Chapter 22: 22. Demons

North East — Dragon Eye

Deep into the Forest, there was movement.

 

Two shadows darted into the forest with fleeting footsteps. The grasses bounced back as their feet left the ground; they continued their way deeper in until ten minutes later, they stopped in front of a nameless giant tree, they arrived.

 

"So, where is this secret hideout you said?" Theo asked, curious, seeing nothing but the tree, "Can you commune to Spirits?"

 

Titus did not answer immediately; instead, he took a deep breath as he turned to his brother, his eyes reflecting emotions mired in anxiousness and fear, "Older brother… are you really going to summon a Demon?"

 

Titus asked, his eyes watering at the idea of helping Theo.

 

Laughing, Theo rubbed his brother's hair, "Don't worry, I'm not planning to do anything insidious. Why are you having second thoughts?"

 

Titus shook his head, "NO! I WANT TO HELP MOTHER LAURA AS WE—"

 

Theo reached out and covered his brother's mouth, "Shhh, I see, now be quiet. We don't want any unwanted beast following us now." He said in a small voice.

 

'A Demonic Cultist wouldn't admit he's summoning a demon; that's just common sense. For Older Brother to claim he's summoning a demon right after becoming the Saint of Fate must be to combat Demons… right? But a Demonic Cultis might also be lying about their intentions. Ahhhh, I wish Lyria and Lisa are here.' Titus was aware he wasn't the brightest in the family.

 

"Don't worry too much, Titus. If you help, we wouldn't only be helping Mother Laura but also stopping the chances of Demons coming to this side of reality. We're pretty much helping the world by doing one bad thing that is also canceled out because of good intention… ish."

 

Titus gave up trying to understand Theo, 'I am not cut out for thinking too much,'

 

"Please, just promise me you're not

 

Proceeding to lift a wooden cover, an opening between the roots of the giant tree, "Older brother, follow me."

 

It was Titus who jumped into the opening and just before Theo followed, he remembered something.

 

Looking around frantically, he picked up a rock and led the divine energy into his fingertips.

 

Blood dripped from his fingertips and waited-

 

—Rustle—

 

Theo threw the rock at the first sign of life. The death throes of a tiny hunter echoed.

 

Moving the bushes, he saw a fox, cinders still burning on its paws.

 

'A Firefox, Hehe, lucky—and it's dead.' Upon flipping its twitching body, Theo saw its pierced eyes, warm red fur, and white fangs that had already turned ashen.

 

The rock reached the brain.

 

Theo let out a breath of frustration.

 

He prepared his blood for a second time.

 

mew~

 

'But wait… oh…'

 

He paused.

 

Underneath the Firefox's body was another creature.

 

'Oooh?'

 

It carried but a tiny wisp of life.

 

'Ooooooooh!'

 

It was the Firefox's prey, caught before its captor fell due to greed…

 

Theo grabbed it, touched its fur, and in that second when he caressed its body, he smiled joyfully, 'You're the one!'

 

Carrying the creature, he followed Titus down the hole. He whistled as he jumped down the hole.

 

Like a girl following a rabbit down to a bad trip, Theo slid down a surprisingly spacious path, 'My senses aren't sharp enough to detect anyone outside from here—aiya, that's a rush!'

 

Reaching the bottom and hitting his behind, Titus had him crawl down further until they arrived at a spacious area filled with the smell of sugar, 'Is this a former winery?'

 

It was too dark to confirm.

 

'I'll go blind if I use more in my eyes….' his thoughts paused for a moment, '…an eyepatch isn't that pricy, right?'

 

Titus pulled a lever somewhere, and a wooden cover dropped from the hole on the ceiling.

 

Moonlight touched Theo's face providing him a light for him to see, "I didn't have to blind myself, after all."

 

"What!?"

 

"Nothing."

 

Moonlight provided light from the sinkhole on top, and Theo nodded in satisfaction, 'The scorched walls won't be a problem, and the opening will allow me to concentrate the power of the Moon. This is a good place. I guess it is good luck that I met Titus on the way. The Moon can even be used as a doorway to the Netherworld, what luck—'

 

[The Moon's powers cannot be drawn. If the Moon Guardian senses your Stigma, Saint or not, she will kill you.]

 

'I can make do with what I have.' He didn't bother arguing, 'You're really going at it in your first day, good job, Fate. I almost don't want to make your existence miserable.'

 

[…]

 

'You need to respond when your boss compliments you.'

 

[…thank you.]

 

'Hehe~' Theo made a petty cackle while unwrapping his left hand.

 

A purple light escaped from Theo's hands, and Titus leaned over to get a better look. He was still afraid, but curiosity got the better of him as he extended his neck, "Woah~" he was amazed by what he saw.

 

"Be careful; the first and last minutes of the process are the deadliest, so you best stand back. If you're not careful, you'll get possessed, and you'll kill me as well as the nearest human settlement. Which is our city."

 

Theo hummed delightfully while Titus kept silent on the side. Even when he noticed that his older brother was holding something, Titus kept silent.

 

Titus swallowed his saliva and stepped back without even noticing it.

 

'Okay, let's begin.' Theo said to himself, taking out the knife he kept with him.

 

It was a simple kitchen knife he stole.

 

It was duller than what he would want, but one swing was enough to cut his wrist. He ignored the pain as well as Titus' yelp. The blood flowed to his fingers, and he began drawing on the ground while humming.

 

He repeated this process a total of four times until there were six Circles in total. With the necessary symbols, it took him an overall of ten minutes to complete the formation, 'Ugh, I'm becoming anemic. I wish I had a blood sacrifice. But I can't hurt Titus, and I'm the only virgin I know.'

 

It was already a miracle that someone got through 20 years in their life as a virgin, so Theo couldn't complain much.

 

Theo slapped himself multiple times to keep himself awake, "Come on, we're almost there, don't fall unconscious now. Remember the tortures."

 

Filling the knife with Divine Energy, Theo carved the ground around the formation just before it cracked and disintegrated. With this final act, Theo tossed the sacrifice in the middle of the blood formation.

 

"What's that?"

 

"Sacrifice, can't call upon a demon without one.

 

"Lesson #1: You can use anything as long as it is alive, a virgin man or woman can be used to ensure its effect…" noticing Titus' horrified expression, Theo stopped with a shoulder shrug, "…I wouldn't recommend you do it, a rat can be just as effective if you're desperate."

 

"…okay, but is it real—"

 

"A~nyway~, stop bothering me. Any mistake can lead to my death, so don't distract me." Theo felt questions on morality… he didn't want to answer, 'It's always tedious to explain.'

 

He clapped his hands together to start the process.

 

"Oh yeah, don't watch it with your bare eyes. Cover it with magia or spirit."

 

"…why?"

 

"You'll go blind."

 

"What!?"

 

"1.2.3 go!"

 

Theo poured his attention to the summoning.

 

And in that instant, where nothing seemed to change, Theo became a totally different person.

 

'Wo-Woah… this is my always drunk older brother?' Theo could not believe what he saw, 'He's like Mother Thalia.'

 

Theo's expression remained lax, but his aura flipped from harmless to that of a Magic Magister.

 

"Deconstruct 90% of the remaining Divine Energy to pure Magia."

 

[Order Complete]

 

Theo's body overflowed with Magia and into the blood formation.

 

[Status: Magia Overflow

 

Magia Overflow: Your body has an inordinate amount of Pure Magia.

 

Do you wish to experience Body Purification? Y/N?

 

Body Purification: Purge internal impurities and strengthens the body from the inside out.]

'Good, as I thought, I didn't need to draw lifeforce.' Theo celebrated, but his thoughts and attention never faltered. It only serves as a reminder, 'Redirect flow.'

 

When moonlight hit the center and touched the blood formation, an explosion of glorious, brilliant crimson light came to be.

 

The symbols floated, one by one, the layer of the circles lifted from the ground and coalesce midair. The phenomenon created a swirling vortex of demonic energy filling the entire room.

 

It would have left the cave if not for the golden light around the blood formation expanding to seal the room. The circle Theo carved with the golden knife stopped the demonic energy from spreading, effectively hiding their presence.

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A veil of thick white mist shrouded the cave, but, as one would expect, what just appeared was no ordinary phenomenon.

 

'What is that?' no one could give Titus the answer.

 

The mist became darker by the passing second, and when it reached its darkest hue, a burst of purple energy pushed the fog into the walls, copying the earlier symbols floating around Theo.

 

Theo's hand trembled uncontrollably as his skin cracked, and the mark of a dragon eating its tail was stripped out of his palms and transferred into the sacrifice's forehead.

 

Chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeee!

 

The ball-shaped sacrifice squealed while getting dragged up into the air by the purple stigma. Incomprehensible pain encroached its mind breaking its mind.

 

'It survived!!' Theo celebrated in his mind.

 

The ground quaked and torn asunder.

 

Black miasma crawled out of the rift to the Underworld and into the Mortal World, freezing the cave walls with unearthly winds!

 

Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

 

Titus covered his ears as a new soul-wrenching cry escaped the cracks, followed by dozens of black hands to attack its summoner.

 

"Older Brother, watch out!" Titus cried out in worry for his brother, but Theo did not bother moving.

 

Bam!

 

A golden wall protected him from the Demon's assault.

 

"How lively." Theo praised using a forgotten language.

 

"Gahahahaahaha, a Mortal with a sharp tongue, I see." a peal of guttural laughter caused the cave's integrity to be tested.

 

'As I thought, the Forgotten Tongue still exists.' Theo snorted in derision, "If you're trying to add theatrics to your appearance, that's not going to work. You think a Mortal who speaks this language can be frightened?"

 

The Demon grew silent and burst into a cackle; another dozen of hands came out and dragged a humanoid creature wearing a green suit from the bowels of the Underworld.

 

"Classy." Theo quipped.

 

Standing at two and a half meters in height, the Demon had a three-eyed snake for a head, its black scales glistened with the touch of moonlight, and the vile purple mist continuously flowing from the corners of its mouth already began eating away at the ground.

 

Its eyes filled with an adage of curiosity, "Now that you mention it, how can a Mortal speak the lost words of the Forgotten Era?"

 

"You only noticed that now? I thought you'd be smarter; well, what did I expect from an Imoogi?"

 

The Archduke of Greed's smile wavered, "Don't call me that!"

 

"Why? Ashamed of your own heritage? Because I'm pretty sure a Dragon does not screech, it roars, and it rules over as an Emperor."

 

BAM!

 

Tens of black hands tried to smash the golden walls to get to Theo. The Serpent's maw opened wide as its anger came out, bursting without breaks.

 

"I am a Dragon! A being that calls for respect! How dare you talk to me an Archduke of Greed like that!" Cracks formed all around the cave, "I may have had my claws and wings clipped, but I will forever be a Dragon! Born as a Dragon, exist as a Dragon! You shall respect me, as you would respect the God you worship!"

 

Theo opened and closed his mouth; speechlessness plagued him.

 

The Archduke smirked and then disappeared soon after, replaced by confusion, until his eyes turned to slits when Theo regained his vibrant smile.

 

"Haha, I'm sorry, I am still new to being Theo, so his hate for Demons, especially you who tortured him for nine long years, is messing with my values." again, Theo laughed, allowing it to continue until he stopped to exhale, "I apologize for my rude behavior."

 

The Demon snorted, "Goo—"

 

"But, in return, do not dare think for a second that I will worship the Gods or that I will bow before anyone, much a less a God born from the wishes of others, else, I will skin you and turn you into a leather bag for retail."

 

The way he spoke could only be taken as calm, but to those with half a brain could see almost taste the poison underneath. One so vile it matches that of the Demon he summoned.

 

"I… will keep that in mind." The Archduke cleared his throat. "Now that is out of the way, human, what do you need of me?"

 

"I want to have a chat."

 

"Stop playing, and tell me, I am a busy Demon. You mentioned torment. I reckon you are my Demonic Vessel. Are you here to strike a deal of some kind? If you are, in honor of going so willingly, the fact that you can speak the Forgotten Era's tongue and my earlier rudeness, I will grant your wish. I will have you reborn as a Wandering Demon."

 

"How gracious of you."

 

"Of course, I am a Demon of Greed I can answer your desire, and if you are willing to give me a vessel as paym—"

 

"I was being sarcastic. Who would want to be a Demon?"

 

The Archduke tilted his head in amusement, "Is that not what you Demonic Followers dream of? To be freed from your Mortal Flesh, live in servitude of your own desires, unshackled by morality. Or what? Do you want a more barbaric desire? To kill and have someone suffer, I can do that as well."

 

"I don't want others' hands getting dirtied; if I choose to snuff out someone's life, I'll do it on my own. If I wanted to become a demon, I would've just let the Demonic Mark last for another ten years, and I'll become a Mortal with the ability of a Demon, maybe even the Immortality part. Surprise I know so much?"

 

"Then, what is it that you want?"

 

"To make use of you?"

 

"…you want to enslave me?"

 

"What? Of course not; I am not a monster. I'm allowing you freedom, but you would need to be connected to me in a one-way Blood Pact, an exclusive I die you die but not the other way around, follow my orders, not disobey me, and become completely subservient. Like a pet more than anything else." Theo explained.

 

"Gahahaha, two of those are one and the same. How stupid."

 

"Hahaha, I know, I just wanted to drive it home." He countered.

 

The Archduke was stupefied by his words, "Oh, you're actually serious, Human?"

 

"Of course, I am. If not, why would I bother calling you when I could have easily destroyed the stigma of a Demonic Vessel?"

 

The two matched eyes, and Theo and the Archduke Demon burst into a peal of unrollable laughter in that instant. The two found each other's words laughable.

 

BAM!

 

"YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A VESSEL, BORN TO BE TAKEN OVER, TO BE A SUIT OF FLESH OF MY OWN DESIGN! YOU THINK I WILL ALLOW YOU TO CONTAIN ME, HUMAN!?" The Archduke slammed the golden wall with more than three dozen black hands to get to Theo, but like his previous attempts, all were stopped by the Golden Wall of Divine Energy.

 

The ground shook at his anger, but Theo did not waver, and neither did he back away from fear.

 

Theo stood before the Archduke and showed him his most innocent of smiles, "I wasn't asking, I am simply informing you of what is about to happen, and I wasted enough time by now. Look behind you."

 

"What are you—" the Archduke's words stifled, seeing a dying furry creature having the mark on its forehead. The Mark of the Archduke of Greed stamped in the middle of its forehead, "The—then, this is… this is not a rite to summon me?"

 

Theo shook his head, "What? No, did you ever hear me call your name? I don't even know what name you have."

 

"That's impossible. No Demon could appear in the Mortal World without anyone calling it through a passage—" it was then that the Archduke remembered the Mark on the sacrifice's forehead.

 

"This is me transferring the mark to another vessel." Theo raised his left hand and showed him blood dripping down, "You must be wondering how I did this, and it's fairly simple. Transfer the mark to a weak creature that couldn't hope to fight back your whispers, wait for the Underworld to open because of the concentrated Demonic Aura provided by your mark leaving my person, and then distract you with the Forgotten Tongue as I wait for the transfer to finish."

 

The Archduke looked in horror to Theo; it was its turn to be utterly speechless. The human's smile that once looked amusing became insidious to the sight, "You… YOU BASTARD!"

 

"I heard that so many times; got anything new?"

 

The Archduke quickly made an attempt to shred the sacrifice to ribbons. He turned one of the black hands into a pike and aimed for the creature's body—

 

"Screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" it screeched in pain as it felt the same pain as the sacrifice would.

 

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. To accommodate a Demonic Noble, I made sure to make a perfect vessel. A simple tweak to the blood formation will allow you to use your full power in the Mortal World.

 

"Normally, it would damage my lifeblood, but as a previous holder of the Mark, I have free reign in controlling the transfer. Your mark permeated in my body and left a long last carve in my soul, giving me access to the backdoor of Demonic Rituals. But the price is your vessel's perfect compatibility. Kill it, and you die as well."

 

"I'LL KILL YOU!!" its serpentine maw opened wide as its poison touched the Golden Wall of Divine Energy.

 

"Then better do it fast because soon enough, you wouldn't be able to do anything with that as your body."

 

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

 

The golden wall shook as the Archduke slammed it with his many pike-turned appendages. He was unrelenting and began creating cracks on the wall, and as it broke through and almost reached Theo, the Archduke saw the human take a step back.

 

"And I win."

 

The Archduke failed to reach Theo by a single millimeter as his body soon felt a pulling force come down upon him. His face turned to that of absolute terror, "…no… no, no, nono, nononononono, Noooooooooooooooooooooo!"

 

The mist around them whirled. The Runes transformed into chains that latched themselves around the Archduke, dragging him into the fragile creature's body.

 

The floating body of the sacrifice revolved as everything fell into place. The Archduke was sucked in the mark on the sacrifice's forehead even after fighting with all he had.

 

The very thing that would have allowed him freedom from the Underworld now attempted to pull him into a world worst than the former!

 

The Archduke had no chance of fighting back.

 

A blinding light exploded and engulfed the entire cave. Titus covered his eyes, and so did Theo.

 

Poof!

 

The Archduke felt his new body bounce on the ground. He felt sluggish, but he immediately came to check his hands and found soft paw pads.

 

"No…" he checked his body and discovered that the scales he tried to maintain like a religious act were no more, replaced by thick and fluffy purple fur that covered his entire body.

 

His venom was replaced by saliva, and his tall image dragged down to nothing more than an eight-inch ball of fluffiness.

 

"What have you done to me!?" the Archduke demanded an answer.

 

From the billowing smoke came walking out the now giant human.

 

Theo smiled and picked up the glorious Archdemon from the ground, "I gave you a Floof's body."

 

Theo answered as the now fluffy boi lost his consciousness from shock.

 

"Heh…pussy." Theo commented