Chapter 50
“Allow me to stay here for as long as the time limit allows,” the demon begged, “and I will do whatever you ask.”
Zeth stared at her, still lying back at the edge of the ritual circle, his heart pounding so hard he felt it may snap his ribs in two. “What are you talking about?”
She looked up, meeting his eyes. To Zeth’s fear-addled mind, the intense stare almost looked as if it contained the souls of thousands of tortured men, screaming for him to run. But within that look was also a clear sense of desperation. “I-I am speaking to my summoner, correct? Or does this process work differently from what I have heard?”
“I…Yeah, that’s me,” he said, frowning. Had any other demon ever asked him that question before? How did she not know he was her summoner?
“Good,” she said, bowing her head once more. She almost looked like she was treating Zeth as some sort of royalty. “Then please, if you would grant me my wish. Do not unsummon me, and I will follow your every order until the time limit is up and I am forced to return.”
He stared at her. “You’ll do whatever I ask? You don’t want any payment?”
“No,” she said. “My kind typically accept summons in order to secure human lives in exchange for favors, yes? I want no such thing. Please, allow me to make up for my inexperience with enthusiasm. I will not fail you.”
This was strange. Suspiciously strange. What kind of demon spoke like this? So far, she hadn’t insulted his intelligence, called him a slug, or even made the slightest implication that humans were an inferior species to demons. Zeth’s mind, forced into paranoia by this demon’s immensely powerful aura of fear, saw such a strange occurrence and instantly ran in every direction it could with her behavior. She was buttering him up before backstabbing him. She was just an illusion while the real demon was already in town, slaughtering people by the thousands. She was buying time while a demonic army was on their way to arrive on his doorstep. Most of the theories made no sense, but they all slammed into his brain at full force, keeping him from considering anything else.
Her face morphed into a worried expression. “Am I displeasing you? Please, tell me what I am doing wrong, and I will remedy my action immediately.”