Author-Kun: Sup, got bored again and made this, enjoy! But a warning: a little violence here, if you don't mind.

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{Chapter 3}

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Rick, or Derick Nathan, was called many things back in his original world: normal, a genius in english – in writing and speech – and a friendly person to whoever was friendly to him.

But patient wasn't one of them.

'Mother of – Just how long is this god-forsaken line?!' He thought to himself, thinking of cute and fluffy cats to ease his growing frustration.

After getting that reward money he got yesterday, he passed the night on a bench, just staring at the night sky until he got sick of it, which was impossible given how beautiful it was.

How the moon was almost glowing, the stars shining like jewels, how the darkness in the sky reminded him of the ocean. It was all too beautiful!

He remembered that the last time he gazed at the clear night sky was... he actually can't remember when, maybe when he was still a young child?

The sky wasn't really polluted or something, he just didn't have the time nor reason to look up and stare at space, being that life was like a wheel, spinning and moving, doing something for the good of society. If it breaks, it's replaced; if it's obsolete, then it's scraped and replaced with a better one.

No matter how sad the truth is, if you're useless to society, then you're disposed of. You'll be sucked out of everything you have: ideas, energy, manpower, strenght, knowledge, and all your talents, until you're no longer needed.

But that's how life works. You win some, you lose some.

Not like it'll change anytime soon, he knows and he doesn't care. If the his world survived for this long, then nothing would change. If isn't broken, then don't fix it nor improve it.

"Sir...?"

"Hmm?" Rick turned his head, having stared at the ceiling for the last hour. "Oh, sorry 'bout that." He apologized, but his expression said he wasn't.

"Um, okay...?" The blonde receptionist said, wearing a loose uniform, showing an unhealthy about of cleavage and breasts.

'What the fu – is everyone a secret prostitute in this world or what?!' He mentally shouted, thinking of sinful thoughts while reminding himself that god is literally watching him right now. "I'm here to register." Rick said, staring directly only at the girl's face and eyes, trying his hardest not to lower his eyes.

The receptionist flinched, feeling a chill run up her spine from the teen's gaze. Those eyes felt wrong, really, really wrong. "Y-Yes. Can I have your name, Mr...?"

"Nathan, Derick Nathan's the name." He answered.

"Y-Yes, you're here to register as an Adventurer, correct?" The teen nodded. "Good. Now there's a fee-"

Rick dropped a heavy pouch of Eris on the counter, making an audible thud, his expression neutral. "Anything else?"

The receptionist shook her head, a little dumbfounded. "N-No, nothing else except filling out a few papers and all." She said, trying her hardest not to stutter, but the eyes gave her a really hard time.

They weren't alluring or handsome, or anything; they were just... weird, scary, almost frightening. The red one felt like the eyes of a Crimson Demon but more menacing, while the gray one, it felt inhuman, as if something was behind it and ready to tear everything in this place apart.

"Good." He grabbed the papers handed to him. "Oh, is there a pen?"

"P-Pin...?"

"I-I meant ink and a feather..." He quickly corrected himself, mentally cursing himself for the tongue slip.

"Oh! You mean the ink stick!" She reached under her counter and gave him what seems to be a pen, a modern-looking pen.

Rick had a deadpanned expression, taking the pen and sitting on a nearby table. While he was finishing the paper work, his mind began to wander a bit.

That girl he met last night, she was a demon, or half of one. She looked pretty and almost human, he thought demons looked like the creatures you would see in nightmares and not what anime poorly depicts.

Busty, horned demons in skimpy clothes, don't make him laugh.

She could possibly a succubus, a demon of the Sin of Lust. But why did she scream for help when those men tried to do what she – a demon – was born to do?

Maybe demons in this world are different? Or maybe has different laws than his own?

Either way, he'll probably fight them when he faces Satan – not the real one, the poser one.

'Ah... Where can you find good books when you need them...?' He sighed, after being transported to this world, he hasn't even read a single good book or story. Yes, this world is fantasy at its finest, but he needs books like... real ones and not those stupid chuunibyou ones.

Dear gods knows he tried reading one, it didn't end well.

"Demons... why write about them when the whole world is being invaded by them...?" He asked himself, staring at the ceiling.

But he wasn't expecting someone to answer him. "Well, humans are... interesting to some degree..."

Rick snapped his head infront of him, seeing a cloaked, white-haired man infront of him. The man was probably in his early-twenties, his eyes were closed and a serpent-like grin on his lips, while the cloak covered everything except his head and face.

'Great, a Hazama-lookin' guy is here...'

But the most eye-catching feature was the horns on the man's head, hooked and black.

'And he's a demon... Why isn't anyone saying something about this.' Rick took a quick glance at his surroundings.

Everything: people, objects, even the wind itself stopped moving, like time itself stopped around them.

'Time manipulation...? damn...!' Rick thought, dumbfounded beyond belief. Luckly he didn't show it.

"I see you're speechless, great!" The white-haired man chuckled himself. "Oh! I haven't introduced myself!" He bowed in a professional manner, but the serpent grin on still on him. "The humans call me the Leviathan, but my colleagues call me Invidia." He introduced.

"The Demon of Envy, huh? Well, the name's Derick Nathan." Rick introduced himself, trying his hardest not to show fear infront of the demon. "So, what does a demon want with me?" He asked.

"Uh, blunt are we? How refreshing...!" Invidia snickered. "I simply want to know the person who captured and imprisoned a friend of mine..."

'Friend?' Rick thought, a bit confused at the man's accusation. "Sorry, I think you got the wrong guy."

"Oh, I didn't. I know fully well what you did, Mister Nathan." The man's grin felt menacing now, sending a small chill down his spine. "I do thank you that you saved her last night, but..." He cracked his eyes open, showing a pair of red, serpent-like eyes, they were filled with an incredible amount of malice. "Did really need to turn her in?" He questioned, his tone cold and deadly while his grin got wider.

'S-Shit! W-What's happening to me?!' Rick thought, feeling his entire body numb. "W-What the..."

"I see my passive is finally taking a toll on you. I'm surprised that it took this long for your body to react to the poison; people die after a few second of being exposed. I am impressed..." He said with a smirk. "Well, looks like you're going to die no-"

Before Invidia could finish, he blocked a giant, black, meaty fist by crossing his arms infront of him, pushing him back.

Rick's arm looked bigger and more muscular than before. It was covered in black chitin plates, his fingers were now sharp, black claws. His arm was covered in neon-green veins, ending on his shoulders. His mouth was drolling a thick, black substance, almost like sludge.

"Hmm? Impressive... Not only did you resist my poison, you also managed to land a hit in your state. Truly impressive!" The demon exclaimed, laughing. "

"... Go... to... hell, asshole..." Rick growled at the demon, his body already changing into something different, something inhuman.

"Hmm, seems like you aren't actually human. A type of demon, I assume?" Invidia guessed, not one bit afraid of the thing infront of him.

"Shut up!" Rick roared with deep, echoing voice, his body covered in chitinous armor. He looked bigger and meaner than before.

"Oh, am I annoying you with my voice?" The white-haired man said as he dodged a scythe-like tail aimed at him, but his cloak got a deep gash instead. "Ah! Almost got my there!" He laughed. "Sadly, as much as I want to play with you. I'm simply here to deliver a message." He continued, drawing a hidden sword in his cloak.

Before Rick could deliver another blow, all of his limbs were sliced off, green and red blood spraying everywhere. He gritted his teeth in pain, fighting back the tears. A boot then stepped on his torso, which was now on the ground, his limps wiggling around like fish out of water.

"My mistress ordered me to give you an offer, an offer that you can't refuse even if you wanted to..." The demon said with an arrogant smirk. "She wishes you to guard her daughter, the one you captured and imprisoned." He then pointed his sword directly at Rick's neck, pressing deep enough to draw blood. "But if you do refuse or something happens to her daughter. I won't hesitate to finish the job..." He finished, his tone cold and dark.

Without another word, he stepped off of Rick and strolled to the exit, making sure every step he did was full of arrogance.

He took a final glance at the angry torso on the floor. "Oh, almost forgot. Goodluck, she can be a real handful." He then left through the door with a massive shit-eating-grin on his face.

Rick gritted his teeth in both anger and pain, he wanted nothing more than to crush that arrogant man's head in his claws.

Slowly his vision turned black.

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He blinked his eyes, sweat painting his face as his throat felt dry and rasp. He almost collapsed if not for his hands supporting his entire body's weight. He took a quick glance at everything in his surroundings.

All the damage, the blood, and even the wounds done to his body were gone. Everything was moving like normal, as if time started to move again.

Rick sighed and rested his forehead on the table, trying his hardest to stifle his raging heart. It all felt so real, the pain, the noise, everything. Good thing everything was all just a dream.

"Hey, gray-hair, you there?"

Rick's head mechanically turned, a familiar blondie infront of him. His face beyond stoic. '... Fuck.' He sweared in his mind, wanting to kill his luck.

"Hellooo? Earth to gray-head!" Saya, the half-demon he turned in, waved her hand infront of his poker-face. "You there or what?"

She was actually wearing something a lot more different than what she wore the last time he saw her, which was behind bars.

Saya wore a black body suit with orange and blue armor plating around her body: gauntles, a breast plate, shin guards, and some armor plating around her hips. She even had a long, beautifully-crafted halberd stuck to her back.

But there were two eye-catching differences: one, her horns are still on her head, but there's now a black headband on, which could be mistaken as a pair of fake horns, and the second one... her chest was slightly bigger than before.

'W-What the actual hell...?! I-I thought she was flat, but damn! S-She's probably bigger than that girl I met yesterday morning, Yunyun was it?' Rick thought, trying his hardest not to stare. Then his mind remembered the girl's former clothes... which had thick bandages around her chest.

"What? Shocked that I have bigger melons than anyone here?" She teased, a shit eating-grin on her face. "Heh, just goes to show how much I look like my mum!" She beamed with pride as Rick had a deadpanned look. "I love it how people make mistakes..." She flashed him a devilish smile.

He once again sighed, his whole world already collapsing all around him. So that wasn't a dream? He was really defeated by a demon, a demon who could control time and beat him to the ground.

That really shook him to the entirety of his core.

If that demon, from the looks of it, wasn't the Demon King, then he might have a problem on his claws. Heck, he might not even be a demon general, something that scared him more.

Leviathan, from what he read, it was a giant sea serpent that plagued the seas, something like the kraken, but more snake-y and less suction-y. There were even legends that the serpent was a demon, a Demon of Envy, one of the princes of Hell.

If he remembered correctly, the man mentioned a mistress or a someone who has a higher rank than him, probably in power or influence, being how demons think like tribes.

"Oi! Don't ignore me!" The girl shouted at him, now poking his face.

"... Why?" He questioned, his face still buried on the table. "Why are you here?" He repeated, saying it through gritted teeth.

"Well, duh! How else can I be an Adventurer, Silly?" Saya said with a laugh, making Rick freeze in place.

Adventurer, as in the guys that are supposed to be beating demons, monsters, and finally the Demon King?

Was this girl high or something?

"... Y-You do know what Adventurers do, right?" He questioned. If what a lot of animes and fanfictions taught him, then the stupid one can be the one you expect the most.

"Well, of course I do, gray-head!" She responded, slapping Rick's head, hard. "Adventurers are like mercenaries, sellswords, people who would do practically anything for fame and money, even killing other Adventurers." She said with an innocent and naive smile, which completely betrayed on how bleak the she sees Adventurers were.

'Damn, lady. You just gave the real definition of Adventurers... Hot damn...' Rick thought, slightly dumbfounded and slightly disappointed.

Dumbfounded that the girl was actually smart.

Disappointed that the girl is smart.

"Oi, I ain't dumb, shit for brains." She growled at the teen infront of her. "If you think I don't have what it takes to be an Adventurer, then I can leave you alone and find a new partner..." She said as she stood up.

Rick suddenly remembered the deal he was forced to accept. Fearing for his life, he quickly stood up and bowed at her to apologize, accidentally bashing his head on the table, but still continued to bow. "I-I'm sorry! Please be my teammate!" He exclaimed, desperation in his tone.

As long as he was weak and inexperienced, then that guy can kill him without a problem. But if he grew and got a little smarter, then he can dump this annoying girl and beat the living crap out of that Leviathan dude!

But for now, he need to be obedient like a dog.

Saya grinned. "Good. At least someone knows their place." She sat back down. "Now, how do I register?" She asked, her grin still present.

'Oh dear gods, this is gonna be a long day...'

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After an ungodly amount of explaining, paying, and plain-out torture, he was finally going to finish registering as an Adventurer.

"Huh? That's odd..." The receptionist infront of him said out loud, narrowing her eyes at the card in her hands. "I... I haven't seen stats like these before."

"M-Miss, is there a problem?" He asked, fearing for his career.

"Oh, no, no! There isn't a problem. It's just that... your stats seem to be different like the rest. Look." She showed him his Adventurer's card, which was said to be an essential to be an Adventurer.

Question marks, some of his stats were filled with questions marks. His strength, agility, endurance, vitality, and dexterity were all filled with question marks instead of numbers like his intelligence, wisdom, and luck, which looked kinda low in his opinion.

"... Maybe there isn't a problem!" He exclaimed, surprising both his partner and the receptionist. "Look at this way, question marks might mean something good..." He continued with a nervous smile.

"Or maybe they're so bad that they can't be measured." Saya snickered, mocking the teen.

The receptionist then had a face full of pity, much to a certain teen's further dismay. "Y-Yes, you might be right. They might be really high, Mister Nathan." She tried to cheer the teen up, but it did the total opposite. "L-Let's look at the classes you can take, shall we?!" She tried and failed even further.

"... Yeah, whatever..." Rick said through his hopeless and lifeless expression as he was handed a thick book, which has a page open for him.

"As you can see, Mister Nathan, these are the classes available to you. Please choose wisely, Sir." The receptionist said in a professional manner.

Rick began to scan the whole page, his face turning to intrigue when he found an out of place class. "Brawler...?" He said out loud, raising a confused eyebrow.

"Oh! Brawlers are frontliners, Adventurers that can deal an incredible amount of damage in a short amount of time with strong physical attacks and skills that can buff their body even further. But the drawback is, they aren't good in long-lasting fights, having horrible defense unless back on." She informed.

Brawlers, huh? If he remembered correctly, they're like pit fighters, people who fight dirty and can't do any normal techniques or styles. But they can proved to be difficult to deal with, being the case that they were unpredictable to fight.

He, Rick, loved being unpredictable.

"I want to be a Brawler, please." Rick said, politely. He was, what you call, a damage dealer at heart, even if he picked a tank-class, he would likely focus more on damage than on durability. Plus, Demon Reapers can regenerate if he was correct, which would defeat the point of being a glass cannon.

Now he's a glass cannon that can regenerate!

And he fought better with his fist and a polearm anyways.

"Oh? Are you sure, Sir?" The receptionist asked, a bit worried at the teen, but still a little frightened at the teen's eyes.

"Positive."

She nodded. "Alright then. Please give me the card and place your hand over this globe over here."

And he did what she said, giving the card and placing his hand on the globe. The globe started to glow a bright light, but it slowly became a neon-green. When the process was over, Rick felt a bit stronger than before.

"Wow... This feels amazing!" He turned his head to the receptionist, who was slightly shaking with dilated eyes. "Umm... Miss, you okay?" He asked as he took the card under the globe.

"... D-Demon...!"

Rick's eyes widened, a chill running up his spine. 'H-How did she know...' Thanks to his enhanced hearing, he could clearly hear what the receptionist said.

"I-I mean, I'm alright. Just a little shaken, that's all..." She lied, but Rick instead played his clueless card.

'Dammit, not even here for a week and someone already knows that I'm a demon!' He cursed under his breath. Yes, he was indeed a demon, but only in body, while his mind – he made sure – was still human.

He kinda felt like that one character in that new anime he watched on Netflix... Demon-Man, was it?

'Anime later, plan now!' He glanced at the girl behind him, Saya. She had her eyes narrowed at the receptionist, likely hearing what he heard as well.

"N-Now, you're here to register as well, correct, miss?" The receptionist asked the girl behind him.

"Yes, I am..." Saya walked up to the counter as Rick stepped aside.

While Saya was busy with registering, Rick's mind went somewhere else entirely.

If that woman told anyone that he was demon in disguised, then he'll have a huge problem on his hands, especially that they are in the middle of a town full of Adventurers. He would likely need to silence her, which does include killing.

He never understood why people in animes and in fanfics are able to kill people easily, especially killing in general. It's considered a crime and a heavy moral choice, which would likely change the person by traumatizing them. Life and death choices or not, killing is hard if they don't have any experience with it or haven't killed before, especially people with good morals.

You never forget your first kill... So he heard, which explains everything and nothing at the same time.

Maybe he can rent a warehouse and lock her up there. It's considered kidnapping and a crime, but what can he do? Send her to this world's version of China and change her name to Chi-Chi?

"My goodness, these are the second most highest stats I've seen yet!" The receptionist exclaimed, pulling Rick out of his thoughts. "You can be of any class, especially the tank-classes or support ones!" She continued with awe in her voice, getting the attention of almost every occupant in the guild.

"Damn, another one?! Are the gods finally on our side?!"

"This might be the one who can finally defeat the Demon King!"

"This girl will be our salvation. Hail the newbie!"

Everyone, and he meant everyone began to cheer and chant the girl's name, while they were carrying her up in the air.

But something was off. Why didn't the receptionist say that Saya was also a demon? Maybe because she was half of one or something?

"Ha! Told you I was amazing, gray-hair!" Saya exclaimed, mocking the teen who was in the very back of the crowd.

He wasn't offended or jealous one bit, maybe a little but that's that! Nothing more. As long as he finish what he was sent here to do, she can have all the attention she wants.

"Mister Nathan! Come here!" A voice called out to him. He turned around and saw the same receptionist – who knew he was a demon – calling out to him, standing in a open door in the very back of the guild. "Come here! I have something to tell you!"

If this was in his world, he would have ignored her and walked along. But that woman knew he was a demon, so he doesn't really have a choice right now.

'This sucks so hard right now...' He walked up to the receptionist, but not before taking a final glance at his partner. 'But maybe there are some perks...' He thought, seeing the girl getting swarmed by everyone in the guild, asking her questions upon questions.

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"... So, why did you call me?" Rick asked, leaning on a wall in the back room of the guildhouse.

"Blunt, are we?" The receptionist teased. "Introductions are in order first. My name is Luna, the head receptionist and manager of Adventurer Guild in Axel. Nice to meet you." She raised her hand for a handshake.

Rick simply stared at the hand, his face neutral. "You know I'm a demon, correct?" He asked, saying it out of the blue.

Luna flinched at the teen's blunt question, slightly shaken at the boy's eyes focusing on her. "Y-Yes... Y-Yes, I know."

A silence then soon enveloped the room, both of them trying to find the right words to say.

"So, are you gonna tell the guards about me, or are you going to place a bounty on my head for the Adventurers to hunt me down? Which is it?" Rick broke the silence as he was staring at the ceiling. "Either way, I'm still going to escape without a trace..."

He was indeed prepared to run and escape, probably live the life of a convict and run for the rest of his life, or shapeshift into another form and change his name to Pedro or Santiago.

Well, he always wanted to wear a sombrero anyways.

"No, I won't... To tell you the truth, you aren't the first one actually." Luna scratched the back of her head. "Ever since the Demon King resurfaced, a lot of passive and neutral demons ran away from the Demon Lands, seeking salvation from the war between Demon and Human. So, they go here, the city of Axel, one of the farthes cities from any conflict. The city is considered one of the most peaceful cities in the land; nothing really interesting happens here except for the ocassional, accidental Adventurer deaths from Rookie Killers." She explained. "You'd be surprised on how many demons are hidden in this very town. Heck, some of the workers here are demons as well."

Rick gave her one of the most shocked looks he could possibly give since he came here. Demons are walking among them... Sounds like a start of a shitty web-novel if you ask him.

"So, let me get this straight. You think that I – as a demon – am hiding here in this very city to avoid the War?" He questioned, his brain already straining on how she could think of such of an assumption.

"Yes... Unless, you aren't here to escape it?" She questioned as her eyes narrowed on him.

"N-No, you're right. You got me." He laughed nervously, trying to fake his shock. Well, technically he wasn't lying, he was indeed a demon – used to be human – but wasn't planning on participating in any battle that didn't need require his attention. He only needed to defeat the Demon King and not fight a land-wide war that he didn't care about.

That didn't mean he won't help people in need, and he meant truly in need of help.

"Good. Now, I won't say a word about you to the guards... for one condition!" She raised a finger at his face. "The Guild is currently having a bit of... staff crisis."

"What do you mean by staff crisis?" He asked, already fearing the worst.

"Well, being that almost half of the staff are demons in disguise..."

'Damn, that many?!'

"I need you, Mister Nathan, to work at the Guild as a errand-boy." She finished waiting on the teen's answer.

"Wait, you mean a call-boy?"

"N-No!" Luna exclaimed, her face turning beet-red. "I mean an errand-boy! You know, someone that runs errands for the Guild! Know the difference, please!"

'Heh, got her...' He snickered under his breath, finding the older girl's reaction amusing. "Okay, but... Why? I'm a demon as well."

"That's the reason, Mister Nathan. You are a demon, a demon errand-boy, someone that the other demons working here can approach if they need anything." She explained. "The demons here aren't really comfortable talking to humans or any race that isn't related to the Demon Species."

"Heh. For a human, you're really considerate for demons, you know that?" Rick chuckled to himself, finding the whole situation interesting and amusing. "So, is that really all I need to do?

"Yes, that is all. Nothing more, nothing less." She raised her delicate hand for a handshake. "I hope we come to a mutual agreement?"

"By mutual agreement, you mean by blackmailing me to work for you for free, then we do." He gave the woman a firm handshake. 'Damn, those are some soft hands.'

'Wow, those are some soft hands... for a guy, I mean.' Luna also thought, hiding a blush from climbing onto her cheeks. "Good, now I think that girl you came in with would will probably need your help by now."

"Hmm? What do you mean?" The teen raised a confused brow at the woman, but his question was quickly answered by a totally familiar and exact scream he once heard in an alleyway.

"Ah! Someone, help me!"

"Please join our party!"

"Step aside, dick! She's mine before Trash-zuma claims another one!"

"Ah...! Nevermind then." Rick turned his head back to the receptionist, who had an overly innocent smile on her face. "You sure you aren't a demon as well?"

"Nope. I'm just really good at acting, especially if you see a lot of people come and go with really unique stats. Plus, Adventurers in general are gullible, no offense, by the way." She joked with a smile.

"None taken, lady..." Rick chuckled and left the woman alone, coming to rescue his cambion partner. After the teen left the room, Luna sighed in relief, leaning on a table for support. She pressed her hand on her chest, feeling her heart beat uncontrollably.

It took all her willpower not to flinch from the teen's gaze. The more he looked at her, the more uncomfortable she felt, almost unnerving to her. Those eyes weren't normal, that much she knew.

She was slightly frightened, not about the teen being a demon, she worked with demons everyday, outside and inside of the Guild. The scary thing she found out was something else.

The globe that registers new Adventurers has the ability to show a person's stats and true form, useful to discern bad people from the good ones. Unfortunately the globe doesn't work on half-breeds, being that they didn't need to; half-breeds can't disguise any of their more distinct race features, no matter how strong the magic is.

But the moment that teen touched that globe, she saw something far more demonic than the usual demons in their world.

An amalgamation of muscle, bone, flesh, and tendrils. Its eyes glowed a dangerous neon-green and crimson-red, its teeth bare and deadly, its claws big and sharp. To her, the abomination was far more frightening than any Demon General she knew about.

But the term scary was far from being powerful. She still didn't know why most of the teen's stats are a bunch of question marks, it was the first time she saw stats like those. A wild-card if you will.

"Of all the stupid things I've done thus far, this might be the stupidest..." Luna sighed to herself as she slumped over to the table behind her.

The best she can do is hope for the best and expect the worse.

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Author-Kun: Sup! It's me your boi! Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, kinda had to rewrite a few parts. Fun fact: I thought call-boy was another term for Errand-boy, good thing I didn't use the former, that would've been embarrassing ws crap!