Sylvandar Kingdom.

At the largest rice field in the kingdom.

The heat from the sun seemed to burn everything.

And that was why all the farmers had returned home to escape this torture.

Even a fool could tell that this was not a suitable time to plant crops.

It could be said that it was the worst time to do so.

However, on that giant rice field, there was still a farmer working diligently.

It seemed that even the hellish heat from the sun could not move him.

It seemed that the word "tired" did not exist in the farmer's dictionary.

What an indomitable will.

"And that's it!"

The man threw the hoe down hard, stood up straight, and smiled with satisfaction.

He had finished his work for the day.

"Huh?"

But then, as the farmer was wiping the sweat from his forehead, he noticed a woman not far away.

"She is…?"

When he saw her, the farmer's heart completely froze.

Part of it was because of her appearance.

"Number 1 beauty" was indeed a fitting description for this woman.

With that elegant and refined appearance, all the men would definitely think that she was from some noble family.

But, contrary to that appearance, that woman exuded a strange yet extremely charming aura.

It was like when a person knew that something was very dangerous.

But they still wanted to get close to it.

Was this… charming?

And the other reason was… the appearance of that woman in this place.

With just a glance, the farmer realized that something was wrong.

Why would a woman with such an appearance appear in a place like this?

Even if she was a farmer like him, what was she wearing?

It was a white fur coat.

It was not suitable for the current weather.

It was not suitable for farming.

"…A madman?"

But no matter what, she was still a beauty.

And that was what attracted the farmer's entire mind.

"Well, if I talk to her, I won't lose anything."

Muttering, he started to approach the woman.

Meanwhile, she kept her eyes closed, standing still in one place, not moving at all.

Like a statue.

It seemed… that woman didn't even notice that man approaching her.

Or… she didn't even pay attention to the farmer's approach.

"Hello, girl, what are you doing in this middle of nowhere?"

The farmer gave a polite smile.

"…"

But the only response he got was a deathly silence from the woman.

She didn't even open her eyes to look at him.

Despite being ignored, the farmer still didn't give up.

It was as if he was possessed by a ghost.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"…Astral."

This time, she did react.

"Wow, Astral? That's a nice name!"

The farmer lavished her with compliments.

"Then, may I see your eyes? Someone as beautiful as you must have equally beautiful eyes, right?"

He continued, not realizing that he was pushing himself closer to death.

"…"

Apparently, Astral had paused slightly.

"…You… really want to see?"

The farmer nodded like a chicken pecking at rice.

He felt as if his spring was drawing nearer:

"Of course!"

"…Okay."

With a smile, Astral slowly opened her eyes.

And at that very moment, her body emitted a strange aura, enveloping the entire rice field.

"Eh?"

The next second, the farmer had completely lost consciousness.

Or rather, he died, without even seeing her eyes.

And not only him, all the humans in this area had passed away without knowing the reason for their deaths.

The destruction had not stopped yet.

Because not long after, all the rice fields had been poisoned and died.

Needless to say, this was an extremely great loss for the kingdom of Sylvandar.

Meanwhile, the one who caused all this, Astral, was still standing there, smiling faintly.

"Oh sorry, I haven't introduced myself clearly yet."

Looking at the corpse of that farmer, she continued:

"I am Astral. One of the demon king's commanders. Nice to meet you."

***

The capital of the kingdom of Aetherforge.

Since it was rush hour, all the streets were bustling with people.

But, on the road with the most people moving, stood a young man with a delicate appearance but made people feel as if he had a lot to share.

Unlike all the others, he just stood still in one place, staring into an indefinite space.

And because of this difference, he received a lot of curious looks from the people.

— Hey, what's wrong with that guy? Why is he just standing still?

— Is he crazy?

— You should try talking to him.

— No way, he looks handsome, but at first glance he seems mentally unstable. What if I get bitten?

"…"

The man heard the gossip.

But he didn't care.

If humans heard the gossip of ants about them, would humans care?

The answer was no.

And then, after a while, a person approached the man, seemingly overcome by his own curiosity.

"Hey young man, are you okay? Why are you standing still?"

"...1."

Suddenly, the young man said something completely unrelated.

"I see you've been standing here for over an hour."

"2."

"Do you have anything to share?"

"3."

"Hey, can you hear me?"

"4."

"What's your name?"

"5."

It was only then that the young man looked straight into the man's eyes.

"You've talked to me five times."

"Huh?"

The man was bewildered, not understanding what was going on, but still nodded his head involuntarily.

"Do you understand what that means?"

"…Um… no?"

The man shook his head.

"That means you have become my slave, the puppet I will control for the rest of your life."

"Huh?"

The man replied in confusion.

But the next moment, his body completely stiffened.

That man was no longer himself.

He was now just… an empty shell.

"Welcome to Amon's collection, one of the demon king's commanders."

Then, Amon pointed towards the others, revealing a sinister smile.

"Now, find me more slaves."

Just like that, in less than a day, the entire humans in the capital of the Aetherforge kingdom were no longer themselves.

They had all become toys for Amon.

"Now, have you understood the difference between humans and demons, you lowly being?"

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