Ascension of the Dark Seraph

Samael was composed.

No aura could be sensed from the person approaching him, covered by an artifact, it seemed.

But with the background of the people he's meeting with, he wasn't surprised.

He turned over to a new page calmly, waiting for the person to sit across him.

Julian or Callista should be the one he was meeting right now, but from his periphery, he saw the person bore no resemblance to either of them. His instincts kicked in, causing a cold sweat to trickle down his nape slowly.

Other than knowing that the person was a man, he also saw a pair of glowing, mischievous eyes.

As the footstep rang directly across the table from him, Samael, unable to contain his curiosity, closed the book and raised his gaze. Julian, Callista, or even the twins were the people he thought he would be meeting tonight.

Instead, he was meeting a man who wasn't even a part of the Feradith Family.

And worse, this man was his target.

"Pleased to meet you again, Sir Samael. It's been a while…"

Lucivar greeted as he pulled back the chair and sat down, his movements were unhurried.

Showing clearly that he wasn't afraid of Samael, one of the five Dark Archangels.

Despite remaining stoic outside, he unconsciously swallowed.

"You have a lot of nerve to come here directly."

"And why is that? I don't recall doing anything wrong."

"Because you're an Angel Hybrid."

Upon hearing this, Lucivar grinned, expecting that Samael had already pieced the pieces together.

That he's an Angel Hybrid.

"Bold claim. Do you have any proof?"

"No, but I'm certain."

"Emotions are not facts. I'm worried if you bring this out to the public, you'll be beaten down. After all, I recently got promoted in the eyes of the public, becoming the star of the young generation of Hybrids, the best this city could offer."

Samael chuckled incredulously and pushed aside the book.

It wasn't wrong.

Going after Lucivar with a bold claim like that would only complicate his position.

Of course, he could slap a charge on Lucivar and bring him to custody, but Samael knew better.

He wasn't blind. He knew that Lucivar was meticulous and ruthless.

Just by showing up instead of the Feradith Family, Lucivar had already proven that—he has the family under his thumb. Perhaps that was his plan all along, to make sure Samael knew—to force him to take this seriously.

And with that, Samael finally realized the true reason for his visit.

"What do you want?"

"Oh, I like smart people like you. Save me the trouble of explaining things."

Lucivar clasped his hands on the table, staring at Samael with a cold, professional look.

One that made it clear that he came with a proposition.

"Before we go to that, let's start with some honesty as an offering of goodwill between us. I am indeed an Angel Hybrid."

"You admit it?"

"Yes."

Samael's aura flared when he was now 100% certain that Lucivar was an Angel Hybrid, the very prey he swore to eradicate. His ether was extraordinary, swallowing the entire library like a fierce tidal wave and crushing Lucivar where he sat.

Breathing became hard.

Taking in a breath requires more effort as the air was too thick and heavy, too little was sucked inside.

"I'm the one who killed the man you sent to probe me."

"Hmm?"

Almost instantly, the aura dispersed as Samael's brows knitted together.

His face contorted with a mixture of surprise and doubt.

"Even so, an Angel Hybrid and their twisted sense of justice could bypass their killing restriction, as long as they believed what they were doing was right. You killed one of my own—so what? That only reinforces what you are."

"Does it?"

Lucivar smirked and raised his hand.

A sinister energy climbed up his arm and turned his palm black.

Then, from it, a swirl of dark energy appeared, sizzling like fire from the depths of the void.

Its twisting tendrils mocked Samael's very belief.

"Did you even have the chance to see—his corpse?" Lucivar tilted his head slightly, feigning genuine curiosity—but his voice dripped with mockery. "He died from corruption. I killed him with my dark attribute. You are the expert on Angel Hybrids here, aren't you? Tell me—have you ever seen an Angel Hybrid with a dark attribute?"

Samael's expression turned grim.

He had never been talked down to like this before in his entire career.

But what made him angry was the fact that Lucivar was telling the truth.

His man did die from corruption, and no Angel Hybrids were capable of that feat.

"Just tell me what you want."

"What I want, Samael, is to help you."

"Help me? What can you possibly help me with?"

Even though he knew Lucivar wasn't on his level, far from it—and could only be of us as an underling, he didn't dismiss his words outright. Lucivar had clearly prepared for tonight, and it would not hurt to hear what he had to say.

Just then, Lucivar took something out from his pocket and placed it on the table.

It was a phone.

Before Samael could ask what the phone was for, the phone was already pushed towards him.

He stopped the phone with his hand and looked at Lucivar questioningly.

"What's this?"

"Unlock it and see for yourself."

As soon as Samael looked down, he frowned when he realized the phone didn't seem to be normal.

Enveloping it were armor-scales.

He thought that the phone was using a weird phone case, but it wasn't; the scales were one with it.

'I can sense a faint energy within it—and the sheen of this armor makes it feel almost alive.'

Curious, Samal tapped on the phone's screen, only to be greeted by a pulsing wave extending forward, one that he instantly recognized as a radar. He looked up from the phone and stared at Lucivar, "A radar? What can it detec—"

Ding!

Before he could finish his sentence, the phone made a high-pitched 'ding' sound.

Samael looked down and realized there was a very faint purple dot there, picked up by the radar.

And it wasn't that far from him, in front of him, right where Lucivar was sitting.

It was only then he sucked in a cold breath in realization.

"An Angel radar…?"

"Yep."

Lucivar knew from the way Samael's face changed from cautious to absolutely shocked that he had done the right thing coming here. Even one of the five Dark Archangels—from the Black Zenith Order, would not be able to pass up something as precious as this.

During their last encounter, Samael used an ability to probe Lucivar's bloodline.

It caused multiple side effects as long as the target was an Angel Hybrid.

So, from that alone, Lucivar knew that the Black Zenith Order still did not have an effective way to locate Angel Hybrids. Their rate of eradicating Angel Hybrids is probably low because of that, needing to investigate suspicious Hybrids manually.

However, with this radar, their operation could be changed entirely.

"It can even detect me, though barely. But that showed it could locate others easily."

"This is not some high-level tech. This must be a spell of some sort. I'm guessing only you can do it, and somehow, if I take this from you forcefully, it'd not work. So, Lucivar," Samael placed the phone down gently and clasped his hands under his nose. "What do you want in exchange?"

Clearly, Lucivar wanted something in return for something as valuable as this.

Hearing this, he could only grin.

"I'm glad you're more reasonable than I anticipated…"

Moments later.

Angel noticed Lucivar walking out of the library with a liberated smile from the car.

She could tell from his face alone that it had been a successful meeting.

Excited for him, Angel got out of the car and approached him.

"How did it go?"

"Good. Now, we can only wait and hope for the best."

"Congratulations, I'm happy for you. You've worked hard."

"What are you, my wife? Stop acting cuddly and go back inside the car."

Even at those sharp words, Angel didn't move.

She lingered for a moment, standing in front of Lucivar, seemingly having something more to say.

"What is it?"

"I was wondering if you have something planned after this," She fidgeted a little, acting more feminine than normal as her professional side melted by the night. "I… I have a new sofa in my apartment, and I can't really bring it inside alone."

"Call someone else, I'm busy." Lucivar raised a brow questioningly.

"I-I meant," She stuttered, scrambling for words. "You left something in my apartment, yes, that's it."

"So, which one is it? Do you want me to come over because of the new sofa or because I left something?"

"Never mind…"

Angel sighed dejectedly, knowing that it was unreasonable for her to ask him to come over anyway.

Pah!

Out of nowhere, Lucivar slapped her ass crisply, startling her.

"Fine, I'll come over. Since you did well with finding out Samael, I'll reward you," He draped an arm over Angel's shoulders—a gesture that was supposed to be an act of fondness, but when Lucivar did it, the gesture looked more like claiming a possession. "It's not like you to make excuses. Next time, if you want me, just say it—you looked stupid with your excuses."

"I don't know how to say it…" Angel tilted her head down a little, blushing, not resisting at all.

Lucivar chuckled a little.

"I have to go somewhere tomorrow, so I'll be leaving early."

"It's okay. I also have to go to work tomorrow."

"Angel…?"

Out of nowhere, a voice interrupted them.

A woman called Angel, and the two of them seemed to know each other.

"I'll wait in the car."

Lucivar pulled his arm away and entered the car.

He rubbed his chest, feeling a weird tightness inside like his life was in danger.

It was a feeling that made him feel uneasy, "Is it that stupid Sirrush again? What is it this time?"

Immediately, he leaned back and closed his eyes to go to his Inner Chamber.

On the other hand, Angel pulled the woman in casual attire—a t-shirt and jeans—away.

"Indira, what are you doing here?"

"Me? I'm studying. The question should be what are YOU doing here. Who's the hot guy? Boyfriend?"

"No, he's not my boyfriend!"

"Come on, don't lie to me," Indira looked down at Angel's chest. "He's your boyfriend, for sure. Look, even your nipples are swollen—already! Am I interrupting something? Are you about to have some fun with him?"

"Kyaah~!" Angel squealed and pulled away, covering her breasts when Indira tried to poke them. "I can't believe you… I'm leaving!"

Not wasting a moment, she walked away, heading back to the car.

Seeing this, Indira waved her hand, a bright smile stretching her lips.

"Introduce me to him soon, Angel! We're besties, right?! I won't forgive you if you don't!"

"Next time!"

Indira shook her head and placed her hands on her waist.

It was such a pleasant surprise to see Angel, a workaholic, date someone like this.

But then, her eyes widened when a hand gripped her mouth from behind.

Before she could do anything, she was yanked away.