A mark had appeared on my chest.
I stared at it in silence.
Purple.
Dark.
As if it were made of living veins moving beneath my skin.
I sighed.
—So I really took part of its power…
I ran my fingers over the mark.
It was warm.
Pulsing slowly.
Like a heart.
My eyes narrowed.
—I hope this isn't a tracking mark…
Because if it was…
Things would become annoying later.
Especially when I decided to go look for it again.
I smiled faintly.
—Although that also sounds fun.
I looked around.
The fight was over.
The purple barrier that had isolated the battle had disappeared several minutes ago.
The city was slowly returning to normal.
Cars passing by.
Lights turning on.
People walking around with no idea what had happened above their heads.
Although…
There were still traces left behind.
A small crater.
Several destroyed walls.
Broken windows.
Black fire marks burned into buildings.
Nothing too excessive.
Most of the destruction had happened when the first subordinate appeared.
So people would probably blame everything on a gas explosion or some other stupid excuse.
—Perfect.
I teleported.
The world distorted for an instant.
And I appeared inside my room.
I dropped onto the bed.
Silence.
—…
I frowned slightly.
—I need to buy a softer bed.
My phone started ringing.
I stared at it for a few seconds before answering.
—Hello.
—Hello, Ryan.
The lunatic clown's voice came from the other side.
Relaxed.
Amused.
Like he had just finished watching an entertaining circus show.
—I saw your fight.
I smiled a little.
—And?
—It was amazing.
He started laughing.
—HAHAHAHAHAHA!
I stayed silent while he kept laughing like a complete psychopath.
—Tell me, Ryan…
His tone shifted slightly.
Slower.
More serious.
—How did it feel fighting a real supernatural entity?
I looked at the mark on my chest.
—Complicated.
Silence.
—You…
The clown's voice lowered even more.
—Ryan, calm down. I saw everything.
My eyes narrowed slightly.
—Looks like it left you a mark.
—When you used "Sacrifice."
The room fell silent.
My smile faded a little.
—Ryan…
—You need to be careful.
Pause.
Then he started laughing again.
—Well then, goodbye loser.
Click.
He hung up.
—…
I stared at the phone for a few seconds.
—That bastard…
I clicked my tongue.
—Everything that comes out of his mouth needs to be taken with caution.
I looked back at the mark.
The skin around it looked completely normal.
But the feeling…
Wasn't.
Something inside that mark was moving slowly.
As if it were asleep.
Waiting.
—Tch.
I laid back down.
Crossing my arms behind my head.
—I'll deal with it later.
I closed my eyes.
And for the first time since the fight…
Fatigue finally crashed down on my body.
---
The next morning.
I slowly opened my eyes.
Sunlight entered through the window.
Silence.
I stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before getting up.
I turned on the computer.
Nexum was still growing.
Slowly.
But steadily.
New users.
More activity.
More movement.
More interest.
I smiled faintly.
The YouTube channel was also doing well.
Nothing impressive yet.
But enough to keep growing.
—I'll pay more attention to it this weekend.
I rested my chin on my hand while looking at the statistics.
—The future of my empire is waiting for me…
My eyes glowed faintly.
—But it can wait a little longer.
I leaned back in the chair.
Thinking.
Mentally replaying the entire fight from last night.
Every hit.
Every mistake.
Every movement.
That entity's speed.
The monstrous pressure it released at the end.
Silence.
And then I reached a conclusion.
—Training.
That was what I needed.
More experience.
More control.
More power.
Because that fight…
Had been genuinely dangerous.
And that excited me.
I looked once again at the purple mark on my chest.
I stared at it for several seconds.
But then I shook my head.
—Staring at you won't give me answers.
I looked away.
And then I remembered something.
—…
The letters.
I still hadn't sent the letters to those girls.
I sighed.
—I'll have to do it.
It was easier to send one letter to one of them and let her inform the others afterward.
Much more practical than sending four separate letters.
I closed my eyes for a moment.
Thinking.
And then I remembered something else.
My eyes slowly opened.
—I'm in New Jersey…
I tilted my head slightly.
—And if I remember correctly…
A small smile appeared on my face.
—There's something else interesting here.
The wind blew softly outside the window.
The purple mark burned for just a second.
—The Jersey Devil.
Silence.
Then my smile widened.
—…How interesting.
I stayed thinking for a few seconds.
—I just hope it's an urban legend.
My smile became awkward.
—Because if it's a real demon… that would basically be suicide.
I sighed.
But then my eyes gleamed faintly.
—Although…
—I could also take advantage of it.
I rested my elbow on the desk.
—I could use magic to feed the legend.
My smile slowly returned.
—Rumors.
Videos.
Sightings.
Fear.
Popularity.
Money.
An urban legend exploration channel would grow ridiculously fast with something like that.
I laughed quietly.
—Yeah… that sounds good.
Then I looked back at the purple mark.
My smile faded a little.
—Of course… first I need to make sure that entity's subordinates don't come looking for me while I sleep.
Silence.
The Jersey Devil.
—Please just be an urban legend…
Pause.
—And not a real demon.
I stood up from the chair.
—Well, whatever.
I pulled a balloon out of my pocket.
Slowly inflated it.
The plastic twisted between my fingers until it took the shape of a small bird.
Then I took out a letter.
I started writing.
A warning.
Simple.
Direct.
When I finished, I folded the letter and tied it to the balloon bird.
—Let's see…
I looked out the window.
—Deliver this to Vivian.
The balloon bird tilted its head slightly.
Then it flew out the window.
I watched it disappear between the buildings.
Silence.
And then…
The purple mark burned again.
This time stronger.
My smile slowly disappeared.