The floor of the cabin rumbled under his feet, as Jason hung from his seat. The beast that he was riding in was rapidly clambering down the hole towards the second floor of Hell, and since the hole was completely vertical, the beast was also vertical, and Jason was literally hanging from his seat, though he was glued to it by the glowing red runes inscribed in it. ‘It seems that everything here glows some shade of red, that’s good. Red is a very charming color, it complements the pitch-black of my body.’

Shaking his head, Jason stopped thinking about his future attires if he could wear any, and went back to going through his gains. More specifically, the inherited memories he unlocked this time.

There were only two pieces of information, but after reading through it, it appeared to be crucial for his survival and improvement from now on.

The first was about the society of devils. Devils, unlike the more chaotic and violent demons, were more civilized. They formed a complex civilization in Hell; surprising considering devils were basically sociopathic killers with superpowers. Devils had an extremely strict hierarchy based on bloodline and rank, and it determined your status and rights in society. Devils were not as prone to fighting each other as demons, and those of the same strength were wary of each other. Due to the difficulty of surviving the trials, anyone from Knight Rank and above was a dangerous and resourceful combatant, so devils would not easily fight to the death with anyone else. This was the basis of Rank.

Next was bloodline. Bloodline determined the rate of your growth. A being with a Grade 10 bloodline would grow much stronger than one with a Grade 9 bloodline if they increased their soul power by the same amount. They also had more powerful abilities, and so they were treated more cautiously. However, devils did not have the convenient system he had from the Mark, so they could only measure the grade of their bloodline with special and often rare devices or methods.

The second piece of information was far more important, which was about the different worlds in Reality, and how to invade them. Reality consisted of an infinite amount of worlds, as far as anyone knew, and each world was its own universe. Earth and the universe it was in were considered as one world. All these worlds were like marbles, with a thick outer shell that protected the space within from intrusions from the outside. And these ‘marbles’ were all floating in the vast sea known as reality. Hell was a special place, as it was on a higher level of existence than an individual world. It was located within the empty space between worlds, and as it permeated throughout Reality, its denizens could attack any world they wished.

Of course, it wasn’t so easy to invade a world, and various Gates scattered throughout Hell were one of the only ways to invade a world for the lower Ranks. These gates were mysterious structures scattered throughout Hell. No one knew who made them, although many suspect that the highest-ranking and most ancient devils did. They were gargantuan, indestructible monoliths, massive gray stone pillars with millions of complex red runes engraved upon their smooth surface. They were a strategic resource, so most were controlled by the many factions of various high-ranking devils.

Jason hung on his seat silently, ruminating about future plans based on this information. He would have to get to a Gate and enter a world to gather souls, that was for sure. But how would he do this? Would the faction of this Duke Barbatos have a Gate in their possession? Would he have a chance to escape by hiding in a world? He still did not know how exactly gates worked.

Suddenly, the air blew in his face with a whoosh, as the beast finally exited the tunnel and entered open air. Jason stared, entranced, by the incredible scene outside the window.

He was high, far above the expanding lands below him, and a vast landscape of red and grey appeared in his eyes. The land was rough and irregular; hills and mountains, cliffs and canyons decorated the ground. Cities and villages dotted the terrain here and there. Much like the first floor, the ceiling was covered in a thick red mist, preventing him from actually seeing the source of the muted red light behind it. ‘At least it’s not a rocky dark grey wasteland like before. The monotony was starting to get to me.’

‘Wait. Weren’t we on the inside of a hollow pillar before? How are we seeing the outside now, when we are still travelling down the pillar? We are still high up, where did we come out from?’ Jason attempted to bend his neck and look backwards, but he was still glued to his seat. ‘Ah, wait a minute.’

Jason used his and elongated his neck, turning his head around and look outside the window. The rest of the devils in the cabin didn’t seem to react, although a few of them twitched.

He was dumbfounded to find that they were in fact, now clambering on the outside of the pillar. ‘But how??’ He squinted his four eyes and tried to peer up at the ceiling, but there seemed to be no opening for them to go out of. How did they get out of the pillar?

After staring at the pillar for a while, running through a dozen possibilities, Jason gave up on trying to figure it up, opting to chalk it up to the unique properties of Hell. After all, the massive second floor they were now in were simply held up by a few gargantuan pillars, the one they were on and a few others he could see in the distance. That made so sense either, it was very unlikely these pillars could hold up the massive ceiling above them, but there they were.

He retracted his elongated neck back in the cabin, shifting it back to its original form. His newly upgraded Rank 6 ability was turning out to be pretty convenient after all. He would also have to test out his new ability soon. As a special grade skill, it was definitely very powerful. He could not help but grin as he thought of his new power, an eerie smile filled with fangs spreading open across the pitch-black surface of his face.

“We’re here. Get out.” The voice of the overseer boomed in his ears, and Jason snapped out of a daze as he felt the pulling force gluing him to his seat disappear.

He got up, and walked to the door of the cabin, observing his new surroundings. As they went down the pillar, Jason had observed the various settlements scattered throughout the lands, and as he got closer, he found that most of the buildings seemed to be medieval or gothic in style, but it gave no indication to their level of civilization. The beast they were currently riding was a fascinating mixture of steel and flesh, and he imagined that a high level of bio-engineering was required to create it.

When they reached the ground, the beast did not stop and barreled past towns and cities at a blinding pace. He saw many one and two-story houses made of stone slabs, cottages and bungalows. And many castles, many, many castles. ‘I can’t blame them. Castles are a symbol of status, refined taste and elegancy. Our similar taste is a common trait for devils, I suppose.’

They finally slowed down when they neared a large city, one of the largest so far. Contrary to his expectations, the buildings were not rough or boorish, but were smooth and elegant, filled with sharp angles, spires, columns and statues. The walls were massive, looming over them at about 10 times his height, towers interspacing the walls at every section. The very picture of a gothic city.

Jason jumped out of the cabin, and proceeded to line up with the rest of the devils already forming a row in front of the overseer. They stood in a courtyard in front of the large castle at the center of the city. As usual, the muted red light shone down from above, barely illuminating the many stone grey pillars and statues around the courtyard.

“Listen up, hellhound mulch! You will now be assigned your housing in the servant’s quarters, as well as your duty from now on. Work hard, and maybe you’ll survive long enough to be promoted. Although I doubt you’ll even live until you pay off your debts! Haha!” The overseer chuckled, as he motioned at several devils waiting at the side of the courtyard.

They stepped forward, carrying several dozen metal tags, and started distributing them to the crowd of newly enslaved devils. Jason received his tag, and examined it. The words in devil language inscribed on it simply denoted several things, his quarters and assignment.

Servant HCL5092

Quarters: Servant’s section, 426B, Room 2B

Assignment: World Invasion Vanguard

“That is all. Now get out of my sight, filth.” The overseer waved his hand dismissively, and the other servants that were waiting beckoned for them to follow.

Jason walked with the other new servants as the guides led them to one of the sections in the city. The city itself seemed to be divided into several sections, as Jason observed the buildings become less luxurious and more run-down. The guides explained to them that there were street signs that showed them what street they were in, and left them to find their own quarters.

Jason wandered throughout the labyrinth of roads, houses and tunnels smattering the messily designed city, following the signs sticking out at every junction on the smooth stone street, counting the numbers. ‘423, 424, 425, ah, there it is. 426.’

He went down the street, passing by rows and rows of houses. They were long and narrow, likely simple accommodations for the servants, though the walls were still lined with ornamental decorations. It seemed that the detailed gothic architecture extended throughout this entire city, regardless of the status of its residents. Jason finally found his new home, a rather small apartment building.

He tentatively entered through the door, his mind already preparing for whatever interactions he would have for the other servants likely living with him. He hoped at least his room would be personal, but he doubted it.

The inside of the apartment was large, probably to accommodate for the various body types of the devils. Surprisingly, the interior was well-decorated, though minimalistic and simple. Wood, of all things, lined the walls, along with the trademark grey stone of Hell. There were several others in the lobby, quietly conversing with each other. It was strange, seeing devils not leap to tear each other apart upon seeing each other, but he had to remember that everyone here could probably go head-to-head with him.

The devils glanced at the new arrival, but soon went back to their business, and Jason scanned the room, looking for the door to his accommodations. Not finding it, he walked to the stairs at the back of the room, and went up to the second floor.

The corridor was narrower, and Jason finally found his room here. Room 2B. He went to the large wooden door, looking for a keyhole or something similar. The door was reinforced with metal lining, and he found a small slit on the side, right under the doorknob. He slipped his tag into it , and the door unlocked with a click.

He slowly opened the door and walked in, and the room’s three occupants stared at him.