Ch 9: The battle of two [pt1]

‘Did I make the right decision bringing this man back with me?'

The guard doubted his mind as he traveled longer with Alex. At first, Alex had felt like a breath of fresh air to him since he could fight off all these monsters.

But it did not take long for the guard to change his mind about Alex. And it was mainly because of Alex’s attitude when he was fighting.

There was a maniac grin on Alex’s face as he flashed fists with more and more monsters. Sometimes, this guy even went out of his way to pick up fights with the other monsters when it was not needed.

It was reassuring to have someone strong like this with them. But that also made the guard a little worried about what would happen once they reached the city.

Everyone looked afraid of Alex and it was a given. Currently, Alex was covered in monster blood and smiling his maniac smile back toward the people. It was terrifying enough to make even the guard break out into cold sweat.

There was only one person who was not afraid of Alex and that was the priest.

“Young man, I told you to be careful. You are too prone to getting hurt, so you need to be careful. Come here so I can treat your wounds.”

The priest patted his side to make Alex sit down. He quickly checked Alex up and down before letting him stand up once more.

That was how the journey to the capital went. Only one person approached Alex and he also talked to only one person.

The front-door guard looked suspicious of these people and he especially have Alex a hard look before opening the door for their group. And finally, they entered the city and dispersed as a group.

“Young man, you stay right here. I will go and call for the head priest to come here. He will decide what to do with you.”

With those words said, the guard quickly disappeared into the city. The barrier was powerful but the demoness flying above the city did not look worried. Alex could tell that she was confident in her powers.

“Hey priest, why were you not afraid of me? I could tell that everyone else felt uncomfortable while being near me. So, what about you?”

Alex was curious about the reason this priest had treated him this well and not backed down in fear. But the priest only smiled and gave Alex a reassuring grin.

“Young man, how could I turn away from someone who has the blessing of our goddess? You are someone special and I wanted to help you out.”

‘He’s a devotee of mine so I decided to have him help you. You are still greed behind your ears so you need all the help you can get.’

It was frustrating to be told this, but Alex knew that the goddess was right. This assistance from the priest had helped him out too much.

Alex nodded back at the priest in a thankful manner before he decided to sit around and wait for the head priest to come back. And it did not take long for the head priest to come back.

The first thought Alex had when he saw the head priest was that he was a young man. And then it was followed by suspicion and even distance.

Alex had not lied when he said that the head priest was a young man. He looked to be in his 20s at the most and he also had a youthful glow on his face. But everyone seemed to respect the head priest and even bowed to him.

As soon as the head priest locked eyes with Alex, static energy passed between them. It made the head priest flinch and even Alex felt a little odd.

The similarity between his power and this high priest was too much. It was confusion Alex’s senses and he almost attacked the head priest before realizing where he was.

“Head priest, are you alright? What is going on? How can we help you out? Is this person hurting you?”

The guards surrounding the two people asked as they looked at Alex with an unspoken expression. They looked ready to attack him if Alex so much as breathed wrong in the high priest’s presence.

But the high priest only raised his hand to make everyone quieten down. He looked at Alex and his gaze seemed to be searching for something.

‘The high priest is one of my people. Don’t worry, he will help you out.’

The goddess spoke inside Alex’s mind as she gestured for him to stake a step forward. Alex did as he was instructed and he watched as everyone got reach to attack him.

“Welcome, my dear friend. The goddess foretold your coming a long time ago. And now, you are finally to help us in our times of need.”

The high priest’s words were spoken softly but they carried an air of calmness and serenity. Anyone who heard his words would be forced to believe him.

“Everyone, calm down. This is a messenger of our goddess sent down here to help us out. We shall welcome him with vigor and let him inside to rest for now.”

The high priest had spoken and everyone's calendar was down. The guard who brought Alex back to the city looked smug and he had the biggest grin on his face.

Above them, the demoness decided that she was done playing around. Her magic collided with the barrier and it shook. It was clear to see that the barrier would not last long in this state.

“Young child of the goddess, come with me. I should tell you a few things and make you eat something before you go on and complete your heavy task.”

Alex got a weird feeling from the man in front of him.

Unlike the clean energy of the priest before, the high priest’s power felt darker and closer to the goddess Alex had met. He could also tell that the high priest was not what he said he was.

As soon as Alex was alone with the high priest, he dropped his gentle facade and his face broke out into a frown.

“A kid? My queen chose a kid over me this time? You! What did you do to my queen to make her choose you as her representative?”

The high priest asked with an angry expression on his face but his energy was still calm. It was a little overwhelming to take everything at once, but Alex was used to dealing with people who had constant mood swings.

The best way to survive such an ordeal was to keep quiet.

“Not going to talk about it, young man? Well, that’s quite alright with me. After all, your only job here is to spread the will of the goddess. The weak spot of the succubus is her neck. Cleave it and she will not survive.”

The high priest’s information was important but it felt incomplete. They both looked at each other awkwardly after that and the air turned tense.

“Is that all you called me here to tell?”

“Of course. Is there something else I need to tell you about? I think you can just figure out everything on your own from here on. Also, good luck. My barrier will only last for about 15 more minutes. After that, you are on your own.”

“I know you have questions for me, but I cannot answer them now. If you come here another day, then I will answer what you want me to.”

The high priest assured Alex before he took a random turn. By the time Alex turned there as well, the high priest had disappeared. That turn the high priest took was a dead end and there was no way to go anywhere else.

“Huh! Where did that head priest go-?”

Alex questioned but there was no time for him to lose. He felt something shake the city and then the power of the succubus spread all over the city.

‘Now go and bring me that sacrifice. It’s time for you to show me that you can use your powers and complete your trial.’

The goddess was insistent inside Alex’s mind. She seemed to be pushing him forward and her power flowed into Alex’s body.

Alex hurriedly ran outside to see the demoness. Christy had finally broken through the roof and her eyes zoned in around Alex’s general location. And then she dashed down toward Alex’s general location.

‘I made you both each other’s targets. Only one of you will be able to survive this situation and avoid being a sacrifice for me.’

“What the-? And you are only telling me about this now? You said that you would help me live. What happened to that promise?”

Alex asked as he ran away from the demoness. He needed some time and ground to prepare his counterattack.

But that wicked goddess only laughed inside his mind.

‘Oh, my dear contractor. I said that I will lean you my power once you show me your desire to live. You still need to prove yourself to me. Now go and fight. Fight to survive and show me your worth. Show me your life is worth living.’

One day, Alex was going to kill this goddess. But until then, he needed to keep on living. That desire was taking shape slowly inside Alex.