A bead of sweat rolled down from Lucian's forehead, tracing its way down his face before falling to the ground with a barely audible plop. He lay on his back, his chest heaving as he stared up at Iralis, who stood in the shadows at the edge of the duel platform. Her eyes, though hidden behind her mask, seemed to burn with cold contempt as she gazed down at him.
"I didn't expect you to succeed," Iralis said, her voice dripping with smugness. "But even then, this is a bit disappointing."
Lucian heard the taunting edge in her tone. Maybe it was meant to anger him further, and perhaps it would have, had it been anyone else.
"I suppose being the Chosen of the Fourth God has its perks," Lucian muttered, struggling to catch his breath. "To have such an annoying ability at your level… I see why you were so confident now."
Iralis tilted her head slightly, her voice sharp. "Excuse me?"
Lucian sat up from the floor, meeting her gaze as she spoke again. "Do you think Vashara's ability is the only reason I can win against you?"
"Think?" Lucian scoffed. "I don't think. I know it is."
Exhausted and unsteady, Lucian forced himself to his feet, his legs almost buckling beneath him. He turned toward Iralis, but she had already begun to leave the platform.
"Go and get some rest, Lucian," she called back, a snicker in her voice. As she walked past him, she paused for a brief moment. "And if you want more training, ask nicely next time—rather than that pathetic attempt at provocation."
Her words lingered as she exited the training hall, passing by Ash, who had been observing the duel from the sidelines. Ash's gaze remained on Lucian, her silence broken only by her soft footsteps as she approached him.
"So," she asked, a hint of amusement in her voice, "what do you think?"
Lucian brushed the hair out of his face, still catching his breath. "Well, she definitely hates my guts."
Ash let out a small laugh. "That much is obvious."
"But…" Lucian hesitated, his tone growing more thoughtful. "It seems I was lied to from the very beginning."
Ash frowned, genuinely curious. "What do you mean?"
"Those eyes… Even back then, they were the same. She wasn't naïve—she was just a good liar. So good that even I failed to see the most obvious truth. What was I thinking?" Lucian laughed bitterly. "Any child from the slums of Namek would've known better than to trust a stranger… I assumed she was stupid, but that hellhole doesn't accommodate stupidity."
He shook his head, still incredulous at how blind he'd been.
"The NPF knew they couldn't get me into their territory unless I was desperate. So they convinced me that it was the only place I could drop her off without drawing attention. How did I not see it? That night, I didn't take her to the NPF—she brought me to them. And she made me do it with my own two feet."
Lucian turned to Ash, who simply stared at him with a blank expression. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"
Ash's lips curled into a sly smile. "I guess you were both outsmarted. She thought she'd be paid and let go, but we knew about you both from the start. So we had the bright idea to give each of you the task of capturing the other. We did receive word from th NPF though that you were killed after forcing their hand during an attack… but a few hours later, there you were again, healing with the flames of hell."
"Hmm… to think I was so easily played," Lucian mused, his voice tinged with bitterness. "And yet, she acted like I was the villain… as if she didn't do the same."
Ash shook her head, clicking her tongue. "She doesn't care about right or wrong. She feels she was naive because she fell for our plan. It doesn't matter that she did the same to you—it's still your fault she's in this situation, and she's not the type to let that go."
"Neither am I," Lucian shot back quickly.
"Yes… you two aren't so different," Ash noted, a knowing glint in her eyes.
"And that's why we can never trust each other," Lucian muttered, his belief in the team setup growing shakier.
"Let's not say 'never,'" Ash said, patting Lucian on the shoulder. "It's been a long night. You can get some rest, or I can help prepare you for tomorrow's mission."
Lucian raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "How?"
Ash's smile widened. "Let's just say I've studied a few things about you that even you don't fully understand… Ever since I saw how you reacted to hell's flames, it was clear you had a demon core. Why do you think you encountered that imp?"
"It followed me," Lucian answered, still uncertain. "I don't understand why."
"Satellite footage showed that the imp actively tracked and pursued you from the other side of the city," Ash explained.
Lucian raised a brow. "And I'm guessing you know why?"
"There's a hierarchy in every demon's march. No demon goes unruled unless it's the strongest of the battalion. When a demon is without a general, other demons can sense it. Depending on the strength of the unruled, different demons will chase it down and force it to submit. Because you were so weak, you were chased by an imp. But the demon that ruled the imp sensed something unusual about you… which is why you ended up facing that brute."
Lucian nodded slowly, the puzzle pieces falling into place.
"We know you possess a demon core," Ash continued, "and your training will take that into consideration. Including the fact that, like them, you also feed on souls to grow stronger."
Lucian glanced at Ash, his eyes narrowing slightly. "And you're okay with me killing humans?"
Ash smirked. "I think you've been here long enough to understand that this organization lacks morals. In fact, tomorrow's mission was designed specifically so you can… slaughter as many humans as possible."