*Asura's POV*

 

"Wake up." A voice sounded from somewhere, sudden and loud. Ringing in my ears like a flesh wound that just wouldn't heal.

 

" Wake up, I won't say this again, Rat." The same voice sounded, old but still very much loud.

 

'Am I captured? No, the demon would have killed me immidiately and I don't feel any bindings either so can't be a human as well.' I thought suddenly sober.

 

Slowly I opened my eyes, only to be assaulted by bright light from a bonfire that was frankly too close to my face, even as I adjusted my site I could feel my skin being too hot for comfort and more than that I could smell some of my hair having being burnt.

 

Wait, smell!

 

I sat up straight immidiately noticing the forest around me and even more the person who had helped me. But before collecting those thoughts my mind went to the scent, it wasn't there anymore.

 

The demon had disappeared. Gone and vanished.

 

"I'll have to go." I said more to myself then to my helper before starting to grab my provisions bag that was lying just out of my arms reach.

 

"There, there. Let's not rush this." The helper said from beneath his great Hat that covered his face in full. He put one of his legs onto the bag caking it with mud.

 

"Remove your foot from that. Or I'll repay your kindness by gifting you a finger from your own foot. And I'll be a poor man to gift a men with a harsh lesson." I said trying to appear stronger than I felt.

 

One part of me wanted to rush off straight without taking the bag, it had nothing in it that I couldn't replace. Food that could be traded or bought, coins that could be earned.

 

But I was weak in that moment, my body drained of strength so much that I swayed even as I tried to sit upright. I couldn't leave this men behind me in this forest to ambush me.

 

He could do a lot, sure he didn't smell like a demon but I couldn't trust that not with the repugnant smell that was coming from him being much the same as the smell of a Demons blood. But much thicker, like Oil and tar mixed to an almost liquid.

 

It was nauseating and more than that it told that this was men was no normal traveller, even as I stared at him he appeared unflinching and despite my loss of feeling in parts of my legs i knew for a fact that with the carvings on my body, the different color of my eyes and most of all the Unbound Mane of hair that went down past my shoulders made me look more like a Demon then any human.

 

"It would be a worthless gift indeed, but my foot is short so I say be done with it and relieve me of this burden. I shall remove that pretty head from your shoulder for that kindness." The men said in an old guttural growl for a voice.

 

And now I fully looked at him. Even as he was standing and I was sitting I was almost the same height as him, couldn't have been more than 4 and a half feet in height, perhaps a bit shorter than that.

 

His head was covered in a straw hat that could hide his whole body, if only he could crouch well , but looking at his hunched back I doubted this men had easy bones to work with. Dressed in open clothes that might've once been Green but now looked the color of wet dirt, they punctuated his fat fingers and legs even more.

 

Covered in hair were the visible parts of his body, his fingers so swollen they looked ready to burst but with long nails that were colored black instead of a healthy pink.

 

This men.... This creature. I couldn't turn my back to it because at that point it would be better for me to open my back with my own knives and hands.

 

The creature didn't remove its hat and looked at me from beneath it and I looked away. Perhaps a bit too quickly.

 

"Terrible aren't I? Hideous, even, but if your eyes have had enough to drink of my beauty then I suggest returning to the matter at hand." The creature opened his face and gave a heartening smile of Rotten black teeth.

 

"I'll let you go. Only if you can walk on your own legs back to the place you wish to walk back to." The man replied, turning his hat a bit and showing a part of it that was painted black.

 

'What's he playing at?' I thought confused.

 

No way it was that simple to get away from him but still to check his sincerity I started to stand up and saw no moment from him.

 

'Guess it is that easy.' I thought confused before my legs buckled and I hit the ground face first. The pebbles only put scratches on my face making them more irritating.

 

"You'll have better luck crawling on the ground with those legs them you'll have travelling. But then again your kind do heal quickly don't they?" The stranger said with mirth in his voice.

 

For a moment there was silence in the clearing, with the only sound being those that came from the fire.

 

"Yes, humans do heal quickly. I suppose. But not much faster than demons. Like you." I asked, adjusting myself with my hands and looking at the stranger.

 

" Oh a demon am I? What gave it away? The smell or my looks?" The stranger replied scoffing before taking out a blade and cutting himself across his index finger.

 

Black blood, thicker than honey slowly ebbed out from the bloated finger and landed on the ground but the wound did not immidiately heal.

 

"Apologies. I have some clean cloth in that bag, let me treat the wound so it doesn't become infected." I could only swallow my shame and try to stand.

 

"No need. I'll be wrought to die from an infected wound of all things, it's rather that blade that'll rust to dust rather than me." The man replied unkindly.

 

"Sit down boy. I didn't save you for you to fool around in the forest before dying in a ditch while trying to find your way back to those Demon Slayers of yours." The man said and this time i was too shocked to even care.

 

" You know about them?" I asked on instinct more than anything.

 

" Of course I know about them. Prancing little children with their swords trying to act monogamous. Say boy you've seen my kind before haven't you? Even those like you with sharp senses show flinching when you first sense our blood.

 

Or rather smell it, I suppose, I don't know how the others work. But they're disgusted by us all the same." The man now spoke with ease making his disgust all the more clear to hear.

 

This time I couldn't keep the shock out of my face as I looked at him and his Beady swollen eyes from behind his BlackHat.

 

"Who are you? And how much do you know?" I asked, struggling to keep my eyes open.

 

"I'm just a wanderer boy. And I know some things. More than you atleast." The men replied, chuckling.

 

 

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Author's Notes: So, I managed to get a back infection and lost the ability to sit for a long while so the gods have truly being kind to me. So sorry for the delay, I got this out as quick as I could, it was originally meant to be a single chonky chapter but I had to split it in two.

My poisoning has healed so that's good but I'm nursing a migraine right now which is evidently less good.

Anyways, I need to bounce quick and well everyone comes here for  those chapters, which I promise will keep on coming soon as I'm able to, it's hard to write when I'm turned into stew at 42 degrees celsius, I wish I could  change that but don't have the cash for that so cold water has to suffice.

I promise to heal quickly and upload chapters, just need to sleep for a night without stress, which is impossible but well I can at least try.

To those that wanna read ahead, they  can do so at my Patreon. I try my best but I appreciate readers both there and here, thank you for reading what I write.

Anyways, hope everyone  has a nice Day/Night and know that whatever any of you are going through, I trust you all to get through it; I  believe in all of you. I wish someone had said that to me once so I'm saying it to all of you.