My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger Chapter 856 - 857: High And Gone

Evangeline let out a weary sigh, her head beginning to throb. Technically, she was the elder of the two, having been born a few months before Damon. Had they been raised side-by-side, the responsibility of being the role model would have undoubtedly fallen on her shoulders.

She could almost hear their grandfather’s voice instructing her to keep Damon out of trouble.

The problem, however, wasn't about keeping him away from trouble. Damon was the trouble itself.

’The goddess must have shown me mercy,’ she mused with a touch of despair while observing his expression.

He was an incredibly temperamental individual. He could shift from being a cold, calculating pragmatist to a chaotic prankster in the blink of an eye.

While she wasn't sure which version of him she preferred, she was convinced this behavior was a psychological defense mechanism he had developed to navigate social circles. Originally, he had been an exceptionally frigid and distrustful person. Those traits remained, but now he displayed a certain playfulness even when committing acts that were nothing short of twisted.

’Well, at least he seems happy... or he’s doing a convincing job of faking it.’

She doubted that Damon ever experienced genuine happiness, and even if he did, it was fleeting. His joy was always a momentary spark.

Damon crossed his arms, his gaze sharpening into a glare.

"Wow... have you no shame? A room with ventilation... in the middle of a desert... while the rest of us were struggling just to survive, you’ve been living here like royalty," Damon remarked with a mocking sneer.

Ignoring the jab entirely, Xander turned his attention to the woman standing beside him.

"Right. Evangeline, Leona, I assume you are both acquainted with Lady Highgon."

He indicated the lady at his side—a striking woman whom Damon recognized instantly. She served as the student council president of the Capital’s renowned Royal Academy. Although it didn't quite reach the prestige of Aether Academy, it remained a highly competitive institution.

She gave a polite nod of greeting.

"It is a pleasure to meet you once more, Lady Brightwater and Lady Val—"

"Just Leona is fine," Leona interrupted, her tone blunt but not intended to be offensive.

Evangeline nodded her head in agreement.

"You may use my first name as well. We don't need to worry about formalities here."

The lady nodded before turning toward Damon.

"Then you should call me by my name as well. It is a pleasure to meet you too, Damon."

Seeing his opening, Damon lifted his glass.

"Not going to call me Lord Grey because I’m a commoner, I see..."

Evangeline felt a strong urge to strike him. Hadn't they all just reached an agreement regarding first names?

"My apologies. I intended no disrespect toward the great Damon Grey, the slayer of demons, the genius of Aether, the Ascendant himself."

Damon cleared his throat. Ah, he suddenly recalled why he found Lady Highgon likable; she certainly knew how to stroke a man's ego.

He shot a look at Xander.

"Do you see this, Xander? You could learn a thing or two about etiquette from a true noblewoman."

He cleared his throat again.

"This is precisely why I always support maintaining peaceful ties between our two academies."

Emilia’s expression turned rigid as she struggled to comprehend how anyone could be so brazenly shameless.

"...You have physically assaulted more of our students than any other person from Aether Academy," she pointed out flatly.

Damon gave a nonchalant nod.

"Ahhh, such wonderful memories. I’ve always been a man of the people, which is why they adore me."

"You broke their bones, sir," she countered, her face twisting into a grimace.

"They became stronger men because of my guidance. But let's move on from my contributions to your school..."

Evangeline had never been more grateful that their relationship remained a secret. At least this way, her embarrassment was kept private.

Xander let out a sigh and shut his eyes for a moment.

"Anyway... enough of this. Firstly, I am relieved you are all alive. Most of you girls, at least... Damon is like a cockroach. I assumed he’d find a way to crawl out eventually."

Evangeline and Leona shared a smile.

"Yeah, it's good to see you too. I didn't realize you were leading this mercenary group. Then again, I had my own problems to deal with. It couldn't have been simple to get the Black Tower to let an outsider form their own private force."

Xander sighed once more.

"No, it wasn't easy. We are still being watched very closely. However, bypassing these brands was simple enough. This magic is ancient and, by modern standards, completely obsolete. Anyone with even a basic grasp of runes could strip it away—though I kept mine to maintain my cover."

Damon looked at Emilia, then shifted his gaze back to Xander.

"So, how long have you two been engaged?"

He asked the question while staring at the rings on their fingers. It was a blunt, sudden inquiry, but Damon wasn't the type to wait for a polite opening.

In truth, as far as he could recall, Xander had always harbored feelings for Evangeline. Damon himself had never really grasped the idea of crushes or romance. Despite being constantly surrounded by stunning women, he wasn't involved in any actual relationships.

Yet Xander had somehow beaten him to the punch.

Xander met Damon's gaze. A familiar darkness lingered in his blue eyes that Damon recognized instantly, and the answer he gave made Damon’s heart sink.

"My family’s primary heir is gone. As the remaining male heir, I am obligated to continue the family bloodline. To that end... I was the one who proposed to Lady Highgon."

Damon’s eyes grew cold. He wanted to speak up, but the words wouldn't come. Xander was only seventeen. While early marriage and fatherhood weren't unheard of in this world, Xander’s motivation was deeply warped.

And it was also Damon's fault.

The two of them shared a hidden pact. To assist Xander in seeking vengeance for his brother—who had been slain by Amon—Xander had agreed to give Damon his firstborn child for a duration until the child reached maturity.

Damon had originally made that demand hoping Xander would refuse and abandon his futile path of revenge.

Instead, he had actually accepted.

Of course, this cruel joke had a final twist: Amon, the man who had killed Xander’s brother, was actually Damon himself, who had sought retribution for his parents' deaths at the hands of Xander’s brother.

Beneath the surface, the situation was tragically simple.

"Congratulations," Evangeline and Leona said in unison.

Wendy remained silent, though she seemed to beam at the prospect of new life being brought into the world.

Damon let out a scoff.

"I see... and here I thought you’d be pining for our Eva forever."

Someone had to break the pleasant atmosphere, and he decided to take the lead.

Emilia raised her eyebrows, glancing at Evangeline, who began to scowl.

Xander remained silent.

Evangeline let out a long sigh, inhaled deeply, and then—using every bit of her strength—hurled Damon right out the window.

"Asshole," she hissed under her breath.

Xander scoffed before erupting into laughter, successfully dissolving the lingering tension in the room.