#executioner theory

One, it makes it seem like he's choosing not to hurt sinners instead of literally being unable to.

Two, it turns the duels into a spectacle for everyone to join in on and watch.

Three, Lucifer gets to have fun as a showman putting on a big performance, and getting the crowd revved up, and feeding his ego as the Sin of Pride.

Something else that would be fun to explore with this AU is the idea that Lucifer can still use his powers on sinners, he just can't hurt them. He can redirect their attacks back on them, and can even heal them if he feels like it. Which he does for the sole purpose of dragging out the duel even longer.

Just imagine the sinner getting worn down and beaten up without the Devil laying a finger on them, thinking the battle is already over, only for Lucifer to completely heal them, forcing them to keep the 'show' going.

As the Sin of Pride, Lucifer loves the attention these duels bring.

And as the Devil, he gets to punish the sinners in the only ways he really can: by humiliating them with a brutal and very public defeat.

Over time, these duels have become the biggest source of entertainment in Hell.

People placing bets on who they think might win.

Training arenas crop up to try and make a sinner strong enough to land a hit on the Devil.

And one day Rosie makes a deal with a human that she plans to use to win that one favor from the Devil.

She knows she has no hope of beating Lucifer, so she plans to use someone else in her place. And since she owns his soul, any rewards Alastor gets for being Lucifer would automatically be transferred to her.

So, when Alastor finally arrives in Hell, Rosie wastes no time in catching him up to speed. Taking him to each duel so they can study Lucifer's strategies and mannerisms. Looking for any weaknesses to exploit.

It goes beyond the duels as well.

They go over any public appearances the King has made over the last few centuries, pouring over every news article written about him, and attending any speech Lucifer gives to the public. All for the purpose of gaining whatever advantage they can get.

Throughout it all, Alastor started to develop a theory about their King, one that he doesn't really have any evidence to support. Just a hunch.

What he suspects is that Lucifer can't actually harm any sinners.

The only real evidence he has for this theory is the fact that Lucifer is never shown hurting any sinner ever. Even outside of th arena.

Alastor would have thought that The Devil would be out there torturing sinners in the streets, but that's never the case. All the records and media coverage he was able to found never depicted Lucifer as the Tormentor of the Wicked as you'd expect from him.

It wasn't a lot to go off of, but the more Alastor thought about it, the more it began to make sense.

If Lucifer wasn't able to harm sinners as some kind of cosmic punishment, then it effectively makes him a sitting duck (pun intended) in a sea of self righteous sinners who would love nothing more then to exploit the Devil's weakness.

If Alastor was in that situation, he'd probably do the same thing as Lucifer. Hide this weakness in plain sight as a misdirect. Convince the public that you're not restricted at all, and are simply choosing to be 'merciful'.

With that theory in place, Alastor tells Rosie he's ready to face the Devil.

It's a gamble, but it's all he's got right now.

The duel between them quickly becomes the talk of the whole realm. The Radio Demon, most powerful Overlord that's ever existed, has challenged the Devil. It's all anyone could talk about for weeks.

In the arena, Alastor is struggling to keep up with Lucifer, but he keeps pressing on, trying to get close to him for one particular reason: he wants to make a Deal with the Devil. One that is completely separate from his deal with Rosie.

The very idea that he'd have to go through all this trouble to beat Lucifer, only to have to hand over the winnings to his owner sickens him.

He's not about to let Rosie use him like that.

So when he's close enough to Lucifer that no one else will over hear them, he reveals he knows Lucifer's secret. He even threatens to reveal it to the entire realm, which is a credible threat given he runs the radio industry. He's even been broadcasting this fight this whole time, and has only now muted his microphone to have this little chat.

If Lucifer doesn't play along, then all of Hell will know their King is powerless against sinners.

But it's not just about playing along.

Alastor doesn't want to use his winnings just to free his soul. That would be a waste. Part of this deal would involve Lucifer freeing his soul from Rosie's grasp first, and then granting whatever favor Alastor asks for afterwards.

The threat works.

As much as Lucifer hates having to lose to a sinner, he also can't afford to let his secret out.

After the duel, Lucifer keeps up appearances, acting the part of the graceful looser as he congratulates Alastor on doing what no one else has done before.

Then Lucifer relocates them to a private location where there are guards waiting to execute Alastor.

Under other circumstances, Lucifer would have been willing to make good on his promise to give the victorious sinner what they want, but because Alastor knows his secrets he can't risk anything.

Alastor is quick to offer himself up as Lucifer's Executioner before he could be taken away.

It's enough to get Lucifer to hear him out.

What Alastor has to offer is to act in Lucifer's stead to punish the wicked where the King can't, and in exchange all he asks is for the freedom to travel all of Hell. To be the one sinner allowed to leave Pride Ring.

Lucifer doesn't even need to give it much thought.

Sinners have been getting far too comfortable in Hell, and Lucifer has already started seeing signs of a rebellion. If nothing is done about it soon, he could have a real mess on his hands.

He accepts Alastor's offer on one condition: He cannot use his new found powers and rank against him or his family.

Alastor sees nothing wrong with that. It's bad manners to bite the hand that feeds you, after all.