“Signs of demonic energy have been detected, so the building will undergo a strict lockdown until the investigation is over. Everyone, this is not a drill...”
‘Weird! I didn’t sense any demonic energy being used, but the alarms still tripped.’
Whatever the cause, the situation was in his favour, so Rhian decided to ignore the malfunction.
“Wait a second.” Rachel suddenly interrupted him.
“What happened?” Rhian quickly turned around, concerned that something was wrong.
“I just had a thought. Now that sensors are tripped, the escape routes must have been severely limited?”
“Yes, they have...” Rhian could easily understand where she was going with this. They needed to determine which locations were still accessible, as those would likely be the paths the Fallen would attempt to use.
They both paused, racking their brains for potential escape routes that the mall lockdown wouldn't properly cover.
“The Artifact Exhibition!” they both exclaimed simultaneously, arriving at the same conclusion.
The Exhibition was taking place on the topmost floor, granting him access to the roof. Not to mention, all the Artifacts that were on display. The Fallen will have a vast array of weapons in his hands.
‘Kaboom!’
Suddenly an energy blast erupted from above them. Cracks snaked through the ceiling, as a second blast soon erupted.
“Everyone, please remain calm! Heroes are on their way! I repeat…”
The air became thick with B-Rank Aura, making it difficult for Rachel to even take a step amidst the overwhelming demonic energy. Rhian swiftly grabbed her shoulders to steady her and prevent her from falling.
"Are you okay?", he asked, concerned.
"Yeah, I'm fine!" She assured, though still struggling to find her balance. Rhian carefully guided her to a nearby bench, urging her to rest.
"You stay here and rest. I will go and investigate the Fallen." He explained as he helped her.
"That will be too dangerous." Rachel protested, but Rhian was firm.
“Come up, when you are able to move!” He instructed her before darting up the staircase, leaving her behind.
'What is happening?'
Mana coursed through Rhian as he could feel his body being energised by the demonic energy from the blast.
Beside him, Rachel groaned, clearly affected by the blast. He quickly supported her and guided her to a nearby bench. After making sure she was okay, he quickly made his way back to the top floor. As he approached the Exhibition Hall, he could feel the demonic energy fuelling his power.
'Why is my body absorbing Demonic Energy? I am just a normal human, not even a Fallen?' Rhian questioned himself, as he stared at the entrance of the Exhibition. 'Is this because I am Reincarnator?'
Another shockwave shook the building, shaking the foundation of the building. He decided to think about the demonic energy later and went to search the Fallen. Inside the Artifact Exhibition, the security guards were all knocked to the ground.
The auction hosts and attendants had fainted from being exposed to the strong demonic energy. Rhian tiptoed around their bodies, to not step on them. He bent down to check the pulse of some of them. None of them seemed to be in a fatal situation, so he decided to go after the perpetrator for now.
It wasn’t hard to find the location since he could feel demonic energy being released every time the tremors occurred. As Rhian got closer, the density of Demonic energy increased and he could feel it affecting his body, slowly boosting his strength.
At the site, Rhian found two hooded guys, trying to blast open the glass windows. One of them was the guy he had seen earlier with the Egg.
Unfortunately for them, the windows were made with glass specially strengthened with mana techniques, so most mana attacks would only bounce off. But this didn’t discourage them from throwing attack after attack at the glass furiously, resulting in shockwaves reverberating across the building.
As Rhian took a step closer, one of the individuals turned around to face him. “It was foolish of you to trip the demonic sensors just to stop me. You've compromised your own identity.”
The other Fallen, finally sensing Rhian's presence, turned around in a hurry. He was a D Rank, unlike his B-Rank companion, so his senses weren't heightened enough to notice the changes in his surroundings.
“I wasn’t the one who tripped them.” Rhian corrected him as he measure his opponents' strength.
“What bullshit! You are the only one here who can use demonic energy other than us.” He yelled back. “Are you after this Egg too? Don't think I will let you deliver it to the Alliance and take all the credit.”
“You are right about the fact that I am gonna take it from you, but who said anything about handing it to the Alliance? Why will I give something so precious to those rotten Demons?” Rhian laughed at the accusations.
The Fallens' eyes widened in horror and surprise. “How dare a servant of the Demons think about going against his masters. Prepare to be struck down soon!”
“Struck down?” Rhian just stared at him with an amused smile. He even waved his hand, mockingly imitating waiting to be struck.
The Fallen were fanatics that believed the Demon Race to be all-powerful. Of course, the truth was far from this. Demons were highly mana-restricted creatures that couldn't even step on Earth because of its low mana density. Of course, the very low-ranked demons were an exception. The most the demons could do was form contracts with the Awakened and spread Curses. This was the only reason why Earth was able to advance its magic uninterrupted for so many years and not be swallowed by the Demon King's powers.
Suddenly the atmosphere around them changed. Sensing something was amiss, the B-Rank quickly jumped, but his companion didn't have such reflexes. A tendril of blood and demonic energy lashed out from Rhian's body, capturing the unlucky Fallen. The tendril exploded into a ball of thick crimson blood, swallowing the two, leaving the B-Ranker to stare at the situation in disbelief.
As the D-Rank Fallen locked eyes with Rhian, he could feel himself being crushed inside a pool of blood. Drowning in the sensation, the blood around him churned, pushing him toward its owner.
Rhian slowly walked towards him, as the Fallen found himself in a globe of blood.
“Y-you are not a Fallen, you are a Demon!” He stuttered as realisation dawned upon him.
“Ex-demon, but yes.” Rhian corrected him, examining his mana in surprise. As his demonic instincts awakened from the demonic energy, he could feel his thirst for bloodshed resurfacing. He had tried a simple attack spell, but its power had increased several fold compared to his human powers. Of course, they were nowhere near his prime as a Demon in his previous life, severely restricted by his current D Rank.
"Get down on your knees!" Rhian tried his new-found power once again, commanding the Fallen in a tyrannical tone. The guy's knees immediately buckled up.
The Fallen had a much higher boost in their powers, compared to normal Heroes. But this power came at a steep price. It was complete submission to the Demon Race. This D Rank Fallen was responding to Rhian’s soul, which belonged to an ex-Demon, thus rendering him powerless.
Suddenly, a demonic tendril came out of him, striking Rhian. He tried to sidestep it, but the attack still left a deep graze on his arm. Dark smoke began to coil around the Fallen’s body, slowly shaping itself into a snaky form.
“Hey, demon! Who are you? And why are you attacking my contractor?” A deep voice called out.
“Do I need a reason to kill Fallen? They are just the servants of demon scum like you.” Rhian replied coldly.
Finally getting a good look at Rhian, the snake Demon realized that he was no longer facing another Demon. Rhian possessed the eyes of a Demon but had the body of a human, as if a Fallen had merged with a demon.
“You! You are no Demon. What are you?” The Demon realised that he didn't have to be wary of breaking any demon ethics. “Victor, I command you to attack him.”
Victor slowly stood up, his Master’s order overriding his instincts to obey the Demon Race. He summoned an energy shot and flung it toward Rhian. But instead of the attack connecting, Rhian simply caught the energy ball before the mana integrated into his body.
"Do you honestly think the impure demonic energy of a Fallen would be able to harm me?" Rhian stared at them, amusement glinting in his eyes. With a quick step, he appeared next to the Fallen and snatched away his Demon Master.
“Unhand me, you imbecile. Do you even know who I am?” The Demon shrieked in Rhian’s hand, but Rhian tightened his hold even more.
“You are just a weak D-Rank Demon. What gave you the audacity to go against me?" Rhian's calm demeanour struck fear into the Demon. He had only experienced this oppressive aura once in his life when offering his allegiance to the Duke. But there was no way a Duke would already be on Earth.
“Get lost now!” Rhian gave the snake a final squeeze and the Demon crumbled into ashes.
Witnessing the destruction of his Master, Victor's body began to tremble in fear. Of course, the Demon wasn’t really dead. Only his physical form on Earth had been destroyed. As long as the Demon’s hearts were still intact, he would eventually revive back on Tartaros.
‘Now what do I do with this guy?’ Rhian wondered, staring at the Fallen at his feet, begging him to spare his life. Absorbing the Demon and Fallen's power had temporarily given a boost to his almost non-existent Demonic powers.
Rhian looked down at the dark-haired Fallen. He had quite a toned build, but it wasn't muscular enough to be a Tanker. "What type of Awakened are you?"
"A-an Assassin." The guy named Victor stuttered.
'Assassins are good at sneaking and finding information. I can use him.'
Finally deciding, Rhian presented him with an ultimatum. "I will let you live. But you will form a contract with me."
"But Fallen aren't allowed to break their contracts. Only Demons in the contract can do that, and that is usually done by the Death of the Fallen."
"I asked you a simple question. Will you form a contract with me or not?" As a final nudge, Rhian released a strong burst of demonic energy to intimidate him. Victor rapidly nodded his head, afraid to lose his life.
"Good boy!" Rhian praised him. With a brief touch to his forehead, Rhian pushed his remaining Demonic energy into the Fallen.
Victor could feel his previous Master's demonic energy being pushed out his body, as the new mana took its place. Blood began to accumulate in his throat.
'Bleurgh!' Dark blood regurgitated in his mouth, as his body excreted the dark energy.
"H-how?" Victor stared in shock as the contract that had been established between him and his previous Master was slowly destroyed, and the black thread of fate bound him to this Demonic Human.
Rhian looked at him with an amused expression. "Be proud! You are now the servant of the ex-Duke of War!"
“Signs of demonic energy have been detected, so the building will undergo a strict lockdown until the investigation is over. Everyone, this is not a drill...”
‘Weird! I didn’t sense any demonic energy being used, but the alarms still tripped.’
Whatever the cause, the situation was in his favour, so Rhian decided to ignore the malfunction.
“Wait a second.” Rachel suddenly interrupted him.
“What happened?” Rhian quickly turned around, concerned that something was wrong.
“I just had a thought. Now that sensors are tripped, the escape routes must have been severely limited?”
“Yes, they have...” Rhian could easily understand where she was going with this. They needed to determine which locations were still accessible, as those would likely be the paths the Fallen would attempt to use.
They both paused, racking their brains for potential escape routes that the mall lockdown wouldn't properly cover.
“The Artifact Exhibition!” they both exclaimed simultaneously, arriving at the same conclusion.
The Exhibition was taking place on the topmost floor, granting him access to the roof. Not to mention, all the Artifacts that were on display. The Fallen will have a vast array of weapons in his hands.
‘Kaboom!’
Suddenly an energy blast erupted from above them. Cracks snaked through the ceiling, as a second blast soon erupted.
“Everyone, please remain calm! Heroes are on their way! I repeat…”
The air became thick with B-Rank Aura, making it difficult for Rachel to even take a step amidst the overwhelming demonic energy. Rhian swiftly grabbed her shoulders to steady her and prevent her from falling.
"Are you okay?", he asked, concerned.
"Yeah, I'm fine!" She assured, though still struggling to find her balance. Rhian carefully guided her to a nearby bench, urging her to rest.
"You stay here and rest. I will go and investigate the Fallen." He explained as he helped her.
"That will be too dangerous." Rachel protested, but Rhian was firm.
“Come up, when you are able to move!” He instructed her before darting up the staircase, leaving her behind.
'What is happening?'
Mana coursed through Rhian as he could feel his body being energised by the demonic energy from the blast.
Beside him, Rachel groaned, clearly affected by the blast. He quickly supported her and guided her to a nearby bench. After making sure she was okay, he quickly made his way back to the top floor. As he approached the Exhibition Hall, he could feel the demonic energy fuelling his power.
'Why is my body absorbing Demonic Energy? I am just a normal human, not even a Fallen?' Rhian questioned himself, as he stared at the entrance of the Exhibition. 'Is this because I am Reincarnator?'
Another shockwave shook the building, shaking the foundation of the building. He decided to think about the demonic energy later and went to search the Fallen. Inside the Artifact Exhibition, the security guards were all knocked to the ground.
The auction hosts and attendants had fainted from being exposed to the strong demonic energy. Rhian tiptoed around their bodies, to not step on them. He bent down to check the pulse of some of them. None of them seemed to be in a fatal situation, so he decided to go after the perpetrator for now.
It wasn’t hard to find the location since he could feel demonic energy being released every time the tremors occurred. As Rhian got closer, the density of Demonic energy increased and he could feel it affecting his body, slowly boosting his strength.
At the site, Rhian found two hooded guys, trying to blast open the glass windows. One of them was the guy he had seen earlier with the Egg.
Unfortunately for them, the windows were made with glass specially strengthened with mana techniques, so most mana attacks would only bounce off. But this didn’t discourage them from throwing attack after attack at the glass furiously, resulting in shockwaves reverberating across the building.
As Rhian took a step closer, one of the individuals turned around to face him. “It was foolish of you to trip the demonic sensors just to stop me. You've compromised your own identity.”
The other Fallen, finally sensing Rhian's presence, turned around in a hurry. He was a D Rank, unlike his B-Rank companion, so his senses weren't heightened enough to notice the changes in his surroundings.
“I wasn’t the one who tripped them.” Rhian corrected him as he measure his opponents' strength.
“What bullshit! You are the only one here who can use demonic energy other than us.” He yelled back. “Are you after this Egg too? Don't think I will let you deliver it to the Alliance and take all the credit.”
“You are right about the fact that I am gonna take it from you, but who said anything about handing it to the Alliance? Why will I give something so precious to those rotten Demons?” Rhian laughed at the accusations.
The Fallens' eyes widened in horror and surprise. “How dare a servant of the Demons think about going against his masters. Prepare to be struck down soon!”
“Struck down?” Rhian just stared at him with an amused smile. He even waved his hand, mockingly imitating waiting to be struck.
The Fallen were fanatics that believed the Demon Race to be all-powerful. Of course, the truth was far from this. Demons were highly mana-restricted creatures that couldn't even step on Earth because of its low mana density. Of course, the very low-ranked demons were an exception. The most the demons could do was form contracts with the Awakened and spread Curses. This was the only reason why Earth was able to advance its magic uninterrupted for so many years and not be swallowed by the Demon King's powers.
Suddenly the atmosphere around them changed. Sensing something was amiss, the B-Rank quickly jumped, but his companion didn't have such reflexes. A tendril of blood and demonic energy lashed out from Rhian's body, capturing the unlucky Fallen. The tendril exploded into a ball of thick crimson blood, swallowing the two, leaving the B-Ranker to stare at the situation in disbelief.
As the D-Rank Fallen locked eyes with Rhian, he could feel himself being crushed inside a pool of blood. Drowning in the sensation, the blood around him churned, pushing him toward its owner.
Rhian slowly walked towards him, as the Fallen found himself in a globe of blood.
“Y-you are not a Fallen, you are a Demon!” He stuttered as realisation dawned upon him.
“Ex-demon, but yes.” Rhian corrected him, examining his mana in surprise. As his demonic instincts awakened from the demonic energy, he could feel his thirst for bloodshed resurfacing. He had tried a simple attack spell, but its power had increased several fold compared to his human powers. Of course, they were nowhere near his prime as a Demon in his previous life, severely restricted by his current D Rank.
"Get down on your knees!" Rhian tried his new-found power once again, commanding the Fallen in a tyrannical tone. The guy's knees immediately buckled up.
The Fallen had a much higher boost in their powers, compared to normal Heroes. But this power came at a steep price. It was complete submission to the Demon Race. This D Rank Fallen was responding to Rhian’s soul, which belonged to an ex-Demon, thus rendering him powerless.
Suddenly, a demonic tendril came out of him, striking Rhian. He tried to sidestep it, but the attack still left a deep graze on his arm. Dark smoke began to coil around the Fallen’s body, slowly shaping itself into a snaky form.
“Hey, demon! Who are you? And why are you attacking my contractor?” A deep voice called out.
“Do I need a reason to kill Fallen? They are just the servants of demon scum like you.” Rhian replied coldly.
Finally getting a good look at Rhian, the snake Demon realized that he was no longer facing another Demon. Rhian possessed the eyes of a Demon but had the body of a human, as if a Fallen had merged with a demon.
“You! You are no Demon. What are you?” The Demon realised that he didn't have to be wary of breaking any demon ethics. “Victor, I command you to attack him.”
Victor slowly stood up, his Master’s order overriding his instincts to obey the Demon Race. He summoned an energy shot and flung it toward Rhian. But instead of the attack connecting, Rhian simply caught the energy ball before the mana integrated into his body.
"Do you honestly think the impure demonic energy of a Fallen would be able to harm me?" Rhian stared at them, amusement glinting in his eyes. With a quick step, he appeared next to the Fallen and snatched away his Demon Master.
“Unhand me, you imbecile. Do you even know who I am?” The Demon shrieked in Rhian’s hand, but Rhian tightened his hold even more.
“You are just a weak D-Rank Demon. What gave you the audacity to go against me?" Rhian's calm demeanour struck fear into the Demon. He had only experienced this oppressive aura once in his life when offering his allegiance to the Duke. But there was no way a Duke would already be on Earth.
“Get lost now!” Rhian gave the snake a final squeeze and the Demon crumbled into ashes.
Witnessing the destruction of his Master, Victor's body began to tremble in fear. Of course, the Demon wasn’t really dead. Only his physical form on Earth had been destroyed. As long as the Demon’s hearts were still intact, he would eventually revive back on Tartaros.
‘Now what do I do with this guy?’ Rhian wondered, staring at the Fallen at his feet, begging him to spare his life. Absorbing the Demon and Fallen's power had temporarily given a boost to his almost non-existent Demonic powers.
Rhian looked down at the dark-haired Fallen. He had quite a toned build, but it wasn't muscular enough to be a Tanker. "What type of Awakened are you?"
"A-an Assassin." The guy named Victor stuttered.
'Assassins are good at sneaking and finding information. I can use him.'
Finally deciding, Rhian presented him with an ultimatum. "I will let you live. But you will form a contract with me."
"But Fallen aren't allowed to break their contracts. Only Demons in the contract can do that, and that is usually done by the Death of the Fallen."
"I asked you a simple question. Will you form a contract with me or not?" As a final nudge, Rhian released a strong burst of demonic energy to intimidate him. Victor rapidly nodded his head, afraid to lose his life.
"Good boy!" Rhian praised him. With a brief touch to his forehead, Rhian pushed his remaining Demonic energy into the Fallen.
Victor could feel his previous Master's demonic energy being pushed out his body, as the new mana took its place. Blood began to accumulate in his throat.
'Bleurgh!' Dark blood regurgitated in his mouth, as his body excreted the dark energy.
"H-how?" Victor stared in shock as the contract that had been established between him and his previous Master was slowly destroyed, and the black thread of fate bound him to this Demonic Human.
Rhian looked at him with an amused expression. "Be proud! You are now the servant of the ex-Duke of War!"
