Innocent Devil’s Harem Ch. 106 (BOOK 8) (Patreon)

November 13, 2022

NOTE: Well, this is pretty much the culminating chapter of this entire series (the climax I was aiming for since like Book 2). We are about to get some major hints at quite a few mysteries, and the next two chapters 107 and 108 will probably unravel the rest of it, including the mystery of the black stone (likely in Ch 108, the way it's looking).

This chapter does have a recap, but it's still a really long chapter even without the recap.

<< Chapter 105 | Ch 1 (Book 1) | Ch 16 (Book 2) | Ch 31 (Book 3) | Ch 46 (Book 4) | Ch 61 (Book 5) | Ch 76 (Book 6) | Ch 91 (Book 7)

- CHAPTER 106: Confrontation -

Thus far, our entire Saturday had not gone even remotely as planned, or even as expected, in so many ways. After getting that unexpected letter from my biological father on Wednesday after school, I spent the next two days trying to learn a defensive spell, so that I would be prepared for any unsuspecting attacks that might occur when I finally met my family, including my father and my twelve living brothers.

Unfortunately, my training didn’t go as well as hoped, even if my struggle was absolutely anticipated, given that it was a lot to expect of anyone. However, that didn’t mean Serenity and I went completely defenseless.

The redheaded succubus Miriam was absolutely not going to let me walk into a den of lions unprotected, and applied a magical barrier on both me and Serenity before we left, promising that it should last at least twelve hours and would use our own magic if we came under attack by an unanticipated spell.

Of course, she had always planned on doing that, if needed, but wanted me to learn the spell on my own, if at all possible, so that I didn’t have to depend on her. And so that I wouldn’t run into the problem of the barrier fading before we came back home.

Which was exactly what ended up happening…

And not in the way I expected…

The mature brunette, named Ms. Elizabeth Monroe, picked me and Serenity up at 8 AM in the morning, and proceeded to drive us the four-hour distance to meet my father, and also attend a funeral for who had been the oldest of his living sons. On the way, we tried to get to know her better, and to learn more about what kind of situation we were walking into.

Unfortunately, what she had to say wasn’t encouraging.

She spoke of constant harassment and abuse between my older siblings, with them typically picking on the youngest the most. Which, prior to me, had been a guy named Joseph, who was only in his mid-thirties, much younger compared to my other brothers, and who had suffered a lot at the hands of our family.

In particular, Ms. Monroe spoke of a young woman named Rachel, who literally gouged out her own eyes after being compelled by the others, in order to prevent such a thing from ever happening again. It was a gruesome and disturbing reality, and it made me all the more thankful that Serenity could no longer be compelled in the first place.

However, it also made me concerned that hiding my power would be difficult, especially if I already had a target on my head, since I was the newest to the family, as well as the youngest brother to pick on.

But then, even something more unexpected happened, even before trouble with my brother’s started.

I was taken to my father’s office, since he had unavoidable work to attend to just before the funeral service, only for a black-haired, blue-eyed, short, petite, gorgeous succubus to come barging in unannounced. And to make matters more complicated, the moment that I truly looked at her, I was hit with an intense sensation of familiarity, even though I’d never seen her in my entire life.

Needless to say, she was confused, I was confused, and we both wanted to avoid bringing attention to this bizarre situation.

She promptly departed, and after speaking with my father for a few more minutes, I promptly made an excuse to go find her. I did, and we ended up talking, but the realization of who she really was didn’t come to mind until we got to the cathedral where the funeral service was being held.

While a bunch of my brothers were harassing Joseph, one of the others was busy harassing Rachel, the blind girl, prompting Ms. Monroe to intervene. Which also resulted in us meeting Rachel and her making a comment that prompted me to whisper Miriam’s defensive spell out loud.

A spell that Ms. Monroe actually knew, since the person who had helped Miriam create it was the exact same person who I had just met not long ago.

The succubus who currently went by the name Delilah.

Through a series of messages with the short woman, as well as information provided mentally by Miriam through Gwen, I was able to confirm that this particular individual was, in fact, Miriam’s long lost friend. And promptly tried to win her to my side.

Something I had already done with Ms. Elizabeth Monroe, by that point, allowing her to see and experience my flames, which made the fire spirit living inside of her immediately want to abandon my father and serve me instead.

All in due time though, since I hadn’t come to this event with the intention of openly opposing my father.

If anything, I had to avoid that as much as possible, since I was still inexperience even if I was also very powerful. I still had so much to learn, before I put myself in a situation where I might go head-to-head against a powerful entity or organization.

However, my brothers definitely made it difficult.

Just as I was deleting messages I’d exchanged with Delilah, wanting to ensure that our conversation was never seen by anyone else accidentally, one of my more muscular brothers, by the name of Judah, tried to steal my phone away.

And I went from fine to enraged in an instant.

Almost breaking the guy’s arm, I transformed my eyes, and let everyone feel my palpable homicidal rage for long enough to make a very clear point.

That I was not to be messed with.

However, then things took an even more unexpected turn, after the funeral service.

Our small group was late to the repast banquet, partially because I had been busy discussing the possibility of forming an alliance with my brother Joseph, only for us to show up and for me to discover with my third-eye that the prepared meat…was poisoned…

Or, as Delilah soon confirmed, cursed.

A curse called Mathur’s End, which was apparently only harmful to nonhumans.

It was a tense situation, and my father was visibly embarrassed and pissed over what had almost happened, vowing to never let such an offense ever occur again. He also thanked me publicly, though it did feel a bit insincere. Because, despite his words of appreciation, I didn’t feel like he truly meant it.

Or rather, while I was sure he did appreciate me speaking up and stopping the worst from happening, I felt confident that he also didn’t enjoy being indebted to me. More than that, when he thanked me, I felt like he was more thinking along the lines of ‘this will never happen again,’ as well as ‘I must show due respect, so that I am not shamed even further,’ rather than feeling any true appreciation.

It was more about him avoiding shame for himself.

Once everyone not directly family had left, we then ended up eating the food that wasn’t cursed at the request of our father. Because he wanted to salvage what remained of this unfortunate day, and to still eat in remembrance of the son who passed.

But it was a super awkward meal.

And despite the fact that I’d saved everyone’s lives, I didn’t get any sense of appreciation from the others. If anything, while I did feel like there was some respect there now, I also felt an intense aura of jealousy. As if they hated me for being more in favor with our father than they were, even if that was actually only their personal perceptions, since I wasn’t confident that was the case.

To make matters worse, as if to confirm how the others truly felt, after the meal Judah came up to me to give me a big hug in ‘supposed’ appreciation, only for his gold rings to touch my back…

And my defensive barrier instantly popped, like a soap bubble.

Fuck!

Just like that, out of nowhere, the barrier Miriam had applied was gone, and I was suddenly defenseless from any unsuspecting magical attacks, with my only hope of surviving such an attack being my ability to regenerate quickly.

And shit, I didn’t even know if he did it on purpose or not!

Didn’t even know if he knew that he had done it, since it was obviously an effect of one of his rings!

Part of me wondered if maybe the hug was for ‘show,’ just so it looked like he was showing appreciation in front of our father, but another part of me wondered if it truly was a warning. To break through my defenses so easily and clearly communicate that they were still a threat to me. That I wasn’t all-powerful.

That they were competent enemies.

I didn’t know, and thankfully Serenity’s barrier was still intact, but I went from feeling ‘alright’ to now being very uncomfortable about the situation I’d found myself in. Thankfully, Elizabeth, who was definitely on my side at this point, sensed that rise in my tension and decided to speak with my father about essentially ‘calling it a day,’ while things were still more positive after so much misfortune.

He agreed to it, giving one last speech to only us brothers, coupled with the one female each of us were expected to bring, finally finishing off by publicly addressing me, asking that I meet him in his office in approximately one hour.

Given that I’d been warned by Elizabeth that he would want to talk to me anyway, since we didn’t get much of a chance earlier, I pretty much expected it. Especially now, since I’d just saved everyone’s lives, and overheard Delilah mentioning that I was owed the ‘Law of Deliverance,’ whatever that was.

Likely some kind of Incubi law.

Delilah even suggested that she only brought it up to avoid him feeling more shame, seeming to know exactly what to say to avoid suspicion about her true intentions. Since I assumed it was meant for my benefit.

Still, I had been hoping to talk to her before I met with my father.

And I also realized that I could probably have her reapply the defensive spell on me, since it was one she helped create jointly with Miriam a very long time ago, before they lost touch entirely after being forcefully separated somehow.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t sure how to make that happen.

One, because Delilah left with him, upon his request, and two because he specifically requested that Elizabeth come with him too, instructing me and Serenity to wait here, at the banquet hall, by ourselves, until Ms. Monroe came back for us…

Which meant, we would be forced to engage further with my brothers, assuming they didn’t avoid me outright, something I knew wasn’t going to happen in a million years. Not when they all gathered around our table the moment he was out the door with both the succubus and ‘fire bitch,’ the only two people who might have been able to keep them in check.

Undoubtedly, it was a clear show of force, and I was still trying to recover from having my barrier popped without warning.

Fortunately…or maybe unfortunately, their behavior also provoked my ego.

Because I quickly stopped caring as the eleven of them circled around us, my mind growing cold again as I decided I might just really burn them all alive if someone tried attacking me.

Thus, scooting my chair a little closer to Serenity, I leaned back in my seat, wrapped my arm around her shoulder, crossed my ankle over my knee, and got real comfortable as I focused on Judah, who was clearly the aggressor here, even if they were all wanting to intimidate me.

Joseph and Rachel hadn’t left yet, even though there was nothing keeping them here, and I suspected I knew why. Because, even if Joseph had no power here, he didn’t want to risk me taking back my offer to give him power, and give all his women immunity to compulsion.

It was obvious in the way that he and Rachel held hands on the table -- tense, not like a loving hold, but like they were hanging off a cliff and grasping the other for dear life.

Meeting Judah’s gaze, I didn’t say anything, making it clear that I wasn’t even remotely intimidated by the show of force, realizing that we probably weren’t going to get out of this without revealing some more of our power.

Serenity was already prepared.

Without a doubt, pretty much all of them had tried to compel her, but when one of the guy’s behind me moved a little too close, I finally decided to speak up.

“Go ahead and touch her,” I said casually, causing him to freeze, especially since he was technically in my blind spot. “It won’t be me that rips off your arm.”

“Bullshit,” Judah hissed.

Serenity just grinned, abruptly tilting her head straight back, since the guy who had almost touched her was practically on top of her, with her abruptly shifting only her eyes, like I had done before, her sclera becoming pitch-black with the motion, her irises turning crimson red, her pupils narrowing into slits naturally like Gwen’s.

“I’d love to eat your heart,” she added cheerfully as she looked up to meet the man’s gaze.

The guy straight-up screamed, and jumped backward half a dozen feet, only to continue backing up into the food table, almost knocking some of the containers off. Several others moved away too, at least two cursing under their breath.

Serenity then giggled and focused on Judah, ensuring that everyone saw her eyes. “Would love to eat your heart too,” she said warmly.

“What the fuck?!” he exclaimed, reflexively taking a step back. “What the hell is she?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I taunted. “She’s not kidding about eating your heart. I’ve got her on a tight leash, but get her excited enough, and even I might not be able to control her.”

“Fuck,” he hissed. “This is fucking bullshit. I bet it was you who cursed the food wasn’t it?”

I frowned at that. “If I was the one who cursed the food, which is absurd, then why would I have told everyone it was cursed?”

One of my other brother’s immediately spoke up, with me realizing it was Daniel, the guy who was initially harassing Rachel when we first showed up at the cathedral, while the others were harassing Joseph.

“You did it to make yourself look good.”

I scoffed. “I love steak. I almost ate it myself. And honestly, probably the only reason why I noticed was because I put two big slabs on my plate, because I was fucking hungry and I fucking love steak.” I scoffed again. “Look, I don’t give a damn whether you appreciate it or not, but had I not been here today, then you’d all be fucking dead.” I focused on Judah. “And with that short chick, it’s a good thing she doesn’t hate you, because it would have been so easy for her to just say it was too late for you.”

That drew him up short, with him not having anything to say to that.

“She fucking saved your life,” I nearly spat.

“Yeah, and I thanked her,” he snapped back.

“Think she’ll save your life next time?” I wondered. “Think she would have saved your life if our father wasn’t right here asking for her to try?”

That again drew him up short.

I looked around at my other brothers, all of them still mostly surrounding us, but like ten feet away now from the startle of seeing Serenity’s red eyes, which were still very much vibrant red as she casually looked at each of them in turn.

“That could have been any one of you,” I said seriously, focusing on each of my brothers. “Every single person here was about to take a bite. Would she have saved you? Or would she have just said it was too late?”

I wasn’t even sure why I was sticking up for Delilah so much, really just wanting to say anything to put them in their place. To get the subject on something else other than harassing me and Serenity.

Judah finally scoffed. “Yeah, well I still think it was you.”

“Oh really?” I said tauntingly. “Our father doesn’t have any enemies? You don’t have any enemies? Shit, didn’t a bunch of werewolves just recently vanish into thin air? Think I was responsible for that too?” I tried so hard not to smirk, as I continued sarcastically. “Wow, how highly you must think of me, even though I didn’t know any of you before today. I’m apparently a werewolf killing, curse creating, attention seeker, who went through so much effort to create a lethal curse, just so I could get in father’s good graces. Because that makes absolute fucking sense.”

He looked like he was about to respond, but I decided to continue before he could.

“Look, you don’t like me? That’s perfectly fine. I didn’t come here for you. I came here because our father just lost one of our brothers, and asked me to be here.”

“Like you fucking care,” he snapped.

“About the brother I’ve never met? How can I care about him if I didn’t even know he existed prior to today? Shit, our father didn’t even tell me why I was coming here. The only reason I thought it might be a funeral was because of how he asked us to dress.”

“So then you admit it?” he spat.

Shit, just how immature was this asshole?

I mean, I knew he looked about twenty-five, but this guy had to be at least over the age of fifty. Shit, he might even be over a hundred! And yet he was acting like a child! I knew adults could be immature, but this was ridiculous. It was like none of them had ever grown up beyond the age of twelve!

They were like a bunch of idiotic middle school boys in the bodies of grown men. As if their power over others caused them to never grow up, since they could pretty much get whatever they wanted from most women.

And it was fucking ridiculous!

Annoyed, I unexpectedly had a crazy idea, just to throw them off entirely. Because honestly, at this point, I was just looking for ways to try to delay as long as possible, to try to keep this situation at least mostly civil, before Elizabeth came back to get us.

And so, I kind of wanted them to think I was crazy.

Maybe even a bit unpredictable.

So that they might feel more wary about messing with me.

I sighed heavily, deciding not to answer Judah’s question about ‘admitting it’ that I didn’t care.

Focusing on Serenity, I spoke casually.

“I’m kind of getting bored waiting. Want to fuck on the table while they watch?”

Serenity giggled boisterously, her skin beginning to gray slightly too, just to startle them even more. “Ohhh,” she groaned. “You know I get hungry when I’m horny. Can I eat their flesh?”

“Only if they touch you. Then you can bite their cocks off.”

“Oh my!” she said excitedly, giggling again. “Can I?”

“Fucking, what the fuck!” Judah roared in disbelief. “What the fuck is she? And what the fuck are you?”

I grinned at him. “Well, I could be your friendly brother.” My eyes instantly turned black and glowing gold, my pupils turning into slits, my voice low and menacing. “Or I could be your worst fucking nightmare.” My eyes turned back to normal as I smiled warmly. “Totally up to you, brother.”

Unexpectedly, before anyone could even respond to that, the doors burst open in the lobby area, and Elizabeth came rushing in as if she was expecting to find a bloodbath, only to immediately slow down when we came into sight, speaking up harshly.

“What the hell is going on here?” she snapped.

I glanced back at her cheerfully, causing her eyebrows to shoot up as I responded. “Oh, we were just socializing. Ready to go?”

She just stared at me for a long second, before finally responding hesitantly. “Yes, your father is ready to see you.”

“Great,” I said warmly, unsurprised when Joseph and Rachel immediately began standing up several tables away, clearly relieved to be getting out of there.

However, Elizabeth immediately continued.

“Not you Joseph. I’ve been given very specific instructions to pick up only Kai and Serenity, and bring them directly back to your father.”

Fuck!

I could literally see the impending doom cross both of their expressions, both looking like they were about to be murdered the moment we walked out of the room.

Shit, without a doubt, my brothers would pounce on them the moment we were gone. Especially since they couldn’t get anywhere with me, they would immediately go back to harassing the next youngest. And they’d probably even take it a step further.

The moment that we left, no doubt they were going to pin Rachel down, and show her that ‘being blind’ wasn’t going to stop them from doing whatever the fuck they wanted. Shit, I could sense it in her aura. As strong as Rachel was, as determined as she was, she was terrified now.

She knew exactly what was going to happen when we left.

Hell no.

Hell fucking no.

I’d just agreed to an alliance with them, and that went both ways. No way in hell was I abandoning them right now.

“Joseph, Rachel, let’s go,” I said firmly.

Elizabeth was shocked. “I just told you they couldn’t come,” she hissed.

“And I never said I was going with you,” I snapped. “We’re walking back to the church. You can pick us up there, if you want.”

She pursed her lips, but didn’t say anything.

And Joseph wasted no time grabbing Rachel roughly by the arm, not at all in a friendly way, and rushing her out of there like their lives depended on it, heading straight for the exit without waiting for me.

I didn’t blame him.

Not with the tension lingering in the air.

Not when our eleven brothers were just waiting to pounce on someone.

Still wanting to put on a show, I calmly wrapped my arm around Serenity’s shoulders and began walking out too, ignoring Elizabeth entirely as I did so, not at all worried about her dealing with the others.

She just stood there for a long few seconds, before I heard her curse under her breath, only to turn around and begin following us out.

Otherwise, no one said a single word.

It was completely silent as we exited the building and began making our way down the alley to get to the street.

Elizabeth didn’t even try to stop us, climbing into the car and driving on over to the cathedral ahead of us. In the meantime, Joseph looked back hesitantly, still holding onto Rachel’s arm, prompting me to speak firmly.

“Don’t worry about us. Just walk. And when we get to the church? Leave, immediately. Staying isn’t worth it.”

He simply nodded, continuing to pull his blind wife along as fast as he could manage without tripping her.

However, once we got about halfway there, having walked about a tenth of a mile, their panic seemed to subside some when it was clear we weren’t being followed. He then finally readjusted his hold on her, wrapping his arm around her waist instead, but letting her walk far enough away from him that she could comfortably hold onto him at the same time, her arm wrapped around behind, her thin hand grabbing his shoulder. It looked like it would be an awkward walking posture, and yet it looked comfortable for them, like they were used to walking that way.

They slowed down a ton too, now only walking at a more normal pace.

Serenity and I decided to catch up, all four of us moving more casually, with us just right behind the two of them.

“Thank you, by the way,” Joseph finally said. “For not leaving us there.”

“It goes both ways, right? You have my back, and I’ve got yours.”

He glanced back at me, before nodding and looking forward again.

“And I’m not stupid,” I continued. “I know what was about to happen. And no way was I leaving you to the wolves. Fucking bastards. If not for you and Rachel about to eat that steak, I might have just let them all die.”

“T-Thank you,” Rachel blurted out, revealing she was actually a bit emotional -- like, ‘I almost got sexually assaulted’ kind of emotional.

I let Serenity answer her. “You’re welcome,” she said sincerely. “And, umm, just so you know. I don’t eat hearts.”

Rachel laughed at that, almost tripping in the process, reaching up to wipe her eyes, which were leaking tears now. “Fuck,” she hissed, only to sniffle. “I’m sorry for being a bitch.”

“It’s fine,” Serenity said reassuringly. “I’m actually a detective and have to be a bitch sometimes too.”

Joseph looked back at her in surprise. “You’re a cop?”

“Yep,” Serenity said cheerfully. “The real kind, not just the fun kind.”

Rachel laughed again, only to sniffle a second time.

Serenity continued. “And hey, just so you know. We aren’t kidding about the immunity thing. Or about any of the other stuff. It’s all real, and it’s also important we keep it all a secret.”

Rachel turned her head toward Joseph as if prompting for him to respond.

And he did, glancing back at us again.

“Thank you. Seriously, thank you. And yeah, we won’t tell anyone.” He paused. “Umm, how soon do you think we’ll hear from you?”

I sighed. “Hopefully tonight, but don’t be too shocked if something comes up, and it’s not until tomorrow. Worst case, and you’re worried, then just send me a quick message.”

“Okay sure,” he replied, focusing up at the church as we walked along the black fencing, getting ready to turn into the parking lot. “Then I guess we’ll say goodbye for now.”

“Yeah, we probably shouldn’t make Ms. Monroe wait any longer, and I want to make sure you guys actually get out of here, so go ahead and make haste.”

“Yeah,” he agreed simply, picking up the pace as he looked around, as if scoping out for hidden trouble, not saying anything else as they made a beeline for their vehicle. Which was actually a really nice car. A fancy expensive one, indicating that he might actually be a respectful well-paid individual in the real world, away from our nightmare family.

Serenity and I automatically slowed down when we caught sight of Elizabeth’s car waiting in plain sight, with me waiting until Joseph and Rachel were both in the vehicle and peeling out of there before picking up the pace again.

Separating, Serenity opened her own door this time as we both climbed in simultaneously and slammed the door shut.

I spoke up before Elizabeth could get a word in.

“Sorry for yelling at you,” I said sincerely.

She hesitated at that, beginning to drive, looking as if I’d really interrupted whatever she’d been about to say, only to wait until she was pulling out onto the street to respond.

“No, I actually appreciate your backbone,” she finally admitted. “I’m just worried you’re unaware of how thin the ice is, that you’re walking on right now.”

I was sincerely shocked by that.

“What do you mean?” I asked seriously, since she was implying that there was something more going on here -- more than just my brothers being annoyed at me.

“Something’s off,” she admitted. “With your father.”

“How so?”

She sighed. “I don’t know, but your father was acting very weird after we left. I figured he would be appreciative about what you did, but I’m not getting that impression at all.”

“Shit,” I hissed, pulling out my phone just to see if Delilah had sent me anything to tip me off.

When I saw I didn’t have any messages, I continued.

“You know, one of my brothers just accused me of being responsible for that curse. You don’t think he believes that, do you? Like, that would just be so ridiculous. If I created a curse to kill everyone, then I would have fucking let it kill everyone. Shit, just how stupid is my family?”

She sighed heavily. “Your father is a very intelligent man. I don’t think he would be foolish enough to believe something so absurd. I’m just forewarning you to be careful. Don’t get arrogant and demand anything of him. You still need to treat him with respect.” She grimaced. “All his sons are terrified of him, and while I don’t know everything he’s done to instill such fear, I know their fear is not without good reason. Your father is not a man to be openly trifled with.” She sighed. “So respect him, and don’t expect him to respect you in return, no matter how much you deserve it.”

I took a deep breath, wondering if that was part of the problem. The idea that I deserved respect and he wasn’t willing to offer it to me, even though he demanded it from me.

“Yeah, and I’m fine with that,” I agreed. “Like, I honestly would prefer to be on good terms with him, if at all possible. I don’t want problems. Shit, I still have several weeks of school to finish. I can’t afford this nonsense right now.”

“I understand,” she replied sympathetically.

I groaned. “Why did this have to happen the first day I show up?”

Elizabeth took a deep breath, already beginning to turn into the underground parking garage. “It’s horrible timing, I know.” She turned her head toward me. “But I’m really glad you were here. That curse would have killed me too. It’s slow, but lethal. We would have all been long since finished eating, before the first person died. And there’s no cure, as far as I’m aware.” She sighed, turning around the corner, and aiming for an empty parking space. “So thank you for that. If I didn’t already have reason to be in your service, I definitely have it now. Because, as I said, the spirit inside of me values only two things. Power and survival. And if the power you offer wasn’t enticing enough, then ‘undeniably saving our lives’ is more than enough reason to obey your every wish, from now until forever.”

I glanced at her as she parked, prompting her to glance at me too, holding my gaze.

She then raised her sunglasses, so I could see her gorgeous green eyes, framed by dark chestnut hair, a smirk slowly tugging at her lips at my reaction. Fuck, how was she so attractive?

I would think she was succubus with how much her face turned me on.

She wasn’t, I was sure of that.

But damn.

Most models couldn’t compete.

“You want me?” she said playfully then…seductively. “Because I’m yours.”

I tried to swallow. “Umm, yes.” I cleared my throat. “Just not right this second,” I clarified.

She smiled at that, but then frowned. “I guess I’ll wish you luck then. We’ll both just stay here.” She sighed. “As soon as you’re done talking, then we’ll head home. Okay?”

“Okay,” I replied, opening my door.

“Remember how to get there?” she asked seriously.

“I do,” I said simply. “Thanks,” I added before closing the door.

Taking a deep breath, I then began making my way over to the elevator, feeling a bit apprehensive about this. Hopefully, my father would just thank me and send me on my way, but I suspected the conversation would be much longer than that…

And I feared…

That it would be about something more than him expressing his appreciation…

Especially when he otherwise lorded over his sons like a tyrant, letting them do whatever they wanted so long as they feared and respected him, in particular. Like, I almost was afraid he was going to try to put me in my place, and make it clear that what I did was something only expected of a son, and not something that should be praised or rewarded.

Fuck.

Riding up the elevator to the tenth floor alone was exceptionally nerve-wracking, because I began to realize just how significant that Elizabeth, of all people, was warning me that something was off. For, she of all people would know. After all, she had practically been his righthand woman for a long time now, likely for several hundred years, given her age, and probably knew him almost better than anyone.

Which meant…

I truly needed to tread very carefully here.

I shouldn’t ask or expect a reward for saving everyone earlier, and should humbly insist that the best reward I could receive was just to go home. I shouldn’t even expect any kind of respect from him, since it sounded like he didn’t offer such things to his sons.

And really, I kind of wondered if the general expectation, that he was indebted to me due to my actions, was actually a big part of the potential issue. Because he didn’t want to be indebted to someone like me, and might take offense if I even so much as implied that he was.

Possibly…

But as I walked down the hallway, I began to feel like something was definitely up…

Because I felt that confirmation when I reached his office, and opened the glass door to the receptionist area, seeing that all the blinds were closed, all the lights off, making it fairly dark even though the sun was still up outside.

But then there was something else.

Auras.

His aura, definitely pissed.

And then another aura.

A familiar one.

Afraid and helpless.

I gasped as I rushed for the door, opening it up to find darkness, my eyes automatically shifting to gold to see what lie within.

My father, standing at his desk with his hands planted firmly on the surface, his skin dark gray, his eyes glowing gold like mine, his hair stark white…

And then there was Delilah, on her knees on the floor, her hands in thick metal cuffs on her thighs, a thick metal collar around her neck with several crimson inset gems, her blue eyes looking miserable and terrified as she looked up at me in the darkness.

My heart froze in my chest.

I focused on my father in alarm, baffled by what I was seeing.

“What are you doing to her?!” I exclaimed.

He scoffed at that, his tone full of anger. “Did you not realize I could compel a succubus? I promised her I would never do it! But you pushed me to extremes! And she’s told me everything!”

Holy shit, I was going to murder him!

I couldn’t believe this was happening right now!

“I’m so sorry,” Delilah whimpered desperately.

“Shut up!” he snapped at her, causing her to flinch. “Before I compel you again! And do worse than just get information out of you!” he snarled. He then glared at me. “And before you do anything stupid, that collar on her neck is cursed! The only way it comes off, is if I take it off. Otherwise, you’ll just be taking a fucking headless body home. If something happens to me, you’re taking a fucking headless body home! Her head melted, starting with her flesh!” He scoffed. “Oh and don’t worry. It won’t be a quick death. You’ll hear her scream your name before she fucking dies! As her face fucking melts off!”

FUCKING BASTARD!

I WAS GOING TO FUCKING MURDER HIM!

“Now,” he hissed. “I want to know why in the hell you think you can just come in here and steal my succubus and my Ifrit! Fucking little cunt! You’re about to learn your place right now!” He bared his teeth at me, looking even more pissed. “And I want to fucking know what in the hell this power is, that is so fucking enticing to my Ifrit!”

My eyes widened in shock at that, drawing me up short.

Because I didn’t tell Delilah that.

Fuck, I didn’t tell Delilah any of that!

But did that mean Elizabeth lied to me?!

Fuck, she could have lied about being ‘immune to compulsion,’ if she was fucking saying it under compulsion!

Because her telling him was the only way he would know…

Right?!

He grinned at my reaction, his tone sarcastic and full of spite. “Yeah, isn’t technology wonderful? I have my little fire slut’s car bugged. I heard everything the two of you discussed. Fucking everything!”

Shit!

But at least that meant Elizabeth truly was on my side…

But shit!

How could I be so stupid?!

SHIT!

He snarled at me. “And you’re going to fucking give me this power!” His voice became even more sinister. “Only then, might I let this little whore live long enough to become the newest ‘cum dump’ for my sons to beat the shit out of! Otherwise, I’ll just kill her now! That’s the only fucking deal you’re fucking getting! Either she dies! Or you give me this power, and she gets the shit fucked out of her by all my ‘repulsive’ sons! Fucking bitch had it coming anyway! Always running her fucking mouth, she fucking had it coming!”

Finally, it was too much.

The idea that my options were watch her die, or let her get sexually assaulted and beaten for all of eternity, was too much.

I fucking snapped.

My rage cooled and solidified.

It became a pulsing heart, beginning to beat deep within the pit of my stomach.

A life of its own, a fire fueled by eternal hatred.

My bones began popping.

My suit’s seams began splitting.

My black horns began growing.

One wrong move, and Delilah was dead.

If I killed this bastard, then Delilah was dead.

I had no way to remove the collar.

No way to prevent the spell from activating that would melt her face and dissolve her head.

But what I did have, was my ANGER.

What I did have, was my fucking RAGE.

And what I did have…

WAS MY OWN FUCKING SPELL.

The man’s gold eyes widened in horror, his hand shooting out toward Delilah, the red gems beginning to glow in the collar.

“Stop!” he shouted in a panic. “Fucking stop! I’ll fucking kill her! STOP!”

The entire building began to shake, pictures on the walls violently rattling.

My wings erupted from my back as I ascended to twelve feet, my horns having grown to their full length, sharply contrasted against my white hair…

Delilah began screaming, her bound hands clawing at the collar desperately as it began eating away at her flesh like acid.

AND MY RAGE DETONATED.

My voice EXPLODED from my throat.

“PROTECT, WHAT IS MINE.” She continued to scream, clawing desperately at the metal as it rapidly dissolved her flesh -- her lips, her nose, her cheeks all melting away. “SHIELD, WHAT IS MINE. Defend the rights of WHAT IS MINE.” She shrieked at the top of her lungs, in a matter of mere seconds, her skin completely dissolving on her face, the bone beginning to show. “INVOKE, WHAT IS FUCKING MINE! DEPENDENCE!”

Instantly, an earsplitting whine came from the metal, and the collar exploded in every direction, like shrapnel from a grenade, with Delilah promptly collapsing to the floor, her face raw muscle and bone, her adorable nose completely gone, her beautiful skin completely eaten away, looking entirely unrecognizable now.

A sight…I felt like I’d seen before. Or at least a similar one...

Long ago…

MY ANGER DOUBLED.

My father screamed. “Fuck! What the FUCK!” he shouted, immediately holding up his fist toward me, a gold ring with a crimson gem beginning to glow brightly, my right eye unexpectedly exploding…

Only to instantly regenerate, in the blink of an eye, fueled by my unending rage.

I barely noticed the brief loss of vision.

“WHAT THE FUUUUCK!” he screamed, my left eye exploding, and regenerating, my cheekbone dissolving, and regenerating, a piece of my brain melting, and regenerating.

His attempts to harm me only pissed me off more.

Without further hesitation…

I invoked what I knew was a forbidden spell.

One that I felt like I’d used once before…long, long ago.

One that I felt like had once almost killed me…in exchange for weakening my foe.

One that could destroy me now, even if my rage were true.

But…

One that would obey my will, because my body could now handle what I was about to fucking do.

And so I became my rage.

I became the fucking spell.

“Father,” I said simply, beginning to decrease in size as more magic, than I even had available, rapidly began to be devoured. “Did you not know?” I wondered curiously, my anger as hot as lava, and as cold as ice.

“Know fucking WHAT?!” he shrieked, making my right eye explode again, only for it to instantly regenerate.

I grinned at the agony in my body, as I felt my wings begin to decay, felt my right arm begin to wither away, this spell almost being too much for my body to handle, about to leave me at least temporarily maimed.

Yet, I would fucking cast it anyway.

For, he was going to fucking know.

“Father,” I said softly, my rage freezing cold…

Only for my voice to come out in a snarl, as it became fucking hot as hell.

“WRATH is my name, VENGEANCE is my purpose, RAGE is my power.”

“Stop!” he shrieked. “Stop right now!”

“For ten-thousand years, you will suffer in the blink of an eye. For ten-thousand years, you will be unable to die. For, FIRE is my ELEMENT, FLAMES are my POWER, INFERNO is my PUNISHMENT, INCINERATE is how I DEVOUR!”

“STOP!” he shrieked at the top of his lungs. “STOP, STOP, STOP!”

Too late.

My tone was cold again. “Father, did you not know? There are two endings to this forbidden spell, two punishments for me to seek out…and you are far too weak to waste my effort on the stronger punishment. Still, you will not only die, but will suffer for ten-thousand years, in the blink of an eye. You almost escaped death today, but decided to taunt death again anyway. You have brought this upon yourself.” I raised my voice, holding up my decrepit right arm, just as it began to crumble into ash. “For I AM WRATH! CEASE TO EXIST! INCINERATE!”

He shrieked at the top of his lungs, his skin beginning to fracture with blue fire threatening to burst outward from within…only for the flames to become a vacuum of suction into the abyss.

Instantly, rather than explode into ash, he imploded into fucking nothing, as did my right arm with him.

As if neither he, nor it, ever existed.

There was nothing left.

No sign that he’d ever been present in this room.

No sign that he met his fate here.

No sign that I’d ever had a right arm to begin with.

Serenity witnessed it all in my head, having taken the stairs when the building started shaking, racing with ease up the ten flights, already rushing down the hallway on the tenth floor, Elizabeth not too far behind.

To save Delilah.

For, like the old vampire who likewise destroyed his arm, I would heal, eventually.

She would not.

Not without help.

A moment later, and Serenity was bursting in the room, seeing with her own eyes that I was worse than I even felt, blood streaming from my eyes, my clothing in shreds, my right arm completely gone, my body too drained of energy and magic to even heal the limbs I’d lost. Even my wings were shriveled up to a third of their size, my body unable to absorb them.

Yet, despite her shock and grief, she didn’t hesitate.

She had brought a syringe with her in her purse, just in case, and she rushed over to me with the needle, even as I held out my left arm, with her jabbing it in my throbbing vein and drawing a sizeable amount of crimson fluid.

Elizabeth rushed into the room, focusing on me in alarm.

“Oh my God. What happened?!” Her hands instantly lit up in orange flames, with her looking pissed now. “Where the fuck is he?! I’ll fucking burn him alive!”

“Already done,” I coughed, prompting her eyes to widen in alarm. “I invoked WRATH,” I added.

Apparently, she truly understood what that meant, that I’d used a forbidden spell, because her glowing orange eyes widened in complete shock.

“You…” Her voice trailed off.

I inclined my chin. “For a brief moment in time, I became Wrath. And this is the result of my rage. My vengeance. It was more than death. More than Incinerate. Much more. It was pain and agony and punishment.”

Elizabeth just stared at me, her glowing orange eyes wide.

Serenity was rushing over to Delilah now, and grabbed her arm, injecting her with my blood.

The short succubus whimpered.

Her face eaten away, and she was fucking conscious right now.

Fuck.

Fuck!

My remaining anger…instantly shifted to tears, a wave of anguish washing over me, streams beginning to mix with my blood, agony plaguing me over what I’d let happen to her just now. Over the fact that it was my fault that she was in this condition.

And so…

My vengeance turned to remorse.

Without hesitation, I used the last bit of magic I had…

To cast one more spell.

For her.

For Miriam’s friend.

For…my beloved.

Gwen was yelling at me in my head.

‘Stop master! Stop! She’ll survive! She’ll be okay! But you’re not okay!’

Too late.

I opened my mouth to speak.

To make amends for my transgression.

To seek forgiveness for my sins.

To die in her place, knowing it wouldn’t be the first time I died and resurrected.

It wouldn’t even be the second time.

“I reside, I now return,” I whispered.

‘Master stop! Please stop!’

“This flesh, this bone, this vessel of mine…”

‘Master! Please!’

“Obey,” I whispered.

Serenity was suddenly at my side, having finished injecting the blood. “Kai, please,” she said seriously. “Please listen to Gwen. Please listen to Miriam. Please listen to me.”

I focused on her, my heart full of the remorse, sadness, and torment…of thousands of years…as I opened my mouth to speak.

For, this was who I truly was.

And…I could feel that this truly wasn’t the first time...

That I’d sacrificed everything to save the ones I loved.

“My soul, my spirit…this essence of mine. Obey.”

Unexpectedly, Gwen was suddenly pushing into me as if she were physically here, her presence seeming to envelope us both, even as I felt Serenity draw closer too.

‘Master, if you insist…then please borrow my strength.’

“Me too,” Serenity said firmly, wrapping her arms around me, her magic drawing closer as well, sinking deeper, merging with mine.

Gwen and Serenity’s magic merged with mine.

As I opened my mouth to continue, Serenity’s lips parted as well.

We continued as one, Gwen included, over a hundred miles away.

“Bone mend. Sinew bind. Flesh persist. Breathe new life. Make haste. OBEY.”

My knees buckled, and Serenity helped guide me to the floor, yet all I cared about was just one thing.

Just one thing.

Watching over Serenity’s shoulder, as magic flooded out of my body…

And watching, as the skin and muscle on Delilah’s face began to return.

Watching, as I used the last of my magic…

To repent for my transgressions.

To seek forgiveness for my sins.

To undo what I’d done…

Her face restored, but her mind likely still scarred…forever…

Never again.

No one would hurt them, ever fucking again.

So help me, over my dead body.

This would never happen, ever fucking again.

FEEDBACK: Being completely honest, this was NOT how I originally anticipated the meeting with his father going. This is definitely a case of the characters (like his father) doing things that I wasn't anticipating.

Because I created this character without fully understanding the implications of his personality on his future actions.

So I ended up getting to this point thinking I could make this turn out differently, only for it to just be impossible, given who each person involved is.

So, what did you think? About what happened. About what is being implied about Kai, etc.

Check out Wolfgirl's Pet Witch (now a prequel to this one).

The plot advances a lot faster than IDH. Over a month has already passed in the story after only 8 chapters.

Chapter 107 >>

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