Chapter 12

"Deal, what do you mean by a deal?" Power suddenly became cautious.

"If you know where that devil's located, I can save your cat," Sam explained. "Since it's your cat, he must have asked something of you in exchange. I won't inform Makima, but I'll rescue your cat."

"Really?" Power's eyes widened.

"Yes," Sam confirmed.

"But what if you can't defeat him?" she asked.

"If things go south, you can take your cat and escape," Sam assured.

"I understand," she replied. "So, what's your condition?"

"Here's the deal. If I save your cat, you agree to be obedient and follow my orders. Got it?" Sam proposed.

If he succeeded, according to the universal contract between humans and devils, Power would be bound by her part of the agreement. She would have to be obedient to him and comply with whatever he asked.

Putting her finger beneath her chin, Power pondered for a moment. "Okay, deal."

Sam extended his hand. "You should shake on it."

"I'm familiar with basic human interaction," she replied, giving a small smile. "But you, human, you better stick to my side." She playfully pinched his cheek, and Sam gently removed her hand.

"Stop calling me 'human'," Sam grinned. "Use my first name."

"Alright, let's go," she said, taking his hand and leading him to the bus station. They boarded a bus heading out of the city, eventually reaching the countryside.

As they walked through nature, Sam marveled at the surroundings, all the while holding his sword. He had a hidden agenda, waiting for the right moment.

Power continued to lead the way until they arrived at a farm. Standing before a farmhouse, she spoke, "This is it. The devil is inside."

"Oh, really?" Sam stepped forward.

In an instant, her blood dripped, forming a small hammer. Reacting quickly, Sam raised his sword, deflecting the blood-formed hammer with the sheath. He shot a smile at Power.

"You never lower your guard, do you?" She challenged, pressing the attack.

Though Sam's strength was exceptional, he didn't match. Even though he was several times stronger than an average human, he still couldn't lift and throw a car like a demon such as Power or Denji could. But when it came to speed and fighting skills, he had the upper hand.

Sam deflected the hammer to the side by pushing the sheath away. Power caught the hammer with both hands, flipped it in the air, and brought it crashing down towards Sam.

Swiftly, Sam executed a sideway flip, unsheathed his sword, and lunged at Power. Her blood dripping from her wrist to create a new weapon, she blocked his attack with her new blood-formed spear.

"You're not as weak as I initially thought," Power grinned. "Time for me to get serious." Stepping back, she gripped her blood-formed spear, readying herself.

"Yeah," Sam sheathed his sword and squatted. The moment Power made her move, he activated his skill, creating a blinding light that darted past her legs, his sword back in its sheath instantly.

Power's legs were severed.

Her upper half slide on her lower half.. Sam seized the opportunity, took the spear from her hand, and squatted next to her.

"Got any thing to say to me?" Sam asked.

Seemingly ashamed, Power turned her head away, her face hidden. Unbeknownst to her, Sam could sense that her apology wasn't genuine. She felt sorry, not for her own sake, but because she couldn't fulfill her part of the deal with the bat devil to save her cat.

"Nothing," she mumbled.

Extending his hand, Sam gently patted her dirty blond hair. "Be a good girl. Stay put. I'll retrieve your cat."

"I don't care what happens to me. Just save Meowy," Power said in a subdued tone.

"Yeah, yeah." Sam walked to the farmhouse door and knocked.

[A quest triggered:

Save Meowy.

Rewards: Blood Devil demon as a loyal subject.

+20,000 XP

+A Mystery Box.]

An unexpected bonus, a mystery box.

Knock Knock

"Who's there?" a deep voice questioned.

"I have a delivery of 3 liters of fresh blood," Sam declared.

"What?" the voice responded, baffled.

"The secret blood delivery service sent me. They said I'm supposed to deliver it to the devil bat. We're offering a discount. Interested?" Sam improvised. He didn't know why he was saying this. But he liked to mess up some times with people.

"Has the world changed so much while I slept?" the voice sounded more confused. Sam almost laughed.

Steeling himself, Sam took a step back, kicked the door down, and confronted a massive bat-like humanoid sitting within. The creature stood at around 4 meters tall, its body bulging with muscles. One arm was missing, while the other shielded its face from the light.

"What a fortunate day," Sam exclaimed, gripping his sword with both hands and inhaling deeply. "A devil on the brink of death, and just one blow will send it to hell."

"Blood Devil, you have betrayed me..." the devil bat muttered, extending its hand in a certain direction and retrieving a cage containing a cat. It brought the cage closer to its mouth.

"Damn," Sam darted forward. If that cat got consumed, he'd have failed his contract with Power. You see, when a deal is made with a devil, the first party to break it would die.

This meant that Sam himself would perish if the cat was devoured.

He had no choice.

[-50 MP] [-10 MP]

Sam activated his Wind Footwork and Wind Cut skills, lunging as fast as possible. In an instant, he materialized beside the bat, his sword striking down and meeting the hand of the devil. Meowy slipped from the creature's grasp. The Bat-Devil looked taken aback. Capitalizing on the moment, Sam caught the falling cat, pressed a foot against the devil's chest, and employed it as a platform for a backflip.

Shit, he had already fought Power and used two skills back to back, leaving him with only 30 MP. This meant he could only use one skill. Feeling fatigued, he had no desire to take unnecessary risks.

He didn't know why, but his instincts advised caution—to play it safe.

With Meowy secure in his arms, he presented it to Power, who stared at her beloved cat in astonishment.

'Completing the task will level me up and restore my MP.'

"Are you satisfied now?" Sam inquired.

"Thank you, human. But don't think I'll forgive you for cutting off my legs," Power retorted with a scoff. She then shifted her attention to her cat, a warm smile spreading across her face.

[Ding, you've leveled up to level 10]

[+1 SP. +2 AP]

[+Mystery Box]

With these developments, he had a total of 3 Skill Points and 4 Affinity Points at his disposal.

"Yes!" Sam clenched his fist and raised his arm, his health and mana replenished.

He then retrieved Power's severed lower half, reattaching them to her body. Unsheathing his sword, he inflicted a slight cut on his hand.

[-10 HP]

Wincing, he squeezed some blood into Power's mouth.

Instantly, her body healed. Power stood up, holding her cat close.

"Remember our deal, okay?" Sam reminded.

"Yes. Tsk." Power warned. "I wasn't kidding. I'll do whatever it takes to save Meowy, even if it means selling my soul."

"I wasn't planning on restraining your freedom. Plus, your soul is of no use," Sam remarked. He then stretched his arms and yawned.

"Your soul isn't of much use either," Power retorted.

"Anyway, now that you're an official Devil Hunter, what's your plan?" Sam inquired.

Power placed her cat on the ground and turned her head to him with a smile. "Your question was asked in the right time. I'll have my first kill."

"Devil Hunter, I really dislike your kind," the devil bat commented, emerging from the doorway and walking towards Sam.

"Not so fast, Bat Devil! I'm going to give you a good beating!" Power grinned, forming a hammer from her blood.

Sam observed as Power advanced toward the bat devil.

'I'll let her have a go before delivering the final blow. Experience isn't easily obtained,' Sam thought, flipping his sword and circling around, his gaze fixed intently on the wounded bat devil.