Chapter 21: Hell Devil
Cain did not lose much time being amazed by the might of his Kinetic Gauntlets. He took out the spearhead, which was now only useful as a blade, and removed the hearts of the Wave Beasts before flashing away.
Obtaining that Wave Artifact was like giving wings to a T-rex. Cain’s killing speed increased exponentially, and he could now confidently face Level 2 Wave Beasts.
His rush stopped after he again picked up a sulfur scent for the second time. Unlike Wave Beasts, facing a Wave Warrior of Infernus Daemon Race was difficult, even with his Wave Artifact.
Cain followed the scent, which led him to a large mountain. It came from a cave, which immediately drew some problems for him.
Since Cain could not establish eye contact, using the [Pseudo Cellular Analisis] tool became much harder. He would have to get close enough so that the Infernus Daemon could enter the range of his [Basic Scan Force Field].
As he silently approached the cave, the system sent a warning signal.
[Warning. Warning.
.....
—
Basic Scan Force Field has detected several magic matrices in the surroundings. If touched, they will trigger a spell.
—
Magic matrices locations marked]
Cain’s eyes narrowed, and his alertness spiked as the system marked invisible magic matrices hidden around the cave.
‘Abyssal Demons, while intelligent enough to put traps, usually disdain to do it, so the one inside the cave must be a Hell Devil.’
Just like the Godslayer Humankind had many Lineages, the Infernus Daemon Race also had more than one.
According to the Dark Race Compendium, the Infernus Daemon Race had three main Lineages, and the Hell Devils were fond of traps and schemes.
Cain dodged all the magic matrices and got close enough to the cave for the [Basic Scan Force Field] to cover the Infernus Daemon.
It did not take long for the system’s voice to appear in his mind.
[Target scan successful.
—
Race: Infernus Daemon Race
Lineage: Hell Devil Race
Path of Power: Essence Evolution (Level 2 Wave Warrior)
—
Stats:
Strength: 0.14
Agility: 0.19
Vitality: 0.27
Essence Wave: 0.48
—
Note: There is a foreign object hidden inside the target’s body]
As Cain suspected, the one inside the cave was a Hell Devil. As for the fact it had taken the Essence Evolution Path of Power despite having a Lineage, that did not surprise him.
Not because you have a Lineage, you would necessarily embark on the Astral Rebirth Path of Power. Some chose not to take it because of its harshness, and others had Lineages that were more suitable for the Essence Evolution Path of Power.
‘Just marching inside the cave would be suicide. A barrage of spells would come to greet me before I could even get close to the Hell Devil.’
Cain began considering the best path forward and ran many simulations with the system. It did not take long before a plan appeared in his mind.
He got next to the mountain that held the cave and began to strike it in several locations before charging the matrix in his right gauntlet and giving a final blow. Those strikes were not thrust randomly since the system marked them as weak points.
A second after that, Cain connected a Kinetic Blast, and the cave began to tremble. It was a matter of time before it collapsed. Since running into it would be suicide, he forced the Hell Devil to come out.
A beautiful humanoid woman emerged from the cave. She was similar to a human, other than her red skin and horns.
Despite her appearance, the woman’s eyes were cold as she surveyed the surroundings. The Hell Devil felt the Astral Wave and knew an enemy was near.
She quickly discovered the youth covered in a dark-purple Wave Cloak flashing toward her.
“Wait, please don’t do this!” The woman’s plight and the sad expression on her face could have moved anyone’s heart, especially that of a youth.
Yet, Cain’s expression remained resolute no matter what he heard or saw. It was not that he did not find the woman attractive. If he was honest, the red color of her skin hit the right spot.
Unfortunately for the Hell Devil, Cain would not back down now. He had decided to join the Imperial Military Force in the future, which would mean killing members of the Dark Races.
While he no longer hid behind an excuse, letting the indoctrination of the Godslayer Humankind Empire guide him, that did not mean he would show any mercy.
The woman saw that her words did not work, and her sad expression turned cold as she raised her hand and fired a fireball. That spell was fired almost instantly from her hand because she had been preparing it from the moment she saw the youth.
Cain had expected such an attack and was ready to counter it. His left gauntlet glowed as he connected a Kinetic Blast to the ground, triggering an explosion that fired dozens of large rocks forward.
The rocks and the fireball counter each other, allowing Cain to appear right before the Hell Devil. Just as he was about to send a blow toward her neck, he heard the system’s voice.
[WARNING! INCOMING SPELL FROM 8 O’CLOCK]
Cain’s eyes widened as he heard that. He had made sure to survey the surroundings before the battle started, but he found no one, and if not for the [Basic Scan Force Field], he would have never known until it was too late.
‘I can not dodge it nor form a proper defense in such a short time.’
Cain’s mind worked extremely fast, searching for a way to survive, and he found it. He continued advancing, but instead of striking the Hell Devil’s throat, he grabbed it and her waist before turning around.
The youth used the Hell Devil as a shield against the spell.
Dozens of small shadow blades landed on the Hell Devil’s back, cutting the flesh like nothing and leaving deep lacerations in the spine. Due to the hasty defense, some blades also landed on Cain.
Cain clenched his teeth as he endured the pain and focused on where the attack came from. Surprise and rage emerged in his eyes as he saw that the attackers were not members of the Dark Races but humans.
A man and a woman walked out of the trees’ cover. A shadowy aura emerged from the latter that covered both.