Chapter 202: Limbo

The Circle of Greed, the Circle of Gluttony, the Circle of Lust. They all flew past me, glimpses between the dark mountain of impenetrable rock, and finally, changed with the endless mists of Limbo. There, the rain of souls was thick and deafening in their panicked screams. So thick, in fact, that I had to fight my way through them or be thrown down by their weight before I could even get to the edge of the Abyss.

Yeah, I was right that I didn't send the Master of Sin here. The flight device wouldn't withstand this "waterfall".

In the air and on the edge of the Abyss, hundreds of demons did the same thing their peers did in Dis—caught as many of the new souls as they could. The amount of harpooners was their greatest obstacle in catching more souls—they fought between each other constantly for more space and opportunities to aim, and in this bedlam, some souls gathered their bearings enough to fight or flee their captors.

I was noticed by harpooners as well, but a warning volley of wind blades that rained at them, maiming, wounding and even killing some, stopped them from doing something as annoying as throwing their harpoons at me. I flew over their heads and past, not meeting any objections. Until I flew a little farther.

There, I was met with a patrol of… Not, not guards. Bandits. I could read in their thoughts that there were no rulers in Limbo, or at least above them, that they listened to. They were just here for profit. Despite that, unlike the guards in Dis, this trio was mounted on monstrous birds, and circled me with a look of decent combatants.

"Stop right there!" their apparent leader shouted at me over the noise from the Abyss and the slums that sprawled below. "If you want to go farther, you have to pay us! You armour will do."

I glanced at my orichalcum carapace, then back at them. "Nah, I don't think so. But I have a better offer for you."

The trio, reading these words as an introduction for a fight, tensed, readying their weapons: bows and javelins. I pinched my lips, unhappy.

"And I don't mean fighting!" I shouted at them before they could start, and darted towards an empty spot on the ground.

The bandits, startled by my sudden change of course, circled in their previous positions for a second before directing their steeds after me. They landed in a triangle around me, but didn't dismount yet, anticipating that I might try flying away again.

I spread my arms, all four, in a gesture that, I hoped, would signify my friendly intents. "Listen, people like you are just what I need. I have a job for you, with a great reward."

"A job? Hm. Once again, weaklings from other circles need help of the real warriors that only Limbo breeds, eh? What's it about and how much it pays?" the bandit leader asked, smirking.

"Something just for the greatest warriors, yeah." I grinned. "Help me kill a god and get a ticket to the mortal realm."

"A god?" Another bandit burst out laughing. "I've seen many mad people, but you, pal, is the maddest! What are gods, even?"

Others joined him in the merriment. "And what's that stuff about the mortal realm? 'Ticket', you are just making up words!"

I snarled. These idiots. Alright, it was one thing to not know, or forget, what tickets were… and to not believe me… But to laugh at me for that! I clenched my fists, only to lash out with a five of wind blades I threw at the nearest target I saw that wasn't one of the people I needed—some innocent bystander hauling a sack of meat.

The gang of ghoulish starving demons that crawled after him immediately seized the moment to jump the unlucky demon and start fighting over him and his spoils.

But more importantly, the demonstration of strength shut the bandits up. I spread my wings and bared my teeth to show them that yes, there were plenty of things to fear in me.

"I am Devourer. You might've heard about me. If you didn't, then let me just say that unlike you stupid pieces of bird crap that pretend to be mighty warriors and demons, I've not only heard about gods, I've met them. They wanted to destroy me and erase me, all twelve of them, and yet here I am! And I've been to the mortal realm, too—and when gods are dead, I can go back and bring you with me, too. If I want to, that is."

The bandits looked at each other in doubt and disbelief. I ground my teeth. I was so lucky, I supposed, to meet someone actually smart when I came to Dis—the Master of Sin—instead of morons like these who didn't believe me because what I said was just too far away from their narrow scope of understanding.

Gah! I didn't contend for the prize of being the smartest guy in the world, but these three were complete blockheads. They only understood one word—power.

"Screw it," I muttered, cracking my knuckles. Well, trying to—it didn't work in my slimy body. Still, the gesture was there. "Do what I say or I will turn you into meat farms."

To demonstrate my ability to do just that, I dashed towards the apparent leader of the bandits. Before any of them could react, I kicked his bird's head into the ground and had a hand on his throat. With another hand, I gave him a good punch in the gut.

"And that's for laughing at me!" I finished my spree by throwing the demon into his nearest henchman, which forced both to fall to the ground.

Humph. And they didn't even offer any resistance. Yeah, they weren't of Enforcers' level. But they will do as messengers, at least. And tamed birds would be very useful as well.