The Forceful Contract
“So you’re saying he went off to subjugate a Cyclops pack?”
“Yeah.”
After arriving in a nearby city, Bagloros and I gathered information about the man using my name through the Thieves’ Guild, the High Assassin Guild, and various other informants. Thanks to the considerable feats he had accomplished, there was an abundance of information about him, and tracking him down proved surprisingly easy.
Following the trail, we reached the fairly large village of Winzes in four days and learned that roughly a week ago he had accepted a request from some boy and departed for a small village.
“If he left Winzes a week ago, he’s probably still there or at least nearby.”
If the story about him riding a Pegasus was true, there was no need to worry too much. While a Pegasus was indeed a horse that ran across the sky, unlike a phoenix or wyvern it was ill-suited for long-distance flight and not particularly fast. As long as we hurried, we could catch up. The problem was that even riding horses from here to there would take more than four days again, no matter how many spells I cast, and calling Erill again would be difficult.
Of course, I could summon the Black Wyvern. Setting aside everything else, I would at least need a proper saddle first.
“Should I go fetch him?”
Well, that would certainly be faster. But if I sent him alone, there would be no proper conversation—he would simply knock the man unconscious and literally carry him back. Regardless of the circumstances, I didn’t want someone who had been helping others and doing good deeds to experience something like that.
“No, it’s fine. Bagloros, go to Rowell and Aegina now and bring them here.”
I had left traces and even a note to be delivered if the carriage appeared, but they were quite far behind us by now. If we weren’t careful, the information could get mixed up and they might end up lost. Of course, that wasn’t the only reason I was sending Bagloros back.
“What about you?”
Bagloros’s gaze and tone never changed much, so it was hard to read his exact intentions, but it seemed he was asking whether it was all right for me to go alone or whether I could really make it in time.
“It’s fine. I have my ways.”
So I gave an answer that fit both possibilities.
“Understood.”
Bagloros nodded and immediately leaped out the window. We were on the third floor, but honestly, watching him didn’t faze me at all. Once I was certain he wouldn’t return, I grabbed my bag and activated the crystal.
“You’re only showing up now.”
Rofena’s voice carried a hint of disappointment.
“You know it’s been almost a week, right?”
“I told you. It’s hard to come while traveling together.”
I set the bag down in one corner and headed toward the opposite wall. Seeing this, Rofena’s voice shifted slightly.
“So you’re alone right now?”
The artifacts I had stored there—Upper Sky’s Necklace, the Pope’s Ring, and the others I had been wearing last time—were all there. As I began putting them on one by one, she realized I was alone.
“Yes. Only for a few days, though.”
Once I finished equipping the artifacts, her expectant gaze became rather burdensome.
“You’re not planning to leave like this, are you?”
“Ah, I’m in a bit of a hurry right now.”
“So?”
Even though she clearly knew the answer, she pretended not to. It was cute, which was the problem. In the end, after keeping her company in conversation for a while, I grabbed a book and returned to the inn. The sun hadn’t set yet, but the sky was gradually darkening, so I quickly left the inn again.
I told the innkeeper to take good care of the horse and, if Jane arrived with the carriage before I returned, to hand it over to her. I didn’t think I would be late, but there was always the chance they might arrive sooner than expected, and it was a borrowed horse after all.
Once I reached a quiet road outside the village, I opened the book I had brought. Its title was Kokus Jakus, taken from an incantation used in ancient shamanic rituals. Roughly translated, it meant “far away, deeper.”
It was a book dealing with summon beasts that were difficult to reach, an artifact from the era when summoners were still called dark priests. When I found it in the Library of Denatel, I had been genuinely astonished. While it couldn’t compare to the other three forbidden books, this one was also something that could no longer be easily obtained, and for someone with my limited abilities, it was far more helpful than those forbidden tomes.
Of course, I never thought I would actually use it like this. As I flipped through the pages, detailed descriptions of the summon beasts—their appearances, characteristics, and methods of summoning—were laid out, with some names marked by a single red dot indicating danger.
Naturally, not just any summoner could call forth these beasts simply by following the book. Lower- or mid-tier monsters like Grendels that relied on simple instincts might respond to a basic summoning spell, but anything stronger required more.
Even so, the reason I had taken out this book was because that limitation didn’t apply to me.
“Hoo.”
With a short breath, I conjured a large black sigil in the air. The surrounding airflow gradually shifted, and an unsettling energy that made my entire body crawl flowed out from the sigil. Beyond it, I could see a pair of pitch-black eyes. Soon, their owner slowly pushed its head through the sigil.
“Come forth, Kutlkeus.”
It resembled a giant serpent with a beak. Its beak was large enough to swallow someone like me in a single gulp, and though its head was sturdier than a snake’s, it was surrounded by what looked like a mane of solid armor plates, giving it a vicious, almost malevolent appearance.
The creature slowly scanned me with those black eyes, as if recognizing that I was the one who had summoned it, then gradually pulled the rest of its body out.
Its long, serpentine body bore two pairs of wings that were little more than bone, and beneath them ran a straight line of gem-like objects glowing with blue light.
“Qua, quag. Quaa.”
The creature let out a sound while exhaling through its nose, its greedy eyes gleaming. It was signaling that it was willing to talk.
I established a connection between our souls and gradually strengthened it. Only then did the creature’s will come through clearly.
Are you the one who summoned me?
“That is correct, Kutlkeus.”
Kutlkeus. A creature that inhabited Zimnus, a world within the demon realm. While highly intelligent, its temperament was ferocious and sharp. Though its combat ability was lower than Erill’s as a phoenix, it was a rather troublesome opponent that could unleash various attack spells using the blue gems embedded in its body.
“My name is Anak. I am a companion of Rowell, the Hero of Light who defeated the Demon King Thanatos, the Evil Dragon Tiamat, and the Demon God Nix.”
The creature might not know Thanatos or Rowell, but it would certainly understand the meaning of Demon King and Demon God.
You?
“Yes.”
The creature scanned me up and down again, as if unable to believe it. However, its gaze didn’t feel unpleasant. It wasn’t looking down on me—it was simply reacting to something else.
But for someone like that…
“Isn’t there something more important right now?”
As the soul connection intensified, the creature flinched and stepped back. Even if I couldn’t brand its soul and claim ownership, with my abilities I could still force a contract on something of its level.
Do you take me for some mere beast?! I am Jequirac!
The creature’s body glowed, creating blue flames in the air, and its consciousness thrashed as if trying to sever the soul connection immediately. But allowing the soul connection in the first place had been its mistake.
The summoning method described in the book already carried a certain binding force the moment the target responded. Moreover, our souls were now connected. There was no situation more advantageous for a summoner.
The creature hastily shot flames at me, but the aim was wildly off. Simply shifting my body slightly was enough to avoid even the smallest sparks.
“So you thought I was some third-rate summoner?”
As the connection strengthened further, the creature seemed to lose control of its mana under the intense pressure transmitted through its consciousness. The other flames hovering in the air wavered dangerously before extinguishing, and the creature struggled desperately to break the connection. Of course, it couldn’t.
You bastard!
Still, the creature wasn’t a fool. What I currently held was only its consciousness—the physical body remained unbound. It swung its massive body with all its strength, trying to strike me with its tail. But I was faster.
I called upon the wind spirits to lift my body slightly and move backward. The creature’s tail grazed past my face by a hair’s breadth. Of course, thanks to Janus’s Amulet, even if it had hit me the one getting hurt would have been its tail, but since the amulet required a long time to recharge after each use, it was best to save it for later.
“What, is that all you’ve got?”
At my gesture, sigils rose from the earth. I wasn’t exactly relaxed either while holding onto the rampaging creature’s consciousness, but this was still far easier than struggling alone.
The ground rotted away with a black light, and three Puppet Crows slowly emerged from within. In a battle of consciousness and souls, something like Kadorukude would have been far more efficient, but summoning a huanma in the middle of this power struggle risked my own consciousness being consumed. I couldn’t afford to summon ordinary beasts just to sacrifice them either.
Following my will, ancient witch spells flowed from the Puppet Crows’ mouths, transforming into dark-red chains that wrapped around Kutlkeus’s body.
Kuh, kuhh!
“You’re making quite a fuss over something so minor.”
The pain from the chains was partially transmitted to me through the soul connection, but it was nothing compared to what the creature itself was feeling. Eventually, after struggling a few more times, it acknowledged its defeat.
I understand! I understand! I’ll follow your orders!
The creature lowered its head, which it had raised high toward the sky, and no longer resisted the soul synchronization. Following my gestures and spells, binding and contract sigils were engraved across its body, and with its consent, the contract was formed.
While it wasn’t complete ownership like a soul brand or a master-servant contract, I had effectively placed a bridle around its neck.
…For someone who claims to be the Hero’s companion, this is quite a coercive contract.
The creature was angry, yet somehow its consciousness carried a trace of satisfaction.
“Under normal circumstances, I would have negotiated the contract terms like a gentleman, but I’m in a bit of a rush. Besides, you never intended to settle this with words alone, did you?”
Through the connected consciousness, I heard the creature’s dark laughter.
Yes. You’re right. I, Jequirac, have no intention of serving someone weaker than myself, no matter how good the treatment!
Creatures of the demon realm were generally like this. While demons were somewhat different, for these beings, power was everything, which was why they submitted to demons and the Demon King.
“Good. Jequirac. Then here is my first order.”
After sending the Puppet Crows back, I climbed onto the creature’s back. There was no saddle, and the scales were slippery, but none of that mattered. Following my will, the creature’s mana moved, fixing me securely to its back.
“Now, let’s go.”
It spread its two pairs of bony wings, and black magical power unfurled along the skeletal frames, forming enormous black wings. With a single flap, we were already high in the sky.