Newly Summoned Demoness - Chapter 55 – Red and Black, Blue and Green (Patreon)

As Elania stepped out of the third Artificer shop of her search, she began to question her choice to keep shopping around for a higher price. Ranolf’s offer of two small golds had beaten all the offers by a full coin. That was to say, the others had, at best, offered her one small gold.

Lucas was waiting, and to his credit, had showed no signs of being annoyed by her wasting the late morning and early afternoon in a fruitless search.

“Lucas, any other shops? This one was a bust, too. I’m thinking it’s a waste of time.” It was impossible for her to hide her defeated tone.

He rubbed his head. “I know someone who might be able to help. Even if she can’t buy it, I bet she could give some good advice on whether the offers you got were legitimate.”

Elania blinked. “Sure, that sounds good.”

He pointed up the street all the way to the end. “It’s at the very end of the row, in the corner.”

That proved to be further than it appeared because of how the street was so straight and on an upward slope. The shop was nestled in the corner, wedged tightly between two other buildings. A wooden sign proclaimed the property read: “Aetherhart Artifice.”

As they approached, the door shot open violently, slamming against the wall with a loud crack.

The irate voice of a young woman erupted from inside. “You murdered my father! He would never have sold the shop to you! Get out!”

A large, portly man with a bald head stepped backwards, stopping at the doorframe. He held his hands up, warding away whoever was inside. “Be reasonable, girl! You have a chance to save yourself from his debt! I’m trying to help you!”

The female voice reached a crescendo. “Debt he took on because of you!”

A heavy gust of wind erupted from the shop, blasting the man into the air to tumble across the pavement several meters away.

Lucas put a hand on Elania’s shoulder and urged her back a bit more as a young woman with flowing raven black hair stepped outside. The girl’s emerald green eyes sparkled with a fierce intensity and anger, and she leveled her wand at its source.

[Master Artificer – Human – Level 28]

The woman held the same class title as Ranolf had. That hinted that despite her apparent youth she wasn’t to be messed with, and Elania had already learned that level wasn’t a very good yardstick to measure capability.

The man rolled to his knees and got up, much to Elania’s surprise. She wasn’t sure he was the brightest person, because as soon as he did, he shook his fist at the woman.

“You’ll regret this! I’ll make sure of it!” he cursed.

That, apparently, was the wrong thing to say. The wand sparked and then zapped the man. He was wearing a dozen pieces of fancy jewelry in the form of rings, earrings, and even a bracelet. All of them suddenly flashed red and then shattered, eliciting a pained shriek. A second bolt of air formed in the air, this time it made a visible white bullet of mist. It shot forward and slammed into the man’s chest, sending him rolling down the street a considerable distance.

Elania’s nose twinged in discomfort. It was impossible to ignore the scent of his bloody, shattered teeth as he skidded to a halt. Thankfully, Lucas’ hand on her shoulder was enough to ground her from the impulse to chase after the wounded prey.

Remarkably, he got up again, and instead of turning and running, he yelled again. “I’ll summon the guard, you insane woman!”

The black-haired girl raised her wand, but this time Lucas stepped forward. “Yolani! You’re going to kill him!”

The emerald eyes slashed over to him. “Good!”

But she didn’t lower the wand or release whatever magic she had intended. Lucas stepped up and took her wrist, and the weapon was gently lowered.

Fatso didn’t seem to be able to read the room. “Ha! Now—”

Lucas turned on him, drawing his sword. “Get out of here or I’ll skewer you myself!”

The man ran.

The violent tension seemed to evaporate and turn into something else. The woman’s anger turned into something sad. Lucas patted her on the back, and they said something to each other in low voices.

Feeling awkward, Elania stepped forward. “Umm, Yolani? If this is a bad time, I don’t want to bother you…’

The girl looked at her with surprise, noticing her for the first time. “Uh.”

Lucas stepped in for the rescue. “This is Elania. She’s a demon, and she’s looking to sell a monster core, but isn’t sure about the offers she’s been getting.”

Elania nodded quickly.

Yolani looked her over while wiping an eye. “Sure. I can appraise it for you at least. I am not sure I am looking to buy one, though.”

“That would be helpful. I just don’t know if the other shops are trying to rip me off or not because of…” Elania's words trailed off, unsure if she should finish the sentence.

It turned out she didn’t need to because Yolani finished them for her. “Because you’re a demon. Right.”

The black-haired girl gestured for them to follow. “Come in.”

Elania stepped into the shop, but Lucas shook his head.

“I’ll keep watch out here, just in case that asshole comes back,” Lucas stated.

Yolani nodded. “Thanks, Lucas. I’ll take care of her.”

The door closed with the subtle jingle of the doorbell. Elania looked around and sniffed the air. It was a more mellow scent that Ranolf’s shop had. The largest contrast to Ranolf’s bustling industrial workplace was how much denser the shop was. It was smaller, but tables everywhere were covered in a multi-faceted display of unique items.

A large central workbench was surrounded by shelves that were stocked until they looked like they were in danger of being overloaded. Secondary workbenches lined the walls, each with their own projects in progress on them.

And then there was the central piece near the back, an enormous crystal that looked identical to the ones that hung high over the city and provided its day and night cycle.

Yolani walked behind the counter and extended her hand for the core. Elania handed it over silently. Yolani’s fingers brushed against her own in the exchange, and Elania couldn’t help but notice how warm they were.

Holding up the core to the light from a nearby lantern, Yolani examined it carefully through squinted eyes. Her lips moved as she muttered under her breath, too low for Elania to hear. A familiar set of spectacles came out, and Yolani repeated the tests done by Ranolf in her own way.

Letting her work, a silence lingered between them, broken only by Yolani’s occasional murmurs and the distant hum of activity outside. From close proximity, Elania could see faint lines of exhaustion under Yolani’s eyes, and a vulnerability that hadn’t been there before.

Eventually, Yolani straightened and put down her tools on the counter gently. “It’s a B-class core,” she confirmed Ranolf’s evaluation. “Given its size and clarity, it would probably be worth about one large gold. Maybe two if someone really needed one of this type.”

Elania frowned. “But with the mana shard shortage?”

Yolani sighed. “It honestly isn’t very useful right now. A core like this would build something that requires mana shards to power, and there aren’t any. No power, no function. So, I am not surprised you’re having trouble selling it for what it is worth. They’ll basically be keeping it in storage until things recover. If they ever recover…”

Elania nodded slowly at that affirmation from Yolani; it stung less than it had from Ranolf, but not by much.

Noticing Elania’s disappointment, Yolani added hurriedly, “If you aren’t too hard up for coin, you might want to keep it and sell it for its real value later on.”

“I was really hoping to get more.” For a moment, their eyes locked. There was something about Yolani’s gaze that resonated with her. Was it just seeing another girl with her own troubles, trying to work through them?

Yolani bit her lip. “If you need some coin right now, I guess selling it is your best option… but…”

Their fingers brushed again as Yolani carefully passed the core back. The simple touch yet again felt strangely warm.

Elania raised an eyebrow. “But…?”

Yolani seemed to consider something for a moment, her gaze distant. Then she turned her sparkling emerald eyes onto Elania, curious and probing. “What are your plans, Elania?”

Elania hesitated, taken aback by the question. She really hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. “To sell the core and… figure things out,” she admitted. “I was hoping the money from the core would give me time. I’m… new to this world and things aren’t the greatest.”

Yolani nodded, then looked over to a tray on another table. “Would you be interested in charging mana crystals? I could use someone capable of what you can do.”

Elania frowned, a sense of wariness filling her. “That’s what Ranolf wanted me to do too,” she confessed cautiously.

A look of understanding flashed across Yolani’s face. “Of course he did…” she muttered, more to herself than anyone else.

“There is something you should know about how mana shards and crystals are powered.” Yolani started slowly; her voice grim, which immediately put Elania on edge.

“The city owns a large array of non-sapient demon kennels for most of the city works. Here on the row, Ranolf has a near monopoly on the things. He has a kennel under his shop, and with the mana shard shortage, he’s the only source of [Power] for recharging. He’s seriously price gouging everyone and there is nothing anyone can do about it. That’s one of the reasons I’m interested in your services.”

A chill ran down Elania’s spine as she considered the implications. Demon slave kennels? The city used demons as magical battery chargers? If she ran into trouble, was someone going to cuff her and lock her up in a box and drain her constantly? The prospect was terrifying.

“Kennels?” The world barely escaped her lips; it felt like the air had been sucked out of her lungs. Her heart pounded against her chest as panic seized her. First Marcus had been after her, and now she realized she’d barely side-stepped going down into Ranolf’s lair for something likely just as sinister.

She felt sick to her stomach just thinking about it. Trapped like an animal, and her freedom stripped away.

“Thanks for the information, Yolani.” Elania finally murmured.

The other girl nodded understandingly. “I didn’t mean to say that he intended to lock you up or anything. Just that’s…his thing. I would compensate you for your time and services if you could help me.”

Elania’s eyes flickered with uncertainty as she looked at Yolani. She wasn’t sure how much trust to extend, but it felt like she was genuinely concerned and…honest. Maybe this was the most honest conversation she had since arriving in the city, even.

“I… I need to keep my [Power] high.” Elania admitted, holding Yolani’s gaze steadily. “I can’t afford to let myself get low, or that would leave me… weak and vulnerable.”

Yolani nodded in understanding, then hesitated before asking another question. “What do you usually… eat, Elania?”

The question took her by surprise. Blinking in confusion, she tilted her head slightly as she tried to understand what Yolani was getting at. Apnals? That was—Oh. OH. Realization dawned on her.

“Ranolf feeds his kennels clutches of chickens, every day,” Yolani continued. “They fuel the demons and then he extracts the excess.”

Elania shook her head. “Darkwalkers mostly, although not many as of late. But I think I hit some type of threshold and it marked me. Then there were some Razorscale, Rockbears, and…”

Elania swallowed. “There was a ranger…”

Yolani nodded at her. The judging glare or look of condemnation never came. It didn’t really lift the weight of guilt on her chest, but it was… nice.

“You want me to absorb chicken essence to acquire energy, then charge your crystals?” Elania asked.

Yolani nodded again in simple affirmation. “That would probably be the best way to do it. Although like you said, too much of one thing can cause changes in yourself. Signing a contract would be best, one that provides you with enough essence so you can maintain your humanity on your own.”

Elania’s mind was already spinning, and the mention of a contract brought back an image of Marcus’ sly grin. He had tried to get his hands on her via one. Ranolf was keeping demon slaves in a kennel. Tessa was, despite her brief appearance, apparently running away from some type of sewer cleaning duty. It hinted that the contracts weren’t complete slavery but…

The worry that somehow someone could make a loophole or use a skill to modify the contract thing without permission made her afraid of making one. She’d done so with Joren out of desperation, and it had worked out mostly, but…

“What kind of contract are you talking about?” Elania asked cautiously.

“I could use some help around here,” Yolani admitted with a glance around her shop. “I… I’m having to handle a lot more than normal. It would probably need to be temporary. I’ve been having some issues of my own, and unless I can solve one of them, I’m going to lose the shop.”

Elania blinked in surprise. That certainly was a big problem. “The man earlier…”

Yolani winced slightly, but nodded in confirmation. “That was my uncle… He’s part of it.”

She didn’t elaborate further, but her silence spoke volumes.

Yolani glanced at Elania, her emerald eyes serious. “Here’s what I’m thinking, Elania,” she began, carefully choosing her words. “We sign a contract for an essence exchange; you feed off my mana regeneration and perhaps on chickens I can acquire from time to time. The human essence from the contract would counterbalance the chickens so you don’t have to worry about growing feathers.”

Elania covered her mouth, almost letting loose a laugh, despite how serious things were. Was growing feathers a real thing? It probably was, she shouldn’t be laughing, but the way Yolani said it tickled her.

“Then we use the power derived from that to charge mana crystals and wands that I need for my work,” Yolani continued. “Besides charging things, I could use an extra set of hands around the shop and…a bodyguard. Neftasu can be dangerous, especially now with my…situation.”

There was a pause before she added quickly: “In return, you’ll have a place to stay here in the shop—it’s not much, but it’s safe and clean...” Yolani paused and looked around, then corrected. “…well equipped. I can also help you with figuring things out since you probably have lots of questions about things…and of course, there will be payment in coin.”

The proposal hung in the air between them. Elania bit her lip and considered it. It seemed like… a miracle? It offered a sense of security and companionship that she hadn’t realized she’d been craving. If something seemed almost too good to be true, then it probably was. That adage made her feel like it could be a lie. Or a mistake.

“I appreciate your offer. It almost seems perfect, but… what’s the catch?” Elania asked.

Yolani frowned and looked away. “I only have eight days to figure out how to settle my father’s debt. He died… well… My uncle got him to agree to a stupid contract, then convinced him to do something even more stupid, which cost him his life.”

“The man earlier, he killed your father?” Elania barely managed to ask without stammering.

Yolani’s fists clenched. “I haven’t been able to prove anything. He’s working with a Magister to steal the shop. They’ll get a lot of money. It’s…it is ridiculous.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Elania offered helplessly.

Yolani nodded and brought her hand to her forehead to rub it. “If you stay here, you’ll be involved. If I can’t settle things and you’re here when they try to take the shop… they’ll probably try to claim you as well. So you’ll have to go before then.”

A moment of silence filled the air before Elania took a deep breath and broke it. “And the contract… It would be one that we both agreed upon? No hidden loopholes?”

Yolani’s emerald eyes glittered in the workshop's light, meeting Elania’s gaze straight on. “Absolutely. We write it together—no tricks or hidden clauses.”

Ah shit. Elania bit her lip. The girl was her type. The offer was exactly what she needed. Reaching out, she took Yolani’s hand and shook it. What the hell was she getting in to?

Elania smiled. “Let’s do it.”

Yolani smiled back.