《Savior of the Dark Goddess》


 Chapter 1

    The bed was drenched in tears as he woke up. He had relived the horrible event once more in his nightmare, this time feeling even more vivid than when it happened...


    His cat, who jumped out the open window to chase something, and as it was running, suddenly got struck by an oncoming motorcycle. Before he could react to anything he had already lost his dearest friend. After that, he didn''t have the energy to get out of bed for 3 days.


    For the first time in a while he stood up from his bed, which gave him a blackout for a split second. After nearly falling on his ass he clumsily regained his balance. He sighed out as he finally managed to stand firmly.


    "Fluffy......"


    He said his cats name aloud in a vain hope he would be greeted by the furball, grasping for the hope he was stuck in a long nightmare. What he got in response to his faint wish was relentless silence. Tears kept streaming from his eyes as a wry smile arose from his lips.


    "Nothing... Nothing ever goes right..."


    At that moment he knew how alone he was. That if he wishes to get comforted he would need to reach out to those people that barely give a shit about him. People who couldn''t care less, but had to put up a social front in order to maintain their virtuous facade.


    It was not the first time he was struck with misfortune. His mother, his girlfriend, his cat, his job, in one way or another they were taken from him.


    Isn''t it amusing knowing that god stares down upon yu hving done nothing to stop it. It''s strange how every few centuries saviours and angels rise to bring prosperity but he had to suffer for seemingly no reason. It seemed that the creator of the universe took out all his frustrations out on him, or played some sadistic prank. Funnier thing is, there is an angel roaming around, and he''s personally acquainted with her.


    ''God must be laughing his shoes off'', he thought as he walked into the kitchen and picked up a long knife.


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    "...Let me show him something... r-really funny."


    The knife quivered in his hands as he spoke out the drastic thoughts that swarmed him, which in turn scared him. He was scared of what insane ideas he had. He is scared that he will be judged harshly in the afterlife.


    He put on a coat and put the knife inside the coat pocket. Steeling his nerves, he took deep breaths before opening the front door revealing the cold and rainy night. What he had to do was simple, revenge.


    The victims he would make would be collateral, a statement against the big man staring down and judging all. It was his time to strike back.


    He noticed the streets were unsurprisingly desolate as he was walking outside. This would be to his advantage. But slowly as he seemed to not find anyone around, his thoughts compromised from mass murder to suicide.


    The pain would be over.


    Noone would get unnecessarily hurt.


    He would be freed from god''s punishment.


    Nobody will stop him.


    Such deranged thoughts went through him, mentally wearing him down. It was at this point he could hear screaming off into the distance. A high pitched shriek and a cry for help before a harsh bludgeoning sound could be hear


    The inquisition was roaming around, likely on a hunt. Which gave him a foolish idea. A foolish idea... that might just work.


    He readied his knife, hiding it in his sleeve ready to be used as he sneaked closer to the loud yelling from the fight they were in. But as he came closer, all of a sudden a menacing aura gave him goosebumps from a silent alleyway. He was terrified, his body felt like it was on fire but his legs, his legs stayed frozen solid planted on the ground.


    He thought at that moment hat he was a dead man.


    But unlike what he expected, only a pained voice reached him.


    "H-help... please..."


    His body unfroze as the soft voice reached him. He approached closer, his body becoming swallowed by the aura. Though somehow, he felt a lot more relaxed. With his knife readied, he could see the outline of...


    "A young girl?"


    Surprised, he uttered to her. She was bloodied all over, and in serious need of help. He rushed over to her and sat her upwards.


    "Hey! Hey!! Stay awake! Are you alright!?"


    The girl didn''t answer as her eyelids slowly closed and opened. Her breaths were harsh and irregular and it looked like she was barely conscious. He took off his coat and tied it around the stomach area where the mst blood was spiling from.


    He knew it was the inquisition that had done this, and that they would kill him on sight if they saw him with her. Quickly he lifted her up and carried her away to his place.


    He had no time for foolish plans, he needed to save her.

 Chapter 2

    He heard yelling from behind, followed up by sounds of shots... in his direction!


    Frantically he kept running back trying his best to remember what path he took to end up here. Every now and again, he had to turn back when he realised he went off into the wrong direction. Luckily, the sound of shots stopped as he reached close to home.


    A lot of blood was spilled from the evil being''s limp body. What was more unnerving however is that the pressure from the aura seemed to fade.


    ''She isn''t going to die now, is she!?''


    He rushed to his door and tried to open the lock with his keys while carefully balancing the limp body to not fall. After trying for a minute, he finally got it inside the lockand opened the door. He laid her on the couch and immediately got the medkit he had in his bathroom. He almost tripped on the way back, but managed to maintain his balance.


    The bleeding girl''s eyes looked unfocused. Her lips were opening and shutting down as if to say something, but no sound came out. As quick as he could he pulled away his blood soaked jacket and wrapped the wound with a bandage.


    The wound was simply a gaping hole in her stomach area, he could imagine were it any deeper all her guts would''ve spilled out by now. Hastily he wrapped her up while coating the bandage with disinfectant. Some wounds he tried to stitch but he couldn''t even get the needle through the pin with how shaky his hands were. It was an extremely poor way to treat someone so critically injured.


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    Still, it seemed to work when she, if only barely, maintained consciousness throughout, even managing to squeeze a few words out of her throat.


    "It... hurts..."


    She grabbed his hand with a lot of force, making it feel to him as if his bones were being crushed. Unsure what to do, he stroked her hair to try and calm her down.


    "Fuck, fuck, fuck. First day I go out and I get this."


    Is this one of god''s omniscients pranks? Having a demon die inside his house to show him the futulity of fighting back? What a fucking piece of shit asshole.


    He could barely calm himself down at this point. Only being able to because something caught him off guard.


    The demon pulled his arm to her and forced him into hugging her.


    "Stay......"


    The demon quivered in fear, hurt heavily from her encounter with the inquisition. She needed someone to be there. And so he had no choice but to accept, as she wouldn''t let go of him. Like that, their bodies were pressed tightly against each other.


    He knew he couldn''t stay like this. The inquisition would sooner or later knock on his door, when the time comes, the last thing he should do is be in this defenseless situation.


    But as he struggled to get away, her aura only got stronger, eventually overwhelming his will to leave. Even as he knew he could face death, he didn''t have the willpower to withstand it. The young wounded girl hugged him tightly as he laid paralysed.


    Soon enough, a voice would be heard at the door.


    "Mr. Kashima, you are ordered to allow us to enter."


    At these words the demon''s aura grew even more, and a faint flash could barely be seen crossing her eyes...

 Chapter 3

    The wounded girl whispered something in his ear he didn''t expect.


    "Kill them...for me."


    At hearing these words a red flash struck his eyes blinding him for a brief moment. He gasped for air as the shock of his vision turning red struck him.


    But after that... he could see sharper than before. Details like the color of the stains on his table became clearer to him, even if they are usually hard to spot. He felt adrenaline rush through his body as he stepped closer toward the door.


    Killing them... He felt so nervous about the idea of it. Was he really going to? Before he could answer that he already had opened the door slightly, seeing a man clad in white look at him with suspicion in his eyes. The tall man spoke boisterously with an air of self importance.


    "We have detected a strange aura from this direction and would like to investigate. Open up the door please."


    The ''we'' in question looked to be two young women behind him... and that''s all. Only three people.


    ''What a bunch of idiots!'' ''Would be funny if you cut his throat.'' ''Stab, stab!'' ''What a bunch of nuisances...''


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    A barrage of voices from within his head assaulted him with an onslaught of bitter sentiments towards the three. He felt like he wanted to tear them to shreds. Looking at them, his eyes and brain coordinated subconsciously to ready his knife and strike at their unguarded points, but they looked like they would fight back the moment he tried to make a weird move.


    He opened the door a bit more, but not enough to show the wounded girl to them. He needed to lure them ever so closer.


    The two women readied some sort of musket with a strange white glow coming from them. It seemed to be some sort of holy weapon.


    "Feel free to come in." he said with a strange smile. As the man takes a steps forward he lunges forward with his knife, wringing it inside in the white robed man''s gut, but as he did that, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in return. Seeing the muskets pointed at him he quickly shut the door. He put his hand over his wound, his arm was stabbed at the same time, he was countered.


    Quickly the door got shot, splinters flying around. The cheap wood didn''t hold against the magical bullets pelting through it.


    He relaxed is body briefly, he had got one of them. One of the idiots that became pawn for the tyrannical god that took everything from him.


    ''HAHAHAHAAA!''


    The ego''s inside his head were roaring with laughter. He had done it, he had wounded an inquisitor. But now he''s in deep trouble. He picked up the bloodied girl and frantically looked around for another exit. The three outside were ready to storm in, or maybe it was two by now. Lifting her became incredibly painful. Finally the door snapped in half. They stood face to face against each other. Two versus three. Two of them wounded.


    And once again his vision turned blood red.


    "Leave none... alive..."

 Chapter 4

    ''Leave none alive... Isn''t that obvious? They are threats to us, thus they must be eliminated.''


    Such went the thought process in his, Yasou''s, head. Once the idea of escape was out, he found no other options left. However, the opposing party barely looked like they considered themselves in any danger at all. With bored expressions did they look at his kitchen knife, before slowly turning their gaze at his burning red eyes.


    "Is that the only weapon you have with you?" The wounded guy asked provocatively. "What do you think you can do with that? Look, we aren''t here for you, hand over the girl."


    "Hand her over? For what, to make me powerless again?"


    When he spoke those words, the expression of the 3 changed ever so slightly. Confusion, pity, mockery, he felt barraged by an onslaught of ridicule.


    "...Insane." One of the girls said, one with a small stature and short hair contrasting the other girl, before taking scope pointing her rifle at him.


    Without hesitation, he flung his knife at her face before anymore could be said, striking her harshly in her throat. Blood gushed out as the knife easily tore through her skin. Before she could fire she already had the metal blade stuck in her throat, and was unable to breathe anymore, before she fell over, the knife piercing straight through the remaining skin. Before the other two could react Yasou lunged forward, grabbing at the man''s throat while his hand was still covering his gut wound, which left the man defenseless. With immense power Yasou grabbed him and flung his head to the ground, blood splattering upon the blunt impact striking the head of the wounded inquisitor.


    "You''re out of your goddamn mind..." He said weakly as blood trickled from his mouth, showing his blood stained teeth.


    "Damn right I am!" Yasou yelled while crushing the man''s face, giving the finishing blow


    The last person standing, visibly shaken, called for backup as she tried maintaining a calm expression. While she loaded her rifle he stried to get within punching range of her. However, he was much too far away to even get close in that split second of time he was given. His anger faded, which made him stare rather surprised at the gun barrel aimed straight at his face.


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    ''Shit.''


    White flashed in front of his eyes. Instinctively he jumped away, which made the shot miss his face, instead hitting his left shoulder point blank.


    "Agh!"


    The pain coursed through his body, making him lose control of his body and plummet to the ground. The red flash in his eyes and the voiced has dissipated, making him defenseless. But the girl hesitated shooting a second time, eyeing the demon that''s still lying barely conscious on the couch, and looked unsure which of the 2 to target. More than that, she was visibly trembling, shaking her gun up and down as if she forgot how to properly hold a gun at that moment. Her confidence withered completely away. She shot while shutting her eyes, missing the shot from hitting him completely. However, even with this opportunity presented to him, he still could only drag himself forward as the pain withheld him from making any sharp or sudden movements.


    With one still barely awake, one down on the ground and one extremely pressured, it was as if the battlefield was already concluded to a draw, even though neither side could afford to give up. Still, it was exhausting to go on any further for the both of them. Both had reached their mental and physical limit, and so, could only look at eachother with a wry expression, before falling to their knees.


    The girl suddenly burst into tears, and slammed her fist into the ground in frustration. She couldn''t bear to look up at the damages they faced. Yasou himself felt really scared at the tapped at his still bleeding shoulder, hoping he imagined it. However, what he and the girl didn''t notice was that the person he saved wasn''t lying on the couch anymore.


    Within a blink she appeared behind the girl who dropped her weapon and lifted her upward. The inquisitors expression twisted from frustration to frightened almost immediate. But before she could even squeak her head was flung off her neck.


    "...Good work, but not good enough yet..." She said with an equally soft voice as before, as if to comfort him. However, what he saw in those few moments was a bloodthirsty monster. He was unnerved to the core with which person he sided with. It wasn''t normal at all to him, he thought about how he shouldn''t have sided with a demon and should''ve just handed her over, he was repulsed by his actions, and he felt he would be killed immediately now that he wasn''t useful anymore.


    But instead of that, she slowly appoached him, and patted his head softly.


    "...Sleep... You''ll be all better soon."


    His fast beating heart became too overwhelmed, his head shut down, and he fainted before he could even utter a "Help."

 Chapter 5

    He noticed the cold, dark, mesmirizing eyes as they stared down upon him. A reflective black, is the only way he could describe it to him. The room was enshrouded in dark, her facial features barely being able to be seen. Neither of them speaking they simply stared deeply into one another''s eyes, as if there was a greater meaning in doing so.


    ''Am I not dead?'' Yasou asked himself as he laid on the cold wooden ground, still not fully woken up, and barely comprehending the situation. ''Why am I... being looked at?''


    The slaughter he had witnessed before was still vivid in his head, the true power he witnessed at the time shocking him. Compared to that, what had he to offer? He struggled to see why he hasn''t been killed at that very same moment. Perhaps pity? Maybe a whim? Whatever the case was he couldn''t tell the reason.


    As he laid there a few droplets fell onto him, the smell already very familiar. ''Blood...'' his mind quickly picked up on. He wasn''t sure who''s blood it was though, before quickly recognising the gaze.


    "...Have you awoken?" the sinister voice asks of him, calling him out. In his fatigue he blurts out a uestion toward the mysterious girl.


    "Why am I not dead yet?"


    The girl gives him a patient smile, looking at him with an expression similar to ones of a parent who indulges into a toddlers curious but thoughtless questioning. A wry expression, but one that''s filled with a hint of joy as well.


    "It would be unwise and disgraceful to do so. You are one that assisted me in dire need, how could I not repay the favor?" She asks rhetorically. "Though having felt the pure emotion from your mind, it seems we share the same goals."


    ''No we don''t'' his mind yelled out, though he could not utter the words. He knew that doing so would only paint him a foolish hypocrite. He desired death upon others for many, many years. There isn''t any point of distinction between them in that regard, he quickly realised.


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    "So I''m alive because I''m useful?"


    "If you weren''t we both wouldn''t have been alive by now, would we?" She chuckled at it, showing no clear disturbance at the thought of it.


    He stood up, making the girl lean backward a bit after staring intently at him.


    "But I will make sure no harm befalls you." she said. "Just move careful and give your best efforts to remain unnoticed, the smaller details I can take care of."


    When he heard the words ''smaller details'' he shuddered, vivdly remembering the gruesome scene once again. Even being reassured, he felt he coudn''t let his guard down for one second, even if his resitance would still prove futile.


    "Be assured, I will not lay a finger on you. All I ak is for you not to make me regret that decision."


    ''What the hell does that mean? Am I supposed to feel better about that!?'' his mind rebuked.


    Just as she spoke those words she left, leaving him behind in the darkness. Not feeling her overbearing presense relieved him. He felt she was way too powerful compared to before. He was feeling overwhelmed by his new situation; he felt he was brought into something muh bigger than he had hoped for, his petty final revenge turning into a slaughtering of people that tried to side with justice.


    "Maybe I should''ve jsut spoken to someone." He lamented. "Those people wouldn''t have had to die."


    The only comfort he had was that he got to save someone in the end, someone that was being hurt by that same group. The only thing he couldn''t convice himself of is that it was unjustified of them to do so.


    Exhausted and despirited, he flicked on the lightswitch, being suddenly assaulted by the sight of the bloody mess that used to be the inquisitors once again. He realised just how much damage he dealt to their fragile bodies, and felt sick to his core. Quickly, he hurried into the bathroom and threw up, the vomit burning in his throat as he winced in pain from it. once done, he backed off from the toilet bowl and saw it.


    It was almost completely grey, with only small hints of orange and green being able to be seen within it. Remembering his injury, and how he felt nothing of it, he turned to look at his previously cut open arm, seeing no wound on there anymore. However, when he touched it, his skin seemed to push inward a bit, freaking him out even more. Having done so, a rotten stench dissimilar from the one in the living room assaulted him.


    He felt like he had truly lost all his humanity, and was afraid for future events to come.

 Chapter 6

    Worn down he slumped toward the bedroom and crashed down on the cozy looking bed he only a few hours prior went up from. He wanted to pretend everything was a dream, and that he would magically wake up the moment he would land on it. Sadly for him that wasn''t bound to happen, which made him tear up, soaking his pillow.


    "What''s wrong?" the demon asked curiously.


    He instinctively looked toward the origin of the sound, which made him see the looming figure in the dark, scaring him as he didn''t expect a figure in the dark.


    "What''s the issue?"


    The tone of voice was not one of concern but only out of curiosity, the demon not understanding what went though Yasou''s head.


    "Why did you mind control me... why did you make me kill those people?"


    "Because else we would''ve died... on top of that, calling it mind control is both rude and inaccurate, please refrain from doing so."


    In a casual tone she nitpicked his comment, not minding the stress Yasou felt as he spoke. However, the girl hadn''t changed expression one bit, even as she pretended to be offended by Yasou''s remarks.


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    "Even if I hadn''t amplified your desire you still would''ve tried to kill. The only thing different is that you would''ve easily died without my support." She says matter-of-factly, "All in all it was a succesful defense, neither of us sustained any serious injury, and the enemy was wiped out before they could be located and sent support to."


    "Couldn''t we have at least kept them alive?"


    She walked towards Yasou and he said that, and with a blank expression stared him in the eye. Maintaining eye context, she sat next to him as he laid in bed, before speaking.


    "No."


    An answer that was quick and final, no forther elaboration was given to Yasou, intimidating him from the sudden shift in tone. He remembered the angel he had known for many years, but was never close to. Would she forgive him for this? Will she kill him? Such thoughts ran through his mind as he kept stressing out. In response, the demon laid her hand on his hair and gently stroked it, trying to lull him into sleeping.


    "There is nothing to worry of, you haven''t done anything wrong." She consoled him. "There wasn''t any way to save them without sacrificing ourselves. We have our own goals to concern ourselves with, a bit of collateral damage is inevitable. However, in the end it will all be worth it."


    He felt it was wrong of him to accept it, but he couldn''t argue. He was much too tired for it, and even thought that they felt correct. He still had to take revenge, death is inevitable. As long as this world is corrupt, he should live to fight it.


    The gentleness of her hand overtook all his worries, he felt comforted of his burdens. For only a moment, he trusted someone who he considered to be a psychopath fully, before nodding off into a deep sleep.


    "Rest well, I will have a gift prepared for you tomorrow."


    With that she got off the bed and headed out of the room, ready to head out.

 Chapter 7

    Before leaving, she glanced at Yasou''s sleeping body one more time.


    "...you fool." she spoke to herself in a wry smile, and shut the door behind her. Sighing deeply she looks at the barren streets, devoid of any human life. At least, so it would appear at first glance. She knew that in fact any misstep could easily lead her into an ambush. It was common to hear a joke that the inquisition tries to take over the role of go, being omnipotent and omnipresent. In truth however, their only strength is in their packs. When you take away the scouting force the will simply be left blind, unable to adequately position themselves to counterattack.


    she looked up at the night sky, faint tinges of red permeating the black, starry sky. From her sleeve she pulled out a dagger as she sneaked around, trying to find more prey to eliminate.


    For demons, this was simple cleanup duty. The church should never be allowed to dominate the streets, for if they do, the demons will slowly be eradicated.


    After weaving though dark alley after dark alley, with steps quieter than a whisper, she found a 2nd trio approaching the same direction as the trio taken out before them.


    She knew she couldn''t attack them head on, her wounds would keep her strikes from being close to fatal. The human barely made it out alive in the last fight.


    Instead, her approach was trying to keep her presence as faint as possible, keeping a small distance as to not be sensed, spotted or heard.


    This trio of inquisitors seemed a lot more battle hardened and were significantly older.


    "Communications from Mephiel are dead, should we contact Cristo?" Asked the youngest looking of the three, a guy with an eyepatch and a slim frame, holding a glowing katana in hand.


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    "Sounding the alarm over a lost flock of fledgelings? Laughable." An older man with a hunched frame said as he stuffed a cigar into his mouth.


    "No need." Said the bulkiest man of the three. "We will simply report."


    "Report?!" The guy with the eyepatch exclaimed. "You really like playing by the rules huh?"


    "Regrettable as it may be, our leader knows to keep up from trouble."


    "Report, and done."


    This was one of the groups hunting her down earlier, and which wounded her severely.


    In her eyes, the older man was most dangerous. The moment you get distracted he will find a moment to strike.


    ...


    But she still hesitates to strike, the group hasn''t shown any openings even if they didn''t sense her presence.


    They are professionals.


    In such cases, it is a demons task to take one out and retreat, but she knew she couldn''t do much.


    But worst of all, if she had to retreat she would put him in peril.


    She bit her lip, knowing she was ill equipped.


    ''... just one strike'' she told herself. ''..... one strike should do.''


    She couldn''t leave demonkind behind either, leave them to die.


    But as she readied a small throwing knife from her pocket, another thought burrowed inside her mind.


    ''Is he okay?''


    She was worried, worried that the person who saved her would... well she didn''t know. Maybe he wouldn''t wake up, maybe he is bleeding from the inside somewhere. She doesn''t know, and it makes her all the more worried.


    ''Ridiculous, stop it. Focus.''


    But that one moment of hesitation made all the difference.


    "A visitor, this late at night?" The old guy suddenly spoke up. "Come closer, child. Reveal to us the sneaky little kitten hiding behind that corner."


    "Hey gramps, you sound disgusting, knock it off." The man with the katana retorted.


    She tried to run away noiselessly, hoping her aura would dissipate enough for them to lose track.


    But as she was nearing the end of the alley, a knife flew by her face, missing it by only a hair.


    "A little blackbird too curious, so that''s who you are. Keh keh keh."


    ''Tch, I was almost there.''


    A sense of dread entered her mind. This was not the way she wanted to start a battle.


    ''Should have gone for it while I had the chance.''


    She was at a crossroads, having 2 bad choices. To fight a losing fight or to escape while being tracked down.


    "Capture or kill her. Doesn''t matter."


    The leader ordered the attack. Wracking her brains, she could only think of one option.


    ''Fight to flee''

 Chapter 8

    She locked eyes with the old man and readied her knife.


    The three men took position, the bulky guy grabbing a hefty axe, and the slim guy taking on a kendo pose with his katana.


    ''I''ll just have to take down one of them. Maybe he''ll be happy if I make that his gift.'' She thought, but quickly corrected herself ''No, no. It''s not really a gift. It''s my job as a demon.''


    "Cat''s got your tongue sweetheart? We''ll be gentle if you approach us slowly without resistance."


    Upon hearing this the slim guy hit the old man with the side of his katana.


    "Yeowch!" Yelled the old man, jumping around while putting his hands on his head.


    However dumb it may seem, there is method to this madness. Many demons have fallen to the temptation of underestimating the opponent. The inquisition loves to take advantage of it.


    "Hm, tough crowd." The burly guy said before approaching steadily.


    The guy with the katana followed his lead while the old man stayed behind quietly.


    She looked around, carefully taking in all the different objects in her surroundings.


    A bush, a tree, a couple parked cars, a glass bottle, an electricity box. Anything and everything that could be of use shey would try and look for. Knowing the arena she fights in can spell the difference between dying and living another day.


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    She ran towards the electricity box with the glass bottle on it, swiftly picking it up before taking cover behind a black volkswagen in the opposite direction.


    The slim guy took offense to this, biting his lip and calling her a coward as soon as she ran off


    The old guy however simply took out a throwing knife and telepathically flung it towards the car. She felt a loud thud when it crashed into the door opposite her.


    "You''re surrounded, hellspawn. Nobody will come to save you. Give up." The katana guy said, suddenly being a lot more talkative.


    ''Could be the real leader.'' She thought. It would be unlikely but not impossible.


    He suddenly burst forward towards the car, slicing it open in one swing, barely missing her.


    She jumped backwards and threw the glass bottle at his face. However he simply smashed it into pieces with his hand as she retreated back into the bush.


    "You stained my shoes, bitch. You''re gonna pay for that." He said in a deep, threatening voice.


    She heaved heavy breaths as she realised she barely avoided death. Knowing she can''t hide she think of a small spell to cast before running away.


    The guy with the katana was quick to slash at her, however the couldn''t keep running as the guy with the axe stood at the end of the street towards Yasou''s house.


    However she was already aware. She threw a small gust of wind just behind the glass shards, which lauched them straight into the left leg of the katana man. Small drips of blood were running down his leg. His speed started slowing down by a bit, giving her ample room to avoid the man with the axe who tried to go in for the kill against her.


    "Crafty, but weak." The man commented.


    "I''ll fucking kill you the moment I get my hands on you."


    She backed off slowly from the axed man, but kept her ears peeled for the old man. She was well aware he may be up to something while she doesn''t look.


    The man with the axe didn''t let up his steady approach, and she knew the man with the katana would soon arrive. She readied another gust spell, having hatched a plan.


    ''Just keep approaching.''

 Chapter 9

    The man with the katana held his sword steadily as he approached, his eyes squinted, and his muscles tensed as she saw that he was ready to strike. The man with the axe with a stone faced expression was approaching from her side. She simply waited, readying herself.


    But they stopped moving suddenly, only barely out of reach for any of the three to attack.


    "If you could just move away from that electrical box, that would be great." The burly man said nonchalantly. "I''m not into getting electrocuted."


    She shifted her eyes over to the man with the katana, who gestured at her to move away.


    ''Well, guess they know better than to rip open some wires with metal weapons.'' she thought, and shrugged as she moved aside a couple inches.


    "...Didn''t think she''d actually do it."


    She chuckled, she knew the old man was lurking somewhere, just waiting for her to stand stilln so he''d get a clear shot. Standing next to it, the swiftly took out her knife and jammed it inside the electrical box, ''shocking'' the two men. Forcefully she kept stabbing hole after hole into the thing, causing all the surrounding lights in the neighborhood to stop functioning.


    "What the hell?!" they yelled out in unison, both angry at the destruction caused, and because of the incomprehensible action. The men were hesitant, not knowing whether to keep attacking or to back off. They weren''t even sure how she was still alive after what they assumed was her electrocuting herself.


    But she was still standing with a smirk plastered on her face.


    The guy with the katana tried to keep his composure.


    ''I was a goddamn member of the yakuza, no way some random schoolgirl is going to make me piss my pants. I don''t know where gramps went off to but me and Tamazaki-san can easily take her. I just got to finish the job, that''s all.''


    He slowly inched forward again. All he had to manage is one good cut, straight into her. No demon has survived it before, it will be an easy kill. Her guard should already be down after he haphazardly swung his weapon around, it should be clear to her he poses no threat... or so she''d think. And then in one swift strike she would be put down, dead before she even realises it.


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    Sure, she got him once, but a couple glass splinters means nothing in this world. As long as he keeps some distance she will never be able to get through his guard. A sword reaches way farther than a kitchen knife.


    Tamazaki looked him in the eye, nodded and slowly approached alongside him. The girl looked shaken up as they did, suddenly on edge.


    He took one step, then another, slowly, carefully. Like a hunter trying to approach a deer, he needed to make sure she wouldn''t suddenly run. The demon was already with her back against the wall, just a couple steps more and they could take her down and get paid handsomely.


    The demon that eradicated Mephiel and wounded Stophle, among others. The trickster demon that recently gained notoriety, is their prey now, and she has nothing she can do about it.


    She hunched over and drooped her head down as they started taking their final steps toward her, as if she looked like she had given up. But under that posture came words spoken in a determined voice as she released the aura he carefully hid all this time, overwhelming the two men.


    "Utter fools... they didn''t even realise they died."


    The girl pointed her knife at the man with the katana, a faint rainbow colored glow shone off of its surface. And in a flash, as Tamazaki watched in horror, a shot of electricity burst out from the tip, reaching the trail of blood behind him, and shooting 600 volts into his body via the blood that was leaking out. The last thing he saw was a violent flash of white as the overwhelming amount of amps ran through his body causing immense burns in his organs, making his heart stop within a nanosecond, and killing him from shock.


    Tamazaki at that moment was distracted, witnessing his long time partner die in that moment. As he shifted his eyes back to the girl, he came fact to face with the knife only half an inch away. Not able to stop it, he was struck in between his eyes, the knife deeply lodging itself into his skull. He fell backwards as the sudden blow took him out.


    She sighed in exasperation as she realized the scene she had caused. It was never her plan to take them out so violently, only wanting to kill one in order to deter them from approaching Yasou.


    Still, at least the crime scene was relatively bloodless, aside from a thin trail going around the entire street.


    She went the the burly man with the knife lodged in his skull, and ripped it out while using his coat as a way to soak up the blood. The biggest worry she had was the old guy that was left. She perked her ears but didn''t hear anything, as if he''d simply vanished from the surface of the world.


    She hoped that he simply ran off in order to relay the events to the higher ups, but she knew he was secretly more powerful than the other two.


    She stood up and pulled the man over her shoulder, while keeping an eye out for any sudden movements. If she can''t clean him up in peace, at least he''ll serve his duty as a meatshield.


    But suddenly She felt the winds around her change, and without having noticed that she was being attacked, she suddenly had a bone lodged into her side, just barely avoiding the corpse she carried.

 Chapter 10

    Her eyes darted towards her hip as she felt a sudden shock of pain. blood dripped out as she saw the head of a small bone sticking out. Heat started building up inside as her bloodcells rushed to fix the damage. She had to stop herself from yelling out in pain, biting her tongue to keep her concentrated.


    She swiftly looked over to the side where the attack was launched, but didn''t see anyone. They couldn''t have hidden either, the only thing on that side was road and buildings.


    ''So where the hell is he?'' She thought, as she picked the bone out of her leg carefully, blood splattered on the asphalt in a rush, before a slow trickle of blood ensued.


    She slowly backed off, trying to think of useful cover. She was too out in the open, and could be attacked from any direction. All she had was a kitchen knife to use and a dead body as cover, but if she threw it the knife she''d be out of any weaponry.


    She steadied her breath, she lamented that she went out while still in a weakened state, but knew that there are more important matters to ponder.


    ''Either I find my opponent and take him down, or I''ll need to find a way to disappear from his sight. Hopefully the former, else there will be one hell of a news report tomorrow morning.''


    She tried to concentrate on any sounds while she slowly went to the direction of the road. It may have been counterintuitive, but she knew that since there is nowhere to hide, it''s unlikely that he would be there.


    She held the body tightly to herself as she slowly walked toward the road. It has a path towards Yasou''s house that she could take if she was certain she shook off her attacker. but otherwise, it would reduce the amount of risk for her, as instead of having to look out for the front, the sides and behind her, she could keep her eyes forward at all times.


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    "Keh, keh, keh!" she suddenly heard, coming at the very same end of the road she was approaching, causing her to flinch and jump back. However there was still nobody there.


    ''Is he hiding around the corner?''


    she wanted to shrug it off, telling there''s no way that from that distance she could have been hit. But it wasn''t impossible, if there was somehow a way it could have been propelled at high speeds.


    She decided to go to the right instead, she went back as fast as she could to the square and quickly took cover behind a wall. Keeping the body to her left side as she looked towards the right.


    She can''t sit here indefinitely, the sun will go up and she will be easily found out if she can''t find him in time. Her only option was to try to approach the street the attack came from from the side.


    ''But what if... what if he approaches forward, and then attacks me when I think he ran away? That means that even if I don''t see him, he could simply be waiting to ambush me.''


    She hesitated, but pulled out her knife, and started shanking the body a couple times, she could hear the man faintly groan once, but the limp body soon gave up all signs of struggle.


    Blood spilled on the street quickly. She knew that she wont be able to wipe out her traces after this. It was a risk she felt she had to take, unless she wanted to possibly risk losing her life, or the situation getting worse. Yasou certainly wouldn''t be pleased, though maybe he''d understand.


    She ripped one of the holes she made open with her kitchen knife, tissue and flesh falling onto the floor as she ripped the corpse open piece by piece. She stuck a finger inside and absorbed the life forces that remained. The soul, the bone, the brain, all kinds of different matters are needed, and this human was particularly powerful.


    The wound in her hip grew burning hot as it rapidly started healing, the newly made tissue being stronger than before.


    She corpse shuddered in her hand as if writing in agony, violently whipping from one side to another, as the remains started looking less and less human. It deflated, torn open in many spots, until eventually it looked like nothing more but a clump of dying cells quickly rotting and dissipating.


    all which couldn''t be absorbed, the gut, the stomach, the colon among other things, were violently thrown out the body in the process, causing a disgusting sight of blood, digestive fluid and fecal matter splattered across the entire street.


    "What a mess this has become..." she lamented, before standing up and readying herself. Off in the distance she could still hear the old man kackle in delight.

 Chapter 11

    She remained motionless, quiet, on edge. She could feel something approach in the distance, something making only the slightest of disturbances in the flow of the wind.


    "That old bastard sure is nifty."


    He wasn''t at the end of that road. No, he is trying to sneak behind her instead. She assumed his plan was to scare her away, and just when she would rest he would sneak up and kill her swiftly.


    ''Maybe if I let him believe that I''m at his mercy, I can kill him instantly.''


    The gore was however strewn about, she couldn''t let that set him off. So she slowly but surely started to approach in his direction.


    The decision was simple. if she stayed there, he would have noticed. if she walked out to the square again there was a good chance he would still see what happened and go into high alert. There was only one move left, and that was walk into the trap.


    From the square, there are 4 sides. left right up and down. she tried to go up before but halted and retreated to the right side. thus, he would be assured that she ''knew'' he was to the front. He then likely left the front to approach to the right side and go close to the corner, either to see her walk out when she tried to go behind his position, or if she doesn''t move, to assassinate her from the back.


    ''For a senile old idiot he sure is a clever one, even if it''s somewhat simple. But that only leaves one question.''


    Why would he have given away his position?


    The only hint for now is him trying to play around, as he felt he had already won... but is that really the case? She didn''t have time to think about it yet, for now she had to play her move. Slowly, as if she''s still hurt, she inched closer towards the end of the street. She tried to maintain her sense, and could still feel him approaching from the street to the other side. she knew that one she saw him, his death would be guaranteed.


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    ''10 meters...... 5 meters... 3 meters.. 2.. 1.''


    In a moment she jumped out of the corner, ready to strike. But as she lunged forward there was one apparent flaw.


    He wasn''t there.


    Another bone shot towards her at high velocity. Barely a millisecond too late, it scraped her leg, causing a sharp pain she had to bite through.


    "Oh? A miss? What seems to be amiss?"


    He tauntingly mocked her as she failed to realize that he never once left the spot he was in.


    ''How? I definitely sensed it. I sensed him move.''


    "You youngsters sure know how to fly around with the wind. My bones could never handle that... imagine how bad my hip would be if I tried. Keh heh heh."


    "... Are those your last words?"


    "Are they yours?" He said, pretending to be pondering about it by rubbing his pointer finger against his chin. "Hmm... anything else to say?"


    She pushes her hand in front of her face.


    "Ooh, a trick? Exciting, exciting."


    In a single moment, a drop of boiling hot blood shot out like a bullet, but before he could hide, it exploded into a hot mist.


    But he wasn''t affected by it seemingly much at all, he wasn''t screaming in pain, he wasn''t cooking alive. He simply stood there in his same relaxed posture.


    "...Disappointed, my dear?" He said, taking out a piece of chicken from a chicken bucket. As he bit down, he snapped the bone into two with his teeth as easy as a shark could do so, and spat the end out at her once again. She quickly moved away from it.


    "Crafty, aren''t you?" she replied.


    "Crafty? No, no no.... thorough is the word you''re seeking. I don''t like surprises as all, they aren''t good for my heart."


    He seemed calm, almost serene when he talked. It was as if he was completely assured that he was in no danger at all.


    "It was a shame that two of my good friends died in the process, but that is just a small sacrifice for one that has killed many more."


    With complete nonchalance he rambled on, as if he was a teacher trying to correct a misbehaving student.


    "But once more man shall be at peace, for a vital key in the structure of demonkind will be vanquished. The souls of the fallen may finally rest."


    "The yakuza guy was right, you do sound like a pervert."


    "Ahaha, how impertinent. Back in the day, I was known as a lady killer, don''t you know?"


    She knew she would have to try something different, an attack he won''t expect.


    She shot another drop of blood at him, exploding it in his face once more... or more specifically, in his eye.


    "Agh?!"


    She quickly went behind the corner, dashing quickly from one end to the other, until this time she approached from the front part of the square knife in hand.


    But as she came near once more, the old man simply grinned.

 Chapter 12

    Each dash forward she made, with every step on the ground she gained 8 meters, each one being spaced out by around a second each. For a demon of her degree, a trivial speed to maintain. Within a couple seconds she was already near the old man, and readied her weapon to strike swiftly, slicing through his neck with tremendous force.


    And cotton spilled out. Heaps of cotton falling out of the body, deflating it.


    "Boo!" the old man jumped up from a bush to the side. "Missed me?"


    She rolled her eyes, knowing that he was stalling. A demon on full strength should have no issue casting humans, holy or not, into the very depths of hell they came from... however that is no excuse for negligence.


    ''He may be mere prey, but it''s prey that can bite.''


    The man clasped his hands in prayer as he took out a cross, a feared symbol amongst weaker demons. A white light radiated off of the man''s body and cross, piercing the darkness of the night, and only getting brighter by the second.


    "Scared of death?" she said as she gazed in the man''s eyes.


    But in a showcase of tranquility, he shrugged his shoulders. "Who lives and dies, it shall be as it may."


    She stepped forward as her skin itched in the harsh light. An unseeable force was trying to push her back. But the man gestured for her to come closer, knowing such a powerless deterrence would be futile.


    She found it an amusing performance, backing her into the spotlight like this. She almost found it a shame that such a man will face his demise in a couple seconds.


    The man must have thought the same thing, as his eyes drooped and he spoke an inhuman tongue. In a gesture of respect, she spoke her native demonic language in return, for a final spell.


    She itching turned into a burning sensation as she was only a couple dozen or so feet away from him, nearly enough to speak face to face. She could see the light slowly being concentrated into the cross. Without any care in the world she marched on.


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    "Alkanam vi delore, picore em sutul."


    With a last cryptic that the cross rapidly absorbed all the light surrounding them. She became blinded as she was encased in darkness, and she knew that this was the time to strike. She dashed with all her strength forward and to the left, and threw her blade where the old man stood...


    ...and heard a yell of pain.


    But the light didn''t return. The man still had control over his weapon. If she was to beat him she would need to sense his movements, but this has only ended in failure.


    Truly, she had never expected this fool to try and trick her again. Not only that, but gamble his life on it as well.


    If he tries to escape, the negative aura will escape too, and she will be able to see. If he tries to attack, he would never be able to see if it hits. If he shoots the accumulated light, he will be defenseless after it either hits or misses... and if he does nothing, his cross will discharge that same power erratically.


    So what was his plan? Was there a trick that she had missed?


    ¡­ and then it hit her. all this time, he knew exactly where he was. And she figured out the reason, one so blindingly obvious it could pierce the darkness around her.


    The aura, the smell of a demon. It was there, even if it was faint. A man that was keen on sensing a demon could theoretically have trained to sense it. Someone who would be very, very experienced with the demonic; A crusader.


    But someone of that power scale would have the very same weakness. One may tare into the abyss, but the abyss will stare back.


    A tiny, tiny flicker. Near imperceptible to the human eye, she noticed it. He was trying to go behind her.


    She whispered the last word of her demonic spell as she could see that very same light suddenly halt. One of the three human responses to threat; Fight, Flee or Freeze.


    She had him.


    With pinpoint accuracy she flung herself to that light, causing it to jump all over as the man she was about to kill became panicked. And only a millisecond later, she forced a hellish darkfire onto the man that had tricked her so many times. The man had no time to scream or squeal, for he had ceased to exist, and only pieces of matter remained.


    The cross leaked out light, as the surroundings suddenly became more visible. A dark, muddy goop remained of what was once his organs, melting into nothingness as if encased in lava.


    dark flames flickered on some that were still somewhat intact. his lungs, his skin, all slowly burning up. The fight was over, but the sights shall forever be burned into those that will see the spectacle it caused as morning rises. All that remained for her was to quickly flee before she could be seen, and return to the man who gave her this opportunity for revenge, Yasou.


    She charged towards her new safehouse, silent and quick as the wind, while faintly wondering if the old man in hell is cursing her for his anticlimactic death.

 Chapter 13

    Yasou woke up, his heart thumping vigorously. His eyes dart back and forth across the dark room, but he could not see even a flicker of movement. He felt a slight disappointment, knowing himself to be alone.


    "Fluffy...?" he mumbled, hoping for a reply. "please..."


    He begged again for an answer. He wished his beloved cat would meow back at him, and that she''d snuggle up to him and soothe his pains.


    A wish that can''t be fulfilled.


    All he was greeted with was once more the smell of rusting iron; the blood of those he killed the day before. It made him want to retch. He had gotten his desired revenge, in a way, and it didn''t satisfy him at all. He became a walking dead man, or so he thought. So what choice does he have when he makes an enemy out of humanity?


    His brain hurt, he tried to stop thinking about it. He pushed himself up with whatever strength he had while ignoring the aches he felt from his arms. He slumped toward his desk with his laptop, turning it on to keep his mind distracted. Lively bright colors illuminated his room just barely enough to be able to look around.


    He looked at the uncountable amount of tabs he still left open after he last used it. He clicked around, seeing if anything would pique his interest. Video''s, articles, blogs, manga, forums and porn, none of it was able to distract him. It felt wrong for him to so casually pretend to belong alongside those he would often read about or interact with. No matter how he tried, he was forced to face that he wasn''t a normal person.


    He could only see himself as a disgusting murderer that made a pact with a demon. The same kind of person who in those very same articles and forums would get shunned by those who read of their actions. Not so very long ago, he did the same, echoing the thoughts of others in comfort. It was his way of dealing with his loneliness. So who was left to associate with? The murderers who suffered a gruesome end and their apologists and fans. He was suddenly set on the other side with those he deemed reprehensible.


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    He sat there, tensed up, as he slowly dragged his mouse to open a new tab. After a moment of hesitation that someone would be looking, he typed in the query:


    ''killing inquisitor crime''


    His bloodshot, weary eyes skimmed through the search results. They consisted of small blogs and a small church site that wrote an article on it. Most of what was written was speculation, since there were no official convicts. The only throughline consensus what that whatever punishment was given by the local church was brutal.


    He shivered as he read accounts of multiple ''sinners'' that had been brought to justice. Some died during a fight, their body and soul often decimated and ripped apart. Those were the ones that got off easy, they had the luxury of a swift death. Those unfortunate enough to  get captured would barely resemble a human anymore after extensive ''purification''. He wasn''t even sure what he was looking at. Ripped skin and flesh, dislocated and crushed bone, ripped noses and ears were only a few of the possible disfigurements he got to learn of.


    He looked at his hand, imagining the things that could happen to him, before shaking his head in the hopes of shaking away those thoughts along with it.


    ''I''ll be fine'', he tried to comfort himself with ''worst case I''ll just have to make sure I die.''


    However his gut still left a sinking feeling inside of him, and his hand started shaking a bit. He closed his laptop on instinct in the hopes it''d make him stop thinking about it.


    "How very intriguing."


    The same accursed voice behind him that turned him into a bloodlusted killer was cheerily interjecting his thoughts, not even having announced her presence to him, making him almost jump from his seat. She casually wrapped her arms around his neck in a warm embrace.


    "Sadly for them I won''t let them lay a finger on you."


    He held his head down in silence, knowing that his fate now rests in powers far beyond him. She brought her head close to his head, and whispered in a sweet voice to him.


    "We''ll kill them all, until nothing remains."

 Chapter 14

    <div>


    As far as she could remember, demons, humans, and angels alike had been living alongside and fighting each other on the same Earth.


    However, it hadn¡¯t always been like that. The progenitor of all demons originated from hell, and so were many of her ancestors.


    A long, long time ago, demons used to inhabit the deepest, darkest recesses of the underworld. A place where the sun didn¡¯t rise, where no light could reach¡ªthe exact thing that tempted them to set foot above grounds.


    It led to her ancestors and some other demon clans to establish a pact with humans: A pact to live alongside one another in harmony and peace.


    Whether or not it was a foolish mistake on her ancestors¡¯ part, she didn¡¯t know. But it certainly was one for her clan, her family, and herself.


    A long, long time ago, long enough to the point where she couldn''t even recollect exactly how far back it was, she used to adore humans.


    Compared to a demon, their lifespan was much shorter. What for humans amount to a lifetime a demon would consider gone in a flash. They were much weaker and much more brittle. Especially because back then, the concept of magic was basically non-existent to them. In the eyes of demons, they were silly little creatures having to struggle for every little thing.


    But because of the little time they had, the measly amount of years they were able to live to their fullest, the human race didn¡¯t lack anything to do, or to strive for, as well as being highly adaptable to any new situations and changes. Some would improve themselves by learning new skills, and any shortcomings they couldn¡¯t fix, they made up for by working together. Some would fail, and then pick themselves right back up again. No matter how much they failed, they would try, and then again, and then some.


    Thus, in what seemed like a blink of an eye to a demon, civilizations collapsed, and were replaced, akin to the experience of how the sun would set and rise day after day for a human.


    Compared to a mighty demon¡¯s long yet dull life, spent in unending boredom, a puny human¡¯s life on earth was short yet meaningful.


    Therefore, she could understand her ancestor¡¯s envy of them, if only just a little bit.


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    ...In her defense, back then, she just didn¡¯t know how selfish, conceited, arrogant, delusional, and malicious humans could be.


    ***


    "Why did you mind control me... why did you make me kill those people?" The man asked, hunched over, dropped to his knees.


    The full brunt of what had just transpired¡ªdid it only just now occur to him? What was he so sorry about?


    However, it seemed like his mind wasn¡¯t ready to accept that fact, and so he faced her, eyes wide open, with within them a faint glimmer of hope to be absolved of the crime he so readily committed.


    He wanted her to admit to his crimes, to let her take all the blame for it. The coward, with tears in his eyes, was ready to cast her away as readily as a trashbag, just to feel better about himself.


    Once again, she was reminded of how weak and cowardly humans were. How utterly revolting they act to save their own hides, never being able to face their own actions with honesty.


    Frustration welled at the pit of her stomach, but before she could give him the cold, hard truth¡ª


    ¡°¡ªCouldn''t we have at least kept them alive?"


    He, or she, asked another na?ve question. Yet for some reason it stung to hear this time.


    Standing in front of her was a young girl wearing an adorable dress, with her long hair fluttering behind her. A grassy meadow where colorful flowers bloomed surrounded her.


    That girl, bitterly smiling at her out of pity, was none other than herself.


    At that moment, she jolted awake in a confused state. She''d forgotten for a moment where she was, and wasn''t able to remember how she''d gotten into the bed there in the first place.


    ¡°...A dream...¡±


    She was dripping with cold sweat. Even though she had seemingly recovered after having sapped the life out of her attackers, in the end, all that occurred was her healing her flesh wounds and nothing more. She was still running dangerously low on magic.


    If there was anything she should be grateful for, it was the fact that she was currently in a house of a sinner instead of inside the church¡¯s domain. Or worse yet, that flower meadow.


    Sitting up and taking off the sheets, she glanced at the floor, where the human called Yasou had insisted on sleeping.


    Even though it would be warmer if we slept together.


    She would never understand humans and the weird rules they imposed on themselves.


    Even in his sleep, he was grimacing. It didn¡¯t seem like the so-called rest he brought himself gave him any respite.


    She got off the bed and scooted over next to him, peering into his face.


    He seemed so defenseless, he probably wouldn¡¯t notice if she were to wrap her hands around his neck and snap it.


    She was aware that that wasn¡¯t the kind of thought she should be harboring towards her benefactor.


    Years after years of leading and ultimately trying to salvage what was left of her clan had taught her what kind of creature humans were.


    They were creatures who adored purity, light and virtue, hating the darkness and condemning all evil. The exact reason why devils couldn¡¯t even be spotted on the street without being killed.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you are different.¡± She murmured while poking his cheek.


    Then, after making sure that he was fast asleep, she moved away.

 Chapter 15

    After the previous attack, the door to Yasou¡¯s house laid in total shambles. A large hole was present, having even struck one of the door hinges. When moved, the door would creak loudly, sounding similar to a screech of agony. Splinters were strewn about on the floor, with small and large chunks of wood scattered across the room as if a small bull had barged right through it. She was amazed that a single attack from an inquisitor could do this much damage.


    The girl stared at those pieces for a few moments before deciding that she¡¯d better conclude her business outside. The air shown outside the gap that used to be part of the door was still dark, making her realize that she¡¯d probably hadn¡¯t slept for long.


    But now that she had some semblance of rest, she was eager to go somewhere, anywhere. Whether for cleanup duty or just exploring, even if there wasn¡¯t much for her to see.


    In the first place, it wasn¡¯t within her nature to remain in one place for a long time, especially when being inside of a human village.


    Well, with a certain exception, that is.


    She glanced back at the house of her benefactor.


    It was by no means a big house, and from the entrance, one could basically see the entirety of the building; A short hallway lead into to the TV room, where the human male was currently asleep on the floor, along with two other small rooms off to the back seemingly serving as a storage room and a lavatory. The walls were stained yellow, parts of it showing signs of decay, as cracks could be seen spread around if one observed closely.


    Rather than a house, a hut or a shack might be a more accurate description of this place. It was much too run down and dilapidated to be considered proper housing.


    To a demon, who sometimes spent a long period of time in nature, moving from one place to another, the mere concept of needing a roof over one¡¯s head was bizarre, so it might be considered a luxury. At best, some demons would have temporary dwellings, in forests or caves, when needing to stay low.


    But to a human, it was a ¡®home,¡¯ a place where someone was supposed to feel safe. A place they considered to be a part of them.


    Briefly, she wondered how it would feel to have one herself.


    That aside, for a human like Yasou, the wide, gaping hole might leave him a sitting duck, especially after a bunch of inquisitors raided his house earlier. It could arouse suspicion if left alone. Skirmishes were occurring everywhere recently, so it was unlikely for the recent killings to be linked to a human possessed by a demon, but that wouldn¡¯t mean the church wouldn¡¯t be on the lookout for abnormalities like these.


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    She sighed.


    I can¡¯t be discovered yet, so I better not leave any trail that can be easily traced back to me.


    Thus, she sacrificed some of her remaining magic to fix it. Both huge chunks and smaller pieces of what used to be the door flew, arranging themselves like a puzzle. It was almost as if they rewound to a time before they were blasted off.


    Afterwards, she gently shut the door behind her and made her way towards her destination.


    ¡ªTowards the highest place in that village.


    ***


    It wasn¡¯t difficult at all, because by being in Yasou¡¯s house, she was already halfway there.


    She had noticed it earlier, when she made her return after the cleanup duty.


    Although most of the villagers lived near each other, with their houses essentially flocked together, for some reason, that man lived on a hill away from the rest of the people, in one of the few old houses there. Though that only worked to her advantage.


    From where she was, all she had to do was keep following the upward path. Due to the passage of time, and neglect from the village, half of the road became basically a forest. Passing through the rows of trees and tall grass, she kept going straight. If her memory served her right, she would reach the top soon.


    ¡°¡ªThere it is...¡±


    As she anticipated, moments later she had reached the top of the hill.


    Since it was seldom visited, the wooden fence around the edge of the cliff was mostly broken, parts of it almost dangling over the edge. Still, without a care, she approached the railing.


    The hill itself was overlooking that very village, offering her a bird¡¯s eye view of the whole village, along with the surrounding ones¡ªher actual purpose for going there.


    Yet, instead of looking down, as she rested her hands on top of the broken picket fence, she looked up at the sky above for the nth time that day.


    The moonless sky was as dark and gloomy as always, with no stars in sight.


    ¡°...Father truly was an awful liar.¡±


    She wistfully mourned under her breath.


    Only then did she lower her gaze below.


    The first thing that caught her attention was the marble white cathedral at the center of the village, with its needlessly tall spires rising towards the sky, glowing unnecessarily bright with holiness. The landmark of that village, symbolizing their allegiance.


    The church was a showy bunch, after all.


    The mere sight of it made her sick.


    But soon, her scowl was replaced with a grin.


    The spot didn¡¯t only offer her the view of that village, but also the surrounding two.


    The brilliant light from the cathedral cast a shadow over the village. What set it apart from the rest was that, while each village had it, the one in this village was much higher than the other two. Though because of that shared holy aura, the area was referred to by the people as the ¡®Holy Trinity.¡¯


    Now, that wouldn¡¯t be the case anymore, seeing that only one remained standing tall.


    The invasions have been a success.

 Chapter 17

    <div>


    Beep¡ªbeep¡ªbeep¡ªbeep...


    Deep within his consciousness, a ringing, sharp tone blared through¡ªfaintly at first, but growing louder and clearer as time passed.


    ¡°God damn it.¡±


    Realizing what it was, his eyes shot wide open, and he leaned up from his bed with the vigor of a bedridden patient.


    He stared blankly at the thing, half awake yet still exhausted. As he leaned to reach his hand over, memories came flooding back in from the night before one after another.


    The spilling of blood from the gut. The final gasps of air from the girl whose throat was slit. Three inquisitors who were out to get her. The sensation of the knife in his hand as he rushed in for the kill.


    Jumbled and in a mess, as if they were all different events, in disarray they flashed by. Before he could make sense of any of them, they¡¯d already disappeared from his mind.


    Yet what he didn¡¯t forget were those expressions. How quickly they turned from confident, to horror and grief, until only moments later ending up lifeless.


    And that moment where he felt his life could have ended. Instead having been faced with her head being cleanly slashed off, falling lifelessly to the ground. As if it was merely a ball falling off a cup. The horrifying sight etched deeply into his mind.


    Beep¡ªbeep¡ªbeep¡ªbeep...


    Another series of rings dragged him back to earth. He had been staring unfocused at his alarm clock for God knows how long, the numbers on it staying an unrecognizable messy blur.


    ...What was that... about?


    ¡°A dream...?¡±


    An unsettled feeling welled in the pit of his stomach as a layer of cold sweat covered his nape.  He told himself it was made up, yet that ominous feeling remained.


    Perhaps out of self-preservation, or out of an ingrained habit, he dismissed it as a nightmare and turned off the obnoxious alarm. His mind, in a desperate bid to forget, focused its attention on something else.


    ¡°R-right, I need to go to work¡ªah, fuck!¡±


    The clock¡¯s hands clearly indicated that it was 10.30 p.m., three hours past the time he would usually prepare to get to work. And even when he woke up at his usual time, he struggled often not to be late.


    His boss in Fukushi Village had probably been blowing up his phone with voicemails berating and yelling at him at this point.  The elderly senior worker had an obsession with respect, seniority and dignity, especially when it came to the younger workers like Yasou. His only would be to call his boss and apologize profusely. At best, he could count his lucky stars for a pay cut or a demotion. At worst, there wouldn¡¯t be any food on the table for the next upcoming while.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    He tried to locate his phone, though his mind kept wandering back to that nightmare, distracting him from what he was supposed to be doing. For some reason he couldn¡¯t stop thinking about it. It was just too vivid¡ªtoo real.


    The acrid smell of blood, the warm and sticky sensation as the puddle of blood that had reached his feet, the unsettling cracking sound of fractured bone¡ªthey all pervaded his sense of hearing, smell and touch as if he was still witnessing it firsthand inside that dream.


    Not only that, the way the nightmare was presented, it was as if he had already seen it before.


    As if¡ªas if¡­


    Those thoughts he tried to shake off to the best of his ability, yet the trouble at hand does not hold a drop to the flood of anxiety and fear he got from what he¡¯d seen.


    It took him a while to manage to find his phone, which had fallen onto the floor due to the tossing and turning in his sleep.


    He tried to press the button to the side to turn on the screen, but somehow couldn¡¯t. His fingers were shook back and forth, as he kept mistaking it for the volume buttons


    It¡¯s a dream...!


    It¡¯s just a dream¡ªit has to be...!


    His mind was far too unfocused to even do as much as merely turn on a phone.


    Instead of thinking about his boss, his job, the pressing matters at hand, his mind was still dead set trying to convince himself of those experiences having all been a dream.


    ¡°You seem to have witnessed something terribly frightening. I¡¯ve never seen you quite this pale before.¡±


    A chipper, yet callous voice called out.  His gut feeling, the thing he feared most, appeared to be reality.


    It was the voice of a girl¡ª something that doesn¡¯t normally belong in this downtrodden man¡¯s rundown shack of a house.


    He slowly turned around, hoping to affirm he was hearing things, making up voices.


    But there she was.


    A young girl with long, charcoal-colored hair sat on the couch.


    When their eyes met, she showed him a smile that embodied the word ¡®innocence.¡¯


    Though he knew the true depth of depravity one such smile came from.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t bother with that phone. There¡¯s nobody worth calling.¡±


    Her tattered and ripped clothes he was seeing, as she relaxedly leaned back, removed the last bit of doubt in his mind.


    This was real.  It wasn¡¯t a nightmare.


    What he saw just now were his memories.


    Then, in an instant, he collapsed to the ground.


    ¡°Urgh¡ª¡±


    The nausea welling up in the pit of his stomach had risen up all of a sudden. A burn scratched at the back of his throat, sweat breaking off as his face grew hotter.


    He bowed over, facing the ground. A vile liquid spewed out from his mouth.


    A weird clear, stingray liquid was expelled from his gut, reminding him that he hadn¡¯t eaten anything a while before last night.


    Last night.


    The memory of it resurfaced, but this time, he could make sense of it.


    He had welcomed The Devil into his house.


    Amidst the dry heaving, he desperately struggled to crawl to his feet. His arms trembled weakly, barely holding his body weight. It took him everything just to look into her eyes again.


    Meanwhile, the girl was still sitting leisurely, confident and uncaring. If anything, her smile only deepened, appearing almost like one expects from a merciful angel.


    She took her time standing up, slowly approaching him, and bending over to face him.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to look so afraid. You¡¯re safe now, as I promised.¡±


    Even though she was the main cause for everything, the fear, the danger, the insanity of it all.


    He took a hold of her shoulder with every inch of his power, his arm clutching onto it like it was his last lifeline.


    The girl maintained a smile on her face, yet her eyes no longer bore any trace of light.

 Chapter 18

    <div>


    ¡°The hell are you even saying¡­? Safe? After that stunt?¡±


    Though his voice remained composed, his hands clamored at the thoughts of starting another massacre, or getting that same type of violence done to them.


    A word like ¡®safety¡¯ bore no meaning when he struggled to even think of a way to survive. The law enforcement will make their lives hell from hereon.


    Killing an inquisitor is already enough to get burnt at the stake, this crime was already far beyond that.


    However, the girl''s eyes widened in amusement, as she smiled without a care in the world


    ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be any trouble, not right this moment.¡±


    The sheer confidence in her demeanor almost made him question himself. If a demon like her can remain this callous there felt little room for doubt.


    Yet he couldn¡¯t consider her completely sane either.


    ¡°Look, we need to find a place to hide.¡± He spoke with a deep, commanding voice, mimicking a sergeant giving out orders. ¡°There is a hidden passageway of sorts. A trail nobody knows about-¡±


    ¡°No need.¡±


    Her tone remained light, almost playful, as she mercilessly cut him off.


    ¡°We won¡¯t escape.¡±


    For a moment, she reminded him of his cat, Fluffy. The way he would carelessly knock things over, then purr happily as he picked up the shattered remains of whatever poor item was smashed on the floor.


    Yet, in a strange way, the thought put him at ease.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s your suggestion then? Sit here, wait for them, then die?¡±


    ¡°No need to wait when they won¡¯t arrive.¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    With every sentence he heard from her he felt as if his mind was being dragged through a swamp. Every word spoken was utter nonsense.


    The Church, the most powerful, vicious and dangerous institution in this village, is out to hunt them, with an almost infinite supply of men against the two of them.


    Suffice to say, terrible odds.


    ¡°See it from their perspective if you will, Yasou.¡±


    Then, like a teacher teaching an elementary student, she put on a high pitched voice and explained with exaggerated gestures.


    ¡°In our first hour, I was being hunted by 3 men. You saved me, they trailed behind you, then died like insects.¡±


    Holding in her laughter, she continued.


    ¡°Hour 5, I went out, took out the remaining patrol, and got rid of the bodies¡­ So what does the church actually know? Do they know where we are? Do they know how 6 of their men mysteriously vanished off the face of the planet?¡±


    ¡°The gunshots, the doors being blasted to-¡± he cut himself off after looking at the door.


    ¡°... what the hell did you do?¡± He asked, baffled at it looking good as new, no bullet hole in sight.


    ¡°And lastly, even if they did know of our dangerous existence, even if they wished to hunt us down, cost what it may cost, how would they know how to attack us? 6 losses for a village this size would be quite painful, it¡¯d be rather foolish to lose 6 more in much the same fashion.¡±


    It sounded surprisingly reasonable, coming from her. As for rebuttals, there were some theoreticals that came to mind, but it could very well be that they have no such measures available at this time.


    He heaved a deep sigh.


    ¡°So, what do you have in mind?¡±


    Her eyes gleaming with excitement, she asked him a question in turn.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we take a look at the news?¡±


    ***


    Bzz¡ªbzz¡ª...


    Now and then, static noises could be heard from the small, retro antenna TV he had installed in his house. Old as it was, it had saved him from countless nights of boredom. Most of the channels were dead static or a black screen, though by a miracle the one for local news remained clear and crisp, outside of moments of radio interference.


    As he listened in, he remembered that he hadn¡¯t eaten anything. He was starving. He could only find a few dried up vegetables in the kitchen, alongside one singular egg, packaging not included. He hadn¡¯t gone to buy groceries lately, or eaten much, for that matter. Couldn¡¯t be arsed to.


    He sat in front of the TV, drowning its noise while peeling the vegetables with his rusted switchblade. A slightly off-color potato, an extra dry carrot, and a few yellow leaves of lettuce. He could probably make a salad with that. He¡¯d boil the egg for the girl later out of courtesy. Sadly, all he could offer to go with that was a small bottle of soy sauce, which was half empty.


    The news had been going on for a while, explaining about the recent events in the country. Nothing he hadn¡¯t heard before. The winning coalition of angels and humans, the demons being pushed back, peace being restored, all the same shit.


    But then, a certain piece of news made him drop his switchblade.

 Chapter 19

    "The citadel has fallen."


    An ominous headline sprawled across the bottom of the screen. A possibility that never occurred to him, shown in bold red letters on screen. The news report didn''t get any better, demons burning the homes and churches, wreaking havoc on the streets, all in a small town he hadn''t heard the name of in decades.


    The reported rattled off about the different fights and their gruesome consequences. The demons appeared seemingly out of nowhere, honed in and smashing through the meager defenses in 3 adjacent villages. As if the earth itself one day spat them out from the depths below.


    Disasters like this were considered top priority. Picking the switchblade off the ground, he blew the dust off that''d settled on the floor.


    A moment later, a knock on his door.


    ***


    "And, like what you see?"


    Yasou sat baffled, mouth agape, eyes threatening to bulge out. The sheer carnage on display one he''d never seen before.


    "And you... you did all this?"


    "Huhuu~ a group effort."


    The demon gave a relaxed smile, rather pleased at the display.


    "You were the leader of it."


    Ominous words spilled out her mouth.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    "Those few meager kills, it created a butterfly effect of sorts."


    "The hell does that mean."


    "Us demons... harbingers of sin sense the loss of divinity. To us, divinity is like what would be smoke for you. Thick, misty, unbearable to breathe through. We purified it, using your envy and wrath."


    Her finger ran down to his heart, circling it like a marking as she wrapped her arm around him.


    "Now that we could breathe, we fought."


    The absurdity had yet to hit him, as he kept staring in disbelief, looking at the corpses, sliced in half, hung off from the rooftops of churches, or sprawled out on the street.


    Some he faintly recognized, or at least thought he did. It was hard to say from whatever disfigured remains were displayed.


    "Yet, the fog will soon reappear, and with it the party will end. If we were to run, the root of sin would weaken, it would be over just... like... that."


    She inched her face close, whispering to him.


    "Or... we could truly show revenge. No one will stop us, no one can."


    He felt suffocated, this being is what he led inside his house, made a deal with. Bloodthirsty enemies as friends and enemies alike, just from a single decision. A world that was hidden in plain sight all this time revealing its ugly face.


    Yet at that moment, he felt no remorse.


    "...I have saved you once before, and you have saved me." He kept his eyes downcast. "Though don''t get me wrong... your plans, your friends, your war, they mean nothing to me. I''m not a demon. Humanity, virtue, sin, it''s all noise."


    Even hearing these words, her smile didn''t dissipate.


    "I promised no harm would befall you. Yet, I cannot save a martyr from hanging himself on a cross. If your remaining purpose ends here, all that remains will be atonement, soon followed by death."


    She put the palm of her hand on top of his as she spoke, feeling the tremors he couldn''t suppress.


    "You can see such a fate right before you."


    "..."


    He silently stared back up at the tv, the broadcast soon ended, being cut off abruptly by the tv network.


    "I''m going to go outside for a bit, stay here and don''t follow me."


    An urge had welled up within him. An urge he couldn''t tell why he felt it.


    He wished to see it for himself.


    "Be safe, dear." The demon waved at him, as she sat back in the couch, a self-satisfied look on her face.


    Just in case, he took his trusty knife with him.