Into the Demonverse

I awake, laying on the hard ground. Passively absorbing the mana from the surrounding air, yields a rush of emotions. The raw, potent mixture of fear, rage, and unease all enter my body, making me freeze as the mana is a bit overwhelming. Then, my body adjusts as it begins to accept the stronger mana than on the world I was on.

Finally, I stand up, taking a look around in amazement at my surroundings. I was in a desolate landscape, with jagged, twisting, imposing structures that continued into the horizon. In the sky, it was if there was just space, as it was just void with what appeared to be thousands of planets in the distance. Our only source of light was a brightly red planet that was close to this one. 

The malevolent aura. The desolate lands. There was no denying it, this was the demon realm, and I couldn't help but love it. I imagined it to be like how most would picture Hell to be, with the flames, but this was just... beautiful. Plus, I knew it was the demon realm based on Silverfoot's memories. 

It seemed that I was correct in how I consumed Silverfoot, as his memories were added to my own. His information on demons, though limited, was valuable. It provided me with a clear goal and plan on what to do.

Demons were born from the chaotic mana from this world. Their personalities, appearance, and base abilities are formed within minutes after coming into existence. Once formed, they have but one common goal, gather mana. Until they evolve, they are unable to gather this world's mana, but instead have to utilize the portal they have as a birthright of sorts to go to a human world with their orb they also possess. This orb is basically their heart, if it cracks or shatters, they are unable to use it to gather mana and devolve into something called a fiend. 

When a demon de-evolves, they lose all their personality, appearance, and powers and become a gray horned small imp. Losing their intelligence as well, they're basically considered pests. But should a demon be successful in gathering enough mana, they evolve into an Archdemon. Their orb fuses with that demon on reentering the demon realm, granting them a new ability that will define their strength. 

The process to evolve further was unknown to Silverfoot, but once they were an Archdemon, they could evolve into a Demon King. Demon Kings were far stronger than Archdemons, who needed higher ranking members of the church to intervene. A Demon King were known to use their portals for a final time to wreak havoc on the human world, gaining a title from the church which they wore as a badge of pride. 

Then, they would evolve once more, into a Demon Lord. There was only four Demon Lords at the current moment. Silverfoot's knowledge on them was just rumors, but basically, they were the rulers of this world, each claiming territories in different areas. Every demon apparently knew of moments where Demon Lords would grow bored and perform a ritual, allowing demons of all kinds to raid a planet through a massive portal. 

Finally, there was the legendary rank of Demon God. Each Demon Lord was currently contesting each other over this. To keep the balance to just four Demon Lords, they often subjugate Demon Kings under a contract, keeping them from further evolution. Most willingly enter this contract as benefits and perks trickle down to them, allowing them pleasantries. 

Having this information was extremely beneficial, as I now knew what to avoid at the moment and what to go for. Speaking of which, I looked at Silverfoot's orb that I was holding in my hand. If he was holding it, when he reentered the demon realm, he would have fused with whatever mana he stored in it. Judging from what was in it, he wouldn't have been that strong when he evolved. Nevertheless, I pop his orb into my mouth, relieving my hunger but increasing my yearning for more demons. 

Thanks to Silverfoot, I momentarily had his Mana Sensitivity, so finding demons within this wasteland wasn't going to be as hard as it would be. My plan was to find some demons and consume them to gain some abilities before taking on an Archdemon. Eating fiends was useless, and I wanted to avoid Demon Kings at all costs right now. Their powers were unknown, but I could only guess they were impossible for me to deal with right now until I evolved myself. 

Using his ability, I pick up on a nearby demon, who I could only assume was getting ready to portal to a random human world. Thanks to the superior mana here and the ability to control my mana, I make it to him with minutes. He appears to be like a rat, with the ears, teeth, and nose of one. With his back to me, his long tail winds around him as he becomes aware of my presence. 

"What do you want? Can't you see that I'm busy?" He shouts without turning around. Looking at his work, I could see that he was indeed about to perform the ritual to portal. I don't bother answering him, as my thirst for demons is overwhelming, and I charge him. Unprepared for my assault, he offers up little resistance, other than striking at me with his tail, which I ignore before I have him in my own claws. 

His shrieks are just lost in the air among this treacherous world as I consume him. Satisfied with how easy that I was, I move on to the next target. I guess, demons who are just 'born' really don't have much to worry about until they collect mana.

Betrayal was common in the demon realm, as everyone wanted mana, but those who didn't have it didn't really have much to lose. I was preying on them mostly to collect as many of their abilities as possible, not their mana. His ability was something useless to me, Enhanced Smell. Shaking my head, I continue on to the next, hopeful to luck out on this ability lottery.