Baator Hell Promotion

Baator Hell Promotion

Author: Old Lamp God

Summary:

Introduction: Are you willing to be a demon? Even if you are misunderstood

Maybe no one will see it, so I'll just stack my nails.

It does not involve the existing world of D&D, and the settings of each version are mixed (except the 4th version). Try not to show data, and there will be monsters made by the author at random.

Volume One

Chapter 1: Hap the Chipmunk

The little devil Hap transformed into a chipmunk squatting on a tall barn

Hap observed Clover Village, the outermost village. Last night's heavy rain had washed away the hoof prints of the Sassen family knights who had come to perform the routine task of liquidating inferior humans.

For the little devil, a place like Clover Village was undoubtedly fertile virgin land. Every soul there had never been touched by another devil, and every soul was a valuable commodity in Hell. But in Baator, a world where hierarchy and order were paramount, the little devil, while not at the bottom of the heap, was not something to be dignified with. Such valuables were beyond his reach. If he weren't on a business trip, he wouldn't even have the ability to come to the material plane on his own initiative.

However, since they are on a business trip, it is only natural for them to make some money for themselves. In other words, if a little devil does not make some money while on a business trip, its boss will definitely suspect that it is cheating.

The little devil turned his eager gaze away from the village. The arrival of the Sassen knights was a challenge. He was too weak to face the leading paladin head-on, and would surely die. Fortunately, Harp's target wasn't the glittering tin can.

The night was as dark as ink, and none of the three Moon Goddesses were on duty tonight. The clamor of the welcoming ceremony for the knights had long since died down, and almost everyone had fallen asleep, leaving Clover Village immersed in tranquility.

almost.

Arden strolled through the dark night, holding a torch made of dried nightshade and pteris. The torch smoldered, but Arden wasn't worried about attracting anyone's attention, because the light it emitted could only be seen by the person holding it.

As he walked across the harvested fields, the locks on the barns loosened of their own accord, and the dogs that should have sounded the alarm fell silent of their own accord.

After he closed the door, the barn was even darker than outside. The smell of newly harvested wheat and dust filled his mouth and nose. He tentatively called out to the darkness:

"Mr. Hap, are you there?"

"I'm here, as always," a childlike voice echoed from above. Before Arden even spoke, Hap saw him: a young soul filled with ambition, yet unable to realize it. Youth meant inexperience, ambition meant susceptibility to temptation, and unappreciated talent was a quick path to downfall. This was Hap's favorite target.

A month ago, Viscount Bensay Sassen fell seriously ill, and all the villages surrounding the castle were in a state of panic, fearing that his illness would attract foreign enemies. Harp found time to sneak into the village and landed on the cradle of Arden's newborn brother. Just as he was contemplating how to gouge out his eyes, Arden appeared. Through the little devil's guidance and innuendo, he mistook Harp for the fairy who rewards the brave in the ballad. Following the ancient ritual of entertaining fairies, he offered milk and salt to the fairy and prayed for strength.

"You mastered your first spell well. Few can grasp it as you do. The spell 'Fairy Fire' requires a strong and durable torch. The illumination spell released through the torch can have sufficient range and brightness. This is the so-called consistency of matter and spirit, and the influence of the material foundation on the spirit." Harp leaped lightly from the truss to the man-high grain pile, just taller than 14-year-old Arden. The little devil made a pretentious comment on the magical torch in his hand, trying to play the fairy in the fairy tale. "You truly have great potential. Once you master the five spells, the gates of fairyland will open to you."

Aiden's face flushed with excitement. Ever since his younger brother David was born, his parents had basically no time to take care of the emotions of a half-grown child. They devoted all their attention to David, fearing that other people would discover that something was wrong with David.

"Thank you for signing a contract with me and teaching me how to guide and control magic," Yaden said happily. "Why don't you live in my house? Living in a barn is too unbecoming of your status. My parents would be very happy too."

"Aden, Aden," the chipmunk jumped onto his shoulder and rubbed his warm head against the boy's cheek. "Of course I'm willing to do so. I live here because I like you more in my heart."

"I've traveled all this way looking for a single contractor. In a barn where only other farmers come and go, you're certainly the most suitable. If I were to live in your house, that wouldn't be the case."

Arden was momentarily bewildered. Then he remembered that when he'd spotted the chipmunk, it was crouched on David's cradle. The cold implication of this image was like a bucket of ice water, causing him to tense up, leaving him feeling only the chipmunk's warm fur.

"You mean, David..." Aiden still spoke without giving up, but in his heart he was secretly glad that his parents took David to hide in the wild.

"You know, my dear Arden, I've always stood by you," the chipmunk's voice echoed in his ears, "but I have to say that your brother, perhaps due to the ancestral bloodline that is evident in him, possesses magical powers far greater than yours."

"Isn't his tail sick?" Yaden asked in surprise. It was late at night when his mother gave birth to David, and his father helped his wife like he was delivering a cow. The joy he felt the moment he saw the newborn's appearance turned to endless fear - the child had a scaly tail growing between his legs.

His father was almost about to drown him in the toilet, but David's loud cry finally reminded him that he could not let anyone know that there was a monster in his family, otherwise the whole family might be expelled from the village. The child could not die now, at least not before he showed himself to the whole village.

The father explained to Arden that David was ill and cut off the tail in front of his horrified eyes. The next day, he showed the baby to everyone. He and his wife decided to wait for another month or two until winter came and bury David on the pretext that he had caught a cold and was ill.

"No, no, no," Hapu shook his head like a rattle, his beard scratching Arden's nerves. "If he's just sick, why don't they call a priest or a doctor? His tail is a symbol of magic. Once he gets older, I won't be able to ignore him. The law requires me to sign contracts only with those with the most powerful magic."

"Of course not, his tail is just a reversion to his tiefling bloodline." The little devil was very proud of himself. Lying was almost a devil's instinct, easier than breathing.

"Of course, a baby is like an egg in a nest; it takes a long time for it to grow wings," Harp hinted maliciously. "But be careful. I heard that the knights who arrived yesterday believe the Viscount's illness was caused by a poison from a non-human being, and they're offering a reward for information leading to the cause. You and your parents should be careful. This knight and his master particularly dislike non-humans. Don't let anyone know about your brother's condition. Many people will do anything for the bounty, even making false accusations. If he's exposed, he'll be dead."

"I'll ask Mom and Dad to take David away." Arden digested the explosive news about the cause of the Viscount's illness and said hesitantly, "The knights won't stay for long."

"Maybe not. If you deliberately hide, everyone will be suspicious of you." Hap shook his head and denied the idea.

"I think your father's suggestion is more practical. Pretend David is sick, so you can have a good excuse not to show up with him often."

"I'll give you this amulet," Hap said, pulling out a white crystal from his cheek pouch and handing it to Arden. "Go home and swaddle him. As long as you perform the proper ritual, this crystal will protect the baby's soul from harm and prevent him from getting frightened by illness."

Aiden looked at the beautiful and clear crystal. He had never received a decent gift before, and nodded thoughtfully.

I can almost taste the sour smell of jealousy in the air, Hap thought. Self-esteem and desire are delicious seasonings. I'm really looking forward to whether he will give the gift away.

Chapter 2 The Devil's Gift

At dawn, Arden returned home. The extinguished fireplace was already lit. His mother was sitting by the fire stirring the pot. The aroma of grain filled the room. At her feet was a small cradle, and David, wrapped tightly in it, was sleeping soundly.

Neither of them noticed that there was a little devil hiding in the air hole under the eaves, listening to their conversation.

"Mother, you're back," Yaden said in fake surprise, blurting out the excuse he had already prepared, "I just went out to look for you. Is Father still outside?"

Lies are the first step to depravity.

"We hid in the woods all night. Your father went to check on the rabbit trap. Did anyone ask about us?" The mother wiped her hands tiredly and patted the baby in the cradle with her warm hands.

Arden looked at her. Due to childbirth and lack of sleep, the skin on her face was loose and her eye sockets were sunken. She looked as if the baby had sucked all the blood and flesh out of her.

"One or two people asked casually, but their attention was focused on the party, and no one blamed us for not attending. But I'm worried..."

"worry about what?"

"I heard the knights are here to find the inferior human who caused the Viscount's illness. They'll probably conduct a comprehensive inventory. If we don't show up then, trouble will come our way."

His mother's face lost all color because of his words. She bit her lower lip unconsciously. Her mind was working fast, but she was overwhelmed with thoughts. She had not slept all night. Hunger, coldness and bad news rushed into her collar like a cold wind, making her tremble all over and her vision went black.

Arden hurriedly supported her. Her eldest son's thin and strong arms gave her some comfort. She slowly covered her face. Arden took the opportunity to tell her the plan he had been thinking about all night with Hap's suggestion.

"As long as the knight thinks we are okay, no one will doubt us in the future." Yaden squatted down and looked directly into his mother's confused eyes. "We just need to divert the knight's attention."

"We can take the initiative to find the leading knight and tell him that David is sick and ask for his treatment. We are not the only one who is sick, and the knights don't have much time to carefully identify each one. As long as we drag it out today, everyone will assume that David is sick, and all problems can be covered up with illness. The knight will be gone by then, and no one will refute it."

The mother's expression gradually shifted from bewilderment to composure. She lowered her eyes to gaze at her still childish eldest son, who had grown into a young man capable of making strategic decisions in a corner they ignored. Half trusting, half fearful, she nodded slowly.

Arden walked around his mother, pulled the crystal out of his pocket, and stared at it for a long time.

Hap hung upside down from the roof in a precarious position, wondering if he would give it away.

Yaden looked directly at his blood sibling and roughly stuffed the crystal into the swaddling clothes. The cold touch woke David, and he opened his blue eyes and looked at him.

“His eyes don’t look like mine, nor like Mom and Dad’s.”

Arden opened the window, and the cold morning wind blew towards him with moisture, dispersing the warmth in the small room. He couldn't help shivering. He hung the cradle on the window, picked up the kettle, and poured cold water all over the cradle amid David's crying.

"It would be more believable if he were really sick rather than pretending."

Hap almost laughed out loud when he heard this. Humans are always willing to find an excuse for their actions, even if it sounds like there is no reason.

The young spellcaster held aloft the cold-water-soaked swaddling clothes, gathered his magic, and recited the eulogy his guide had taught him in a voice his mother couldn't hear.

"O man of knowledge who hides himself in the dark, may you place David in your arms. I offer you my wish, my spirit, and my faith, and may you shelter his soul amidst the chaos of this complex world."

Hap shuddered, nearly falling from the roof. It felt like an electric shock had struck him. In that moment, young Arden committed one of the most foolish actions of his life. He had completely sacrificed himself and David to Mephistopheles, the Lord of the Eighth Circle of Hell, also known as the Knower. And as the manipulator, Hap would receive a rich reward when the brothers' souls descended into Hell.

Hap squatted on a nearby rooftop and watched the Arden family squeezed into the crowd. Everyone came for the Knight's free clinic.

The villagers, relying on their strength and voices, strove to get closer to the Knight Commander seated on the platform. While violence didn't erupt, shoving, screaming, and slapping were inevitable. Amidst the boisterous crowd, the Arden family, following the little devil's plan, pretended to be trying to bring David to the free clinic, but in reality, they were just making a public appearance to announce David's illness.

One of the devil's rules of conduct is to never allow the soul in their mouth to escape, let alone the soul in their mouth to repent. The reason why Hap didn't kill the Arden family directly to collect their souls is simply because Hell has a rule for devils that prohibits them from using violence to kill those whose souls they have deceived.

Hap scratched his ear. He didn't want Arden to get away with it so easily. If someone conducted a confession ceremony and the soul escaped, he would be laughed to death by his peers.

The chipmunk sensed the crystal in the cradle and controlled it to poke David hard.

David cried out in pain, causing everyone to pay attention even amidst the noise around him.

A hand with an iron gauntlet easily took the swaddling clothes from Arden's hand. It was the Knight Commander who came over.

Fear rendered Arden speechless, his words stuck beneath his bitter tongue, blood rumbling in his eardrums. The white-bearded Knight Commander stared at the Arden family with hawk-like eyes.

Kind people are stupid, Hap commented harshly in his heart. The cowardly Aiden was so scared that his eyes were wide open. As a holy knight, you didn't even notice anything unusual.

Finally, the Knight Commander simply turned to face the baby, whose face was flushed from fever and crying. He smiled, his beard concealing a smile, and placed his hand, shrouded in a faint golden light, over the child. The baby's crying immediately ceased upon being touched by the light, leaving only sporadic whimpers.

The Arden family breathed a sigh of relief, and relief and ecstasy rose from their hearts, completely drowning out their fear.

"You've tied the swaddling clothes too tightly," he said kindly, untying the straps and handing the baby to Yaden's mother, who extended her hands in gratitude.

Perhaps it was a cruel irony of fate, perhaps a harmless cold wind, or perhaps the belt was too loose, but before the mother could take the baby, the crystal given by Hap rolled out of the swaddling clothes and fell at the feet of the knight. He kindly held the baby in one hand and bent down to pick up the small jewelry.

He held a crystal no bigger than his knuckle, a mark on it that looked like a scratch to the uninitiated. His smile froze, then slowly faded. Then, he took a step back.

"Guards, arrest these three devil worshippers!"

All the villagers screamed and scattered in terror. Harp chuckled, enjoying the drama it was leading. Meanwhile, the Ardens fell to their knees, arguing that they had no contact with the devil and could swear an oath by placing their hands directly on the blade of a perfect man.

"Sophistry!" The Knight Commander drew his sword and pointed it at them, holding up the crystal with the other hand. "This is engraved with the symbol of the Great Devil. Only a demon worshipper would carry it with them."

Aiden stared at the crystal in amazement. He couldn't explain where the crystal came from, and no one would believe his reasoning. But the words of defense came out faster than he could think, as if they had been hidden under his tongue, waiting for the right moment to rush out.

"That crystal is not mine, it's David's. He's the devil! He was born with it."

His parents froze in shock, and Arden's mind went blank, yet he felt strangely relieved.

He has a tail, his eyes are blue, and he's not from our family.

The Knight Commander hesitantly opened the swaddling clothes and picked up the defenseless baby with one hand. Then everyone saw the scabbed scar on David's tailbone, and there was a deathly silence.

The knight's expression changed from serious to one of strange satisfaction, and he smiled at his good fortune and his own acumen.

"Good, good," he said, throwing David and Crystal back into the swaddle, nodding amidst the babies' cries, "Lock them up first."

"I render the following verdict: The demon child and this woman who had sex with the devil are guilty of blasphemy and are sentenced to death by hanging tonight. Her husband, guilty of harboring heresy, will be sentenced to five years of hard labor and all his private property will be confiscated."

The knight paused, looked directly into Arden's slightly hopeful eyes, and pronounced with a condescending superiority:

"Her other son, whose identity cannot be identified at this time, is suspected of blasphemy. I sentence you to temporary detention until the church deliberates and decides how to deal with you."

Aiden collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at the rooftop opposite. The chipmunk on the rooftop grew a long tail and bat wings as he watched, a mocking smile appearing beneath its blood-red face.

It's harvest time, Hap said to himself.

The red-skinned little devil flew into the air, his figure twisted and disappeared into the air, he swooped down towards the baby invisibly, and Aiden's eyes full of horror caught the attention of the Knight Commander.

The Knight Commander turned, as if sensing something. He couldn't see the invisible little devil, but he could hear the wind. The incandescent flames ignited the Knight Commander's sword, and without hesitation, he struck in the direction of the wind—the swaddling clothes.

Harp grabbed the crystal, and the longsword followed. The Knight Commander didn't care if he hit an inferior human baby. The little devil rolled on the ground, and the blade brushed against its tail. It could smell the smell of its own skin burning, and the baby's crying stopped abruptly.

The sacred flames burned through its invisibility, and the Knight Commander roared in anger the moment he saw it.

"devil!"

Using the remaining momentum from rolling, Hap suddenly leaped up, spread his wings in the air and pounced on Aiden.

Poor guy, he thought I was here to help him. Without hesitation, Hap kicked his hard skull and took off completely.

Harp struggled to rise. The guards' arrows missed or grazed him, and even the occasional strike failed to penetrate his hide. Crystal clear as ice shone from his forepaws, revealing a small, immature body. The soul of David, slain by the knight, was trapped within.

The little devil felt extremely satisfied.

Chapter 3: Harvester

Steep Rock, the Sassen family's castle, wasn't far from Alfalfa Village. On clear days, from the highest tower, one could gaze out across the horizon, gazing out at the river like a white snake on the horizon and the roof of the Alfalfa Village town hall clock tower, shrunken to a tiny point of light.

It was a short distance, from the rising red sun to the setting silver moon. It finally arrived when even the guards on duty were snoring softly on their spears.

The little devil somersaulted gracefully through the air and descended. Its leathery bat wings, bulging horns, and unnaturally sharp claws retracted as it tumbled, and its head rapidly elongated, its red hide covered in silver-gray fur. By the time its hind paws landed on the parapet, Harp had transformed back into its favorite chipmunk form.

Generally speaking, after leaving Hell, most imps choose to transform into animals that suit their aesthetic tastes, such as crows, mice, or toads. However, as a peculiar freak (and particularly proud of it), Harp greatly appreciates his harmless appearance - kind people are always easily blinded by beautiful and harmless creatures.

Facing the silver moonlight, Hapu happily rubbed the crystal he took out from his cheek pouch.

"You're my greatest reward on this mission, my dear," the little devil sighed. "A newborn soul, completely unaffected by any deity, pure and innocent, is completely worth the sacrifice of a Soul Prism."

At this thought, Harp calmed down from his greedy elation. Hell would hand out Soul Prisms to every devil tasked with harvesting souls. These crystals, emitting an oily iridescence in the darkness, were mined from the fetid Abyss of Exile. Like their origins, known as the "Eternal Prison," Soul Prisms would attempt to imprison any soul striving for freedom. Their peculiar properties earned them special regard from all soul-coveting villains. For the devils, simply stamping their mark on the prisms, they would automatically absorb any souls separated from their bodies, becoming their eternal prison.

A low-level devil like Harp could only get one prism at most during a mission, and he often had to "voluntarily" give it as a gift to a higher-level devil.

But Harp had no intention of surrendering his soul this time. Souls were Hell's food and treasure, and more importantly, they were the ladder that devils longed for, the path to higher rank. Only after harvesting nine souls could a lesser devil apply for advancement.

Harp rubbed it many times, reluctantly, before stuffing the prism back into his cheek pouch. Like a cat scratching wood, the little devil used this action to relieve his tension in preparation for the next test.

The largest room in Steep Rock Castle naturally belonged to his master, Lord Bansey. The spacious hallway outside was lined with portraits of successive heads of the Sassen family. From the chipmunk's perspective, it seemed as if the faces, bearded, ribboned, or armored, beneath the firelight, glared angrily at him, the devil of hell, accusing him of tarnishing the honor of the knight family.