Rachel emerged from her father’s office to a surprising sight: Arthur standing against the wall, seemingly waiting for her. His presence, unexpected and slightly unwelcome, made her eyebrows rise in question, “You are still here?” she inquired, her tone laced with a mix of curiosity and annoyance.

After hearing her father’s words, especially about Arthur replacing what Golden Prince stood for, Rachel didn’t feel like interacting with him any longer even though she wasn’t sure of what the truth was.

Arthur offered a smile that held a hint of eagerness and courtesy, “I was actually hoping to ask if I could join your Starfire Cadre and assist in tracking down members of the Coven of the Damned. Working together could enhance our efficiency, and I could learn a great deal from you, Prefect Rachel.”

A sigh escaped Rachel, her arms crossing over her chest as she regarded him with a skeptical eye, “Did my dad put you up to this?” she asked, suspecting her father might have influenced Arthur’s sudden proposal or maybe her father himself suggested the idea to him.

Confusion briefly marred Arthur’s polite facade as he stumbled over his words, “I am sorry, I don’t-“

Rachel cut him off, her stance firm and her gaze unwavering, “Listen here. I don’t care if my dad convinced you that you’re destined to achieve what the Golden Prince could not or something similar to that. And if you have any intentions of marrying into the Sterling Family, you’d best abandon those thoughts now.”

Arthur’s reaction was one of sheer astonishment, his hands fluttering in denial, “Oh god, I would never dream of it. Even if your dad said something like that, I would have refused because I already have someone. I never told anyone about it, not even my father or the president. In case you were wondering, she is-“

“Good then. As long as I know you have no ulterior motives, I’m willing to collaborate with you. Apologies if I seemed harsh,” Rachel’s expression softened, a wave of relief washing over her at Arthur’s earnest declaration.

Arthur’s smile returned, genuine and understanding, “It’s fine. I completely understand your concerns.”

Rachel quickly outlined Arthur’s role, “Aside from the task my father assigned you, you’ll be supervising a man named Ash. I’ll introduce you to him once he’s ready with his new team. See you later,” she said, turning to depart.

Left in her wake, Arthur blinked in surprise, then hurried after her, “The manaless guy who took down Professor Bernard in a spar??” he mumbled, his intrigue piqued as he followed Rachel, eager to learn more about the mysterious Ash and his unexpected role in their shared mission.

—

As the imposing silhouette of the World Hunter Association’s building loomed over them, two girls, each an almost mirror image of the other with their black hair and eyes, stepped onto the grounds with a mixture of awe and anticipation. The stark contrast between their appearances and the stern, utilitarian structure before them was as striking as it was symbolic.

The first, her hair cut in a practical bob and clad in a blue jacket and shirt tucked into tight pants, surveyed their new environment with a critical eye. Yet, her serious demeanor couldn’t mask the underlying innocence that she shared with her companion, who, in her silver armor and hugging a green staff, seemed almost out of place amidst the concrete and steel.

“I only dreamed of standing in this place after hearing about it everywhere. Can you believe that now we are really standing here, Emiko?” Yui’s voice, tinged with awe, broke the late evening stillness before adding in a tone of sadness, “I wish Aunty Grace was here with us. I miss her already,” Yui knew Grace had to stay back since people here might easily recognize her younger form.

Emiko, however, was busy casting wary glances at the onlookers whose curiosity was barely contained, “Yui, you don’t have to be in your Hunter uniform now. We already came late here. You should put back your stuff before others think we are on duty. People are already giving stares at us,” she advised, a note of discomfort in her voice, especially as she glared at the men gawking at them.

These very men couldn’t help but stare at these two asian girls with such pure and delicate charms yet looked quite gorgeous as well without even any makeup. They were so tired of seeing all the haughty genius women here who put up airs around them while walking around with kilos of makeup.

And so these two seemed like a breath of fresh air, and they even started making plans to approach them.

Yui, undeterred by the attention, smiled softly, “Don’t be like that, Emiko. They are just curious since we are new. But what makes me happy is that we will be working together with Master to destroy the evil ones. We can finally save more people like us in the past,” she said, her optimism unshaken.

Emiko, taking a deep breath, found solace in Yui’s words and held her hand, “That we definitely will. Aunty Grace trained us all this time for this moment.”

“Mhm,” Yui nodded readily before she asked with a worried look, “But about our stay…did Aunty Grace mention where we would be staying? I forgot to ask. What will we do now? Is it okay to disturb Master by calling him, or should we just call Aunty Grace?”

“About that…” Emiko’s expression faltered for a moment. “…we will be staying with our Master,” she revealed, the awkwardness of the arrangement not lost on her.

Yui’s shock was immediate, her face a red hue of embarrassment and nervousness, “Ehhh??? R-Really? S-Staying with him?” She stuttered as she whispered in a barely audible voice.

Emiko’s expression became a bit flustered upon seeing Yui’s reaction, and she averted her gaze as she said, “Amelia said since we aren’t part of the WHA or even their academy, they can’t assign separate rooms to us. So we have no choice but to stay in the room allotted to Amelia, which she gave to our Master.”

Yui tapped her forefingers together as she said in a soft, embarrassed voice, “I-It feels strange. U-Usually only…couples stay together in a room, right?” Yui can’t imagine living under the same roof as the Demon King. It just seemed so shocking that she couldn’t even imagine it and was afraid of offending him accidentally.

Emiko cleared her throat as she pulled Yui along and said, “Stop thinking like that, Yui. It’s not like we would be alone. His slave, that demoness, would also be staying with him. He couldn’t care less about Soulservants like us,” Emiko noticed a few men about to approach them and wanted to get inside before they tried and caused any trouble.

“Ohh…” Yui let out a relieved sigh as she let herself get dragged away by Emiko.

—

The headquarters of the WHA also came with their own housing apartments for not only their students but also for their Elite Hunters.

Within the barely lit confines of the room of one such towering apartment, the large tinted glass windows allowed the captivating view of the serene sea to be visible from the inside, while maintaining the privacy of the occupants on the inside. However, the ambiance of the hall of this particular room was shrouded in a dark, sensual aura, further, strongly contrasting with the gentle crashing of the waves against the shore outside. The air inside was filled with a palpable tension, laced with a heady scent that could make one feel a tingle in their bones.

At the center of attention stood a naked woman with a black choker around her neck, her curvaceous figure accentuated by the tight bondage holding her limbs apart. Her eyes, covered by a black silk blindfold, heightened her other senses, putting her entirely at his mercy. Long silver locks cascaded down her back, damp with perspiration, as her big, plump breasts rose and fell rapidly with each ragged breath. She writhed against her restraints, held aloft by mana ropes attached to the ceiling. A spreader bar between her thighs stretched her legs apart, accentuating the curves of her womanhood, leaving her vulnerable, exposed, and aching.

Despite the cool air conditioning, her porcelain skin gleamed with sweat, betraying her anxiety and uneasiness simmering behind her anger.

Opposite her stood a tall, muscular man clad only in low-slung pants, revealing toned abs and powerful thighs.

His chiseled and charming features twisted into a wicked grin as he raised a thick leather whip above his head. With expert precision and a ominous glow in his golden eyes, he brought the whip crashing down onto the bound woman’s exposed flesh, *Thrash!*

*HANGH!~*

A sharp cry of pain escaped her luscious lips as red welts bloomed where the whip met her skin, standing out vividly against her pale complexion. Each strike left her trembling, her muscles tense as she strained against her bonds. Her already erect nipples twitched and was harder than ever.

One can guess that this seemingly poor woman had been getting tortured for a while now upon seeing the state and the number of red marks on her supple figure.

“You…bastard! You can’t keep doing this to me!” Rebecca shouted with gritted teeth, her face flushed while struggling to catch her breath. Since this was a human shell and not her original body, she couldn’t heal or recover anywhere near as fast as her original body.

This made her feel the sting of his lashes radiating all over her body without any signs of disappearing.

She had no idea how much time had passed since he started torturing her like this.

Every blow landed sent waves of lightning rippling through her veins at the sensation of the whip biting into her flesh. But what annoyed her the most was that instead of focusing on her hate and anger toward this scum, she couldn’t ignore the stinging kiss of the whip that ignited a fire deep within her core. She didn’t want to continue and keep feeling these sensations.

Asher coldly laughed before he asked as he tracked the numerous red whip markings on her sweaty skin, “But I can. Isn’t that why you are here? You chose to suffer for your son’s sins and your own, of course. You helped and enjoyed it as your son tortured me every day and I couldn’t even voice my pain. Compared to what he did, I am being quite merciful with you, considering how your pussy is getting wet from this.”

“Y-You!” Rebecca gnashed her teeth and couldn’t even refute his words since she was afraid that he might do worse to prove a point. It’s not like she can even come up with any other reason for why she was getting wet down there. Why was her body so stupid??

But even if what he was doing to her now was nowhere near as painful as what Oberon did to him, it was a hundred times more humiliating to be restrained like this and get whipped and violated by this bastard.

Seeing her lips quivering with humiliation and anger, Asher smiled as he rubbed the warm whip against her wet pussy, making her twitch and shiver, “This isn’t just punishment, my pet. It is penance for your transgressions, a catharsis neither of us would forget.”