"What are you-...? Wait, you don’t mean forming a...?" Trailed off Azazel, his eyes widening in realization at what I was getting at.

"Looks like you’ve caught on, good. Form a Contract with me...that’s the only way to keep you from dying here and now. Though, I’m not sure that can be called living...you won’t have a physical form anymore, you’ll essentially be trapped inside my body, and when I die, you’ll die too.

But that said, if you agree to it, you can see for yourself how things turn out after this...well, assuming I don’t die anytime soon. I’ll give you my word that I’ll use your power to save the other Demons and help protect Izzy," I promised him, as I held out my hand towards him.

"You...you can’t be serious?" He responded incredulously.

"I sure am. Of course, I’d be lying if said I wouldn’t use your power for my own benefit too. I’ll use it against all my enemies, not just the ones Izzy and I share in common. But I’ll promise you this much...I won’t do anything that would jeopardize Izzy in any way."

"No, that’s not what I meant...a Contract with a Demon is quite different to forming one with a different Monster. The same applies to True Dragons and Elder Vampires, an intentional breach of Contract would result in inevitable death, and it won’t be instant, it-...," He began wide-eyed.

"Mhm, I know. If I break the terms of the agreement we based the Contract upon, my very soul will be subject to unimaginable agony and I’ll die a slow, painful death. That’s exactly why the three most powerful Monster races have never formed Contracts with humans before, at least as far as anyone knows...well, aside from the fact that they all hate humans, of course.

So, if my word alone isn’t enough for you, that’s fine. You’ll essentially have a guarantee that I can’t break my word. To sum it up, if we form the Contract on the basis that I use the power to help save the Demons and never deliberately use it in a way that’d be to Izzy’s detriment, I’ll die if I break my word.

There’s another reason I’ve agreed to this...it’s been made clear to me that Demons dislike deceit and acting dishonorably. Which means that, if I help save the other Demons, not to mention having formed a Contract with one of their comrades, it’s highly unlikely that they’ll consider me an enemy.

And to be blunt, I’d much rather have Demons as friends instead of enemies. It’s a matter of practicality. You should decide quickly, from the looks of it, you’ve probably got no more than a handful of sveond left. So...what do you say?" I inquired, as the cracks began to crumble, his body starting to fall apart.

"Hah...hahahaha, well now, I certainly didn’t see this coming! What an interesting proposal, human...very well, then! I must have gone insane, entrusting my very being to a human after being enslaven by humans for over two centuries! Hm, what was it that you said before...regardless of race or species, wasn’t it? Yes, I like it...very well, then!" He grinned, as he raised his hand and placed his palm on my chest, a large, complex Magic Circle forming there as I felt a surreal energy enveloping me.

This feels so weird...but it also feels like I’m getting stronger. My body, it’s changing...since I’ve regenerated so many times, I can tell, the internal structure of my body is undergoing changes.

"Woah...," Muttered Izzy, as a bright glow shone out...woah is right, I can literally feel the Mana in the air around us, it’s like we’re inside a dense cloud of the stuff.

H-holy...there’s memories and emotions flowing into me, it’s so overwhelming...I think our minds just got linked, I can sense it, the terms of the Contract are being established.

It’s happening almost subconsciously, and yet I can feel it so clearly, like it’s being imprinted onto my very being...it’s an indescribable sensation, I literally can’t put it into words. It’s almost like I’m dreaming and wide awake at the same time somehow.

I...I can feel the pain in his memories and emotions, the suffering he endured while under the control of the Agate Knight Order and Royalty. I can even get a sense for how he thinks, the way his mind works...

"Hm, it’s almost done...but I’ve all but maxed out your body’s capacity for this. And a fraction of my life energy is yet to assimilate into you. You have almost completely realised your full Mana capacity, that’s what’s getting in the way of the assimilation. And the small surplus of my life energy that’s remaining may damage your body if I try to force it in.

It wouldn’t make too significant a difference if I simply let the excess energy go to waste, but that’d be a shame...so, instead, I shall imbue the leftover energy into your weapon," Suggested Azazel, as his body began to turn transparent, the bright glow around us intensifying sharply.

"So, my whip’s getting a Demonic upgrade, huh? Cool, I definitely have no complaints about that," I grinned, as he completed assimilating his life energy into my body and my Soul Weapon.

"I must say...I’m grateful that Lady Izzozon encountered a human like y-...no, let me rephrase that. I’m grateful that she found a friend like you...you may be a rather sneaky and deceptive individual, which was made quite clear during our fight, but I can see it in your eyes...you possess a strong will and spirit.

What’s more, when we began the Contract process, our minds were linked...I’ve gained a good understanding of what kind of individual you are. And now, I’m relieved that I didn’t end up killing you. I have to admit, I was a bit conflicted when I first found out that she’d befriended a human...," He smiled wryly.

"Well, I mean, she’s basically my sister in law at this point, so she’s pretty much family," I muttered awkwardly.

"You’re freaking me out, Larrk. You never say such touching and sappy stuff usually...," Remarked Izzy in bewilderment, before adding, "Why are you being so much nicer than usual? Did you hit your head or something?"

I mean, my head definitely took some damage in that fight, sooo...

"Not a word about this to the others. I’ll deny that I said any of it," I huffed as I averted my gaze.

"I see, your sister in law, that’s-...," Nodded Azazel with a smile, before pausing as his eyes widened and the Contract process began to finish up, "W-wait, what!?"

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