Fantasy Land of the Poor Lord (Demon World Isekai)

[TanteRegenbogen]

Reborn in a new world as demons, you are expected to join one of the worlds seven nations. You hear from other demons of how glorious six of the seven demon lords are and how anyone who follows them will become prosperous. It almost sounds like the demon world version of the American dream. However things end up not being that easy and the lords even laugh at you for wanting to follow your dreams and recommend that you'd be better off in the seventh nation and probably have a better chance at becoming a citizen there. Basically, if you stay in one of the more prosperous six nations, you might end up a serf.

You get to the seventh nation. The seventh nation is beyond the opposite of the other nations. It is totally undeveloped and its largest known settlement has only about a couple dozen demons. Worst of all, the lord of the nation is a she-demon who lives in a shack. She doesn't seem much like a leader or a lord. However, she offers citizenship and a plot of land and maybe other benefits in turn for regular tasks like hunting boars, cutting thickets or slaying dragons. The seventh nation is undesired and undeveloped for a reason: It is a very dangerous place where only the strongest can perservere. But there may be hope for future development.

The lord of the seventh nation wants to develop the nation some, at least the habitable and less dangerous lowlands. But for that she needs warriors and adventurers to push back the dangerous wildlife of the land.

Setting: The seventh nation, known simply as "The Wilds" is relatively large by area. But it is known to lack towns or paved roads and there are only a couple thousand demons who live in this vast land, most of which are only small groups or hermits. The largest settlement or rather the capital consists of two or three dozen demons who mostly work as farmers or hunters in one of the unforested valleys in the Wilds. The lord lives in a small shack on the edge of the settlement. The nation has seen better days hundreds of years ago. But population has long declines because other nations offer simpler lives.

Technology: Most of the demon world has rather modern technology. The Wilds however has some parts that are still medieval with only the main settlement having some modern technology such as a mast for telecommunications and internet.

The lord of "The Wilds": A she-demon from a long line of powerful demon royalty. Generally, the demon lord is decided by lineage and which demon can defeat their predecessor in fair battle. This has produced more and more exceptionally strong lords of the wilds who have defended the land from invasion and from larger internal threats.

 

[Naburius]

It had been about three weeks, three weeks since Remy had been reborn into a new world. His first impression was that it was everything he could have asked for and more. He didn't look all too different but could already feel the difference in power. Upon getting the rundown on how the world works here he'd initially planned on heading straight for the first nation if possible but was scared off upon hearing all the promises of servitude. He'd just been reincarnated he wasn't about to waste that opportunity as some serf, besides it only made sense he start from the bottom and rise all the way to the top by starting in the, frankly less intimidating sounding, seventh nation. It was full of monsters and such but as the protagonist being reincarnated in a new world obviously he'd have some kind of immense hidden power that'd make them no threat.

Thus he happily made his way to the Wilds and promptly got extraordinarily lost. His first week was spent wandering aimlessly and scaring off more monsters than he fought. Eventually after all that pointless travel he stumbled across another sentient inhabitant and was able to properly relax for the first time since he arrived. While he could certainly take more hits than when he first arrived he felt ill equipped and did enough hunting jobs for the demon that they gave him a proper set of armor. With that and proper directions for how to arrive at the Demon Lord's abode Remy took his leave and promptly got lost for another two weeks.

After two weeks of eating poorly cooked monsters he eventually arrived at what he supposed one could call a capital. It was extraordinarily pitiful frankly and no more than a village by rpg standards but it was the biggest settlement he'd seen yet. He finally got to sleep in a comfortable bed after so long and now he's once again stuck on a search, going door to door trying to find where this supposed Lord of the Wilds lives. Frankly he was having a hard time believing they would actually be here. None of these buildings were really... impressive enough, seems nobody here has the same standards as someone like Nighcisa. But he wasn't about to pass anything over and had finally reached the last house on the edge of town. It was the most pitiful abode yet and the chances were slim to none. Frankly it made more sense for the Lord of the Wilds to, you know, live in the wilds so his hopes weren't high. Regardless he knocked on the fourth door of the day and waited for an answer.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

It was morning in the little hamlet that was the capital of The Wilds. Rura laid in her bed wrapped in fur blankets. She was awoken by her neighbor who was wrestling a giant boar with his bare hands next door, lifting the boar by it's tusks over his head and slamming it into the ground. It was a normal occurence and something the tourists that tended to come couldn't get used to. It was expected though. Tourists where rarely physically fit compared to the inhabitants of the wilds, who were often well trained and physically strengthened from generations of powerful ancestors.

Rura got up and dropped the blanket from around her soldiers. She climbed into a wooden tub and pulled on a line, making fresh water come down a pipe. She showered in the filtered rainwater and it drained through a hole in the tub back outside. Once finished showering, she dried off, brushed her hair and put on her usual get up: A bikini top, this time in blue and black, a pair of blue shorts and a plain black velvet choker that magically fastened seamlessly around her neck. She usually wore dragon leather thigh high boots. Once dressed, Rura put on black eyeliner and some pink lipgloss.

She stepped out back to grab some wood to light up a fire. The logs were a bit large to start a fire, so she seemingly tore apart the logs into smaller pieces using her somewhat clawed hands. She then lit a fire outside and filled a kettle with water. The kettle she put over the fire and once it was steaming, she opened the kettle and threw in some herbs to make tea. "Gods I wish we finally had decent electricity. It would be so much more convenient." Rura grumbled.

The Wilds had poor infrastructure. While the roads from the outside at least made it into the capital, there were only solar panels to power the homes in the hamlet, providing only enough for lighting, charging phones and powering the antenna. All reason why Rura offered citizenship and land to anyone who would come to the wilds to help build an infrastructure or at least make areas safe enough for workers to work on infrastructure. Currently, she needed to build up the capital a little. Lure in adventurers, craftsmen, engineers, technicians and traders. Then maybe turn her small one room shack into a decent house or even a small palace worthy of a lord. It didn't have to be anything big, but it needed to stand out enough.

Rura heard someone knock on the door in the front. She went around to the front. It was an unfamiliar face. Possibly someone from outside of The Wilds. "Hello. Welcome to The Wilds. I am Rura, lord of these lands and avid dragon hunter. Well my job is to prevent the dragons from crossing the border and attacking the other nations and not so much kill them. You look new. Have you come to register for citizenship? If you come from a remote village and have just come of age, then I need to know your lineage. If you are from outside of the nation, I will have to lead you through all the procedures from explaining the different programs we have for newbies to the handful of rules that apply in the land and are punishable by expulsion or death if broken. Or are you here for none of that? Please state your purpose." Rura said all formally yet unenthusiastically.

 

[Naburius]

Yet again Remy was faced with something he wasn't quite expecting. Technically she matched the little abode she stood before but he couldn't help but feel someone who supposedly hunted dragons should look the part a little more. At the very least she was beautiful, something fairly characteristic of what he'd expect. Well either gorgeous or horrendous, there probably shouldn't be an in between for Demon Lords. A Demon Lord has to command respect and looking too average wouldn't make that very easy to say the least. Matching up to appearances or not she had the speech down pat so it was fair to assume he had indeed finally ran into the right person here. Everyone else had more or less responded with something along the lines of 'is there something I can help you with?' Some more friendly about it than others. Though that's probably to be expected in a land where most have to fend for themselves all things considered.

Remy immediately straightened up and took a moment to think about his answer, he wasn't actually sure what it was he wanted from the woman before him. He'd sorta just on instinct thought she seemed like the main quest and everything would fall into place here, he hadn't thought too much about the specifics beyond that. Well every Demon King has to start somewhere, citizenship is a first step. He gathered his thoughts and cleared his throat before responding. "I am Regulus Armand, son of Tony and Sophia. I am an outsider to this realm and I seek great power, I deduced the best place to start was at the top and so now I stand before you. If citizenship is the first step on that ascent then so be it, I shall endure this introductory seminar." From what he remembered the deal was basically build up civilization anyways, that was only a natural step in world conquest.

He clearly had a rather self satisfied look on his face after his overly gaudy introduction and even clenched his fist as if to say nailed it. Immediately afterwards he regained his composure and forced a very serious expression but it was rather clear he was merely emulating a persona. He'd tried to keep his tone serious but really he had a thousand questions for the woman standing before him, most of them rather nonsensical and all of them itching at the back of his mind. Still he had to at least contain his curiosity till introductions were out of the way or he'd just be plain rude, main character or not he did not want to get on the current Demon Lord's bad side.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Outsider of this realm? If he meant outside of the demon world and reincarnated here, then he wouldn't be the first and certainly not the last. All of them seemed to be on a quest as if in a story or fable but they all ended up failing. Those who hadn't died ended up becoming farmers or craftsmen in remote villages, giving up their dreams of conquering the realm or becoming some hero. "You seek great power, eh? I will have to tell you that there have been many who sought great power before you. Many of them also proclaiming that they were not from this world. Most of them died and those who survived settled for a somewhat decent life in a simpler and safer profession. The Wilds aren't a walk in the park. They are dangerous and can be overwhelming even for seemingly hardened demons seeking an adventure. If you want to succeed here, I recommend not rushing into a huge battle but finding something easy first or learning under a master." Rura explained.

Rura sighed and said: "Listen, while my nation may have been slavery and indentured servitude, the other nations may have been easier to live in. I don't know which realm you are originally from but this nation is a hard start. If you don't want to die due to inexperience, I can offer you missions in turn for food and benefits and make sure you don't wander into situations that are too dangerous for you. Now if you wish to be a citizen of this nation, just let me get the paperwork ready and we can proceed."

Rura went into her home and came back out with a stack of six sheets of paper. "First, I must brief you of the rules and programs of the nation before giving you citizenship. Yes, citizenship is this easy here. There are basically no requirements else than being briefed beforehand. Most people don't seek citizenship because it is very difficult here even with the benefits." Rura said.

Rura then went on to brief Regulus: "The rules are pretty simple and pretty few. If you are capable, you should help out other citizens in dangerous, usually identifiable by a whistle in the distance. If you have quarrels with another citizen, follow the rules of feud to settle the dispute. Seek out a mediator of higher standing to oversee the feud. If you don't trust the demon of higher standing, you can seek out your regent: That's me. If you seek to challenge your regent for their position, you must first prove yourself worthy of a fight by fulfilling a pre-test such as a jumping competition. Fights with your regent have to be on honorable terms, which mean no surprise attacks or single-sided initiation of combat. Poaching and slavery are illegal and otherwise most of the rules are made by regional leaders. Citizens should help each other out and set aside differences as best as possible. Neglecting to abide by these rules can lead at best to expulsion and at worst to execution. Any attempted coup against your regent will lead to execution unless a challenge is consented to bilaterally."

"Well those are the general rules. In short: Treat your fellow citizens as equals and don't try to backstab them and don't try to overthrow me." Rura said. "Now on to poaching. Most creatures here can be hunted without a license as they are bountiful. Exceptions to the rule are dragons and dragonkind. Only five demons have general hunting licenses for dragons. Temporary licenses for limited amounts of dragons may be handed out. Generally the eastern range dragons are not allowed to be hunted since I have a personal contract with them."

"In terms of benefits and programs, the Wilds offers land ownership to all full citizens willing to contribute to the nation. You are entitled to a hectare of land for personal living and an additional four hectares for farming if you seek to farm. The national government also offers you a small personal powerplant in for of a large solar panel or a small wind turbine and a battery for personal use. If your area doesn't have telecommunications reception, you will also be given an antenna for telecommunications and TV reception. The Wilds only has two TV channels. The main channel with it's station in the capital offers variety programming from a regents hour to tips on safety and survival and even shows from other nations. The second channel comes from the eastern range and features programming for both demon and dragonkind." Rura said.

"As programs, I offer the standard landownership and benefits for citizenship. For craftsmen we offer additional subsidies if they benefit the infrastructure of the nation. For adventurers, we offer payment and additional land or equipment with each mission complete." Rura continued. "Due to past problems with foreign multinational companies that started a war against the nation, we only allow cooperative endeavors by locals now. If you need to know the details: Well, we allowed a foreign company engage in mining but they broke a bunch of rules. I gave them a month ultimatum to vacate the nation and instead they got the nation of Mitra to declare war on us. Mitra attacked and were defeated. They retreated after I heavily injured the leader of Mitra with the throw of a rock and decapitated half a batallion. At the end, Mitra sued for peace to which I allowed a peace without change of conditions else than that the leadership of the mining company was summarily executed. After that, there had been a number of assassination attempts on my life which ended after I flew a dragon into the Aratan metropolis, broke through the palace shields and destroyed part of the palace. Yes, I have bad publicity in the other nations because of that but the reason why this nation is safe from foreign invasion is because the leadership of the other nations fear me and my people."

"If you still seek citizenship, sign here and seal it with a drop of blood. You will receive your emergency whistle upon receiving the confirmation of your citizenship. I will observe you and intervene in the first couple of weeks of your citizenship to keep you from dying." Rura said with a smile. "Otherwise I might invite you to hunts if you stay in the area and this weekend we have our national festival to which over three thousand citizens from around the nation will come to camp out here and participate in festivities and competitions."

 

[Naburius]

So there were people who'd arrived before him huh? A little disheartening but only the slightest of roadblocks to a future Demon King. So what if it objectively made Remy less special, he was pulled into a fantasy world and was obviously destined to do great things. It's not like he's simply going to quit at the slightest hint there might not be anything worth accomplishing here. He'd been reborn as the demon Regulus and was going to blow this world away. Besides just listen to the stuff people are expected to accomplish here, that's classic kingdom building, monster slaying, world changing adventure.

There was certainly some less exciting stuff in the specifics of her speech but overall this was exactly the fantasy world Remy had hoped for. Dragons, adventurers, war, duels for power, it was the whole package. Not only that but far as he could tell the woman before him got to partake in all of it and more at her leisure, that was the kind of life he was searching for. As she continued listing off the terms of citizenship he couldn't help but get less stoic and more visibly pumped. Once she finished her debriefing he looked over the documents before staring her in the eyes.

There were of course a few stipulations to be made clear before he signed anything. "Listen well Milady, there may have been many before me but assure you I am unlike any you've seen before. I am not one who will be satisfied performing menial labor till the end of his days. If one is to walk deep into the pits of Tartarus then one should be prepared to put his life on the line and face adversity like none before him could even imagine. THAT is what it means to be a Hero, NAY a King! I declare to you that I shall not only thrive in this nation but I shall make this nation thrive with me! Either do something with your whole heart or don't do it at all that's what I say!" As his speech continued his voice only got louder and more pumped up. "I may not appear like much now but I swear to you that the one standing before you shall one day surpass even your great self. Be you on the level of Ssusal or even Kkulf Kkulf I shall raise this Nation into prosperity and then challenge you for it!"

That was a pretty impressive speech if he did say so himself, his pride in it and confidence in his words was practically radiating off of him. Far as he was concerned he was the coolest thing since sliced bread. He signed the papers in the name of Regulus Armand before biting his thumb and stamping it with his blood. Just how cool was that, even paperwork was more exciting in a fantasy world.

There were so many things he could do now, granted he felt like it wasn't much more than before he signed but before all that there was one thing that absolutely had to be accomplished. "I know exactly what I wish to do Lord Rura, no, Rura-Shisho." He stood up to his full height before bowing before her and looking up at her pleadingly. "I formally request that you make me your apprentice!" There was obviously no better person on the continent to train him. Be it combat, politics, or simply how to survive she was the epitome of it all and thus the only acceptable person to train him. (Not to mention she has a dragon! A DRAGON!) He absolutely had to get this woman to take him under his wing.

He could picture it now, the grueling training and epic quests would all be worth it as he grew stronger than anyone on the continent be they demon or dragon. What was a few measly months or years of apprenticeship leading up to conquest? A true ruler had to admit when someone was stronger than them, and then study and steal all their techniques so that they can surpass said stronger person. As admirable as the headstrong ways of this nation were there's certainly nothing wrong with utilizing cunning just as well. If anything how else is an outsider meant to survive if they don't grab every opportunity at their disposal? He's certainly not going to waste time fighting menial monsters and farming, eugh. There's adventure to be had and no better time to seize it than right now!

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Rura listened to his speech and watched as Regulus signed the paperwork and marked it with his blood. "Nice speech, but honestly you are more likely to be raised into a noble standing than have a chance at being of contest to me. Maybe when you become an adult and make a decent impression, you can marry yourself into royalty but I have 92 years on my back, over 75 years of combat experience and 3000 years of lineage consisting of predecessors that have gotten stronger and stronger. I think it may be better to shatter your dream of ruling the world early on and give you an idea of what is realistic before you get destroyed in a challenge and ultimately get eaten. But then again, getting eaten is probably a more bareable thing than what the other lords do to losers of challenges who survive. The other lords do things like slavery or cripple the loser permanently." Rura said. It may have seemed harsh but it is ultimately to help them and prevent them from doing something fatal and stupid.

Rura took the certificate, put a seal on it and put her finger on it, illuminating the writing in a vivid red. Once the writing dimmed, Rura handed Regulus his copy of the certificate while putting her copy of his certificate in a binder. Then Regulus ecstatically requested to become Rura's apprentice. "Shisho? Is that some foreign word from your home realm? Anyways, I can show you some basics but if you want to become an apprentice, I will have to test you first. I must warn you that I cannot enhance your strength and I am not the most active lord. You have three simple tests. One, jump as high as you can on the spot. Two, move that boulder over there. It needs to stay in tact. Breaking it into smaller pieces results in your failure of the test. I will say this: Others before you passed the test without having much strength, because they had brilliant ideas of solving it. Lastly, do laps around the hamlet until you are out of breath." Rura said and pointed to a boulder the size of her hut.

"While you do the test, I will have breakfast. My last challenge by a former apprentice was yesterday and I have leftovers to eat today. Yes, that's right I eat other demons." Rura continued. She then grabbed a demon leg from an old school preservation chamber that was on the outer wall of her hut.

(The boulder is basically unmoveable by raw force for the average demon. You need to be creative.)

 

[MissBumble]

Dying was only half the battle, Cora had realized a bit too late. At present the newly born demon was nestled away between the roots of a huge oak tree in some unknown, densely wooded area, listening to the snuffling of some huge beast that had been hunting her for the past half an hour. She had no weapons, no distractions, and certainly no helpful knowledge of how to get this thing off of her back. She found herself wishing she would have stayed and argued with the person who had called themself Hacotia, perhaps try and persuade them to have let her stay as a serf. Hell, she was better at following orders than much of anything else anyways. Why had she been so stubborn? Perhaps it was still some of her rebellious nature she had possessed in her previous life that had made her refuse that kind of life, and look where it had gotten her. Hunted by some... thing. Taking a deep breath, Cora peeked out cautiously, eyeing every branch and twig suspiciously. The snuffling of the beast seemed to be retreating now, and at the moment she saw no sign of it.

Placing a shaking hand on the root, she hoisted herself up onto her feet, still glancing around for any sign of its presence. Making absolute certain that she wouldn't make any noise to draw attention to herself, she tiptoed out from her hiding spot and began walking in the opposite direction that she had heard the beast. She had only gotten about a mile out before it had caught back up with her.

"You've got to be kidding me." She hissed under her breath, looking for another hiding spot. This time however, there didn't seem to be one anywhere. Without even realizing it Cora had walked into an area where the trees began to thin out. Up ahead looked more like a clearing than the woods she had found herself in. As the sniffing became louder, so did the footsteps. She heard the crunch crunch crunch of dying leaves under the monster's weight, and at that moment she knew she had no other choice than to try and outrun it. She could hear the beast off to her right, barely making out the faint grey outlines of it's grotesque figure between the foliage. Cora calculated the distance she was from the clearing compared to the beast, realizing there was only slight hope of her making it out alive. Without second thought she took off running, hearing the beast take off after her only seconds later. If she could make this, there would be more of a chance for her to fend it off than if she were to fight in such a closed off space. The sound of the beast's breaths grew closer and closer, but Cora hadn't processed it until she had burst into the clearing.

The first thing she noticed were two people- or demons, more likely, standing just a few feet away. The second thing she had noticed was the absence of teeth sinking into her flesh, and when she spun around waiting to come eye to eye with her hunter, there was nothing but trees and discolored leaves that met her. She stood for a moment, bewildered. What had happened to it? Why had it stopped chasing her? Had it... just been her imagination? Taking a few steps away from the edge of the forest, she turned again to face the two who had seemed to be deep in conversation. Sweeping her hair out of her face, Cora settled her expression to a more neutral one, trying to play off her previous scare.

"Hello. Can either of you tell me where I am exactly?"

 

[Naburius]

While being eaten wasn't... ideal Remy was certain it wouldn't come to it. Maybe he was new and maybe it would take a while but he planned to grab every opportunity to grow stronger. Lineage wasn't all it took to be strong so far as he cared those 3000 years were basically a moot point, leaving the only gap he had to fill as 75 years. Still an extraordinary amount of time for him but not a lead he couldn't catch up to. He wasn't just the protagonist he had his head rightly on his shoulders and would plot and scheme whatever it took to make it to her level, including surpassing this test however possible. It shouldn't be that difficult considering she provided basically no rules or stipulations. With it as lenient as that he could certainly find some kind of work around for everything.

"It is a term for a combat instructor that denotes great respect in a far off land. Now just stand aside and be amazed as I blow through your so called tests." Once she grabbed her breakfast he immediately dropped crisscross where he was standing so he could think. The hardest was definitely the vertical jump but not impossible, he'd likely save it for last so he had more time to think about it, at the least no time limit was announced and nothing said he had to do them in order. The laps it didn't matter whether or not he could do them, he could certainly do more in this demon body but he simply had to not stop no matter how tired he got. But he imagined the most important to address first was the boulder. It was simply put, much too big. He was definitely stronger but whatever proper footing there was to move that with brute force he didn't know it. He could probably simply dig around it a bit and it'd sink which would technically count as moving but he wanted to blow this Demon Lord away.

As he was lost in thought he heard a rustling from the woods and then a question aimed his way. He immediately noticed the new demon's eyes and nearly forgot her question as he looked into them. "You are currently just on the edge of the capital, not actually sure what it's name is. But more importantly-" He walked up closer than was probably necessary before questioning her. "What do they do, your eyes?" He was clearly very expectantly looking into her eyes for some kind of fantastical answer to what was really a kind of vague question.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Regulus seemed pretty confident about the tests. Not the first person to be so. In all honesty, most demons who took on the challenge could jump twice their own height, most the boulder a miniscule amount or fail trying to do so and managed to run a dozen laps around the hamlet before being out of energy.

A new face arrived. It was a female demon who seemed to be a little out of breath. She asked Rura and Regulus where she was. Regulus then replied to the she-demon that it was the capital although he didn't know it's name.

"Hello. You are in the capital of The Wilds, the hamlet of A'antara. I am Rura of A'antara, Lord of the Wilds, regent of this nation, prime dragonslayer of this realm and likely the guardian preventing dangerous creatures from invading the other nations. You look a bit distraught and out of energy. Did you run into a creature you couldn't fight?" Rura said before biting off another piece of leftover cooked apprentice.

"Let me guess, you heard of the news to become a citizen here and left one of the other nations to become a citizen here as you were in danger of becoming a serf in the other nations instead. If so, you are in luck. This young man just obtain his citizenship. I can process yours too. It only comes if you intend to contribute to my nation. Adventuring, craftsmanship, engineering. You are basically forced to do something here to survive. Are you up for it?" Rura said. Regulus seemed to be interested in the she-demons eyes, but Rura was rather unfazed. While she had seem that eye color before. it didn't necessarily mean a person was blind. It was just uncommon for a demon to have naturally white irises.

 

[MissBumble]

Cora glanced from demon to demon, feeling a bit awkward in the brief silence that followed as both of them took in her sudden appearance. Then one of them spoke up, and Cora drew her gaze swiftly to meet his own intense one. He seemed a bit too excited as he promptly gave a vague answer to her question-

'Helpful.' She thought sarcastically before the guy suddenly took a very odd interest in her eyes. This time it was her turn to be baffled by his question, and she backed up as he approached her, getting a bit too close for comfort. Cora had arrived here only the day before and hadn't had time to inspect her appearance nearly at all, let alone knowing what her eye color was. She looked the demon up and down before grimacing at him.

"Well... I'd imagine the same thing yours do." She was about to ask for further information about her location before the she-demon spoke now. This one seemed to be much more collected and approached Cora calmly, spouting information about her identity and, thankfully, their location. At the mention of the creature, Cora turned with apprehension towards the forest's edge again, eyeing it as if the beast would pop out at any moment. Finally she turned to address Rura and nodded.

"You could say that," she bowed her head in a brief greeting before introducing herself, "I'm Lacora Amorete. You're right in thinking that I was told to come here. It's comforting to know I found the right place." Rura seemed to know immediately how she came about finding this place, which told Cora this happened more often than not. She glanced again at the demon who had first spoken, wondering if he had come in the same way.

Turning back to the demon Lord, she continued. "I'd be more than willing to help you on your endeavors. I do have one question however. How might one go about getting a more... permanent place here? Say for instance becoming a Reaper?" She had heard the word thrown around in the other nation she had first visited. Citizens spoke in hushed voices when talking about it, and she had to dig around to know what exactly it was. She knew what a Reaper meant on earth in her previous life, sure, but she had to be sure it meant the same down here. When she had obtained the information she needed, she came here looking for the opportunity. She had been warned multiple times that it was impossible to just become a reaper. But certain thoughts from her past life had feulled her determination in finding out all she could about the position.

'If I'm spending the rest of my life down here I might as well enjoy it.'

 

[Naburius]

At the newcomer's confusion and quick dismissal the disinterest that appeared on Remy's face became rather quickly clear. "Normally when one has eyes like that you'd expect them to see the future, or ghosts, or at least mana." He pulled away with considerably less curiosity aimed her way and returned to contemplating on the ground. While she certainly could be possessing some amazing hidden talent the fire growing under him was very quickly trampled at the dismissive response. Ah well, not like everyone he ran into was going to be utterly outstanding like he was.

Still his attention was a bit caught at the mention of reapers. How badass a title is that? Like a guild of assassins who'd silently take care of any task if the proper price was paid. As cool as they stounded he was willing to simply settle for joining somebody else's group. In terms of citizenship he didn't have much of a choice and it didn't really count if he planned on taking the nation anyways right?

More importantly he had plotting to do, he planned to move this boulder a full foot by the end of the hour. The only clear cut way to move it so much without straining himself to the point of bursting a vein was clearly science. He was no prodigy in physics but he was at least familiar with a certain quote that might lend it's aid to him. It wasn't even too daunting of a task to pull off if he understood it right.

He looked towards the woods scanning the different trees till he spotted one that would suit his needs. He pointed to a rather tall one with lots of branches before turning back to Rura. He wasn't really sure what type of tree it was but it'd probably serve it's purpose well enough. "Shisho can I have this? I need it to complete my trial. And maybe a blanket and rope if you have either. Blanket preferably stretchy."

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Rura giggled at the two. The young she-demon then confirmed she had encountered a beast and introduced herself as Lacora Amorete. She expressed her desire to become a citizen, getting a place to stay, but also become something called a reaper. Rura tilted her head and said: "A reaper? What's that?" She faintly recalled something about that word in the other nations. "But then again, I have heard of it a long time ago in the other nations. That is someone who helps the dead to their rest, right? We don't really have graveyards here and many don't believe in graves here. Usually demons in the Wilds eat their ancestors immediately after their deaths and memories of ancestors live on in descendants who have followed the practice. There are shrines around the Wilds though. Many are family shrines that have the bones of ancestors and some are shrines to the land deities here. Maybe in the future there is need for such an occupation for demons who which to be buried instead of eaten or enshrined."

"In regards to living arrangements, first we have to take care of your citizenship." Rura said and went into her hut and grabbed a small stack of papers. "I will give you the rundown like I did to Regulus just half an hour before."

Rura then spoke the very same well rehearsed lines that she had spoken to Regulus just minutes before: "The rules are pretty simple and pretty few. If you are capable, you should help out other citizens in dangerous, usually identifiable by a whistle in the distance. If you have quarrels with another citizen, follow the rules of feud to settle the dispute. Seek out a mediator of higher standing to oversee the feud. If you don't trust the demon of higher standing, you can seek out your regent: That's me. If you seek to challenge your regent for their position, you must first prove yourself worthy of a fight by fulfilling a pre-test such as a jumping competition. Fights with your regent have to be on honorable terms, which mean no surprise attacks or single-sided initiation of combat. Poaching and slavery are illegal and otherwise most of the rules are made by regional leaders. Citizens should help each other out and set aside differences as best as possible. Neglecting to abide by these rules can lead at best to expulsion and at worst to execution. Any attempted coup against your regent will lead to execution unless a challenge is consented to bilaterally. In short: Treat your fellow citizens as equals and don't try to backstab them and don't try to overthrow me."

"In regards to poaching. Most creatures here can be hunted without a license as they are bountiful. Exceptions to the rule are dragons and dragonkind. Only five demons have general hunting licenses for dragons. Temporary licenses for limited amounts of dragons may be handed out. Generally the eastern range dragons are not allowed to be hunted since I have a personal contract with them." Rura continued. "In terms of benefits and programs, the Wilds offers land ownership to all full citizens willing to contribute to the nation. You are entitled to a hectare of land for personal living and an additional four hectares for farming if you seek to farm. The national government also offers you a small personal powerplant in for of a large solar panel or a small wind turbine and a battery for personal use. If your area doesn't have telecommunications reception, you will also be given an antenna for telecommunications and TV reception. The Wilds only has two TV channels. The main channel with it's station in the capital offers variety programming from a regents hour to tips on safety and survival and even shows from other nations. The second channel comes from the eastern range and features programming for both demon and dragonkind."

"As programs, I offer the standard landownership and benefits for citizenship. For craftsmen we offer additional subsidies if they benefit the infrastructure of the nation. For adventurers, we offer payment and additional land or equipment with each mission complete."

Then Rura became lazy and made the last part brief: "We only allow cooperative endeavors due to incidents with multinational companies. Company didn't stick to the rules. I gave them a moratorium to leave. They instigated a declaration of war by Mitra against the wilds. We won. I summarily executed the leaders of the company. Assassins came for me. I killed them, then flew a dragon into the Aratan metropolis area, broke through the palace shields and destroyed part of the palace and now in foreign media I am the bad guy and monster."

"No one from the outside attacks us anyways because we keep the dragons at bay and the other lords fear me and the citizens of The Wilds." Rura finished.

Rura then gave the papers for Cora to sign and then said: "Sign this and mark it with you blood."

"Now to both of you. You will be given a hectare of land each to build on. I will have a yurt set up for you until you have built your homes or have had them built. If you wish to live in A'antara, I have zoned a new subdivision for new citizens down that gravel road. You just need to clear the beasts who live there before your yurt can be set up. The beasts in the subdivision shouldn't be too hard for new adventurers. If you don't have armor or weapons, I can provide you with a starter set. The beasts in the subdivision are dire boars. They are about five times the size of the boars you find in the other nations. If you take out the alpha creature, then the others will retreat. When you build a home you can take any natural resource you find outside of town, just please don't chop down the entire forest. If you don't know how to make a house, you can ask the hamlet carpenter and mason to do it, but he will ask you for a favor in return." Rura explained.

Regulus then asked if he could use a tree branch and if Rura had a blanket or rope. "Go on ahead. I don't have rope though. The next thing I have is a vine." Rura said. She went around back and came back with a brown vine of leathery consistency. "This usually makes carrying firewood easier. But do the trials before you go off clearing dire boars."

 

[Naburius]

Remy had a feeling that the Demon Lord had misheard him but regardless he received a yes to his request. He didn't have any particular tools and didn't want to keep asking for things from the Demoness otherwise it'd feel like he wasn't even the one accomplishing anything. He may not have anything sharp but he was at least wearing metal armor, as crude as it was. He stood in front of the tree for a moment before kicking it as hard as he could. It wasn't enough to knock it down but the tree shook and there was a noticeable dent where his leg had made contact with the trunk. That was good enough for him, he continued to kick the trunk of the tree till he'd smashed through enough of it he could snap it and have it fall in the direction he desired. His leg was a little achy but otherwise he felt more or less ok.

Next came the more tedious part of removing the branches, technically some of them could probably stay but he didn't need them getting in the way. Fortunately it was a lot easier than felling the tree and he merely had to snap them off with brute force, gauntlets helping in the way of avoiding splinters. He piled all the branches up before picking up one of the thicker ones and returning to the rock to dig out a slight hole on one side of it. Once he was satisfied with it's depth he tossed the branch aside and dragged the trunk over to slide it underneath the small of the rock he'd uncovered. He then grabbed a much noticeably smaller but still clearly difficult to carry boulder and slid it underneath the other side of the log so that a small part of the log was stuck in the dirt underneath the rock and a large amount was angled up and into the air.

Alright so far that only took about 35 minutes of the hour he'd mentally allotted himself. Not quite trusting the sturdiness of the vine he twisted it around itself to increase it's strength and tied it to the end of the log in the air. Now came the actually complicated part. He drove one of the thicker branches into the ground like a stake with about two feet sticking out of the ground then coiled the vine around it and finally pulled the last of the length of vine around a tree trunk and firmly placed his feet on it with the rope being taut enough for him to stand on it.

"Now watch and be amazed oh Lord of the Wilds. Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world." Regulus took a deep breath before grabbing a length of the fine and pulling. As he pulled on the vine the coil travelled along the branch and around the trunk he was standing on, pulling the trunk oh so slightly down with it, and as it did so the boulder lifted just an inch higher on the log. This was clearly going to be very tiring. After minutes of very slowly pulling on the rope like he was climbing up a mountain the Boulder continued to slowly lift until it was nearly on it's side. If he pulled any more the log would probably just come out from underneath it, so he tied the rope to the trunk and trudged his way over to the boulder that'd likely flatten him if the log fell out of place. All he could do now was give it one last push so he backed up, gave it a running start, and leaped at it to kick it. Were it not barely balanced on a corner it likely wouldn't have budged but with the angle he managed to get it to completely flip it away from him with it's own weight. Ouch that hurt but he'd technically gotten it to travel the distance of it's entire diameter.

He gasped out of breath with his hands on his knees before raising his hand with a finger up as if to say, one moment please. He then took a deep breath and looked to the Lord of the Wilds, "How was that? A new record?"

 

[MissBumble]

Cora managed to sit through her monologue without a single yawn, even throwing in some nods here and there. It was unfortunate that she didn't know about anything involving becoming a reaper. She had her suspicions that perhaps this was just another attempt to cover it up. She would just have to do a bit more digging. She was curious about Rura's standing with the other leaders however. It didn't seem right that she should be ostracized simply for the actions she had taken. Who was she to judge though? The life of a Lord must be much different than anyone else's, so someone in her position had no right to- nor any idea how to- give any input. Not that it was asked for. Taking the paper from Rura, Cora swiftly nicked her finger with her teeth and signed at the bottom with the blood that now refused to stop welling up. Sticking her finger back into her mouth to keep it from bleeding any more, she watched as a completely different scene unfolded. Unsure if she was supposed to go and fight the boars with the other demon or not, she simply waited and watched as he began collecting seemingly random things.

Cora's confusion only grew as he then went over to a humongous boulder that sat near a small shack only a few yards away. The demon began building some contraption that began to, as she watched, look like it was made to actually move it.

'This should be good.' She thought with a smirk. Why would anyone want to move a boulder of that size? As the minutes ticked away the contraption began to grow quite impressive. At this point Cora had taken a seat near the shack, making it a point to stay as far away from the woods as possible. Her finger had stopped bleeding only after a few minutes, but she had completely forgotten about it by then. Finally it seemed that it was ready. The demon jumped up on his newly built... thing, and began the process of moving it. Actually moving it. It had worked. Cora's mouth hung open in shock before she quickly returned her expression to the neutral one she had favored since coming here.

"So... is that like some demon mating ritual I have yet to hear about?" She called out to him sarcastically.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Regulus built a contraption to move the boulder. In Rura's opinion, he put in far more effort than necessary. In addition, Regulus seemed to be certain to blow Rura away with his solution. He then managed to flip the boulder over. Out of breath he asked how it was an if it was a record. "Yes it was a record. You managed to come up with the move complicated way to move this boulder. Also I just said move. Many would have just taken a smaller rock and a sturdy branch as a lever to simply lift the boulder a little. You may have been overthinking a bit." Rura said. She then lifted the boulder, almost as if it was made of paper maché or styrofoam and set it back into it's original place.

"Now I need you to jump in place and then run around the hamlet until you are out of energy. With jumping, you can't use anything to aid the outcome and with running you need actually run, no jogging or powerwalking." Rura said.

"He wants to be my apprentice. So I am testing him." Rura then took the papers from Cora after she signed and marked. Rura did her usual lord magic to complete the document and gave Cora her copy. "We don't have wallet card format yet, so keep a good eye on the certificate in case you need anything done. I am actually hoping for someone who knows a lot about information technology to show up and just make an ID that I can put into a sturdy wallet ID to make the bureaucracy faster. For wallet card IDs we need the funding to buy the machines for it. It is all on the capitals quest board under voluntary quests." Rura explained.

"That is another thing I need to tell you about." Rura said loudly enough for both Regulus and Cora to hear. "In larger settlements and on the national government website, we have a bulletin board for questing. There are three forms of quests: Favors, voluntary tasks and adventures. Favors are requests by other citizens. They always offer something in return. An example would be collecting crystals for a craftsman in turn for a keg of ale or driving away beasts from a farm in turn for a free dinner. Then there are voluntary tasks. They are quests by the national government that have a direct impact on the development of the nation. The payouts are low if anything at all. However the common good benefits from the quests. Finally there are adventures, which are usually quests to hunt beasts that plague a region. The payouts for these are rather large but the quests tend to be higher risk. Examples would be clearing a wyvern den or killing a rogue demon in turn for gaining additional land, services, titles and even money payouts. You are basically registered on the website already, you just need either a key from your local government administrator or a blood reader function on your phone. The blood reader is a function that identifies the live blood of a demon as a unique ID. Many phones from the other nations have that function and abuse is unlikely because blood has to be either flowing in your veins or be fresh."

Rura then showed her phone. It wasn't the most up to date phone and it looked like she had an obsidian finish on it. "The most expensive part was the finish. Any phone I own has to withstand a lot of force and still function. It also has a blood reader with extra safety features. If you need a phone, I can offer second hand phones or if you want a new one, you will have to wait a bit for delivery or pay extra for a quick delivery. Mail comes daily from the other nations to A'antara by ground mail. The other settlements usually receive mail once or twice per week by wyvernmail. We have a couple demons who fly the mail by wyvern to remote places. We don't have an airport or an airforce though. The last combat airplanes that intruded got taken down by dragons." She said.

 

[Naburius]

Remy shook his head at the naysayers before him. "If you're going to do something then you should do it all the way. Who could be satisfied with just moving it an inch?" They may be thinking he was overcomplicating the task given to him but previously he was planning to overcomplicate the others just as much. He honestly wasn't sure how high he could jump, he was obviously much stronger than his previous life but by how much he wasn't really sure. Clearly not on the level of the Demoness.

"Secondhand works just fine. But if you have phones can I ask why you don't keep IDs digital? Especially if to access the phone it takes blood." Better to have it sooner than later, besides they were previous property of the Demon Lord even if they were a bit damaged they were probably better quality than anything run of the mill.

It was a little unfortunate he couldn't just make a shitty trampoline and use that but he supposed good old fashioned leg power would have to do. He was glad he'd went overboard with moving the rock because he felt this would not be the most impressive feat of strength he'd ever seen. He did a couple stretches to stall for time before caving and just jumping as high as he could, and a good bit better than expected. He hadn't quite surpassed twice his height but he was certain he'd at least risen above his own head and then some.

He had no gloating to be done over what he felt was a very ordinary feat of strength so he merely took a seat so he could relax and recuperate as much as he needed before running around the city.

 

[MissBumble]

Cora watched in amusement as the demon seemed to contemplate how best to do this jump.

"Odd tests they are." She commented, mostly to herself, but it was loud enough for the other two to hear. The demon didn't seem deterred however by their comments, and although it annoyed her greatly, she couldn't help but admire his confidence and resilience. He was certainly out of breath by the time he completed his second trial and, without gloating this time, decided to sit down as well. Rura had spoken up again and mentioned how the two of them were to get quests and how to help out in the little community. Cora nodded in agreement when the other demon had mentioned obtaining a secondhand phone.

"Yes, secondhand will do just fine, thanks." She found it funny how much she had gotten herself into. It was only the second day and already she felt as if she was beginning some crazy video game story or something. Standing up, she stretched until her back popped and dusted herself off.

"So after we have our weapons and our phones we can start our first task of clearing the area of boars, yes?" She cocked her head a bit in a questioning manner, glancing at Rura as she did so. She was ready to head out and get the first objective completed and out of the way before dark. She was feeling a bit unnerved at the fact that they would have to build their own homes however.

'Perhaps I should just ask the carpenter, as Rura had suggested.' She thought to herself. Even that seemed a bit daunting though. What kind of task would they ask of her if she wanted her house built? Unlike the demon who was already proving himself to be a great apprentice (She hated to admit it, even in her head), she herself wasn't too confident in her own abilities. Even this upcoming task with these boars made her heart begin beating frantically with worry. Thankfully Cora had a killer poker face, and stood calmly as she awaited the response.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

"Sometimes modesty is the better choice. You need to know how to judge things correctly if you don't want to die." Rura noted. Then in response to Regulus' question about the IDs, Rura responded: "Because lord magic doesn't work digitally. The certificates are the only form of ID that are absolutely secure. With wallet card IDs I can still use lord magic, but I have tried doing it digitally and it doesn't work. The other lords manage so many people because they have appointed lower nobility to take care of administrative work and still make a large part of their population serfs. I don't take serfs. I think it is on one hand cruel and on the other it turns the overall population weak in the long run." It was too difficult to explain to someone how lord magic worked and why while a blood ID could be registered digitally, lord magic and therefore consistent proof of citizenship couldn't.

Rura then watched Regulus jump and honestly expected a little better. If he doesn't mess up the running, then he will just have to need more training in leg muscle and possibly maturity. "Alright, a bit weak on the jumping but we will see what you can do on the third test." Rura said.

Both of the younger demons seemed fine with the secondhand phones, so Rura went into her hut and grabbed two very standard smartphones out of a chest. One still had dried blood on it from the apprentice who had failed their challenge to Rura the day before. They weren't her previously owned phones but simply phones owned by recently deceased demons that were put on factory reset and made sure that they function perfectly.

"Here. They might be older models, but they have blood readers on them." Rura said. She put the phones with their accessories in little boxes and set the boxes on a long that laid in front of her garden fence. "Here are also your panic whistles. Only use them if you cannot manage the creatures you are fighting." She then put a panic whistle into a box each. "You will receive the other things for living when you have cleared your housing plots from the dire boars."

Then the female, Lacora, asked if they were to clear the boars after receiving their weapons and phones. Rura replied with: "Yes, that is so. Do you need armor too?"

 

[Naburius]

Weak huh? In that case Remy'd absolutely have to step up the running portion even past what he'd been planning. Didn't matter how much his body wanted to output he could definitely make it go a little past that. His legs weren't really that tired from the prior tests anyways, it was his arms that ached more. It might as well not even be an issue if that were the case. He'd show her what he could do.

First he claimed dibs on his phone, having no complaints about a little blood. For the time being he left it laid on the fence, not wanting it poking into him while he ran. In the terms of proper weaponry he was definitely interested but would simply have to wait till he finished his final trial to claim anything in particular if he didn't want it slowing him down.

Speaking of he peeled off the low quality armor he was wearing for the time being. Mediocre craftsmanship or not it was still metal and was bound to tire him more than if he wasn't wearing it. He planned on taking every precaution he could to go above and beyond expectations. Before that at mention of the boars he turned to the newcomer before he headed off. "You wait here for me for that, I have things I want to discuss with you."

Alright then no time like the present. "I'm off!" He crouched down into the typical runners position before sprinting off. In his previous life he imagined he'd be able to run seven laps at the absolute maximum. Here was all new and certain he could go far past that, it wasn't like the town was small but he had confidence. To make the activity itself he made note of each of the individual buildings he'd pass, remembering them from earlier in the day when he'd been hunting down Rura. It could be helpful to know the town's layout and what the buildings looked like if he needed anything from them later and was given instructions. Before he knew it he his legs were aching, his lungs were burning, and he'd pretty much memorized the whole town. He was only nineteen laps in though which absolutely wouldn't cut it for going above and beyond, so despite his starting to lag a bit he continued running. When he finally couldn't force his body to take another step and collapsed at the Demon Lord's feet he'd ran by them twenty eight times. While he was immensely exhausted he couldn't help but berate himself himself for not being able to push it to thirty, though even if he had tried it he'd only be able to trudge the last two at best. He'd gloat but frankly all he could get to come out of his mouth was desperate wheezing for air.

 

[MissBumble]

After Cora collected the phone and her whistle (She noticed with relief the lack of blood on hers) she put them safely away in her satchel where she had kept her card as well. One thing she had noticed about her appearance was the fact that the clothes she had been wearing during the time of her death had followed her down here- accessories, jewelry and all. Not that she was complaining; she thought she looked amazing in it. She was about to be on her way before the other demon had stopped her and asked her to wait. She grumbled under her breath, but figured it was important if this random demon she hardly knew wanted to speak with her about something. This time she leaned up against the wall to wait, crossing her arms as she watched with disinterest as he began his trek through town. Her attention flickered over to Rura when the lord came up to her and asked about armor.

"Oh... Yes, I suppose I will. Nothing too flashy or heavy though, I'm not one for those kinds of things." Offering a small thanks, she waited in silence the rest of the time. She had never been one to offer small talk when it was quiet. In fact, she enjoyed the quiet. It was funny when others got uncomfortable about it though. She could never understand why.

Minutes began passing into hours and Cora was just about to doze off (She had at this point favored laying in the grass) before she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. She jumped up, her mind immediately racing with thoughts of the beast from earlier that day. Not exactly sure what she would have done in that situation, she opted to head into Rura's shack and rummage for a weapon- that is, until she noticed that it was the other demon, finally back from his third and final trial. Heart still pounding, Cora tried to act more casual, but her eyes were still dilated and her expression screamed fear. Turing to the demon lord she scoffed.

"I sure hope you make him your apprentice after this. I certainly didn't wait here this whole time for nothing to happen." Even her voice shook a bit with anxiety. Clearing her throat she turned to face the other demon right before he collapsed on the ground. Even for a Hell-spawn he didn't look too good. Cora waited patiently as he got his breath back, watching the scene unfold.

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

Cora wanted armor that wasn't flashy or heavy. "Second hand armor is never flashy and most beginners who have deceased didn't have heavy armor to begin with." Rura said as she pulled out a chest from the back. She opened it. "In here, you can pick your armor." She said.

Remy just finished. "Twenty eight laps. Not bad. I guess endurance is your strength. I will take you as an apprentice, but only for combat and not as a apprentice to be a successor. Wanting to become a ruler just for the power is a bad idea and not a noble cause. Maybe you'd have better chances succeeding the other lords. Anyways enough of that. You need to get your plots cleared before dark, so that we can set up the temporary yurts until you build a home." Rura said.

"Anyways, I will be watching you clear the boars from a distance. I wont intervene unless you get overwhelmed. You are the adventurers not me." Rura said.

 

[Naburius]

Remy's physical endurance was technically quite as high as he'd just pushed it on average but fortunately he had the mental fortitude to make up for it. It didn't matter how much his legs cried out in pain so long as he technically had the stamina to keep moving. He responded to her approval by rolling onto her back and flashing a thumbs up, wanting to use as little air as possible. Still it's not like he could stay silent at a half rejection. "Very well, I don't need political training. I've ruled many a nation in my previous life so I shall accept martial training." It wasn't really necessary to bring up all the kingdom's he'd ever ruled were digital, he did a kickass job of it at least.

He sat up to see inside the chest, curious if she could top what he had. It was more beginner gear anyways and what he'd gotten was rather comfortable so he wasn't in dire need but there was no harm in looking. As unimpressive as what he had was he'd settle for less used for the time being, no point in replacing something that was serving it's purpose well enough. It didn't cover everything but the vitals were safe and it was easier to move in anyways.

He grabbed onto the nearby fence and used it to climb his way onto his feet. Once he'd steadied himself enough he pocketed the phone and whistle before leaning against the fence and turning to the lower ranking Demoness. "I will be ready to go in about five minutes. After we've cleared out the boars we can discuss my proposition for you."

"Before that weapons would also be nice, Shisho." He'd nearly succumbed to the instinct to say he didn't need one but he certainly at least preferred being armed.

 

[MissBumble]

Cora glanced in the chest to find a bunch of used armor set neatly side by side. Some were stacked on top of the others, but she could see clearly what the everything was. She rummaged through until she found armor that would closely fit her stature. She struggled a bit, frowning when she realized it didn't really go with her outfit. She had to remind herself however that this was to protect them, it wasn't a fashion statement. Ready to face down the boars, Cora almost forgot about the weapons until the other demon had mentioned something about them. Ah! Of course. That was definitely something that should be...looked into.

The demon stated that he would be speaking with her about the "proposition" after they had finished this little task. She only responded with narrowed eyes. Although she didn't think he was necessarily a threat, they hardly knew each other. Even in her previous life Cora had always been skeptical of others.

'Another trait I happened to carry down here with me. I suppose it'll be more useful here anyways.' She reasoned with herself. By the time the demon had found his breath and the two began waiting to see these weapons they had to take with them, the sun was beginning to set. This worried Cora a bit. How long would taking these things out last? She certainly didn't want to stay outside in the dark when random, blood thirsty beasts were roaming about. She remembered the one and only night she had spent in Hell here. It didn't usually get that dark. In fact, she distinctly remembered being able to see almost as clearly as she could during the day, if not a little better!

'At least we have that going for us.'

 

[TanteRegenbogen]

"Sure you have." Rura said sarcastically when Remy claimed to have ruled nations in his past life. "Maybe on a phone game or a video game. It's not like we don't have those here. It is just unlikely you will find them in this nation. But I doubt you have ever run a real nation before." Putting him down was not to depress him but rather to prevent that he dies like so many before him. Rura didn't want to lose another apprentice because of issues with character. If he wanted any ruling power at all, he could maybe become lower nobility if he matures properly.

"What kind of weapons would you like?" Rura asked the two. She then faced Cora. "Do you desire to become an apprentice too? If you two manage to survive more than a year, then you are on a good path of becoming leaders in this nation. I don't mean regents but rather find decent standing here since it is likely that I might rule for another two or three hundred years until a descendant defeats and eats me and if I don't have descendants or none of them defeats me, I will probably retire in five hundred years and hand over the title to someone I think fits the job."