Chương 33: Cleansing Ritual

Ch 33 - Cleansing Ritual Hiroto stared at Evan, his mouth half open, while Evan forced himself not to look away.

"I'm not joking," Evan said.

"They exist. And the man who kidnapped you when you were a kid is one of them."

"What do you mean?" Hiroto asked.

"You aren't the only one who has encountered one of them," Evan said.

"I ran into one not too long ago. They seem to have a habit of kidnapping children. My friend's cousin was one of their victims, and I ended up crossing paths with the one responsible. I can't tell you the details, but he's been dealt with. The important thing is that they're real." Hiroto only gave him an even more confused look. Evan rubbed his forehead, wondering how exactly he was supposed to convince Hiroto.

"You know my brother is a Healer, right?"

"Yeah?" Hiroto nodded.

"Let's just say he's not like other Healers. You could call him more like a priest," Evan said.

"Aside from healing, he's also highly sensitive to demonic energy because his abilities are a form of holy power. After my encounter with that practitioner, my whole body was tainted with demonic energy, and my brother had to cleanse it off me.

"What I'm trying to say is… Hiroto, I think, no, I know there's leftover demonic taint in you. My brother noticed it."

"So you think I should undergo a cleansing?" Hiroto asked.

"Yeah! And my brother is willing to do it! You just need to come, and he'll handle everything!" Evan stepped closer and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Listen, that demonic energy lingering on you might even be the reason you're F-rank! If we get rid of it, your rank might increase! You won't have to keep your head down anymore, so—" Hiroto just kept staring at him with a blank look. Evan bit his lip. He definitely sounded like a madman shouting about the end of the world. Who would believe his claims about something like this? Damn it, he thought picking this game would be a good way to bring this up. Maybe he should let Reid handle this instead.

With his protagonist halo, he'd probably be able to convince Hiroto.

"Evan," Hiroto said, grabbing his arm.

"I believe you."

"Eh?" Hiroto smiled.

"You're my friend, if I can call you that. I think you're a good person, and your brother is too. That's why I know you're telling the truth." Don't give me the good guy card. My shriveling, exploitative heart can't take it, Evan thought. After all, his original plan was to turn Hiroto into his underling, which was the only reason he was putting in this much effort. Being praised like this just made the whole thing feel awkward.

"That's good! The preparation isn't done yet, but it might be tomorrow, so I just wanted to give you a heads-up," Evan said. Evan quickly changed the subject once the difficult conversation was over and dragged Hiroto into another game. The two of them spent the rest of Sunday like that, and Evan only returned to his room after night had fallen. On his way back, he messaged Reid. [I told Hiroto about it. He said okay.] [That's great! The incense should arrive tomorrow. We should be able to do it in the afternoon if you two are free.] [We should be.] Evan replied. A smirk spread across his face. Things were progressing smoothly. By tomorrow, he would have his first lackey. Evan practically skipped back to his room, ignoring the strange looks people shot his way. The next day, every lesson seemed to drag on forever. Time itself felt determined to work against him.

He couldn't wait for the afternoon, when they could perform the cleansing ritual and finally rid Hiroto of the demonic energy. The moment the final bell rang, Evan grabbed Hiroto's hand and dragged him straight toward Reid's classroom. As usual, Reid was surrounded by a crowd of admirers, but Evan didn't have time to waste. He squeezed through the group, brushed a few students aside, and grabbed Reid's wrist.

"Sorry, I need him!" Evan said as he pulled his brother away. Ignoring the death glares boring into the back of his head, Evan led them to a quiet corner away from prying eyes.

"So where are we doing it?" he asked.

"Calm down a second, Evan." Reid smiled before turning to the other boy.

"Hiroto, are you fully aware of what we're going to do?" Crossing his arms, Evan jutted out his lower lip. Did Reid think he'd tricked Hiroto into agreeing? The kid was naïve and easy to fool, but Evan hadn't lied this time. Hiroto nodded.

"Evan said that you can remove the demonic energy from me..."

"Yes. The process itself is fairly simple and quick, but I do need a large open space to set up the ritual circle. My room doesn't have enough space, and I tried renting a personal training room today, but they were all fully booked."

"We can use Hiroto's room!" Evan said.

"It's huge! At least thrice the size of ours!" Reid looked at Hiroto.

"What do you think?"

"I don't mind." Hiroto said and led the two brothers to his suite in Residence Block One. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Reid merely took in the spacious interior with a calm glance, showing no hint of surprise at the stark difference between their accommodations. He gestured toward the sofa and coffee table.

"We'll need to move these."

"Go ahead." With Hiroto's permission, they cleared a large space in the center of the room. Reid drew a ritual circle with mana dust before reinforcing it with Sacred Light. He then arranged the remaining materials around it, placing the purified monster core in a shallow bowl of holy water as the floral scent of burning incense gradually filled the room.

"It's done," Reid said, turning to Evan and Hiroto, who had been watching with rapt attention.

"You just need to stand in the middle."

"The middle?" Hiroto slowly approached the ritual circle, stopping at its edge as he studied the intricate pattern before him. He lingered there for several seconds without moving. Maybe the ritual circle had reminded him of what had happened back then. After taking a deep breath, Hiroto finally stepped inside. As his feet crossed the lines of mana dust, the powder remained fixed in place, parting just enough to let him pass before flowing back into its original position.

The lines shimmered with a soft golden glow as Sacred Light coursed through them.

"Ready?" Reid asked.

"... Yeah." After giving Hiroto another reassuring smile, Reid raised both hands. His thumbs met at the base while his index and middle fingers touched at the tips, forming a diamond before his chest. Evan recognized the gesture immediately. It was the traditional prayer gesture of the Church of the First Light, one he'd seen countless times in Chronicles of a Demon Hunter.

Unlike the manic chanting Evan had heard from the demonic art practitioner back at that strange Rift, Reid's voice was calm and reverent, more like a prayer than a spell. The words remained incomprehensible, spoken in the ancient Hieran language. The ritual circle's golden glow intensified with each verse. The mana stones scattered around it also began to radiate light as more Sacred Light flowed into them. Soon the brilliance became so overwhelming that Evan had to squint.

He couldn't help wondering if he should've brought a pair of sunglasses to properly witness the event. Reid then lifted his right hand, extending his index and middle fingers before slicing them upward through the air. Some of the floating mana dust rose with the motion. With deliberate strokes, he traced the sigil of the First Light, an eight-pointed star that hung suspended in midair. As he completed the final line, he began reciting the First Light's divine name.

Although the invocation was spoken in Hieran, Evan could effortlessly translate it after seeing it referenced so many times in the novel. The First Light that shines upon all creation; The Undying Radiance; The Lord of Order and Life; The Guardian Against the Endless Dark; The Beacon of Every Soul. The sigil flared even brighter, then broke apart into countless specks of starlight that surged toward Hiroto and sank into his body. Moments later, thin wisps of darkness began to seep out of him.

Before they could drift away, they were pulled toward the sacrificial vessel, the purified monster core. The darkness poured into the orb, and its golden glow was quickly stained black as it absorbed the demonic energy. Reid's chanting slowed, then gradually came to a stop. With it, the golden light filling the room receded. Mana dust settled back onto the floor, and the surrounding mana stones dimmed until only a faint glow remained. Hiroto blinked.

"Is it done?" Nodding, Reid gently picked up the bowl and lifted the now-darkened monster core.

"Look. This is all the demonic energy that was drawn out of your astral body." Hiroto didn't dare get too close. He merely craned his neck, trying to get a better look at the dark orb as it sloshed gently in the water.

"How do you feel?" Evan asked.

"A bit lighter, I guess?" Hiroto replied.

"Just that? What about your mana? Can you control more now? Try using your ability." Hiroto did as Evan asked and opened his portal again. It was, as before, only large enough for a small piece of candy to fit through. Evan's eye twitched.

"Sorry..." Hiroto said.

"Don't get too hasty," Reid said.

"After spending so long with his astral body entangled by demonic energy, his mana reserves won't expand overnight. He'll also need time to break the habit of limiting himself to such a small amount of mana."

"Time and training, huh? I guess that makes sense," Evan said, though he couldn't help feeling disappointed that all his effort hadn't paid off immediately. Turning his gaze to the corrupted monster core, he picked it up and asked, "What are you going to do with this?"

"Safely dispose of it. I can't just leave it lying around now, can I?" Reid replied. He reached out to take it, but before Evan could hand it over, an unexpected System notification appeared. [Source of Demonic Energy Essence obtained!] With a loud crack, the monster core split open right in front of them. The darkness sealed inside surged free and shot straight into Evan's hand.

"Evan!" Reid snatched the monster core away and crushed it in his hand, light flaring around his fingers. The core exploded into countless fragments, but the darkness had already slipped into his brother. [You have gained 30 Demonic Energy Essence.] I don't want it! Evan screamed inwardly.

"Are you okay?" Hiroto asked.

"Let me take a look at you," Reid said, grabbing Evan's hand and channeling his sacred light into his body. The frown on his face deepened as he examined whatever was going on inside Evan's body, but in the end, he could only sigh.

"Do we need to perform another ritual?" Hiroto asked, wringing his hands. Reid shook his head.

"No. I don't have another sacrificial vessel and…"

"It's okay, guys! It's just my System ability!" Evan said, scratching the back of his head.

"I have this ability, see. It's called Fiend Form, and it says that if I gather 100 Demonic Energy Essence, I can use it. I think The System detected the demonic energy in the orb and automatically absorbed it."

"How did you get such an ability?" Hiroto asked.

"I awakened after I was kidnapped by a practitioner of the Demonic Arts. Maybe being exposed to so much demonic energy messed with my awakening and left me with this weird ability. I'm not going to use it, okay? Don't worry." Evan shot Reid a desperate look. Reid's lips remained tightly pressed together. I'm not a demon, I swear!

"Brother?" Evan gently touched his sleeve. This guy wasn't going to snap and point his gun at his head again, would he? Reid sighed.

"It's my fault. I should've kept you away from any possible source of demonic energy."

"No, no, it's not. None of us knew something like this would happen, and besides, I don't feel any pain at all!" Evan said. The frown on Reid's face didn't abate as he looked at Evan's grinning face. Please, please, please, just let this go. It was just a skill. Don't overthink it.

"Alright, but tell me if something is off immediately, and…" Reid's eyes flashed with conviction.

"I'll make something for you." Something? Why did that sound ominous? It wasn't a specially made sanctified bullet to the head, was it?