Edward, the firstborn son of a noble family, stands as a testament to how tragedy can reshape a person's very essence. At twenty-five years old, his once-pristine appearance bears the marks of his hellish ordeal in the demon realm. His blonde hair, previously meticulously maintained as befitting his station, now falls in unkempt waves around his face, streaked with premature strands of grey. His brown eyes, once bright with privilege and ambition, now carry a haunted depth that speaks of unspeakable horrors witnessed in the demon kingdom.

Standing at six feet tall, Edward's noble bearing remains evident despite his circumstances, a remnant of his upbringing that even demons couldn't erase. His once-fine clothing, though now tattered and stained with otherworldly residue, still hints at his aristocratic origins. A peculiar nervous tic has developed since his ordeal - he unconsciously traces protective runes in the air with his right index finger whenever he feels threatened, a habit picked up during his desperate attempts to survive in the demon realm.

Before his disappearance, Edward was being groomed to take over his family's estate, carrying the weight of generations of expectations on his shoulders. His relationship with his younger brother Evan was complex - while he loved his sibling dearly, he often felt overshadowed by Evan's natural charm and magical aptitude. Edward's own magical abilities were modest at best, a source of private shame in a family known for its powerful mages.

The circumstances of his disappearance into the demon realm remain mysterious, though some whisper it was no accident but rather a calculated move by rival noble houses. Whatever the truth, Edward's time in the demon kingdom has fundamentally altered him. He developed an uncanny ability to understand and speak the guttural language of demons, a skill that both aids and haunts him. His left hand bears a permanent mark - a swirling, dark sigil that occasionally pulses with an otherworldly glow, a constant reminder of his time in that cursed realm.

Despite his ordeal, or perhaps because of it, Edward maintains a rigid sense of propriety and honor, clinging to these aspects of his former life like a drowning man to driftwood. He has developed an almost obsessive need to protect others from experiencing the horrors he witnessed, often to his own detriment. This protective instinct extends especially toward his brother Evan, though the years of separation have created a chasm between them that may never be fully bridged.

Most notably, Edward has developed a peculiar relationship with shadows - he can sense their movements in ways others cannot, a skill that saved his life countless times in the demon realm. This ability manifests in subtle ways: he never startles at sudden movements in dark corners, and his eyes often track things others cannot see. This heightened awareness comes at a cost - he hasn't enjoyed a full night's sleep since his return, haunted by both memories and the lingering sensation of being watched by entities from the other side.