The promotion ceremony had finally arrived on December 1st. All the lesser Grades, from One to Five, were gathered. Demons from each grade would progress to the one above, while those in Grade Five would ascend into Grade Six, officially becoming Upper Demons. At the same time, new association leaders for the lesser demons would be chosen from the fresh Grade Four ranks.
Renny had planned to avoid the ceremony altogether. The past few days had been overwhelming, marked by revelations and truths he was still trying to piece together. His newly awakened Ezraphor powers weighed heavily on him, especially the garden he had brought to life, where spectral gardeners now toiled endlessly, fertilizing and nurturing the grounds.
And then, there was the kill. His first. He told himself it shouldn't matter, she had already died once, back on Earth. She had been a demon in hell. By that logic, there should be no room for guilt. Yet it clung to him, faint but relentless, a bitter taste he couldn't spit out. And layered atop that came the deeper dread: the consequence of killing a demon. He could not even imagine what the royals would do to him. But guilt and fear soon gave way to something worse, the pain searing through his left eye. It devoured every thought, overshadowing all else.
At first, he was powerless before it, forced to witness Hell in its rawest form. The sight flayed him, agony sharp enough to draw blood, crimson streaks running down his face, until it dragged him into a deep, unwilling sleep.
When he finally awoke, the torment had subsided. His left eye had returned to its original form, and with that, relief washed over him. The agony was gone, and he prayed he would never feel it again.
But one thing still gnawed at him, his right eye. It had also changed in appearance, with dark markings appearing momentarily, but it did not bring him pain, yet it had given him a strange new sight. When activated, he could see faint energies flickering around certain people or objects. It wasn't constant, only surfacing when he looked at specific places or faces, as though the energy itself was bound to them. And though he could see it, he had no idea what it meant and decided to ignore it for now.
Instead, he turned his focus to what had consumed him since the day he received his contract. Delving into the Ezraphor store, he found all the abilities tied to his mark. Most remained locked, but a handful had been granted to him at his current level, Grade One. His overall had risen to 213, an impressive number for his grade. But it meant little now. Because of his failure to complete his first contract, he was condemned to repeat Grade One. His peers would graduate, their overalls soaring past 500 and up to 1,075 once the ceremony concluded. Meanwhile, he remained stagnant, shackled at 213, unable to advance above 500, until his contract was fulfilled.
This fact alone had made Renny plan to skip the ceremony and spend the day digging deeper into his abilities. But the outgoing lesser demon president, Yurokane Omekro, had issued his final order before stepping down: every demon was required to attend.
Renny was irritated. He wasn't getting promoted, what was the point? A waste of time, he thought bitterly. But Kev had pushed him, telling him he should at least show up to celebrate his "homie." Against his annoyance, Renny found a bit of reason in that. So he came, a forced smile tugging at his face.
By the time he arrived, the place was alive. The venue was far larger than the usual gathering halls, draped in elegance. Round tables gleamed under soft lighting, each set with polished flower vases and two neatly arranged chairs. Heavy curtains framed the walls, and massive crimson banners stretched across the hall, bold white letters scrawled across them:
DOWN YOU GO!
Every grade from One through Five was present, which only thickened the tension in the air.
Renny slid through the crowd toward an empty table. He noticed quickly that the promoted demons stood out. Instead of the usual suit-style attire, they wore tuxedos, subtle, but sharp enough to make them shine against the rest. The hall buzzed with chatter, friends congratulating friends, demons boasting or sulking, the air swelling with murmurs of envy and pride.
To Renny's surprise, there were plenty who weren't being promoted. Even with their mark abilities, contracts had clearly proved too difficult for many. That gave him pause. Maybe his failure wasn't as rare, or damning, as he thought. Still, it made him wonder how he'd fare when he finally got the chance to redo his contract, this time stronger.
Kev had been there long before him, association rules required promoted demons to be present before the ceremony began. When Kev spotted Renny in the crowd, he pushed through and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Look at this gangster," Renny said with a dry grin, "all dressed up, looking cute."
Kev laughed, shaking his head. "Man, shut yo' ass up. You fool."
The two of them cracked up, the tension breaking for a moment.
"I didn't think this many people weren't getting promoted," Renny said, glancing around the room.
"Bruh, me neither," Kev said. "But hey, at least you ain't gotta feel too down. You probably did better than most of these dudes out here, and you was playin' handicapped."
Renny nodded, muttering under his breath. "No more."
Kev tilted his head. "What was that?"
"Nothing," Renny said quickly.
Kev smirked, then leaned closer. "Yo, you heard about the vice president's girl?"
Renny's brow furrowed. "No. What about her?"
"Man, I just heard she dead." Kev lowered his voice, eyes darting. "But check it, the body ain't nowhere to be found though."
Renny stiffened. "Really? Then how do they know she's dead?"
Kev shrugged, lips twisting. "Grade Fives say so. Gotta be from the higher-ups. Maybe she pissed off the wrong authority. They prob'ly snatched her away or some shit. Who knows…"