Chapter 186: Who Gave You the Right to Meet the Demon Lord’s Gaze? Kneel!

Translation by: Weebsread👹

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“Ssshh—”

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The campfire flickered, painting the clearing in hues of violet and gold, its glow dancing across the encroaching night. The scent of roasting fish—skewered and slowly turning under Lin Wei’s magic—permeated the air, rich and inviting.

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Opposite him sat the Saintess, eyes wide with delight, the firelight mirrored in their depths.

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Camping beneath the stars, sharing a meal by the fire… for her, it was a first—strange and wondrous.

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Especially with Mr. Lin Wei at her side, she felt a security she’d never known before, as if the darkness itself held no threat.

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“This is just for you to experience,” he told her gently. “No need to keep watch tonight. Sleep well, and rise early for the road tomorrow.”

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They’d been traveling for a full day since leaving the City of Argos.

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True, when they first set out, Lin Wei had put on a stern act, threatening Yalis with all sorts of dire warnings: “I’ll put you through grueling training! Don’t expect me to go easy on you!”

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But in the end, those words were empty. Once their journey toward the City-State of Brook began, all his plans to make her suffer quietly vanished.

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After all, the Saintess was simply too adorable. If he were still the Demon Lord of old, he might have tossed her into a sea of lava for a proper trial by fire.

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But now, as a Clergy Member of the Holy See, he couldn’t bring himself to be so heartless.

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“It’s like taking my little sister on a trip,” he mused. “Even if she’s supposed to suffer, it always turns into sightseeing.”

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Lin Wei sprinkled spices over the finished fish and handed it to the drooling Little Saintess. Watching her, he couldn’t help but chuckle. “So, if I left you here alone, you wouldn’t get scared, would you?”

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“Hm? Why would you leave me here by myself, Mr. Lin Wei?”

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Yalis accepted the fish with a delighted smile and took a huge bite, cheeks puffed out, her words muffled as she looked at him in confusion.

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“I just wanted to see if the fearless Saintess ever feels a little fear.”

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The wilderness pressed in, silent and oppressive.

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Yalis, taking his words to heart, glanced warily at the darkness beyond the firelight. The warmth of the flames only reached so far—beyond that, the world was a well of inky blackness.

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She chewed slower, a chill creeping up her spine, that ancient, nameless dread of the unknown.

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Mr. Lin Wei wants to leave me alone in a place like this?

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“Th-this question…”

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She was quite sure he wouldn’t actually be so cruel… but she couldn’t be entirely certain.

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“If… if it’s just for a little while, I think I could manage. But if you’re gone too long, I’d probably get scared.”

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If she acted too tough, he might really walk away.

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After a moment’s hesitation, Yalis offered a cautious answer.

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In truth, she wasn’t lying.

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“I see… Well, I need to step away for a bit.”

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“You stay here—don’t wander. I’ll be back soon, all right?”

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“Eh?!”

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Just like that, her worst fears came true.

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Lin Wei stretched lazily, as if merely tired, tore off a piece of fish for himself, and chewed.

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Catching Yalis’s wide, innocent gaze, he shrugged. “In the wild, you and your companions should always check your surroundings before making camp.”

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“Don’t worry. I’m just doing a quick patrol. As long as you stay within the firelight, you’ll be perfectly safe.”

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She claimed she wouldn’t be scared for a short while, but her face betrayed her.

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Still, no matter how much he doted on the Saintess, if he shielded her from every hardship, it would be too much.

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Ignoring her pleading eyes, Lin Wei turned and walked away, refusing to let sympathy sway him.

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If it were Iresha, he might actually bully her a bit. Why was it only the Saintess who softened his heart?

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“Maybe it’s her unique Team Favorite skill…”

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Natural airhead, beautiful, and utterly adorable. All those buffs at once.

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Just like the Saintess archetype in his memories—they really were supposed to be like this.

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“Awooo…”

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He cast a quick illusion, sending a wolf’s howl echoing into the darkness. Yalis, who had almost jumped up to follow, froze and sat back down.

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The unknown terrors of the night seemed to double, pressing in on her.

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“Mr. Lin Wei… mmph!”

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She scanned the shadows, clutching her fish like a talisman. Suddenly, it tasted like nothing at all.

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Her bravado crumbled, and the spark in her eyes faded.

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He really left…

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Patrolling was necessary, of course.

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But he could have taken me. I could learn from him.

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So he really did leave me here…

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But… I can’t cause trouble for Mr. Lin Wei.

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He said I wouldn’t be scared, so I have to stick it out.

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Just stay close to the fire. Wait for him to return.

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Without Mr. Lin Wei, I really am helpless…

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She couldn’t help but mutter, sensing a strange déjà vu—someone else always said the same thing.

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All she could do was wait.

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◇

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As for the Saintess’s worries? Lin Wei didn’t care.

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The twisted, gnarled branches loomed in the darkness, like monstrous jaws waiting to devour him.

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It was as if the abyss itself stared back, ready to swallow him whole.

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“Hm…”

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He’d put several kilometers between himself and the camp.

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Once certain Yalis wouldn’t try to follow, Lin Wei finally stopped.

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Eliminating threats? Unnecessary.

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His Skills were strong enough to sense the entire area. If anyone could sneak up on him, they’d have to be a Demon God.

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No, he was here for something only he could face alone.

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Because… someone had been following him all along.

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“Krulu.”

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His previously calm face chilled in an instant, eyes turning sharp and menacing.

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No one had ever seen this side of Lin Wei before—the darkness, the overwhelming presence.

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Powerful, violent, untouchable.

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He simply stood there, but it was as if the Demon Lord himself had descended upon the night.

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“Come out.”

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“M-Master Demon Lord!”

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A cloaked figure stepped from the shadows.

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It was the same assassin from earlier—the one who’d failed to kill the Saintess that morning.

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A faint scent of blood drifted from her, but it was her own.

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Had it been daylight, anyone could have seen the gruesome wound splitting her flesh from abdomen to neck.

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Her hands, arms, every limb beneath the cloak were cracked and bleeding, as if her body had already fallen apart, held together by sheer will.

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Even with her monstrous vitality, the black flame leaking from her wounds gnawed at her, refusing to let her heal.

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A corrupter, a curse—the antithesis of life itself.

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She radiated a chill that made the skin crawl, indistinguishable from the Evil God’s energy.

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“It really is… you!”

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But all that agony was nothing compared to the wild, feverish joy in her eyes.

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She could never mistake that scent!

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That voice, that bearing—impossible to imitate.

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And that face, known to only a handful in the world.

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Calm, handsome, exuding an aura of absolute power.

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It could only be him. Alone with him, she was certain.

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“I sent people to the Imperial Capital, sensed your aura in their letters. I thought it was an illusion, but… it’s really you, returned at last…”

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“Are you here to lead the demons to conquer the world again?”

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She threw back her hood, revealing tufted feline ears and vertical pupils—if Afuduo was catkin, this was the real thing: claws, beast-hide armor, and a wild, ecstatic energy.

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“Krulu… do you still dream of conquest?”

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Lin Wei’s gaze was calm, but something dangerous flickered in his eyes.

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A slow, crimson smile curved his lips.

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“Yes! Please, take me under your command again!”

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She flung herself at him, cloak and all, desperate for the comfort he’d once offered after every defeat.

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That reassuring hand on her head, the Demon Lord’s leadership—nothing could stand against it.

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“Master Demon Lord! You’re finally back… I missed you so much… We finally meet again…”

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“Master Demon Lord… ugh—”

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But her words were cut short by a flash of agony.

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She’d hurled herself into his arms like a worshiper, but Lin Wei’s fist slammed into her abdomen, twisting her face with pain.

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He looked down at her with utter disdain, as if kicking a stray dog aside.

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“Follow me? So you can betray me again? Collude with the Cult of the Evil God and ruin my plans?!”

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No mercy. No pity.

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Even as Krulu’s face shone with adoration, even as her wounds seemed to fade beneath the strength of her devotion.

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Lin Wei stomped on her abdomen, grinding her into the dirt, her screams echoing as crimson light filled his vision.

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“Drag me back into war, ignore my orders, attack the Coalition Army’s leaders? You dare defy me now?!”

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“Krulu! Why did it have to be you?!”

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“You were the first to storm the human camp, the one who led the Demon Army in betraying me! And now you want me to lead you again? Do you think I’ll be stabbed in the back twice?!”

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He kicked her, sending her broken body tumbling through the trees, until she landed in a heap, blood soaking her tawny skin, her expression still one of pitiful devotion.

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“Kneel.”

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At Lin Wei’s cold command, even with her body on the verge of collapse, Krulu scrambled to crawl back to him, prostrating herself like a beaten animal, pressing her lips to his boot, whispering with her last shreds of strength.

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“Please forgive me, Master Demon Lord… Master… they tricked me… Let me atone with my life, just don’t hate me… Master…”

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Had it been any other Demon General, Lin Wei wouldn’t have let them utter a word.

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But faced with Krulu’s pitiful, broken plea, he ground her knees into the dirt.

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Bones snapped, but she kept groveling, desperate to please, never daring to resist.

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Lin Wei sneered and overturned a potion over her head.

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“Shhh—”

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The elixir, guided by magic, poured into her mouth in a steady stream.

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As the healing took hold, the clash of holy and Evil God’s energy burned inside her, wildfire devouring her from within.

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Lin Wei stood over her, his eyes glacial, devoid of human warmth.

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The Demon Generals—his own creations.

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When he awoke from his stone coffin, they’d been nothing but empty titles.

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Only after he set foot on this land did they begin to grow—training, fighting, becoming true calamities in his name.

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Under the Demon Lord’s banner, the Demon Generals became monsters capable of razing nations.

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Especially within the Demon Lord’s castle—they could unleash their full power.

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But among them, the most unique, the most gifted, the one he valued above all… was Krulu, the secret Fifth General.

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He’d plucked her from the front lines—a demi-human with half-demon blood, who’d awakened an ancient power from ten millennia past.

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He remembered how, at sixteen, she’d arrived at the castle—a shy, scrawny girl. Now, she was a juggernaut.

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And even so… she’d betrayed him when it mattered most.

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“Come here. I have questions.”

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There was no returning to the demons for him. Not now.

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Looking at the one he’d once trusted most, who had chosen betrayal in the end, Lin Wei’s voice was cold and impatient.

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The Evil God’s energy was eating her alive, the holy power in the potion tearing at her insides.

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But Krulu didn’t dare delay.

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She crawled to him, face pressed to his shoe, not a hint of resistance in her half-beast form.

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Even as her body split apart, she refused to show pain, terrified of displeasing him.

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“Master… ask me anything, Master. I’ll answer everything.”

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Whether deceived or not, she’d broken his orders and forced him from the demons. If he killed her here, she would accept it gladly.

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“What’s the state of the demons now? Have they chosen a new Demon Lord?”

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Lin Wei’s tone was frigid, his foot idly nudging her as if she were no more than a pet—glaring down at the beastial, broken Krulu.

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“And you—one of the Demon Generals—how did you end up in such a pathetic state?”