I felt a cold sensation on my body, and like that, the image stopped appearing.
"You can now open your eyes." The Devil urged in a light voice, as if he's afraid of spooking a child.
The nearness of his voice made me aware of our close proximity.
" Let go of me. " I got myself down his arm, and glared at me, "why must you tightly hold me to you? Don't you know how gentlemen act?" I raised a brow at him.
"And this is the thanks I received for the help?" He sighed, "I should have known helping you isn't something to be done."
"Thank you," I look down in embarrassment to prevent him from seeing the pink tint of my cheeks.
"You're welcome." He sighed after some time, "now, are you ready to see my palace?"
"I hope it's not like…."
"Of course not. Those were your imaginations and not mine.
Don't worry, my palace isn't as hideous as your imagination. It's the most beautiful place you could have ever conjured." He gestured to the empty, desert-like place.
I made to comment on his words, but what happened next left me speechless as my eyes blinked to make sure what I think I'm seeing is real, and not a mirage.
A blue simmering seal appeared from nowhere and covered the entire desert place. In the blue thing, you can see beautiful creatures swimming in it as if it's some sort of river.
"This is beautiful," I murmur.
Entranced by the beauty in front of me, I take a step forward. My mind is is is set on getting to the simmering thing.
It's as if it was beckoning me, urging me to come closer to it.
The more I walked closer, the more the beckoning became too much.
It felt as if there was something magnetic about it. Something dragging me and urging me to it.
"I won't go near that if I'm to be you." The devil warmed.
"But they're beautiful." I sigh, raising my hand I tried to touch them, but the devil *have I told you how much I hate the devil* stopped me from doing that.
He held my waist and dragged me back, and away from my beautiful creatures.
"Let me go!"
"Those things are deadly."
"They are not. Can't you see how beautiful they are? They're the most beautiful things in the entire world."
" Look." Picking up the box of snacks I ate when I ran from the devil, he threw it towards the beautiful blue seal.
" Wait! You're going to kill them!" I tried to stop him, but he has already done it. "No!"
In horror, I watch as the box made a collision with the blue seal, and...
But instead of the box killing a few of the creatures like I initially thought, the box shrivelled the moment it came close to the seal.
"What happened?" I look on in shock as the box melted into a puddle beside the beautiful blue seal.
"The beauty of the seal is just a cover. It kills any who's unauthorized to enter into it."
" And who are those?" I gave the Devil a look as I thought back to what would have happened to me had the devil not stopped me from touching the seal.
Undoubtedly, I would have melted into a puddle also, and that would have been my end.
" I created it, and I am the only one it allows." With those words said, the Devil walked towards the blue, shimmering devil of a seal.
A seal that was once beautiful to me is now as ugly as the ugliest creature. It's as if the beauty of the seal got transformed into ugliness in my eyes.
Looking at the seal now, all I see is ugliness. There's no beauty to desiring it. None at all.
Instead of killing the devil as though, the sea parted, creating a fine path for the devil to walk on.
"You see?" The smug devil turned to me, "are their Master, they only open up to me."
"What of the others? I mean, where do your people walk through if the seal only works for you?"
"They walk through the gates of the kingdom. This way I'll be aware of those who leave, and those that entered."
" What a bossy king."
I have no doubt he'll have something like a register to count the people, and also record the number of people he has in his Kingdom.
" Call it whatever you want, I don't care about that."
" Bossy king." I scoff.
I wonder how his people are coping with someone like him. Undoubtedly, they're all trying for ways to kill him and take over from him.
" You'll be surprised to hear the number of people who do wish for that." He smirked," the yellow demons you thought I was selling you too are my minor demons who came to fight against me." He smirked, "They did want to play with the big boys."
" I don't blame them at all."
Currently, I want to do nothing more than murder him and get on with my life when I've only been with him for two days.
Talk more to those who has being with him for a long time now. Undoubtedly, they are all planning on a takeover.
" I have loyal followers. Not all my demons intend to kill me.
You will be surprised to hear the number of those who are loyal to me." Smirking, he motioned for me to come closer.
" What's that?" I curiously gave him a look, but made no motion to go closer to him.
Once bitten, they say, is always shy.
" Let's go. I've wasted enough time outside my kingdom. My throne lies empty, and my people are getting restless."
" Why don't you proceed with your journey? I'm good here." I give the seal a very dark look.
Presently, the one I fear most between the Devil and the seal is the blue shimmer seal. The seal is the deadliest one among them.