Prologue

 

“Grr! The Great Demon Baal has appeared! I’ll capture all the cute little babies!”

“This time, you’ll never catch me!”

I darted away from my dad’s gaze, giggling uncontrollably as laughter bubbled from my lips, stretched into a grin.

The man chasing me was so handsome that no one would believe he was the father of a five-year-old. His name? Lloyd Delight.

At the age of twenty-four, he was a peerlessly handsome man raising his young daughter all on his own.

Tossing my golden hair—the exact same shade as Lloyd’s—I hid myself behind a curtain.

My heart pounded wildly.

“Where has my cute little angel hidden herself? Dare you escape the eyes of the Great Demon Lord…? Hmm, maybe you can! This demon daddy is blinded by the sheer cuteness of my angel! Ahhh, I can’t see!”

My dad covered his eyes with both hands, pretending to be in pain.

Grinning ear to ear, I hugged the window frame tightly and rose onto my tiptoes.

Getting caught would be disastrous! The punishment was 200 kisses!

“Are you here? No? How about here? Found you!”

“Nooo!”

Caught instantly, I burst out from behind the curtain and bolted in the other direction.

Mrs. Marsha, the only servant in our house and our cook, couldn’t stop laughing as she watched us.

“Oh my, how can they be so happy and playful all day without resting even once?”

In our small, charming two-story house, the Delight father and daughter lived alone.

We were the most famous duo in the peaceful, pastoral town of Neverland.

It had been that way since I was a year old.

One day, the father-daughter pair suddenly appeared and captivated the attention of the entire village wherever we went.

After all, we looked like dolls unlike anything the world had ever seen!

A baby girl with silky golden hair and candy-sweet pink eyes.

And a young father whose dazzling beauty outshined his daughter’s loveliness.

As my dad—me, Crescent Delight—went around the village borrowing milk for his baby, he stole the hearts of every woman he met.

Not only was he handsome, but his personality was impossibly polite and kind.

As sweet as he was to his daughter, he was just as gentle and considerate toward others.

The way he poured all his love into his little girl melted the hearts of the entire village.

In truth, he was a hidden powerhouse, but that hadn’t mattered to him for a long time.

Even when I turned six, then seven, and now eight years old, our happiness remained unchanged.

One day, just before my eighth birthday…

“Dad! Can you read me this book again?”

“Why wouldn’t I? I can read it to you without even looking!”

Dad, who was washing dishes, threw off his apron and lifted me into the air.

Honestly, I already had the book memorized.

At eight years old, I was known as the greatest genius in Neverland. But still, I loved the story of the Great Demon Baal more than anything.

That was because Dad played the part of the demon so realistically it felt like a real story.

Although I’d moved on to academic books far beyond my age, I could never give up Baal’s tale!

Carrying me to the second floor, Dad set me down.

“My little Crescent angel must hide her wings well. The demon will catch up and unleash a 200-kiss attack at any moment!”

Smooch! Smooch! Smooch!

Dad showered kisses all over my cheeks. It happened every single day without fail.

“Ah, it tickles!”

“Daddy’s coming to find you soon!”

“You won’t find me this time!”

Overflowing with confidence, I dashed to my room, tied small wings over my princess dress, and crouched down in a storage space.

Thump, thump, thump.

Dad would come soon, right?

Playing with Dad was the most fun thing in the world.

We weren’t rich, but I never lacked anything to eat or wear. Dad even boiled and pressed my pajamas.

He didn’t let me eat fruit unless he peeled off every bit of skin and removed every seed.

And when it came to playing with me, Dad gave it his all.

I never even had time to feel sad about not having a mom because Dad filled so many parts of my life.

He even provided me with all the old books and scholarly works I loved.

In my mind, there was nothing but happiness, fun, and Dad.

Until this moment.

…How long had I been waiting for him?

I had dozed off without realizing it, but suddenly my mind snapped awake.

“Mm?”

Looking toward the window, I noticed it had grown dark.

‘Why is it so late? Did Dad not find me yet?’

Feeling puzzled, I stood up. Maybe Dad was still searching for me, so I opened the door carefully.

‘Don’t get caught!’

If I got caught, I’d face the punishment of 200 kisses!

Smiling at the thought, I tiptoed through the house. But no matter where I looked, Dad was nowhere to be found.

Had the rules changed? Was I supposed to find him now?

Sneaking down to the first floor, I finally found him. In the drawing room.

He stood at the window, his back to me, with sleek, dark horns sprouting from both sides of his head. Draped over his broad shoulders was a luxurious black cape that gleamed unrealistically, like flowing light. The epaulettes resembled the armor of a wicked monarch.

‘He really looks like a demon!’

Finding this even more exciting, I spread my arms wide and jumped into view.

“Found you, Daddy!”

Twitch.

I felt an unsettling ripple in the air. Slowly, Dad turned around.

I had to look up and up just to meet his gaze.

The moment our eyes met, I froze.

Red eyes.

His eyes were red.

My dad’s eyes were always as green as a radiant forest.

Even his hair wasn’t golden—it was pitch black.

Today, Dad’s “demon” act was on another level, and I was amazed.

“Wow, Daddy! You even changed your hair and eyes this time? And horns too!”

Dad’s the best!

I gave him a thumbs-up.

That’s when he opened his mouth, his voice chillingly emotionless.

“Pathetic. I am the Great Demon Baal.”

“Eh? Baal is gone. He died five hundred years ago!”

“…Humans think I’m dead? Did it never occur to them that I would return?”

Wow. What acting.

I was momentarily speechless.

For at least four years, I’d seen Dad play the demon, but today his performance was more vivid and lifelike than ever.

I even noticed a wine glass in his hand. Dad never drank alcohol. Was it a prop for his role?

“Daddy, you really seem like a demon! This is so fun!”

I ran up and hugged his knees. Dad’s eyebrows furrowed in displeasure.

“I told you, I am the Great Demon Baal. Lord of demons, ruler of the underworld. I am no ‘dad’ to humans.”

“Then I’ll be a princess angel instead of a human!”

Stepping back, I showed off the wings on my back with a flourish, sticking my little butt out for added effect.

Take that! My ultimate cuteness attack!

At that moment, Dad crushed the wine glass in his hand. Wine dripped from his palm like blood.

“Begone, brat.”

His voice was cold and frightening. I froze in place.

Now that I looked closer, Dad’s usually neat teeth had grown sharp, like fangs.

‘Wow, Dad went all out today.’

But crushing the glass seemed dangerous, so I decided to play along.

“W-wait, are you really a demon?”

“Yes, foolish humans. You thought I was gone? At last, I’ve regained my true self. The Great Demon Baal has returned.”

What vivid acting! I couldn’t let him win.

“I’m Princess Crescent, daughter of the archangel! I’ll defeat the demon!”

I pulled out the toy sword from my waist and pretended to slash his leg.

Usually, this was the part where Dad would groan and fall over in pretend agony.

I watched him with sparkling pink eyes, expecting the usual, but this time he bent down and brushed my hand away as if touching something filthy.

“Stupid girl. I’ve had my fill of flavorless wine. I’ll be leaving now.”

“Where are you going?! You can’t run away!”

Despite my fearless bravado, Dad smirked as if mocking me.

“Prepare yourselves, humans. The underworld will soon conquer the mortal realm.”

Before I could react, his body rose into the air. Black wings unfurled behind him, larger than our entire wall.

‘Huh?’

Where did those wings come from?

They were enormous and thick, with feathers so abundant that some floated down to the floor.

I looked back and forth between the sad little wings on my back and Dad’s majestic ones.

With a scoff, he flew toward the window. Before his wings even touched it, the window—and the wall—shattered.

The deafening noise and cloud of dust made me scream and cover my face, but it soon grew silent.

“…”

Dad?

The drawing room wall was completely gone.

Beyond it, under the moonlight, his black wings rippled.

I loved his demon act, but destroying our house was too much!

“Daddy!”

Where was he going?

I ran through the ruined wall and into the open night.

“Daddy, wait! Where are you going?”

I ran and ran, chasing after him.

But Dad only flew higher and farther away.

Eventually, he vanished.

“…Daddy?”

That was the day my dad, who’d played the Demon King for years, truly turned into one.

It was also the day I lost the person I loved most in the world—
and the day the world’s destruction began.