“Xeron, well done. I didn’t expect you to cause the volcano to erupt and build a city so quickly!”
In the hall, one of the high-rank demons said to Xeron, “King Kreegan is very pleased with your performance and has instructed me to bring you a reward!”
“No matter what the reward is, nothing can make me happier than the impending war!” Xeron replied. “Did His Majesty say when we can start marching?”
“Yes, we can get ready to set off!” the high-rank demon said. “But there’s a problem now. We might not be able to attack the capital of Erathia with our allies, the Dungeon Overlords. According to the reports from our spies, someone has blocked the path to Steadwick, the capital of Erathia!”
“Who?” Xeron asked with displeasure.
“The AvLee elves!” the high-rank demon responded with great annoyance. “They have always been allies of Erathia. Not long ago, a lord of the AvLee Elves brought troops and rushed to support Erathia. Now, they’ve not only blocked our path but also seemed to have found out about our existence. According to the spy reports, they’ve stationed on the main road and built fortifications, preparing to stop our troops at the border of Erathia…”
“Then kill them!” Xeron pounded the table. “Those weak elves, they can’t stop us. With the iron hooves of our Inferno army, all obstacles will turn into ashes!”
Another high-rank demon, who had kept quiet all along, spoke in a coveting manner, “I have the same idea, Xeron. The souls of those elves are very delicious…”
“Unfortunately, I’m afraid it won’t be that easy! We’ve found out that among this army of AvLee elves is the Gold Dragon Queen. She is leading a large number of gold dragons to assist the elven army. Rashka, Xeron, those gold dragons are hard to deal with!”
There was silence in the hall for a while before Xeron said, “You’re right, Ignatius. We need a stronger army lineup!”
The high-rank demon known as Ignatius nodded. “Summon some high-rank demons. Only these high-rank demons can help us against the gold dragons!”
The other high-rank demon Rashka was unhappy. “But if we summon high-rank demons to help, we’ll have to share some of the souls that we harvest…”
Xeron said, “Just share them. With the dragons around, it’ll be difficult to win by just relying on some low-level demons. Our first task now is to work with our allies and surround Steadwick. In the history of Erathia, it has never fallen into enemy hands. Now, we must make history!”
“Good. We’ve reached a consensus!” Ignatius said. “So, who stays here to summon those high-rank demons?”
“I won’t stay here!” Rashka immediately said. “Staying put in the demon city means I can’t go out to fight and harvest souls. This is intolerable for me!”
Ignatius said to Xeron, “Then, Xeron, do you want to remain here?”
“Why me?” Xeron said with great displeasure, “I’ve stayed here long enough this month just to build this damn city, and you still want me to remain here?! I want blood, I want to kill, I want souls! Who can give these if I stay here?!”
“All right!” Ignatius sighed. “In that case, I’ll stay. You guys can set off with the troops first and get rid of the small reconnaissance forces on the way. After I summon a large enough army of demons, I’ll catch up.”
“Hahaha! Ignatius, what a great buddy you are!” Rashka laughed out loud upon hearing that Ignatius was willing to remain. “Don’t worry. I’ll leave some of those pretty elven women for you!”
“Say no more. I’m worried I’ll regret it if you keep going!” Ignatius said. “Damn it. I should have just brought one of the Heretic Lords along when I came. That way, he could have stayed here while I went…”
In the Inferno faction, in addition to pure demons like Xeron, Rashka, and Ignatius, there were some lords who were believers of demons and could also lead demons in the war. These leaders were humans who were ostracized by the human kingdoms because of their belief in demons, and they were frequently known as Heretics. Ignatius was referring to these lords.
As Roy stood guard outside the door and listened to the conversation of the three high-rank demons, he sank into deep thought.
He knew that this was a Heroes of Might and Magic world. But because this was a real world, the situation was very different from the original one in the game.
Here, the Inferno faction leader heroes were actually some high-rank demons. They did not recruit their army using gold coins but summoned it from the Abyss. Well, truth be told, what could demons do with gold coins? They did not buy anything and had no concept of money. The army of the other factions could have been recruited and probably trained.
The heroes leading the troops were high-rank demons, and the high-level soldiers were also big demons that were high-rank demons. At most, their difference was between the top and the bottom. And this led to a problem. Xeron and the others had to modify the contract when they decided to fight against a strong enemy, but high-rank demons could not enslave other high-rank ones, so they could only transact.
The low-rank demons were enslaved, while the middle-rank demons were treated as mounts. Only the same high-rank demons could transact equally. From this, it could be seen that the caste system among demons was divided very clearly. Only strength, bloodline, and rank were crucial in determining the status of a demon.
Actually, from another perspective, Roy gained an advantage by staying in this world. In the Abyss, he had no opportunity to come into contact with high-rank demons, so he did not understand the class division among them. But in this Heroes of Might and Magic world, he had seen not only middle-rank demons but also high-rank demons. With more observation, he would likely be able to understand the differences between the ranks, which could prove useful for reference for his future promotion.
What Roy discovered now was another huge difference.
In the game, heroes led an army and used all types of magic and their own unique traits to provide assistance and bonuses to the army. And even the enemy could not attack them… But that was the game. Now in this real world, since heroes were leading the army, then they had to participate in the war. This was a very huge difference!
Since they were participating in the war, it meant that the heroes could die, especially the belligerent races like demons. Roy did not believe that Xeron and the others would just hide behind the army and cast magic. He could tell from their enthusiastic talk about fighting.
Since the heroes could die on the battlefield, then Roy had room to maneuver…
The Heroes of Might and Magic world was one that centered around war, and it was not a bad idea for Roy to remain here. After all, he could amass a large number of souls to strengthen himself. However, even if he wanted to plunder souls, he did not want to do it under coercion. If possible, Roy certainly preferred waiting until he was more powerful before entering this world to fight as a hero. This way, he would not be picking up the leftovers of others but keeping all the harvest.
Had it been Roy, he too would have liked to enslave other demons to fight for him and harvest those souls on his behalf.
Although Roy had appeared to be obedient all this while, causing Xeron to let his guard down, Roy had never wavered in his desire to get rid of that demon contract.
Since Xeron used the demon way to treat him, he too could use the demon way to treat Xeron. And the best way to get out of a demon contract in the demon way was to have the contractor die!
If the scale of the war was not big enough, Roy would have had difficulty doing so. But now, Roy heard the best news for him.
The enemy this group of demons wanted to deal with was actually dragons. Not only that, but there was also a queen of the gold dragons!
Roy had initially been mentally prepared to work under Xeron for a long time, but little did he expect that the opportunity would come so soon. Roy might not be able to kill Xeron alone, but he could do it with the help of the dragons! As long as Xeron died in the battle with the Gold Dragon Queen, Roy would become free…
So, it’s time to plan…