"aahhh~~"

"Such a pristine paradise...to think I would reanimate in such a revolting place." The man said in disgust as he pinched his glabella while his head raised towards the sky, feeling wronged.

"Oh! Gods in heaven! Do you even have eyes?! to treat me with such prejudice...how-" But before he could complete his words, the sky violently rumbled in protest to his remark.

"Ehem~"

'In the first place, isn't it normal for my adversaries above to condemn my existence?', he thought mockingly to himself.

Stretching his limbs, a cracking sound was heard from his neck as he muttered in delight, "Ahh~That felt great"

'And I should be thanking the Great Old Ones for granting me a safe passage to the mortal realm.'

He then inhaled a breath of fresh air in an exaggerated manner in order to savor the gift of new life.

'I seriously thought I was a goner there, yet who would expect a host have already been prepared the moment I surfaced'

As he squinted his eyes, it glinted with a dangerous light while his mind was in deep contemplation. 'Sounds fishy, but it is what it is.'

After shrugging his shoulders and tossing the unnecessary thoughts he was helpless against straight to the back burner, he walked towards a small pond nearby to see his reflection.

He examined his newfound body with interest, '...hmm. Not bad, quite the charming face if I say so myself. It's a bit too demure and feminine for my taste but it's a lot better than donning an ugly one, though.'

With his left hand on his chin, he tilted his head from side to side to inspect his features once again, satisfied.

"Now, where to go..."

He then scanned his surroundings to gain an initial understanding of his location but he could not find any semblance of familiarity.

With nothing worth coming to mind, he eventually opened his mouth and said, "To commemorate my descent into the mortal realm, all those who exhibit the gift of life shall wither away in respect to my authority."

His hunched back went ramrod straight like a pole as his demeanor turned that of a tyrant, and started waltzing in a random direction as if the world was his for the taking.

However, he suddenly stopped after a brief moment as he felt something amiss. He masterfully swiveled his body to stare at the ground where he previously stood. His face was that of utter shock and confusion.

'My demon lord's aura...' he muttered in a voice only he could hear, 'It's gone!'

The man's already pale complexion went ashen as his shriveled face shrunk even more. 'How can this be!?'

As the sudden realization dawned upon him, he nervously inspected his body. By repeatedly opening and closing hands, he had just affirmed his fears becoming a reality.

"I can't muster any strength nor invoke my magic..to be reborn as a mere mortal...inside a swine's body..."

With a brief pause, his expression darkened yet his mouth arched into a grin.

"he he he! to be hexed into such a pitiful state. Ramiel, you've done me well this time." Chuckling evilly, he pressed forward as if his predicament was nothing but a passing breeze.

"This humiliation I will reciprocate one day, and in a befitting fashion at that."

"I am a petty being who duly pays its grudges, after all."

Putting the matter at the back of his mind, he wholly accepted his fate with an optimistic mind.

'It's not like I am without any tricks, though.'

He then raised his arms towards the sky as though he was a magician performing his act. All of a sudden, his pair of hands fell on his eyes, covering them.

His index fingers slowly parted away from the middle fingers, revealing his fiendish gaze.

Intricate runic symbols then manifested in his eyes as a tiny magic circle sporadically rotated in a bid to unlock some mysterious secret.

After an indefinite amount of time, the man gained complete clarity once again as the runic symbols and magic circle vanished.

'As expected' a triumphant smile hung on his face. 'Maleficent Eyes...my eternal accomplice, has not abandoned me.'

The man's vision then changed as the flamboyant nature around him became a gray monochrome.

As he surveyed his surroundings, he could see the spirituality or aura of living things permeate like tongues of flame dancing in the wind.

'Splendid! he he! It is still exactly as I remembered it to be.'

The vision was an inherent skill that manifested in him after a regrettable event long ago which lead to his fall from grace. It grants the wielder the ability to see the deepest, murkiest desires of all that live, and discern truth from fallacy.

Subjecting the target to his vision also gives him the privilege to manipulate its emotions and extract the very truth. In short, if unresisted, the target can become his marionette.

If one becomes a marionette, he will then have the discretion to consume his puppet's soul as a form of sustenance and strengthen himself.

'It might take several thousand to even scratch the peak of my original prowess, though.' his brows furrowed to the dispiriting prospect.

After walking a considerable distance from his original location, he came to a halt and hid behind a trunk of a massive tree.

He could vaguely hear several indistinct voices overlapping each other. As he activated Maleficent Eyes, he could detect the aura of humans which was much more saturated and rich in color compared to that of other living things.

Although their spirituality was a mixture of a few colors such as orange which represented excitement, red for greed and lust, the most prominent emotion that revealed their truest nature was black. The group of humans each wore a dark aura as though it was an overcoat.

This sharp and distinct color, the man was too familiar with.

Black, the color of evil itself. The manifestation of one's wickedness and depravity.

'Well..well..what do we have here', the man silently mumbled in delight as he slowly approached the group to further investigate.

As he drew nearer, the bushes and nearby overgrowth in his path rustled, alerting the group.

The humans then collectively looked in the direction where the noise came from and found an outsider, already a few meters away from them.

At a single glance, they could tell the man had endured hell from his bloodied state alone. His sunken face told a miserable story like that of a starved beggar.

The word scrawny would even pale in comparison to the man's present appearance. If not for the pale skin which clung tightly to his bones, they would have mistaken him as a reanimated skeleton from the netherworld that needs to be exorcised.

But, the most disconcerting of all in this already weird encounter was the man's eyes. In contrast to its ramshackled body, his eyes overflowed with infinite vitality as it exuded an archaic aura. The group of men which numbered in four could not help but be drawn to the man's mesmerizing eyes whilst gulping a mouthful of saliva.

"Greetings, fellow humans"

The man respectfully said in a rich, deep voice. "Pardon me for my unsightly appearance as I have just recently endured the harshness of the wilderness with only myself to rely on."

His back that was as straight as a pole slightly leaned forward to give a gentleman's bow. "I hope I have not given offense by intruding into your...secret affairs"

The man could finally see what the men were busying themselves with. A naked body of a young girl was laid on the ground in a ruined state. From what remained of her maimed face, he could guess she was a fair beauty before misfortune struck her.

Chunks of flesh were carved out in several places as though a pack ferocious beast had taken a bite of her meaty limbs.

The men were visibly panicked as they tried to hide the girl's presence by blocking the man's sight with their bodies.

The man then squinted his eyes in obvious disgust, 'Cannibals, huh. I can't say I approve of such barbaric way of dining.'

Cannibalism had existed ever since ancient times, and the man himself had his fair share of meetings with human cannibals indulging in similar practice but through the integration of culinary methods.

Although in this case, he deemed these humans more befitting to be categorized as savages, uncultured, and most especially ignorant of the magnificence of fine cuisine.

Any prey in general which was to be consumed by beings of higher intellect should be given substantial consideration. The preparation should be meticulously conducted to observe minimal wastage.

As the man subdued his urge to rid the world of such distasteful existences, he heard one of the men growl at him. "Who are you...!? What are you doing here!?"

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am known as Mephistopheles, and I am just an unfortunate traveler who had lost everything but his life to the unforgiving wilderness."

After the man named himself, he then raised his arms to gesture that he meant no harm.

"And oh by the way, as my exalted name is a bit of a mouthful, you can address me as Mephisto." he added while beaming a charming smile.

Although the men saw Mephisto as a defenseless human on the verge of death, they could not help but feel apprehension as their perturbed hearts were gripped by an unknown sense of danger.

"S-scram..! or else we will end you ourselves!"

One of the more courageous men stepped forward, with a bloodstained cleaver in hand in an attempt to drive off Mephisto who was in their way.

"H-Hel..me...P-pleath..."

But suddenly, an incoherent and pained voice of a girl entered their ears. Her pleading tone was that of anguish. One could tell the unimaginable misery she had endured just from her plea alone, and the sweet promise of death has become her only hope.

'Poor child' Mephisto could not help but pity the girl before her.

Despite her losing all hope, he could see her aura which greatly surprised Mepthisto. A deep crimson hue enveloped the young girl's entire existence as any other color was suppressed. Her spirituality raged like that of the burning fires of hell.

Extreme anger, regret, reluctance, abhorrence but not despair or self-abandonment.

'Interesting. Normally, those who had submitted themselves into despair would only emit pure whiteness that signifies their lack of desire in life. An empty husk'

"Shut her up!"

"I can't believe she's still alive. Go slit her throat"

"Damn it..!"

The group of men began to yell in alarm, obviously distressed that their vile deeds had come to light.

"Human"

Mephisto then began speaking as his voice calmed the people around him. No, they froze in terror as their teeth began to clatter involuntarily.

"Do you hate this world? Do you blame the heavens for subjecting you to such cruel fate?"

"Are you willing to die a pig's death...?"

Mephisto's voice that was normally guttural and demonic in nature was replaced by a gentle one akin to that of a loving mother soothing her child.

"...."

"Since the Gods have forsaken you, will you take the hand of a devil instead?"

"uhmm..."

The girl was not able to produce an audible response to his question but her fiery gaze was more than enough to relay her wish. It exhibited her indomitable spirit despite her wretched state.

"Are you willing to pay the price?"

She could only groan, her eyes still fixed at Mephisto, "...ghh"

The men around him could only stare dumbfoundedly at the man who released a mysterious pressure that weighed down on them.

"Very well, then.." Mephisto then dramatically cupped his left eye with his hand, his lips arched into a mischievous grin.

After a second, he fully extended his arm to the side, fully exposing his left eye which glowed insidiously. Its pupil turned into a vertical slit with a crimson iris akin to that of the purest blood.

From that moment on, Mephisto's fiendish aura permeated in a few meter radius. He then spoke with a bearing of a sovereign.

"By the authority of the Sixth Omen of Hell, Lord of Mischief and Deceit. You all shall...!"

The ever-escalating terror within the men's eyes suddenly dissipated as they became lifeless dolls.

Mephisto had already overridden their will and asserted absolute mental dominance over them.

Like a merciless guillotine delivering its verdict upon the wicked sinners, Mephisto commanded in a deep, monotone voice.

"Forfeit your lives!"

In response to Mephisto's decree, the four men turned their bodies to face each other directly in pairs of two. And without a moment of delay, they grabbed each other's throat and started ferociously ripping each other's neck apart.

Blood bloomed as it spurted in a beautiful arc midair while human flesh of different sizes and volume decorated the ground.

"I have no use for filthy hogs that knows no grace, and partake in such vulgar acts." he scoffed while lowering his hand to his side.

A moment later, only the inevitable sound of silence remained.