Chapter Nine
Flame of Renewal
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A robust and familiar aroma greeted me as I entered the kitchen, drawing me further in. The space was charming, with tall windows lining the walls, much like the living room. Shelves were filled with various spices and peculiar ingredients reminiscent of those used in witchcraft. I knew Enoxon was a sorcerer, but I hadn't realized he needed such multiple items. Frog legs, toad warts—oddities straight out of the fairy tales of my childhood—could easily be found in the collection. It was clear there were some bizarre things here for him to use.
In the center of the kitchen stood an island covered with various foods. They seemed to be a hellish twist on familiar human dishes. I stepped closer to the island, my eyes drawn to an intriguing spread of food. At the center was a dish that immediately caught my attention—a steak that looked burnt to a crisp. Curiously, I reached out to touch it, but the heat radiating from it made me pull back.
"Charred Soul Steak," Enoxon said, noticing my interest. "Kurai's specialty."
“Kurai?” I echoed, curious as my eyes gazed over the food. “Interesting. I didn’t know….”
"That a demon could cook?" Enoxon finished for me, chuckling. "Absolutely. He's not the kind of demon you'd read about in human folklore." He gazed at me gently across the kitchen, his soft green eyes reflecting a warmth at odds with the spice-and-strange-foodl surroundings. Dressed in casual clothing that seemed straight out of the human world, he looked nothing like the sorcerer I'd first met in his ‘magic’ robe.
“Well, no… But…” My gaze drifted off to the bread next to it, which looked like it was made from darkness.
“Abyssal Bread,” Enoxon explained, his gaze following mine. “Another one of his creations, baked with ingredients from the underworld as well.”
I reached out and tore off a piece of the bread, feeling its unusual weight in my hand. It was dense yet surprisingly soft. A faint, smoky aroma filled my senses as I brought it closer, hinting at the mysterious flavors within.
“Such unusual food,” I murmured gently, more to myself than to Enoxon.
“Even the simplest meals can hold a delicious flavor in this realm. You’ve seen Kurai’s room first-hand. He has numerous plants and ingredients he grows himself. And he can cook? Every woman’s dream,” the sorcerer chuckled as he made his plate.
Not comprehending what he said, I was still fascinated by the different types of food on the table and grabbed a small piece of it all. With a full plate, I gazed around to see where I would sit. Enoxon led me to the living room, where the fire was crackling and dancing on the walls. I sat at the table in the middle of the room.
It was silent for a few moments besides the crackling, and I felt very awkward eating at a dinner table with a man I barely knew. It felt similar to a first date, but he did not seem bothered as he started eating immediately. I wasn’t a fan of silence, so I would take a few bites and make small conversations. The first thing that came to mind was how Kurai shared that Nogitsune feeds off negative emotions. I questioned Enoxon, “When we were out and about,” I started awkwardly, “Kurai shared with me that he - well, nogitsune’s feed off negative emotions? He said I made him, um, well, I guess you could say I made him transform earlier because I was having a slight mental breakdown.”
He nodded and replied, "That is mostly correct. The Nogitsune is known to be a trickster, often causing trouble and feeding off human fear and despair. While they enjoy a good meal, a soul filled with negative emotions is like a delicious soup to them—easily consumed.” He paused for a moment.
“So, how does a negative emotion fulfill them? It is actually like food?”
“I mean, kind of?” Enoxon shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure, and there’s not a book that explains it.”
“Weird,” I commented.
“Unfortunately, the Nogitsune population is tiny, and the few that exist are nothing like Kurai. He's calm and uninterested in playing tricks. Yet," he paused, tilting his head and his expression shifting to uncertainty, "he somehow possesses the knowledge of a Fox Spirit that has lived for 500 years. That's partly why he has five tails. It's honestly astonishing. I know so little about him, but... one could say he's special. I've been around for hundreds of years, and I've never seen another Fox Spirit as young as he is, with five tails!"
I nearly choked on my bread as I heard him say he’d been around for hundreds of years. I coughed, quickly grabbed a drink of water, and stared at Enoxon wide-eyed.
The sorcerer’s eyebrow lifted slightly as he caught my shocked look, a grin playing on his lips as he shrugged. “I’m pretty much immortal - frozen at the age of… Well, for your sake, let’s say I’m 27.”
“So you’re old as Hell then?” I couldn’t help but ask him, a small chuckle escaping me.
“Sure, we’ll go with that,” He replied. “Weird huh? I’m a sorcerer who has been in this world for a long time, Snow. Most demons live for hundreds of years but usually have a stopping aging point as well. Demons are demons - either dead or born of another entity. But Me? I’m a special case in my way - just like Kurai is,” He said, his gaze lowering to the plate before him.
I thought I saw a flicker of sadness for a second, but he continued talking as I was about to comment.
“I'm just a magic user with different knowledge who is trying to gain more,” he said as he held out his hand. A blue orb appeared and floated in it.
The sadness I saw through that tiny little orb made me curious about who Enoxon was. I get it; maybe being immortal was awful, but perhaps he’s not even that old. It’d be interesting to see how the world changed over time.
“Err,” I murmured, avoiding calling him out on his depressed look, “How did Kurai become so intelligent?” I questioned.
“I’m honestly not sure,” He stated as he finished the last few bites of his meal and stood up to clean his plate.
I hurried to my plate, feeling uncomfortable if left alone, and wanted an answer. I got up and chased after him into the kitchen and went to the sink area to start on the dishes while cleaning up the leftover food. Back in the kitchen, I tried my best to continue the conversation, but also with a slight tease as I mocked him, “The all-powerful, old, yet-supposed-to-be wise sorcerer has no idea how the Nogitsune is so smart?”
The corner of his lips curled upwards as I asked that, and his gaze lightened momentarily. "That's not my place to tell you, Snow. When Kurai is comfortable, I'm sure he'll share that with you. Maybe one day, he'll share that part of his life and more," he teased me gently.
Feeling my body tense up, I winced at the slight pain in my ribcage, where a large bruise lingered. The memory of the strange marking on my side flashed in my mind. "Enoxon," I started, holding my arm to him, "will these markings ever go away?"
The sorcerer turned his attention back to me, now standing just a few feet away. Gently, he wrapped his hand around my wrist and, with his other hand, lightly rested his pointer finger on the side of the wound, examining it closely. “... Is that why you were crying?” He questioned me more gently than a soft, flowing river.
I cringed at his gentle grip and frowned when he questioned my crying. I responded only with a simple nod.
A sigh escaped him, "Everyone is different. You are human, Snow. Or something like that. It's been a while since a demon has attacked a human, so knowing that you were attacked makes me curious if they've found a way back into the human realm," he said, his finger gently tracing the outline of the wound down my arm. “Kurai is doing his best to help you. He has an interesting healing technique that he’s learned from one of his tails. That’s part of how we treated you when you were out for three days. Why not go and visit him? He’ll take care of you.”
The way he said that last sentence made my body tense, and I gripped the counter's edge with my open hand, quickly snatching my arm away. I was not too fond of the idea of someone taking care of me—I had been taking care of myself for years. I felt like a child as tears began to form in my eyes. "This place is strange, and I don't even know why I'm here," I softly whimpered.
In response, he patted me on the head and flashed another grin, his eyes void of emotion, as if he had no remorse for my tears. "Don't worry. We'll help you figure things out. As Mundus said, you're our problem." A laugh escaped the mage, his smile so precious and perfect—not that of an older man. He even reached out and wiped the tears from my eyes, causing me to flinch back a step. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I must finish cleaning up and attend a meeting. Get your wounds treated and dressed again, get some rest, and I'll see you in the morning." With another smile, he turned his attention back to the kitchen.
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My face grew hotter when he wiped the tears away, and I was sure I looked like a tomato. I had never been around such kind people, even if they weren't entirely human. I thanked Enoxon respectfully for dinner and left the kitchen after ensuring everything was clean and tidy, leaving the sorcerer alone. I was grateful that I wasn't the only 'human' in the underworld. I was thankful for Enoxon's presence, knowing he probably experienced a lot when he first came to this world, just as I did. I wondered if other humans had been here before and if they knew what lay here.
I made my way to Kurai's room, stopping outside the door, which was slightly ajar. I was about to knock, but I felt uneasy. Was I disturbing him? Perhaps he was sleeping; did he know when it was time for bed, given it was always dark? I questioned myself when I heard a soft melody from his room—classical music. I listened to the tune for a moment and started swaying slightly. Letting out a sigh, I turned away, thinking he was likely sleeping as it was dark in his room, and he had music playing.
My hand hesitated to knock, but my courage wasn’t there. It had been a long training day, and he was probably as exhausted as I was. But as I turned to leave, I heard the door creak, and his voice spoke out roughly, "Are you going just to stand there, or are you going to say something?"
"I, uh," I stuttered, folding my hands together and awkwardly scoffing as I turned back to face him. My heart pounded slightly as my gaze studied the floor, landing on his bare feet. "Eno said… You needed—err, I needed to..." I couldn't find my words. Why was I so embarrassed? But then again, here I was—asking a stranger for help, again, after he had saved my life—twice! I lifted my head and looked up from the floor, skimming his body as I gathered the courage to make eye contact.
But I stopped when my eyes landed on his bare chest. It wasn’t too hairy, but it wasn't bare either; a light dusting of hair covered his chest, giving him a rugged yet well-kept appearance. His muscles were well-defined, hinting at strength and discipline, but not overly bulky. The sight made my heart race even more, and I struggled to maintain composure. Completely embarrassed, I spun around to leave again and spoke. “I’ll come back later,” I said squeamishly.
His hand rested on my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze to stop me from walking away. My body quaked in embarrassment, and sweat began to form on my brow. I stood there with a slightly squirming lip, my heart pounding like a drum in my chest. The warmth of his hand seemed to seep through my skin, rooting me to the spot. Every nerve in my body tingled, and I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks. I was frozen, a mix of anxiety and unexpected comfort washing over me as I tried to process the moment.
"Your wounds won't heal themselves," he muttered, his voice rough but slightly reluctant. "I'm tired, so let's finish quickly." Despite the gruff exterior, I could sense a flicker of concern buried beneath his annoyance. Or at least, I hoped it was a concern. Maybe it was just my delirious mind imagining things.
Kurai’s warm hand sent a surge of heat through my body, my emotions spiraling into a whirlpool. I tried to swallow my pride and calm myself, but my body trembled slightly. I took a deep breath as the nogitsune gave me another reassuring squeeze, his other hand guiding me to turn around and face him. Standing there, half-naked, was embarrassing, but as I sneaked another glance at him, I couldn't help but notice his well-toned, almost inviting physique. I quickly cleared any inappropriate thoughts from my mind and glanced down at my arm, reminding myself of the urgent need to get my wounds treated.
His room, which had seemed intimidating earlier, now felt calming. Several dimly glowing fireballs floated in the room's corners, away from his plants. I assumed these were Kurai’s creations, controlled by his mastery over fire. The thought of the Shadowflame Sakura catching fire crossed my mind, but I reassured myself that he knew what he was doing. Surprisingly, I felt no heat radiating as I passed one of the floating fireballs. It was like a simple lamp-light but in a magical form.
“T-t-those are neat,” I commented randomly out of the blue, which had nothing to do with anything.
He grunted, “A child could learn that.”
I glanced around awkwardly, trying to avoid looking at his back as he approached his bed a few feet away. However, I couldn’t help myself. His back muscles were intriguing, and I found myself staring at them. As I studied his back, I noticed something unusual—a marking that started from the middle of his lower back and extended to his upper middle back. It was slightly off-tone from his natural skin color. The marking had a sharp edge at the lower part, leading to a circular shape on his upper back. The circle was darker in the center and gradually faded to a lighter color towards the edges. It looked almost like a sword, but there were no handles.
“You can stop staring,” He grunted, pulling a white button-up shirt over his arms, his back retreating into the fabric.
“That…” I shook my head, biting my tongue, fearing that he would comment on me staring.
“It’s a scar, yeah. What about it?” He questioned as he made his bed.
“Um, nothing. Nothing about it!” I quickly said and let out a gentle clap, standing in the middle of his room, which I felt like I was just in not too long ago.
It's nothing for you to be concerned about," he commented. "I am okay."
"I never said you weren't! I never said it was something to be concerned about, and I certainly wasn't staring at your back before you put your shirt on! I... was looking for your tail! Yeah, that's what I was doing. I was curious how your tail popped up."
He grunted, obviously not believing me. "Get comfortable. This could take a while. A demon wound isn't easy to heal."
I glanced around the room for a chair or something, but suddenly, a pillow hit me in the face. I huffed as I picked it up off the ground. "What was that for?!" I growled at him.
He sighed and shook his head. "Perhaps if you were paying attention," he muttered, motioning me to his king-sized bed.
"I, uh," I gripped the pillow, all my embarrassment flooding back as I stared at the bed. "You want me to... lay down?"
"Yes, Snow. Don't make this weird," he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Please, just do it.” He murmured. “I told you I was tired.”
I looked at his bed and then up at him, noticing his amber eyes were exhausted. He had slight bags under his eyes, and they were just glazed over. His black hair was a ruffled mess, and I suddenly felt awful.
"I'm so sorry. I know you're tired. We can do this tomorrow, can't we? You've had a long day, what with training me and cooking dinner—"
"Snow," he growled, his voice aggressive, causing me to tense up.
Immediately, I went to his bed and did as he told me. I crawled onto the bed like a toddler and sat up straight as he pulled a swirly chair over to sit a few feet before me at the edge of the bed. I sat criss-crossed, holding the pillow tightly against my lap. I noticed a little fox emblem on the pillow and kept my gaze fixed on that. Every few seconds, though, I’d look up and try to catch his tired gaze or sneak a glance at his exposed chest through his unbuttoned white shirt.
Sitting on his bed was nerve-wracking, but when Kurai grabbed a leaf from one of his plants and brought it to me, I felt a wave of calm wash over me. The pungent smell from the leaf he had crushed and sprinkled on the bed beside me was surprisingly soothing. I watched as he moved things around me, feeling more relaxed with each passing moment. It was comforting to be with Kurai in his dark room, with the low light of fire casting gentle shadows. The information that Enoxon shared with me—that Kurai was 25 but had the knowledge of someone over 500 years old—trickled into my mind. The thought of this fox spirit being so intelligent bewildered me.
Kurai gently grabbed my arm, and a warm sensation rushed through my body. This time, it wasn’t from embarrassment; it was something else. His touch was gentle, and his hands felt as warm as sitting before a fire. I watched as his hands began to glow with an orange hue. I felt a gentle tingle in my arm, as though something under my skin was being tugged at, but it wasn’t Kurai’s fingers. Perhaps it was the poison from the previous demon? Or something else?
I looked up from his hand and into his amber eyes, which were now glowing, along with the little amber-orange specks on his cheeks. As he massaged my forearm, extending over the wound and pulling back in, it felt as if he were controlling the poison himself. His eyes shut as he focused, and I noticed his fluffy black fox ears popped up on his head and twitched as he concentrated. I couldn’t help but form a soft smile, feeling entirely at ease with whatever he was doing.
Then something strange happened.
The warm, glowing balls of fire that floated around the room began to flicker erratically. I watched in confusion as the flames turned icy blue, their warmth rapidly vanishing. The room's temperature plummeted, and the icy fireballs smashed into the ground, shattering into shards of ice.
“Kurai!” I gasped, my voice trembling with fear.
His eyes snapped open, and I saw a mix of shock and determination in his gaze. “Stay still!” he commanded, his voice firm but strained. The icy shards scattered around us, but Kurai didn’t let go of my arm. His grip tightened, and the orange glow from his hands intensified. I felt a powerful surge of energy as he fought to control the poison. The air around us crackled with magic, and his amber eyes blazed with an otherworldly light.
Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my arm, as if the poison was fighting back. The sensation was like icy tendrils snaking through my veins, and I couldn’t help but let out a small cry. Kurai’s ears twitched, and he leaned closer, his eyes narrowing in concentration. I could feel the pain intensify by the second.
“Hold on, Snow. I’m almost there,” he murmured, his voice a mix of reassurance and urgency.
The orange glow from his hands grew brighter, and I could see the muscles in his arms tensing as he poured more energy into the healing process. The icy shards around us began to melt, creating small puddles on the floor. The room’s temperature started to rise again, but the tension was far from over.
Just when I thought things were improving, the world around me blurred. Everything seemed to fade away in the room, Kurai, replaced by a swirling vortex of colors and shapes. I felt like I was being pulled into a different world or vision.
I saw Kurai standing in a vast, desolate landscape in the vision. The sky was a tumultuous wash of dark clouds, and the ground was cracked and barren. Shadows surrounded him, each one whispering cryptic messages in a chilling chorus. His eyes glowed with fierce determination as he faced the looming darkness, but he seemed to be searching for something crucial.
The shadows whispered secrets, their voices indistinct and haunting. I could feel the weight of ancient magic in the air, a sense of something powerful and foreboding. The vision shifted violently, showing ancient symbols and runes glowing with a mysterious, pulsating light. They seemed to pulse with an eerie rhythm as if alive. I couldn’t decipher their meaning, but they emanate a sense of profound importance. Kurai reached out with a trembling hand to touch one of the symbols. The moment his fingers brushed against it, a blinding light erupted, engulfing everything in its brilliance.
I saw something else within that blinding light—a dark, sinister energy coiling around Kurai, manifesting his fox spirit’s dangerous potential. I wasn’t sure how to explain it, but it almost looked like chains of ethereal light wrapped around him, binding his movements. His expression was a mix of pain and defiance as if he was fighting against something. I tried to narrow my eyes on him, but he was so far away that the last thing I could see was the large fox spirits with tight amber eyes as they locked contact with me.
I saw something else within that blinding light—a dark, sinister energy coiling around Kurai, manifesting his fox spirit’s dangerous potential. Chains of ethereal light wrapped around him, binding his movements and suppressing his power. His expression was a mix of pain and defiance as if he was fighting against an unseen force.
“What the hell was that?!”