Chapter 2: A human and a devil

A swarm of crimson circles began manifesting across the decayed outskirts, their eerie glow casting flickering shadows over the desolate ruins. From these sinister portals, grotesque creatures emerged one by one—beasts with the muscular bodies of lions, yet their faces bore the twisted, rotting semblance of dead humans. Their hollow, sunken eyes glowed an ominous red, brimming with malevolence.

"A-Ah… What are these?!" The middle-aged man from before gasped, his voice cracking with terror. His body quivered uncontrollably as his widened eyes darted from one horror to another.

Then, one of the devils turned its attention toward him. Its burning gaze locked onto him like a predator marking its prey.

A sudden wave of dread crashed over the man. His legs stiffened—paralyzed, as if invisible chains had bound them in place. He tried to move, but his body refused to obey.

The putrid stench of rotting flesh filled his nostrils as the beast charged toward him, its jagged teeth glistening with thick drool. In mere seconds, it lunged—crashing into him with the force of a raging beast.

Before he could even scream, the devil's maw clamped onto his neck. Sharp, uneven teeth punctured his flesh, tearing through veins and muscle. A sickening squelch echoed as a spray of crimson blood erupted into the air, staining the cracked earth beneath him.

And this was only the beginning.

All around, the same carnage unfolded. Women, children, the elderly—no one was spared. The outskirts became a nightmarish feast as the monstrous devils descended upon the helpless people, their agonized screams drowning in the chorus of gnashing jaws and rending flesh.

The air reeked of death. The gray sky bore witness to the massacre.

The outskirts had become a pit of despair.

***

'I..I feel cold.'

Everything was pitched black. Only thing that was audible in this void was a fading voice of Burn and his panting.

'I don't wanna....die. somebody... anybody..help m..me.'

"Oh. So you wanna live, do you?"

Suddenly the dark world was pierced with a dim light as a mysterious voice of a woman echoed through the void.

It was a voice Burn wasn't familiar with.

"Who are..you?" Burn asked hesitantly.

"Who am I, you ask? Hmm.. I am Synthia. If you wish I can revive you, boy."

"Revive me? How?" he asked in a stuttered manner.

The woman chuckled.

"I can, no doubt. After all, I am the devil princess. I had my eyes on you for quite a while now, Burn. If you wish to I can revive you..But there's condition: you have to make an eternal contract with me, one that can't be broken until you die of old age."

"What condition?" Burn queried.

"You have to become my partner."

"Huh?"

Burn was already on the verge of death. So, if there was a chance for him to revive himself again, he would take it.

"Yes I accept your condition. Please revive me." He said with absolute firmness in this voice.

"You sure? It would mean that you have to you give up on being human and live the rest of your live with a devil. Then after you die, only place you will go to is HELL. Knowing all that do you still want to proceed with my proposal?"

After a minute of silence, Burn answered:

"I don't care."

The woman again chuckled, as she said, "Glad to hear that."

The moment she said that Burn's body began to become visible in this darkness.

Little by little, white fragments were gathering until it formed something like an astral form of Burn.

Soon after, the woman also become visible, though she didn't have a astral form like Burn.

Synthia was hovering over Burn.

She had long, flowing white hair and striking red eyes. She has large, curved, black-and-red demonic horns and was wearing an elegant, gothic-inspired outfit in black and crimson with intricate designs. The outfit features sheer fabric and bold red accents, emphasizing her dark yet alluring aesthetic.

Her expression was confident as he smirked and slightly seductive, with a pale complexion.

As Synthia was hovering above Burn, she reached out her hands as she was slowly descending down towards him.

Reaching near Burn, she first touched both of Burn's cheeks, softly.

"Finally, we can be together!" She smiled.

Astral formed Burn was left completely mesmerized by Synthia's seductive beauty.

Burn couldn't let out a single word from his mouth other than gawking.

As Synthia's face got closer to Burn, she brought her pink soft lips closer to Burn's and then she..... kissed!

The moment she did that both Burn and Synthia began to glow in white. Within a second, both of them turned into white energy, and completely began to merge with one another.

Then a sudden heart beat echoed as Burn's wounded chest magically began to heal.

The wound completely closed. Then after another heartbeat Burn opened his red eyes.

The moment he opened them, the first thing he saw was a fragile looking devil with giant and creepy head and face, snarling.

The devil was about to eat Burn opening its mouth without any teeth but hollowness.

The moment it brought its mouth closer to devour Burn, something uncanny happened.

The devil abruptly got sliced in half as Burn, who was laying on the ground, vanished.

The devil's split body, each half falling in opposite directions with a sickening thud. From the gaping wound, a surge of crimson burst forth, the torrents of blood colliding midair before raining down in thick, heavy droplets. The air reeked of foul blood, and the ground beneath was quickly painted in a dark, glistening red.

"Aaah."

Burn was panting as he was standing before the entrance of the tent, and looking at his pure white hands while frowning.

Surprisingly Burn wasn't looking like himself anymore. Instead, he looked like an otherworldly being.

His blue eyes was now crimson red, while sclera completely black. His hair was same as before, but a little bigger-- spiky white hair. He was exuding a menacing yet captivating aura. Intricate black tribal-like markings covered his face symmetrically: jagged lines run down from his forehead to his chin, accentuating his bone structure, with sharp, curved lines framing his eyes and crossing his cheeks. A set of markings forms a skeletal, tooth-like pattern across his mouth, adding to his sinister grin.

The demon or rather Burn had two sharp black horns and elongated, claw-like black nails.

"Is this me?" He mumbled to himself, looking confused.

All on a sudden, few dark red color notifications appeared before him.

[Your transformation was successful]

[You have attained the power and abilities of the Devil Princess, Synthia]