The Benefits of a Familiar - Witch Oath - II

Flames burned the forest with the smell of burnt trees and cooked flesh. People screamed for help until their voices vanished as the witches fought desperately against the church paladins whose magic tore through their defences with brilliant divine lights flooding the village.

Sigurd was hopeless...

He didn't understand why his body refused to move. Standing in a safe rune hidden from sight, he watched as the beautiful Rosa and his dear familiar Eva fought until a group of knights tore them apart with the holy swords of the paladins, which destroyed Luxe Village without difficulty.

They cut down those powerful elders he thought were amazing, like nothing. He watched them burn and beheaded like powerless children once the divine magic crushed their magic.

'Why?' Tears fell as his eyes scanned the village's destruction.

He felt despair that the new solace and place of rest he found after being abandoned burned at the hands of those who cast him away, and he lacked any power to stop anything or save those who guided him this far.

In the dream, Sigurd wore the robes of an Acolyte... one step above the Apprentice rank.

Luxe village was gone, the innocent villagers were dead, and the once beautiful forest was scorched earth.

"For good!"

'For God?'

"The will of our great god," the crusader grinned, and his axe bore down on Medea, her body wounded, missing an arm and a huge wound from the archbishop's divine lance that penetrated her as she protected the village.

It wasn't her fault; it wasn't the witches' fault that this happened.

"You are full of sin! I will save your soul!" The crusader's axe burned with righteous fury and flames, destroying her face.

Then the world stopped, and a voice... marred in the darkness, sounded; it sounded female, yet Sigurd couldn't focus on the voice. The words would fade from his mind moments after speaking.

—Do you resent your weak self? Do you not wish for power? Power to protect what is yours, Power to defy those that bring harm to your belongings? Power to take what is rightfully yours?

He would just nod numbly before being crushed by a powerful force.

—A world of nothing but power! In a world like that, you will have nothing to fear, no one to protect. Everything will bend to your will. All will kneel before you. Would you like that?

'It's not something I can just have...'

—Yes, that's right! It isn't easy, but you... you are special and have that right!

Oh, heir of greed and spawn of the devil! I, your glorious guide, offer you the world you desire in return for accepting my power. I will give you strength beyond that of kings and a soul devoid of sins.

Sigurd saw the devil in the darkness. It was a woman—no, it wasn't human at all. It had pale blue skin and blood-red eyes that watched him as it spoke.

'If I accept this deal, won't sin will eternally taint my soul?'

The devilish woman grinned as her wicked nails ran through his soft hair.

—Do not fear the consequences, for in this world, where you will have everything, you will be the sole judge, and you were born a half devil.

Do you think they would accept you aren't tainting the world? They would shun you and call you evil; such a sin will not be enough to sully your soul.

Her hand moved away, and Sigurd felt warmth and comfort from the female devil and no longer struggled. His eyes watched the scene.

'I accept your power, Devil!'

—Do not forget this scene, for it is the future to come if you don't gain the power to defend that which is yours. The soul-debt, for your greed, shall bind you to me. I, Lilith, will watch over you until you become the strongest devil.

And then... I will make only one request.

'Understood!' Sigurd spoke before a blazing light burnt him, and the world faded to darkness.

The dreams Sigurd had in the dark abyss were violent, terrifying, and full of rage as he imagined a world where he watched his family, Eva and his mysterious master dying over and over until the scent of cooked bacon filled his nose...

*****

"The scent of bacon..." Sigurd muttered before climbing out of his tent. His arms and legs were stiff, almost falling from his body's lack of blood flow. 

His mind became so baffled by the dreams that he forgot he was naked. Then he stepped out of the tent to find Eva sitting quietly, managing the flames to avoid burning the egg or bacon with a focus he had never seen before.

"Oh, are you finally up?" Eva's eyes left the fire and glanced at Sigurd, his body exposed in full, as a warm smile appeared on his face.

"Ah, do you like what you see?" Sigurd grinned as he stood proudly in the morning light.

"You've grown well, that's for sure. " Eva narrowed her eyes, licking her lips, before sighing, "Breakfast is ready."

"Breakfast..." Sigurd's eyes grew distant as he thought about the dream, and a growl came from his stomach, making him pout.

"Yes, breakfast. Sorry, I was just so happy to see you were alright..." Sigurd said before wearing his padded pants and underwear. He then sat down, and Eva placed some freshly made bacon on a large leaf with a friend. Here, eat up. You are still growing and need some meat on your bones."

The meal was tasty, and Sigurd found that who made the meals made a difference. Suddenly, he felt a strange tingling on his left side, towards the hilltop about fifty metres away. This sensation felt foreign to him for several minutes until he began to realise and understand the spell and its workings.

"Eva?"

"Hmm?"

"There are seven wolves to our northwest, atop the small hill fifty metres away... They are stronger than the wolves last night." Sigurd spoke about his discovery with some shock, yet Eva just nodded as she listened.

'The intensity of pain shows me their power and danger. The tingling is a low-middle threat, and there were seven pangs of pain... that's the number of enemies. How I know the distance that's still a mystery...'

"You can tell without casting, Sonar? I didn't even feel the movement of your magic!?"

"Sorry, I didn't use sonar, but let's prepare for combat first. They are coming for us after seeing only the two of us."

"Wait, touch the monolith! Tell me your number! I increased to 30 somehow overnight!"

Sigurd didn't mind touching it and also desired to know himself; knowing she increased by four points to thirty made him curious if he might have dropped...

While focused on the wolves and their movements, his right hand touched the black monolith, and the black and green flame devoured the tower, forming rings.

One ring

Two Rings

Three Rings

Four rings...

With a final number of 42, it seemed he gained an entire 10 mana from making her his familiar, but to understand how and why, he would need to find Medea after the mission ended.

'I am an amateur; these lucky mistakes cannot continue forever. Let's mix my supposed genius with hard work and effort... Or is it that devil's doing? Lilith.'

He grasped Mammon.

The blade seemed even lighter than before as his magical flames naturally flowed into the sword without chanting or thoughts.

As if it was natural for his flames to dominate the blade.