“Bye, Lucivar!” The hero called, waving his arm as his party disappeared on the horizon. I waved back along with my companions, smiling as I did.

  He’s a nice guy.

  [I can’t wait till we kill him.]

  I sat on a log that we had placed by the bonfire. Cedric and Viressa sat on my left and right, respectively. Kril hovered by my shoulder while Azazel lounged around my neck like a scaly necklace. Lioren was lying in the grass a few feet behind me, and Zorrack had limped over, leaning heavily against Fang, who struggled to support the injured demon. Ossara was kneeling on the ground a few feet ahead of us, staring intently at the charcoal slowly burning in the night.

  “Alright, everyone, I’ve been thinking about it, and I’ve decided we need to get some revenge on those Elves.” I started, making eye contact with each of my companions one by one.

  “I agree, Lucivar,” Cedric started, speaking quietly. “But that Elf… he was so strong.” The air was silent, each of us remembering how the Elven Prince had so easily defeated us. Zorrack grimaced, feeling the scar still carved into his torso.

  “That was before you had me,” Kril said confidently, puffing out his chest. “Or that guy.” He added, pointing a thumb backwards at Lioren, who stared at the tiny Imp as if he were pondering whether or not Kril would make for a good snack.

  “That is true, however, and I mean no offense to either of you. Lirien is incredibly powerful, and the Elven King even more so. I hope you understand that such a foe is not to be toyed with,” Ossara warned.

  “We have added some powerful allies, yes,” I said, agreeing with my first friend. “But still, we are not quite ready to mount much of an attack against the Elves.”

  “Then what do you suggest?” Viressa inquired.

  “Firstly, we need to figure out how to get Zorrack back into fighting shape,” I began, glancing at the hobbling demon. “After that, we all need to do our best to get stronger, which means leveling and finding new equipment. Finally, we need to keep an eye on the Elves and make sure they don’t attack us before we’re ready.”

  Cedric perked up at my final sentence, raising a hand adorably in the air.

  “You can speak, Cedric, this isn’t elementary school.”

  The small demon blushed, then began to offer his assistance. “It’d be best if I did the scouting, since I can turn invisible and all.” He said. I nodded in agreement.

  “I should help him, considering I know the Elven territory best,” Ossara added.

  I looked the huge centaur up and down before replying, “No offense, but you don’t seem very… stealthy.”

  [Are you fat-shaming?] Joshua jeered.

  No!

  “Then you know little of my true power, demon,” Ossara replied with a confident smile. I shrugged in response, trusting the ancient creature.

  “As for the rest of us, I think it’s best if we explore to the south and see if we can find any creatures to fight,” I said. Curiously, Azazel climbed down from my shoulder, transforming into his human-like form with a flash of blue light. I looked at the dragon, raising an eyebrow curiously.

  “I… I have something I need to do alone,” The dragon said mysteriously. “I’ll come back in a few days, brother.” He walked off, headed towards the dragon trench where I had found his egg.

  [Stolen.]

  Yeah, yeah.

  “Alright then,” I said, shaking my head out of my trance. “Tomorrow morning, we go exploring!”

  The wet ground beneath me squished with every step, my leggings sinking deeper into the mud. The hot exterior of my armour hissed as the moisture seeped towards me, creating pockets of steam that wafted upwards as we made our way through the swamp. Tall willow trees surrounded us, their long, dangling leaves flowing down and smacking against my head as we walked forward.

  We had ventured to the south, the one area that we had not yet explored. Behind me, Viressa stomped her boots into the mud, irritated by our soggy environment. Lioren casually walked through the damp flooring, undisturbed, although his glorious white fur was now dotted with specks of brown. Kril flew beside me, completely avoiding the ground altogether.

  Lucky bastard.

  I had told Zorrack and Fang to remain in Mount Boom to assist the Dryads, treants, and spirits in assimilating to their new home. He was disappointed, but begrudgingly obeyed the command. Even he knew that he was not ready to fight just yet.

  Suddenly, a movement in the water caught my eye.

  “Get ready!” I called out, sharpening my claws. A lizard-like water monster leapt towards me, its jaw wide. It had spines along its back, poking up dangerously towards the sky. It had four muscle-bound limbs, raising its torso about a foot into the air. Its head was like a combination of crocodile and komodo dragon, and it had green scales and a cream-colored underbelly. I casually slashed at its hide, killing it in a single blow.

  My companions tore into a handful of the creatures who joined the first one in their surprise attack. Viressa casting flame magic while Lioren cut into the beasts with ferocity, tearing them in half with ease. Kril didn’t use his transformation, reserving its power, instead flitting around the battlefield and tossing his now tiny pitchfork, which surprisingly wreaked havoc among the swamp creatures. It magically twisted and turned in the air, then returned to Kril’s hand, stained in blood.

  Level nine now, nice! This swamp has a lot of potential Exp!

  It had been my second level up since entering the swamp, and we had killed several Draskils so far, but hadn’t encountered any other creatures. I used both rewards, electing to upgrade one skill and gambling on a random reward.

  [Command Greater Demon has evolved into Command Demon Duke!]

  [You have received a powerful weapon!]

  [When are you gonna upgrade me…] Joshua complained, not even bothering to yell. I felt a tinge of empathy, but it quickly went away as I recalled his violent tendencies.

  Yeah, not happening, bud.

  Even though Kril, the only Duke-class demon I knew, which is apparently the next tier after Greater demon, seemed staunchly loyal to me, I wanted to play it safe in case something changed down the line. I felt that Viressa, Cedric, and Zorrack would probably never betray me or anything like that, but it seemed like a distant possibility. I then took a look at the item I had received.

  Not really my style… but this would work well for Zorrack!

  I checked my quests, now needing just one item for Azazel to complete the ‘Equipment’ quest, and to forge an epic item to complete the ‘Bolster your Defences’ quest, although I still had no idea how to do that. The Stormcaller item was the right rarity, but it seemed it didn’t count as ‘forging’. A second Draskil flung itself towards me, and I finished it without even bothering to spare it a glance.

  [Rare drop: Antidote +1]

  I didn't have time to inspect the new item, however, as Viressa screamed in horror.

  “What is that?” The demoness shrieked, her eyes darting wildly.

  “What’re you talking about?” Kril responded in confusion.

  “I heard something!”

  We stood still in complete silence. But there was no sound.

  “Perhaps the girl is hearing things—” Lioren started, but he was interrupted by a massive tail slamming into his side. The lion-like beast flew through the air, crashing into a tree that exploded into sharp fragments of wood.

  “Lioren!” I called out worriedly, but the creature responsible gave me no time to think as I stared at it in horror. It was around the size of Lioren, standing on all fours. It had smooth, jet black skin, pacing dangerously in a circular motion. A long tail extended from behind the creature with a sharp hook at the end, poised and ready to strike. Intelligent yellow eyes stared out at me, and I could see razor-sharp claws attached to each of its four limbs. It had gill like slits along its forelimbs, as well as small frills poking from its shoulders. Small protrusions shot from the creature's long neck, its head lower to the ground than the rest of its body. It snarled viciously as it approached.

  Are you kidding me?

  As if it had been prompted, the animal suddenly disappeared from view as I shivered with fear. “Stay on guard!” I called out.

  “This is nothing!” Kril declared, activating his transformation, becoming the huge, winged creature that had saved me from Conrad.

  [Chaos Blast]

  A torrent of blackened energy shot from my companion's palm, slamming into a tree and causing a huge explosion of wood and mud. The aftermath splattered all around the swamp, but it seemed the Imp had missed.

  “Watch where you're aiming—” Viressa started, but was suddenly interrupted by the hook of the Nightstalkers' tail. The sharp point dug into her arm, and she screamed out in pain.

  There you are.

  I ran forward, muscles screaming as I willed every last drop of speed from my body. Upgrading to the legendary skill had given me a substantial increase in power rating, and I felt its effects immediately. I reached the monster in an instant, slamming a claw into one of its front legs. It roared, then whipped its tail around in an attempt to strike me.

  [Blood Chain]

  The red chain leapt from my hand as I angled it to block the Nightstalkers' attack. Sparks flew as the sharpened point met the hardened blood, and Viressa took the opportunity to strike.

  [Fire Lance]

  This time, a bolt of sharpened flames leapt from her staff, boring a hole through the torso of Nightstalker. The intense heat immediately seared the wound, and blood barely had time to flow before Kril leapt forward, slamming his pitchfork into the animal. However, the Nightstalker wasn’t finished yet. It raised its jaw, catching Kril’s attack and tossing the weapon aside. Kril recalled the pitchfork, but the Nightstalker disappeared into thin air.

  “Where’d the bastard go!” Kril yelled in frustration, swinging at the air in hopes that he would miraculously land a hit. I shifted closer to Viressa, hoping to be able to protect her if the creature chose to come after the demoness.

  [Behind you!] Joshua warned, his sharp instincts kicking in. But, I had no time to react, feeling the rushing air of the invisible creatures strike careening towards my skull.

  Lioren suddenly leapt forwards, crashing his body into the still invisible Nightstalker. It uncloaked, revealing its exposed torso to the Ashmane, who ripped into flesh like a knife through butter. Flames shot from Lioren’s jaw, encapsulating the Nightstalkers' neck in a plume of crimson fire. The Nightstalker attempted to turn tail and escape, but I summoned a second blood chain, yanking hard and holding the creature in place. Kril raised his arm, hurling his pitchfork with incredible force.

  The Nightstalker fell into the mud, then disappeared in a flash of light.

  [Exp +150]

  [Gold +50]

  [Nightstalker Claw +1]

  “That was the toughest monster I’ve ever fought!” I exclaimed, relaxing my muscles that had strained to keep the creature in place.

  “He almost got me,” Viressa grimaced, holding her still bleeding arm, although the wound was slowly closing.

  “Never fear, Kril is here!” My adoptive demon brother shouted triumphantly, holding his pitchfork in the air.

  “What is that?” Lioren asked, sauntering towards me and gesturing with his glorious mane in the distance. I spotted it, a circular wooden door carved into a cliff on our left. It was covered in vines and was almost impossible to notice, surrounded by two tall willow trees. The four of us approached cautiously, and then we were suddenly hit with a message.

  [You have discovered a world dungeon! Would you like to proceed?]

  rating or even a review! Any and all interactions with the story help out a TON with trying to hit RS and grow the story! Someone randomly dropped a 3*, which they are completely entitled to do, but did tank the score a bit.

  [Maybe your story just sucks?]

  I don’t believe my story is perfect, so if you do have an issue with the story so far, go ahead and comment that or dm me directly! I will gladly take any and all feedback!

  [Here’s some feedback. Die.]