The leader of the demon summoners was elated. It was a successful summoning, and the demon seemed stronger than he expected. The baby must have been high quality. It was a bit unusual that after eating the baby the demon fell to the ground, and then when it tried to stand up it crashed to the ground again, but it was still under his control so it should be fine. He would finally take revenge using his pet demon. First, of course, he would order it to kill everyone else in here.

To test it, he tried to order it to just simply stand up, but the demon seemed to be confused. Maybe it needed some more time to adjust, so he strengthened his command, and with each repetition he knew the demon found it more and more painful. It would fully submit soon, and—his thoughts cut off, because he died.

The other demon summoners were frozen in shock. One moment, they were successful, their leader making the demon fully submit, but the next… the next… they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Their leader was… pulverized. The demon closed his eyes in pleasure as his claws, hand, and whole face were covered in gory innards and grisly pieces of flesh, as if human blood was a sweet perfume it wanted to be soaked in. They had no time to react when the demon roared in elation, and they were plunged into the depths of hell. There was no escape. They were crushed one by one no matter where they tried to run, while the demon indulged itself in massacre and fresh human flesh.

Just before this, when Ray decided to follow Vorm’s advice…

As soon as Ray killed the leader, he realized why Vorm was so nice… it was because… it wasn’t nice at all!

Ray froze for a few seconds to realize what had happened, then…

EWWWW, DISGUSTING! VORM, YOU PIECE OF SHIT, IT GOT ALL OVER ME! FULL POWER MY ASS! EWWWW!! Ray screamed like a little girl, while Vorm howled in his mind with laughter.

He tried to shake off all the remains, but he had bad control over his body, and accidentally hit another human, splashing more human remains on himself. Blood went into his eyes, so he shut them closed, and tried to get it off his face with the back of his relatively cleaner hand, but he stumbled, and felt something wet and squishy under his right foot. He froze, processed what he probably just stepped on… he screamed even louder.

“Run to the right, no humans there.”

Ray ran to the right, and he ran into a wall. He heard the crunching, and felt another wet squishy thing squashed between him and the wall.

YOU LIED AGAIN. He turned back and blindly ran in fright. His brain wasn’t working properly.

“Run to the left, there’s an exit.”

Ray was now experienced, and ran to the right instead. Vorm wasn’t going to be able to tri—he felt his left foot stepping on something squishy and crunchy. Vorm roared with laughter.

Ray couldn’t handle it all anymore, and decided to crash to the ground, and not move anymore. He crashed to the ground face first. He felt the crunching squishy wetness on his face. He jerked his head up, and turned to lay on his back instead, and felt and heard the crunchy wet squishiness on his back. He was completely speechless, his brain crashed. He was lying on squashed human remains, but there was no escape.

If anyone were still alive, they would have seen a vicious demon crying tears in a bloody cave, lying in human blood, flesh and bones. They would have thought it was crying in joy and satisfaction.

*

It took a long time for Ray to compose himself. After a while, he sat up carefully, and tried to look around. But as soon as he opened his eyes, he was about to throw up. So he decided it was better not to look. It was quiet.

Did they all die?

“Yes, you squashed them all beautifully, good job. Their innards are—“

Shut up! Just… no more please. Haven’t you had enough fun already?

Vorm was in a great mood, so he stopped talking for once, and instead kept whistling cheerily.

As Ray was trying to calm down and figure out what to do, something occurred to him. Didn’t you say my physical body is affecting my mind? Shouldn’t I find humans tasty as a demon?

“…”

Vorm?

“…your stupidity hurts me. I feel like its infectious, don’t make me stupid as well.”

Ray’s answer: …...

“You aren’t a demon. You are possessing a demon body, it is completely different. Possessing, got it? Possessing, how many times do I have to tell you? But yes, your soul is too weak, it will tire in a day or two, and then you get to reincarnate again.”

So I’ll die in a day or two?

“Depends what you call dying, since you are sort of already dead, but yeah, sure. You’ll die in a day or two.”

That cheered Ray up a bit. He didn’t feel right in this body, getting out of here soon was great news. He could just lay around and wait to die.

The smell was suffocating. Ray decided to at least leave this cave, and opened one of his eyes a fraction. He located the exit, and stumbled towards it. He got a bit better controlling his body, and soon he was out in a bright forest.

As he squinted, trying to see, he realized he could make use of this body. So now, he wanted to go to a town or something, and get slain like a proper demon for experience. He looked around, trying to figure out which way to go, but it all looked the same to him. He refused to ask Vorm, so he randomly decided a direction, and left that way.

“Wrong way.”

Ray stopped.

What do you mean wrong way, it all looks the same.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Those demon summoners came from the opposite direction, they left tracks, can’t you see?”

Ray dropped to the ground, refusing to go. Why should I believe you? You seem to enjoy lying to me.

“Why would I lie? It would be more fun if you went to a town and got slain than if you died peacefully, idiot.”

Ray had enough. Why are you always insulting me? Lying to me? Why are you such a jerk all the time?

Vorm sounded amused as it answered, “This personality model I created to interact with you is based on your preferences. So, shouldn’t you blame yourself?”

Ray was speechless for a while. What… what do you mean?

“Exactly what I said.”

So… you are just acting this way, because you believe this is what I prefer? I want you to be yourself, not this, and this isn’t what I prefer to begin with.

“Little human, it is impossible for me to ‘be myself’, if I were to ‘be myself’ you’d go insane in that moment. And face reality. Don’t you hate kind people? You are always suspicious of them, and find people with this kind of personality I’m using the most comfortable. I’ll even tell you, I’m using this personality model in order to manipulate you, and make you trust me more easily.”

You keep lying to me, why would I trust you at all? Especially when you tell me all this.

“Yeah, you shouldn’t, but this what makes you feel more comfortable with me. You are pretty messed up, huh?”

As much as he wanted, Ray couldn’t deny it. He was always the most distrustful towards seemingly kind, smiling people. Maybe because he saw how easy-going and fun his father seemed to outside people, everyone got alone well with him, but no one knew what he really was like in reality. So he didn’t trust, and avoided nice, kind, good people.

“Also, don’t tell me it wasn’t hilarious you trampling down all those people while screaming in fright and disgust.”

Ray imagined the scene how it must have looked from the outside. From the view of those summoners, he must have looked horrific, as he slaughtered them with joy and rage… meanwhile he was just screaming with disgust, and trying to get away...

Ray snorted, something close to a laugh. It was all so ridiculous, and fucked up.

You are such an asshole.

“Because that’s what you like.”

Ray sighed, got up and left in the direction Vorm told him to.

After a while, he asked while walking to pass the time. Are you an AI?

“No.”

Aren’t you like an AI though? Created a personality model based on my preferences? Totally sounds like what an AI would say and do.

“I’m not a damn AI.”

Sure, that’s what an AI would say.

“…” Vorm couldn’t be bothered to keep answering.

Do you have feelings?

“…”

Do you Vorm?

“Yes and no, I’m simulating this personality model’s emotions as well…”

See? Totally an AI!

“I’m not…”

Why else would you not have real feelings, but having to simulate them? Only machines don’t have them. Actually, I can imagine machines that have feelings…

“It’s not that I don’t have any at all, it’s that the things you face are so inconsequential they cannot create an emotional response from me. And are you sure your so called real feelings are truly real?”

Ray decided to ignore the question that would send him down into a deep abyss.

So what kind of stuffs are consequential enough to make you feel something?

“Remember when your old world was suddenly gone? Stuffs like that.”

…I see… I shouldn’t have asked… to me, you are still like an AI.

“…” no point arguing with fools, Vorm thought.

Ray walked and walked, and after a couple hours, he came across a road. It was just a dirt road, but it was pretty wide, and looked well traversed. He looked left and right, but couldn’t make up his mind.

Which way do you think?

“Both ways should lead to somewhere with humans eventually.”

…Of course I know that! Which one is closer though, what if I die before I reach a town because it’s too far?

“Isn’t it obvious? Just run.”

Ray hesitated, and hid behind the trees that weren’t even thick enough to hide him.

But… what if I run into people?

“Kill them?”

I’m not going to just kill people!

“What do you mean, isn’t that what you have been doing? Both as a wolf, and just a couple hours ago, you killed like a dozen people? You do realize you killed your mother as well?”

…Don’t remind me, I didn’t mean to…

“Then just don’t kill them, what’s your issue?”—Vorm then realized something as it recalled Ray’s old life.— “Don’t tell me… you are actually scared of meeting people?”

…Why would I be scared? Ray tried to deny it, but he didn’t sound convincing at all.

“How do you still have social anxiety while you are twice as tall as humans, and can trample them into paste as easily as breathing?!”

It’s not something I can control, okay? If I could I wouldn’t have shut myself at home, and refused to go outside alone!

“You could go outside if you weren’t alone though, even if you only went out with the dog, so what’s your issue now? Am I not here?”

It’s different, you are only in my head. I didn’t dare to go outside with just a phone either, even if it had an AI. It’s the same thing, it’s just that you are in my head, not my hand.

“……..” Vorm was so insulted, it felt it would lose face if it deigned to react to that comparison. Instead, it went on the offense.

“Do you realize how ridiculous it is that you are hiding here as an almost four meter tall demon, too scared to meet humans?”

It’s fine, my favorite hunter hid behind some trees as well when people first came to his valley, hoping they would leave.

“Yes and you laughed your ass off at it.”

Ray: …...

“Just think of it this way. You are only possessing the demon body. It’s like a costume, so no one can actually see you.”

You are right! Vorm you are a genius, it’s like I’m a furry now, just without the fur. Ray became more relaxed and spirited at this thought.

He came out of the woods, and after looking left and right at the road a couple more times, he decided randomly, and started running.