Chapter 175- Huge Trouble! (Part 1)
"Huh? What do you mean… Wait…" Hearing his words, Evelyn was confused at first as the idea that this young boy wasn't a human still didn't hit her.
But, when her mind worked and she realized that there was another race in this world that was as sane and as conscious as humans, her eyes widened to the extreme.
But, even though Rin saw that she caught on, he still affirmed her suspicions.
"He is most likely a demon… Isn't that right, Cid?" He pointed the last question to the little boy.
"Bingo! You got the right answer. How about a reward for your analysis?" Cid asked as his eye stared up, right toward Rin's.
"Wait, wait, a demon? That's impossible. Demons can't use magic…" Evelyn said.
The thing that affected the citizens is Hypnotizing magic and magic can only be used by humans. This was a widely known thing that no one, not even demons, can refute.
The fact that a demon had somehow been the culprit behind this made it so unbelievable that Evelyn tried to find ways to refute that possibility even though the reality was right in front of her. The boy Cid was a demon and a very strong one at that.
"Fuuh, how did you do it?" Rin asked as he exhaled a sigh.
"Hahahahah! I have no reason to tell you! Although I'm intrigued to see what kind of reaction you will have if you knew the truth."
"I see… You've been a slave here, no?"
"..." The moment he said those words, Cid went silent as he glared daggers at Rin.
"I've been hitting the bullseye for a while now. Well, I can see what most likely happened. You have been enslaved a long time ago and have been treated poorly by the lord of this city. I will assume this is you exacting revenge on humans?" He asked.
'He is… What is he going on with him?' From the sideline, Elise couldn't understand how Rin was reaching these conclusions in such a record time. Usually, Elise was more quick-witted than he was, not because of a difference in mental capabilities but more of a character-based difference.
Elise was a very serious, observant, and clear person so she can see things as they are. On the other hand, Rin was serious too but not as serious as she was so his mind couldn't reach conclusions as fast as Elise.
However, now, not only was he easily and perfectly hitting all the right points, he was also eerily calm when dealing with a potentially lethal demon. The boy, as misleading as he looks were, is still someone who was able to hypnotize a city of hundreds of humans.
Even Evelyn, who was far stronger than both, is still struggling to come to terms with the situation.
"Am I right, Cid?"
"..."
"Hm, why did you become silent all of a sudden? Shouldn't you continue running your mouth with that smug face?" Rin asked.
"Shut… up."
"Hm? I can't hear you, could you repeat that?"
"Shut up."
"Why? Isn't that the truth?" Rin asked.
Although Rin's words might be purposefully trying to make Cid get angrier, but, the reason for that is very simple.
'If he can break the shadow bind, then I'm going to kill him.' He thought to himself.
Cid is the only demon Rin had met that could use magic so getting to learn more about him is extremely important and crucial. However, at the same time, he can't risk putting Elise and Evelyn in danger since that could be the end for them. However, if even in his outraged state couldn't break the shadow bind then that would make it way easier.
"I SAID SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" He screamed and yelled as he tried to move his hands left and right. The frenzied movement put a slight toll on Rin but it wasn't a big trouble.
It seemed that his powers were solely reliant on his hypnotic magic.
*Swish*
"You don't have to move! You can't break that." Rin said with a mocking smile.
However, the moment he said them, Cid went motionless instantly.
"I… can't break it?" He asked. His voice had come back to its lower tone from before.
"I can't break it? I can't run away? I can't escape? I won't be able to return to my home?" He asked in a quick, unperturbed motion, one after the other.
"Rin… What is happening?" Elise approached him quickly and stood beside him while retreating toward the door.
"I don't want to be a slave, I don't want to stay imprisoned. I can't, I can't… I don't want that. I want to see my father, I want to see my mother. I want to see them." He said.
A huge strong aura erupted from Cid's body, creating a strong gush of air that sent everything inside the house into chaos.
'Shit, I might've overdone it.' Rin thought as he quickly pulled out his dagger.
"Stay here." He said to the two of them before he dashed toward Cid at his fastest speed.
He had already started feeling the pressure of the demon's power on his shadow and could immediately discern that if he let him do whatever he wanted, he would be as good as free.
Closing the distance between them while ignoring the ominous, evil aura exuding from him, Rin quickly slashed with his dagger. The blade quickly moved like flash and severed the demon's head as if it was cutting through butter.
Cid's head flew in the air as blood splurted everywhere. The evil aura vanished along with the sound of the head hitting the ground.
Instantly, the room returned back to silence.
"Tsk…" Clicking his tongue, Rin tried to get rid of the blood that fell on him.
Although at the moment he wasn't feeling any particular change in his head because of the danger that he could've faced if he let this demon live. But, for better or worse, this was Rin's first ever real kill in his entire life.
Although he had killed Kaisa, the smiling demon before, since that creature wasn't sane or conscious, it could still be considered a monster. However, Cid was an actual sane creature that had the language and a brain to communicate with humans and even trick them into believing he is a human too.
'Fuuh, calm down. It was for the sake of our safety.' He thought.
"What was that?" Evelyn muttered as he held her face.
This was the first time in her entire life that she felt overwhelmed by something. Even though she considered herself a very calm and composed person no matter the situation, but seeing how absurd and successive the events that occurred in the last few minutes were, she started questioning whether that was really the case or were the things she saw simply no absurd enough to challenge her mental fortitude.
On the other hand, Elise simply walked toward Rin in pure silence. He was still giving her his back so neither she nor Evelyn could see his face.
When she was close enough, she extended her arm and touched his shoulder then whispered softly in a worried voice.
"Are you ok, Rin?"
She didn't care about the demon, or what could've happened if Rin didn't kill him. Hell, she didn't even think twice about the mystery of the origin of this demon's power nor how he was able to escape the shackles that the lord put him under. All she cared about at that second was Rin.
She was sure that this was the first time Rin actually killed a conscious being and she knew how strong the effect of that thing was on him. He could be going through a swirl of thoughts that would only push him down, for all she cares.
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just… slightly weird that's all." He replied in a confused yet calm tone.
"..." Elise kept staring at him silently as if trying to read his mind.
"I'm really fine." Rin chuckled awkwardly at her glance and tried to change the topic.
"I was sure he would've broken the chain if I didn't kill him. I guess I should've not pushed him that far."
"So he was indeed a slave?"
"Yeah, almost every demon in the human realm is enslaved, killed, or both." He said, recalling the scene he saw in that pocket dimension when Maria led them there.
Those demons may seem to be alive, but they are dead as far as Rin was concerned. Being stuck in darkness for years and years wasn't a life, that was death itself if not even worse.
In a sense, Cid was nothing but another victim of this stupid struggle between humans and Demons. He might be an evil human being by human standards, however, by his standards, he was simply exacting a well-deserved revenge for the people that were the reason for his suffering.
'This can't go for any longer… It really can't… Blood is being shed for no reason.' Rin thought as he was about to turn around and leave. He can't handle the look on Cid's dead face, it was pained, sad, and regretful yet also mournful.
But, as he was about to do so, something happened.
*Swish*
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