Zach suffered from severe pain because of his sore throat. He couldn't speak for hours. He couldn't even find water in that Asura Land. All he could see was fire and molten lava anywhere.
Since he couldn't speak, only Ryuki did all the talking. He gave Zach information that the portal going to the human world would be open tomorrow.
Their quest of gathering evil points in the human world would begin. They had three months to collect as many evil points as they could to level up their ranks.
The portal going back to Asura Land would be open after three months. They had to come back as soon as possible for appraisal of their new rank.
If Zach would succeed in leveling up into Demon Knight Rank, then he would be qualified to join the Trials and compete for the Demon King's position.
While Zach was waiting for his voice to return, he decided to warm up first. He was supposed to hunt a demon beast right away after talking to Angelique. However, he got punished by her after he pacified Lilith.
He couldn't communicate well with Ryuki if he didn't have his voice. He thought it would be dangerous because he needed Ryuki's guidance while fighting a demon beast.
He stretched his body, doing push-ups and sit-ups. Though his body was small like the body of a ten-year-old kid, Zach didn't find it hard to do those intense exercises.
He also tried throwing punches and jabs in the air while working on his footwork. He was still fast but not as fast as before when he had his original 20-year-old body.
Ryuki was watching him. He could say that his master had a good fighting stance. With his current speed, he could match up and kill a demon beast of a lower level.
"Master, do you know that killing a demon beast will give you some evil points as well. But you have two choices."
Zach stopped what he was doing when he heard Ryuki. He glanced at him, giving him a questioning look. Ryuki already knew that Zach couldn't talk for a while.
By only seeing his expression, Ryuki could tell that Zach wanted to know what were the two choices he was talking about.
"Two choices… either you kill the demon beast and acquire its evil points or you can make a bond with it, making the beast one of your slaves that you can summon anytime."
"Don't worry, master. I will not get jealous if you will make it as your slave. I am your pet and way higher than a mere slave. Unlike them, I have my free will. Whereas, they don't have a choice but to follow your orders whenever they get summoned by you."
Zach nodded his head with eyes sparkling with delight. He liked that idea.
"That's interesting!" Zach mumbled.
Zach's eyes widened and he held his throat. He was so engrossed with his physical exercise a while ago that he failed to notice that his sore throat was already gone. He could talk now!
"Master!!! Finally, you got your voice back!" Ryuki flew towards him, rejoicing.
"Hahaha! Yes! My voice is back! Now, let's go and hunt some beasts. Where can we find them?"
There was a surge of excitement inside him. He wanted to fight now.
"We can hunt beasts in demon dungeons and dark forests. In your current rank, master. I think we should go to the dark forest first. There are lots of low-level stray beasts in the dark forests compared to the demon dungeons."
Zach raised his two hands above his head and said, "Yush! Now, lead the way, Ryuki! We are going to hunt a beast in the dark forest!"
"Yes, Master. Let's go!"
Asura Land had lots of dark forests. But Zach and Ryuki went to a dark forest which was near their location.
20 minutes later, they arrived at the entrance of the dark forest called Enchanted Maple Mist Forest. Ryuki warned him to be careful before they entered the forest.
The forest was covered by fog, that's why it was called mist forest. But Zach still had enough visibility to see the environment in the middle of that forest.
The tall trees and thorny vines were dry. Their color was either brown or gray, there was no sign of life in those trees. Those were like dead trees without leaves.
The atmosphere inside gave Zach an eerie vibe that was enough to make the hair on his body rise.
They could hear some rustling sounds and howling noise nearby. It was a sign that they were not alone in that scary forest.
"Master, something is coming towards us!" Ryuki warned Zach.
The rustling sound grew louder and louder. Something was running in their direction. Whatever creature it was, Zach stayed alert, assessing which direction the creature would suddenly appear.
Zach turned to his left as the sound was coming in that way. The creature moved swiftly in the foggy atmosphere, making a crackling sound as it stepped on the skeleton bones scattered all over the forests.
"Master, it's here!"
"I know!" Zach said as he stared at a giant creature in front of them.
If Zach would estimate its height, it would be 6 feet tall having eight legs and a hairy body. He was drawn to the four red dots shining at the creature's head… its four eyes.
"Holy Shit! This is a giant spider!" Zach let out.
Zach stood frozen in his spot, still in awe upon seeing a giant spider. Beside him, Ryuki was also staring at the creature with a dumbfounded expression.
He had never thought that as soon as they entered the forest, they would encounter a giant spider beast.
"M-Master… w-we should run!"
"Huh?"
Zach didn't hear Ryuki's words clearly. He was about to ask him when suddenly the white transparent screen popped up before his eyes. Angelique came into action again.
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< System Analyzing the Opponent >
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[ Information ]
Name: Giant Spider
Race: Demon Beast
Level: 30
EP: 3,000
*Skills*
Spider Web: used to trap its prey. The web is durable and could not be easily broken nor cut by ordinary blades or other sharp weapons. Very sticky.
Spider Venom: used to poison its prey and weaken it during the fight. It will immobilize and paralyze the parts of the body that will be hit by its venom.
======
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*Note*
Demon Beasts had different level categories from the demons. Demon Beast's rank or level was based on numbers from Level 1 up to Level 100.
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Zach's lips curled up into a sinister smile upon seeing the information. Once he defeated this beast, he could get 3,000 evil points. He was also considering making it his slave.
Unlike Ryuki who was looking frightened, Zach was filled with excitement. He put his hands together, cracking his knuckles as he was getting ready to fight.
"M-Master…!" Ryuki called him with his anxious voice.
"What?"
"We should run!" Ryuki said.
"Huh? Run? But why? We are here to hunt this beast! Just relax and watch me," Zach said confidently.
"Weapon!" Zach mumbled.
It did not take long when his two hands were equipped with two double-edged daggers. The dagger was his favorite weapon when he was still alive as an assassin.
Zach thought the giant spider would attack them first, however it moved around them, throwing spider webs on the nearby trees.
Zach frowned as he saw the spider moving in circles at a fast speed. It continued using spider webs, sticking them to the trees.
"Eh, what is he doing?" Zach asked Ryuki.
Ryuki felt like crying. His master didn't listen to him.
"Master, we are doomed! The giant spider is making a trap, sticking its webs around making sure that you can no longer run nor escape."
When the giant spider stopped, Zach realized that the beast indeed created a trap. The webs were connected, enclosing an area wherein Ryuki, Zach, and the Giant Spider were the only beings inside.
"Whoa! Why do I feel like we are inside an arena or maybe a ring?" Zach blurted out excitedly.
Ryuki could only sigh helplessly. 'Master doesn't know that we are at a great disadvantage now.'