Demon and the Mage (Jeongcheol)

Jeonghan

You made a deal with a devil.

Time to pay up.

Calling in my favour.

Come back to me.

Come back to me.

There was nothing but darkness and Seungcheol's voice.

Come back to me.

Come back to me.

I clung to the bond with both hands. My power and life were drifting away, flaking off me like dried pieces of paint as I groped along the bond.

But I'd made a deal.

That magic was just enough to show me the way back to Seungcheol.

Back to life.

Come back to me.

Come back to me.

I didn't really care if this was my time to die. I'd lived a long and happy life, and I'd even experienced true love right at the end of it.

But letting Seungcheol die too? No. There was no way.

So I groped my way along in the darkness, focusing on his voice.

Come back to me.

It felt like it took an eternity, but eventually, I reached the end of the bond. There was a rushing sensation like I was inside a rocket catapulted skywards. With a slam, I landed back in my body.

I gasped, immediately wincing at the pain in every inch of my body. My lips were crusted with blood and my eyes were difficult to open.

But I was alive.

I was no longer dying.

And more importantly, neither was Seungcheol.

I forced my eyes open. Seungcheol stared down at me in shock, his mouth open. "Holy shit, it worked."

"Couldn't have us dying and missing out on all the fun," I replied, my voice hoarse. Sounds of the ongoing battle reached my ears. I knew the others were mainly here for Seungcheol, but just the thought that they'd come for me too made me feel all warm and fuzzy. "Thank you for coming for me."

"Like I'd let you get away that easy," he quipped. "Anyway, we need to—"

Everything happened in slow motion.

Seungcheol's words cut off.

His brows drew together as we both looked down.

At the sword sticking through his chest.

The silver vanished as quickly as it appeared.

My heart leapt into my throat as I felt Seungcheol's end of the bond flutter. It stayed steady, though, as his eyes rolled back in his head and he crashed backwards onto the floor.

That was good. Whoever had snuck up on us wasn't powerful enough to end him permanently.

That didn't mean I wasn't going to make them pay.

My power was returning quickly, no doubt boosted by Seungcheol's magic. I stood from his lifeless body, dark malevolence on my face. A couple of feet away, a demon sneered at me, all stringy hair and thin-lipped.

"Don't know what all the fuss is about," he leered, jabbing the sword in Seungcheol's direction. "He's not hard to kill."

Letting my power gather, I flashed my teeth at the demon. "Fortunately, neither are you."

With a snap of my fingers, the demon's blood drained from his body and pooled in the air in front of me. Before he'd even hit the floor, I'd gathered the liquid into a ball and shoved it down the throat of another lower demon trying to sneak around a corner.

While he choked to death on the blood of his comrade, I shoved Seungcheol back against the wall. I needed to keep him safe until he reincarnated. If a higher demon showed up before he came around and I couldn't fight him off, we were both fucked.

I scanned the dim basement. It was full of noise and bodies. Vernon, Joshua, and Soonyoung were fighting off multiple higher demons. An angel stood back to back with Soonyoung, striking down anyone who came within six feet of them, using his whip and a wicked-looking sword.

Even Toby was here. I watched as he proved just how effective he was with his stake. Even though he couldn't kill them permanently, he could incapacitate them long enough for one of the demons or Jihoon to make the killing shot.

Fire lined the ceiling, illuminating the chaotic battle below. Occasionally it shot down, seeking out weak spots in the enemy demon shields. I was confused though. Who was doing it? It couldn't be one of the demons, not with them fighting using all of their wits.

Then I saw him.

Standing on the stairs, sweat dripping off his face, was Blaise. His features were contorted in concentration, his hands trembling with the effort.

I surveyed the fight, trying to decide who needed my help the most. My heart sank when I realised how fucking overwhelmed we were. With the tight space, the demons' powers were limited. I'd heard stories of Joshua decapitating demons without even touching them, but he wouldn't be able to do that without risking hitting one of the others. Like everyone else, he was fighting off multiple attackers. All of them were blood-spattered and weary, yet refusing to back down.

Unlike the demons, I didn't need room for my powers to work.

I shook out my arms, knowing what I had to do. I wasn't sure if I'd regenerated enough power to pull it off, but you could bet your arse I was going to try.

If I failed, it'd leave me vulnerable. Weak enough for a lower demon to kill me with little effort.

But like I'd once told Seungkwan, I was nothing if not reckless.

Breathing in deeply, I focused on everyone in the room who wasn't on our side. I tunnelled down into my power, not stopping until I reached the bottom. Once I did, I pushed off, dragging my magic with me.

I raised my hands and breathed out.

My magic rushed from me with a howl.

There was a pause.

Then the bodies began to fall.

The brothers, the angel, and the vampire all gaped at their foes. They were now lifeless on the floor where they'd been battling seconds before.

I let the blood I'd drained from them fall to the ground. As one, all the supes turned their shocked expressions to me. Only Blaise didn't look surprised. He had the gall to snort and roll his eyes like he knew I'd take all the glory.

"Kill them all now before they reincarnate." My vision filled with dots, my power now completely empty. "You're welcome."

With that, I collapsed. As I crawled over to lay my head on Seungcheol's stomach, the sounds of blades and magic sang through the air as the brothers went to work.

I'd never heard anything more beautiful.

That was until Seungcheol's eyes cracked open, and he croaked out my name.

"Jeonghan."