What do you mean by "this is a dating game"?

In the quiet, dense forest, Nefa walked steadily and unhurriedly.

Upon reaching an open area, he suddenly stopped and turned around without warning.

His aged face was as still as a deep well. He tucked his hands into his wide sleeves and said to the air, "Why don't you show yourself? Do I have to invite you out, sir?"

The surroundings grew increasingly quiet.

Even the insects have stopped chirping.

Ripples spread through the air, and a human figure slowly emerged.

He was over two meters tall, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, with horns on his head that were twisted and as thick as a child's arm.

Its golden eyes burned fiercely, and its left arm was densely bound with iron chains—it was a high-ranking demon.

He said expressionlessly, "Lord Nefa, I extend my greetings to you on behalf of His Majesty Sera."

"Your Majesty? A despicable traitor, a vile parasite, dares to presume to call himself Your Majesty!"

The high-ranking demon was not angered.

He gripped his long sword and said, "Her Majesty said that you are a meritorious subject. You were misled during the riot a year ago, but she still respects you as always... As long as you hand over the 'Crown of the Eastern Demon King,' she can forgive and forget, and you will still be the chief mage of the Eastern Demon King City."

"snort……"

Nephallus sneered.

Sera is the "Demon King".

She killed Sieg, but failed to obtain the most important, unique artifact that could prove her identity as the Demon King—

【The Crown of the Eastern Demon King】.

This crown disappeared along with the Demon King's corpse, and no one knows its whereabouts.

Sera dug three feet into the ground, but still couldn't find it.

Many people suspect that the Crown of the Eastern Demon King is in the hands of the "Remnant Blade Society," and that Sig's fanatical followers stole the artifact and fled to the border region.

The high-ranking demon king added, "It doesn't matter that the crown isn't in your possession. Just tell me where it is, and you too can receive his favor."

Nefar raised a hand: "Enough talk. Come on, let me see the fighting power of an Iron Guard agent."

"You can't withstand one of my strikes, but killing you is not my goal."

The high-ranking demon spoke indifferently.

There was not a trace of warmth in his burning golden eyes. He continued, "I deliberately exposed my presence. You noticed and discovered that I was following you, so you chose to leave the group and face my blade alone. Lord Nefarian, you are a kind-hearted Typhoon, and even if your rank drops to the first tier, you will not change your nature."

"..."

Nepha remained silent, staring intently.

The high-ranking demon is right.

As originally planned, Nepha would accompany Xiyou until the end of this palace.

When he realized that someone was following him and even sending him signals, he quickly realized that the debt collectors had arrived.

Nefa did not want to implicate the innocent.

Even though he didn't know how many people were on the other side, he didn't want Xiyou and Xige to be affected, so after completing the task, he voluntarily left the team and faced it alone.

but……

Kindness is always used as a weapon to torment every moral person.

The high-ranking demon stepped aside and said, "I am a cunning demon. I am going to kill those two now. Do you have anything to say?"

Nefarian's eyes widened in fury, his magic erupting as he straightened his robes: "Your despicable nature is just like Sera's!"

The high-ranking demon finally showed an expression.

It was a chilling, cold laugh: "The Iron Guard Bureau only pursues efficiency."

……

……

Sieg believes that continuing to take risks is unwise.

Only adventurers of the corresponding rank can enter the corresponding Fire Palace.

Under this rule, adventurers of all ranks have a place.

Some adventurers are hopeless; they refuse to drink the advancement potion and remain stuck at Tier 1 for life.

This is a survival strategy.

They went in and out of those few first-tier beacon towers, and they knew exactly how many trees were in the Crimson Fortress. Leaving the beacon towers was like coming home; they were incredibly relaxed.

Among them are morally corrupt individuals, just like those who blocked the bridge in the Delta and bombed the evacuation point.

He doesn't take any risks even when entering the palace; he just crouches in a dark corner, killing other adventurers—he's extremely vicious.

Sieg's nose was filled with the scent of grapefruit powder. He tried to pull his hand away and said, "What's the point of lingering? Miss Grapefruit, Captain Grapefruit, we've achieved our goal. We can still go back and have dinner."

"I brought some dry food, including canned beef."

I brought one too!

Sieg added, "Crimson Fortress is a popular location for raiding. Most adventurer groups will send an elite team to claim the treasure, but we only have two people. What if we encounter a powerful enemy? Raiding is not like outside; your noble status won't help."

Xiyou smiled, her red lips curving upwards: "Putting aside my fighting ability, with you here, what am I afraid of? Just activate your black fire-emitting skill and kill one person with a single punch. What's there to say?"

That's the problem!

The Chain Form is still in cooldown!

Sieg was going all out; although Xiyou was reckless, she didn't seem like a bad person.

He lowered his voice and said, "I consider you one of my own, so I'll give you a heads-up. Once I use that skill, I have to wait ten days before I can use it again."

"That long?!"

Grapefruit's eyes widened as she scrutinized Sieg's face. "You're not lying to me, are you?"

Sieg said seriously, "I'd be a dog if I lied to you. Get out of here, okay? Ten days from now, you name a beacon, and we'll go there. I'll kill whoever I see, I guarantee we'll be safe."

"Um……"

Grapefruit released Sieg's arm and stood with her arms crossed.

His small face was full of thought.

As the daughter of the Morning Star family, she knew that Crimson Fortress was the most competitive and deadliest Tier 1 Fire Palace.

Defeating the leader of the Fire Palace, "Bloodthirsty Urdor," gives you a chance to obtain the blue rare-grade extraordinary weapon, [Black Gold Bone Spike].

Rare weapon.

In Oz's save file, Sieg eventually reached Tier 7, but he only had twelve rare or higher extraordinary items.

The high value of the black gold bone spur is evident; if you're lucky enough to find one, champagne, yachts, and socialites will follow.

Furthermore, because the Scarlet Fortress "map" is small, most of the resources are concentrated in the castle on the mountaintop, leading to a large gathering of adventurers and making accidental clashes inevitable.

Internal data of the Fire Stealing Institute.

Ordinary people can't see it, but Xiyou knows that the average survival rate of Blood Fortress is only 60%.

Of the 100 people who go in, only 60 will come out alive.

"All right!"

Grapefruit wasn't actually that scared; she was confident in her abilities.

She's just not that stubborn.

Since Sieg doesn't seem to have much fighting spirit, let's go back. Anyway, the main objective has been achieved, and we can come back next time: "Let's go back."

Sieg breathed a sigh of relief: "I'll cover Nephalem's wages. You can deduct ten gold coins from my paycheck every month, okay?"

"Hmph, no way!"

Xiyou raised her hand to her face, proudly holding up one finger: "Buying your loyalty for thirty gold coins is a great deal! I don't want you to pay me, you can just owe me a favor, hahaha!"

"..."

It hardened, like a fist.

Just as Sieg was about to say something, a bright light suddenly appeared, illuminating the woodland in white.

What followed was a deafening roar!

The turbulent magical currents roared in, scraping and stinging people's skin.

Sieg glanced to the side and saw explosions occurring continuously in the direction Nefarian had left. In the bright light, two figures were locked in combat, rapidly closing in.

Grapefruit squinted and said, "It's Senior Nefarian! Senior Nefarian is fighting a demon!"

Nefar?

And a demon?

"Run!"

Nepha's roar echoed from afar as he desperately tried to stop the Iron Guard officers, shouting, "Miss Grapefruit! Daikon! Run!"