Garden Of Poison-Chapter 206: Lowly demons in Storm

Despite her complete lack of involvement in the situation, when Lauren received Raylen’s glare, the demoness became nervous and replied, "All the servants were occupied with their work, and they wouldn’t have had access to any of the ingredients to summon anyone from the underworld."

However, Raylen’s glare wasn’t aimed at Lauren; it shifted and landed on Emily, who continued to breathe deeply.

It finally dawned on the head servant that it was the princess who had communicated with Hell, but at the same time, a frown creased her face. She inquired, "Who was the princess trying to contact in Hell?"

"I doubt she’s as close to the Devil as her grandmother," Raylen responded, deducing that it was a mistake on Emily’s part. He had cautioned her, and she had failed to listen. "The only demons from Hell she knows are back in her own home, the one that has broken her heart, and me."

Balor promptly informed its master, "Some of the lower-level demons appear to have managed to pass from the underworld into the Storm Kingdom. I have taken the necessary steps to close the portal for now."

As delicious as Emily’s blood tasted, Raylen was far from pleased with her negligence, and she was fortunate to be sleeping at the moment. He was peeved. Instead of informing them about the mistake she committed, she chose to wander around the castle.

Raylen ordered Lauren, "Take the remaining ingredients that the princess brought with her for the summoning ritual."

Lauren didn’t question Raylen, noting the abrupt shift in his demeanour to something colder and more aloof. She simply nodded and started gathering all the items that Emily had brought from home and had been using to communicate with her family. It might have seemed harsh, but she understood her master’s reasons far better than the princess she had met just five days ago.

"I will be heading out," Raylen announced before exiting the room.

Stepping out of the castle, Raylen started walking with the small creature trailing behind him in the pouring rain. The lanterns in front of the houses had been snuffed out, and some residents had brought theirs indoors to conserve precious oil. The landscape was periodically illuminated by flashes of lightning occurring in the sky, and when Raylen noticed a hurried movement in the shadows, the archdemon came to a halt.

"Keep a watchful eye on the spot where the portal was opened, Balor," Raylen ordered the imp, who gazed up at him. "The barrier has weakened since the intruder made their way in, and I don’t need any more uninvited guests coming through the portal."

Water continuously dripped down Raylen’s face, his red hair appearing almost black in the darkness of the night, while his blue eyes began to glow.

"AHHHH!!!" a blood-curdling scream echoed from behind one of the houses. When Raylen rounded the corner, he caught sight of a man’s body lying on the muddy ground. The water that streamed down from the roof washed away the blood from his slashed throat.

It had taken some time for demons to make their way to this location. And if they were here, it indicated that the portal had been open for a considerable amount of time. Despite the rain, Raylen could smell the faint yet unmistakable pungent odour characteristic of lowly demons.

Raylen entered the forest, following the trails they left behind. He rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt as he continued walking when, suddenly, a lowly demon jumped at him from behind, ready to drive its sharp claws into his back. But simultaneously, he swiftly drew a gun and spun around to fire, causing its head to explode into pieces.

Before long, many more lowly demons emerged. Some perched on tree branches, while others lurked on the ground, encircling Raylen with the intent to devour his soul, unaware that he was no earthling. These creatures appeared emaciated, their skin clinging tightly to their skeletal frames.

"My earthling!" The lowly demons clamoured with their raspy voices, fighting among themselves as they tried to get to him, each eager to claim him for their own.

"Mine!"

"You know," Raylen said calmly while raising his gun, "I am in a very bad mood right now, and it appears that fate has brought us together."

The rumbling thunder masked every gunshot that echoed in the forest. Raylen’s hands moved with lightning speed as he loaded the bullets designed to explode upon impact with the lowly demons. He used his long legs to skillfully kick them, knowing precisely where to apply pressure to break their bones and make them crumble.

"MY SOUL!" One of the lowly demons leaped from above, only to land flat on the ground with a resounding thud as Raylen swiftly moved away. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

Raylen’s sharp eyes scanned the area, taking note of the unusual gathering of lowly demons in this forest. He found it rather strange, wondering what had drawn them here. While his eyes continued to survey the surroundings, he smelled something else in the air. In that moment of distraction, another lowly demon jumped onto his back, latching onto him with its arms around his neck in an attempt to rip his head off.

Suddenly, something forcefully protruded from Raylen’s back, revealing rusted bones with sharp, hardened ends. The demons froze in their tracks, caught off guard by this unexpected turn of events.

"A—an a—archdemon!" whispered one of them in shock, and their feet, which had previously advanced towards him, now hastily moved backwards in retreat.

"It looks like you have forgotten me, dear ones. But allow me to jog your memory before I send you back," Raylen declared, and the bony protrusions in his back retracted, causing the demon who had earlier latched onto him to fall to the ground and dissolve.

This time, when the lightning struck from the sky, it found the archdemon. If it had been an earthling, they would have been electrified and charred, but in Raylen’s case, he merely smiled, enjoying the sensation of the electric charge as his demonic appearance emerged along with his sinister nature.

"Is—n’t that the..." One of the demons couldn’t complete its sentence and was struck dumb in shock, realising they had made a grave error by confronting him when they should have run and hidden somewhere. "Archdemon Raylen!"

The skin beneath Raylen’s face glowed red, revealing an intricate network of nerves, and he said, "Now. How about a little shake for your old bones?" With a single snap of his fingers, the clouds collided, and bolts of lightning rained down upon the demons one after another. Some of the bolts set the trees ablaze, but the rain quickly extinguished the fires.

As they were all struck by lightning bolts one after another, one lowly demon attempted to conceal itself within a tree. When silence descended upon the forest, it decided it was safe to peek out, only to find itself face to face with Raylen.

"Don’t we have someone with a brain here?" Raylen questioned the lowly demon with a terrifying smile etched on his face.

"No kill me! I no do anything! I be your slave!" the demon pleaded, desperately trying to convince him not to end its existence and to instead send it back to the underworld.

Raylen stared at the creature, raising his hand and clicking his tongue. "You are a minute late for submitting your application to become my slave," he remarked dryly.

"I do anything!" the creature exclaimed, refusing to come out of the hollow tree, as if possessed by the spirit of a bird.

The archdemon’s lips twisted in distaste before he asked, "Alright. Tell me, why did all of you come here? Why congregate in the forest instead of attacking the people?"

"Souls here," the creature replied, and seeing how it had caught his attention, it asked, "I show you?"

"You want to wait until the sun rises?" Raylen inquired, his sarcasm evident even though he was addressing a lowly demon. The demon clambered out of the tree, appearing even scrawnier than the others, who were now dead.

The lowly demon walked for a minute before kneeling down and using its bony fingers to claw at the ground. Raylen heard a faint clinking sound, and his eyes narrowed upon seeing a small vial containing a trapped soul. Whose soul was that? he wondered to himself, while the lowly demon gingerly offered the vial to him, looking dejected as if it wanted to inhale it as food.

Raylen wondered what the vial was doing here, suspecting that someone had intentionally placed it there. He slipped it into his trouser pocket and then turned his gaze back to the creature. The creature crouched defensively as if to shield itself when he questioned,

"What did you do to end up in Hell?"

"I no remember," the creature replied warily, and when Raylen raised his hand, it hurriedly shouted, "So long! So long ’go! No remember!"

Raylen didn’t hold much regard for this lowly demon, but there was something he could use it for. He proposed, "How about we make a deal? If you harm any innocent soul, I’ll personally ensure you end up in the Devil’s lap," concluding with a smile.

The creature appeared horrified, as if it preferred death over the alternative. But then again, it realised that death would also lead it back to Hell. It had not come here with the intention to kill but to live... but that would have to entail inhabiting someone’s body. Reluctantly, it nodded in agreement.

"’eal!"

"Before anyone else notices, there is something that needs to be fixed," Raylen said, and he began to walk with the creature following behind him. On their way, Balor reappeared and noticed the lowly demon trailing behind its master.

Once they reached the back of the house where the man had recently died, Raylen turned to the creature and instructed, "Get inside him. His soul is long gone, and you might as well make use of the body while it lasts."

The creature transformed into smoke before seamlessly slipping into the lifeless body of the deceased man. After a second, the dead man’s eyes flickered open, as if he had returned to life.

"You seek out creatures like yourself and either kill them or report them." Raylen assigned the job to the creature and then turned to his imp. "Keep an eye on this one," he ordered.

"Keep an eye on it?" Balor’s eyes widened, as it had other more important duties to attend to than babysitting this lowly thing! Master!

Raylen stared at the man’s neck as blood slowly trickled down from the open wound, and it reminded him of a few hours ago when he had sunk his teeth into the princess’s wrist. The taste of the blood was unique. The blood... it finally dawned on him what must have happened during her summoning ritual to connect with her family.

Once Raylen returned to the castle, his shoes and clothes left a trail of water droplets on the floor as he made his way inside. He walked up the wide staircase before finally reaching the princess’s room. Upon entering, he noticed Lauren standing next to the bed.

"How is she doing?" Raylen inquired softly as he walked towards the foot of the bed and observed Emily deeply asleep.

"She hasn’t woken up since you left," Lauren replied in a similarly hushed tone. She continued, "I have tried to reduce her fever, but she seems to be troubled by something. It continues to spike. I think she misses home."

Raylen walked around the bed, and Lauren stepped back from her previous position. He placed his cold, rain-soaked hand on Emily’s forehead and heard her sigh as if she found comfort in the coolness of his touch while her body burned with fever.

His cold hand roused Emily from her slumber, her eyelids heavy as she heaved for air. He said, "Good morning, opener of the portal and killer of an innocent man. Time to wake up, Princess."

Lauren cleared her throat and said, "Master, she’s still sick..."

"She needs to eat something rather than sleep on an empty stomach," Raylen said, retracting his hand from Emily’s forehead. She wasn’t a demon from Hell but an earthling demon from the living realm. He ordered, "Get her something light and easy to consume."