The legend of the Crimson Demon clan started from Suqing.

Chapter 623 Passing the Demon King's Castle Three Times and Finally Entering

the next day.

After a day of rest, the Scarlet Demon Village, which had been destroyed by the Demon King's army, was completely renewed. If I hadn't personally experienced the battle the night before last, I would have thought that the Scarlet Demon Village had not been invaded at all.

However, the team members were already used to it and had considerable experience with the frequent invasions by the Demon King's army led by the Demon King's daughter. It's no exaggeration to say that they were the experts in fighting the Demon King's army.

After resting, the group, carrying their luggage, didn't rush off. Instead, they accepted Sister Tao's invitation to visit the fortune-telling shop of the Crimson Demon Clan... no, the most famous fortune teller in the entire kingdom.

"Ah! Venerable... my poor little brother, are you really going to embark on this difficult path to defeat the Demon King!? Do you know how many hardships and tribulations await you ahead! Why must my little brother bear this fate...!"

"I know, of course I know, my dear sister! But for the sake of the Crimson Demon Clan, for the peace of the kingdom and the world! I must embark on this journey and shoulder the mission of defeating the Demon King!"

"How could this be...!? Such a sense of responsibility! My little brother has grown up... I'm so touched! Well then, let me wish you well! May you successfully defeat the Demon King and return safely...!"

"I will, sister. I will return victorious and fulfill our promise! You must wait for me!"

The siblings embraced.

Meanwhile, the beautiful older sister kissed her younger brother's forehead, offering him a farewell blessing—although it was a particularly touching scene, it was actually just the Red Demon Clan's chuunibyou (middle school syndrome).

It wasn't for the Crimson Demon Clan, nor for world peace, nor for any sense of responsibility; it was all because of a joke Sister Tao made back then.

What we're seeing now is nothing more than an awkwardly embarrassing, yet touchingly poignant, farewell scene between siblings.

—Once Zun Zun got this point, he immediately understood the purpose of his sister's trick of bringing them to the fortune-telling shop.

of course.

Before leaving, she performed a divination for them, and the result, naturally, was that their fate was fraught with hardship, foretelling that they would have to pay a considerable price to successfully defeat the Demon King…

This inevitably raises suspicions.

She said that for the sake of the show.

But to everyone's surprise, Aqua, that idiot, actually believed it. She was too scared to set off to defeat the Demon King, saying she wanted to wait a while to level up. In the end, Darkness forcibly carried her away.

This personality is exactly like that of Kazuma Sato.

Just as everyone was leaving the Crimson Demon Village, a group of people suddenly caught up with them—

"Wait! Venerable One, have you forgotten about me? Or are you planning to go and defeat the Demon King yourself?!"

"...Yuken Hibiki!?"

Seeing the person rushing over, he widened his eyes slightly.

It was Mikado Hibiki, wearing the Holy Armor of Aegis, and behind him were his two companions, whose names I remember were... the spearman Fio and the thief Clemia.

The approaching Mikami Hibiki spoke in a rather unfriendly tone.

"You...you're not planning to abandon me, are you?"

"how come……"

Actually, I forgot.

Honestly, whether he's there or not makes no difference in defeating the Demon King; as long as I can face the Demon King myself, I can easily resolve the situation.

Moreover, to some extent, Miken Hibiki is not an ally, but rather a hindrance, or perhaps an adversary.

Their common goal is to defeat the Demon King, but who should do it is very important. When Zun Zun was sent to another world, he did not rashly attack the Demon King, but was actually somewhat relieved.

If he acts impulsively.

He might actually succeed.

"Never mind." It seemed that Yujian Xiangye did not intend to make things difficult for Zun Zun on this matter. "Since you also plan to go and defeat the Demon King, then go together."

I must say, he's quite clever.

Instead of offering to be an ally, he suggested they were going the same way, while also implying that even if Zun Zun and the others didn't go, he would still go to defeat the Demon King today, making it impossible for them to refuse.

"Isn't it great?"

That's what Darkness said.

"Brother Demon Sword is, after all, a hero I sent over. His strength is much greater than Kazuma's."

Aqua acknowledges him, even though she can't remember his name even now.

"Heh, let him join. After all, my explosion magic is too special. Let him help clear out the mobs before facing the Demon King."

Huihui seemed to regard him as a handyman.

"I... I also think that Mr. Yujian is quite strong, which will make the journey to defeat the Demon King much easier."

Youyou followed closely behind.

Although everyone's comments were quite harsh, they generally agreed with Yujian Xiangye, and he himself looked at Zun Zun seriously.

"...I understand. Welcome to the team, Hibiki."

"Ah! I will defeat the Demon King, leave it to me!"

The two of them gripped each other's hands tightly.

"……Um?"

"...Eh? Wait, wait... It wasn't me! Hey, Aegis! Let go! You're going a bit too far! Let go of Zun Zun's hand! Don't touch him, don't touch his hand with such a lewd gesture, let go! That's too much!"

It seemed to be Saint Armor Aegis's own initiative, and only after Miken Hibiki kept cursing it did it reluctantly let go.

Yu Jianxiangye was speechless.

I feel that although Saint Armor Aegis is very good, it has too many problems, and it also constantly harasses the two teammates, thus indirectly lowering its own rating.

Therefore, he made his decision!

After defeating the Demon King, return him to the goddess Eris!

……

Zun Zun used teleportation magic to arrive at the plain hillside closest to the Demon King's castle. Looking at the Demon King's castle, which was shrouded in dark clouds, he felt a great sense of oppression.

"I say, isn't this place even scarier than before?"

"...Because the Demon King gave a warning." They almost got their base raided; if they don't strengthen their defenses now, they'll be courting death.
Darkness asked with slight concern, "Can we still go in?"

"It's alright!" Huihui patted her chest and said, "As long as I have enough high-quality magic crystals, I can easily blast the mere Demon King's Castle barrier to smithereens! But..."

There are currently no ultra-high quality magic crystals available.

Aqua raises her right hand.

"I can't either. I could have used magic to break through the barrier before, but with it reinforced, I'm powerless. There's nothing I can do about it; I didn't expect them to be prepared. Alright, since we can't break through the Demon King's Castle barrier, let's go back and discuss this further... okay?"

She had been thinking about escaping ever since the beginning.

Yu Jianxiangye also looked at Zun Zun, his eyes indicating that he had no other choice either.

Zun Zun said smugly, "Actually, when I invaded the Demon King's City last time, I set up a coordinate inside that allowed me to teleport in."

"What?! It's actually possible to do something like that!?"

"Of course!"

If teleportation magic can set up teleportation points in the realm of gods, how could a mere Demon King's city not be able to do it? After Zun Zun snapped his fingers, a magic circle enveloped everyone, and they disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Then, with a flash of light, everyone appeared inside the Demon King's castle.

"what?"

"They really... got in?"

"No way."

Looking at the familiar maze-like passage, Darkness, Megumin, and Yuuyu were slightly surprised, while Aqua couldn't help but burst into tears, only to have her mouth covered to stop her crying.

"Phew... Did they come in again?"

"I'm a little nervous, with this pervasive, invisible pressure."

Miken Hibiki's two little followers were a bit nervous.

"Fio, Clemia. Relax a bit. Even if we lose this time, we can challenge you again in the future. I know you've reached a plateau and have been secretly leveling up in various places to catch up with me... Thank you for sticking with me to the end. Let's go and defeat the Demon King together and return in triumph!"

She's quite good at public speaking.

At least after Yujian Xiangye said that, his two little followers' eyes were filled with spring water.

"And the only problem I'm worried about is..."

He then looked at Zun Zun.

It made me feel a little uncomfortable.

"What are you doing?"

"It's nothing. I'm just worried about what will happen if you accidentally disappear again, Venerable One? We can't just give up halfway through again, can we? No, I've made up my mind! Even if you disappear, even if Lady Aqua doesn't approve of me, even if I'm all alone, I will still go and defeat the Demon King!"

"...I've already apologized."

Zun Zun didn't see any determination in the person; instead, he kept complaining to himself.

"But don't worry, I don't know how to..."

Before he could finish speaking, he vanished.

"Ok?"

"Hey! Zun Zun, where did you go!?"

"No, no, please! Nobody in the team knows teleportation magic right now. Even if we invade the Demon King's castle, we won't be able to get out! I'm saying... Venerable One!?"

"Your Excellency, could it be that it's not going to happen again...!?"

"seriously!"

Everyone was in a panic.

Just as they were searching for Zun Zun's figure, he suddenly appeared in front of them again, but the smile on his face looked slightly awkward and angry.

"I say, Zun Zun, you wouldn't have just...!"

"That's not true! Listen to me, with the Star Cup, I can't be teleported so easily..."

The person disappeared again.

A few seconds later, he reappeared.

"In short, I've fixed my coordinates, and I won't be teleported no matter what..."

The two people disappeared without a trace.

A few seconds later, it reappeared.

"Therefore, we will definitely not let you down at this crucial moment!"

"—This is completely unconvincing!"

Yujian Xiangye couldn't hold back any longer.

Less than a minute had passed, and Zun Zun had disappeared three times—if I'm not mistaken, he must have been teleported away three times, right? Although I don't know how he came back or why he was so fast, it's hard not to worry.

"It's okay...it's okay...!"

"But--"

I said, it's okay!

Zun Zun slightly raised his head and looked up at Yu Jian Xiang Ye. Those red eyes gleamed with a terrifying light, which made him somewhat afraid.

"I...I understand...Then I'll leave it to you, Venerable."

"give it to me!"

He readily agreed and chose to ignore what had just happened. After all... how could he possibly admit to such an embarrassing incident as being teleported three times in a minute after making such a boast?

(End of this chapter)