In a place filled with black soil, obsidian rocks, small patches of red grass, flowing rivers of ichor-like water, and a black sky with seven purple moons illuminating a vast and boundless plane, infernal energies coalesced, forming a new life.

From thin air, a pebble-sized, grey, and ball-shaped creature was born. It had a pair of small and yellowish beady eyes and a long slit for a mouth. These were the only characteristics of this creature, the weakest creature of the infernal plane, the Grey demon.

This Grey demon, like any other grey demon, had a base instinct. To kill, eat, and evolve. Glancing around, the grey demon soon found another of its kin forming up near it. A primal and predatory instinct took over its simple mind. By slightly flattening its small body and using its natural elasticity, it began to hop towards the still unborn Grey demon, ready to kill and feast on it.

However, just after jumping ten times...

Chomp*

The small grey demon had half its body bitten off by a larger grey demon, splashing yellowish blood all over, killing it instantly. The larger grey demon, being twice as tall and having a body mass eight times larger than the smaller one, relished in its new meal. It ground the meat to small bits using its razor-sharp teeth before swallowing it.

Up until now, the larger grey demon killed and ate ninety-eight of its siblings. Now, it killed its nine ninths. If it killed and ate one more, it instinctively knew that it could mutate into a more powerful evolution. While it could have evolved after killing merely ten of its siblings, it had higher ambitions. It wished to grow! To become stronger than its peers!

And now, it saw another of its brethren forming up. It leisurely advanced towards its sibling, knowing that it would be easy picking. After this, it could finally evolve to what it wanted.

However, just after it bounced a dozen times, it halted its hopping. It was because it felt large booming sounds.

Boom* Boom* Boom*

It turned around and saw a huge bipedal red figure. Even just its leg was many times larger than itself. It recognized it as the angel of death. The small demon still vividly remembered it. It remembered how its siblings died at the giant's hands.

Run! - That was its base thought.

It began hopping in a frenzy, attempting to get away from the menacing figure behind it... To no avail.

Stab*

The giant bipedal figure stabbed the grey demon with a giant knife, instantly killing it. Such was the end of another ambitious grey demon.

By this time, the unborn grey demon was finally born. The first thing that it saw in its naive and innocent eyes was a huge red bipedal creature. In its left hand was a grey ball oozing yellowish liquid, and the other was a knife that dripped with said liquid.

Its instinct told it that the grey ball was tasty, but its simple and inexperienced mind didn't register the red giant as a threat. It simply stared at the huge figure, blinking innocently. In the meantime, the red giant put the grey ball inside a container. The giant then stared at the newborn grey demon, and after pausing for a bit, it reached out its now-empty left hand towards it.

The newborn didn't resist or struggle. It simply stared innocently at the large creature that picked it up. The large creature then said something in a language that it didn't know. Then, it opened up its large maw and brought the grey demon towards it.

The newborn grey demon just stared at the quickly approaching maw in wonder. It didn't register its impending doom in the slightest. Just when it was about to enter the maw, suddenly, it received a weird prompt that, somehow, it could read, although it didn't know what reading is.

[One of your seven princes, The great aspect of Lust, Asmodeus herself, has offered you a familiar contract with an LVL 0 Human from the main plane. If you accept, you will become soul-bound to it and will need to obey its commands. Do you accept? Yes/ No?]

The newborn didn't know the implications of being personally offered a familiar contract from one of the rulers of the infernal plane. Nor did it understand what a familiar contract is. Neither did it understand what a soul or soul-bound is or what an LVL 0 Human is. As for obeying commands, it had absolutely no opinion on it. So, without any hesitation, it selected the first option. Not because it wanted to select Yes, but because it wanted to dismiss the annoying prompt that blocked a corner of its vision.

Flash*

And then it disappeared from the giant's hand with a flash, as if it was never there.

 

 

 

 

Olgorin, a naturally born LVL 1 Elite Imp Rogue of a nameless rural Imp tribe, who also worked as a grey demon shepherd as most young and growing Imps do, was about to take a bite at the tasty newborn grey demon when suddenly...

Flash*

His clawed hand flashed with a bright light, and the grey demon in his hand seemed to have vanished.

Staring in disbelief at his hand, he asked himself, "Eh... What just happened?"

Blinking his young, yellowish, and verticle eyes, he stared at his hand in wonderment and deep thought. Snapping out of his reverie, he suddenly started looking around himself for the grey demon.

"It must have slipped."  He mused to himself.

However, after searching for a whole two minutes, he gave up.

He said with a weird tone, "A newborn should not be able to run so far from me..."

He then looked at his relatively barren surroundings. All other grey demons in the area already ran away from him like the plague, so his immediate proximity was empty. Also, his naturally strong senses should have located the small creature by now. In other words...

He suddenly turned pale and started to sweat. He came to a realization.

"I-It was... It was... S-Summoned... Oh fuck... Oh fuck. Oh, fuck! OH FUCK! OH FUCK! OH FUCK! FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!!!!"

A grey demon shepherd had few duties. The first was to hunt and collect large enough grey demons from the fenced growing area. The second was to make sure the enchanted fences, their function being to gather infernal energies into the growing area and promote grey demon birth, were functional. The third was to check for anomalies, such as a grey demon evolving or some foreign demon climbing over the fence to get some food and act according to the situation. The fourth and final duty... is to monitor if a grey demon is summoned. Something less likely to happen in a hundred years in a particular growing area than to win the Powerball on Earth.

Olgorin tried to calm himself down. The horrible stories from his elder, the village elder, rang in his head. He knew that the village was in danger now, and he had to report this immediately.

Using his naturally powerful speed, enhancing himself with aura, and even using his racial skill Light step I, he ran at breakneck speed towards his village. On the way, he shouted to his fellow shepherd, another juvenile imp.

The imp was red-skinned, 1.2m tall, had stubby red horns growing on its bald head, a crooked nose, a wrinkly face, yellowish irises with verticle pupils, long and droopy ears, long and thin arms, and shortish yet powerful legs. It also sported a smallish red tail with a barbed end, two underdeveloped bat wings on its back, and had sharp claws and teeth as its natural weapons.

It was an LVL 0 Imp named Egech. Unlike Olgorin, who was naturally born at LVL 1 Elite Imp Rogue, Egech was born as an LVL 0 Imp. After doing quests and eating a lot of LVL 1 monster meat, he reached the peak of LVL 0. Most of the village kids were like that.

From a visual perspective, Olgorin was taller than Egech, standing at 1.3m in height. His horns were larger, the wings on his back were bigger, his tail was longer, his nose was less crooked, his ears were shorter, his head had raven black hair, and his face was smoother and more humanlike. He had longer legs compared to Egech, and his arms and legs were more muscular.

While regular Imps were Rank H+, Elite Imps were Rank G+, more powerful than a regular G Rank human on the same LVL.

Elite Imps were 50% stronger in an overall manner than regular Imps. Also, being a Rogue made Olgorin both smarter and faster than his peers. This was just his base stats. He also had racial skills. The basic racial skill of Imps, magic-sight I, was a skill that enhanced vision. It combined aspects of dark vision, as well as perceiving mana with their sight. It was one of the rare counters against invisibility, making them good scouts when combined with their small size and wings. The Rogue skill that he got was Light step I. It enhanced his speed by making his body lighter and reducing air resistance and drag when activated, a good skill for both running and flying. He also got Fire(Rudimentary) attunement that allowed him to use some basic fire magic, something that evolved imps had. In addition to that, he also had Magic Resistant Skin I, a skill that increased magic resistance slightly. This was a racial skill of evolved Imps.

His only disappointment was that he had two free unique skill slots. One of the downsides of being born at LVL 1 and not advancing through your own effort is that unique skills are filled, or empty, at random at birth. And he drew the short end of the stick... Although only one in five usually had a unique skill at birth, however weak it was, let alone two.

Because of the natural difference in strength and the gravitas held by higher races, Olgorin was considered a small juvenile leader among his generation in his tribe.

Olgorin called out in haste, his slightly hoarse and high-pitched voice sounding, "Egech!"

Egech, who was lazily staring at the Grey demons over the fence, immediately perked up and looked at his leader charging in his direction and replied in surprise, and an even more hoarse and high-pitched voice then Olgorin sounding, "Boss! What is it?!"

Olgorin didn't have time to chat with his subordinate and cut to the chase, "Egech, cover for me! A Grey Demon was summoned! I need to go back to the tribe!"

Egech thought he heard wrong and asked in fright, "W-What?! Sorry boss, I think I heard wrong! Please repeat that?!"

Olgorin ignored him and continued running at full speed, leaving a frightened and pale Egech behind.

After running at the speed of 94 km/h for five minutes, the speed of a car on the highway and over twice as fast as Usain's world record, he arrived at a small tribe, his tribe.

The tribe was surrounded by a 3m tall wall made out of obsidian rock. Covering the walls were specialized runes that absorbed mana into itself while filtering out infernal energies. This not only prevented monsters from spawning inside the tribe but also strengthened the walls.

Standing guard by the entrance of the village were two initial LVL 1 Imp Brawlers. One male and one female. They both wore bone armor and held bone spears, tied together with sinew and leather.

Unlike Olgorin, who was naturally born as an Elite Imp, these two guards were born as regular Imps and only evolved a class and not their race. As adult Imps Brawlers, both of them were 1.4m tall and were more muscular than Olgorin. However, apart from that, they still had the same characteristics as regular Imps. Female Imps looked like male Imps apart from except for their breasts and slightly smoother face.

In raw strength, they were stronger than Olgorin, but only because they were adults and had more training. If they were at the same age and same training, Olgorin would be as strong as them because of his higher race. If they were to be compared in anything else, especially speed and finesse, Olgorin could absolutely trounce them.

To evolve into an Elite Imp costed many times more points than to evolve just a class, which meant risking yourself more. That was why they chose to evolve into Imp brawlers, like many others in the tribe. Only one in ten would attempt it... And only one in twenty on average would succeed. That was why their status in the tribe was lower than Olgorin.

When both of the guards saw Olgorin rushing at such high speeds, they both tensed up. Olgorin had only ever rushed to the tribe like that two years ago. When he did that, it was because an LVL 2 High Infernal Salamander entered the growing area and started munching on everything, destroying a part of the fence and killing one of the other shepherds in the process.

As they expected, the next moment, he shouted something that brought them both dread and disbelief, something far worse than just a wild beast attack.

"A GREY DEMON WAS SUMMONED! A GREY DEMON WAS SUMMONED!!!"

The two guards looked at each other in complete dismay. The male guard motioned to the female guard, "Go!"

The female guard nodded and immediately rushed into the tribe.

Inside the tribe, houses made out of obsidian rocks and huts made out of bone and leather served as a shelter for its residents. Most of the residents were women, children, and elderly, of which most of them were regular Imps, with a scant few being Elites. Most of the adult hunters, the elites of the tribe, were out hunting.

The guard directly rushed to the biggest house in the village, the Elder's house. Instead of having a proper door, the house entrance was instead covered by some leather. However, the guard didn't dare rush inside. Instead, she was about to shout to the elder, but a magnetic yet old male voice sounded from inside, stopping her, "Tell Olgorin and Sar'guz to see me."

The female guard immediately answered in a croaky voice, no different than a male's, "Yes, Elder!"

Just as she went back, she got confused. Sar'guz? Wasn't he out hunting?

Oh, he probably just came back. - she mused to herself.

And just like she thought, she saw Sar'guz and Olgorin, riding on a huge dark red salamander, the same LVL 2 High Infernal Salamander that attacked the village two years ago. Sar'guz tamed it. Both Sar'guz and a tired Olgorin dismounted the Salamander, and the female guard looked at Sar'guz with pure desire and worship.

Sar'guz was a tall Imp, standing at 1.65m in height. His red skin looked glossy and smooth. His horns were larger than even elite Imps, his tail was long, and looked sharp and deadly. His wings were large and developed enough for flight. His face was smooth and without wrinkles. His eyes were deeper and more golden than that of his son. His ears were short and slightly pointy. His nose was slightly large yet not crooked. His body looked chiseled, forming a triangular shape. Thick and muscular arms and legs with claws that are sharp enough to break stones. He also had a black beard and long hair. He wore bone armor and a bone sword sheathed on his waist.

In total, he looked heroic and could pass off as a human in incredible cosplay on Earth.

Sar'guz was an LVL 3 High Imp Soldier. High Imps were the evolved form of Elite Imps, and Soldier was an LVL 3 warrior-type class. He was originally born as an LVL 2 High Imp Fighter and then evolved only his class when he reached LVL 3.

The female guard wanted to bear his children, like many of the other women in the tribe. It was a known fact that the more highly evolved a creature, the higher the chance that its descendants would be born at a higher LVL. Olgorin was a prime example. Olgorin was Sar'guz's and another female Elite Imps, child. In fact, about half of the hunting team were Sar'guz's children, with one even being born as a High Imp!

Even if the chance that she gave birth to an Elite Imp as a regular Imp was not high, with Sar'guz's seed, she had a nice chance! Alas... Sar'guz had more refined tastes and wouldn't lower himself to sleep with a regular Imp like her... Although the chances of an Elite being born is lower, she would make do with seducing one of the Elite goblins. Who knows? Maybe she would get lucky.

Thinking up to this point, she stared at Olgorin but dismissed the thought. He was already engaged to an Elite Imp from another tribe. Besides, he was barely 10. While he could technically produce seed, she wouldn't force herself on a child.

Shaking her head from those distracting thoughts, she quickly went up to the two men and saluted respectfully, "Hunting leader, young master Olgorin, the Elder has requested your presence."

Sar'guz directly ignored her lowly self and went to the Elder's house with rapid steps along with his son.

A few minutes back, he just returned after hunting an Infernal bull, when he suddenly heard his tenth recognized son shouting that a grey demon was summoned. Knowing his son wouldn't cry wolf in vain, he immediately picked him up and went to the Elder.

When he reached the entrance of the Elder's house, his face turned dignified. He said in a clear and masculine voice, "Elder, requesting permission to enter."

A magnetic voice sounded from within, "Enter."

Sar'guz Immediately pulled the leather covering to the side and entered the house, followed by his son. Inside the house, he saw rows upon rows of bone shelves filled with precious scrolls and tomes of ancient lore. Furniture made out of rock and padded with leather. Skulls of exotic nature, still emitting frightening auras that could even make him cower in fear. Exotic and rare infernal plants and other rare alchemical ingredients. An alchemical cauldron lay in the middle of the room, and translucent vials... Glass, the Elder called them, were on one of the tables, some filled with magical potions, and some filled with preserved body parts.

A dignified and old man reclined on one of those chairs, reading a thick tome of magic worth an incalculable amount of cores. The man wore silken robes with runes, mage robes, unseen in these desolate parts of the Infernal plane.

Blemishless white skin, neatly trimmed shiny silver hair full of vitality, attractive and deep golden eyes, small round ears with rare metallic earrings adorned with magic crystals, a straight nose, and a trimmed beard and trimmed fingernails. He had a few aging wrinkles that, somehow, made him look even more attractive, giving off a mature and experienced vibe.

The only things that gave out his identity as a demonic being were only his verticle pupils and small horns on his forehead.

Sar'guz did not know how strong the Elder was, nor did he dare imagine. He only knew that this Elder is his distant ancestor that lived in seclusion in these parts for some unknown reason. The only time that he managed to even glimpse at this Elder's power was when the tribe was about to be assaulted by an LVL 4 Infernal Lesser drake. The Elder didn't even exit the house. A meteor suddenly fell from the sky, crushing the drake into meat paste. That happened when he was but a boy.

Gazing at the Elder, who did not seem to age a single bit in these past thirty years, he bowed respectfully and said, "Elder, my son claims that a grey demon was summoned."

The Elder didn't remove his gaze from his tome as he said, "I know. I sensed the spatial fluctuations before he even arrived, and I heard what he screamed by the village entrance."

Sar'guz asked respectfully and with some fear, "Then, Elder, do we evacuate the village?"

After flipping a page, the elder answered in a relaxed manner, "You don't need to panic. I made you all fearful of such an event on purpose to make sure you will inform me if such an event occurs. While the stories about grey demons getting summoned as familiars, only to return as high LVL seven sin demons and committing mass murder is true, it isn't the whole truth. It actually largely depends on the summoner's personality, as well as our own actions. Very rarely does such a calamity happen."

"Then, what should we do? Are we to sit here and wait until it returns?"

"That depends." The Elder then looked at Olgorin, "Boy. Tell me. Under what circumstances was it summoned?"

Olgorin stammered, "I-It was a newborn, sir. I picked it up and was about to eat it before it disappeared..."

The Elder asked again, "Did it struggle? Did it do anything at all?"

"N-No, sir. It was relaxed in my grasp the whole time."

The Elder sighed, "Innocence... The prince of Lust, hah?"

Now it was Sar'guz who stuttered, "T-The prince of Lust? THAT prince of Lust?"

"Yes... The prince of Lust. One of the seven rulers of this plane. It was she who summoned it."

"H-How do you know?"

The Elder glanced at him before returning his gaze to the tome and said, "Only the great seven princes of the infernal plane have the ability to summon a grey demon. No other minor god of this plane has the authority. These gods will select a grey demon with the most suitable dormant personality in the grey demon.

Those who struggle against all odds, unwilling to bend, even facing death, are summoned by Pride, for they are prideful even in the face of death.

Those who starve constantly are summoned by Gluttony, for hunger is the origin of Gluttony.

Those who ambush in a specific location and prey on newborns are summoned by Sloth, for they are too lazy to actively hunt.

Those who tend to gather shiny things are summoned by Greed, for it is a sign of materialistic love.

Those who are cornered and need to repress their rage are summoned by Wrath, for it is the origin of the madness it represents.

Those who covet what belongs to others, such as dead bodies, are summoned by Envy, a clear reflection of its envious nature.

And lastly, those who are innocent and pure of mind and heart will be summoned by Lust, for Lust is excessive love, and love is pure and innocent... At least in the beginning.

The grey demon that got summoned was a naive and innocent newborn. Hence, it was summoned by the Prince of Lust."

Sar'guz listened carefully and then asked, clearly confused, "So, is it good or bad?"

The elder replied with a sigh, "I do not know. It mostly depends on the summoner and his circumstances. Those who receive a grey demon as a familiar usually possess an incredible potential that only the great gods can see... Or it is just a whim of one of them out of boredom. If I were to presumptuously assume that the summoner would evolve his familiar into a Lust demon variant, the situation would be a variant, as Lust is the most unpredictable of the seven sins."

He then closed the tome and walked to a window. As he stared at the seven purple moons, he said, "However, even if the prince of Lust is unpredictable, she should be aware of my presence here. Hence, knowing how intelligent she is, I doubt that we will have a problem. If I were to make a wild guess, the prince has bigger plans involved, and we are all a part of it. Woe is me..."

The father and son due looked at each other in dismay. If even their mighty Elder was wary of the future, how should they feel?

Sar'guz warily asked, "What are your orders, Elder?"

Without turning his back, the Elder said, "Keep an eye on the area where it was summoned. If the summoner even has half a brain, which I would assume he has one, he would wait until his summon reaches LVL 0 or 1 at the very least before sending it here again. At that time, do not attack it under any circumstances and keep your distance. I will go there personally."

Both Sar'guz and Olgorin bowed their head and said in unison, "Yes, Elder."

After they both left, the Elder muttered to himself while staring at the moons, "Whim of the gods, hah?"