Duke Bryan was looking at the television screen that had been constructed using the schematics brought by an ascender. He took a step away from the screen in the meantime. His infiltration unit on standby.

The duke found the lack of defensive measures around the mansion hard to believe. Almost like he was up against a novice. There was only standard traps bought secondhand laid around haphazardly.

"Is there really a land owner who is naive enough to trust technology?" He thought in disappointment. It was unknown if this sort of thing was a hobby or a standard act. Seemingly used to sending assassins.

As for what purpose they were sent?

Well, that was in their namesake and profession.

The duke turned the screen off and went to his lab. A look of derision appeared when he looked at a servant. His eyes looking down on the woman. Her shoulders were shivering, but dared not to run.

Fear had rooted her to the ground like prey.

"You'll help your master, right?" The duke asked the maid. She, who had been tasked with escorting her master, promptly lowered her head. Unable to offer an answer. The rumours were seemingly true.

His body smelled of chemicals and plants, with a slight tinge of blood in the air. The maid knew exactly why. A part of her wanted to refuse. Her face was twisting. Refusing his overbearing 'request'.

"I..." She was about to say it, but couldn't after seeing the intense emotions in his glare. The savage and cruel gaze unbefitting nobility. The duke seemed to be wondering how long she would be stalling.

The maid felt repulsed.

However, such feelings were useless...

It was in an instant... An overwhelming obsession appeared on her face that eased the fires of life in her composed eyes. The fear had been eased, and she looked like she'd be willing to sacrifice anything.

The maid nodded in a not-so-different way from how Jake eagerly followed Clara's commands. The fast growing emptiness in her eyes showed a lack of independent thought, but didn't seem hypnotised.

That slight contradiction was favourable to him.

The duke walked into his lab. He opened the door to reveal why his suit reeked of compounds. Chemicals and glass beakers were everywhere. Unhealthily clouded Ether was seeped into the atmosphere.

Still, the maid didn't seem to be able to refuse going in. Horror started to fill her internal mind. Her desires cut off from her actions... Her face was still smiling regardless of the emotions she was feeling.

"Why did you call me?" A feminine voice called out from the corridor on the right. The newly arrived foreigner saw the whole scene. The fog of cloudy Ether seemed not to affect her senses whatsoever.

Her clothes seemed esoteric. Skimpy in a few areas despite having the outer layers similar to a Chinese hanfu dress. A thin robe draping a qipao that exposed her stomach. A sash just underneath her modest chest holding everything together.

Although Bryan found her attire uncouth and maybe even a bit self-demeaning, he also knew his pride shouldn't be an enabler for him to make the worst mistake he could: Offending such a scary woman.

"My apologies, Miss Demon." The duke spoke to her in a robotic and emotionless tone. These words made her squint, but not for the reason others would expect. She stomped over in his direction and waved away the cloudy miasma covering her face.

The features of a pale beauty were unearthed.

"My name isn't literally 'Heavenly Demon'." The woman couldn't tell if he was being serious or sarcastic. She gave no real name, so all he had to call her by was what she used as her introduction.

"My apologies, Heavenly Demon." Bryan corrected.

"Who said you could address me by my title?" Little miss 'Heavenly Demon' seemed to enjoy his annoyance. The way he was silently rebelling against her. Such a wicked man needed some adversities.

Even though her words were grating on his nerves, the Duke showed patience and composure. His smile didn't fade even as he continued to speak to her:

"Our collaboration is on equal terms. You help me with some odd jobs, I provide you with medicine and materials you need to become stronger. Is the nature of our relationship somehow different now?" Duke Bryan knew too much submissiveness was bad.

Seeing his cold eyes, the black-headed Chinese beauty frowned... but she backed down from taunting him. Choosing not to escalate the situation into a brawl. Knowing what she'd lose if they fought.

A good alchemist was hard to find...

"You know I hate this smelly place. The worldly Qi in here is murky... especially from the things you're doing." Heavenly Demon covered her nose with her sleeve. Looking at him with an honest, sincere gaze.

Her eyes landed on the expressionless maid. The brown-haired woman was proudly watching her with an unblinking stare. It was as if she was possessed by the spirit of servitude. Ready to sacrifice herself.

No, 'pride' couldn't describe the nature of the chains that bound her to the words of the Duke. The martial artist simply titled the 'Heavenly Demon' spoke while putting down her earlier intrusive thoughts:

"What's this?" She pointed at the maid.

To an internal martial artist, this scene was akin to unorthodox magic. She felt no abnormalities in the energy and Mana of the maid... It didn't look like brainwashing. This seemed more 'innate' than that.

Still, she knew the only servants who ever saw her never lived longer than a day. Even if her mind was working properly, it didn't change the fact that her alliance with the Arcadia Household was a secret.

Still... What was this ploy?

"Nothing..." The duke shrugged dismissively and continued: "I wanted to test out a new medicine I'm making. As you can see, my loyal and disciplined maid has agreed to help me in this experiment."

"Does she know that 'experiment' will make her die a dog's death?" Heavenly Demon spoke clearly and loud enough for anyone in the corridor to hear. She looked at the maid. Her words caused no reaction.

This caused wrinkles to appear on her forehead.

"Don't bother scaring her off." The duke was calm.

"You did something to her." She was certain of it.

"Maybe... but how does that-" Bryan shut his mouth.

"If we're on equal terms, you should explain this situation properly. Let's say trust is a consumable resource." Heavenly Demon circled the maid while speaking. The lack of any change was concerning.

"..." The duke neither agreed nor refused her bold request. However, the way he sighed showed he had no other option. He moved towards a table inside the room. There, two mysterious stones were placed next to each other. Made of an unknown material.

That along with colourful liquids and thick gasses.

Next to a colourful cream yellow gemstone was a black and ominous stone. One that did not glow at all. Though the Heavenly Demon couldn't recognise them, she felt a familiarity towards the latter one.

"What are these things?" She pointed at them.

"On the right is a 'Spirit Stone'. I'm sure you're already familiar with them. Now on the left, the one you're pointing to, is a common 'Beast Stone'. This is probably your first time actually seeing this." Bryan took any opportunity to show how intelligent he was.

"So you used them in my 'Cultivation Pills'?"

"I'm surprised you're taking this in so easily. Here I thought you'd reject the notion of this material and try to kill me." Duke Bryan genuinely smiled. That sincerity was disgusting enough to make her mute.

She watched his expression intently. It was a bit confusing since he clearly knew the thoughts she was trying to convey without words. There were warning she had given before they started their cooperation.

Bryan went into detail:

"Again, these are Beast Stones. They are what drop from 'Dark Beasts' of both Animalistic and Monstrous nature." The duke checked her reaction to see that she had mellowed compared to earlier.

"Why are you calling them 'Dark Beasts'?"

"It's just for specificity. Don't mind the wording. I needed a new term after meeting a certain Beast in the past." Bryan knew calling them Dark Beasts was akin to calling cats 'mammal felines', but he did not go into detail. There was something else in his head.

"Right... Get back to what you were saying."

"I make your... 'Cultivation Pills'... through mixing Beast Stones with other materials. After all, Beasts in general become stronger by devouring these mediums. Ascenders should too... theoretically."

"Theoretically?" That last statement didn't make sense to her. Regardless, it was good research. There was something to look into regarding the natural reinforcement of Beasts and artificial reinforcement.

"There's no need for concern."

"Right..." Heavenly Demon gave lip service.

"You could probably make more connections with strong people from that 'Martial Realm' of yours if you sold it." Bryan glanced over at a window. The community of martial artists had already formed.

They just didn't show themselves.

"Is that your thoughts too?" She accused.

"That would never happen." The duke said with clearcut certainty, continuing: "Only you had succeeded in using these pills. I've tried, and haven't found anyone else able to devour these resources."

These words made the Heavenly Demon think of many things to come up with an idea why, but she didn't tell him. One came to mind, but... There wasn't a need to ruin her monopoly just yet.

"I'm satisfied." Heavenly Demon refocused her eyes and pretended she was still in thought. The brief glimpse of enlightenment that flashed by her eyes didn't escape his notice, but he didn't say anything.

The duke couldn't help asking the question:

"Do you know why this always happens? My father and grandfather had been studying for years, but we had never gotten an answer. Scans show no abnormalities in the Mana extracted from them."

"Who knows? Anyway, let's get to business. You didn't call me here to talk about this, right? I'm not so free lately. If you won't say, then I won't hesitate to cut you off." She turned her back to the man.

Her attitude was pleasing, but it put him at ease.

Similar to how Adam only trusted animosity.

"..." For a brief moment, Bryan let his guard down enough to fall into an 'emptiness'. His expression was just like the maid. If there was a difference, it would be that he had a different inclination.

"Heh... Haha..." After chucking, Duke Bryan sighed out of agitation from being so close yet far from the truth. He needed to get it out of her mouth, but knew the inevitability of loss if he tried to pry it from her.

The answers on why his pills didn't work were now put to rest. He wouldn't be able to avoid about it any further. This caused him to lose his composure to an extent. It was similar to the mental instability Jake felt when he'd learnt of the true nature of his parent.

"You know... People like me are different from people like her." Bryan started to defend himself out of nowhere. This wasn't what they were talking about nor what she wanted to hear, so the Heavenly Demon frowned. Ready to slice him into pieces.

"I don't care about what you do." She expressed.

"You should. I'm important." Bryan kept on talking.

"Sure." Heavenly Demon was used to his mental instability at this point. She simply waited for him to calm down. Her mouth said one thing, but her eyes were stating that he couldn't be compared to her.

A king of ants had nothing in front true greatness.

And she was patience enough to indulge him.

"You don't understand one bit. You think I'm drowning in a worthless feeling of superiority?" He accused her of caring. Bryan had no idea what he was talking about, but he still pointed fingers.

"Like I already said: I'm not interested in you."

"LISTEN! I've heard of how hierarchies have been established in your 'Martial World' from another. I know you see me as nothing special, but this world is nothing like your own. We of Gaia are different."

"If I hear another one of your ravings, I'll kill you myself. In front of my greatness, you should be honoured to even lay eyes on me. An ungrateful fool like yourself dares try and lecture me?!" Heavenly Demon felt offended by the way he was speaking.

A cruel and demonic power arose from her body. It was a heavy form of internal energy completely different from 'Mana'. A composite form of life energy that did not conform to the laws of nature.

'Mana' was always separated into Attributes when externalising, but 'Qi' was whatever it was cultivated as in the body and out. As such, the 'Demonic Qi' she used was something Duke Bryan would never be able to understand his whole life. It was not the same.

Regardless, the duke decided to prove his claim.

"You... defend me with your life. Protect me even if you have to die." Fear started to settle into Bryan's heart. He'd realised his mistake. Knowing that his unstable mind had caused friction between them.

The demonic woman raised a brow at him.

Did he think a mere maid dared to stop her?

The frail servant had already buckled onto her knees in fear. Asking anything if this maid was a worthless endeavour. She was initially at ease. However, her expectations were exceeded the next moment..

The mere non-combatant maid manifested her broom-like Spirit Essence and charged at Heavenly Demon recklessly. Her face filled with the 'loyalty' he talked about. She had no idea what she was doing.

It was a pity...

That was the last moment of the maid's life. In the next moment after her charge, she fell to the ground like a stringless doll. There was no scream of pain or sound of air being cut. Her death was silent.

Blood started to stain the floor at that moment.

Heavenly Demon didn't know what this eerie feeling was in the beginning, but now she realised what he meant. Her eyes started to widen, but she held back her confusion to act like she understood nothing:

"How useless... What a waste of life."

"Not worthless. Just small." Bryan gave a nod. The grandiose way the duke had carried himself after doing this angered her. Heavenly Demon already knew this maid would die. Maybe that was only because she happened to know too much.

The true reason for this wasn't revealed.

Heavenly Demon took no pleasure in useless killing against powerless pawns. She had no need to slaughter any more of his subordinates. They only served to dirty her fingers after dealing with them.

"I understand."  She gave up pretending.

The conversation would go nowhere unless she accepted the reality he was trying to convey. The words he wanted... She decided to say them. Going along with his ego so they could be productive.

"You do?" The duke looked extremely shocked. 

"You used a drug to amplify her obsession with being your loyal maid. You took advantage of it." Heavenly Demon's words had nothing to do with the subject at hand. She was clearly diverting the topic like he did.

Seeing that she wouldn't budge, he sighed:

"Correct, but not entirely right."

"Don't speak in riddles." Heavenly Demon had enough of that. Speaking to him was taxing on her mental energy. She did not want to have to deal with his ravings about the universe and his position in it.

"I'm not. You know... 'Class' is innate to us Gaia Humans. It decides who and what we want to be in life. Unlike you, we are born with purpose. Knowing what our fate is before it's even a stumbles upon." 

"You made your point." Heavenly Demon lifted her finger and pointed at him a way that heightened his instincts. She wasn't having any more of his nonsense. If he continued this farce, he'd taste her Heart Puncturing Wind Demon technique firsthand.

The threat of death finally made him regain his senses. The index finger pointed at him seemed like a bladed weapon. He felt it was ready to stab through his heart. End him in a matter of moments.

The duke swiped back his hair and spoke:

"My apologies... You might say that there are a lot of people in this kingdom who are... 'unstable'." Even though he said that, that didn't change he had wasted a good amount of time on this nonsense.

"I can see that." Heavenly Demon rolled her eyes.

"...I understand saying anymore about it will just threaten my life further. I'll get straight to the reason I called you." Duke Bryan sighed and decided to get to the point. He didn't feel confident of himself after seeing how his mental state wasn't in a good place.

"Finally..." Heavenly Demon lowered her 'deadly weapon'. A label that was given to her index finger un-ironically. Instead, she used it to scratch her head. Looking at what the crazy duke was scheming.

"Please protect my children." Bryan begged the girl.

"Huh?" Heavenly Demon wasn't expecting him to suddenly request this. After having killed a maid in cold blood as his sacrificial pawn, he was asking her this? The man's sincerity was a big surprise.

"My children- No, all of us... We have been acting weirdly ever since my real daughter returned to her home. I have been trying everything, but it doesn't seem to be the work of narcotics or brainwashing."

"Do you suspect your 'real daughter' now? I know this isn't what you have in mind. It's not like your sons keep their relationship with their new sister a secret. I saw how harmonious it was the way here."

"That's what bothers me." Bryan lowered his head.

"That your children are too intimate with her?"

"No... It's just... They haven't been studying magic ever since she returned to our home. It's too strange to ignore." In terms of common sense, the duke had every right to be worried when they acted this way.

But that didn't mean Heavenly Demon understood.

"...You called me here for such a stupid reason?" A finger was raised to poke out his heart once again for this tomfoolery. This was basically just him being a helicopter parent. Kids change. What's the big deal?

"It's not a jest." Bryan was looking her in the eye.

"I don't have children, but I know the thing kids hate most is studying. You're overreacting." Heavenly Demon tried to get him to see reason. She was thinking that this entire meeting was a joke.

"Look at that body there." The duke pointed at the fallen maid. His attitude uncaring and disrespectful of her corpse. Though that could be said for both of them. The only thought that came to mind was who would be responsible for 'cleaning' it after the fact.

The Heavenly Demon hesitated. 

Duke Bryan used that opportunity to explain:

"She died because she wasn't favoured by Gaia enough. Because if she were, I'd be the one in misery. In terms is value, a 'Maid' is a small cog in this kingdom. Essential, but not hard to replace."

"You're saying... Your obsession is innate?" She realised he wasn't talking about ideals or his personal beliefs, but how the laws of the universe were being applied. It explained a bit of all this.

At least to some extent...

"That's what I've been trying to say. My family is made up of 'Wizards' from birth. Studying is our life's calling. Unless we are on the verge of death and have no choice, we cannot deny this directive."

"And you can't deny it?" Was he a robot?

"That's not the point here." Bryan waved it off.

"Isn't it?" Heavenly Demon found it significant.

"Will you protect my children?" He asked her again.

"...I'm only doing this because they're cuter than you are. I don't understand how you had those cute little kids. Especially that little girl... 'Lucia'. A devil like you doesn't deserve an adorable girl like her."

"You hag...! Eyes away from my girl!" Bryan thought inwardly but chose not to express it. Fatherhood had been arduous, but it gave him treasures. He found the way she called his kids cute to be a bit unnerving.

The duke hoped none of them really took her fancy...

"Do we have a deal?" Bryan made up his mind.

"...Alright. I'll accept this request. You better help me find good materials for my sword as payment." The woman didn't argue or barter. She had enough pride to not go back on her words. This was an easy task.

"You have my gratitude." Bryan extended his hand to her politely, but she didn't even give him a second look. Heavenly Demon's body sped past him in the blink of an eye. Vanishing from the laboratory.

The duke took his hand back embarrassedly and looked at the corpse again, his only thought being:

"My wife will want this."

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The best I could do with Heavenly Demon: