Another Horn for You

Eaten! Sanderson shuddered. I would be eaten? Just like an ordinary little magical beast? He had hunted plenty of magical beasts himself, and many of them had ended up on his dinner table.

Although he had long prepared himself for it, hearing it from Stavago was different.

Would I end up just like those creatures I hunted? That might not be so bad. At least it wouldn't be an unbearable outcome.

Let him eat me, then. Sanderson sighed in relief. The demon Stavago was merciful enough—or perhaps simply uninterested. Had he encountered a more brutal demon, it might have tortured his soul, filling it with the flavor of suffering before devouring it. At least ending up in Stavago's hands wasn't so bad.

Sanderson felt he could accept this, and suddenly felt much more at ease. Back when he had received that vast wealth of knowledge, he had put the question of what would happen to his soul out of his mind. Now, decades later, when he was about to face that question, he realized he had absolutely no idea what would become of him.

Sanderson nodded to Dean. His relaxed expression made Dean feel that his mentor had finally put his worries to rest.

And now Stavago was actually offering a concession. Dean and Sanderson exchanged a glance. Could there really be such a good deal?

"Hahaha, little one, I have a feeling that once you grow to a certain level and your soul becomes powerful enough, it will make a delicious feast—a very rare delicacy." Stavago licked his lips. "For the sake of that feast, I am willing to make a concession. Until your life ends, I will preserve the souls of all four generations. I intend to eat them along with yours."

"Now, my time is almost up. If you have any questions, ask them quickly." Stavago looked at Dean, seeming more satisfied the longer he looked.

"One more question. By limitless knowledge, do you mean everything you know? Will I know it all once I sign the contract?" Dean asked.

"No, no, no, little one. Only once you reach or approach certain levels can you learn the knowledge pertaining to them." Stavago shrugged. "Moreover, some of that knowledge cannot be passed on to others. It is knowledge reserved exclusively for us. Of course, there won't be much of it."

Stavago spoke as though this were only natural. What neither Dean nor Sanderson noticed, however, was that the demon's little shadow before them seemed to have weakened slightly. Though the change was extremely subtle, it was undeniable.

In the sky, the dark clouds that Stavago had dispersed earlier with a grunt seemed to be gathering again. Wisps of dark cloud converged from every direction above Blue Town.

More precisely, they gathered directly above the little bamboo grove behind Sanderson's courtyard.

Of course, Blue Town was only a small town, with virtually no professionals above the third level. No one noticed anything unusual about the dark clouds overhead. In fact, hardly anyone even noticed the clouds gathering.

A few bored idlers happened to look up and see the dark clouds, however, and hurried home to tell their families to bring in the clothes they had hung out to dry that morning.

"Little one, can we sign the contract now? You should know that the great demon Lord Stavago's patience has its limits!" The little shadow put on a ferocious expression, though Dean found it rather comical.

Sanderson, of course, was the exception. Having spent more than half his life under a contract with the demon, he could clearly sense Stavago's impatience.

"There's still—there's just one last question," Dean said hurriedly.

Stavago's ferocious expression froze. Somewhat speechless, he said to Dean, "You really do have the nerve to make demands of me."

"The last one. I swear by the Light God, this is absolutely my last question," Dean said solemnly, though his little face flushed slightly.

"Don't mention the Light God to me. He's a dictator. Besides, you're a mage. What does your oath have to do with the Light God? Not a copper coin's worth!" Stavago exhaled, unimpressed by Dean's oath.

"Enough. Stop wasting words. Ask your final question, then decide immediately whether you're signing the contract. Someone as important as me has no time to sit around chatting with a little ant like you." Stavago was growing irritable.

Only moments before, he had been chatting pleasantly with Sanderson and Dean, almost like a gentleman. Now his demonic nature was beginning to show. Of course, Stavago did not mind revealing his true nature to Dean at all, because he was running out of time.

"Esteemed great demon Stavago, I would like to ask how many more years you can live. I need to work out how I can live that long." Dean spoke to Stavago with utter seriousness.

"Over a thousand years. There, now you know. Hurry up and sign the contract. Countless people dream of the chance to make a deal with the great demon Stavago, yet never get it. What are you still hesitating for?" With that, Stavago looked at Sanderson.

Sanderson was already prepared. He took a roll of parchment out of his ring.

A storage ring! For a moment, Dean's attention was captured by the storage ring on Sanderson's hand. Crafting storage items required extremely specialized magic, yet his mentor actually owned a storage ring.

"Stop staring. I have the magic for making storage items. Come look at the contract!" As he spoke, Stavago pointed at the parchment. In an instant, dark red flames rose from it, then formed a passage of text.

These were the terms of the contract. Dean had no idea why he could actually understand every clause written there.

"This is hellish soul script. It projects directly into the contracting party's soul. It is also the most powerful form of soul contract for any living creature," Sanderson told Dean. However, Sanderson himself knew little about this script beyond these basic facts.

Even with his former strength at the peak of the Fifth-Level Grand Mage rank, Sanderson had not understood the soul script commonly used by Abyssal Demons.

Dean was tempted, thanks to the magic for crafting storage items that Stavago had mentioned. Once he learned that magic, he would soon have more gold coins than he could count.

Even the poorest-quality, cheapest storage item was worth over a thousand gold coins, and there was no shortage of buyers.

"Let me think a little longer. This contract..." Dean still hesitated. An instinct deep within his soul warned him that this contract was dangerous.

"Such a delicious soul. For the sake of your delicious soul, how about I give you another gift? A gift every mage dreams of..." Stavago could hardly wait any longer.

Time waited for no one, and certainly not for demons. The dark clouds overhead were growing thicker and thicker, and most people had already noticed them, though everyone assumed they were rain clouds.

(End of chapter)