24 Greeting the Guests...
Demon #2 gives Bruce a strange look before he gestures towards the ancient device that he's holding in his hand
(Demon #2) "You mean this?"
(Bruce) "Yeah, a flip phone. You probably don't know what that is, but that's what the device is called"
Demon #3 grumbles and draws his weapon, which appears to be a large greatsword with a black hilt, and a red and almost luminescent blade shrouded in a demonic aura
(Demon #3) "Enough talking, there's no use in talking to a magical automaton! We'll scrap you before tracking down your creator to kill him next!"
There's an awkward silence for about 5 seconds before Bruce breaks the silence
(Bruce) "Isn't this the part where you talk about your reason for coming here and stuff?"
(Demon #3) "Why in the Demon Gods name would I ever tell you that!"
Bruce is quiet for a moment
(Bruce) "Are you sure you don't want to monologue-"
(Demon #3) "I'M SURE-" {Interrupts}
(Bruce) "Not even a little-" {Interrupts x2}
(Demon #3) "YES, AND I'M DONE WASTING ANY MORE TIME!!!" {Interrupts x3}
Demon #2 puts away the flip pho- I mean ancient device and takes out a long black and red colored staff with a red gem at the end of it that releases a very dangerous demonic aura. And Demon #1 draws a gothic looking bow made of black and red colored metals and a dark and twisted looking wood. And just like the equipment of the other demons, the bow also releases a demonic aura
Demon #3 is male and is about 8 and a half feet tall, while Demon #1 is female, and Demon #2 is male, and both of them are around 7 feet tall. It's also obvious that Demon #3 is the leader of the group because of the fancier looking armor. And by fancy, I mean it's more jagged, spiky, and edgy than the armor of the other two demons. All of which are wearing full sets of armor, with not a single bit of skin showing anywhere
(Bruce) "So~... Is every demon a hardcore edgelord like you guys, or-"
Bruce's sentence is cut short by a red energy arrow that he barely manages to dodge
(Bruce) 'Okay, I guess we're doing this then...'
Demon #3 charges forwards at a ridiculous speed, and Bruce barely manages to leap to the side in time as the demons sword ignites into a crimson red flame as it's swung down where Bruce used to be. The force from that single sword strike creates a massive crater. And before the sand on the ground even gets a chance to be flung into the air, crimson flames glass the sand before it can do so
Bruce doesn't even get enough time to counter attack as a barrage of red energy arrows prevents him from retaliating. Bruce then quickly leaps in the air after sensing the massive amounts of mana Demon #2 had been gathering be released in his direction in the form of crimson flames with a tiny bit of black fire mixed into it
(Bruce) 'They're not going to give me any openings are they...'
While mid air, Bruce watches as a barrage of crimson energy slashes, red energy arrows, and crimson fire bolts fly towards him...
(Bruce) 'Yeah, they definitely aren't going to give me any openings...'
Knowing he won't be given any openings to do any real damage to his opponents, Bruce prepares some whitish yellow crystals with runes engraved on them as he dodges the combined barrage of the demons. Bruce then injects mana into the crystals and tosses them before rushing towards Demon #2
And just as the Demons are about to attack once more, they are interrupted as the crystals Bruce threw explode and release a massive amount of light, blinding and distracting the demons long enough for Bruce to attempt to eliminate the spellcaster of the party
Bruce charges his fists with mana, and starts attacking Demon #2 with a rapid barrage of punches. However, they are stopped by a red energy barrier surrounding Demon #2. Many cracks appear on the barrier as Bruce rains down blow after blow on it, but he's forced to retreat as Demon #3 begins relentlessly pursuing him
(Bruce) 'You know, maybe I should've checked the ranks of these guys before I picked a fight with them. Oh, and maybe I'll check the rank of my new body while I'm at it'
{Appraisal Results}
Demon #1 (Rank B)
Demon #2 (Rank B)
Demon #3 (Rank B+)
Unique Golem (Rank B+)
{End}
(Bruce) 'Yeah... Definitely should have appraised them first... Oh, and I guess it's cool how my golem body has reached rank B+'
Just as Demon #3 gets within range to attack Bruce with his sword, Bruce puts his hands together final flash style and nails him with a massive mana blast that sends him flying. However, Demon #3 managed to intercept the attack with his weapon at the last second, nullifying almost all the damage that he otherwise would've taken
Bruce doesn't stop his attacks after that, because the moment he repelled Demon #3, the other two demons started to barrage him with attacks once more. So Bruce begins his own barrage of attacks, intercepting the combined attacks of Demon #1 and Demon #2 with blue mana bolts
And just as Demon #3 is about to engage Bruce once more, the sand underneath the feets of Demon #1 and Demon #2 start to violently shake before azure and lime colored slime shoots up from underneath the ground trying to touch them
(Demon #1) "WHAT THE-!"
(Demon #2) "!!!"
Demon #1 and Demon #2 quickly avoid the incoming wave of slime as they watch as more and more slime keeps emerging from under the sand to form a larger whole
(Demon #1) "How much of that gross stuff is there!"
It seems like it never ends as more and more slime keeps coming together. The Demons try and fire a barrage of attacks at the creatures before them, but the azure and lime colored slime create holes in their gelatinous bodies big enough for the attacks to fly through without making contact. One demon watches in disgust and terror while the other watches in amazement and curiosity as the last bits of slime form together, revealing two massively oversized slimes bigger than houses, both of which are wearing golden crowns on top of their glorious bodies
(Demon #1) "H-Hey, stupid metal guy. What the hell's with these oversized slimes!"
Demon #1 points towards the two slimes while sounding quite distressed, and the two slimes seem to jiggle slightly in a way that shows how embarrassed they are for getting so much attention, but if you watch closely, you can make out a small unnoticeable jiggle that means that they enjoy the attention, and secretly don't want to admit it because they don't want to come on to strong about their feelings. You know, that one special jiggle that means "Hey there... I really, really, REALLY want to dissolve you within the depths of my glorious slimy body, and even if you can't accept my feelings, just know that you will always have a special place within my stomach that will last forever"
(Bruce) "Oh, those two are the lime and azure slime kings. I was experimenting with what would happen if I fused slimes of the same type together, and eventually. I managed create these two beautiful specimens right here, and let me tell you how much it surprised me when I appraised them and found out that they're both rank B-"
Both slimes seem to slightly melt and give off a little gurgle after being praised. The gurgle also contains a small hint of a sploosh that means that it's not like they like being praised or anything, but the sploosh is made at a fraction of a decibel less than normal meaning the context is that of a tsundere. And this is further evidenced by the way they melt. Seeing that if you look very closely, you'll see that their bodies have drooped down 1% of a degree lower than normal, revealing their true feelings on how they actually feel...
(Demon #2) "I... Uh....."
Demon #2 seems to think hard about something before he resumes talking
(Demon #2) "Out of curiosity, did you try mixing different types of slimes together? And if you did, what was the end result?"
Bruce seems to shut up for a second as he remembers the slime like entity with the outer appearance of tar, with a rainbow colored interior that looks like that one puddle of gasoline you might see at the gas station. And he remembers how aggressive the sound of it's glops where. The way it quite literally boiled in such a manner, that anyone with a good eye could tell how the creature was filled with the rage of 1,000 suns, roughly 10% of the rage contained within the calmest honey badger, or approximately 0.00001% of the rage contained within a single deviljho brain cell during the calmest moment of its life...
(Bruce) "I did... And I feel stupid, because I've played enough slime rancher to know that mixing multiple types of slimes together is a horrible idea. Yet, I did it anyways, and the end result has been thrown in the bad bin, never to see the light of day again"
Demon #2 stares in confusion at Bruce before the slimes charge towards him and Demon #1 menacingly. Causing Demon #2 to snap out of it before he begins firing off spells at the slimes while Demon #1 seems to have discovered a new power deep within herself as she frantically fires off energy arrows faster and more powerfully than she's ever done in her entire life
Demon #2 casts a spell to slow down the time perception of himself and Demon #1 before he uses the telepathy spell to talk with Demon #1
(Demon #2) 'So, I'm very curious... Why in the world are you so scared of slimes when I've seen you quite literally strangle one of Demon Lord Beelzebubs chimeras to death. And I'm not someone who's disturbed by many things, but Beelzebubs chimeras redefine what the word terrifying means...' {Telepathically}
(Demon #1) 'Well, first of all! Those two slimes are HUGE!!! Second of all! I was sent to Demon Lord Belphegor's castle by Demon Lord Gremory to deliver a letter containing a friendly little message. With the message being filled to the brim with the usual'
(Demon #2) 'The usual?'
(Demon #1) 'You know... Multiple paragraphs dedicated to nothing but death threats, her eternal hate and disgust for him, several colorfully phrased sentences related to the cutting off of certain parts, and the insulting of his genetic heritage...'
(Demon #2) '...'
(Demon #1) 'Anyways, while I was busy trying to figure out where to deliver the letter. I just so happened to pass by the wrong room at the wrong time while Demon Lord Belphegor was having fun letting his pet slimes uh... Play with the villagers of a recently raided village...'
(Demon #2) 'Oh... Everything makes so much sense now...'
(Bruce) 'I agree...' {Telepathically Interrupts}
(Demons #1 and #2) '!!!'
The two demons are surprised as Bruce interrupts their conversation, making Demon #2 nervous about how powerful the individual before them actually is
(Demon #1) 'Hey, I thought these telepathic conversations where supposed to be private!'
Demon #2 nervously clutches his staff
(Demon #2) 'They are private, but someone with enough skill can force their way into a telepathic conversation if they want to...'
(Bruce) 'Well, I guess you could put it that way... Oh, and I'm also going to dispel your telepathy before you guys start talking of actual strategies. Don't worry though, I'll make sure to dispel the time perception spell while I'm at it as well'
Before either demon can retort, the telepathy is suddenly cut short, and time resumes at its normal speed
(Bruce) 'Now then, back to fighting that guy...'
As Demons #1 and #2 are busy fighting the king slimes, Demon #3 approaches Bruce, and even though his face isn't visible. Bruce can tell he's very pissed off right now... Actually, Bruce can see his face by simply looking through his helmet. And yep... Definitely pissed.....
(Bruce) "So, you wanna keep going at it?"
(Demon #3) "*Angry Demon Noises*"
(Bruce) "So that's a yes then..."
Bruce seems to pull a strange katana shaped sword out of thin air. It has a thick jagged blade, with a strange rune mechanism built into the hilt. The runes of the mechanism are engraved onto the surface of all the many interlocking cogs, with each cog having a small magic core inserted inside of the middle, with every part of the mechanism connected to a central magic core in the center. The handle of the sword is also built in a special way so that the hands of Bruce's golem body are able to attach and connect directly to it, allowing for mana sent to the golem to flow directly into the weapon. This feature makes it so Bruce doesn't have to waste space within the weapon creating large magic storage crystals to power the weapon, and it also allows Bruce to save more space so he doesn't have to create a mechanism that allows him to send mana from his dungeon core body to the sword. The handle feature also adds the bonus that the swords magical mechanism can only be activated by Bruce's golem body or any other device specifically made to connect with the handle. Meaning the weapon can only be activated by Bruce... Well, someone else might be able to activate the weapon, um, if they spend years working on it that is, and depending on the person, it might only take months
(Bruce) "So how does it look?"
(Demon #3) "*Angrier Demon Noises*"
Demon #3 starts to emit streams of red demonic energy, and a red ominous fog has begun to form around him as his demonic aura starts getting stronger and stronger at a terrifying rate
(Bruce) "..."
Bruce quickly creates and throws a strange potion at Demon #3. The potion is made from a mix of holy water and some other strange materials, with the effect being... *Crash*, a strange foam starts expanding at a rapid rate, all the while releasing a super strong aroma that has a very powerful calming effect, and the foam itself also contains holy properties mixed with lesser mana absorbing properties. Simply put, the potions effect puts a stop to whatever Demon #3 was trying to do
(Demon #3) "Wait, what!"
(Bruce) "Did you really think I was going to just stand there and let you power up using some sort of super demonic rage ability..."
(Demon #3) "You are the type who likes to just stand around and monologue to your enemies, so yes! I really did think that!"
(Bruce) "..."
(Monika) 'He's right you know...' {Telepathically}
(Bruce) '...'
(Bruce) "You know, let's just get back to the fighting"
Bruce sends mana flooding into his sword, and as the mana courses through the strange machinations of his blade. The mechanism located in the hilt starts to release loud mechanical whirs and clanking noises as the cogs start to rotate. And soon enough, the mechanical sounds are joined with the arcane sounds of magic as the runes activate, and magical circles are projected all throughout the inside of the machine. With tiny mana crystals strategically placed throughout a network of magical rune carvings start to glow brightly as they temporarily store mana in order distribute it efficiently throughout the sword. And thin rune carvings lining the outside of the swords blade start to glow as they efficiently send mana into the blade itself, making its mana conductivity much more efficient. And looking closely, one could also see that the sharp edge of the blade used to cut and stab things has a blue crystalline color instead of a shiny grey color like the rest of the blade. And soon enough, it starts glowing a bright blue color as huge waves of mana flood into it, with the very edge of the blade glowing the brightest, as the extremely tiny sharp part of the blade's edge seems to be made of a different material than the rest of the blades edge. And finally, just as it seems like it's over, a hint of special magic seems to appear around the edge of the blade as an almost invisible substance coats it before erupting into bright blue energy that seems to have temporarily become one with the blade's edge
(Bruce) "Oh thank god it didn't explode. Uh, I mean, *cough*, HAHA, you shall now feel the wrath of this weapon that I most definitely expected to work. And it has absolutely been very successful during its test runs when I first started creating it. So you can totally believe me with utmost certainty when I say that it won't explode violently the moment are blades clash when we start fighting..."
(Demon #3) "..."
Demon #3 may be dumb, but even he can tell that the person in front of him is spouting nothing but nervous lies to either be funny or pathetically try and cover up the fact that he didn't expect his weapon to actually work. This fact makes Demon #3 a little hesitant on tracking down the creator of this machine, seeing how they are most likely some sort of mad rune wizard who might accidentally blow up the place he or she is hiding when trying to use one of his or her magical devices. However, that's the least of Demon #3's worries right now as he prepares to fight the individual in front of him
(Demon #3) "That sword's definitely going to explode..."
(Bruce) "No it won't..."
Bruce jumps a bit as a small shower of blue mana sparks fly of the blade, creating a loud crack like sound, similar to the explosive sound a run down car engine makes when you turn it on
(Bruce) "..."
(Monika) 'It's going to explode...'
(Bruce) 'I know...'
Bruce stares at the blade for a second before he seems to have realized something, and quickly readjusts something with the blades handle. Whatever the adjustment was seemed to work though, as it caused the unstabilizing mana within the blade to become more stable. It didn't entirely fix the problem though, as it is still very questionable if the mana is stable enough to function correctly
(Bruce) "Problem fixed, now where were we..."
Bruce looks up to see Demon #3's sword blade no more than half a foot away from his metallic nonexistent face as he barely manages to duck in time as the blade easily cuts through the protective magic shield covering his body and grazes the top right side of his head. Normally, he would have noticed, but it took all of his attention to locate and [hopefully] fix the problem
Bruce then counter attacks, and a loud violent noise fills the air as Bruce's counter attack collides with Demon #3's follow up attack. The weapons of the two individuals are repelled from each other after they collide, and it takes everything Bruce and Demon #3 have in order to stay in one place to swing again. And after a second collision of attacks, Demon #3's blade seems to barely hold itself together, even after being filled to its highest capacity with mana while also receiving buffs from several skills. Demon #3 is also feeling quite strained as well since he's activating more skills than his body can physically handle. So he'll only be able to keep doing this for a little bit longer before he starts losing stats
Bruce then seems to kick things up a notch out of nowhere as he sends mana through a previously unactivated rune carving to a spot on the blade, causing the previously normal spot to shine with a purple light as a purple colored magic circle appears on both sides of the lowest part of the blade. Causing the blade to increase in weight as Bruce swings it. And when the next collision of attacks happens, Demon #3 is sent flying 10 meters away, creating two glassed lines in the sand as he kept his feet planted in the ground as he forced himself to stay upright
Bruce then cancels the activation of the magic circle before he ends up flying the same way Thor does in the Avengers using his hammer
Bruce then sends mana through the rune carving once more, this time activating a blue magic circle above the purple one. Seeing this, it could be assumed that the whole length of the blade is covered in these circles. Once the blue circle activates however, unlike the purple circle, the blue circle produces a different effect as it compresses mana around the blade. Bruce then quickly swings his sword, sending a highly condensed blue energy slash of mana towards Demon #3 while he's still trying to recover from Bruce's previous attack. Demon #3 can barely even see the attack coming, and swings his sword down purely by instinct and battle experience alone while filling the blade with all the mana he could muster. Demon #3 even activated all the skills he could, not caring for the repercussions of doing such a thing, but even after doing all that he could. A loud sound was created when the condensed mana slash broke through his attack, broke his sword, and busted through the armor of his right arm, severing the limb as it flew off into the distance before the compressed mana decompresses and explodes
(Demon #3) "..."
Bruce can see that Demon #3 barely has enough strength to stand, most likely because of the side effects of using to many skills at the same time. And while Bruce was confronting Demon #3, he noticed that Demon #2 was fighting half heartedly, but completely stopped after seeing Bruce's sword before quickly casting a spell on the portal he came through in order to close it. He then puts his weapon away and raises his hands in surrender. He also seems to be smiling at the same time like he's just seen the most amazing thing in his whole life. Seeing this, Bruce just curiously sends an order to the slime that was previously fighting Demon #2 to stop attacking, so the slime stops and gives a confirmative glopping sound as it ends its assault. I would explain the complexity and secret meanings contained within this action, but that would take too long [I guess you guys will have to decipher it own your own...]
Seeing that the slime attacking him is stopped, Demon #2 motions towards Demon #1. Seeing this, Demon #1 catches on quickly before putting her weapon away, quickly running to where Demon #2 is standing, and raises her hands in surrender as well
Seeing no reason to kill her, Bruce decides to hit the spare button as he sends an order to the slime attacking Demon #1 to stop. However, even though the slimes may not be attacking anymore, Demon #1 seems to childishly hide behind Demon #2, and just stares at the slimes as if the moment she stops looking at them they'll start attacking again
Bruce then approaches Demon #3, stopping only once he's directly in front of him
(Bruce) "Your allies have surrendered, and you are only moments away from death. But as long as you comply with me, and tell me everything you know. I will let you live"
Demon #3 struggles to raise his hand for a bit before removing his helmet. Revealing his red face, pointed ears, and black hair. His face also seems to have that special type of look only demons can pull off. Scary but extremely handsome at the same time...
Demon #3 then inhales like he's about to say something
(Bruce) "?"
But instead of saying something, he just simply spits on Bruce's feet while using the last of his strength to flip him off
(Bruce) "..."
Silence...
(Bruce) "I see that you have chosen death..."
Bruce then proceeds to behead Demon #3, but for some reason, he's smiling... He also has that look in his eyes that a warrior gives a worthy opponent after being defeated by them. That look that means even though he's going to die, he enjoyed the fight. And that even though he hates them as an enemy, he respects them even more as a warrior. Signifying that he wouldn't want to die any other way... Oh, and another thing this look also excels at is making you feel like crap for killing said warrior, so there's that too...
...
Anyways... Bruce turns the corpse and equipment of the demon into DP, cleans where Demon #3 spat on him, and then begins to approach Demon #1 and Demon #2. He expected them to be mad that he just killed their leader, but they didn't seem to care. As they only showed minor signs of distress that their ally just died, but more so seemed to react in a way that isn't quite releaf that he's dead, but more instead in a, "we were allies yes, so it's not like I wanted you to die. However, you had it coming since you're such an asshole. So I don't care since you deserved it", kind of look
After walking for a bit, Bruce reaches the two demons, and just as he's about to talk. Bruce realizes that he's still holding the sword in his right hand, and quickly stores it before talking
(Bruce) "Hello, as of this moment, you two are now going to be taken into custody for the attempted. Uh, I want to say scouting?"
(Demon #2) "You are correct..."
(Bruce) "Alright, yeah, the scouting of this island for, uh, a larger raid party of elite demons?"
(Demon #1) "That is also correct..."
(Bruce) "Okay, good, nice, awesome. Anyways, I can't let either of you two leave the island. So you'll either have to die, or follow all the rules that come with living here. And as long as you agree to them and behave, I won't lock you up in a jail cell for the rest of your life"
Demon #2 shrugs
(Demon #2) "I don't really care what the rules are, and neither do I care who or what I serve. All I want is to continue my research on magic. And after all I saw here today, I decided to close our portal back home so I could stay here and ask to continue my studies"
Demon #1 looks at Demon #2 with a conflicted expression before she also talks
(Demon #1) "I uh... I'd like to hear the rules..."
Bruce secretly thinks to himself for a few seconds, because he's totally not just making these rules up on the spot or anything...
(Bruce) "Well, the first rule is no misbehaving or creating escape plans. I'll make this next part simple, and I'll just tell you that I have omnipotent awareness of practically everything that happens in this island. So the moment you try to pull anything funny, I'll know"
(Demon #2) "Wait, you just said the word I'll?"
Bruce scratches his head a bit
(Bruce) "Oh yeah, you guys think this body is some sort of sentient automaton created by someone to serve them. When in fact, this body is just a tool for me to use. My real body is hidden somewhere on the island, and I just use vessels like these to personally interact with things on the island. Anyways, on to the second rule"
Bruce sticks up two fingers
(Bruce) "The second rule is to just simply do what I say. I mean, it's not like I'm letting you two live here out of the bottom of my heart or anything. And it's not like I'm some heartless guy who'll dispose of you the moment I achieve my objectives either. Simply put, it's my house. So you'll have to follow my rules"
Bruce sticks a third finger
(Bruce) "And the third and final rule is that neither of you go anywhere I don't say your allowed to go. And if you want to go to a place I don't specify as safe, ask first. Again, I'm aware of everything that happens on the island"
(Bruce) 'So you can ask me something at any time, and I can answer you right away using telepathy' {Telepathically}
(Bruce) 'Oh, and don't do anything crazy like create a super magic bomb without my permission either. And now that all the rules are out of the way, feel free to take off your helmets. Even though I can see them through the helmet if I concentrate hard enough. It'd still be nice if you took your helmets off'
The two demons shrug and take off their helmets. Both of them have red skin, pointed ears, red eyes with the outer part of the eye being black instead of white, and Demon #1 has short messy black hair while Demon #2 has short nicely combed hair
(Demon #2) "Anyways, about the rules. They are even better than what the most reasonable best case scenario I could come up with was. So I've got no problems whatsoever"
(Demon #1) "I guess I'm fine with them to then... I still don't trust you though, since I don't see any reason for you to actually let us live here"
Bruce starts slowly walking towards Demon #1
(Bruce) 'Oh, but you do have uses, several in fact'
(Demon #1) "W-what to you mean!"
Demon #1 starts inwardly panicking
(Bruce) 'I mean that-'
Demon #1 braces herself for whatever comes out of Bruce's nonexistent telepathic voice next, and hardens her resolve
(Bruce) 'You can tell me everything you know about the demon lords, about what it's like in demon society, and several other bits and pieces of information. Also, you looked worried there for a second. What did you think I was going to say?' [The song roundabout begins to play]
(Demon #1) "Oh uh... Nothing..."
Bruce shrugs
(Bruce) 'Well, okay then... Anyways, follow me for now so I can take you guys where you'll be living. Oh and one last thing...'
Bruce looks at the two demons
(Bruce) 'I've just been thinking of you guys as Demon #1 and Demon #2. And I'd like to know what your names are? Oh, and no using an alias to hide your real name either'
Demon #1 takes some time to think about it, but Demon #2 answers right away
(Demon #2) "Alright then, my name is-" [Roundabout music hits the to be continued part]
<{[||||||||To be continued...|||||||/\/\/]
