Blade of the Demon Hunt

Chapter 6 be fooled

Amir was wrapped in bandages, his face full of frustration.Since his injury was on his back, he could only lie on his stomach in bed, and any slight movement would tug at the wound, causing intense pain.But more than the pain of the wound, what irritated him even more was the smiling man sitting in front of him. The more Amir looked at the man's grin, the more he felt an overwhelming urge to punch it off his face.D took a moment to enjoy the conflicted expression on Amir's face, then cheerfully said, "We're family now, so just relax and focus on recovering. There's nothing else for you to worry about for the time being."Hearing this only made Amir more upset rather than reassured. That damn bastard, he thought. If only he could get out of bed, he'd rush over and pluck out every single one of that smug little mustache, just to see if the guy could still keep smiling.Of course, that was assuming he could actually get out of bed.He hadn't expected that monster—no, that demon—to cause such severe injuries with a single blow. The thought of facing such an enemy in the future filled him with a sense of hopelessness.Could he back out now?As if reading his thoughts, D wagged his index finger with a mischievous grin and said, "Once the contract is signed, there's no backing out. Otherwise, you'll face sanctions from headquarters. Very scary, you know.""That was clearly fraud!" Amir yelled angrily, pushing himself up only to wince in pain as his abrupt movement pulled at his wound. He let out a pained groan and slumped back down."Now, now, don't say it like that," D chuckled, looking like a cat that had just gotten into the cream. "Let's just say you were too naive, too quick to trust others."Amir was speechless. "So it's all his fault?"Looking back, Amir remembered the moment he had pressed his handprint on the contract. Right after, D had tossed a prepared pill into his mouth. Then, with a cheerful clap, D had said with a grin, "Oh my, I didn't expect you to fall for it so easily."What? Amir swallowed the antidote pill, looking up in confusion."Heh, it was just a joke," D had chuckled, stroking the mustache at the corner of his mouth. "Even if you hadn't agreed to join, I would have given you the antidote anyway. I thought it would take some convincing, but you actually believed me. In the future, you shouldn't trust others so easily, especially suspicious-looking strangers. And, of course, you should be cautious even with familiar faces who don't seem suspicious."Amir felt a wave of frustration wash over him. Had he really been tricked?After that, unable to move, he had no choice but to let D take him to the Demon Hunter Guild's district in the magic capital. There, he was handled by several people in matching uniforms, who fussed over him before finally leaving him to lie quietly in bed.As Amir recalled the entire ordeal, he still felt a deep sense of anger and frustration."Hehehe, you're injured and need to rest, so I won't disturb you any further," D said with an unusually cheerful grin as he stood up. "Once you're able to move around, come find me. I'll give you a detailed introduction to our guild." With that, he gave an exaggerated courtly bow and backed out of the room, leaving Amir to his thoughts.Amir resigned himself to lying back on the bed.Initially, he had assumed that his injuries would keep him bedridden for at least a week. However, after just one night's sleep, Amir awoke feeling completely refreshed. He moved around a bit, and aside from a slight itching sensation on his back, he felt no pain at all.Puzzled, he sat up and began unwrapping the bandages, craning his neck in an attempt to see the state of his back. Just then, there was a soft knock on the door."Come in," Amir called out. No sooner had the words left his mouth than a petite, pretty girl opened the door and stepped inside."Oh, how did you get up on your own?" the girl exclaimed as she rushed to the bed, trying to push Amir back down.Amir felt a bit embarrassed. With the bandages removed, his upper body was now bare, and being pressed down by such a pretty girl was something he hadn't anticipated at all.A faint, pleasant fragrance wafted to his nose, causing Amir's face to flush."Uh, I'm fine now," Amir stammered, turning his face away in embarrassment."Really?" The girl released her hold, moving around to inspect Amir's back. After a thorough look, she exclaimed in surprise, "The wound is completely healed! Your body's amazing.""Hehe," Amir let out an awkward chuckle, though he secretly agreed that it was indeed impressive."Come to think of it, all you hunters seem to have remarkable healing abilities," the girl remarked, straightening up and reflecting on it with a sigh."Really?" Amir was a bit puzzled. He hadn't always been like this. Could it have something to do with that dagger?Amir was momentarily taken aback by the girl's cute, animal-like expression, and after a brief pause, he asked, "Uh, may I ask your name?" After chatting for so long, he still didn't know who this girl was."Oh, I almost forgot!" the girl said, slapping her forehead before standing up straight. "I'm Dina, the internal affairs officer of the guild's Magic City division. I assist Chairman D with various tasks. It's a pleasure to meet you, Officer Amir.""Officer Amir?" Amir found the title a bit odd."Um, Lord Amir?" Dina, thinking he wasn't satisfied, hesitantly tried a different title."Uh, why the formal title?" Amir asked, slightly choking on his words."Because in the guild, hunters outrank internal affairs officers," Dina replied matter-of-factly."You can just call me Brother Amir," Amir said, sweating a little."How can I call you 'Brother' when you're younger than me?" Dina asked, puzzled."I'm twenty-five," Amir replied, wiping away his sweat. This girl looked like she wasn't even twenty; how could she possibly be older than him?"Wait, really?" The girl was clearly shocked, her face showing disbelief.Do I really look that young? Amir thought, feeling a mix of embarrassment and frustration."Ahem." Realizing she might have been a bit rude, Dina cleared her throat to ease the awkwardness. Then she straightened up and said seriously, "Um, Brother Amir, Chairman D asked me to check on you. If you're able to move, please follow me to see him.""Uh, okay." Amir thought to himself how quickly the girl had changed the subject.Since his coat was too damaged to wear, Amir had to put on the new coat that had been prepared for him. Draping it over his shoulders, he followed Dina out of the room.The place was huge, and Amir lost track of how many turns they made before entering an unbelievably large study. Three of the room's walls were lined with bookshelves that stretched from floor to ceiling, filled with original editions in various languages from different countries. The sight was truly impressive. In the center of the room was an oversized desk, behind which D sat, grinning at them as they entered."Hey, you look like you're recovering well," D said, raising his right hand to wave at Amir.Amir smiled politely and walked over to sit down across the desk from D.After Dina served them tea, she quietly left the room, leaving the two of them alone."Don't you have any questions?" D asked first. "If you have any doubts, feel free to ask. We're all on the same side now, so no need to be shy."I'm not shy, Amir thought, though he was tempted to snap back at D. He decided against it, recognizing that arguing with this man would only end up causing him more trouble.After calming down, Amir finally spoke up: "I'd like to understand more about demons and the guild. And also, what's the deal with that dagger?""You've asked quite a few questions at once, so I'll answer them one by one," D said with a grin. "Which one would you like to hear first?""Anything is fine," Amir replied, finding the conversation with D rather exhausting."Alright, let's start with the demons," D said, propping his elbow on the desk and resting his chin on his hand. "Do you remember what I told you before?"Amir thought for a moment before realizing that D was referring to the comments made when he had been stopped on the street that day. At the time, he had dismissed them as nonsense, so he shook his head."We don't know where demons come from," D said, narrowing his eyes. Though he smiled, there was a coldness in his gaze. "What we do know is that they can change their appearance to blend in with humans, making them nearly impossible to identify. There could be demons among your relatives and friends, and you wouldn't even know.""Demons feed on humans and are inherently cunning and evil. They have naturally superior physical abilities compared to humans, with strength and speed far beyond ordinary people. Higher-level demons even possess special abilities. For demons, humans are both food and energy. The more humans a demon consumes, the stronger and higher in rank they become. The demon you encountered was merely a low-level C-class demon. Above C-class, there are B-class, A-class, and the rarely seen S-class demon lords. Regardless of their rank, ordinary weapons are ineffective against them. They are, in essence, humanity's natural enemies.""Wow, if they're that powerful, does that mean they're invincible?" Amir's eyes widened in disbelief. It sounded as if humanity had no way to fight back and was doomed to be preyed upon."In this world, everything has its counter," D said with a smile, shaking his finger as if to say, "You're too naive." "If demons are humanity's natural enemies, then there's something that counters demons."He pointed to Amir's wrist.Following D's gesture, Amir looked down at the pattern on his right wrist. He noticed that the color of the pattern seemed slightly darker."Monster-hunting weapons are the only things in this world that can kill demons," D explained."Actually, I'm not too sure," the girl admitted, sticking out her tongue sheepishly, her cheeks turning a little red. "I haven't met many hunters."