Chapter 3- Demon Of Hope
"AAAAAAGH!!! What the hell is going on?!" Jack screamed as he started falling from the sky. The strong wind slammed into his body violently. He didn't know what had happened. He simply touched Evelyn's hand, and when she snapped her fingers, everything around him shifted faster than he could even blink.
From his small apartment to thousands of meters in altitude, Jack's mind went in swirls just like his body. Struggling to balance himself as he fell through the clouds, he looked down and finally saw the vast lands before him, stretching as far as the eye could see.
"I'm going to die!" He clenched his teeth. "Goddammit!! I didn't think I would be sent flying like this!"
Seconds passed as Jack's speed reached terminal velocity, cutting through the air like a bullet. He expected his body to get crushed by the sheer speed he was falling at. Yet, by some miracle, he wasn't feeling anything at all. Even the air slapping into him didn't feel overwhelming.
"..."
Eventually, Jack's screams died down as he started realizing the weird situation he was in. He looked down at his hand and then at the rest of his body.
"I'm not feeling any pain…" He muttered. "Hm. Did she…"
"Are you enjoying your ride, Jack~?"
At that moment, he heard a whisper in his ear that made him flinch as he looked to the side. There, floating next to him, was Evelyn with her familiar smile.
"You!! What the hell is this?! Why am I falling through the atmosphere!" He yelled.
"Oh, it's just to show you a view of the world. Look down."
"I can't look down when I'm falling to my death!!"
"Don't worry, you won't die. Here, let me hold your hand." Saying that, Evelyn grabbed his hand and stopped his fall.
"..."
'Did she just absorb all my momentum? How…?' He frowned. At that kind of speed, his arm would've been torn off if he came to a sudden stop like that. Yet, by some kind of miracle, or a fit of magic, that didn't happen.
"Open your eyes, Jack. You're going to like what you will see." She said.
The boy hesitated for a second before he slowly parted his eyelids. What he saw at that moment took his breath away.
"... Beautiful…" He muttered under his breath.
What lay before him was a scenery straight out of a dream. A vast, green world filled with enough details to break his mind.
Endless plains, colossal mountains in the far distance, rivers cutting through the world carrying crystal-clear water. A scene he only saw in games and fictional worlds as it didn't exist in the real world. The air was fresh and crisp, way crisper than anything Jack had ever inhaled before.
Animals of all kinds, things he had never seen before, moved about. Large flocks of gigantic birds passed by beneath them. It was mesmerizing, to say the least.
"Do you like what you're seeing?"
"... Yeah…"
"Well, welcome to the Demon Realm." She said. "The world where all Demons, or at least most of them, reside. We're currently in the Northern Plateau, near the Vilovia mountain range — the one you're seeing over there." Pointing at the colossal peaks, she spoke calmly.
"This is… the Demon Realm?" He asked. "It's not… what I expected."
"Did you think it would be flames and ashes? Well, we do have those. They're down south. The closer you get to the Mother Flame, the more scorching hot the world becomes."
"Hah…"
"Anyway, let me get you down to the ground so we can talk."
As she said that, Evelyn snapped her fingers, and before Jack could even blink, he found himself standing on the green grass. It didn't even feel like he teleported but rather as if time skipped. That was how fast it was.
His bare feet touched the soft grass. It felt fluffy, as if he were standing on an expensive carpet. Dazedly, he stared around. Everything had just occurred so quickly that he didn't even have time to take it all in.
It truly felt like he was dreaming.
"Why?" He muttered.
"Hm?"
"Why did you bring me here?" He asked. "Why me?"
Even though there were far more important questions to ask at that moment, Jack felt a strong urge to know why this beautiful demon came to a pathetic loser like him. He was merely a failure in a world filled with far more capable people. He didn't know why he was given such a privilege.
"Why, you ask?" Evelyn tapped her chin. "Well, you could say you're far more unique than you give yourself credit, Jack."
"..."
"I didn't choose you by coincidence. I had my eyes on you before you were even born." She said.
"H-Huh? Before I was born?"
"Yeah. I have a very keen eye for talented individuals, people who are destined for power. I have been looking for people worth recruiting into our guild, and you're by far the most unique human I have come across. The sheer talent you have…" Evelyn's eyes flashed with a weird glint. "It is immense."
"... Me? I have talent?" Jack frowned. 'What kind of nonsense is this? There is no way I have talent. I'm useless.'
He was a limping, fat boy with no future and all the past to reminisce about. How could he have any real potential?
"I told you, you have way more talent than you think. You can't see it now, but I can see it, and it is only more and more fascinating."
"..." Jack blinked. "So, I'm… special?"
"Mhm, very special!"
"And you brought me here because I'm special?"
"Yes."
"To join your guild or whatever?"
"Indeed."
"... And what kind of talent is this that you're talking about? You said power."
"Fufu, I'm talking about this." Evelyn said as she pointed at her horns. "When I'm talking about power, I'm talking about demonic powers. You will become a demon, Jack."
"A demon?! Isn't that bad??"
"Bad? Oh, no no. It is quite the opposite. Becoming a demon will grant you supernatural abilities that you couldn't even imagine. You will become stronger, faster, smarter. You will be able to manipulate the mana in the air to use all kinds of abilities and, more importantly… becoming a demon makes you immortal."
"..."
"You will heal from all ailments and injuries. Including your poor left leg that you have been limping with."
"It will heal my left leg? How…?"
"We demons have immensely fast regeneration speed. It helps us survive many dangerous injuries and heal from old ones. Recovering a paralyzed leg is no big deal." She said. "Many people of all kinds of races wish to be demons to gain these exact abilities. However, not everyone has the talent or ability to handle that. Those who don't heed the warning end up regretting it greatly."
Everything Evelyn said sounded so good that Jack found himself struggling to believe all this didn't come with some sort of price. That was what life taught him. Good things always come with a price. It didn't matter how much you tried, bad things always follow good things, and that cycle is eternal.
"Jack?" Evelyn noticed the look on the boy's face.
"What price must I pay? What am I supposed to do?"
His question made Evelyn's smile vanish slowly as it was replaced with a complicated one. "I told you… There is nothing to pay. I'm giving you the tool to change your own fate, Jack. I can tell that you wish your life were better. That you want to be better, and you could be. If you become a demon, not only will you gain so many opportunities, but you will also have all your fate in the palm of your hand."
"I see…"
"Our guild, Blood Moon, needs you. Seeing your potential, we all wish to have you with us and watch you grow. We want to welcome you as one of us. As one of our companions." She said. "You won't feel alone again."
The wind swept through the vast plains, rustling Jack's hair as he contemplated her words. He would be lying if he said he wasn't enticed. She promised him power and a different fate. Wasn't that what he was yearning for precisely?
No, it was even more than what he wished for. He could move his leg again, for heaven's sake!
'I don't know her, and she could clearly be lying. But…' Jack pursed his lips. 'What other options do I have? If I get sent back to where I came from, I will continue my miserable life and perhaps end up really doing it… once and for all.'
So, it was either death or becoming a demon. The choice wasn't really that hard to make when he looked at it that way. Jack truly had nothing to lose and everything to win. If it didn't work out, then he would get the second option, which was something he already intended to do.
"Ok…" He shook his head. "I get it, and I want that. I want to change my fate."
His voice was calm and precise.
"I want to become a demon."
***
A//N: Add book to your library and donate some PS for a cookie :]