The old man was bewildered, but York was not. He looked at the middle-aged woman named Prima on the bed, his mind already recalling the days of the past.
When the system cheat had just arrived, this fellow in front of him would show up within his jurisdiction for no good reason. Eventually, he had painstakingly exorcised it, completing his first random mission.
It could be said that the first stat point he allocated in the system was contributed by this demon, whom he had exorcised nearly a dozen times.
Importantly, every time this fellow appeared, there was a fifty percent chance it would trigger a random mission.
Most importantly, every time this fellow appeared, it was within his area of responsibility.
As the saying goes, "no discord, no concord." After more than a dozen encounters, he had become familiar with the other's evil power, and the other was also familiar with his scent and appearance.
Seemingly able to sense the other's grievance, a rare smile appeared on York's face.
"Then I'm sorry. Thanks to you, I've earned quite a lot..."
York was about to mention points when he suddenly felt something was off and braked in time.
"Well, you know, for that, I'm quite grateful to you."
The demon inside also seemed to be reminiscing. Prima's face instantly became distorted as she stared fixedly at York, her face filled with grief and indignation.
"Damned bug!"
Amidst that voice of grief and rage, a massive dark air current quickly gathered and slammed hard toward York.
The mere residual force blew up York's black hair and the hem of his priestly robe. It also buffeted the old man's body, pushing him stumbling until he was pressed against the door. Like an earthquake, things in the room fell everywhere.
"Buddy, you should know that this is useless against me."
York's smile remained unchanged, becoming even more radiant. Facing the massive dark air current, he whispered softly.
"Protego."
The spell he had just learned was finally displayed for the first time at this moment.
[2 points of Mana used]
[...]
Two giant white shields, visible only to York and the demon, instantly covered the shaken old man and York, who still sat motionless, blocking the massive air current head-on.
On one side were two steadfast circles; on the other was the storm formed by the dark air current. The two were locked in place against each other.
In the next second, a slight clashing sound rang out, and both sides dissipated simultaneously. Tiny fragments of energy scattered into the void.
While the old man was in a daze, York waved his hand as if brushing away dust. Looking at Prima's distorted face and her extremely angry eyes, he said indifferently.
"So... how about you go back on your own? You've given me so many... uh,"
"What I mean to say is, since we're like old friends, I really don't want to hurt you,"
"and you don't want to be given an injection by me again, do you?"
His tone was very relaxed. To an outsider, it might have sounded like kind words, but to the demon who had painstakingly crawled up from Hell to possess Prima, it carried a different meaning.
From these words, especially the part about the injection, scene after scene surfaced in its memory.
A full dozen or so times.
This damned priest had gone from struggling at the beginning to gradually being able to easily drive it back to Hell.
From sweating profusely while holding a Cross and a Bible at the start, he had gradually evolved to using a strange smile while holding some odd things... Thinking of this, Prima's face became even more distorted. Her waist twisted, and her movements were somewhat contorted, yet filled with a sense of grief and indignation.
The power it could use was too little. Even now, the fusion was only in the first stage, and the power it could use was less than a third of its true body.
Staring at York, an unwilling look humanly appeared in Prima's grayish-white pupils. As a demon, it should have been the one torturing humans, but now it was the other way around.
"Damnable!"
When this emotion of grief and rage reached its peak, the dark air current in the entire room instantly became intense.
"You shall have a day when you fall into Hell! When that time comes, I..."
It roared, but was interrupted by York in the next second.
"You're wrong. As the Lord's spokesperson, I will only return to the Lord's embrace."
Combined with York's serious expression, these words seemed even more infuriating in the demon's eyes.
"Aaaaaah!"
Prima's behavior became even more frantic. Her body rolled incessantly amidst her roars, and in her struggle, she even managed to move the bed slightly.
At the same time.
Everything in the room was knocked to the floor by this dark air current invisible to ordinary people, and the furniture trembled and was slightly moved.
Clattering and clanging filled the room; it was a total mess.
If one ignored the surging dark air current, all of this looked exactly like a demon's performance in a movie.
York, still calm, had a look of reminiscence in his eyes.
And the old man, Welber, who had just recovered, had no idea of the reason behind it; he only felt like the entire room was shaking everywhere.
He could only desperately grab the doorknob to steady himself, looking at the priest sitting on the stool with a terrified expression, trying to find a shred of security.
Seemingly sensing the old man's gaze behind him, York looked at the frantic victim, Prima, and said helplessly.
"To be honest, I really don't want to hurt you."
Saying this, to restore peace to the scene and look after the old man, York simply dissipated the dark air current in the entire room.
"Repello."
Originally a spell used to push away or keep something at a distance, following York's will, a ripple like a water wave emerged with him as the center, sweeping across everything, passing through all physical objects.
[6 points of Mana used]
The result of using six points of Mana was that the room, which had been shaking incessantly, instantly regained its calm as if caressed by a light breeze.
The whole place fell silent.
The old man, Welber, subconsciously looked at the priest sitting over there and breathed a sigh of relief.
Despite this, the demon inside Prima seemed very unwilling. It stared at York, still roaring incessantly, while the taut ropes held her limbs.
"It seems you're really not backing down, buddy. Then I'll have to give you an injection, at least to deepen your memory..."
As York spoke, he unzipped his backpack with one hand. With a zipping sound, the items inside were suddenly revealed to everyone.
Most obvious were a Shotgun and a Revolver, two boxes of ammunition, and a bandolier.
Along with an old Bible, five crosses, and two large bottles of holy water.
Finally, what remained were Syringe guns that looked like firearms and some sealed needles.
Next to the needles, labeled bottles and jars were arranged very neatly inside.
This was everything York usually carried—a full set for a conventional exorcism.
"Damn you! You deserve to die!"
At the sight of the needles inside, Prima's face became even more distorted, and her movements grew more violent. But as the fusion was only in the first stage, it could only watch helplessly as York picked up the Syringe gun and began to assemble it.
"Hehe, buddy, have you remembered everything now?"