Story: I'm a Daemon, so what?
Disclaimer: I do not own the original setting.
Chapter 105: Recruitment
There are up to 15 chapters ahead of update schedule at [email protected]/theogbasilisk
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- Damrada -
"How does he not you know… go poof. That much power in a brand new vessel would overpower the vessel. Especially a baby." Felix asked in befuddlement.
He nodded, for without a proper vessel Emperor Rudra would be incapable of channeling his true power. Too much power with a weak vessel would cause the vessel to collapse on itself. That's why Daemons were so picky with their incarnation vessels, they didn't want to materialize in this world only to not be able to use their full power.
Emperor Rudra's power was strong enough to challenge the Ultimate True Dragons. "You are correct, which is why until he reaches adulthood he trains his body to be capable of handling his power. Until then he suppresses it perfectly leaving his vessel in optimal condition."
Damrada had seen the training regiment. It was brutal. At the very least it allowed Damrada a glimpse of understanding into just how Emperor Rudra became so powerful. Velda must have been an incredible task master since Emperor Rudra had said he got the training regiment from Velda.
Damrada himself had attempted it but he wasn't able to stay as committed to it as Rudra had.
He could only smirk at Felix's expression in reaction to Emperor Rudra's greatness.
"Hmm, I see." Felix said nonchalantly.
Damrada rolled his eyes. Both of them knew full well how absurd of a feat what Emperor Rudra did was, and yet Felix acted as if it was nothing. Training his body to the extent that it could withstand his full power in under 15 years was absurd, there was no other way to put it.
"Moving on." Damrada said.
Felix raised a hand. "Before you continue, I do have a question that has been bugging me for a while."
Damrada nodded. "Very well, I will answer them to the best of my capability."
Felix nodded. "Thanks, then I wanted to know what's up with you all and Veldora?"
Damrada tilted his head. "Excuse me?"
Felix blinked. "Ah, that was pretty vague huh? Well from what I understand a long time ago the Eastern Empire mounted an attack on Veldora. What was the reasoning behind that? From what I know the Empire and by extension Rudra just deployed a mostly mortal army with some Enlightened sprinkled around. There's no way he didn't know how outmatched his people were? He was literally sending them to their deaths if you ask me."
Damrada nodded with a grim smile. "Because that's exactly what he was doing."
Felix blinked in confusion. "Now you've lost me." It was quite amusing that Felix couldn't see the entire picture, at least not in this case. At least that went to show that even the monstrous Demon Lord in front of him did not know everything.
"He was sending them to their deaths." Damrada explained.
Felix's lips twitched. "Uh huh, why?" He could understand Felix's confusion, to most it would seem like an idiotic move, it was just a waste of manpower. It could only perhaps have some use if the units sent to their deaths had rebellious elements within them, other than that it was a total waste. Most of the time at least.
"Among those that were sent to fight off and defeat Veldora, there were many Enlightened. Emperor Rudra believed that some among them had the potential to evolve. All they needed was an appropriate desire, a stimulus to achieve more." Damrada explained, knowing full well how it sounded.
It was most definitely a cruel practice, to sacrifice the lives of the men that had sworn loyalty to him, that had placed their hopes in Emperor Rudra, yet perhaps that was exactly why Emperor Rudra did what he did.
His dreams could not be achieved without strength. Hundreds of thousands of loyal soldiers died on that day, and it would have all been worth it if even a single Saint was born out of it. Sadly Gadra was one of the only survivors and the only thing that incident did for him was terrify Gadra of Veldora which was valid. The Storm Dragon was considered the weakest True Dragon by Emperor Rudra, but he was still a True Dragon, a being matched by few in this world.
Felix's eyes widened in realization. "So he sent them to their deaths in the hopes that some will Awaken?"
Damrada nodded. "Quality over quantity." When a single proper Saint could wipe out entire cities if not countries, what was a few hundred thousand lives?
Felix whistled. "That's messed up."
He nodded with a grim smile. "It is, but such methods have been used to moderate levels of success in the past."
Felix shrugged. "Well whatever, I was just curious, not my business how shit of a ruler Rudra is."
Damrada's lips twitched as he felt the urge to defend his Emperor, but he knew when to talk and when to keep his mouth shut. That wasn't a skill a merchant like him could live without.
Damrada sighed. He still hadn't gotten to the main point of this entire conversation. Damrada would be betting on Felix, because he had no one else to bet on. His plan to release and make contact with the Masked Hero Chronoa had failed, and he knew of no one else that could perhaps stand a miniscule chance against Emperor Rudra. He now knew that Felix himself was rather powerful.
His dream was to keep his promise to Emperor Rudra, to find someone capable of defeating him before Michael took over, for Michael would eventually win, those were Rudra's own words.
It was only a matter of time which was why Damrada was okay with so blatantly acting against his Emperor. Rudra would not stop reaching for his goal, that was not in his nature, even if he knew it was all likely doomed to failure, and so it was his burden to make sure his Emperor's selfishness did not doom the world.
Not to mention Rudra likely believed that he would at least accomplish his dream before then.
Rudra's overwhelming power wasn't even the main issue in Damrada's eyes, it was his unbeatable defense. Rudra himself described it as absolute, and while Rudra could not maintain the barrier for longer than 10 seconds at a time in his prime, he had mastered strategic use of it to deploy it at the perfect moment.
Damrada could not see just how strong Felix was due to the vast difference between them, but all he could do now was hope and pray that it would be enough.
But first he'd have to convince the Daemon in front of him to help him with his goal. That was the most difficult part of this entire thing. And for that Damrada was willing to offer everything.
He had been trying to find someone capable of keeping his promise for literal centuries. It took him a very long time to find Yuuki, a man with a unique bodily composition that nullified the effect of Skills and Magic. Such an absurd never heard of ability was something Damrada could see perhaps working on Emperor Rudra.
Damrada didn't know the nature of Emperor Rudra's absolute defense, but Yuuki was the only one he had found that even had a chance at countering Emperor Rudra. And he had looked a lot, he had gone through countless burgeoning Champions only for them all to fall short of his expectations.
They all still went on to accomplish great things, yet they weren't what Damrada was looking for.
Yuuki was his hope, and an aspiring young man who held grand ambitions of ruling the world. It reminded him heavily of Emperor Rudra. Damrada was seduced by his charisma and chose to wholeheartedly follow him, they eventually became close friends and partners-in-crime. He came to genuinely be loyal to Yuuki, though that did not extend to Yuuki's cohorts like Kagali.
He had gone through great efforts to help support Yuuki. He built up the secret underworld organization Cerberus which was founded by Yuuki on top of its predecessor Echidna, expanding it to hold great influence and power in the East.
Though Damrada was fairly certain that Kondou knew of Cerberus since it used to operate out of the Eastern Empire in the past. Kondou knew damn near everything that occurred within the borders of the Eastern Empire, it's what made him so terrifying to go up against. You didn't know if the man you called a brother was a plant sent by Kondou. Anything and anyone may not be what they seem when Kondou has his eyes on you.
Now Cerberus was mostly a shell of its former self. Kagali was holding onto the reins of power as tight as she could before this attack but it was all still slipping away. Her enforcer, Laplace was gone, taken by the Daemon sitting across from him from what he knew. Laplace was powerful as well, Damrada would win in a fight between them but it wouldn't be easy.
It made Felix's power even more blatant since from what he knew, Felix was likely responsible for Laplace's fate, and Felix had also managed to defeat him with minimal effort. In fact Damrada had practically reached a temporary state of enlightenment thanks to Felix, yet he still only managed to scratch the Daemon.
Galaxy Impact was by far his most destructive move in his skillset now, however the amount of control it required over your own energy and Haki was absurd. Damrada wasn't sure if he could accomplish Galaxy Impact again without his state of enlightenment aiding him.
He sighed as he thought back to Kagali's fate. It was a shame what happened to his former compatriots, but it was inevitable that it would all fall apart with Yuuki's demise. Yuuki was what was holding them all together.
It was a combination of things that drove Kagali to the state she ended up in, Damrada could only mourn the once bright young woman who served Yuuki alongside him.
He expected that Cerberus would soon fall apart entirely, Kagali was dead, as was Tear, Misha, and Vega. He didn't care for many of them, but it was still a rather unfortunate series of events. All of them had tremendous potential, even Vega. But what happened, happened. There was no use dwelling on the past.
"After Emperor Rudra explained his circumstances to me I was in shock. I can still remember that day clearly." Damrada sighed as he focused back on the present moment.
"Well the thing is, you know I've been reincarnating right? Due to the strain my Skill puts on my Soul?" Rudra sighed.
Damrada nodded.
"Well, it turns out that according to Guy, my Soul wears down, little by little, even with my reincarnations. There will come a point where I won't be me anymore."
Damrada's eyes widened hearing his friend. "What?!"
Rudra still had his normal happy smile on his face, as if none of this was his issue. "Yeah, so I'm going to need you to do me a favor."
"What is it? I am willing to do anything to help you!"
"Haha, you're always like this huh?"
"Well I think that's my strong suit."
Rudra nodded. "Yeah, even Velgrynd says she respects you for that, though please don't tell her I said that, she'll skin me alive!"
He rolled his eyes at the Emperor's antics.
"Anyways, it seems every time I'm reborn, I lose a piece of myself. So in the case that I lose myself completely, I order you this Damrada, kill me, or find someone else capable of killing me."
His eyes widened at hearing his Emperor's unreasonable order. "Rudra!"
Rudra laughed sheepishly. "I can't ask Velgrynd such a thing ya know?"
He didn't want to promise his best friend such a thing, but seeing the look in his eyes he had no choice. He sighed. "Very well, I will make sure you are taken care of should you lose yourself."
Hearing him Rudra smiled. "Great! I knew I could count on you."
Ever since that day he had felt a burden in his heart.
Time passed and eventually he spoke with Rudra about the same thing again.
"I think I'm going to reach my limit soon, Damrada. Controlling Michael is just too much. Perhaps my ideals were wrong from the start? What is absolute justice? Is it not as evil as tyranny and injustice?" Rudra sighed.
He clenched his fists hearing his friend, he had never sounded so… broken before.
"That promise from some time ago, will you keep it?" Asked Rudra.
He nodded, no matter how much it pained him to do so.
Rudra sighed in relief hearing him. "Good… good, I can leave it to you then. I am sorry for asking you such a thing my friend, but while I am still in control of myself I must make sure the appropriate countermeasures are taken. I do not know what will happen after I truly lose myself, I wish to prepare for the worst."
Rudra looked to the sky. "It seems the Skill entrusted to me by my friend was too much for me. No matter how this game with Guy and I goes, I know I will not be able to continue to use Michael."
"The Emperor is dying." Damrada said.
Felix's eyes widened. "That's great!"
Damrada's eyes narrowed as his Aura bubbled up to the surface. It only took him a moment to realize how pointless it would be to make his anger known at the Demon Lord's callous statement.
Felix seemingly sensing his displeasure coughed lightly. "Oh no, Emperor Rudra is dying… how sad." Felix said mournfully.
Damrada rolled his eyes.
Felix shrugged. "Come on, I have no reason to not be happy that your buddy is dying."
Damrada sighed. "That is true. Forgive me, it is merely something that is close to my heart."
"Chill, nothing came of it. I can be reasonable." Felix waved him off.
For some reason Damrada doubted that last statement. Reasonable and Demon Lord generally did not go in the same sentence.
"Each time he reincarnates, the Emperor's soul wears out little by little." Damrada explained. This was a secret that only he knew. Perhaps Emperor Rudra had shared this with Kondou at some point, Damrada couldn't know. But he knew for a fact that Velgrynd was unaware, otherwise that fire headed woman would do something rash to preserve the life of her beloved.
Felix tilted his head. "So he's reincarnating in the first place to strengthen his soul but the process of reincarnation itself weakens his soul."
Damrada nodded. "Something like that. Emperor Rudra reincarnates due to the strain his soul is always under due to Michael. So he reincarnates to strengthen his soul, however during the reincarnation process Rudra is more vulnerable than normal, from what I understand Michael does the most damage during these moments. However Emperor Rudra has no choice but to continue or his soul will continue to weaken even quicker."
It was a truly troublesome situation if you asked him.
"I see." Felix hummed as he tapped one of his fingers against the desk.
"Rudra feared that eventually he would lose himself entirely, that he would merely be a husk of his former self, that he would no longer be Rudra, the Hero of the Beginning. He did not know what he would do in that state, and so he asked me to find someone capable of killing him should the worst come to pass." Damrada said with a sigh.
Rudra asked that of him despite knowing just how difficult such a thing would be. As far as Damrada knew, perhaps only Demon Lord Guy Crimson was capable of such a thing, but for whatever reason Emperor Rudra and Demon Lord Guy Crimson would stay out of each other's ways.
With it all out in the open, now he could only wait for Felix's response.
"Huh. Well that's not really what I expected at the start of this conversation." Felix mused. "I'm guessing that Yuuki was your solution to Rudra then?"
Damrada nodded. "Indeed, he lacked the raw power but his Anti-Skill could perhaps make that a nonfactor. Yuuki is an intelligent individual, I believed that with time he could stand at a similar level as Emperor Rudra."
Anti-Skill was a truly interesting ability. He had managed to test it subtly and Anti-Skill had so far managed to nullify everything he had thrown against Yuuki.
While he hadn't used any of his complex techniques as that would arouse suspicion, it still gave Damrada hope. Hope that Yuuki was the one he had been looking for.
Felix snorted. "Yeah right. Well whatever, now why did you tell me all this? I suspect why but I'd like to hear it from your mouth." Felix stated.
With the cards all out in the open, they both knew that Felix had the advantage in this negotiation if it could even be called a negotiation.
Felix basically had him dead to rights, he could likely kill Damrada where he was sitting right now and Damrada would be helpless to do anything about it. But still Damrada would try to keep his promise to his friend, to his Emperor.
Damrada sighed as he bowed his head. He could swallow his pride when he needed to. "Please, Demon Lord Felix, help me put my friend out of his misery should the worst take place."
Damrada kept his head bowed, the silence went on for a few moments before Felix spoke up. "Why?"
Damrada blinked as he looked up. "Pardon me?"
"Why should I help you?" Felix said as he leaned forwards. "You're an enemy, or at least you were an enemy. You were part of Cerberus, an organization that was actively planning against me and my friends. So why should I help you?"
Damrada sighed, despite being a merchant, one of the best around, he always felt the process of negotiating and what not was truly tiresome. It was rather ironic seeing just how wildly successful he was as a merchant, but it was the truth.
He was known as the Fist Saint for a reason, he preferred his fists over anything else.
"Very well. What do you wish for?" He asked.
A grin slowly spread across Felix's face causing a pit to form in Damrada's stomach.
He was doomed wasn't he?
"I wish for everything, but we can start small." Felix said with a grin.
Damrada sighed. He had been doing that a lot lately. "Very well. Starting small sounds fine, however I would like some assurances at the very least."
Felix's eyes narrowed as some of his Aura began leaking out. Damrada held back a shiver as he felt the sheer maliciousness of the Daemon's Aura. It was only a fraction of Felix's Aura, Damrada knew that and yet he still felt like the Aura could consume him entirely.
What a monster. He thought.
"You do know you are alive solely at my mercy, right?" Felix asked.
He nodded. "I am aware that should you wish, you can kick me from the mortal coil at any time."
Felix tilted his head. "Yet you still push me?"
Damrada nodded. "If I must. I have a duty to see through, I do not mind my life being forfeit should I keep my promise."
He was willing to offer everything to Felix, all he had at this point was money and himself. His resources in the Eastern Empire were rather lacking due to not spending much time there. Of course as the Vice Commander of the Single Digits he could still command the entirety of the Imperial Guardians bar Kondou, but that was something both Emperor Rudra and Kondou would notice and overwrite his orders for.
He had a feeling Felix won't exactly be working for the Empire's benefit. It had been a long time since Damrada saw Emperor Rudra, he had no idea how far the Emperor's condition had gone so far, for all he knew the Emperor he swore loyalty to was gone, and all that was left was a mere husk. He truly could not tell.
He knew he could be working against his Emperor, one that was sane, but he had a promise to keep. Rudra would understand if they ended up on opposite sides this time.
He knew Felix was playing with him, pushing him to see how far he'd bend. But he had no choice. If Rudra truly was losing himself, then he had to see this through, no matter the cost. He couldn't fail him.
Felix smirked as he leaned back in his chair, his Aura withdrawing into him. "Fine, fine, you've amused me enough, what kind of assurance do you want?"
He knew he couldn't ask for anything major, despite Felix's shaky approval of him, he had no doubt that if he proved himself to be a nuisance then Felix would take care of him as such. He was on shaky ground and he knew it, but he was used to making the most out of some rather dire situations.
"I merely wish for the assurance that you will hear my request out to its fullest and give it genuine thought."
It wasn't anything much, but there wasn't much else he could request at this point that Felix would accept. He doubted Felix would allow him to just leave if they did not come to an acceptable deal, that would be foolish.
"Sure, sure, that's fine." Felix said nonchalantly. "Before I explain what I want from you for helping you, you should probably know just what your Alternative is capable of doing to you."
Damrada looked at Felix in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"While you were unconscious I was able to analyze you, according to the analysis it seems that your Alternative has a direct link to Michael, Lord of Justice." Felix explained.
Damrada blinked. That wasn't too surprising, his Alternative was bestowed through Michael, so having a connection with that Ultimate Skill wasn't too surprising.
"The issue is what Michael and Rudra can do through this connection. To put it simply if they wish they can mind control you to various degrees. From subtle suggestions to making you a robot that obeys all orders." Felix continued.
Damrada wasn't quite sure how to react to that. He wasn't surprised that Emperor Rudra kept that information to himself, beyond everything else Rudra was responsible for the Eastern Empire. Having some countermeasure to deal with the strongest within the Empire was only normal should one of the Single Digits turn traitor.
So while Damrada did not blame Rudra for what he did, he still did not like the feeling of knowing that there was some countermeasure within him that could guide his actions. Were any of the actions he took until now truly his own? He couldn't know and wouldn't waste his time dwelling on it.
But one thought lingered in the back of his mind. Had his Emperor already lost himself by the last time they met in person? If he had, then Damrada likely would not even know it if what Felix was saying was true.
"On top of that it may have something to do with you not developing Divinity."
His lips twitched at that. Divinity had long been something that eluded him. He didn't question the authenticity of the Demon Lord's words, for he had no real reason to lie to him.
He would think more about his Divinity predicament later.
"...I see. Why are you telling me this?" He asked.
"Well I don't really want to talk about what I want while there is a risk of whatever you know going back to Rudra. So before anything else we need to remove that connection." Felix said.
"And are you capable of this?" Damrada asked.
Felix nodded. "I wouldn't be talking about this if I wasn't."
"I see. And how will I know that no control measure is placed within me? Trading one master for another." Damrada hummed.
"That's because it's exactly what I will be doing." Felix said.
Damrada blinked in confusion.
Felix sighed. "Let's face it, despite having a good impression of you, I'm not willing to give you my trust."
Damrada nodded. "That is fair enough."
They were enemies until just a short while ago, and he was a high ranking member of the Eastern Empire, an Empire that would eventually invade the West and to do that would have to go through Felix's territory. They were anything but allies right now.
"I'm not going to trust you for a long while, your loyalty to Rudra seems rather high, I'm assuming you're only here giving me all this information because you are hoping to use me to keep your promise to Rudra."
Damrada nodded. "You would be correct. I am too weak to keep my promise and so I have been looking for others to do so for me. Emperor Rudra has prioritized this above all else, meaning he would not mind should I side against him for this objective."
Felix nodded. "That's about what I thought. On top of having your Alternative modified to guarantee your loyalty I will also be signing a Contract with you."
Damrada sighed but nodded. He was at the complete disadvantage here, and he couldn't blame Felix for being thorough.
Daemon Contracts were rather absolute, they created a soul connection between the contract holder and the contractee, making both sides fulfill their side of the deal.
At least that assured Damrada somewhat that Felix would keep his end of the agreement. Though he wouldn't be surprised if Felix somehow had a way to wiggle out of his side of the agreement, nothing like that had been recorded, and the Eastern Empire had done much research on Daemons, but Felix was already managing extraordinary things, what was breaking a Contract compared to the other things he had done?
"If you agree, we can move on to me modifying your Alternative." Felix said.
The fact that Felix could modify Alternative was rather absurd if you asked Damrada. Modifying Skills was something he had only heard of the Star King being capable of, Veldanava himself.
Even Rudra failed when he attempted to do so, and Damrada had not heard of any other people being capable of such a thing. He did not know everything yet he still believed not many if any could do what Felix claimed to be able to. For Felix to be capable of doing the same was absurd, but it also brought Damrada hope that he was betting on the right person.
"Very well, I agree to your terms."
Felix smiled. "Great, we can talk about what exactly I want from you after this whole process is done. Do be aware that it is a rather invasive process."
Damrada nodded. "Will this take time?"
Felix shook his head. "Nah, it shouldn't take too long."
Damrada nodded. The last thing he saw was Felix raising his palm towards him.
- Felix -
"Beelzebuth." I murmured, watching as Damrada vanished back into my Infinity Space, his form dissolving into nothingness. Once he was gone, I let the silence settle around me, using it to process everything he'd revealed.
It was pretty amusing that Damrada was betting everything on Yuuki of all people. Yuuki was deluded if you asked me.
I would say that he had eyes but couldn't see Mount Tai if I were in a cultivation world, or a toad that lusted for swan meat or something.
He wanted the entire world in the palm of his hand, but he had no idea just what kind of monsters lay within this world. I was strong, very strong by the standards of this world as far as I know. But I still wasn't confident that I could take the world if I wanted it.
"I do believe that you are underestimating yourself, Master."
'Eh, am I?'
I didn't think I was. But ever since I first appeared in this world I was extremely cautious, never trying to pick fights unless I knew the other person's power.
The most dangerous situation I had been in was when I was summoned to the Cardinal World and had to take on that Dragon. That Dragon was nothing to me now, but that went to show just how careful I had been in selecting my fights.
"I believe you are in the incorrect mindset for your current state of power, Master. Despite what you may think, you are supreme as you are now. I have yet to analyze or meet anyone who can rival your capabilities except perhaps Milim Nava."
'Raw power isn't everything you know. Look at Guy, he managed to fight Velzard to a tie when she has much more raw power than him.'
"Indeed. That is correct, however you have both raw power and technique thanks to me as well as your own efforts. Your fighting technique rivals that of Guy Crimson's due to my analysis and modification of your Sword Arts as well as your overall fighting style. Your mastery over Time Stop is superb thanks to me even though you have only used it once. That is not including my own existence as a Manas supporting you."
My lips pursed as I went through everything Othinus said, and I couldn't find any valid argument, because she was right. Perhaps I was being too cautious but that was fine. Being cautious was how you survived no matter how strong you were. But I could see Othinus' point, perhaps I would relax my wariness a bit.
"That is all I ask. You may leave the worrying to me." Othinus said.
'I'm not going to do that, we are partners but I see your point.'
"... Very well."
I sighed as I leaned against the comfy chair I was sitting on. I didn't want to rely on Othinus for everything, that would be boring. Whenever you cheat at a game too much you tend to get bored of the game, despite life being a game I still wanted to enjoy myself.
I had relied on Othinus and her predecessor, Odin for a lot of things at the start. But as time went on I cooled off on that front as I realized just how boring life would get that way. Now I just relied on her for the major things, the things that actually mattered.
I thought back to Damrada as I considered just why he could have put his faith in Yuuki.
I'm guessing that Damrada's primary reason for betting on Yuuki was Anti-Skill. From what I'd heard from Damrada, Rudra's so-called ultimate defense, Castle Guard sounded busted.
More busted than Multi-Dimensional Barrier and barely anyone had managed to get past my Multi-Dimensional Barrier, though that was less due to the barrier and more due to me supporting the barrier.
Damrada was probably hoping that Anti-Skill could nullify Castle Guard, when in reality something that complex likely made use of multiple laws making Anti-Skill useless against it.
Poor Damrada, he was truly doomed from the start, at least if he kept relying only on Yuuki. Though maybe Yuuki would pull something out of his ass with his Unique Skill: Creator.
Guy had to have known about Castle Guard though, but I could imagine why he didn't tell me about it.
There was still more I wanted to hear about from Damrada, like how the military is truly structured in the Eastern Empire. Guy gave me a general overview but he never cared much for how strong the Eastern Empire's armies were, something that I thought was foolish.
Guy was too confident in his power, he didn't even think of there being anyone else in the Empire that could make a difference. While I was similar in that I was confident in my power, I at least tried not to let it get to my head. I tried to learn all the factors so I could plan around them.
There was a lot of bullshit in this world, one day I would face someone with bullshit of their own, my preparations would be the difference between losing and winning on that day.
Not to mention that Damrada would have a good understanding of the Eastern Empire's military tactics. I wasn't expecting too much from him when it came to information. He had likely already told me a lot of what was relevant, according to him he had been out of the fold within the Eastern Empire for a long time, so he wouldn't be of much use when it came to planning against him.
Still I wanted him for myself, as a subordinate. Normally I wouldn't trust him similar to Vega, but I was willing to go the extra mile for Damrada by creating a control circuit within his Alternative as well as a Contract with him.
Daemon Contracts were unbreakable to most so that was just another layer of insurance on top of everything else.
"I am beginning the process of altering Alternative. I will be removing the connection with Michael while establishing a connection with Brahma."
Othinus was going to basically get rid of Damrada's current Alternative and replace it with an Alternative that does the same thing, except it originates from Brahma, more specifically its Skill Gifting sub-skill so it maintains a connection to me. Through Brahma I can access the control circuit embedded into this new Alternative.
Since Damrada was in my Infinity Space where both Othinus and I could practically play god, there was virtually no risk when messing with Damrada's soul like that.
If I wanted I could probably rewrite the Information Particles in his soul to rewrite his entire being similar to what Odin did with Sukuna.
Though Damrada was a Saint so maybe he'd have some more inbuilt resistance to such a thing, still with both my and Othinus' combined efforts I doubt he'd last long.
Still I wouldn't do that, Damrada was trusting me and I wouldn't betray that trust for no reason. So far he had been nothing but accommodating so I'd give him a chance. I'd keep to my end of the bargain as long as Damrada kept to his.
The control circuit gave me all the reassurance I needed, and the fact that he was allowing me to place it within him told me a lot.
I didn't plan to leave Rudra just hanging around after he attacks Azeroth and Tempest either, so really I was getting Damrada's allegiance for doing something that I was already planning to do.
As I waited for Othinus to finish I began playing with some Magic to pass the time. I didn't see much of a point in innovating new Magic when what I already had was leagues better than what most in this world were even capable of. But it was still pretty fun. Plus I can always just add the random new spells I create to the rewards center for some of the military and such to grab if they earn it.
Unsurprisingly my plan for a rewards center was working. The Majin of this world worshiped strength above all else as a general rule. If you were strong, you were right, that's just how it is, or at least how it was until recently.
Rimuru's Tempest was trying to change that mindset with a land equal for all, I was also doing the same. Life was just better for everyone involved if every other slightly strong person wasn't showboating and full of themselves thinking they could get away with anything.
But that didn't change the fact that Majin would still seek strength. And so according to Megumin they had been working extra hard to gather the points necessary to buy some of the good stuff in the rewards center.
There were tons of things in there as well. From Ancient Magics to Sword Arts, to Defensive Arts, to Barrier Arts, to Battlewill, almost my entire reservoir of knowledge was stored in various grimoires within the rewards center.
Everything except for the most powerful at least, still there was some good stuff in there like Distortion Field which could even help in fights where Ultimate level abilities were being thrown around.
I held out my palm, letting a flicker of energy spark to life. I twisted the energy into a faintly shimmering orb that danced above my palm, shifting between colors like liquid fire. The spell wasn't anything advanced, lots of people could do it but it was still pretty enjoyable.
Tornadoes formed on my palm, as did firestorms, lightning storms, and various other magical phenomena. Before long I could feel a connection between myself and Damrada form.
With the new Alternative skill embedding itself into his soul, the connection to Brahma was firmly in place, the bond between us was secure. There was a flicker of power as Othinus finalized the circuit, and I felt the subtle link snap into place, an invisible thread, tying Damrada's abilities to me.
"And done!" Othinus said.
'Great, thanks.'
"The control circuit is embedded securely. If Damrada attempts to break his allegiance, the circuit will respond as intended. You can also actively control him if you wish to do so, but for now I have merely added an early warning system of sorts that will warn you of any rebellious thoughts as you did not wish to alter Damrada's mind."
I nodded, satisfied. I was more confident in revealing more things to Damrada now, knowing that everything I said wouldn't go back to Rudra.
I could feel the link with Damrada in place through Brahma, his connection with Rudra was severed. I'm sure that'll come as a bit of a surprise to Rudra.
I raised my hand again, ejecting Damrada from my Infinity Space. Damrada landed perfectly on his feet as he looked at me. "I assume all went well?"
I nodded. "Mhmm."
Damrada sighed. "How odd, I do not feel any different."
I ignored his words as I began creating the pact between us. Despite being a Daemon I didn't really make many if any contracts, there was no reason for me to in the past.
The Daemon race generally fed on souls to gain power, it didn't matter whether the souls were strong or weak, power was power.
Of course at a certain point the amount of souls needed to increase power just gets absurd, at my level I'd need to consume hundreds of thousands to see a slightly visible difference in my overall power.
Daemons also did other things with souls as well. The stronger Daemons didn't get much from souls so they bled the emotions out of the souls, consuming all happiness and joy from them for their own amusement.
There was a reason Daemons were reviled.
Daemons would grant wishes, and in return they would get souls from whoever it was they were assisting.
It was why the older Daemons were almost unbeatable within the Daemon realm. They just had so much more experience than the freshly born Daemons.
The veteran Daemons had a lot more magical know-how and so they could grant much more complex and high value wishes. I was lucky that I started off with powerful Skills or else I'd be having to compete with other Daemons for contracts to power up a bit.
The contract I would be making wasn't a physical contract of course, it was more spiritual in nature.
Damrada took a seat. "So now, it's time to sign a deal with the devil I suppose." He mused.
"Now I'll give you my terms." I said directly. "In return I want your everything."
Damrada blinked before he slouched. "My everything huh?"
I didn't say anything as he thought for a bit. Asking for the soul of a Saint was rather crazy, but the task Damrada was asking me to do was of that magnitude.
He wanted me to kill the rival of Guy Crimson, someone rivaling a True Dragon. The soul of a Saint was nothing compared to that, excluding the fact that I was going to do it anyway, Damrada doesn't need to know that I'm fleecing him.
After a few moments Damrada sat up. "Very well. My soul is yours so long as you keep to your end of the bargain."
I smirked. "Great!"
I felt Damrada's soul open up and reach out to my own as payment. Daemon contracts could do some rather wonderful things, you can snatch a certain amount of lifeforce as payment for helping someone, their soul, their memories, there really weren't too many limits. It all depended on your creativity.
I felt the contract between Damrada and I click into place.
"In return for your soul, I will be taking care of Rudra for you." I declared as I looked Damrada in the eye.
His lips curled up a bit as one of his hands reached out. "Looking forward to working with you, boss."
I grasped his hand in a hand shake. "Looking forward to making use of you as my minion."
Damrada sighed after hearing me. "This will be a rather tiring tenure indeed." He mumbled to himself.
"You've got no idea."
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I am highly motivated by your guys' reviews and likes, so do that! I'll probably keep writing or something.
I have a discord server, come hang out if you want! https://discord.gg/VxR5Gn72Fp I also have a channel in Shiro's Gaming Omniverse.
Author's Note: Sup everyone, back with another chapter of Daemon. Finally wrapping up the whole Damrada situation so that's finally done. Hopefully it didn't feel like it dragged out a bunch, there was just a lot to cover. Some things that haven't even been mentioned so far so hopefully it was a bit enlightening.
Damrada is finally a minion! Wooo! Hoping to wrap up a few events before the world trip but I have no idea how many chapters that'll take since there are a good amount that I want to cover. But I might just push a few back until after the world trip. Let me know what you'd all prefer, as an FYI the world is going to be solo leveling.
Anyways, thanks for reading, peace!
Thanks to @Salante and @Flowerman for beta'ing this chapter.