"Now, master, don't celebrate yet. I think you're forgetting something," Alice said when Lucas started telling her his plans.

"What?" Lucas asked with a frown.

Alice's eyes darkened. She approached him and whispered, "Remember that you made a deal with a demon. A demon, master."

"Are you implying that you intend to kill me?"

Alice snorted and leaned out from him. "As your familiar, I am bound to follow all your commands and I'm not allowed to harm you. After all, you're my master. You're the one who summoned me and saved me from that cursed place. So I'm yours, master. Feel free to use me to make your wishes come true."

Lucas took a step back and looked away, trying to hide his flushing face. "That was weird. That sounded very romantic to me even if you meant it as my familiar."

"You're right, I'm your familiar. I'm a demon, and nothing I said is romantic."

Lucas gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "So, what was it you said I was forgetting?"

Alice smiled. "Our contract will only be valid until this clock has completed its full rotation."

She held up a golden pocket watch and showed it to him. The two hands were pointing to the roman number twelve.

"So our contract isn't permanent?" Lucas asked.

"Permanent? Not really. But if you want me to remain as your familiar and keep your soul intact, you must grant my wish before you run out of time."

Lucas staggered back, shaking his head. "I didn't read anything about this. It wasn't written in the book!"

Alice sighed. "Of course, it's not. Only spirits like myself are aware of this."

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Lucas's brows descended low over his eyes. "And you didn't tell me this on purpose before the agreement."

A wide grin formed on Alice's face. "Of course, master. If I did, things might only get complicated for me. I badly needed a contractor, so I thought I'd make it easier by not telling you beforehand. You should know that I also saved you some trouble. If I told you the consequence, I'm sure you'd be paralyzed by indecision, which would delay everything. You want your vengeance as soon as possible, don't you?"

Lucas clenched his fists. "Yes."

Alice smirked. "Your wish and mine are intertwined. If you failed to grant mine, you will suffer from the consequences. Don't worry, I only have one wish."

"Spit it out," Lucas said in a deep voice.

"I want you to help me find the Mad Hatter."

Lucas frowned. "The Mad Hatter? The greatest magician and inventor of this century?"

Alice furrowed her eyebrows, her every muscle tensing. "Oh. So he was that successful now?"

"He is very successful. He is well-known even in other nations!"

Alice's eyebrows twitched, rage bottling up inside her.

"What do you want from that man anyway? Is he also known in your world?"

Alice's expression darkened. "No. That man is the one who turned me into a monster. I used to be a human, in case you didn't know. That was a long time ago."

Once upon a time, Alice and the Mad Hatter were best friends. Even as a child, the Mad Hatter excelled at magic and invention. However, when he discovered the forbidden book, greed overtook him. He cast a forbidden spell on his best friend. In an attempt to create a powerful spirit capable of granting all of his wishes, he turned Alice into a demon. But when Alice refused his request for a contract, she was thrown into a strange and nonsense world where she almost lost her mind.

It was all Mad Hatter's fault.

And Alice was here for revenge.

"Greed makes a man blind and foolish. It breeds cruelty in humans," Alice stated, her eyes boring into Lucas. Then, her mouth curled into a wicked smile. "So, will you grant my wish?"

Lucas ran a hand through his silver hair. "What choice do I have anyway? You'll take my soul if I fail. But I will do it as my gratitude for answering my summon."

Alice wiggled her eyebrows. "Oh, are you sure you can keep your heart pure and maintain that selflessness?"

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing," Alice answered, smiling. "Since we're all set now, the clock has now started moving."

The light glinted off the golden surface of Alice's pocket watch as she held it up one more time. The long hand was now pointing to the roman number one, just as she had said.

Lucas's jaw clenched. "I suppose it could be a problem. The Mad Hatter has been missing for almost a year now."