“Do your own evolution?” Phisola asked in a cynical voice.

“A sufficiently advanced technology could pull it off. So why not?”

“Techno … are your people supplementing the lack of magic with technology?” Her eyebrow rose involuntarily.

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

“… hmm … it could be true if we let our imagination run wild. But the reality is much more disappointing.”

Eric raised his left hand, showing the watch on his wrist: “This thing works without magic.”

“I’m already aware of that.”

“That means we don’t need magic to animate objects. I’d say that’s quite advanced for this world’s technology and perfectly comparable to your magic. Most people would confuse this watch for a magical item.”

“Hmm … that is true. So, what kind of energy is powering it if not magic?”

“Do you know what electricity is?”

“No.”

“I don’t know how to describe it precisely, but essentially, it’s controlled lightning.”

Phisola stayed quiet for a while before answering: “And you expect me to believe that?”

“No, I don’t. You have no reason to trust me on that, and I cannot prove it to you. Or … actually …” His lips went wide, and his brows up as he realized something, “Yeah, I can actually prove it to you!”

“Oh? You can summon lightning for me?” An amused grin showed on her face.

“Yes, I can, but not right now. I’d need to go back to my camp to fetch something. A small device that lets out a tiny lightning. But first, how do you light a fire?”

“Like any semi-competent mage would,” she said while raising an index finger and letting a tiny flame form on top of it.

“Whoa! That’s cool! And very useful.”

“Although I’m not a fire mage, so I can’t make it intense. It’s not like I can incinerate people. I can only give them a small burn at most.”

“What kind of mage are you then?”

Phisola closed her eyes for a moment, letting out a low sigh as she made a slight pause in the conversation.

“Do you realize how unstructured and all over the place our conversations are?”

“So? It’s not like anyone is listening to us anyway. As long as we understand each other, it’s all good.”

“The gods are listening, but that’s not the point. I know that you demons are chaotic as fuck, but you have to be the most all-over-the-place person I’ve met in my life. You have the curiosity of a devil, yet you are way too disorganized to make any use of it.”

“Now, now, we did learn a lot about each other.”

“And have done nothing useful with it. We’re just talking for … how long now?”

“We are ironing out our differences at the very start. I’d say that’s a good way to start a friendship, to get to know each other as much as possible so we’d avoid any misunderstandings in the future.”

“And what have you learned about me, hmm? Let me see just how useful our conversation was.”

“First of all, I learned that you’re a devil! And a mage at that! Speaking of which, are all devils mages?”

“And just like that, you moved our conversation in a different direction. Again.”

He gave a short chuckle: “Sorry about that, it’s a professional deformation of mine. As a diplomat, it’s my job to divert the conversation when there’s even a hint of a possible confrontation. I’m not doing it on purpose.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“That’s fine when we’re having an idle chatter, but you should focus on the task at hand when learning something new and not be all over the place. Besides, there was no chance of us getting into a confrontation just now. You’re just extremely chaotic and all over the place!”

“Sorry, sorry,” he raised his hand gently to calm her down, “Usually, that’s not the case, but I admit I’m letting my curiosity get the better of me with you. I mean, isn’t it natural? There’s an entire new … race in front of me, so isn’t it natural to be curious about everything regarding you? Especially since we’ll be living and working together.”

“That’s not how people usually respond when they hear they’re in a devil’s company.”

“Right … I bet people are mostly scared of you. And rightfully so.”

“I’ll be kind and take that as a compliment. But yes, most people treat me as if I’m some deity. Not to praise or worship me, but to know they’re at my mercy and there’s nothing they can do about it. But it seems that you’re already accustomed to my presence, even though you haven’t spent a single day with me yet. That takes either some very admirable adaptation skills or a complete lack of intelligence.”

“I realize that my chances of leaving this place on my own are slim to none. And you’ve also stopped abusing me for the time being. As long as you’re fulfilling your promise and are treating me as a person, I have no reason to leave.”

“Is that all you’re asking for?”

“What else would I be asking for? For all your latent aggression, you can be a very reasonable person when you feel like it.”

“I’m only aggressive when people deserve it.”

“That’s exactly what every abuser says. But still, you’re very capable, and it’s obvious that you know what you’re doing. You even have a plan that’s more than just ‘keep walking, and maybe we’ll find an exit’. So I don’t mind you being in charge. You certainly did much better here than I did. Besides, I’ve always been a supporting character, so why wouldn’t I keep doing what I’m best at?”

She nodded her head in satisfaction: “Good. It’s good to see that you know where your place is.”

He extended his arms as if waiting for her to embrace him: “That’s what being a diplomat is all about! It’s all about knowing your strengths and weaknesses and ensuring you don’t overplay your hand. Besides, I see nothing wrong in following people who are more competent than I am.”

“That’s great, but don’t fool yourself into thinking flattery will help you.”

Hearing that, he raised an eyebrow while giving her a sleazy smile: “And on top of that, you’re also beautiful and hot! Why wouldn’t I follow a beauty wherever she goes?”

She used her hand to throw her long hair to the side in an over-exaggerated, theatric manner while leaning on the other hand: “You don’t mind following beautiful females?”

“Of course not! Hell, I love doing it! That way, I get to stare at their asses as they’re walking in front of me!”

That made her laugh: “This suits you far better, my follower. Honesty makes you much more charming than that constant whining you did not so long ago.”

“What can I say? I’m learning.”

“If only you’d learn when to shut up and get something done.”

She grabbed another ceramic cup and a small knife from the small, portable table within reach. Eric was so engrossed in the conversation that he never noticed the table was there.

“Ok, give me your arm,” she said in an authoritative voice.

“Do you promise you’ll give it back?” He said with a stupid smile.

“Sure. It may be detached from the rest of your body, but I promise I’ll give it back.”

“That’s not really … a joke I appreciate.”

“A stupid joke for a stupid joke. If you can imply I’d take your arm off, then it’s only fair for me to imply that I will.”

She looked at him with puppy eyes: “Don’t you realize your mischaracterizations are hurting me?”

“Sorry, I just … I thought you’d appreciate it.”

“I don’t appreciate passive-aggressive cowards. If you want to be aggressive, then at least have the balls to do it right, like I do. I hate pretenders. Then again, your whole job boils down to pretending and giving fake smiles to the people you hate.”

“Now you’re hurting my feelings.”

“Isn’t payback a bitch? But we need less talking and more bleeding. We’ve talked long enough, now is the time to get something done,” she made an ‘approach-me’ gesture with her hand, “Give me your arm already. Or are you having second thoughts? You can give up if you feel like it. I’m not a good person, but it’s not like I’d take your blood without your permission.”

“I gave blood before, so it’s nothing new to me. Although, I never had my vein cut with a knife.”

“Your people have instruments specifically designed for taking blood, right?”

“Not just for taking blood. You can inject something into the bloodstream with it, too. Like a cure.”

“Or a poison.”

“Well … yes, you can … but that’s not what we’re using it for.”

She took his hand and placed his arm on her lap.

“Then what are you using it for?” She asked while looking at him.

“I’ve already told you, to administer cures directly into the bloodstream. Or to take blood for analysis.”

“To analyze what?”

“Health mostly. You can learn a lot about someone’s health from their blood.”

“You can learn so much more. Not just about their health.”

“That’s true. Their heritage, for example. You could do a detailed mapping of their heritage.”

“But there’s no magic in your world, right?”

“No, there is not.”

“So, how do you get the information out of blood?”

“Using chemistry. Actually, it’s very similar to what you did with my blood before, when you’ve put a drop of it into that cup.”

“Oh?”

“I’m not an expert, but I think the blood and its components are reacting to different chemical solutions. Observing the reactions can tell you OUCH!!!”