Chapter 8

"Hey, you took my Black Flash Cannon and didn't even flinch, huh...?"

"Yeah, I can put up a magic barrier, so don't worry about it. Show me more!"

I replied to the surprised Grimoire. Indeed, offensive magic often has many aspects that can only be understood by experiencing it firsthand. Hmm, hmm.

Grimoire must have understood this, which is why he suddenly aimed at me. I was a bit surprised, but upon reflection, I always have multiple magic barriers on standby, set to automatically deploy for any impact above a certain level.

He must have noticed that. Impressive, for a demon. He really knows his stuff.

Good job, Grimoire.

"G-guh... y-you're kidding me...! This is the magic I spent five years mastering...!"

But Grimoire was shaking his fists and grinding his teeth for some reason. I wonder what's wrong with him.

"Hey, Grimoire, what are you doing? Hurry up and show me the next one."

When I urged him, Grimoire ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. Then he glared at me with a hateful expression.

...Did I do something wrong?

"Tch... Ah, damn it, fine! If you insist, I'll show you! My strongest magic!"

Grimoire raised his voice and held out his right hand in front of me. I could see a line on his palm, wriggling and squirming. Then, the line opened, revealing a red tongue and sharp teeth—essentially, a mouth.

"Double incantation—"

Muttering those words, Grimoire began to chant two different spells simultaneously with his two mouths. Wow, demons can do that, huh?

"‘Fill it, black, black, black, pierce and tear with my blade—’"

As I waited excitedly for the incantation to complete, Grimoire's body began to glow brightly.

"—Die, you bastard!! Spiral Black Flash Cannon!"

A torrent of magical energy roared out. The pressure pushed me back slightly. The dual black waves of magic spiraled toward me. The magic waves collided with my automatically deployed magic barrier, creating a tremendous impact.

"G-gr-gr... Pierce, you bastard...!"

Grimoire was exerting a lot of effort. It seemed the output was increasing bit by bit. Of course, my magic barrier wasn't even scratched, but it was interesting how the power increased with his determination.

Still... what was it, a spiral? Is he controlling it to form a spiral? Does it have any meaning? It just looks like a regular magic wave to me... Hmm, it's hard to tell through the magic barrier.

I'll touch it directly. I extended my finger through the magic barrier and gently touched the magic wave.

There was a loud explosion, and a shockwave erupted.

"Hah-hah-hah! You took my Spiral Black Flash Cannon with your bare skin!? You're done for! Explode and fly apart!"

While Grimoire was roaring, the magic wave remained at my fingertips. I had stopped it to examine its structure.

...Hmm, the spiral and the black color don't have any particular meaning, it seems.

Still, the power increased because of his mindset. It's common for the nature of magic to change with emotions like anger or strong beliefs.

However, this isn't always a good thing and can sometimes have negative repercussions. That's why it's not recommended as much anymore... but perhaps ancient magic evolved in that direction.

It's interesting that it can achieve this level of power.

"Well, time's up."

The magic wave disappeared because the flow of magic from the caster was cut off. But I think I observed enough. It wasn't that complex.

Grimoire was looking shocked where the magic wave had disappeared.

"W-what... That's my maximum power magic...? You think I spent decades of hard work to master that... and you just...!?"

Grimoire looked stunned.

"I see, I can feel the considerable trial and error and training in that magic."

"...Hah! That's right, it was blood, sweat, and tears!"

"---Yeah, it must have been a lot of fun."

Magic training is a lot of fun.

Demons are the same, right?

Humans and demons are the same in that regard. Hmm, hmm.

"F-fun...!? Are you an idiot!?"

He seems really surprised.

Did I say something weird?

"Damn it! You're kidding me! This time...!"

Grimoire started to chant the same spell again.

Hmm, I don't need to see the same one twice.

Besides, it's not that high-level.

Ancient magic might not be very offensive.

"Ah, I'm good with the attack part, I get it. Show me something else."

"Something else...?"

"Yeah, anything... how about defensive magic? Oh, I'll attack to make it easier to see."

I held out my right hand and gathered magic.

Let's start with a high-level regular magic.

"---‘Blazing Fireball’"

I gathered a massive flame at my fingertips and launched it at Grimoire.

"Wh-what!?"

The flame hit, and Grimoire screamed.

Huh? Why didn't he use a magic barrier to defend?

"Hey, Grimoire, are you okay?"

I called out in a panic, and a shadow flickered in the flames.

Grimoire's body didn't have a single burn mark.

"H-ha... You surprised me... But you can't defeat a demon like me with magic! Too bad for you!"

"Really!?"

"Yeah, that's right. A bit of damage from holy magic used by priests is possible, but a mere magician can't defeat me! Too bad, Lloyd, you were doomed from the moment you revived me...!"

This time, I hit him with a 'Waterfall Torrent Ball'.

Even as he was hit by a torrent of water, Grimoire didn't seem to be taking any damage.

"H-hear me out... It's useless... Gah!?"

"Amazing. It really doesn't affect you?"

I muttered while casting an 'Earthquake Rock Ball'.

Even as he was crushed by rocks, Grimoire seemed fine.

This is surprising. Do demons really not take damage from magic?

How far does it go? I want to know, I want to test it.

"Hey, wait a minute, you! Why are you looking at me with those sparkly eyes!? Stop it! Hey, cut it out!"

I bombarded Grimoire with every magic spell I could think of.

***

"I'm sorryyyyyy!"

In front of me, Grimoire fell to his hands and knees.

"Hey, hey. What's with the sudden apology? You're doing a dogeza..."

"Please forgive me, Lord Lloyd! I won't cause any more trouble! So, please!?"

Grimoire pleaded with tears in his eyes.

I only hit him with attack magic a few hundred times... I don't get it.

"Whatever, let's just continue. I want to learn more about ancient magic."

"Ah! Wait! My body can't take it anymore!"

"Really? But I'm still not satisfied..."

Grimoire turned pale at my words, took a few steps back, and bowed so deeply that his head almost touched the ground.

"I, Grimoire, swear to serve Lord Lloyd with all my heart! I'll be your familiar or anything you want! Please, have mercy!"

"A familiar, huh..."

I don't understand, but if he's willing to go that far, I can stop for today.

If he becomes my familiar, I can experiment with magic as much as I want.

...Yeah, not bad.

I smiled and extended my hand to Grimoire.

"Alright, let's make a contract, then?"

"Sure thing!"

Grimoire clung to my outstretched hand. A bright light enveloped us, and the contract was completed.

"...Damn, for a demon like me to become a human's familiar, what a humiliation... But this guy's power is no joke. If I can gain his trust and manipulate him properly, I can control the world from the shadows. Hehe, I'll just have to endure until then..."

"Huh? What are you mumbling about?"

"N-nothing! Nothing at all! Lord Lloyd!"

Grimoire was flustered.

He seems emotionally unstable... but whatever.

In any case, Grimoire became my familiar this way.