"Can't you go any softer?!!" Jason let out a hiss filled with anger and a mix of agony.

The teenager was currently bare chested, seated on a rumpled queen sized bed. Seated besides him was Aletta, who was dabbing at the injuries on his body with a cotton wool soaked with ethanol.

"Quit whining like a babe. It isn't helping" Aletta grunted as she softly brushed the cotton wool across a peeled section of skin on Jason's left rib.

The latter stiffened reflexively before gnashing his teeth.

"So let me get this straight, you wanted to hunt down a Malevolent? who then trashed you but right before it could go for the kill, a little boy with telekinetic abilities came to your rescue and left with the Malevolent through a portal?" Stephen who was playing a video game on his laptop, gave Jason a fleeting look..

Although he tried to conceal it, Jason could tell he was only a small step away from breaking into a smug grin.

"Why do I get the feeling that you are more delighted at my setback than the fact that I got my sss beaten by a ghost?" Jason scoffed.

"I don't know.. I mean after that first kill of yours, your ego seemed to be more inflated than the heavens itself. Maybe encountering this setback wasn't such a bad thing. Like I told you two days ago, in the line of work we do, Invincibility isn't our greatest forte--"

"Yeah. Yeah. And the slightest carelessness can have us killed " Jason cut in with a sarcastic expression.

"We? I thought after encountering this setback you'd have a rethink about your career path?" Stephen was taken aback when he saw Jason still interested in being a Mystique Hunter.

The Jason he knew wasn't the dedicated sort. Once a path didn't go according to his direction, he would simply ditch it for another. To be still dedicated even after suffering such a defeat was both bewildering and puzzling to Stephen.

"Are you serious here? being a Mystique Hunter allows me to help those in need.. plus the rewards aren't bad. Just killing a level two Malevolent earned me five thousand dollars.. imagine if I kill four, five, twenty.. just this little setback wouldn't be enough to stop me"

"Looks like someone is motivated " Aletta's lips curled as she intentionally placed more pressure.

"Hey!" Jason snarled angrily at her.

As for Stephen, he gave Jason a deep look. He knew the other party too well. The only way he was still motivated to be a Mystique Hunter even after such a setback was because of one single thing..

There was benefit for him!

And it wasn't that he could save people considering Jason was a selfish narcissistic, or the reward money considering he was once a spoilt trust fund brat.

As for the true benefit, Stephen had no idea what it was. This intrigued him deeply and stroked his curiosity.

"So, who the hell was that guy? although I was only defeated by that Malevolent because I was careless, it was stronger than the one I killed. However that little boy easily dealt with it. Is he a Witch or something?" Jason's curiosity was far from satiated.

"A male who is a Witch? that's funny.." Stephen slowly shook his head .

"From your description, what you encountered was an Xper Mystique Hunter.. they are terrifying people to say the least"

Noticing the cautious look in Stephen's expression, Jason became even more curious.

However before he could move his lips, Aletta beat him to the punch.

"Remember how I told you there are different classes of Mystique Hunters? Xpers are one of them and are terrifying"

"Saints enter a contract with a Patron Angel to tap slightly into their power, allowing them to weild Hallow. Knight class Mystique Hunters are more of less regarded as Champions of their own Patron diety. You can think of them as Semi-gods, capable of tapping into the abilities of their Patron diety. However doing so causes a serious strain in their physical body so Knights normally utilize blessed Items during combat. However there's a way for Knights to refine their physical bodies to the point where they could endure using the abilities of their Patron diety without having their bodies implode. Stephen is the champion of Sango, the Yoruba Pantheon diety of lightning and fire "

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Aletta took a pause, seemingly waiting for the effects of her revelation to sink in before she continued speaking.

"Xpers are another class of Hunters. Rumors has it that their mothers managed to survive an assault from a Malevolent, effectively altering the physiology of their unborn infant. As such, Xpers are kind of like Malevolents in some way apart from the fact that they are not yet dead. They can tap into psyplasm, a variant of ectoplsm that can only be found in the Phantom Plane. So in simple words, they are capable of tapping into the Phantom Plane and weilding it's energy "

"Next on the list are Summoners and this is where things get interesting.. they are actually Hell Spawns "

"Hell Spawns?" Jason's brows knitted.

"You mean like Scorpion from Mortal Kombat?"

"No. Those are just fiction and Hell Spawns are not like that. At most Scorpion was similar to a Wraith. Hell Spawns are special humans capable of fully serving as the vessels of Demons"

"You mean like possession?" Jason cut in, appearing intrigued.

"I thought demons could possess whatever body they choose?"

"Yeah. For the lower classes of demons. If a higher class demon tries doing so, I am afraid the host won't be able to contain their vast presence, causing them to implode. As potential vessels for Demons, the Summoners has a small connection with the Arcane plane, allowing them to forcefully subjugate beings from the Arcane Plane.. for example curses, Hell Wraiths, Hell Creatures and even demons, depending on the mental fortitude of the Summoner "

"So, was my Uncle an Hell Spawn?" Jason seemed to have remembered something, causing intense hatred to almost explode out from his eyes.

"Indeed. However he wasn't a Mystique Hunter so he couldn't resist the possession. I am sorry"

"It's fine. Do you perhaps know the name of the Demon responsible?" Jason asked as he silently balled his fist.

"Unfortunately, no. However I know the mastermind.. it was a powerful Witch"

"A Witch?"

"Yeah. There's another class of Hunters known as Witches and Warlocks.. however unlike us, they are more.. selfish. Although they hunt mystical creatures, they only do so if there's benefit for them. In a way, they are similar with Saints"

"Like you?"

Aletta nodded slowly.

"Indeed. They are contracted with their own patron entities known as Empryeans. Not much is known about the Empryeans.. at least that's information a Hunter on my level can't access. However the basic knowledge about them is that they live at the farthest corner of the Arcane Plane"

"So they are demons?"

"No.. they are Hell's neighbours"

"So Jason.. what class of Hunter are you?"

It would seem Stephen was also curious because he also stopped the game he was playing and focused his attention on Jason as he and his sister awaited his response..

Sensing the four eyes gazed intently on him, Jason sighed..

"A Knight class"

This was the only reasonable expression he could give.. considering his trump cards were actually a set of daggers.. according to Aletta's earlier explaination, that fitted the M.O of Knight class Mystique Hunters right?