He's conflicted and trying to deny his feelings. For one thing, he has both a magical whammy and trauma from the past, so he cannot process and express emotions properly. For another, I believe he is afraid, because he does not want to show a weakness or fondness for a servant ever again, and because the last time he loved, when he lost the people, he almost turned into a monster--so loving again is very scary.
And yes, he is still an asshole. These are just the reasons why, not an excuse.
Just remember that he used to be nice, and now he's an ass--so when he starts to kind of be nice, the ass part of him comes back.
so am i the only one with no fucking clue of what's going on with lucaon's characterization??