Chapter 26

Slezzy walked towards an abandoned and very old building, still wearing the black tunic that the Sam Brothers gave him on the day of his visit to the Ruin of Maple. In the end, he really liked that costume.

It was another day, a sunny morning.

The young man was far away, not only from his home, but from the city center. They were in a place far from the Western Region, where there was no house or dweller nearby.

The site was a large abandoned five—story factory. Some of the bricks on the walls were on display, but most were still covered by old, faded concrete.

Much of the ground on the first floor was covered with grass and moss; there were puddles scattered there.

Slezzy walked to the center of the first floor and put his backpack next to a concrete wall.

— Are you sure no one will be able to hear anything from here?

— Relax. We know this "end to end" town. This is the best place where we could train you, according to the conditions you have imposed — replied Haram.

— Right. So... let's get started!?

— Of course, but before... I would like to reinforce once again, Slezzy... — Said the other creature. — When trying to control the Higher Atom only with the signing of the Preambular Contract... you may suffer great damage... not only physical... but even psychological.

— You want me to give more time of my life in exchange for your powers!?

— Sure! That's what we're here for, isn't it?

Slezzy laughed after that line and replied:

— Hiram... I know that I need to train these powers to be able to face all the criminals also mentoreded, but even so... I will not sacrifice so easily my precious years of life!

— Hmm! I bet that opinion won't be the same when the time comes for your first fight against any of them. Believe me! We've seen all that way — Hiram smiled.

— Are you talking about the other nine names that were written in my contract?

— Not all those names have ever been on the side of criminals...

Slezzy was thoughtful for a moment, before persisting in the matter:

— You said, still on the day you presented yourselves to me, that you are one of the newest demons among the others... and that you have not been with a single person for more than a year either. So... if nine people signed that contract, considering the transition interval between one signature and another, I would say... you have about ten years of existence!?

— Apparently, you don't lose your memories easily...

— No, it's just basic math. To tell you the truth, my memories aren't really my strong suit — Without delay, he completely deviated from the subject. — Hey! Yesterday... when the Lieutenant referred to the gray object... why did you...

— Did we ever tell you about mystical objects? — Haram replied.

— Han!? I don't think so! You don't tell me much, do you?

— They are the rarest things in our world. Not long ago they were given as a legend and, to this day, some still deny the possibility of such an existence. And... if what this lieutenant said is true... then I'm sure what Crow carried with him... was a Lunar Medallion.

Slezzy frowned at her.

— "A gray matter with a moon figure at its center," isn't it? It's a shame to know that Crow has one of the strongest mystical objects left. Lieutenant Jan was right, kid. The military is in grave danger now.

— Enough talk! The faster Slezzy dominates the Higher Atom, the more fun we will have! — proposed Haram.

Slezzy slowly came out of that state of shock, until he finally broke free, began to concentrate, putting his right hand in a certain position, so that he tried to "suck" the atmosphere, while listening to Hiram's words:

— The Arché is the origin of all things. He is present in all that exists. On the other hand, the Upper Arché, although originating from the same matter, is able to conjure anything in a magical way. With Gankkai activated, you can safely manipulate this power as long as you hone your skills.

Slezzy visualized the first traces in the air, which literally entered his fingers. It was something fascinating. Her arm shivered and her skin appeared to be darker, as if she was being dominated by a shadow.

— Since you only have possession of the Preambular Contract, the chances that you will dominate the Higher Atom in the first few attempts are extremely low.

Slezzy could not stand that force on his arm and suddenly fell back, over a puddle of water, leaning on the ground only with the other arm.

Haram laughed at this fall, while Hiram assumed his physical form, saying:

— It is a fact that Arché originated from air or gases that fill the atmosphere is the easiest to be controlled. However, you can also take advantage of our expertise.

— What do you mean by that? — asked Slezzy, rising from the concrete floor as he passed his hand over his wet tunic.

Hiram took a piece of land that was among some abandoned rubble in that vicinity.

— For example, demons that possess the specialty of the earth element will have more ease to manipulate the Arché originated from this same component than any other, such as water and fire. This principle does not differ for their mentoreds.

— So, are you saying that there are different types of Higher Atom?

— Not exactly that, kid — replied the demon, crushing the piece of land in his hand, causing a kind of energy to dissipate from there.

— Wow! — Slezzy was surprised. — Is that the Higher Atom?

— Almost that! — Hiram smiled. — Since I don't have such a specialty, I can't completely master that element. But watch...

Hiram placed his hand on a sunbeam. Soon, he conjured a bright orange energy, as if he were literally sucking that matter. She then hurled it into a concrete column nearby, shattering it and causing almost the entire factory to shake for a few seconds.

— What the fuck... was that? — said Slezzy, extremely excited.

— This... IS OUR POWER! Slezzy Kaliman! — cried Hiram, excited.

From that moment on, Slezzy began to try to cast that same power, in the same way as his demon, without stopping even once.

Orange energies surrounded his arm with each attempt.

— Once again! — Hiram shouted at every failure of Slezzy.

At one point, Slezzy removed his tunic to facilitate his movement. His body was injured with each fall, but he simply ignored it.

*

After long hours, that cast gained pigmentation on Slezzy's hands. The noise of this was already significant, yet he failed miserably in all the finishes of the same power.

As long as the boy did not give up casting the Higher Atom, the demons filled him with provocations:

— So... this is how you want to fight all those criminals?

— I'm sure you wouldn't last a minute in a real fight!

— I feel sorry for you! At this level, even a child could defeat you!

At one point, Slezzy couldn't take all the fatigue anymore. He flipped on his own leg, falling forward, slamming his face into a puddle of water.

The demons approached, worried.

— He is well... — Said Hiram, while checking the veins of the boy's neck, assuming his physical form and touching him with his fingers.

Slezzy woke up slowly, putting his hand on his head.

— What happened? — he asked, mumbling because of his pains.

— Apparently, you have exceeded the limits of your body — commented Haram.

— You can still choose the fastest way and with the lowest possible pain rate! — spoke Hiram with a gentle and convincing tone, passing his hand on the ground, presenting him five contracts.

Slezzy stood up, standing firmly.

He unbuttoned his social shirt and shook his head, causing a large part of those drops of water to come out of the strands of his hair.

The wounds throughout his body were easily noticeable.

He ignored Hiram's proposal, took long steps to distance himself from those creatures, and then made one more attempt to cast the Higher Atom.

That time, the rays of orange light appeared with solidity around his arm. He finally manipulated that power for considerable seconds.

The young man laughed as he dominated those rays in his hand.

The Sam Brothers watched him with a big smile, impressed.

Finally, before he could lose control, Slezzy conjured the power toward a nearby concrete wall, wreaking havoc, opening a medium hole in its surface.

The young man looked at his extremely injured hands and soon closed them, laughing, very excited about such an achievement.

Hiram approached, touching him:

— ONE MORE TIME, KID!