Astaroth dropped Silent Light on his feet, before dashing out of the dust cloud towards the hill that had once been his home. At the entrance of it, standing proudly, were four demons.
'So they were waiting before setting out. This isn't good.'
He had no way of knowing if there were more of them inside the cave, but these four would already be an enormous challenge. He scanned them to know what he was against.
*Demon Scout*
Level: 50
Grade: Elite
HP: 96,600
MP: 2,310
*Demon Escort Guard*
Level: 50
Grade: Elite
HP: 191,250
MP: 2,310
*Demon Escort Mage*
Level: 50
Grade: Elite
HP: 96,600
MP: 9,725
*Demon Reconnaissance Leader*
Level: 60
Grade: Elite
HP: 93,300
MP: 13, 265/14,265
Their health pool alone wouldn't be easy to take care of, and Astaroth knew that. But what worried him more was the fact that, unlike the scout, the others seemed to have equipment.
The taller one standing in the middle, the leader, was especially well-dressed. The small sheen on his armour told Astaroth this was special-grade armour.
And his weapons had that same glow.
'This will be an excellent test of my new skills.'
Sending a private message to Silent Light, who was still in the dust cloud behind him, Astaroth dashed into the enemy group.
*I'll distract them. You go inside the cave behind them and find the portal. Close it as fast as you can, and then stay hidden. I'll get to you once I'm done. If there are enemies inside, tell me and I'll come get them.*
Silent Light didn't respond, but Astaroth knew he would follow his directions.
Although Silent Light was an extraordinary healer, and could sub in as a combatant, that was not his strength. At best, he would make a wonderful distraction for these demons.
At worst, he would be a hindrance to Astaroth. And that was not a result either of them wished for.
As he dashed forward, the demon guard jumped in front of Astaroth, shield raised, ready to intercept him. The guard was decked in some heavy leathers that looked to be of common grade, but still looked sturdy enough.
Astaroth estimated they would cover him for ten to fifteen percent, at most. The shield in the demon's hands was also a standard one and was no bigger than a pot lid.
Astaroth pulled out his Ironbark Shield and switched Ad Astra into sword whip form. His current speed was greater than the demon guard's and so was his strength.
When the two collided, he immediately pushed the demon guard back, as the latter dug his heels into the ground, trying to resist the force of Astaroth's charge.
Astaroth swung his sword wide, trying to strike the leader to gauge his strength. But the seven feet tall demon swatted the sword aside with his, like it was nothing, his eyes not even locked on him.
Astaroth followed his gaze, his eyes eventually landing somewhere just outside the dust cloud he had kicked up upon landing.
'He's looking for Silent Light!'
Astaroth knew he couldn't let them find him, as it would defeat his entire purpose of charging at them. So he kicked into second gear, summoning Luna and White Death through Soul Manifestation.
White's strength wasn't up to standard for this fight, but he could hound the scout and mage, while Luna targeted the demon leader.
He had yet to be able to summon the demons to fight for him, and he could only ever summon them for very brief moments at a time, which he used to force their souls into melding the first time.
If he could, this fight would turn into a slaughter, faster than the demons could cry for help. For now, his options were still limited on the matter.
Astaroth took his attention back to the guard, who was trying to push him back, only for him to notice the scout was gone from his place.
But before he could turn his head to find the fast bugger, it popped next to him, stabbing at his side with both blood daggers. But White Death jumped into action, ramming into the demon head first, and pushing it away.
The leader was forced to look at his new assailant, Luna, who was now the size of an adult doe, even though she lacked antlers still, her two cute nubs still growing on her head, as she started lunging at him, and pelting him with lunar beams.
This would let Silent Light sneak into the cave. Or at least, that's what Astaroth thought.
Until the demon leader opened his mouth.
"There is still one sneaking around. Magus, keep your eyes open."
'Shit.'
Astaroth needed to pin the demon mage down, too. His only way to do that would be to swap melds to a demon in the ring and get Morpheus into the fray.
But then, they would still be grossly underpowered. Morpheus and White Death's levels were too low.
He had to power them up soon, or they would never be up for the fights to come. But for now, his hands were tied.
'I guess I'll just have to use everything I got, and take down this leader first. Then I'll help them take out the trash.'
Astaroth kicked the demon guard's shield, sending him hurtling away, and with the time he bought himself, he changed meld to one of the more powerful demons that obeyed him and summoned Morpheus.
Feeling himself grow taller and larger, two horns sprouting from the side of his head, Astaroth grinned. He had formed a certain relationship of respect with this one, through a few scuffles with the more prideful demons.
Seeing him as a hard-headed, battle-hardened mortal, this demon prince had acknowledged his grit. So when he first summoned him, there was no hiccup, and the demon let him use his soul to form a bond without issue.
G?ap was a pure fighter demon whose power of destruction was only second to King Bael. But Astaroth still could not bend the latter to his will, so he used the next best thing.
He could have melded with Asmodeus, but he noticed that melding with demon kings was not worth it yet. Their power was too much for him to handle, and Solomon held it back almost entirely, making the stats he gained from them smaller than what he gained from the weaker demons.
Astaroth had to beg Solomon to let him have full reign over G?ap's power. He eventually granted his request, when he interrogated the demon prince in length, to make sure it had no nefarious intention.
But Astaroth still felt G?ap in his mind, like a looming guardian, watching over his every action. It was unnerving, to say the least.
But the surge in power felt amazing, and would be more than enough to contend with these weak enemies.
Punching his fists together, which were now coated in metal from Ad Astra's change of forms, Astaroth grinned.
"Luna! Target switch!"
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