Darkness fell upon the face of the city.
A light drizzle blanketed the entire city of South Lepton.
The dark clouds, coupled with the fallen night did nothing to take away from the beautiful nightlife of the city.
Richard let out a tired sigh as he drove down a bustling street.
Shops with flashing neon lights. People of all ages, shapes and ethnicities strolled along the streets, like blood vessels pumping life into the city.
This was the world of humans.
Richard pulled his eyes away from this sight.
The world had two faces. One of light and one of darkness.
The world of light was this; a lustrous, beautiful land of oblivion.
He gripped his steering a bit tighter.
Driving off the main road, he rode in silence for a few minutes before arriving on his street.
Driving down, his eyes lingered on the house beside his for a moment. This was the house of the teenage girl he had encountered the other day.
The one that had been possessed. He remembered she was the one that had been staring at him through the iron fence as well.
Turning his car off, he couldn't help but think to himself.
'Possessions, huh...'
"I hope she got home safe."
***
Wiping his hair down with a towel, a Richard clad only in a pair of shorts hiding his nether regions plopped down onto the chair.
Throwing the towel in his hands to the side, he pulled open a drawer. There, a collection of books and old scrolls were kept.
It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.
He pulled a leather back book out of the drawer. It was large and seemed rather hold.
His expression serious, Richard opened the tome.
It was a codex holding information on all the abyssal creatures known to humans. This included information on Dukes of Hell, Lords of the Abyss and Corrupted Angels.
Besides the Dark Gods, these three ranks were the most powerful ranks of abyssal creatures recorded.
Any one of those things stepping into their world would spell disaster of unprecedented levels. Sorcerers and mages had the job of making sure none of these things made their way over to their world.
Richard frowned as he muttered to himself,
"That thing was no ordinary Abyssal denizen. A Duke, perhaps..."
Tonight, he had defeated a Horror class Abyssal creature together with the others.
In reality, he wouldn't have needed help in defeating it.
After all, he was Richard Bane.
He sighed as he leaned back onto his chair, making himself more comfortable.
He had fought against a horror class creature of the abyss alone in the past. And won.
Flipping through the book, his gaze finally settled on an oddly familiar image.
The corner of his lips tugged up,
"So that's your name, huh..."
Then his expression changed.
"Well, this isn't good news."
"Name: Abin'iksol. Rank: Duke of Hell. Dominion: South Lepton. Known Appearances: Mysterious disappearances and deaths at South Lepton Highschool, East Crow Market Massacre. Current Status: Unknown. Current Location: South Lepton."
The codex was useful because its information was open to change through magical means. That meant all the information in it was up to date.
Richard scratched his head,
"That means this thing will be my problem. I've already run into already. That means there will be more encounters in the future. Perhaps that was just a greeting."
Hw shook his head, "No. It definitely was a greeting."
He paused, "That girl probably goes to that school. That means..."
South Lepton Highschool. It was a normal highschool. It hadn't produced any one of renown in all its years of existence and it wasn't particularly known for anything.
For all intents and purposes, it wa a normal school.
Richard frowned,
"Or not."
According to what he knew of the story, five years ago, there was been a series of mysterious disappearances and deaths amongst the students and teachers of the school.
At first, the police and authorities had suspected it to be a trend amongst the students, but after the principal had jumped to his death from the rooftop, the school had been closed for a year and investigations were made.
It wasn't until three years ago the school was reopened.
He had no idea if anything else had happened after that incident, but he suspected there was something up.
He grimaced. It had also been five years since he left that school.
"To think I'd have to return there after five years..."
Since he was now officially a member of the circle as well as the holder of the honorary title of 'Watcher of the South', taking care of this problem would fall under his job description.
Plus, the damned thing has personally come to welcome him back.
He folded his arms as he stared at the image of Abin'iksol.
He clicked his tongue,
"How ugly..."
Now, he had to plan a method of attack.
'It's been here for years. Its roots probably run deep. I, on the other hand am stuck with a group of weirdos and half-wits.'
Although today had not been so bad, he still couldn't bring himself to rely on them.
He sighed,
'Looks like I won't be getting any rest tonight.'
Standing up from his chair he walked a bit then dropped face first into his bed.
With a groan, he rolled over.
The room was silent.
The house was silent too.
There was no one but him in here.
He muttered something. Then he closed his eyes.
When he opened them next, he was surrounded by fog and shadows.
He was inside his own soul.
The world of his soul was dark and mysterious. He himself knew very little about it.
But that was to be expected. The same could be said for every other sorcerer.
The soul and mind still remained one of the greatest mysteries in the society of magic.
Richard turner around.
Behind him were four enormous thrones that ascended into the mist within his soul.
Seated on each one was an enormous illusory figure of all his Demons.
He walked a bit before dropping to the ground and folding his legs.
"So, what do you think?"
Plato was the first to speak,
"You cannot afford to confront such a powerful Devil as you are right now."
Richard nodded, "That much is certain, but I do not have a choice, do I?"
Plato chuckled,
"He doesn't seem interested in killing you for the meantime, does he?"
Richard shrugged. His brows furrowed,
"So it was toying with me..."
Cupid's laughter rang out,
"My, my. Our Richard is getting quite arrogant. Of course you were only being toyed with."
Richard calmly folded his arms,
"I see. In that case, it would be best to delay a confrontation."
"Maybe it wants you to grow more before tearing you apart. It wants to slowly savor the struggle." Fenrir calmly suggested.
Richard chuckled,
"How reassuring, Fenrir."
He let out a tired yawn then turned back to Plato,
"So what do you suggest?"
Plato went silent for a moment.
Then he answered,
"Devils are malignant creatures. But they are also very curious fiends. If you keep things interesting, it might refrain from destroying your soul for now."
Richard nodded,
"I guess this is also a good thing."
"Hm? A good thing how?" Plato couldn't help but ask.
A strange smile appeared on Richard's face,
"A Devil of that rank certainly would have a lot of minions around. Like that one from tonight. There's bound to be a ton of them crawling around the city."
He stretched his arms out,
"That means there are tons of resources to be harvested, aren't there?"
Cupid suddenly chuckled,
"How amusing. Calling those stinky devils resources is definitely a unique way of putting it, huh..."
Richard shrugged,
"If I want to ascend to the third rank before the month ends, I need lots and lots of origin essence cores."
"I am sad that my peaceful days are coming to an end, and if I can, I will protect what is left of it. But..."
The shadows and fog swirled and shifted.
The abyssal palaces shook.
"If it comes down to it, I guess I can make a little sacrifice."
The rumbling stopped.
The Demonic face of Plato had a strange expression,
"I see. Fenrir will be of great help when searching for the Devil lairs. I hope your hunts are successful."
Richard stood up. Stretching his arms, he grinned at the demons seated within his soul,
"Thanks. By the way, I'm curious what these changes mean for you all. The contracts between us is rather tilted in my favor, you know. But I feel like you are hiding something from me. Especially you, Plato."
Plato shrugged,
"Maybe you are overthinking it. Humans can be presumptuous..."
Richard chuckled then waved,
"I'll let you off the hook for now."
With that, his will disappeared.
An uncomfortable silence stretched out between the four Demons.
"Our master sure is terrifying." Razor said, having been unusually quiet during the conversation.
Fenrir clicked his tongue then turned to Plato.
He growled,
"How wonderful of you to throw me under the bus like that. I will return the favor."
Cupid chuckled,
"Make sure to support our master really well~"
"Shut it, whore!"