GalaxyTL
* * *
The Great Evil Spirit, Engee Albitt, was panicking.
Why?
Because his vessel, the magic sword ‘Soul Devourer’… was snapped in two by that filthy, bearded idiot, Megzam.
What happens then?
‘Soul Devourer’s’ soul preservation function doesn’t work.
Because of that, Engee’s soul is currently… continuously losing… its constituent… mana.
From the break in the red blade, his soul was gradually, gradually seeping out into the outside world, dissolving into the world.
If he just sits and waits in this state, what awaits him is annihilation.
The annihilation of the Calamity, the Great Evil Spirit Engee Albitt, who has existed and evaded the gods for over 5,000 years!
He can’t accept that!
Engee hasn’t accomplished anything yet!
He hasn’t fulfilled his purpose!
Yes, Engee…
…Truly, like a true evil spirit, maintains his ego based on the grudge deeply ingrained in his soul.
What is the nature of that grudge?
It’s resentment… towards the gods… and this world, Ardyst.
* * *
When Engee Albitt was human, he was an engineer.
He was also a businessman, and even a celebrity, but anyway, he saw himself as a genius engineer, or a genius researcher, and that’s how most people perceived him.
Because he really was a genius.
The numerous inventions born from his extraordinary mind, from everyday magic tools to weapons, spanned a wide range of genres, and it was said that he advanced the times by 500 years.
The people of the Bamapamma World Empire, which ruled the world at that time, all benefited from Engee’s inventions, living prosperous and happy lives.
Those were good times.
Everyone praised Engee.
His authority was so great that even the Emperor of the World Empire treated him with deference.
Engee’s heart became increasingly distorted, and he became arrogant, but no one could say anything to him.
No matter how arrogant he became, he was still a genius, and his inventions continued to enrich the world.
But during this era…
…What we now call the ‘End of the Super Ancient Magical Civilization’…
…A certain problem… began to cast a dark shadow over people’s lives.
That problem was… the worldwide depletion of magical energy.
The people of this era lived prosperous lives, using the mana they extracted from the earth to operate various magic tools.
The depletion of magical energy, the foundation of their lives, was a truly troubling issue.
Naturally, Engee also used his genius mind to its fullest, creating various inventions to resolve this situation.
But they were all just temporary solutions.
None of them could solve the fundamental problem.
But then one day…
…The trigger was… something that happened completely by chance.
Engee… observed it.
For the first time in human history, he ‘discovered’ it.
A frontier that could potentially provide humanity with abundant magical energy… to replace the earth.
It’s a world whose existence has been passed down since ancient times.
The world where the gods reside.
Yes, what Engee ‘discovered’…
…Was the world of the gods, called ‘the Divine Realm’.
Once its existence was observed.
Once its location was known.
Engee came up with countless ways to extract magical energy from it.
He immediately got the Emperor and the government involved, and began to take action… to extract magical energy from the Divine Realm.
There’s not a shred of fear of the gods in Engee’s soul.
He was simply… arrogant.
He ignored all objections.
Because he’s a genius, and he’s always right.
And then…
…Finally…
…Engee launched his final invention during his lifetime, called the ‘Divine Realm Gate’, high into the sky…
…And was about to press the button that connects the Divine Realm and the mortal realm…
But.
His finger touched the button…
…Just before that moment…
…Finally, the gods were angered.
…And the earth was scorched.
The ‘Day of Ruin’.
* * *
On this day, most of humanity was destroyed by the gods.
Civilization was reset.
A handful of humans survived and passed down the story of this ‘Day of Ruin’ to future generations.
The humans of the Imperial Family and the upper echelons of the government were deliberately allowed to live, and were subjected to a living hell.
They, and their descendants, were condemned by the gods as sinners for all eternity.
As a mark of their sin, their skin color was changed to a pale blue.
This was the birth of the demons.
They were destined to be used as pawns by the gods, as villains, to be consumed for entertainment, for as long as the world exists.
On the other hand, Engee’s physical body was destroyed on the Day of Ruin.
But his soul… is different.
The gods captured his soul, without letting it reincarnate.
After all, Engee was the main culprit behind the insolent act of reaching out to the Divine Realm.
He was to be punished by the gods for all eternity.
A brutal torture of the soul that would make an ordinary person want to be annihilated immediately.
But Engee endured that torment.
He was able to endure it.
Because… he’s arrogant.
He truly believed that his actions were always right.
He truly believed that the gods’ actions were unjust.
His resentment towards the gods… and the world they govern… grew day by day.
And then, one day.
He deceived the watchful eyes of the gods, and somehow… managed to escape.
This is something that shouldn’t be possible.
But Engee’s research on the soul, which he had been secretly conducting since he was alive, finally bore fruit… after he actually died.
He was able to manipulate his own soul more skillfully than any other dead person.
And on top of that, there was negligence on the part of the gods.
They never imagined that they would be outwitted by the soul of a mere engineer.
They were careless.
Anyway, Engee’s knowledge of the soul and the gods’ negligence and carelessness combined, he succeeded in escaping.
He jumped into the cycle of reincarnation, possessed the souls of others, reincarnated without being noticed, and slipped into the mortal realm, retaining his ego.
And then, he began to prepare for revenge.
Revenge… against the gods and the world that unjustly condemned and tormented him!
That preparation couldn’t be completed in a single lifetime, so he ended up reincarnating several times.
In the process, his unauthorized reincarnation was discovered by the gods, and finally, Engee Albitt was recognized as a Calamity.
To capture his soul once again… the gods even introduced a new technology called the ‘Soul Recovery System’, even changing the way the world works… but Engee still escaped.
By transplanting his soul into the magic sword, ‘Soul Devourer’, and going into a deep sleep.
…At that point, his preparations for revenge were complete.
All he had to do was find a suitable human to act as his limbs, and then start his plan.
Eventually, Engee will become a ‘transcendent being’, continuously growing with the power of the inventions he created, destroy all the gods, and destroy the world.
…That was the plan…
But at the very last moment… he was thwarted.
By a black-haired, black-eyed Cursed Child.
* * *
This black-haired, black-eyed Cursed Child… is abnormal.
Abnormally strong.
Both when he first met her in his secret base… the underground ruin… and now.
This Cursed Child, demonstrating her abnormal potential, has thoroughly crushed all of his plans.
A hated enemy.
But…
…Although she’s a hated enemy…
…What if he could… seize her abnormally strong body?
It would definitely… be beneficial… to his revenge.
To reworking his plan…
And if nothing else, Engee will be annihilated if this continues.
And at that moment of crisis…
By some twist of fate… that Cursed Child came into contact with the blade he resides in.
He has no choice… but to go.
Engee laughed triumphantly, and jumped into the Cursed Child’s body.
* * *
Engee went deeper.
Deep, deep, deep into the mind… of the Cursed Child named Emi.
He smoothly made his way towards where her soul resides.
<Ihihi, ihihi, ihihihihihi!>
The form of Engee as an evil spirit is, in a word… a cluster of red haze.
In the center of that haze are two glaring eyes, and a lecherously curved mouth.
A simple form.
That red haze continued to move straight ahead, gliding through the darkness.
Engee knew from experience…
…That souls… pulsate.
Thump-thump, making a sound.
He headed straight for that sound, moving through Emi’s mind.
And then…
…He hit something soft, like a membrane…
…He forcibly broke through that membrane and moved on…
…And he was thrown out… from darkness into a space filled with faint, pale blue light.
<Ihi…?>
Engee looked around.
And immediately noticed…
…A giant lump of blue light… floating in this space.
<Ihihiーーー! That’s this brat’s… soul!?>
It was… incredibly… huge.
It’s probably spherical… but it’s too big to tell for sure.
<Ihi…>
Engee… was a little intimidated.
The souls he knows… the souls he has possessed until now… were much, much smaller and cuter.
What’s with this size…?
Thump.
The giant sphere of light pulsated, making a muffled sound.
That pulsation created a shock wave, pushing Engee back a little.
<…Damn it!>
But there’s no point in being intimidated here.
Since that girl is so strong… her soul must be extraordinary as well.
But no matter how powerful that soul is, Engee should have an edge when it comes to handling it.
Because ordinary humans have no way of learning how to control or defend their own souls.
Therefore, that ridiculously large soul… although it looks intimidating, should be harmless and defenseless.
If Engee possesses it, he should be able to easily take control.
Engee, after shivering, mustered his courage, and was about to move towards the giant lump of light…
But it was at that moment!
<My, my… how foolish you are… to not know your place.>
A woman’s voice came from behind Engee.
It was a sweet voice.
But at the same time, it was a voice filled with exasperation and ridicule.
Engee hurriedly turned around…
…And there she was.
…A lump of blue light… shaped like a female silhouette…
——
The next chapter is finally the time for this character, who’s been rather inconspicuous, to shine!
And then, the circumstances of the birth of the demons will be revealed.
Have you come to understand the position of demons in this world of Ardyst?