Demons Beside You

“Blackie, why does that woman make me feel like she’s cooler than me?”

“From the way you understand the word, she is indeed cooler than you,” Blackie said matter-of-factly.

“Is she powerful?”

“She should be a deathspeaker witch.”

“I know what a witch is, but what’s a deathspeaker?”

“Just like careers for people, you can say a deathspeaker is a type of career too.”

“What do they do? It sounds really high-end.”

“They’re a type of witch that enslaves evil spirits to help them do some things when needed.”

“For example?”

“Regular evil spirits just scare people, but stronger ones can take over a human or even help her fight directly.”

“I feel like I’m involved in a magical world now… This is different from my worldviews. Are there many people like her in the world?”

“Witch magic is the magic that demons don’t want,” Beelzebub said with disdain. “More than 1,000 years ago, demons left behind some magic when they were summoned to the human world. Most aren’t suitable for human use though, so the humans changed it up themselves and evolved into what it is today.”

“Are there any I can learn?” Chen Zhao wanted to learn magic too.

“I don’t know many spells and most are subordinate spells. You can’t learn it.”

“Why not?”

“You aren’t my king’s low-level demon. How can you learn Glutton spells?”

“What about you? Any spells?”

“Human, don’t ask me. I don’t know any spells other than subordinate spells.”

“Blackie, what about you?”

“I don’t know any,” Blackie answered. “But if you want to learn, you can look for demons without subordinate.”

“Are there any spells that can destroy the world instantly?”

“Yes.”

“Really?”

“In comics.” Beelzebub looked at him scornfully. “But if you really want to learn magic, you can look for Raz. Maybe he has magic books.”

“Him… But his stuff is all so expensive.”

Chen Zhao got back home but saw that the light was on. He froze. Was there someone there?

“Gerlyn?” Chen Zhao had only given his keys to Gerlyn.

As soon as he entered, he saw someone lying on the sofa. A pair of long legs was propped on the living room table.

Those legs weren’t Gerlyn’s. She was more muscular and didn’t have such slender legs. The skin color wasn’t right either.

Chen Zhao walked into the living room and saw Fali sleeping on the sofa. She was still holding the remote control. She’d probably fallen asleep while watching TV.

Knock, knock.

Chen Zhao enjoyed those long sexy legs and gradually looked up. As expected from the coastal lifeguard, her figure went without saying.

When he knocked on the doorframe, Fali’s eyes flew open and she jumped up.

“Uh…did I go into the wrong home?”

“Hi. You’re back?” Fali rubbed her eyes. “Walter, come to me. I miss you so much.”

“Can you tell me why you have my keys and why you’re here?”

“From now on, this is my home too.”

“I never allowed you to live here,” Chen Zhao said coldly.

“Actually, you did.” Fali took out a contract and placed it on the table.

Chen Zhao grabbed it. Seeing the rent contract, his expression darkened immediately. The agent had called in the morning and told him they’d found a roommate for him. It was her?

“Don’t you know that rooming with an unfamiliar man is really dangerous…”

“I’m not scared. Walter will protect me.” Fali acted as if she didn’t understand, but Chen Zhao doubted she was just a dumb blonde.

Plus, she wasn’t even blonde…

“Why aren’t you going to your room?”

“Didn’t clean up yet… Oh right, where did you go? Why did you come back so late? And why did you bring Walter with you?”

“I think that’s my freedom. You don’t need to worry where I’m going or if I bring Walter.”

“Walter isn’t only your dog.”

“Did you hear about this home’s history from the agent?”

“Yes. It’s bad luck, right? But you’re not scared, so why should I be scared?”

“Fine, whatever.” Chen Zhao shook his head. “Since we’re living together, you better be prepared. I have some habits, for example.”

“Habits?”

“Running around nude at home.”

“Ha… If you dare do that, I’ll call the cops. It says clearly in the contract that if one party has indecent behavior in shared space, the other party has the right to call the cops.”

“If you can’t tolerate it, I’ll have to move.” Sneering, Chen Zhao continued, “I promise you’ll never be able to find me or see Walter.”

“Fine. As long as you don’t harass me, I won’t care. I’m a lifeguard. I’ve seen everything before.”

“Also, you can’t go into the basement.”

“What’s in the basement? Did you hide any unseeable things?”

To be honest, the basement was just a basement. The entrance to Blackie’s space crevice was there, but without Blackie’s permission, no one could enter the crevice.

“Some of my medical equipment and medicine. I don’t wish for anyone to touch my things.”

“Okay, I won’t go. I don’t like being in those dark and damp places anyway.”

“Okay. I’m going to rest now.”

Chen Zhao walked into the bathroom. He stripped until only his underwear was left and then ran around the house. Fali pretended she didn’t see the half-nude Chen Zhao, just as they’d agreed on.

“Is there food? I’m hungry.”

“In the fridge. Go look yourself.” Shirtless, Chen Zhao brushed his teeth while watching TV in the living room.

“The pizza’s nice. You make it?”

“No, the neighbors gave it to me. Leave some for me. I haven’t eaten yet. Is it okay for you to eat so much at night?”

“Lifeguards have high expenditures every day. I need to eat at least 2,000 calories per day. If I’m not full, I’ll be the one to run into trouble.”

Fali was entirely unladylike when she ate. She stuffed the pizza in her mouth like a chipmunk.

“Do you work so late every day?”

“Depends,” Chen Zhao said. “I have to go out if I get a client’s call at night.”

Fali saw Raymond slither to Walter. The snake and dog cuddled up together.

“Are you sure that snake won’t bite Walter?”

“It’s smarter than you.”

Chen Zhao showered in the bathroom. When he came out, he saw that Fali had taken the beer out of Chen Zhao’s fridge.

“There’s more than 2,000 calories on the table.”

“It’s okay. I have a fast metabolism, so I never get fat.”

There were two types of people that Chen Zhao hated the most: skinny people and skinny people that proclaimed they never got fat no matter what they ate.