Ascension Rebirth - The 13 Demon Generals

CHAPTER XXVIII

PART ONE

[Eternum Calendar 500]

It's been a little over three years since I've come to this orphanage. Life really isn't all that bad anymore and I've adapted to the people and have gotten my life back on track.

Like a hamster running on the hedonic treadmill it's terrifying. You can be the happiest man or the most depressed individual in history and still return to a state of normalcy after a while.

Ren, Celina and I were waiting down stairs for Alice to get ready.

"Alice, hurry up!"

Ren shouts from the bottom of the stairs, peering up at the shut door of Alice's room. His voice echoing through the walls leading up.

Looking at him now he's surely grown up, physically I mean. He's a lot taller than he used to be but still has the same cool and loner-like demeanour, not to suggest he's ever actually a lone, he's with us after all. One thing that does get on my nerves a tad is the fact that he's taller than me.

Mardoc was on the tall side so I don't think I have to worry too much about this but it's just a little pet peeve.

He still likes tinkering with machinery and still often can be seen with some sort of device in his hands. Maybe I should make him a gun for when he comes of age, for self-defense I mean. If it's him I feel like I can entrust him with something that dangerous.

"I know! I'm coming, just give me a second, geez!"

Alice shouts from her room, which is also mine mind you so the next things I heard was a little worrisome. I could hear loud banging and crashing noises as she was bumping into all manner of objects trying to put on her clothes. It almost sounded painful. Focusing my hearing a little I could swear she was crying.

I can only sigh at the imagery of her crying on the floor because she scraped her knees or something.

"Sorry, could you go help her?"

I turned to Celina and asked. She promptly agrees and slithers her way up into my room.

I could go myself, but I think Alice is becoming more conscious of our difference in gender. Maybe.

The only thing I know about child psychology is what I learnt from my lecturer at uni about human mental development. Obviously that's not exactly source material I should consult so keenly, especially given the context of this world.

Never having children of my own didn't really help much either, so the development of children is something foreign to me. In fact I'm quite amazed at the level of responsibility and care that they give to each of the children living here, all by themselves. My heart really goes out to them.

Though I guess you can say that I'm kind of like a father figure, if you stretch that definition really widely. Being with them so long I sometimes get the feeling this might be what it's like to have children of my own, but that could just be my imagination.

Enough about me for now. Celina has also grown up quite a lot. Her secondary sex characteristics have yet to show but she has developed mentally and physically. She's also taller than me but only because she's part of the [Lamia] race. Her serpentine tail gives her a little bit more of an edge so her real height is a little deceptive.

She still likes to be around me but a little less than before, a fact that is actually a little lonely for me, but that's just a sign of her growth so I should be happy for her. It could also be because she's becoming more aware of our gender, much like Alice.

Another aspect of her growth was her development in combat related areas, although I'll use the term 'combat' loosely because she is a [cleric] class.

She's at level 8 now, still an apprentice cleric but that's a fairly impressive level for her age. The median level for her age is only around 4 ~ 5 depending on the circumstances of the individual. I know many noble children forgo combat training all together and focus on politics or trade, even well into their adulthood.

That's why it's not too outlandish to see adults with a level of 1 ~ 3.

Other than that her mathematics are pretty good now, she doesn't need to use her hands anymore. Yay~

As for Alice, there hasn't been too many major changes aside from her levels in swordsmanship. She's also at level 8 as she has been training under Miko day in and day out.

With the amount of training they put into improving their skills, I actually feel a little guilty about the fact that I have it so easy. All these children train so hard to get to where they are now but I have this little cheat ability called [Custom Editor] that accelerates my growth greatly.

That being said, I guess you'd be most interested to know about my progression over these long three years, right? Well prepare to be disappointed, because I wasn't able to level up all that much. Now I have perfectly valid reasons for this.

First is that my reason for going into the forests were a little, 'selfish' so since I stopped doing that I didn't have many more places to train. I did go in a few times here and there to even out the population levels of the monsters.

Actually they were breeding much more quickly ever since I arrived, to compensate for my mass… 'destruction'. So I tried to go there and 'regulate' a bit.

There's also the fact that it becomes more and more difficult to gain experience as I level up. The monsters here don't give me anywhere near a satisfactory amount of experiences for me to level up. Not only that there's also the system where I get less experience from hunting those who are at a lower level than me.

The experience penalty.

Then there's also the part where I have been doing more research about [Ragnarok]. My schedule has actually been quite full these few years.

With those factors in mind I hope you can forgive me for not living up to your expectations.

Anyway I'll stop trying to delay the inevitable and pull up the [status menu] for you.

[Status Menu]

Morgant Fallon. Level 42

NECROMANCER

DEMON GENERAL

SUCCESSOR OF THE COSMIC LEGACY

Strength: 230 (155+75)

Dexterity: 60 (5+55)

Intelligence: 50 (5+45)

Insight: 100 (45+55)

[Status point: 25]

I've managed to procure 3 whole levels. Congratulations me!

Now I have accumulated a bit of undistributed [status points]. Right now I'm thinking of how to use them effectively.

They way I've been distributing them so far is a little cringe-worthy. However I can still use this to my advantage. In fact, I do have a plan on what I want to do with that massive amount of [strength].

Although for that plan I need a weapon. I do have [Obsidian lance/shield] for ad hoc weapons but that won't be enough nor does it utilize my [strength] stat. I probably won't be able to find any weapon that will even if I searched the world. So my only real choice is to make my own.

I have a candidate for a special weapon but I don't have the materials to make it nor do I have a way of gathering them at the moment. So I'll have to put that on hold for now. I won't spoil the fun for you, you'll just have to find out.

So with that I'll leave those stats and anymore subsequent stats undistributed until I find a way of getting the materials for the weapon.

Now then, for the skill sections it's pretty much the same case as the stats. I've managed to improve a smidgen.

[Strike +] was now level 27

[Summon Skeleton Knight] was now level 22

[Transfer Life] was now level 43

[Wither] was now level 29

[Decay] was now level 40

[Aura Field] was now level 24

[Soul Gambit] was now level 17

[Obsidian Lance] was now level 40

[Obsidian Shield] was now level 39

[Reanimate Dead] was now level 30

[Enchanting Voice] was now level 23

[Lord of Ghosts] was now level 15

[Phantasmal Maelstrom] was now level 20

Finally there's the two new skills that I've received from the cosmic terror fiend himself.

Also sorry to disappointed but, I haven't used [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]even once so it's still at level 1. I don't even know how it looks or functions. From the description it appears to work similarly to [Life Drain] + [Aura Field], of course with the added effect of shredding through the enemy's sanity in true Lovecraftian fashion.

That being said, I didn't really have any use for the skill while I was at the orphanage, I don't want to scare the children by summoning a cosmic terror. Admittedly I should've used it once or twice on the forest monsters when I went there but I didn't really know the implications of the skill so I refrained.

Besides, Miko and Lilith came with me every time so I didn't really have that luxury either.

Aside from that, I can still use the normal [Life Drain] if I wanted to, it's just that the skill has been removed from the [skill menu]. It's now kind of like why would I want to use something when I can use something better for twice the value?

I mean there are uses for the normal [Life Drain], but I won't look as cool.

Then there's [Transformation - Black Pharaoh] which I also haven't used either.

My assumption is that I'll turn into the form of Nyarlathotep I saw on that night. A gigantic 2.4 meter towering behemoth. It also states that I'll be given a boost to my [strength]. [speed] and [dexterity], but whether that's referring to a numeric boost or not is in the ether for now.

I just haven't had time to test out those skills since everything has been peaceful recently. Although I should considering what I'm about to go up against, it's necessary to know my own skills and how they function.

Now then, thinking back, I've now reached level 42. Mardoc was at that level too, the last time I saw him.

"You have to remain strong, okay Morgant?"

"I'll be expecting a lot from you when you return."

I remember his last words. I intend to live up to those words with every fibre of my being. Just watch me, I'll make sure that I leave a mark on this world.

"Sorry about that."

Alice and Celina comes down from the room.

"You took far too long. They're already leaving."

"I said sorry, stupid Ren!"

"What'd you say?!"

"Now, now. Break it up you two. It's time we go already."

"Hmph!" x2

Deep down their still children, well they're still children physically too I guess.

Now then, I guess you're wondering what's going on.

Simply put, there are some children in the orphanage who have come of age and are now leaving to find their own place in the world; graduation from the orphanage. The children usually leave when they've become adults, which is at the age of 15 in this world.

Since this place is a hub for all sorts of merchants and venders there are a lot of jobs available to the children to apprentice under. [Merchants], [travellers], [smiths], [politicians] and etc.

Most of the people who come to this town already know that there will be children looking for apprenticeship so some even come specifically to get a few apprentices.

There were a few children who wanted to be apprenticed under Enrich since he comes here so often and looks professional, but he had to decline because he's a busy man. It was fairly amusing to see him panicked by the hordes of children.

The more braver and adventurous children decide to become, well, adventurers.

There's an [Adventurer Association] in this town too so it's real easy to sign up.

And now you'll probably thinking, 'What's an [Adventurer Association]?'

The general gist of it is that it's a hub for adventurers. It's where they receive quests, make parties, guilds, organize dungeons, accept private requests and etc.

It's where RPG really comes to life.

I've been there a few times but honestly while it was exciting it didn't give me the same 'oomph' that it did before. This is probably because I was already desensitized to that kind of thing after seeing it so much.

It's scary how fast the human mind can adapt to these kinds of things.

There's also the fact that the average level of the adventurers only really go up to their mid 20s. admittedly it is stronger than those in the center continent which only had a median level of 15 but still.

It's something that I only found out recently but there's actually a cap on how strong people can get, unless they go through extremely tough or specialized training but even then there's still a cap.

A normal human adult would only ever reach a maximum of around level 25 in their entire life time. This is without any sort of magical aide. It makes sense, even back in my world, no matter how much time you train at the gym there's only a certain amount of weight a human being is capable of lifting.

Now apparently there are ways to exceed that cap through specialized training or extremely tough circumstances like, continuously fighting in war or against monsters. People like those tend to become high ranking soldiers such as the [Praetorian Knights].

Which makes me wonder what kind of past Diana had. She's at level 44 which, thinking about it now is almost uncanny. I don't want to pry unnecessarily so I'll leave it at that.

Different races have different level caps, for example the beast-kin have an average level cap of around their early 30s.

Which means Miko's already capped her level, unless she does something extreme.

Demons have a little bit more leeway as their average level cap is around 60s. Not surprising considering that they're also technically monsters, so to speak.

As for me, I don't know what my level cap is. I do have an estimate and that number is probably level 255. I'm basing that number on TMAQI's level, the android in [Gladsheim].

Anyway this does make more sense as to why monsters are considered dangerous. With strength disparity like this I get why people don't want to go to war with demons.

PART TWO

Numerous children were lined up at the front gate watching their elders leave for the next step in their lives. I had gotten to most of their names over the time I've spent in this orphanage so it is a little sad to see them leave.

This must be what parents feel when seeing their children off to college.

I talk to a few of them.

"Good luck."

I tell each and every one of them. They smile and give me a handshake and tell me to give it my best as well. By now they all know I'm the 'troublemaker' in this place.

I offer them a silent prayer.

The boys and girls of the orphanage, I bid them good luck in their future endeavors.

Someday too, I will leave this place, I wonder if the children will be alright on their own since I probably won't be with them at that point.

PART THREE

As we were all but ready to leave two important looking people come to the orphanage. They were demons, some sort of messenger I think? They wore the traditional demon army uniform which was a brown jacket and pants.

I'd make an SS joke here but that would be in poor taste.

Miko and Diana are talking to them while the children are glancing over.

Suddenly one of them points to me and comes to my direction. It's a woman and her gaze is really sharp, but I stand there unflinching while the other three children hide behind me.

She's human, or at least appears to be, but she has silver hair, but not white so I doubt she's a homunculus, still it is a rather odd coloration for hair. The only one I know who has that kind of color is Miko. Incidentally the other emissary which was male also had similar features to her.

"Can I help you?"

I check her status just in case.

[Deborah. Level 35, Emissary of Demons]. So she has the same position as Enrich.

She gives me a bow. She shoes me a small crest.

I [inspect] the object and a small description box pops up.

[Crest of Andras: A crest that proves their loyalty to the one named [Andras].]

"Yes, Lord Astaroth requires your presence."

Astaroth, huh. I wonder if something happened. If it's at her request then I won't refuse, beside I haven't visited her ever since arriving at Vertloch, which may have been a little rude.

"I see, then I will go prepare right away."

"Thank you for your cooperation, Master Morgant."

They even know my name. I guess Enrich was right about me being known throughout the ranks of the demon army. I honestly would've preferred to be hidden so the enemy doesn't know about my existence, but oh well.

I go up to my room to prepare some stuff for the trip. Astaroth is currently at the [Vertloch Skyreach] which isn't that close to here, maybe around 2 or 3 days trip by carriage which the demon army emissaries brought with them. Ugh, I hate those things.

Miko and the children enter the room as I'm packing some stuff.

"You've decided to go?"

Miko asks.

"Well it's a request from our demonic leader, I can't very well refuse now can I? Don't worry I'll be back in a few weeks."

I answer as I continue to pack my stuff.

"Then I'll go with you."

I stop to think about what she just said. I wonder if that's possible, I mean would they allow her to even enter the [Sanctuary]?

"Miko, not to sound rude or anything, but I don't think they'll let just anyone into the [Sanctuary]."

She couldn't think of a counter argument for that and just stood silently as I packed my stuff. I'll say this as much as I can but I'm truly grateful to Miko for looking out for me, but sometimes it can be a little overbearing.

"Is Morgant leaving?"

Alice asked while grabbing onto the hem of Miko's shirt. Alice has always had an aversion to people around her leaving, especially me who would've seemed like an older father figure she could trust. This probably ties in somehow with her circumstances leading to her being placed in this orphanage.

I suspect that she was also deliberately late for the graduation for the older children because she didn't want to see them leave.

"It's okay, he'll be back soon."

Alice's eyes started to water.

"No!"

She ran to me and stopped me from packing my bags. She started to take out the clothes I put in.

"A, Alice?"

"No! You can't leave! I don't want you to!"

"Alice!"

Miko ran over to stop her. She was easily picked up but she was flailing violently, crying all the while.

"No! He'll leave! Just like mommy and daddy!"

Miko gently placed her on the bed and embraced her. Alice clung onto her and cried for a good while.

Ren and Celina only stood in the sidelines, watching silently. Usually Ren would step in and say something to her but as a child of this orphanage he probably also understands how Alice feels.

"Alice, you don't have to worry, I'll definitely be back soon. So be a good girl and wait for me here, okay?"

She stared at me with her big, blue, watery eyes. Perhaps she couldn't trust me with just those words; fair enough, I suppose I'm not the most trust worthy person alive, I know that better than anyone.

As much as it pained me I took out something from my pocket.

"Alice, give me your hand for a second."

She curiously lent me her hand.

Grasping it and placing something there.

She took it and stared at it.

It was the skull hairpin I received from Kyoko. Sure enough that may have just been a by product of Nyarlathotep's power but to me that was the single most important object. Even if it was just an illusion it was still Kyoko who gave it to me.

"Listen Alice, that hairpin is very important to me, more-so than even my own life. I want you to keep it safe for me until I return."

She wiped her tears and gave me a silent nod.

I stroke her head.

"That's a good girl. I'll be back soon Alice."

"… Okay."

After packing my backs we went out to the front where the two emissaries were waiting.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting."

"It's not a problem. Are you ready to go?"

"There's actually someone else I want to take with me, if that's okay with you?"

"There's no problem but not just anyone can enter the [Vertloch Skyreach]."

"I know, she's someone who used to live there anyway."

The emissary woman tilted her head in confusion. In the end she still obliged and agreed to my request.

Before getting on the carriage with my luggage I turned to Miko, Diana and the children.

"I'll be right back so wait for me."

"Be careful Morgant."

Diana tells me with that sweat voice of hers. I nod in acknowledgement.

With that we left.

…

…

Only to stop at a particular flower shop.

When we stop there the two emissaries mumble something under their breaths when they see the sign post.

That's right the one person I wanted to take was Lilith. I had promised to bring her back to the capital when she was ready, and I believe after these three years she's grown considerably.

Though I'm not sure if she agrees with my assessment.

I tell the two emissaries to wait at the front while I go get her.

When I enter Enrich is there too.

He gives me a small bow as does Lilith.

"Master! You're here. Is something the matter?"

"Actually I'm here for you."

"Eh?!"

I can see her face blushing. I don't know what she was imagining but she was wrong.

"I don't mean like that. I was summoned to the [Vertloch Skyreach] and I was thinking of taking you along as well."

Just as a quick recap I'll give you her numbers right now.

[Lilith De Signa. Level 54, Florist].

While it wasn't the biggest improvements in level, at 8 levels it was far more than what I ever achieved in these past three years. She was most likely off training by herself at the dead of night or something.

She was probably trying to hide that fact from me but unbeknownst to her doing so made me refill her mana more frequently so I knew. Well I can see her levels directly so that wasn't really necessary to deduce.

She tries to find a way of declining but since I'm the master of this relationship she probably doesn't know how to.

"Don't worry, I'll be with you the whole time."

"Umm, if you say so, then I'll go."

She answers meekly.

We leave Enrich in charge of the flower shop for a few days and get into the carriage. Sitting opposite us the emissary woman is staring at Lilith intently. Lilith flinches and tries to avert her gaze.

"It has been a while Mistress Lilith."

Lilith flinches again and looks at her slowly.

"Y, yes it has been."

"Do you know Lilith, Deborah?"

I ask. When I casually speak her name she stares at me with a perplexed look, wondering how I knew.

I offer her a professional fake smile in return.

"We… are childhood friends."

"I see."

I won't ask anymore because I can guess what happened. Deborah probably feels betrayed or abandoned when Lilith ran away from the capital.

PART FOUR

The trip to the capital took three days like I had initially expected. We stopped regularly but as I thought, I really hate riding these carriages, my backside hurts all over.

After I get off the carriage I quickly change into a more suitable attire for this formal meeting.

It was a small black butler style suit, with white gloves.

Upon looking back this place really lives up to its name.

The [Vertloch Skyreach]. Tall skyscrapers that seem to go into the heavens themselves- is what I would say was I really that impressed. Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty surprised that they could make these kinds of structures but you have to see it from my point of view.

I lived in a major metropolitan area in the heart of Tokyo. A small skyscraper there would dwarf these structures. Still, I do like the somewhat 'oriental' feel of these structures. There's an odd mix of Chinese, Japanese and Korean style theme going on.

There are numerous lanterns all over the streets, powered by magic of course, that gives it a lively vibe even in this darkness. It reminds me of the city of my previous life in the way it tries to defy the darkness with artificial light.

We were lead to the main entrance of the [Sanctuary]. Two soldiers who guarded the place stopped us in our path.

They wore the same SS looking military uniform.

They did acknowledge Deborah and her partner, even begrudgingly accepted Lilith. I kind of pitied her for being seen as the black sheep of this place. I wouldn't have been angry if she declined coming here.

Anyway, they stopped me.

"Children are forbidden from entering the [Sanctuary]."

"He was summoned by Lord Astaroth herself."

Deborah tries to defend me, but the guards just look at each other and don't really believe it.

The guards are around level 28 so I can easily take them on. Though it's probably not a good idea to do so.

"As convincing as that sounds, I don't think I can accept that as truth. Even if you are part of the demon army."

Are they being sarcastic?

"Very well, would this change your mind?"

I try to concentrate. I haven't done this for a very long time, the last time I did this was over 5 years ago.

I offer my hand and a small red and black crest appears. Instantly they recognize it and step back, giving me immediate access.

It was the [Crest of the Demon Lord] that I received when I was three.

"We deep apologize! We did not recognize who you were, please go right through!"

They bow their heads.

"It's fine. Thank you."

Like that I was granted entry into the heart of the [Vertloch Skyreach] the city of perpetual darkness.

We were taken to this elevator-like platform. You see these kinds of things in RPGs all the time, they're just solid platform that float in the air without any sort of electricity or technology.

Just magic, how convenient.

I am taken to a large dome like place and in front of me is a large double door.

"Beyond there the Demon Lord Astaroth, awaits your arrival."

"I see, thank you."

Lilith and I decided to enter, but was stopped.

"Unfortunately only Demon Generals may enter at this crucial time. So Mistress Lilith will have to stay in the waiting room until the meeting is finished."

Lilith's face turn instantly pale. I sympathise with her but there's nothing I can do in this situation.

"Sorry Lilith, I did promise to stay with you but I hope you can forgive me."

"Y, yes. It, it's quite okay."

She forces herself to smile, but comes out horribly.

PART FIVE

I open the door and enter into a large dome shaped room. There is a large, long red carpet that leads into a large throne. Behind the throne is an open window that reveals a large red moon.

Even though it's supposed to be around noon this place is always night, as such the moon can be seen, but it's the first time I've ever seen the moon this big.

Sitting in the throne freely is a small child like figure of a girl. She has two horns that protrude from the side of her head that curves to face forward. Her blazing red hair and eyes are only accentuated by the shadow of her throne from the moon's light. It glows a deep bright red, especially her eyes.

She's wearing rather revealing black and white clothes, but now that I know she's part of the [succubus] race it does make more sense. Or does it? With the size of her body I mean… well I'm not going to judge.

Standing to her right is a familiar mask wearing freak- I mean vampire.

Just to make sure I concentrate and see their stats.

[Astaroth De Signa. Level 113, Demon Lord].

[Kyrios. Level 97. Vampire Lord].

Yup, they're the same as always.

I see a few other people as well.

One of them is someone I know. A slimy fellow, literally.

[Cedric. Level 94, Slime King]

Yep. My old acquaintance Cedric. He's standing on the edge of the red carpet in eerie silence as he takes a glance at me.

There are two more people who I assume are demon generals as well. To Cedric's side is a human looking woman who has silver hair, much like Deborah, but the aura around her is a lot more intimidating. Her pink colored eyes look at me like a keen blade.

She doesn't have any weapon to speak of.

[Andras. Level 87, Luminary of Lycanthropes].

I see, [Lycanthropes]. From what I know about them there are actually human who were experimented on by the [were-wolf] kin. It's not a story that you'd think to hear about the beast kin.

Centuries ago the were-wolves were trying to artificially create more [were-wolves] in order to bolster their numbers but somehow the experiment ended in failure and thus created the [Lycanthropes].

The difference between the two races are that [were-wolves] are part of the beast kin race and always have their power readily on hand.

Whereas the [Lycanthropes] are mostly human but can transform into greater wolves. They're much more furrier, bulkier and brutal. In that form they are technically stronger than [were-wolves] but have much more difficulty in controlling themselves.

So if you were to ask me who would win in a straight up fight then I'd answer that the [Lycanthropes] actually have more of an edge, but the [were-wolves] have greater mastery and skill. In the end [Lycanthropes] would win.

To the opposite side is a towering, dark skinned brute. He has some impressive muscle structure. I can't say he has the most friendliest face though. He has large canine teeth that stick out from his lower jaw. He has blood red eyes as well which is scary as hell, worse is that he's staring at me.

He has an impressive set of leather and metallic armor. He's holding a tall battleaxe that could probably chop anyone in half with a single swing.

Anyway, this feature is similar to what I know of as [Orcs] in RPGs.

[Raak. Level 84, Orc Warlord].

That was easy. Usually Orcs only play the part of enemy NPCs or monsters so it's a little surprising to see one as a demon general, not that it doesn't make sense.

They don't say anything after noticing my presence and wait for me to step forward.

I'm actually a little nervous, this is the first time I've met them in such a formal manner. I take a deep breath and try to channel my previous life's professionalism.

With that my nerves calm down a considerable amount and the air around me change, or at least that's what it feels like.

I slowly step forward. With each step an audible tapping noise resounds against the walls of the room.

After about 20 or so steps I stop just in front of the throne.

I kneel on one knee, place my right hand across my chest and my left hand behind my back. I don't know how formal bows are done in this world so I'm just mimicking what I saw in a period drama about historical Europe.

"I have arrived at your summon, Demon Lord Astaroth."

"Umu, thanks for coming. I had called out to all the [Demon Generals] but I did not actually think you would be coming. I did say that you were a special case and did not have to follow any of the rules after all."

So you say but you've sent me on various missions in the past.

Of course I can't say that out aloud.

"I thought it a little rude to not show myself at least once since I was brought to the Northern Continent. This was just the perfect opportunity to do so."

"I see, that's fine as well. You've grown impressively over the past few years, almost to the point I no longer recognized you. The aura about you has become much stronger."

"I thank you for your kind words. It is the result of many people who have helped me thus far."

"Yes. I am also terribly sorry for what had happened to your family."

She says with a small voice.

I become silent for a moment before speaking again.

"It is an unfortunate event, however I will use that motivation to make sure that no ill will befalls anyone close to me ever again."

"Umu, that's good to know. Anyway, you've arrived a little earlier than everyone else. The other generals will be arriving shortly so why don't you stand guard on the side?"

"I understand."

I take point on the edge of the red carpet, next to the Orc Warlord just to show how badass I am. I can be pretty vain sometimes too you know.

Well whatever, I guess this means I'll be introduced to all of the 13 demon generals, I'm actually quite excited to finally see them. After all they will be my greatest allies in the battle against Nodens and his ilk.

PART SIX

The large doors at the end of the room creek open once more. A new person has entered the room and walks up along the red carpet and stands before the demon lord.

It's a woman that appears to be in her early 20s.

She has icy blue hair and red iris that seem to encompass her entire eye. There are no sclera which makes her much more menacing. Not only that there are six small dots going up along her forehead, with the same shade of red.

She's wearing an oriental dress. It's not really a kimono nor any traditional clothing of any Asian country I know, but it for some reason feels very oriental. The clothes are colored in red and blue with floral markings all across.

Her hands are glowing in an icy-blue color, perhaps it's some sort of magic? If so then I'll hazard a guess and say she's a master of [ice] type magic. She's wearing what seem to be geta sandals, which makes a 'clack, clack' noise as she walks.

I concentrate and check her status.

[Arachna. Level 85, Spider Queen].

'Spider Queen' huh. Then I'm going to go ahead and assume that this isn't her true form. If I go by RPG depictions then she'll transform into a half spider, half woman type being.

I do want to see that.

"I have arrived at your summon, Mistress Astaroth."

A small white fog is emitted every time she opens her mouth.

"Umu, well done. The others have yet to arrive so stand on the side."

"As you command, Mistress Astaroth."

She walks up to me and stares for a second. She smiles then stands to my left. I can feel that side of my body chilling up. Good thing I can regulate life energy in my body to negate those effects.

I think she was doing it on purpose to irk me out but seeing her attempts to irk me with her coldness fail she giggles under her breath. What are you a 4th grader trying to get your crush's attention?

I can already tell she's going to be a pain.

…

…

After a while another person enters the room. He, or I assume it's a 'he', he's incredibly tall, towering at around 2.6 meters. He's entirely made of a black skeleton. Similar to my [Skeleton Knight] he is armored in a black metal armor but instead of a helmet on his head it's a bright yellow crown.

He has no weapon to speak of but looks like he would pose an incredible amount of threat even without one.

Every step he takes the floor reverberates from the sheer force.

He walks up and even though he's kneeling he's still taller than Astaroth who is sitting atop of the stairs on a throne.

"I have arrived at your summon, great one."

"Excellent. The others will be here soon so stand aside."

He doesn't answer but complies with the order and stands next to Andras.

His glowy red dots for eyes focus on me. Yeah, yeah everyone stare at the new kid. What is this, some sort of an elementary classroom?

Let's see.

[Texzatopekmetziluxotl. Level 83, Skeleton King].

I flinch at his long name. I'm just going to call him [Xotl] in my mind.

…

…

With a loud creaking noise the large iron doors open, revealing the next person.

OH MY GOD I KNOW WHO THAT IS!

She's a [Lamia], the original one, from the stories in my previous world at least. She's wearing a white peplos; those white silky garbs worn by ancient Greeks.

She has golden eyes, but her most distinct feature is her hair, or lack thereof.

You all know who this is by now right?

The one with snakes for hair and can turn anyone who gazes into her eyes into stone.

[Medusa. Level 86, Gorgon Monarch].

I'm right!

She has a bow and arrow strapped to her back. Did the original Medusa fight with those? I don't think so, well whatever. I've seen a distinct lack of archers in this world, I wonder why.

She has a magnificent emerald colored scaly tail. Using those she slithers her way across the carpet and stands before the demon lord.

"I have arrived at your summon, High One."

"Good. Not all has arrived yet, take a side and we shall await for their entrance."

"Of course."

She slithers to our side and stands next to Arachna. She take a glance at me as she passes. Yeah, I'm used to it by now.

Is she going to be okay? I mean Arachna is still exerting that cold air around her. Medusa's an exothermic creature right? Oh well, I don't understand how these [Lamias] operate.

…

…

The next one to enter was a peculiar one.

The best way to describe it would be to say it was a humanoid figure made entirely with squares and rectangular prisms. It was a robot, but not like those super advanced robots from [Gladsheim] but one you would find made during the 21st century.

It was basically a silver endoskeleton. It had an eerie red camera for eyes on the box for a head that was placed above his neck. I could see several cords and circuit boards within him as well.

In his chest seemed to be what looks like a blue [Mana crystal]. Perhaps that was the thing that was giving him his life and sentience? That would be my hypothesis.

It stumbled robotically along the red carpet and stood before Astaroth.

"I. Have. Arrived. Master."

"I see. The others have yet to arrive. Feel free to stand along with the others.'

"Affirmative."

It stumbled across the carpet again before stopping in front of me. It was taller than the 8 year old me.

It crouched down and scanned me with its red eye.

I stood there and stared up. I wonder if the others knew what he was.

I concentrated for a bit to see if I can read his title and stats.

[Tiki. Level 1, Heart of the Machine].

Huh? Level 1? Well, it does look extremely fragile compared to the others here. The only reason I can think of why it would be chosen as a demon general is because Astaroth thought it would be fun.

Other than that, perhaps it has amazing computational powers? Like maybe it can strategize for the demon army's movements?

"I. Detect. Similar. Synthetic. Organism. From. Within. You."

"You'd be correct in that assumption but let's talk about that a little later, okay?"

It stood there for a few seconds before answering.

"Affirmative."

It walked over and stood next to Medusa.

…

…

A few more minutes passed before the great doors to the inner sanctuary opened for another person.

A very dignified looking person entered the room. He had black hair and deep blue eyes. His muscular structure and several scars running down his arms and chest revealed his battlefield history. There were several cuts across his eyes and lips as well.

He looked to be in his early 30s.

He was wearing black leather armor with his chest exposed. He had two small horns at the front of his forehead.

To his waist was a familiar looking Japanese style Katana. The handles and sheath were black. I didn't think such a blade would exist in this world but considering the thematic settings of this city I shouldn't be too amazed.

However, for some reason I thought his face looked familiar to someone I knew. I just couldn't put my finger on it.

I concentrated to find out his name to see if that would give me a clue.

[Albion. Level 103, Great Devil].

Level 103? He's stronger than Kyrios. Most impressive.

Though considering all those scars I shouldn't be surprised. But anyway that name doesn't really tell me much. Perhaps it's just my imagination then.

"I have arrived at your summon, Matriarch."

It seems that everyone else has a different name for Astaroth. Cute.

"I'm glad you can make it, Albion."

"If it is your will, I will do whatever it takes to answer your call."

"Wonderful, there are a few more that have yet to arrive, we will await for them."

"Understood."

He walks past and glances at me for a fraction of a second then stands next to Xotl. I bet they're great pals because they both look intimidating.

…

…

The doors suddenly burst open and let in the scent of the sea.

What arrives is a person dressed in a black military outfit. If I had to say, the style of clothing is reminiscent of a high ranking general or admiral of a military.

Well, he's an admiral, I can tell from his hat which has an anchor symbol on it. He has black hair mixed with aging white hair and his eyes are a heterochromatic red and grey.

He has a grey moustache that screams wisdom.

If I had to describe him, it would be 'Badass grandpa'. He looks around to be in his 60s but his aura looks like he can take on any number of enemies. Even the way he walks has a aura of magnificence. On his waist is a thin metallic rapier.

I usually don't like swords too much but if there was one I like it's the rapier.

I instantly like this man already.

[Ordwell Rommel. Level 107, Homunculus Admiral].

An immortal admiral and he's level 107! Geez can this man be any more cooler?

"I have arrived at your summon, Astaroth."

Holy shit, he just called her by her name! That's it he deserves the annual badass award, right now!

I wonder if he helms a Battlecruiser, he probably does.

Sorry, if I sounded like a crazed fangirl. The truth is I was always a fan of the navy back in my previous life, I used to have model ships back at home as well.

"Good to see you, Ordwell. You haven't died yet I see."

"Haha! I would never die before you."

"Of course. There are two more people coming so we'll wait for them."

"Right."

He turns around with grace and walks next to Albion.

He turns to my direction and gives me a smile.

I unwittingly smile back.

I don't know why but Arachna next to me didn't like that I showed some kind of reaction to him when I didn't for her. I knew that she was a bit upset by this because the temperature went down a bit. By a bit I mean that frost was forming on my shoulders.

Still, because I can regulate life energy I didn't really feel cold, so I continued to not illicit any reaction. Though it did look like Medusa was getting a tad upset by this.

…

…

Finally the second last person entered the room.

It was an extremely elegant and beautiful woman. No, the word 'beauty' would be an insult to her, she was much more alluring than even the demon lord herself.

She had long blonde hair and brown eyes with long eyelashes. Her supple red lips looked like it could leave a permanent mark if she kissed you.

She wore something akin to black leather bondage gear? She had shiny black leather boots and gloves as well. Such a gaudy outfit. I mean, sure it's her choice but still. I don't think she's a succubus.

[Leanan Sidhe. Level 86, Ancient Banshee].

[Leanan Sidhe], if I'm recalling correctly she's also part of the Celtic mythology. She would visit artist and poets and in exchange for great inspiration she would take their lives, or so the story goes.

She turned towards me as she walked along the carpet and gave me a wink.

I instantly flinched because I was thinking about that story, though I don't think she was offended, probably.

"I have arrived at your summon, Mistress."

Her natural voice was really alluring, to an unnatural extent. Actually I recognize this, it's similar to my [Enchanting Voice] skill. I see, so her voice has a natural hypnosis effect?

Well, it's fine.

Actually I should take this time to explain something else that I forgot to mention before, which isn't totally unrelated to what's happening now.

It has to do with me receiving the [Successor of the Cosmic Legacy] profession.

See, there's a new skill I got along with it, it's called [Mental Fortress]. It actually appeared on my skill menu already at maximum level of 50. It's really what it sounds like.

As long as I have this skill I'm impervious to all types of mental attacks such as hypnosis. It makes sense considering the background of the lovecraftian abominations that I get this skill.

So anyway, yeah her voice is alluring but has no real affect on me.

It doesn't appear to have any effect on anyone in the room either.

"I have arrived at your summon, boss."

Astaroth nods.

"We have one more coming, we can start as soon as they arrive."

She walks past me once more but seems to realize that I'm not under her hypnosis and she has a disappointed face. I offer her my most professional smile.

She takes a spot next to Ordwell.

…

…

The final Demon General has arrived.

Suffice to say, it was not a person, or at least doesn't appear humanoid.

The best way to describe it would be to say it's a stone elemental that levitated through the air.

It was a hulking figure that stood at least 2.3 meters tall. It was made entirely of grey and green stones. It had a single eye like Tiki, a round green gem. It was really just an upper torso with the arms and head with blade like fingers.

Jagged and sharp edges protruding through its shoulders and elbows. It looked really dangerous to get close.

It appeared to use some sort of magic stone to levitate through the air.

I concentrated for the last time to find out its name.

[Gygant. Level 78, Primordial monolith].

"…"

It hovered its way to the front and stood in front of Astaroth. It remained silent but appeared as though it was conversing with Astaroth telepathically.

Astaroth nodded.

"Good, then take your place we'll start the meeting."

"…"

It hovered and stood next to Tiki.

Astaroth stood up from her throne and started to speak.

"I'm grateful that you've all answered my call. We have very important matters to discuss about a certain individual. It seems that the worst possible threat has surfaced itself, and it is a foe we must defeat."

END REPORT

[Status Menu]

Morgant Fallon. Level 42

NECROMANCER

DEMON GENERAL

SUCCESSOR OF THE COSMIC LEGACY

Strength: 230 (155+75)

Dexterity: 60 (5+55)

Intelligence: 50 (5+45)

Insight: 100 (45+55)

[Status point: 25]

[Skill menu]

(AUGMENT) [Strike+]: Level 27

(ACTIVE) [Summon Skeleton Knight]: Level 22

(ACTIVE) [Transfer Life]: Level 43

(PASSIVE) [Life Force Sensory]: Level 50 (MAX)

(ACTIVE) [Avatar of Nyarlathotep]: Level 1

(ACTIVE) [Wither]: Level 29

(ACTIVE) [Decay]: Level 40

(AUGMENT) [Aura Field]: Level 24

(ACTIVE) [Soul Gambit]: Level 17

(PASSIVE) [Physical Damage Resistance]: Level 50 (MAX)

(ACTIVE) [Obsidian Lance]: Level 40

(ACTIVE) [Obsidian Shield]: Level 39

(ACTIVE) [Reanimate Dead]: Level 30

(AUGMENT) [Enchanting Voice]: Level 23

(PASSIVE) [Lord of Ghosts]: Level 15

(ACTIVE) [Phantasmal Maelstrom]: Level 20

(AUGMENT) [Transformation - Black Pharaoh]: Level 1

(PASSIVE) [Mental Fortress]: Level 50 (MAX)

[13 Demon Generals]

Morgant Fallon - The Living Necromancer

Kyrios - The Vampire Lord

Cedric - The Slime King

Andras - The Luminary of Lycanthropes

Raak - The Orc Warlord

Arachna - The Spider Queen

Texzatopekmetziluxotl (Xotl) - The Skeleton King

Medusa - The Gorgon Monarch

Tiki - The Heart of the Machine

Albion - The Great Devil

Leanan Sidhe - The Ancient Banshee

Ordwell Rommel - The homunculus Admiral

Gygant - The Primordial Monolith

(Sorry that I took so long to come up with this chapter. It took so much time just to think of 8 different interesting demons. For the most part I like what I've created even if it is a little vanilla. Still, I'll try to write them as interestingly as I can so enjoy~ :P)