They are distorted. The climate malfunctioned. The intense presence consumed everything as the Dracogon made its way downward.
Reality itself seemed to warp and bend around the descending figure. Temperature fluctuated wildly—sweltering heat one moment, a more intense heat the next—coloring the plane in colored radiation. Plants withered and crumbled to dust while the soil beneath cracked. The atmosphere grew thick with a raging inferno, almost viscous, and made it seem as if the plane itself was pleading for help. Each time he flapped his wings, a gust of hot wind was sent through the entire planet, reaching everywhere—even up to Hollow, who wasn't present in the physical plane. Those weren't mere gusts. Each time the wing flapped, it unleashed a powerful, raw force that tore the trees around from their roots, scattered boulders into pebbles, and sent lesser demons and devils present in the plane tumbling through the air like autumn leaves. Even mountains couldn't contain the assault; their peaks eroded visibly with each successive wave. In the distant seas, tidal waves rose hundreds of feet high, crashing against coastlines and reshaping shorelines that had remained unchanged for millennia, if not even more. I guess this is where the whole story changes. I am afraid I won’t be letting you go from my grasp, even if it means battling the Dracogon. Hollow spoke inside Ryder's mind. There was something Ryder noticed in the demon monarch's mental voice—uneasiness, perhaps even... concern? No, that couldn't be right. Demon monarchs didn't feel concern, especially not for their hosts. If Hollow is feeling concerned, that means Hollow wants him alive, which also means—Hollow will not hurt him. Ryder couldn't be sure about the Dracogon, since the Dracogon might probably be angry that he contracted another beast. Hollow, who was inside Ryder’s soul space, slowly disintegrated into particles and flowed away until he disappeared. It wasn't a violent disintegration. Rather, inside Ryder's soul space, it felt like frost melting under the first touch of morning sunlight—gradual and peaceful. First, it was Hollow's fingertips, then his hands, arms, torso, and finally his face. Throughout the process, those predatory eyes of his remained fixed on Ryder; he didn't even blink. With how he acted, one would even be able to guess that a being like him could feel concern or any emotion along the line. Each fragment of his dissipating body glowed with a faint blue luminescence as it drifted upward, creating a galaxy of tiny stars that swirled once around Ryder before disappearing into thin air. Blue particles from a demon monarch! Ryder wondered. That doesn't feel demon-like, honestly. Ryder felt the world around fading shortly after Hollow disappeared. The world was breaking into particles just like Hollow's body; he was clearly exiting his soul space as well. Then, with a sensation like a stretched rubber band forcefully snapping back to shape, he was thrust back into the plane where he was. More like his consciousness, though, because his original existing body remained while he spoke to Hollow in his soul space. Opening his eyes, he expected to see the seemingly beautiful landscape once more. The landscape with greenery, flowers, trees, and sweet, calm breeze were gone; the blue sky, the golden clouds… Everything was lost, nearly as if it had never existed. Instead, the scene was even worse than the Dracogon plane, which already looked like a wasteland. The light reflecting across the entire plane at that moment made everything appear orange. It was as if they stood inside an enormous blaze. The orange light didn't just illuminate the surroundings—it consumed. It devoured shadows and bathed everything in its glow, which felt as if it had emotion—the emotion of animosity towards everything. The air shimmered with heat that dulled distant objects, making them dance and waver like an illusion. The horizon itself seemed aflame, a ring of fire encircling their world and slowly closing in. "W-What is this presence?" Ryder stuttered. "It feels like it’s calling me." The call was wordless, yet Ryder could decipher it. It resonated with something primal within him, something that was dragging out his humanity, perhaps even his existence. Appearing out of nowhere was Hollow. One moment there was nothing but shimmering air; the next, Hollow stood before Ryder, his suddenly materialized form just as solid and defined as always. Gone was his usually casual posture. He stood rigid and tense, his feet planted firmly apart, his fists clenched tightly. His jaw was set in a hard line, and his predatory eyes reflected the orange glow—not his own aura, but that of the Dracogon's flame. Hollow nearly had no aura, and Ryder noticed this for sure. "That is the one who helped us realize how special you are—the Dracogon. He is currently in this plane." Hollow's voice carried no emotion. Each word was precise and heavy. His gaze never left the burning horizon, not even when addressing Ryder directly. Something about Hollow's intensity made Ryder's skin crawl. "I never needed you to tell me that," Ryder retorted. "My body and soul can already translate our cur…" Vwwoooooooo! The sound was impossible to properly describe. It wasn't merely loud; it was invasive, carrying more force than the Dracogon's flapping wings that could reshape mountains. Suddenly, right before their eyes, the entire landscape was reduced to a smooth, leveled land. The rocks, the mountains, and the buildings all disappeared in a flash, due to a sudden burst of force as the intruder approached. The shockwave that followed knocked Ryder back three steps despite all the strength he had derived from Luxy. He felt a nosebleed start, the warm trickle of blood toward his lips. Just like how he felt powerless when he first met Luxy, he was feeling the same now. Back then, he knew that should have been the case, after all, he was a mere human; but now, he shouldn't have felt the same. Now, he has the power of a devil beast running through his veins. A mere gust of wind, that wasn't even from an attack but from the appearance of the Dracogon, was already overpowering him. The Dracogon's real body was now right within their field of view. All the devils in the plane panicked, running around chaotically. Lesser demons ran around disorganized in every direction, like ants whose hill had been kicked over. Some took flight into the air on mismatched wings, colliding with each other in their haste to escape. Some others who didn't possess wings clawed at the ground, attempting to dig their way to safety. This wasn't the right way to escape; the correct way is by banishment—self-banishment. Ryder took a step backward; even Luxy hopped behind him and peeked over his legs. "The destructive speed of this creature is like nothing I’ve ever seen!" Hollow stood his ground, staring into the distance. Unlike every other being in the vicinity, Hollow showed no fear. His posture remained perfect—spine straight, shoulders high, chin slightly raised in a forced smile that he planned to contain as he fought. Only someone who knew him as well as Ryder did might notice the subtle tells: the almost imperceptible tightening around his eyes, the slight flaring of his nostrils, the way his fingers curled just a fraction too tensely at his sides. Even Hollow wasn’t radiating such an aura, despite being a demon monarch, just like the Dracogon. In truth, Hollow never exuded an aura of heaviness at all. He was terrifying only due to his tone, his composure, and the way he acted, not his aura. "Come forth, fellow monarch. Let’s settle this once and for all." Vwwoooooooom! The Dracogon, who had been barely in their field of view a second ago, suddenly stood a few tens of meters away, rage burning in his eyes like intense orange flames. For the first time in his life, Ryder was seeing the Dracogon with his own eyes. He knew the Dracogon would be on a different level, being a monarch, but he never expected it to have such a malicious aura and appearance. The Dracogon stood on two feet instead of four, as Ryder had expected. Not only did he have draconic features, but he also had a demonic appearance. Its dominant stance gave it an unsettlingly humanoid aspect that somehow made it more terrifying than a traditional dragon would have been. The fusion of draconic and demonic features resulted in a distorted form of the Dracogon. However, the proportions of the Dracogon's humanoid form were all wrong—limbs too long, joints bending in impossible directions, symmetry perfect yet disturbingly scary. Looking at it for too long gave Ryder a sudden headache, as if his mind refused to agree with what his eyes were seeing. Countless spikes stuck out from his body, masking his rock-hard skin. Both the spikes and his skin appeared to be made of the same material—bony in texture and rock-hard. Its eyes were empty, with only raging flames burning without a source inside. His mouth had no tongue or organs, only teeth and an endless burning flame down its throat. He stood as a literal giant, nearly twenty feet tall in height. His sharp claws on his long limbs scraped the ground. Overall, his aura made it impossible for anyone in his field of view to breathe in or out. "Hollow," the Dracogon called in an elongated, husky tone. Hollow~~~ Hollow~~~ "Will you say something already? I’m tired of hearing my name." Hollow yawned and smacked his lips nonchalantly. Hollow~~~ "You… You dare?" The Dracogon ignored Hollow; each syllable he uttered shook the entire plane like an earthquake. "How dare you get in my way?" "You’ve got some nerve trying to steal my host." Hollow smiled, his sharp teeth on display. "You should’ve said that from the start instead of calling my name over and over, dummy." "You see, punk, no one gives a damn about anything in the Astral Shadow Plane. We take what’s best for us as quickly as possible before we lose it. "You’ve lived long enough to know this yourself. I can’t keep lecturing you on general knowledge." "You see that host over there? He isn’t yours." Hollow pointed at Ryder, causing him to flinch. 'Damn it! You’re having your conversation—don’t involve me, please!' Ryder screamed inwardly. "That host belongs to whoever lays their hands on him first, before anyone else." 'Then that should be me.' Luxy wished he could say this aloud, but he didn’t dare to interfere in a conversation between two monarchs. "You should’ve made a contract with him when you had the chance. After so many years that felt like eternity, you finally found a vessel that could hold a demon, and yet you wasted your precious time testing and assessing him, only to let it slip out of your grasp. How foolish, Dracogon." "Is this all you have to say to justify not feeling like a thief?" The Dracogon spoke in his usual malicious, elongated tone. "You think you can convince me to follow your mentality, huh?" "Unfortunately, Hollow, I think I’ll have to remind you—and all the other monarchs—why they shouldn’t mess with me." The Dracogon puffed out smoke from his mouth. "I won’t sugarcoat my words, Hollow. I’ll be giving you an unfriendly reminder." Turning his head slightly, Hollow observed. Just as he had hoped, all the creatures from his plane were disappearing one after another, evacuating the plane, just like Luxy did to the Dracogon's plane—they were all using self-banishment. Hollow nearly breathed out a sigh of relief as he saw the occupants of his plane scrambling to safety. He didn't want them to be caught up in the confrontation he was having with Dracogon. Ever since the Dracogon had stepped into this plane, all the creatures had been alerted to his presence. In an instant, they had gone crazed, running around aimlessly and haphazardly. The sheer might and aura radiating from the Dracogon screamed chaos. Hollow knew this, and he knew for sure that if he and the Dracogon engaged in battle with them around, it wouldn’t end well. 'More than half of the creatures in this plane have migrated to another plane,' Hollow thought inwardly as a sudden, small burst of blue, flame-like aura exploded over his hands. "I guess I can go all out now." The Dracogon's claws dangled as the heat pressure increased in the air. The declaration of battle doesn't always need to be spoken. The actions of Hollow and Dracogon already made it clear that a battle of pure chaos was about to unfold.Related Chapters
The Seven Demon's Tamer chapter 10
Bang! The sound wasn't merely loud—it was catastrophic, affecting the landscape like the birth of a universe in reverse. The impact sent shockwaves everywhere across the plain, causing ripples that distorted everything. Trees that had somehow survived the initial overpowering presence now uprooted themselves and fled alongside the high air current and shockwaves. Bang! The second collision was even more violent than the first. Where the two monarchs met, the air itself seemed to solidify, in fact, crystallize before shattering into a million fragments that were strangely visible to the naked eye. The entire plain had ceased to function properly in the presence of such overwhelming power. Bang! Bang! One after the other, loud sounds, like explosions, resounded as Dracogon and Hollow clashed in different directions each time. The ground shook upon every attack, and Luxy and Ryder both braced themselves. It felt like the entire plain wouldn't be able to maintain its stiffness and
The Seven Demon's Tamer chapter 11
Vwoom. A sudden appearance of a foreign energy was felt. Like a powerful gust of wind traveling through the air, it flung the hooded figures away violently. Crash! The wall that they all went smashing against crumbled, while they coughed up blood. The ancient stone wall, which had withstood centuries and maintained its shape, gave way like wet paper beneath the force of their bodies. Dust and debris filled the air, creating a hazy cloud that carried the smell of dust. There was actually no force in reality, but the Gloomy Guses could guess why such a thing had happened to them. The presence of a stronger familiar just appeared. Kyle, his vision still swimming from the impact, watched as tiny cracks spread across the floor of the conjuring room like veins. The ancient runes etched into the stone floor glowed, pulsing with light—as if the very magic holding the room together was straining against something it had never encountered before. They were most certain that it was the pr
The Seven Demon's Tamer Chapter 12
The next day morning...Knock, knock, knock.Ryder, who was awakened by the knock at the door, walked toward it and opened it.Standing before him was a troop of men dressed in identical uniforms containing stars, strapped by the shoulder.The one standing next to him was most likely the highest-ranking member among them, having three stars on each side of his shoulder."This uniform, I recognize it."It is the uniform of the Federal Summoner Guild, owned by the federal government of his own country.This isn’t mostly referred to as a guild but more like the police force. On the planet Terra—a planet of summoners—there were major security forces like the police, soldiers, and an extra—FSG, which stands for Federal Summoner Guild.The FSG isn’t actually the extra; it is more of the major force among them because they take charge of duties that are beyond the capabilities of the other common security forces.<
The Seven Demon's Tamer Chapter 13
"I noticed their summoning beast was trying to escape from their body and run away from their sight, not just because of my presence, but because of a presence that leaked out from the Astral Shadow Plain.""Due to the level of fear they were experiencing, they abandoned the safety of their host and hurt them in an attempt to escape.""I never directly caused any harm to Lucas or Kyle; I believe they can testify to that."Ryder explained. The aura burning through the plain were he came out from was terrifying indeed, even for Luxy who is a devil beast as well. It was demon monarchs fighting, not just any random creature.Upon hearing what Ryder had to say, she turned towards the duo.They had a clue about what Ryder said, but never knew it would get to this extent.With a slow nod, they approved.Now, turning towards Ryder, the entire interrogation was coming to an end.Now I would like to confirm: did you truly contract a beast from the demon plain?"Yes," Ryder gave a flat answer.
The Seven Demon's Tamer Chapter 14
It wasn't too hard for Ryder to find his way home. With his extraordinary jumps, he got to his village faster than he would have imagined.Upon reaching the village, he sighed and relaxed his shoulders while lazily walking through the bush path. He wasn't tired physically, but he was mentally.He was overthinking once again, like in the past, whenever he got into a mess.He had particularly chosen the bush path, trying to stay away from the public. Right now, he could tell how popular he was.He wouldn't like to add to his problems right now.Ryder could feel himself just minutes away from home when a sudden scent flashed past his nose.'What the hell is that?' he wondered as he narrowed his eyes.Ever since he had contracted with Luxy, his physical capabilities had increased—every single thing he could do normally, he could now do at a superhuman level. His senses of sight, smell, and others had all been enhanced.The scent lingered in the air throughout his journey until he got home
The Seven Demon's Tamer Chapter 15: The Red-Eastern Guild Leader
*Flip. Flip. Flip.*Dwang Sung, the leader of the Red-Easter guild himself, flipped through the pages of the newly printed newspaper, sipping the coffee from the cup in his right hand."Is that so...Someone successfully contracted a beast from the demon plain.""Y... Yes... Mm... Master Sung."His personal servant, who had brought the newspaper to him, remained in his bowed position as he spoke. Ming Fan had served the master for over a decade, even since before he created the Red-Eastern guild, yet master Sung's presence still made his knees weak and his voice tremble. There was something about being in the same room as a man who contracted with four red-marked familiars that made even the most hotheaded men tremble."And his simmon is?"Dwang Sung asked, taking another sip of his coffee. The newspaper now lay flat on his lap after he dropped it, the headline screaming up at him in bold letters: "DEMON
The Seven Demon's Tamer Chapter 16
Luxy was still stunned by the view of the city. He had lived most of his life in the Dracogon Plain, which was nothing but a mere wasteland—a barren expanse of cracked surface, where the horizon stretched endlessly into a vast, dry land.The most exciting thing that happened there was when the occasional dust devil whirled across the plains, kicking up dirt that would find its way into the makeshift shelter of the dwellers of the plain. Even the vegetation seemed to have given up, and insect familiars have no option but to build their homes from either rock or dead plants, with only the most stubborn of shrubs managing to cling to life in that forgotten corner of the world.The city right before them looked like an imaginary painting come to life. Towering structures of glass and steel reached toward the heavens, their surfaces reflecting the sunlight in dazzling patterns. The streets below teemed with life—people bustling about their daily routines, vehicles weavi
The Seven Demon's Tamer chapter 17
Ryder was quite surprised at the situation unfolding right before his eyes.He knew there was something up right from the time he got into the room. The muscular size and strong presence of the disguised workers made him already know that he might be having a problem.Furthermore, he was most certain of the fact that they were all interested in him from the moment he noticed their piercing gaze on him.It was like being watched by a pack of wolves who thought they were being subtle.Every time he glanced up to stare around, at least three pairs of eyes would quickly look away, busying themselves with random tasks that seemed comically out of place.One particularly large man with scars peeking from beneath his rolled-up sleeves was delicately arranging chopsticks with the precision of someone disarming a bomb.He never expected this situation he had found himself in as the outcome of being unable to pay for his meal. But before attending to all the workers there, Ryder couldn't get so
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chapter 25
Let the fight... begin.Crusher wasted no time with his offensive strikes.He blasted forward with a leap, covering the distance between him and his opponent nearly instantly.Whoosh.He swung his fist straight at Green Bloody's face. With the power enhancement he had gotten from his familiar, the punch was catastrophic. The air itself seemed to compress around Crusher's fist, creating a small shockwave that ruffled Green Bloody's hair.No, more appropriately, the punch would have been catastrophic if it had hit.Green Bloody dodged the punch, much to Crusher's greatest shock, by ducking under his arm and swiftly appearing behind him. His movement was fluid in its grace.Unlike the few others Crusher had fought, he instantly recognized that Green Bloody wouldn't be easy.A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. No one had ever made Crusher miss so completely since today's tournament began.Wham!
chapter 24
The number of people in the warehouse was easily a thousand or two, if not even more. Every breath Ryder took felt like inhaling a cocktail of cheap alcohol and stale cigarettes.Bodies pressed against one another, creating a suffocating atmosphere with every breath. The warehouse—once used for storing imported goods that never made it past customs—now housed a different kind of contraband: violence for profit.It was dominated mainly by gangsters. Men and women with hard eyes and harder knuckles, bearing scars all over as if their bodies were illustrating the intensity of their misdeeds with scars that spoke louder than any confession.Although various other criminals were there, they weren't there for the fight but to carry out some more illegal activities that could help them bag a great deal of cash, mostly gambling."Five grand on Crusher breaking at least three bones!" shouted a man with a face that looked like it had been rearranged by an a
Chapter 23
As Ryder walked through the moonlit streets, his newly purchased cloak flowed gently in the evening breeze; he observed the multitude of posters plastered haphazardly on walls and poles.He pulled his hood lower, ensuring his face remained hidden. The best decision he could think of was hiding his face at all times since only a few people know his identity. His name is quite famous now, and as long as his face remains hidden, then it should be fine.A particular poster caught his eye, the paper still fresh, unlike most of the other weather-beaten announcements surrounding it.[Underlings TournamentEvery Tuesday and FridayOrganized at midnightLocation: undisclosedWhoever defeats the champion goes home with the prize.#10,000 Terra gold coin.]"They'll be organizing it today," Ryder thought inwardly, mentally calculating the hours until midnight. "It's Tuesday."He patted the pocket of his tr
chapter 22
With how popular Ryder was turning out to be, he was beginning to trend around the four nations of the United Kingdom.All the radio channels were booming. All they could say was about Ryder and the most recent disaster.—"Today on the recent unexplainable disaster: What exactly is Ryder? Man, myth, or monster?"—"One who contracted with the devil beast."—"Has the devil beast possessed the anonymous Ryder?"The news anchors delivered their lines with a wry grin that was supposed to be fake, just to appear presentable, but the excitement in their eyes betrayed them.This was the story of a lifetime. Ratings had never been higher.And as for the rumors? They multiplied at a crazy rate.Some said he could fly; others insisted he could walk through walls. One particularly creative someone said Ryder was actually three small children in a trenchcoat who had been possessed by his familiar.Cases like these do spring up once in a while about someone contracting a familiar from the devil pla
chapter 21
The morning sunlight penetrated through the half-drawn curtains, casting beams of soft sun rays across the living room.Ryder sat cross-legged on the wooden floor, his dark eyes fixed on the translucent figure hovering before him. Luxy—his familiar—floated in the air, the edges of his ethereal holographic form rippling once in a while like disturbed water."Familiars and their summoners are emotionally linked, but not you, Luxy," Ryder said, breaking the silence that had stretched between them for nearly an hour.This is one of the few times he had summoned Luxy out. This kind of summoning style wasn't the regular one; it was different.It may appear like a unique style he developed by himself at first, but then, deep down, he knew this was a failure.He has tried multiple times to summon Luxy out of his body to experience the world, but not once has he succeeded.Normally, summoning a familiar isn't something that is learned, because the knowledge of it naturally engraves itself on t
chapter 20
Normally, when a human receives a mark of invitation to the Astral Shadow plain, the mark is shapeless, resembling a scar. It is an ugly-looking, twisted thing that appears somewhere on their body all of a sudden—simply there one morning when the newly marked person wakes.New bearers of the mark might mistake it for perhaps a strange bruise from sleeping awkwardly. But, due to how widespread the summoning mark is and how summoners populate the entirety of planet Terra, it does not appear as a foreign mark.Everyone, including those familiar with the ways of summoners and those who have partaken in any practical aspect of summoning, recognizes it for what it truly is: an invitation to power beyond mortal comprehension.The marks vary in color—some blood red, others brown, a few with an orange marking. Tang Jim's had been a deep red, so dark it seemed to absorb the light from everywhere, located on his left arm. He'd spent years proudly displaying it at every chance he found, watching
chapter 19
The piercing wail of FSG van sirens cut through the heavy afternoon air, along with the continuous, windy noise from the flapping wings of various familiars. The cries and roar of familiars and sirens echoed across what had once been the busy eastern district of Ludlow. The district where various shops and busy street markets had stood just hours before now contained only an area filled with rubble—a wasteland of shattered concrete and twisted metal. Commander Lucian stepped out of the lead vehicle, his boots crunching on debris all around. The smell of smoke, along with something else—something he'd come to recognize from too many scenes like this—hung in the air. There was also the unmistakable scent of spent magical energy—the remaining trace of gamma energy that had been unleashed through an affinity for fire. "Spread out, fifteen-meter intervals. Our priority is survival of the survivors, and evidence accumulation," Lucian ordered, his voice carrying the authority that came wi
chapter 18
"If I go all out and kill this familiar, then what?" Ryder questioned."Well, if you kill a familiar, then it will die for good, and there'll be no way to revive it."Ryder rolled his eyes. "You're right. That's generally what 'killing' means."Familiars are dwellers of the Astral Shadow Plain. The Astral Shadow Plain is a plain for partially dead creatures.When some creatures die, their souls instantly travel to the dead domain, but while others do, their souls get transferred to the Astral Shadow Plain."Death has one beginning and one end, but what lies in-between differs," Luxy explained, his tone taking on that professorial quality that made Ryder picture him wearing tiny spectacles and suits, that is, if beings inhabiting one's soul could wear spectacles."The Astral Shadow Plain makes creatures half alive and half dead. With that state of existence, they can either visit the living or the dead Plain at will, if a contract is being made."Ryder tilted his body to the side, narr
chapter 17
Ryder was quite surprised at the situation unfolding right before his eyes.He knew there was something up right from the time he got into the room. The muscular size and strong presence of the disguised workers made him already know that he might be having a problem.Furthermore, he was most certain of the fact that they were all interested in him from the moment he noticed their piercing gaze on him.It was like being watched by a pack of wolves who thought they were being subtle.Every time he glanced up to stare around, at least three pairs of eyes would quickly look away, busying themselves with random tasks that seemed comically out of place.One particularly large man with scars peeking from beneath his rolled-up sleeves was delicately arranging chopsticks with the precision of someone disarming a bomb.He never expected this situation he had found himself in as the outcome of being unable to pay for his meal. But before attending to all the workers there, Ryder couldn't get so