DD sometimes hated himself for adopting Ed. He had successfully averted suspicion, yes, and he was living the comfortable life of a champion he had always longed for because of it. After years of scraping up survival from the bottom, he was finally reigning at the top. His plan was, for the most part, a complete success. But there was a flaw: he had a son.
Ed was usually a good boy. He was quiet and studious and hard-working, and he never asked much from DD. Even when shedding tears over his father, he never bothered him with his sorrows. He was more mature than a child his age needed to be. But Ed's presence alone was enough to make him think of it—the sin he had committed to live the life he was living…the blood that stained his hands. Because of that horrible child, he couldn't forget.
But even that was not the worst of it.
For ten years, he had lived by his side, had watched him grow, had watched him transform from a helpless child into a powerful duelist. He knew his secrets, his weaknesses, his passions, his tastes. He had been there long enough to memorize his speech patterns, his habits, his gestures. He knew everything there was to know about Ed Phoenix.
Yet, somehow, it was not until the flames engulfed his body and the ship began to sink that he realized that maybe—just maybe—he had loved him.
At that moment, he gave himself up to hell.