"Azazel...?"

Nyx unconsciously whispered the name as her blue eyes remained fixed on one of the floating screens displaying the Dominion Entrance Exam.

The Dominion Assembly Hall was packed with thousands of students. The seating arrangement itself represented the academy’s hierarchy.

The first rows belonged to the D-Rank students, followed by the C-Rank, then the B-Rank, while the upper sections were reserved for the prestigious A-Rank students.

Above every ordinary seat stood an elevated circular platform where the S class students then the Elite Class observed the examinations in comfort, separated from the rest of the academy, the ranking of the dominion academy was just like the holy academy.

Then separated from the rows of seat belonged to the Student Council.

There was Nyx, Dahlia, Nadia and the rest of the crew. After the name Meghan Azazel was mentioned Nyx’s attention had completely shifted.

"Meghan? Azazel?.." she whispered once more.

Dahlia frowned. "What are you murmuring about?"

Nyx slowly turned. "Didn’t you hear the name?"

"What name?" Dahlia asked, her mind wasn’t even on the exam since it felt too boring.

"Azazel."

For a brief moment, Dahlia’s expression froze. "...Are you certain?"

Nyx nodded. "I heard it clearly." Then her gaze shifted to where the eliminated ones were taken to the infirmary hoping to see Meghan.

Then Dahlia spoke. "But... that’s impossible."

Nyx folded her arms. "That’s exactly what I’m thinking."

Thousands of years ago, after the Great Primordial War, the original devils the beings known as the Primordial Devils had nearly conquered every realm.

Their strength surpassed ordinary devils so greatly that Heaven, Humanity, and even many Fallen Angels formed an uneasy alliance against them.

Unable to kill such immortal beings, the alliance forged the Chains of Eternity, divine seals created from holy essence, celestial laws, and countless sacrificed souls.

One by one, the Primordial Devils were imprisoned beyond reality itself inside the Abyssal Prison, a dimension from which escape was believed impossible.

Only a few of their children escaped the sealing, the rest vanished alongside their fathers. For thousands of years, history accepted one truth. The Primordial Devils would never return.

Nyx’s brows knitted together. "So tell me...How can they possibly come back?"

Dahlia looked toward the floating screens. "If the one you heard is truly connected to Azazel... then maybe one of his descendants survived."

Nyx nodded slowly. "His daughter may have participated in the exam. We have to find her."

Dahlia blinked. "His daughter? You mean Meghan?"

Nyx nodded. All primordial devils children were very familiar with each other. "You think she’ll know the truth?" Dahlia questioned again

"Perhaps." Nyx continued, "Some of the children of the Primordial Devils followed their fathers into the sealing while others remained hidden among the worlds."

"If Meghan is truly here, then she may know what happened."

A smile slowly appeared on Nyx’s face. "So..."

"Why don’t we investigate like old times?"

Dahlia’s expression instantly melted into an excited, fiercely loyal grin. "Count me in. Let’s dig up the truth."

Their friendship had survived everything. Nyx, Dahlia, and Nadia had grown up together.

Although Dahlia wasn’t related to Nyx and Nadia by blood, everyone in the academy considered them sisters.

Dahlia’s father had once been Lucifer’s closest companion, fighting beside him throughout countless battles.

But after Lucifer’s death, he abandoned his loyalty and sided with the Fallen Angels, believing Lucifer’s era had ended.

Dahlia despised him for it. The day Nyx vowed to eradicate every the Fallen angels responsible for the betrayal, she offered Dahlia a place beside her.

Without hesitation, Dahlia accepted. Since then, their bond had only become stronger. Many joked that Dahlia was closer to Nyx than Nyx’s own blood sister.

Just then, an exaggerated sigh echoed nearby. "There they go again..." Nadia folded her arms and puffed out her cheeks. "Being all sisterly without me."

Riley, sitting right next to Nadia, chuckled softly and rubbed her shoulder. "Oh, stop it, Nadia. You know Nyx loves you. Don’t be like that."

Nadia sighed, her gaze drifting toward the empty space beside them. "I know, I know... it’s just.... I’m already missing him."

Riley’s cheeks flushed a faint pink, her golden eyes softening as she leaned back into her seat. "Me too."

Mira, the council secretary sitting at the end of the row, looked up from her ledger, raising an eyebrow. "Lucien? You’re both pinning over that new human?"

Nadia and Riley snapped their heads around, answering in perfect, aggressive unison, "Mind your own business!"

Mira simply stared while nearby students struggled to suppress their laughter. While her face burned red.

---

Meanwhile in the pristine, white-stone courtyard of the Holy Academy where students passed to go to their classes, the priest version of Lucien was facing a completely different problem.

The girl who had caught him wiping the dark blood from his mouth stepped closer, her arms crossed.

"Mind my own business?" she mocked, her voice a sharp, dangerous murmur. "Don’t get so cocky with me, holy boy, or I’ll go straight to the high priestess and tell them you are not a true priest. A pure light core doesn’t cough up corrupted blood."

Lucien didn’t flinch. He leaned in slightly, his mismatched red and blue eyes locking onto hers with cold, arrogant certainty. "And why would you do that? If it wasn’t for me, you’d be a corpse right now."

The girl froze, the words dying in her throat. Her sharp gaze wavered as the memory violently rushed back to her, the day the fallen angels had aggressively invaded the Holy Academy’s testing grounds, and the terrifying moment Lucien had stepped between her and a lethal strike, saving her life.

She let out a long, defeated sigh, her tense shoulders dropping. "Fine... maybe I do owe you my life."

Reaching up, she pulled back the thick white hoodie that had been obscuring her face. Her hair was styled in wispy face framing bangs, striking white hair that framed a face of delicate but fierce beauty, and her eyes were a unique, translucent blue that seemed to hold no secrets.

As she stepped fully out of the cloak’s shadow, Lucien’s eyes briefly traced her figure; she possessed an incredibly curvy, breathtaking physique that he hadn’t fully appreciated during the chaos of the invasion.

"Have you been stalking me?" Lucien asked, a small, teasing smirk breaking through his stoic priest persona.

"Like I’m that jobless," she scoffed, rolling her translucent blue eyes, though a faint tint of pink colored her cheeks. "I’m Serena. And... thanks. For saving my life back then."

"I’m Lucien," he replied, his eyes narrowing slightly as he glanced around the crowded courtyard. "And are you absolutely sure you’re not going to spill what just happened to anybody? My core is my own problem."

Serena offered a soft, genuine smile, tapping her index finger against her lips. "My lips are sealed, Priest Lucien."

With a playful wave, she turned on her heel and disappeared into the crowd of moving students, leaving Lucien to refocus his mind.

Lucien watched her disappear into the corridor. But as he looked down, a tiny drop of blood landed on the floor. He quickly wiped it away before anyone could notice.

The Dominion within him was growing stronger. And somewhere beyond the forgotten seals of eternity...Something ancient seemed to be awakening.