(Leif)

Tiol gave me 'challenge'. Thing to do to see how I do. Not sure I like it. Had to leave castle and walk towards town. He made me put clothes on. I don't like that. The town is two weeks' travel away. I'm almost there.

I'm not allowed to use my Demons, he said. Not until I reach city. So Tim remained in his cell, and I'm not sure what Hex doing, but he gained a Level, so he must be doing it good.

Fireball and Fire Manipulation not wanting to go past Level 5, no matter how much I used them. Fire Eye stuck on Level 4, but Tiol say that getting to Level 4 that fast was impressive. He said that after Level 4 or 5, most Skills starts stall out. No clue what that mean, but maybe it means they no gain Levels anymore?

I dunno.

Really sad part of this trip be that no get sex. That be fun, but Tiol having me travel by myself. This be long and boring, and Fire no want to gain Levels, which not be fun at all.

People traveling on road, too. Really scary. No like that. Not good. Bad. It bad. Lots of people, closer I get to the city. It's got giant walls. Huge ones. Wide road. Really hard, not like when first got on. Tiol said it do that, from so many people being on it so much.

So weird.

"Hey, there!" Someone waves at me. Man. No like. "You traveling alone?"

"Maybe," I answer. "Maybe I Warlock with hidden Demon following me. What you want, person?"

"Sheesh," he says. "No need to be rude."

"No like people," I say. "Coming to city get stuff, then go back castle."

"You come from a castle?"

"My castle," I say. "Tiol kill intruders, no matter how strong. Keep me safe. He watching castle right now, while I gone. I still fight. I kill, you try hurt me."

"Sure," he smiles, holding out a hand. "I'm James."

"What you want?" I ask. "I no like repeating self. Kyle learned that. He no want me repeat anymore. Don't make me repeat again."

"Just thought I'd help an adventurer out."

I no believe him. New Skill say he lie, too. Just got new Skill when he say that. Lie Detection. It say when people lying, the window tells me.

"You lying."

"What?" He asks. "No, I'm not!"

"Fire Eye!"

My fire Eye appear. I need more Mana make it last longer, but need less cast it now, with its current Level and my Fire Manipulation. Tiol said that the Level of a Skill, and the necessary Manipulation's Skill, help decrease Mana Cost. I make Fire Eye last full minute, with my Mana. But that before factor in my regeneration. Maybe minute and half.

Unless I make Fire Eye shoot beam of fire from its eye. Then it lasts less time.

"I kill you," I say. "You no tell truth."

"Guards!" Man yells. "Guards! This elf is trying to kill me! Guards!"

Men in armor run over.

"I just walked up to him, to see if he was traveling alone!" The man lies. "And he said he's going to kill me, and summoned that creepy eye thing!"

"It no creepy!" I say. "And you lie! You lie when say you want help adventurer out! You liar! Tell me truth, or I kill you! I burn you up! I no like liars! Lie Detection say you lie!"

"See?" The man starts crying. Fake crying. No way that be real. "He's wanting to kill me! All I did was ask him for help! And he's too young to even have Lie Detection!"

"I have it," I say. "Got it when you lie. You stupid. Tell me truth now! Don't make repeat again! I kill you!"

"You need to calm down," man in armor says. "And come with us, kid."

"I no kid, I Leif!"

"Are you Warlock Leif, without a last name?" A woman ask, approaching.

She got really big boobs. Really, really big ones. Blond hair, green eyes. Red lips. She wearing black and red and green and blue clothes and jewels. Tiol say jewels be sign of money. She be rich.

"I no have name until Tiol call me Leif," I tell her. "He say I be Leif, so that be my name. This man be lie. Oh, ran out of Mana."

"Gentlemen," the woman says. "I happened to witness the event, and was going to ignore it, but if this is Warlock Leif, I suppose I should say that Leif was approached with ill intent. He is acting defensively, here.

"In addition to that," she says. "The 'Tiol' he is referring to is a very, very powerful Demon. He might be less than nineteen years old, but ask any Warlock worth his salt of the name of 'Leif', a black-haired elf Warlock, and they will know it. He commands one of the most powerful Demons to ever exist."

"This kid can't even talk properly," the man in armor talking already says. "There isn't a chance in hell he could-"

"Hells," I say. "Plural. P-L-U-R-A-L. Plural. More than one. Tiol said there be eight of them."

"My name is Savanna Grimlock," the woman says, and the men in armor all tense up, some taking step back, the liar looking scared. "Leif, sweetie – would you kindly share with me your Status?"

"How comes?"

"To confirm who you are," she answers. "Your Status, Skills, and Classes. If you are, indeed, the Warlock Leif, you won't have the funds to enter the city and get papers, and you don't already have them, according to the Demons in my employ who have recently come from the hells. Unless, of course, that's changed."

"I have money," I say. "Lots. Tiol make sure I have, so I get in city and be able buy what need."

"Indeed," she says. "And the Thief who was approaching you was probably going to steal from your inventory. It's a nasty Skill, and not one anyone would know about unless they could see someone's stats beyond a regular Appraisal. Cedric – or rather, Demari – would you kindly turn yourself in? You are a wanted person, after all. Nice glamour."

Bad man get arrested. He try fight, but woman summon a Demon that look sort of like Tiol, but smaller. More size of people around here, not like Tiol. And horns smaller. Lots smaller. Same with dick.

Woman tell me she help me go in. Lie Detection no say she lie, but maybe she good 'nough it not work on her.

But she seem know 'bout Tiol, so she probably not going try be bad. If she know Tiol, she know he no like people. Especially people who be bad. He get real mad when I get hurt.

She pays men at gate to let me in after showing papers, then leads me to an office to get my own papers. She pays for that, too. I put papers in my storage, then she asks me what I need. I pull out paper Tiol gave me and start looking through the list.

"I dunno names," I shrug. "Only know a few of them."

"May I see that?" Woman holds out hand.

"Mine!"

"I'll give it back to you," she smiles. "I promise. I wouldn't do anything to harm or cause problems for the protected of an Archdemon, much less the one who has taken you under his wing. I will say that I'm impressed by your levels for your Fire Magics, and the fact that you have Fire Eye. That's not normally something someone can get easily."

I have no know what she just said. I mean, I know what she said, but not really understand. Comprehend. I think that's the word. Comprehend?

"May I look at that paper?" She asks. "I can help you find the items you're here for, if you do."

"Oh!" I say. "Maybe Hex know what they be! I summon him, he tell me! Hex! I want you!"

Hex appear beside me, and woman blink several times, staring at it. Hex stare back.

"So it's true," she says. "You did contract with an Eye Demon. Your stats said you had Level 2 Warlock and Summon Demon – have you contracted another Demon yet? The last time I summoned a Demon from the hells was a few weeks ago, and at that point, you hadn't gotten Warlock up, or Summon Demon. The hells are probably toiling in confusion, with your quick advancement, especially with something as difficult as an Eye Demon. You do know no one summons those, right?"

"That what Tiol said, too," I nod. "Same for imps. Tim in time-out."

"You summoned an imp named Tim?"

"Yeah," I nod. "You got big boobs. Can I feel?"

"You want to feel my boobs?" Woman asks.

"Yes," I nod. "They big. Tiol and Kyle and Braden and I no have boobs, just breasts, and they no big, like some women's. Yours be really big, compared to women invade my castle. Want know how they feel. Boobs feel different from breasts. Tiol said even an overweight guy's breasts won't feel like boobs, even if called man-boobs. I feel?"

"We're in public," she says. "Something like that would be best for a bedroom."

"You sure?" I ask.

"I am," she nods. "It's considered inappropriate to do it in public."

"Oh, okay," I say. "My bedroom at the castle. It take weeks get there. Tiol said it be two weeks, but I no be sure. Took me twenty-six days to get here."

"That's nearly four weeks," she says. "You can always rent a room. It's temporary, and you have to pay for it. If you're staying here for a few days, you'll want to do that."

"Tiol said stay three days, get all things I can in that time," I tell her. "Today day one."

"So two nights, then," she says. "Come with me."

We leave, and she take me to another building, telling me it called 'inn', and has a bunch of rooms to rent, which is pay for temporary use. She talks with the 'innkeeper' and has me pay for two nights, and he gives me a key. She no pay for a room, though. Why not? She no get a key, either.

She takes me up to the room I rent, and once we inside, she pulls off her shirt and says I can touch them. I do. They're squishy. Not like our breasts, those are firm. Except Kyle's, his are a little softer and squishier.

"Okay," I tell her. "I felt them. They squishy. Let's go buy the stuff, now."

"Are you sure?" She asks.

"It's big list," I nod.

"You don't want do anything else, first?"

"Eat."

She look sad, but puts shirt back on, and we leave. She takes me to place she call a restaurant, and orders food. It good. Not as good as Tiol's cooking, but still good. She pays for it, and leaves a little extra money. We leave. She takes a long time telling me about the place as she takes me to stores.

I don't really understand her. We get everything I need today.

When I'm going to the room in the inn, the woman looks at me.

"Are you gay?"

"No, I'm Leif," I tell her, then go into my room and lie down for sleep.

In the morning, I wander around town a little bit. Some people corner me in an alley. I set them on fire. They call for guards, say I attack first. I say they attack first. I get put in a cell. They don't. I got kicked, too. Guards kicked me.

They want me give them all I have in my storage. I no want to do that. Tiol told me get this stuff, so I did. Not giving it to guards because they mean. I was attacked first. I defended self. But they still kicked me up and threw me in a cell. I really scared.

"There's no way you've gotten to Level 3 yet," Steve says after my Mana fades.

"No," I say. "I no know other way talk you. Can you tell Tiol I really scared? Mean people attacked me, so I set them on fire. Then, they got guards to throw me in a cell. They want take all the stuff Tiol gave me and told me buy. They kick me up first, too. I really scared."

"One doesn't just talk to an Archdemon," Steve says. "It would take an act of the Boss to contact him, if he even replied."

"Please?" I ask. "I really, really scared. They kick me up and want take Tiol stuff."

"Erm… hold on a second," Steve says. "Let me see the wording… yes, this. So you, Leif, were sent on a mission by the Archdemon, hereafter known as 'Tiol', to purchase items legitimately. You did so, and then were attacked, defended yourself, and then were arrested for defending yourself. Now, the guards wish to take your legitimately-acquired items, which you were there to obtain for the Archdemon Tiol, and you were beaten by the guards. Is this correct?"

"It be correct," I say. "Though lots of big words."

"Give me five minutes."

"Shut the fuck up, elf!" Someone yells at me. "Stop talking to yourself!"

"I talking to Steve!" I tell him. "You shut up! I no do wrong! Let me out!"

Guard opens cell and beats me more, then leaves. He squished Hex, too. I really, really mad.

"Steve?" I ask quietly.

"Yes?"

"Okay, you still there," I say. "Guard yell at me and beat me for talking to you. He also kill Hex. Hex got banished."

"I see that," Steve says. "Let me add this in. While contacting me to inform me of your predicament, a guard attacked you, wishing for you to not be able to contact your sponsor, the Archdemon Tiol, to inform him of your situation. This act would thus delay his awareness of your predicament, and possibly result in your demise, should a response not occur soon enough. Is that correct?"

"Um…" I think about it. "You use lots of big words again."

"Is it correct, though?" He asks.

"Yes," I decide. It at least mostly correct, so yes. "It is."

"Okay!" He says. "If they put Mana-Draining Shackles on you, I can still stay in contact, as once you perform the ritual, the flow is on our end, not yours."

"Like the shackles he bringing me now?" I ask. "Got lots glowy thingies."

"Probably," he says.

Guard beats me 'gain and forces the shackles on me. I fight him, but he too strong, and beats me up again after. Feel like going to pass out. I crying. I no want to, but I do. I so scared. I want be gone.

"Are you still there, Leif?"

"Yeah."

He take long time talk 'gain. I hurt so bad. I stop crying already. Just want sleep. Was 'bout sleep when Steve talk 'gain.

"Okay," he says. "The Boss actually responded to me pretty fast when I tried to get into touch with him, he's arranging help for you now. He's also alerting Tiol that you are in danger, but assuring him that we're arranging assistance for you. I will stay here and talk with you until you have been rescued."

"Who scuing me?"

"Depends on what the Boss does," Steve says. "I added on that last part, and he sounded furious. He might just tell Tiol what happened, or he might show up personally. I'm honestly not sure which would be worse, to be honest… anyway, oh… oh… HELLS!"

Steve yell that. It hurt head.

"Hells?"

"The Boss… issued a Hellish Crusade."

"What that?"

"Uh… not good," Steve says. "For the guards or the men who attacked you. Uh… this is going to be interesting."

"Why?"

"A Hellish Crusade," he says. "Is when all Warlocks' Demons are forcibly summoned to the mortal realm, and will be resummoned until it ends, without needing their Warlocks' Mana to fuel the summoning. In addition, they are not bound by the normal rules preventing them from acting against their masters, and can ignore many commands. This is a Hellish Crusade in that city, which has thirty Warlocks currently in it, and roughly one hundred and forty Demons, including your own two. If you look around, I'm sure you'll see them."

"I see Hex," I say. "I no resummon him. I no have Mana. These thingies took it away."

"No Tim?" He asks. "Ah, Tim's already out. So the Hellish Crusade basically gives the Warlocks and their Demons free reign to do as they wish, so long as their mission is carried out. Until you're free from that cell, Warlocks and Demons are going to run rampant through that city. The Boss is in the city, himself. Huh. He went personally."

"The Boss?"

"The one who runs this," Steve responds. "Well, he's actually filling in for the real Boss, on a sort of work program, but he's the real Boss's son. He's still very powerful."

Steve keeps talking to me for bit. Guards come down to dungeons, panic.

"What's with the commotion outside?" Guard asks.

"The Hells invoked a Hellish Crusade upon the city!" Guard tells him. "Demons and Warlocks are running around destroying shit!"

"The fuck for?" Guard yells. "A Hellish Crusade? What the fuck is going on?"

"What, indeed?" Someone say, and two people walk down steps to dungeons.

I feel my thingy get hard when see them. One has blond hair and blue eyes, other has black hair and green eyes. They really, really look good.

Jamie Human

That the blond one. He really look good. Other one no show up. Not eighteen yet, guess. Tiol said must be eighteen to have Access to System and show up like that. Unless he have Appraisal Resistance, Tiol said. Appraisal Resistance higher than Appraisal block Appraisal lower than Appraisal Resistance.

He look good, too.

"I'll give you one guess," boy with black hair says. "Why the Hells unleashed a Holy Crusade upon this city, after you threw a Warlock into a cell for defending himself."

"Is that him?" Jamie asks, moving head in my way. "The black-haired elf? Name's Leif, like you said."

"Yeah," other boy say. "That's the one we're here for."

"I'll get him out."

Jamie start walk toward me, guards try stop him. Jamie smash their faces in. Others stop.

"I'd be careful, were I you," other boy says. "Jamie here isn't an ordinary human. He's much, much stronger than jerks like you."

Jamie stands in front of the bars, smiles at me, then grabs the bars and pulls. They break, coming out of the ground and ceiling. He drops to side, then grabs the next two bars and pulls them out as well.

"Hello, Leif," he says. "We heard that Tiol's student needed some help getting out. I don't really know who that is, but Max said he's a powerful Archdemon, and I'd rather not have him try to kill me. I might be able to adapt, but I'm not that adaptable. Come here."

I scared, but do what strong and look good boy says do. He asks me to hold out my hands. I do. Obey be good. Obey not get hurt. He grabs one hand, puts fingers under thingies on both sides of arm. Then, he breaks thingy, and it falls off. He does that to other hand, too. I feel Mana return.

"I'm not sure what Tiol was thinking," Jamie says. "Sending you here by yourself, but it was kind of foolish of him to do that. People tend to dislike things that aren't their own species, and you mostly certainly aren't human. Strange that you're in this area, I thought elves were in the lower half of the continent?"

"I live in castle," I tell him. "It two weeks away, Tiol said. Took me twenty-six days get here. Probably took long 'cause I try make Skills better. What species?"

"What is species?" He asks, and I nod. "It's what type of creature you are. I am a human, and you are an elf. Some places are okay with beings of other species, but most aren't. If you're going to be here much longer, Max and I will happily protect you from the stupid, stupid humans wandering around town."

"Stupid, stupid humans?" I ask.

"Yeah," he smiles. "And trust me when I say that Max and I are powerful enough to protect you. I have a body like steel – tough and resilient. That's before I trigger any sort of defensive Skills. You saw my strength – I did that with my raw strength. Max here… well, let's just say that his spells pack a powerful punch, just like his fists."

"Spells punch?"

"Leif doesn't understand more complex things," Max says. "Explanations will need to be a bit simpler. Leif – Jamie and I will protect you while we're here. We are good. Make sure you safe. Okay?"

"Okay!" I say. "So how spells punch?"

"It's a way to say that my magic is strong," Max says. "How much longer do you have here?"

"I dunno."

"What do you need to do before you leave?"

"Nothing," I tell him. "I got all stuff Tiol want me get. They want take it from me. They mean."

"Yes, they are," Max nods. "Why don't we bring you to our room at the inn and get you cleaned up? You can sleep with us tonight."

"Hex staring at you lots," I say to Max. "Even though you all way over there."

"He can probably sense what I am," Max says. "He's an Eye Demon. It's unusual to see them, but once they're up a few Levels, they're actually pretty powerful. See if he can get to Level 100 overall for his Classes, and he'll Rank Up into a more powerful creature."

"Rank Up?"

"Become better," Max says. "Change from what he is to something stronger. The Hells are quite amazed by your ability to hit Warlock 2 and Summon Demon 2 so quickly. Good job. Hex already being Level 3 Overall at just six months old is amazing, too."

Max compliment me!

"Is that rare?" Jamie asks.

"Eye Demons are probably the absolute worst Demon one can contract," Max nods. "They're notorious for having absolutely no way to really gain Levels, outside of the Class Hex currently has, which, as you know, will only have 10 Levels. No one summons them. Them, imps, and a few others."

"I got Imp Demon named Tim," I tell him. "Tiol real mad. Meant get incubus, not imp. Got mix up. I do that lots. Tiol say no contracts without Tiol present, now."

"Imps are pretty useful," Max says. "If you can control them. Problem is, orders don't hold as strongly over them, and they find ways to do extra stuff, too."

"Tim in time-out," I tell Max.

"While this is nice and all," Jamie says. "I'm sure you want to get out of here, right? We can take you for food, then to our inn to get cleaned up. You can stay with us as long as you'd like, though we might have to leave soon, ourselves."

"I'd like to see them make us leave," Max snorts. I know snorts. Tiol do it when Kyle stay stuff, lots of times. "Considering how strong the two of us are. It isn't every day a human hits Orange Rating before they hit forty, and you're only twenty."

He look eighteen. No more. He twenty? He look young.

"Come on," Jamie says. "Let's go, Leif."

"How you know name?"

"Appraisal," Jamie says.

"Oh, right!" I say. "I use it, too! You Jamie! Max no show up!"

"Max is a demigod," Jamie say. "His father is a god, his mother, a human. Appraisal doesn't work on him. What kind of food do you like?"

"Good food!"

"Anything in particular?"

"No know what meats Tiol gets," I tell him. "But they good! I like fruits, too! Most veggties are bad, though. No like them. Fruits good!"

"Alright," Jamie says. "Let's go get dinner."

I nod, and follow him out. Did guard piss and poo self? He look scared.

We leave Dungeons, and a window appears in my vision.

Notice to All Warlocks and Demons in the City of Lairus: Warlock Leif is Now Free Hellish Crusade is Over

I finish reading that one, then another appear.

Notice to All Within the City of Lairus: You Harmed That Which was Not Yours to Harm

Let This Crusade be Your Warning

It May be Over, but We Will Not Forget

Don't Even Think About Taking Action Against Those that Participated, so Long as They Stopped at the End

Seriously

I Won't Hesitate to Personally Attack at Full Power

Maybe Bring an Archdemon or Four -Maxrulnamis, Boss of the Demonic Realms