Chapter 432 — One Month
6 min read ·
One month had passed since the attack on Tranquil City.
The entire world knew what had happened. News broadcasts played footage of the destroyed city on an endless loop. Analysts dissected every detail while survivors gave tearful interviews.
But what shocked the public most wasn’t the scale of destruction.
It was the demon contracts.
The revelation that humans could bind themselves to demons, could become something other than human in exchange for power, sent ripples of horror through every corner of the Federation.
The Shadow Council became the most infamous terrorist organization in Federation history overnight. The SFD and military police united for the first time in decades, launching a coordinated manhunt that spanned all five regions.
Ashley Blackheart’s involvement hit particularly hard. A major SFD officer, someone trusted with protecting citizens, revealed as a Shadow Council member who’d participated in an attack that killed thousands.
Admond Ashford’s betrayal carried similar weight. A respected professor at Stormhold Academy, someone who’d taught countless students, now exposed as a traitor.
And both were nobles.
The outrage exploded across social media, protests, emergency Parliament sessions. How deep did the corruption run? How many other nobles had secretly joined? Could anyone be trusted?
The Ashford and Blackheart families moved fast, issuing public statements that disowned both individuals completely. They stripped Ashley and Admond of their family names, erased them from official records, and joined the SFD’s crackdown with resources and manpower.
Whether it was genuine disgust or damage control, nobody could say for certain.
Mass moments of silence were held in every major city. Millions stood together, heads bowed, remembering the lives lost in a single night of violence.
And through all of it, one name kept surfacing in discussions and news coverage.
Damian Valcor.
More achievements were added to his already famous name. The one who’d lifted thousands of children to safety. The one who’d killed Jonathan Thorne in his Demon Form despite the power gap.
But Damian paid no attention to what happened in the outside world.
He sat cross-legged in a training room deep inside the Mafia headquarters, the stone walls around him marked with scratches and impact craters from weeks of practice.
For the first few days after the attack, he’d attended the mass funeral held for Vermont and the others who’d fallen. He’d stood beside Gregor, Castor, and Yara while thousands gathered to pay respects.
But after that, he’d isolated himself completely.
Training, healing and spending time inside his domain, facing his negative emotions without running away from them.
All of it had to be processed, acknowledged and accepted.
Running from it would only make it stronger.
His eyes snapped open, the crimson irises focusing immediately as his hand moved through the air.
"Status."
A translucent screen materialized in front of him, displaying information only he could see.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Name: Damian Valcor
Age: 16
Rank: B+
Talent: SS
Core Attributes:
Strength: 754
Speed: 767
Stamina: 759
Vitality: 763
Aura: B+
Will: 463
Perception: 369
Intent: Slaughter
Skills: —
Shooting: A
Hand Combat: A
Telekinesis: A
Macro Vision: A
Sonic Blink: A
Self-Healing: A
Stealth: A
Obsidian Hide: C
Aura Control: A+
Body Control: B+
Aura Magnification: 2×
Weapon Arts: —
Omega Point - S: Level 3
Abyssal Slaughter - SS: Perfection
Devourer Body Art - ???: Minor Success
Bond: Kuro (B+ Rank)
- Unknown Entity
- Talent Unknown
Domains:
Domain of Despair
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
His eyes tracked across his status screen.
’I Can feel it, I’m close... Just a bit more and I’ll break through to A- rank.’
The thought settled with certainty.
’All my core stats are hovering around 760 to 770. ’
But another observation followed immediately.
’The closer they get to 800, the slower the progress becomes...’
He’d noticed it over the past few weeks. The same training intensity that used to yield steady gains now produced diminishing returns.
Each point became harder to earn, like pushing against increasing resistance.
’I’ll need to either break through the rank barrier completely...’
His eyes flashed coldly.
’Or devour stronger enemies.’
His gaze shifted to where the status screen showed his skills.
Nothing about the Blood Sovereign appeared there. There was no mention of the translucent crimson marks that had covered his body during the fight and no indicator of the thirty percent unsealing.
’No matter how much I’ve tried this past month... The bloodline skill won’t activate again.’
He’d tested everything he could think of, tearing apart his chest to hold his heart, manufacturing dangerous situations and even tried meditating on the feeling of that moment when the marks had appeared.
Nothing worked.
’At first I thought it unsealed because I was on the verge of dying... But I’ve been in life-threatening situations before as well.’
None of those moments had triggered the awakening.
’The skill only manifested when I wanted to protect my people selflessly... When Jonathan was about to kill Mike and the others.’
The connection felt obvious in retrospect.
’So maybe it requires both conditions... A genuine threat to my life combined with selfless intent to protect others.’
But even understanding the trigger didn’t solve the fundamental problem.
’I need to find a way to awaken my bloodline talent and skills...’
His eyes narrowed.
’And more importantly, I need to find a way to hide them once they’re active...’
The Blood Sovereign marks had been visible to everyone during the fight. If someone with knowledge of the Bloodworth family had been watching, if they’d recognized the skill...
Buzz Buzz
His thoughts cut off as a buzzing sound broke the silence.
His hand moved to the communicator resting beside him on the floor.
Luna’s name appeared on the small screen. He accepted the call, bringing the device to his ear.
"Come to the terrace." Her voice came through clear and direct. "Right now."
Damian stood up slowly, his muscles protesting the movement after hours of sitting motionless.
"Luna, it’s night." His voice came out tired. "Shouldn’t you be at the academy? What are you doing here?"
"Just come up." Her tone shifted, gaining an edge he couldn’t quite identify. "And don’t spread your awareness or use any skills on the way."
Beep Beep
The line cut off before he could respond.
Damian stared at the communicator for a moment, confusion rippling through him.
’Don’t spread my awareness? What is she planning?’
But something in her tone suggested arguing would be pointless.
The building stood quiet at this hour with no one being present as he climbed the stairs toward the roof access.
Whoosh
Cool night air hit his face the moment he pushed through the door onto the terrace.
Luna stood at the far edge, her back to him, silhouetted against the city lights of Tranquil City spreading out below.
She wore simple black clothing, a fitted top and pants that looked comfortable. Her black hair moved slightly in the breeze.
"Luna?"
She turned, and even in the dim light he could see the smile on her face.
"Close your eyes."
Damian’s eyebrow raised.
"What?"
"Close your eyes." She walked toward him, her steps light and quick. "And don’t you dare spread your awareness... I mean it."
Before he could protest, she was in front of him, her hands coming up to cover his eyes.
Her palms were warm against his skin, blocking out his vision completely.
"What are you–"
"Shush." Her voice came from very close, her breath touching his ear. "Stop asking so many questions."
Damian stood there, acutely aware of how close she was standing, how her hands felt against his face, how her presence seemed to fill all the space around him.
"Okay." Luna’s voice pulled him back to the present. "On three, I’m going to move my hands. Keep your eyes closed until I say to open them."
"Hey–"
"One."
Her hands shifted slightly.
"Two."
He heard her step back.
"Three."
Her hands left his face.