Chapter 01
Prologue
“Grr! The Great Demon Baal has appeared! I’m going to snatch up every cute little baby!”
“You’re not catching me this time!”
I scurried away, dodging my dad’s gaze. Giggles bubbled out of me, my smile stretching from ear to ear.
His name was Lloyd Delight—a man so handsome, it was hard to believe he was the father of a five-year-old.
At just twenty-four, he was raising his young daughter all on his own—a rare, ridiculously good-looking man.
With golden hair the exact shade of my father’s fluttering behind me, I dove behind the curtain.
Thump-thump! My heart was pounding!
“Where could this little angel have gone? Could it be… she managed to escape the eyes of the Great Demon? Impossible! This evil demon daddy has been blinded by the sheer cuteness of his angel! Aah, I can’t see!”
Dad dramatically covered his eyes with his hands and groaned in mock pain.
Beaming, I clung close to the window ledge and tiptoed up on my feet.
I couldn’t let myself get caught! The punishment was 200 kisses!
“Are you here? No, over here? Aha, there you are!”
“Nooo!”
Caught so quickly, I burst from behind the curtain and ran in the opposite direction.
The only servant in the house, our cook Madam Marsha, couldn’t stop laughing either.
“My goodness, how can they be so happy and playful all the time?”
In our small, cozy two-story house, it was just the two of us—the Delight father and daughter.
We were known as the most famous parent-child pair in the quiet, pastoral region of Neverland.
It all started when I was one year old.
One day, a father and his baby suddenly appeared in the village and immediately captured everyone’s attention, drawing crowds wherever they went.
Because these were living, breathing dolls—more beautiful than anything anyone had seen before!
A baby girl with golden thread-like hair and sweet candy-pink eyes.
And a young, unbelievably handsome father whose beauty outshone even his adorable child.
That man—my dad Lloyd—wandered around town seeking milk for baby Crescent Delight (me), and stole the hearts of every woman in the village.
He wasn’t just good-looking. He was so polite and kind it made your heart flutter.
As sweet as he was to his daughter, he was also full of warmth, courtesy, and consideration to everyone else.
The pure, devoted love he showed only to his daughter ended up softening the entire village.
In truth, he was once a powerful man hiding his strength—but such things no longer mattered to a devoted dad.
Even when I turned six, then seven, and eight, our happiness remained unchanged.
Then one day, shortly before my eighth birthday…
“Daddy! Can you read this book to me again?”
“Why wouldn’t I? I could recite the whole thing with my eyes closed!”
Dad tossed aside his apron and swept me up in his arms, dishwashing forgotten.
To be honest, I had the whole book memorized myself.
By age eight, I was known as Neverland’s top genius. But the story of the Great Demon Baal was still my absolute favorite.
That’s because my dad made it come alive with his dramatic, demon-like performance.
I’d long since graduated to reading complex academic books beyond my age, but I could never give up the tale of Baal!
After climbing up to the second floor, Dad set me down.
“My sweet little Crescent angel, go hide with your wings. The demon will be right behind you, ready to launch a 200-kiss attack!”
Smooch smooch smooch!
Dad showered my cheeks with kisses, as he did every single day without fail.
“Ah, that tickles!”
“Daddy’s coming after you soon!”
“This time you won’t find me!”
With confidence, I dashed off to my room, strapped decorative wings over my princess dress, and crouched inside the storage room.
Thump, thump, thump.
He’ll be here soon, right?
Playing with Dad was the most fun thing in the world.
We weren’t rich, but I never lacked for anything to eat or wear. Dad even boiled and ironed my pajamas.
He’d never let me eat a fruit with a single seed or bit of skin left on it.
And when it came to playing together? He gave it his all.
I never had time to miss having a mom—because Dad filled that space and more.
He even tracked down rare books and scholarly texts I liked to read.
In my world, there was only joy, happiness—and Dad.
Up until this moment.
…How long had I been waiting for him?
I must’ve dozed off at some point, because I suddenly snapped awake.
“Huh?”
Glancing out the window, I realized it was already dark outside.
‘How did it get so late? Did Dad not find me yet?’
Puzzled, I stood up and gently opened the door—he might still be looking, after all.
‘I can’t get caught!’
Because the punishment was 200 kisses!
Cheerfully, I tiptoed from room to room. But I couldn’t find Dad anywhere.
Maybe the rules had changed and now I had to find him?
Sneaking downstairs, I finally spotted him—in the parlor.
He stood by the window, back turned, with elegant black horns curling from both sides of his head. A luxurious black cloak draped over his broad shoulders.
It shimmered with an unreal gleam, and the pauldrons looked like a fearsome demon king’s armor.
‘He really does look like a demon!’
Finding it all too exciting, I threw my arms wide open and declared, “Found you, Daddy!”
Twitch.
The air around him rippled unpleasantly. Dad slowly turned around.
I had to crane my neck way up to meet his eyes.
And the moment our eyes met, I froze.
Red eyes.
His eyes were red.
My dad’s eyes were usually bright green—like a dazzling forest.
And his hair… wasn’t golden, but pitch black.
He’d really gone all out with the demon role today!
“Whoa, Daddy, you changed your eyes and your hair this time? Even added horns!”
Daddy, you’re amazing!
I gave him a thumbs-up.
Then, in an icy, detached voice, he spoke.
“How amusing. I am the Great Demon Baal.”
“Huh? But Baal disappeared. He died 500 years ago!”
“……Humans think I’m dead? Not a single one imagined I’d return?”
Wow. What a performance.
I was momentarily speechless.
I’d seen my dad play the demon for years, but never this vividly.
Now I noticed he was holding a glass of wine. Dad never drank—was it part of the act?
“You really seem like a demon today! This is so fun!”
I ran over and hugged his leg, wrapping my arms around his knee. Dad’s eyebrows twisted in annoyance.
“I told you, I am the Great Demon Baal. Lord of demons. I am no human’s father.”
“Then I’m not a human either—I’m a princess angel!”
I pulled back and showed him my wing decorations. I even stuck out my little butt by accident.
Feel the power of my cuteness attack!
In that moment, Dad crushed the wine glass in his hand. Red wine dripped between his fingers.
“Get lost, you brat.”
His voice was chilling. I flinched, frozen in place.
Now I saw his even, white teeth had turned into sharp fangs.
Wow, he really went all out today, huh?
Smashing the glass was a bit dangerous, but his dedication moved me, so I played along.
“W-wait… are you really a demon?”
“That’s right, foolish humans. You thought I was gone forever? At last, my true self has awakened. The Great Demon Baal has returned!”
Inspired by his acting, I joined in.
“I’m Crescent, daughter of the Archangel! I’ll defeat you, demon!”
I whipped out my toy sword and lightly tapped his leg with it.
Now Dad was supposed to groan and collapse in pain!
I looked up with twinkling pink eyes, waiting for the scene—
But instead, Dad bent down and brushed my hand off like it was something dirty, glaring with blood-red eyes.
“Stupid little girl. Now that I’ve tasted this flavorless wine, I’ll be off.”
“Where are you going?! You can’t run away!”
Even as I boldly stood my ground, Dad smirked like it was pathetic.
“Brace yourselves, humans. The demon realm will soon take over the human world.”
Before I could say another word, Dad’s body lifted off the ground. Enormous black wings burst open behind him.
‘Huh?’
Where did those come from?
They were big enough to cover an entire wall of our house—and then some.
Feathers scattered as he flapped them, thick and black.
I looked back and forth between my flimsy little wings and his huge, majestic ones.
I was almost jealous.
With a sneer, he launched himself at the window. Before his wings even touched it, the window and wall crumbled apart.
The deafening crash and cloud of dust made me scream and cover my face.
But the noise vanished quickly.
“!”
Dad?
The parlor wall was completely gone.
Beyond it, under the moonlight, his black wings soared.
A demon game is fun and all, but what if he really destroyed the house?
“Daddy!”
Where is he going?
I ran out through the shattered wall.
“Daddy, wait!”
How is he flying?!
“Daddy!”
I ran and ran after him.
But Dad only flew farther and higher.
Until, at last, he vanished.
“Daddy…?”
That was the day my father—who had played the Demon King with me for years—truly turned into one.
The day I lost the person I loved most in the world… and the day the apocalypse began.
