Rick stopped moving. He didn’t expect that answer.
Rick heard Zara’s laugh join in with Zork’s, which was loud and full of joy.
"Hahahahahaha!!!"
"Did you see that?" Zork wheezed as he laughed. "I thought he was going to break his back when he bowed so hard!"
"His face!" Zara said, wiping her eyes. "He looked like he was going to die!"
Rick slowly lifted his head, and fear turned to confusion. "Fucking hell... I’m already losing so much aura by acting weird...!"
Zork was slapping his knee and laughing harder than Rick had ever seen anyone laugh. Zara was leaning against the throne, and her shoulders were shaking with laughter.
"Boy, get up now," Zork said, still laughing. "You look stupid down there."
Rick stood up slowly, his face red with shame. "I’m sorry... maybe it’s the first time for me to... uh... go head-to-head with you two?"
"No need to act like that. Just chillax, brooo~!" Zork raises his thumbs up.
Zork pointed to a chair that had been put next to the throne. "Sit down, sit down!"
"We are not going to kill you."
"What kind of first impression would that leave?"
"It’s not good for diplomatic relations!" He laughed again at his own joke.
Rick sat very still, feeling like he had accidentally entered a different world where the Demon King was... nice?
Zork grinned widely, showing all of his sharp teeth, and said, "You should have seen your face when you walked in."
"Like a man who is going to die!"
"Zara, didn’t you tell him I was okay with this?"
"I did!" Zara nodded, but she was still smiling. "Many times! He just naturally feels nervous about meeting you in person."
"Stop worrying," Zork said as he leaned forward in his throne.
"You’re almost like a little brother to me now."
"Anyone who is brave enough to put themselves in front of certain death to save my wife deserves that much."
Rick felt some of the stress leave his shoulders. "Thank you, my lord—"
"Zork," the Demon King said, cutting in. "Only call me Zork without the lord in it."
"When we’re just talking like this, don’t call me ’my lord.’ Save it for when you’re in public."
"Yes. Zork." Rick tried out the name and thought it was strange to call the Demon King so casually.
Zork clapped his hands together, and the sound was like thunder in the tent. "Great!"
"Let’s talk about this Spirit Bond thing now that we’ve made it clear I’m not going to kill you." He hit Rick’s shoulder so hard that he almost fell out of his chair. "My wife says it’s a big deal!"
Rick coughed to get over the friendly slap on the shoulder that almost dislocated something. "Yes, it, um, it involves real emotional connection and both people agreeing to it—"
Zork laughed and slapped him on the shoulder again. "You act so formal! Take it easy!"
"Hey, we’re all friends here!" Another hard slap on the bone. "How many of these bonds do you have now?"
"Four active Spirit Bonds," Rick said, and his shoulder was going to hurt. "With Carmilla, Natasha, Liora, and Sylvia. Plus developing connections with others."
"Four!" Zork’s eyes lit up. "That’s very good! And they all get along? No jealousy? No fighting?"
"They understand the mission," Rick said. "We’re trying to save the world."
"We prioritize survival over personal feelings."
Zork hit him again. "That’s how a true warrior talks!"
Slap.
"I like you more and more every minute!"
Slap.
"Zara made a smart choice!"
Slap.
Rick was contemplating whether to inquire about discontinuing the friendly shoulder slaps, as his entire right side was beginning to go numb.
At that moment, Sebastian chose to show up, appearing on the arm of Rick’s chair. "Please allow me to interrupt the bonding with blunt force trauma."
"I need to explain how the Spirit Bond system works."
Zork’s eyes got big with happiness. "The person in charge of the system! I’ve heard of you!"
"Little butler spirit with a sharp tongue!"
Sebastian primly fixed his monocle. "My name comes before me."
"Yes, I am in charge of Rick’s Mature Affinity System."
"Should I explain how the Spirit Bond works?"
Zork’s whole attitude changed. The demon king who liked to joke around and play games was gone.
In his place was the serious ruler who had conquered and united the demon realm. "Yes. I want to know exactly what this bond means for my wife."
Sebastian nodded, showing that he understood the change in tone. "A Spirit Bond is a spiritual link that lasts forever between Rick and a qualified partner."
"It needs the highest level of affection, a real emotional connection, and both people to agree to it."
"The bond gives both partners more skills, more power, and the ability to understand how the other person feels."
"Is it possible to break it?" Zork asked.
"No," Sebastian said with determination. "Once it’s made, it’s there to stay, but it doesn’t change existing relationships or loyalties."
"Zara would still be your wife and general. The bond is just another way to connect people, and it was made to bring the Seven Major Powers together to fight the corruption before it destroys this entire world."
Zork stroked his chin and leaned back in his throne. "And you need this bond with all Seven Powers to save the world?"
Sebastian said, "That’s the prophesied answer."
"The bond network will give us enough power to clean up the corruption and put the barriers back up."
"This world has about four months left before it falls apart completely without it."
The tent became quiet. Zork looked at Zara, and she looked back at him without blinking.
They understood one another like a couple who had been fighting for decades, but they remained silent.
In the end, Zork nodded. "Then you have my permission. In a formal and official way, that is."
He looked at Rick with those old, wise eyes. "But I want to give you something in return."
"A gift for saving my wife’s life and for taking on the hard work of trying to save our world."
Zork stood up and walked toward Rick before he could say anything. "This is going to hurt."
"Wait, what?" Rick began.
Zork reached up and took out his own right eye without any hesitation or pain. Rick’s stomach dropped when he saw the Demon King holding the amber-colored eye in his hand.
The optic nerve was still attached and moving around like it was alive.
"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck—" Rick’s brain stopped working.
"Hold still," Zork said with a smile.
"Wait, no, I don’t—" Rick tried to get up, but some kind of demon magic kept him from doing so.
Zork grabbed Rick’s head with one huge hand and pushed his eye right into Rick’s right eye socket with the other.
There was no way to describe the pain. Rick screamed, his voice breaking as every nerve in his head ignited.
It felt like someone was using a hot knife to cut open his skull and shocking his brain at the same time. The demon eye and his own eye merged, changing his cells so that they could accept this new organ of pure demonic power.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH! FUUUUCCCCKKKKK!!!" As the pain got worse, Rick’s scream turned into a gurgle.
Then it gradually began to disappear.
"That’s it!" Zork said cheerfully, as if he had just helped Rick with a small job.
"That wasn’t too bad!"