Chereads / Zero Soul / Chapter 20 - The Ways of Darkness

Chapter 20 - The Ways of Darkness

"Hey…." A voice called out to Luke who was lying down and he raised his head to look outside his cell and no one called out to him.

"Hey, partner..." Luke who heard that immediately sat on his bed because the voice was not coming from outside but from inside him.

"Abaddon?" Right, it was the sound that came from the sword that was his partner.

"How can you talk to me? Are you near here?"

"No, I am currently in the armory of this cell and I can talk to you because I have obtained a small part of your soul."

"Is that so…" Luke didn't know how many souls he had lost in that battle but, he couldn't feel any hesitation at this crucial moment.

"So, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"Come to my world."

"How?"

"Of course in the same way you made a contract with me."

"Okay."

After hearing that Luke sat cross-legged on his bed and began to close his eyes. He slowly began to feel his soul being pulled out and when he woke up he saw a different world. This was not the first world he had come to when making a contract. This time he did not wake up in an old tower in the desert nor in a dense forest nor in a snowy mountain. This time he was standing on a surface of water so clear that it reflected a blue sky filled with clouds. There was nothing but the surface of the water and the blue sky. This world is very different, this world is very peaceful.

"Oooh… Looks like you quite like the arrangement I made." There was a male voice and Luke turned towards the voice beside him and saw a man with blond hair and bright purple eyes and the clothes he was wearing looked like black and purple nobles' robes.

"Who are you?" Luke who saw that person started to get a little wary because a person he had never even met in his life was suddenly in this world.

"Hey, calm down partner, it's me."

"Partners? Don't tell me you're Abaddon?"

"You're absolutely right partner."

Luke who saw Abaddon's relaxed behavior did not expect at all that the large shadow he initially met turned into an eccentric human like this. After all, why did his nature change from being cruel and heartless to being so easy-going and even eccentric, but rather than his character the most striking change was that he became a human. The sword transformed into a human.

"You're surprised aren't you? Seeing my new look and also this new world."

"Y-yes I was really surprised to see what happened here."

"This place is a reflection of a small part of your soul partner."

"This place is a reflection of my soul?"

"So true."

Empty, that's what Luke first thought when he found out that this place was a place that Abaddon made from a small part of his soul.

"Don't worry, the more you give your soul to me. This world is changing, because this world is a reflection of your own soul."

"Is that so…"

"Alright, how about we start now?"

"Starting what?"

"Of course, this fight. Look, in your hands." Abaddon pointed at Luke's right hand and without Luke noticing he was already holding the blackish purple sword.

"Hey, you're kidding right? Why did I have to come here just to fight with you?"

"Don't talk too much anymore..."

Abaddon charged swiftly and he launched an attack using the same sword that Luke was currently holding. However, Luke, who had not yet had time to take out his sword from its scabbard, could only parry the frontal attack with the sword that was still halfway out of the scabbard. Luke quickly pulled out his sword and took a few steps back to put some distance between the two of them.

"Hey, I wasn't even ready and you just lunged."

"In battle there is no such thing as being ready or not, partner. It's either you living or you being killed by your enemy." As Abaddon spoke he again launched an attack which this time was at Luke's blind spot.

"Shit," Luke quickly dodged the sword slash that could have blown his head away. "Hey, you really want to kill me." Luke turned around and launched an attack but, Abaddon was no longer there.

"Of course, I am serious about killing you. After all, if you die here your whole soul will be mine." Luke looked for the source of the voice and Abaddon was nowhere to be seen. Where is the devil? From which direction would he launch his attack? Luke continued to pay attention to his surroundings with a defensive stance. If he wasn't above then it was certain that he would come out from under this water. Luke who was about to look down he quickly bent his body back because, if he didn't then, this sword that just came out from under the water would pierce his skull.

"Ooh, that's pretty good."

"You," This time Luke didn't hold back but instead he lunged towards where Abaddon was standing. First Luke launched an attack vertically and was blocked by the demon in human form.

"You know, attacks like this I've read about. Don't you notice that the technique you use is still the same as the one you used against that comrade of yours?"

"Shut up!!" Luke jumped back a few steps and he changed his sword gripping style where he held his sword upside down and turned his body 180 degrees and Abaddon still managed to block the attack. However, what Abaddon didn't expect was that a blow from Luke's left hand hit his right abdomen which made him take a few steps back.

"Ooh… Why didn't you use a technique like that when you were fighting that guy?"

"Maybe because the impression of this battle is different." Luke again changed the grip of his sword to its original state.

"How about we lay down the rules in this battle."

"What do you propose?"

"If I win against you this time, then I will take a piece of your soul. If you win then I will give you my power of 20 percent. Every time you use that 20 percent power I will not take your soul but, if you exceed it then I will slowly take your soul."

"You propose a proposal that sounds quite detrimental to me and your proposal is quite heavy on you."

"Well, if you don't want to, that's fine. But, every time you use my power every time I will take your soul. After all, that 20 percent of my power is still quite large and I'm giving you this power for free."

Should he take up the offer proposed by this cunning demon? The offer sounded very one-sided. However, if he rejects the proposal he does not know how long his soul will remain in his body. Was this soul still in his body when he saved Rena? Or maybe this soul was gone before he found out about Rena's whereabouts. Defeating Vampires is not easy. If it was the Lichs maybe with only sword skills and firearms then defeating them would be easy. Unlike the Vampires, they were divided by a social strata that was quite similar to today's humans but, the thing that set them apart was their strength and level of purity. The purer the Vampires the stronger their power.

"I'll add a little more."

"Please, the more rules we make, the more exciting this fight will be."

"If I win I will get your power by 30 percent and I want you to return the soul you took from me."

"No problem, but if you want 30 percent power then you have to be prepared to lose and lose 80 percent of your soul."

80 percent in exchange for 30 percent of that power sounded very one-sided but, right now he really needed that power. He couldn't hesitate at this point. If he doubted he would lose everything if he doubted he would not be able to get out of these walls and seek the meaning of freedom and the truth that Charlotte spoke. The only way he wouldn't lose everything was to bet everything right now in this place. Devils are very cunning creatures they really want to always benefit and don't want to feel disadvantaged.

"Okay, I accept your proposal."