“Are you going to see Marie Rose? Hmm... Do whatever you want.”

It was neither Grid’s intention nor meaning to ask Braham for permission. He just thought it wasn’t polite to contact Marie Rose without informing Braham.

“It’s okay?”

Grid expected a violent reaction from Braham. From Braham’s point of view, Marie Rose was someone Braham had a deep-rooted enmity with. Grid thought Braham would be angry with him for meeting her. Yet Braham was surprisingly sober. “Why wouldn’t it be okay? It is up to you who you meet and what you do. It doesn’t matter even if you have a liaison with her or not.”

“T-The term liaison is a bit... in the first place, I’m not interested in her.”

Grid looked around like someone was listening. Marie Rose was pure and bewitching. She might have the most ideal ratio of beauty, but surprisingly, she wasn’t to Grid’s taste. Perhaps it was because her beauty was so perfect that it felt unrealistic. In the first place, Grid had people he loved. Shifting his eyes to a new woman when he couldn’t even organize his relationships properly with the women already in his life? He couldn’t do that unless he was a son of a bitch.

“I mean it doesn’t matter if you cooperate... what did you take it for?”

The embarrassed Grid coughed and asked straightforwardly, “Hum hum, can you be amiable with Marie Rose?”

Braham wondered, “What is your purpose?”

Purpose? Of course, it was to eat and live well. He wanted his family, colleagues, and people to be happy and peaceful. The necessary processes to achieve this ultimate wish were...

“Destroy the great demons in hell, help the four gods of the East Continent, and save Hexetia in Heaven.”

“Destroying the great demons is among them. That is also my wish and Marie Rose’s duty. It isn’t bad to join forces for a while if there is a part that matches our purpose. Personal feelings are just a luxury in front of the cause.”

Magicians were extremely intelligent people. As long as Braham recognized himself as a ‘magician’ instead of a ‘vampire,’ he would be able to postpone any resentment toward Marie Rose. Grid was reminded of Kasim. The man who swallowed his grudge against the empire for the future of the Overgeared Kingdom...

Kasim and Braham were truly very good people.

“Um...”

Lord was now too far away even for Barbatos’ Vision. Grid came back from the memory of his conversation with Braham and made up his mind as he stood with his back against the setting sun.

‘Let’s go.’

He could intuitively tell that a meeting with Marie Rose couldn’t be avoided just because he didn’t want to be in a relationship with her. They would be involved in the future anyway. it was better to establish a good relationship with her. Above all, Braham wasn’t worried about Grid going to meet Marie Rose. Braham was well aware of Marie Rose’s personality, so it meant that the possibility of her harming Grid was low.

“Your Majesty,” Mercedes called out to Grid who was ready to leave. “I will go with you.”

He felt the will to never withdraw from her determined eyes.

Grid nodded gently. “Yes, let’s go together.”

“......?” Mercedes was confused. Her duty was to defend Grid but Grid had always been reluctant to let her accompany him on the pretext of danger. Now he was saying to go together so easily? Mercedes was relieved.

‘I thought he wanted to go to a dangerous place alone again. Fortunately, this isn’t the case.’

Yes, there should be times for people to rest. Mercedes thought they were going for a walk nearby but she soon turned white as she followed Grid. The only place among the vampire cities that hadn’t been attacked. No, it was a place they couldn’t attack. Grid stopped in front of the entrance that was ‘her land,’ also known as the home of the vampire duke Marie Rose.

“......”

She never imagined their destination would be here until she took the warp gate to Reidan. Why did he come to this place that he had been avoiding so far? Was His Majesty fascinated by her as well? Mercedes’ hair shook slightly as she recalled the shocking beauty of Marie Rose, who came to Lord’s coming of age ceremony. Yet she didn’t break her posture no matter the time or the circumstances.

Grid looked at her blue hair that was the only lively thing in this dry desert under the hot sun and opened his mouth, “You’ve already seen it with Keen Insight, but Marie Rose is very strong. Perhaps even a dragon can’t treat her carelessly.”

Mercedes didn’t deny it. The Marie Rose whom she met at Lord’s coming of age ceremony was in a different dimension. She was confident that she had become stronger after defeating Hell Gao with Grid’s help, but she couldn’t do anything against Marie Rose. It wasn’t merely at a level that could be called a species difference. Marie Rose was special compared to the direct descendant vampires who followed Grid. Her origin itself felt different.

“I think Marie Rose’s strength is necessary for the future of humanity.”

Mercedes with her Keen Insight and Grandmaster Zikfrector. Two of the people with humanity’s greatest potential were originally destined to have died. Satisfy’s story was designed to continue without them. However, could the story continue without Marie Rose? Grid predicted that there would be no variable of Marie Rose’s death.

In particular, if he assumed that the reason why the Evil God Yatan expelled Beriache instead of killing her was because he couldn’t kill Beriache, it meant that Marie Rose’s power—that transcended Beriache—could reach a divine level. Physically, it was hard for her to die.

“Marie Rose was born at the expense of Beriache’s life and has a duty to avenge Beriache. Her enemy is Yatan, the evil god who expelled Beriache from hell and the great demons who follow him.”

“...You mean that you can cooperate with her.”

There was confidence in Grid’s voice as he answered, “Yes.”

Therefore, Mercedes had no doubts. “I will follow you. If she doesn’t want to stand by your side, I will punish her even if it means sacrificing my life.”

“...Don’t do that.”

Then let’s die together.

***

“Is this a warning? He is still so childish.”

A boy examined the landscape outside Reinhardt and clicked his tongue. The skinny body and pale white skin caught the eye of passersby. A man who appeared to be in a group with him was completely covered by a robe, making them seem even more suspicious. The man who didn’t care asked the boy, “What do you mean?”

“These mountains.” The boy pointed to some debris that had large and small rocks mixed with them. The man thought it was traces of destroying a building, but it turned out to be a ‘mountain.’ The boy continued, “It is the aftermath of Disintegrate.”

“Disintegrate...”

The legendary great magic that was said to be the strongest among magic with no attributes. As far as humanity knew, there was currently only one man who could use it. Braham. The strongest power Grid relied on. The man’s expression stiffened at the thought and the boy explained, “As long as Braham leaves a mark that he is staying here, no one would dare to make trouble here. It is a type of domain marking.”

“Kukuk, smashing mountains just to show his domain, he has a hot-tempered personality.”

“He is a crazy guy. In any case, I don’t want to deal with him.”

The boy frowned when the man in the robe laughed.

“Can you please show us your ID?” Just then, soldiers approached and surrounded them. The passersby seemed to be going past, but they had actually reported it.

Did he look like a child abuser? The man was frowning invisibly when the boy whispered to him, “Should I kill them?”

“Didn’t you just say that you don’t want to meet Braham? You might immediately encounter him if you cause a disturbance here.”

“It is your wish. In any case, I have to follow as long as you are my master.”

The boy who spoke bluntly was called Pauld. Pauld was a magician who was active in Braham’s era. He failed to become a legend because his skills, achievements, and every aspect were lacking compared to Braham, but he was still called a great magician. A few months ago, he was resurrected hundreds of years after his death. He ate the Kunlun Ginseng and was reborn as a complete lich. His master was naturally...

“Excuse me? Please cooperate.”

“Of course I will cooperate. I’m sorry for my slow actions.”

It was Agnus. He took off his robe with a wide smile once the soldiers urged him and pulled out an ID card. The soldiers confirmed it. The name was Havel. 35 years old. Occupation was a craftsman. His residence was in Saharan and he was supporting an ailing mother and a young son...

There were no problems with the contents of the ID. However, the soldiers of the Overgeared Kingdom were known for their thoroughness. “Is this your son?”

"Yes, my son’s dream is to also become a craftsman. He saw that I was visiting Elizabeth’s workshop and resolutely followed me. He isn’t in good health.”

“Um...”

The soldier who was trying to ask for the boy’s ID looked nervous. At a glance, the sickly boy and the thin father were rich in life experience and could endure all types of storms. The ID card was fine and there was nothing strange, so he didn’t want to be stricter than necessary.

However, the senior soldier’s attitude was different. This investigation was carried out due to the report of residents, so he planned to proceed with the formal procedure. “Your son’s ID.”

"Yes, here.”

“Um... How is your relationship with your father?”

“It’s good. Very much so.”

“I’m glad. I’m done checking. I hope you make good memories in Reinhardt.”

“Thank you.”

Agnus nodded to the soldiers, passed by the fields, and reached the city gates. He also passed unharmed through the gates.

Pauld laughed. “It is magic to change your appearance by covering yourself with the skin of a corpse. It is really disgusting like a demon’s technique, but it is convenient.”

“Isn’t it ridiculous for a madman who turned himself into a lich to say it is disgusting? Sniff sniff.” Agnus suddenly started sniffing. He thought there was an unpleasant smell at the tip of his nose, but it turned out to be the stench from his body. The corpse skin he was wearing had started to rot. It seemed he needed new corpse skin before visiting Elizabeth’s workshop.

He didn’t want his identity to be discovered and a commotion to occur. He only had one purpose in visiting Reinhardt. It was to gain the materials needed for the artifacts that Pauld would create. Elizabeth was a craftsman level artisan maker and she could make the materials. He would have to pay quite a lot of money, but...

“Look for a graveyard. Find a private cemetery or family cemetery where there are few people.”

“Croak. You are too careful. Since ancient times, Baal’s Contractor should advance and dominate with overwhelming force and no scruples. Croak. You have almost been like a rat recently. Croak.”

It was Chepardea who grumbled while jumping and searching for a graveyard. The toad, who was the subordinate of the 1st Great Demon, Baal, was useful in many ways.

"There are quite a few powerful people. We have to be very careful while we’re staying here.” The soldiers who were merely security guards gave off a feeling of martial ability with just one glance. Perhaps they might be caught the moment a high ranking security guard passed by. Pauld reflexively controlled his magic power and warned Agnus. Agnus looked over a fence toward a training ground and nodded.

“I know that.”

The dozens of targets lined up in the training ground had traces of arrows piercing ‘only the center.’ The spacious grounds of the academy were filled with elemental energy, while the towering towers were filled with powerful magic power. On the surface, it was a seemingly peaceful city. From a slightly different perspective, it was a place where all types of monsters lived.

“Let’s become rats as Chepardea said.”

After the destruction of Luna (believed to be real), Agnus changed. Now he faced reality. Like other rankers, he became calm and cautious. The Agnus who always lived with madness and death no longer existed in the world. It was the birth of a new evil, the demon king.