Chapter Text
It was late in the afternoon in the Kingdom of Shin. Within the field of flowers stood the six-year-old Crown Prince, Kazuma Asougi . He was hand-in-hand with who seemed to be Kazuma's close friend, a simple commoner named Ryunosuke Naruhodo.
As it’s been a few hours since they’ve started playing in the fields, Ryunosuke stopped in his tracks to exclaim, "Kazuma! We need to hurry; your father wishes for our return before night. He said today was the day of the ' Red Moon' and that it wouldn't be safe." The aforementioned groaned at this, "Ryu, you're no fun!" clicking his tongue, Ryunosuke shook his head, "Well, isn't that unfortunate- The crown prince can't even follow his own father's orders. How should we expect you to rule this kingdom if you keep that attitude? " Kazuma just laughed in response, "You could keep me in check! After all," he paused, walking in Ryunosuke's direction, passing a rose as he spoke, "Once I'm king, you'd be my right-hand man."
Ryunosuke was left speechless, blush threatening to creep up his cheeks, and he said, "Hey, that’s insensitive of you! What if I decline?" he argued. The prince kept quiet and merely grabbed his friend’s hand. "It doesn’t matter; I know you’d never say no."
Looking down, Ryunosuke let out a breath he wasn’t aware of holding. He knew that Kazuma was right and that he could never refuse him.
Knocked back into reality, Ryunosuke was face to face with Kazuma, who looked extremely bothered. "W-What’s wrong?"
Without answering the question, Kazuma raised another query: "Ryu, what time is it?" His voice was shaky but gentle. Ryunosuke fell into silence for a moment, quite offended by the lack of response to his inquiry. Pushing his personal feelings aside, he searched for his pocket watch and was taken aback by what he saw. "Well?-"
"It’s... 6:06 P.M." He stuttered and turned around, wanting to confirm his worries. A grave mistake on his part, both boys were now staring directly at the rising ‘Red Moon’. The prince immediately grabbed his friend’s hand and started running after snapping out of the moon’s trance. To his dismay, Ryunosuke dropped the flowers he held with his hand, growing weak at what clouded his sight, consciousness slowly slipping away. Not wanting to squander more time, Kazuma did his best to carry his friend despite his struggles as a mere six-year-old who only knew how to wield a sword. "Ryu! Hang in there! We’re going to be okay-" whilst breathing heavily, Kazuma continued to run as fast as he could.
Their surroundings slowly being drowned in darkness, Kazuma began to panic and scream internally, ‘Where’s the castle?! I need to get Ryu to safety!’. It was useless to look around in the darkness. Kazuma fell to his knees in exhaustion, panting relentlessly. "Ryu..." he huffed, "I’m going to... Get us home... Even if it’s the last thing I do!"
Forcing himself on his feet, Kazuma shrieked as he started running without a second thought. He couldn't care less if he couldn’t see. He just desperately wanted to bring his best friend to safety.
Soon, Kazuma ran into a dead-end, his face colliding with the rough surface. The boy yelped in pain as he caressed his wounded face whilst continuing to support the unconscious Ryunosuke laying on his back. "Ow- What-" placing his hand on the enclosure in front of him. "Is this a mountain of some sort-"
He proceeded to keep his hand on it, making use of what had blocked him. Each step he took was slow and careful. Minutes after he was able to discover an opening, he entered the mysterious entrance. Kazuma believed it would be best to take shelter in the meantime. After thinking it was safe, he gently laid Ryunosuke down. It was still dark regardless of his location, so he figured any sort of whining would be futile.
Kazuma failed to notice the glowing red eyes glaring in his direction. Despite the boy’s eyes shut tightly as he groaned in distress at his current situation, his ears were still able to pick up the loud noises of metal dragging against the ground. Kazuma's eyes bolted open at this, and now he was faced with a large pair of eyes, seemingly piercing through his soul. He started sweating at this, but one thing was clear: those eyes were bright enough to become his source of light in his direction, and yet, for some reason, he failed to process the image of the entity itself.
"Ah yes, if it isn't another Asougi coming to visit my domain."
"Who- Who are you?!" Kazuma shrieked as he backed away, making sure to drag Ryunosuke alongside him. "Don't tell me Genshin failed to mention me to you? That's rather insulting." the entity laughed bitterly. "How about this? Are you aware of Klimt van Zieks?"
Kazuma thought for a moment. Klimt 'van Zieks? Ah yes! ‘Klimt’ was the God his father made a contract with.
Then it struck the prince. "How come you know of Klimt van Zieks?" he asked. "I don't think that's my place to say, Kazuma Asougi."
Another red flag , Kazuma thought once more.
In spite of Kazuma being young, with the loss of his mother came his awareness of red flags. The tension was surely growing thick. "What do you want from me?" Kazuma stood his ground, regardless of how frightened he was. "What in the depths of hell do you mean, little prince? You were the one who stepped into my territory."
If Kazuma was trying to be brave earlier, he’s definitely terrified now. His legs trembled as the entity steadily went ahead. "Your father. The man who took everything away from me. I wonder how he would feel if I took something precious from him as well?"
Kazuma already knew where this was going. He was already running, Ryunosuke slowly regaining his consciousness with how Kazuma dragged him so recklessly. Ryunosuke tightened his grip on the prince, who was unusually tense. "Kazuma! Hey! What's with you?"
"Whatever you do! DO NOT LOOK BACK!" Kazuma exclaimed at the top of his lungs. Ryunosuke grew more worried at this and did the exact opposite, immediately regretting it right after he saw the raging eyes rushing towards them.
The chase went on for a few minutes, the raging entity growing as infuriation swallowed it whole. Horns, wings, and spikes started to grow out of the entity. With its flames engulfing the boys’ surroundings, they were left with no choice but to halt. Their grip on each other tightened in fear of what was to come.
“Ryunosuke Naruhodo, surrender Asougi to me and I’ll consider sparing you.”
Ryunosuke gulped, internally wondering how a commoner such as he was known by some powerful entity he woke up to. "NO! I refuse!" he looked down amidst his outburst. "As someone who promised Kazuma to be his loyal assistant, I refuse to give up on him now."
Standing in front of Kazuma, Ryunsouke glared at the entity. Kazuma was shocked at what he witnessed but did not question it.
"You radiate a strong aura. You remind me of myself, boy."
Ryunosuke felt uneasy as the entity slackened and vanished on the ground. Arms suddenly grasping upon both Ryunosuke and Kazuma, both tried to free themselves from the clutches.
"Kazuma- Does this thing not have shackles on- how do we" Ryunosuke groaned. "It does! But it appeared to be an endle-"
"You two clearly haven’t been educated." the voice was stern, demanding silence. "Nevertheless, I’m not surprised. It’s clear that two kids would never understand such significant matters adults go through." The entity sighed, the shadows still firmly gripping the young.
The eyes looked displeased. "These shackles are not meant to lock me within this domain. Rather, they’re here to lock me within the red moon. That’s why little brats shouldn’t play outside. If you were normal kids, a scare would’ve done it and I would’ve let you go. However… I’ve discovered an Asougi. Eyes never deceive. Gazing directly at you is enough for me to identify you as your father’s son.’
"Anyway. That’s enough chatter. I’ve exhausted you for long enough, Asougi. It’s time for you to perish!" the laugh was loud, ringing and echoing in Kazuma’s ears. It was sickening.
Stepping forward, the entity grabbed a sword mid-air, menacingly walking in Kazuma’s direction after he was shifted into a bowing position. "Are you ready to witness your ‘partner’s death, Naruhodo?"
A wicked smile appeared on the entity.
"No… NO!" Ryunosuke broke free of the shadows and immediately stepped in the way of the sharp blade. Taking what Kazuma was supposed to bear. Choking out blood, Kazuma opened his eyes only to be faced with a severely bleeding Ryunosuke who had a sad smile.
"K-Kazuma- I-I’m sorr-y…"
Ryunosuke fell on Kazuma who already had tears streaming from his eyes. "R-Ryu…? RYU?!"
"Oh great, just great ."
Kazuma continued to cry out aggressively, hugging Ryunosuke’s lifeless body against himself, his suit staining in crimson the longer he did so. "R-Ryu please w-wake up…". All this was familiar to Kazuma, reliving the moments of his mother bleeding to death in front of him.
"Asougi." the entity called.
"YOU- YOU WANT ME DEAD RIGHT? J-JUST KILL ME- PLEASE JUST DON'T LET ME BE ALONE! DON'T LET ME LEAVE RYU-"
"Kazuma Asougi. Listen to me. This was your fault. That brat died for you out of love and loyalty. It sickens me how you grieve so easily." Kazuma’s eyes darkened at this, "What do you know about grieving? WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE PEOPLE I’VE LOST!" the pair of red eyes remained unphased.
"How about you? What exactly do you know about me for my resentment towards the Asougi dynasty?" the prince did not answer, sustaining his sniffles. "Do you think living as the Devil is easy? I’ve witnessed almost everything for thousands of years in the sky until I was brought here per your father’s demands."
Kazuma had no words. He could no longer hear. He could no longer listen. He was just broken and lost.
The Devil sighed and massaged his temple. "Asougi. Do you really wish to perish after all this? You’re pathetic. It’s true that it was my motive to end your life, though I am not heartless."
"How am I supposed to trust you? You killed my best friend!" Kazuma’s anger was still there, though his voice was very hoarse from his constant screaming and crying. Ryunosuke’s body was becoming cold ,
"Hmm… Perhaps, I could offer you the chance to see your friend once again." the prince protectively hugged his friend’s body closer. "What are you planning-" he grumbled. The Devil simply smirked. "I wish to have a pledge with you, Asougi. Based on my understanding, you’re well aware of the power these pledges hold. I no longer seek your death. Instead, I seek to make use of you as the next heir of the Asougis."
Kazuma was immensely perturbed by how much the Devil knew about his connections, family, and bloodline. "Who exactly are you?"
"You needn’t worry about my identity," the Devil chuckled as its shackles shook while shadows formed a waving pointer finger. We've gotten off track, so let me ask again: do you want to see your very "heroic" excuse for a best friend?”
Left with no other choice, the temptation was too strong for a stubborn 6-year-old to make such a decision with a Devil. “I-I’ll make a pledge with you but I need to hear your circumstances as I make my own…” Kazuma tried to imitate what he’s previously heard from the king.
From the moment the Devil heard Kazuma’s words, it immediately started clapping its hands. “Well done, well done, Asougi. My conditions are simple: First, you shall not, under unforeseen circumstances, let anyone, let alone Genshin Asougi, have knowledge of this pledge. Second, you must understand that this pledge involves Ryunosuke Naruhodo using me as his vessel. Therefore, shall sever Genshin’s previous contract with Klimt van Zieks upon my imprisonment. Third, as a result of our agreement, you will be indebted to me and will serve me upon every upcoming Red Moon. And there is much more, but I’m afraid we can’t discuss those matters now as we’re running out of time.”
Inhaling after the statement ended, Kazuma commented, “Where are you getting at here exactly? And what do you mean by ‘running out of time’?”
The Devil only rolled its eyes at this, “All you’ve yapped about since our encounter are questions. However, to answer them. I shall be Ryunosuke’s vessel. He shall live and strengthen his soul through me. He will be eternal for as long as our agreement stands. As for the time, red moons don’t last the entire night. Glance at the one outside and you shall see it fading back to its original color. We can discuss your own circumstances when Naruhodo has successfully become a part of me.”
The prince started to sweat at this. Was it really a good idea? But it’s all for Ryunosuke so it had to be worth it, right?
“Alright fine, I’ll agree to your circumstances. But you better promise Ryu’s soul won’t be harmed!”
“That’s doable.”
“So... what’s next?”
From the shadows appeared a chalice. “Fill this chalice with your blood, and I shall settle the rest.” the Devil passed it over. “B-But I don’t have anything sharp…” this resulted in a laugh. “Did you honestly forget about the blade I used to end your own friend’s life with?”
“We do NOT talk about that! He’s coming back! You said it yourself through this ple-”
“Right. Now, will you shut up, brat?” Kazuma fell silent. “This blade is no ordinary blade. A simple wound it inflicts on someone, be it human or spirit shall die an immediate death. So observe what I shall do to avoid that deat-” an interruption was made. “I-I object!- To you harming your body for the sake of demonstration- Ryunosuke will live through you, so I don’t want him waking up with a wound.”
“Understandable. Then do as I say or you might end up facing your doom.” the Devil’s hand over the blade, its flame slowly vanishing from Kazuma’s touch. “Hold your arm out and cut a wound open. Make sure you don’t cut your wrist unless you’re really desperate to meet death.”
The boy nodded, his hand weighed down by the heavy blade, slowly cutting a wound open as he winced in pain. "Endure it. Remember who it's for," the Devil’s whispers echoing through his mind. And so Kazuma did. The wound then burned into nothing, leaving Kazuma confused. The pain was gone the moment the chalice was filled.
"With that done, we shall proceed with the ceremony. Hand me over that boy’s body." even if Kazuma never wanted to let go of Ryunosuke’s body, he knew it was the only way to actually see him again, so he carefully passed it on.
The Devil’s flames were to be seen once more, circling around Ryunosuke’s body as Kazuma stood nearby, worried. Not long after, the Devil’s human form started to appear. A fine man in a suit who had a very serious face. This was the first time Kazuma was truly astonished by what he saw. The man, the Devil, carried Ryunosuke's body into the circle. "For this boy, I shall be his vessel. A soul wandering through the realm. Guide him to me so that we can see him again. A contract to fulfill, a pledge that could make time still. And he who is guilty of temptation shall face the consequences of his actions."
The flames were extinguished for a moment, then burst out like a dragon’s roar. Kazuma covered his eyes as the sight was almost blinding. He really did it this time. He rebelled against his father, who had far too many ties to celestial figures on heaven and earth.
In the blink of an eye, Kazuma lowered his arms and came face to face with Ryunosuke, who had large horns and a pair of wings. It was the same as what he'd seen on the Devil's human form earlier. Without thinking, Kazuma rushed towards Ryunosuke, who seemed to have regained consciousness. His horns and wings turned into ash as he rubbed his eyes.
“K-Kazuma?”