Suspicion of Human Demon

Two figures broke through the clouds and landed steadily in a patch of wild grass on the outskirts of Salem City.

The soil beneath their feet was damp with the moisture of early morning, while the outline of the distant urban district emerged and vanished in the thin mist.

After landing, Shane staggered half a step—not because his injuries had not healed, but because an abrupt sense of irritation had risen in his heart.

He raised a hand and rubbed his brow, his gaze sweeping across the sprawling urban district in the distance as his brows knitted tighter and tighter.

The information Batman had provided was precise only down to Salem City. But this was an entire city, not some isolated stronghold.

Doctor Fate was already elusive by nature, and he was also accustomed to living in seclusion. Finding a magic-based hero who had deliberately concealed himself in this vast Sea of People was no different from searching for a needle in a haystack.

"What's wrong? Hit a snag?"

Diana landed beside him, a hint of teasing in her voice.

She had long since noticed Shane excitedly making plans along the way, but she had not expected that this fellow had never considered the most basic question of all: how to locate the person precisely.

Shane turned and glanced at her without denying his oversight.

"I really didn't think it through. I just figured we'd get here first and worry about the rest later."

He paused, a sly glint flashing through his eyes.

"How about this? I go into the city pretending to be a Superhero, flip over a few cars, and yell a couple of times. Once people start crying for help, Doctor Fate, as the guardian here, should come out to take a look, right?"

"You dare!"

Diana reached out and tapped him on the head, exasperation in her voice.

She naturally knew Shane was joking, but the idea of using destruction as a means still made her frown despite herself.

That boy's Viltrumite way of thinking really was deeply ingrained.

"All right, no more joking."

Shane rubbed the spot she had tapped and put away his playful expression, his tone turning serious.

"Teacher Prince, I need your help."

Diana raised an eyebrow, signaling for him to continue.

"You're an Amazonian princess, and divine power blesses you. Perhaps your aura can draw Doctor Fate's attention."

Shane explained that this was the safest method he could think of.

Diana pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"It's worth a try. Doctor Fate's artifact shares the same origin as divine power. It might be able to sense my magic bracelets."

She pulled Shane to an open area at the entrance to the urban district, then raised both arms.

The pair of ancient magic bracelets on her wrists gently struck one another, producing a crisp, pleasant "clang—."

Sound waves spread outward, accompanied by faint golden light that was almost impossible to see with the naked eye. Like ripples on water, they flowed toward the depths of the urban district.

Wherever the light passed, the magical energy in the air began to tremble slightly, and even the mist in the distance thinned somewhat.

The two of them waited quietly for a while.

Just as Shane was beginning to think the method would not work, a burst of golden light suddenly appeared in the sky.

A completely golden, tower-shaped building slowly materialized in midair. Complex runes were engraved across its body, gleaming with a sacred radiance beneath the sunlight. Suspended more than twenty meters above the ground, it slowly rotated.

Immediately afterward, a figure flew out from a watery ripple on the tower's surface.

The man wore a dark blue bodysuit with a golden cape over it. Most striking of all was the full-faced, holeless golden helmet on his head, which completely concealed his face. Only a faint magical halo flowed around its edges.

It was Doctor Fate.

Shane stared at the smooth helmet, which had no viewing holes whatsoever, and could not help wondering to himself.

Doesn't that thing feel stuffy on his head?

While his thoughts wandered, Doctor Fate had already slowly flown down before the two of them.

His voice came through the helmet with an ethereal and solemn quality, as though it had crossed through time and space.

"Diana Prince, daughter of Zeus, God Nabu greets you."

"I'd rather you called me Diana, or Wonder Woman."

Diana frowned, clearly displeased by the title "daughter of Zeus."

Doctor Fate did not argue. His helmet turned toward Shane, and his tone suddenly grew cold, filled with undisguised hostility.

"Human Demon, leave this land."

Before his voice had even faded, he raised a hand and waved it. Pale golden magical light gathered before him, forming a symbol resembling a cross.

The Ankh Life Symbol.

The magic condensed into the symbol radiated an intense suppressive force and bore down on Shane, carrying the threat that he had better leave—or else.

"What do you mean?"

Diana's expression changed. She instinctively stepped in front of Shane and raised an arm to block the magical light.

"Doctor Fate, he's my student, not some Human Demon! Explain yourself. Why are you insulting him like this?"

"Student?"

Doctor Fate let out a mocking laugh, his tone filled with disdain.

"Princess of Zeus, you cannot even see the true nature of the Human Demon?"

He raised a hand and pointed at Shane, his voice suddenly rising.

"In God Nabu's sight, the resentment and stench of blood wrapped around this boy are thicker than those of most demons in Hell! A Human Demon capable of angering God Nabu has slaughtered at least hundreds of millions of Intelligent Life!"

"Hundreds of millions?"

Diana's entire body trembled, and the body she had placed before Shane stiffened slightly.

She turned back in disbelief and looked at Shane, her eyes filled with shock and confusion.

She knew what level God Nabu stood at. Such a being would never lie.

Yet after spending the past few days with Shane, all she had seen was a boy struggling to escape his past and live a good life. How could he possibly be a demon who had slaughtered hundreds of millions of Intelligent Life?

She drew a deep breath, turned around, and fixed her eyes on Shane. Her voice carried a faint, almost imperceptible tremor.

"Shane, what he said... is it true?"

Shane fell silent.

He had known all along that he could never conceal his past completely.

After arriving on Earth, he had admitted that he came from Viltrum and had been honest about the brutality of that planet. Yet he had concealed the blood on his hands.

It was not that he did not want to tell them. He simply could not.

Slaughter on this scale could no longer be summed up as "making a mistake" or "repenting."

Across the careers of every Superhero in the Justice League, the combined body count of every Superhero they had encountered likely did not equal his.

Even if one included the interstellar criminals Green Lantern had dealt with throughout the universe, it still would not be enough.

He had no way to defend himself, because Doctor Fate had spoken the truth.

The civilizations conquered by Viltrum, the weaker races used as their "trial targets"—billions, even tens of billions of lives—had died either directly or indirectly at the hands of him and the other Viltrumite Warriors.

"He was born on Viltrum, a civilization that takes pride in conquest and slaughter."

Diana looked at Shane's silent figure. She already had her answer, but she still could not help defending him.

"That wasn't something he could choose! He was forced to take part in it. He must have suffered over it, too!"

"Self-deception."

Doctor Fate cut her off without mercy.

"If he had felt even the slightest remorse for the slaughter of his past, the stench of blood and aura of sin on him would not be so heavy. From the perspective of Soul Magic, his soul has long since been soaked in blood. There is no possibility of redemption."

Diana's expression finally turned solemn.

She turned to look at Shane again, a final trace of hope in her eyes, waiting for him to argue back.

Even if he said anything at all, she was willing to believe him first.

But Shane merely looked at her. His eyes, which had always been devoid of emotion, were now filled with exhaustion. He let out a soft sigh.

That sigh explained everything.

Diana's heart sank. She did not continue questioning him. Instead, she turned back and spoke to Doctor Fate in a low voice.

"We came to ask for your help. My student has been targeted by the Goddess of Discord Eris and obtained her artifact, the Golden Apple. We need to find a way to break the curse and deal with Eris's revenge after her resurrection."

"Impossible."

Doctor Fate refused without the slightest hesitation.

"God Nabu will never help a Human Demon whose hands are stained with blood. Until he has completely left Salem City, I will keep watching you. Do not try to remain here."

The golden life symbol lit up again. This time, it even stirred up a massive current of air from thin air.

Shane stood amid the whistling wind and gave Doctor Fate a slight nod, his tone calm.

"Sorry for disturbing you. I'll leave now."

With that, he did not linger. He turned and shot into the sky, flying away from Salem City.

Diana watched his back, hesitated for a moment, and finally chased after him.

In midair, she wrestled with herself for several seconds before suddenly accelerating. She flew directly in front of Shane, blocking his path, and looked at him with complicated emotions.

"Shane, tell me. Under what circumstances did you have to kill so many people?"