Ashuradō, Yomi — Two hours earlier. Mura walked about the busy streets of the large city, as cars stuck in traffic inched by at a snail’s pace. Several advertisements flashed on enormous monitors displayed on towering skyscrapers. Whatever you could possibly want, there it was on a poster or television screen.

Mura looked up at an ad featuring a voluptuous woman dressed in black. She wore a large hat, one side folded over its top with three dangling silver charms hanging from the brim.

“You may know me as Lamia, Ninth of the Jikininki,” the woman spoke in a smoky voice on the advertisement; holding a crystal bottle of some clear liquid. “But have you ever desired to be me? Now you can experience the aroma of the elite with Black Witch — the new fragrance for women.”

Mura continued walking while his eyes were glued to the screen.

—She sounds pretty cute. I wonder if I’ll get to meet her if I win the tournament?

His mind was just wandering now. He had asked at a few bars if anyone would be willing to partner up as his Thrall for the tournament. After no success he had even sunk as low as to ask a stray cat and bird to no avail.

—My desperation is clouding my train of thought. I need to go about this a different way.

Mura strolled into a secluded stretch of alleyway, looking to get away from the bustle of the city to a setting he was more comfortable around. He closed his eyes to think about what to do next, folding his arms across his chest as he meditated. He tuned out the noise of the outside world until everything became silent to him. Minutes later, he felt a hand grab his shoulder. Instinctively, Mura’s eyes shot open and grabbed the perceived threat, holding the person’s arm in a lock.

“Ow! Hey Mura, cut it out! It’s me!” Said a familiar face.

“Grimm? The hell are you doing all the way out here? Never mind that, I could actually use your help.”

Grimm rubbed his arm as Mura let go of it. He rubbed his shaved head, smiling lightly at Mura.

“It wouldn’t happen to be about that Zoroaster Tournament thing, would it? I’ve been hearing around the grapevine that you’re looking for a Thrall.”

“Jeez, I sometimes forget that word travels fast around here. But yeah, it’s just to get the Old Man his money.”

Grimm laughed heartily, as if Mura had just told the world’s most hilarious punchline.

“First off, I wouldn’t be caught dead being anyone’s Thrall. Old Man Belial may have forced us to train with all that magic shit as kids, but I never liked it. Preferred the old fashioned way of robbin’ folks. Second off, Belial told me to find you.”

Mura raised an eyebrow quizzically. “What for?”

“He’s worried you’re going to wind up dead in the tournament, you’ve only been doing small time robberies after all.”

—‘Worried’ my ass. Like Belial actually gives a shit about anyone but himself.

He knew why Grimm was really here after all. He was sent to persuade Mura into quitting this foolhardy notion and pay off his debts a safer way. Belial didn’t give two shits about him, he just wanted to protect his investment.

That’s when he noticed something off about Grimm. The veins in his exposed arms were glowing slightly underneath his skin. Grimm’s eyes weren’t the typical green color they had always been, but were now inverted to the color purple.

All telltale signs of a person using a Thrall.

“Okay Grimm, cut the bullshit I can see you’re using a Thrall; who do you have inside you right now? You always were the user, not the one to be used right?”

“Heheh, nothing gets past you Mura! Got two of our buddies floating around inside my soul right now, actually! You thought I’d bring only one to deal with you??” He said with a cruel laugh, dropping the act and lunging his fist towards Mura.

He braced himself and tried to dodge to Grimm’s side. Two Thralls at once? Mura would be insane to stick around for a fight, especially since it was already hard enough dealing with a Thrall user to begin with.

—If I remember correctly the more Thralls you have joined with you, the less control you have over your own actions. It’s like being intoxicated, one beer is just fine but several and you’ll have a tough time just walking straight!

Grimm’s movements were sluggish, just enough for Mura to dodge the punch that was aimed for his head. Grimm’s fist collided with the brick wall instead, shattering the stone like a bullet flying through a glass mirror.

“Shit, hold still dammit!” He shouted at Mura.

Mura considered running into public, he could easily blend in with the crowd of people and lose Grimm’s trail.

—No, I can’t. Grimm probably isn’t thinking straight right now, I don’t need to endanger any innocent people.

“Jigadō Number Two: Soul Flash!” Grimm said spinning around, firing a blast of yellow electricity from his fingertips. It was too fast to avoid and shot through Mura’s body. He felt his muscles seize up and spasm as his nerves went numb.

“Did you forget about magic, you dumbass? You can dodge my attacks all you like, but good luck trying to dodge that shit!”

Grimm grabbed the paralyzed Mura off the ground by the collar of his shirt.

—Dammit… This is gonna hurt.

“Nothing personal, kid. Just gotta rough ya up.” Grimm said before his fist shot into Mura’s face.

❇ ❇ ❇

Ashuradō, Yomi — Present time. Mura had woken up, bloody and in pain. He had a girl’s boot on his chest as she pointed a dagger at him.

—So that’s what happened… I’m gonna kick his ass when I find him again.

The young blonde girl hissed at him. “Don’t you move a freaking muscle if you value your life.”

Mura studied his attacker. The girl appeared adolescent, roughly fourteen or so. She had her hair pulled back into a ponytail, with white barrettes shaped like bat wings. She also wore a skintight sleeveless bodysuit that stopped at her upper thighs, decorated with spiral designs and a white vest. All white clothing, minimal at that. She was probably a yokai, a wandering spirit.

“Yeah yeah, so this is a hold-up I’m guessing? Don’t worry, just… just let me get my wallet.” Mura said in a slurred voice.

This wasn’t his first time getting robbed. He currently looked like the typical drunk trash you’d expect to find beaten up in a gutter. Now he just had to act the part.

“N-Now where did… did I put that thing?” He stumbled, feigning an alcohol-induced memory lapse while raising his hands in the air.

“No funny business! Just gimme the wallet you... drunk bastard!” She scoffed back, her tone shaking lightly.

—This kid is an amateur. She’s never done this before, has she?

Mura could tell just by her tone, plus the fact she left her foot placed on his chest while her other foot remained planted on the ground. An unfortunate placement for her, but a big advantage for him.

In a sudden burst of speed, Mura grabbed the girl’s ankle tightly with both arms as she let out a yelp. He rolled over onto his side while holding her leg, bringing her crashing into the ground. The robber dropped her knife and Mura seized the opportunity to throw the weapon into an open dumpster nearby. He got up on his knees and pinned the girl down onto the pavement.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?! Pervert! Get off me, help! Somebody!” She screamed, trying more devious methods in an attempt to make an escape.

“Really? Shut up, kid,” Mura replied coldly. “There’s no one around, they’re all busy watching the imperial coronation. Now fess up, why are you robbing people?”

“Why is that any of your concern?? Buzz off, asshat!”

The girl struggled underneath Mura. She wasn’t going to talk, but then suddenly a stroke of brilliance flashed into his mind.

“You must need the money pretty badly, huh? It’s tough for a yokai out here in the streets. Prejudice toward ghosts are getting pretty heated these days.”

“What exactly are you implying, that I get a job shining shoes? As if.” She spat.

“Well, I was just going to say… I’m an accomplished pit fighter, kid. That Zoroaster Tournament coming up, the one with a prize bounty of one-million sols? That’s going to be mine.”

The girl’s red eyes lit up, but she quickly darted them away to the side.

“O-Oh, really..?”

“Yeah, really.” Mura said, sliding his weight off her and letting her sit up.

“If you’re an accomplished pit fighter, why were you lying here beaten up in the alleyway, huh?”

Mura stumbled mentally for a moment, not letting his cool façade crack once.

“I’m an insomniac, and a really heavy one at that. I have such a hard time sleeping in fact, that I have to pay people to sock me in the face just to get some shut-eye,” Mura said in a matter-of-fact tone.

The girl’s mouth half rose into a smile before dropping again. “That’s really stupid.”

“Stupid, yes. But it works, right? So hear me out, kid… ugh, what’s your name? In the arena they call me ‘Bloodstrider Mura’ on the account that I’m always darting about covered in the blood of my enemies,” Mura lied coolly.

“I’m Lilith, Mister Bloodstrider,” She said with a cocky smile. “You need a new nickname though, that one is almost as stupid as your insomnia bit.”

—Perfect, I think I can gain her trust here. I’d normally feel bad paying a kid to fight alongside me, but it seems with some practice she can hold her own.

“Well listen, Lilith. I’m in need of a Thrall to enter, you know what that is?”

Lilith silently shook her head.

“A Thrall is… Well, it can be anything that has a soul. That’s the important part, you see. It’s because when you perform magic, a spell requires energy from your own soul. Kinda like how when you lift something heavy, you need energy from your muscles. With me so far?”

“I think so, I’ve seen a few sorcerers around Yomi before but I never knew how they actually did it.”

“Alright then, so imagine trying to lift a car. You might be able to if you tried hard enough, but you’d probably kill yourself trying. Magic is the same way, casting a spell, even a small one could prove lethal if you do it by your lonesome.”

“So that’s where a Thrall comes in?” Lilith chimed in, resting her chin on her hand lazily.

“Exactly! Thralls fuse with their user, residing within the user’s soul. They combine both their souls essentially in a fusion, making it possible to cast magic safely. Many hands make light work, as the saying goes.”

Lilith nodded as she silently processed the information given to her.

“So… You want me to fuse… with you? Geez, that sounds like something taken from an old anime.” She said, standing up nonchalantly. “Fine, whatever. But I want half that prize money in exchange.”

Mura laughed lightly and also stood up, towering over her.

“What the hell are you gonna do with five-hundred million sols? Tell you what, you’ll get half of that. Sound fair?”

“Well, what are you going to do with the seven-hundred and fifty million?! Pay more people to punch you in the face??” Lilith spat out sarcastically.

“Maybe I will! Like you said yourself, that part is personal. Let’s just practice, alright?”

Lilith nodded reluctantly, reaching out her hand to shake on the deal. Mura grabbed her hand in return, shaking it firmly.

“Now, we’ve made a pact. I accept this girl Lilith as my Thrall. Now you accept me, okay?”

He hated saying those words, but that’s just how the ritual was performed. He couldn’t help the terminology.

“I accept… this man Mura… as my...”

“Master.” Mura whispered to her.

“Master…” Lilith repeated after him. She uttered the word quietly, as if thinking over what she had gotten herself into. To her, this was just a way to get the money she needed. She didn’t know this stranger and she didn’t care to, he was a means to an end.

Suddenly, a small flash burst from their joined hands as Lilith’s body began to de-materialize.

“Holy shit, what’s happening to my body?!” She yelled out in a panic.

“Don’t worry, this is normal! Your soul is being fused into mine!”

Lilith’s physical form transformed into hundreds of small fragments composed of white light, no bigger than a centimeter. It looked almost as if a paper was being sent through a shredder. The fragments began to shoot into Mura’s fingertips, sucking them up like a mighty vacuum.

The translucent blue veins visible through his arm glowed white as if injected with neon fluid. Mura threw his head back as he felt a warmth flow throughout every inch of his body. It felt alien and unnatural, but also painless and slightly euphoric.

Mura felt the feeling subside and he stood alone in the alleyway. His normally purple colored eyes were glowing green. He could hear Lilith’s voice inside his head, as if it was one of his own thoughts.

“That was freaking weird! I never want to do that again!” She said, her voice as clear as if she was standing next to him.

“Yeah, well we’re gonna have to get used to it. It gets easier the more you do it. That didn’t hurt, now did it?”

“No, it just felt like… Well, it didn’t feel like anything really! I was just in the alley and then I was suddenly inside you... God, that sounds so wrong.”

Mura nodded in agreement. Her consciousness was inside his soul now and only he could hear her.

“Alright, we gotta get to the arena before registration closes! You wanna come out now?”

“Nah, it’s pretty cozy here. It’s like relaxing in a hot tub or something! Beats walking too, hehehe,” Lilith snickered.

—Great… who’s the real master here?

“I heard that, smartass! Move it, Mura! On the double!” She called out in his head. With a sigh, Mura dusted himself off and made his way to the arena.