I Made a Contract with a Devil, but the Price is Strange

As the orcs broke through the walls and rushed out, we ran without looking back.

“Kuaaaaagh―!!!”

The roar that reached us as we sprinted with all our might. At that sound, I raised the corner of my mouth.

“The orcs are shouting something?”

“They must be having a good time. Ignore it.”

After creating some distance, I slowly turned my head back. The orcs weren’t even visible anymore. That’s how far we had gone.

“Hoo.”

I took out a water pouch from my bag. After gulping down water, I passed it to Inis.

“Here.”

“Thank you.”

She looked at me hesitantly before taking the pouch. With her hand on her waist, she raised her head to drink, and her Adam’s apple moved.

Her ponytail swayed with each slight movement of her head. Due to running, loose strands of hair clung to her nape.

Gulp-

Seeing her white nape stirred my desire. It seems like my libido has become particularly strong since contracting with Egun. Normally, I wouldn’t even be interested enough to visit a brothel.

“Did… I do something wrong?”

As I continued to stare, Inis’s body twitched. She clutched the water pouch to her chest as she asked, looking like a frightened squirrel.

“I-if I drank too much water….”

“It’s not that. You don’t need to worry about it.”

I had decided to wait until Inis opened up first, but now this. I ran my hand over my face.

“Let’s go.”

I took the pouch back, put it in my bag, and headed toward the stairs. As we gradually approached our target, the figures of the orcs came into view. But what they were doing seemed a bit strange.

“…Are they running away now?”

“It… seems like it?”

Surprisingly, the orcs were packing their belongings, leaving their tents and walls as they were. I was dumbfounded by this completely unexpected situation.

“What do you want to do?”

Inis asked me. Would I let them go quietly? Or would I torment them more?

“I can’t just let them escape like this.”

Nothing is easier to hunt than a beast showing its back. Due to the sudden war, we hadn’t caught many goblins or orcs.

Returning like this would be very inconvenient. There were many places where money needed to be spent. So I had to hunt.

“Fire.”

I summoned a flame in front of me. After changing it into the shape of an arrow, I shot it using magic power.

Whoosh―

The fire arrow cutting through the wind. After confirming that it was soaring high in the sky, I continued to summon flames.

“The first arrow hit.”

Inis delivered the news in a calm voice. I raised the corner of my mouth and shot more arrows.

“The orcs kicked their burning comrade and pushed him to the opposite side.”

“The orcs did?”

For creatures that should have strong camaraderie, such behavior? It seems like I’m witnessing many unexpected behaviors today.

“One orc pointed in our direction. Other orcs also started looking this way. The second arrow missed. The third arrow hit.”

“How are the orcs responding? Are they running toward us like before?”

“No. Rather, they’re bringing tents and walls from around and starting to set them up. The fourth arrow was blocked. The fifth arrow too… yes, it was blocked.”

I stopped making arrows. Looking up at the enemy camp, I could indeed see obstacles burning.

“Hmm.”

The enemy had lost their will to fight.

But that wasn’t because it was a meaningless battle, but rather they weren’t truly fleeing out of fear. They didn’t show any signs of panic. The term “strategic retreat” would fit perfectly.

Because of the obstacles blocking, the arrows I shot were now meaningless. Moreover, they obscured the view, making it difficult to know the situation beyond the wall.

“What will you do?”

“Do you think it’s a trap? Or do you think they’re really trying to escape?”

At my question, she looked toward the orcs. She observed quietly with her eyes furrowed. Soon, Inis answered.

“I think it’s a trap.”

“Orcs are monsters that think and move with their bodies, not their heads. And such creatures have set up a scheme?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your reason for thinking that?”

“I thought about how I would respond if I were an orc. Would I fight back? Or would I run away?”

It meant she had tried to put herself in their shoes. It would be difficult to understand the mindset of orcs, who aren’t human.

“So what’s the conclusion you reached?”

Inis hesitated.

“To, to finish off Master here. Orcs are belligerent, aren’t they? Having encountered a strong opponent like Master, I thought they would absolutely want to hunt you.”

After saying that, she bowed her head deeply.

“I’m sorry if I offended you. I tried to think of the best words, but I don’t know many….”

“That’s what you were hesitating about? It’s fine.”

I was wondering why she was acting strange, but she was choosing her words carefully to avoid offending me. She probably couldn’t think of anything appropriate, so she spoke directly.

“You don’t need to worry about that. I’m not someone who stands on ceremony anyway. You think comfortably too. Understand?”

“Yes.”

“So if you were an orc, you’d want to catch me here? Because I’m a strong opponent?”

Inis nodded and said yes. Her appearance was so much like a puppy that I unconsciously stroked her head.

“Then let’s not approach, and continue observing from here.”

“Yes!”

She answered with a bright smile. She must have liked that I listened to her opinion and accepted it.

Whoosh-

I kept the flame floating and waited for the tents and walls to turn to ashes. It wasn’t long before the obstacles began to collapse.

“Kuaaaaaagh―!”

As the barriers disappeared, the orcs roared and charged toward us. Inis’s prediction was correct.

“Fire.”

I summoned a flame.

“Fire Arrow.”

Imagining the arrow in my mind, I gradually transformed its shape. When it took the form of a sharp arrow, I immediately shot it. The difference from the previous attack was:

Whoosh―

This time, I controlled it directly by moving my hand. The arrow lodged in an orc’s shoulder and began to vigorously burn its clothes.

The comrade running alongside caught fire, but the orcs approaching didn’t care. I thought about running away even now, but soon shook my head.

“Fire.”

It wasn’t too late. But considering what the orcs had shown so far, there was a high probability they would chase to the end. This meant we had to end it here.

I took out a cigarette from my pocket and put it in my mouth. I lit it and took a long drag. The cigarette smoke entering my lungs. I felt my concentration sharply increase.

“Fire Arrow.”

The flame changed faster than before. As soon as the arrow shape was complete, I shot it.

Whoosh―!

An orc raised its axe to block the arrow. I flicked my finger to make the flame drop. It fell and hit the leg.

Whoosh―!

My attack didn’t matter where it hit. As long as it hit, it would start burning regardless of which part.

No living being was without magic power. Magic power circulated throughout the body, and my flame followed that path and caught fire.

This was why the ability given by Egun was frightening. It used magic power itself as fuel to burn anything.

Whoosh―!

I continued to shoot fire arrows, but because there were quite a few orcs, it didn’t make much of a difference. Especially since I was controlling each one individually.

“Uoooooogh―!”

The orcs were much closer than before. Seeing them approach in real-time, I started to feel anxious.

This wasn’t good.

Inis would protect me, but the number she could handle was limited. This meant I had to kill more enemies.

But how?

The answer was simple. I needed to shoot more arrows. But how could I do that? I was already making them as fast as possible.

Even for this, the answer already existed. I had to skip the manufacturing process of the arrows. In other words, instead of creating a flame and converting it into an arrow, I had to create an arrow from the beginning.

‘Is it possible?’

The question was raised briefly. My magic power was already starting to respond. I had instinctively attempted it.

“Sssip….”

I took a long drag on the cigarette. As the end burned, I spat out what had now become a butt, and concentrated.

Attention is something that depends on environment and condition.

It was difficult to concentrate in a noisy environment, and easier in a quiet one. Good condition made immersion easy, and bad condition made immersion impossible to even attempt.

“Kuoooooogh―!”

The orcs were disgustingly noisy. Even at this distance, it was enough to make my ears hurt. My physical condition wasn’t great either. My sleep had been quite restless.

The situation was the worst.
The condition was the worst.

But ironically, my concentration rose endlessly, and extreme immersion began to change the environment as it pleased.

Inis, standing with sword and shield, was erased.
The orcs were deleted.
The crying sounds gradually faded away and became silent.

A world where everything had cleanly disappeared. I could fully feel only magic power, and it was truly an exhilarating sensation.

Gulp-

Using magic power as paint, I drew arrows. The pictures were completed with disappointing ease. As the situation turned out like this, my greed surged.

I wanted to draw something more splendid than arrows. As I thought that, my brain arbitrarily drew an image.

Whoosh―!

When I returned to reality, the flame had already drawn a form I had never seen before.

“M-Master?”

Inis, who had reappeared, was looking at me. Her eyes were wide open, as if they might burst. Normally, it would have been an action that should never be done. But this time, it was okay.

“Kuuaaauuugh!?”

Even the orcs approaching us stood still, dumbfounded.

Whoosh―!

A spear of blazing blue flame. I didn’t know why a spear had appeared. But that wasn’t the important thing right now.

Whoosh―!

As I flicked my finger, the flame spear rushed toward the orcs. They tried to turn and run away, but I was much faster.

Shunk―!

The blue flame pierced through the enemy. A spear that thoroughly cooked the internal organs from the inside, rather than from the outside.

The orc’s eyeballs melted. An unidentified liquid boiled and escaped from all its orifices. The orc’s body didn’t turn to ashes but rather became mushy and melted.

“Ugh. Fuck.”

Even I found this quite horrific. I thought it might be better to just turn to ashes and disappear.

“Kuaaaaaaaaagh!”

The orcs howled and ran across the field.

Although I couldn’t see their faces, their emotions were already felt through their actions. Fear and dread had consumed even the weak rationality of the orcs.

Whether they were afraid or not, I continued to wield the spear.

Unlike arrows, the spear didn’t disappear after piercing the enemy. Thanks to this, I was able to completely deal with the remaining orcs.

“Haaah….”

“M-Master!?”

The moment the spear disappeared, I collapsed to the ground. In my gradually fading consciousness, Inis’s face was the last thing I saw before losing consciousness.