Lucas had been gathering intel for weeks, visiting libraries, inns, even the newly created drug trade in the capital was breeding grounds for rumors.
Yet all he got was nothing.
There were a few capable trackers, but their skills were mostly focused on tracking animals or prey in a forest. Still, that didn't stop him from learning from the hunters he came across.
Of course, not many were willing to teach a random visitor that came to their doorstep. So Lucas first tried to pay for their services. If that didn't work, he gave them a choice between life or death. Then many became quite willing to help out. Sadly, it didn't get him any closer to Asta, though he did learn quite a few neat tracking spells.
His motivation kept plummeting each time he reached a dead end. It was starting to annoy him. His morale was still holding strong, but having achieved nothing of substance was starting to weigh on his mind.
Sitting in another inn, his appearance was completely different. Two small horns were placed on his forehead as his skin was blood red. Using the disguising devices the members of the Underground used before, he was trying to go around unnoticed while gathering intel.
Sitting at one of the tables, all he had was a sticky table, ale he didn't drink from and no interesting conversations around him.
He had been to this inn quite a few times now, it was one of the biggest ones in the capital. Which only gave him a slight hope of hearing something interesting, but for once, he hated the fact his senses were improved to such a level of hearing, smelling and almost tasting every smack, burp and fart from the uncouthly customers.
Ready to leave, a hooded man dashed by his table, leaving behind a single note. The man hurried to rushed to leave the inn, his speed almost made him invisible to some of the normal demons sitting around.
Seeing he finally had some action, he grabbed the note and followed the man in an instant.
Exiting the inn, the man was nowhere to be seen, but it didn't matter. Lucas had learned plenty of tracking skills in search of someone who knew more about it.
Learning all the skills of renowned hunters, he was capable of sensing the mana more finely.
Yet when he opened his magic vision and searched for the mana the man gave off, there was nothing.
'The fuck? That mystical hunter son of a bitch said it would be like seeing a line leading to the prey, where the hell is it?'
'It's been blocked, removed or changed.'
'An artifact?'
'Most likely.'
'What does the note say?'
Taking a closer look at the note, Lucas couldn't help but frown.
'Lord Alastor wishes to meet us?'
'Lord? Has that cheating bastard such an ego he can't see himself as something normal any longer?'
'No, this is their stupid naming system. The descendants inherits the name of the family. Astaroph was the 52nd, Lord Alastor is most likely someone powerful from the Alastor bloodline.'
'I hope he's at least a little less of an asshole.'
'We can hope.'
Not wasting any time, he instantly latched on the single clue he had. Travelling to the correct address that was noted down, he expected to arrive at a lavish mansion or castle, yet it was just a normal roadside house in a seemingly random street.
The demons walking around didn't even have any magic in them. This was a normal neighborhood for the most part.
Knocking on the door, it opened almost right after by a demon dressed in a butler's suit.
"Good afternoon, esteemed guest. Please make your way upstairs, the dear lord is waiting for you."
The demon butler didn't even open his eyes. 'He's not just a butler. I can sense his power, he's good.'
'Indeed. He looks like a decent prey. Just try to contain your bloodlust. We're here on invitation.'
'Don't worry, I can keep myself in check.'
'Hah! I'm the last person who would believe that! You just push it to me to deal with.'
Walking past the man, Lucas took the stairs, arriving at a small office, a large intimidating demon sat on a small chair with his legs crossed. The man had a light smile on his face, but the power emanating from him was more than enough to put Lucas on edge.
He felt like he stepped into a trap. The horns on the demon curved more than once, yet still reached high in the sky.
Standing at the entrance, Lucas tried to calculate his chances of running away before the demon lifted his arms up.
"Don't worry, Lucas. I'm don't have any intention of hurting you. I don't know if my words hold any value for you, but I'm willing to take a vow with my core at stake."
The fact that his disguise was useless in front of him, he disabled it. "Can you also read minds?"
"Hohoho, you must've had a rough encounter with my son. Don't worry, innate gifts aren't hereditary. I don't posses any innate gifts myself, sadly. You, on the other hand posses more than one," the man kept his calm and jovial demeanor despite Lucas not reciprocating.
"I don't have a single one."
The older demon frowned for a moment, "Hmm? I'm not an expert in this field, but I've met plenty of individuals with innate gifts to the point I can point them out from a distance. I've seen you in action for quite a bit. Are you just trying to hide behind a mask? Or are you ignorant of your own powers?"
Lucas frowned upon hearing that. If there was anyone who knew himself, it would've been the parts that formed him.
"Unlike your so-called son, I wasn't blessed with powers or given gifts by the world. I reached my position due to my own blood and sweat."
"Looks like I hit a nerve, my apologies," the man bowed slightly, his long hair draped down besides his horns. "It was not my intention to anger you. The reason I called for this meeting was because I believe I might be able to help you."
"And why would the father of the next Duke be so willing to help his enemy?"
The man shook his head, "As you get older, you start to stop caring about what your descendants do. I can't control them all to my wishes, so I've decided to simply let them be. Whether or not Alastor gets the throne matters little to me. Besides, I wouldn't help you for free. In fact, I won't help you at all unless you do me a favor."
"What could I possibly do that you can't?"
"Hahaha, money and resources are powerful, but they can't always form a solution. What I need is someone willing to befriend an acquaintance in order to help them. If you accept my request, you'll have to fix someone's heart so you can break it."
Lucas frowned for a moment. The request itself felt strange, there didn't seem to be any good reason for making such a demand. Only a single possibility came to mind.
"You want to reawaken someone?"
The man's eyes widened slightly before he flashed a smile. "Correct. Looks like I'm not the only one who can read minds. Then I believe you also know why I can't do it."
"Yes. If it's someone on your side, you can't take the blame. But then I'll need a better disguise, because I'm not going to take the full brunt of his anger as well."
"Hahaha, perfect. I'll provide you with an artifact that will hide your appearance for all mages under Rank 3 and everything I know about the man."
"I never said I would accept it. You haven't even mentioned how you would be able to help me."
The man smiled, "Of course. I know who you're looking for, and frankly, I don't like what happened between Alastor and Astaroph. They were both capable men, losing one of them would only hurt our Dukedom in the long run. If you help me with my request, I'll make sure that Alastor won't accept the position of Duke until he is found. "
Lucas felt even more on edge. The rewards seemed too good to be true. He just had to reawaken someone by giving them some form of psychological trauma, in return, he would be able to pause the competition.
Sadly, to Lucas, the competition for the seat mattered little, but if he could get Asta there, he wouldn't only save him, but keep his promise to him as well. The fact that it would be extremely beneficial to him just made him even more wary of the man in front of him.
After standing in the doorway for some time, Lucas figured out an escape route. The man in front of him was at least Rank 4, so a direct confrontation was out of the question, but running away might be possible. Taking his chances, Lucas placed his hand in the lion's jaw.
"Asta was kidnapped by a mage capable of creating portals without artifacts and was capable of hiding his presence better than most hunters I know. If you want my help, then you'll have to promise to make everyone search for Asta. Considering your resources, it shouldn't be that hard to stir everyone to seek him out. Besides that, I'll need a meeting with the Space Guardian."
The man's smile widened ever so slightly. 'Looks like he already knows who got Asta. It was pretty obvious considering everything, but I'm afraid we need a bit more time.'
"I am a mighty lord renowned for his intelligence and power, the closest friend to the Duke, yet I've only seen that Guardian of Space once, when he was hired. From then on, I've not ever had the pleasure of meeting him. But I believe I can arrange a meeting with him for you. And I'm willing to encourage the other families to join in the search, results I can't promise."
"So how come you believe you can arrange a meeting now if you're never in contact with him?", Lucas wasn't going to let it go. The man in front of him wasn't asking for a simple deal, to him, he was even part of why Asta disappeared in the first place. It wouldn't make sense for them to start helping each other.
"Because, Lucas, I can do so by removing my family from the competition all together," the man lost his smile as he laid bare his motives.
"You want to exit out from the succession battle?"
"Exactly. All my predecessors, myself, and now my son, have always had to battle it out against the others. Never has anyone else besides someone with the Astaroph's name won. This time is no different, since my son technically lost. There's no point in putting my family in danger for a seat they won't ever get. I might as well consolidate the families power for a few centuries and re-enter when the time is right. Once my family steps away from the competition, the Duke will grant me some things. I'll request a meeting for you then."
"Then why not do so now?"
"Hahaha, I thought you were a born mage, Lucas. Since when do we do something without getting any benefits. I was planning on exiting, but that can wait for a few more decades. I can push it forward if you want me to."
"For a price."
"Exactly."
Lucas hated the look in his eyes, only because he recognized himself in them.
---
Deep in a forbidden region, a lone hut stood in the middle of a cursed forest. The hut was merely a cover, for after taking the stairs to an underground cell, a demon was hung up by his wrists. Blood was running down his legs as it pooled beneath him. The nails from both his fingers and toes were ripped out.
Hanging there lifelessly, the demon didn't seem to have any horns. That, or it was covered by his hair, which was tinted dark crimson. The air was filled with an bloody scent, as all the demon could taste was a bitter iron. His red skin became indistinguishable from the blood.
The sound of footsteps accompanied by a cane reverberated through the cell. An older looking demon came down, a cane by his side to hold him up, he stared at the demon.
"Hello there. This is the 34th day. Are you willing to use your powers yet?"
Not a sound or even movement was given. If it weren't for the fact that the blood kept running from his wounds, one would think him dead.
"As I have reiterated before, I don't mean to harm you. It's my purpose in life to stimulate your emotions to awaken your Demonic Powers. The moment you can use them, I will set you free. Now, are you willing?"
The old man talked with a slow and steady pace, as if he feared the man before him might not hear him that well. Since the man didn't bother saying anything, the old man put his cane to the side as he grabbed a notched whip.
Opening his cell door, he stepped inside as he unfurled the whip. Readying his stance, he lifted his arm and swung it wide. The whip landed on the man's chest, leaving a deep red streak on his already bruised and red skin. Scratches made the blood pour out.
Seeing no reaction from the strung up man, the older demon lifted his arm once more. Continuously whipping the demon, he eventually stopped to heal the wounds so he wouldn't bleed out.
Not that he could die from bloodloss. The arrays in the room constantly healed the man when his life was nearing death. Otherwise, the wounds would stay.
Finding no success with the whip, the old man furled it back up and went to fetch an iron tong with a piece of almost melting coal. Bringing the tong close to the man's body, he didn't even retract his stomach. Without reaction, the older demon pushed the melting piece of coal straight into his abdomen.
The man started to scream out loud, as his skin was being burned at the slightest touch. Finally seeing a reaction, the man started to rub the scolding tongs over the man's body, making him cry out tears of blood. His yells and screams certainly reached the outside world, but in the forbidden forest, not many visitors were present.
The coal started to cool down after giving most of its heat to the suffering demon. Putting it away, he stared at the destroyed body of the demon before healing it back to the point where he wouldn't die.
The demon didn't bother saying words as the pain was making him incapable of barely breathing. He barely could think after all the nights he spend here. For the physical torture was somewhat bearable if his mind was intact, but due to the illusions that plagued his dreams, all he had were deep nightmares that drained his mental energy.
Since there was no response from the demon, the old man grabbed a spoon and stared at the man's eyes.