Simple Ploy

Sizzle—!

The liquid substance from the glass container achieved the result I had been experimenting with while looking for the 'cure' that could resolve Aster's condition.

Approaching the glass, I raised it at the level of my head before showing it to Aster who was watching everything with interest.

"I got it,"

Whatever result I'd gotten from the experiment also elevated Aster's mood, but he still wasn't sure what it was all about.

'I mean… I don't know too. Heh, but Aster would not believe me if I told him that. After all, saying the glass on my hand is a cure for his condition is not true,'

The glass in my hand will not remove the demon outside Aster.

When the demon Danath used Aster to replace his consciousness briefly to talk, I saw that his chaotic mana became more unstable.

This resulted in a change where the mana became half belonged to Aster, and the other half to Danath.

Unlike before when we were in the Academy, his body is now being shared with the demon, basing this idea solely on the mana which I'm familiar with.

That's why I'm confident that the demon was listening into Aster's body on the inside, and I took safety precautions such as putting the Isolation Barrier.

But what's the point of wasting three days if all of it just leads to nothing?

Well, it's not entirely wasted since I was able to understand a few principles regarding all these Demons but there's one underlying problem of it all.

It was so, so, so complicated.

Even though I was able to understand, learning about them is a different matter.

I couldn't even find a breakthrough that could actually help Aster with his condition, something that I promised him three days ago.

This truth became apparent two days ago.

At this point, everything will come to a ploy I've already begun yesterday.

Make the demon inside Aster think that I have the key to destroy its existence when all I want to achieve is to separate it from him.

And the glass container in my hand will be the one that leads me to my plan succeeding.

Sizzle—!

Wielding the potion in my hand, my gaze fell on Aster before approaching him, stopping right outside the walls of the isolation barrier.

"Is this it?"

Aster asked in an expectant tone.

'You mean this fake bottle that only does nothing but mess with your mana can help you save your life? I don't know much about that,'

Keeping the answer only inside my head, all I did was give him a reassuring smile.

A smile that is nothing but a façade.

No words left my mouth.

All I did was push the glass container inside the barrier and the decision left from this situation was to drink it or not.

Aster took a gulp before asking.

"What's the name of the potion?"

I replied.

"Demon Extinguishing Potion,"

Liking the potion's name and appearing to be expectant about the results, Aster's face was delighted as he continued.

"What about the uses and how it's made?"

I explained the uses with a glib tongue and confidence.

"The potion, as its name suggests, is solely made to eradicate the demon inside you. Using the research from a few mages and some churches to create a formula such as the Holy Water, I mimicked it using the same ingredients that almost had the same potency as that item."

I paused.

"The only thing you'll ever feel is the pain coming from your mana to fully extinguish the demon. It will be excruciating but if we ever want a shot at removing a pest, the right time would be now."

As if he was already aware of the downsides of drinking the potion, Aster did not seem to make much of a deal about it.

Aster took the glass and held it right in his hands.

"What would happen if it didn't work?"

If that happened, then you're screwed.

If I'm wrong about my guesses, then we're both screwed.

But the demon who might just be listening to you will never believe it if I spoke in utter nonsense and lacked confidence.

Hence I replied with my usual smirk.

"I'll kill myself,"

That message was enough to stir confidence in Aster.

Without even a moment of hesitation, Aster closed the lid of the container to his mouth before swallowing every single last of it down to his throat.

Gulp—!

'Come on demon. Now that the both of you share the same mana since you're starting to control him, you'll also feel the pain that this potion contains. However, that's all there is,'

The gamble here is whether the demon is willing to risk going outside or stay put, thinking everything's a fluke.

But I do believe that the chances are higher than the chances of losing the gamble.

After all, the only single lining left of existence from this demon is being inside Aster.

The Demon was killed by him after all.

And after hearing the potion that could clearly remove a demon like him from someone like me, even though it was as unbelievable as it sounds, I guarantee that it will produce a seed of doubt in his head.

All that is left is for the demon to see it for itself.

Clang—!

Aster dropped down the glass and then bent on the ground as he let out a wailing scream from his mouth.

"Aaaaaaah!"

I immediately focused my attention on Aster's mana where the chaotic mana became even more frenzied.

"Uaaaaagh!"

The normal mana and the dark mana kept colliding with each other as the demon and Aster felt the excruciating pain targeting them from the inside.

'Fifty seconds,' 

The potency to keep Aster feeling the pain from his mana had only a minute duration.

I kept that knowledge hidden because the demon might've just waited for the time to turn up and the plan would flop.

But that doesn't mean the pain had a stable frequency of self-torture.

It increased any second that passed by.

"Arrrrrrghhhh!"

Forty seconds from the clock, Aster's eyes are already turned upward due to the excruciating pain that just won't go away.

The mana inside him seemed like it was about to explode.

'Hold on. You got to hold on, Aster,'

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

Half a minute passed and the pain had already tripled since then.

Aster was shaking all around as he tried to balance himself but failed to do so, leading to him flailing around the barrier.

But just as I was about to get nervous since the demon wasn't showing a reaction when he should've felt the pain as Aster, my eyes turned slightly wide upon discovering another 'Aster' atop the real Aster's body.

"Arrrrrrgh!"

Now two of them are screaming their hearts out.

'Not yet…'

Looking at their suffering with a deadpan expression, one of my hands was clenching the star pendant within my cloth and was ready to throw it inside the barrier at any moment.

'Twenty seconds…'

Aster seemed to be only conscious because of his sheer will to dominate the pain but he was still in so much pain.

On the other hand, Danath was on the verge of breaking through.

Using the image of Aster, Danath slowly leaves Aster's body, leaving an image of a dark Aster and a human Aster inside the isolation barrier.

'Now!'

Trying to reach out to Aster whilst my face changed greatly as if this type of situation wasn't within my expectations, I 'accidentally' dropped the star pendant inside the isolation barrier.

At the same time, there were only ten seconds left from the potion's residual.

"Aster!"

Calling out his name, my attention was still divided on the other side where I saw Danath crawling towards the star pendant.

'Five seconds…'

The demon reached out toward the star pendant and slowly transferred himself into it while I undid the barrier for a few seconds to get Aster out from the barrier.

'One second,'

Releasing Aster from the barrier who was unconscious, my eyes looked inside his mana and saw that it became stable.

No darkness swirling inside like a pest.

My eyes shifted to the barrier where there was only the star pendant oozing out its dangerous aura.

Then a smile slowly formed on my lips as it reached from ear to ear.

"Caught you dumb fuck,"