Growth
Growth
The moment he awakened the power called Soulkill, Johan was able to draw one conclusion.
‘This body I possessed never appeared even once in the original work.’
No being in the novel Record of Demons could unilaterally extinguish the soul of another. Even evil gods or apostles with overwhelming power could not directly intervene in spirits.
Johan was different. The power he awakened was defying the original work.
Irregular. The half-demon ‘Johan’ would be a foreign existence within this world.
He looked at the woman sitting on the inn room bed.
“With whom did you even share affection?”
As always, no answer returned. The emaciated woman only stared at Johan with empty eyes.
He swallowed a sigh.
‘If I knew my bloodline, I could at least grasp a clue.’
For now, he could not peel away even a single layer of the veil surrounding his identity.
As he was lost in thought, a loud noise came.
The door burst open.
“Illea has disappea—”
It was Gaf. His voice trailed off as he looked at Johan with a horrified expression.
“Your face looks as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
In fact, an evil spirit was standing before Gaf’s eyes.
The bean-sized imp had vanished without a trace, replaced by a sub-adult demon.
Such growth in just a few days left Gaf speechless.
“Get a hold of yourself and close the door first. Or do you want to advertise our identities?”
If one of the inn’s guests saw the scene inside, everyone would be in trouble.
Realizing the situation, Gaf quickly closed the door. Unable to fully escape the shock, his gaze trembled slightly.
Johan clicked his tongue and spoke.
“You’re late.”
Usually, Gaf would take Johan to Raguel before sunset. It was safer to move with Johan in his human state.
He could not walk around the castle after sunset with Johan in demon form.
Today was different.
The sun had already set, and Johan was in his demonized state.
Gaf, as if remembering, shouted.
“I was looking for Illea! She’s nowhere to be found!”
It had already been three days since she left for the Abyss.
“Do you know? Your daughter’s whereabouts, I mean.”
“She went on a journey. She said she would return in three weeks.”
At Johan’s indifferent attitude, Gaf’s expression twisted.
“What are you talking about? A journey, you say.”
“If you want the details, ask Illea directly. If I tell you, it would be like exposing someone else’s secret, and I don’t like that.”
To tell him about Illea’s destination and purpose, Johan would have to reveal that she was a witch.
He had no desire to do so. The emotional drain from the conversation was already visible in his mind.
For Gaf, things were different.
“I need to hear it now. Tell me what you know.”
“No. Every time I talk to you, it’s draining.”
Gaf’s face turned threatening as he took a step forward.
“You damned demon!”
Johan let out a small laugh.
“You claim you don’t need the help of a demon, yet you keep trying to rely on me. Instead of asking for favors, demand a transaction. If you sell your soul, I might just tell you.”
Gaf’s whole body trembled. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he turned his body sharply toward the door.
“I won’t fall for your schemes anymore. I’ll find out on my own.”
“Do as you please. But before that, there’s something to settle. Let’s terminate the ‘protection’ contract.”
Gaf turned his head to look at Johan.
“……What are you scheming?”
Suddenly offering to release his soul? After wielding the contract as a weapon for so long.
“I have a new protector now. You’re free. Congratulations.”
At the shameless smile, Gaf felt a strange sense of crisis.
“You—don’t tell me……”
“Illea. I made the same contract with your daughter.”
At the same time, Gaf’s face twisted like a demon’s.
The demon had finally extended its claws to his daughter. His reason vanished in an instant.
“To terminate the contract, mutual agreement is required. Do you accept it?”
The moment Johan finished speaking, Gaf lunged.
The massive body shot forward like an arrow, throwing a punch.
Smack!
A loud impact rang out.
“You’re not much, are you?”
In a black grasp, Gaf’s fist was caught and twisted.
He could not hide his shock.
“Y-You……!”
“‘Lion of Kandeya’ is a wasted title. Is it because your danjeon has been sealed?”
Gaf, leader of the Kandeya Mercenaries, had lost his danjeon to a demon in the past. The aura he had trained his whole life was now beyond his reach.
The strength that had made even high-ranking knights kneel was gone.
Johan released his fist.
“Anyway, don’t do anything foolish. As I said, your daughter is my protector. If something happens to me, Illea will not survive either.”
Gaf’s face turned red as if it would burst. Murderous intent overflowed in his bloodshot eyes.
But he could not move. His reason, which had momentarily fled, was now back in place.
From now on, his daughter was his leash.
Johan swallowed the pain inwardly.
‘My wrist almost broke.’
Even with a demon’s durability, Gaf’s brute strength was hard to handle. Such raw strength without aura—he was like a beast.
Had he been struck while still an imp, his head would have burst.
Dynamic vision, reflexes, agility, strength, durability…… All of his physical abilities had improved, yet he still was not confident he could win a fight against Gaf.
Enduring the pain, Johan spoke as casually as possible.
“I trust even a fool like you understands the situation now. Let me add, you don’t have the right to refuse the termination. Illea demanded your contract be broken in exchange for protecting me.”
Meaning, if Gaf refused to terminate the contract, Johan would die. Failing to protect Johan, Gaf and Illea would also die.
Gaf had no choice.
He had to lay down the duty of protection.
Johan lifted the corners of his mouth.
“Once again, congratulations. You’ve regained your freedom at the cost of your daughter’s sacrifice.”
***
Three weeks felt like an eternity to Gaf. He could not remember sleeping properly out of worry for his daughter.
Illea and Betra, traveling together alone. For women to wander in this world was no easy matter.
The mountains were filled with bandits, and the shadows teemed with evil spirits. Leaving the territory without escorts was tantamount to suicide.
It was common sense for the people of this world, so no one believed that mother and daughter had gone on a journey.
Everyone thought they had fled from the Baron. Or that Betra had kidnapped Illea to sell her to another territory.
The contents of the letter saying they would return after a brief wandering did not convince Baron Grian Miyatro in the slightest.
The Baron, in a rage, sent out pursuit parties.
They achieved nothing. Trained soldiers had lost track of two women.
It was absurd. Unless they had flown into the sky or sunk into the earth, they should have been caught.
Now, in the third week with still no word, everyone, including Gaf, was bewildered.
‘Where on earth did they go?’
Biting his lip, he grabbed the inn room’s doorknob.
Inside, the mother and baby should be sleeping. It had been a long time since he visited, and he felt a bit worried.
The mother might have died alone. If she died, it would trouble Gaf. There was no one else to take care of Johan in his infant state.
Now that he thought about it, for about three weeks, he had not taken Johan to Raguel either.
The moment he opened the door, that pale baby would glare at him with bright eyes.
‘Damn demon.’
He sighed and turned the doorknob.
The interior was revealed, and Gaf froze like a statue.
Because he saw neatly arranged silver hair.
“You, you……”
“Long time no see, Father.”
“How are you here!”
Illea was sitting on a chair.
“I wanted to meet my stepmother.”
She glanced at the woman sleeping soundly on the bed.
“She’s quite attractive. Your type, I assume?”
Gaf was so flustered he couldn’t even open his mouth.
“I’m sorry. Was it too sudden? If it’s a burden, I can visit another time. Let me know when it’s convenient for you. I’m ready to welcome a new family.”
Illea rose from her seat and headed toward the door.
As father and daughter passed each other, Gaf grabbed Illea’s wrist tightly.
“Wait!”
“That hurts, Father.”
“S-Sorry. But don’t go. There’s so much I need to say to you.”
“Ask me anything you want. I will answer everything.”
“Where on earth have you been? Are you hurt anywhere? How did you find this place……”
“Slowly, one at a time. Let me tell you how I found this place first.”
Illea added with a gentle smile.
“I smelled it.”
“Smelled it?”
“The wicked, eerie lingering scent.”
A strange light flickered in her eyes.
“The scent of a demon.”
Gaf swallowed dryly.
“……W-What are you talking about?”
“Witches are sensitive to malice. That lingering scent led me here.”
“I don’t understand a word you’re saying.”
“I’m confessing that I’m a witch.”
The calm declaration struck Gaf’s mind like a hammer.
“Now that I’ve shared my secret, please tell me yours, Father. You’re a demon contractor. Aren’t you?”
Just as Gaf suspected, Illea and Johan had already made contact.
“Ah, I suppose not anymore. You would have terminated the contract by now.”
The longer the conversation continued, the more Gaf felt dizzy. These abnormal words flowed so calmly from his daughter’s mouth. As if discussing what she had for breakfast or whether she slept well, Illea was completely unfazed by topics related to demons.
“A daughter who’s a witch and a father who’s a first-class heretic. What a mess of a family.”
The Great Saint Church classified those who made contracts with demons as first-class heretics.
“I wonder if Mother is normal. If so, that would be a relief, but somehow, I doubt it. Like attracts like, after all.”
Suddenly remembering, Illea clapped her hands.
“Oh, and there’s a younger sibling too.”
She pointed at the woman’s arms. Johan was sleeping there.
“I wonder about that child as well.”
Gaf felt so dizzy. He needed to say something, but no words would come out.
“Could he really be normal…… I’m so curious.”
Illea stared quietly at Johan. She felt nothing. He was no different from an ordinary baby.
“Please answer me. What kind of people are these new family members?”
If even the baby and the stepmother were hiding secrets, then there were no normal people in this family.
They would be the Church’s highest-priority targets for eradication. A family whose very existence was a sin.
“Come on. Why won’t you say a word?”
It felt like an interrogation. From the shock and pressure, Gaf wanted to run away.
He pinched his thigh hard. It was not a dream.
“T-This is……”
“It’s sad, but it’s reality, and it’s time to accept it. Let’s at least be honest with each other. We’re family, after all.”
Gaf shook his head, pale as a sheet.
“T-This is all a demon’s scheme. You must not get involved any further. Let your father handle this. Illea, my daughter, please forget everything and live normally. Everything that happened until today, please……”
Illea’s expression calmed.
“No. With your strength, you can’t resolve anything. You didn’t even know I had been kidnapped. From the very beginning, we received help from a demon, and it’s too late to change that now.”
Gaf looked at his daughter with an expression close to tears.
Illea gently embraced her father.
“You can’t cross the waves alone. You have to join forces even with sailors you don’t like. We’re already on the same ship.”
Then, she smiled playfully.
“That way, when the waters calm, you might get the chance to push the sailor you dislike overboard, don’t you think?”
“Illea, I……”
“Someone might get a little hurt hearing that, though.”
Gaf’s gaze shifted slightly toward the baby.
Illea drew a strange curve with her lips.
“He looks just like an angel when he’s sleeping. Did you give him a name yet?”
“Ah, not yet.”
“That’s too cruel.”
Illea pretended to think, then spoke.
“How about Johan? Doesn’t it suit a pale baby quite well?”
Gaf did not know Johan’s name. His face showed his embarrassment.
“It’s a nice name.”
“Let’s ask the baby too.”
“What……”
At the same time, the baby on the bed floated up.
It was magic. A power forbidden by imperial law. As the shocks continued, Gaf’s face completely stiffened.
The floating baby landed in Illea’s arms.
“Now, let’s hear his answer.”
She took out a small glass vial. She dropped a single drop of transparent liquid into the baby’s mouth.
Immediately, a few strands of hair sprouted on the bald head. The short limbs grew ever so slightly. Overall, there was a slight growth.
It was sap from the World Tree. The baby had drunk an elixir of the ancient races.
Illea smiled and spoke.
“Johan, do you like it?”
The baby, whose lips twitched, slowly opened his mouth.
“Bring more.”