"Let's… be friends."
An awkward silence filled the room. Calcifer, with an unreadable expression, stared at Ashley, not responding.
Ashley's eyes twitched. 'Why does this feel like the scene from that anime where the white-haired kid wanted to befriend his devil?' he thought, frowning internally.
"So… Can we?" Ashley asked again.
"No," Calcifer said bluntly.
Ashley's eyes slightly widened. "The hell do you mean no?" he shouted, annoyed at Calcifer's response.
The Nether Beast, though, didn't reply, saying something under his breath like "he really is stupid", making Ashley even more annoyed.
He had just taken the courage from nowhere to say those words, only for his supposed-to-be contract to reject him.
Unacceptable.
"I should have just signed the damn contract the first time…" Ashley muttered, almost impossible to hear.
"Then go ahead," Calcifer grinned, mockingly amused. "You'll probably not be able to use my powers at all."
"Enough of this!" Ashley said hysterically. "All I wanted was for us to work together because I can clearly tell… that you want revenge."
Calcifer's eyes wavered for a second before his gaze turned malevolent. "What do you know about revenge?"
Ashley hesitated for a moment, contemplating his words, then spoke, "I… look, I don't know about your story," he paused. "But what I know… or rather feel, is that there's someone you want dead…"
His gaze lowered towards his chest, his hand gently clutching his purple pendant in his palm.
"…someone you want erased from existence…" he gritted his teeth. "…and you can't do that without me being your vessel."
Ashley's head shot towards Calcifer, his eyes blazing with rage and determination.
"So why don't we use each other to get rid of the ones we hate the most?"
Some moments passed in silence. Then, for the first time since the Nether Beast appeared in the human realm, Calcifer smiled — genuinely.
"Kekeke… as much as I don't like you runt…" his eyes narrowed into slits. "You do make a good point. Hmm… I might just agree with you there…"
Then his smile turned malevolent, revealing rows of sharp jagged teeth.
"Willing to take the risks of dying to a power stronger than you, all for the sake of revenge… You truly are the most twisted human of all." He let out a screeching giggle. "But don't think I'm a being that could easily be swayed. You will have to prove your worth."
'Thank the dead gods that that went well,' he inwardly sighed. 'I was already planning to do the other thing.'
Ashley nodded. "Now that we are on the same page… shall we get back to the main topic?" Ashley, having achieved his primary goal, said.
***
"Firstly, let me pretend that you weren't trying to take advantage of me earlier…" Ashley glanced between Calcifer and the scroll. "…So, I'll be changing the terms to my satisfaction."
Calcifer frowned, misunderstanding what Ashley meant.
"What I mean is I'll rewrite the contract to benefit us both, but I'll still be the main benefactor." He clarified.
Calcifer didn't reply.
Ashley stared at the contract, his expression puzzled. Some moments passed before he turned to Calcifer. "Uhm… how do I write on this thing?" He questioned.
"With your blood." Calcifer shrugged.
"My what now?" Ashley's eyes widened in disbelief.
The Nether Beast sighed. "It's a contract written in blood, so the ink is obviously your blood." He stated as a matter of fact.
Ashley stared at him, then the scroll. 'Why do I have a feeling that he isn't lying?'
"Then that means…" Ashley's eyes slowly met his index finger, his face scrunching at the thought of what he was about to do.
'It's just like performing a summoning…'
With this thought, Ashley bit his finger, tearing into its soft pinkish flesh. He winced as blood trickled down.
***
After several minutes of muttering, crossing out, and alterations, Ashley was through changing the contract.
[Nether Contract Scroll]
[As per failed contract implementation, the subject may enact the contract on the invoker, or cancel it and achieve a Mark of Passing that would prevent any other NetherBeast from contracting them.]
[Contract Terms:]
•Sharing of the subject's soul, but the subject will still be the main holder.
•Sharing of the subject's body, but the subject will still be the main holder.
•Subject is entitled to the usage of the Invoker's powers without resistance.
•Invoker is obligated to do the request of the Subject.
[Duration: Till demise of host ]
[Type: Mutual]
Calcifer, whose eyes had been dimmed the whole time watching Ashley happily change the contract in horror, brightened up at the sight of the new terms - though frowned at the last line.
"You're still going for… a mutual contract?" Calcifer asked, more confused than shocked.
Ashley might have done all that big talk earlier, but for him to actually make it mutual…
"I don't know if you're stupid or what, maybe worse," he said after some moments. "But you might not be so bad after all."
Ashley smiled at the comment before Calcifer realized what he had just said. "You… you're still a weak runt." He quickly added.
"Sometimes, from the way you behave, I wonder if you are a child." Ashley blurted.
Instantly, a thick vein bulged on Calcifer's forehead. The air grew cold, even more than the Beast's first appearance in the human realm, and Ashley thought that he might really freeze to death this time.
Ashley, realizing his mistake, was about to apologise before Calcifer cut in.
"What the hell did you say?" Clacifer seethed, his happy expression nowhere to be seen on his perfectly sculptured face.
He slowly got up from the floor, flexing his arm, black, sharp nails glinting in the dimly lit space.
"I'll show you who's a child, you pathetic runt!" He screamed as he dashed towards Ashley, his arms pulled back, ready to stab the soul out of him.
Ashley, with a horror-stricken face, quickly stamped the section of the scroll that indicated "bind".
There was a blinding flash of light from the scroll, temporarily stunning Ashley, before he could raise his hands to shield his eyes.
A moment later, he slowly blinked away the world of blur before his vision gradually cleared. He looked around, noticing Calcifer wasn't there.
"Did he die?" Ashley asked himself hysterically.
[You bastard runt!] A screeching scream resonated in his mind, causing him to drop to one knee.
"He's… inside my head?" Ashley blurted, despair on his face.
[Show yourself, pathetic runt!] Calcifer kept shouting from within.
Ashley, puzzled by the screams, shut his eyes tight and struggled to concentrate on the source of the sound.
A black space materialized in his vision, and in the middle of that space was his Nether Beast contract, shouting and waving his hands in a childlike manner.
"Would you just shut the hell up!" Ashley retorted, having been fed up by the constant pain in his ear.
Calcifer turned and twisted but couldn't see him.
[Show yourself and say that to my face, you wimp.] He roared, trying to find the source of his voice.
"So you could finish me off, er, no, thank you."
Calcifer gritted his teeth. [Why you…]
"Look, if we are going to work together, then I suppose you learn to be quiet." Ashley reputed.
[Oh, look who's acting the brave and bold.] Calcifer laughed.
"Do you want your revenge or not?"
[Tsk…how am I going to get that with such a weak, puny body as yours?]
Ashley outwardly frowned. "I don't have a puny body… I just… haven't eaten well for the past few days," he sighed in resignation, his stomach rumbling in resonance with his words.
[Then eat something…] Calcifer suggested, more annoyed than caring.
"Like what? I don't even have the money to eat anything if I wanted to," he muttered. "I already spent all I had just to enjoy a last meal before you showed up."
Then his expression darkened. "If I had known I was going to survive this, I wouldn't have wasted all that hard-earned money."
[Look, runt,] Calcifer said after some moments. [Do you really need to "buy" your food?]
"What are you implying?" Ashley asked, already having a subtle feeling of where this was going.
[You may not be able to access my powers or activate my Mana since… well, you're weak…] Ashley was about to retort when Calcifer added, […but you should be feeling some changes in your body right now.]
"Yeah, changes like a powerful NetherBeast gawking in my mind," Ashley replied sarcastically.
[No, you stupid runt… You should have felt a change in your physique.] Calcifer shot back. [Though minimal and almost insignificant, you should have a boost in your stats.]
"Actually… I do feel a bit stronger, and lighter too…" Ashley opened his eyes and looked down, clenching his fist. "…and I can… see in the dark!" He shouted, only realising now that his vision was clear as day.
[You really are dumb… just why did I have to get stuck with you?] Calcifer murmured.
"Oi, that was your fault, but what were you actually trying to tell me?"
Calcifer, having regained his composure, answered, [Everybody knows about the strong taking whatever they want from the weak…]
"Yes?"
[…and you're stronger than an average human…] He paused, then added, […well, an average weak human.]
"Just get to it…" Ashley seethed.
[It should've been as clear as day by now.] Calcifer grinned.
Ashley's expression turned grim.
"You want me to steal."