The demon hissed in pain, jerking its limb back.

"That's it?" Vonjo's laughter boomed, filling the room with an unsettling joy.

He moved like a predator toying with prey, each step deliberate, each swing of his fist punctuated with a gleeful shout. He grabbed the demonoid by its horned head, twisted, and slammed it against the tile floor.

Cracks splintered out from the impact, and the ghostly entity screamed like a chorus of a hundred lost souls.

"You like stealing souls, huh?" Vonjo taunted, dragging it up by its writhing horn, his other fist cocking back. Bam! He punched it again, and the shadowy body rippled like liquid smoke before reforming. "You think you're scary because you make people crash their cars and eat 'em afterward?!"

Bam!

Another hit, louder than the first, his laughter growing wilder with every strike.

The man on the floor groaned, curling up, his voice cracking into a panicked plea. "P-please! S-stop! I-I'll cancel the pact—please—!"

Vonjo crouched, his eyes glowing faintly crimson, looming over the cowering man. "Cancel it? Oh, I'm way past that. I wanna hear your buddy here squeal." He turned to the demonoid, now trying to slink back into the shadows, its inky body trembling. "Oi, you. What do you do with the souls you take?"

The demon hissed, its voice like broken glass scraping stone. "We… eat… it's our… nature…"

Vonjo's grin sharpened. "You eat 'em, huh? That's cute." He grabbed it by the throat—if it could even be called that—and hoisted it into the air like a struggling puppet. "Then choke on this!"

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Each punch landed heavier than the last, his knuckles smashing through shadow-stuff that sizzled and evaporated on contact with his devouring energy.

The demon shrieked, its voice a layered, distorted wail of hundreds of faint echoes. It begged, clawed at him, its once-menacing form now folding in on itself.

"Please!" the demonoid cried, its voice a trembling chorus. "We… we didn't force them… they wanted the cars… they drove… they crashed… it was their choice! We only… took… the aftermath!"

Vonjo paused, his chest rising and falling with excitement rather than exhaustion. He tilted his head, considering their words with mock thoughtfulness.

Then he chuckled, deep and low, a sound that sent a ripple of fear through the man and the demon alike.

"…You're right," he said finally, his tone almost gentle. "It is your nature to devour souls."

For a moment, hope flickered in the man's wide, bloodshot eyes.

Then Vonjo's smile widened into something predatory. "And it's my nature to devour everything."

Before either could respond, Vonjo's hand glowed with a vortex of dark energy, and he yanked the struggling demonoid toward him.

A sound like a massive inhale filled the room, a whummmmp that vibrated the glass windows as the demonoid's form unraveled into streams of black smoke.

It screamed, a final wail that rattled the walls, before collapsing entirely into Vonjo's hand—absorbed, devoured, gone.

The man jolted as if struck by lightning, his body spasming before going limp. For a moment, silence filled the shop. Dust floated lazily in the single ray of light from the cracked doorway.

Then, slowly, the man stirred. His eyes cleared, color returned to his face, and the sickly gray tinge of his skin faded into a more human tone. He sat up groggily, blinking around the room like he had woken from a nightmare.

"Wha… what happened?" he stammered, voice hoarse but alive. "I… I feel… lighter… What's going on…?"

Vonjo dusted off his hands, letting the faint traces of devouring energy dissipate. "Long story short? I just did a little… pest control. You're free now."

The man blinked, still disoriented.

"Now," Vonjo said, his tone shifting to one of casual curiosity as if he hadn't just beaten a demon to death, "let's talk cars. I need a new ride. Something with… hmm… good acceleration, decent durability, maybe something I can modify with a little curse energy if I get bored."

The man nodded, still shaky, and led him toward the rows of cars in the showroom. Vonjo peppered him with questions, pacing around the vehicles with a childlike enthusiasm that contrasted with the violence from moments before.

"What's the horsepower on this one?" he asked, tapping the hood of a dark-gray SUV.

"U-uh, about… 400… maybe 420 if modified," the man said, regaining some confidence as he shifted into the familiar rhythm of sales talk.

Vonjo crouched, peering under the frame. "Hmm. Not bad. And the handling?"

"Smooth… with reinforced tires… good for rough streets…"

Vonjo hummed thoughtfully. He climbed into the driver's seat, gripping the steering wheel like he was already imagining tearing down an empty highway. "Oh yeah… this feels right. But… hmm. What about that one?" He pointed to a sleek, black car in the corner, the dustiest of the bunch, practically radiating menace.

"That… that one…" the man hesitated, "is fast. But it's… temperamental. Very sensitive steering. And after… everything that happened…"

Vonjo grinned, his fingers drumming the wheel of the SUV before hopping out and striding toward the black car. He wiped a finger across the dusty hood, leaving a clean streak.

"…Then it's perfect."

The frog, finally creeping back from its corner, croaked nervously as if questioning his choice.

Vonjo only smirked, tossing the keys he'd plucked from the man into the air and catching them. "Relax. This one's gonna be fun."

He slid into the driver's seat like a king settling into his throne, his fingers brushing over the steering wheel with a proprietary satisfaction.

The new car's interior smelled faintly of leather and metal polish, the soft click of the door locking behind him oddly satisfying. He tapped the dashboard twice with his palm, as if greeting an old friend, and muttered, "Alright, let's see what you can do."

Before Vonjo sped off, he remembered to reach into his pocket and pull out one of the cursed gold cards he had acquired from his raid on Sutterfouse's local branch.

With a flick of his fingers, he tapped it against the car's payment receiver embedded in the dash.

A soft chime rang.

Ding.

"Payment accepted," an automated voice hummed from the car's console.

Vonjo smirked. "See? I'm not a complete thief. I can be civil… sometimes." He gave the frog on his shoulder a pointed glance.

The three-headed frog blinked slowly, its three throats puffing like bellows, and let out a long, synchronized croak.

"Ribit… ribit… crooaaak…"

Vonjo chuckled. "Yeah, I know. Being 'civil' isn't really my brand."

Then he turned the ignition, and the engine roared to life with a deep growl that sent a shiver of delight up his spine.

He eased onto the gas at first, feeling the car's smooth glide along the cracked city street.

Then the open highway stretched before him like an endless invitation, and Vonjo couldn't resist anymore. His foot slammed down.

The car responded like a beast unleashed.

Wind punched through the window cracks, tugging at his hair and jacket.

The city blurred around him, the sun catching on steel and glass as they shot past.

The frog pressed itself flatter against his shoulder, its three heads quivering from the sheer speed, croaking nervously in three pitches.

"Haha! Ribit to that!" Vonjo laughed, exhilaration bubbling out of him. "This is freedom! No Van, no Sutterfouse rats breathing down my neck, just me, this beauty, and the road!"

The speedometer needle climbed higher. Street lamps and traffic signs warped into streaks.

Every bump in the road vibrated through the car frame into his bones, but he didn't care—he loved it.

He leaned forward into the motion, his eyes gleaming as he wove between the few late-night drivers like a phantom.

The frog croaked sharply, its left head staring at him with something resembling disapproval.

"Oh, don't give me that look," Vonjo said, voice raised over the wind. "You know damn well I can't get hurt like this. Even if we crash, I'll walk it off. Probably." He paused, smirking. "Well, you might splatter. So… hold on tight, partner."

The frog let out a low, resigned croak.