The Damned Demon

793  More Than Just A Title

Just as Asher's silhouette faded into the skies, unbeknownst to Rebecca, another figure cloaked in deep red was standing atop another cliff, watching the same fading figure in the sky.

She pulled down her hood as a face exuding grace and captivating beauty was revealed. Her ruby-red eyes were fixated on his figure as she mumbled with an inscrutable expression, "Will this time be any different...?"

----

The wasteland stretched endlessly before him, a graveyard of ashen ruins and blackened bones. The sky, once filled with embers of war, now stood eerily silent, the distant caws of carrion birds the only sounds that accompanied his aimless footsteps.

Asher walked, his boots dragging through cracked earth, the lifeless soil crumbling beneath his steps like the remnants of a past he could never escape.

A past that had just repeated itself.

His mind was a storm, thoughts clashing against each other in a relentless maelstrom of betrayal, anger, and sorrow.

Naida.

She was the last person he thought would ever stab him in the back. She was one of the few women he had given his trust to, the ones who made him feel less of a monster and more of a man who still had a heart.

And yet, she had been the one.

The one who ripped out his trust with her bare hands and handed it to his enemies.

His fingers twitched, a dark green aura flickering around them as his rage threatened to boil over.

He clenched his fists.

He had already been here before.

The ghost of Aira still haunted his soul, her betrayal seared into his very being. He had loved her. He had bled for her, killed for her, believed in the future they could have had together—only to have her tear it all apart and turn her back towards him.

That pain had nearly consumed him once.

And yet, despite all that… despite everything he suffered, despite swearing to never let himself be fooled again—

Naida still found a way to break him.

He let out a slow, bitter chuckle, his voice dry, hollow.

"Guess I never fucking learn, huh?"

The wind howled in response, whispering through the wasteland like the ghosts of the dead.

But this time… this time, it wasn't just about him.

The pain of Aira's betrayal had been one thing. She had only destroyed his heart, his trust, his life. But Naida's betrayal?

She had destroyed his kingdom.

His people.

His family.

She didn't just betray him. She betrayed Rowena, Isola, Sabina, Silvia... all the people he loved.

She handed over the key that could doom their world.

She had become Aira's shadow, but somehow—even worse.

Aira poisoned his heart, but Naida?

She pretended to love him, while selling his kingdom to its doom behind his back.

And yet, through the anger, through the hatred threatening to consume him, there was something far more painful gnawing at his soul—

The doubt.

Why?

Why did she do it?

Why betray him like this?

It wasn't about power—she already had influence. It wasn't about resources—she had more than she could ever need.

So why?

Was he the reason?

Did he do something? Did he fail to see something? Did he fail her?

His hands trembled as memories of her warm smiles, the way she would rest her head against him, the way she would whisper his name with affection flashed before his eyes.

All the moments he spent in that beautiful illusory "home" of hers.

Was all of it a lie?

Had he been so easily fooled again?

The thought was suffocating.

His breathing grew ragged as he clenched his skull, fighting against the storm of emotions swirling inside him.

And yet, through all this, there was still one difference from back then.

Back when Aira left him, he had no one, waking up in a world that wasn't his.

He was alone. Broken. A man with nothing left to lose.

But now… now he had Rowena, Isola, Sabina, Silvia, and everyone who truly cared about him waiting for him.

They were still here.

He hadn't lost everything.

Not yet.

But if he let this pain, this anger, this betrayal consume him—

If he let himself become the monster Naida wanted him to be—

He would lose them too.

And that?

That was the one thing he couldn't bear.

Asher exhaled sharply, his burning eyes staring at the desolate horizon.

The pain was still there. The anger still boiled in his blood. The betrayal still throbbed inside him like an unhealed wound.

But this time, he wouldn't let it define him.

He had made that mistake once.

Never again.

Never fucking again.

With a determined yet pained light in his eyes, he decided to make his way back towards where Eradicator and Lori were.

—

The flickering lights within the tent cast elongated shadows across the rugged fabric, their dim glow barely reaching the edges of the confined space. Asher stepped through the entrance, his eyes falling upon the imposing figure standing guard near Lori's resting form.

Eradicator.

A living corpse clad in dark, jagged armor that absorbed the light rather than reflected it. A silent specter, ever-watchful, ever-dutiful. Her presence, despite its eerie nature, was oddly reassuring.

She immediately straightened upon seeing him, the momentary stillness followed by a deep, disciplined bow.

But Asher simply lifted a tired hand, palm up, "You don't have to bow before me anymore."

Asher felt guilty to make Rowena's elder sister bow to him, especially after how he wronged Rowena. Even if Eradicator may not have a soul, he still couldn't shake off her true identity from his mind and felt bad for how she ended up like this. She was still his sister-in-law.

Eradicator remained still, her stance unwavering.

Asher exhaled, rubbing his temple, "Perhaps it's better you know—I am no longer a king. Not just because my kingdom is gone, but because Rowena banished me. Rightfully so. Someone like me never deserved to be a king."

His voice carried no anger, no resentment. Just hollowness.

Eradicator, as always, remained silent as if studying him.

Then, after a pause, she asked in a stoic, measured voice, "How should I address you going forward?"

A soft chuckle escaped Asher's lips, the sound dry and almost bitter. Of all things he just said, this was what she thought to ask? Of course…she probably couldn't care about it.

"Just call me Asher. I don't care if you're an undead. You're still family to me now that I know who you are."

Eradicator gave a slow, deliberate nod.

There was something unnerving yet strangely comforting about her presence. Knowing that Rowena's unknown elder sister had been watching over him for decades in silence.

09:15

Eradicator's gaze lingered on him for a few seconds before she finally said, "I do not know if my master will help, but I will ask him for you."

Asher let out a breath of relief, though it was short-lived. There were still too many uncertainties.

"Thank you, Eradi—" He cut himself off mid-sentence, his eyes narrowing slightly as he studied her.

"It feels strange calling you Eradicator."

She remained still, offering no protest.

"What's your real name?"

She blinked once, then said plainly, "Eradicator is my name. It is the only name I was ever bestowed with."

Asher scoffed softly, shaking his head. "Heh, I can't believe your master didn't give you a better name. Someone as beautiful and loyal as you deserves more than just a title."

"It isn't necessary," she said in the same even tone. "A name is nothing but a means to address someone."

Asher tilted his head, his expression softening. "You might not need a name, but I think you're more than just a title. You deserve to be remembered. That's why… I'm going to name you Valeria. Valeria Drake."

For the first time, there was the faintest flicker of something in her crimson gaze. It was fleeting, almost imperceptible.

"Valeria..." The name rolled off her tongue quietly, as if she were testing its weight in her mouth for the first time.

"Meowww…."

A sudden, pleased meow echoed in the tent as Twilight, the small twin-tailed feline always hidden beneath her cape, purred approvingly, rubbing its small body against her armored shoulder.

Asher's lips quirked up slightly, "See? Even your cat approves."

Valeria simply nodded, as if committing the name to memory.

Then, just as quickly her crimson eyes fixated back on him.

"What do you wish to do next, Asher?"

He sighed, running a hand through his damp moon-whie hair, "We should head over to meet your master, but first, I need you to make a container that can protect Lori from the cursed mana in the ruins."

Her ashen, cracked skin had patches of eerie smoothness, almost too perfect, yet unnaturally cold. The deep crimson glow in her eyes no longer filtered through a visor, and despite seeing her face for the second time, he couldn't help but think,

She was terrifying.

She was majestic.

And she was Rowena's blood.

Asher exhaled softly, shaking his head. "You are really her sister…"

Valeria tilted her head slightly. "Would you like me to put it back on?"

Asher shook his head with a soft smile, "No. Keep it off. You look way better like this."

She simply nodded.

Finally, Asher turned and lowered himself onto the ground in a meditative stance, his eyes flickering with a different kind of glow.

"Before we head to the ruins, I have to make a quick trip to Earth… I need to talk to my cult."

Valeria watched as his consciousness drifted away, her crimson gaze unblinking.

The tent fell silent, save for the steady rhythm of Lori's breathing and the occasional purr of Twilight, nestled contently against Valeria's armor.

For the first time, she had a name.

A name given to her by him.

Valeria.

And though she had no soul, no living heart to measure emotions—she would remember it.

Finally she got a name :)

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