Is this really a Game?!



"So, the humans have no idea we were able to listen in to them?" The other leader asked, to which Alszenom nodded his head.

"Correct sir, those lowly humans have no idea that we knew where they were, nor that we are able to listen in to their conversation each time."

"So, what have you learned, tell us everything." The previous leader, who was the one responsible for the region they were in, and was the leader that Alszenom followed, said.

"Yes, my lord."

"The humans are moving in a group of 60 people, each one being a Tier IV combatant, amongst them, 10 are peak Tier IV combatants and are quite powerful from what I have been able to hear."

"The reason the souls of those they killed never returned here was because the humans have used a device that blocked the souls from escaping, which meant the only place they could go to was back to their home world, meaning that we would not be able to summon back their souls in order to find out any information."

"Pesky humans, they have managed to create such a device, that is a bit concerning." The other demon said as he scoffed with anger.

"Furthermore, it seems two of their peak Tier IV combatants are demon hunters, so they were probably able to deal damage to the souls of the demons they killed as well."

"Demon hunters, despicable." The leader of the region said as his eyes flashed with a dangerous glint.

"We have known for long that the second-in-command of the Lumon region was a demon hunter, where did the second one come from?"

"It seems they have come from a different world, my lord, they never talked about it directly, but I believe that the humans might have found a way to summon mercenaries in a similar manner that we have," Alszenom said as the two leaders nodded their heads.

"That might be tricky."

"No, I don't believe they can summon many of them, they don't have the funds for it, nor will the suppression of the demonic sun allow for that to happen." The leader said, to which Alszenom nodded his head.

"It is as my lord has said, the humans have seemingly only summoned two of them, even though both are peak Tier IV combatants and are powerful, they won't be able to affect the current situation."

"Good, tell us, what more did you learn?" The leader asked as he leaned forward and smiled dangerously, to which Alszenom merely nodded before talking.

Over an hour later, Alszenom, the right-hand demon of the leader of the region, left the huge hall and made his way below.

He had omitted quite a lot of information and lied about even more. He never told them that Reign and the others knew about the device, he didn't speak of Reign not being human and being capable of attacking souls, about the soul fragments that they had talked numerous times about, and more.

The reason for that was a very simple one.

Alszenom, the second-in-command, was the main strategist of the region, as well as one of the most talented demons on the entire planet. He wasn't satisfied with being a servant of the leader, he wished to be the leader.

In order to do that, the leader has to die. Without dying, it would be impossible for Alszenom to do anything in this region. He wouldn't be able to evolve and reach Tier V as his leader definitely wouldn't allow him to do so and would kill him during his evolution.

He had been in the region for a long time, and even though he knew that it was almost impossible for him to try and challenge the top powers of the world in the future, he wished to take a piece for himself and grow more powerful.

All the demons in the region respected him, after all, he was the smartest amongst them, and the second most powerful, with the leader being the only one above him.

"Yo, Alszi." A demon suddenly spoke with glee as he stared at him.

"Finished speaking to the boss?"

"Yes, what are you doing in front of my office, Abalor?"

Abalor, the demon who was right below Alszenom was only a little bit weaker than him, but he was completely loyal to the leader and had clashed with Alszenom numerous times.

He lost each time, and not because his level was lower or his stats were lower than Alszenom's, no, it was actually the opposite, in sheer stats and power, he was above him, but the latter was able to utilize his strength better and was simply the better fighter when it came to skill.

"I just wanted to check up on you and tell you that your followers have returned, it seems they still haven't found a trace of the artifact," Abalor said with a smirk, to which Alszenom merely sighed.

"I don't know why you're acting so arrogant, you and your men have managed to do even less than I and my followers have, this is just like always, you are the one losing and yet you try acting arrogant, go and be useful for a change, alright?"

"What the hell did you just say?!" Abalor took a step closer to Alszenom and stared at him as the latter looked at him with annoyance.

"Leave, I will not be polite the next time."

"Humph, sooner or later, I'll deal with you," Abalor said as he scoffed before going down, leaving  Alszenom to stand in front of his door and coldly look down at him.

'I might need to create a chance for this zealous meathead to clash against the humans, he is starting to annoy me more and more.'

'I swear, it's like he can sense what I'm up to, always being present to make my plans more difficult, if the humans can get rid of him, then everything will proceed smoothly.'

'And I know just how to get him to attack them, too bad that it's too early for that.' Alszenom thought as he entered his office.

'Don't disappoint me, humans, my plans do need you to find the artifact after all, too bad that I can't continue eavesdropping anymore.'

Back in the demon region tens of miles away from the stronghold, Reign and the others were still searching for the artifact.

They might not have come across any demons, but that didn't matter as everybody felt a lot more comfortable since they destroyed the device and wholeheartedly believed that they had managed to foil the demons plans.

With their confidence once again being high, the search continued without any issues and they were able to search around the region faster than before. Of course, it was boring work as they didn't come across any enemies and the only thing they did was walk around, hoping that Liara would be able to sense the artifact somehow.

That, unfortunately, did not happen and they returned to the region in the evening in order to tell the leaders what happened today.

Upon hearing how the device might have been tracking and listening device that the demons let them have on purpose, the two had solemn expressions on their faces and said nothing much. They knew that the demons were planning something, and if they truly had been listening to them this entire time, then that meant that the demons not only knew their strength, but what they were planning on doing as well.

Everything they had discussed was heard by the demons, but at the very least, they had managed to find out about it before it was too late. Even though they had no proof that that was what happened, they still decided to change their tactics and start searching a different part of the region.

The next day, they were searching and doing their best to find the artifact before a group of demons appeared near them.

"After a week, these guys finally showed up," Alistair said as Reign and the others smiled.

"It seems you were right, without the device, they can't locate us anymore, so they sent out the demon groups again."

The demons quickly scrambled and ran away upon noticing the group, but it was too late.

  They were only Tier III, and Reign was able to catch up to them in a matter of moments before killing all of them. He took their souls and let Aethion interrogate them as he wanted to find out more about what was going on right now.

He had already managed to get all the information out of the Stalker Demons they had killed, and from them, he was able to find out that they were indeed mercenaries, but they were mercenaries that actually lived on this planet and had arrived much sooner.

They were near the center of the planet, and their leader was a powerful Tier VI combatant, and they had plenty of Tier V combatants as well, which was why a group of 40 Tier IV demons could easily leave and work in different areas.

From what they told him, the enemy also had other mercenaries, most of whom were not from this planet.