.

Greco

"The devil's back," Zeus muttered, rubbing his temple as the sky above Olympus dimmed just slightly. "And here I was thinking Hera yelling in my ear would be the worst of my problems this century."

He exhaled and leaned back in his seat, eyes half-closed.

"Guess peace really was too quiet to last."

Elsewhere

"Why did he have to come back now, we have to stand back and hold for his next disappearance before we attack."