Contract; Complete

I woke up to the sound of birds chirping on my window.

The sun shined through my window and got into my eyes, causing me to reflexively close them.

"What time is it...?"

I let out a sigh as I pushed myself off the bed, then stretching to relieve my muscles.

I opened the door to my room, then I walked down the stairs as the aroma of good food entered my nose.

"Oh? Did you wake up already? You usually sleep until noon, son."

A voice entered my ear and I turned around to see my father coming back from the farm.

"The birds were too loud."

"Ahahaha! Well, you woke up at the perfect time since your mom almost finished preparing breakfast! For once, you'll be able to eat hot food!"

"That's because mom refuses to warm it up with magic."

That's right, magic.

Magic has always existed in us humans ever since the beginning of time, but only a few are able to harness it; like my mother.

Currently, on the continent of Luxfellia, there are only 1, 788, 988 registered mages, and my mother is one of them.

"I refuse to warm it up because you need to learn how to wake up early!"

A feminine voice sounded out from the kitchen, my mother no doubt heard the conversation between me and father.

"I woke up early today, did I not?"

I responded to her as I continued walking towards the kitchen, and when I entered, I saw my mother in an apron finishing breakfast as I entered.

"You did, and that's good. Maybe I should put food for the birds every morning on your window?"

"Please don't do that."

"Oh well, you did well to wake up early today because it's a special day; you will be testing your aptitude for magic!"

I was surprised.

When I was younger, I envied the older kids for being able to test for magic; even if none of them awakened.

I dreamt of shooting fireballs, launching earth spikes, and creating giant waves to defeat the demons who oppose our God.

Now, I just want to live a normal life as my father did.

My father was also surprised as I was, "Our boy turned 15 already? Time flies by in a flash!"

"Don't lie, you don't remember my/his birthday.", My mother and I said at the same time.

My father's smile turned awkward and he chuckled, "Ahahahaha..."

"I made your favorite food because this is a special occasion, good luck!"

"Thank you, mother."

We sat down at our dining table and started eating steak.

As I bit into the steak, it fell apart, almost melting in my mouth.

The juices then violently exploded after a second's delay, and I must've had a delighted expression on my face because my mother saw and commented on it.

"Well? How was it?"

"Perfect. The texture of the meat is softer than anything I've ever touched, while the flavors are exploding in my mouth like the 'fireworks' that are used at festivals."

I continued describing the greatness of the steak, and my parents were surprised at how long my description of it was as I am generally a quiet child.

Well, I've always enjoyed eating food for as long as I can remember.

"Where did you get this meat, mother?"

"Hmph! I had to use my connections as a mage to get this from an auction. It's the meat of a high-ranked cow demon, and it has been purified by the greatest priests of the Church."

She continued bragging about how great she was for acquiring such exquisite meat, but my father and I weren't surprised, instead we had a smile on our faces because she simply enjoys bragging.

'Today is off to a great start, and it'll be perfect if I have the aptitudes of a mage.'

...

"I'm sorry, you have no aptitude to be a mage."

The examiner dismissed youths one by one with a bored look on their faces, ignorant of the hopes that they crushed.

Perhaps they weren't ignorant, as some of them had sympathetic faces.

They simply didn't care.

Eventually, the line shortened with many weeping on the side.

'Of course. If you aren't a mage and you are a commoner, there's almost no hope for you living a good life. At best, you'd be a farmer like father.'

I was sympathetic to them.

Eventually, I was the first in line.

"Put your hands on the orb and if it shines, you can be a mage."

That has always been the test.

The orb is attracted to mana, and if you can expel mana from your body, it will be absorbed and the orb will shine.

I put my hands on the orb, but nothing changed, even after 10 seconds.

"You have no aptitude to be a mage.", they said with a bored face.

My parents had bitter smiles on their faces, but they quickly recovered after seeing my bored expression.

'It's fine if I'm not a mage. It'll only make trouble for me because I'm in such an unknown village with no connections.'

Although a part of me was disappointed, I pushed it down and focused on the positive side of not being a mage.

'That sucks. My day will be ruined with this.'

Of course, I will recover like I always have, and I'll be fine the next day.

...

"AHHH!!!"

I woke up to people screaming on the streets.

'What the hell?'

I opened my window and my face was shocked; our village was on fire.

It was uncommon for fires to start in our village, but they happen sometimes.

'It'll be fine. It's just a fire.'

It wasn't.

There were hooded figures holding blades, slaughtering anyone they see on the street.

What little guards stationed at our village were quickly killed; they stood no chance against these hooded killers.

"Mama... where are you?"

A little girl cried out for her mother just before she was decapitated.

The doors to my room opened with a bang, and I prepared myself for the worst.

"Son, are you alright?!?!"

It was my father, who was holding a rake in his hands.

He had a relieved expression on his face as he saw that I was fine, but then his gaze sharpened.

"Duck."

I followed his words without hesitation as I was used to it, and as I ducked, the rake flew out of my father's hand and made contact with something.

*Squelch*

I felt a warm liquid (which was probably blood) land on my back, and I turned around to see the rake stuck in one of the hooded men.

My father walked around me and pulled it off, uncaring that I saw him murder someone right in front of him.

As my father approached the corpse, he pulled the hood off only to see a shining glyph.

"SHIT!"

My father kicked me away as hard as I can, and I must've crashed through several walls.

I had no time to recover as the corpse exploded, taking my father and I with it.

*BANG*

...

Every part of my body hurts.

It feels like my cells are screaming at me, telling me to relieve their pain.

I tried my best to ignore the throbbing pain in my head, and I attempted to get up, feeling blood trickling down my forehead.

My lower body was crippled, I couldn't move at all.

I tried to look past the debris to find my dad, but all I found was a patch of blood in the room.

"Father? FATHER!"

"Quiet. They'll hear you if you keep screaming."

A hoarse voice sounded out from my left, and I looked to see my father.

Or, what was left of him.

My father's face was severely disfigured, his arms and legs were nothing more than stump at this point, and I could see parts of his brain coming out of his skull.

I widened my eyes at his condition, "We must get you to mother!"

"Too late."

A voice whispered right next to me.

My blood went cold and I froze as I analyzed the situation before realizing that it was useless.

The voice certainly did not come from my father.

There was no way that it was mother's voice either. I know what she sounds like.

I turned around, but there was no one there either.

*Squelch*

The sound came from my father.

I looked at where he should be, but all I saw was a decapitated head and a torso, with a hooded man towering over it.

I saw his face.

Blond hair, green eyes, with a maddening smile on his face.

I wanted to rush at him, but I couldn't.

My body froze, my instinct and my cells were screaming at me to run away.

I couldn't.

I didn't move even as he walked slowly towards me with his blade glinting in the moonlight.

He raised his blade and stabbed me.

The pain was immense, and he purposely targeted non-lethal areas.

"I wouldn't have found you guys if your father didn't try to lift the idiot's hood off. Oh well, at least no one survives tonight."

No. Someone will survive, and that's my mother. She's a mage, there was no way they'd risk killing one.

"Hmm? You look like the son of the mage that we were ordered to kill..."

My blood went cold when I heard that sentence, and the words repeated in my head like a ripple.

'Ordered to kill... ordered to kill..... ordered to kill...'

I tried my best to squeeze out whatever I can with the pain in my chest, "Is she alive...?"

"Hm? Yeah. We didn't kill her yet because we didn't find her."

'Thank god..."

"KYAHHH!!!"

...

For one to experience despair, one must first have hope.

"Oh? Did she die already? Guess the mana disruptor actually works!"

The hope in my heart was crushed.

If it was a blazing flame before, now it has been snuffed out with no traces left.

"Gyahaahaha! I think we'll have some fun with her body... OH! How about we show you it?"

The hooded man picked me up by the collar, with the blade still in my chest, and dragged me down the stairs.

"Hey, look who I found!"

"Are you showing him the way we have our fun? With his mother? How cruel... but I like it"

One of them said with a grin as they all took their cloak off.

Underneath the cloak was the symbol of the church.

The Church of Light.

I couldn't think straight.

There was no way that the ones who were slaughtering innocents are priests.

"Well, we killed this bitch because of orders, but they never said that we couldn't have fun with her body..."

...

(3rd person POV)

As the cloaked men violated the body of a recently deceased mother, the son was on his knees, forced to watch it all.

"Now we can kill him."

One of the men unsheathed his sword and walked towards the boy kneeling on the ground.

The killer was about to swing his sword when another one stopped him.

"What's the fun in that? Let's do it slowly."

"Haha! Good idea! How about we chop off his limbs individually?"

The group of killers brandished their blades that were glinting in the moonlight, unaware of the consequences of their actions.

...

"Mother... father..."

The orphaned boy kept mumbling the same two words, even as he was being tortured.

He didn't feel any pain from it, only pain from his parents' deaths.

He was slowly overcame with anger.

'I'll f*cking kill them... I'll kill them all...'

A pentagram formed.

"I'll give you all the power you need."

A voice whispered into the boy's ear.

"Form a contract with me..."

The same voice kept on whispering into the boy's ear, and slowly, the boy was being tempted.

This was called the 'Devil's Temptation'.

If a person heard a voice whispering in their ears, offering to grant them their wishes, it was often a demon talking to them.

A contract was mutually beneficial for both parties.

The human would gain the powers of the contracted demon, while the demon would gain the human's body.

'The 'Devil's Temptation' huh....?'

The boy's eyes slowly regained their light at the chance of revenge.

'Will you grant me the power to kill them all?'

'Anything you need.'

'Anything?'

'Yes... anything.'

'Well... why not?'

'Wonderfull... my name is Axbarath, a low-ranking demon. I was the only one who heard your pleas. I offer XXXXXXX a contract. XXXXXXX will be able to use my powers, and I will reside in his body.'

'Now, say that you accept the contract, XXXXXXX'

'Alright... I,... Tarixth... accept the contract'

'THE PACT IS SEALED'

Hell was unleashed upon Tarixth's hometown, Laressa.