Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot
Chapter 96 - 95 - Reaper-Class Demon.

Chapter 96: Chapter 95 - Reaper-Class Demon.

For a moment, no one moved.

No one breathed.

The levitating form of Galeon—his body twitching and convulsing mid-air, his eyes as black as a starless void—sent a ripple of raw fear through even the most seasoned mages in the stands.

Slowly, Galeon landed on the ground, his pitch-black eyes locked on Raven.

No one had seen anything like this.

This was the first time the world was witnessing a demonic possession.

Even Tower Master Vernix tensed as he saw this.

His voice echoed across the arena, low and grim. "This... This isn’t resurrection. This is possession."

He knew about one of the greatest magics ever known, called resurrection. It was said to be the peak of life magic.

But this didn’t seem like a resurrection. Resurrection was pure magic, and this felt dark.

Inside the barrier, Raven sighed, rubbing his temples.

"You know," he muttered to himself, "I was really hoping he’d stay unconscious. Maybe he pees himself or gets carried out in shame. But no. He had to go full exorcist-circa-evil-reincarnation arc."

Behind him, Galeon twisted unnaturally, cracking bones and popping joints as the demonic energy surged through him. His mouth opened in a hideous smile that stretched too wide.

A second voice came out. It didn’t belong to Galeon.

"You smell different, boy," the voice crooned, reverberating with layered tones like a chorus of dying snakes. "Your blood is strong and potent."

Raven turned toward Gaelon, his expression deadpan. "And you smell like burnt garbage and unresolved childhood trauma."

The possessed Galeon paused. Blinking or maybe glitching. It was hard to tell.

"...You mock me?" It hissed.

"I mock everything. You’re not special," Raven replied, cracking his knuckles. "Now tell me. What exactly are you? Some parasite? Or maybe Galeon’s imaginary friend who decided today was finally the day to come out and play?"

Raven already knew what was happening and who was now floating before him, but others didn’t.

This was the first time a demon was being introduced to them, so Raven wanted them to know more about the demons.

The entity’s grin widened. "You may call me Axxorath. I’m one of the most capable soldiers who serve—"

Raven nodded slowly. "So basically... an underling."

Axxorath twitched violently but held back. "Mockery hides fear. I see it in your soul."

"Wrong," Raven said. "That’s not fear. That’s secondhand embarrassment for you."

The demon closed its eyes for a second before opening them back and shaking its head. "I understand why this boy was so annoyed and angry at you."

"However, it is also thanks to him breaking down that I could take over this body." A slow grin spread across its face. "So, I must thank you—"

Raven again cut the demon off, raising an eyebrow. "What’s your rank?"

The demon blinked. For a moment, it seemed confused—but old pride surged in its voice.

"Reaper-class."

There was a sharp inhale from Jessy in the stands. "...Reaper? That sounds very not-good."

Back inside the barrier, Raven’s smile widened, a little too sharp.

"If you’re a reaper-class, then your soul is most likely damaged."

From what Raven knew, the demon’s ranking went from Grunt, Raider, to Reaper, then Knight, and so on.

Reapers were quite low in the ranking.

But Reapers were strong enough to contend with a plate-seven magic swordsman, so they weren’t weak by human standards.

Raven, however, knew something that demons always wanted to keep hidden, and listening to him say that out loud, the reaper-ranked demon before him stilled.

"What?" It stared at Raven, its eyes wide.

"I mean, to cross over into a human realm like this, a Reaper-rank must’ve taken a nasty hit to the soul." Raven’s voice was low but casual, like he was commenting on the weather. "You probably fled your realm like a little slimeball before someone stronger gobbled you up. You thought that you would be among the strong in this realm, huh?"

The demon’s expression warped with realization.

"You... You know our ranking system?"

"Ding ding ding." Raven tapped his temple. "Good job, Reapy."

The demon snarled. "How—How do you know this much about our kind?!"

But that was when Raven struck.

He lifted his hand, and his eyes gleamed with gold.

A soul ripple burst from him—silent and sharp like a razor in the wind.

Before the demon could even realize it, the soul ripple hit its soul.

The demon’s body jerked, frozen mid-snarl, its eyes wide with pure spiritual pain.

"Ever heard of a soul sting?" Raven asked, voice dry. "Hurts like betrayal and taxes."

Then he moved.

Raven vanished from where he stood, appearing beside the demon in a blink, his body twisting mid-motion.

BOOM!

His fist—coated in dragon scales—slammed into the demon’s side with a bone-shattering crunch, sending the twisted body flying across the arena like a ragdoll.

Outside the barrier, Ilzara gasped. "That strength... Is this really human?!"

Lia’s eyes were glued to the stage, her knuckles white as she whispered, "That demon... It was possessing Galeon."

Jake stayed silent, but his eyes never left Raven.

Inside the dome, the demon was already moving again.

It was too fast.

Since a reaper was equal to a plate-seven at its prime, it could exert that much force even now.

If not for Axxorath’s soul being weak, Raven wouldn’t be so sure about his victory.

The demon twisted mid-air, landing low on all fours, black claws digging into the arena floor. Its smile now stretched too wide—inhuman.

"How does a Vaise—?!" It hissed. "How can a Vaise use that attack?! It isn’t a power that should belong to you!"

It vanished, reappearing behind Raven in a flicker.

Raven barely dodged, the claws grazing his shoulder.

Another slash.

Another blink.

The demon never stayed still, zig-zagging across the field like a shadow on fire.

It forced Raven on the defensive, striking at angles even elite warriors would struggle with.

Even with Jake’s quick slash move, Raven could move at peak plate-six speed at most.

Yes, he could touch the threshold of the plate seven if he were to limit his direction of movement, but that would be more disadvantageous than advantageous.

So, the best thing to do right now was defend.

He deployed Jessy Unbreakable Fortress and took the hits.

"I’ll rip you apart!" The demon howled. "Then, I’ll take your heart and study it! I need to know how you have that power!"

Raven didn’t answer.

He rolled, shifted, and ducked.

He waited and baited.

Then—

He slowed just enough.

The demon lunged, and its black claws punched into Raven’s chest—dead center.

Raven, appearing to struggle, tilted his body slightly, taking the hit on the right side of his chest.

"You can dodge that?" The demon grinned. "Then how about this?!"

It pulled its arm back, wanting to attack again, but—

CLANG!

The claws stopped halfway in.

"What—?!"

Raven grinned. The demon looked down.

The scales from Raven’s left arm had moved—shifted up to his chest like living armor. Black and red, they locked down the demon’s arm like a steel trap.

"Oh, you wanted that back?" Raven tilted his head. "Yeah, you’re not getting it unless you chop your wrist off."

He was in pain, but now, it didn’t feel that bad.

He was getting used to it.

But he needed to get used to the pain. Only then could he utilize his healing factor to its full potential.

The demon, on the other hand, roared, trying to pull back.

But Raven’s eyes were already glowing.

"Try moving now."

WHAM!

A second soul attack detonated—point blank.

The demon’s body froze again, its scream cut off.

Raven didn’t wait; his right hand—still covered in dragon scales—smashed into the demon’s head with brutal finality.

CRACK.

The head caved in under the blow, dark energy leaking like ink into the air.

For a second, nothing moved.

Then—

Slash!

—The demon cut off its hand, jumping back.

It still couldn’t see anything, its head bashed in, but it tried to distance itself.

All it needed was time; in a minute, it could heal its vision.

’I need to report this anomaly!’

Realizing that it might lose, the demon started to plan an escape, but before it could make a plan—

—With a sickening squelch, a claw pierced through its chest.

"GWAK—!!"

The demon coughed blood, its claws moving to tear Raven’s hand stuck in its chest, but then it paused.

"This is it, isn’t it?"

It couldn’t see anything, but it could imagine an annoying grin on Raven’s face as his finger wrapped around its core, which had replaced Galeon’s heart.

"W-What are you saying?" The demon stuttered, gritting its teeth, feeling Raven caress its core.

"This is your core, I know. What I want to know is how long it takes for it to mature. How long has this core been inside Galeon before you could influence his mind?"

The demon paused, its expression shifting too fast for one to even tell what it was feeling.

Rage, shock, bewilderment, or fear—one couldn’t tell.

Squelch!

"Are you not gonna answer?" Raven asked, pushing his hand deeper.

To others in the audience, it looked cruel and repulsive. How can a human keep his hand inside another human like that?

But for Raven, the one before him was no human.

It was a demon.

To him, it was similar to how he dissected beasts during his time in the forest.

"S-Six months!" The demon replied, breathing unevenly.

"Good boy," Raven replied, nodding his head, and the demon, thinking that he would survive, sighed inwardly.

But the next second—

Clench—Crack—Shatter!

—The demon’s eyes went wide as it felt its core being destroyed.

It was dead.

The demon knew it was dead.

And even in its last moment, there was only one thing it wanted to know.

’How does this human know so much about us?’

Unfortunately, the demon wasn’t getting an answer. With a—POOF—the demonic essence burst from Galeon’s body like a cloud of ash, dissolving into the air.

Galeon collapsed, unmoving.

The dome shimmered—and then vanished.

It was as if the barrier was supposed to stay up until the reaper demon opened it.

But now that it was dead, the barrier started functioning properly.

Outside, the crowd blinked in disbelief.

Siris smiled again. Not the creepy kind this time. Just... satisfied.

"...He actually won," Ilzara whispered.

Jessy exhaled. "Of course he did. Though..."

She looked at Raven, who was now brushing dust off his shoulders.

"He just said Reaper-rank. That’s not some mage title. That’s the demon hierarchy, isn’t it?"

Lia looked nauseous. "You’re saying there’s a ranking system for demons?"

"Which means there are others," Rufus muttered. "Stronger ones."

Nibbles, still perched on Alex’s shoulder, nodded with grim squeaks.

Even Jake frowned. "...This changes things."

Alex blinked. "Wait—wait. So Galeon wasn’t possessed this morning?"

"No," Jessy said slowly. "He was possessed long ago. Today was just the moment the demon woke up."

Raven finally turned to the group, flexing his sore arm.

"News flash, everyone," he said flatly. "Demons are real. They’re strong. They’re inside your towers."

Then he gave them a casual two-finger salute.

"And I just beat one with a punch and psychological warfare."

Siris clapped once.

Jessy shook her head.

Lia looked like she needed a drink.

Tower Master Vernix, on the other hand, stood up, his eyes sharp.

He wasn’t going to let Raven leave like this.

He needed to know more, and for that, he needed to talk to Raven.

So, as Raven moved toward his group, he glanced at his daughter—Ilzara—who was standing beside them and nodded.

Ilzara’s expression turned serious as she turned toward Raven, who was headed toward the group.

Like Vernix, she also knew how important this matter was. And because of that, she knew it was important to learn more about this.

After all, they were facing a new enemy.

However, it wasn’t just Vernix and Ilzara who had thought about that.

Everyone in the stadium wanted to know more.

Unfortunately, they didn’t have the authority to question Raven.

One thing, however, was sure.

From today onwards, the demons won’t just be stories to scare children.

People would realize that they were real, and they were among them, living like humans while harboring thoughts of destruction.