Hey, it's me, standing around whilst chaos is happening. I've got a ring on my finger, a piece of paper in my hand, and an indestructible mask on. You know, the mask I got from the God of Gods fellow. I heard he got sent to execution recently, but he escaped before the guillotine went hard on his neck. Good for him. As for what I'm doing, I'm doing nothing. I'd be contributing to the fight, but since it's mostly small-fry, they said Mel, Mimi and Michelle are all that was needed. I could've taken them all by myself, but apparently, that was overkill, that they needed to hide their trump card, and that I didn't deserve cake.

So I'm just standing here, watching Mel, Mimi, and Michelle do work. Mimi and Michelle are on the frontlines, taking out criminal mook after criminal mook. Michelle is doing most of the brute work, telekinetically lifting knocked-out foes and throwing them at the enemy. Mimi is sneakily flanking them, paralysing any of their ranged fighters. On the other hand, Mel is taking out anyone who tries to sneak up on Michelle whilst also relaying information with the help of magic provided by Carte and Maxine.

By the way, Carte and Maxine are beside me. I hate it. I can obviously tell that they mean something to each other, and it's pissing me off. The princess keeps going on about how the sorceress should come, while the sorceress keeps going on about how she must continue her search. You know, the kind of tragic love story you'd read about in novels. I think… it's been a while since I've read fiction. I stopped reading when the Reincarnator's Organisation got involved with the publishing companies. Their taste in stories is… well, I don't like them, personally.

You know what, I'm bored. I wonder if I can go into that shadow prison I sent the Creator's Kid into. I'd love to interrogate them. Get some juicy information about the Creator. Oh my god, what if I tried seducing them? Being able to call the Creator 'Father-in-law' sounds too funny to not do. After I tie the knot with Mel and get her permission, I'll do that. Since I'm standing in a shadow right now, I might get sent there if I just sink into it. Ring of Lurking Darkness, let me lurk!

…

…

…

Oh god, all I can see is black. This was a mistake. Shit, shit, shit. "Your eyes are merely closed. Open them to see." Oh… I opened my eyes and found myself in a prison. A prison that's really dedicated to being black. I like it. I looked around to see who told me to open my eyes to find an elf. An old-looking elf, who wore regular elf clothes and… I've just realised I don't know anything about elven fashion. It might actually be weird elf clothes.

"We meet once again, Madeleine."

"Do I know you?"

"I am Mad Rox, the former holder of Shadow Cloning. We met on the day of the Patras Tribe's destruction."

"Oh, the skeleton! How's it going? Where are we?"

"I am doing well. We are currently inside the prison section of Shadow Cloning's dimension, the Shadowrealm."

"Ooh, the Shadowrealm. Sounds scary. So why is there a prison here?"

"It is tied to how Shadow Cloning produces clones. Please," He created two chairs out of the shadow and sat down, "Take a seat. I shall explain."

"Aye aye, chief!" I took a seat. For a shadow, it's pretty comfy.

"The amount of clones one can make depends on their affinity with Darkness. Demons tend to summon more clones than an angel. Certain occupations also find it easier to utilise Shadow Cloning. A ninja would be able to summon ten, while a paladin would struggle to summon one. Based on your heritage and abilities, Shadow Cloning will have a limit. Some have it high, while others have it low."

"I see, I see."

"There are ways to have clones beyond the limit. One way is passing down Shadow Cloning and letting yourself become a shadow. This inheritance allows you to summon 32 more shadows over your limit."

"Are the shadows clones of you guys or me?"

"You decide which, as you are in control."

"Coolio."

"Another way is to imprison others into your shadow and turn them into your shadow. That is why there is a prison. This is where they rest while they wait to be converted."

"Huh. That's wild. So if I keep putting people in, I'll get more shadows?"

"Correct. There is one exception, however."

"What is it?"

"Other Sacred Power holders. In those cases, they are just held within these cells indefinitely, awaiting release. Unfortunately, not even death reaches here."

"That sucks… so how many prisoners are there?"

"Only three. The two you captured, and one other who never goes away, even when given the choice of freedom."

"Take me to them!" We stood up, and he led me to the cells. We first came across the Creator's kid, who still had their cloak up. Hmm… I'll strip them later. I've got all the time in the world to talk to them.

The second cell we came across had a familiar yelling. Oh, man… I do not miss this at all. The insane screamer, as soon as he noticed, ran straight to the bars, grabbed them, and started yelling at me, "DELIRIUM IS COMING!!! YOU HAVE MET YOUR LOVER'S PARENTS!!! WHY DOES THE CREATOR MISPRONOUNCE LASAGNA?! STAB THE THIEF!!! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!" Suddenly, he collapsed.

"I pity his insanity."

"I do too."

We continued walking until we reached the end of the cells, and in the very last one was a demon, sitting upright, his legs crossed and his arms to his side.

"So this is the guy who doesn't come out?"

"Yes."

"Does that mean he's a Sacred Power holder?"

"Yes."

"That's all I needed to know." I walked towards the cell. "Yo, what up demon."

"Pleased to meet you. I am temptation itself. I can give you anything you need. Power, information, and so much more. All you need to do is make a deal."

"Ooh… anything?"

"I can tell you who your parents are. I can give you the object of your desire. I can kill your greatest enemy. Just know I'll be asking for something in return."

"Then I want to look into your eyes."

"..."

"..."

"Is that it? Really?"

"Yeah."

"Boring, but fine. Consider it on the house." He stood up and walked to the bars, opening his eyes to reveal a swirling mix of abyssal black, blood red, and for some reason, lime green. I like lime green. Looks tasty.

"I'm satisfied. Bye bye, Mr Devil."

"See you. Hope you make a proper deal next time."

I walked back to Mad. "Will you be returning back to the world?"

"Yeah."

"Then I shall go back to training your clones. Any last enquiries?"

"How many clones do I have?"

"You had around 50, but as soon as you acquired that ring, it feels like you now have an innumerable amount."

"Oh, good to know. Then I'll be off. Have fun training them."

"Understood. Farewell, for now, Madeleine."

I'm back in the real world, and holy shit. Looks like things got severe, since a guy is standing on top of Mimi, Michelle, Mel, Maxine and Carte's knocked-out bodies. "So there's just a maid left. How disappointing." I've decided I want to beat his ass up.

Character profile: Pam

Sacred power: The Devil

Deals made: 31

Description: The maker of deals, stuck in the Shadowrealm. It is unknown which Shadow Cloning holder brought him into the Shadowrealm, but what is known is that even the oldest holder currently residing in the Shadowrealm found him in his corner cell. There is a theory among the shadows that the Shadowrealm is a separate dimension made solely to seal away this fiend, and Shadow Cloning was created from an escape attempt of his. Another theory is that he tried to make a deal with the first holder of Shadow Cloning but was outsmarted and trapped within the Shadowrealm, and stays here out of respect for the first holder. In truth, he was a friend of the first holder, and when he was taken in for the first time, he just refused to come out. He has managed to make a deal with every holder of Shadow Cloning, excluding Madeleine.

Chapter namesake: Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones

pojlk

So I finished the glossary, I think. There's probably some more stuff I could add, but holy shit, there's too much stuff. It turns out there's some limit to how many entries you can have in a single category, so something tells me that I might push the Glossary feature to its absolute limits. Well, I wanted to do that, so it's alright. I'd recommend having a look at it. It's a good timewaster. You don't have to look at it, though, since it's mostly the character profiles found at the end of each chapter. Some of them do have added facts, though.