The Damned Demon

Jarius arrived at a small building located on the outskirts of the city, disguised to make sure nobody would notice him.

However, seeing a large cloaked figure in front of the building, he gulped, feeling the sheer weight of this mysterious person's aura.

He didn't even dare to look in their direction and hurriedly got into the building. He cautiously stepped inside and came upon a dimly lit interior with only a few candles scattered around the room.

He could see a few commoners sitting around and getting drunk and realized this was a lazy town. It was no surprise Asher picked this place.

He made his way further into the building and spotted a hooded figure sitting in the corner, his face covered.

Jarius had a good guess who it was after seeing that mysterious man tapping on the table thrice.

He immediately walked over to his table, his eyes glinting with recognition, "I-I hope I am not late."

"Stop wasting my time and tell me what you have to say. It better be something useful," Asher said in a jaded tone. Asher could see Jarius' nervous movements, his eyes darting around the room as if he was trying to avoid any possible trouble. It seemed as if he really had something to say that might hurt him as well.

Jarius was still filled with fear and uncertainty, knowing that he was basically putting everything on the line by coming here. He still had no idea what was going to happen to him in the future if things went south.

However, thinking about how he was looked down upon and mocked like a peasant in his own House and his dignity crumpled, he was filled with a deep sense of determination and conviction, which helped him make up his mind.

He took a deep breath and began to speak, his words coming out in a rush. He told everything he had overheard the other day. The more he spoke, the more he curled up his fingers.

Asher had a calm expression when he began to listen to his words. But the more he listened to Jarius, the more his expression began to subtly contort.

It was as if something sparked off in his mind as memories of the past flooded back, vivid and painful. The sudden rush of these memories overwhelmed him with a fury that he struggled to contain. He felt his blood boiling with rage, his fists clenching tightly at his sides.

Jarius had finished speaking when he suddenly felt Asher's aura getting chaotic and made him break a sweat. 

He realized Asher was pissed, but who wouldn't be after hearing all this? Even a saint wouldn't be able to sit still after hearing all that.

He began to worry if Asher was going to stir up things using this. Jarius felt that he should just bury himself if Asher was going to do that. He didn't want to face the wrath of his House, especially Edmund's.

But even as Asher seethed with anger, Asher knew that he shouldn't let it prevent him from thinking straight. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm, and knew he had to channel this anger into making them pay for what they did, especially Oberon and Edmund. Of course, he equally held Rebecca responsible for covering it all up while encouraging it as well.

He was now even more determined to utterly crush and break them in every way possible rather than simply killing them.

"You did well, Jarius. Continue to keep your ears open and report to me every week. If you lie or try any tricks, then I will expose you as a rat and a traitor of your own House. Got it?" Asher asked as his cold gaze fell on Jarius.

Jarius felt his spine rattle as he nodded with a trembling gaze, "P-Please…I have no reason to trick you now that I have jumped into a sinking ship. I will tell you everything I know, but please…don't let them find out about me," Saying so, Jarius fell to his knees and touched Asher's feet.

Asher curved his lips as he pulled him up by his cloak and threw him back onto his seat, "I will judge your worth by the information you bring to me, especially Edmund's. If you do well, then I have nothing to gain by exposing you," Saying so, Asher got up and left, leaving behind a trembling Jarius who wondered if he would survive this or not. 

Still, he poured all his hope into Asher since his success would determine his fate. He couldn't care less about his fucking brother and had no hesitation to snitch on him as long as he didn't get into trouble.

And so with tense steps he discreetly left the building.

—

Asher arrived at the Demonstone Castle as the sun was slowly setting behind the horizon, casting a warm, crimson glow across the sky.

The servants of the castle stopped whatever they were doing and deeply bowed as Asher walked past them.

He loved taking a walk inside the castle, taking in the beauty of this ancient architecture while observing the activities of the people around him. He had already learned some things about how things work here just by observing.

However, right now, he was walking towards a certain place, and after taking a lot of turns, he arrived at the Eastern Courtyard.

The moment he entered the courtyard, he was welcomed by a warm and pleasant atmosphere. The garden was a peaceful spot to calm one's soul with fragrant flowers and bubbling fountains that lent a soothing air to the otherwise harsh surroundings.

In a harsh world like this, it would take quite a lot more effort to maintain a comparatively nice place like this.

Still, the sight that arrested his eyes was the intoxicating beauty standing near the balustrade as if she was waiting for someone. 

She was looking quite resplendent, wearing a flowing black gown that seemed to shimmer in the surrounding light.

Her hair, black as night, cascaded down her shapely back in soft waves, and as if she noticed his presence, she turned around, her almond-shaped crimson eyes looking at him with a warm glow.

"How did you know I mostly visit this courtyard?" Rowena was surprised when Asher suddenly sent her a message telling her to wait in the Eastern Courtyard, which happened to be her favorite.

In the past, she always used to come here and simply stare at the skies, thinking about all sorts of things without anyone around.

Asher lightly smiled and said as he slowly walked towards her, "It was just a coincidence that I happened to find this courtyard most beautiful than the rest. It is also the biggest out of all."

However, as he said this, his eyes briefly glanced in the eastern direction where dozens of miles away, a big mansion was situated.

It was not a coincidence at all that he chose this courtyard. 

After Jarius' words triggered some memories, Asher remembered Oberon 'conversating' with his soulless self while torturing him and passionately describing Rowena's beauty and how he got to see her taking a walk in her courtyard from his mansion despite not being nearby.

He realized how he underestimated Oberon's obsession with Rowena. That son of a bitch even waits in his mansion to gawk at Rowena using some binocular-like artifact after learning beforehand whenever she would spend time in her favorite courtyard.

The courtyard was the only open spot that was barely visible from Oberon's mansion.

So how could someone like him waste any opportunity to freely 'admire' his 'beloved' even if it was with difficulties?

And that was why Asher made sure to inform Rowena earlier to come here. How could he not give Oberon the opportunity to witness their time together?

Rowena softly nodded, thinking that he must have probably asked around which courtyard she used to visit most of the time. She felt warm seeing how thoughtful he was.

"Come, let's take a walk, shall we?" Asher said with a gentle smile as he held out his hand, gesturing to her to hold it.

Rowena blinked her eyes as she looked at his hand. But after a moment of hesitation, she awkwardly and slowly placed her palm over his hand. 

The moment she did, she felt his big, warm hand wrapping around hers before the two began to walk.

"How was your training session with the Head Warden?" Rowena asked, feeling curious, though she was confident there was no better teacher than Duncan Doru in this kingdom.

Asher nodded with an energetic smile as he said, "It was great and I am lucky to be his disciple. No wonder people say he is the best. I learned a lot about Reaping, and he also spoke highly of you, saying that you are quite talented at Reaping. Is that so?"

Rowena slightly averted her gaze and said in a cold yet soft tone, "I was just very determined to get stronger at that time and did whatever it took. I am sure you will be good at it too."

"Hmm, I think I have a knack for it, but tonight I will be doing my first reaping quest. How did your first reaping quest go?" Asher felt that she must have naturally completed it with ease.

Rowena's expression suddenly froze, and then she pressed her lips together as she said with a downward gaze while lightly stroking her left brow, "It didn't go well…I failed my first reaping quest."

Asher was truly surprised to hear that a genius like her failed her first reaping quest, "Was it that hard?"

Rowena softly shook her head as she said with a far-off look, "No…It was easy as it could get, but…It just didn't go the way I expected"

Asher noticed how her aura and expression underwent a subtle shift and wondered if she was still feeling bad that she had failed her first quest. Was failing a quest a big deal for nobles like her? Asher could only guess since he was still in the process of understanding their mentality and lifestyles.

But he now realized why Duncan warned him about not underestimating the 'vessels', though he felt Rowena wasn't the type of person to do that. Still, sometimes things just don't happen as expected just like she said. But he did notice how she didn't seem to want to talk more about it, though it didn't matter to him.

"Since we are talking about the past, do you still not remember anything from the past 14 years?" Rowena suddenly asked as she looked at him, her eyes glowing with a certain light. She had asked him this question earlier, but she wanted to know if there was any change.

Asher sighed as he said, "It's kind of complicated. I remember the maids coming in and treating me, but the rest is too vague, and most of it I still don't remember. But Igrid says that based on his observations, I would recover memories faster if it gets triggered by seeing or hearing the right things. The problem is I have no idea what I should see or hear to recover all my memories."

Rowena softly hummed as she said, "I see. Then you should just leave it up to fate. You might remember everything at the right time, though I feel that even without those memories, you will be fine. You barely left this castle and were sleeping most of the time. But…"

"But what?" Asher asked with furrowed brows.

"The day you woke up….I still haven't found out how those guards sneaked you outside the castle. Usually, my father would send at least one Bloodborn Guard to accompany you, and I followed suit. But when it happened, I was busy with a quest and nobody noticed you leaving the castle," Rowena mumbled with a brief headshake.

"So I used to go for strolls? How…Wasn't I soulless?" Asher asked with a confused look.