Chapter 69: There's a Ghost
2023-10-23 Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
A month ago, Laurie was a loser.
In a place like Gotham, there was no shortage of people like him. In his thirties, unemployed, and with no particular skills, he had recently tried to make a living in the underworld. As a result, he went through three bosses in a row: the first was hacked to death in a gang shootout, the second choked to death on a fish bone, and the third was thrown in the slammer by the fledgling Batman.
From then on, his reputation in the local underworld was sealed. They called him the "Boss Killer," and no small-time gangs dared to take him in.
And so, he became unemployed in the underworld as well.
Burdened with debt and unable to pay rent, he was kicked out by his landlord and seemed destined for a life on the streets. But as they say, there's always a way out. One night, while scrounging through trash cans for scraps, he suddenly ran into a ghostly figure who claimed to be a demon from another world, looking for a lackey to help it invade this dimension.
Figuring he had nothing left to lose, Laurie signed the contract with the demon without a second thought.
And that was how he met his Lord Belial.
Lately, Lord Belial's demands had suddenly become stricter, leaving him feeling a bit overwhelmed. The intensity of his crimes these past few days was so high that even in a place like Gotham, the number of missing persons was starting to draw unnecessary attention.
The others weren't much of a problem, but it seemed that Batman had started to notice this series of cases. That Batman's nose was a little too sharp, and even with the help of a demon's magic, Laurie's situation was becoming quite dangerous.
So he had paused his activities for the night, temporarily taking shelter in an abandoned building like this one to lay low for a while.
He never expected that a few reckless youngsters, who didn't know any better, would deliver themselves right to his doorstep.
Laurie was delighted. It was like someone handing you a pillow when you're sleepy—fodder delivering itself right to his mouth.
He retreated into a dark room and carved a crimson magic array on the floor. He placed candles around the array in a specific pattern and lit them one by one.
The faint candlelight barely illuminated a corner of the room, as well as Laurie's deathly pale face. The magic array, drawn with blood, formed an ancient, twisted geometric shape. Within it were various complex and mysterious symbols, ancient script, and strange patterns.
Laurie chanted softly.
"Demon of another world, heed my summons! In the name of the great Demon God Belial, descend upon my world and, with crimson blood, offer a sacrifice to our great master! Appear, fiend of Hell!"
Every line of the magic array began to glow, and a crimson light illuminated the entire room. A vast surge of energy erupted, extinguishing all the candles at once. A twisted, terrifying fiend, something that should not exist in this world, appeared upon the magic array.
However, when it appeared, it was fast asleep.
Laurie, still holding his ritual pose, froze for a moment.
Then, he took a deep breath and chanted again, "In the name of the great Demon God Belial, with crimson blood, offer a sacrifice to our great master!"
Hearing his chant, the magic array once again pulsed with a red glow. The fiend's body twitched violently... and it rolled over in its sleep.
Laurie: "…"
Yes, this was the fiend dispatched by his great master to coordinate the operation with him. This wasn't their first time working together, so Laurie was somewhat mentally prepared for its temperament.
This fiend was a total slacker. Laurie didn't quite understand why the Master had assigned him such a specimen. It had no drive, only thinking about slacking off and taking it easy. In his opinion, it was a disgrace to all fiends.
Laurie coughed and said with a deadpan expression, "Time to eat."
The fiend's eyes shot open. It sat up from its slumber as if doing a sit-up. "What's to eat?"
"A few thrill-seeking youngsters, your favorite age group. They went to the third floor, to the left of the stairwell," Laurie said. "Same as always. The souls must be sacrificed to the great master; the rest is yours.
"But make it clean. Things are tense lately. Someone's watching us, so don't leave any traces."
"Don't worry," the fiend said with a confident smile. "I'm a professional. Give me three minutes, I'll be done in no time."
With that, it confidently transformed into a dark shadow and floated out the door.
A few seconds later, however, it floated back in, smiling sheepishly.
"Did you say left or right on the third floor?"
Laurie: "…"
"Now for the crucial part."
On the third floor, in an empty room, Chris and his two Henchmen were huddled together.
"You, repeat the plan," Chris said, pointing to Henchman Number One.
Henchman Number One immediately gestured to the dark, one-piece uniform in his hands. "I'm in charge of putting on this Halloween costume to pretend to be a demon and scare those two girls. When the boss comes in, I'll pretend to be scared, turn, and run!"
Henchman Number Two raised his hand. "I'll be the lookout and give the signal!"
"Very good," Chris nodded with satisfaction. "If I can successfully pick up that transfer student today, you'll both be handsomely rewarded! Got it?"
"Got it, boss!"
"If you've got it, then hurry up and get changed!"
Henchman Number One quickly grabbed the Halloween costume and scurried away.
Chris was smug, already imagining the romantic scene of him heroically saving the damsel in distress, the beautiful girl throwing herself into his arms.
That's right, he was just lusting after her body. He was shameless.
But he was proud of it.
Just then, a shadow materialized silently behind him.
It was a humanoid shadow, ugly and emaciated. Its skin had a pitch-black sheen, as if smeared with ink, and it emanated a strong, foul stench. Its eyes were long, narrow, and fierce, with deep, dark pupils. Its lips were colorless, revealing sharp, canine-like fangs. A rotten, foul odor emanated from its mouth, and the horns on its head were menacing and sharp.
"What's that weird smell?"
Snapping out of his daydream, Chris turned his head and came face-to-face with the fiend's terrifying eyes.
"Roar!"
The fiend bared its teeth, brandished its sharp claws, and struck a terrifying pose.
It then waited with eager anticipation for the young man to collapse in terror and let out an ear-splitting scream.
Savoring their prey's fear was one of the fiends' favorite pastimes.
Unexpectedly, however, the young man only paused for a moment, showing no trace of fear on his face.
He even seemed a little... pleasantly surprised?
"Huh? Your getup is pretty good!"
Looking delighted, Chris even started to feel up the fiend, patting and prodding it all over.
"This design, this texture is amazing. Your eyes can even light up? And what are these horns on your head made of? They're so realistic!"
As he spoke, he started to squeeze the horns on the fiend's head.
The fiend: "?"
It had never encountered this kind of reaction before. The fiend watched the human grope it all over, momentarily too stunned to make a move.
It was dumbfounded on the spot.
What's with this human? Isn't he afraid of me at all?
Chris was very satisfied with his "henchman's" performance. He hadn't expected that the guy who usually seemed so foolish and unreliable was actually being so dependable and thorough today. The costume and makeup alone made him feel like today's goal was already halfway accomplished.
The next moment, however, a voice came from behind him: "Boss, you called me?"
Chris turned toward the sound.
He saw Henchman Number One, half his body stuffed into a loose, shoddy-looking one-piece uniform, his upper half still exposed as he poked his head out of the room in confusion.
Wait a minute.
Chris frowned, realizing the matter wasn't so simple.
Henchman Number One was in there, not even fully dressed yet. Then who was he feeling up right now?
He turned his head back again, his eyes meeting the fiend's—ferocious, terrifying, and just as bewildered.
Chris's pupils contracted, and an uncontrollable scream escaped from the depths of his throat.
"A g-g-ghost!!!"
(end of chapter )