"It dropped that much loot?"
A flash of delight crossed Kurose Akira's face. After defeating the Flame Demon Virgil, they had actually obtained an Epic-grade Flame Core, along with a full Elite-grade Blazing Demon armor set!
"Here."
At that moment, Lotherin drifted down from the air and handed the block of flame demonstone to Akira.
Within the stone, an Undying Flame was sealed—its temperature terrifyingly high.
"So hot! You hold onto it instead!"The instant Akira took the flame demonstone, the heat scorched his palm, and he hurriedly passed it back to Lotherin.
"The Undying Flame inside can only be sealed for less than a day. You must return it to Lady Rose within that time."Through the white veil, Lucia's golden-crimson eyes rested on Akira as she softly emphasized the importance of the matter.
"Less than a day…?"Akira stared at the flame demonstone in Lotherin's hand, his brows knitting slightly.
An Epic-grade item, yet it could only contain the Undying Flame for such a short time—just how absurdly powerful was this fire?
"Hahahaha! Incredible!"Glen strode over, his entire body coated in ash, yet his grin was radiant. "No wonder Her Ladyship ordered us to cooperate with you. Your adventurers are terrifyingly strong!"
Akira smiled faintly, then turned his gaze toward where Virgil had fallen."Where's the core of the demon lair?"
Only by destroying the lair's core could it be completely annihilated. Yet after Virgil's defeat, there had been no sign of it.
"I… don't know. It should be nearby?" Glen scratched the back of his head, looking puzzled.
"Guildmaster! I think I know where the core is!"Suddenly, Fuli raised her hand eagerly.
"You do?"Akira looked at her with curiosity.
"Mm-hm!" Fuli nodded firmly."I can feel a powerful surge of energy deep within the magma. That should be where the core is."
"Deep in the magma…?"Akira stroked his chin. It was probably due to Fuli's pure fire-element body—her sensitivity to flame was far sharper than anyone else's.
"That's troublesome," Glen frowned. "If it's deep in the magma, how are we supposed to destroy it?"
"Guildmaster, leave it to us!"Fuli and Flora volunteered together. "We can use fire-element magic to create violent震动 at the bottom of the magma, shattering the magical barrier protecting the core. The core itself can't withstand magma's heat—once the barrier is broken, it'll be destroyed."
"Good. Do it."
...
Outside the demon lair.
"We finally got out!""Damn it! A level-50 Flame Demon—how were we supposed to beat that?!""Thank god we ran fast. We were this close to dying in there!"
After fleeing the lair, the players all let out deep sighs of relief.
But their panic unsettled the forces waiting outside.
The black-haired female officer stepped forward urgently. "What happened inside?"
"Run. Now," one player said gravely. "There's a level-50 Greater Flame Demon in there. We're no match for it. You need to mobilize all military forces in Red Maple Leaf Territory—otherwise, once it emerges, the casualties will be catastrophic."
"That's right. We were lucky to escape. The others… are probably already dead."
Hearing this, the officer's brows tightened as she looked toward the demon lair, unease filling her chest.
Suddenly—A violent tremor erupted from within the lair.
"T-This… what's happening? Is the Flame Demon coming out?!"
The soldiers turned pale, while the players frowned, sensing something strange.
One of them cursed in disbelief, "What the hell—did the demon lair get destroyed? What actually happened in there?!"
Before the words had even faded, Glen burst out of the lair, leading the knight order and hundreds of soldiers—everyone covered head to toe in ash.
"We're out! Damn it!"
"Brother! Are you alright?!" The female officer rushed to him.
"Hahahaha! Of course I am! Notify the garrison—everyone can return to the city. There's no need to guard this place anymore."
"Then… the level-50 Flame Demon?"
"Obviously—we killed it."
The moment those words fell, the players present stared in shock.
"A level-50 Flame Demon… killed?"
They couldn't comprehend it.How could a level-50 Flame Demon be killed?That was level fifty!
While everyone was still standing there in confusion, Kurose Akira had already used a teleportation array to return to the guild.
Since Idis wasn't at her estate, there was no reason to remain in Red Maple Leaf Territory. It was better to rest at the guild and recover his stamina.
After enduring the magma terrain, everyone was filthy with ash—they desperately needed a wash.
"Then~ we'll go bathe first~""Mm."
Yvesa entered the guild's only bathroom together with the elf sisters. With only one bath available, they had to take turns.
Akira thought to himself that the guild might need to expand—add more bathrooms, or perhaps just build a large communal bath.
So everyone could bathe together…
"Cough, cough."
With a thought, Akira opened the event points panel. After killing Flame Demon Virgil and destroying the demon lair, his points had reached 425.The extra 25 came from casually finishing off a few lesser flame demons on the way out.
"The top player already has 1,400 contribution points…?"
Akira stared at the leaderboard, murmuring softly.
Was that player doing nothing but grinding event missions nonstop?
And judging from the event channel, the top-ranked guild seemed to be only C+ rank. For a guild of that level to push this hard, the top-three rewards must be extremely valuable.
Akira searched the event channel for clues, but no one seemed to know much. The only confirmed information was that the rewards were tied to the history of the Starfall Kingdom.
"The Starfall Kingdom's history… could it be related to the Valkyrie?"Akira rubbed his chin.
If the rewards involved a Valkyrie, then they were absolutely worth fighting for.
As he pondered, a slip of paper drifted down from above.
The distinctive scent of roses told him instantly—it was a note from Idis.
He caught it and read.
Idis:I have urgent matters to attend to. Keep the flame demonstone with you for now. Before it shatters, I will personally come to retrieve it.
"..."
Akira frowned slightly after reading it.Idis really was busy.
He turned to Lotherin. "Where's the flame demonstone?"
At his words, Lotherin immediately took it out. The intense heat spread through the entire guild hall, as if invisible flames were burning the air itself.
"What exactly is the Undying Flame?" Akira asked, studying the stone curiously.He couldn't inspect it—some mysterious force wrapped around the flame, blocking any attempt to perceive its true nature.
"The Undying Flame comes from the Abyss," Lucia explained softly from her seat."Legend says it was the heart of the Wrath Demon King. His endless fury could burn everything, and no one could kill him. But legends are just that—the Wrath Demon King was defeated. His heart shattered into three fragments. Those fragments are what we now call the Undying Flame."
"Just… fragments?" Akira was stunned."Then how powerful must the one who defeated him have been?"
"It wasn't anything extraordinary," Lucia added calmly. "After all, the one who defeated him was the current Pope of Light. Dealing with a single Demon King was within reason."
"So the Pope of Light defeated the Wrath Demon King… no wonder…"Akira couldn't help but marvel.
"What? In your understanding, is the Pope stronger than a Demon King?" Lucia tilted her delicate foot slightly, asking with curiosity.
"At that level, it depends on the situation. Either could win," Akira replied honestly."And I don't really know the Wrath Demon King's strength, nor have I ever seen the Pope of the Light Church. There's no basis for comparison."
"Is that so? That makes sense."A faint glimmer passed through Lucia's eyes beneath the veil.
"By the way," Akira continued, "as the Holy Maiden of Light, you must see the Pope often, right?"
"Yes. Every day," Lucia answered lightly.
"Every day…?"Akira glanced at her, a subtle suspicion forming in his mind.
He also noticed something else—Lucia was completely spotless. After enduring lava and ash, everyone else was filthy, yet she remained pristine.
Especially her pair of delicate feet—still snow-white, radiating a quiet, enticing allure…
Cough.
"Kurose Akira~ we're done~"Yvesa and the others emerged from the bathroom, their hair still damp, fresh fragrance clinging to them.
"Master~ it's our turn!" Alice said brightly, wrapping herself around Akira's arm.
"?"
...
Elsewhere—deep within the Abyss.
Idis stood amid darkness.
Before her, hundreds of unawakened young succubi knelt, trembling.
"Lady Idis, please spare us! From this day forward, the succubus clan will obey your every command!"Mary bowed deeply, offering her submission.
The moment she learned that all those who had fled the Abyss in search of revenge had perished, she understood—no one could stop Idis's return anymore.
A cold gleam flashed through Idis's dark-red eyes. With a flick of her finger, a blood-red portal bloomed into existence.
"Enter," she said coldly. "From now on, you are nothing more than my slaves."
"Yes!"
Mary sighed softly in resignation and led the hundreds of young succubi into Idis's portal…