"Have you made a contract with your sword, yet?" Rose asked as we stood, waiting for my barrier to finally crack and let the undead in so the battle could commence.
"A contract?" I frowned. "What contract?"
She sighed. "To use a demon sword, you need to form a contract with it! Don’t tell me it’s never spoken to you?"
"Spoken?" My brows furrowed even more. "This thing talks?" I raised the sword high, eyeing it skeptically.
Rose let out an exasperated sigh. "Figures! This is Ifrit we’re talking about. Of course, that prideful bastard wouldn’t just speak to a human unprompted." She glanced at me. "That demon sword is Ifrit—a legendary powerful fire demon believed to possess the power to destroy the very world itself if wielded by a powerful being."
My eyes widened. "Wait... Hold on. Are you telling me this sword has some badass demon inside it?"
"No! The sword itself is the demon! Call its name and—"
"Ifrit!" I called out before Rose could finish.
In an instant, I felt like my entire body and soul were being transported to another place—a void of endless darkness like some kind of domain. I was weightless, floating in nothingness, until I turned around and saw a towering figure before me.
Its eyes and mouth were blazing with fire, its entire body crackling with flames.
"Human." The voice was deep, dark, and filled with contempt.
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t terrified.
"How I despise humans! You’ve kept me locked away like some worthless scrap! And now you dare wield me with your weak hands? How revolting!"
I narrowed my eyes. "So, you must be Ifrit, huh? I gotta say, I don’t like your attitude. I might be human, but don’t you dare call me weak!"
The demon roared, spewing flames with every breath. Fear gripped me, but I refused to cower. The strong rule over the weak in this world, and I refuse to be ruled by a mere demonic sword. As l kept my ground, l heard the demon chuckle.
"For a human, your guts amuse me!" Ifrit growled. "Fine! I’ll make a contract with you. But be warned—making a deal with a high tier demon such as myself comes with a hefty price."
"What price?" I crossed my arms.
"I’ll feed on your blood every time you use me. And I’m sure you know what that means."
I fell silent. Feeding a demon sword with my blood sounded like a nightmare, but my normal attacks were useless against the undead. If I ever had to face them alone, Ifrit would be my best option. But that also meant gambling with my life—if it drained too much, I could die.
"Fine!" I shouted. "Let’s do this!"
Ifrit chuckled darkly. "Hahaha... what a foolish human! It will be my pleasure to drain you dry. Maybe then, I’ll find a worthy master after I’ve killed you. The contract is sealed!"
Suddenly, I was yanked back through the void as agonizing pain surged through my entire body. I couldn’t help but let out a wailing scream.
"Asher! Asher!" A voice called me, jolting me awake. Opening my eyes, l saw Rose standing over me, her whip lashing out against the approaching undead.
My barrier had collapsed.
I was drenched in sweat, my wrist burning with pain. Looking down, I saw two tendrils from Ifrit piercing my skin, greedily sucking my blood.
"You bastard!" I snarled at the sword.
"Can you stand and fight? I can’t hold them off much longer!" Rose shouted, swinging her whip in wide arcs. She was exhausted, probably out of mana, and so were the other demons who were trying their hardest to hold their own.
How long was I out?
"Don’t worry! I can still fight!" I reassured her.
She gave me a tired smile. "Good. Then let’s do this."
Gripping Ifrit tightly, I felt a surge of overwhelming power flood my body. Smirking, I chanted my flight spell and shot into the sky.
Who said l can’t do a dramatic powerful landing like that brat, Evelyn?
Once in position, I raised my sword high, summoning forth its full power! It engulfed in blue flames changing the very atmosphere in the sky which made everyone glance up to look at me.
Once l felt like l was ready, I plummeted down toward the horde of undead with uncredible speed. My plan was simply just to cut them down, but, the moment my blade struck the ground, its flames erupted violently like an active volcano, swallowing the enemies in a raging inferno. But that wasn’t even the craziest part.
The impact split the ground itself apart. A massive chasm tore through the battlefield, an earthquake so violent that I, the one who caused it, nearly fell in.
The undead were engulfed by the flames and sent tumbling into the crack l had caused. Even Nathan—the undead who was once Rose’s general—fell into the chasm, completely powerless to save himself. Then there was the one I suspected was Hilary Martinsville. As he teetered on the edge, I flew toward him, grabbing him just in time before he fell in and bringing him back to safety where Rose’s forces were gathered.
"What in the hell just happened?" Rose exclaimed, frozen, and glancing at the catastrophe l had just unleashed before her.
"You’ve outdone yourself, human!" Evelyn called as she descended from the sky. "I suppose, as a reward, I’ll grant you the privilege of calling me by my name. You may stop calling me ’Princess.’"
This little twerp. "And why exactly should I be happy with such a measly reward?"
She groaned, clenching her fists. "How ungrateful! You’re the reason we’re in this mess in the first place! You shouldn’t be getting any reward! Just accept it before I change my mind!"
Now she was practically yelling.
"Fine," I grumbled.
The sword retracted its tendrils from my wrist, but even then, I felt my strength slipping away. The bastard had nearly drained me dry.
But before I passed out, I wanted to try one thing.
Raising a hand toward the undead I’d saved, I muttered, "Divine Protection."
But before I could see if my skill worked on it or not, l collapsed to the ground, and now l could see nothing but darkness.
No way in hell am I using that demonic sword again.
TBC