Demon Stories (Part Two)

"Yes, the man without wishes had long realized that he was traveling alongside a Demon."

Mr. Asmon nodded, craning his neck to watch Shade and the poet each draw the first facedown card of their second round.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, as though recalling more details of the story:

"The man without wishes traveled with the Demon that granted wishes for a long time. Until one day, the man could walk no farther. The long road called life had reached its end."

Shade and the poet drew their second cards. Shade stared conflictedly at the Stars 6 in his hand, his hole card being Stars 10. After considering it for quite a while, he decided to draw another card. Meanwhile, the poet smiled and revealed his Flower 9, Heroic Legends Fletcher, placing it beside the wineglass on the table.

"Your luck seems rather good too, Mr. Shelley. So is your hole card a Flower suit?"

"No."

Thus, although he had drawn a special card, the young poet had not triggered the special rule.

"The man without wishes finally collapsed, falling in an Ebony Thicket. The Demon then emerged from his soul and asked whether he was willing to trade all the clothes on his body for ten more years of life."

As Mr. Asmon told the story, both Shade and Mr. Shelley looked at him.

"That's quite a good deal. Very worthwhile."

"I think that's insulting the man without wishes, isn't it?"

"The Demon did not believe that someone could have no wishes, which was why it proposed such a trade at that moment."

Mr. Asmon spoke calmly, while Shade and the poet lowered their heads and reached together for their third cards.

"'No, I will not trade with you,' the man said. The Demon was curious, so it