Perhaps the Bull-Headed Demon really had changed its approach and wanted to corrupt Ian.
"We can sign a contract, a soul contract, and use the power of the contract to guarantee that I won't harm you," it earnestly suggested to Ian.
"Don't you serve Trigon?"
Ian's suspicious gaze was full of distrust.
"I'm not changing allegiances. The great Demon King is my eternal faith, that will never change. The contract between us is merely a constraint to ensure I won't harm you."
The Bull-Headed Demon's tone still sounded sincere.
"You're Superman's son. Even my master would surely not dare to casually scheme against you." The demon's voice carried a hint of emotion, but this might just be its Oscar-worthy acting in play.
"Do you think I believe that?" Ian subscribed to the belief that unsolicited courtesy hid malicious intent. Only the Joker, who sent him a check, could he temporarily pretend was an anomaly.
"I can smell your longing for magic, intensely strong, utterly greedy... and tinged with Kryptonian arrogance. You are bound to have great talent in learning magic."
The Bull-Headed Demon continued its persuasion with a confident tone. "You probably don't understand what your pendant is. Perhaps you still think it's a gift bestowed upon you, right?"
It recalled the past where Ian kept pressing it against the ground and stuffing it into the pendant.
Its expression showed a slight trace of lingering fear.
"You know about my pendant, too?"
Ian pulled out the pendant hidden beneath his shirt.
"Yes... I remember now... It's not a treasure. It's an... invitation letter from Death." The Bull-Headed Demon's voice became slightly solemn.
"An invitation letter from Death?"
Ian looked thoughtfully at his negative status. The demon seemed to be telling the truth on this point. Perhaps the reason for the one life point deduction per minute was to bring the wearer closer to Death?
"Exactly. This thing was supposed to belong to the Death Knight. However, there are rumors in Hell lately that it fell into the hands of a Great Demon whose name I dare not mention."
"That Great Demon has been using this pendant, attempting to sacrifice interesting lives to appease the Death Knight. Now, I think you are the offering the Great Demon is using to please the Death Knight."
"You might not know who the Death Knight is. That is the end of all things, a truly terrifying and dreadful deity, an ancient existence that even my master would not want to provoke."
The Bull-Headed Demon deliberately explained the seriousness of the situation to Ian.
However.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Ian simply grabbed the expensive alloy hammer he had bought to destroy evidence during the hospital incident and slammed it hard against the Bull-Headed Demon's forehead a few times.
"You're the terrifying one! You're the dreadful one! Don't you dare sow discord between me and my adopted father!" Ian's hammer was very handy, but the damage it could inflict was very limited.
The Bull-Headed Demon didn't even get a bump on its head.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!!!"
So Ian quickly landed a few more heavy blows, making the Bull-Headed Demon's head see stars—honestly, even so, Ian still missed that one afternoon.
Ever since he experienced the feeling of dual-wielding his aunt, he couldn't go back. A Kryptonian's forehead was truly the best hammer in the world.
"What... what adopted father?"
The Bull-Headed Demon's head was truly ringing from Ian's blows.
"Listen up! The man standing in front of you—no, the boy sitting in front of you—is the Death Knight's most beloved adopted son, and the perfect object of Miss Death's secret crush..."
Ian's words abruptly stopped here because he felt a sudden, fierce hammer blow to his own mind. This led him to deduce another thing about Miss Death.
She wouldn't always pay attention to him.
But when her name was sung, she might perceive it. Earlier, when Ian confessed to his parents using a codename, he hadn't experienced the feeling of an unspeakable force bypassing his body to smash his brain.
"My apologies, I was just sensing the shyness of a secret admirer."
Ian shook his head.
"You... You..."
The Bull-Headed Demon was utterly speechless. Its entire bull head was in a state of confusion—either this boy was not afraid of death, or he was actively seeking it.
Other than that.
It truly couldn't fathom how he dared to slander two of the most ancient existences in such a manner.
Especially the latter one—even if that entity was kind to humans, even Lucifer once described her as a "fickle old woman." Just thinking about it suggested she must be difficult to deal with.
"Don't say any more! I dare not even listen! Human child! You have no idea what you are offending... Please, let's talk about the deal to learn magic."
The Bull-Headed Demon's tone became somewhat shaky.
"A deal? So there's a price? What do you want? Abyss Barrel." Ian didn't know the demon's original name, but since the afternoon, this demon was only allowed one name from him—honestly, not directly calling the Bull-Headed Demon a Trash Can was already enough for the demon to thank Ian.
"..."
After another moment of silence.
The Bull-Headed Demon didn't get angry.
It knew anger was useless.
"Don't let that boy get near me... absolutely not." The demon spoke its condition in a hoarse, low voice, which surprisingly carried a hint of pleading.
"Huh?"
Ian couldn't immediately react.
Then.
The Bull-Headed Demon's eyes showed panic.
"I am a demon from Hell, so you must trust my intuition... That boy, your brother, he is the one who truly wants to pee in my mouth!"
"Maybe more than just peeing!"
The mortal world was not worth it.
The Bull-Headed Demon truly regretted being this pawn.
The atmosphere in the air was silent.
After a long while.
"Nonsense! Gibberish! Spreading rumors! Is this what a demon is like! I finally understand how despicable you are!" Ian ultimately chose to believe his second brother.
Brotherly love.
That's how it was. A person cannot, or at least should not. He knew his brother and knew that Jordan definitely had a good twenty percent chance of not doing such a thing.
"Alas."
Seeing this, the Bull-Headed Demon didn't continue the topic.
"Let's hurry up and sign the mutual aid contract, human child." It merely urged him, but Ian, who hadn't believed it at all, only sneered.
"What contract? What magic? I've been completely incompatible with demons since I was a child, like water and fire. Who's helping who? Dream on! No, I won't even give you a fart to eat. I'm saving it for the one who deserves it later." Ian used his hand to pull at the corner of his mouth because he felt his sneer wasn't quite convincing.
"..."
The Bull-Headed Demon was utterly speechless.
Just then.
*Knock Knock*
A knock suddenly sounded outside the door.
"Ian, we need to talk."
It was the voice of his father, Clark. It seemed Superman had returned from rescuing the nuclear power plant. Ian didn't dare to breathe, instantly holding his breath, unsure if his mother had returned with him.
He knew the fact that he was in the room couldn't be hidden from his father, who had x-ray vision. This was perhaps the tragedy of being born into a superhero family; there was no way to successfully play dead.
Precisely for this reason.
*Knock Knock*
After the knock sounded again.
Ian suddenly started believing that mutual aid was a good thing.
"He said... he said... everything was done by the demon corrupting him. Whatever issues you have... you should take them up with the demon... He also said he's just a child!"
This was the Bull-Headed Demon's slightly trembling voice.
It even contained a hint of a sob.
*Me* fight Superman?
The little demon, less than two thousand years old, felt like it might truly shatter at any moment. It sensed the terrifying, ever-increasing pressure of the aura outside, even though it had fallen silent.
Heart pounding with fear.
Yet, the little boy's whisper in its ear, urging it to repeat the words, felt so hauntingly familiar to the demon.
In this moment.
The bull head experienced a sudden enlightenment.
There was indeed a demon in this room.
But it was certain that it was not itself.
***
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