The ear-piercing alarm ringing in the Dean's laboratory made it difficult for Adam to open his eyes. At first glance, it was as if a huge head was staring at him. He wanted to greet the Dean, but he was so weak to the point where he couldn't utter a single word.
Thankfully, the Dean didn't mind. He stretched out an arm and let a bottle of nutrients hover towards Adam. Adam swallowed the contents of the bottle instantly and he could feel energy returning to his body.
"You may be smart, but as per mage tradition, you have to pay me at least five years of your income before you can offset the value of me taking care of you," the Dean muttered.
Adam got up to his knees and replied, "Of course, it is reasonable. Thank you, respected Dean."
Adam took a look around the Dean's laboratory, and it was as if it was in another world. Now he knew why he wasn't immediately annihilated by the tower's enforcers.
Adam politely asked the Dean for instructions, but he simply gestured his hand, signalling him to continue doing his own thing.
The devil phased in and out of reality on the ground, flickering between a visible form and a ball of sludge. Even though the negative energy didn't allow the devil to gain in strength, it has greatly enhanced their power. The devil's body was tangible, real, no longer a pure will to live. Adam could feel from the devil's aura that their strength has greatly surpassed Adam.
Blink.
The devil opened their eyes, blinking their slit-like eyes. The devil patted itself, and whispered softly.
"Master... I really did get stronger... wait... Master...?"
After the devil regained their senses, they discovered that the chain binding them to Adam had disappeared. As a litmus test, the devil conjured a weak energy ball and pushed it towards Adam.
Adam didn't resist, simply letting the energy ball hit him gently.
The devil staggered when the energy ball hit, but a smile erratically formed on their face upon realising that they weren't injured from the contract. "I... I'm free! Adam, you damn tyrant! I will turn you into my slave and torture you for tens of thousands of years!"
"Really?"
"Yes! You will pay for what you have done for me!"
"Do you even know how to form a contract?"
"Uh..." the devil stuttered. "I... I'll know sooner or later!"
"Where are you right now?"
"Of course! I'm..." the devil's face turned pale upon realising that they were no longer at the forest, but back on the Mage Continent.
"And what kind of energy is in your body right now? Tell me."
The devil gulped.
"Do you know that unowned creatures imbued with negative energy are annihilated on the spot if found on the Mage Continent?"
The devil hovered in the air, bringing their knees to their chest, imagining their fate.
"Look behind you."
The devil turned their head stiffly and saw the Dean staring back at him.
The devil fell to the floor and swooped behind Adam and trembled, "Lord, my master, I was just... joking! I will always be your most loyal servant, right? Quick! Conjure a contract!"
The devil's joy of freedom was short-lived, but immediately recognised that they couldn't survive without Adam.
Even though Adam was incredibly weak at the moment, they knew that choosing Adam would guarantee their survival.
Adam sketched out the master-servant contract with ease and the devil accepted it with tears in their eyes. The moment the contract was established, they plunged into Adam's mind to hide themselves.
Adam turned back to the Dean and thanked, "Thank you for your help, esteemed Dean."
"Well," the Dean replied. "It is a fair deal. Everything that happened in your soul is valuable knowledge to me. As for your payment, you can pay me in instalments."
After the Dean finished speaking, he hurriedly shooed Adam away. After Adam broke free from his restraints, it meant that Adam was no longer protected from the Dean. A single thought could annihilate Adam from existence.
Adam exited the tower slowly, not rushing back to the laboratory. He toured around the Academy step-by-step. There wasn't any change in infrastructure, but there were many unfamiliar faces.
Adam has a photographic memory, so seeing all these new apprentices was surprising to him.
"How long has it been?"
"Two years," the devil replied. "You have been asleep for two years."
Adam was silent.
As he walked, the apprentices looked at him with amazement. For someone to leave the tower, he must be someone important. It was rare for an apprentice to exit the tower.
Before they could step forward to mingle with him, they heard a group of apprentices shout in astonishment, "Adam?!"
"Adam?! Didn't he...?"
Adam ignored the amazed shouts and continued to walk back to the Academy. The apprentices didn't care that he ignored them, but they were still shocked upon learning that he was still alive, despite his less-than-well condition.
Adam's still alive!
Meanwhile, at the laboratory, everyone was silently practising their meditation technique.
Suddenly, William could sense something was amiss, and spoke, "Everyone, did-"
With a click, the door of the laboratory swung open.
"Adam? Adam!"
Adam walked into the laboratory with a rare smile, ejecting the devil out of his mind, letting them crash to the floor. "I'm back."
...
Early the next morning, James was the first to come to the laboratory, enjoying the atmosphere that was full of vitality.
Among the three people working in Adam's laboratory, he was under the most pressure. Coupled with his short lifespan, he was under a lot of pressure to perform. If it wasn't for his good relationship with Elliott recently, he would've been dead by now if it wasn't for Elliott's potions.
He saw Adam sweeping the floor and simply said, "Hello, Devil."
The devil simply took on Adam's form to do the chores, and James knew that Adam himself would never take on any chores. The devil glanced at James and continued to sweep, silently cursing Adam.
James knocked on Adam's door and entered, seeing Adam sitting silently in his chair, seemingly in a daze.
He stood by the door and waited for him to snap out of his daze. After an hour, Adam spoke, "Good morning, James. Is there something wrong?"
With all the questions James had accumulated over the years, James wanted to ask Adam for advice, but he couldn't help but worry, "Are you okay?"
"My situation is really bad as of now," Adam replied, nodding. "My body is broken, and my soul..."
Although Adam has cleansed his soul, it doesn't mean that it has fully healed. His soul needs time to recover, and no amount of medicine or potions could heal what was inside of him.
"It'll probably take me more than ten years to make a full recovery."
James was stunned. Ten years was nothing to apprentices like them. James had zero doubt that Adam could be promoted to become a mage in ten years.
Of course, he doesn't know that Adam had already been promoted to an antimage, but Adam forcefully ejected his promotion through sheer will.
However, Adam didn't want to disclose this to him.
Ten years would pass in a blink of an eye anyways.
Just when James wanted to ask him more questions, the devil entered his room in Elliott's form and said, "Master, Elliott is here to see you."
James saved his questions with a wry smile. He knew that there was probably no chance to ask his questions today, but it was alright. It's good that Adam is back -- he'll have plenty of time to ask his questions in the future.