In his room, Dyer sat on a chair with a smile on his face.
"Good stuff," he thought.
He received a plethora of rank 10 items from Doris's ring, such as over 30 spell crystals, various raw materials, and five rank 10 magic treasures.
Out of all the items, the ones that proved to be least useful at the moment were the rank 10 magic treasures. A complete law is essential to use a rank 10 magic treasure, which Dyer didn't have.
But still, even without counting the magic treasures, the 30 rank spell crystals, and the raw materials were a wealth never seen before in the world.
"Those invaders are so rich!" he thought.
Dyer had soul-searched Doris, so he knew about her 'system.' Obviously, 'the system' was just a way for the 'world invaders' to help Doris reach rank 10.
What he didn't understand was why the system disappeared.
"The invaders have many rank 10 items, so it's illogical to think all this was only to get a complete law. Why did they take the complete law from her?" he was confused.
After soul-searching Doris, he let her live.
However, she couldn't start mage training again. The lifespan of 'mortals' is unlimited, but mages have a limited lifespan. Doris had lived for thousands of years. She will die of old age as soon as she becomes a rank 0 apprentice mage.
The only way for her to extend her life is to use a rank 4 'jump rank.' However, Dyer is unwilling to let her become a mage again, at least not yet.
"Let her be the King of the Robels empire for now!" he thought.
The Robels Empire still exists, but Doris holds only nominal power.
Dyer began to examine the flow of time in the river.
Today, his prediction ability is much more profound than before.
With the changes he made, other rank 9s have lost most of their ability to predict the future, unless they learn of the new rules.
Dyer can feel that the greatest danger to him is in Hell. But attacking Hell is much more complicated than attacking Heaven.
"This requires a lot of planning!" he thought.
Then, he opened his third eye and started calculating.
...
Cory was overcome with joy as he exclaimed, "At last, my next job!"
He undertook a risky task in the past few days and fortunately survived, earning over 100 XP.
With anticipation, he reviewed the details of his upcoming job on the system interface.
"Job: Kage – minimum requirement: level 25, 1500 XP."
"Kage holds the position of chief in a ninja village and is considered one of the most powerful ninjas!" was written on the system interface.
Cory was aware of what a Kage was.
"I already reached the Kage stage at level 25, so what would I get at level 100?" he thought.
He tapped on "Advance Job."
"Are you certain you want to switch to the Kage permanently? This will eliminate any possibility of advancing to a different second sequence job.!" the system warned.
"Are there other jobs? Then, let's wait!" he thought and pressed "No."
He cast a glance around the area and let out a sigh.
There were scattered demon body parts and a lot of blood all over the place.
He had just completed the task of 'exploring a treasure map.' The 'treasure map' was just a random map he bought from a shop, with a meager chance of being authentic. As the system was not strict, it was counted as a 'ninja task.'
After searching fruitlessly, he headed back to his residence.
...
Cory's house consisted of a single room with minimal furnishings. Due to the high cost of land in the City, he had to settle for this house as the best possible choice.
It would be unbelievable to say that a rank 1 mage could not buy a mansion in the world of mages. However, it was expected in Hell, where most demons lacked a home.
He looked at the paper that was sent to him.
"Assignment order? The 7th army? Isn't that comprised of dumb demons? Why are they assigning me there?" he was confused.
Although he was self-conscious about the pig head he was born with, he was not unintelligent.
"Sigh, there is no choice."
All demons, excluding the royal ones, are slaves and must obey their master, Iggad.
He then began reading some books.
Being a former human who lived in modern times, he understood the importance of knowledge. In his free time, he borrowed numerous books and read them using spells for assistance.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
...
The following week, Cory walked to a teleportation array. The baron paid for it, and naturally, he was pretty excited to use teleportation for the first time. Someone cast the teleportation spell on him, and he disappeared.
When he arrived, he started throwing up.
"Why is the quality so poor? No wonder the baron is giving it away for free.," he thought, not daring to say it aloud.
He eventually departed from the City and made his way to the "Cannon Fodder Headquarters."
He entered the 7th Army's headquarters after introducing himself and receiving his badge.
As he gazed at the badge in his hand, he couldn't help but wonder why he, a mere rank 1 demon, had been granted the title of Deputy General. Typically, such a prestigious position was reserved for those of rank 3 or higher, leaving him perplexed and unsure of what to expect.
Soon after arriving at the 'general's office,' He was greeted by a menacing demon with a bald head, towering over two meters in height, sporting a tail and horns - a classic demon indeed.
"Hey, pig head! Do you remember me?" Zagronan said.
Cory thought, and his eyes went wide. "You are my birth father?" He remembered the monster he saw when he was born in this Hell.
"It's impressive how well you remember. I am your father, and I never expected you to reach rank 1 so quickly despite not having royal blood. As I suspected, it was the right decision to spare your life.!" Zagronan said, expecting Cory to thank him.
"Are you a demon general?" Cory asked.
The Hotblood city was huge, so after he was placed in the 'carhouse,' he couldn't find his 'parents.'
He wouldn't have approached them even if he could, as they seemed unfriendly.
"Yes, I am the demon general responsible for the 7th army, and I specially arranged for you to come here to help me. In addition to you, five of your brothers and sisters, who also reached rank 1 demons, are also coming!" Zagronan said with something that could barely be described as a kind smile.
Cory saw the smile and shuddered, feeling that this man might eat him alive at any moment. All his hair stood on end, and with difficulty, he said, "Thank you, F-Father."
Zagronan nodded and said, "Now, go and settle down!" With a bow, Cory left.
...
"Rachel, I feel I am getting too soft these days! I don't have my past aura of intimidation," Zagronan said, dissatisfied with himself.
"No, trust me, you are as scary and intimidating as ever. Now, why are you gathering your children?" she asked.
"Isn't this obvious? I want people in the army who are of my blood. As a royal demon, I can somewhat control my offspring, so it's much safer to use them as my deputies," he said.
Rachel nodded.
To a certain degree, royal demons have the ability to control their offspring who do not possess royal blood. As for royal-blooded children, Parents have much greater control over them, as royal children aren't slaves to a noble.
One of the main reasons Royal demons try so hard to have royal children is to be able to control them.
...
In the Lam continent, many countries existed, with the strongest being Terry Country.
In the past, elves and humans were roughly equal in power, but as human technology advanced, the elves fell further and further behind, and today, humans are completely dominant. Still, as humans became more civilized, they became less aggressive. Today, non-humans' rights, especially elves, are protected.
Non-humans in this continent are different tribes of beastmen, various elf tribes, and different tribes of green-skinned creatures.
The green-skinned creatures are humanoid beings that use sunlight as their source of nourishment. They are essentially plants with humanoid characteristics.
They are the least aggressive species on the continent, which allows them to live peacefully on their reserved land without many enemies.
Beastmen, on the other hand, were not compatible with humans, preferred raw meat, and were more violent. However, after trading with humans, they became much more civilized than in the wild days of the past.
As for elves, most tribes were highly compatible with humans. Especially the snow elves, who were almost the same as humans.
Years ago, they wholly integrated with humans. If it weren't for the prohibition on childbearing due to the endless lifespans problem, there would have been many more half-human, half-elves today.
Among the elves, one tribe was very resistant to integration - the wood elves. They staunchly clung to their traditions, unwilling to let them go no matter what.
Humans tried to convince them many times to at least wear clothes so they could boost the tourist business, but they didn't accept. For this reason, the tourist business with the wood elves is minimal today.
...
Bertha was sitting in the Senate.
The Senate was the governing body of the wood elves, with representatives from the seven wood elf tribes each sending one senator.
Bertha was the chief but was also a member of the Senate, as she was her tribe's senator.
Seven wood elves, four women and three men, Bertha included, were sitting.
"One every 10 days? That is too much!" a man, who had darker skin and, like all elves, looked beautiful, said.
The wood elves generally have darker skin, green eyes, and petite bodies.
"We don't have any other choice! I don't like it either, but we must accept that they are the strongest," Bertha said.
The senators looked dissatisfied but knew the truth, so they remained silent.
A green-haired woman said, "Bertha, how is your training going? You are our hope." Everyone paid attention to this question.
They knew Bertha had broken through to rank 1 knight, which had never happened before. If she manages to break through to rank 2, she can protect them from a possible invasion.
"It's going great! We just have to avoid conflict until I reach rank 2, at the very least," she said.
The senators nodded, and the meeting ended after a few more irrelevant questions.
...
Bertha came out and sighed. "I want to run a little!" she said to Rachel.
Whenever she feels bored, she likes to go outside and run among the trees. The wood elves, known for their exceptional tree climbing skills, find traversing the forest easier than the ground. Bertha, a rank 1 knight, is no exception.
She went out of the City and started running.
...
Milan was lost in the forest.
He was an adventurer who loved exploring the unknown. Unfortunately, not much 'unknown' was left in today's world. So, he chose the next best thing: the land of the wood elves.
For humans, entering without permission was prohibited. Still, the wood elves' settlement was the closest thing to his City that could be considered 'unknown,' so he decided to do it.
In his school books, he had seen pictures of the wood elves. They were dressed in green attire, had green eyes, and petite frames, along with the distinctive pointy ears of elves.
He took a 'water car,' got to the closest road to the border, and then walked according to the map.
After a few hours, he got completely lost!
"Who thought I'd die like this?" he was desperate.
Fortunately, the wild animals had been cleared.
The forests he had explored up to now were all recreational and clearly marked to prevent people from getting lost.
But this forest...
"Why do all the trees look the same? Wait, this tree is the one I marked before! Did I go in a circle?" He just sat down, being was hungry, thirsty, and tired.
"I'm going to die here!" As he thought of this, a rustling sound came.
Then, he saw a woman!
She was naked, relatively short, and beautiful, more beautiful than anything he had ever seen.
He stared and was unable to look anywhere else.
"Why are you here?" Bertha asked.
No answer.
"Another one of these weird humans!" she said out loud.
Most humans she meets stare at her for no reason.
"Bertha, for them, it's very strange to see other people naked," Rachel said.
Bertha sighed, thinking human culture is so strange and unnatural.
"Hey, take this," she threw a bag with food and water in it.
The meal was entirely composed of plant-based ingredients, and the water was solely sourced from rain.
"Do you see the sun? Move toward it, and you'll reach the human territory. You understand?" she asked.
"Yes? Yes," Milan finally spoke.
"Good."
Then Bertha jumped again and left.
"W-Wait! Come back!" Milan shouted.
But Bertha was already gone.
Milan, shaken to his core, started crying. "Now I get it when they 'Love at First Glance,' I finally get it."