Chapter 253: Chapter 253 : A Father’s Regret ( 1)

Demonic energy was pouring out from Azrael’s body as Alex’s corrupted darkness began to devour it, twisting the air around them into a violent storm of opposing forces.

The ground beneath their feet cracked, the ancient runes on the summoning circle flickering chaotically as their auras clashed for dominance.

The clash wasn’t merely magical—it was primal, a battle between existence itself. Azrael’s deep crimson aura radiated dominance, while Alex’s inky black corruption consumed everything it touched, turning even light into shadow.

Just as Azrael opened his mouth to speak, Rick Colesan suddenly stepped between them, his old body trembling but his will burning bright.

“Alex! Stay back!” Rick shouted, his voice cracking as he slammed a glowing fist into Alex’s chest, pushing him backward. “I was the one who summoned him for a reason! Because I needed him! You should stay back!”

Alex stumbled a few steps before regaining his footing. He didn’t respond—he simply stared at Rick with unreadable eyes.

’So that’s how one looks when someone they love with all their heart dies before them,’ Alex thought silently, watching the desperation flicker in Rick’s trembling hands.

Azrael, however, didn’t move an inch. His glowing eyes remained locked on Alex, completely ignoring the old man standing in front of him.

Rick turned toward the demon, trying to suppress the shaking in his legs. Despite the overwhelming pressure crushing him, he raised his voice.

“Great demon… Azrael, one of the highest among your kind… I—I beseech you! I am willing to sacrifice my soul itself if you grant me this one wish!” Rick’s voice wavered, but he pushed through with tearful conviction. “Please… bring my daughter back to life!”

For a brief moment, silence reigned. Then Azrael finally looked at Rick. His lips curved into a faint, almost pitiful smile.

“Old man,” Azrael said coldly, his voice like the grinding of obsidian. “Where did you hear that a high-ranking demon could revive the dead?”

Rick’s breath hitched. His face went pale, and sweat rolled down his forehead.

Alex’s eyes widened slightly. ’So that’s it… the cult manipulated him. They fed him false hope so he’d summon a being from a higher plane. They planned this—to kill the Headmaster, the professors, the students… everyone.’

Azrael exhaled slowly, his gaze filled with disdain.

“You foolish old man,” he said. “You would have already been dead if not for my restraint. I have no obligation to grant your request… nor even to listen to your pitiful words. The only reason you still draw breath is because of that human standing behind you.”

He turned his glowing eyes toward Alex.

“It seems he holds you in quite high regard. You should be grateful.”

Rick froze, too stunned to reply.

Then Alex’s voice cut through the tension.

“Hey, bonehead,” he said casually, tilting his head. “What my master said… is it even possible to bring someone dead back to life?”

A vein popped on Azrael’s forehead. His eyes flashed with irritation.

“Careful now, human,” he said with a menacing tone. “I still haven’t acknowledged you as my contractor. Watch your tongue before I rip it out.”

Before Alex could respond, the system’s mechanical voice echoed inside his mind.

[ Host, be careful. That demon is likely from a mid or even higher plane. And we’re still inside the academy. For reasons unknown, he’s concealing his presence instead of destroying everything around him he’s talking peacefully with us. We must keep it that way—Lily is still here. ]

Alex’s jaw tightened.

’Can we handle him if it comes to a fight?’ he asked silently.

[ That’s why I’m warning you to wait. When a being from a higher plane descends into a lower one, the universe places restrictions on them. They can’t exceed the highest rank of power available in that world. Just wait, host. Over time, he’ll weaken. ]

Alex nodded faintly, his expression calm despite the storm raging around him.

“Alright then,” he said, looking directly at Azrael. “Just answer one thing. Can the dead truly be brought back to life?”

Azrael paused, then laughed—a low, chilling sound that resonated through the chamber.

“Hah… what is the definition of ’dead’ to you, human?”

Alex met his gaze without hesitation, his voice steady and cold.

“You don’t vanish when you die. You fade, slowly—like the last note of a song no one remembers how to sing.

As long as someone still wonders about you, you’re still here, just out of reach.

You’re only truly gone when no one remembers about your existence.”

Azrael’s eyes widened slightly, then his lips curled into a dark smile.

“Amusing,” he murmured. “Truly amusing… what a fascinating way of thinking.”

The demon’s laughter echoed through the room, and even for a moment, the storm between their auras seemed to pause—as if the world itself held its breath at Alex’s words.

Azrael finally turned his eyes back toward Rick. The old man looked pale, trembling as the weight of the demon’s presence loomed over him like a mountain ready to fall.

Then, with a sigh of tired annoyance, Azrael snapped his fingers. A chair materialized behind him darker, older, twisted slightly by demonic influence.

On it lay Charlotte’s unconscious body, still breathing softly.

Azrael sat down beside her, resting one leg over the other like a bored king, and pointed a clawed finger toward Rick.

“Look, old man,” he said coldly. “Whoever told you that a high-ranking demon can bring someone back from the dead had nuts so tangled they couldn’t tell their own soul from a goat’s tail.”

Rick flinched.

“There are… methods,” Azrael admitted. “Ways to bind the soul back into the world. Necromancy, soul fragments, spiritual anchoring. But let me make one thing clear.”

He leaned forward, crimson eyes glowing like dying stars.

“The way I’d do it… she’d come back as something else. A husk. A puppet. A twisted copy made from your memories and grief. Not her. Never her.”

Rick’s hands began to shake.

“Her real soul? It’s already gone. Crossed into the underworld. Likely judged by the god of death himself. Or worse… already reincarnated into some mud-covered farmer in another corner of the world.”

He leaned back against the sofa, exhaling.

“And believe me, I would know. There’s no one more proficient in the matters of death than I am.”

Rick fell to his knees. Tears began to pour down his wrinkled cheeks as he collapsed completely, letting out a broken, guttural sob.

“No… no… Cristina…”

His cries echoed painfully across the stone walls.

Alex sighed deeply, his arms crossed.

’Here we go again,’ he thought, dragging a hand down his face.

“So you’re also useless, huh? Just like a certain someone.”

The system beeped in protest inside his head.

[ Host, you’re not talking about me, right? That’s unfair— ]

“Shut up.”

Azrael looked over from the couch, raising a brow.

“What did you just say?”

Alex turned and walked a few steps forward.

“You heard me, dead-ass demon.”

Azrael’s aura rippled dangerously. His voice was colder now.

“I just told you. She would come back as an undead. Not the same. Not human. And you’re mocking me?”

Alex smirked.

“I just thought of a way. A better way.”

Azrael paused. One of his pointed ears twitched.

“You… thought of a way?”

He stood slowly, his cloak of shadow billowing unnaturally around him.

“You think you can do better than me, human? You think you can make that old man meet his daughter again?”

Alex’s expression didn’t change.

“Well,” he said with casual arrogance, “if everything proceeds the way I’m thinking… then yeah, it’s possible.”

He winked.

“Dead-ass.”

Azrael’s eye twitched violently.

“Stop calling me that.”

“Make me.”

The room instantly darkened. A shockwave of demonic aura exploded outward as Azrael released his pressure in full, the ground beneath him fracturing. Charlotte’s unconscious body trembled faintly on the couch.

The oppressive force surged toward Alex like a roaring tsunami.

But as it touched him—

A constellation like symbol carved into the back of Alex’s right hand ignited.

Bright, golden-crimson light pulsed from it, cutting through the darkness like a divine blade. The demonic aura vanished into smoke, erased entirely.

Azrael’s eyes widened. His breath caught in his throat.

“Impossible… how did you do that, human?! Thats… impossi—”

Alex grinned, casually examining his fingernails.

“Because I’m not a dead-ass idiot.”

Azrael’s mouth twitched.

He stared at Alex for a long moment, then slowly broke into a smirk of his own.

“Very well,” he said finally. “If you can truly do better than me… then I will acknowledge you as my contractor.”

——

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