Demons Beside You

“You mean that yellow… that Chen healed little John?”

“Not completely, but his brain tumor halved in size.”

“Is this even possible?”

“I don’t know, but I do know that he pulled you back from the brink of death.”

Rasfa was deep in thought. “From your conversation, he promised you that he will give me six treatment sessions. Is that right?”

“Yes.”

“I feel quite energetic.”

“But according to the examination report from the hospital, your condition is very unstable. In three to seven days, you might…”

“What did he say?”

“He said that he will extend your life by three days.”

Rasfa could feel his heart tighten. This time, he did not dare to dismiss Chen Zhao’s warning as a joke.

At the very least, those who would joke with him did not have the ability to save him.

However, the person whom Rasfa totally offended in their first encounter could control his condition, or even his death.

“Father, I think you should call him yourself.”

“Don’t I have two more days? I’ll see. I feel I am recovering well.”

“Fine. If you want to decide this just before dying, I don’t object.”

“I’m not dead yet,” Rasfa emphasized.

“Yes, but you will soon, if you continue hesitating.”

“Alright. I’ll call him.”

Rasfa was slightly annoyed. He was not used to bowing down to others.

However, he also knew that he had no other choice.

Rasfa was like a drowning traveller at the moment. He must grip onto whatever he could.

“Hello, is it Chen? This is Rasfa.”

“Yes? I’m about to sleep.”

“I’m sorry for disturbing you.” Rasfa swallowed his pride.

“I’m planning to organize a party. Are you able to attend? It’ll be in my manor.”

“Err… I’m scared that I’ll breathe the air in your manor and then you’ll call the police.”

“Listen, Chen, I feel really, really sorry for my attitude and words yesterday. I know I’m wrong. I know that my previous believes are very inappropriate. I hope that you can forgive me. I sincerely wish that you can attend my party and I want to resolve the misunderstanding between us.”

“Right, I’ll think about it.”

“And… You said that… I can get hard again? Is that real?”

“Yes, but I hope that it’ll be after the first session.”

“Then can I postpone the party to after the first treatment? I want a perfect party for both you and me. You can stay at my place after the session. I’ll invite many people, many beauties.”

Although this old man was already dying, he was still a hedonist.

“It’s your party. Of course you can decide when you want to hold it.”

“So when will our first session start?”

“The day after tomorrow. I’m moving to another place these next few days, so I’m quite busy.”

“Okay. I’ll stop disturbing you then. See you.”

…

Chen Zhao hang up and clenched his fist.

“Aren’t you arrogant? Now you’re as scared as a mouse.”

Chen Zhao was not really being narrow-minded. Anyone else would have more or less the same reaction.

Chen Zhao would not have cared less about Rasfa’s life or death had Rasfa not offered him such a high pay.

Therefore, money is really extremely useful sometimes.

After taking a shower, Chen Zhao lay down on his bed. Suddenly, half a body emerged from the wall.

Ah!

Chen Zhao was shocked out of his wits before he took a closer look.

“Blackie, what the hell was that? Do you really want to frighten me like this?”

“I recently watched a horror film. The evil spirit in the film scares people like this, so I want to try it out.”

Chen Zhao was rendered speechless. “Can I curse you?”

“I know languages from 28 different countries, including Chinese. Are you sure you want to see whose vulgarities are more vicious?”

“Why would you know so many languages? Do you learn foreign languages when you’re bored?”

“No. I can strip off the language abilities from the souls I collect and then devour them. So it’s really easy for me to learn a new language.”

“What? That’s convenient. I want it too.”

“You humans cannot devour those things.”

“Just great. Where did you watch that horror film. Do you have a DVD player in your crevice?”

“No. The day before yesterday when I was waiting for a person to die, he was precisely playing a horror film. Then he scared himself to death.”

“How sad.”

“After I caught his soul, I watched the entire horror film with him. In the end, his soul shattered into pieces directly. But I feel that the film was not that scary after all.”

“You don’t say. His soul was frightened by you into nothingness.”

“Is it?”

“Oh yeah. You said you’re going to move to that space crevice. Is it done yet?”

“Nope. I’m packing my stuff. In fact, I have collected many souls. I think that I’ll only be able to start moving after you have moved to the new place.”

“Do you really have so many things to shift?”

“Yes indeed.”

“By the way, can I enter the crevice?”

“If the crevice belongs to another Soulbringer, that’s definitely a no, because you’ll be attacked by that Soulbringer’s collection. But if it’s my crevice, I’ll be happy for you to come as a guest. I can promise that you’ll be absolutely safe there.”

“I can’t wait to see what a Grim Reaper’s residence looks like. Oh yeah, does your kind dislike the title of ‘Grim Reaper’?”

“No, but I really prefer the name you have given me. It’s a name unique to me.”

“Human, I also welcome you to go to my home,” Beelzebub said, jumping onto the bed.

“Hell? Forget it. I’m not planning to go to Hell so soon. I know that in the end, I’ll definitely end up in Hell, but I’m not prepared for it yet.”

“No. You can enter as a living human. I can guarantee your safety.”

“Can living organisms also go there?”

“Demons can be summoned to the human world. Of course humans can also be summoned to Hell.”

“Can humans return after being summoned to Hell?”

“Yes of course. They’re protected by the contract. To us demons, there’s no sacred things that cannot be sullied, except the holy contracts. For example, nine hundred years ago, the human named Dante journeyed through Hell. He was even received by many demon kings. After all, that was the first time a completely living human entered Hell.”

“Was Dante summoned into Hell?”

“Yes. Because of the holy contract, none of the demon kings hurt him. However, later Dante entered Hell again, no longer protected. His soul was burnt by an endless amount of padma flames, until he finally turned into ashes.

“Why?”

“Because he violated the contract. According to the Contract of Summon, he was allowed to travel in Hell. In return, he must use his pen to record an accurate description of what he saw. However, he only depicted Hell as an evil world, a world cast aside by the living.”

“Is that incorrect?”

“If he’s right, he would not have violated the contract and fallen into Hell.”

“Whether it’s the human world or Hell, there are rules. They’re not set by any god or demon king. The evil falling into Hell is caused by the rules, and not the desires of demons. If a kind soul enters Hell, even the most wicked demon cannot hurt him. However, in the Divine Comedy, demons are described as punishers, polluters, and deceivers. We’ve become the source of all misfortune. This is an offence that cannot be forgiven.”

“Err… I think I’ve seen some of what you just said in the Bible before.”