The First Contract (2)
I had been scattering my aura nonstop.
"They're here! They're finally here!"
Sensing a presence from afar, I let out a cheer.
"Whew. I was almost completely drained—lucky break."
Truth be told, my plan had more holes than Swiss cheese. People might have steered clear of the "ominous aura," and if no one showed up at all, the whole thing would have been a total wash.
"…But why is that presence moving so fast? Anyone watching would think they were running for their lives—"
Creeeak—!!
Whoa, damn, that scared me.
What the—a kid? Why is she bursting in here like the place is on fire?
A silver-haired girl slammed the door open and stumbled inside. She was gasping for air, as if she had sprinted the entire way.
No, wait—that's not the issue here!
Her condition was critical. There wasn't a single unscarred patch of skin left on her body. She looked like she had just survived an ambush.
How did a girl this pretty end up in such a terrible state…
I couldn't just stand by and watch. When someone was in danger, you helped them. The way Surda had once helped me.
I offered her a few words of concern.
Are you okay, little one? Those wounds look really bad.
"At last you've arrived. I thought I would die of boredom waiting."
…What?
No, no. That had to be a slip of the tongue.
I was just too tense. I wasn't exactly used to talking to people.
Sorry, I'm not great with words. What I meant to say was—
"Even after being alone for such a short while, this emptiness is unbearable. It seems I simply cannot live as a solitary creature."
Ah. Shit.
It wasn't a mistake.
My mouth is moving on its own.
I wasn't going to bother asking the obvious "why."
At least keep the meaning the same! And why does the delivery have to be this cringey?
All behavior deemed unbefitting of a demon will be rectified!
Yeah. Of course it was you.
Locking you away wasn't enough, huh? Now you were going after my mouth, too.
"Unbefitting of a demon will be rectified," huh.
This was just puppetry. Standing a person up and forcing them to put on a show.
"A demon…!!"
Just as I was getting thoroughly sick of those blue letters, the girl cried out, her face twisted in terror.
Right—I'm a demon right now. Not the time to be griping.
How terrified must she have been? Some random demon standing on a blood-soaked altar, talking to her.
I needed to clear up the misunderstanding.
It's a misunderstanding. I only look like this on the outside—I'm a proper human on the inside.
"Yes, a demon. You have a keen eye."
Oh, for the love of—
"Flattery will get you nowhere. Were you planning to claim those wings are mere decoration?"
Hearing the confirmation only made her more horrified.
"Answer me. Why did you lure me here?"
She seemed to be under the impression that I had drawn her in on purpose.
Unfair. This wasn't the situation I'd been hoping for at all.
"Lure you? I have no idea what you're talking about."
"How shameless. You waited until my will was at its weakest."
For the first time, my words and my intentions actually matched—but I had already lost the girl's trust long ago.
Whatever I say, she's not going to listen. What a pain.
No choice, then. Time to lean into the shamelessness.
"You've seen through me. Well, I suppose there's no point in deflecting any further."
"I knew it…!!"
The surefire way to reduce your odds of losing an argument to zero: simply play along with the other person's tune.
"I'll be direct. I have a proposal for you."
"I refuse any deal with a demon. I decline."
The girl was brimming with hostility toward me. She showed no sign of being persuaded—but I still had a card to play.
"An excellent choice… provided the humans currently charging this way happen to be on your side."
"……!!"
"You're in a tight spot, aren't you?"
Dozens of presences were racing toward this place. Given the circumstances, they had to be either her enemies or her pursuers. There was no other reason she would be in that condition.
"You're still so young. You can't possibly want to die already."
"…So you're saying I should stop being stubborn and cooperate?"
"Exactly."
She wouldn't have long to deliberate. Even now, they were drawing closer.
"……"
Hurry up and decide already. We're seriously out of time.
Outwardly I kept up a calm front, but inside I was about to lose my mind from anxiety.
Those dozens of people closing in—were they even normal? The kind of humans who would drive a single girl into this state?
I don't want to ask villains for help. And there's no guarantee they'd help me even if I did.
The tension and dread kept climbing. Cold sweat had just begun to trickle down the back of my neck when—
"…Fine. What do you need me to do?"
At last, her decision came through.
Contracts. Or deals.
You couldn't talk about demons without those two things coming up.
"You need my soul, right? I'll give it to you gladly."
A human fulfills a desire; a demon takes their soul as payment. The classic story.
"Whoa, now, don't say things like that. I have zero interest and zero need, so you can put that worry right out of your mind."
"…?"
I had no intention of going down that road.
Am I insane? Steal a person's soul?
Things might have been flowing pretty naturally so far, but I had no plans of becoming a real demon. Pile up any more karma and I'd be inviting divine punishment.
"Oh my. Do you happen to have… particular tastes in that direction? How clumsy of me."
"Th-there's no way I do!! Just get to the point already!"
Heh. Teasing her was actually pretty fun. The kid had great reactions—it made me want to keep messing with her.
"Very well, as you wish. The terms of the deal are—"
Bang!
"Captain! We found the Saintess—what the hell is that."
"A demon! Haley Ul Richt has joined hands with a demon!"
Tch. I had taken too much time.
The pursuers finally burst into the room.
"How low you've fallen, Saintess. Will you truly borrow a demon's hand just to stay alive?"
"I don't care. If it means saving more lives, then so be it."
The girl—no, the Saintess—started arguing with the man at the front of the group.
…Wait. Saintess?
"I thought you seemed extraordinary, but to think you were the Saintess all along."
"Drop the act. You knew full well when you called me here."
No, I genuinely had no idea.
I'd just thought she was a pretty girl. Turns out she was a Saintess.
"To think one still existed in this era."
"This era? Just how many years have you been aliv—"
"Do you think you have time for idle chatter?"
With a sharp whoosh, the soldiers drew their swords and advanced. The exits were sealed. We were completely surrounded.
"I was briefly startled, but it seems you can't leave that spot, can you?"
"Hmm. Or perhaps I simply choose not to step out. Have you considered that?"
They had read my situation.
Damn. Sharp eyes.
"Bluffing is pointless. Once we've dealt with the Saintess, we'll take care of you next."
The man strode toward us.
With things as they were, I had no choice but to use that method.
Saintess. Can you hear me?
…? Is this telepathy?
Hearing that lovely voice of yours, I take it the message is coming through clearly.
The Saintess's voice rang inside my head. Magic wasn't limited to spewing fire and hurling lightning, after all. I had already planned for a situation where I wouldn't be able to speak out loud.
I've placed a piece of parchment inside your clothes. Check it, please.
…When did you—never mind. And then?
Did the speech correction apply to telepathy too?
This was driving me crazy. Moving on for now. That wasn't the important part.
Good. Hold it tightly against yourself, and—
I should apologize to the Saintess in advance. The method I was about to use was a little—no.
Allow yourself to be cut once by that swordsman.
What? Wait a second—
—Shhk!
It was rather extreme, after all.
What comes to mind when you think of demons?
The contracts and deals I already mentioned. Deceit and trickery practiced on humans. Or perhaps a beautiful appearance.
"W-what…!!"
"Didn't I tell you? Perhaps I simply choose not to step out."
But the greatest hallmark of all—
That was an excellent demon summoning, Saintess.
—was summoning.
The ultimate taboo: offering blood, flesh, and soul as sacrifice to call a demon into the world.
Are you all right? I ended up using a rather rough method.
I'm fi—ne. Just a little startled.
I caught the blade with one hand. With the other, I gently brushed the thin cut across her chest.
I hope you'll understand that a demon summoning inevitably requires blood.
I had exploited a loophole in the seal. Once I saw that the seal only cared whether my body itself made contact, the idea came to me.
I figured if I bypassed it through a summoning, it might work—and luckily, it went exactly as planned.
For the record, teleportation had been impossible. The skill simply wouldn't activate. Apparently the caster had to be someone else.
……
Hm? What's the matter?
Ah, n-nothing. It's nothing.
The Saintess had suddenly gone quiet. It was odd, but I let it go. This wasn't the time to worry about that.
"Impossible! A demon-sealing formation was definitely in place!"
"And yet here I am. Perhaps the seal was simply cheap goods?"
A lie. The seal itself had been highly effective. The other side knew that too—I was just leading them to misread the situation however they liked.
Bluffing is everything from here. I can't let them figure out my real strength.
How to sell it… Start light.
Step back. I'd rather not ruin this pleasant mood.
"It's been so long since I set foot outside. Shall I treat you all to a little massacre while I'm at it?"
What?
Hang on. That bluff is way too obvious.
"Nonsense! You think a lone demon can fight while protecting the Saintess as well?!"
See? Even that nobody saw right through it.
Honestly, this mouth of mine was pure poison. Damn thing.
How troublesome. I was hoping to use the opening to escape.
If this kept up, we were done for. I had been stalling to recover the power I'd burned through, but with them this eager for a fight, I would have no choice but to engage.
Don't you have any other techniques? A high-ranking demon of your caliber can't only know how to be summoned, can you?
While I was briefly stuck for an answer, the Saintess spoke to me.
Well… that may prove a bit difficult.
I had no idea what kind of being she thought I was, but right now it was impossible. Crafting that summoning parchment had used up everything I had left.
Damn it, what now? Recharging is going to take a while.
I needed to buy time somehow. First, lower their guard by surrendering—
"Silence. Does the thing standing before your eyes look like an ordinary demon to you?"
"E-excuse me? Could you repeat that?"
…What?
"All units, withdraw and await the next opportunity. If we face that thing head-on, I cannot guarantee victory."
The soldiers began filing out of the room, one by one. The number of people remaining dwindled, until—
Creeeak…
"We may retreat for now, but next time will be different, demon. I swear it upon the name of Ain Torua."
Even the man who seemed to be the captain finally left.
…No, seriously? They're just… leaving?