Another Fine Myth by Robert Asprin

“Cold, vicious, and bloodthirsty,” the demon gasped as if he had read my thoughts. “You really bought the whole line, didn’t you, kid?”

“I beg your pardon?” I said because I couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“Something wrong with your ears? I said ‘cold, vicious….’ “

“I heard you. I meant what did you mean.”

“What I meant was that you were scared stiff, by a few well chosen words from my esteemed colleague, I’ll wager.” He jerked a thumb at Garkin’s body. “Sorry for the dramatics. I felt a touch of comic relief was necessary to lighten an otherwise tragic moment.”

“Comic relief?”

“Well, actually, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. You should have seen your face.”

He chuckled to himself as he strode out of the pentagram and began leisurely inspecting the premises.

“So this is Garkin’s new place, huh? What a dump. Who would have thought he’d come to this?”

To say I was perplexed would be an understatement. I wasn’t sure how a demon should act, but it wasn’t like this.

I could have bolted for the door, but I did not seem to be in immediate danger. Either this strange being meant me no harm, or he was confident of his ability to stop me even if I tried to flee. For the sake of my nervous system, I decided to assume the former.

The demon continued to inspect the hut, while I inspected him. He was humanoid; that is, he had two arms, two legs, and a head. He was short but powerfully built, a bit broader across the shoulders than a man, and heavily muscled, but he wasn’t human. I mean, you don’t see many hairless humans with dark green scales covering their body and pointed ears lying flat against their head.