Blade of the Demon Hunt

Chapter 3 The Monster

For the next few days, nothing unusual happened, and Amir began to think that the events of that night might have been a dream. However, the pattern on his wrist continued to remind him that it was not a dream. The strangeness of the situation made him reluctant to mention it to Abbas, fearing it might cause unnecessary trouble for him.Yet, despite the terror of that night, Amir was plagued by more immediate concerns—like finding a job.The world might be full of the fantastical, but he still couldn't find employment. It seemed absurd.He began to wonder if he was cursed by the pattern. Why was he failing every job interview? With a bachelor's degree, a clean record, and good health, it seemed unreasonable that he couldn't land a job.Could it be his appearance? But he didn't think he looked that bad.Amir's appearance was indeed not unattractive—he had fair skin, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, standing at a standard height of 1.76 meters. Although he didn't fit the current trend of single-eyelid handsome guys, his youthful-looking baby face made him appear a few years younger than his actual age. Nonetheless, he looked clean and sunny.After facing numerous rejections from job applications, Amir now appeared a bit dispirited, walking with his head down."Excuse me, sir, may I have a few minutes of your time?" a deep, magnetic voice called out from behind him.Amir glanced around but saw no one else nearby, so it must be him they were addressing."Sorry, I'm in a hurry," Amir said without stopping or turning his head. Typically, when approached by strangers on the street, it meant they were salespeople trying to pitch their products. If he stopped, they would persistently try to engage him until he was compelled to open his wallet. Therefore, his usual strategy was to ignore them."Sir, please wait a moment. I assure you, I am not a suspicious person," the voice persisted behind him.Suspicious people wouldn't admit to being suspicious. Ignore, ignore, ignore. Amir kept walking until he reached the next intersection and turned the corner. Finally, he slowed his pace, feeling winded—he realized he'd been lacking exercise lately."Sir, can you spare a moment to hear me out?" The magnetic voice sounded again, startling Amir.Damn, this guy is really persistent. Can't he find someone else to pitch? Why follow me for so long?With these thoughts running through his mind, Amir turned around, his mouth twitching, and faced the speaker. "Sorry, I don't have any money on me. I can't buy anything. So please don't waste your time, find someone else.""Hehe, no need to buy anything," the person seemed a bit surprised by Amir's response. After a moment of pause, he smiled and said, "I just want to inquire about something.""Not a salesperson?" Amir asked skeptically."No, I'm not," the person replied with a friendly smile."Ah, well, you could have said that earlier and saved me the trouble of running away," Amir said, taking a breath and sounding slightly annoyed."You didn't give me a chance to speak," the person replied with a chuckle."So, what do you want to inquire about? Directions?" Amir finally took a good look at the individual.The man in front of Amir was probably in his thirties, handsome with a meticulously groomed mustache, exuding a distinctly British gentlemanly charm. His three-piece vintage suit looked somewhat extravagant, as if he had stepped straight out of a medieval-style oil painting, missing only a hat and a cane. Everything about him seemed particularly suspicious.Amir instinctively took a step back."Here's my business card," the man said with a very polite demeanor, handing over a card. He then smiled and asked, "I'd like to know if you're interested in joining our guild.""What? A pyramid scheme?" Amir took the card with confusion and looked down. The card prominently displayed the words "Demon Hunter Guild" in shiny gold letters, with a line of dark red smaller text underneath: "Shanghai Division President."Amir's mouth twitched slightly as he said, "I don't play online games.""No, no, it's not a game." The man with the mustache seemed surprised by Amir's reaction. "We're a guild that hunts demons existing in the real world.""Demons?" Amir couldn't help but take a step back, distancing himself from the man."Yes, demons. Those evil beings hiding among us, disguised as humans. They approach people to lower their guard, and once they've gained their trust, they reveal their fangs and strike." The man waved his arms as if giving a speech on stage."That sounds truly terrifying," Amir said, half-heartedly responding while quietly taking a few steps back."We're looking for special individuals with the ability to fight demons. These individuals are chosen by fate and destined to become exceptional demon hunters. There is a mark somewhere on their bodies that proves their identity." The man with the mustache grew increasingly excited, his tone exaggerated. "Finding these people and working alongside them to eradicate demons is our guild's duty.""That sounds really tough," Amir thought to himself, feeling that this guy was quite delusional."And you, sir, are exactly the person we're looking for," the man suddenly pointed at Amir."Eh?" Amir was confused about how the conversation had suddenly shifted to him. "Aren't we talking about 'demons' and 'hunters' in some sort of fantasy story? Are you sure you've got the right person?" He didn't want to get involved with such strange things."No, I can't be mistaken." The man shook his head, then continued, "You definitely have a destined mark on your body. To prove what I'm saying, may I see your body?"body？Amir awkwardly chuckled and took a few steps back before quickly turning and running away."Wait!" The man could only manage to say one word before Amir had already vanished in a cloud of smoke.With a resigned sigh, the man muttered to himself, "He runs really fast. Was I that intimidating? Bai Ye said he saw a weapon on him, but was it really there?"After running off in a hurry, Amir felt a bit agitated.Damn it, how is it that I keep running into weirdos while just walking down the street? Is my luck just that bad lately?Noticing that he was still holding the man's business card, he absentmindedly stuffed it into his wallet. At that moment, his phone rang, and looking down, he saw it was an unknown number."Hello, is this Mr. Amir?""This is he. May I ask who's calling?" Amir replied, puzzled."I'm from the HR department of xx Company. We reviewed the resume you submitted a few days ago, and the company has decided to offer you the position. The probation period is three months. Please come to our office tomorrow morning to report." The woman's voice was cold and formal.Amir was thrilled to hear the news. He quickly accepted the offer and asked a few follow-up questions before ending the call.Though he had no recollection of xx Company, with the sheer volume of resumes he had sent out recently, it was understandable. Regardless, this was a positive development and possibly a sign that his bad luck was coming to an end.Laughing like a maniac, Amir decided to celebrate the news by inviting Abbas out for dinner. The earlier encounter with the strange and creepy person was already forgotten.The next morning, Amir dressed up in his interview suit and went to xx company.However, when he went to the HR department to report, he was told that there was no such position available. The company was currently downsizing due to operational issues and could not hire any new employees at this time.Unwilling to give up, Amir dialed the number from the previous night's call from his phone records, only to be answered by an elderly woman whose voice was barely understandable.Amir almost threw his phone in frustration. Who the hell was playing this prank? He was already having a rough time and now someone decided to mess with him. Did they think he was easy to bully?Despite his extreme frustration, there was nothing he could do. Unable to find out who was behind the prank and unable to argue with xx company, he had no choice but to leave dejectedly.As he walked down the street, he looked at the strange black pattern on his wrist and thought that since he picked up the dagger, nothing good had happened. Could it really be the curse of this thing?As Amir was thinking, he noticed the black pattern on his wrist growing increasingly hot and slowly turning red, as if being heated by intense flames. The burning sensation pierced his skin, and he gripped his wrist tightly with his other hand, looking around desperately for something to cool it down."Well, we meet again," came a somewhat familiar voice.Amir turned toward the voice. As soon as he lifted his head, a sharp pain struck his forehead. He barely saw a blurry shadow before everything went dark, and he collapsed.The newcomer, seeing that Amir was out cold, quickly lifted him and threw him into the trunk of a nearby SUV. Without any hesitation, they started the vehicle and left the scene.Everything happened so fast that the newcomer didn't notice a figure stepping out of the shadows of a wall about thirty meters away, quietly watching as they drove away.