Spring passes and autumn comes, a year goes by so quickly, like an endless river flowing away, never to return.
Outside the empire’s border, in a small village not far away, the voice of the Demon King echoes.
“Village chief, what’s that supposed to mean? We’ve been working together for a year now! It’s time to settle the final payment. Stop trying to brush me off.”
At this moment, Sieg looks at the few scattered silver coins, dissatisfaction welling up in his heart, as he lightly taps the table.
His eyes reveal a trace of impatience and suppressed anger.
Why does he have to work?
Because he’s broke?
Why not just rob someone?
After all, he’s supposed to destroy the world…
Please, he has principles.
He’s not some efficiency-obsessed, profit-driven machine.
Besides, destroying the world is the outcome, not the process.
The process matters.
If there’s a better way, he wouldn’t choose this path.
And with his female companion by his side, for some reason, he often feels restrained, unable to act freely.
He can’t help but glance at Emilia, whom he never tires of looking at.
Clearing his throat, he returns to the matter at hand.
The job is simple: clear out the monster lairs around the village and ensure its safety for a year.
It’s a piece of cake, and the pay isn’t bad either.
There are plenty of more meaningful things he could do.
The seemingly kind, elderly man brings out two cups of plain-looking water, promising with conviction, as if it were genuine.
“Don’t worry, we’ll definitely settle. Have some water first, and then we’ll go to the granary to get your money, esteemed adventurers.”
One of the adventurers is Sieg, and the other, undoubtedly, is the former Saintess Emilia, sitting elegantly, silent, like a refined doll.
Her striking appearance still draws attention.
Not to mention, the empire recently issued a bounty to retrieve this former Saintess, with unclear intentions but a substantial reward.
This makes her even more conspicuous, for better or worse.
As the water is brought out, Sieg shakes his head silently and downs it in one gulp without hesitation.
His anger subsides—after all, there’s no point in getting mad at a dead man.
What a pity.
Emilia, on the other hand, doesn’t touch her water, as if she knows something’s wrong with it and what’s about to happen.
A trace of sadness flickers in her eyes, whether from pity or regret, but she does nothing more.
The old man doesn’t care.
As long as he deals with the man, the woman is just a lamb to the slaughter.
His smile grows brighter, greed gleaming in his eyes.
He gestures, inviting them to the granary to collect the money.
As expected, the granary is an ambush.
Men leap from the shadows, wielding pitchforks and sickles, overwhelming Sieg with their numbers, piercing him through until he’s pinned to the ground, cold and lifeless.
His tongue hangs out, motionless.
Yet they don’t touch Emilia—not out of mercy, but because she’s far too valuable.
The villagers, still shaken, celebrate their victory.
From their practiced routine and the setup, it’s clear this isn’t their first time.
Just another case of killing the donkey after it’s done grinding the mill.
The villagers never intended to pay.
Why would they?
No one cares if these people die.
Even if someone investigates, the village is tight-knit, all in on it together.
And there’s no worry about running out of people.
They can just lure the next adventurer with a high bounty and repeat the cycle.
Soon, gleeful voices fill the granary, comparing Emilia to the bounty notice, greedily eyeing her.
The crowd starts discussing, as if dividing up spoils.
“Village chief, we’re rich! Have you heard? The neighboring empire is looking for this woman. She’s a perfect match—definitely her. Haha, we’re rich!”
“Wait, isn’t this the woman who was exiled for doing bad things? Why is the empire looking for her now? I don’t get it.”
“You don’t need to get it. You guys don’t know, but the empire’s in big trouble lately. I went to sell some stuff the other day and saw chaos—random fees everywhere. Lucky I’m not from there, or I might not have made it back. I thought I went to the wrong place. Looks like they need this woman to stabilize things or something.”
“Probably. I heard seven years ago, when the empire was on the brink of collapse, the current emperor put her in charge. In a few years, she turned things around—peace and prosperity. But just a year ago, they kicked her out after she stabilized things. And now, only a year later, the empire’s falling apart again?”
Unfortunately, their discussion is cut short by a demonizing Sieg.
He twists and rises, his flesh expanding uncontrollably, his body growing massive, bursting through the granary with a deafening explosion.
In the terrified gazes of the villagers, he speaks hoarsely:
“Since you’re prepared to kill, you must also be prepared to be killed.”
That night, the village runs red with blood, flames soar into the sky, and all its wealth is swept away.
No one knows what happened.
Only Sieg, now with a pile of treasure—much of it adventurers’ relics, a staggering amount—knows.
How did he get it?
Picked it up, of course.
No one wanted it, so he turned on auto-loot.
Finally, he has the startup funds to build his Demon King Castle.
He chuckles lightly as the man and woman walk along a forest path.
He looks down at a bloodstained wanted poster—no, a search notice—stating that whoever finds Saintess Emilia will be rewarded with 100,000 gold coins.
Even providing a lead earns 5,000. Sieg is stunned.
A year of hard work earned him only 2,000 gold coins, plus the 1,000 he just looted, making 3,000.
He glances at the girl, as if seeing a mountain of gold.
Silent, but she knows what he’s thinking.
She sighs quietly, her blood-red eyes showing a hint of helplessness, but she speaks up.
Her delicate hand rests on her chest, as if resolute, her eyes downcast, like she’s facing the gallows.
“If you want, I can go back.”
“What do you mean, ‘if I want’? That’s ridiculous.”
Sieg retorts, frowning. It’s as if he’s forcing her into something degrading.
He hasn’t mistreated her this past year—good food, good drink, because she’s still useful.
Until her use runs out, he treats her like a guest, with no personal feelings involved.
The more he thinks, the more annoyed he gets.
He stops, staring straight at the girl, his tone dripping with sarcasm and a smirking grin.
“Don’t tell me you want to go back to the empire but can’t bring yourself to admit it, so you’re hoping I’ll say it to ease your conscience. Same old scheming mind. It’s not the first time you’ve betrayed me, so one more time doesn’t matter.”
Don’t think he’s serious—he’s just being polite, same as a year ago.
If she nods, her head would roll instantly.
“I don’t want to go back. I’m serious. I’m tired. I swear in the name of the goddess, I won’t betray you again. I’ll stay by your side.”
Emilia hurriedly waves her hands, shaking her head, sincerely stating her stance.
Why go back?
There’s no reason.
To be a workhorse again, only to be kicked out?
Now, she just wants to complete her mission and go home—nothing more.
She glances up at her companion, seeing his persistent distrust, and feels a pang of despair.
Her favorability with him is growing so slowly.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.