The Author's POV

My eyes were glued to Edward's body, which was lying on the ground. In my ears, the noise from the crowd was drowned out.

During that moment, I had all my attention focused on Edward.

It wasn't until I saw his chest move that I finally relaxed.

He was still alive.

As he lay on the ground with his eyes wide open, staring at the red sky of the arena, his body was anything but fine.

Taking a deep breath and inwardly praying, I put the device back in my dimensional space and closed my eyes.

'I hope Amanda does not find out about this…'

If she found out I beat up her father...

Shivers ran down my spine.

'...Yeah, let's hope that does not happen.'

What Demon King?

She would probably finish me before that happened.

Well, I didn't think she would go that far, but I still didn't care to find out what would happen.

Keeping this secret under the grave was a sacred duty.

"Haa..."

I exhaled, and slowly opened my eyes.

As I opened my eyes again, I felt everyone's gaze pause on me. A pin-drop silence filled the arena grounds as none of the spectators spoke.

I then glanced toward the right. Nevertheless, I was surprised to find that the demoness had not appeared yet.

She was usually punctual.

'Where is she?'

I wondered to myself as I glanced around the place. It didn't take long for her to appear, as her figure appeared next to me shortly thereafter.

'Ah, there she is.'

Her eyes alternated between Edward and me as she hung open-mouthed. Eventually, she began to announce the match's result. The look on her face never changed as she spoke.

It was still filled with shock.

[…and the winner of the match is White Reaper, officially dethroning the Blood Prince from his Overlord position, and thereby becoming the new Overlord!]

It wasn't long before her words deeply echoed throughout the whole arena.

During a brief pause, the crowd and spectators digested the information before erupting into cheers.

The stadium started shaking as the cheers grew louder.

It was that loud.

My attention briefly focused on Edward's direction before I turned around and moved toward the metallic gates in the distance.

'My job is done, I should get prepared for the big event that is coming soon...'

It was about time I returned home.

***

"Not bad…"

Duke Azenoch's face was tinged with a faint curl as he watched White Reaper's figure slowly exit the arena.

The more he looked at him, the more pleased he became as he mumbled softly.

"He did not make the same mistake as the other one."

Recalling what had happened with SilverStar, the Duke shook his head with evident disappointment.

He was a good seedling. An obedient one.

It was unfortunate that he had failed his mission.

If only he hadn't been that useless.

"Well, this one isn't all too bad.."

While observing White Reaper from above, Duke Azonech's lips opened enough to reveal a set of yellow teeth.

"At a first glance, he looks pretty obedient..."

Of course, that was merely on the outside.

From that simple request he had asked, Duke Azonech had already come to the conclusion that he wasn't one that could be tamed.

"You wanted to challenge me?"

The smile on his face deepened as he slowly turned around.

"...A pity."

He muttered under his breath.

"What makes you willingly choose to kill yourself like that?"

Did he really believe that he could escape after seeing what he had done to Edward?

In spite of the fact that he could have lived a few more years, he became greedy and decided to challenge him directly.

What a terrible mistake on his part.

"A true pity that I have to kill him."

Wiping his mouth with his hand, he proceeded to head out of the room.

It was time for him to reap his rewards.

***

"It's time don't you think?"

Coming back to my room, the first thing that greeted me was my other-self.

Glancing around the place, I didn't answer. It wasn't that I didn't want to, but the place was definitely under surveillance.

Every one of my movements was being closely monitored, and given that I couldn't speak to him inside of my mind, I could only keep my mouth shut.

Fully aware of my circumstances, he continued speaking.

"Your next match won't be like all the other matches that you've experienced. You should be aware of this."

Meeting his line of sight, I subtly nodded my head.

'I know.'

Of course, I knew.

While my next opponent was just as skilled as Edward, he was actually coming at me with the intent of killing me, unlike Edward who came with a completely different mindset.

Furthermore, I was fully aware of the fact that he wasn't going to be honest with his rank as he would only pretend to wear a suppressor.

He had most likely planned on killing me during the fight. As if the Duke would ever let himself lose in front of his city.

That would be the biggest humiliation in his life.

"I admit, your skills are more than enough to fight against the Duke had he been suppressed. With everything that I've taught you over the past four months, this should be natural. Unfortunately...."

He paused mid-sentence, and silence enveloped the room.

I didn't need him to finish his sentence to understand what he was trying to imply.

It was then that he continued.

"...He won't be wearing a suppressor and if that's the case, you stand no chance at beating him. Your only choice is to lend me your body."

Staring in his direction, I didn't say anything.

Rather, my thoughts were quite complicated.

'I still don't trust him.'

I knew that despite helping me over the course of four months, he had done it for his own benefit.

He wasn't doing it for the sake of doing it.

I understood this point as I took advantage of this.

He also knew this.

But there was only a problem.

I was still unclear about his real motive.

Was it just to kill the demon king and get rid of his curse? But what exactly was this curse he was talking about?

Was it perhaps the fact that time would repeatedly loop for him, or was it something else?

I wasn't sure.

Whenever I tried asking him, he would always keep his lips tied.

His silence seemed forced.

It felt as though someone or something was stopping him from saying anything.

Were they perhaps the weird chains? This was most likely the case.

Regardless, putting all of these unanswered questions aside, I still didn't feel comfortable with the idea of him taking over my body.

"You're thinking too much. It'll be just like when you use Monarch's indifference. It won't make a difference."

The moment he said those words, I cocked my head forward and gave him a stare.

'...Back then I didn't know you were the one controlling me.'

Seemingly being able to understand my thoughts, he shrugged his shoulders.

"You still allowed me to control your body not too long ago, when we were in that dungeon. What difference does it make now?... Are you really that confident in defeating a Duke-ranked demon that could potentially use his power at any second without warning and kill you?"

As he stared deeply into my eyes, he paused for a brief moment before continuing.

"Let me tell you something. Regardless of how many times you want to die, or how many times you die, you will never die. That is your fate."

Drawing closer to me, his ice-cold eyes looked down at me.

"I'll repeat this again, I'm not interested in taking your body. But, it is within my best interest that you don't die, and..."

Extending his hand, he pointed his finger toward my chest.

"It is within your best interest if you don't die."

***

Clank. Clank. Clank.

Chains were being pulled inside a small cell, creating a loud rattling sound.

"Ukhh.."

After awakening from his groggy state, Edward glanced toward the other side of the cell and saw a figure standing there. Blinking a couple of times to get a better look at the figure hiding beneath the shadows of the room, his eyes sharpened.

Clenching his teeth, he hatefully spat.

"Duke Azonech."

"...It's been a while since we've seen each other."

A sinister voice replied back.

It was none other than Duke Azonech who smiled widely.

"You should already have an idea as to why I'm here."

"..."

Edward's eyes narrowed.

Of course, he knew why he was here.

It was the most obvious answer.

"You want to sign a demon contract with me?"

Why else would he still be alive if not for this reason?

"You're quick to catch on."

The Duke stretched out his hand and materialized a thin piece of paper that glowed a faint purple hue.

Flipping the paper around and gazing at its contents, he asked.

"I've heard that you've been missing your daughter quite a lot..."

Clank!

A strong chain-pulling sound echoed throughout the cell as Edward barred his teeth.

In a fit of rage, he shouted.

"Don't talk about my daughter!"

"Woah!"

Jokingly moving back, a teasing smile spread across Duke Azenoch's face as he raised both hands.

"How about you let me finish my sentence?"

"I don't care!"

Edward hatefully spat as he glared his way.

Duke Azenoch ignored him and went straight to the point.

"If you sign this contract, you will be a free man."

The moment those words escaped from the Duke's mouth, Edward stopped struggling.

With an incredulous look on his face, he gazed in the Duke's direction.

"What did you just say?"

"You heard me right the first time."

With a flick of his fingers, the contract flew in Edward's direction before magically stopping right in front of him.

"I'll soon be fighting against White Reaper. By the time it takes for me to beat him, I want to know your answer."

It was then that he turned around and proceeded to head out of the room. Leaving no room for Edward to talk.

Clank.

The door soon closed shut, and silence enveloped the room.

Gazing at the contract that was laying down on the ground, Edward's face pulled into a wry smile.

Recalling the events of the day prior, the corner of his lips twitched.

'He really did me dirty.'

For him to have attacked right as he was about to finish his own attack. Couldn't he have at least made it seem so not one-sided?

"Ukh..."

Just thinking about the fight caused Edward's face to darken a little.

'He said he knew Amanda, right?'

Somehow, Edward suddenly felt an ominous premonition.

He just couldn't explain what it was.