I stared at him in silence, my mind still echoing with his words.Lost. Uncertain. Afraid to admit how much of myself was slipping away.
The Jester stood, dusting off his coat with theatrical annoyance."Come," he said lightly. "Let's take a walk. There's something I want you to see."He paused, sniffing the air dramatically."But first—please shower. You reek of blood. Even I have limits."
After washing away the dried crimson and the metallic smell of violence, he handed me clean clothes.Without the face paint, he barely looked like the same person—long black hair, calm blue eyes, surprisingly human in their sadness.
We walked through a place I didn't recognize.Red moonlight spilled over narrow alleys, neon signs flickered like dying fireflies, and shadows twisted unnaturally along the walls.
"This… this isn't my hometown," I muttered."And why isn't there a single cop? I killed my whole family. Someone should be chasing me."
The Jester burst into loud, almost painful laughter."Oh, Sammael," he said finally, wiping a fake tear. "We're not in the world you know. This is the Underworld of the Living—a realm for devils cast out of Hell, and for newborn ones like you. Your kind is extremely rare, you know."
"You dragged me here without asking?" I snapped.
"I carry out Lucifer's will," he said with a shrug. "Besides, staying up there wouldn't have ended well for you."
He sucked on his cigarette before continuing."As for your family… Sammael no longer exists. No fingerprints. No identity. No records. And your brother? They think he's insane. The wounds on the bodies were far beyond human. To be safe, I… let's say I 'redecorated' your old man's corpse. Sorry about that."
I surprised myself by feeling relieved—not for safety, but because the world would forget me.I wanted it that way.
"It's fine," I said quietly. "Thank you, actually. But… what's your real name?"
A shadow crossed his face. He looked up at the red moon."I've lived a thousand years," he said softly. "I've had names I barely remember. But some things," he smiled grimly, "never fade. For now, call me the Jester. It's the closest thing I have to a name."
I didn't know what to say to that.An eternity of existence—lost identity, lost purpose.A fate I carried now too.
So I forced a smile."What was it you wanted to show me?"
We reached a black sea littered with crows, glowing faintly under the crimson moon.The sight was beautiful and terrifying.
"This part of the Underworld is forbidden," the Jester whispered. "Only a few devils know why. Want to hear the truth?"
"I… yes."
His expression softened with pity."This is where Lucifer first landed after Heaven cast him out. This sea was once the purest place on Earth—God's favorite, Adam's sanctuary. Now it's the first and deepest corruption."
My breath caught.It made sense.And yet… why show me?
Before I could ask, the Jester stepped into the black water and drank.Immediately, something inside him twisted—his eyes turned crimson, the makeup formed on his face like blood blooming beneath skin.He looked exactly like the jester from my dreams.The one in the forsaken temple.
Fear crawled up my spine.
"Jester… where are we really?"
A horrible smile stretched across his painted face.Laughter erupted—so loud the sky trembled.Clouds bled.Corpses surfaced from the sea, countless and rotting.
My nightmare had become reality.
"ANSWER ME!" I screamed. "What is this place?!"
He stopped laughing and gazed at me with that same pitiful look I'd seen all my life.
"Sammael," he whispered, "do you know why demons spread corruption?"
"I don't…"
"Of course you don't."He knelt, voice filled with ancient sorrow."Lucifer does not hate humanity. He wants them to see the truth—about the cruel God who condemned us, who cursed demons to be the villains in His story. Every war, every extremism, every man-made evil blamed on Him… it was all God's design."
He raised his head.Behind him, Lucifer sat upon a simple wooden chair, watching with cold patience as thousands of corpses kneeled before him like worshippers.
The Jester bowed deeply.The sea grew darker.The sky bled harder.
I ran to Lucifer, heart pounding."Is this… the Temple? The one from my dreams?"
Lucifer smiled with sad, fatherly sorrow."Yes, son of Lilith. The beginning—and the end—both start here."
I could only think one thing.
Why does everything keep falling apart so fast?Why me?