Chapter 100

The palace was empty, with hardly any decorations. Only the old demon king, who was said to have lived for over five hundred years, sat on the throne. His pale face appeared even more sinister under the equally pale light.

There were four demons here, but they separated into two spaces. Vesper stared at Frodien, who also bowed his head respectfully, avoiding eye contact.

After a long silence, Vesper raised his hand, his long fingers touching his forehead, the crystal between his brows shimmering with tiny lights. He closed his eyes and said, "Go ask Orlando who is leading this campaign."

"Please don't let it be that stupid ancestor," Vesper's expression twisted slightly at the thought.

Florian replied respectfully, "My lord, the Pope's intention is that this campaign will still be waged against that newly emerged hero."

Vesper fell silent again, then asked after a moment, "Who is that Arnold?"

Frodien got excited as soon as he heard that; he had investigated the matter thoroughly.

He cleared his throat and said, "This is a long story, it all started with the Lamb incident..."

Vesper showed no impatience. Those demons weren't very bright; among the short ones, he was choosing the tallest. Frodien, a demon who had mingled with humans for many years, spoke and talked much like a human, his words clear, logical, and vivid. Vesper was still willing to give Frodien face.

To be honest, when Lamb entered the Demon King's Forest, he traveled north from the Fisherman's Tomb to reach the Demon King's Forest, and briefly stayed in the City of Rift. However, at that time, Florian was not the Great Protector of the Demon Clan. He had just had an opportunity to become stronger and stayed in the desolate Demon King's Abyss.

The heroes had already reached the Sand Rift City, but the demons around the Demon King showed no sign of alarm. The Grand Protector was sent to deal with Lamb, and Florian seized the opportunity to devise a plan to kick out the Grand Protector and take over.

When Lamb went to the Demon King's Abyss, Florian took the opportunity to avoid a direct confrontation.

He ambushed the rest of the hero's team, landing three consecutive blows, which counted as a merit.

So when Lamb and Vesper started fighting, Frodien just watched from afar, cowering in a corner, too afraid to move forward.

On the battlefield over there, the ground was littered with the corpses of demons.

Not half-dead demons, but complete corpses.

Lamb's individual combat ability is terrifyingly strong. Isn't that guy a warrior? How come the puppet he casually throws out is so powerful?

Frodien recalled the scene from that year and couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

In short, Lamb and Vesper were both severely injured in the battle, and Lamb inscribed the new magic circle on the stone tablet.

All his companions were dead. The young human was all alone. He picked up the broken longsword, casually hung it on his waist, glanced back at the deep pit, where purple light flowed everywhere, but he could see nothing.

So he looked ahead again and walked out of the Demon King's Forest step by step.

Once the purple light dissipated, Florin scrambled over to check on the old man's condition.

Amidst the pit full of corpses, the old demon king sat atop a pile of demons, staring at something, lost in thought.

Another battle against the Demon King has come to an end.

However, the magic circle Lamb carved was different from that of the previous generation, and Vesper, as the one who was sealed, knew this all too well.

Frodien vividly recounted Arnold's life story, how he rose from a shepherd boy in a remote place to the most prosperous capital of Icarus, and how he shone brightly in the ancient mystical realm.

Vesper listened absentmindedly, his mind uncontrollably drifting back to the first generation.

The human he once hated most was Lortheran.

Lortheran and he made a thousand-year curse: every hundred years, a hero will emerge, beat him up in front of the world, set a new seal, return to the country, and receive the world's praise.

After Frodien finished speaking, he noticed that there was no movement at the head of the table. He glanced at the man cautiously, only to meet the old man's gaze.

He gave an awkward laugh.

Vesper suppressed his chaotic thoughts for the time being and waved his hand: "Go out, and don't let those guys bother me these next few days."

The purple magic circle dissipated, waking the bored Second and Fourth Protectors. They saw their leader take a step back and stand in front of them again.

With a wave of his hand, the old demon king shoved them away with great force. Then the palace doors closed, and the demons who couldn't run away were crushed in two and could only crawl quickly on the ground.

The blood of demons is more rotten than that of humans. Florin ascended the steps expressionlessly, while the second and fourth guardians chattered beside him, saying in a sarcastic tone that he and the old demon king had a very good relationship, and that the old demon king treated him like a son.

Reaching the end of the stairs, I saw the two stone tablets again, and the magical beasts standing quietly beneath them.

In the plaza not far away, the demons were still enjoying their daily entertainment.

Bats flew across the blood-red sky, and the gray castle reflected no light at all. Frodien suddenly realized that the brightest place in the entire Demon King's Abyss was actually the old man's palace.

He stood beside the stone tablet, while the Second and Fourth Protectors were still talking back and forth. As if finally realizing what was happening, Florin turned to look at the Second Protector. When the other met his gaze, a bad premonition had just arisen when his vision began to spin.

In the square not far away, several demons who were carrying out a "Great Harmony Movement" were hit by something and started cursing.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the Second Protector's head.

Before the stone tablet, the short, stout demon trembled, a far cry from his earlier arrogant and sarcastic demeanor. Now, a fawning smile graced his face, and Florian, of course, did not let him off the hook.

With a flick of the giant scythe, the demons saw the four guardians' severed bodies flying through the air.

The black monkey hanging upside down on the dead tree clapped and cheered, and after a brief silence, bursts of laughter erupted in the square.

Only the castle remained silent, watching all of this unfold.

The Great Protector of the Demon Clan, the leader of the Seven Protectors, the number one demon below the Demon King, and the Necromancer's Blade.

Florin put away his weapon, pulled the docile monster over, climbed onto it, and was about to leave when he couldn't help but take one last look at the stone tablet that had been scratched beyond recognition.

The two enormous stone tablets were covered not only with scratches, but also with graffiti, demonic curses, unintelligible patterns, dark red handprints that had turned black over time, and other dirty, unidentified marks.

Between the stone tablets, as if sensing that Frodien had not left for a long time, a demon poked his head out and invited Frodien to enjoy his newly acquired beauty.

The Great Protector glanced at him, then pulled the demon beast away.

Frodien didn't know how long he would stay in the Demon King's Forest, but as long as Veris was still there, he couldn't leave; the old Demon King wouldn't allow it.

He believed he had defected to the church, but in reality, he felt he would only listen to the words of the legendary pope and Veris; he had nothing to do with the other church members.

Veris did give him an alchemical communication device, allowing him to contact Veris at any time.

He asked Veris when he would go to the Demon King's Abyss, and Veris said to wait.

The young man changed his appearance and returned to his old profession as a bard. After entering the city of Rift Sands, he stayed for three months before heading south.

He frequented various entertainment venues, and his skills were superb. Even when he was singing on the roadside, strange and unusual races would come up to support him.

There are also those who are blind to the danger, who want to rob or take a fancy to this decent-looking human and want to snatch him back.

He was beaten into mincemeat right there in the street.

It is said that Veris smiled, said nothing, and just kept banging his lute.

They brutally crushed a demon whose body could still live after being separated from its body.

Logically, Veris should have been hunted down for such an incident, but this time he seemed to have no intention of keeping a low profile. He killed one by one, and when a group came, he held a flute and actually used it as a staff.

Not entirely. I heard that he pointed his flute at the magic circle and it flew out, and then he used the flute to stab the demon.

The flute wasn't sharp, and the demon's defenses were very high. He had a lot of strength, and amidst the horrified gazes of the onlookers, he managed to shove the flute into the demon's head, stirring it around a few times before pulling it out.

Can you blame Veris? It was those demons who provoked him first.

South of Rift Sand City lies the Forgotten Underground Tower, and then the Fisherman's Tomb.

Upon reaching the Fisherman's Tomb, Frodien completely lost contact with Veris—unless he inquired about him.

News from the people in the south, however, came intermittently.

Frodien, having nothing to do in his Sand City, would occasionally send his men to human territory to buy some popular novels to read, finding that these novels were no worse than those of Granvar.

Another year passed, and Frodien suddenly heard some very interesting news.

The Mage Union recently announced that the number of mages last year increased by nearly half compared to the previous year.

However, the levels of many mages did not see any new breakthroughs.

The higher the level, the harder it is to break through.

The war to conquer the south ended six months later.

Crown Prince Ethan was on the verge of death several times, but was saved by the newly promoted ninth-level magician Murphy, and the two became friends.

Upon returning to the capital, Ethan went to pay respects to his father, the king.

Then he went to see His Majesty the King.

Lortheran looked at the resolute yet handsome young man sitting below, his eyes momentarily glazed over, as if he had seen a familiar figure.

He quickly recovered, a happy expression on his face, and said that a banquet would be held that night to celebrate Ethan's return.

The Papacy also sent congratulatory gifts.

The banquet lasted very late, and the nobles and meritorious officials who attended were carried home drunk, but His Majesty the King left the banquet long ago.

On an open-air pavilion deep within the Papacy.

Sylvain silently poured Lortheran a glass of wine, while Veris sat on a slightly elevated stone chair beside him, raising his hand to pluck the strings of his harp. A gentle breeze and bright moon blew, and the aroma of wine wafted through the air.

“That Ethan is looking more and more like my good heir.” Lortheran said, taking a sip of his drink, his voice filled with melancholy.

He thought that hundreds of years had passed and he had long forgotten what his son looked like.

But that was his first and only child, how could he possibly forget?

In fact, every generation of the current royal family, if traced back, is a direct descendant of Lortheran.

Sylvain remained silent, like a wine-pouring machine, while Veris smiled and said, "Shouldn't you be happy?"

“Being happy and being no wonder are not mutually exclusive,” Lortheran sighed.

He looked at Veris: "You've been in the Demon King's Forest for so long, have you made any progress?"

Veris lowered his head and tapped the body of the violin, producing a crisp sound, his voice flat: "No."

"Let's arrange for Arnold and the others to set off in a little while."

Lortheran remained silent.

He's been so busy these past few years that he's completely forgotten about that hero.

When he happened to remember, he would send messengers to deliver warmth. To prevent himself from forgetting again, he simply instructed the messengers to deliver warmth every now and then.

In fact, in the two years that had passed, he had seen Arnold only a handful of times.

The following day, Lortheran rose at the crack of dawn as usual and once again became the wise and mighty King VIII.

Ethan spent half a year in the palace, cramming on his cultural knowledge. This time, Lortheran didn't stop him from reading novels. In recent years, literature in the kingdom has flourished. Many bards saw that this kind of thing was more profitable than singing, so they switched to this profession. For some novices, the addition of bards was like a game-changer.

Their insights are far superior to those gained through isolation.

Six months later, Ethan was ordered to go to what was then Phoenix, now District 15, to start as a small town mayor.

No one knew he was the esteemed Crown Prince; they only thought the new mayor was very easy to talk to, always running around every few days, and resolving everyone's questions the next day.

Ethan worked there for only two months before being transferred to another city to work as a junior secretary in the administration department.

Two months later, he was transferred to the 18th District as the commander of the border guard, where he made his first contact with the demons.

As usual, after two months, Lortheran asked him to return to the capital for the New Year. Ethan hesitated for a moment, then politely declined His Majesty's request, hoping to stay in District 18 a little longer.

I stayed there for more than half a year.

One day, Ethan suddenly heard from his subordinates that a group of young people were leaving District 18 and heading to the Demon King's Forest.

Ethan frowned and asked, "What do these people look like?"

The subordinate said, "They all look clean and fair-skinned, but they seem quite capable."

What good is having decent strength? Ethan frowned. He had been in the border area of ​​District 18 for almost a year and knew better how chaotic the Demon King Forest was. Hoping that someone with a conscience would emerge from there was no better than hoping that his father would come back to life.

He straightened his clothes and said, "Take me to see."

The young people waiting below the city wall showed no signs of anxiety. The leader, a young man with blond hair, had bright eyes and an extraordinary air about him.

Among the others, one wore a single-lens glasses and looked composed. He carried a metal box on his back, the weight of which was unknown.

There was a burly man, over two meters tall, carrying weapons on his back. Despite his massive size, he had clear eyes and would occasionally chuckle to his companions.

There were also two thinner young men.

A figure with unusual white eyes, dressed in the robes commonly worn by magicians, with a calm expression.

One of them had pursed lips and a hint of arrogance in his eyes; the pointed ears peeking out from his blond hair revealed his identity.

As soon as Ethan arrived at the city wall, he saw his long-lost friend and was overjoyed. He quickly went to greet him.

The previously indifferent white-eyed youth suddenly revealed a slight smile, but he couldn't help but be surprised. He didn't expect that the Crown Prince, who had been sent abroad for more than a year and a half, would actually be in the 18th District, which borders the Demon King Forest.

"Huh? You two know each other?" Arnold asked, looking at their expressions.

Murphy bowed to Ethan first, and Ethan quickly helped him up, whispering, "Shh, the other subordinates don't know who I am."

The white-eyed youth looked knowing, turned to his companion, and introduced, "This is Ethan."

Ethan's name is not uncommon, and most people wouldn't think much of it.

However, Arnold and the others had been in the capital for so long that they were very familiar with the name, and they all showed surprised expressions and bowed to Ethan.

His subordinates, standing far away, watched this scene and muttered that these young people were quite polite.

Seeing that it was these people, Ethan stopped dwelling on it and said seriously, "I will let you leave District 18, but there are some things I must tell you."

"In the Demon King's Forest, remember, do not believe any nonsense."

"It's incredibly chaotic inside, and everything you've ever been in contact with is now in darkness."

"There was a recent internal conflict among the guardians of Demon King Forest. You must be careful."

Arnold showed gratitude, and after thanking Ethan, the group headed towards the Demon King's Forest.

Their first stop was the territory of the Seven Protectors—the Fisherman's Tomb.

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Author's note: See you tomorrow! [kissing emoji]