After reading the contract, Slezzy started walking, finally leaving the alley.
On the way home, he was thinking a lot:
"Family ties? Lord Demon? Ruin of Maple?"
After a few minutes, Slezzy was back at his house.
Arriving there, he took off all his clothes and headed towards the bathroom to take a shower, while trying to forget all that for a moment.
Thoughts dominated his mind.
Underwater, Slezzy could not stand, at least for a single minute, thinking of absolutely nothing.
As he left the bathroom, wrapped in a towel, Slezzy saw that Emmeline was collecting her clothes that were on the floor.
— Hum!? Zzy, what is this piece of paper... black!? — Emmeline asked, realizing that the sheet had fallen from one of the pockets of Slezzy's pants.
The girl's words stirred with the mind of the young man, who in despair, advanced on the piece of paper, before Emmeline could touch him.
— Ah! Yeah... it's nothing, Emmy! It's just some notes from work! It's no big deal!
— Since when... can you write on a type of paper like that? — provoked her, laughing later.
Slezzy smiled, continuing the conversation, avoiding the subject.
— Emmy, I have great news! But I think I better wait and tell him until Rainn gets back from school. You know, he hates being the last to know things.
The girl nodded, excited and distinctly curious.
Slezzy kept the contract in the pocket of another pair of pants, disguised.
*
After an hour, with the meal served on the table, Rainn had arrived from school.
Emmeline from the kitchen called Slezzy to join her and the boy.
Slezzy, on the computer in his room, carried out some research on recent reports, in order to find someone else who had also witnessed any of those creatures. However, he was unsuccessful in his search.
Discouraged, the young man stood up and walked to the small kitchen table.
Soon, the three were reunited.
Rainn was still dressed in his high school uniform, while Emmeline was wearing white light—cloth clothing.
Slezzy gave a speech:
— Today, I received an incredible offer! A vacancy for a type of exclusive training in the central sector of the FMA!
— What? — Rainn was surprised. — Will you be like those "army guys"?
— It is... If everything goes well... it may happen!
Emmeline was clearly worried, and Slezzy realized it.
— What is it, Emmy? Not happy?
— Han? No! It's not that... Zzy, I'm happy with this opportunity, but... what worries me is... you're getting closer and closer to facing the criminals in this town, literally!
— You're right. But, anyway, that's inevitable. Anytime the NCC would escalate me to street surveillance, so...
— Maybe... you're right, dear — replied the girl with half a smile stamped on her face, without letting Slezzy conclude.
After lunch, Rainn ran to her room, while her brother helped Emmeline wash the dishes.
— Rainn asked me to take him to Diana's house tomorrow. It's been a long time since we visited Harvim — said Emmeline.
— Oh, great! I love that child! He always reminds me of the time of my childhood... and also the school...
— Wow! Do not even remind me of high school! — answered the girl, amid laughter. — Even with some good memories, the end of that was like hell!
— Really...
After helping her partner, Slezzy warned her that she would go down to the yard to remove a garbage bag from the house.
Then the young man left the apartment and went down the stairs towards a backyard, which served as a recreation area of the small condominium, just a few meters at the back of the same building.
Upon arriving there, Slezzy pulled the contract out of his pocket again.
He tore it into several little pieces, picked them up and threw them in a big garbage can, along with the bag. Then he left from there.
As Slezzy climbed up the stairs, he felt something warm in his pocket. He stopped his steps, frightened, to check it out,
The same contract that had just torn through, was there, completely intact. Enraged, the young man quickly climbed up to his apartment again.
Upon returning, Slezzy walked to one of the kitchen cabinets to get a lighter.
— What are you doing? — asked Emmeline, with curious looks.
Slezzy ignored that question and left the apartment again.
— Hey! Don't leave me here talking to myself!
Returning to the recreation area, he approached a barbecue, which was next to a small pool. There, he threw that piece of paper and set it on fire. Before his eyes, the paper crumbled completely, turning to ashes.
The young man sighed, closing his eyes. Even so, he felt once again the same warmth in one of his pockets.
Angrily, Slezzy took the resurrected contract and crumpled it into a paper ball. Then he threw it away, above the wall that surrounded that area.
The crumpled contract, mysteriously and in a matter of moments, returned in the same direction, with double force, colliding with the kid's forehead.
— Oh! — groaned in pain. — What?
— It's no use. You won't get off that easy! — was the voice of Hiram. The demon appeared suddenly, right next to you.
Slezzy was initially frightened, but soon faced the demon.
— Fortunately, demons have the power to call themselves in the presence of their own contract. From the moment the Preambulare is sealed in your hands, you won't be able to get rid of it so easily. That's not so cool!?
The creature collected the paper ball from the ground and threw it at Slezzy.
— I don't want that! I never wanted to! And as you yourself said..., if I do not want to sign this, I can go on normally with my life — said Slezzy, throwing the paper ball that I had caught in the direction of Hiram's chest, with extreme force. However, the piece of paper just crossed it.
— Unlike all your other victims, I'm not gonna freak out. I will never corrupt myself, and I am absolutely sure that I can carry with me, perhaps... the greatest secret that lies behind all humanity!
— The greatest secret that lies behind humanity? Never... had anyone described the Demon World in such a way...
— So what? What's it going to be like? By any chance, will you ever leave me? Why don't you just... go after someone else?
After a short pause, Hiram replied:
— I see... a potential in you... Slezzy. I can easily see your next accomplishments in this city with the possession of our powers! — said as he opened his arms. — During all these last years, since people began to use our contracts for evil, no military power has been able to guarantee peace. So, answer me... do you think you could face the biggest criminals in this town... on an equal footing?
— You're a demon, but you want the good of the city? — Slezzy laughed ironically.
Hiram did not answer that question, walking until he came face to face with the young man:
— The future is inevitable. The demon bearers will dominate this city! Power has risen to the head of all of them in recent years. I could see for myself. But, I will understand if you want to stand and watch the death of all those who are important to you, one by one, that is if your time does not come a little earlier, is not it? Since, based on the last great war that I witnessed in this city, the NCC agents are the front line for the FMA.
— What are you talking about?
— I've offered contracts to the most diverse people in the past, Slezzy. And even though I am still a recent demon in relation to others, I know of many things that would make you open your little eyes easily, such as for example... the presence of mentoreded in the military institutions themselves!
"What? People... from within corporations... could have contracts? At this point, when you think about it, it's quite possible that this is real..."
The faces of those agents, which Slezzy had witnessed in recent days, suddenly came to light in his mind.
"Agent Sanches... Lieutenant Jan... Edward... Saith... you... no! I don't want to think about it!"
Doubts surrounded the young man's head.
— Listen, Slezzy. If you're not ready to sign the contract, know that this was definitely the last time we met. The clock is ticking.
— Hey...!!
Before Slezzy asked another question, the demon disappeared, through a kind of gray, steamy magic.
The boy left the yard, walking up the stairs of the building once again. He sat down on one of the steps, then cowering.
Amidst the tears and with his arms folded over his face, Slezzy tried to hide all that fear.
"It can't be possible..."
A new face of the world was right there before his eyes.
"All this time, they've been behind it all!"
" I can't freak out. I need to contain myself. Next week, I have FMA training!"
"If I try to share this with someone, everyone will accuse me of crazy... or worse! They're gonna accuse me of ingesting that kind of drug they talked about on TV!"
"Damn. At the end of the day, it was all true! All the patients... supposedly insane... actually saw other demons... and were simply induced to coma or sedated!"
"Maybe more minds are behind all this."
The boy covered his eyes with his hands, covering almost his entire face, while wiping his tears.
"On the other hand, that demon may be right... It may be that someday, the bearers will try... to dominate the city. Everyone would die in a stupid, endless war. But in case I sign that... other than these supposed powers, I could still unravel this whole dark side."
After a few seconds, the young man finally calmed down, becoming to stand.
Then he went upstairs, ignoring this time the heat of the contract that had just resurfaced in one of his pockets again.