“Are you an idiot? Didn’t I tell you to wait obediently and let me come find you? Why did you come back?!”
The two of them were completely surrounded, unable to move an inch.
Aelia truly felt as if her lungs were about to explode with anger.
If Hualà had chosen to come back alone to save her, Aelia might have been moved to tears.
But the key point was that Hualà had brought back the ‘Seed of Epiphany’ she was about to send out of the Black Market!
All her plans were ruined by this foolish loli’s arbitrary decision.
“Gu… So what if I’m an idiot?! But if I didn’t come back, wouldn’t you have died?!”
Hualà puffed up her cheeks angrily, her face turning red. How could someone be so willful and unreasonable?!
She clearly saved her, yet instead of thanks, she was called an idiot. Who could stand that?!
Hualà couldn’t bear to see anyone commit suicide, no matter how painful things were—even if it meant slogging away on a Human beer factory assembly line or lying around depressed after defeat.
Weren’t those pains something you just endured and got over?
What could possibly be so unbearable about living?
A hint of confusion flashed across the elven girl’s face.
Her pink lips pressed together, the anger in her chest dissipating, replaced by relief. She apologized for insulting HualÃ.
“Sorry… I shouldn’t have called you an idiot, HualÃ. Um… Or rather, thank you for coming back to save me.”
Aelia started to feel guilty instead.
She had been too suspicious, always wary of HualÃ, hiding the existence of the ‘Seed of Epiphany’.
If not, Hualà wouldn’t have brought it back without knowing its importance.
Thinking about it now, anyone willing to risk their life to save a stranger they’d only known for less than a night wouldn’t covet something that didn’t belong to them.
Besides, the other party was never obligated to help her.
In fact, she had dragged them into danger.
“Quick! Capture the two of them alive for me!”
Seeing the hope of retrieving the lost item, the male Succubus’s eyes burned with fervor.
At his command, his subordinates swarmed toward the two like rabid wild dogs, throwing all reason aside.
The pressure on the two of them became overwhelming.
They struggled against wave after wave of attacks, like butterflies with wings singed by fire, fallen into an ant swarm, wary of being torn apart at any moment.
It wasn’t long before Aelia was utterly exhausted.
Her hand gripping the Short Blade trembled, her muscles aching from the strain.
Even Hualà wasn’t faring much better.
She leaned on the Greatsword she had stolen from a Black Market Dog-head Man, her body covered in sweat.
Hualà regretted it again.
She regretted slacking off during the swordsmanship lessons from the old Sword Saint before being forced to become a Human Hero and sent to the frontlines.
She had forgotten so many moves; even fighting a few Demon soldiers was tough.
Finally, when the two were nearly spent, the Demon leader in the back—the male Succubus in the tailcoat—decided to make his move.
After activating Demonization, the male Succubus’s muscles swelled, bursting through his tailored tailcoat, leaving only tight briefs that looked ready to explode.
A pair of Demon Horns pierced through his skin, curving upward, as Magic surged within him, ready to overflow.
The male Succubus struck a bodybuilding pose called ‘Demon Horns’ toward the two, his broad chest twitching, a bloodthirsty, cruel smile on his face.
The next instant!
He shot forward like black lightning through the night, attacking HualÃ.
The punch was so fast and massive that she couldn’t react in time.
“HualÃ!”
At the last moment, Aelia lunged in front of HualÃ, raising her Short Blade to block the blow.
The blade clashed with the male Succubus’s fist, sparks flying as if it had struck steel!
Feeling the strength of her opponent, Aelia’s face darkened.
A fully demonized male Succubus at the level of a Sub-Demon General was extremely troublesome for the two of them at that moment.
“Aelia, are you okay? Sorry, I spaced out for a moment!”
Hualà hurriedly checked Aelia’s injuries.
“Spaced out?!”
Aelia felt like she was about to die—from anger at HualÃ.
“It’s already come to this and you’re spacing out?!”
“No, it’s just that I sensed something just now…”
“Wait! Move!”
A huge sense of danger slammed into her like a mountain, and alarm bells rang in Aelia’s heart.
Before she finished speaking, the Demon leader lurking in the shadows leaped out, appearing behind HualÃ.
His giant form raised a huge blade, slashing toward HualÃ’s waist.
He intended to cleave the seemingly frail Hualà in two.
Excitement gleamed in the Demon leader’s orange-yellow eyes, as if he could already see HualÃ’s body being severed, blood and organs spilling everywhere.
The sudden attack left everyone thinking Hualà couldn’t possibly dodge or survive.
Yet at that moment, Hualà opened her mouth and shouted a name—one that no one present could have predicted.
A name powerful enough to reverse any crisis.
“Saint Sword!”
Shengjian? What Shengjian?!
A brilliant meteor streaked across the dark night.
The gem set in the hilt of the Saint Sword Phillips burst forth with blinding white light, illuminating the entire Black Market under the black dome.
For an instant, all the Demons present were blinded.
The sword landed point-down less than half a meter in front of HualÃ, embedding itself deep into the marble floor.
On the edge of the crowd.
Hualà looked in the direction the Saint Sword had flown from.
At the edge of the encirclement, Jeilinfa pressed her injured shoulder, let out a sigh of relief, and gave Hualà a thumbs up.
Hualà nodded vigorously, gripped the hilt of the Saint Sword, and, with the sword’s approval, pulled it out effortlessly.
“Shengjian? Pah! Saint Sword?! You—you mean you’re that Human Hero?!”
As they came to their senses, the Demons’ eyes filled with terror.
Wasn’t the Human Hero supposed to be with the Blood Queen after defeat?
How could she suddenly appear in the Black Market? And steal the Seed of Epiphany?
“Why, are you surprised? Surprised that I’m off duty today?”
The Saint Sword’s appearance filled the gap in HualÃ’s strength—the endless supply of pure Magic.
The battle was decided, and it was time to bring down the curtain.
“Now that I lack nothing, all of you line up and wait your turn. Resisting counts as cutting in line!”
Watching the petite figure wielding the oversized Saint Sword like a racket among the Demons, the elf girl Aelia murmured,
“A Human… Hero?”
***
The Black Market incident ended with the powerful Hero Hualà defeating all enemies.
The three left the Black Market, walking down the midnight streets of Demon King Castle Aisaridu.
“Jeilinfa, are you alright? Your hand…”
Hualà still felt a little guilty.
It was all because she sold the Saint Sword for money that everything happened.
“It’s all your fault, Saint Sword! Why couldn’t you fly over on your own and had to make Jeilinfa throw you?!”
Hualà tried to push all the blame onto the Saint Sword, clearing herself completely.
“HualÃ, you…”
Jeilinfa shook her head helplessly.
Just then, the three arrived at the castle gates of Demon King Castle Aisaridu.
In about eight minutes, it would be exactly 1 a.m.—the time the gates closed.
“I’m leaving now. May I borrow Hualà for a moment?”
Aelia asked Jeilinfa.
“Huh? Borrow me?”
Hualà blinked in confusion.
Was she something that could be borrowed?
Unexpectedly, Jeilinfa had no objections.
“Come with me!”
Hualà was dragged by Aelia into a dark, deserted alley, cornered with no escape.
A sense of foreboding welled up inside her, and she swallowed nervously, lips trembling.
“Haha… You—You must have something you want to say to me, right… Like ‘Until we meet again’ or something…”
A gentle smile spread across Aelia’s face, but her words were aggressive.
“Are you taking off your clothes, or should I help you?”
“Gu… Can’t we not take them off?”
“Mm… It might be troublesome, but I suppose it’s possible~”
Before Hualà could rejoice at escaping disaster, Aelia’s hand landed on her chest, squeezing and kneading.
Hualà squeaked, instinctively trying to resist, but a suppressed voice sounded in her ear.
“Don’t move. I can’t find the hidden item.”
The ‘Seed of Epiphany’ tucked inside her underwear had shifted deep into the Slime padding as Hualà bounced around.
To retrieve it, Aelia had to grope around, feeling for its location.
“Gu…”
Hearing this, HualÃ’s clever mind finally pieced things together.
She realized the item the Demons were searching for had probably been hidden on her by Aelia.
Fine, as long as she was really just looking for something and not taking advantage of her.
Hualà wasn’t that unreasonable.
“Gu… Th—Then hurry up.”
“Maybe it’s further inside.”
Aelia frowned.
“I can’t find it through your jacket.”
Before Hualà could protest, a cold hand slipped under her clothes like an eel.
“Guu…”
Her body shivered, cheeks growing hotter.
It felt like kneading dough—the movement just wouldn’t stop.
“Haven’t you found it yet? Could it have fallen out…”
Hualà was starting to lose composure, her voice turning weak and breathless.
“Not yet. Please endure a bit more.”
Hualà didn’t notice the increasingly heavy breaths from the person in front of her, biting her lip.
“Hurry… Hurry up…”
It was so soft.
Completely different from when she bathed herself.
The unfamiliar sensation caused the elven girl to lose herself, letting go of her mission, forgetting the promises she had made.
Suddenly, the ‘Seed of Epiphany’ didn’t seem all that important anymore.
The greenish-blue orb slipped through her fingers several times, but the girl’s hand refused to release the soft thing she held, as if reluctant to let go.
It wasn’t until the great bell of the Clock Tower in Demon King Castle Aisaridu struck 1 a.m. that Aelia jolted, gripping tightly.
Hualà yelped, stars flickering in her eyes.
“Sorry!”
Aelia apologized, realizing time was running out.
She quickly retrieved the ‘Seed of Epiphany’.
“Finally found it. You really hid it well!”
Hualà couldn’t sense anything wrong. All her attention was focused on the greenish-blue orb in Aelia’s hand.
“What’s this?”
“Seed of Epiphany.”
Aelia didn’t dwell on the topic, simply explaining,
“Something that lets you see a true god.”
“Sorry, HualÃ. There’s not much time left. I have to go!”
“Then this bracelet?”
Hualà raised the green Jade Bracelet on her wrist.
“You don’t want it?”
Aelia hesitated, then smiled gently.
“Consider it a thank you for coming back to save me.”
The elf girl made a playful face.
“If you can, it’d be best to keep wearing it. That way, maybe we can meet again someday.”