Another night fell.
An unusual scene unfolded on Mt. Fujikasane.
In a dense forest, a dozen demons stood scattered, watching each other warily. But they didn't attack.
A demon with a long tongue, hanging out of his mouth, stood in the middle, speaking excitedly. He gestured wildly, adding to his force.
"I saw it with my own eyes! He's strong! Tei Shinichi was no match. He was beaten into helplessness quickly. Then, he was swallowed whole... with that hand!"
A demon nearby scoffed. "Impossible! Demons eat humans. I've never heard of a demon eating a demon!"
The long-tongued demon glared. "Are you calling me a liar?"
Another demon curled his lip. "I didn't say that. Maybe you saw it wrong."
The long-tongued demon's face darkened. "You think I'm as stupid as you? Haven't you noticed? There are fewer demons on the mountain lately!"
A long-haired female demon sat in a tree, looking down at the long-tongued demon. "So? What's your point? You didn't call us here just to tell us this, did you?"
The long-tongued demon raised his arm, slammed it down. His voice was cold. "We need to find that demon. Kill him!
If we don't strike first, he'll eat us all!"
The other demons were unimpressed.
The long-tongued demon had expected that. He spoke again. "Why is he eating demons? Demons get stronger by eating humans. What if eating demons..."
He didn't finish the sentence. But the demons understood. Their eyes lit up.
Trapped here, they only had a chance to eat humans during the Final Selection. And only some of them succeeded.
Hunger tormented them.
If they could learn to eat demons, they could escape the hunger. They could grow stronger. Maybe they could even leave this wisteria prison.
Fools! The long-tongued demon sneered to himself.
He'd asked for help because he wasn't sure he could beat the demon alone.
But he'd only asked weak demons.
None of them knew. He'd eaten two humans during the last Final Selection. He'd eaten seven in total. He was much stronger than these demons who'd only eaten one or two.
He'd be the one who benefited!
"Ooh-hee-hee-hee! Why didn't you invite me to this fun?"
A strange voice spoke. The demons' faces changed.
Thump, thump, thump!
Heavy footsteps sounded. A huge figure walked into the clearing. He was like a mountain of flesh, covered in arms. Only a pair of yellow eyes showed. He looked bizarre, terrifying.
The long-tongued demon's face twisted. "How did he find us?"
The Hand Demon had been hiding on Mt. Fujikasane for over forty years. He'd eaten over forty humans, they said.
He was the only one on Mt. Fujikasane the long-tongued demon wasn't sure he could beat.
"Ooh-hee-hee-hee! What? You don't want me to join?" The Hand Demon covered his mouth with three hands. His sly eyes scanned the demons.
"No! Of course not!"
The long-tongued demon's mind raced.
If he didn't let the Hand Demon join, he might give them away.
This was good, in a way. The Hand Demon made it safer.
The key was... How could he make sure he got the biggest reward?
The Hand Demon's eyes burned. "When I get the power to eat demons... I'll eat every demon on Mt. Fujikasane! Maybe I can leave! Urokodaki! Urokodaki! Urokodaki! Wait for me!"
The other demons had different reactions. Some sneered. Some looked scornful. Some were feverish. Some were thoughtful.
...
"Die! Die! Die! Die!"
A demon with jagged teeth pounded his fists.
Aoki saw an opening. He stepped forward, his arm sweeping like a blade.
Thwack!
The head came off.
Aoki grabbed it, retreated quickly.
The headless body chased, the face on the head still crazed. The tongue shot out of the mouth, like an arrow.
"Been stuck here too long, huh? You're not right in the head."
Aoki twisted his wrist, making the tongue miss. He slammed the head against a rock.
Thump, thump, thump!
After a few hits, the headless body stumbled, fell face-first. It twitched a few times, then lay still.
Aoki lifted the jagged-toothed demon's head, checked it. Unconscious.
"First kill of the night!"
He'd figured out the fastest way to kill demons.
Without a Nichirin Blade, beheading didn't kill them. But it made them much weaker.
Hitting the head hard could knock them out.
"Devour!"
Aoki activated Demon Devour.
[Killed a Demon, Gained 11 Experience.]
[Congratulations! Leveled Up!]
"Only eleven experience? Getting poor," Aoki muttered.
He looked at the System panel, thought for a moment. He put 2 stat points into Strength and Intelligence.
His body swelled quickly. His muscles bulged, straining his clothes.
Agility affected balance, coordination... A little less Agility just made him clumsy. But Intelligence controlled his strength.
His Strength had jumped too high, too fast. He didn't control it well.
If his Intelligence was too low, he might lose control of his body.
He adapted for a moment. Then, he put his free skill point into Demon Blood. All stats went up by 1 again.
[Name: Aoki]
[Strength: 12]
[Constitution: 11]
[Intelligence: 11]
[Agility: 10]
[Profession: Hunter, Aberrant Demon]
[...]
[Aberrant Demon]
Quality: ★★
Level: lv3 (2/300)
Skills: Demon Blood Ⅱ, Space Warp (Available), Transparent World (Available), Demon Devour
Tasks: Mt. Fujikasane Dungeon (Demons 16/30, Hand Demon 0/1)
"Twelve Strength... That's enough for now. I'll focus on the other stats."
Aoki looked at the panel, thought.
He was strong, but he couldn't use it all.
He didn't control his strength. His coordination was bad. He didn't have fighting skills, experience, or high-level skills.
He was like a fancy weapon with bad parts. His stats were out of balance.
In a novel, he'd be the kind of weakling a genius could beat easily.
The best way to level up was to keep all the stats even.
His stats were warped now. He was just trying to get stronger fast. It was a choice he had to make.
Aoki looked at the Skills section. He shook his head.
"Demon Blood Level 2 still isn't enough?"
He tried to learn Space Warp and Transparent World. The System said, "Prerequisite Skill Level Insufficient."
Those two skills would boost his fighting ability a lot more than a few stats.
Rustle!
A light sound broke Aoki's thoughts.
He turned. A demon ran away, into the trees.
Aoki's eyes flickered. He watched, still. He didn't move.
The running demon stopped, looked back, annoyed.
---
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