Imp to Demon King: A Journey of Conquest

Everyone\'s joyous roars enlivened the dead camp as their fists cut through the air in triumph.

The freshly healed Garduck rose to his feet and observed him, eyes sparkling with uncontainable joy. It has been his oldest dream to climb the demonic hierarchy, like many others. But just like them, he had given up in the cruel demon realm.

More than a mere advancement, it was a testimony of their lord\'s care for everyone, even the imps no one liked.

He let them celebrate, lips stretching into a smile as the djinn brightened the sky with improvised fireworks for a moment.

Then, he chuckled as he continued.

"Gather the corpses and dismantle the tents and walls so we can return and sleep like logs for the rest of the night."

Everyone nodded and moved into action.

Meanwhile, he retrieved the heavy battle ax and scanned its stats on his way to the leader\'s tent.

The Splitter

Introduction:

A standard battle ax found in Oikos, the grand kingdom ruled by Hestia\'s followers. Its long shaft emphasizes powerful strikes, and its edges are razor-sharp.

Rarity: Uncommon

Level requirement: 15

Strength +15

Agility +4

Note: It\'s still too big for you.

He grinned at the item, feeling its cold shaft in his hand and gazing at its broad blade before carrying it on his shoulder.

\'A perfect weapon to sublimate Bart\'s powerful muscles.\'

Whistling an RPG tune in his good mood, he pushed the tent\'s fabric up and gazed inside.

However, his pupils constricted at the sight.

Then, blood rushed onto his face as it turned scarlet and something hard poked his pants.

"AHHH!"

"AHHH!"

He yelled in shame, making the three naked ladies lying alluringly on the leader\'s bed yell in terror in a chaotic scene.

The women covered themselves with bed sheets, tears streaming down their cheeks as they dreaded the miserable fate awaiting them now that an imp massacred their kidnaper. Though Brad was a bastard, he was still human, unlike the fiery haired and tailed creature before them.

As despair colored their faces in black ink, he noticed the chains attached at their feet and frowned now that their natural weapons were concealed.

"Slaves?"

His guttural voice sent a shiver down the ladies\' spines as they burst into hiccuped sobs after noticing his pants.

"Kill me, sisters. I don\'t want to be sullied by a demon."

"Just when we resolved ourselves to comply with that hateful Brad... Why is fate playing with us?"

"Oh, dear Hestia, help us cross the afterlife without trouble and slip a good word to Hades for us."

"I\'m not a beast! Calm down!"

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he moved towards them, forcing terrified gulps down their throats as their teeth chattered.

\'Don\'t they understand me?\'

He tilted his head to the side, confused by their reactions.

\'Old method it is.\'

Without bothering to speak, the large ax glinted under the brasier lighting and heating the tent as it descended toward the terrified women.

They close their eyes, finding relief amidst the terror. At least they wouldn\'t suffer.

CLANG

The noise of metal shattering echoed as the ground caved in by the bed, and broken chain links flew before their enlarging eyes.

"Shihan! I need you here."

Like a gust, the beautiful demon stormed into the tent\'s fur-covered ground.

Her Eastern robes fluttered as she warily scanned the large seat the leader used, the wooden table filled with half-eaten dishes, the five sealed chests and the three women trembling on the bed.

"I don\'t know why, but they can\'t understand me, so tell them we won\'t do anything to them. They can leave if they want or return with us as citizens."

She scrutinised him before a realisation struck her like a bolt, and her eyes widened.

"Now that you mention it, how do we all understand you? Imps usually can\'t talk."

He crossed his arms over his chest, a furrow creasing his brows as the ladies watched with bated breaths.

"I don\'t know. Maybe because I\'m the territory\'s lord. Anyway, fix the situation with them... and make them wear something."

Without looking back, he walked to the five wooden chests and kicked them open as Shihan busied herself with her task.

A soft glow flashed as the lids collided with the carpet before a pile of resources and blueprints greeted his delighted eyes.

He clenched his fists as notifications rang in his ears.

[Obtained: unit of coton x10.]

[Obtained: unit of earth gems x10.]

[Obtained: unit of water gems x10.]

[Obtained: unit wind gems x10.]

Then, he gripped the blueprints, curiosity prickling his skin.

[Basic smithy blueprint x1]

[Basic leather workshop blueprint x1]

[Basic carpenter workshop blueprint x1]

[Basic brick kiln: blueprint x1]

[Firm wooden walls blueprintx1]

"Hahaha! I can finally build real facilities!"

Laughter rocked his frame as his bright eyes sparkled with joy.

He would still need specialists to build and work in them, but they were available at least!

\'Wait, wait, wait! There is that lord of the nine realms living nearby.\'

A sudden idea spread into his thoughts like wildfire, illuminating his mind and offering a potential solution.

Without wasting time, he opened his chat interface and acted on it.

[Adam: Lord of the nine realms, I have a business proposal for you. Did you summon any specialists? If so, I want you to send them to the bandit camps between our territories. I\'ll pay you in beast cores.]

[Lord of the nine realms: Forget about it. The summoning rates are so low, and he\'ll be valuable in the future.]

Elated to see him awake despite the late hour, he rapidly answered.

[Adam: 30 beast cores in exchange. You\'ll bolster your forces a lot with them.]

A grin split his mouth despite the implications. He would provide his closest adversary with soldiers but desperately needed specialists to continue developing.

[Lord of the nine realms: That\'s a lot. But no. I\'ll need my carpenter.]

\'A carpenter! Give it to me!\'

Without a second thought, he went all in.

[Adam: What will you need him for without an army to protect yourself once the grace period is over? I don\'t know if you explored the forest, but it\'s filled with threats like oversized ant colonies with thousands of level ten insects. Focus on your military and surviving instead of wasting an excellent opportunity, especially if you don\'t have blueprints. Here, I\'ll raise my offer to 81 cores.

You\'ll unquestionably become one of the greatest lords and ensure survival.]

[Lord 6369: 81? Can you send me a few, rich big brother?]

[Hamburger lover: Send them to me. I have a smith who\'s counting the clouds every day.]

Many lords intervened in the discussion, explaining how specialists were haunting them since they needed the relevant buildings to operate. They also complained about the stress pressing down on them with each passing day, keeping them awake at night before Pharaoh meddled with his wise advice.

[Pharaoh (Isis contractor): Adam is right. Don\'t think about the future when the present is uncertain. I have a hunch that the walls won\'t merely disappear in two days. Something big might happen.]

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An: Don\'t forget that you have a 90% discount on privilege chapters unlocking with the last tier. You\'ll save around 950 coins for the month (including the priv cost, so 1200 if you don\'t), so I highly recommend buying it even if you plan to read the story later. :D