The First Prince of Hell is Human?

They say the true nature of a man is revealed in his final moments.

For Leo, it came in ways he never expected. Fear was replaced with excitement, and confusion was replaced with immense focus.

His breathing steadied and his frantic heartbeat slowed. Leo brandished his pocket dagger while signaling to Isaiah to come at him.

At this moment, the throbbing pain that radiated from his injured abdomen didn't matter. Leo wanted to see how far he could push himself and was eager to know the limits of his body.

"Come!"

Swish!

Isaiah lunged forward and struck with his right hand like a spear, but this time Leo was ready. His right foot slid forward as he slipped under the claw attack, and he struck with incredible force.

Kaaaaahh!

Leo's dagger plunged into Isaiah's exposed chest, forcing him to squeal. Like a wounded beast, Isaiah's first instinct was to swing at the cause of its injury, but Leo had foreseen this.

He knew a stab to the chest with a pocket knife was far from enough to put this vampire down.

As soon as he stabbed Isaiah, Leo hopped back and watched as the vampire's claw tore the surface of his tracksuit.

Thud!

Leo's left heel dug into the ground while his right foot swept through the air gracefully, finding its way to Isaiah's exposed face.

Pa!

Leo's eyes widened in shock as the image of his dad wearing the Hollow Night baseball team hat and jersey with blue jeans, his hand outstretched in his direction, overlapped reality—Isaiah catching his foot before it could reach its target.

"Dad?" Leo mumbled—his tone a mixture of disbelief and relief.

His vision blurred as Isaiah pulled him off the ground, tossing him into the air before ruthlessly smashing him into the ground.

Leo felt all the oxygen in his body escape through his parted lips as he tried to cry out in pain but failed to make a sound.

"It's alright, kiddo, you did your best. You can rest now."

Strangely, the image remained even when the world was a blur and tears ran down his eyes.

Leo was confused. He couldn't understand why the man was crying. Behind the man, countless more scenes of his very few encounters with his dad played out all at once.

'Am I dying?' Leo mumbled in confusion.

He couldn't help but wonder why all these memories were surfacing now.

Leo tried to turn his head, but he couldn't. Isaiah's body was on him and his head was buried on the right side of Leo's neck --- he made disgusting grunting sounds while drinking.

'I see.' Leo smiled bitterly as the scene before him changed to barely an hour ago in his kitchen.

{Master Morningstar, must I remind you never to drink off the bottle?

I already said you are free to leave if you don't like my lifestyle.}

Leo watched himself leave the kitchen, forgetting his ring on the counter, which Anderson picked up. The scene changes to him running out of the living room while Anderson runs out of the kitchen, screaming in his name.

After reliving life in a flash, Leo realized a few things;

How little his mother meant to him, especially since memories of her never surfaced.

He probably should have treated Mr. Anderson a lot better, especially since the man has made an effort to look after him after the tragedy.

How little time he had with his dad and, most importantly...

He felt extremely frustrated that he lost.

The loss of his father didn't hurt him as much as the realization that a skilled human like him can't even defeat an overweight vampire.

Was this the full extent of a human's capability?

'I don't mind dying, even if I kill him!' Leo's eyes regained their will to fight, and his blurred vision cleared up.

And that's when it happened.

Buzz!

The heavens turned dark while the sun remained. Its rays were focused on Leo.

{There is nothing to be ashamed of, little warrior, the battle is not yet lost...}

The earth rumbled as the sun spoke, but strangely, Isaiah didn't seem to notice.

{But the price of continuing this fight is heavy. Can you afford to pay the price?}

'I'm already dead... I will pay any price to win'

{Hi~hi~hi... With this power, you will never know defeat.}

{With this power, you can change the fate of humanity}

{If I give you the power to rectify this error, would you kill for me?}

"Yes!"

{Once you receive this power, would you live for me?}

"I will!"

{Tell me, Human. What sin are you guilty of?}

"Pride!"

{Good... You are perfect for this task.}

{Favor of the Demon Lord acquired}

{Sin of Pride}

{New race unlocked; Demon race}

{New titles unlocked: First Prince of Hell & Sin of Pride}

Buzz!

The world distorted as a series of messages appeared before Leo's eyes. The darkness faded, and light sun rays illuminated the entire world.

The weight on Leo's chest was gone, and the disgusting grunting sounds were non-existent.

Isaiah had presumably drained Leo of his blood, leaving behind Leo's corpse. He had ripped off Leo's shirt and used it to wipe off the blood on his lips and chest, where he got stabbed.

"This is where acting high and mighty gets you."

Isaiah tossed the shirt over Leo's face, covering the distant and unfocused look in his eyes. He was still a young vampire who had only killed two humans, excluding Leo.

The eyes of the dead still bothered his tainted soul.

"You should have acted human." Isaiah snorted disdainfully before walking away.

He had only taken five steps when the fog cleared instantly, and the sun's rays intensified greatly.

Aaaaah!

Isaiah felt nauseous, staggering a bit and falling on a knee. He wasn't sure why, but his instinct was screaming danger—there was something extremely dangerous behind him!

Isaiah nimbly turned, his eyes widening as he saw Leo standing with his bloodied shirt in his hand and a look of annoyance.

"I know you are an animal, but the least you could do is send my shirt to the dry cleaners."