Waiting outside, Damon decided to check his status:

Damon Asmodeus LVL. 4 (30/1000)

• All humanoid language acquisitions
• Arithmetic’s Lvl.6/7
• Black magic Lvl.2/10
• Dark magic Lvl.2/10
• Dark spirit communication Lvl.2/10
• Detect diseases and viruses through smell Lvl.3/5
• Earth magic Lvl.1/5
• Improved memory Lvl.2/5
• Medium disease tolerance
• Night vision
• Telepathy Lvl.3/10

Deep in his heart he thanked Emilia for bringing him with her. Thanks to the massive increase in his level he also confirmed that either intelligence or endurance influenced mana. He could also guess that the points gained after levelling up were attributed based on a person’s activity a bit before the level up. This made perfect sense, but it wasn’t very convenient.

Any who, he’d have to find a way to use his intelligence before and during combat to guide his perk point distribution.

Not long after Emilia came out of the cave, her clothes still pristine. And there, on a log, Damon looked like a convict who had fought his way out of prison.

“Let’s go then,” said Emilia. She dusted off her clothes.

“Where do the trolls live?”

“Further to the east. They’re not a big problem if you’re a level four magician. They’re pure physical fighters so, as long as you keep your distance, they won’t pose a problem. However, for low-level mages like you, well, you wouldn’t last long, to say the least. They’re equivalent to level five fighters yet their organs aren’t valuable. Perhaps if there were more mage adventurers then some would go for trolls, but for now they have bigger fish to fry.”

Half an hour into their travels the trees began to regain their lustre. The tree barks no longer looked old, and green leaves out numbered their shrivelled and grey counterparts.

“Are we not still in the Forest?”

Emilia looked up at the changing scenery. “Technically yes, however, there are a few specific regions in the forest which are, well, a bit different. It’s been like that ever since I’ve been part of the sect and in all honesty I’ve never asked anyone the question. You’re just a curious one.”

This redirected Damon’s attention to his employer. “Do you know how old the sect is?”

Emilia shook her head. “Demons are the rulers of the sect, and are time immemorial. I doubt they themselves know. As mortals all we can do is to worship them in exchange for their grace.”

A while later they arrived on a small rocky mountain which overlooked a village made of straw and wooden houses.

“They live in villages?” asked Damon.

“It’s no different than the goblins who live in caves or the wolves who live in packs. Solitary animals are the exception, we are no different. Even us, black mages who are pushed out of cities and villages live in groups.”

Damon turned to face the village and then the mountain. “What exactly do you need from this village?”

Emilia picked up on his intentions. “As long as two houses are intact it’s fine. If you fail, we’ll find another one.”

“Can we attack at nightfall?”

“No, but we can wait till early dawn, I’ll set up camp and go to sleep. Wake me up when the preparations are complete.”

Damon nodded and went to work.

#

When Damon saw the inklings of sunshine, he woke up Emilia and told her to head to the side of the village which faced the mountains.

Since she took a large detour to avoid the troll’s detection, she arrived at her position an hour later. The trolls seemed to have gathered at the centre of the village. The night watch unit returned to the village as Emilia arrived at her position. This would let them kill all the trolls in one fell swoop.

Damon shot a rock in the air as a signal to Emilia. He then started to shoot rocks at the group of trolls around the campfire where they ate roasted meat.

When he managed to hit one on the head, 10 of their soldiers delved into their huts and exited with large wooden bats. They started to head up the path Damon had flattened last night. When they reached halfway up the small mountain face, Damon used fifty mana points to create an earth pillar under a giant pine tree he had continuously tried to unearth last night. The thirty-meter-tall tree slide down the strategically placed trail.

The trolls couldn’t do anything but try to run down back into the village. At first Damon wanted to trigger a landslide and burry the entire village. However, he didn’t have enough mana nor specialized earth spells to create such seismic events.

Although now that he saw the result of his second plan, he didn’t feel so bad. The tree caught up to the group of trolls and flattened them under its weight. He couldn’t have killed one troll without dirty tricks much less ten.

Emilia had explained the ranking of beasts, they went from one to ten, one being simple rats or rabbits, 2 being goblins, wolves, or bears. Trolls were ranked four, and the strongest beast in this region of the kingdom, the Vorracino weighed in at 6. Although this wasn’t a bad system, it had its disadvantages. Even though a magic user with level 4 magic could kill a troll without much difficulty. A swordsman would need to be level 5 to do the same.

Damon slid down the path, the entrails of trolls lined the path. It seemed some were impaled by the branches.

He didn’t slide down the earth slide too quickly. His magic wouldn’t scratch a troll. Here he had a good view of the battlefield, if you could call it that.

Emilia decimated the remaining trolls with her magic. Her fighting methods were, particular. i.e., it didn’t resemble what came to mind when you thought of magic combat.

A troll took a step forward with its large bat; however, Emilia created a concentrated water jet and forced it down the respiratory system of the troll before it could get within five metres of the old lady. He’d seen a similar scene with the goblins; however, it hadn’t registered then. But now, from afar, and against many strong beasts it seemed unfair and gruesome. When she said fights between mages weren’t glorious nor fancy, she meant it.

When he’d made it halfway down the mountain face Emilia made her way inside a house. She came out a few moments later. Although he wondered what these secret ingredients were, he wouldn’t ask her. This was still an organization led by a demon, even if they seemed like decent people, they shouldn't poked and prodded.

When Damon made it to flat grounds, he walked through the trampled village. A few were spared. Although they were crude, they still showed a certain level of craftsmen ship. The goblins did as well. Did they not wear clothes? Did that not prove their sapiens, had they not eaten the apple as well? But then again, cows and deer also had a familial structure, or do we only empathize with bipedal creatures. No, the only thing one shouldn’t kill were humans, no dark elves, i.e., members of one’s species. Everything else was free game; however, cruelty wasn’t warranted.

But still, all this rationalization, only helped him bear it for now. Unfortunately, he’d already killed them all. Plus, weren’t experience points only earned by killing these animals. Perhaps if he could level up by cooking, he could lead a more upright life, but wasn’t it God who had willed it so? Wasn’t it right to kill if ordered by God, the creator of the Universe, and the maker of laws?

“Make sure to stab their necks, some may fake their deaths. The last thing you want is a troll charging at you from behind.”

Damon stabbed his sword into every troll near him. He’d checked how much experience points he’d collected beforehand as a measure to count the number of survivors. Surprisingly enough just as Emilia said he gathered an extra 50 points after making the rounds.

“You’re right I got at least one.”

Emilia nodded, “That’s why I’m here.” She looked around the village. “There doesn’t seem to be any beasts nearby.” She turned to Damon, “Have you ever tried to dissect a creature as big as a troll?”

Damon shook his head.

“Then this is the perfect time. I didn’t sleep too well last tonight, my body’s old and the rocks took a toll on me. I’ll take a nap, while I do that practice dissecting the trolls. Don’t forget to retrieve their ovules and testis. If you see anything coming wake me up.”

She handed Damon a glass jar half filled with preservation agents and left to go sleep inside a nearby hut. Damon went to work; he took a small dagger and pierced a small hole in the troll’s skin. He took another knife which resembled a primitive scapula, he placed it in the notch made in the troll’s skin by the other knife and pushed down the scapula in a swift motion which parted the skin and revealed the testis. He then took a pair of tweezers to pull them out. He did the same thing with the bodies of three males and three females, at which time the jar filled up with the ingredients. He proceeded to dissect the rest of the bodies and mentally compare them with goblins. Of the bat the skin seemed twice as thick and thrice as strong as that of goblins. They also had a large layer of fat under their epidermis. He’d heard of the qualities possessed by troll fat, but it didn't sound much better than that of a pig’s at the time. However, the quality of the marbled fat exceeded his expectation.

On the other hand, the muscles didn’t seem any different. The trolls just had more of it. This made him wonder, did the physical quality of humans change when their levels increased or was the increase in strength due to mana? He couldn’t tell with the trolls since their massive figure, large bones, and inhuman muscle mass seemed to correspond with their strength. However, he’d have to analyze this later. Damon continued his research by peeling off one layer of flesh and organ at a time until all he had left were the bones and nothing else. With everything neatly arranged around him. The sun reached its zenith. Four or five hours had passed.

When Damon had finished Emilia came out of a hut.

She looked at the neatly arranged surroundings and spoke, “That isn’t bad, especially since you’ve only been at this for a month. You’ll make a fine black mage one day, but for now we need to keep going.”

The compliment gave him a strange feeling, he looked back at what she’d called a fine job and now with refreshed eyes, he could only see a slaughter. Although surgical it was still disgusting. His gut started twist, and acid bubbled up his throat. However, it didn’t take long for it to be suppressed by the desire to learn and make his own living dead one day. After all, this, deed, would let him create life one day. And as Stolas had said early one, “Demons and angels are in a sacred balance.” The same was true when it came to the cycle of life. Nothing could escape it, not even gods.