The Dark Revelation: Valentin’s True Nature Unveiled

Here is the continuation of the story: --- ### **Chapter 15: The Dark Revelation** Valentin’s words clung to the silence, thick and suffocating. Ember’s mind struggled to grasp them, to mold them into something that made sense. But they didn’t. They couldn’t. Her breath came in short, uneven bursts. “What do you mean?” she asked again, her voice barely more than a whisper. Valentin’s expression darkened. He took a slow step forward, his presence suddenly too overwhelming, too unnatural. “I’m a creature of the night,” he said, his voice deep and edged with something raw, something ancient. “But I’m not a vampire.” His lips curled into something that wasn’t quite a smile, but something more like regret. “I’m something much worse.” A chill ran down Ember’s spine. She swallowed hard. “What are you?” His jaw tightened, his hands clenching into fists at his sides. He hesitated, as if forcing himself to admit the truth was just as unbearable for him as it was for her to hear it. Then, with a quiet, almost pained voice, he spoke the words that shattered everything. “I’m a demon.” Ember took a step back, her heart hammering against her ribs. “No,” she whispered. “That’s not possible.” Valentin let out a humorless laugh. “Believe me, I wish it weren’t.” His golden eyes gleamed, and for the first time, she saw something in them she hadn’t noticed before—something otherworldly, something dark. “I was summoned from the depths of hell,” he continued, his voice heavy with self-loathing. “I was created to serve the darkness, to bring fear and suffering to the mortal world.” His fists tightened. “I wasn’t meant to feel, Ember. I wasn’t meant to—” He stopped himself, looking away as if the rest of his confession was too dangerous to say aloud. Ember forced herself to breathe. Forced herself to think through the rising tide of fear clawing at her. She should have run. Every instinct screamed at her to flee. But she didn’t. Instead, she whispered, “Then why are you here?” His gaze snapped back to hers, something sharp and vulnerable flashing across his face. “Because I made a choice,” he murmured. “A choice that goes against everything I was created to be.” The air between them grew heavy, charged with something she couldn’t name. “You’ve protected me,” she said, searching his face. “You’ve saved me. Demons don’t do that.” Valentin exhaled sharply, as if her words pained him. “You think that erases what I am?” He shook his head. “You don’t know what I’ve done, Ember.” “Then tell me,” she challenged, her voice steadier now. For a moment, he just looked at her, as if deciding whether she could bear the weight of his past. Then, slowly, his expression softened. “I don’t want to lose you,” he admitted. Something inside Ember shifted. Maybe she should have been afraid. Maybe she should have turned and run. But she didn’t. Because, demon or not, he was still Valentin. And she wasn’t ready to let go.