Chapter 246
He tried to keep his voice steady, but there was an edge of doubt, of disbelief.
No matter what, it sounded too absurd for a single human to do it without alerting anyone. The very idea gnawed at him—an entire region wiped out, and yet no one had noticed until it was too late. He didn’t want to believe that this was done by the human but rather that it was some kind of ploy.
“Haha… you brat, you think I don’t know what you mean? Grow your horn first before suspecting me. It’s my city, and all demons here are my subjects. I won’t sacrifice my kin for useless schemes,” the city lord growled, his voice low and dangerous.
Sera stepped forward. The air around her seemed to sharpen, a cold, dangerous edge in her stance. “I will handle this matter personally from now on. I assure you that the culprit will be presented before you shortly.”
Vasoth’s eyes widened slightly, a flicker of surprise breaking through his usual stoic expression.
Sera’s words came as a shock to Vasoth. For their captain to step up was very rare, but the situation was also serious, so he remained silent.
“Captain!” He managed to contain his astonishment, but inside, he felt a pang of shame.
A single human was not worth his captain’s attention at all.
How badly had they failed if their captain herself was forced to intervene?
Despite being cunning and scheming, he and Drul, along with all her other subordinates, were extremely loyal to her.
Demons followed the law of strength, loyal to those stronger and in awe of those with capabilities.
Vasoth was on Sera’s side and always made plans in her favor, to elevate her above others. Even back at headquarters, he had always been cautious of everyone, keeping his captain’s reputation above others.
But this time, so much had happened that their captain was forced to come in person to take action.
He felt even more ashamed than before. The bitter taste of failure lingered in his mouth, stoking a fierce resentment for the human who had forced them into this situation.
If something happened and the human caused even more danger, then the people back at headquarters would attack Sera brutally with this excuse and try to restrict her as much as possible.
He had never felt more hatred for a human than at this moment.
The thought filled him with cold dread. Sera was not only his captain but his ally in a world where loyalty was rare. He could not allow her to fall because of this.
However, everything would be over soon. Sera was not like them, after all.
The city lord waved his claw in a dismissive motion. “Do what you must. I want the culprit behind this whole situation, dead or alive. Let me witness the power of the infamous Black Lotus.”
Sera didn’t reply but turned around and left. She should have acted as soon as she was informed of the intruder in the city.
She hadn’t expected it to turn into such a huge matter now. Even one of her subordinates was killed.
Her jaw clenched as anger simmered beneath her calm exterior. Her eyes darkened as she parted her lips, an enchanting yet threatening smirk forming on her face.
‘A single human… it’s been a while since someone so interesting has appeared.’
The sound of her heels clicking against the rugged road echoed; the thrill of the hunt stirred something fierce and exhilarating within her.
‘A human I was not able to sense…’
She looked at the yellow, dusty sky, feeling a surge of excitement in her veins. The sky seemed to mirror her mood, casting a dim, hazy light over the city as if preparing for a storm.
“Vasoth,” Sera called to him, her back facing him.
“Yes, captain?”
“You said you left those human slaves at the city square?”
“Yes, captain. I left those livestock there only.” A brief hesitation flickered in his eyes as he asked, unsure, “…Was I supposed to take them with me?”
He asked the last sentence in a low tone, wondering if leaving the slaves there was a mistake. Perhaps they could have threatened the human by holding them hostage?
After all, it was known that those human rebels in the demon lands usually went after the captured ones, aside from other nefarious acts.
He considered them nothing more than mere livestock, and what he did was logical. People like them were not weak enough to need hostages—especially not their captain.
But maybe the situation required them to settle this quickly?
“No,” Sera shook her head, a smile on her face.
“What you did was right.”
She whispered as a glint flashed through her cold eyes. It was a calculating look, a gleam of anticipation that Vasoth rarely saw.
“He will fall for it,” she said. “After all, he is a human.”
“Prepare the troops, we are going to clean a lot of pests soon.”
“Pardon?” Vasoth asked. But Sera said nothing more, a mysterious expression on her face.
However, neither of them realized that the human they were after had already left the city.
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Outside the city…
Oliver was sitting on a piece of rock.
He had already left the city along with the group of slaves.
The city gates now lay far behind him, the distant silhouette of the walls barely visible in the misty morning light. He had incapacitated the guards at the city gate and forced their way out.
Now, he was sitting across from a makeshift campfire with a few pieces of sleeping cloth laid out in the open, where the other six who had left with him were resting.
They had, of course, looted the guards at the city exit, ransacking everything.
Coins, food, and scraps of armor lay scattered around the camp, hastily gathered trophies of their escape.
Oliver didn’t want to share his belongings in the space artifact with them, after all.
Even after rescuing them, he didn’t have any solid plans for them. His gaze flicked over the sleeping forms, his mind already calculating his next move.