His mind slowly regained clarity, enabling him to finally come to himself. He could feel the enormous surge in power, flowing all throughout his body.

At the same time, all sorts of negative thoughts poured endlessly unto his consciousness. Despair, Hatred, Disgust and countless other malicious notions whispered in his mind, seeking to drown his sanity into the abyss.

The chaos drove deeper and deeper into him, trying to reach the core of his being, while he could only sit still, unable to stop it.

Just as it had broke past the last layer protecting his soul, he suddenly felt a scorching pain. As if every fiber of his being torn in an excruciating manner.

 

*G̷̦͈̻̽̀̇͌̋̂͜R̷̡̫̙̲̳̍͋̈́͜U̷͔̖̹͍͛̍̍̓̂͘͝A̶̲̒̋̓͊A̴͚͑Ȃ̸̼̦̼̖̜͒Ȧ̸̧̻̳̺̠͕Ă̶͓͖̭̮̙̰͛̇̂̊͗ͅA̴̫̐̽Ȧ̷̭̰̜̉ͅA̴̢͔̩̬̿͌͗̍̓͜͠Ȧ̸̛̯̼̣̂͂̓̄̔Ǎ̷͇̖͉̳̪̥͌̌̾̄́̕ͅA̵̳̠͒̋Ä̵̬͎̰͙̰́ͅH̷̛͔̮̗̏́͂̌̚͝*

 

He couldn't help but to scream from the agony, yet what escaped his mouth was nothing short of the bellows of a rabid beast. His fiendish howls continued for over a minute, echoing all around the forest.

After some time, he was finally able reign over himself, heavily gritting his teeth with enough force that blood began to pour out of his lips.

He stood up, enduring the pain, staggering out of the small crater and reaching towards a nearby tree, in hopes he could lean upon it.

Yet the moment he touched the tree, a sinister aura spread towards the tree, savagely distorting it before cracks appeared before it. The fissure proliferated across the tree, shattering it.

Niel stared at the broken remains of the tree blankly, his shock hindering him from quickly processing the situation. He then turned his gaze at his fingertips that had lightly grazed the tree earlier.

Witnessing the scene had given him a more dreadful understanding of his current circumstances. He observed the 'power' flowing around his body, clearer now of it's disastrous potential. Looking around, he also came to realize that the miasma surrounding him seem to contain this 'power' as well, similarly distorting everything it touched, though to a lesser degree than what had happened to the tree.

Steeling himself, he concentrated all the 'power' circulating in both the miasma and his body, pulling them towards him before focusing it all back to where they seem to originate, his heart. The further condensed the 'power' was in his body, the more violent the pain and malice became.

The agony, which he forced himself to ignore, reached its peak when all the ominous 'power' had been completely contained within his heart. But he knew it wouldn't stay there for too long, the moment he loses concentration, the 'power' will once again spread.

In order to repress the 'power' in a more permanent manner, he poured the vast majority of his Mana into his heart, encasing it. The Mana formed a perfect sphere containing all the 'power' within it, while on the surface of the sphere, Runes stringed together, forming countless various overlaying spells which enhanced and fortified the seal.

Once the seal was completed, his form seem to return to normal. His horns and eyes receding to their original state, while the dark ink like markings all around his body withdrew to his back.

Afterwards, the went upon the next nearest tree, which had largely remained unaffected. He reached out to it, hesitating every so slightly, before his fingertips finally touched it.

A slight wave of relief washed over him as he saw the tree remain unchanged. He laid resting upon the tree with his back against it, weakness and exhaustion finally overcoming him.

Even with the seal, the searing pain engulfing his soul along with the malevolent whispers never disappeared. They continued to eat away at him, leaving him powerless. He could not even fall into unconsciousness as the torment kept him firmly awake.

Time seemed to pass excruciatingly slowly, as if each second was eternity itself, all the while Niel remained lying upon the tree. His thoughts raced despite his clouded mind, as he tried to think as clearly and rationally as he possibly can.

Finally, he came into a decision.

'I can't stay here.'

Gathering his tattered strength, he stood.

He looked vacantly towards the direction that he came from, before gritting his teeth and turning the opposite direction. The last remains of his hesitance vanishing.

Using the vestiges of his Mana that he could utilize, Runes were created and coalesced into a complex spells that erased his tracks and traces, along with concealing him and his presence.

Thankfully, it appears that him becoming the Devil had greatly increased all aspects of him, from his physical abilities to his Mana capacity and quality. As such, although now only little of his Mana can be operated, it's quality and quantity was still relatively exceptional compared to others.

After briefly finishing his preparations, he set off. This time, truly heading towards the depths of the forest.

 

 

---

 

 

The Great Denure Forest is home to many varieties of plants and wildlife. While not the largest forest of the Alkanorz Continent, it was well known for the countless different monsters that inhabit it, along with being referred to as the unconquerable territory.

The strength of the monsters one would encounter would only grow stronger and stronger as one heads deeper into the forest.

As such, not many dare to tread upon it deeply despite the possibilities of rare herbs and plants that could be found within it. Only those who can be considered powerful would try, but even amongst them, death could come at any given moment.

Yet at a certain part of the Denure Forest, a young boy could be seen traveling across it. He had a rather disheveled appearance, with many parts of his clothes being torn and ripped.

This boy was naturally Niel.

He had spent the last the three days on a straight path, having had no rest, food, nor water for the duration of it. Normally, one who is experiencing such a situation would be in a dying and emaciated condition, yet Niel still somehow goes on normally.

Upon becoming a Devil, his body seemed to have made a drastic transformation, the extent of which he is still unclear of. He seemed to have lost the need to consume food or water, and his body stayed strong despite having yet to sleep.

The only disadvantage would be the constant blistering pain in his soul and infusion of malice within his mind, yet he has somehow, if only partially, become used to them.

Then again, pain and torture was something he was already all too familiar with. Perhaps having lived peacefully in this world for five years had caused him to relax, leaving him vulnerable.

Even still, the three lonesome and agonizing days had left a toll in him. A constant sense of irritation kept welling up within him, and a seething desire to tear something apart grew as time passed. At first he could still suppress it, but as days went by, it had grown into something far more volatile.

At times, he meditated as a means to clear his mind, and while it did yield some effectiveness, it was never enough to truly calm himself. In the end, the feeling of vexation only continued to build.

Regardless, he carried on nonetheless, silently enduring as best as he could.

At this moment, as he treads across the he was noticed by a green bison like creature nearby. Perhaps being aggressive towards the sudden intruder, the bison turned itself to him, threateningly pointing its horns.

Niel frowned, immediately realizing that the concealment spell had finally exhausted itself and worn off. As he had been far too focused on controlling himself, he didn't notice the drained state of the spell and forgot to imbue Mana into it.

He intended to back away slowly, attempting to ease the beast, but the bison seemed far too impatient and suddenly charged at him.

Niel sighed, realizing he has no choice but to undergo this battle. Standing his ground and attaching himself to the earth beneath him, he waited until the bison reached him. 

Just as the beast made contact with him, its charge was immediately put to a stop. Its left horn and head was being firmly held by Niel, leaving it unable to advance further nor retreat.

It thrashed its body around trying attempting to escape his grip, but an immense strength suddenly pulled on it, causing it to fall the its side. Before it could even react, Niel took hold of its other horn before finally,

*Snap*

Niel strongly twisted its neck, quickly silencing the bison.

The short battle had allowed part of the frustration that had built up for these past three days to subside.

For a brief moment, the whispers in his mind seemed to deafen ever so slightly, before a wave of pleasure welled up in him. Alarmed, he tensed his body and tried let go of this feeling immediately.

Only after it passed did he relax, heaving a complicated sigh.

One of the reasons why he avoided conflict in the past three days was exactly because of this foreboding situation. Every time he killed something, a rather addicting feeling seem to emerge within him.

It was a cause for concern for all the right reasons, becoming enamored with it was certainly the last thing he needed.

Turning his attention back at the dead bison, he wondered what to do with it. He wasn't sure if he should take this time to rest, and possibly get a proper meal for once.

In the end, he gave in to temptation and decided to take a breather, for however useful it could even be.

The bison itself was called a Cornac, a strange bull/cow like creature that live in the forest rather than the plains. While it's certainly not the best tasting animal, it's said to have a relatively decent flavor.

Coating his fingers in sharpened Mana, he cut a portion of the beast. With a few simple spells, and occasionally using his hands, he removed the unnecessary parts of the meat before roasting it.

He was never good at cooking, whether in this life or the last. To him, the act of eating was merely a means of constituting nutrition in his body. As such, he could hardly say he cooked it well.

At a very young age, one where he could barely form memories, he had lost his sense of taste. Ironically, in its own twisted way, it had made his life at the time partially easier, at least compared to the 'others'.

Regaining his taste buds in this life was most definitely a great boon to him, which he had tried to enjoy to the fullest for the past five years.

From the first bite upon the meat, he could safely declare that the food was good, though it was also possible that the lack of sustenance for the past three days was what made it taste good.

After finishing the course, he made another and continued to do so until he could no longer eat. Looking at himself and the missing portion of the Cornac's body, he marveled at how his small body could somehow hold all of it.

Regardless, the meal had certainly enlivened him, despite his miserable situation. Having no way to contain the rest of the Cornac, he decided to leave it for whatever else could find its remains.

Following the long rest, he set out once again.

_______________

_____

 

Another two days passed, with Niel surprisingly becoming greatly accustomed to his circumstances.

He was still heading deeper into the forest, slowly having come to an understanding of what exactly he might soon have to face.

As he treads farther in the depths of the forest, unusual creatures with abilities that are able to see through his concealment start to pop up every now and then. Thankfully, none of them have been hostile or threatening so far, which had allowed him to safely reach this distance.

Yet he was well aware that, sooner or later, it will not be so simple anymore. Several times, he had contemplated whether he should stop or find another objective, but he had already come too far to simply turn back now.

The territory he had entered was one that was greatly unexplored even amongst the uncharted parts of the Denure forest. As such, even he was unclear of the nature of the area he is situated at. What kinds of creatures and dangers he could potentially encounter was no longer something he could determine.

He had already mentally noted down the directions and distance he had passed through so far along with a map within his memory. Path ways, routes, and distinguishing landmarks that he could utilize in the case of problems arising.

Although he had kept some level of preparation for the unexpected, reality is often unpredictable no matter how well a person plans ahead.

Traveling a little down further, he encountered an especially dangerous foe.

Mantrosses, strange monsters that appear to be a mix between an animal and a bug.

They have ape like bodies wrapped in chitin carapace, which to some degree protects them from both physical and magical attacks. A lizard like head with a mouth full of serrated teeth, along with razor sharp claws from both its arms and legs. Springing from their shoulders were a pair of appendages resembling a mantis's arms and a prehensile tail around their lower back.

They tend to ambush their prey, hiding their presence around the trees until an unsuspecting victim falls within their grasp. Though they are very well capable of chasing their target if need be.

Individually, they are already enough to be considered a great hazard, yet their most dangerous aspect lay in the fact that they hunt in packs. Even the most seasoned warriors could very well perish to these things if he is caught alone or unprepared.

And it just so happens that they have aimed their sights at Niel.

He had already noticed them earlier, prompting him to stop. Though it seems they realized their ambush was discovered, and saw it fit to reveal themselves.

There was three of them, two in front of Niel while the third seems to be attempting to get behind him.

It was unusual that they would target him, as he highly doubts whether he can even be considered nutritious nor was his small stature big enough to fill them.

He pondered whether he should make a run for it, but Mantrosses are well known for their agility and their expertise in speedily gliding across trees. Outrunning them would merely be a wishful thinking, considering the minuscule amounts of his Mana which he could actually utilize as of now.

Just as he was still contemplating, one Mantross in the front lunged at him, swiping its blade like appendage towards his head.

Niel slightly lowered himself, dodging the blow before dashing backwards, wary of the other two Mantrosses. As he suspected, the other two Mantrosses had readied themselves to attempt a pincer attack, aiming at his sides.

He rapidly twisted his body, very narrowly avoiding their blows once more, but he couldn't escape the tail swing that followed after, resorting to crossing his arms to block it.

The attack sent him hurtling to the trees, crashing through several of them before landing onto a boulder.

Niel spat a mouthful of blood, he could feel that several of his bones had been fractured and a few of his inner organs were damaged. Yet strangely, his wounds were healing at an accelerated pace.

Not giving him a room to breathe, the Mantrosses speedily raced towards him.

He was already well aware that the Mantrosses were strong, but he didn't think it would be to this degree. For a moment, he thought to remove the seal, but immediately declined that notion.

Instead, he opted to use another method.

At this instance, his eyes grew colder while also becoming exceedingly clear. All unnecessary thoughts, information, along with pain had been entirely voided, as everything irrelevant to the specific assortments of objectives set within his brain was rendered obsolete.

From here on, the very function of his consciousness itself was fundamentally reconstructed.

It was a unique state of mind that one of his late comrades had humorously referred to as [Extremity Point].

At the very start, among his 'kind', he was never considered special. He wasn't associated with the strongest or smartest of them, and he could barely pass as one of the upper echelons. A gap that only grew more obvious once they all reached adulthood.

This held true even amidst the peers that he had allied with. He couldn't throw a metal pipe at half the speed of sound, nor could he dodge a bullet after it had already been fired. And he's certainly unable to craft advanced and complex machinery or weaponry on a whim.

Yet, despite all of that, he alone survived the longest amongst those monstrosities. Which was perhaps the greatest irony in that long and needless conflict.

[Extremity Point] served as his most effective tool in battle, and was one of the things that allowed him survive for so long.

Within seconds the Mantrosses had reached him, once again resuming their onslaught. Their claws and appendages slashed left and right in attempts to shred him to pieces.

Unlike previously where he was being overwhelmed, Niel was able to quickly respond to their assault. Turning his body at slight angles, minimizing every movement to his utmost, and greatly reducing the stamina and Mana usage.

His cold eyes along with the rest of his senses was constantly scanning his enemies, observing their every movement. From every twitch of their muscles, every twist of their joints, and every pulse of their Mana. Allowing him to predict the aim, direction, and power of their strikes before they even started.

Amidst the aggression, a Mantross got behind him, immediately vertically swinging its appendage at him. Without even looking towards it, Niel slightly stepped to the side, dodging the attack at a hair's breadth.

The blade appendage of the Mantross sunk into the soil from the force, which was instantly hardened by Niel with an earth spell.

Its attack had also caused a slight stir around the nearby trees, resulting in a few branches falling. Of those falling branches, Niel caught a long and a short stick. Promptly, he delicately coated the long stick with considerably sharpened Mana, while place a few Runic spells on the shorter one.

Using the long stick, Niel stabbed through the eyes of the Mantross, which was still struggling from the hardened soil, piercing through its brain and also breaking the stick in the process.

The other two Mantrosses, seeing their companion perish, screeched before angrily rushing at him again. 

Niel threw the other shorter stick towards them, to which the wary Mantrosses dodged, resulting in it being embedded on the trunk of a tree behind them.

Now empty handed, Niel poured Mana into his hands before circulating them in a particular rhythm.

The Mantrosses continued hacking at him, while he continued to weave through them. One of them, having gotten too close to Niel, was heavily kicked in its knee which effectively broke its footing, causing it to bend forward. Niel, not missing a chance, struck its head with one of his palm.

The moment the palm made contact with its head, a wave of Mana pulsed and entered its head, bypassing all of its defenses and splattering its brain from within.

The last Mantross witnessing this finally felt fearful, almost immediately turning tails and attempting to escape. But the moment it turned itself and started dashing, the short stick embedded in the tree created a flash of light followed by a shock wave that disoriented it briefly.

That brief moment of bewilderment was enough for Niel to reach atop it and strike its head with the other palm, adding yet another body count.

After subduing the last enemy, Niel stood still for a few seconds, lucidity slowly returning to his cold eyes. Just as he regained his clarity completely, an intense headache washed over him. Only calming down after persisting for several minutes.

Thankfully, he had already become numb to pain due to the last five days, so it did not trouble him too much.

[Extremity Point] was a state of mind that leaves his brain into something more akin to a computing machine, pushing his consciousness in an extremely concentrated state.

In such a condition, his mind pursues utmost precision, while minimizing the steps and actions taken to reach the set goal. Self-preservation usually being the primary objective, while other objectives, such as slaying the enemies, only being secondary. 

While useful, it takes a toll on him mentally, especially now that he is a child once again.

He looked intently at the three Mantross corpses lying on the ground, before sighing and moving towards one of them.

He cut apart one of the appendages, trying to make it into a sort of provisional blade. They were already naturally sharp on their own, along with being made of some kind of durable chitin.

In the end he made a simple single edged short blade that was somewhat compatible with his small stature. There was no sheath, so he tied together a tough long grass he found nearby, creating a makeshift rope to bind the blade to his back.

By now the sun was starting to rise, so he took upon himself to rest for a few hours.

Though, such a decision seemed to have backfired on him.

*CRASH*

Because as of right now, he faces a much bigger problem.

A bronze giant landed in front of him, leaving a heavy crater in his wake.

"—Hello kiddo, it's been a while you know?"

It was perhaps one of the worst situation he could get into as of right now.

"...So, mind at least telling me what prompted you to leave?"

Granvar had found him.