Chapter 11: Companion ④

A one-room shack clumsily cobbled together from heaps of trash. A single flickering candle barely lit the interior.

The cat looked up at the girl embracing it.

“Cleon, you can actually understand what I’m saying, can’t you?”

……

“Are you… maybe one of those so-called familiars?”

Familiars—extremely rare second-generation beings born from monsters. Unlike ordinary monsters, these spirit creatures bore no hostility toward living beings.

“But I heard familiars are dumb unless they form a contract… This is weird.”

The black-haired girl slid her hands under the cat’s armpits. The cat allowed itself to be lifted without resistance, its quiet eyes meeting hers.

“Say, Cleon… if you really are a familiar, can I ask you one favor?”

……

“If I die like this…”

“Will you use my body?”

Yu Hyesun woke from her dream with dazed eyes. Her internal clock said it was morning, but the darkness surrounding her was thick.

Her vision gradually cleared. Her large eyes darted around the area, scanning her surroundings.

Two large men lay sprawled on the floor. Another brute sat propped up against a pillar. And lastly, one sleazy-looking guy stood right beside her, peering down.

He yawned.

“How could you just sleep and leave me alone? I was bored to death staying up all night.”

“A cat ought to sleep plenty. If you were lonely, you could have awakened this lady.”

“How could I interrupt a noble’s final nap?”

He scratched his head and glanced at Yu Hyesun.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Thanks to you, I had a pleasant dream. You’ve done me a great kindness—I’ll forgive you even in death.”

“I mean, how could I treat someone who’s about to be sliced apart all disrespectfully?”

“Hmm. If you feel pity, then untie me. This lady has no desire to die.”

The man gave her a dumbfounded look.

“Judging by your face, you weren’t actually planning to, were you? Now that I think about it, I was captured because of you. Guess I should haunt you after all.”

“…Tsk tsk.”

Their banter faded as Yu Hyesun turned her gaze to the distance.

Death.

To say she wasn’t afraid would be a lie. Her pounding heart and every cell in her body screamed in primal rejection of it.

But more than death itself… what terrified her was the fact that she’d be dying in such a brutal, body-destroying manner.

‘Forgive me, Yeonja. I’ve broken our promise because of my foolishness.’

“It still puzzles me. How did that clown Crown manage to hire an assassin like you? You’re ranked 1,990—what are you doing holed up in a place like this?”

“Everyone has their reasons, little miss.”

“A lifetime contract, perhaps?”

“…For someone about to die, you sure ask a lot.”

The man shut his eyes, clearly done talking.

Yu Hyesun turned her gaze back toward the void. Fleeting memories of hungry but happy days shimmered behind her eyes.

‘What was the point of my existence?’

And with that final question, she slowly closed her eyes.

Just as she did—

“Found you.”

Darkness swept through the underground parking lot.

When I descended into the underground level of Trisium Apartments, I saw Yu Hyesun tied up with thick rope.

Without hesitation, I stretched out my hand and summoned my mana.

A dense concentration of shadow trembled violently, desperate to escape this cramped space.

Granting that wish was my role.

I aimed at the man standing next to Yu Hyesun and opened a path.

Crack-crash!

A torrent of darkness burst forth like a jet stream, striking the unprepared man head-on.

“Who the hell are you?!”

The thugs jolted awake.

I immediately released a burst of shadow spheres, shattering all the lights in the basement.

– Elemental abilities are heavily influenced by the environment. In your case, your talent’s power will peak in darkness or poorly lit interiors.

A veil of perfect darkness fell.

Within it, I calmly began multiplying my shadow spheres.

Five, ten, fifteen, twenty.

Normally, I could only control up to ten.

I’d effectively doubled my firepower.

‘Release.’

A barrage of shadow surged toward the scrambling enemies.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

One by one, they fell to the ground under the assault.

“So this is the power of the environment…”

On rainy days, water-element users reigned supreme. In forests, it was those with wood-type abilities.

And here—this was my domain.

It felt like fighting on land for the first time after being forced to brawl underwater. My mana flowed freely, no longer restrained.

“Damn… almost died…”

But the enemy wasn’t so easily crushed.

The man who took the first blast of darkness was still standing, covered in blood, and glaring at me.

I already knew he was powerful.

The surrounding mana throbbed in fierce resonance with him.

But I didn’t expect him to remain on his feet after taking a full hit.

His durability was abnormal.

“You…?”

Yu Hyesun finally recognized me, her expression turning bewildered.

Her gaze lingered on the faint traces of my magic.

“Chaos affinity… I see… so that’s why…”

The man took a step forward.

Then, he shot a nasty look at Yu Hyesun.

“What the hell is that? Another ally?”

“……Even I do not know.”

“This is insane. Just more work for me.”

Suddenly, the man’s eyes gleamed.
At the same time, the ground began to tremble.

Ruuuumble.

The concrete floor split apart, and a massive hand shot out.

The creature that pulled itself up was so huge, it nearly brushed the ceiling.

It was a bear.
A bear with a body entirely made of massive, earthen brown stone.

“An A-rank familiar I got when I signed a lifetime contract. I call it the Earthbear.”

Earthbear.
What a half-hearted name.

Its attribute was obvious—earth.
And since familiars take after their master’s element, that meant the man was earth-attribute too.

A-rank, huh…

It was easy to tell he wasn’t bluffing.
What stood before me didn’t feel like a bear—it felt like a fortress wall.

“Land Spear.”

With a stomp of his front foot, sharp spikes shot up from the concrete.
Each spike was as thick as a forearm, and radiated an overwhelming pressure.

Canceling it with darkness is the best bet.

At that moment, the Earthbear moved.

It stepped into the path of the darkness and opened its arms as if to embrace it.
All the dark spheres slammed into the Earthbear.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Shockingly, the Earthbear withstood the barrage with sheer durability.
Fragments of rock crumbled where the darkness collided, but it looked otherwise unscathed.

Startled, I drew mana again—but the Earthbear twisted its body slightly.

A spike scraped past the Earthbear’s side and flew at me at incredible speed.

Its massive body had blocked my view, so I realized too late that it was an attack.

As soon as I grasped the situation, I rolled to the side.
The spike narrowly missed me.

“Quick, huh. How about this?”

I wanted to focus on the man, but the Earthbear came charging at me on all fours.

“Whoaahhh!”

Its merciless claws slashed toward me.
Even through its sluggish movements, I could sense the immense strength.

But I’d fought close combat with Yureon—I dodged every slow swing.
At the same time, I created dark spheres to counterattack, but the Earthbear endured them all with brute durability.

“This is the end, brat.”

The Earthbear suddenly retreated, and I realized too late what that meant.

Several high-speed spinning spikes came flying at me.

An unavoidable attack.

I instantly summoned a wall of darkness and solidified it.
The reinforced materialization was as tough as a boulder.

But could it really withstand that attack?

‘Impossible.’

My rational mind assessed coldly.

Now I understood why villains were so obsessed with familiars.

To a villain, a familiar was another comrade.
An ideal partner who could move in perfect sync.

This wasn’t a one-on-one.
It was basically a two-on-one.

Too late……………..

I tried to move away from the dark wall and summon another, but the spikes had already pierced through the one I made, like it was tofu.

Just as I shut my eyes, a familiar voice cut through.

“After coming to save me, do you really think you’re allowed to give up on life?”

In that split second, someone stood in front of me.
A black-haired girl, tightly bound by strange ropes.

Yu Hyesun looked at me and smiled with an expression I couldn’t read.

Then, the merciless spike struck the girl’s back.

“Khack!”

The spike pierced through her chest and continued to spin, but it didn’t fully go through her.

The man’s eyes widened, clearly surprised by the unexpected scene.

An opening.
My body moved before I could think.

‘Dark sphere.’

The man dodged the incoming wave of darkness.

For now, I ignored him and rushed to Yu Hyesun.
She was on her knees, gasping in pain.

“……”

Blood dripped steadily from the spike embedded in her.

Should I pull it out?
No, this was already…

“Khak… haah… I-I’m fine……”

“……”

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Someone was dying right in front of me.
To protect me, she was extinguishing her own life.
I couldn’t bear to watch—I lowered my head.
I could see my body trembling violently in my blurred vision.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

“You… Iran…”

“……”

“Do you… want to save me…?”

“Is there a way?!”

I jerked my head up. Yu Hyesun interlaced her fingers with mine.

Her lips, pale from blood loss, trembled faintly.

“Make… a contract… with me…”

“……What?”

“Will you…?”

I didn’t really understand what she meant. But I nodded anyway.

Yu Hyesun smiled brightly, as if relieved.

“The familiar… Cleo… now belongs to Iran……”

From Yu Hyesun’s clasped hand, something flowed into me.

“……!”

It was an odd sensation—like something settled into the empty space of my soul.
And along with it, a burst of indescribable fulfillment surged through me.

In my inner world, a cat sat curled up and stared at me.

I stared back at it.

Meow.

The cat cried out happily.

“……”

The moment I opened my eyes, Yu Hyesun was gone.

Only the embedded thorns and ropes remained in her place.

“What… what just happened?”

The man watching from a distance let out a voice full of shock.

“First, I need to capture you.”

The earth mole charged toward us again.

It moved with terrifying momentum, like a tank barreling forward.

At that moment, the cat in my mental space leapt upward.

Simultaneously, a black hole opened at my feet, and something shot out of it.

“Nya-ha-ha~ I feel reborn!”

Yu Hyesun, with long claws extended, grinned slyly. The earth mole swung its arm at her, reacting to the sudden threat, but she evaded with an uncanny movement.

Then she leapt and landed atop its arm.

“Uwooooh!”

Furious, the earth mole slapped its hand like it was swatting a mosquito, but Yu Hyesun gracefully bounced away and was suddenly at its neck.

“Nice trick, wasn’t it?”

Crunch.

The rock-hard neck cracked from a single swipe of her claw.

Just before the earth mole could counterattack, Yu Hyesun struck first.

Thunk.
With a heavy thud, its head rolled to the ground.
Its decapitated body trembled for a moment before collapsing into a pile of rubble.

“My god…”

The man and I stared in stunned silence as Yu Hyesun smiled gleefully.

“Did you see, my lord? I may have looked pathetic, caught in that human wave tactic once…”

“…”

“But this is the true power of the familiar you’ve contracted.”

The man gave up on fighting once he saw Yu Hyesun had recovered.

Yu Hyesun giggled and poked the now-bound man with a teasing smile.

The tables have turned, haven’t they~?
–Life really is a wheel of fortune!

“I didn’t treat you badly, so let’s show some mutual respect.”

“Of course~ I’m just playing a little prank, that’s all!”

“…”

Yu Hyesun picked up a pen, grinning mischievously. The man let out a resigned sigh and closed his eyes.

From a short distance away, I watched and let out a small chuckle.

A moment later, Yu Hyesun came trotting over to me with a cat face drawn on the man’s face.

“How does it feel?”

“Feel what?”

I didn’t speak formally to Yu Hyesun.

No one had decided that—it had just naturally happened that way.

A deep bond connected us now. Formal speech didn’t suit us anymore.

Yu Hyesun leaned forward and gave me a sly smile.

“To have gained the greatest familiar of all! I assure you, there’s no more useful familiar in the world than Me!”

“But… are you really a familiar? I’ve never heard of a familiar that mimics humans this perfectly.”

“Exactly.”

…‘Exactly’?…………………….

Yu Hyesun rolled her eyes upward, pretending to ponder.

“I don’t know my own identity either. But really, does it matter?”

“…I guess not.”

Yu Hyesun was unusually excited.

The contract itself was a great joy for any familiar, but more than that, it was because my mental space was far cleaner than she had expected.

“I still can’t believe your inner sanctum. Why play the villain, my lord? You could’ve become a hero and achieved greatness.”

“…My sister said the same thing.”

Familiars can sense their master’s emotions.

Feeling the turmoil inside me, Yu Hyesun changed the subject.

In any case, I never imagined you’d possess the chaos attribute. That explains why I was drawn to you.

“What’s the connection?”

Demons and the races descended from them are instinctively attracted to chaos. Probably because their origins lie in the rift of chaos. Honestly, the first time I saw you, I seriously debated whether to eat you whole!

Now that I thought about it, she did say something about becoming one with me. I made a queasy face at the thought that it might have worked.

“And, my lord…”

Yu Hyesun was about to launch into more excited chatter—

Clap, clap, clap.

The sudden sound of clapping drew everyone’s attention toward the entrance.

A black fedora and coat. Eyes sharp enough to slice a person apart.

My eyes widened.

“Master…?”

“Impressive. Defeating a thousand-ability user. It’s nothing short of a feat. Be proud.”

I felt joy at seeing him again, but Yu Hyesun narrowed her eyes.

Because of the man’s surface-level mental state.

‘Disgusting. Foul.’

He looked composed on the outside, but Durek’s true feelings were revolting—so much so that even Yu Hyesun, who had faced countless villains, felt nauseated.

Meanwhile, I was thrilled by Durek’s praise. I didn’t show it outwardly, but Yu Hyesun could tell.

“Then kill them.”

My elated feelings instantly sank.

I stared at Durek in confusion.

“What?”

“Why are you hesitating in front of the enemy? Finish them off to prevent future trouble.”

My red eyes turned toward the four bound men.
They had been listening, and their faces were deathly pale.

“B-but they can’t resist anymore…?”

My voice trembled slightly.

Are you saying you’ll starve them to death? That’s not a good idea. Someone could find them and release them.
:Kill them now, on the spot.

“…”

“If you let them live, they’ll definitely come back as your enemies. Iran, remember your goal. The resolve to earn a reputation so terrible that even Gwangmyeong shudders. You haven’t forgotten, right?”

My small shoulders quivered.

“The fastest way is to kill every hero you see.”

“…”

“Iran.”

Seeing my hesitation, Durek spoke coldly.

“This is necessary to punish Gwangmyeong.”

My eyes widened in shock.

Yu Hyesun sensed the sudden storm within me.

‘What… what did he just say to cause such a reaction in my master?’

A towering wave had swallowed my once warm and pure mental space.

Yu Hyesun desperately tried to understand the emotion that engulfed it.

Love, rage, vengeance, devotion—an unholy mix of all that and more.

‘What kind of feelings are those…’

At that moment, Durek tossed me a spear.

After a moment of silence, I picked it up.

“…”

I walked toward the bound men with a blank expression.

“P-please, spare me! I swear I’ll never oppose you again! I’ll pledge my loyalty, just don’t kill me…!”

I silently stared down at the man.

He kept begging, eventually looking up at me with tear-filled eyes.

Empty, emotionless red eyes.

Thud.

He grabbed the shaft of the spear, as if not believing the blade was buried in his heart.

But only for a moment. His head slumped forward.

“Eek! I-I was only following orders…!”

Thud.

“I… I have a daughter at home…”

Thud.

I stabbed three of them in the heart, one after another, like a machine. I stood before the last man.

He let out a bitter laugh, seemingly resigned to everything.

“You monster.”

Thud.

He, too, fell cold and lifeless.

Durek turned away, satisfied.

“Well done. Your teammates are waiting, so don’t be late.”

Just like that, Durek disappeared.

I stood still, staring blankly in the direction he had vanished.

My face showed no emotion.

But Yu Hyesun knew that wasn’t true.

“My lord.”

I turned to face her.

She smiled gently, her eyes softening.

“You said that last man was kind to you, right? I’m sorry. That must’ve upset you.”

“…My lord.”

“To make up for it, I’ll grant you one—”

Without a word, Yu Hyesun pulled me into a hug.

“…”

I hesitated for a moment before letting go of the spear.

“You don’t need to hide your feelings from me.”

“…”

Whether it’s your emotions or anything else, you must never conceal anything from me.

My hands trembled. Carefully, I hugged her back.

“Poor thing.”

“…”

“Tell me. What happened to you? How did someone who belongs in the brightest place end up suffering in this filthy city? I want to hear everything, from beginning to end.”

My small shoulders began to shake.

Yu Hyesun gently patted my back.

I’ll accept and understand everything about you.

“…”

“I am your only familiar.”

And your companion.

Ep 3. Companion (End)