“Who, who exactly are you?!”
It watched the woman’s transformation with terror, a silver-white figure flashing in its mind. Yet, it found it hard to believe they were the same person.
“Can’t you tell yet?”
Lena waved her hand expressionlessly, severing her other arm. As the demonic entity recognized the silver-white petals manifesting from her magic, it finally accepted the truth.
“Silverbloom, Silverbloom Sword Princess?! Lena, Lena was just your disguise?!”
It tumbled to the ground, its fear escalating infinitely.
‘I thought I was just capturing a woman without magic, but it turned out to be the Silverbloom Sword Princess. Could this have been a trap from the very beginning?’
As this thought flashed through its mind, it struggled to its feet. Without a second thought, it spread its bat-like wings, preparing to flee for its life.
Seeing the sudden shift, the other two demons also unfurled their wings and flew off in different directions.
But how could Silverbloom possibly let them escape?
She softly chanted a short spell, and pure white flowers began to sprout from beneath her feet. The flower stems rapidly grew, surging towards the sky like vines, coiling around the fleeing demons.
They struggled desperately, but the vines only tightened their grip, dragging them back relentlessly until they were brought before Silverbloom.
“Tell me what you know, and spare yourself the suffering.”
Standing before the lead demon, Silverbloom met its gaze, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on her lips.
“No, it’s useless… I won’t say anything…”
Apart from its head, the demon was completely immobilized, yet it remained resolute, unwilling to divulge what it knew.
Not expecting such an easy answer, Silverbloom crossed her arms, observing something peculiar. “You weren’t always demons, were you? I’ve never seen low-tier demons capable of rational thought.”
“So, let me guess. With human-like minds and consciousness, and strength ranging from second to third-tier, you must have been Vidona’s knights before this?”
She had long harbored doubts. True low-tier demons rarely possessed intelligence; they acted solely on instinct.
However, these demons before her were entirely different from those she had encountered years ago. They possessed fully functioning brains, and their logic and behavior were indistinguishable from genuine humans.
Coupling this with her previous encounters—Bruul and the hero Black Sun, both of whom could transform into demons—she had already formed a subtle hypothesis.
These demons were all transformed knights of Vidona.
“How laughable. Do you even know what you’re saying?”
Though the demon continued to speak defiantly, its reaction was less intense than before, betraying a hint of guilt.
“Demons can feel fear too?”
With a soft chuckle, Silverbloom intensified the magical hold of the flower vines until the demon shrieked in agony. Then, she asked, “Who transformed you into demons? Was it the Captain of the Knights, who commanded the knight order, or the Administrator Roy?”
The demon snarled in pain, gasping for breath twice. “You want to know? Then come closer, and I’ll tell you!”
Taking a step forward, before Silverbloom could even fully settle, the demon suddenly opened its cavernous maw, its neck elongating grotesquely, aiming to devour Silverbloom’s head in a single bite!
But Silverbloom was prepared. Without any visible effort, the flower vines coiled around its neck and head like tendrils, dragging it back to its original position.
Unperturbed, she continued, “Do your families know you are demons?”
While her impression of Vidona’s knights was generally neutral, anyone who passed the knight’s assessment, no matter how flawed their character, would never willingly become a demon reviled by all. Therefore, these creatures had likely been forced into their current state.
“Families? If I could go back, I would have eaten them long ago!”
The demon licked its lips, utterly devoid of humanity.
This also made Silverbloom realize that they were no longer Vidona’s knights, but cruel demons with fragmented human thoughts.
There was no hope for salvation.
“You were knights in life. I once thought you might retain a last shred of humanity, but alas…”
She raised her hand, pointing it at the demon, her voice filled with pity. “Rest assured, your families will know you died a hero on the battlefield. That should bring them some comfort.”
“No, no, no, I have, I have humanity… Ahhh!”
Realizing Silverbloom’s intent, the demon thrashed madly, begging for its life. But in the end, Silverbloom’s hand slowly clenched into a fist.
At the same moment, the tiny thorns on the flower vines pierced its flesh. It could distinctly feel its life rapidly draining away, and its eyelids grew heavier.
Yet, it had no means of escape.
Soon, its head slumped. Its flesh transformed into flower mud, nourishing the white blossoms, making them even more delicate. Its fragile bones, like sand, scattered with the breeze.
It was as if it had never existed, its traces wiped clean.
Having completed this, Silverbloom walked over to another demon.
With a gentle smile, she softly said, “Answer my previous question. I hope you are a little smarter than it was.”
It was a warm, beautiful smile, yet to the demon’s eyes, it was the death knell announcing the end of its life.
“Demon, you are the demon…”
It trembled, its voice sharp and hoarse, articulating its profound fear.
****
Meanwhile, the demons surrounding Celia’s trio grew in number, yet their oppressive force gradually diminished. Several times, Celia and her companions nearly broke through the encirclement.
Still awaiting news of Lena’s capture, the leader demon of the bat-winged horde’s expression turned grim, its ominous premonition intensifying.
When its patience finally ran out, it seized a subordinate, baring its fangs with savage ferocity. “Where is that woman? Why haven’t you captured her yet?!”
The seized demon dared not move. It stammered, replying, “I don’t know. The hero protecting that woman was already lured away…”
“Useless! Do you not realize that if we fail this time, we will all die?!”
This news enraged the leader demon completely. It bit off its subordinate’s head, tossing its body to the ground, then clenched its fists, silently pondering its next move.
Celia, fighting the demons, naturally witnessed this scene. With just a quick thought, she understood what had transpired.
“What? Can’t catch Sister Lena, so you’re fighting amongst yourselves?”
With her longsword parrying a demon’s sharp claws, she seized the opportunity to mock them in an odd tone. On her other side, Isha even raised her grotesque mask.
“Pfft~ You can’t catch Sister Lena at all! Kneel and beg us now, and we might leave you a whole corpse. Otherwise, we’ll chop off your limbs and make you suffer endless humiliation!”
She hurled the leader demon’s earlier threats back at it, infuriating it to the point of grinding its teeth.
“Too arrogant…”
It intended to personally teach them another lesson, but before it could act, another messenger demon arrived beside it.
“B-boss, the demons sent to capture that woman, they’re all… gone!”
It whispered tremblingly, fearing that its message would displease the leader, resulting in its own head being bitten off.
Although their heads could regenerate, their enemies wouldn’t grant them the time. Especially now, they might be burned alive before their heads could even regrow.
“Gone?!”
The leader demon roared in fury, grabbing the messenger demon by the neck and lifting it from the ground.
“Bastard! You always find such cowardly demons!”
“Boss… they, they didn’t escape…”
“They didn’t escape? Are you saying Lena killed them?! She’s just an ordinary person with no magic!”
Ignoring the messenger demon’s explanation, it bit off its head again.
After tossing aside its body, the leader demon turned to glance at Celia and her companions, instructing, “You all hold them back for me! I’ll go see for myself!”
With that, it unfurled its sole wing and flew directly into the sky. Some remaining demons, seeing this, exchanged glances before following it, with only a few staying behind to stall Celia.
In truth, the leader demon wasn’t leaving the battlefield to capture Lena; it was doing so merely to escape. Capturing Lena was now impossible; the mission had clearly failed.
If it continued to fight, heroes like Skyfire and Chiling, currently held back by their superiors, would arrive. If it didn’t flee now, only death awaited it.
Although mission failure meant becoming fodder for their master, escaping Vidona might still offer a sliver of hope.
Behind it, many other demons harbored the same thoughts.
Insidiousness, treachery, and cunning were synonymous with demons. They reveled in the suffering of others and never truly pledged loyalty to anyone.
Shortly after leaving the battlefield, the leader demon intended to quickly escape Vidona. However, as it looked down from the sky, it unexpectedly saw the very person it had dreamt of capturing—Lena.
On the empty street, Lena walked alone, the cold wind rustling her clothes and hair, forcing her to hug her shoulders for warmth. She seemed uneasy, hurrying along, occasionally glancing behind her as if avoiding something.
She walked alone on the road, completely unprotected.
‘Wasn’t this the best chance to capture her?’
Ecstasy flashed through its mind, and its mouth once again stretched into a wide grin, saliva continuously drooling from the corners. If it could just capture Lena, the mission wouldn’t be a failure. The previously arrogant Celia and her companions would then kneel before it, displaying expressions of agonizing torment!
At that moment, it vowed to tear out their tongues, then break their bones one by one, making them suffer an unbearable fate!
Staring intently at the woman on the street, still unaware of the danger, it waved a hand. The demons that had been fleeing with it immediately turned and charged towards Lena!
However, what it hadn’t anticipated was that Lena, who had appeared frightened, became calm upon seeing them. Then, her appearance subtly began to change.
Before it could comprehend what was happening, white flowers coiled around its body. Startled, it tried to break free using its fourth-tier magic, but the flowers only tightened their grip.
Amidst its desperate struggles, it heard a gentle voice remarkably close by.
“Hello there, Mr. Demon. We can now resume the question I didn’t get an answer to earlier.”
Raising its head in a daze, it realized it had been dragged onto the street by the flowers at some point. The woman who had been some distance away was now standing directly in front of it, a warm smile on her face.
An inexplicable, bone-chilling cold washed over it. It knew it had fallen into a trap. The woman before its eyes had been the bait from the very beginning. The magic-less Lena was, in fact, their greatest nemesis—the Silverbloom Sword Princess.
‘So, those three demons didn’t escape; she killed them.’
Silverbloom’s gentle voice sounded again, “Who turned you into demons?” Yet, for some reason, it found itself unable to speak.
Afterward, it heard her mutter to herself with a hint of disappointment, “A mute? No matter. After you die, I’ll say you sacrificed yourself on the battlefield. That way, your family will feel better.”
‘Family?’
A strange yet somewhat familiar word flashed through its mind. Before it could ponder it further, its savage instincts compelled it to open its bloody maw at the woman before it once more…
The clenched hand slightly relaxed. After devouring the last demon, the white flowers transformed into starlight and dissipated into the air.
Silverbloom reverted to Lena.
She had used this identity as bait, capturing many demons and interrogating them, but still hadn’t obtained the answer she sought. Who was it that caused Vidona’s knights to fall and become demons?
The Captain of the Knights, or Administrator Roy? Or perhaps someone else, like the Adjutant?
Upon careful consideration, she believed Administrator Roy was the most likely culprit, as these knights were his subordinates.
As she pondered, Sharlene, who had saved several heroes, rushed back.
Though no traces remained at the scene, her sharp intellect allowed her to deduce that a major battle, or rather, a massacre, had just occurred here.
A massacre of demons by the seventh-tier hero, Silverbloom.
Not long after, Celia’s team, having annihilated the demons, reunited with them. Seeing that Sharlene was still by Lena’s side, they couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
“It’s good that you’re alright.”
Celia was covered in blood, a faint pallor on her rosy face. Her legs trembled slightly from exhaustion as she walked.
Second and third-tier demons had surged like a tide. Even with their exceptional teamwork, their stamina and magic were nearly depleted. Fortunately, the demons’ momentum had waned, and the heroes guarding the city gates had arrived, allowing them to eliminate all the demons in the central plaza.
“With Sharlene protecting me, you don’t need to worry.”
Lena reached out, cupping Celia’s cheek, tenderly wiping away the blood on her face. Then, she glanced at Isha and Aurora, praising them with a smile. “You’ve truly grown so much.”
“Of course! This is all the result of our hard training!”
Isha placed her hands on her hips, huffing twice, a look of smug pride on her face. Aurora, meanwhile, covered her mouth with a soft laugh, delighted by Lena’s praise.
Afterward, they met Skyfire and Chiling.
Both heroes looked grim. Their absence here clearly indicated they had been held back by the demons’ tactics. Chiling was more suited to investigating Vidona’s demon incident than Silverbloom, so Lena pondered for a moment before deciding to subtly convey the information she knew to her.
“Where are Roy’s knights?” she suddenly asked.
Sharlene frowned at the question, not quite understanding her meaning. The others also looked at Lena, awaiting her explanation.
“Demons appeared during the celebration, so why weren’t Roy’s knights present?”
At these words, Sharlene instantly caught on. Knights, like heroes, were one of Vidona’s vital defensive forces. Yet, with demons appearing at the celebration, there was no sign of the knights.
Where had they gone?
“That scoundrel…”
Sharlene snorted, realizing that Administrator Roy was implicated. “Leave it to me to handle from now on. You can all go.” Chiling, an eighth-tier council member, naturally understood this and took charge of everything.
After dealing with the demons in the celebration, the group did not linger. Celia and her companions, who had a slight aversion to cleanliness, couldn’t stand the demon flesh clinging to them, so they hurried home, eager for a thorough bath.
Lena had originally intended to visit the Witch’s Flower Shop, as a message from Liss informed her that demons had raided her shop, and many of the flowers inside had been ruined. Fortunately, the celebration had given the staff a day off; otherwise, they would undoubtedly have encountered the demons and lost their lives.
However, Sharlene didn’t want her to go to the flower shop. She linked arms with Lena, pulling her into a tavern that was still open for business.
Upon opening the tavern door, the interior, though not crowded, was far from quiet. Many patrons were still loudly drinking and boasting about their exploits.
“Didn’t you know, that demon almost shoved the little girl’s head into its mouth earlier? I just went up and punched it, knocking its teeth all over the floor!” A burly man, seemingly drunk, had one foot on a bench, a drink in his hand, swaying as if he could fall at any moment. “After that, I held the little girl…”
“Alright, alright, stop bragging. You’re not a hero. How could one punch take down that demon?”
“Hey, don’t you believe me? Want to compare your head with my fist?”
The boisterous environment, coupled with a faint stench that even perfume couldn’t mask, made Lena despise coming to such places, especially since only alcohol was sold here. She couldn’t drink such things.
Furthermore, upon entering, she felt several gazes fall upon her, seemingly scrutinizing her, while Sharlene adjusted her glasses and moved to her side. As the Guild Master of the Hero Guild, Sharlene was a prominent figure in Vidona these past years. Her appearance caused those who had ideas about Lena to behave themselves.
After sitting on a chair at the front counter, she turned her head to Sharlene. “Why did you bring me here?”
“Have a drink.”
“I can’t drink.”
“It’s fine, juice will do.”
Sharlene asked the bartender for a bottle of strong liquor and a glass of juice. Then, propping her chin on her hand, Sharlene quietly watched Lena.
Feeling a little self-conscious under the gaze, Lena twisted her face. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s been ten years, and you’re still so beautiful.”
‘Did she bring me here just to say that?’ Lena smiled helplessly.
“There was a demon attack just now. As the Guild Master, shouldn’t you be taking charge of the situation?”
“If I have to take charge of everything, this Hero Guild might as well disband.”
Completely unlike her usual workaholic self, the current Sharlene seemed genuinely tired, utterly lacking interest in work. Receiving the strong liquor and juice from the bartender, she handed the juice to Lena, softly murmuring, “They’ll do a fine job.”
Noticing her low spirits, Lena took a sip of the tart juice. “Are you trying to tell me something?”
“Do you remember the first time we met? It was in this very tavern.” Taking a mouthful of strong liquor, the fiery sensation made Sharlene grimace.
“Of course, I remember. You threw up all over me back then.”
“…Let’s not bring that up again, it’s quite embarrassing.”
“Oh, so you *do* know shame?”
Detecting the hint of grievance in Lena’s voice, Sharlene twitched her lips, a faint blush of shyness spreading across her cheeks. She had always prided herself on being elegant and ladylike; getting drunk and throwing up on her best friend was indeed quite damaging to her image.
Lena, on the other hand, felt a touch of sentimentality at her transformation. Ten years ago, Sharlene was not yet mature, more like a disheartened girl who barely knew how to dress herself. Now, as Guild Master, she was mature and captivating; her long, silk-stockinged legs alone had charmed countless heroes.
After two more sips of the strong liquor, the blush on Sharlene’s face was no longer just shyness; it increasingly indicated she was getting rather drunk.
“I wanted to ask you, when you said I was a gifted hero, were you just comforting me, or did you truly believe it?”
This was a question she had always wanted to ask, even though she thought she knew the answer. Even now, having broken through to the sixth-tier, she wasn’t a true genius. Silverbloom had likely just been comforting her back then.
Lena was silent for a moment.
“Do you want to hear the truth?”
“Yes.”
“Actually, I’ve long forgotten that I ever said those words to you.”
…Well, reality was even crueler than she had imagined. Silverbloom probably said the same thing to every junior. She wasn’t even comforting her back then, but merely giving a habitual reply.
After a long pause, she saw Lena tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, then softly and gently say, “Because in my eyes, the future of every hero is immeasurable. Perhaps some have good talent and can become high-tier heroes, while others are less gifted and can only remain at the low-tier.”
“But who can say that strength represents everything? Many heroes’ talents aren’t even in that aspect; they just haven’t discovered where their strengths lie yet.”
She paused there, then turned to look at Sharlene, smiling. “And most importantly, in the eyes of all who love them, they will always be the most excellent and perfect. That is enough.”
Sharlene stared at her face, stunned. Her drunkenness unconsciously receded slightly because of these words. It wasn’t comfort, nor was it habit. In Silverbloom’s eyes, she truly was a gifted hero.
“That’s truly an answer Senior Silverbloom would give.”