The Demon King

During the lunch break, Xie Shenhong and Lyte went together to the Crimson Knights’ activity room.

“This is wonderful, Lord Shenhong, you’ve finally graced us with your presence!”

“Princess, I’m sorry for upsetting you in the classroom; I’ll definitely be more careful from now on.”

Seeing that everyone had only undergone slight changes in height and appearance, and acquired some unwarranted self-reproach.

He quickly concealed his guilt deep within his heart, and said gratefully:

“My apologies for keeping you all waiting so long.”

He then informed them of his desire to join the Deep Sea Vermilion Knights.

“You can do it, Princess! You’ll surely succeed!”

“Lord Shenhong, at all times, we will always support you from behind.”

So as not to disappoint their expectations.

So that they would feel their wait had been worthwhile.

“How considerate. I somewhat understand why they hold you in such high regard.”

After leaving the activity room, Lyte mused.

In response—

“You flatter me; I merely excel at speaking pleasantries.”

Xie Shenhong coming here was not because he was moved by Lyte—rather, upon hearing Lyte’s words, he nearly burst into laughter.

This kingdom belongs to all of us… Anyone could say such a thing, but not Lyte, the Imperial Prince.

He was unworthy!

However, Lyte’s other words still held value for listening; after all, sometimes enemies understood one better than oneself.

For example, he had always thought about how not to trouble others and not to overly rely on them… Now he understood that if this mindset was too obvious, it could also cause worry.

For those who resolutely offered help, it would cause them to hesitate and overthink when assisting him, needlessly adding a great deal of trouble…

As for others who had the intention to assist, at best, it would make them indifferent, and at worst, it could even traumatize their spirits…

It might even attract busybody types like Lyte.

Thus, Xie Shenhong buried this thought deep in his heart, and pretended to change on the surface… Indeed, he was precisely that stubborn.

But this was normal.

Even setting aside Lyte’s identity as an enemy, they had only known each other for two days to be convinced by a few words and abandon his long-held convictions… Was it possible?

At the very least, Xie Shenhong believed that his convictions were not such cheap and fragile things.

“I don’t think so. Words are magical things; a single word of encouragement from you, a kind utterance, could change someone’s life. Even more so when spoken with genuine good intentions for the other person,” Lyte said.

“You’re really good at complimenting people.”

Xie Shenhong began to understand how Lyte typically won people over.

“I’m genuinely complimenting you.”

‘Heh, heh, I’d be a fool to believe you.’

Just thinking of Lyte’s true nature, Xie Shenhong couldn’t help but display his standard fake smile—an expression he reserved for people he disliked.

Seeing this, Lyte, as expected, fell for it, believing Xie Shenhong was smiling contentedly out of happiness.

“After lunch break, let’s leave school directly. The president has already requested leave for you.”

“I see…” Xie Shenhong silently took out his phone and sent a message of thanks to Dongfang Qinglong.

As he had said before, he wanted to offer a small, simple token of appreciation so that those who helped him wouldn’t have so many concerns.

At the same time, he wanted them to feel that helping him was a good thing, and to derive satisfaction from the act of helping.

After all, whether he received help or not was a minor matter; if others in the future failed to receive due assistance because of him, that would be a major problem.

Witnessing this scene, Lyte became even happier. One might have thought he was the one being thanked… Xie Shenhong hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did nothing further.

‘I won’t thank a guy like you. What are you going to do about it?’

Lyte clearly didn’t care, and immediately bid him farewell to go eat in the cafeteria.

Watching the golden-haired youth’s retreating back, Xie Shenhong stomped his foot in anger.

At the same time, he comforted himself inwardly, having learned another lesson—that sometimes, the person who receives help desires to say thank you more than the helper.

Of course, when the recipient was an enemy, the best form of gratitude would be to grant them a swift end in the future!

****

After finishing the lunch he had brought, Xie Shenhong went to the changing room to change his clothes.

For ease of movement, he changed into a gender-neutral outfit of a polo shirt and high-waisted capris.

However, his shoulder-length hair, lengthened by magic, was unavoidable, so he simply tied it into a single ponytail.

Thus, on the surface, he still appeared to be an undeniable “girl,” heroic and spirited, yet without losing feminine grace.

‘It had to be this way.’

The issue of his appearance was not something Xie Shenhong could control.

In his previous life, he would have intentionally worn more masculine clothing in everyday life… but then he wouldn’t have come to school.

Now, however, he didn’t care about men’s or women’s clothing.

After all, compared to what was to come in the future, these were trivial matters.

Moreover, when he wore women’s clothes, even if it was just this degree of gender-neutral attire, Duanmu Yun was always very happy.

Although he now knew that Duanmu Yun’s happiness stemmed from her hope that he would serve well as a “power bank.”

But when it came to repaying kindness, as long as the other party’s true goal wasn’t something heinous, he had always been indifferent.

‘No, this alone isn’t enough.’

After leaving the changing room, while there was still time, Xie Shenhong went to the equipment department to begin the final modifications and adjustments to the Crimson Twin Guns.

The core magic stones of the twin guns were undoubtedly powerful, but the pistols themselves were obsolete models from five years ago.

Coupled with his actual experience of the future, Xie Shenhong, as a technician, simply could not tolerate using a relic from nine years prior.

In fact, he had begun the modifications last night, but with limited tools at home, he could only conceptualize the improved blueprints in his mind first, then bring them to fruition now.

Of course, this was merely the first step.

Afterward, he would proactively disseminate the technology of four years hence throughout the entire kingdom.

While it wouldn’t lead to an explosive surge in the kingdom’s power, it would at least grant them a few more points of resistance when facing the Empire.

However, the main focus still depended on his charging of the Hai Zhu puppet.

No matter how strong or numerous ordinary soldiers were, their presence was never as crucial as that of a War Duke.

War Dukes were the strategic weapons of this world.

The kingdom’s biggest problem was that, besides Hai Zhu, it had no other War Dukes.

The Empire, on the other hand, possessed at least seven War Dukes, while the Great Desert Khanate had three.

Though it was called a three-way standoff, if not for a fully powered Hai Zhu being able to fight multiple foes, the kingdom wouldn’t even be a contender.

‘Never mind, now isn’t the time to dwell on such thoughts.’

Having completed the first stage of modifications to the Crimson Twin Guns, Xie Shenhong quickly left the equipment department to meet Lyte at the school gate.

“You look very good in that outfit too,” Lyte praised him immediately upon seeing him.

“As I should.”

Xie Shenhong deliberately replied with an unfriendly tone.

“Then let’s go.”

Lyte’s face still showed no displeasure, but Xie Shenhong knew he was likely just biding his time, and would certainly seek revenge later.

After all, this man, whose true name was Reinhardt, was insidious, cruel, ambitious… and laughable.

“What’s wrong?”

Noticing Xie Shenhong’s involuntary snickering, Lyte asked.

“Nothing, I just thought of something amusing… By the way, where’s the mission location?” Xie Shenhong tried subtly to change the subject.

Lyte had no intention of probing further, but his steps did halt.

“Actually, we’re already there.”

“Oh, is it nearby?” Xie Shenhong glanced left and right, but found no particular or suspicious locations.

“Not just nearby.” Lyte cast projection magic, displaying a map of the Royal Capital. “We have to cover this entire area.”

Watching him draw a large circle on the map, Xie Shenhong paused slightly, taking a moment to fully comprehend.

“The mission you mentioned… is it patrol?”

“Yes.”

Lyte’s expression was resolute and duty-bound.