The Damned Demon

Arthur's breath stopped.

His entire body froze.

His eyes widened in utter disbelief, his heart thudding so hard he could hear it in his ears.

"...No."

It came out barely above a whisper, his lips trembling.

"No... That—"

His thoughts were a mess, his mind reeling, screaming at him that this wasn't possible.

Cedric. The Golden Prince.

The hero who was betrayed and killed by Derek.

That hero...His father… was Hellbringer? A demon?

The very same demon he was supposed to take down? The one who disguised himself as his mentor?

"You're lying," Arthur said, his voice uneven, barely able to hold itself together, "T-That can't be possible... He—he died…How could my dead father be alive and a demon?"

Grace's gaze didn't waver.

"We thought the same. But he didn't die that day, Arthur. A miracle happened. A miracle mortals like us can't comprehend."

Arthur staggered back, shaking his head violently, his breath coming out in ragged gasps.

This couldn't be true.

Amelia felt bad for him as he was learning so many painful truths all at once. Even for her, it was overwhelming to learn the truth about Cedric's death. But Arthur…his entire world just got turned upside down in a single day.

However, Arthur only struggled more as he said in a trembling voice, "This cannot be. My father was a hero. Even if Hellbringer destroyed evil people in our world, he still killed a lot of good Hunters and even innocent people, especially when he first showed up. My father was a hero. He would never do such bad things."

Amelia gently approached him and eased him into a chair as she softly said, "Unfortunately nor the people or the world can be judged black or white. But I can imagine how you might be feeling right now. Perhaps you will understand if you know everything that happened," Saying so, Amelia went on to reveal everything that happened to Asher after he died as Cedric.

....

Arthur's hands were shaking by the time Amelia told him everything. He couldn't believe it was all true.

How could something like that happen to his father?

It couldn't be.

And yet—

A horrifying realization slammed into him.

The way he always felt an innate respect towards Asher when he was his mentor.

The way he felt when Asher guided him and taught him things.

The way he had tried to warn him about truths others wouldn't dare to say, even if he might have done it as a mentor.

The fact that he couldn't bring himself to hate him despite learning that he was a demon in disguise.

Was it because somewhere deep down he felt a connection to him?

It all made sense now.

But it broke him to know how such a valiant and honorable man was forced to turn towards darkness for survival and to punish those who wronged him.

Arthur's hands trembled as he whispered,

"...Did he know?"

Tears burned in his eyes.

Arthur's voice was barely above a whisper, trembling as he asked, "Did he know… that he was my father?"

Amelia shook her head, her expression filled with sorrow. "How could he know? The only reason he became your mentor was to keep an eye on Derek and you since he noticed that Derek had an unusual interest in you. He died thinking that Aira betrayed him just like Derek and the others did. He died hating your mother and still does. Even I did when I first learned about it."

Arthur's chin quivered, the weight of Amelia's words crushing him.

He hated his mother… He hated her because he believed she betrayed him.

His fingers dug into his palms, his nails biting into his skin as guilt and anger warred inside him.

Amelia continued, "But it always felt strange to me… Aira has been by his side since they were children. She loved, cared for, and protected him when he was weaker, no matter how difficult things became. Why would she suddenly betray him?"

Arthur felt his chest tighten, "She wouldn't…I don't know why she did it, but I can feel that she never really would betray him," he murmured.

Amelia nodded, "That's what I believe too. Maybe Asher—your father—feels it as well, deep within his heart. Otherwise, why would he keep trying to find her? He could have just accepted that she was gone or just wished she had turned up dead. But no—he keeps looking. Maybe, deep down, he knows something isn't right."

Arthur's breath grew heavy as his mind churned.

All this time, he had been searching for the truth about himself, about Derek, about his past…

But now, he had another mission.

He had to tell Asher...his father the truth.

"He has to know… He has to know where she is…" Arthur stiffly shook his head, his voice breaking as his eyes grew red. "I have to help him save her… and everyone from Derek."

Yui and Remy's expressions softened as they saw his anguish and determination.

Grace and Amelia shared a look before Grace nodded firmly. "That is the plan, kid."

She smirked slightly, trying to lighten the moment, "It's a good thing Derek pumped you full of Radems to raise your strength to peak S Rank. We're going to make sure he regrets that."

Arthur clenched his fists, "I know Derek wans to control me… He must have done his best to cripple my potential, to keep me under his thumb. No wonder I never knew how to properly defeat powerful demons or tackle difficult situations despite being a S Ranker. He made sure I never had the experience, and all those fights I remember are fake. I never went through them."

Grace's eyes glowed with confidence as she said, "Don't forget, Arthur—you are the Golden Prince and the Oracle's son. You are way stronger than you think. Derek might have tried to keep you in chains, but we're about to break every last one of them."

Arthur nodded, his resolve hardened like steel.

"I have to meet him," he said suddenly. "Please, tell me there's a way I can reach him. We have to tell him everything—especially about my mother."

Amelia sighed, her gaze dark with regret, "I'm sorry, Arthur. He can't be reached now. He's out there in the demon world, struggling to get stronger. That's why we're doing everything we can to prepare. He told us to keep fighting, even if he… doesn't return."

Arthur immediately stood up, shaking his head. "No. Don't say that. I know he will return to us. If he survived death once, then he can survive anything."

Grace grinned, crossing her arms, "Damn right he will."

She then turned serious, "But we might not see him for a couple of weeks at least. So, within that time, we have to do things ourselves. We need to rally allies, like you said."

Arthur exhaled sharply, refocusing. "Then who else can we trust? The WHA was supposed to be the symbol of justice, and now they're hunting good Hunters like you people. We can't ask any Hunter for help unless we're sure of their loyalty."

Grace nodded, "We know. That's why we'll be careful. We can't fight Derek head-on. We need to be smart."

But before she could say more—

A sharp beeping sound shattered the moment.

BEEP!

"SHIT!" Remy suddenly shouted as he rushed to his laptop. His fingers flew across the keyboard, his face paling.
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"The perimeter alarm's been tripped! We've got WHA guards surrounding the building. Based on their badges, most of them are at least A Rankers, and the ones leading each squad… are S Rank."

Arthur's heart pounded.

"They found us. How?!" Amelia asked, her eyes wide in shock.

Grace let out a heavy sigh, turning her gaze towards Arthur, "Like I feared… Derek must have let you go so you would lead him straight to us."

Arthur's eyes shook in realization.

Of course. Derek let him leave too easily.

He had been playing right into his hands.

Arthur clenched his fists, an indescribable rage filling him, "Then I'll hold them off. You guys should escape."

Grace immediately shook her head. "No, kid. Listen carefully. We won't get out of this alive if we all fight."

Arthur gritted his teeth. "Then what do we do? I am the reason that put you all in danger."

Grace's eyes darkened. "This is not the time to blame yourself. You need to 'arrest' us."

Arthur's breath caught. "…What?"

Amelia stepped forward, placing a firm hand on his shoulder, "She is right, Arthur; this is the only way. If you arrest us, Derek won't be able to immediately execute us. The Judge will have to handle our case and he might only imprison us. You will also have more freedom to do things rather than openly revealing yourself as an enemy to Derek."

Arthur's jaw clenched, "What? How do you know we can trust the Judge when the President himself turned out to be such a evil man?"

"I have known the Judge since I was a kid, and he was Cedric's Mentor. Something tells me he is not on Derek's side. Otherwise, he wouldn't have kept Amelia's parents safe by keeping them 'confined' instead of letting Derek deal with them. Derek could have easily flushed Amelia out if he got his hands on her parents."

Amelia nodded with a heavy look, "She is right. I have a feeling the Judge is truly fair and one of the few who cares about justice.

"No. I can't just risk all of your lives under an assump—"

"Arthur."

Grace's voice was low, firm, and unwavering.

"If you want to fix what Derek has done—if you want to protect the people who are still alive—then you have to do this. The moment you expose yourself, not only your grandparents but your mother will also suffer."

Arthur's chest heaved as he struggled with the decision.

This went against everything in his heart.

But… they were right.

If he pretended to capture them, he could stall for time. Keep them alive.

It was the only way.

Arthur took a deep breath. His hands shook as he clenched them into

fists.

Then, finally—

He nodded.

"…Okay. I'll do it."