"Mark, don't hesitate any longer, you were born to be the heir here, this is the legacy your father left for you, and it will always be"

"Stop talking, Frank."

The young man named Mark held the whip in his hand and looked at the herds of sheep and the endless dark green grassland in the distance. He clenched his teeth and stopped talking.

But if you look closely, you can discover a horrifying fact - there is no one around him.

Mark Brown is the legal heir to this fertile land and herd.

More than a decade ago, his father Tommy Brown was still a serf. But Tommy joined the Burning Embers Kingdom, gradually became a grassroots officer, and seized the land and herds from the northern nobles.

But the good times did not last long. Due to the recurrence of an old injury on the battlefield, his father passed away soon, leaving only seven-year-old Mark and his mother to depend on each other.

Such a large ranch cannot be managed by a woman and a half-grown child alone. Soon, their family welcomed an uninvited guest - the so-called Uncle Gordon Gray, Mark's stepfather.

What made Mark even more unhappy was that Gordon and his mother soon had a little son, who was named Theodore Gray and was very much loved.

Theodore, a child given by God, his parents' love for him can be seen from his name alone.

Listening to the baby's crying all night and looking at the happy smiles of his mother and stepfather, Mark clenched his fists and felt extremely depressed, as if he was just a stranger here.

Not long after, his mother, who was already weak due to long-term abuse by the slave owner, fell ill and seemed to have little time left.

Once his mother left, Mark's last blood relative in the world disappeared, leaving only the strange and estranged stepfather.

"Will this ranch left by my father be named Gray in the future?" Looking at the familiar grassland and the crowded cattle and sheep, Mark sighed secretly.

He had been sitting next to the haystack for a long time. The night had become pitch black. Mark wanted to go back to the house left by his father, but he didn't want to face his strange stepfather.

"Mark, haven't you figured it out yet? If you hesitate and show mercy, you will become a slave to the Grey family."

A hissing, harsh voice echoed in Mark's ears, it was still the same voice.

After his father passed away, Mark became extremely withdrawn. He didn't have many friends in the village and often cried alone late at night.

But his stepfather and mother focused almost all their attention on the newborn, Mark's "brother", and did not notice anything unusual.

But in recent months, Mark has made his only true friend, a creature with tattered wings and red skin named Frank.

Except for Mark, no one seems to be able to see Frank, not even his mother and stepfather.

At first, Mark was quite disgusted with this guy who called himself the wishing elf and remained wary of him.

But over time, due to the neglect of his existing family, Mark confided his troubles in life to Frank all day long, and their communication became more and more frequent, even to the point where they could talk about anything.

"Frank, after all, they are my family. I can't treat them like this." Mark's voice trembled and his eyes were dazed.

However, Frank leaned over to Mark's ear and whispered softly in his harsh voice: "Relatives? Do they really regard you as their relatives? Think about it carefully. Mark, the pasture, the house, the sheep, and even the love of your mother - all of these should belong to you!"

"But now? You're just a slave who manages the ranch for them!"

Frank's sharp and sarcastic remarks were like a dagger coated with poison, piercing deeply into Mark's heart.

"No, it's impossible!"

Mark kept shaking his head. He suddenly shook off Frank's claws that were brushing his face, and squatted beside the haystack with his head in his hands.

He choked up and said, "Yes, yes, I still have my mother. She will not abandon me. She has always loved me."

Frank flapped his tattered wings and flew beside Mark, patting his shoulder with his red claws as if to comfort him.

"Mark, I understand your feelings, but have you ever thought about why your mother became ill so suddenly? Think about it, Mark, if your mother also passed away, who would benefit the most?"

“To whom will your flocks, pastures, and house, all the precious wealth your father left you through his own efforts, fall?”

Just like that, with Frank's "patient guidance", Mark, with tears in his eyes, whispered the name he didn't want to mention.

"Gordon Gray."

"To be more precise, there is your younger brother, Theodore Gray. Tsk tsk, a child given by God. What an ambitious name."

Frank laughed hoarsely and continued, "In the face of the benefits that are within reach, even the life of a wife is not worth mentioning.

Think about it, Mark. Once he poisons your mother, Gordon Gray can take over your house, own your sheep, and pass all your property to Theodore.

And you are nothing more than a slave serving the Grey family."

Hearing the horrific picture described by Frank, Mark was so angry that he trembled all over, and bloodshot appeared in his wet eyes. "No, these are all things left by my father. He paid for them with his life!"

"Yes, Mr. Brown," Frank said excitedly.

"You should pick up your weapons and kill that damned invader and the bastard he left behind before they can attack you."

But after hearing Frank's suggestion, Mark was still a little scared. For this ordinary shepherd boy, killing a person was still too terrible.

"But, but, this is a crime! The Imperial Security Team will not let me off."

"crime?"

Frank leaned forward and said angrily, "You are defending your property!

You are protecting your father's honor and guarding your homeland! Even the judge of the gods will never think you are guilty! "

"But."

Mark curled up beside the haystack, his face showing a mixture of complex emotions including anger, worry, and fear.

Frank continued to add fuel to the fire, making righteous accusations: "Do you want to shame your father?
He was a hero who defeated the nobles of the North, but you, Mark, I misjudged you. It turns out that you are just a coward who can only watch your homeland being invaded step by step and your mother begging for mercy from other men."

"enough!"

Mark suddenly stood up and shouted, with an unprecedented ferocity showing on his still young face.

Frank was overjoyed. He leaned on Mark's shoulder and praised him repeatedly: "Face it all. This is what a brave man does. Kill all those who have hurt you!"

"I will never bring shame to my father. I will become a hero like him and protect my homeland."

Mark gritted his teeth and muttered to himself. He picked up the pitchfork stuck in the haystack, turned around and looked at the house that had become dim.

Apparently, the intruder and his bastard had gone to bed, sleeping peacefully in the house left to him by his father.

The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, and the breeze is gentle.

Now was a good opportunity. Mark strode towards the house his father had left him. The young shepherd had made up his mind to use the pitchfork in his hand to eradicate everything - even if it would cause terrible consequences.

Standing at the door of the dilapidated house, Mark took a deep breath and plucked up his courage. He told himself in his heart that he had done nothing wrong, he was just defending his home.

"Go ahead, Mark, do what you want to do, there's nothing wrong with that."

Frank's voice echoed in his ears, which gave Mark more confidence, and he pushed the door open carefully.

"Squeak-"

Walking into the room silently, looking at the betrayed mother, the greedy stepfather, and the young baby, Mark trembled and slowly raised the pitchfork in his hand...

"Think of the injustices you've suffered. Kill them. Kill them."

Frank's voice became more and more excited, like the cheers of the audience, giving Mark the determination to take action.

He recalled the countless nights when he shed tears silently, the hostile gazes, and the indifference his mother had shown him, whether intentional or unintentional.
Thinking of this, Mark no longer hesitated.

"You deserve this."

After whispering this, Mark held his breath and slowly closed his eyes——

"stop!"

The house suddenly lit up, the bright light made the room as bright as day, and the stepfather, mother and the newborn child were all awakened.

"Mark, what do you want to do?" the mother screamed.

At this moment, Mark was like a punctured balloon. All the courage to kill that he had accumulated with great difficulty poured out at once.

"Quick, kill them! This is your last chance!"

Frank urged angrily, but Mark seemed to have lost his soul, his legs were shaking, and he slowly turned around.

"Why, how could that happen?"

Behind him were several fully-armed Tiefling soldiers, holding brand new rifles and with the badges on their chests particularly eye-catching.

——That was the emblem of the Burning Empire that Mark had been thinking about.

The tiefling standing in the front pointed his gun at the sky and pulled the trigger, causing a loud gunshot.

"boom!"

"The Imperial Guard is here on His Majesty's orders to arrest the devils who entered the empire without permission. All outsiders, leave immediately!"

"Is he the devil?"

Mark turned around and looked at the red-skinned "wishing elf". Frank's face had become hideous at this time.

Only then did he realize that his close companion was such a terrifying existence, and he was almost bewitched by the devil and committed a heinous crime!

"Ignorant mortal!"

The "wishing elf" that originally looked like a four or five-year-old child, and even a little naive, became extremely hideous and abominable amid the noisy and shrill screams.

A blood-red halo surrounded Frank, an aura of evil and fear.

"what!"

"For the love of Cassius, what is that?"

Mark collapsed to the ground in fear, his mother and stepfather were in a panic, and his newborn brother was screaming and almost fainted.

"Fear, mortals, I am Lord Frank, your nightmare!"

Seeing the panicked crowd, the devil spoke triumphantly, as if trying to scare away the tieflings.

However, the captain of the tiefling guard standing in the front had an indifferent expression and was unmoved. He just stared at the devil in front of him.

He said coldly: "How dare a mere little devil deceive the Imperial Guard? You really don't know how to live or die!"

The tiefling didn't waste any words. He just raised the rifle in his hand and shot without hesitation. The special bullet engraved with runes flew out of the muzzle and passed by the little devil.

"what!"

Frank covered his burned arm and screamed, his expression extremely terrified.

He knew that he had been seen through by this group of demons!

Frank lost his previous arrogance. He quickly raised his hand and said with a wry smile: "You are also the descendants of the devil. We are our compatriots. These mortals are just our food. How about this, I will help you contact the adults in the Nine Hells."

Tiefling interrupted coldly, "Enough! We are servants of the supreme Majesty Cassius. We have boiling dragon blood flowing in our bodies. We have nothing to do with you, the dirty devils from hell!
There are only two choices before you, surrender or die!"

At this moment, there was a slight "pop" sound, and blood-red smoke appeared in the original place, but the little devil had disappeared without a trace, leaving only a harsh curse.

"You damn bastards! (Infernal language)"

The tieflings did not panic, but turned around with a sneer. Soon, they heard a scream.

"what!"

At the door of the house, the invisible little devil crashed into the [Evil Barrier] that had been set up long ago, and Frank showed up, his whole body turned black.

The tiefling nodded to the outside of the house and said loudly, "Thank you for your help, Earl Charlotte."

"Nothing, all in the service of the Empire."

The man in the robe waved his hand, lifted his hood, and revealed an exceptionally hearty smile.

He opened the sack, manipulated the wizard's hand, picked up the half-burned little devil, and said happily: "You are arrested, Devil Frank."

"Let me out! You a bunch of insolent mortals!"

Imprisoned in a birdcage-like cage, the little devil pounded on the door, but to no avail.

And there are many such things happening all over the empire. The devils from hell are vulnerable in front of the powerful imperial followers.

The Duke of the Empire, Medorash, who is in charge of the Tiefling Guard, has set up an exorcism team and is gathering players to search for traces of demons across the empire and arrest them one by one. (End of this chapter)