Jax was staring at the demon Lilith when the chained version finally snapped.
Her sobbing twisted into sothing sharper. Angrier. Directed entirely at the version of herself standing freely before her.
"Stop it! You are the one because of which I have to suffer! It was always you who made my life hell!"
Her chains rattled as her body shook with every word.
"I never wanted you! Never wanted this power! This cursed blood! I only ever dread of living without fear!"
Demon Lilith smiled. Calm. Unbothered. As if she had heard this exact speech a thousand tis before.
"Curse?" She tilted her head. "You are a fool, Lilith. I have told you many tis. This isn’t a curse. Strength is a gift. No. The greatest gift one could ever possess. Because the world isn’t fair. And that’s exactly why strength exists."
Chained Lilith scread back. "Strength?! This power has only brought pain! It has taken everything from !"
"No." Jax’s voice cut between both of them. Flat. Certain. Like a blade severing the argunt at its root.
"Your fear took everything from you. Your refusal to accept what you are. That’s what chained you."
He looked at the sobbing girl on the ground. Not with pity. With understanding that bordered on disappointnt.
"And you say you never needed this power. That it was the very reason for your suffering. But deep down, you knew the truth. You are useless without it. And that’s exactly why you embraced it today. Knowing full well it could consu you."
His words carried no sympathy. Only truth.
"You always had the chance to run. Hide. Just like you’ve been doing your entire life. You could have never relied on your power today either. But you did. Why? Why the greed? Even knowing what would happen?"
Silence.
"The answer is simple. And you’re the one who already answered it, Lilith."
He gestured toward the demon version.
"This world isn’t fair. And that’s why strength exists. Strength is the right to survive. To make the world bow. To do whatever you want. Even your mistakes correct themselves when you carry enough power, because fear and authority rewrite the rules. And when necessary, strength exists to dominate what would otherwise crush you."
Jax pointed at demon Lilith.
"See this girl? She is not so different entity. She is you. Nothing but your rage and fear given form. She exists because you refused to accept yourself."
Chained Lilith’s tears hadn’t stopped. But the sobbing had quieted. She was listening now. Really listening. Perhaps for the first ti in years.
"Professor, I am too weak to fight her. To fight others." Her voice trembled. "And what frightens is that when I lose, everything will be gone. Just like I attacked Seris today. Just like I insulted her."
Her head dropped.
"This cycle will repeat. Until I do sothing from which death will be the only option left for ."
Jax didn’t flinch. "Then be afraid. Fear is human. But don’t let fear make your choices for you. And don’t create a demon to make them instead."
He took a step closer.
"Every person has inner demons. Just like you. Yours happens to exist because of a bloodline. A test designed to either break you or build you."
His voice shifted. Quieter now. More personal.
"I have an inner demon too. Much more devilish than yours. But the only difference is that I caged it. I control it. And still it’s there. Lurking. Instead of cursing it, it curses . Begs to let it out."
He t her eyes.
"That’s the difference. And if you still think you’re so special case, that your bloodline makes you an anomaly, then you are wrong."
A pause.
"Even your father controlled it. And what was the result? He was considered the greatest fighter of his generation."
Chained Lilith’s breath caught. The ntion of him always did this to her.
"Not only that. The strength he possessed made everything he dread of possible. Establishing peace. Making allies and friends wherever he went, irrespective of race. Rebelling against his own kind. And ultimately fighting for others. His love. His village. And you."
His voice hardened.
"So in the end, what matters in this accursed world is strength. And strength alone. It can bend reality itself."
Chained Lilith whispered. "You know my father?"
"I know everything about you, Lilith. About your father who was the greatest fool I have ever seen."
She flinched. The word ’fool’ struck her like a physical blow.
"I’m sorry, Lilith. But your father was nothing but a moron. If he hadn’t surrendered his power, he would be alive right now."
His words were brutal. Deliberate.
"And I can tell you feel the sa."
Silence confird it. The silence that scread louder than any confession.
"You see, when he let others seal away his power, what did he get? The most brutal death in the world. Dying powerless. Dying because of his own mistake."
Jax’s jaw tightened.
"If it weren’t for his foolishness, death wouldn’t have dared to face him."
He let the words settle.
"And you’re repeating his mistake. The exact sa one. He let others seal his strength. You’re sealing it yourself. Different hands on the lock. Sa result."
Jax stepped forward and placed his hand on her shoulder. Gently.
"You are powerful, Lilith. If you were weak, you wouldn’t have raised your hand to join my team when you knew exactly what people would think. You raised your hand to fight by my side when I needed soone to beat Zharina."
His grip steadied.
"And today, I know very well why you chose to use the power you call cursed. You didn’t want to fail ."
He pointed toward demon Lilith.
"All of this was your choices. Not hers."
Then his hand returned to her shoulder.
"You think you have a miserable past? Let tell you sothing. You will never find a strong person without a brutal past. Every great soul once fought wars within themselves before they ever fought the world."
His eyes held hers.
"And today is the beginning of your war. I knew this would happen. That’s why I wanted you to figure out your own things."
A pause.
"This was an inevitable lesson. Any lesson that you refuse to learn will repeat itself until you do."
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