Forsaken By The Gods, I Made A Contract With the Demon King

I hoped to avoid this situation at all costs.

I didn't want to use the demonic powers once again, and that was also the case when my classmates and seniors were not so far away. But this was a moment where pretense no longer served a purpose. As the assassins closed in, I reached deep within myself, touching that dark, familiar power I'd kept locked away for so long. The reaction was immediate and violent.

"What's he doing?" one of the assassins muttered, sensing the sudden shift in essence pressure. "This... this isn't normal enhancement..."

Most of the assassins who were on us were of Priest rank, while I couldn't quite tell what level the woman was at, maybe she was Knight? I didn't know - anyway - being in Preist rank they could feel the essence that I was hiding welling up from my soul sea.

My blood felt like liquid fire in my veins as the transformation began.

That's right!

I have activated Demonic Transformation - one of my strongest abilities!

Emotions welled up inside me as the transformation started - forcing out the deepest and most insane rages from depths, releasing waves of corrupted essence that made the very air around me shiver. Blood-red marks erupted across my skin, burning like brands as they traced ancient patterns of power across my flesh.

The female assassin took an involuntary step back. "Impossible... the contract didn't mention anything about-"

Her words cut off as my first scream tore through the clearing. My bones cracked and reformed, muscle and sinew stretching as my frame expanded. The ground beneath my feet cracked from the pressure of my essence, dark energy spiraling outward in violent waves.

"By the Nine Shadows," someone whispered in horror. "What is he?"

My modest height stretched well beyond six feet, my body bulking with muscle that rippled with barely contained power. Two horns burst from my forehead in a spray of blood, curving back over my skull. My fingers elongated into deadly claws, and I could feel my teeth sharpen into fangs that would put a wolf to shame.

The transformation completed in seconds, though it felt like hours of agony. I straightened to my full height, rolling my shoulders as I adjusted to my enhanced form. The world looked different through these eyes - sharper, clearer, with essence patterns visible like flowing streams in the air.

"Still want to try your luck?" My voice emerged as a growl, deeper and more resonant than my human tone.

The female assassin recovered first, her professional training overriding her shock. "It doesn't matter what you are. A contract is a contract." Her blade whistled through the air, trailing corrupted essence.

I caught it with my bare hand.

Now that I had unleashed my full power, I could somehow recognize how powerful the woman was.

Thankfully, she wasn't in the realm of knight - but she was definitely not a priest rank either.

'So, a paladin'

I thought as the corruption essence coating her blade hissed and sparked against my skin, but caused no damage. If anything, it seemed to be absorbed into the marks covering my arm, making them pulse brighter.

"Interesting trick," I growled, then snapped the blade like a twig.

It was maybe an artifact - a shame that I destroyed it like that! But I couldn't entertain such thoughts longer.

The fight exploded into chaos. Two assassins dropped from above, while another emerged from the shadows behind me. The female assassin danced back, drawing two more blades that hummed with deadly enhancement.

"Formation Delta!" she commanded, and her subordinates moved with practiced precision.

I moved with newfound speed and power, my enhanced muscles responding instantly to every thought. My claws raked through one assassin's essence-reinforced armor like paper, drawing a shocked cry of pain. He stumbled back, dark blood seeping from four parallel gashes across his chest.

"He's too strong!" the wounded assassin gasped, trying to stem the flow of blood. "Leader, we need-"

I didn't let him finish. My kusarigama, now crackling with my transformed essence, sang through the air. The weighted end caught him in the temple with a sickening crack. He dropped without a sound, his mask shattering to reveal a young face frozen in permanent surprise.

"Rook is down!" someone shouted.

The remaining assassins moved with deadly coordination, their attacks coming from multiple angles simultaneously. Blades enhanced with various types of corrupted essence sliced through the air, while essence-infused projectiles sought any opening in my defense.

The female assassin proved why she was clearly their leader. Her attacks were precise, targeting weak points in my defense with uncanny accuracy. Even with my enhanced speed, I barely avoided a thrust that would have pierced my throat.

"You're holding back," she noted, her voice clinical despite the intensity of our combat. "Interesting."

Another assassin made the mistake of getting too close. My claws found his neck, tearing through essence enhancement and flesh alike. His death gurgle was lost in the general chaos of battle.

"Two down," I snarled, blood dripping from my claws. "Want to try for three?"

The remaining assassins regrouped around their leader, their stance wary now. They'd lost the initiative, and they knew it. The female assassin's mask betrayed no emotion, but her essence roiled with barely contained fury.

"Full power," she ordered. "No more testing. End this."

The air grew thick with murderous intent as the assassins prepared their ultimate techniques. I could feel their essence signatures swelling, drawing on whatever dark power the Shadow Walkers used in desperate situations.

But before either side could make another move, a new presence made itself known.

He simply walked into the clearing as if taking a casual stroll.

No mask covered his features, and he wore no obvious weapons. His clothes were simple - a gray tunic and black pants that seemed oddly ordinary for someone who radiated such dangerous power.

"My, my," he said, his voice carrying an accent I couldn't quite place. "You sure have a lot of enemies." His eyes scanned the scene - the two dead assassins, my transformed state, the tense standoff - with mild interest.

Then he turned to the remaining assassins, his expression hardening. "He is my prey. Leave quietly if you want to live."

The female assassin's stance shifted slightly.

By her expression, they clearly weren't together! And more importantly…

'I didn't even detect his presence'

Neither I nor anyone else detected his presence - even my Eternal Vigil, a fallen rank artifact had failed to warn me of the danger, which only meant one thing.

'Strong!'

He was just stronger than whatever I have encountered so far.

But it didn't seem like the woman would give up.

"We have a contract. The Shadow Walkers don't abandon their-"

"Your contract," he cut her off, taking a step forward, "is meaningless to me."

"You dare interfere with Shadow Walker's business?" one of the assassins snarled, launching a barrage of essence-enhanced needles at the newcomer.

What happened next was almost too fast to follow, even with my enhanced senses. The man simply... shifted. The needles passed through where he had been, embedding themselves in a tree trunk with enough force to sink to their hafts.

"How disappointing," he sighed, now standing behind the assassin who had attacked him. "I offered you a chance to leave."

The assassin spun, blade already slashing, but the stranger caught his wrist with casual ease. There was a sharp crack, followed by a scream of pain as the assassin's arm bent at an impossible angle.

"Last chance," the stranger said, his voice still conversational even as he held the broken assassin. "Leave, or join your fallen comrades."

The female assassin's essence flared. "Shadow Walkers! Strike Pattern Omega!"

The remaining assassins moved as one, their forms blurring with enhanced speed as they attacked from multiple angles. Their blades left trails of darkness in the air, their movements perfectly synchronized in what must have been their ultimate combination attack.

The stranger smiled.

He released the broken assassin, who crumpled to the ground and raised one hand. The air itself seemed to thicken, and suddenly all the assassins froze mid-motion, as if caught in invisible amber.

"Impossible," the female assassin gasped, struggling against whatever force held her. "This power... you're-"

"Someone far beyond your ability to challenge," he finished for her. With a casual flick of his wrist, he sent them all flying backward, their bodies crashing through trees before coming to rest, motionless but still breathing.

Then he turned to me, and I felt the full weight of his attention like a physical force.

"Now then," he said, as if we were meeting for tea rather than standing in a battlefield surrounded by broken assassins. "I believe you and I have much to discuss."
Explore hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

I maintained my transformed state, every enhanced sense screaming danger. This man had just casually defeated three Shadow Walkers without seeming to expend any real effort. Whatever he was, he was far more dangerous than the assassins had been.

The real fight, I suspected, was just beginning.

---***---