Chains of Desire

The world blurred when Luca’s arms closed around Kai. His touch was hot—too hot for any human—and Kai gasped as if scalded, though he couldn’t pull away. The alley seemed to melt into something else, stone walls stretching into black marble, shadows bleeding into crimson light.

Kai stumbled back. “W-What’s happening?”

“My realm,” Luca said simply, his voice echoing as though the world bent itself to his will. “I will not have my chosen trembling in filth-ridden alleys. You deserve to be ruined in a palace.”

“Ruined?” The word made Kai’s stomach flip, heat curling in his chest. “I don’t belong here—I don’t belong to you!”

Luca’s lips curled into something between a smirk and a snarl. In an instant, he was before Kai, fingers gripping his chin with sinful precision. “You do. You always have. Your soul carries my mark—no priest, no god, no pathetic human will strip it away.”

His thumb brushed Kai’s lower lip, and Kai felt the electric jolt run down his spine. It was maddening, humiliating, yet intoxicating. He should fight, scream, anything—but instead, he trembled.

“You… You’re a devil,” Kai whispered. “Why me?”

Luca’s golden eyes flared, brighter than flame. “Because even in the abyss, I crave what burns brightest. Your humanity tempts me. Your defiance excites me. You, little human, are the sweetest sin I’ll ever taste.”

Kai’s heart pounded. He tried to wrench free, but Luca caught his wrist and raised it. A chain of black fire coiled around his skin, searing yet leaving no wound. The chain pulsed like a heartbeat.

“What is this?!” Kai cried, struggling.

“My claim,” Luca purred. “Do not mistake it for shackles—it is your truth. With this, you cannot hide from me. Your body may flee, but your soul will crawl back on its knees.”

Kai’s breath hitched, fury and panic swirling in his chest. “I’m not yours. I won’t be.”

The devil king laughed, low and rich, making the air tremble. “Oh, you will. You’ll curse my name while whispering it in the same breath. You’ll despise me while begging for more.”

Luca leaned in, so close Kai could feel the heat radiating from his skin, smell the faint trace of smoke and sweetness that clung to him. “Do you feel it, Kai? The ache inside you? That’s not fear. That’s me.”

Kai clenched his fists, yet his knees weakened. His body betrayed him—his pulse raced, his breath quickened, and the dark warmth Luca stirred threatened to drown him.

“Stop…” Kai whispered, but his voice trembled with something far from hatred.

“Never,” Luca murmured, pressing his forehead against Kai’s. “You are mine, not just in this moment, but until eternity itself collapses. My maddest obsession. My beautiful ruin.”

The chain of fire faded, leaving only the lingering heat on Kai’s skin, as though Luca’s claim had burned its way into his very blood.

And though his mind screamed denial, Kai knew one thing with horrifying clarity—

The devil king was right.

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