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The Devils led by Jeerah were already surrounded by the Purgatory Warhorses. Though the numbers on both sides were roughly equal -about a hundred on each side-, their actual combat strength couldn’t be any more different; the Warhorses were vastly more powerful than a bunch of low level Devils. Not to mention that these Warhorses still had a Six-star elder watching over them from the sidelines who I doubt was in the best of moods after being pummelled by me. In all likelihood, he had no intention of sparing even a single one of them.

The battle going on before us right now was a pretty clear cut one. In order for the Warhorses to qualify for the hunting party, they had to at least be Three-stars. In comparison, the Devils who just came over from the Prison of the Dead were malnourished, and were mostly One-stars or Two-stars. There were barely any Three-stars, let alone Four-stars. With such a difference, it didn’t come as a shock that they were getting trampled right now.

Had it not been for Jeerah, the Devils probably would have lost in two minutes flat. You heard me right! Jeerah was like a messiah to them right now thanks to her decisive combat support.

As a Lust Demon of the beguiling branch, she practically radiated beauty from top to toe. As long as it was a male, regardless of race, they would be affected by her.

A Beguiling Lust Demon’s strongest tactic was to enthrall an opposing male to fight for her. However, in order to reach this level of beguilement, that Lust Demon first had to ensure that there was a comfortable distance between her level and her target’s.

Not only that, she had to ensure there was enough time to pull off the enthrallment. The requirements were rather complicated, but mostly because of individual differences.

The ability to enthrall an enemy without any physical contact was a high level technique. Most Lust Demons could only enthrall an enemy by coming into contact with them. But if a Lust Demon was powerful enough, her enthrallment technique could take place from a distance through her words, scent, or even sight. At the pinnacle of this technique, Lust Demons were even able to alter a person’s memory.

These techniques which controlled one’s psyche were all collectively known as Psychic Enthrallment.

Psychic Enthrallment possessed three tiers of power: Novice, Adept, and Master. Novice Psychic Enthrallment required the caster to maintain close contact with the target to have any chance of success. This was the forte of the carnal branch of Lust Demons. Through their bodily techniques, they would forcefully brainwash their targets. A normal human would merely require a single session or perhaps even a kiss to enthrall.

Adept Psychic Enthrallment was what the Lust Demons of the beguiling branch specialised in. Because this tier of enthrallment only required simple contact like a touch, they often did not have to go to the same… lengths… that the Carnal Lust Demons had to.

When one reached the master tier of Psychic Enthrallment, the brainwashing could take place simply through words, scent or even sight. Such a Lust Demon often only had to use her voice to control countless souls. This was the strongest power a Lust Demon could hope for!

In truth, I was naturally endowed with Master Psychic Enthrallment thanks to Ferti’nier. Furthermore, this enthrallment wasn’t easy for me to control. That was why when I had just reincarnated, I would often encounter situations where Devils would inexplicably submit to me.

Jeerah was performing just such a technique right now. As she stood atop a giant rock, she feverishly released her mana in the form of a pink fog that slowly travelled across the battlefield.

It was a pink fog that somehow triggered certain memories within me… didn’t I give out this fog in the past as well?

Upon inhaling this fog, the Devils immediately experienced an explosive burst of fighting spirit. Yelling “FOR THE MISTRESS!” at the top of their lungs, they would fearlessly charge towards the Purgatory Warhorses like a bunch of brainwashed zealots.

This fog wasn’t only effective against the low level Devils either. Majority of the Warhorses who inhaled this fog experienced a momentary period of giddiness. And on a battlefield, such a momentary distraction often proved fatal, no matter how short that moment was.

A Three-star Warhorse was the first to inhale this pink fog. His movement started to turn sluggish, and his strikes became weaker as well. In the beginning, he was able to defeat a Large Imp with one simple kick, but after ten seconds of inhaling that fog, his attacks not only became slower, but were now unable to even seriously injure a Large Imp.

In stark contrast to that, the Large Imp he fought charged with the ferocity of a zealot who just received a divine revelation from his deity. His actions practically screamed that he would at least take a bite out of that accursed Warhorse, even if it meant his death. Other than frenzy, there was nothing to be found in his crimson eyes.

But a Large Imp’s body was nowhere as tall as a Warhorse. That meant that he had no choice but to jump in order to reach the Warhorse. As he did so, he accurately wrapped his arms around the neck of the Warhorse and began biting into his neck. Like a hound that found his prey, the Large Imp viciously tore into the neck of the dazed Warhorse, inflicting a serious injury in the process.

Neck throbbing furiously, the Warhorse finally came to his senses. His injuries caused the blood within him to circulate even faster, countering the slowing effect of the pink fog in an instant with its own adrenaline-filled frenzy.

The Warhorse neighed loudly in the air as if to announce what was coming next. Nostrils flaring and muscles taut, the Warhorse galloped furiously in a forward charge. No matter who he encountered, whether friend or foe, he simply rammed through them all.

Yet the Large Imp held fast. He stubbornly bit into the neck of that Warhorse, the rocking of the Warhorse’s charge merely adding to the speed at which his teeth tore.

Purgatory Warhorses had no arms to speak of, so no matter how fast that horse charged, he really had no way of knocking off that Large Imp. His only hope now was to shroud his body in flames, hopefully burning that Imp to death before it could do more damage.

Shrouded in flames, the Large Imp was immediately burnt by the wrapping flames. As this fire wasn’t of his own making, the Imp’s body was sure to be damaged. Yet no matter how much his body writhed in pain, he had no intention of ever letting go. Right now, he was the most devout follower of Jeerah; his heart only held the desire to protect her to his death.

Even with his flame resistance, there was no way a Large Imp could completely ignore the effects of a Three-star’s flame. Before long, the Large Imp was completely engulfed by the flames, yet that only served to fuel his ravenous biting. Finally, right before his body was reduced to ashes, his teeth made contact with each other…

Fresh blood gushed out like a crimson hotspring. The moment that happened, the Warhorse lost all strength and began wobbling, knocking into two more Large Imps and one of its own at the speed of over 150 km per hour, carving a bloody road of death right before its own impending demise.

At long last, the Warhorse collapsed to the ground leaving behind a smothering trail of fire in his wake, his head knocking into the rock Jeerah so happened to be on.

The Warhorse used whatever energy it had left in its body to raise his head in hopes of looking at Jeerah one last time. Unfortunately, he failed. He could only let forth one last mournful neigh before dying together with that Large Imp who finally let go of his neck at that exact same moment.

‘A One-star actually fought a Three-star to death…now that’s a miracle right there!’

In truth, such an occurrence wasn’t unusual at all. There were a few cases of something similar happening all around. The most frightening fact was that even a Five-stars wasn’t completely immune to Jeerah’s enthrallment. It could only be said that her technique had surpassed what a normal Adept Psychic Enthrallment should be able to accomplish.

“Little brother, that right there is the natural born power of the beguiling branch.” Jeerah’s exceptional performance naturally attracted the attention of Ferti’nier. Like the Devil queen that she was, I could hear her amused voice rattling in my head right now. “Her technique is on the precipice of evolving into a Master Psychic Enthrallment. That pink fog of hers is actually an enthrallment that uses scent to affect her opponents.”

‘So we got a genius on our hands…speaking of which, Devils with an Original Sin aren’t even that common to begin with…’

“Beguiling Lust Demons are actually a rarity amongst Lust Demons. That’s because they have to maintain their chastity until they comprehend the secrets of Adept Psychic Enthrallment… truly an ironic rule, I have to say. Even though they are the incarnations of Lust, they have to curb their desires…but should a Lust Demon be able to achieve such a feat, she would be a Lust Demon of the beguiling branch. She would no longer have to rely on her body to enthrall her opponents.”

‘So once they lose their chastity, they lose the ability to evolve into the beguiling branch. But if they don’t use their bodies as a weapon, these nightworking Lust Demons can’t survive… truly a conundrum…’

That exchange with Ferti’nier didn’t last too long, and we soon turned our attention back to the battlefield.

Jeerah’s enthrallment had brought forth an unexpected outcome in this battlefield, resulting in casualties amongst the Warhorses. However, such a fortuitous turn of events wouldn’t last long. Warwraith wasn’t one to allow his fellow horses die, thus he would never allow Jeerah to continue unchecked. And as I had predicted, Warwraith prepared to intervene.

‘We mustn’t let that Warwraith join the battlefield. If that blasted horse interferes now, he can take out all the Devils in an instant with just his Six-star might and capture Jeerah.’

‘That Jeerah was even able to earn praise from Ferti’nier. That must mean her talent is the real deal.’

Being understaffed as I was, there was no way I would give up this chance to recruit another member. I immediately gave the order, “Advance, don’t let that donkey of a horse join the battlefield!”

Shameless Self-promotion

If you liked my work translating Devil’s Evolution Catalog, feel free to check out Song of Adolescence. Also, every comment is appreciated even though I might not reply. I do read them.

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Lust Demons can be broken down into three categories: the carnal branch, the beguiling branch and the combat branch. In practical terms, the beguiling branch and the combat branch can basically be combined into one branch.

Certain Lust Demons are blessed with exceptional talent, displaying traits of both the beguiling and the combat branch. These Lust Demons are particularly frightening. Their combat traits give them unthinkable close combat prowess while their beguiling traits allows them to entrance their opponents. Whatever they can’t solve with strength, their charms can most likely handle, and vice versa. There is rarely anything these Devils can’t handle, making them a truly unique existence amongst Devils.

From My Kingdom for a Lust Demon

I stared at the disappearing silhouettes of the Warhorses. The battle had ended, but my heart refused to calm down. There wasn’t any danger to speak of in that encounter; even if Warwraith tried anything funny, my golems could easily smack him away. No. What really made my heart pound was that I had just declared war on the Warhorses.

The horn of a Nightmare Steed was something I had to have. Yet the status of a Nightmare Steed within its race was anything but ordinary; every such Warhorse bore the rank of a Grand Elder. Furthermore, the horn of a Nightmare Steed had greater significance to a Nightmare Steed than a Devil and his horns. Should a Devil lose his horns, he would at most suffer restrictions on his abilities. Should a Nightmare Steed ever lose his horn… he would ultimately die…

Naturally, a horn from a dead Nightmare Steed was fine too, I wasn’t picky. However, with their supreme position within Warhorse society, I wouldn’t be surprised if such horns were treated as sacred objects. As a symbol of their strongest warriors, there was no way they would simply hand one over just because I asked. Without a doubt, they would fight to the death to protect such an object.

The best case scenario would be if I managed to subjugate their race while obtaining the required horn. After all, I wasn’t trying to conquer Sable Radiance just for the sake of becoming an overlord; I had deeper goals.

In a fight between my golems and those Warhorses, the Warhorses clearly had the advantage in speed and agility. Should they choose to avoid a head on confrontation, instead choosing to employ guerilla tactics, I would have a headache inducing battle ahead. With that in mind, it was best for me to take things one step at a time. If need be, I could place the matter of the horn on the backburner first.

For now, what had to be sorted out was this batch of Devils that I had just rescued.

“Mama, that Devil over there seems to want to talk to you.”

As I was mulling over the upcoming battle, my precious baby took the initiative to interrogate the Devils. While she had always been an active one, it was fortunate that she knew to share my burden from time to time.

“Most esteemed one of the Fallen Angel bloodlines… we are the servants of Mistress Jeerah. Right this very moment, Mistress Jeerah is being threatened by those Warhorses. We seek your aid in rescuing our mistress…O one of esteemed bloodlines, hear the pleas of your subjects…grant us aid…”

The Flame Demon Child immediately knelt upon being brought over by Mo Na. It was a female Flame Demon Child who came before me; I had almost gotten used to the habit of viewing them through their souls now. Yet, I couldn’t but feel that something was off about her. If I had to place a finger on it…

I swept my eyes across the gathered Devils. Over three hundred low level Devils, mostly males and barely any females -less than ten percent even.

That wasn’t normal at all. While it was normal for there to be more male Devils than females, the disparity shouldn’t be this big. Strictly speaking, there was no gender differential in terms of combat strength amongst low level Devils. In other words, gender had nothing to do with combat strength.

Putting aside that gender disparity for now, I had another question that needed answering. “Who is Jeerah?”

“Mistress Jeerah is our master.” The Flame Demon Child kept her head down while she continued to plead. “We just came over from the Prison of the Dead, landing at the teleportation point not too far from here. We barely got our bearings when we were set upon by the Warhorses. They wanted to capture us for food but Mistress Jeerah strongly objected to that. However, our enemies were too strong. Thus, I led the greater portion of our forces away as a diversion while Mistress Jeerah retreated to safety…”

If the Warhorses were just out hunting for food, it would make sense for them to chase after the side that had more Devils. However, based on what I knew of their speed and strength, they most likely would have split off a smaller force to chase after the other group.

In other words, Jeerah wasn’t safe right now.

That was precisely why this Flame Demon Child was pleading for my aid. Still… a Devil aiding another Devil… sure, the entire Devil race was the creation of Lucifer. And as the head of the Seven Original Sins, the Original Sin of Pride could be counted as the head of all the other races, but… why should I help them for nothing?

“Mama, that Jeerah Devil actually has a name!” Just as I was mulling over that issue, my daughter’s surprised exclamation reminded me of something important.

‘A name…she does have a name.’

A Devil normally wouldn’t come up with a name for itself. Just like how human names were all given by the elders of that household, there was also no way for a newborn to name itself. That was a reason why the majority of my subordinates had no names, barring those with a position.

‘A named Devil, regardless of whether it gave itself the name or someone else gave it that name, is still a fascinating occurrence. I guess I’ll take a look at least. Who knows, I might just bump into Warwraith again… the look on his face then…’

I smiled and ruffled Mo Na’s hair. “Lead on.”

Hearing that I had agreed to her request, she immediately jumped to her feet, not forgetting to thank me before that. Following which, she sprinted off. “Over here…before we split off, Mistress Jeerah retreated in this direction…”

“I never said that you would be leading us.”

“But…didn’t your esteemed self just promise to help?”

“Sinmosa.”

Faced with her accusatory glare, I merely rolled my eyes before turning towards Sinmosa. She grinned back at me. With a kick of her muscled limbs, she sped past the Flame Demon Child who was still in daze after being called out by me.

Since Jeerah was a named Devil, and even knew how to split up to run, she must have possessed an above average level of intelligence. In that case, she most likely would have changed direction while escaping. Could a normal Devil ever compete with a Hellhound’s nose? Obviously not. That was why leading the way should be left to the likes of Sinmosa and Sasani.

“Keep close!”

I grabbed Cinderel and Mo Na as I flew up to one of the Winged Abyssal Golems, commanding it to follow Sinmosa in the process.

Sinmosa had already gotten the scent she needed from the Flame Demon Child to track down our Devil. As she took off with her husband, the couple seemed to turn into a bolt of black lightning as they sped off into the distance. Behind this pair of siblings c̲u̲m̲ husband and wife, there was an army of golems and low level Devils. Yet strange as it might have seemed, none of these Devils fell behind. Even if it meant running to the point of exhaustion, everyone made sure to keep up with the golems.

“Mama, they aren’t running away at all.”

“Mhm, strange indeed.”

Normally, Devils could all be classified as selfish. Yet without me ever trying to stop them from running away, every single one of them actually stayed behind, instead choosing to go look for this Mistress Jeerah of theirs. Were they all morons? Or perhaps they were just cowed by my golems’ might. Or perhaps there was another reason…

When did Devils become so loyal? Lest one forgot, there was a couple of devious potatoes who betrayed me not too long ago, namely One-eye and Nine-finger.

“Mama, Mo Na thinks that this Jeerah is a Lust Demon.”

“A Lust Demon huh…” If we were dealing with a Lust Demon, it would be possible for her to entrance these Devils. Furthermore, the name Jeerah was decidedly feminine sounding, basically confirming that she was a female Devil.

After dashing for about three minutes, Sinmosa found traces of blood and signs of a recent battle.

The couple paused for a second to have a sniff, coming to a conclusion soon after.

“The corpses should have been brought away the Warhorses, the scent is quite muddled but it’s still discernible… a small portion of the Warhorses have split off from the hunting party -probably to clean up. There’s also traces of Warhorse blood. There should be casualties amongst them.”

“Ignore the others for now, I want that Devil known as Jeerah.”

“That Devil should have gone that way…”

Upon confirming my target, Sinmosa continued leading us.

From that moment on, we would sporadically come upon traces of battle. Without even needing to guess, I could tell that this was the handiwork of a desperate Jeerah who had to leave behind some of her subordinates to fight with the Warhorses. Furthermore, according to the hoofprints and scent left behind, our dear friend was ahead as well…

I had a feeling from the start that Warwraith would chase after Jeerah… oh how I would love to see the look on his face right now when we catch up.

We pressed onwards, soon stumbling upon a group of Warhorses fighting with some Devils.

Most eye-catching amongst them was a particularly beautiful Lust Demon. She wore a tight, black leather suit. Her hair was neatly combed to the back of her head, past a set of C-shaped horns that curved back as well. Her skin was red, and her complexion radiant. Her pointed ears were dainty, cute even. Behind her, a pair of outwardly black but internally red Devil wings flapped.

I had to admit, she was beautiful. Not only that, based on what I could see of her, she should be a Lust Demon of the beguiling branch.

‘A beguiling path Lust Demon… this is my first time seeing one. Strictly speaking, Ferti’nier isn’t of the beguiling branch-she belongs to both the combat and beguiling branch instead. My Mo Na belongs to the combat branch while I’m… while I am loath to admit it, I’m probably both of the combat and beguiling branch.’

Shameless Self-promotion

If you liked my work translating Devil’s Evolution Catalog, feel free to check out Song of Adolescence. Also, every comment is appreciated even though I might not reply. I do read them.