Chương 76: [2.02] Not in Vulgrest Anymore (Part 2/2)

Following Gawk was, indeed, pretty slow-going. At this rate, she'd heal back up fully before they got to their destination, making the need to Evolve feel less urgent. The guiding Imp moved at a snail's pace, which was probably not too inaccurate, since they were sort of a glorified giant slug. But that was fine. Angelica was in no hurry. It gave her time to cool her head, and the rest of her body, apparently.

With each step away from the summoning circle that had brought her to Hell, the temperature dropped significantly, to the point that it felt like being in a well-conditioned building, or maybe it only felt that way thanks to her now absurdly high Heat Resistance. Still, it was nothing compared to the trial by fire she'd gone through upon first arrival. Maybe her fellow Imp's words were spot on, that it was meant as a trap for intruders, roasting them alive while leaving Demons untouched.

And that would explain why she had taken no damage despite bursting into flames. Looking back at the other Demons who were arriving, they, too, appeared in a blazing inferno, but, honestly, it looked more like them using the fire as the method of delivery rather than spontaneously combusting. Also, now that she had cleared the way, the circle she'd used began spitting out Demons like crazy, meaning she must have been clogging the works with her dallying, so she felt a bit bad.

Since it was looking to be a long walk to their destination, one slow step after another with her comparatively long human legs, she decided to strike up a conversation.

"If you've never seen a human before, then I guess most Demons don't walk around Hell in human form, huh." Angelica looked around. She was definitely getting a couple of odd glances from the Demon crowd, but not the scornful leers she was fearing. Still, maybe it would help to turn back into her Imp form, yet she really didn't want to. After the battle with the Malignant, that time she spent sloshing about in its belly full of stomach acid, there's no way her hairy body was in good shape.

And she'd rather remember the cute puffball form for what it was, not wanting to stain the memory of its likely bald and tattered current condition. Really, most of the monsters didn't seem to care in the slightest, though, too engaged in their own matters and destinations to give a frits about anyone else. If it wasn't Hell and they weren't Demons, the scene would be so reminiscent of the rush hour commute in her city, everyone absorbed in their own business and needs. Maybe Demon society wasn't so different.

Watching them was interesting, as they walked or flew wherever they were going, veering down hallways, slipping into cracks in the walls that closed behind them, or vanishing into new magical circles to teleport elsewhere. For the land of the dead, it sure felt very alive. It made her wonder just what all they could be up to. Were there Demon jobs besides being called by Summoners? Did they have home lives, personal matters, pay Hell taxes?

So many things that she'd never thought about that were now engorging her curiosity.

"Hmm, nah, not really, at least not that I've seen," Gawk answered.

"But I'm probably not the best one to ask. Haven't actually been in Hell myself most of the time, and when I have, it's pretty much just been attending lessons with my brood. We're encouraged to train our Skills, though, especially Transfiguration, so I imagine there's a decent amount who do that when they have the MP to spare.

"Still, most definitely aren't like me who was excited to see one, and often talk about being tired of looking at humans, so they probably Transfigure into other things most of the time. Honestly, I'm not looking forward to the Skill too much. I understand why it's important, that we're limited on what we can do and where we can go without it, but I just like being me, y'know? Oh, but don't take that the wrong way. If you wanna walk around as a human for whatever reason, do it! Don't let them judge you.

Everyone's different. And you showed me something new, so now I won't be so surprised when I see a real one. Thank you!" The more that Gawk spoke, the more it felt like they were far more mature than an Imp should be. Gelic had basically assumed that they were considered the annoying toddlers of the Demon world, but this little fellow was wise beyond their Rank. That said, it would seem they'd been an Imp for a good while, so they possibly had a lot more time to mature compared to others.

Also, out of both curiosity and to stop dancing around the matter, she had to ask.

"Hey, do you have a gender you prefer?" Given that they were just an eye and some flesh, it certainly wasn't as easy to tell or guess.

"Hmm, nope, never really thought about it." They genuinely did not seem to care.

"Oh, why don't you give me one?!"

"Erm, really, you'd be fine with that?" The suggestion caught her off-guard.

"Yeah, whatever you think I come across as. Maybe it'd help when it comes time for me to learn Transfiguration, because I've been having a hard time trying to figure out what my disguise should look like. Me as a human, it just seems so weird."

"Hmm." Angelica gave the little creature another glance.

"I guess I'd picture you as like a male teenager. Yeah, that seems about right."

"Okay! I think I've got a general idea now…" Gawk paused.

"Hmm, still blanking a lot on the details. But I think your human form is neat, so maybe a male youthful version of that! Yeah, I've got it now. That will help a bunch, thanks! I am a male Demon named Gawk. Which helps with another problem, since they ask if you have a preference when you register, and I was totally going to get stuck on that one for a bit. They say it's to help with consistency when presenting yourself to humans." With that settled, there was still something else on Angelica's mind.

"So you mentioned not being in Hell much, but also not around humans. Where have they been sending you?" Now that she had confirmed this place with her own eyes, there was no reason for her to doubt another anomaly occasionally mentioned by the Demon Growth System: other worlds. Would she go to them someday too? Deal with their Summoners, explore their lands? The idea was tantalizing but also terrifying.

"Uhh, I don't know if it actually has a name," he answered, surprisingly unhelpful for the first time.

"Everyone just calls it 'that place' but I think that's on purpose. The Demon Lord wants it to stay peaceful, from what I gather, a quiet place where us Imps can get some practice and experience. And, yeah, there're no humans there. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

"But there are a bunch of animals, and they use them to train us as stand-ins for Summoners. I think they're a bit smarter than other worlds' animals, from what I've heard. They've learned to draw basic circles and can convey their desires wordlessly. It's usually just food. Spent so much time foraging food for them, but it was fun. And one time, I helped this fluffy thing build a small dam across a river from trees they'd felled.

"Took forever! Half of my brood graduated by the time I finished up. It's a shame you never got to go with your brood, since I really enjoyed my time there. But now, once I Evolve, they're finally gonna let me go to other worlds and be a proper Demon. I'll be able to meet Summoners, gain Essence on my own, and finally contribute toward the cause!" Those last words echoed in Angelica's ears. The cause. She'd only heard, or rather read, it once before, but it had stuck with her.

Knowing exactly where it was, she checked it again, listed at the tail-end for the description of "Demon Rank" in her Scrying Eye. [The higher it is, the stronger you are, the more respected, and the more useful you will become to the cause] Now, as to what "the cause" was, she still had no idea. And while Gawk had been a great source of resourcefulness so far, and she'd probably confided in him things that were already on the border of too much, this felt like something she definitely could not ask outright.

If even a lowly Imp knew about it, then it must be something all Demons were clued into. Should she come out and express her ignorance on the matter, that felt like it would be waving the "imposter" flag far too boldly. Hopefully, it was something she could eventually piece together with context clues and hope that nobody called her out as an unhelpful slacker before then. Besides that, she had something else from her new pal's words to fixate on. A world of just animals?

Angelica definitely had to visit there at some point. Could she pet them? It sounded like they were pretty social, so maybe even hand feed them. And who knew, maybe as a reward for completing their Contracts they'd even be open to some naptime cuddles—give Cherub a break, though her cat had come to look forward to snuggling with her own cat form. Serving animal Summoners probably didn't pay much in the way of Essence, but it would sure pay fat stacks for her mental health.

"Oh, what world have you been to?" It was Gawk's turn to inquire.

"If they have nice Summoners, maybe I'll head there first!"

"Erm, well, there're good and bad." Gelic didn't want him to misunderstand.

"I've probably had about an even amount of each. The world is called Casniem." As soon as she said it, she couldn't help but wonder if it came out right, what Gawk had heard. Surely the language of her world wasn't the common speak of Hell, and since the pair had no problems communicating, it was surely thanks to the Tongues Skill. Maybe maxing it out or at least raising it decently was part of the Imp training he'd mentioned. Honestly, she was starting to be a bit envious of that.

It sounded a bit like Demon daycamp, and she definitely felt like she'd missed out.

"I've had pretty good experiences with a Sect called Zenmoon, so far."

"Nice, thanks for the tip!

"Oh, I know there was a magician named Ziesta who was looking for a long-term Bound, if you're good at magic tricks."

"Err, don't think I'd be good at that, at least not with my current Skills. Maybe after we Evolve, though. See what I get!"

"Stay away from scuffers known as Lustre and Revice. Hate them, for real."

"Noted, thanks!"

"There's also a High Summoner named Fioso who helped me learn a lot, but I don't know if he does many calls. He even has a Bound Daemon who taught me some stuff too."

"Woah, a Bound Daemon?! They must be super strong! My brood's caretaker was a Daemon, and it's hard to imagine anyone being able to bind him."

"Actually…" There was something a bit heavy that Gelic kind of wanted to discuss.

"What are your thoughts on being Bound? I've been Bound since I was born, so I don't really know what it's like otherwise. My current master is really nice, and I'm fine with being her Bound, but others… Pretty much all of them have tried to bind me, nice or not. So the idea of being stuck with one I don't like… Is it just something we Demons just have to suck up?" That made Gawk stop to think, which Angelica definitely regretted a bit because they didn't need an excuse to be travelling any slower.

"Well…" The eyeball pondered in earnest.

"It is completely scary, isn't it? I don't think that fear ever goes away. But it's also just the way of things, how it all works. We may not like it, but it's what we have to deal with. And that's okay, because there's always an eventual way out, an escape, hope that we'll break free someday. We may do stupid things, or be forced to degrade ourselves, but it's all worth it in the end.

"Humans may think they're using us, but we're the ones using them! That's what I've been taught. They get their quick rewards, but we have the better deal. We get to grow, get Skills, become stronger, Evolve! That leads to a future that can be whatever we want, where we can help the cause come to fruition. So really, they're just the stepping stones.

"That said, if I met a nice Summoner, I don't think I'd mind being Bound. Especially if they let me go out and see things. I really like seeing new things, new places, meeting new people. Maybe a human who would travel the worlds with me. Yeah, that'd be cool. Oh, and hey, you didn't mention the name of your master. If they're nice, maybe they'd be willing to summon me, too!" There he went with that eager, expectant eye again. It was a shame she had to let him down. Well, sort of.

"Sorry, but she's not actually all that strong yet," Angelica didn't lie about herself.

"I don't think she's able to summon another Demon for now. But in the future, listen out for a call from Merlina!" Hell, she'd gone and done it now, but she couldn't resist. Even if she was struggling with her own Essence, once she was capable, her Summoner persona would summon Gawk and be the best master he ever had. After getting Identity Fraud, of course. And actually, maybe she could summon two Demons at this point.

She hadn't checked what had changed since she became a Novice Rank Summoner, so it was quite possible, but also felt unlikely, since the Novice she'd run into was struggling to summon even one. The trip to the Demon Services Office didn't take much longer. Angelica had no way to track the time, but it felt like roughly half an hour total. Walking at her own pace, it probably only would have taken a few minutes at her usual human-legged pace, and if she were to bounce as an Imp, likely only a few seconds.

But it was all well and good. She'd thoroughly enjoyed her stroll with her new Demon friend, and she prayed that friendship existed after they'd reinvented themselves, that this budding relationship would endure whatever changes, mental and physical, were about to come. Something was rather offputting about the office, however. The large building, which was nestled at the end of a large cavern… its design felt very… human. And the inside was worse.

A potent stench riddled Angelica's senses, bringing up unfond memories of past tribulation—not a physical smell, but rather, the place reeked of bureaucracy.