I’ve been running for so long I don’t remember when it all started….

  After my dreadful mistake in my old country, I no longer had a place there anymore. We Daemons are already ostracized by humans for they believe us to be true demons against the goddess Astrea. That could not be further from the truth!!

  Though we ourselves do not worship her it does not mean we are opposed to her either. All we simply wish to do is to live our lives. It is for this reason we had all decided to survive on lands away from her faith. Far away to where humans do not wish to venture.

  The lands are lacking in greenery but are instead surrounded by sand and teeming in Mana. Life there is harsh but despite that we have succeeded in not only surviving but thriving in these lands. We Daemons are naturally attuned to the Mana, granting us more affinity to manipulate it. Most of us have used it to increase our natural strength, others learned to specialize in certain types of magic, and the real eccentrics wanted to learn the advanced levels of magic that takes years of dedicated studies to master.

  Then there’s me. You can say that I wanted to go beyond that, not only wanting to my innate skills with shadows, but I also wanted to advance my knowledge in Mana. Thanks to my studies I’ve now been able to better feel the presence of Mana both from myself and others.

  With this ability I could observe what others are able to do with their own Mana as well as how it worked. Not only that but peering deeper in I could even understand the person themselves through their surface emotions and intent.

  I was able to advance through my life here because of it. Things were looking up for me and I was to achieve greatness.

  But because of the mistakes I made I was forced to escape my homeland. Having to navigate myself through the sandy lands while also defending myself from the dangerous creatures that are able to survive through these harsh conditions.

  At first it was easy. I decimated one monster after another with such ease. Each one was relentless in attacking a small creature like me, forgetting the power that I wield against them. It was later I started to show signs of exhaustion. Day by day it felt like I was given less time to recover. It was an endless spiral of survival with no end in sight! I had to question to myself how our people survived crossing through these lands.

  When I managed to escape the country, I felt relief. The monsters felt weaker here in comparison to the ones in the sand. But I was still so exhausted. It took all of my efforts on keeping my mind active after pushing my Mana to the limits. I couldn’t rest yet; not till I found a safe location free of danger.

  I was hoping to get some help from the people here! Surely after all this time their views of us Daemons have improved, right?

  How wrong I was. The second they saw me they immediately began to hunt me. Cursing my existence. I could have easily dealt with them if I had the strength left. They should thank their goddess for my current state.

  I fought as best I could, I had to survive.

  I needed to survive!

  That’s all I was able to think, I don’t remember when my thought process devolved to that. It was all I was allowed to think about. I even started to lose track of time when even the weaker creatures could take me down.

  And then…

  I felt an unknown strength come by; I was rescued! This mysterious person was the first person to help me ever since my banishment.

  I wish I was able to at least see this kind savior, but I had suffered too much. My sight was all fuzzy, I could already feel my own life fleeting…. I didn’t have much time left…

  Still this generous savior wished to save me. He applied some kind of healing treatment on my wounds. To even use their own supplies as well...

  At the very least it helped ease the pain. I’m thankful for their kindness.

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  I was ready for my life to expire, content to at least know there was someone out there kind of enough to show compassion to a Daemon like me…

  ….

  …No…. this is wrong….

  I could feel that this isn’t enough, I still need to survive! At the very least I need to repay this person’s kindness in turn!

  I mustered whatever strength I had to think up something, anything that could help here! That’s when I remembered something important. It was nearly lost to the age of time but before we established our home country, when we would cooperate with others to establish contracts with them.

  Daemon Contracts.

  Thanks to our species’ connection to our Mana, we could even reach out to our souls with Mana and form binding contracts with willing individuals and set conditions for both parties to agree to.

  If I could use the contract, I could live! But it required something of equal value from both parties. I didn’t wish to take advantage of my savior’s kindness any more than he already had given but I had no choice! I’ll just take as little as I can!

  I barely remember much of the details but in the end they happily accepted. Ah… I wanted to tear up…

  After binding the contract and taking his vitality I didn’t wish to take it for myself, I was able to finally see my savior.

  I was shocked to see that he was a simple Red Kobold. No, it doesn’t matter to me. In the end he saved me and showed me such compassion. That’s all I care about now. From now on I will return that kindness to him and serve this monster.

  And to establish that I asked for a new name, I’m a little ashamed that I lied that I had reaquired it from him, but I wanted to start all over for him. A new name will let me start anew for my new purpose for my savior.

  After some time, I got to know more about my new master. He is a unique monster for sure, he isn’t like other Kobolds who are known for their cowardness.

  In fact, I would say he’s a lot bolder than most people. Just the fact that he has already had a growing empire of his own was shocking enough. But my new master is so ambitious! He has a look in his eyes that tells me he had greed superior to even dragons!

  Even when I first introduced myself and saw the look of fear across from the citizens, he could quell their fears of me. My master holds such authority that it’s hard to deny his will, not that I would consider such blasphemous actions.

  And my fellow henchmen are an intriguing bunch. I could never have imagined that such a powerful monster such as a Minotaur could submit to anyone let alone to a Kobold. And he’s almost as enthusiastic to serve him as much as I do. I’ll just have to prove my worth soon.

  The young goblin was adorable, always curious and easy to approach. And it seems I’m not the only one, the goblin seems to be loved by others. And I can feel great potential out of their Mana.

  The Vulture Beastman seemed hard to read so I’ll need to have the time to get to know them more.

  As for the Bear Beastman, at first glance you would think of him as an intimidating brute and indeed I could feel great strength from him. Despite that it seemed something about my master brings out his true emotions. Though I can’t blame him, Master Vladimir seems to be quite the character himself.

  A very colorful cast overall, I do hope I could live up to the expectations set before me as his butler.

  With the first task I was given, he took me to the kingdom’s castle. With our souls bound I am able to sense the surface levels of his emotions. He should be able to do the same once he learned to master his Mana.

  I could feel it; a swell of sadness and anger surrounded him the second we reached to a particular room. There was a curious linger of Mana in this room that gave me a bitter taste in my mouth. I decided to clean up the twisted magic left over which got his attention.

  A feeling of hope was sparking within the mixed emotions. He immediately took me to the next room and the same disgusting Mana was surrounding the monsters that were house in these cells. What horrible people would think of using such Magic!

  With little prompt, I began my work. Whatever happened has clearly affected my master. I will rid this for him. I kept at it, not wanting to stop until at least my Mana ran dry. I didn’t even notice how dark it was before I was done.

  I can’t believe there could be people who could do this, not only that but their work was sloppy! There was little care over the target and the way the Mana was just forcibly pressed in their minds. Even for me it took a lot of careful precision and mastery of Mana to heal their minds without losing them for good.

  Thankfully I was successful and there were no longer any lingering threats from the ritual. All that was left to do was let them rest for the rest of the night.

  With my task done I decided to check up on my master. Asking the servants in the castle, I learned that he went to the royal bedchamber to sleep. I carefully entered, not wishing to wake my kobold master up.

  I was surprised not to see him sleeping soundly but tossing and turning in distress! The blankets were thrown to the ground, and he was breathing pretty rapidly. I could feel a maelstrom of negative emotions coming from him!

  Without thinking I ran to him, there had to be something I could do to help him! I realized then that with my soul bond to him I could use my own Mana to help quell his emotions and let him sleep soundly at night.

  Mustering out the rest of my Mana I did my best to help my master like he has done for me. It was exhausting work but seeing him calm down and resting easily was worth it. With my last task done for the night I retired nearby.

  A new day will come, and I need to be ready to serve my savior as his faithful butler.