A small amount of people in this world, Fuderpsy, has something called SP, Soul Potential. For some is a blessing and for others a curse, however, this special ‘feature’ is so rare that is said that only one hundred people in the whole world have it.

Albeit it isn’t like having it will certainly make you more powerful, the biggest example being the Emperor of Drakar that doesn’t have SP and is the considered the most powerful person in the world, but someone that has SP is certain to become famous one day, be it for their glory or gruesome death.

One of the holders of this feature in his Gift, a system created by someone that decided to only be remembered as ‘Bob’ and is capable of showing the people’s progress through the form of black windows at one’s front, is a black-haired boy named Alderam that was currently being held against his will by several men and women cursing at him.

“He is a heretic. Captain, let us kill him right now. If he was involved with Demons we could endure him, but involving himself with a Devil is the worst sin someone can commit, even worse than kinslaying.”

Would they think less or more about me if I told them I killed my sister and want to kill my father now? Alderam tried to activate any of his [Abilities] but failed, they most likely had some kind of device in the shackles to not permit him to use them.

The said captain of this group formed of [Guards] and mercenaries that were entrusted with the task of delivering Naturals’ meat to Alderam’s village after the Extermination week, looked to the desolate burned village. It was full of mangled bodies in the village’s center and surprisingly, or strangely, two houses were left intact without a single scratch. “By the flames and remains of Black Qi, it is certain a Devil is the culprit. However, that frail Rank H Devil and this Rank G man are too weak to cause this disaster.”

“But Captain, it’s impossible to a [Human] have a hair color so deep black and strange eyes, even if he isn’t the main culprit, he is beyond question an accomplice.” One of the guards wearing plate armor stamped with a rose figure in her shoulder pads said pointing to Alderam’s appearance.

Alderam was wearing a haggard robe full of claw and burn marks, he would have a complete normal villager’s appearance if he hadn’t his short black hair and piercing inhuman silvery white eyes with black vertical slits as pupils.

It wasn’t like he always was in this way, yesterday he was still a normal man with ivory hair and brown eyes like his mother had.

Everything was his SP and Soul Skills’ fault, and of course, he couldn’t forget of attributing the fault to the slow Devil that let herself be captured and spoil his plans of fleeing from these [Guards].

Soul Potential: [Black Soul] +1. [A soul transformed, capable to store and materialize all that has the keyword ‘Evil’. All Black Abilities are easier to increase and grow.]

[The + represents the number of stocks on the [Black Soul], it has now Black Elementals.]

Soul Skills: [Evil Commune] (Primal) Lvl 4: [You have gazed at what existed beyond the Abyss, but you had been contaminated.]

[Ability to share thoughts and feelings with what the Gift associate with the keyword ‘Evil’. Warning: May create [Soul Corruption] if the sharing is too deep or used too much. Toggled On.]

[You have chosen to Struggle, setting a foot on a path that will only lead to Destruction. You can see and feel Black Elementals.]

[You can now temporally control a Devil with low raw power and high standing, but a [Familiar Bond] will be formed. The Transformation has started.]

[Soul Corruption] (Primal): [You have chosen to Struggle, setting a foot on a path that will only lead to Destruction. Further corruption is inevitable. Emotional damage and psyche breakdown are amplified beyond the limit.]

[But as you have mastered your corruption, permitting you to modify it. You changed it to disable the ‘emotional damage and psyche breakdown are amplified beyond the limit’ function.]

The captain took Alderam out of his thoughts. “You are right, let’s just first make sure we aren’t committing a mistake.” He drew his long sword and pointed it to Alderam’s throat. “You have five seconds to show me you Gift Window and its notices to discover if you are an accomplice or not. Fail to do that and you will die.”

If I show you my Gift, death will be least of my problems, it will even be a salvation. Alderam glared to the captain whilst trying to find an escape to this situation.

Name: Alderam Udalth II

Race: Human 15%

Age: 17

Title: [Devil Bonded], [The One Beyond Insanity]

Job: [Novice Mage] 0%

Rank: G Familiar: Laylasoderscim (Rank H)

Welfare: Injured Mana: 90/90 SP: [Black Soul] +1

Constitution: 9 Mind: 30 Black Force: 10

Strenght: 5 Charisma: 1 Willpower: 15

Dexterity: 5 Luck: 1

Abilities:

[Production]: Painting Lvl 1

[Auxiliary]: Manual Labor Lvl 3, Reading Lvl 7, Cleaning Lvl 3, Cooking Lvl 4, Artistic Intuition Lvl 1, Mana Insight Lvl 1

[Combat]: Combat Arts Lvl 1, Mana Empowerment Lvl 1

[Manifestation]: Mana Aura Lvl 1, Water School: Water Ball Lvl 1

[Transcendent]: Soul Corruption, Evil Commune Lvl 4, Familiar Bond Lvl 1

Quests:

Promotion: [Painter], [Laborer], [Scholar], [Caregiver], [Devil Tamer]

There is no way I can explain the percentage on my [Race] or my [Abilities].

“Five.”

How can I survive this?

“Four.”

If I use the Black Elementals in my [Black Soul] will I be able to flee?

“Three.”

Before the time could run out or Alderam could find the solution, five people appeared after finishing the village’s investigation.

“Guards’ Captain, we found some interesting things in one of the unscathed houses.” The leader of the mercenaries, Berk, said with his comrades in tow. “Uncle Toivo, show him what we found.”

Toivo, a man with blue hair and muscular build without wearing any kind of armor, brought out painting tools and two Skill Books, ‘Common Basics of Mana to Morons’ and ‘How to Let Everyone Soaked with your Water Magic’. “Besides them, there were various horrible paintings of an amateur, with exception of one that really made my thought someone is a better painter than I. And no being strange enough to two Skill Books exist in a frontier village, I found a recently badly made grave behind one house.”

Alderam flinched, his emotions easily perceptible to anyone seeing him. They went to his house and got his grandmother’s painting tools, Skill Books he received in his birthday from his mother, Celia, and mayor, Olirwen. His heart sunk imagining Toivo accidentally breaking or messing with his precious tools and paintings by not appreciating it by his commentary of being of an amateur. Which is true, I am indeed an amateur, but it hurts when someone talks bad about my and grandmother’s paintings.

“As I thought, they are yours, aren’t they?” Toivo smirked as he moved the painting’s tools with his arms to the sides and Alderam closely followed his movements.

“Come on, Uncle. Stop pestering the poor boy.” Berk said. “And you forgot of showing the most important thing we found.”

“I know,” Toivo said, taking away his false smirk to be replaced by a serious look. “Baruchard, knock him out like you did with the Devil. You already made another of those pills by now, right?” He called out the skinny man with curly blond hair and smooth brown complexion.

As Baruchard walked out with a beige small pill and smashed it over a loincloth, no guard tried to stop him, a reputed pill conditioner, no even the guards’ captain that was threatening Alderam with his sword.

Smiling, Baruchard with a melodious voice said. “Go sleep now, boy. You deserve a rest.” The substance on the loincloth that was for sure not chloroform as it takes at least five minutes to act, immediately knocked out the struggling Alderam when the loincloth touched his nose.

“Care to explain now what this all about, Berk?” The Captain didn’t dare of questioning Baruchard's actions.

“Yes, it is easy. Uncle only didn’t want to Alderam be awoke when we bring out this.” Berk took a blood-red book from Toivo’s backpack. “The content of this book, The Jester, that is about how a jester got betrayed by everyone after saving them isn’t the important part. What’s important is that a woman and Alderam had a strong attachment to this book and it was close to them when everything went awry in the village.”

“So we can use your comrade’s [Job] to find out the truth?” The Captain looked at the woman Foxfolk that was close to a Dogfolk, they are Berk’s newest comrades. The woman was special as she had a mask on her head and had the rare [Adept Puppeteer Bard] Job, being able to show the history of an object she touches.

As soon as the brown Foxfolk, Morgiana, touched the book, everyone present saw scenes of a woman and heard her screams while being tortured by a red-haired man with a flame ax. Minutes passed as the man cut out her legs and took her eyes while saying strange things like NPCs, PvP, Assimilation, Association’s writers. When he finished, a powerful Devil in its Shadow Form appeared and began to destroy everything.

Later when the woman was almost losing her consciousness to the pain while holding the book, the Devil came back and didn’t let her and other four people rest as it completely maimed and tortured them with its big claws and dark energy surrounding its ebony wings.

When the people present outside of the ‘object's history’ thought it was over, Alderam surged with the woman Devil and fought against the bald Devil using the woman Devil as a meatshield.

“Guards’ Captain, is it enough proof to you that despite him being involved with a Devil, he isn’t the reason or an accomplice to the this village’s destruction?” Berk asked.

The guards complained about how that series of images couldn’t prove anything substantial, but their captain shut them up and let Berk continue talking.

“But being involved with a Devil is still a grave sin, how about you let their custody to us? We will test them and see if they worthy of being left out alive as our mercenary group’s new comrades. It isn’t like we can permanently kill a Devil anyways.” Berk took in his arms Alderam, ignoring the protests of the guards. “And I can’t see what is wrong to study how one of them works with a Rank H Devil in our hands. So even if she flees from us, she wouldn’t cause too much damage being Rank H.”

The Captain despite the complaints of his subordinates let the mercenary group go away with the weak Devil and Alderam, principally because Baruchard was already carrying the woman Devil with an amused smile on his face. “Forget all about the Rank H Devil and the black-haired man, let’s go back to the city and just report a bald Devil from probably the Greed or Pride Layer destroyed the village.” He ordered, not wanting to go on bad terms with that woman’s protégé.

“Uncle, I hope your decision of not telling them you and Uncle Baruchard used [Full Appraisal] on Alderam and Laylasoderscim to see their Gift Windows be the correct one,” Berk said, looking with pity and fear at Alderam.

“You worry too much, Berk. And look at Baru, he is like he found a jewel in the middle of thrash, and I’m too like him for finding such a bad painter but that is capable of showing so many emotions in his paintings. It will be all fine. I assure you, [Quests] never guide you to the wrong place.”

“... I hope so.”

Alderam drowsily woke up in a place stinking with blood and piss. The first thing he noted when waking up wasn’t his Familiar looking relieved at him, but a piece of paper stuck in his robe. With his brain still not working properly he picked the paper and began to read it without caring about his current situation.

“Little Ald, we saw your and Laylasomething’s Gift Windows. We know you guys are slowing losing your own Races and that you two have a [Familiar Bond] that permits a Devil like her to receive the Gift and be understood by us, normal Gift bearers. This is a peculiar and impossible situation that ‘Bob’ wouldn’t permit as he considers Spirits and Devils too boring and too attached to concepts of ‘Evil’ and ‘Good’ to give them his Gift.”

Alderam drowsiness disappeared whilst he ignored Layla tugging his robe to call his attention. “Your existences are incredibly interesting and at the same time dangerous, so we thought of a test to see if you two will become our newest comrades in our mercenary group. You can’t escape from here without completing the test and remember we could have killed you but didn’t because we are your allies, but we need proof of your's worth. Good luck reaching the end of this small Dungeon with Laylasomething. We are waiting for you there, you have two days-”

Dungeons are traps made to capture and hold Naturals, the ‘cousins’ of Monsters that have two kingdoms in the southern continent. The difference between them is that Naturals have Cores, a round object, in their bodies that make them empty-headed, exclusively following their instincts like normal animals.

“Ald!” Layla shouted in his ear to take his attention to the looming presences going after them. She pointed to a group of small green furless beings running to them in their four legs.

“More Naturals to kill, what an original concept of a test. It is just like my [Job] requirement.” Alderam didn’t go into despair for having to prove himself to be left alive by people stronger than him or for having his secrets uncovered. To him, it is just another day of his life like when he had to obey his father to not be killed by him or when his father discovered his secret that he was giving food and becoming ‘friends’ of Layla, the Devil in their basement.

Alderam found his weapons outside of his reach, if he tried to pick them in this situation the Naturals would reach him faster than he could run, so he looked at Layla. She was a ridiculously weak Devil, had a round face fitting her chubby form, raven short hair and really small jet black wings on her back full of strange symbols that marked her as a Devil.

In short, she was useless with the exception of one thing. “Layla, try to hold them off for as long as you can.” Alderam hugged Layla at her waist with her crying already knowing her fate, and spun.

Throwing her right at the center of the Naturals’ horde.

The Naturals seeing free plump meat to them feast, forgot about the skinny man that was picking his poor magical sword and dagger at the ground unperturbed by Layla’s screams of pain as the Naturals ate her and destroyed the dress Alderam stole from Olirwen to give to her in her birthday.

Wait... don’t I have magic now? I didn’t even need to throw Layla there, I could just stall them with [Water Ball] or [Mana Aura].

Some habits are hard to die, I will probably use her as a meatshield at least more three times before getting used to being more powerful than a normal Human.

[Laylasoderscim died, sending her soul to your SP instead of the Aether.]

But what a shame, a good dress was ruined for nothing. Alderam put his hand at his front and chanted. “Water Ball.” Around his body four azure balls made of water appeared, draining him of more than half of his Mana.

He willed them to propel themselves at the Naturals as he ran with his sword raised and his [Mana Empowerment] activated.

Mana Empowerment (Common) Lvl 1: [Full body internal augmentation is now passively possible. Cost less mana and increase the efficiency of empowerment by 5%.]

The water balls burst out the brains or chests of more than ten Naturals as they continued to penetrate all the bodies in their way.

The four left Naturals stopped their feast and turned to the running Alderam that had his weapon ability activated.

Water Extension (Common): [The spreading of Mana is 10% faster. Able to store water beforehand to enlarge the weapon up to a maximum of a third of its original extension.]

Alderam threw his dagger to pin the feet of the first green Natural with its Core exposed on its naked chest. He then quickly decapitated it and kicked the face of the nearest Natural to give him space to move.

The Natural at the left back that had a piece of Layla’s dress on its mouth jumped at Alderam whilst the one at the right tried to bite him. This is the reason you guys won’t ever become like Monsters, you are too stupid.

Alderam just raised his sword by suddenly extending it with the water blade stored on it, the Natural fell to its death being unable to move on the air with its throat pierced by the blade.

And before the Natural at the right could bite him, Alderam quickly activated his pricy [Mana Aura] to scare it.

Mana Aura (Common) Lvl 1: [Your surrounding will be coated with your type of Mana desired. Effects will vary depending on the type, being more easy to use certain types of transformed Mana.]

From Alderam, Black Mana in the form of a round field of energy surged and when the Natural got close of it, the green thing scampered off by fear and feeling its skin withering. Alderam temporarily ignored the feeling Natural, he concentrated on the Natural growling at him that recovered its bearings with its protruding fangs shaking after being stunned by Alderam’s kick.

Alderam got bored of the deadlock he was with the Natural glaring at him and for sure ready to avoid his sword swings, I’m a mage, this sword is actually to me just use when my Mana ends. He shot a [Water Ball] at it, and it wasn’t capable of escaping the high speed condensed ball of water, miserably dying.

The black-haired man could try to chase the fleeing Natural or trying his luck with [Water Ball] at it, but decided to not do it. Not for mercy or pity though. I simply don’t care about it. He had an exact amount of Mana to shot his last [Water Ball] and didn’t want to waste it on the Natural, he needed Mana to resurrect Layla, after all.

And the consequences of letting free a Natural never got through his head, if someone died because he didn’t kill that Natural he would only blame them for entering this Dungeon and not being prepared to properly fight. These Naturals aren’t that strong anyway, at best Rank H.

Job: [Novice Mage] 0%

“It seems killing things isn’t the mage’s job, to my job’s percentage raise I will need to train the abilities that rely on Mana rather than going on a killing spree.”

Thanks to the Gift, beings from the Material Plane had the capability of receiving [Jobs] after completing a [Quest]. Those [Jobs] give them extraordinary abilities and it is possible to evolve their own [Jobs] by doing what the Gift consider as actions of your [Job].

Improving Mana abilities or studying everything related to Mana, a wondrous energy that exists almost everywhere, in the case of a [Mage].

Alderam went close to the rest of Layla’s corpse and transferred her soul to it while giving to her his Mana and Essence. Normally when a Devil dies and their body is left here in Fuderpsy, their soul is sent back to Aether, the Immaterial Plane. But because of Alderam’s SP that can store anything with the keyword ‘Evil’, Layla’s soul is sent to him and thus is capable of reviving her whenever he wants.

Gazing at the body being stretched, stitched, healed and reformed, he checked one of his suspicions since this is the second time Layla actually died while being his meatshield.

Race: Human 15% to 3%

Will I die if it reaches zero or…

Layla gave a shrill scream of pain when waking up. “Ald, it is hurting so much and even the dress you gave me is ruined.” She sobbed. “Why did you do that? Couldn’t you just kill them with your magic instead of sacrificing me?”

“Sorry, I forgot I had magic. And some habits are hard to get over.” Alderam said, gathering the Cores of the dead Naturals with his dagger opening their bodies. “And stop whining about pain, different from me you have [Pain Resistance] Lvl 4. You shouldn’t even feel nothing when someone cuts off your arm.”

“I have resistance, not immunity. I still feel the pain and I don’t like it.” She stood up and went to one of the backpacks the kind blond man gave her. “I’m not one of those kinky Lust Devils that can for some reason feel pleasure in midst of pain, I’m just a normal Gluttony Devil.”

While Layla searched for clothes in the backpack Alderam didn’t see, he picked Black Elementals from his SP and used them as Black Qi to finish healing Layla’s body to full health by touching her still damaged parts. “From whom is this backpack and steel spear?”

“I don’t know their names, but they seemed kind enough to me since they didn’t torture me when I woke up. Before throwing us here for a ‘test’ a blond man give me this backpack and spear to protect myself, and have supplies enough to survive here in the Dungeon.” Layla changed her clothes to a skin-fitting full-length garb that didn’t disturb her movement.

“Why you weren’t with the spear in your arms when we were attacked?” If she had it, maybe Alderam would trust her enough to guard him until he picked his own weapons instead of using her a meatshield. “Didn’t I teach you [Combat Arts] and how to kill someone to this type of situations?”

Layla stayed silent for a moment before saying. “...This was actually the first test those people gave to us, the blond man said you would fail if you used me as a meatshield.” She picked a paper on the backpack and gave it to Alderam. “I wanted to warn you beforehand, however, you were too engrossed in your own thoughts to pay attention to me… sorry.”

Alderam gave a cursory glance at the paper before throwing it away. Objective One: Don’t make your Familiar go into suicidal missions, she has feelings too, don’t you know? Objective Two: Reach the end of the Dungeon. Objective Three: If possible try to treat-

“Bullshit. Let’s go, Layla. We will flee from here and go to Free Cities to gather power and kill my father.” And if possible gather money too, so I will be able to pay a painting teacher to teach me. Alderam began to follow the arrows sculpted on the Dungeon’s brown walls to get out of it. Without them, it will be easy for anyone delving into the Dungeon get lost in these almost same infinite brown tight corridors.

“But… what about the test? You will die outside without their protection. I know people from the Material Plane don’t like someone that is a friend of a Devil.” Layla followed him with the backpack and long spear in hands.

“It’s true I can die outside before reaching Free Cities, but I don’t trust those people to protect us. And Layla, what’s the meaning of fighting to win someone’s approval? Moreover, from someone we don’t even know.” Alderam looked at Layla’s auburn eyes with determination and to make her focus on the most important thing. “Layla, the only thing we most care is to our survival. Principally yours, if a High Priest gets near you, your soul will be destroyed before going back to me. You will be lost forever. What guarantee we have they won’t have a priest waiting for us when we reach the end of this place be following their orders?”

Layla quivered, the mere thought of her immortality being stolen from her and really dying without completing her dream of opening the biggest restaurant in the world or accomplishing nothing after being locked away for more than two hundred years shook her very being.

She nodded at him, ready to obey his instructions and not caring more about that gentle blond man’s approval.

“Good, that’s the look I like to see in you. Let’s go, Layla. We will flee from here and survive.”

Although I won’t say to you that if they wanted us dead, they could have just killed us while we were sleeping instead of making this test. But you are too useless when not motivated, so pardon me for this small lie since I know we can’t leave this place without completing it.