As soon as the purple tip of the Demon Tooth touched the walls of the Inoshuma wound, a vortex enveloped it. Not knowing how to behave, Yoichi left the spine, getting up and taking a step back.
Enatsu stood beside him, waiting and witnessing the scene.
Inoshuma's body began to crumble from the tip of its tail up. As if it were made of sand, one grain after another, every part of its magnificent yellowish body disintegrated, hovering in the air.
In a harmonious circular movement, all the fragments conversed towards the Demon Tooth, still stationary inside the wound. The last part to crumble was the head of the Inoshuma, which was blown away.
That somewhat macabre vision lifted Yoichi's spirit. The moment of truth had finally arrived: the anxiety to discover the truthfulness of those blood writings would no longer haunt his days.
While his mind was inundated with conflicting thoughts and emotions, the Inoshuma's entire body took the form of a yellowish dust cloud and was sucked into the Demon Tooth. The thorn of the mythical Crimson Lotus, when also the horse's head disappeared, fell to the ground.
After a slight aftershock, the purple veins on the tip assumed a colour similar to that of the newly captured demon's coat. When the plug stopped vibrating, Yoichi heard a strange voice in his head.
"Azron!" that profound and warm voice uttered. Like a breath of wind, it suddenly vanished without giving the young tamer a chance to replicate.
Yoichi exhaled the air held up to that point in his lungs because of the fear. His eyes framed his leather boots. His toes were dirty with the demon-horse's blood.
"I made it..." the tamer muttered, looking up at Enatsu. "I made it!" he yelled incredulously. Caught in a sudden euphoria, he lowered himself towards Kenji and congratulated it, stroking its head.
"Screek!" the Nekage rejoiced.
"Hahaha! You gave me such a fright! For a moment, you were skating on thin ice, admit it!" the merchant laughed happily. Enatsu approached Yoichi and hugged him in a fraternal embrace.
That unconditional act of friendship lasted only a few seconds, but it was helpful for Yoichi to realize that Enatsu, the odd merchant met by chance, had become so fond of him that he followed him to the heart of Bronzeforest.
Yoichi looked at the lake, taking a step forward. His gaze began to frantically search for a blood writing announcing that he had completed his mission.
His heart was beating wildly, pumping blood into the veins of his arms and legs, which did not stop shaking. Finally, just over a minute after the capture of the Inoshuma, something appeared near the shore of the clear, peaceful water body.
Vast writings of thick blood materialized under Yoichi's hopeful gaze.
'Train a demon in 48 hours: quest completed – reward: your new life.'
Yoichi held his head in his hands, incredulous that he had succeeded in his intent before the clock ran out. As Enatsu observed him without understanding, the blood writing updated, and the letters changed shape.
'New quest: enter a guild – reward: unknown.'
[Kenji: (3/5 pts – level 4)]
[Inoshuma: (8/12 pts – level 10)]
After explicitly declaring the completion of Yoichi's main quest, the blood writing announced a new one. Other additional, smaller, lower-level writings expressed the report of his team's experience points.
"Wohooo!" Yoichi boomed with joy, jumping and punching upwards. "In the hurry, I didn't notice Kenji got one XP point!" he said, looking at his little Nekage.
"Screek!" Kenji confirmed, wagging joyfully.
"Hey, hey! Hold your horses. How do you know it's taken an XP point? I didn't notice it, and your gaze was on the Inoshuma. I saw it!" Enatsu pointed out carefully watching the whole scene.
Evidently, the merchant had seen Yoichi looking at the green grass of the lawn near the lake. Realizing that the tamer had remained silent with an empty look, Enatsu reminded him that the time to confess the truth had come.
Yoichi took a long breath, "okay. I promised you. I'll tell you the whole truth, Enastu," he affirmed, smiling. "Just one thing..."
"What?" the merchant asked.
"Promise me not to play me for a fool. I need your help, brother," Yoichi replied, approaching his friend and placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Yes, yes, of course. Now spit it out. I'm looking forward to knowing what you're hiding so far," Enatsu added. He crossed his arms, ready to listen to the words of his companion.
"It all started after I woke up on the farm..." Yoichi began.
In about twenty minutes, the young tamer came clean. He told his friend about the blood writings and mission that, once completed, would allow him to stay alive. She told him about the nightmares and memories of his past life, specifying that he didn't know how he obtained his 'demon pet system'.
"Also, after each fight, the writing tells me how much experience Kenji has gained. Or rather, I thought it was only valid for Kenji, but... apparently, it also works for the other pets of my team," Yoichi concluded, catching his breath.
Moments of silence followed his narration. During those awkward moments, Enatsu's wide-open didn't bode well. After knowing the whole truth, the young merchant had to make a choice: stay by his friend's side or run away.
"Enatsu?" Yoichi whispered, narrowing his eyes and trying to cross his gaze with his friend.
"Hahaha! No way! Why the fuck didn't you tell me right away?! All this is crazy cool!" the merchant marvelled, waving his arms and touching his cheeks with his hands.
Enatsu's happy and spontaneous reaction drew a smile from Yoichi. Did he really react so well? Didn't he believe for a second that I was a crazy guy saying bullshit? He thought.
"Do you know how many things you can do with your incredible powers? You can become a famous tamer in no time and... no, better... no one can know exactly how many XP points your pet receive, so... you're potentially the most powerful tamer of the world! Hahah!" Enatsu rejoiced, as if he had won the lottery.
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