Year 2XXX, Astral Metropolis

Like any bustling city, there’s a hidden dark side to the Astral Metropolis that both the residents and the city officials try to make everyone forget. For all its glory and esteem being derived from the different portal types of [Dungeon] within the floating city, the larger area around most of these divine portals was abandoned, for the most part. Known as ‘The Barrens,’ the wasteland of abandoned buildings made an excellent cover for illegal fighting rings, black market dealings, and under-the-table dealings.

As if it could tell that the world had abandoned it, The Barrens never seemed to get any sun, instead having a constant air of gloom and danger that made most think twice before entering.

Sitting on top of an h-beam leaning against a destroyed building, Asmodeus Pantera admired his handiwork from afar, the unconscious bodies put in a neat stack in the middle of the plaza. He put great pride in his fighting ability, as well as pretty much everything about himself. God plays favorites, indeed.

He adeptly slid down the beam, jumping onto the top of the pile with loud grunts from the men under his foot. Languidly, he made his way down, making sure each step he took was on someone’s head, and grabbed his school blazer that was discarded a ways away from the pile. The gold insignia of the Institute of Luminaries matched well with his dichroic eyes, pools of molten magma hidden by a few strands of black hair, and a honeyed smile. As if sensing Asmodeus’ hubris, an unsteady hand from within his pile grabbed at his ankle in a last-ditch attempt to damage the tall boy, as if it would do anything.

The Luminary student immediately put his weight on one foot as he stomped on the person’s head with his other foot, and his nose crinkled in distaste, as if touched by something dirty. In tandem, some strands of his hair glowed magenta, before returning to a dark purple as he wiped any remaining blood off his fists onto the unmoving man’s jacket. He poked his foot at some of the bodies, making sure they weren’t dead, before checking his Astral Network device, as it was constantly pinging while he was having some fun. He looked at some of the messages and then shut his device off, chuckling to himself.

“If they want me to attend class so badly, they should come and get me. How boring.” Asmodeus looked back at the pile of men, instructing the Network to record the moment so that he could cash in the request at the Seeker Administration later. Hopefully, they would get to the men before some monster did. In The Barrens, anyone too weak was left in the hands of the stray monster that came out of a dungeon portal, another reason why civilization quickly moved away from the area.

‘Well, I did my part. Time to go back.’ He shoved his hands into his pant pockets and whistled a recognizable tune as he walked back into the city. He took his sweet time going back to the academic district, buying himself lunch as well as spending a few hours at a PC Cafe. People looked at him oddly, seeing as he was wearing a school uniform in public during school hours, but took one look at him and assumed that he must be an alumnus living in the past.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Asmodeus Pantera had the appearance and look of someone who had to grow up too fast, which seemed odd, considering his upper-class upbringing. There was a crazy glint in his odd eyes, one that suited an old man locked up for a crime that he didn’t commit, not a sixteen-year-old boy. And the way he walked, like he didn’t have a care in the world, because he knew that anything the world threw at him wouldn’t bother him in the slightest.

He reached one of the many Seeker Lodges scattered around the city, tapping the receptionist’s desk with one finger. The receptionist gave him a dirty look.

“Shouldn’t you be in class, ‘Deus?”

“Shouldn’t you be doing your job?” He pressed a button on his wrist and sent the photo he took earlier to the receptionist, Marc. He sighed, registering Asmodeus’ completed job.

“I hate that I love you. Your reward has been sent to your account. Thank you for contributing to the peace -blah blah blah. You know the drill. Although if it wasn’t me, you definitely wouldn’t have gotten docked off your commission for brutality. Monster breeders are still humans, ‘Deus.”

“That’s why I only come in during your shift. Anyways, gotta go, I have a date.”

“With who? Don’t tell me it’s another one of your classmate’s moms…”

“Oh, come on. It was funny. Not my fault her son’s such a piece of shit. Also, it’s not the type of date you’re thinking of. See ya later, Marc.”

Marc watched the young man confidently walk off, hands behind his head.

“My god, that boy is going to get himself killed.”

“Hey, what the hell, man? You’re two hours late for your fight! We had to reschedule because of you!”

“I got caught up in something.” Asmodeus wasn’t fully lying. Actually, he got asked to work an emergency shift at the soup kitchen, but he wasn’t going to tell people that. It doesn’t match his persona, and he didn’t want to drag the workers at the soup kitchen into any potential problems with people that had a problem with him.

Asmodeus wrapped his hands expertly with bandages, idly listening as the announcer rattled off the upcoming fights. The underground colosseum had an air of chaos and adrenaline, the deafening cheers of the crowd after each bloody fight like a choir to Asmodeus’ ears.

“Up next, the mysterious rogue Deus, versus the giant of steel KO!”

“Total Knock Out!” The crowd cheered for their circuit champion, a large man dressed in a body suit that seemed to be made completely of metal. Asmodeus looked at the large man, a cocky smile on his face as he cracked his knuckles and got up.

“Let’s do this!”