Rise Of Demon King

Ren looked at himself, in his brown robes; after he started to work for the Karatengu family he was given a nice set of clothing consisting of pants, shoes, shirt and a robe. All were brownish color. Aijasil explained that the color brown was reserved for the servants while the more prominent colors were used by high ranked demons. The household was huge, so cleaning it from the inside out was a rather tiresome task.

While working, Ren also met the other members of Tengu family. Almost none of them were true relatives of Karatengu family, most choosing to work as the servants because of the generosity of the host. Of course, as he found out, because of the decline in the family, most servants have left the Tengu family in order to join other, more prominent households. There were only nine servants left in Tengu family including Aijasil, and with addition of Ren the number rose to ten. It turned out that Aijasil and he were the only ones cleaning the enormous household because the other servants were busy with harvesting the crops.

The master of Karatengu household was always wondering within the household, almost as if he had no meaning left to exist. For this very reason Ren encountered Korgan several times while he was cleaning the household. They would just casually greet each other. Ren noted that household"s master"s eyes were always empty, the realization made him somewhat uneasy.

Because he became a member of Tengu household, he was given the last name Tengu. Ren Tengu- now that is what his name was from now on. Ren felt rather pleased with having a last name, he could finally form an ident.i.ty for himself and try to know who exactly he is. So receiving a full name is not a bad start!

Time slowly went on; Ren started making fewer mistakes on his duties around the house. In one month he got completely used to doing things without causing any damage to the property. Aijasil found that Ren is very literate after she tested him out with tomes upon tomes of cooking books. When she had him write a letter however she found out that his handwriting was beyond horrifying and could only be read by him alone. Because of this, she never entrusted him with pen and parchment.

As Ren"s ability to handle tasks improved, Aijasil thought that it was about time for him to accompany her to merchants within the capital of Kalkan. The Karatengu Household was located south of the capital, separated by crop lands, ravines and rivers. Amazingly the rivers were not of blue color but of deep purple color. Aijasil explained that the water is of such color because it reacts to the land of Kizilalem. Purple water is so common that colorless water is considered a rarity.

They both went along the road on foot. Gradually, Ren began etching the road down on his memory. Along the road, they were casually conversing.

Aijasil: "It is rather impressive that you picked up all of the tasks around the household so quickly; it is hard to believe that you came in to the house looking like a barbarian. You even look like a different person now"

Ren: "Wow, coming from you, that is something. You have been drilling all of the tasks nonstop into my ears that I had no choice but to follow everything accordingly! But I have to admit, I look rather handsome in these robes!"

Aijasil: "Self-satisfied with your appearance, are you not? You should be. As a servant of Tengu family you have the duty to be proud of the clothing that displays your allegiance!"

Ren: "Displays my allegiance?"

Aijasil:" Have you looked at the family crest on the back of your robe? That is the Tengu family crest, worn proudly only by the members of Tengu household."

Ren hurriedly took off his coat and looked at the crest on the back of his robe. Indeed, there was a mark resembling a claw of a bird encased inside a circle.

Ren: "I did not notice it before. I thought it was a standard uniform."

Aijasil: "At least pay attention to small details."

Ren did as he was told. He peered intently at Aijasil"s face in order to perceive her better. Green eyes, green hair, scaly skin, tiny horns on her forehead…Then he realized he didn"t look for more details. How foolish of him! He looked at the way how Aijasil"s hair covers her left eye, how delicately shaped her palms are, how her scales accentuated her green hair with tinge of yellow, how she was wearing a maid uniform of black and white color with the family crest on her chest covering the area to the left. Then he realized he was looking at her chest, she was rather well endowed for her age. He found out that she was only nineteen years old, but her air of professionality gave off an impression of someone far more mature. There was ribbon in her hair that looked like it was tied in a strict fashion. Her shoes matched with her outfit in color.

When she noticed him looking over her, Aijasil lowered her head to the side.

Aijasil: "What are you doing?"

Ren suddenly got a close look of her face and realized that on each cheek she had a patch of scales. Instead of making her appearance worse, instead it made her look even more attractive. Her lips looked rather flawless. Two tiny horns adorned her clear and smooth forehead and they added an emphasis to her beauty.

Ren: "I just realized that you are really pretty!"

Aijasil blushed for a second.

Aijasil: "If you are trying to flatter me, you can forget it!"

Ren: "I am serious. Why would I lie to you out of everyone I know?"

Aijasil: "Really? You are not joking?"

Ren: "Do I look like I am joking?"

Aijasil"s serious expression loosened somewhat. She smiled, such a beautiful face, teeth sharp like fangs. Another detail he just noticed.

Aijasil: "That is very nice of you to say. None said it to me before."

Ren: "Why not? With your personality and beauty, I wouldn"t be surprised if there are countless suitors running after you asking for your hand!"

Aijasil looked at Ren with wide open mouth. Her face became entirely red. Then a sad expression filled her face.

Ren: "Ehm? Did I say something dumb again?"

Aijasil: "No, it"s just I never thought I would find someone to call me beautiful. Everyone I have met either calls an abomination or tries to commit evil acts against me. It"s not uncommon for other demons to scorn me."

Ren: "Ouch. Why would they do that? An abomination?"

Aijasil: "I am half human."

Ren: "You are? So what?"

Aijasil looked rather angry now. Little bit of tears formed in her eyes. Ren knew now that he asked a rather ignorant question. He wasn"t trying to be insensitive but one month is not quite enough time to know everything about the world he lives in right now.

Aijasil: "Don"t you get it? In the eyes of demons I am just a half-breed disgrace, and in the eyes of humans I am someone who needs to be killed!"

Ren: "Now that"s harsh. Why demons hate it when someone looks like a human? That just sounds unusually harsh for no reason!"

Aijasil seemed to calm down a little, but a small trail of tears fell on her face. It seemed like Ren chose the wrong thing to ask about, he was afraid she would slap him.

Aijasil: "Demons hate human beings. Human beings are the ones causing all of our disasters and ma.s.sacring our people. Having their blood running through your veins is an ultimate form of disgrace. We are considered traitors of our own kind. We a worse than disgrace, we are failures from the start. We are mistakes. We don"t deserve to exist…"

Ren slapped her across the forehead. She looked at Ren in a dumbfounded way.

Ren: "Can you snap out of it? Failures from the start? Heh heh heh. All I see here is someone who perfect the way she is! And don"t worry of what others think of you; just know that in my eyes you are one of the best demon maids I know."

Aijasil smiled with a genuinely happy expression so unlike her practiced smile, the contrast was rather unmistakable. For the last month he followed her facial expressions and knew perfectly well when she was smiling fake or genuinely.

Aijasil: "Thank You, Ren."

Ren: "Anytime"

They kept walking for quite a distance, with neither saying anything. Aijasil thought that Ren was purposefully ignoring her until he turned around and renewed the conversation.

Ren: "I see now why you look so much less demon like than the Master Korgan or the others. Does every demon with human blood look less demonic?"

Aijasil: "That is really rich coming from someone who looks most human in the entire Tengu household."

Ren: "I do look human, don"t I?"

Aijasil: "Indeed, I have meant to ask for a while, but is this your true form or are you concealing it behind a fake skin?"

Ren touched his face and stretched the skin.

Ren: "Ouch, I am pretty sure this I is my true appearance, and my skin as well."

Aijasil: "That is strange. You are clearly a demon. Yet, you can look so seamlessly human."

Ren: "Wow, so does this mean they are not going to hunt me? That is great!"

Aijasil: "Yes, they are unlikely to harm you. But every demon that sees you will a.s.sume you are a human based upon your appearance and will try to hunt you down."

Ren: "Oh boy, I am in trouble now!"

Aijasil pulled out clothing from her pocket. It was grey in color with silver stripes running along its edges.

Aijasil: "Wear this on your head to conceal your face. As long as other demons don"t see that you don"t have horns or look human, they will not try to attack you."

Ren took the article of clothing that was shaped like a scarf and tied it around his head similarly to a hood. Then he proceeded to hide his face.

Ren: "That feels rather nice"

Aijasil: "It is fashionable and practical"

Ren: "Indeed"

Both laughed, Ren admitting that he looked rather ridiculous with Aijasil agreeing.

They chatted for a while before they reached the merchant city. Ren followed Aijasil wherever she went. Within the city, Aijasil made many specific purchases which included herbs and medicine. Ren noticed she wasn"t holding any of the things she bought.

Ren: "You did buy stuff, didn"t you? I saw you holding them, but where did they go?"

Aijasil smiled. She pointed at the necklace on her neck. "Master Korgan wanted to make sure that I am not defenseless while holding the items, so he gave me an Orin-Yakit Crystal"

Ren: "Orin-Yakit?"

Aijasil: "It"s an ancient name for s.p.a.ce and Time. The crystal has its own small separate dimension to which the surface of crystal is a gateway. You can insert many things into it. It has s.p.a.ce within it size of a large mansion!"

Ren: "Wow! Wait, doesn"t that mean the crystal is extremely heavy?"

Aijasil: "Not at all, the crystal is just a doorway, which only has the weight of the stone. The Dimension itself is separate from the one we are occupying right now, so its weight is not felt."

Ren: "I see, but how come I have not seen anybody in the household use one before?"

Aijasil: "Probably because they are extremely expensive, one of these could cost thousands of ruby coins."

Ruby coins are the currency Ren was forced to be familiarized with. Apparently there are many types of currency circulating in Kizilalem, but Ruby coins were by far the most used currency.

Ren: "I see. So Master thought to prioritize having everything bought safely, right?"

Aijasil: "Indeed. The medicine is essential for training his pupils within Tengu family."

Ren: "Pupils?"

Aijasil looked at him with rather dull expression as if asking whether he was stupid. This happened to often for Ren"s comfort.

Aijasil: "We are his pupils, every member of the Tengu household. Why do you think we call him Master?"

Ren: "I a.s.sumed that was his name…"

Aijasil burst out laughing. This was by far the most ridiculous a.s.sumption she ever heard anyone make. She didn"t know whether Ren was really as dumb as he shows himself, but she knew one thing for sure- he was a humorous fellow.

When they reached a particular trading area with several dark buildings, Aijasil turned towards Ren.

Aijasil: "Ren, in this location I must proceed alone. The owner of the store knows me personally, but he is very suspicious towards outsiders. He may try to kill you because of your appearance. I would like you to wait for me here."

Ren: "Well, then I shall wait here!"

Aijasil entered the middle building which looked more like a tent than a house. The outside looked similar to bark, but red in color and covered with spikes, everywhere. Ren didn"t know how she managed to enter, but it seemed like she just pa.s.sed through the wall. Apparently it was a method of disguising the entrance. Ren no longer was surprised to see that considering he encountered such places every now and then. Apparently their purpose is to protect the demons from human beings by blending in with surroundings.

Ren decided to pa.s.s by time by looking around while still staying at the same location. He made sure the hood covered his head. There were so many demons in the trading area. Each looked unique in his own way.

He noticed that nearly every demon had horns on their heads. He could not see horns on demons wearing headwear, but it was safe to a.s.sume they were demons because they did not resemble human beings. Some demon children looked human though, but their demonic traits were obvious even without horns.

Some had scales, wings, tails, extra limbs, and some didn"t even look remotely humanoid. They were an amalgamation of creatures he could only imagine. Then he saw a four meter tall demon walking by and to his horror he realized that this particular demon highly resembled a beetle, just gigantic, walking on four feet, with four arms each spiky enough to stab someone with. Yet the most horrifying part was his head. He had two gigantic horns extending from his head downwards to his face which resembled tusks. His nose had a big spike growing out of it, somewhat like a third horn. Ren was rather scared of this demon"s appearance, he did not want to end up in his way, and he feared he would end up squashed. The Beetle Demon emitted such an ominous aura that other demons around him subconsciously backed away from him to give him s.p.a.ce.

This particular demon wore garments of black, as though he was some sort of a mercenary that was hired in order to kill on sight. This realization made Ren want to be very wary of him. Ren noticed that this Beetle Demon approached a tradesman. Ren was curious to find out the nature of the trade.

Tradesman: "I am telling you this is the only thing I have on me right now, I have nothing of value that you could take…"

Beetle Demon:" Lies will get you nowhere, half-blood, I know full well that you have in your possession one of the precious Power Stones…"

Tradesman:" That is a lie; I couldn"t possibly possess something of such high importance!"

Beetle Demon grabbed the tradesman by the collar, which allowed Ren to get a full view of his face. He looked reasonably like a human, with a pair of ram-like horns verifying his true ident.i.ty. He looked more like a skinny human with horns rather than a demon. His personality seemed weak as well considering he was trembling while the Beetle Demon shook him like a ragdoll.

Beetle Demon: "Don"t toy with me, give me the Power Stone that you possess, or I will make sure this day is your last!"

None of the demons nearby wanted to interfere, the Beetle Demon looked rather threatening so they didn"t want to risk their lives for a lowly merchant.

Suddenly, someone"s voice sounded.

Ren:" Isn"t it an unfair trade to ask him for something that he does not possess? "

Beetle Demon still holding the Tradesman in a choke looked in Ren"s direction. Ren"s head was covered by hood.

Tradesman: "Thank Goodness, a reasonable soul! How can I be of service…? "

Beetle Demon:" Keep Quiet!" He pushed the Tradesman against Tradesman"s cart making both fall over. "Mind your own business, stranger, you have no idea of the importance this stone holds for me!"

Ren: "Then why don"t you just look for it? It is obvious that he does not possess it."

The Tradesman was sighing in relief. A little bit more and he would have been pulverized by the Beetle Demon, but the appearance of this stranger saved his life. Unlike other demons, the Tradesman didn"t specialize in combat, so he was deemed too weak to fight, and with his small frame and low magical reserves he was an easy target to pick on. In a sense, he felt that he owed the stranger his life.

"Aren"t you the one to talk?" The Beetle Demon slashed at Ren with his upper right arm. Ren managed to dodge it, but the wind created from Beetle Demon"s arm made the hood Ren was wearing open up, revealing his face.

Beetle Demon stared at him with wide open eyes.

"No way, a human!" His body tensed, steaming up. It was obvious that he was getting angry. The spikes on his arms and legs started getting longer and they made a sharp noise when they extended to their full length. His wild expression was replaced by an expression so full of hatred and disgust that Ren felt like if he didn"t run away soon he would be pulverized.

Following his instincts, Ren ran as fast as he could. Apparently revealing his face was as dangerous as Aijasil said. He was hoping the Beetle Demon did not follow him.

"I WILL KILL YOU!" a voice boomed from behind Ren. The source of the noise seemed to be getting closer.

While running, Ren looked back and was horrified to learn that the Beetle Demon was chasing him. He was closing in fast. He tried to navigate through the crowds and get lost, but somehow the Beetle Demon kept finding him. He desperately turned to the right across the alley, in order to have the Beetle Demon think he moved forward, but it didn"t fool him for too long. The chase resumed

Beetle Demon was furious. How could he let a human live after he dared to sneak into Demon domain? How dare he show his cursed face as if it was the most natural thing? How dare he talk as if he was his equal? Beetle Demon concentrated the energy in his mouth and formed a black sphere with the energy he gathered. Then he shot the sphere with a great force from his mouth towards his enemy.

Ren sensed danger coming towards him so he ducked down. He did it just in time. A sphere in high speed came flying to the same spot his body was in just a few seconds ago and it flew by until it hit one of the buildings. The sphere exploded in a fiery fashion. It erased everything it touched in a loud bang. It seemed like the Beetle Demon didn"t care about the collateral damage he had caused around.

"Are you crazy, are you trying to kill everyone?" Ren screamed.

"As long as I kill you it"s all that matters!" Beetle Demon shouted back.

Ren thought that it was rather odd that Beetle Demon replied back to him despite trying to kill him. The chase continued on.

Beetle Demon kept shooting concentrated black spheres from his mouth. Ren kept running for his life, he jumped over things that blocked his path and was acting before thinking. Thinking for a split second longer could cost him his life. The demons caught in the crossfire were running in panic. Ren was purposely trying to go towards a less populated area. Because of this he kept going towards the area with older looking buildings. The area was far more swampy and shady looking, and it smelled a lot like burned grounds. Ren didn"t have much time to a.n.a.lyze his surroundings considering only a few meters behind him a living bomb shooter was trying to erase his existence.

Beetle Demon shot at least twenty spheres that blew up little too close for Ren"s comfort. While he managed to avoid being caught within the blast of the spheres he was thrown around like a ragdoll from the impact they caused in the air. The aftershock from the explosion created a strong current of air pressure that pushed Ren"s weak body and threw him very far away. He crashed against a building, his back hitting the hard wall with a dull sound. He could barely catch his breath.

Beetle Demon was persistent; the impacts from his explosions didn"t seem to slow him down. He kept going at Ren"s direction.

Ren was in area with very few buildings, he didn"t see any demon people, and he was rather relieved. Now n.o.body would get hurt. He looked at the structures and realized there was a detail he ignored. Between every building there was a gigantic pole. Each pole was at least three times bigger than the tallest building around.

Using the dust created by the explosions, Ren tried to fool the Beetle Demon into thinking he ran somewhere else while he climbed the pole. The pole was rather easy to climb, but it had no holds so he used his arms and legs to cling to it. The surface of the pole seemed metallic, but soft. It was very stable in balance, standing firmly while Ren was climbing it. Ren quickly reached the top.

When he looked down he saw Beetle Demon who was looking for him. Ren frantically wished "please don"t find me, please don"t find me…"

His hope was lost when the Beetle Demon looked up. He saw Ren on top of the pole, he made a scary grin. Combined with his tusk-like horns, it created a scary image that caused Ren"s face to cringe from fear.

When Beetle Demon tried to shoot another blast in Ren"s direction, the black sphere he was forming in his mouth stopped forming. He overused his energy, completely depleting his internal energy. He could no longer convert his magical energy into an explosive sphere that he could control. It would take a while for his body to restore the lost energy. Now, the only thing he had left of use would be- he extended his arms- spikes became long and sharp-is to cut down the pole the human was standing on top of!

Ren saw Beetle Demon extending his spikes, and he understood, he will make Ren fall down with the pole towards his death. Ren held on for his life. Beetle Demon started slashing with all four of his arms; the pole became less and less stable.

"Stop, have you lost it!"

"I WILL KILL YOU" Beetle Demon roared at Ren.

The pole was swiveling from side to side; Ren was afraid what would happen next. The pole lost its balance and it started falling towards the buildings. Ren was screaming like a madman while falling with the pole. The pole slowly collapsed towards a building with Ren on top clinging for his life.

Meanwhile, Akil Ras, the current Demon King, was having a meeting with a leader of opposing faction, Korkau Jou, leader of Jou clan, a demon with great strength and reputation. Korkau Jou was willing to plunge the Kalkan area of Kizilalem into a civil war in order to obtain the absolute power. He did not respect the authority of Great Ones; he wanted to overthrow the Demon King in order to obtain the power that comes from having the t.i.tle.

Akil Ras sought to prevent the rebellion at any cost, so he asked Korkau Jou to come to a truce meeting with him. Now it was a matter of how the negotiations are going to go which would determine the fate of Kalkan. If Kalkan were to go to civil war, then Tazak kingdom would have a great chance at attacking Kalkan, enslaving demon-kind and having a totalitarian rule.

Akil Ras: "I am sure you realize that by initiating the rebellion, you will be making Kalkan a target for Tazak kingdom to attack?"

Korkau Jou: "That is only if the Tazak kingdom manages to find out that there is a revolution within Kalkan."

Akil Ras: "A revolution? What you are thinking of is madness! It does not matter who is the ruler of the kingdom, what matters is the safety of the inhabitants!"

Korkau Jou: "Then why don"t you give up your position to me, then?"

Akil Ras fell silent, his expression showed his seriousness of his tone: "If I were to leave Kalkan"s fate up to you, I fear that many of the demon-kind will perish"

Korkau Jou: "It"s just a rule of the nature, strong must survive, so weak must perish!"

Akil Ras: "Position of Demon King is bestowed so that he would protect the entirety of demon-kind; Demon King is the guardian of demons not the decider of life or death!"

Korkau Jou: "Naïve ideas, your way of thinking of justice and future have become rather clouded, you know that weaker demons are a nuisance, so the easiest thing to do is to eliminate the undesirables in order to allow for the strong to shine!"

Akil Ras: "If it means to harm the demons, I will oppose it completely!"

Korkau Jou: "Then it means we have reached an impa.s.se."

In order to have Korkau Jou come to meeting with him, Akil Ras was given the condition to come alone, without any guards or servants. On the other hand, Korkau Jou was in the room with three of his loyal guards. Although none of the guards was as strong as Korkau Jou, they were all Iron ranked demons. Out of all of them Korkau Jou was the only one who was bronze ranked. Combined together, they could pose a threat even to the Demon King.

Demon King wields the highest individual power. Akil Ras, in particular, specialized in defense. Not for personal defense, but defending those near him. When it comes to offense however, he could use the power bestowed upon him by the Great Ones in order to boost the manifestation of his spiritual form.

The spiritual form is a physical manifestation of the user"s own soul. The appearance and size depended upon each user. It requires a considerable talent to summon and control. It manifests in air near the user and acts as an extension of the user. Akil Ras"s own spiritual form was that of a Demonic Eagle, which was justified considering Ras family"s crest was a Blazing Eagle.

The most skilled and talented members of the demon race could manifest their own souls into a spiritual form around themselves and control it. Each family had their own crest, and the members who inherited the blood manifested the powers in some ways connected to their ancestor. The appearance was connected in most cases. For members of Ras family, their spiritual form, if one can manifest it, always has wings and feathers. Just like this it was easy to identify demons based upon their spiritual forms. Sometimes, however, the spiritual form is different due to unusual circ.u.mstances. There are many types of demons, which is why the descendants could inherit mutated versions of spiritual forms.

Spiritual form requires a lot of energy, which is why it should be used wisely.

Korkau Jou smiled:" The old has to perish for the young to flourish, isn"t that true? Former Demon King?"

Korkau Jou smiled confidently. He was fully prepared for this occasion. His guards wielded abilities that complimented his. Korkau Jou was head of Jou family, whose bloodline was that of a Frost Wolf. While he was talented enough to manifest his spiritual form, it was not strong enough, so he chose to focus his training on his body. He concentrated his energy and made his skin get covered in spikes made of ice. The spikes soon covered his body in scale-like armor. He was facing the Demon King with his front. His ability has but a single flaw-he could cover only portion of his body at a time with his armor. This is why he chose to face Akil Ras facing frontwards in order to focus on his defense on front and leave no openings to his vulnerable back. He knew full well about his weakness, but the ability to manifest his armor was limited to an area and that area was smaller than his body.

Plus he has to concentrate on specific body parts in order to cover them in frost armor. The armored part of the body becomes as hard as a rock with no sense of pain, but the back is still soft and vulnerable. Because of this, frontal a.s.sault on his target was optimal. As long as n.o.body interfered, he would only need to focus his defense on front.

Akil Ras stood by himself facing his opponents. Korkau Jou"s servants also unleashed their powers. The air grew colder, icicles formed on the ground, cold wind rushed from their direction. Akil Ras was dominantly a fire type, which is why they were trying to suppress him.

"So long, old man" Korkau Jou said gleefully. A victory was almost guaranteed.

Then, CRASH!

Korkau Jou was standing with his back to the window. A second later someone drop kicked the window and flew in feet first at Korkau Jou"s back.

The kick landed solidly on Korkau Jou"s neck. There was a snap. He collapsed on the floor. While facing Akil Ras, Korkau Jou put his frost armor only on his front, making his back very vulnerable. It doesn"t help that the kick landed on his neck, one of demon"s weakest points.

The man who kicked Korkau Jou just stood in the room. He wiped the dust of himself. "Oh, I am alive!" He made a silly expression and raised his arms out and shouted "YES!"

Korkau Jou"s servants began to panic. One of them checked Korkau Jou"s pulse. He was knocked out cold but still alive. Members of Jou family had very strong physiques, so something that would kill an ordinary demon wouldn"t hurt them as much.

"Hey, old man, do you by any chance know where I am?" young man asked from Akil Ras.

Akil Ras looked at him. He didn"t appear to be an enemy. It was unclear whether he attacked Korkau Jou intentionally or by accident, but the way he did it definitely looks like something he gave a lot of thought. After all he attacked Korkau Jou at his weak point with pin point precision. He might be his ally. Anyhow, Akil Ras thought that he would have to keep an eye on this youth.

"Oh, you are inside one of the buildings, where are you looking for?" Akil Ras said politely. He was trying to see young man"s character.

"Well, I need to find the road back to the trading center or Aijasil will kill me if she finds me gone!"

"You seem to have a lot on your mind, young man" Akil Ras noticed that youth had no horns on his head, but he was not freaking out. Akil Ras presumed he was a demon. It was not uncommon to see "late bloomers" these days.

"Yeah, I was kind of chased by a crazy Beetle Demon!" young man explained.

"Oh, then you better run, you can find the trading center if you climb downstairs, exit and follow the road south"

"Thank you very much" young man bowed to Akil Ras. Akil Ras found his gesture rather polite for a demon.

Right before he could leave. Akil Ras asked him: "Young man, what is your name?"

Young man smiled and put his thumb on his chest.

"My name is Ren Tengu, servant of Karatengu family!" he turned with his back facing Akil Ras showing the family symbol.

Then he left the building.

Akil Ras then proceeded to restrain the remaining servants of Korkau Jou, which was an easy task considering their leader was pa.s.sed out and drooling on the floor. Akil Ras then looked out of the broken window to the streets. He definitely has to keep an eye on Ren Tengu. An ally or not, he just prevented a civil war on Kalkan, this was no small deed. Akil Ras didn"t know what Ren Tengu"s intentions are, but he was sure that he had to find out more about him.

"It seems like I have found myself an interesting demon to observe. Korgan I wonder what you know about this kid?"

Ren Tengu, having no idea he just prevented a full on scale revolution on Kalkan proceeded to go as he was instructed. He pa.s.sed by several buildings when he saw a strange sight that he thought he imagined. As he got closer he realized that his eyes didn"t lead him astray.

It was Beetle Demon, well what was left of him. His head was sticking out of the ground with not body in sight. Ren thought he must have been brutally murdered.

When he approached it, the head looked at him with wide and angry eyes.

"Stay away, human!"

Ren jumped back from surprise. The severed head was talking to him.

"Do you guys have an extra heart in your head or something? Considering you are talking as a severed head"

"Of course not, a severed head? I just got my body stuck in this quicksand!"

Ren smiled. His attacker got what he deserved. Yet, it was somewhat sad to leave him to die like this, a slow and ridiculous looking death. Ren looked at him with sorrowful expression. Beetle Demon would at this rate drown with no trace of him left.

"Don"t pity me human!" Beetle Demon hissed at Ren.

"Human, human, human, you keep calling me human! I will tell you for the first and last time, I am not a human!" Ren lost his patience and shouted out at Beetle Demon. Beetle Demon constantly addressing him as human in order to demean him had finally caused Ren to shout back at Beetle Demon, considering Beetle Demon no longer had a chance to kill him.

Beetle Demon finally seemed to calm down. "You are not a human?"

"No, I don"t know why but I appear very human-like, but I am genuine, 100 percent demon!" Ren said with somewhat foolish confidence.

"Really?" Beetle Demon asked.

"Completely!" Ren gave an irritated reply.

Realizing he attacked an innocent demon, Beetle Demon apologized. "Please forgive me; I was so convinced that you were a human that I chose to kill you without confirming it for sure!"

"Well, you didn"t kill me, so I suppose its ok" Ren said while pondering how exactly it was ok to be nearly killed by being bombed to death.

"Still, for my actions there is no way I can repent!"

"Stop talking about that, you are making too much fuss out of it, it was just a mistake."

Ren changed the topic. "Let"s introduce ourselves, my name is Ren Tengu, I am servant of Karatengu family." He showed the family symbol to Beetle Demon.

Beetle Demon"s eyes focused on the Tengu family crest. The crest was genuine, so he really is a servant of Karatengu family as he claims.

"My name is Orin. I have no family name. I am a mercenary."

Ren was surprised. So this guy, Orin, was not an ordinary demon, but someone who was in a cla.s.s of his own.

"If I help you get out of the quicksand, do you promise to not kill me?" Ren cautiously asked. He thought leaving Orin to die in quick sand was a fate too cruel. Yet freeing someone who will try to kill you is the last thing he wanted to do.

"Previously I tried to kill you from a mistaken a.s.sumption; now that the misunderstanding has been cleared you are in no danger from me"

Ren grabbed Orin"s horns. There was nothing else to grab on to. "Make sure to keep that in mind if I manage to free you or not."

"It"s a promise then." Orin replied.

Ren pulled him as hard as he could, but Orin was tad bit too heavy. Also Ren almost ended up sinking into the quicksand himself. This was not going to work well; pulling on horns with his hands will just get both of them sunk.

Ren looked around the neighborhood and found an old rope lying on the ground. He quickly tied the rope to Orin"s horns and started pulling on it.

This made it somewhat easier to drag him out of the quicksand. Yet by the end of it Ren exhausted what was left of his stamina and sat on the ground panting, trying to catch his breath. Orin detached the rope from his horn and ma.s.saged his horn followed with what sounded like an ouch sound.

Orin: "Thank you for getting me out of there"

Ren: "Don"t mention it." He took a minute to stop his body from breathing too heavily and then adjusted his breathing pattern to normal rate. He thought to ask something from Orin.

Ren: "Orin, do you mind me asking what you were trying to get from that Tradesman"

Orin: "An heirloom belonging of my family. It was the only way I could fulfill my vengeance." Orin"s expression turned sad. "Yet it seems like I was mistaken, not only did I threaten a merchant with nothing to give, but I also almost killed an innocent demon. I really have disgraced myself."

Ren: "Something belonging to your family? What family is that? Do they live around the town or something?"

Orin gave Ren a chilly look that made Ren gulp. Again, he asked a wrong question at wrong timing. Ren wasn"t sure why he always slipped up in his words. He just hoped Orin wouldn"t try to kill him again.

Orin: "My family is no more. They are all gone."

Ren: "Sorry for the insensitivity. I didn"t know."

Orin: "That is fine."

Ren: "You mentioned you are a mercenary, so who do you work for?"

Orin: "None, after today"s fiasco, I doubt any major family will be willing to hire me. It is expected. After all I am just a failure."

Ren: "Well talking down to yourself is not going to help, so let me give you a proposition!"

Orin looked at him as thought Ren was a lunatic. Ren didn"t know what spurred him to say this either.

Orin: "Proposition?"

Ren: "Come with me, work for the Tengu family as an employee, I am sure we need someone with your skills."

Orin smiled. He made a slight laugh that sounded like swords being sharpened. His tusks only made him look even more intimidating. Ren could only hope he wouldn"t feel insulted from his offer.

Orin: "Offering a job to someone who nearly killed you, Ren Tengu, you are one unusual demon!"

Orin stood up. Nowadays every weaker demon was too scared to approach him. The major families avoided him. He didn"t have the chance to exact his revenge upon the family that orchestrated the purge of his family. Every lead to artifacts that could have made it possible has turned cold. Now he was struggling to survive, let alone feed himself. It was rather rare for someone to offer him a chance.

By this time, Orin was desperate enough to agree.

Orin bowed on his knee. Two right legs on front, two left legs on back. With his head down he spoke. Showing respect was one of the things that he held in high regard. One of the few teachings his deceased family pa.s.sed on to him.

Orin: "Your offer I humbly accept. From today on I shall do the bidding of Tengu family! Boss!"

Ren: "Boss ? Me? Aha Aha haha ! Oh you"re making me blush…."

"REN!" a very loud shout followed by "FOUND YOU".

It seemed like a green streak came flying towards Ren at full speed. It collided with him in a form of very effective punch to the jaw. This sent Ren flying up and landing down on the ground.

"Boss!" Orin shouted out. Someone attacked Ren out of nowhere. He looked at her closer and he realized she was a green haired demon. She wasn"t very large, about size of Ren, but she was extremely fast. Before he realized what happened, she punched Ren and now she was clutching him across his jacket while shaking him.

"I TOLD YOU TO WAIT FOR ME! DO YOU KNOW HOW WORRIED SICK I WAS FOR YOU?" She screamed at him.

"Aijasil, please, I am begging you, I didn"t do it intentionally!" Ren was trying his best to defend himself against Aijasil who pinned him down on the ground. This was the first time he saw her get this angry.

"NOT INTENTIONALLY? HOW IS GOING TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE CITY NOT INTENTIONAL?"

"Please calm down; you"re going to scare everyone, including me." Ren was rather scared. Aijasil seemed even more frightening than Orin, and he tried to kill him.

It took him many apologize while bowing his head down on the ground for Ren to finally calm Aijasil down. He looked at her face, and he noticed there were tear marks, she was crying, she was worried for him. Ren was rather touched for the display of affection even if it was demonstrated rather violently.

"Boss, Who is she? Do you know her?" Orin asked. Ren seemed to know her, this was the reason he didn"t outright attack her.

"This is Aijasil, she is my… ehm"

"Mentor" Aijasil said in rather irritated tone. She was still angry that Ren left her and made her worry so much for his safety. She ran everywhere within the market city trying to find him. Her aide had given her more worry than help.

"Ren, who is this?" Aijasil pointed at Orin.

"This is Orin, and I may have just hired him to work for Tengu family" Ren replied.

This surprised Aijasil. Getting hired into declining family like Tengu family was not the usual choice for the demons. They would rather get hired by families with greater influence like Jou, Phoenix, or Ras families. There were also plenty major families that could offer a higher pay. Those families had power and influence, which Karatengu family currently lacked. Yet getting a new recruit was a rather a nice happening.

Aijasil sensed that Orin was very strong, so the thought of someone like him working for the Tengu family made her rather happy. She couldn"t imagine what Ren had done to get someone of Orin"s level want to join Tengu family, but she was secretly glad for it.

Still, stranger out of nowhere wants to work for the Tengu family, it sounded rather suspicious. Yet Aijasil couldn"t think of any reason anybody would want to infiltrate the Tengu family considering it was already declining. From the outside perspective it looked like it would fall apart any day, so Orin"s will to join the Tengu family must be genuine.

She had Ren thoroughly explain everything that happened after she left him. Orin noticed that Ren left out the part about him trying to kill Ren; instead Ren told Aijasil that he was chased by someone else. Orin felt rather grateful to Ren for not disgracing him about his stupidity and rashness.

Interestingly enough, two servants left the Karatengu mansion in the morning, and three arrived in the evening. Master Korgan was rather surprised that someone of Orin"s caliber wanted to join the Tengu family as a servant. He didn"t sense any malice from him. What followed was a rather polite conversation and Orin"s admission to the Tengu family. Surprisingly, Orin insisted on being Ren"s direct subordinate while he was not following Korgan"s direct orders. Korgan was not sure how Ren managed to make Orin respect him so much, but he was impressed by Ren"s actions.

The Tengu household"s number of members has unexpectedly risen from ten to eleven.