The Damned Demon

"Excuse me but…What the fuck?" Asher's expression contorted into one of complete bewilderment, his previous intent to battle fading into the background as he tried to grasp the absurdity of the situation.

His hand instinctively tightened around his weapon, not out of aggression, but more as a reflex to ground himself in reality.

Lori's eyes twinkled with amusement and perhaps a hint of malicious pride as she observed Asher's reaction.

Her coils shifted slightly, a gesture that seemed almost like a shrug, "Yes, you heard me correctly. It's not every day that one finds a worthy vessel. You should consider it an honor."

Asher shook his head, trying to clear the confusion, "Honor or not, I'm here to kill you, not join your... your family tree." His voice regained some of its earlier firmness, though his gaze still held a flicker of uncertainty as he tried to decide whether he was in a battle or some bizarre negotiation.

"Ohuhuhuhuhu," Lori's laugh, a sinister, melodious sound, echoed off the walls as she tilted her head, considering Asher's defiance before the vertical slits of her dark purple eyes narrowed into thin slits, "You killed all my breeding vessels, invaded my home to kill me and plunder my things, and you dare have the audacity to refuse my offer while I am being kind? Do you not love your own life, you spunky brat?" She asked in a chilling, low voice, her eyes briefly glowing with killing intent yet with a hint of fascination.

Asher blinked, processing Lori's revelations with a mix of incredulity and confusion, "Killed your breeding vessels? You mean your minions outside who attacked me first?" His voice carried a hint of defensiveness, the absurdity of the situation momentarily overshadowing the danger.

Lori's response was a low, spiteful hiss that reverberated through the cavern, chilling in its intensity, "Sssss..Some of them were the finest vessels I could find, and I was grooming them to become my breeder vessels. Do you have any idea how many years it took to find them? 350 years! That is the number of years you made me waste in a matter of a few minutes."

"Grooming? Wha-...How old are you? You must be at least 400 years old...Damn...you are really old..." Asher's eyes widened, his tone a mix of surprise and unintended disrespect.

"Who are you trying to call old?!" Lori snapped, her maw dangerously close to Asher, who hastily raised his hands in a placating gesture, "Hey! It's not my fault that you sent your precious men to fight me. Since you are such a wise 'beauty', you should have known there was a good chance of them dying. You should have just kept them safe here. I would have done the same."

Asher inwardly shook his head, his thoughts tinged with disbelief. Was a creature over 400 years old really this temperamental?

Lori seemed to simmer down a bit upon hearing him call her a 'beauty,' though her tone still carried a venomous edge, "If they were too weak to survive, then they aren't worthy of becoming my breeding vessels. But you...you survived at least a couple minutes against me, and that is more than enough to be worthy in my eyes. With our bloodlines merged, I will be the only descendant of my great ancestor, Hydra, to make him proud and usher in a new era where our Dreadhearth bloodline will dominate the entire world and restore our kingdom. I will be known as the Mother Queen for generations to come, Ohuhuhuhu."

Asher's expression shifted from bafflement to outright astonishment as he listened to her delusions of grandeur. World domination, a restored kingdom, a new era—all hinged on him?

But Hydra? She was the descendant of that three-headed mythical beast, one of the First Demons?

Wasn't it the symbol of House Valentine?

The last time he heard of it, Hydra was vanquished by the 5 Elder Hunters when mankind saw the dawn of Hunters and Demons. Those 5 were the first and the strongest Hunters mankind came to know before others began popping up.

Yet, House Valentine never stopped using it as their symbol, as if to pay respect or to still use it as a symbol of strength.

But did it have some kind of branch family for Lori to claim herself as its descendant? Why doesn't she have three heads though?

Clearing his throat, Asher managed a brief, incredulous smile, "You are forgetting something important. I am not a snake or a beast. I am an alien. It's impossible for me to... I mean for us to merge our bloodlines. Besides, it's not like a majestic beauty like you can't find more men. I bet lots of them must be ready to wait in a queue for you."

Asher no longer had any plans to fuck around and find out. He wanted to leave before this crazy old serpent tried to do something unimaginable using him. And so he decided to fluff her pride up a bit and leave without much trouble.

"Ohuhuhuhu," Lori's laughter echoed ominously through the cavern before she looked down at Asher with a smirk, "You want me to wait another 350 years to find more men after I die? Who do you think you are trying to fool, Asher Drake, the king of the Bloodburn Kingdom? The one whose bloodline miraculously is compatible with other bloodlines?" As she said the last sentence, her eyes gleamed with a frenzied light.

"Uh..." Asher's voice trailed off, his surprise evident. He had half-expected this reclusive, old creature to be oblivious to his identity.

"You thought I wouldn't recognize you just because I like to stay inside? The fools that gladly end up as my prey here always have a lot of interesting stories to tell, including the rise of an alien brat who has an immortal bloodline. I would have ventured out to test that theory, but unfortunately, I am the last of my kind and can't take any risks. But fate is so kind to make you come here on your own and let me test your worth to my satisfaction. Don't you see... you are fated to become my breeding vessel," Lori proclaimed, her dark purple eyes gleaming with a mix of malice and excitement.

"I ain't fated for any crap like that. I hate that word and am sorry to disappoint you, but I am a married man, and the last thing I would do is impregnate a...uh stranger. Besides...you are a beast, and I don't swing in that...spectrum. You get me? You should also read up on some demon biology while you are free and understand how all this really works," Asher retorted, his expression hardening as he forced a smile.

"Destiny doesn't care for biology or whatever that is," Lori casually said with a shake of her head, making Asher wonder if she was into philosophy as well. But seriously?

"But whenever did such things stop a handsome and strong king like you? If you are worried about my size being a tad larger than you, well..." Lori's massive form suddenly began to shrink, her scales retracting and her body condensing until her head was at Asher's eye level, "...this should be fine. I won't crush you to death now while we copulate, can I?" she teased, a sly smirk playing across her now more proportionate features.

Asher, still baffled by her ability to alter her size, raised his ring blade defensively as she attempted to draw nearer, "Stop right there. I am not going to become your breeder vessel or whatever it is. I am going to leave peacefully and send some strong male snakes your way to compensate for the losses I caused you," he declared, turning to leave.

"You don't get to refuse the last descendant of Hydra!" Lori hissed venomously, her body swelling rapidly as she returned to her true, massive size.

She coiled in front of Asher, effectively blocking his path, her imposing presence a clear threat, "The only way you are going to leave me is as a corpse or as my breeding vessel," She declared with a savage and determined light in her eyes.

Asher clenched his fists, his eyes glowing with a fiery intensity, "Nothing good ever comes out of women trying to force things on men," he growled as he suddenly used Never Look Behind to teleport behind Lori and shot forward while wearing the Cloak of the Voidweaver to become invisible during his escape.

Lori hissed and saw him wearing a special cloak to make himself invisible, which made her wonder if he had used any such similar tricks to make himself disappear earlier, "None of your tricks will work against the strongest beast of this era!" Saying with an irritated hiss, she slithered after him.

The cavern reverberated with Lori's menacing hisses as Asher made a desperate dash for freedom.

His boots pounded against the rough, uneven ground, each step echoing ominously through the vast, shadowy chamber.

Lori, her massive form undulating powerfully behind him, was a relentless pursuer.

He knew that he was leaving clear footprints despite making himself invisible, allowing her to track him easily. But at least she can't clearly aim at him to use any of her attacks.

*KRSSHHHHH!*

Her scales scraped against the stone with a harsh, grating sound that filled the air with a palpable tension.

"Running will get you nowhere, brat! I have been waiting for this moment for centuries, preserving my virginty to make sure nothing goes wrong!" Lori's voice boomed, a sharp contrast to the soft patter of falling stalactites dislodged by the vibrations of their chase.

Her tone was laced with a mix of amusement and frustration, as if she relished the thrill of the hunt yet grew impatient with his persistence.

Asher, his chest heaving with exertion and stress, glanced back to gauge the distance between them, "I can't care less about your virginity or how long you were waiting. But I'm not your fucking vessel, Lori! This ends now!" he shouted, throwing a look of defiance over his shoulder.

His path twisted and turned, the twisted layout of the cavern working against him, each turn seeming to lead further into the depths rather than offering a way out. Didn't he come this way earlier?

In a swift maneuver born of desperation, Asher hurled his ring blade behind him, hoping to slow her advance.

The explosions as the blazing ring blade struck the wall illuminated the cavern with brief flashes of dark green light.

"SKSSSHHHH!"

Lori hissed in irritation as the ring blade hit her in multiple places before bouncing away, momentarily hindering her pursuit, but her massive size and strength quickly brushed off the assault.

"You think your weak attacks will stop me?" Lori taunted, her voice growing louder as she regained her momentum.

With a powerful flick of her tail, she launched a boulder towards Asher after roughly guessing his position.

He barely dodged, feeling the rush of air as the rock passed inches from his face and smashed into the cavern wall ahead, blocking his intended path.

Cornered and realizing that the path was blocked, in a split-

second decision, he changed direction, diving into a narrower passage that should lead him back to the exit based on how it seemed to extend.

As he rounded a sharp bend, the floor beneath him trembled.

Lori, anticipating his move, had taken a shortcut through the cavern's complex network of tunnels.

After a couple of minutes of getting chased, Asher skidded to a halt, his breath catching in his throat as his eyes widened, and he found himself back in the central chamber—the heart of Lori's lair.

Asher was panting; his mana reserves had almost depleted again after using the cloak and all those attacks to slow her down for the entire duration of the chase.

He realized that the cavern was designed in such a way to trick intruders like him and she slyly must have blocked off the only path of escape earlier there.

The massive serpent loomed over him, her dark purple eyes glinting with triumph and malice.

"Sssss..You see, brat? There's no escaping me. This is our destiny. We are meant to be here...together...alone..." Lori seductively hissed, though her voice only sent chills down Asher's spine.

He wiped the sweat off his brow as he slowly turned around to see her menacing smile and her razor-sharp teeth showing, "Now, obediently become mine, and I might treat you well. Either way...you aren't leaving without me sucking all of that vitality brimming in your immortal bloodline. We have a good chance to finally make a little Hydra and make my ancestor proud," She said with a frenzied yet carnal gleam as the vertical slits in her eyes narrowed with anticipation.