After a short lesson from Eve, the trio left with a pale Zane. Adam let a few of them alive so that the doctor could do some experiments with them. The doctor was greatly elated and sent some basic necessities as thanks.

Zane, still traumatized, weakly asked, "I've never thrown up that much in my entire life." Adam was holding him up as he was trying to move on.

The stench of blood and the cries of the damnded was still too much for someone like him. He wasn't like Adam, who was innately cruel nor was he like Eve, someone who lived through abuse and disdain. At worst, he lived a poor life but it wasn't enough to brush this off.

Adam patted Zane in the back and laughed widely, "Hahahaha! Don't worry about it! That's the worst-case scenario, Eve had a grudge with them and relieved herself of that pain through others. All you will be doing is something swift. You can do it, I believe in you!" Like the words of a devil, Adam coaxed his words with honey to make it seem less evil than it actually was.

Zane looked at the rising sun and never felt so much relief at seeing it. The blood-drenched air and the eerie screams of the damned were traumatizing.

"Where are we going?"

Adam enthusiastically said, "A place ruled by people with physical strength, Bran. There you will be staying for the first two years, after that we will be going on adventures!"

Zane thought about and it all made sense. He needed to get stronger and what better way to do it in a physically-inclined kingdom instead of a magically-inclined kingdom.

Eve was silent throughout the whole conversation as she was still savoring her revenge. She had an ecstatic smile and just kept to herself.

The trio went forth and headed towards Bran. Their week-long journey was relatively quiet with a few beasts here and there as well as a few travelers as well. They weren't bandits nor had they had any evil intent, they were just people heading towards Maghim so they simply exchanged information and left.

At the wooden gates and battered walls, there stood an encampment with a few people patrolling around it. The walls were so bad that there were visible holes big enough to fit ten men. The forests around the small encampment were cut down, letting them avoid sieges.

Zane looked at this and oddly felt at home, the dirt roads, the broken-down houses, children playing in the mud without a care in the world and, men working as soldiers.

After being taken in by Adam, he never has seen this kind of environment ever since, not until today.

After reaching the gate a fat man with some leather armor stopped them. He looked at the three hooded kids and asked them, "What are a bunch of kids doing here? Nevermind, remove your hoods for inspection."

The trio removed their hoods and the trio showed their faces. Zane was in front and behind him were Adam and Eve who were shivering.

The fat man took out some posters and skimmed through them, he put the posters near their faces to compare them.

"Seems alright, pay up. Ten gold each person."

Zane voiced out and made gestures showing how outrageous it was. He was almost shouting, "That's absurd! At most its a gold person! What are you trying to do here?!"

According to the people they met earlier, there would be an entrance fee of a gold piece per person. A few general information on where they could find an inn and restaurant and some stables for their horses. In exchange, Adam told them some things about Maghim.

"Tch."

The fat man was obviously disgruntled, he didn't know that these kids were actually smart. He didn't manage to extort them for a few more pieces of gold. He made a gesture to pay up and Zane gave him three gold pieces.

After entering the small encampment, there were a few lively soldiers drinking beer first thing in the morning, some people carrying some supplies to certain areas and, some mercenaries hanging out in the middle of the encampment waiting for something.

Adam sighed while saying something only audible to Zane and Eve, "Well, even though its supposedly temporary, they made this into a small village. Still, a good place for you to start! I'll be waiting." Then suddenly disappeared leaving Zane and Eve alone.

"Eh?"

Zane looked around and failed to spot Adam, he then looked at Eve and then she said, "In the letter he gave me, we are supposed to live on our own for two years."

Even then took out a map from her backpack instead of her storage ring to avoid some trouble. "Here, we should get here within a week or Adam will kill everyone here, man, woman, child, no one will survive." She pointed at a certain map not too far from here but not doable on foot.

Zane felt angry at how Adam is forcing his own goodwill towards people to further his own goal. Still, he had to follow his tune for now.

Zane face palmed and thought of a viable plan, "That's fine we still have the horses, we'll move out as soon as-"

Eve nonchalantly said, "Adam took the horses."

Zane looked around again and yelled out loud and garnered a few gazes from the crowd, "Dammit!" He used both of his fists to pound at the ground.

Eve then started to act pitiful and used her trait. She now said in a loving tone, "Adam also told me to cause trouble for you, sorry! Please don't be mad at me, I-I don't-" She then started to tear up looking feeble. A scene of a crying girl and a mad man is something people would reprimand the guy at. So that's exactly what happened.

"Have you no shame!"

"She's just a little girl! What did you do?!"

"Apologize! This may be a poor village but we still have morals!"

Zane was internally pained, dammit Adam! I'll get my revenge, I swear it! He saw at the corner of his eye a black figure but ignored it in favor of a more serious crisis.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

While covering her eyes with her hands, Zane saw something unholy on Eve's face.

Eve innocently smiling and laughing, "Teehee."

Zane then swiped Eve and held her by her stomach and ran off. He immediately ran off outside the makeshift village and entered the forest. After running for around ten minutes, he threw Eve to the ground but she elegantly landed on her feet.

Adam showed up unexpectedly while having fun with himself, "Hahahahaha! Nice one Zane! Making little girls cry, what a man!"

Zane ran towards Adam and tried to punch him but Adam skillfully dodged and left his foot out making Zane dropdown.

"Calm down! I left you after we entered that place so you could get a little head start but considering that little blunder, you'll get nowhere at this rate. So will you give up and let those people who insulted you die?"

Zane turned serious and said, "I know what you are trying to do but that's not happening, I'll make it on time, whether you like it or not."

Adam extended a hand towards Zane and said, "Fiesty! I'll see what you're going to do. Also, as a little motivating factor, I still remember when you told me to help people so... if you exceed my expectations, I'll leave them with a little something-something to help them out. Like, say, food and safety guarantees."

Zane then realized something wrong with what Adam said, "Even if they are poor they should still be able to get by, what do you mean by that?"

Adam then sinisterly said, "Oh, did I forget to mention? This isn't a kingdom but a playground, where the strong rule the weak! A place where even if you kill, rape, kidnap, steal, no one would bat an eye! A perfect place for you to grow!"

All the pieces fit into place now, why Adam wanted to go to Bran, why Adam left him with Eve, why they would need safety. It was because this place was no different from the jungle, he wanted to foster Zane's ruthlessness in a place where ruthlessness will save you.

Zane then thought of a problem, "What's wrong with my training? I should still be able to get stronger! Can't you just give me a vial like before?"

"You could but it wouldn't be as effective as this! Besides, anything else weaker than devil's blood won't work on you. Your body has reached its current limits but not your experience. I'll show you how strong you are right now. Crush this."

Adam picked up a medium-sized rock and gave it to Zane. He then crushed it to dust.

Adam used his fingers and felt how fine the dust was, "That rock had the same toughness as a human skull, keep that in mind. You're even stronger then Richard, body-wise, experience-wise he is years ahead of you."

"How can you ensure their safety?"

Adam casually said some parting words while disappearing into the darkness of the forest, "Even the people of Bran, know the title, True Underworld King. Use it however you deem fit." In his place, an emblem with a devil wearing a crown could be seen.

Even spoke up, "So how are you going to do this?" She was curious about how Zane would go about this.

Zane then maniacally laughed, "I am not an idiot! He gave me this and expected that I would only use it in time of need but do you know I am going to do?"

Even's interest then increased, "Ooh? Do tell!" She seemed to have a mocking smile behind her eyes.

Zane picked up and emblem and proudly wore it on his chest, just beside the amulet. He then brazenly walked over to the same man as before but when he saw that emblem his heart almost stopped.

He was eating his lunch when he saw this, "Gah!" He spat out all his food and kneeled down directly below Zane.

When another guard went and looked at what the commotion was about, he did the same as the fat man. They were trembling and shivering as they knew exactly what it meant. The backing of the True Underworld King, someone who even the sorcerer-king couldn't do anything against, a child who could control mana at will ever more so than an actual sorcerer, a devil who does not kill but makes his victims kill themselves and, someone who in just four short years ruled above all.

Zane then said to them with a casual tone, "I want some horses, quick ones at that! Spread my name."

Those two guards ran out instantly and roared at the top of their lungs, "An Underworld Envoy is here, someone new!"

The mercenaries in the middle of the small village heard this and all had smiles full of greed. All of them started to smile and immediately form plans and were filled with excitement.

Zane entered again but the whole atmosphere turned sour, the villagers who were once reprimanding him were hiding behind their houses, the mercenaries that didn't even glance at him were now looking at him with greed and the soldiers who were once nonchalant were filled with fear.

Zane asked Eve, "What's happening? You should know something, right?"

Eve then used her trait and said in a sweet voice, "Oh, yes I do. I'll tell you later when you deal with the mercenaries, though. Ta ta." She waved goodbye and left him alone while the mercenaries started to encircle him.

Zane then realized and said in a self-mocking tone, "I think I screwed myself over."

The mercenaries attacked all at once with a few rangers and wizards behind them immobilizing Zane. The first wave of melee fighters was dashing in fast.

Zane took out a heavy sword, the same one he used for training, and the same one he used to fight against Eve. It shined with a brilliant luster and then he used one slash infused with mana, the air pressure created from that single swing sent the first wave of melee mercenaries back.

"A storage ring! Dammit, he's the real deal!"

"Are you kidding me?! It's just a kid!"

"How can he be so goddamn strong!"

Voices with numerous emotions were filling the whole fight. They took a gamble and they lost. They were now facing an actual Underworld Envoy.

Zane properly took up a fighting stance while Eve was in the background yelling cheers. She took out a piece of paper and some wood and made a makeshift banner saying, "Go! Zane! Go!"

Eve shouted in an adorable tone, "Zane! You can do it! I believe in you very much! I'll make posters for you in the future!"

The mercenaries couldn't be bothered with what she was saying, they were too pre-occupied with a real Underworld Mercenary. They were too far in now, they knew the requirements of being an actual Underworld Envoy, real strength, and real cruelty.

Another batch of mercenaries went in but Zane once again used one slash and sent them all away, though now they were actual injuries, they were starting to bleed. The rangers and wizards finished up all their preparations and started to lock on to Zane.

The melee mercenaries backed off to pave way for a ranged barrage. Arrows coated with poison and spells to restrict and destroy were all thrown at Zane's way. He merely used his giant sword to block the arrows and let the spells hit him.

It wasn't like the last time he fought against a team where all the spells were weak, no, all the spells here were extremely strong and were at full power.

Towards the spells, Zane focused the used mana around him to form a sort of barrier just above his skin to nullify the majority of the damage. His clothes were torn due it not being reinforced with mana while the amulet and emblem were completely fine due to its innate sturdiness.

The mercenaries stared at this scene in utter shock. There was only one word that could be used to describe the kid in front of them.

"Monster!"

The mercenaries all lost hope after seeing all they could do was rough up his clothes a little bit. There was nothing they could do against a monster who they couldn't get close to, couldn't damage and, most likely couldn't even take a hit from.

One of the mercenaries managed to somehow think rationally and started to kidnap Eve who was still making some posters in the middle of all of this.

He took Eve within his arms and pointed a sharp knife at her neck. He yelled out at Zane, "G-Give us the emblem or the girl gets it!"

Zane looked at the man then at Eve, he didn't even care since she's much more skilled than she let on. Then again, a figure at the corner of his eye but was overshadowed by a more pressing matter. Zane wanted to know if Eve was up to something.

Eve then said to the man, "Mister! He won't care about me! He already stabbed me in the stomach while laughing, he's a cruel man!" While on the verge of tears, Eve lifted up her shirt to show a gigantic sword wound, the same size as the one Zane was using.

The mercenaries that managed to see this was appalled, even though they were cruel themselves, who would stab a little girl and make her follow you around. The evilness of the man in front of them was beyond them.

A mercenary who ran off thought he realized something, "He doesn't want to kill us but make us spread his name!"

Some of the mercenaries ran out saying that they would do just that and eventually everything became silent.

Even widely smiled and jumped Zane on the back, "So, this was your idea? Hahahaha!" She then dropped off him while laughing on the ground.

Zane was now in a bad mood, just when he thought he outsmarted Adam, he failed, he said in a sour tone "So, what is this emblem about?"