[Kuzan POV]
It was a truly enlightening conversation with the spirit, having taken almost two weeks just to answer all of my basic questions and to extract any and all knowledge that might be pertinent.
Although I had yet to learn deeply from her about how to cast the 'mystic arts,' I had grasped a pretty good idea of the general 'system' of things in this world.
I had used the oldest trick in the book, the carrot and the stick, the latter, however, being unnecessary after how badly I had traumatized the poor girl.
As she continued to feed me more information, I continued to increase her quality of life, giving her more and more amenities such as water and even clearing the wall of flames.
I would have given her more, but Dryads truly were creatures unlike anything I had seen before, needing nothing but water and some sunlight to survive in the short term.
'Call it Stockholm syndrome, but she's become much less scared after a certain point.'
I had paid no effort in hiding my curiosity as I continued to hound her with my questions, not becoming angry or impatient should she not have an answer.
We had even reached the point where we could talk comfortably face to face while sitting together over a cup of tea. She had grown less impassive, having even thrown out her charade of talking and appearing like a noble guardian of the forest, now instead speaking much less formally.
I had even tested the spirit today, giving her the opportunity to free herself from her shackles and to run away, however, she had done no such thing.
'It was surprising; after all, I no longer have to worry about her escape, but it also meant that she truly had a deal to propose.'
I was constantly dismissing her words, not being interested in her machinations to try and escape, or for whatever other reason she had conjured up this proposal.
However, after no longer having anything else to ask, it was as good a time as any to flatter her before her release.
After all, I was confident in being able to outrun her and not being tracked down a second time if I exerted enough caution.
"So Isabel," I spoke to the spirit, using its name instead of just its species as I had gotten used to speaking with her, "what's your bargain?"
"You mentioned that you sought me out after seeing my hunt of that serpent, why? What is it that you desire?"
Although I had gotten more comfortable with the spirit's presence after learning of its abilities and the time we had spent together, there was no reason for me yet to give up my true identity. Thus, I continued my 'demonic' act, despite it doing little to scare the girl any longer.
"Great demon of Hellfire," the girl answered with respect, calling me by a title she herself had made up, "it was for the forest. A Basilisk Queen has made the inner forest her home..."
'Interesting...'
This world was truly fascinating, not only with its many wonderful creatures but also with the many opportunities for 'fun' that awaited.
"Did it form a dungeon?" I asked the girl sweetly, doing my best to hide the grin surfacing on my face, an effort I succeeded in despite the spirit answering yes.
Dungeons, typically seen as treasure-filled labyrinths in common fantasy, were surprisingly straightforward here. Each one was simply a nest for a specific type of monster. A single powerful creature's lair wasn't considered a dungeon; only hives filled with dozens of its offspring earned that title in this world.
There were, however, some large cave systems in this world that housed a variety of creatures. The locals considered these more of a 'habitat' than anything else, as they were usually abandoned by civilization. Instead, the many kingdoms focused on threats much nearer to home.
'Makes sense,' I thought. 'Why would humans care about something like the Amazon rainforest when it's so far away? They'd much rather make a mountain out of a molehill in their own backyards.'
'Damn, it'd be so much easier if I could find a ruin or something. Ah, whatever, sometimes you just gotta appreciate what you have.'
"Tell me everything about the dungeon, how many of them are there?" I continued to interrogate the girl about the situation before making an informed decision. Thankfully, she had gotten used to answering my questions with the necessary clarity and explanation, no longer making assumptions about what I may or may not know.
"It hasn't been long since it has moved—" the girl, however, was cut off in her explanations by my unexpected outburst.
"WHAT?!"
I paid no attention to either her look of worry nor my undemon-like attitude in front of her as I continued to grasp at my heart, afraid that it would burst from the sheer joy at my newly gained skill that had just popped up in the status window.
It had been years since a completely new skill had unexpectedly emerged, but I found myself forgiving the system for its unfairness upon receiving this.
"It's all water under the bridge."
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[Extract Knowledge (learned)]: Grants the host the ability to delve into the deepest recesses of a target's mind and soul, extracting valuable information directly. When used correctly, this skill allows you to retrieve knowledge that the target possesses, uncovering hidden truths and insights. However, there are significant limitations: the host can only extract information that the target has willingly allowed for the host to seize.
Warning: Use of this skill on individuals with a higher level of intelligence than the host could cause severe damage, even death, due to the current level of skill development. As a result, the skill will not be effective on such individuals until it has been further refined and enhanced. Proceed with caution, as the greater the gap between the target and the host in terms of intelligence, the greater the risk. Additionally, extracting extensive information places a heavy burden on the host's mind, potentially leading to mental strain or exhaustion.
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'Control yourself, Kuzan, control, breathe, breathe...' Although I had somehow been able to control myself from starting to dance around to express my joy, I knew it was only because I had experienced it once before when I had realized the existence of this new world.
Still, despite the prior experience, despite the strengthening of my mind and body, it was proving difficult to fully contain my sheer joy at what I had just seen.
[Isabel POV]
'Yes, yes, let's go, Isabel, keep going...'
Although it had taken days, the more time I spent with the demon, the more confident I became around it.
As weird as it may sound, it seemed that I had misunderstood the 'demon,' as it was only a lack of understanding that had made us 'enemies' in the first place. The more I talked and explained, the more I was able to understand about the 'demon,' especially its nature, being more human than I had expected.
It was pretty 'nice' when it wanted to be, even loosening my restraints so I could move around more freely as well as giving me a stone slab to sit upon as we continued our discussions from the previous day.
Thus, after getting to know him better, I had decided to risk it and not leave even when the demon had considered my debt to it 'paid,' as I needed it to listen to my request for the safety of the forest.
Thankfully, the All-Mother was on my side as the demon decided to finally entertain my request.
"So Isabel, what's your bargain?" the demon spoke to me in a calm tone matching his demeanor as I took a sip from my stone cup of water.
It listened with intrigue, even asking some follow-up questions. However, just when I was sure of my success, the demon cut me off, his face now morphing into one of pure shock and disbelief.
"WHAT?!"
I grew increasingly terrified with each passing moment of his outburst. 'He's never acted like this before. Have I somehow made him mad?'
Just as I had begun to feel comfortable with the unspoken understanding I thought we had, seeing him display any emotion other than his usual cold demeanor was the last thing I expected.
It felt like a cruel joke. The demon wasn't enraged, as I had feared. Instead, he seemed filled with unsettling joy, laughing as if he had just triumphed over the underworld.
"H̸̱̠͉͆̓̇́̽̚A̸̧̬̣̝͉͊̍͜͝ͅH̴̨̙̪̯̫̼͍̖̑́̈́͜Ȃ̶̡̤͚̫̲̣̮̜̺́̔H̶̛̤͓̥̱̥͎̠̙̅̽̆̾̊̆͛̒͝Ȁ̸̤̹̈̌͝H̵̛̼̅̂̍̈́̈́̅̃̽̾A̵͓̽͋́"
A laugh, an expression of joy that was so very normal, became something truly accursed when it came out from that demon's mouth.
Suddenly, just as abruptly as it had started, the demon's laughter ceased. He stopped clutching his stomach and slowly tilted his head upwards, locking his gaze with mine. His eyes pierced through me, leaving me utterly blank.
It was a look I had seen before, reminiscent of the forest.
A look of predatory hunger.
A look that made me regret not escaping when I had the chance.
"Isabel," he spoke, never breaking eye contact, stepping closer with each word.
[Kuzan's POV]
'Darn,' I thought, realizing I had failed to keep from scaring the girl. She began to shiver the moment I let my true capabilities slip.
Fortunately, the spirit was too terrified to even think of running away. She looked like a deer caught off guard by a cheetah, unable to muster the courage to flee even when so close to its inevitable end.
"Isabel," I came closer to her than ever before after she had woken up, disregarding the possibility of any danger it might have posed, as I would soon no longer be constantly afraid due to my lack of trustworthy information.
"Do you remember our promise? That I would release you once you agree to share with me your knowledge in all and in truth?" The girl could only nod her head in response, too terrified to so much as speak.
"You were lying to me, Is-a-belllll..." I sung out her name, playing my part perfectly, "sweet sweet Isabel, why would you lie to me, not giving me everything?"
"I wasn't!" the girl denied the truth with all of her heart. Unfortunately for her, it was her heart that I was seeking.
"You don't even believe it yourself," I dismissed her claims, shutting off her pleads of mercy by holding up my hand, "I need you to believe, Isabel, I need you to believe."
"I can see into your heart, Isabel," I spoke in a whisper, blowing them quietly into the girl's ear, "you need to believe."
"Just believe..."
And she did.
She opened her heart, as I peeked into her mind, gaining more from my captive than I could have ever hoped for...