Progress!

In the aftermath of his triumphant gaming session, Alex reveled in the victory over his friends, their voices still echoing in his ears through the headset.

*"FUCK! Well done man, I guess you win."*

*"GG."*

*"How are you so good?!"*

Jacob's voice, slightly annoyed yet filled with camaraderie, rang through the headset. These friends had been with him since high school

*"A magician never reveals his secrets,"* Alex quipped playfully. But he knew that, for now, he needed to turn his attention elsewhere. *"Anyway, I've got to go now, guys. It's 3 o'clock, and I'm busy, so see ya!"*

*"Oh, so you are cheating, huh?!"*

*"Goodbye!"* 

The final words of his friends faded as he powered down his gaming console.

'Finally, time for Scythe to return!'

Alex thought to himself as he sped to his room and jumped on the bed, placing the vr headset on his head

The system greeted him as he logged back in.

[Welcome back Scythe! Whilst you were away, 4 more villages have been destroyed. You now have over 1500 souls in your hell. Due to the player's previous decisions, all souls have been automatically converted to hell points. You now possess 6234 hell points.]

*"Jeez, 6234 points?!"* Alex marvelled at the rapidly accumulating wealth. *"Well, I guess this is only the beginning... In the future, I shall have trillions of hell points!"* His determination was unwavering.

*"Assign 5 stat points to defence and 5 points to strength,"* he commanded, a rush of newfound strength surging through his digital avatar. The sensation was strangely pleasurable, eclipsing any physical pleasure he'd ever experienced.

His gaze fell upon the 20 uncommon demons that roamed his hellish domain. They bore a grotesque, insect-like appearance, alien in their uniqueness. 

In unison, they prostrated themselves before him, their voices chanting the same words he'd heard from the previous demons.

Eager to obtain more knowledge, Alex scanned through the demons memories and just like every other demon, they all seemed to hail from the same world of Terresia, and yet the kingdom of Valeria, and what seemed to be many other regions of the world, besides Anubis 1, did not seem to have a single demon roaming within

From Anubises memories he seemed to not be a regular demon and seemed to have evolved from a normal lone wolf from beyond the borders of Valeria, he came into contact with a pool of blood, Alex suspected this blood to be a probably dead demons blood, and then the wolf seemed to evolve

This caused Alex some confusion, why were there no demons within any other regions?Just what was going on here?

All these demons didn't have many interactions with humans, they seemed to live in a desolate and unknown region of the world, the few managing to escape this region either not surviving long or only turning into a myth for the entertainment of the humans

Alex didn't get much information from any of the memories unfortunately, frustrating him

This only increasing his determination to uncover all the secrets of this game

'System upgrade all 3 new small punishment zones twice!'

[Affirmative]

[240 Hell points have been deducted

5994 Hell points remaining

All 3 new punishment zones now have enough room for 25 souls and 3 demons]

'Haa….'

The feeling of upgrading sure was exhilarating to Alex

'System, how much for the next level of Spearhead valley and what features would upgrade?'

[500 hell points required for spearhead valleys level 3

The following upgrades are, 10 more demons can be assigned to spearhead valley, the combination of spearhead valley with any small punishment zone the lord chooses, the forest becomes set on fire with regular hell fire, a total of 250 souls can be punished at once ]

'Purchase!'

[Affirmative]

[5494 Hell points remaining]

'Haha this easy life is amazing! I get more powerful by letting my demons do everything! But….a true demon lord requires a  lord's castle! My quest says i am required to harvest 10 super fearful souls…time to head out'

In an instant, Alex had vanished from Hell, the demons looking where his figure once was for a second with revere before carrying on with their duties

....

A few hours back 

King Edmund sat upon his ornate throne, a symbol of power and authority in Valeria's grand hall. The room was bathed in the warm, golden light of numerous chandeliers, their crystals glistening like stars. Around a massive, round table sat his council, a group of trusted advisors and officials who had been instrumental in maintaining Valeria's peace and prosperity.

The king's brow was furrowed with concern as he leaned forward, his eyes scanning the faces of his councillors. He had summoned this meeting urgently, sensing a growing threat to the tranquillity of his kingdom. His fingers drummed rhythmically on the armrest of his throne, betraying his unease.

Councillor Marianne, a woman of wisdom and grace, cleared her throat and spoke with a slightly ridiculing tone. "Your Majesty, as you are aware, there have been two reports of villages razed to the ground near Ardenvale. The sole survivor speaks of a dire omen, of a Lord of Hell named Scythe who has descended upon our lands."

King Edmund's gaze shifted to Sir Cedric, the captain of the royal knights. Sir Cedric's countenance was grave as he continued the report. "Your Majesty, the devastation is severe. We found the sole survivor of the second village, a young girl, who keeps repeating the same chilling words about a so-called Scythe."

The king's thoughts churned as he considered the implications. He had not encountered such a threat in his reign, and it troubled him deeply. The safety and well-being of his people were his paramount concerns.

"What do we know of this Scythe?" King Edmund inquired, his voice laced with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension. He turned to Councillor Eamon, who was known for his extensive knowledge of Valeria's history.

Councillor Eamon, a scholarly figure with a mane of white hair, adjusted his spectacles before responding. "Your Majesty, Scythe is not a name we find in our historical records. I believe this to be the work of bandits from outside of the kingdom, they probably just scared the girl and tricked her."

King Edmund began to think to himself, doubting the veracity of the girl's claims. 'If any more chaos occurs, this might be a larger threat than I first believed, perhaps I should inform... those people.'

The council chamber fell into a contemplative silence, the weight of the unknown pressing upon them all. The fate of Valeria hung in the balance, and the responsibility to safeguard it rested on their shoulders.

"We cannot afford to underestimate this threat," the king finally spoke, his voice firm and resolute. "I want our scholars to scour our archives for any mention of this Scythe. Sir Cedric, strengthen the defences of our border villages. Councillors, we must find a way to protect our people and uncover the truth behind all of this."

As the councillors nodded in agreement and the discussions continued, King Edmund couldn't help but feel the weight of responsibility upon his shoulders. The fate of Valeria rested in his hands, and he was determined to rise to the occasion, no matter the challenges that lay ahead.

….