Demonbound

5

Lumi woke before dawn.

Not because he wanted to—but because the bell rang.

It wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be. The sound carried through the servants’ quarters like a command rather than a noise, sinking into bone and muscle alike.

He sat up slowly, the unfamiliar bed creaking beneath him.

For a moment, he forgot where he was.

Then the black stone walls reminded him.

The room was already stirring. Servants moved quietly, efficiently, pulling on uniforms, tying hair back, fastening gloves. No one complained. No one lingered.

Lumi followed their lead.

---

The work was simple.

That was the worst part.

Cleaning hallways that never seemed to gather dust. Polishing railings already gleaming. Carrying supplies between wings that felt too large for their own good.

It was work designed to keep hands busy and minds empty.

The servants were kind.

They smiled at him. Asked if he needed help. Showed him how to handle certain tools without scratching the stone. One of them pressed a cup of warm tea into his hands when his fingers started trembling from exhaustion.

No one insulted him.

No one mocked him.

And yet—

They talked.

They always waited until they thought he was out of earshot.

“…That’s him, right?”

“The Calder boy?”

“Patriarch’s son, they say.”

“Then what’s he doing here?”

Lumi kept scrubbing.

Kept his head down.

“…Must’ve done something terrible.”

“Or nothing at all. That’s worse, sometimes.”

“Imagine being born into that family and ending up a servant.”

A pause.

“…Still. He doesn’t act like one.”

Another voice, quieter.

“No. He acts like he’s fallen.”

Lumi rinsed the cloth and wrung it out carefully.

His hands didn’t shake.

---

By afternoon, his body ached in places he didn’t know could ache.

The Blackwell mansion felt endless. Every corridor led to three more. Every staircase split into wings that folded back on themselves like veins.

Yet the servants moved through it with ease.

Like they belonged.

That realisation hurt more than the work.

When evening crept in, the mansion changed.

The sigils embedded in the walls glowed brighter. Shadows deepened. The air itself seemed to sharpen, as though night carried weight here.

That was when Lumi noticed them.

Blackwells.

Moving with purpose.

Leather armour replaced fine coats. Cloaks were clasped. Weapons checked. Sigils glowed faintly beneath skin and fabric alike.

Hunters.

Lumi slowed his pace, watching from the edge of the hall.

Corvin stood among them.

Twin daggers sheathed at his sides. Dark attire fitted close, designed for movement rather than show. His sigil pulsed steadily, calm and contained.

Ready.

Without thinking, Lumi approached him.

Carefully.

Quietly.

He leaned in just enough to whisper to Corvin.

“Is there a hunt tonight?”

Corvin glanced at him sideways, amused.

“Stake-out,” he murmured. “Nothing dramatic.”

“So… this is how the Blackwells patrol?”

“Sometimes.” Corvin adjusted a strap. “Demons are scarce. They hide. Hard to blame them when we’re always looking.”

Lumi hesitated. “So you don’t expect anything to happen.”

Corvin smiled. “No.”

Then he studied Lumi properly.

“Do you want to come along?” he asked lightly. “I need someone to carry my load.”

Lumi scoffed.

He was a servant. A glorified errand runner.

And yet—

“I do,” he said.

Corvin handed him a cloak without comment.

“Keep your face covered.”

---

They left the territory as one.

The moment they crossed the boundary, the moon hung fully overhead—silver and watchful.

The group dispersed immediately.

No shouted orders. No wasted movement.

Earpieces slid into place. Quiet confirmations murmured through the night as each hunter reached their assigned position.

Lumi followed Corvin.

Trying to match his steps.

Trying not to look like he didn’t belong.

They slipped into a patch of bushes overlooking a stretch of road and abandoned structures. Corvin crouched. Lumi followed, heart pounding.

“I’m in position,” Corvin said into his earpiece.

After that affirmation, silence stretched.

A full minute passed.

Then another.

Lumi shifted slightly. “So… what exactly is the Sepulchre Order?”

Corvin didn’t look at him.

“Basically a group of hunters,” he said. “Gifted with sigils. Keeps demons from overrunning the world.”

“That’s pretty basic.”

Corvin smirked. “It’s meant to be.”

He adjusted his position, eyes still scanning the dark. Then sighed before continuing.

“They’re made up of twelve families with twelve individual sigils. Each assigned a territory in the country. That’s it.”

Lumi frowned. “Sounds a lot.”

“I’m still surprised you don’t know anything about this,” Corvin added.

Lumi swallowed. “Training and education start after getting a sigil. Since I never—”

“I know,” Corvin said.

The silence returned.

Lumi opened his mouth again—

Then Corvin exhaled.

Soft. Satisfied.

“Show time.”

Lumi stiffened. “There’s a demon?”

“Yeah,” Corvin said, already moving. “And I’m going after it.”

“Where? I can’t see it.”

“Demons are tracked by the energy signature. You need a sigil to detect those,” Corvin pointed out whilst leaping out of the bush they’d been hiding in.

“Wait,” Lumi hissed, scrambling after him. “Aren’t we supposed to report sightings?”

Corvin broke into a run.

“Relax,” he called back. “This one’s like the road demon. Harmless.”

He grinned over his shoulder.

“I can handle it.”

Lumi chased him, still worried but decided to shove the paranoia to the back of his head.

Maybe Corvin was right.

Maybe he was just nervous.

He focused on keeping up.

Until Corvin stopped.

Abruptly.

Lumi nearly collided with him, hands landing on Corvin’s shoulder as he bent over, panting.

“You’re really fast,” Lumi said between breaths. “So did you find the—”

He looked up.

The demon stood ahead of them.

Massive.

Its frame was thick with muscle, skin stretched tight and dark as dried blood. Horns jutted from its skull like broken spears. Its limbs were too long, joints bent wrong, strength packed into every movement.

It turned slowly.

Eyes locking onto them.

Corvin’s smile faded.

“I found it,” he said quietly. “And it’s nothing like the one we faced before.”