Mako's entire body trembled. He'd never done anything like this before.
His younger brother Erick lay sprawled on the ground, spitting blood from his mouth.
For a fleeting moment, Mako's big-brother instincts kicked in, urging him to rush to Erick's side and help him.
"I'm going to kill you…" Erick growled, staggering to his feet, his eyes blazing with fury.
Mako remembered the kind of monster Erick would become.
'Maybe he always was,' Mako thought, disappointment settling in his chest.
"Enough!" Ana shouted, stepping between them. "I won't let the last of your lineage slaughter each other over nothing!"
Though she seemed furious, her face betrayed a hint of sadness and confusion.
Erick finished pulling himself up, his clothes smeared with dirt.
"Ever since our parents died…" Erick began, his voice dripping with bitterness, "you've never been able to do anything on your own. Not even awaken your system."
Erick was right.
Mako, his emotions still surging through his veins, felt a newfound strength pulsing within him.
"When did you awaken it?!" Erick spat, even angrier now. "We've been fighting to survive for years—do you know how important—"
A rapid flapping cut through the air, interrupting him.
Mako, Erick, and Ana, standing in the training field, turned toward the source of the sound, spotting a strange shadow in the sky.
The shadow, a mere dot at first, grew closer and larger.
As its form sharpened, they saw bat-like wings, magenta scaly skin, and, as the cherry on top, a single amber-pupiled eye.
It was a demon.
"Wait…" Ana squinted against the sun's glare. "That's…!"
As the creature drew nearer, its grotesque features became clearer—and less uniform.
Unlike the terrifying demons of legend, this one resembled a basketball with a single eye dominating half its body, tiny wings buzzing like a hummingbird's to keep it aloft, and stubby limbs like a T-Rex's.
"Watch out below!" the little imp squealed, crashing face-first into Ana.
…
"Polyphemus!" Ana roared, her hand twitching toward her sword, ready to slice the demon in half.
"Sorry! Sorry!" the basketball-sized creature yelped, hopping and flapping away from the enraged warrior.
Mako and Erick watched the scene, dumbfounded.
Especially Mako.
'This is weird,' Mako thought. 'I don't remember Polyphemus being here that day. In fact, I don't recall seeing him since Erick awakened his system.'
Then Erick got it.
With a commanding shout, Erick halted the circus, calling Polyphemus to attention. Ana and the imp froze mid-chase.
"Right," Polyphemus said, bouncing up and down like a ball while fixing his single eye on Mako.
"Master Mako, I've come to fulfill my promise—the final wish of your parents before they passed, sealed in a contract with your humble servant, Polyphemus."
Mako's memory clicked.
He hadn't been there, but he recalled the joy on a much younger Erick's face when he'd awakened his system through a demonic contract.
"I, Polyphemus, have the honor of informing you that you've awakened your system: Quid Pro Quo." He stopped bouncing, hovering with his tiny wings. "Something for something, for you uncultured humans, heh heh heh."
Ana, as stunned as the others, broke into a wide grin, her eyes sparkling with hope.
"So it wasn't my imagination," she said.
"Not at all," Polyphemus replied. "A deal's a deal. From today, I'll help Mako develop his system to its full potential."
Until that moment, Mako had lived in the shadow of expectations he could never meet.
Heir to one of Galandria's wealthiest houses, he'd been unable to awaken his powers to defend his parents' business empire against ruthless competitors eager to exploit their weakest hour.
Now, Mako had a chance to fight. And most importantly: a chance to prevent his brother Erick's betrayal.
"Now I get it." Mako let a smile slip with those words. "Looks like the House of the Sun rises stronger starting today."
◇◆◇
"Is it really worth pouring so much wealth into them, sir?" a hunched man in fine, expensive robes whimpered timidly.
From that distant balcony, the shadowed figure of a bearded old man continued watching the training unfold below.
"How dare you?" an indignant voice snapped from the shadows as a blonde woman with merciless eyes stepped forward.
"Catherine!" the hunched man squeaked like a rat.
"Questioning the Order's decisions? Who do you think you are? You're nothing but a cockroach!"
"Enough," the bearded old man spoke calmly, his voice seeming to drown out all else. "I understand your doubts, Igor. These are tough times, and our prized steed, the House of the Sun, hasn't delivered. But don't worry."
Satisfied, the old man rose to leave, no longer watching the spectacle Polyphemus, Ana, Erick, and Mako had created.
"Soon, they'll belong to us entirely."
With a malicious grin, Catherine and the old man vanished, leaving Igor trembling in fear.
A minute later, alone, his lips quivering, Igor muttered to himself while staring at a painting of the former lords of the House: Mako and Erick's parents.
"Forgive me," he said, feeling the painted eyes judge him. "I already apologized! What more do you want?"
On the verge of tears, he fled the room.