The Damned Demon

"Devils of the Abyss, hear me out, as this demon is ready to accept the trial," Asher said aloud in his mind.

Merina had told him how to choose his wording to get the trial quest. Of course, this trial would be a reaping quest, with the only difference being failing it would end in sure death.

Otherwise, reaping quests, in general, had the benefit of not losing any rating points even if one failed it, though the risks one had to face in such a quest were more than enough to make it hell.

However, he didn't even know if any devil up there was even hearing him or if this sentence was just something like a password to unlock the quest.

[ You have called upon the right to participate in a Reaping Trial. Upon failure, your own soul will be reaped. Do you accept? ]

Asher can't believe how calmly they were saying his own soul would get reaped.

"I know, I know. I accept."

[ 20 Life Crystals required for soul transportation ]

"What the fuck? This is even more than for a raiding quest. Why??"

…

Asher realized he was asking a wall and opened his eyes, and asked Merina, "Hey, why are these quests so expensive compared to a raiding quest? It didn't ask for this many life crystals during teleportation," Asher asked, feeling that this was daylight robbery.

"Because Master is not going over there with your body. The power of the abyss will transfer your soul into a human body close to your target without causing any suspicion. It calls for more power from their side to do all this, Master," Merina said, and after a moment of contemplation, she raised her hand towards him, "Please hold my arm for a moment, Master. I will help you with this."

Asher nodded as they held each other's forearm, and the next moment, his eyebrows raised when he felt a flow of life crystals making themselves comfortable in his mana circuit and saw the popup,

[ Life Crystals : 9 -> 49 ]

"Huh? You gave me 40?" Asher asked with one of his brows raised. He wasn't expecting her to give her own life crystals to him, and that too double the amount he required.

"Master will need another 20 to power the runes using the spell I gave you to come back. Your mana isn't yet powerful enough to power the runes to open a gate to our dimension," She explained the reason.

Asher felt this whole reaping thing was quite expensive. No wonder no demons at lower levels go for this. It was too much risk with very few rewards, or so it would seem to them.

"Well, you know what to do till I am back," Asher said as he closed his eyes and utilized 20 life crystals to transfer his soul.

Merina became tenser as she saw him closing his eyes. If he fails, then not only her but she and her entire family will die. She prayed hard…hoping that the royal consort would return even though the chances seemed quite slim, considering he was only a level 2.

[ Your soul will be now transferred to the Severed Realm ]

Asher felt as if his mind was being stretched and squeezed, and the next moment he felt like he was floating, till he finally could see the blue skies….the familiar looking fluffy white clouds of the planet which was once his home.

But to his shock, he found himself floating in the skies and looked down to see that his body looked blurry and intangible. He could even pass his own hand through his stomach.

"Hey!" He shouted, but his voice didn't even pass through the air. It was as if he was a ghost. Was this how demons haunt a place or people? Asher yet again found it surreal that he became the very thing he sought to destroy.

[ You are now in your Spirit Form ]

"Spirit form, huh?" Asher mumbled to himself as he realized that he could float through the skies and even look around as he wished. He saw a city under him, though at first, he didn't recognize it.

Only when he descended towards the roof of a building did he see the large billboards with a language he barely recognized, "This is Thailand?" Asher hadn't been to this country much but based on the language on these buildings and billboards and based on how the city looked, he was quite sure he was in Thailand now.

He floated down the building and stood on the footpath, looking around with a glazed look. People were walking past him and even through him, yet none of them had any idea that he was right there.

He even tried touching one of them, but his hand just simply passed through them.

He stepped into the road as vehicles sped past and through him. He looked around and saw how the world was going on like usual, just like he remembered.

He knew everything around him, including the people, would have been a pile of ashes if not for him stopping the Demon King. Yet…the reward he got for it was getting betrayed by his own people.

He now realized how futile it all was. Living for others was a mistake he would never make again.

But his thoughts were disrupted when he suddenly found himself getting pulled away to a different place.

"Hey!" He tried to address the system, but there was no response, and he simply found himself flying through a number of roads till he arrived at a school's terrace where there was a group of four senior high school boys looking around 17 standing around a fat boy of the same age in glasses, standing on his knees with snot and tears dripping down his face.

It only took a single glance for Asher to know that this was a typical bullying situation going on.

He descended towards the terrace as he walked closer to them.

"You fat pig! Next time you are late, we will be stripping you naked for the entire day. Got it?" A youngster with a buzz cut and a cigarette in his mouth said as he kicked the boy's stomach. The nameplate on his shirt read, 'Somsak, while the fat boy's nameplate read, 'Anong.'

"Ugh! P-Please…don't hurt me…I-I won't be late next time!" Anong cried out with a grimace as he clutched his stomach and used his other arm to shield himself.

Asher was surprised he could understand their language. He had never learned their language, and yet it was as if he had always known it. Did the Devils impart this knowledge to him?

"Look at this pig cry, haha. Lick my shoes like a good piggy, and we will forgive you," Another youngster with slick hair said as he placed his shoe before Anong. His nameplate read "Amree."

Anong's chin quivered as he saw the dirty shoe before him with mud and dust sticking over it in a very unsightly way.

A youngster named Arthip kicked Anong's butt, "You deaf? Lick it, or we will strip you now!"

Asher could see Anong's fists clenching tightly as his eyes radiated a wild light for a brief second before they were filled with fear and obeisance.

And the next moment, Anong put out his tongue and licked Amree's shoe with his eyes closed shut, making Asher shake his head who was watching all this.

However, suddenly he saw a message pop up in his head,

[ Quest - Make the human named Anong unleash his deepest desires by having him kill all those who made his life miserable. You have 10 hours ]

"So he really wants them dead?" Asher guessed Anong wanted them dead after noticing how his eyes changed for a split second. But it wasn't a surprise considering what he was going through, and this didn't seem like the first time either. If he was in his shoes, he would have gotten ridden of them all already.

But seeing how there was a 10 hours time limit, Asher's expression became serious, wondering if he would be able to do it. Otherwise, he would die for real.

The time limit just seemed too short, and he was new to this.

[ Rewards : 80 Rating Points ]

"80? That would take me directly to level 3!" Asher was astonished seeing how the rating points he could get from this quest were way higher than any raiding quest of his level.