The Devil's Contract Lover - Chapter 49

【A weapon that does not belong to this world.】

Scarlet swept across her eyes. The devil ignored the self-detonating shadow, cast aside the black mist, and tightly embraced Yao Yuan.

The only thing that could counter that purple edge was the [Truth], which also did not belong to this world. She exposed her wound to the dagger, and a bloody light drifted out with a cross-shaped radiance.

Star-Sky chanted unknown words from her mouth. Though a devil, her solemn voice was like a holy anthem. Yao Yuan couldn’t understand a single word, yet her intuition “translated” the starting phrase spoken close to her ear: 【Offer the blood of truth…】

There was no room to interject. Star-Sky abruptly pulled the dagger out. The surging blood was vivid red, not the hollow phantom foam.

Drop after drop, the fresh blood changed from red to purple and quickly stopped flowing. A sealing rune covered the wound again. The dagger in the devil’s hand also melted away completely.

And Chu Yan? Yao Yuan poked her head out from Star-Sky’s embrace: The fragments scattered on the sofa were not human limbs but a pile of material of unknown origin.

“She was a puppet?!”

“Her main body temporarily escaped,” the devil’s voice was frighteningly deep. “Whether it’s a stand-in or a mechanical puppet, it doesn’t matter. I will crush her quickly.”

Hearing Star-Sky’s reply, Yao Yuan immediately jolted, scrambling to jump down from Star-Sky’s arm: “You’re still hurt. Are you okay?”

Being stabbed in an old wound—injuries added to an injury—sounded terrible no matter how she thought about it.

“I’m fine,” Star-Sky’s tone gradually warmed. “I’m not that fragile. That strike just now was far from enough.”

“Really?”

“Really. It was roughly 5 damage points taken from 10.”

This perfectly serious, strange explanation instantly dispelled the tense atmosphere. Yao Yuan was still somewhat worried: “You’re not lying, are you?”

“I won’t lie to you,” Star-Sky replied normally, the shadows around her contracting and expanding naturally. Although describing a devil as “full of vitality” felt incorrect, the active reaction of the elements certainly made her circuit feel that way.

She let out a long sigh of relief: “That’s good. So~ you lost, right?”

“Lost what?”

“The wager, the wager.” Yao Yuan approached the devil and smiled mischievously: “I remember the stake was 【everything】, oh. What do you think is equivalent to my everything?”

“Wait a minute, I did not lose.” Star-Sky lowered her head to meet her gaze, her eyes serious: “The content of our wager was 【that I underestimated Chu Yan】.”

“Right, you definitely underestimated her.” Yao Yuan pinched two fingers together: “5 points of blood is still real damage, boss~”

“That small amount of damage does not prove I underestimated her. My opinion of her has always been that of easily killable trash.”

“Isn’t that just whatever you want to say? Is the entire wager judged subjectively by you?” She unhappily pressed: “Then give me a reason why you didn’t underestimate her!”

“Of course, I have a reason.” Star-Sky gently cupped her face, her long hair and shadows falling together: “My most precious contractor is completely unharmed.”

“You, you’re cheating…” Yao Yuan wanted to retreat but couldn’t help but look up.

“This is my genuine thought.” Only the reflection of each other remained in their eyes.

“You, you say that as if you’d admit defeat if I were hurt…” What was with this atmosphere? It wasn’t a confession… She nervously fiddled with her fingers.

“I would.”

The simple two words 【I would】 permeated her heart, sweetly and tinglingly. Suspicion and sweetness complexly intertwined. Yao Yuan hastily struggled free from the devil’s grasp and took a few steps back.

“You, you said…”

She couldn’t bring herself to say 【You’re lying】. She knew the devil wasn’t lying. No, she was willing to believe Star-Sky wasn’t lying.

Taking another deep breath, she walked toward the door: “Forget it. What you said was very nice.”

It was time to leave… right? Walking into the corridor, Yao Yuan was stunned: all participants in the Round Table Game were sprawled out, dizzy, while Miss Wang, the host, had her four limbs turned into stone, fixed to her seat.

Xiao Ke saw them return and anxiously yelled at Star-Sky: “Quickly change me back!”

“Are you commanding me?” The devil snapped her fingers with a half-smile, and the stone immediately [Continued on next page] shattered!

“Aaaahhh—” Xiao Ke shrieked: “My, my hands and feet!”

“Yes, your hands and feet. Would you care to explain to my adorable lover what tricks you pulled?” Star-Sky’s voice was laced with laughter.

“Wuu, I, I’m sorry…” Tears welled up in Xiao Ke’s eyes, streaming down one by one: “I, I was indeed taking advantage of them… but, but I had just started and hadn’t harmed many people! And they had no chance of accessing magic anyway.”

“What did the person who gave you the table say?” The devil truly smiled, as if anticipating the removal of the barrier before the abyss.

“She said… by playing the game with others, I could extract a tiny bit of residual magical energy from them. Everyone has magical energy.” The rich girl’s voice grew increasingly frantic: “They would never use any of it in their whole lives. If it all goes to me, allowing me to become a magician, what’s wrong with that? I paid for it, and I’m taking a risk too! It’s very risky for the King to be fixed at the beginning and the end of the 13 rounds!”

“Do you think what they consume each time they make a wish is only magic power?” The devil gently led her on: “If realizing an unbelievable wish transfers a bit of magic power to you each time, what is the price?”

“N-not part of the magic power?”

“It’s life force.” The devil admired the wilting flower before her: “Those who wish for something against common sense will be completely drained into an empty shell.”

Night soon fell. When the moon shone upon the night sky for the second time, the two were already walking the port streets. Who needs a plane when you have a devil?

“Star-Sky, you actually put her hands and feet back together in the end!” Yao Yuan held her hand, moving forward in the darkness.

“Her pathetic expression was amusing. Do you think she should be punished?”

“Punishment, of course, but, but…”

But what? Yao Yuan didn’t know, and finally gave up: “Forget it. Even if she needs punishment, it shouldn’t be us. Besides, how should we even judge the appropriate level of punishment?”

The table was completely shattered, and the rich girl had sworn to offer compensation… Although it was likely useless for those who were about to die. She hoped not many people who had participated in the gamble had wished for anything exaggerated.

After walking for a while, Yao Yuan suddenly realized: “Star-Sky, why aren’t we going home?”

“There’s somewhere we need to go. The nascent deity gave you a card before; ask her for help,” Star-Sky said, walking forward without looking back.

“Oh, I remember her name was Lin Xiaoyu. Wait, why are you making me ask for help!” She followed with quick, resentful steps: “Who was it that said 【Chu Yan is merely easily killable trash】?”

“Indeed. So this request is only to obtain her specific location. Do you have any leads on your own investigation?”

“Uh…” Yao Yuan was speechless. She remembered the conversation she had with Star-Sky before. It was indeed her responsibility to find Chu Yan, so it was normal for her to be the one to ask for the location.

“The nascent deity’s servant is a spellcaster from another world. Having her help protect you would be even better.” Star-Sky’s speed increased, and the surrounding scenery flew backward as if the distance was being contracted.

“That’s too embarrassing! I mean, why don’t you summon some friends from the Demon Realm?” Yao Yuan complained while running to keep up.

“I won’t ask them for help.”

Who are “they”? A hint of confusion drifted past: “Why?”

“Because it’s embarrassing.”

That, that makes so much sense!

Following the address to the hotel, they were met with a closed door.

“Apologies, Miss and Master cannot stay here for long.” The gentle young man took out a letter: “However, Miss said that if a cute girl came looking for her, I should hand this over. I hope it helps you.”

“A decent magical reaction.” Star-Sky glanced at the young man, who then fled back to the room at top speed.

“I’m sorry, I don’t speak to devils!”

The door slammed shut. Yao Yuan wiped cold sweat and stopped Star-Sky: “No need, no need to be angry.”

The envelope surface was slightly wrinkled and looked quite ordinary. She opened the letter. Only two lines of large characters were written on the paper: 【Going with the flow is the optimal solution. Grasp what you desire most.】

[Continued on next page] This was no help at all. What kind of stale chicken soup was this? Yao Yuan’s face was even more wrinkled than the envelope.

“I’ve been defeated by a deity and by a troublemaking villain.” She dejectedly walked toward the main road. Fortunately, Star-Sky yanked her back, or the swiftly moving traffic would have sent her flying a second time.

“Watch out,” the devil squeezed her wrist firmly.

“Sorry, I almost died again.” Yao Yuan stopped at the traffic light with a deathly look on her face. The night wind blew over them, and her heart calmed down with it.

“Where would you like to go to relax? Night fishing or kite flying?” Star-Sky took her hand again: “With me by your side, you can genuinely leave the safety issue to me.”

Then why did you just say… Yao Yuan secretly looked at Star-Sky’s profile. Didn’t she even realize? If it had been her at the beginning, she definitely wouldn’t have said a word of reproach.

As she thought about it, her face flushed. She looked around, searching for a topic to divert the conversation, and instantly saw the previous rental house standing in the distance, half its silhouette visible.

“Ah, I completely forgot!” She shouted: “That person, whoever she was, she probably sold me out! I need to interrogate her!” Ugh, why did I forget something so obvious?

Yao Yuan pondered and could only think of one possibility: Was that experience too tragic, and did my brain automatically filter out the trauma?

“That person isn’t there.” Star-Sky’s tone suddenly became profoundly gentle: “I handled everything. Be good. You don’t need to worry about any of the details related to that experience.”

They just stepped into the halo of the streetlamp. The devil’s expression when she looked at her could be described as sweet—it was tempting honey, and it was also special treatment for healing wounds.

Star-Sky was merciless to enemies and completely ignored ordinary people, but she was always special to Yao Yuan. This special treatment sometimes transcended the usual meaning of love.

She didn’t understand, and she even became slightly dazed under this kind of treatment.

【Do you think the devil is doing this for you? An ordinary person like you is worthless.】Chu Yan’s words abruptly jumped into her mind.

“Okay, then I want to go to a quieter place to play. Speaking of which…” She casually turned her eyes away: “Star-Sky, why do you like my soul? I remember you said I was more valuable than I thought.”

So, is it because the value you cherish is something I was unaware of at the time? Is my value the fragment Chu Yan spoke of, representing a power that doesn’t belong to me?

“Your soul, your soul is special. If I didn’t value you, I wouldn’t have tacitly agreed to that contractual joke.”

Hearing this reply, Yao Yuan looked into Star-Sky’s eyes. They were clearly a dark void, yet she felt as if she could peer through the gloom and see the sincerity of the abyss.

“Does my soul have some kind of fragment inside? Golden or silver? Does it have a point of light?” Her laugh was fragmented, almost hoarse: “Does it belong to an angel or a deity?”

“Only you.”