Chapter 1 THE RAIN AND THE DEVIL
The rain was merciless.
It pounded against the cracked pavement, soaking through my thin sweater until the cold bit deep into my bones. My hands shook—not from the weather, but from the crumpled piece of paper clutched between my fingers.
₱850,000.
That was the price of my brother’s life.
I stumbled down the empty street, my hair plastered to my face, vision blurring as tears mixed with rain. The hospital’s words rang in my ears like a curse: “Pay within three days, or we’ll have to discharge him.”
Three days. I couldn’t even scrape together enough for tomorrow’s dinner.
Lightning split the sky, bathing the deserted alley in stark white light. That’s when I saw him—standing at the far end, a tall figure in a black suit, untouched by the storm. The rain curved away from him, as if the very world refused to touch him.
He didn’t move as I approached, but I could feel his gaze—sharp, heavy, and impossibly cold.
“You’re desperate,” he said, voice smooth like velvet but laced with something dangerous. “And desperation… is my favorite currency.”
I froze. My instincts screamed at me to turn and run. But then his hand lifted, and in the blink of an eye, the rain stopped—around us, at least. The rest of the world was still drowning.
“What—”
“I can give you what you want, Seraphina Vale,” he murmured, speaking my name like a secret he wasn’t supposed to know. “Your brother lives. Your debts vanish. Your future… secured.”
My heart thudded painfully. “What’s the catch?”
His lips curved into a slow, predatory smile. “Seven years. That’s all I’ll need. After that, your soul is mine.”
The storm roared louder in the distance, as if protesting his words. I swallowed, trembling. This was insane. No one in their right mind would—
“And,” he added softly, “until those seven years are over… your body and soul belong to me.”
Lightning flashed again, illuminating the crimson gleam in his eyes. And I knew, with bone-deep certainty…
I had just met the devil.
END OF CHAPTER 1
