Chapter 68

Mental Education (2)

The Devil’s sword relentlessly poured out profanities and curses. The old scene of it tempting me with sweet words, like a tongue in my mouth, was nowhere to be found, unlike when I first held it in my hands. Now it seemed that it had nothing, but wickedness, left in it.

‘I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you by any means!’

The holy-type metal that constituted the molten statue was called [Telabrium]. The pain the thing with the evil property had felt while being submerged in the [Telabrium] furnace for a few days must have been more terrible than the torment of a man being set on fire alive. Thanks to my adjustment of the furnace’s temperature, the Devil’s sword’s blades did not melt, but it was exposed to endless pain, resulting in it losing all reason and proper judgment.

Listening to the struggle, I snorted and spoke, “How can you kill someone when you’re just a soul trapped in a sword? You’re only a stationary object that has no power to crawl out of the furnace by itself if no one holds you in his hand and moves you.”

‘You son of a biiiiiiitch!’

“Come on. It’s been a while since we’ve talked.”

When I first found it in the dungeon, the sword lost its senses and fell into a deep sleep. The same thing would happen if I didn’t regularly talk to it while holding the handle. It was something I never wanted to happen. The sword had to suffer hellish pain and gradually feel fear beyond anger. The goal of the mental education, as I intended, was to instill appalling and hopeless fears into its mind.

“Now, are you ready to accept the contract?”

It answered with much malicious telepathy, ‘Crazy bastard! I don’t know where the word contract keeps coming from but mentioning those in front of me as a puny human like you is….!’

“You talk a lot for an immobile object.”

Puhk!

I didn’t even finish listening to the telepathy and stuck the blade back in the molten metal.

Bllgh!

A mental wave screamed, as if its soul was squeezed, and echoed in my head. I had a headache, but I held it in. Instead of dipping it and waiting, I stirred it around the furnace while holding the handle, like how one stirs a liquid with the spoon. As I did so, the scream became more ferocious and desperate.

Tssss!

With acrid smoke, the sword reappeared over the gold-colored molten [Telabrium].

‘You motherfucking···· Bastard·····!’

Perhaps it is a bit weary; the mental wave was filled with deep agony and despair.

“There’s no way to manipulate me anymore since the [Whisper of the Sword] is fundamentally blocked, right? To put it in other words, I can do whatever I want with you, when you are only a sword, as I hold the handle. It was a mistake to be complacent even in this situation. You can bother me with loud telepathy, but you jumped to the conclusion that there’s no way that I can’t bother you. But what do we do? I’ve found a way.”

“So, have you thought about it when you dipped yourself in the warm furnace? About the Contract?”

‘Such a puny human like you….!’

“Is it hurting your ego that a human like me is talking about the ‘contract’ in front of the Devil? Perhaps it’s something in your area of expertise?”

‘You bastaaaard!’

“I’m sorry, but I know better than just hearing about you. About the Contract of your kind.”

The devils were the ones who tempted, harassed, and dominated. The Contract was the tool they used to dominate those who have the slightest crack in their minds and had shown their true colors. The temptation to become the sword’s true master was also a tactic to sign a verbal contract. As soon as one accepted, he handed everything over to the Devil. A Devil’s Contract is simply to put each other’s souls as collateral and create a binding force.

“Contract for the soul. For it to come true, both parties must accept the Contract with free will. Is that right?”

The Devil’s sword did not immediately respond. Their Contract is a terrifying double-edged sword that damages the spirit of the one who breaks it. Concluding the Contract is an act of risk for the Devil as well, for both souls are held as collateral. Therefore, the devils write the Contract in their favor. The Devil himself, therefore, does not have to break the Contract, as he has numerous rights and no obligations to partake.

“The former masters who accepted the offer without knowing the meaning of ‘true master’ would have all become your faithful servants. After hearing the sweet words of that, they will be able to know the sword movements of all its past owners, without knowing the truth behind it. Even if so, a contract must have been made. Just as paper contracts that are signed without properly having read, still hold power.” Simply put, a fraudulent contract. However, there was no court to accept the nullity suit because there was no escape clause.

The Devil’s sword let out its mind waves in dismay.

‘What the hell… are you, bastard!’

I went on, “I want you to make a proper deal with me, the Contract that your kind loves so much. But this time, I drafted it. And let me tell you in advance that I have no intention of negotiating the contents or changing it as you wish. It’s a draft, but it’s already the final version.”

The Devil’s Contract was plastered with provisions, in its favor, to then seduce the man. Now I was trying to do exactly the opposite. Instead, I made a contract in my favor, forcing the Devil to accept it.

‘You crazy human!’

The Devil’s sword snapped at me, ‘You’re going to design and compose our Contract? It’s not even funny. If that were possible, all kinds of species would have done that long ago!’

“Of course, I am not a real devil, so I can’t make a verbal contract like you. So, I prepared a more formal contract.”

I took out and unfolded the magic paper used to make the scroll. Then I stuck out the dark red texts written on it in front of the sword.

And as the sword saw it, ‘This… Can’t be.’

It was the most violently agitated response ever. It was natural because the letters written on the paper were familiar to the Devil.

‘How can you speak the official language of demons!’

This was their own script that encompassed all dimensions and was used by demons to form a contract. It was one of the basic materials that made up the contract magic.

I, who was not the Devil, can form a contract if I had this. It was very old, and a language and text composed through a difficult principle so that other races couldn’t learn easily. Still, I’d already memorized it perfectly in my previous life.

Whether the species may be of Archid or Devil, there was no problem in remembering them.

‘···But!’ He tried to deny it, ‘Even if you imitate our texts, you can’t activate them! Stop making all these silly tricks and make me……!’

“You mean that the most important component of the Contract is missing, right? The name of the contractor,” I smiled as I had expected it and flipped to the next page of the Contract.

The Devil’s sword’s mind waves stopped when it saw the page. It must have been the reaction of being unexpectantly baffled. A text was written at the bottom of the page, the second and last pages.

– To comply with the above provisions, the promisor and promisee undertake this thorough implementation with their souls as collateral.

And it was identified who the promisor and promisee were.

– Promisee: Seo Jin-Wook.

The name of another being written next to it.

– Promisor: Genograche.

The name required for a contract could not be a socially promised title, but rather an identity in which the parties to the Contract and, more precisely, the spirit of its existence, perceived itself. In addition, he saw something unexpected in the Mahjong script written at the bottom of the Contract. His real name, which was called a long time ago.

‘You….’

As the shock sunk in, like cold water being poured over a hot head, the Devil’s Sword calmed. After a brief pause, the mind waves were even more subdued.

‘You knew everything from the start ···!’

Yeah, I knew. The first owner of this sword piled a mountain with demon corpses and cut off so many demons; their blood could have formed an ocean. It was also the Devil and was called Genograche. And somehow, after it died, its soul was sealed to the sword that it was using. Since then, the spirit trapped in the sword had dealt with the frustration and anger accumulated over the years in a wicked way.

By dominating the body of the sword wielder and slaughtering innocent lives.

“Yes, Genograche.”

I pointed my finger at the last line of the Contract, “As a human trying to recreate the Devil’s Contract, there were many troublesome procedures that could be skipped if it was only a verbal contract. But it was easier since I already knew your name.”

It murmured as if it had belatedly realized a shocking conclusion.

‘I was caught in your trap from the beginning!’

No, well, it was hard to define it as a trap.

‘You, what the hell are you?’

The spirit of the sealed Devil murmured vaguely, ‘Showing a perfect immunity to mental type attacks that did not exist in reality, setting the stage as if you’ve known every moment of the future, even my name that was forgotten ages ago? How can a human, such a puny human do so much?’

It scattered its mental wave as if it were defeated.

‘Why must it be a guy like you that gets to hold this handle!’

The truth was, if I hadn’t stepped in, it could have slaughtered more over the next few years. It would have seduced and harassed Randy when it got itself in his hands, instead of completely giving in. However, I had changed it in this life.

I thought about it. ‘It’s about time.’

It was time to wrap this up. I stimulated the fear that must have begun to bloom from its mind.

“Actually, it’s not impossible for me to swing you right away without you accepting this Contract. Even if you try to blur my mind with all kinds of curses and profanities… my mental strength is not weak enough to fall for such things. It’s just a little annoying.”

It must have begun to think that way.

“However, if you don’t accept the Contract, I will always, every day, unconditionally, put you in this furnace, aside for the short time that I swing you. This [Telabrium] furnace will be a sheath and sanctuary.”

As if it couldn’t control itself due to the heightened emotions, intense telepathy leaked out that could not be translated into words.

It’d only been about a week since I put him in the furnace. It barely managed to survive that hellish time, and it would no doubt be able to survive if this continued. Some kinds of pain didn’t diminish just because they were repeated and prolonged. On the contrary, there are types of pain that you become more sensitive to the longer you are exposed. The pain caused by the properties of the pole belongs to the latter.

“Now, aren’t you getting scared? If this torture continues, you’ll go mad one day. Being crazy doesn’t make you feel less pain, you know. Rather, you will be exposed to pain without protection because of your mental state and hit rock bottom. The willingness to hold on and endure will have completely disappeared. And being crazy means that the only factor that proves yourself right now will have altered or disappeared.” I was speaking of the fact that this spirit had no physical body other than the sword. Mental illness would have been totally different for him. Could crazy humans be considered as the same person, compared to before they went mad? Apart from the existential criteria, at least from a physical perspective, it may be so. But the body remains unchanged and exists. However, being crazy for a spirit without a true body in the first place is no different from the destruction of its existence. It meant that the only component that proves itself was flawed and broken.

It was a death sentence for them.

“I’m willing to give you one last chance, even though I might just sit by and watch you go crazy. Because I like things to be certain. Now, read it again.”

The Contract listed a long sentence, but in summary, it was like this.

– The Promisor (Devil’s sword) shall not engage in any direct or indirect harm to Promisee(Seo Jin-Wook) and shall obey the order of Promisee(Seo Jin-Wook).

– The Promisor (Devil’s sword) must be as sincere as possible in responding to requests and questions from Promisee(Seo Jin-Wook).

– The Promisor (Devil’s sword) shall not recommend or induce any other person to sign a separate contract without the approval of Promisee(Seo Jin-Wook). (i.e., You can’t say anything about being a true master to anyone.)

– As long as the Promisor (Devil’s sword) complies with the Contract, Promisee(Seo Jin-Wook) does not torture Promisor (Devil’s sword) with the [Telabrium] furnace.

– This Agreement shall remain in effect until either of the parties expires.

‘If this guy goes crazy, it may shut its mouth for good, but on the contrary, there is a possibility that it may be more frenzied and run wild. It can’t even be guaranteed that it won’t affect the performance of the sword. It’s not necessarily a desirable scenario.’

And my biggest concern was someone other than me would grab the handle and fall into a fraud contract. What if it seduces a person and runs away even if it has gone mad? For the Devil, a contract relies on instinct.

‘It’s best for it not to be able to try such things. Bounded by the Contract.’

If it went mad, I would become a little uncomfortable or uncertain about the sword’s performance, but it would be like ceasing to exist from the point of view of the Devil’s sword. If it accepted the Contract, I could keep my mind at ease, and the Devil’s sword gets to keep its existence.

‘And intentionally, I put in a condition that the contract is valid only while I’m alive.’

If I completely blocked its retreat, The Devil’s sword could conclude that it will be trapped forever; it may choose to go crazy.

I had to give it a window for the retreat.

And he probably already understood this plan in its head.

‘Even if it could predict what I think, there is only one option for it as long of the furnace exists.’

I spoke to it again as I was enticing it, “Once again, the contract only lasts while I’m alive.”

I didn’t know when that would be, but of course, I’ll be thoroughly prepared for what happens after I die. Considering Randy’s existence, who was the original owner in the previous life, there were several ways. I hastened it to answer.

“Now, what do you do?”

The longest silence since the conversation began flowed coldly in the basement. I waited patiently. Maliciously, I thought about putting it in the furnace again so that it would make up its mind faster.

‘Can I add a few more lines to the contract?’

I clicked my tongue.

I pulled up the sword and pretended to dip it in the furnace again.

As I did that…

‘You’re a bastard, worse than the Devil! Okay! Fine! I’ll sign the Contract! Let’s make a deal!’ the sword screamed.

I smiled inwardly.