As Alexander accompanied Xeron's demon army through their march, he acknowledged that he lacked comprehensive knowledge of the Heroes of Might and Magic world, including its history and background. Yet, for his current purpose, this didn't pose a significant concern. He knew that the demon army was now pitted against a coalition of humans and elves, which was sufficient for his understanding.
After days of marching, the demon army had closed the gap and was approximately a few hundred kilometers from the demon city. Scouts dispatched to explore the terrain returned with valuable information: they had spotted signs of life, indicating the presence of elves.
Upon receiving this report, Xeron swiftly led his army to pursue the fleeing elves.
It appeared to be a group of elves migrating from a village. Presumably, they had learned of the volcanic eruption and the emergence of the demon city, along with the impending demonic threat to the continent. In response, they chose to relocate their entire village to escape the oncoming demon army. Unfortunately for them, the demons were closing in.
These migrating elves weren't accustomed to sending scouts, so when Xeron and his demon army suddenly emerged behind them, panic ensued. They prioritized evacuating the elderly and young members while leaving the younger and stronger individuals behind to slow down the demons' advance.
Among these defenders were sturdy dwarfs from the mines and slender wood elves who excelled in archery. It was apparent that they had made an unfortunate decision, as just a few dozen of them couldn't contend with Xeron's formidable demon army. Resistance was futile, and their demise was imminent. Once defeated, the demon army would capture the elderly and children who had managed to escape.
Demons had no mercy, and Xeron was no exception. The sight of these elves and dwarfs who dared to stand against the demon army infuriated him. With a roar, he ordered the small demons to attack.
The group of small demons, accustomed to violence and killing, charged recklessly. However, they were met with a barrage of arrows fired by the wood elves.
The foremost small demons were pierced through by the arrows, their screeches echoing as they died. Their lifeless bodies were immediately shrouded in the black mist of the Gates of the Abyss and reduced to ashes. All that remained were orbs of light that the Gates of the Abyss reclaimed and transported back to the Abyss.
For Alexander, this marked the first time he had witnessed demons dying in another world. Such a scenario would never occur in the Abyss. When a demon perished in the Abyss, it was a permanent end. However, in this world, due to the Ouroborus Mark, their moment of death signified expulsion from the world, and their souls were drawn back into the Abyss. Although their injuries endured, their physical forms were reconstructed.
The returned souls were often in a weakened state, potentially experiencing a decline in power and memory loss. Additionally, if malevolent demons lurked nearby, there was a significant risk that the souls would be swiftly captured and annihilated upon their return.
As a result, most demons preferred to avoid death and expulsion, using it as a last resort.
The battle ended quickly. When it was time to clean the battlefield, the little demons that died were expelled from the world, so no souls were left. But the dwarfs and elves were different, and their souls would definitely appear. The little demons collected the souls, and although they were salivating over them, they dared not swallow them but instead obediently handed them over to Xeron.
After receiving these souls, Xeron was very satisfied. Although there were too few enemies this time, and he had not enjoyed the thrill of battle, it was enough to harvest these souls.
After choosing, Xeron gave a few small souls to Alexander and devoured the rest. These dozens of souls could only count as a snack for Xeron.
Alexander took these pathetic souls, knowing that this was his bonus from Xeron. At the same time, he knew what Xeron's first trap in the contract was. Xeron had indeed promised to give Alexander ten percent of the souls after a victory, but he had not specified the quality of the souls and just calculated according to the quantity.
Although it was a trap, Alexander was unbothered by it. Humans had so many laws yet still had loopholes, not to mention demon contracts. The contract was only the size of a piece of sheepskin, but how detailed could it be? Moreover, Alexander had already thought of the second trap Xeron had laid. Xeron could participate in the battles and devour the souls as he killed. The contract only stated that Alexander was entitled to ten percent of the harvested souls after victory, so before the battles ended, the souls Xeron devoured did not count as the harvests of victory. Therefore, Xeron did not violate the contract...
Despite knowing that Xeron was playing his own little calculations, Alexander was not upset. Because he knew that since Xeron could make use of the loopholes in the contract, he could do the same as well. As long as Alexander joined in the battles, he could also devour souls on the battlefield. Furthermore, he could use the system to store the souls, including the ones on the battlefield. As long as the battle continued, those souls were not considered the spoils of war!
Clearly, the loopholes and traps in demon contracts were sometimes double-edged swords...
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