Home/Precious Little Hell-spawn, Evilyn/ch 2

Episode 2

Because.

The eyes that suddenly appeared right before me were strikingly red. Goosebumps rose all over my body against my will.

He did look like a handsome Grim Reaper, as I had wished, but his vibe was a bit... different. Eerily cold, and somehow ominous. If this feeling was what a Grim Reaper was supposed to be, then technically it was correct, but still.

"Evelyn. From now on, your name is Evelyn."

At the voice that suddenly thundered, I realized with an "Ah."

Wrong address. No wonder I couldn't feel any Korean sensibility whatsoever.

I let out a hollow laugh at this absurd situation and said,

'You've got the wrong person. This is Korea, and I'm not some Evelyn—I'm Sung Juyeon.'

"Pee, boo."

Huh?

I looked up at the man with a bewildered expression, as if seeking agreement.

You heard that too, right?

But contrary to my hopes, the man's expression was utterly serious. A sense of unease suddenly washed over me.

Wait, something's not right here?

Everything was already strange, but anyway, my instincts were telling me that. The viewing angle was somehow peculiar for a coffin view, and the face of the person before me looked suspiciously large.

Moreover, looking around, I saw a landscape I'd never seen before. A world filled entirely with pitch-black darkness, and searing heat felt throughout my body.

Ah, somehow I have a bad feeling about this.

What on earth is this? While I was still bewildered, rolling my eyes in a situation where I couldn't predict anything, the man's red eyes, which had come right up to my nose, suddenly blazed brightly.

Are you crazy?

So this is what madness looks like. Along with a sudden wave of anxiety, I instantly felt that something was definitely wrong. Sirens went off wildly in my head.

"I, Evelyn, daughter of the Demon King Lucifer and heir to Hell."

What? Demon King Lucifer? Demon King? Hell?! I opened my eyes after dying and this is real?! I thought I was on the express reincarnation route, but it was an express train to Hell?!

Stunned by the impact that crashed over me like a tidal wave, the man's face filled my entire vision. The man who was supposed to be a terrifyingly handsome Grim Reaper—he's the Demon King?!

I didn't want to believe it, but his black hair flowing with chilling coldness and blood-red eyes were telling me:

You've got the face of a Demon King.

"WAAAAAAAAH!!"

What on earth is happening? Why me?! For what reason am I in Hell?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't understand. Even after carefully racking my brain, I couldn't think of a single reason why I should go to Hell.

Sure, I lived as an indifferent person because I was busy surviving, but deep in my heart, there was a river of peace and an ocean of love living and breathing. I, who filled my final moments with sacrifice—why?!

Overwhelmed by injustice, I screamed out loud.

If given the choice between Hell and Heaven, I thought I'd go to Heaven!

I urgently filed a complaint toward the distant sky, but the vicious demon who called himself the Demon King didn't grant me any time for negotiations with God.

Without warning, Lucifer grabbed both sides of my waist and hoisted me up into the air.

"WAAAAAAH!!"

At the same time, ear-splitting cheers and horn sounds exploded from all directions.

Brilliant applause reminiscent of a concert hall poured out, and then, as if by prior agreement, everyone stomped their feet like a herd of Texas cattle.

Then, like a wave, starting from the far end, everyone bowed their heads until they touched the ground.

Wow, I've seen this.

At the sight unfolding before me, an animation scene came to mind—a baboon holding up a lion cub on a very high cliff.

Damn, that cub had a terribly unfortunate fate.

But what befell me was no mere unfortunate lion cub's fate. Compared to that, I'd have been lucky.

Just then, Lucifer, who had been holding me up for all to see, took a deep breath and shouted thunderously.

"A new era shall dawn!"

Excuse me? I'm seriously losing my mind here!

What is this, some kind of black flame dragon sealed in my left hand? A new era, my foot. They say chuunibyou is beautiful only if you leave it behind in middle school.

"Hahaha, as expected of my child, quite the showmanship!"

Yes. To Lucifer, who had humiliated me, the only thing I could do was soil myself without even a diaper.

So embarrassing. Really.

---

I was dazed. I couldn't believe this reality that had befallen me.

With half-lost eyes, I saw an unfamiliar ceiling. After staring at the barren, unadorned ceiling, I turned my head to find that all sides were blocked by dense wooden bars like a cage.

Wait, am I imprisoned right now?

At that moment, a dark shadow fell over my head. A face appeared silently, and I was so startled that I froze with my hand extended.

"Oh my, Princess. You're awake?"

"Wheee." (Damn! Busted!)

"You want me to hold you? Our Princess has such clear demands. As expected of a born heir."

My two stiffly frozen, spread-out hands seemed to have sent the wrong signal. A woman with hair and face as white as if she'd been dipped in flour looked at me and smiled, reaching out her hand.

Still, she seemed more approachable than the Demon King I'd seen yesterday. Having been trampled by people plenty of times, I briefly relaxed at the gentle features of the woman before me...

"Kyaaaah!" (Gasp, what's that!)

Held in the woman's arms, I happened to glance down and saw legs—one, two, three, four... eight!

Seeing my shocked eyes, her eight tentacles waved cheerfully.

"Sorry for the late introduction. I am Lilith, the Princess's nanny. Did you sleep well?"

Patting and holding my half-conscious self, Lilith moved her soft yet resilient and flexible eight legs toward the window. On the spotless, dust-free window, my reflection held in her arms appeared.

Whoa, no way.

Head, torso, legs. Absolutely a three-head-tall body. Whether seen from the front, the back, or even while bungee jumping, it was a baby.

When I raised my hand, the infant in the window raised its hand too. It was the same whether I closed my eyes or opened them. I had my suspicions, but as expected, I was definitely that baby.

I had no choice but to accept it. The fact that I had truly been reborn here.

Abandoning any lingering hope, I faced my new self again.

Wheat-colored hair and red eyes. The delicate features resembled that face I'd seen yesterday.

Ah, I don't want to believe it, but anyone could see I was Lucifer's daughter.

With a face that even a lost child in the middle of Hell would naturally be brought to Lucifer, and if the hair color were black, I could've sat on the Demon King's throne in Lucifer's place.

The more I stared at my reflection on the window, the more a desperate despair washed over me.

No, if you're going to reincarnate me, shouldn't there have been some proper agreement? I know life and death are God's will, but even a devoted believer doesn't want Hell!

And why is my mind still twenty-four-year-old Sung Juyeon?!

I screamed in my heart toward a God who seemed impossibly far from this Hellish land. Not that anything came out except babbling.

Anyway, outside was as bright as Lilith's face. It seemed somehow different from the scene I'd glimpsed when I first opened my eyes here. I thought it would be completely dark, but it was quite bright around here.

I always thought Hell, where sinners go, was entirely a sea of fire, a world of the bottomless pit with not a single ray of light.

Hell's sun, quite dazzling.

The glare made me squint, and my body shrank back. As I squirmed in her arms, Lilith skillfully soothed me and patted my bottom. For a demon, her touch was surprisingly soft and warm.

Entrusting myself to the demon's soothing touch, I fell into thought. My life of jumping headfirst into action, like when I lived as Sung Juyeon, was now goodbye.

This life, I had to live more cleverly. So let me summarize the situation so far.

First, I, Sung Juyeon, died.

Second, somehow, I was reincarnated in an instant while still being Sung Juyeon.

Third, where did I reincarnate?

Hell. Hell! HELL!!

And not just anywhere—as the Demon King Lucifer's daughter!

I wanted to accept this situation as objectively as possible. I really wanted to!

"Hweeuh." (There's no way!)

"Such clear babbling—clearly the makings of the Queen of Hell."

"Right? And look at this fierce face, Lord Mammon. And that murderous gaze—you have no idea how much I trembled when I first saw it."

Is that an insult or a compliment?

Lilith's face, as she spoke while looking at me, could not have looked more proud. With human sensibilities, it wasn't easy to accept their praise.

With difficulties already anticipated, I warily observed the new demon standing beside Lilith, who I hadn't noticed arriving.

Unlike the pale Lilith, he had entirely red skin and was wearing earrings, nose rings, necklaces—basically everything that could be hung.

"Look at this, a special mobile I, Mammon, made exclusively for the Princess!"

Dangling from the mobile held out before me by Mammon were the bone fragments he wore on his body. And the crowning touch at the end—a skull.

"Gwaaah!" (I made eye contact with a skull! Scary!)

"She loves it. As expected of Lord Mammon."

"Knowing you'd react this way, I brought something else too."

No, stop. Please!

My desperate pleas, as I frantically waved my hands, didn't reach that demon at all, and he triumphantly pulled out a small, shiny object from behind his back.

It was a rattle-sized golden axe.

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