Forsaken By The Gods, I Made A Contract With the Demon King

Levi was very disappointed to see that the body of the Black Wing of Lunacy had vanished. The Providence had claimed that the body was used to create the small bird, but that only intensified his frustration.

A Fallen-rank monster's body, even if it was a pseudo-Fallen rank, was extremely valuable. Not to mention the demonic crystals that would have accompanied it.

Levi had entered Paradise with the initial goal of earning money to attend the Favored Ones Academy, but his intentions had shifted along the way.

"How much essence could I have gained from a Fallen rank core?" Levi pondered.

Given that the monster wasn't fully evolved much like the Lunacy Incarnate he had faced before, he could have obtained at least two cores. The third core was likely not fully formed, and he had even destroyed one of the cores during the battle.

But even a single core would have provided an enormous amount of essence strengthening him considerably, but now he had none.

Levi had also hoped to sell the monster's body for some money, but that possibility was also dashed by the sudden activation of his ability.

Despite his frustration, Levi's attention was drawn to the screens that appeared before him. The disappointment momentarily faded as he focused on the new information.

----[Dominions]----

The one who inherited the power of the Darklord— you should have a legion of your own. Whenever a soul worthy of walking the path of the Abyss appears, you can create dominions using them. Their souls either Submit or Perish!

----[Dominions]----

The Dominions field now had a precise description, clearly defining what Dominions were.

"Aren't they like pets then?" Levi mused, his mind instantly thinking about all the things he could do with them.

He could use them as mounts, or as battle pets or he could just rent them out for other followers while he could rest easy - there were many things he could think of.

But deep down, he knew it wasn't that simple.

Domination was a Trait Ability that he inherited from the Darklord of the Endless Abyss, and it was far from simple. There was undoubtedly more to it, but Levi had no way of knowing these secrets immediately. He would have to explore and unravel the full extent of its power gradually as he continued to use the ability in the future.

For now, he continued to examine the status of the blackbird that had appeared before him.

----[Black Wing of Lunacy]----

Name: ---

Rank: Essence Monster

Master: Levias Drake

Demonic Core: Nascent

Demonic Essence: 0/100

Trait: Death's Hier

Trait Abilities: Carrion Feast | Phantom Flock | MorphWing

Innate Ability: Lunacy

----[Black Wing of Lunacy]----

...That was a lot to take in. For a moment, Levi was speechless, staring at the small bird nudging his neck.

"Does this thing really have so many abilities?"

A typical Essence Monster would possess a single Trait Ability at most, but this small creature had four—three Trait Abilities and one Innate Ability- that was truly something!

Levi recognized the innate ability - Lunacy, so he moved on to examine the Trait and Trait Abilities.

----[Death's Hier]----

Harbingers of Death—wherever the Black Wing flaps its wings, death follows.

----[Death's Hier]----

Levi's interest was piqued by this Trait, which was as peculiar as his own but provided no clear understanding. He concentrated on its abilities instead and continued reading.

----[Carrion Feast]----

Ability Description: [Feasts on the bodies of the dead and absorbs their essence.]

—---[Carrion Feast]-----

----[Phantom Flock]-----

Ability Description: [A flock of phantoms dwells in the shadows of the Black Wing, waiting for their master's command.]

----[Phantom Flock]----

----[MorphWing]----

Ability Description: [Ever-shifting and ever-changing, the Black Wing morphs itself at will.]

----[MorphWing]----

Levi began to understand the abilities better than expected.

Perhaps he was improving and getting used to the system's way of conveying things.

Anyway, the first ability, Carrion Feast, allowed the bird to consume the bodies of monsters. He wasn't sure yet what the bird could absorb, but he would discover that over time.

The second ability, Phantom Flock, intrigued him most. It suggested that a flock of phantoms resided in the Black Wing's shadows and could be commanded by its master.

Now that he noticed, the black wing's shadow looked deeper and darker compared to his own.

Curious, Levi called out, "Come out."

The blackbird suddenly turned towards Levi at his command, and a moment later, its shadow began to move.

From the depths of the shadow, nine phantoms leaped into the sky, gliding effortlessly.

Levi's eyes widened in surprise as he observed the phantoms. They resembled the blackbird, but unlike their small form- they were fully grown, their eyes glowing with a crimson aura.

And what surprised Levi most was that each phantom was as strong as a Dormant Monster.

[Phantom Wing - Dormant Monster]

Trait: None

Innate Abilities: Phantom Mirror | Shared Sight

Though these monsters lacked Trait Abilities, they possessed useful powers. Levi quickly grasped their functions.

The first ability allowed them to use a portion of the black bird's power, while Shared Sight enabled them to project their view into others' eyes—essentially functioning like drone cameras that Levi could control at will.

"These are going to be very handy," Levi thought. This ability was perfect for gathering information. While he needed to explore it further, he was already pleased with its potential.

Suddenly, his attention was drawn to the small black bird, which now appeared exhausted and had flopped onto the ground.

Above its head, its rank had changed.

[Black Wing of Lunacy - Dormant (Temporarily Degraded)]

It seemed that the Phantom Flock's essence consumption had a significant impact on the black bird's rank. It was similar to the Black Wing of Lunacy he had fought—essentially, the blackbird was dividing its essence to create phantom images of itself rather than generating them from nothing.

Levi noted this and ordered the Phantom Flock to return. The nine ravens, hovering above his head, dove back into the bird's shadow.

The blackbird let out an exhausted breath and collapsed.

Levi chuckled dryly as he picked up the small creature. There was one final ability he had yet to examine - MorphWing.

This ability, which had given him trouble during his fight with the Black Wing of Lunacy, allowed the bird to shift its form at will. To what extent, Levi would need to discover?

Satisfied with what he had learned about the blackbird, Levi closed its status window and gazed at the creature.

The cute creature needed a name, he couldn't keep calling it as blackbird. He considered some names for his first Dominion and decided on one.

"Noir, your name will be Noir," he said, picking up the small bird. Noir let out a caw of apparent happiness and nudged Levi's nose.

Levi couldn't help but smile at how cute the bird was.

Now that he had a clearer understanding of Noir, he turned his attention to the pendant still lying on the ground.

He moved his aching body to retrieve it, and soon its information appeared before him.

[Eternal Vigil]

---***---