Renny staggered to his feet, chest heaving, and turned toward the voice.
"Oy! Ezraphor, long time no see!"
It was Tela Osupa, striding out of the shadows.
Relief washed over Renny. He straightened at once and moved to meet him. They clasped hands and embraced briefly. "Man, took you long enough," Renny muttered.
Tela smirked. "Had to make sure the coast was clear." His expression darkened as he glanced at the fallen body. "Still… Me saddened ya could not handle a Shuttar on ya own."
"A Shuttar?" Renny asked, frowning.
"Oy," Tela said, voice flat. "The shapeshifters. That ugly form ya saw, that's what they become. Hell uses them for small tasks, like taxi driving. They are weak, hardly worth much."
"Just like the Pitters," Renny added.
Tela nodded. "Oy. But na worry, things will change soon. Ya unlocked the Garden. That means ya only grow stronger."
He cast a quick look around the alley, tension sharpening his voice. "But first, we need to leave this place. The Rotmen will be here any moment."
Without wasting another second, the two fled into the night.
***
As they reached the Garden of Ezra, Renny placed his hand upon the iron gate and commanded it to open. The ancient hinges groaned as the gate obeyed, swinging wide.
"Come," Renny said, stepping through. Tela followed close behind.
The garden had changed. Where once it had been a half-formed vision, it now thrived, more gardeners moved quietly among the beds, and greenery was steadily filling every corner. By the time they reached the great trunk at the center, however, Renny's stride slowed.
The trunk was unchanged, it had not grown taller nor stronger. Disappointment flickered across his face.
Tela caught it immediately. "Do na worry," he said calmly. "The tree will grow, but only if ya grow as well."
Renny exhaled, shoulders sinking. "And how am I supposed to grow when the system's after me? I can't hide in here forever. If I don't go out before next year, I'll miss my chance to redo my contract."
Tela nodded. "Oy. But that's why ya must become stronger. Ya must defend yaself when the time comes, and complete ya contract properly. Only then will the system grant more access to abilities that lift above both those beside, and those above ya."
Renny gave a half-smile, doubtful. "Abilities that put me above even higher grades? Is that even possible?"
"Oy, Ezraphor!" Tela said, his eyes sharp. "But only if accept ya true nature. Ya not just a demon. Ya half demon, half Royal. What call that?"
Renny frowned, thinking. After a pause, he muttered, "I don't know… a Royal Demon?"
Tela nodded with sudden energy. "Oy. A Royal Demon, that sounds right. Which means ya have access to both the powers of a Royal and the powers of a Demon."
Renny blinked, skeptical. "Then why haven't I seen anything 'Royal' in the Mark Store… or even the Contract Store?"
Tela leaned back against the roots of the trunk. "Ya must first understand what royal abilities are. Start with the one already in ya, the eye. Ya not noticed it?"
Renny frowned. "My eye…" He hesitated, then nodded. "Yes. The day I ate the Ezra fruit. My left eye changed. I saw hell... like it was naked before me. Even my right eye… it was not painful, but it showed me things too, though nowhere near as clear as the left."
"That," Tela said firmly, "is ya Royal and Demon eye. The right one you carry now is ya demon eye. But when the royal eye awakens, it burns through the left."
Renny froze, struggling to take it in. "Royal eye…?"
"Every demon has demon eyes," Tela continued. "But ya are no ordinary demon. Ya are a royal demon. That means ya carry not just the common eye of a demon, but a second eye only the royals possess."
Renny's pulse quickened, how had he become a royal all of a sudden. "So… is this because I ate the fruit?"
Tela shook his head slowly. "Na. The Ezra seed already made ya royal. Planting it and eating its fruit only revealed the power. It brought the garden to life… and it brought ya to life."
"Then how?" Renny asked quietly. "How am I even a royal demon? And are there more like me?"
"There are none," Tela said flatly. "Hell has never seen a royal demon. Because na royal ever died to return as a human. None…" He paused, his voice tightening, as though the next word was bitter on his tongue. "…Until Ezraphor."