A fleeting whisper, as faint as the quiet rustling of leaves, and yet as vibrant as a rainbow.
"Come closer, my little boy..."
Richard's eyes snapped open. It took some time for him to regain his bearings, but when he finally did, he smiled softly.
"Ah, I survived the night. How lucky..."
Getting up from his bed, he stared at the mirror in front of him. Dark circles lined his eyes; an indicator of his restless night.
His hair looked worse than a bird's nest, some of it sticking to his sweaty forehead.
On his neck hung a chain with a silver cross pendant attached to it. Bringing it to his lips, he whispered a few words to it before giving it a light kiss.
Once that was done, he sprung to his feet,
"Alright, it's time to work!"
***
The early Saturday morning sky was gloomy, clouds covering the sky for as far as the eye could see. That was just the nature of this city.
The sun couldn't penetrate the glum blanket of clouds, so the people lumbering below were forced to live their days in a state of semi-depression and vexation.
But none of that mattered to Richard right now...
"One... two... one... two..."
In a separate part of the mansion, a room that had been transformed into something of a personal gym and training room, Richard could be seen, doing pushups.
It was an odd thing to see a magician working onhis body in the way he did. Magicians are entities involved with the organization called the Circle of Magi. Their job, was to hunt down evil creatures, demons, and Devils that cross the barriers between worlds into the human realm.
No matter how much a normal human trains, it was impossible for them to fight against these supernatural entities. And yet, here he was...
Unconcerned about such trivialities, Richard continued to push himself up. On his three thousandth pushup, he finally relented, his arms giving out.
Pulling off the fifty kilogram weights from his body, he collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted.
Having just finished an intense work out session, he was totally burnt out. However, he didn't rest for too long.
Instead, he quietly sat up and closed his eyes, channeling all the heat flowing around his body.
This was a method of physique training unique only to the members of the Bane family. Even then, the new generation of Sorcerers rarely trained their bodies this way. It was far more efficient to just use magic to defeat these creatures.
However, Richard had never stopped training his body. Since the day he began his magic training, he had also begun training his body, hoping to achieve a state of superiority in both mind and body.
The discipline of building a sturdy body was his reward. Alongside a rather chiseled six-pack...
Feeling the slightly uncomfortable heat move through his body, Richard grinned.
A voice in his head whispered to him,
'Building up your physical prowess might not help a lot in the battle against we creatures of the Abyssal planes. And yet, you continue to do it...'
The one who had just spoken, was Fenrir, the Blood Demon...
Richard merely shook his head, "You know, for century old Demons, you guys sure are narrow minded. Even after all our years together, you fail to see some things clearly."
Richard could only imagine the Demon shaking its head,
"Indeed, I can only imagine. No amount of physical might you humans have can allow you to triumph over an Abyssal creature. Your only edge is the mystic arts. Wouldn't it be better to dedicate all your time and resources towards that?"
Richard shook his head, "Again, too narrow-minded. Alright, stop talking now."
Pushing the voice in his head aside, Richard continued his training.
Exhaling a breath of foggy air, his eyes slowly opened. Trapped within them was an endless darkness...
***
Biting into a sandwich, Richard sat on a desk in his study room.
"No calls today from the organization. It's totally out of character for them to not disturb me even once."
Richard's relationship with his family was complicated. In theory, the Bane family was a part of the Circle of Magi. However, this was only true generally.
In reality, the Circle of Magi was merely a body that governed a large number of modern day sorcerers.
The Bane family just happened to be one of the largest groups under this organization's influence, with many of their members in the seat of council.
Richard scoffed, the darkness in his eyes shifting,
"Just a bunch of rotting old pricks."
Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to the book sitting before him. He spoke the name of the book,
"The Unholy Apocrypha of Devils... Lucierosa."
The shadows in the room, caused by the dim illumination coming from whatever little sunlight that streaked in from the windows, moved slightly.
Richard grinned. Finally, after a long time, he had finally gotten his hands on it!
Lucierosa, 'Rose of the Defiler' on the ancient language, was a book with rather questionable sources...
No one knew who its true author is, some even speculate, that it is the evil work of some horrendous dark deity dwelling in one of the Abyssal Planes.
Even in the world of the occult, very few people are opportune to see this thing once in their lifetime. He had been lucky to find this copy on his last mission.
The reason why this book was so important, was because it contained the names, and abilities of every Demon, Devil, Stygian Nightmare, Vampire, Werewolf... you name it, within the Abyssal Planes.
Richard chuckled to himself, "In thao dark world, information is the true power. With this, I'll finally be able to go on more successful hunts. I might even move up a rank in a few months."
Letting out a sigh, Richard recalled the events that had transpired for him to attain this accursed book.
Shaking his head, he smiled, "It's all in the past now anyways."
Flipping the book open, he came across a few familiar names, as well as their abilities...
Just as he was about to get completely invested, the phone laying on the desk beside him rang.
Richard paused...
Slowly, he turned to the ringing object, his face a bit pale.
"I... hope..."
Reaching down, he gtapped the screen, only to see it light up. The number currently trying to reach him was not a saved contact, so he had no idea who it was.
"I swear on every evil creature I have killed, of it is one of those bastards, I'll kill off the entire branch in the city!" Richard fumed as he picked the call.
Upon placing the phone to his ear, he could hear the slight breathing of the individual on the other side...
"Hell-"
"Good day, am I speaking with Sir Richard Bane?"
The voice on the other end of the call was distinguished, and seemed to belong to an older man.
Richard frowned, "Yes, it is I. To whom do I owe the pleasure?"
The old man on the other end of the call chuckled,
"Relax. I got your number from your grandfather. Apparently, he knew you wouldn't reach out to me first, so he thought it was better to be safe than sorry."
Then it finally clicked. Richard sighed,
"That meddlesome old man."
The man on the other end chuckled,
"He's only looking out for his only grandchild. Besides, even if he hadn't asked me to reach out to you, I still would have..."
Richard shook his head and smiled, "Oh, really? And why is that?"
"Why wouldn't I want to be in contact with the Black sheep of the Bane family, the one who is rumored to instil fear in the hearts of Demons themselves... The Cursed Savior of the Bane family..."
Richard was speechless for a few seconds. Then he scratched his head awkwardly,
"This... is my reputation that terrible?"
The man chuckled, "You have no idea... Come on down to the branch office by six in the evening. Let's have a little chat."
Richard fought the urge to let out a sigh,
'On my off day?!'
He thought about it for a while...
"Sure. But you still haven't answered my question. Who are you?"
The old man on the other end smiled,
"You might be familiar with this name, but I might as well still introduce myself. My name is Baxter Rigborne."
Richard's face fell and his eyes turned cold,
"You mean..."
"Don't say anything else. Save it for when we meet this evening."
With that, the call was ended abruptly...
Richard stared at the now dark phone for a few seconds, in a state of shock. That shock slowly morphed into a cold indifference.
"I see... Things might be more complicated than I thought."
In this world, there was no way to avoid responsibility for long. No matter how much one desires rest, it was fleeting.
Richard smiled to himself, "Well, there goes my weekend."