Chapter 35: A Demonic Dilemma and a Looming Threat

Struck where it hurt, Arius’s lips twitched involuntarily.

‘Unbelievable,’ he thought. ‘Absolutely unbelievable…’

‘He hadn’t even gotten a chance to mock Allyrose for her fiancé’s apparent disinterest, and now *she* was mocking *him* first?!’

The Second Prince immediately began to pant, his anger flaring. After a long moment, he shot a furious glare at Allyrose.

Then, he spat out a harsh warning: “Just you wait! You’d better still be laughing later!”

With a huff, he turned and stormed away.

‘Hmph hmph hmph~’

Watching her opponent’s utter exasperation, Allyrose couldn’t help but feel a surge of satisfaction.

‘Of course, she felt absolutely thrilled.’

A moment later, the long black-haired girl turned, tugging at Luo Jia’s arm. Her eyes sparkling with excitement, she began to recount their exchange.

“Well? Well, Little White Hair~! Wasn’t my verbal assault just now absolutely devastating? And wasn’t I so cool?”

“Uh…”

Watching the smug girl beam with pride, Luo Jia quietly wiped a bead of sweat from his brow.

‘Honestly, her attack power was still a bit lacking.’

‘But then again…’

‘She was so happy; it would be rude not to praise her, wouldn’t it?’

“Mhm, mhm~ Truly impressive~!”

The ‘Little White Hair’ silently extended a hand, clapping with an air of complete professionalism.

The long black-haired girl’s lips twitched at the sight.

‘Oh, come on, did he really have to be so perfunctory?’

‘Well…’

Luo Jia tilted his head, for at this very moment, the Demon King was grappling with a peculiar dilemma.

‘Hmm… come to think of it, I *am* the Demon King.’

‘Theoretically, all demonic beings are my subjects.’

‘And the demonic beasts in the forest, though low-level and unintelligent, are still demonic beings!’

‘If I were to help Allyrose fight these demonic creatures later, wouldn’t it seem a little… odd?’

…

‘Ah, forget it!’

After a brief moment of hesitation, Luo Jia decisively made his choice.

His decision was simple.

‘He wondered if the meat of a Calamity-level demonic beast was edible, and more importantly, if it tasted good.’

Indeed, following the girl’s instructions from last night…

The Demon King was already contemplating potential ingredients.

‘Cough, cough…’

Of course, this wasn’t to say Luo Jia was now subservient to Allyrose. What a joke! He was the Demon King.

It was simply that…

‘Cooking, it seemed, was quite an interesting endeavor.’

****

Heavy, dark clouds smothered the sky. Arius had certainly chosen an auspicious day for this practical combat course. A chilling wind swept through the ranks of the advanced class students, raising goosebumps.

Despite the presence of armed guards surrounding them, and the principal and Teacher Yuna trailing at the very rear, a palpable tension settled over the group. Each student found themselves nervously swallowing.

After all, this was the closest approximation to a true combat zone—no, it *was* a true combat zone.

A nature reserve, after all, was an entirely different concept from a mere breeding farm.

Trailing at the back of the formation, Yuna nervously monitored the students’ every movement, dreading any potential mishap. Should these pampered young masters and ladies suffer so much as a scratch, the repercussions would fall squarely on her.

Yet, according to the strictures of the practical combat course, instructors were forbidden from intervening without cause. Only if a student faced imminent danger of injury could a teacher step in to provide aid.

To intervene prematurely, clearing threats before they even materialized, would defeat the entire purpose of the exercise.

What meaning, then, would such a lesson hold? A course devoid of genuine pressure offered no benefit to real combat experience; it would only leave students bewildered when confronted with true peril, utterly lacking the capacity to manage unforeseen circumstances.

Therefore, guided by a sense of responsibility, Yuna could only diligently supervise the group, fervently hoping the students would resolve any dangerous situations themselves. She vowed not to intervene unless absolutely necessary, reserving her aid only for truly life-threatening predicaments.

‘But…’

‘Tsk…’

A moment later, the red-haired ‘Big Sister’ cast a helpless glance towards the contingent of guards Arius had brought along.

These fully armored warriors were presently fanned out around Arius and Vivian, maintaining an intense, twelve-point vigilance. Witnessing such an overtly protective formation, Yuna couldn’t help but inwardly scoff.

‘Was there even a point to a practical combat lesson with this? Even if they were truly surrounded by a horde of demonic creatures, nothing untoward would happen, would it? These guards, after all, wouldn’t possess the same student-training consciousness that she did.’

‘Sigh…’

Thus, this so-called practical training exercise was, in reality, nothing more than a thinly veiled setup, entirely orchestrated to target Allyrose.

A wave of concern washed over the red-haired Big Sister as she glanced towards Allyrose. To her surprise, the long black-haired girl, trailing at the very end of the line, seemed utterly bored. She stretched her adorable little mouth wide, letting out a soft yawn.

‘How utterly boring~’

Ambling at the rear of the procession, Allyrose watched the formidable pioneering squad ahead. Feeling entirely devoid of pressure, she found herself growing drowsy. Suddenly, a student with remarkably keen eyesight from the front of the group cried out in alarm.

“No, look! Quickly, everyone! Up ahead… up ahead, there’s a massive, dark expanse…”

“Hmm?!”

‘What an odd way to describe something!’

Hearing the cries from the students ahead, Allyrose blinked in confusion. She strained to stand on her tiptoes, eager to get a glimpse of whatever commotion was unfolding.

Alas…

‘Hiss—arghhh!’

‘This was truly the long black-haired girl’s most exasperated moment! For the first time, she felt utterly diminutive. Why did those boys in front have to be so tall? Hey, hey, hey—!’

Then, in that very instant, a sudden sensation enveloped the girl. Her waist was encircled from behind. Luo Jia, standing directly behind her, then lifted her forcefully, raising Allyrose effortlessly above the heads of the crowd before them.

The scene beyond was immediately, utterly unobstructed.

‘Mmh…’

“Hmm?!”

Allyrose, abruptly hoisted into the air, was momentarily dumbfounded. It took her a beat to process what had happened, her face flushing crimson.

A moment later, she lowered her head, pouting playfully as she gave Luo Jia a soft smile. Then, in a hushed tone, she spoke.

“Little White Hair, you’re quite considerate~ Well done~! Big Sis will reward you by letting you wash my socks later, okay~?”

‘Hiss—’

‘Suddenly, I had an overwhelming urge to drop her!’

The Demon King’s lips twitched in a helpless grimace. Yet, almost immediately, both of them forgot their playful banter.

For a moment later, the crowd, who had been frozen in place, observing the unfolding situation, erupted in a sudden wave of panic. Allyrose turned her gaze towards the loudest shrieks, and then… she saw them.

A horde of four-legged, purplish-black lizards was slowly, inexorably crawling towards the terrified students.

‘Oh, wow!’

Not only Allyrose’s pampered classmates, but even the long black-haired girl herself had never encountered such demonic creatures before.

However, the textbooks did mention them: these were likely… Quickshadow Demonic Lizards!

Common-level demonic beasts… Though classified as ‘common,’ they were among the most notoriously difficult of their rank to contend with.

The books also specified that these creatures were highly social, possessing formidable cooperative combat abilities, and their colonies typically numbered over a hundred individuals.

‘Hiss—’

A moment later, as they gazed upon that dark, undulating ‘ocean’ of creatures, the students’ calves began to tremble uncontrollably.

‘This colony size… it seems a bit off from what was written, doesn’t it?’