Over the course of the next week, Cetanu found his new underground allies rather interesting, a welcome and pleasant addition to his routine. He had brought his students down to Abyss for an assignment, having them provide aid. Of course, he had an ulterior motive.

He wanted to learn more about the Blood Demons, and used his students as bait to draw that out. With Constance, there was no question about it, she was a Madman, one of the Blood Demons descended from the mentally unstable 'Moon', a Demon responsible for the death of one of it's siblings.

With the materials he had from Edelgard, Cetanu was able to deduce that Balthus and Hapi were both somehow members of the 'Beast' clan. They were a clan of bestially attuned demons that had incredible physical capability and the ability to summon and control animals, much like Hapi. Although, the monsters were a bit excessive by what he could learn.

The most interesting to him, and by far his favorite to deal with, was Yuri. The young man was a member of a clan called 'The Artists', a group of Blood Demons with the ability to manipulate not only their own presence and the way people viewed them, but the very minds and hearts of their targets. Of course, Yuri's abilities had yet to work on Ashe or Cetanu. Even Dimitri was able to resist his inhuman charms. Cetanu found it rather amusing however, that Sylvain was not.

Today was slightly different. The students were enjoying a day off, a day to relax and enjoy a choir performance at the cathedral. Cetanu however, very much wanted to visit Abyss. He didn't want to go alone though, which led him to now.

"It'd be better if Sammy was here with us." he heard, glancing behind him to see Lillith appearing a little bummed that the group's Wyvern Lord wasn't here with his current job. "I think it's fine. We'll be simply spending time here anyhow. Nothing that'd interest him much anyhow." Beelzebub said, the group entering the larger area, finding it rather surprising.

"The Church must really have something against these people if this is the extent of their conditions." Lillith said, frowning as she subconsciously went off to search for someone to help, her oddly angelic nature rather out of place for a group called 'Demon Lords.'

Asmodeus found himself wandering off as well, wondering if there was some poor man or woman whose day he could brighten up, Beelzebub heading to the small inn that was in working order, looking for a stiff drink or at least broken glass so he could look at himself. This left Cetanu alone with Abaddon, who could tell that this was his intention.

"Why are we here?" he asked, and Cetanu looked to them as they started walking randomly. "You said that you lost your eye a while back rushing in against Blood Demons, right? Well, Yuri tells me that they had a fifth member of their group, struck down by an Archer with the Crest of Aubin." he said, and Abaddon sighed, closing his emerald eye.

"It's the truth. You were rather young, but I remember it like it was yesterday. You see, all of the Blood Demons you probably met down here were all young, little adolescents and such that were in and out of this place because of the Blood Demon that lived down here." he explained as they turned a corner.

"They might not remember it the same as I do, since the demon in question was a Madman with the Crest of Timotheos. He probably manipulated their minds, might have altered their powers and such, I have no idea. But we were employed to kill the thing, and I went in blindly because we lost another one of our better men to this guy. He was a good hearted merc named Bruce, and I got too emotional and it cost me my eye." he said, and Cetanu nodded.

"How much do you know about your family and Crest? The Crest of Aubin is listed by Hanneman and other Crest Scholars as lost to history." he said, and Abaddon sighed. "I don't know much. I wasn't around my family often, as both of my parents were mercs themselves. It's why I got into the trade." he mused, and Cetanu hummed as they entered a room.

When they did, the four Blood Demons, who he learned formed an unofficial fourth house called the Ashen Wolves, looked up. They immediately recognized Abaddon, the tall, black haired, emerald eyed Sniper, and knew he was the one that killed their fifth member, the fifth Blood Demon.

They all stood up immediately, Abaddon remaining unflinching at the sight of their fingernails sharpening and fangs bearing and lengthening. He had seen this before in his life, and he knew that with Cetanu here, he would have no reason to fight. "What the hell is he doing here!?" Yuri growled out, and Cetanu could tell that he was on the edge.

"I invited my brothers in arms here. Asmodeus, Lillith and Beelzebub are all walking about interacting with the denizens. I figured that Abaddon would join me on a walk is all." he said, and none of them bought it.

Balthus stepped forward, and Cetanu deduced that despite his outward attitude, that the Beast was the most sensible of the four. "He means no harm, Balthus. Perhaps you should remember that we are all monsters and sinners here." he said, the man diffusing slightly, the Ashen Wolves all remaining incredibly on edge.

"I understand that you all hate me. After all, the Blood Demon you all knew in your younger years, the one called Wade, was killed by my hand. I still wear the scar of that battle, and I'm sure you all have scars on your hearts." he said, and they seemed to take that offensively.

"You dare speak of our friend such!? And you dare use his name like it's some title you won in a contest!?" Constance shouted, and Abaddon frowned. "I took his name because he had no right to bear it. He was a Demon, a monster with the ability to manipulate the minds of others. You might see it differently, but I saved you all that day." he said, and they seemed even closer to attacking the aloof archer.

"You think that Wade was something we needed to be protected from!? You didn't even know him!" Hapi shouted, and Cetanu looked to Abaddon. He found it rather impressive how calm he was, despite the fact that there were four Blood Demons on the edge of their civility, bearing fangs at him. "Do you ever wonder who put the hit out on him?" he asked, and they all hesitated for a second.

Abaddon sighed, feeling a phantom pain in his scar as he shook his head. "The job that we took, to come down here and kill Wade, was given to us by the Emperor of Adrestia." he said, and they all seemed rather shocked, including Cetanu.

This was the first that the Fleshcrafter had heard of this as well. He knew they got the job, but he never knew from who. "And why would the damn Emperor ask you to kill him?" Yuri asked, inching ever closer to Abaddon.

"Because he knew the Emperor's secret." he said, and Cetanu narrowed his eyes. "I was unaware of this as well. What secret?" he asked, and Abaddon sighed. He knew that Jeralt would be furious about this, and he didn't really want Cetanu to find this out, especially with the monster he'd become.

"That he has a bastard child. Someone who could usurp the throne from Edelgard or stake a claim at the Empire should he and Edelgard both fall." he said, and they all didn't expect to hear that. It was enough to diffuse them, and calm them down to the point where they'd hear out the archer.

"I understand that he was a figure you all cared for, believed in and trusted. But we were simply men doing our job, and I only acted as I did out of rage at the loss of a close friend. I had to bury my friend and tell his family about it, and it brought me enough grief to lash out against this demon." he said, rolling his shoulders.

"I understand if you do not wish for me to be here in Abyss, or if you do not wish to associate with me or my brothers in arms. However, do know that you four weren't his only Blood Demons." he said, and they all frowned at that, their inhuman hearts skipping a beat.

"Every Blood Demon we've ever hunted as Jeralt's Mercenaries were connected to Wade. He was a very old Demon, and it was only because of the fact that I have a Mastery over my Crest that I was able to come out with my life." he said, and they didn't take kindly to that.

"You tried to wipe all of us out as well, we didn't forget that." Constance said, and Abaddon rose a brow. "What are you talking about? You were all children when Wade died. Perhaps he used his powers as a Madman to mess up all of our minds, but I remember the four of you. Young children and teens, terrified and greatly saddened at the loss of your mentor. We sent you all home as well, so if you find this sequences of events to be incorrect, I can ask Lillith and Beelzebub to tell you as well." he said.

They all went silent, finding this rather hard to believe. Cetanu knew that they needed this, a chance to hear Abaddon's side of the story, the sequence of events he remembered and knew. He couldn't become their ally in truth if they were already plotting to strike out against his brothers. If even one of them would desire to kill Abaddon after this, he knew that he'd have to take action personally.

"Say we believe you, and Wade was a bad guy. That doesn't change the fact that we cared about him and you killed him." Balthus said, and Abaddon nodded, bowing slightly. "I am aware. I knew that his death would hurt Abyss, which is why I adapted the name and made anonymous donations and recommendations over the years." he said, and Balthus sighed. He hated being the most gullible, but he could tell that this man was genuine.

"I'm going to find someone to punch. This is making me think too much." he grumbled, scratching the back of his head as he exited the room. Hapi soon followed, simply frowning as she departed. Constance also left, Cetanu watching her venomous gaze never leave Abaddon.

"You're the leader, Yuri. Whatever you say goes. If you want Abaddon to leave, just say so." Cetanu said, and Yuri looked to the archer. "Why do you have the Crest of Aubin?" he asked, and Abaddon narrowed his emerald eye before blinking, realizing that this had to do with the fact that Cetanu mentioned his Crest as well. "You were born with it, yes?" he asked, and Yuri nodded.

Abaddon sighed, shaking his head. "Did you know your father?" he asked, and Yuri narrowed his eyes before shaking his head. "Then it makes sense to me. You see, the reason that I always accepted any job that had to do with Blood Demons, including dangerous solo missions, is because one is responsible for the death of my family." he said, shaking his head. He hated talking about this.

"The demon in question is an Artist from Faerghus. He was responsible, indirectly, for the death of my parents. You see, he seduced and Embraced my brother. And my brother went berserk and Frenzied, killing our parents before he fled. I tracked him for year after year, after year. I found him and killed him eventually, but I could only assume that he managed to either turn someone or have a child in the process." he said, and Yuri could feel his world stop.

"So you're saying that my father was… your brother?" he asked, and Abaddon shrugged. "It's possible. The only reason I say this is because you have the same Crest as our family, Al Aubin, descendants of the Holy Apostle, Saint Aubin. And, you are the same kind of Blood Demon as the man responsible for my brother's turning and the death of my parents. As far as I can gauge, you're likely my nephew."

Cetanu found Abaddon's inability to be phased by anything rather impressive. It was odd, how you might have found your nephew, a living relative that was hidden underground, and not human, and not reacted. It was very interesting to see how a human like Abaddon chose to not use his emotions, or how well he kept them in check.

Yuri shook his head, slowly beginning to walk away, Cetanu catching the Artist by the arm before he left the room. He cast him his odd bluish gaze and smiled softly. "You don't need to deal with this alone. If you need someone to vent to, I am here." he said, and Yuri nodded absentmindedly before walking off.

Abaddon looked to the younger mercenary. "That was oddly… loving of you." he said, and Cetanu chuckled. "I'm in a very good mood, Abaddon. Because I was able to learn so much today. Now, why don't we get something to eat, and you can tell me all about that bastard child of the Emperor's?"