Gratitude from an Evil Demon

The Monster King reappeared before Senju Kyogawa, flapping its fleshy wings.

"Master, we've signed the contract now! I don't like the name 'Ugly Thing,' so please call me 'Ugly Monster' instead~" the Monster King cooed in his mind, its tone soft and coquettish.

Hearing that adorable voice while picturing its hideous form, Senju Kyogawa couldn't help but feel a wave of chills.

"Do you really want to be called 'Ugly Monster'?" a recovered Senju Kyogawa asked again. He truly didn't understand the difference between the two names; if anything, "Ugly Thing" sounded slightly cuter. How could "Ugly Monster" be so amusing?

Ugly Monster clearly loved its new name and insisted on it, refusing to change it no matter how Senju Kyogawa tried to persuade it.

"Fine, fine, fine. If you like being called Ugly Monster, then so be it," Senju Kyogawa said helplessly.

"But I have three conditions."

"First, you can consume my 'flames,' but you cannot prevent me from using them."

"Second, can you change your appearance? Can you retract your eyeballs into their sockets?"

"Finally, you are not allowed to let your subordinates lick me!"

Senju Kyogawa stated his demands all at once.

Ugly Monster's eyeballs rolled, paused in mid-air for a few seconds, and then obediently retracted into their sockets.

Immediately after, its manta-ray-like body gradually shed its fluorescent green color, revealing a pale, tender base.

Then, Ugly Monster spun in mid-air and asked, "Master, are you satisfied?"

Senju Kyogawa nodded in satisfaction. Ugly Monster looked quite cute this way, though he wondered why the other Spacetime Rift Derivatives remained so hideous.

Senju Kyogawa voiced his confusion.

"Oh~ they are all my clones. They lack independent thought and aren't as capable as I am, so they can't change their appearance."

After saying this, all the Spacetime Rift Derivatives suddenly vanished, and darkness returned to Senju Kyogawa's vision.

"Don't worry, Master. We usually reside in the flames surrounding your heart and won't interfere with your use of them!" Ugly Monster reappeared and explained to Senju Kyogawa.

With Ugly Monster's help, Senju Kyogawa successfully exited the sticky spacetime rift.

After a bout of dizziness, Senju Kyogawa opened his eyes to find himself suddenly appearing several hundred meters in the air. Maintaining a flailing posture as he plummeted, he waved his arms in vain before falling.

When Senju Kyogawa was only a dozen meters from the ground, he saw several monsters surrounding a child below.

"Get out of the way—" Senju Kyogawa shouted at the top of his lungs.

The person clearly had no time to heed Senju Kyogawa's warning, as he was currently locked in a standoff with the monsters. The monster with the long tongue had just snatched away his kunai, his chakra was nearly depleted, and several lower-level monsters were lurking nearby, eyeing him hungrily.

However, hindered by the presence of the long-tongued monster, the lesser ones dared not scramble for the prey, instead circling the child with the spiky black hair, drooling as they stared.

Senju Kyogawa was ten meters from the ground.

At the critical moment, the giant manta ray suddenly appeared, catching the free-falling Senju Kyogawa.

With a "splat," Senju Kyogawa landed face-first in a patch of slime.

"Ptooey!" Senju Kyogawa spat out the slime, wiped his face in disgust, and grumbled:

"Ugly Monster, could you appear a bit earlier next time? I almost fell to my death."

"Oh my! Does Master not like the feeling of falling from the sky? I thought you humans enjoyed that sensation..." Ugly Monster replied playfully.

With Ugly Monster's appearance, a shadow covered the area below. The monsters curiously looked up, discovering the manta ray that blotted out the sky.

The long-tongued evil demon caught a familiar, enticing scent and looked up as well, extending its long tongue as it searched curiously.

"Fire Style! Great Fire Dragon Jutsu!"

Following the spiky-haired boy's rapid hand seals, a massive fire dragon emerged, charging toward the surrounding monsters.

The monsters, who had been looking up while drooling, were scorched by the sudden Fire Style technique.

Senju Kyogawa leaned over Stinky Treasure's back to look down, clearly seeing how the great fire dragon sent the circle of monsters flying.

The spiky-haired boy seized the opportunity to leap out of the encirclement.

However, the moment he was about to escape, the long-tongued evil demon suddenly thrust its long tongue toward the direction the boy was fleeing.

Seeing the slime-covered tongue about to touch the boy's back, Senju Kyogawa couldn't just watch. He still remembered how that long-tongued evil demon had nearly choked him unconscious.

Senju Kyogawa drew his (bootleg) Nichirin Sword from the system space, focused his breathing, jumped off Ugly Monster's back, and channeled all his strength into his arms to strike at the long-tongued monster!

Sun Breathing: First Form: Waltz!

Accompanied by brilliant, dazzling flames, a circular slash appeared, cutting the monster in half at the waist.

The long-tongued monster let out a miserable shriek; the area where it was struck turned charred black as if scorched by the sun, and the effect spread across its entire body.

The tongue the evil demon had extended toward the boy hung limply in mid-air before turning into ash, inch by inch.

As the long-tongued monster collapsed to the ground, its eyes suddenly revealed a profound sorrow, and its sockets filled with tears. It turned its face toward Senju Kyogawa, its lips curling slightly as it mouthed a word.

"Thank you..."

Seeing the monster's expression, Senju Kyogawa was stunned, only then realizing that the monster had once been human.

Just then, the sun, previously obscured by dark clouds, emerged, and sunlight pierced through the air, spilling onto the ground.

The monster finally dissolved into foam, much like the Little Mermaid in the fairy tale, turning into glowing bubbles under the sunlight before slowly fading away.

The Little Mermaid returned to the embrace of the sea after turning into foam, but what about him?

Where was his final resting place?

Senju Kyogawa felt a sense of profound loss. In the instant he saw that look of relief, many thoughts crossed his mind: he thought of the creature attacking him with its tongue, the inexplicable Evil Demon Virus, and the warmth of this town before the evil demons had ever appeared...

[System, what happens after an "Evil Demon" is eliminated?] Senju Kyogawa asked the system, driven by an inexplicable impulse.

The system replied:

[He will atone for his sins, enter the cycle of reincarnation, and then possess a brand-new life...]