The night air felt colder than it should have.
Am I going crazy?
Probably not. I'd just forgotten my jacket. Again. Going back for it would mean dealing with my mom, and I wasn't in the mood for another lecture or her tears. So, I kept walking, hands shoved into my pockets, pretending everything was fine.
I checked my phone. 12:30 AM. Late, sure, but not illegal. Still, the timing wasn't great. People had been disappearing lately. Always at night. All over the world. The internet was having a field day with it. Aliens. Cult sacrifices. Paranormal nonsense.
Mom believed the "Loose Serial Killer" theory. That was why I'd snuck out in the first place. I personally was part of the camp that thought all this was bullshit. Just a bunch of paranoia.
Two minutes later, I reached the park.
Empty. As always.
"Good," I muttered. Solitude was kind of the point.
I dropped onto a weathered wooden bench in a small clearing and leaned back, staring at the sky.
"Maybe getting spirited away wouldn't be so bad," I said quietly.
I pulled out my phone again. Might as well see if a new chapter was out. I'd been reading some isekai manga on a very official website. The title was something like 'Reincarnated as a Blob Fish and Ascended to a Demon King in Another World.' Too long? You must be new.
It wasn't great, but it had the isekai tag. That was enough.
A car engine broke the silence.
I glanced up as headlights passed the park, then slowed. The car stopped at the end of the block.
My muscles tensed.
Great. Walking around at night during a global disappearance trend. Genius move, David.
I stood up.
A door opened.
I turned and saw a man in a black suit staring straight at me. He raised his arm.
A gun.
"Oh... shit."
I ran.
"HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME!" My voice cracked as I sprinted down the sidewalk. Why me? What did they want?
I turned a corner and nearly collided with someone. Another man. Same suit. Same gun.
"Halt."
Before either of them could move, a voice from above rang out, commanding them to stop.
Light spilled down from the sky, warm and blinding. The men froze, hesitating as something descended from above.
An angel.
Six white wings. Long hair drifting as if caught in a breeze that didn't exist. He looked unreal. Perfect, in the unsettling way mannequins are perfect.
"I have heard your pleas, child," he said.
The men backed away.
He was here to save me.
Right?
"I-I have a question," I blurted.
The angel smiled, cutting me off. "I know. You wish to leave this world."
My heart skipped.
"Yes," I said quickly. "I'll do anything."
He rested a finger against his chin, pretending to think.
"Very well. But such a thing requires a contract."
"A contract?"
"Travel between worlds violates natural law," he said calmly. "Naturally, there is a cost."
"And that cost is…?"
"The energy of your soul," he replied.
"Accumulated through the deeds of your life."
Karma, I thought.
I swallowed. "Fine."
The corners of the angel's mouth lifted, slow and deliberate.
"Excellent."
With a snap of his fingers, paper appeared in midair, along with a black quill.
"I recommend signing quickly."
I skimmed the document. Dense legal jargon. Percentages. Clauses.
Exchange Pact.
Party One will send Party Two to another world.
In exchange, Party Two will relinquish a portion of their soul's energy.
Party One shall not leave Party Two's soul energy reserves below ten percent.
Party Two may request modifications to their new life, at additional cost.
That was enough.
I signed.
David Smith.
Something in his expression sharpened, satisfaction flickering behind his eyes.
"State your wishes carefully," he said. "Once your soul's energy is allocated… there will be no renegotiation."
"Can I have a system-"
"Impossible," he interrupted pleasantly. "You lack the baseline reserves to sustain one."
Figures.
"Then… I don't want to die from natural causes."
"A preventative adjustment," he said smoothly. "Ten percent."
A hot ache flared in my chest, sharp but fleeting.
"I want to be good-looking."
"A cosmetic reconfiguration," he replied. "Two percent."
A brief sting crawled beneath my skin.
"I want to use magic."
He paused, tilting his head as if considering me.
"Magic is unnecessary," he said lightly. "Your soul could achieve the effect naturally. Granting it as a 'wish' is purely formal, twenty-five percent, consumed by the contract, not the outcome."
Something tugged deep inside me, stretching and pulsing strangely, but before I could focus on it, the feeling vanished.
"That's it?" I asked, a shiver of unease crawling up my spine. Great, that hurt, and I don't even know why.
"For the assessment," he replied. "The cost is already deducted. The wish itself is merely… formality."
What the hell is he talking about? I don't get it… whatever. I'll deal with it later. Just… get this over with.
"I want an appraisal ability."
"Ah," he said evenly, "another procedural request. Eight percent will be spent processing it. The appraisal ability itself costs twenty-five percent. Entirely procedural, a placeholder bound to the contract. The potential exists, but the wish grants nothing instantly."
What the hell! Have I just been wishing for the 'potential'? I don't even know what's happening... why does this feel like nothing?
"Processing completed," he said calmly. "All requests are reviewed."
"Your potential remains, but your energy has been committed to the pact. Every wish drains, none grants instantly."
I stared at him. "Wait… so all that energy just… disappeared?"
He didn't answer.
Ok fine, asshole.
"Can I have some kind of companion, summonable if possible."
What? I like summoners a little… can't a guy dream? Well, let's see what this costs me… probably nothing too bad.
"What an unexpected wish," he said, brow raised. "Very well. For the creation of such a being, it will cost five percent of your soul energy. The being will manifest only as the contract permits, its form and power limited by the terms of the pact."
I hope it's at least a strong one… though the details probably won't matter just yet.
A faint warmth pulsed through me, just enough to make my hair stand on end.
"The contract has been completed."
"What! I didn't-" I began, but he didn't listen.
His face twisted into something no longer human.
The ground split open beneath me.
Chains burst from the rift, wrapping around my limbs before I could scream. They dragged me down into darkness.
"YOU-"
The world vanished.
All pretenses fell away, leaving only cold composure behind.
"Excellent work," the angel said calmly.
The two men bowed.
"Thank you, Prince Lucifer."
Lucifer's gaze lingered on the closing rift, unreadable.
"Less than profitable," he murmured. "Satisfactory, all things considered, not much energy, but enough to amuse me."
The two men stiffened.
Lucifer folded his wings neatly behind him.
"Return to your posts. I shall return to Hell," he said. "I have a meeting with Satan… and I dislike wasting time. Begone."
"Yes, sir!"
The two men sprinted back to the car left at the park.
Lucifer snapped his fingers, and the street was empty once more.