Chapter 1 Contract with a Demon

• "Samantha, we're gathering signatures to get Mr. Dex dismissed. Can you sign this?" Someone handed me a parchment amidst the noise.
• "Sure." I picked up the pen and signed my name.
• Mr. Dex was infamous among students for his harshness. Last semester, he gave my best friend, Yelena Reed, an "F," forcing her to retake the exam at the start of this semester.
• As the neon lights flashed with the blasting music, the party organised by the students of Lestrax Noble Academy entered its final stage to choose the Prom Queen. All the boys were inviting their favourite girls to the dance floor.
• "Samantha, would you like to dance?" A handsome boy from my class extended his hand to me.
• "Sorry, I'm not feeling well. I'm heading back to the dorm," I refused and finished off my drink before leaving.
• I walked through the dim corridor and arrived by the window on the top floor of the Stark Building.
• The ancient stained glass window had a board nailed to it with a sign that read "No Climbing."
• Yelena, did you jump from here?
• I quietly stared at the window as my thoughts drifted back to yesterday.
• I went to school as usual.
• As soon as I reached there, I saw a massive crowd ahead.
• Everyone seemed to be watching something, blocking the entrance completely.
• "What's going on? Why isn't anyone going to class?" I tried to squeeze through the crowd as I complained.
• "Samantha!" A boy from my class waved at me.
• "Yelena was your roommate, right?" His face was ashen.
• "Yeah, why?"
• "Yelena ... Yelena committed suicide at the Stark Building!"
• I felt like I was struck by lightning, and my mind went blank.
• I fought my way through the crowd, using all my strength to finally reach the front.
• A bloody, barely recognisable female corpse in a white dress was lying on the ground.
• My face went pale.
• It was Yelena! My roommate. My best friend.
• The students around us screamed in horror at the sight of Yelena's body. Timid girls cried when they saw the scene.
• Yelena's death was gruesome.
• Her bones were broken as she lay twisted on the ground. One of her eyes had even popped out.
• The police arrived quickly to disperse the crowd. Classes were cancelled, and I returned to the dorm in a daze. I couldn't sleep throughout the night.
• I couldn't understand why Yelena would suddenly commit suicide.
• She had just received a recommendation letter for a university; she had no reason to kill herself!
• I reached out to touch the edge of the window, trying to find the truth behind Yelena's death.
• Of course, there was nothing.
• Yesterday afternoon, the police had already released an announcement, officially ruling Yelena's death a suicide.
• I walked back to the dorm absent-mindedly.
• The lights in the corridor were so dim that they failed to even cast my shadow.
• Lestrax Noble Academy used an ancient castle as their base. They still used eighteenth-century oil lamps in some corridors.
• "Yes! Baby, faster!" A woman's moans echoed from a classroom off the corridor.
• The sound of bodies slapping together was unmistakable in the quiet night.
• Through the crack in the door, I saw the captain of the rugby team and his new cheerleader girlfriend being intimate in the empty classroom.
• I turned around expressionlessly and left.
• Disgusting.
• Most of the students at this noble academy come from wealthy or powerful families. They were here just to experience life.
• They would indulge themselves in sexual activities and enjoy the flattery of poorer students.
• People like me, who attended this school on scholarships and weren't willing to curry favour with the rich, were often their targets for bullying.
• I quickened my pace to leave.
• Rose petals were carried away.
• I squinted my eyes when a gust of cold wind swept in, carrying rose petals from outside.
• Then I noticed black feathers drifting in the air.
• A handsome man with huge black wings was floating in midair, staring coldly at me.
• "Congratulations on becoming my bride, Samantha."
• What?