Chapter 292 C292. Demon Generals

The Name Bestowment ritual was an ancient technique that was originally employed or rather created by the first Demon king in existence in order to create a circle of his most loyal and devoted followers that shared an unbreakable bond that could last for several lifetimes.

Able to share his powers with those that pledged fealty to him as he expanded his influence over the massive, yet chaotic continent that was then ruled by war and madness.

In essence, this was the technique used during the time of chaos that spanned the entire world as all sentient races fought to accept dominance over the others. The time before the world was split in four by gods.

Those were the times when gods walked amongst men, leading their follower's races in war against other gods. However, to the one known now as the Demon King of Destruction, even gods were beneath his gaze as he had chosen to shatter his fate.

Breaking free of from schemes of the gods after slaying the God of the Darkness, Irhiha.

He then used the name Bestowment ritual in creating the first-ever demon family after defeating and dominating the strongest demons he could find and establishing the demon hierarchy now today as demon nobility.

Of course, an ancient ritual like the name Bestowment ritual did more than just increased the bonds between all the parties involved. After all, it was not a technique that could be used by mere mortals or even ordinary demigods.

By using an element from the demon's pact skill formula, the seamlessly fluid ritual grants the receivers a divine blessing from the divine entity that bestowed them with their last name.

While there was a lot that went into using this technique, Tyler had been completely unaware of it as he had purely met the conditions by a stroke of luck on how everything until now had proceeded, and even then, he still had no idea he was currently using the technique as Uriel had activated it on his behalf.

As the ritual came to its conclusion, a gentle glow embraced the bodies of everyone who laid eyes on him as they received the passive skill, "Divine Grace."

Following that, they all suddenly felt a deeper connection with everyone there including Tyler as it seemed as though they all had always shared a lifelong bond that rivals or even surpasses those between actual demons who shared the same bloodlines.

While this was true bonds between family members, it did not mean they were all now magically friends as they would still need to work on their relationship but will always share a faint connection with each other.

Not only that, but the skill, Divine Grace also grants protection against mental influence, resistance to fear and hypnosis, soul protection, and the obvious family bond that would allow all those with the skill to freely enter and exit through the castle's barrier as they were now considered members of Tyler family.

Of course, Tyler still didn't realize what he had just done as he suddenly felt a wave of mana leave his body as his eyes glowed in a yellow hue before promptly returning to normal.

The entire process had been carried out by Uriel per his subconscious wishes to create an inner circle that would have the authority to supervise his rapidly growing followers as over the past week, several freemen settlements along with the demi-human settlements that fled out of the Darknar forest due to the undead army had decided to swear loyalty to him in exchange for his protection.

With the number of people gathered in his new city already surpassing 10,000, he needed people that were not only strong but reliable to manage both the city's affairs and his castle.

Normally, in the current era, no noble family would bestow their prestigious name to lesser demons and demi-humans but Tyler was once human, the enemy of demons so he wasn't one to judge any races as long as they could be trusted.

He still didn't know how to use the demon's pact himself as everyone he had met so far had initiated the pact in his stead so he had been a little worried about those he allowed into his inner circle.

However, Tyler was keenly aware that the most suitable person to make those judgments was Albert which was why he had trusted him to make the selections without being biased. Besides, Uriel had assured him that bestowing them with his last name was more than enough to guarantee their undying loyalty and as part of his soul, she was the one thing he could trust the most.

Of course, she wasn't lying as being a part of a demon nobility was considered the highest honor in the demon continent and he was from the ancient Darknar family. A name to help solely to the demon king.

There was no way any living demon in this would not consider refueling that name as the grandest and most lucrative reward in the world. In fact, the possibility of tempting an elder from a Demon Earl's family to his side with that name was amazingly high but there was a secret measure set up by those families that didn't make this an option for Tyler.

In short, he had to take things one step at a time.

He was already aware that there were spies and potential traitors amongst the settlements that came to become his subordinates but according to Z, Erin and Liz, this was all going according to plan.

'At the very least, this is all very intriguing.'

Tyler thought as his eyes returned to normal while he stared at the sparkling and excited eyes of everyone he had just gifted the last name of the Demon King of Destruction.

"You may all rise."

At his command, everyone in the hall swiftly stood back up in a smooth motion with their right arm across their chest but Tyler chose to ignore their perfect synchronization this time and just move on with his train of thought.

"Giving as you've all officially become inner members of the Darknar family, I'll have to assign everyone their specific roles in order for this family to function as a proper demon nobility. However, there will be a lot of differences from the other demon nobles."

Taking a step toward his vassals, Tyler spoke with a stern gaze as his eyes carried the severity of his words.

"let it be known that before my eyes all races are equal, and no lesser beings are serving under me. Gathered in this hall are this era's so-called demons, lesser demons, and demi-humans but in front of me, you are all my loyal and precious subordinates and your merits shall be earned by your hands."

His words reverberated across the large hall as everyone stared firmly at him with an awed expression. The one thing Tyler didn't want was to end up like the other demon nobles who discriminated against lesser demons and demi-humans as a way to maintain their status quo.

However, those things did not matter to Tyler and as far as he knew, the late demon king valued strength above all else and did not discriminate against other races with the exception of humans who he seemed to hate for some reason.

This was why there were so many demi-human settlements who had fled to the dangerous darknar region to escape the influence of the Great Five. There were also a lot of actual demons and demon nobles who had remained loyal to the demon king to this day as they all had a sense of what had happened a thousand years ago.

While most of those demons had remained hidden in various parts of the continent, a considerable number of them had also migrated to various parts of the darknar region as they had survived in this land for generations as freemen.

Naturally, these freemen who had longed for the return of the demon king had jumped at the prospect of Tyler. The first demon to ever bypass the demon king's castle after even the Great Five had failed for a millennium.

That said, the majority of those gathered in the hall consisted of actual demons and demon nobles of varying ranks. There were also a few of those who Albert had aided their escape from his former region before he had left with Erin.

Of course, it was just as Tyler had said and the race of those who had been chosen tonight did not factor into the equation as there were also a lot of demi-humans in the midst whose strength rivaled or surpassed the said demon nobles.

While their strength had indeed been a factor in Albert's selection, due to Tyler's innate ability, it did not take full priority as their personalities, ideals, ego, and mindset had been judged by Albert using various means.

Z had also scanned the memories of everyone here for abnormalities to eliminate the possibility of spies before they were chosen but all of them had in one way or the other, witnessed Tyler's might and were convinced he was the reawaken demon king which might've been a lot more troublesome than traitors in Tyler's eyes.

Still, even though their strength was not the sole priority, in the end, it was still important as the weakest beings here were at the advanced stages of Tier 4 and the majority of them had already reached the peak of Tier 5. They had all had prominent positions in their settlements after all.

To survive in the dangerous lands of Darknar, there was no way any of them would be weak and they could all still become stronger if Tyler finds another reason to use his ability on them as he made it a rule not to help them carelessly so they don't get lax in their training while relying on him for everything.

Seeing as there were no objections to his decree of racial equality, Tyler nodded his head in satisfaction as he continued. He would need to spend some time designing and enforcing laws that would aid in his idea of a peaceful life even though there were bound to be a few mishaps along the way.

Still, as long as everyone here understood and strived to uphold his will properly, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. Now it was time he advances his next plan to delegate his most taxing troublesome responsibilities.

"I am pleased to see that everyone here understands my wishes. Now then, let us begin!"

Saying that Tyler returned to his seat position on his wooden throne as his gaze shifted to the five still kneeling beside the throne on both sides for all to see.

"You may rise."

This time his words were soft-spoken as he glanced at the five and they understood his intentions, gracefully returning to their feet, their every action carried an elegance that could not be replicated no matter how much one practiced.

Such was the demeanor of true nobility that stood above the masses even after Tyler had just proclaimed everyone to be equal.

"I'm sure you've all figured it out by now but allow me to formally introduce you to my Six Great Demon Generals."