The silence added to the confusion and bewilderment of the young man, as he sat dead-faced on the cold ground of the void while the child with black hair circled him. Mumbling a song that felt familiar: Crim was unable to recall its name.
Despite his many attempts at sparking up a bolt of fire, only a pool of blood came out, making him drown in the ever-so-decreasing crimson that emptied the vile with each use.
"Why are you so sad? Didn't you hate humans, to be honest, I thought you would be pleased." The Innocent Child asked, bewildered by the soulless young man shooting out spells like a madman.
"Yes, I hate humans, but do you think I'm willing to give up my humanity? If you are dumb, the answer is no.
Also, I worked hard to become strong, and now I'm back at ground zero. Stuck with a useless core and a useless magic that can only pour out blood. The fact that I need to eat people or something to recover it is not good news, at least not for me."
Crim shot an annoyed glare at the nonchalant kid, averting his head the Child wracked his brains and gave an answer that he deemed would satisfy the young man.
"Well, at least your potential is infinite now! Also, you don't need to eat people, you're not a ghoul after all" The child stopped and finished the sentence without telepathy, 'At least not at the moment'
The young man rolled in his crimson pool.
"Our minds are linked dimwit," Crim's menacing gaze kept the child in check as he spoke. The boy couldn't meet Crim's darting, malicious eyes, and it was apparent that their current predicament seemed rather dire, despite potential future possibilities.
"How can I possibly fight with this all mighty blood-splashing power," Crim pondered aloud, "Meanwhile, I have to worry bout using too much of it, does that sound like an upgrade?"
With a sigh, he contemplated his response to the young man. Raising his hand as if he were seeking permission to speak in class, Crim, despite his vexation, played along with the child's antics.
"Go ahead," Crim granted permission.
The child explained, "It's not just a blood sprinkler there's a lot you can do with it. If you were not satisfied, you can also still learn magic, but it involves absorbing power from external sources like artifacts or skill books, often written by old grumpy men that mastered it."
Intrigued by this revelation, Crim inquired, "Where do I find these skill books and artifacts?"
The child took a step back and answered, "You won't find them on Earth, but if you travel to other planets, especially those with advanced teleportation technology, you might get lucky."
Crim's response was swift, and perhaps a bit exasperated: "You think I'm made of money? Last time I checked I lived in a dumpster."
The child tilted his head, a bit puzzled by the word. Crim decided to change the topic feeling the child's mind muddled trying to understand.
"Never mind that. Can you tell me if there's anything else I can do with this strange blood power? Or better yet, can you explain why that lunatic turned me into a demon?"
With a grin, the child decided to demonstrate. He created a white ball and splashed some blood on it leftover from the cut he engraved on them both, Crim wondered why he didn't just use the pool surrounding him. Then, with fluid hand movements, the blood enveloped the object, hardening it into a material resembling shiny plastic. The child controlled the still ball with glowing eyes, moving it around like a telekinetic before stopping it near Crim's face, catching him off guard.
Crim smiled, dazzled out of his mind.
"I get your point," He took off from his safety puddle and assumed a thinking sitting position. The child was glazed at the news, jumping around in joy.
"So now, before you wake up. I need to tell you about what I need you to do, trust me, this will be in your best interest."
Crim stared at the kid, who tried his best to imitate a politician that had been fired a while back on Mars, even attuning the cunning man tune on point.
"Just tell me what you want, don't wanna hear your business mumbo jumbo."
The black-haired kid pouted, disappointed that his rehearsed acting, which he'd practiced for hours to sound like a movie star, had come across as awkward and unnatural.
"To be honest, I need you to find like 3 artifacts… For personal reasons," the child said, "I asked the man to help with it, and he told me he could find somebody who could do it. Didn't expect him to turn a human into a demon just to help me."
Crim's respect transformed into sheer amazement as he considered the incomprehensible lunacy of the man who used the kid before him. What sort of person would resort to such extreme measures to harm thousands instead of helping a fragile kid like this? Actually, how could this kid be so remarkably naive? The man had literaly made it an excuse for his experimentation rather than genuine assistance. Yet, the Black haired dimwit still believed he was out to help. The Irony.
"So, what's your goal here? Are you trying to resurrect an ancient evil or forge a weapon to bring peace to the world?" Crim quipped. However, when he saw the child's faltering and sorrowful expression, he quickly retracted his smile. The obvious realization struck him: this was the wrong place and the wrong time.
The child, on the brink of tears, exhibited a tiny horn sprouting from his head, resembling more of a bump than anything else.
"…"
The young man hadn't been prepared for the stoic child to trickle a tower of tears when he had been joyful a few seconds prior. Talk about a mood swing, thought Crim. Their mind link stroked away from his mind.
"I wanna… Get my sister back!"
The kid spoke with a teary eye.