How come even this place has been completely cleaned out?
Via opened the treasure chest and frowned at the empty interior.
There was truly nothing left except dust.
In her previous life, she had secretly stashed some jewelry and other valuables here. Part of it was meant as rewards for her subordinates, while the rest was for emergencies.
Yet when she actually needed them, someone had already taken everything away.
These guys… they really didn’t leave a single thing behind!!
Meow meow meow meow?
In a dim corner of the room, the little yellow cat was preparing to jump up and paw at a handle.
Via quickly walked over and scooped her up.
“Don’t touch anything here, Little Ha.”
“Meow?”
“Even though the Demon King’s Castle doesn’t have much energy left, we can’t rule out the possibility that some mechanisms still have residual mana. If they activate, you won’t have enough lives no matter how many you have.”
Via felt uneasy and promptly placed Little Ha on top of her head.
“Be good and don’t run around, got it?”
“Meow!”
Little Ha responded, indicating she would behave.
Sigh, I hope this trip wasn’t for nothing?
Via let out a sigh and looked around.
At this moment, she was inside the Demon King’s Castle ruins.
She had come relying on memories from her previous life, hoping to find something useful.
Unfortunately, the results were far from ideal.
After her fall in her previous life, her subordinates had truly carried away every valuable item they could get their hands on.
Meanwhile, she—the Demon King herself—had ended up with nothing!
“Lord Demon King, look what I found!”
The room door was pushed open as the green-curled twin-tailed maid rushed in, hugging a pile of stones that emitted purple light.
“These are… Nightglow Stones?”
Via picked one up and examined it carefully.
Kurei explained, “Yes, Lord Demon King. These should sell for some money, right? I found them on the first underground level. There were quite a few magical beasts gathered there. When I got closer, I realized it was because of these stones.”
“They can be sold, though there aren’t many. Still, it’s better than nothing,” Via replied.
Nightglow Stones did not have high value as crafting materials and could not produce particularly powerful equipment.
However, they possessed the property of attracting magical beasts, making them decent bait for hunting.
In the past, Via would not have given them a second glance, but now she could not afford to be picky.
As long as they could be sold for money, it was fine.
At the very least, she could exchange some items for magic stones and fully replenish the Demon King Armament’s energy first.
“Kurei, you’re really capable.”
“Hehe~” Kurei looked delighted. “Lord Demon King, scavenging junk is my specialty! I’ve been doing it here for many years. I’m even more familiar with this place than my own home!”
If only they could find a bit more.
Via felt this still was not enough.
Besides replenishing the Demon King Armament, she had other things she wanted to do.
In this world, one really could not go out without money.
“Lord Demon King, leave it to me!”
Kurei rolled up her sleeves, looking quite reliable.
“Anyway, we still have plenty of time. I’ll try my best to find more valuable stuff!”
“So heavy…”
Via carried a box of Nightglow Stones, her expression showing visible strain.
She and Kurei had already scavenged quite a lot of junk and were now withdrawing from the Demon King’s Castle ruins.
“Let me handle it! Lord Demon King, you head back to the residence first. Your stamina really is quite poor right now. Leave these to me.”
Kurei approached while carrying a massive pile of items that looked like a small mountain.
“Come on, Lord Demon King, toss it up!”
“Alright.”
Via exerted her strength and threw the box of Nightglow Stones upward.
It landed perfectly atop the spoils Kurei was carrying.
This demonkin maid’s strength was truly immense.
She caught it steadily without the slightest sway in her posture.
It really was the right decision to keep Kurei as a maid in the royal court back then.
She thought with emotion.
Although Kurei’s official role was that of a maid, her combat ability was not inferior to many demonkin.
“Let’s go, Lord Demon King,” Kurei said. “If we head back now, Melu should have dinner ready by the time we arrive!”
“Does Melu usually handle the cooking?”
“Yeah, I’m in charge of picking up trash,” Kurei complained. “Melu is mainly responsible for cleaning and household chores. That’s how we divided the work, but she’s really too lazy. Besides cooking, she always finds excuses to avoid cleaning.”
“She’s still like that, huh.” Via was not surprised.
“Lord Demon King, once we sell all these things, we should have some money. Then you can buy magic stones to replenish the Demon King Armament’s energy.”
Via was actually quite satisfied with how Kurei and Melu had arranged things.
Although these two demonkin maids had said they would not serve the weak, they were still helping her.
True friendship is revealed in times of adversity.
When she was at her lowest, they had not killed her but instead reached out a helping hand.
They were far more reliable than the other subordinates.
“However, there’s one thing I find really strange and can’t figure out no matter how I think about it.”
Kurei suddenly recalled something.
“What is it?”
“Lord Demon King, I remember you said that only you can use the Demon King Armament, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“But you’ve reincarnated as a human now. So how are you still able to use the Demon King Armament?” Kurei asked curiously. “Plus, you look completely human right now. Not only can you activate the Demon King Armament, you can even wield Abyssal Force? Humans shouldn’t be capable of that!”
“About that…”
Via did not know how to explain it either.
Because even she herself had not fully understood the reason yet.
Can this really be considered human?
“You only look human on the outside, but you’re different from the humans I know.” Kurei’s casual remark stirred ripples in Via’s heart.
From the beginning of this life, as the daughter of the Perfect Saintess Sylvia, she had always believed herself to be human.
However, along the way, she had noticed one thing—her ability to control Abyssal Force. Could it be because of the bloodline from her father’s side?
Her mother was definitely human, but what about her father?
Various speculations gradually surfaced in Via’s mind.
If her father was a demonkin, then she might not be purely human either.
“Lord Demon King, there are people ahead.” Kurei’s voice interrupted Via’s thoughts.
“Hm?”
Via and Kurei stopped in their tracks together.
On the path back to town, they were passing through a narrow mountain trail.
Figures began appearing on both sides of the path, and up ahead several people armed with weapons were blocking their way.
“Stop right there! Don’t move!”