“S-So you were here?”
Graty and Beauty’s expressions turned awkward.
Yulin, the dragon girl, continued to look down on them. “Weren’t you two looking down on my stupid master before? What? Now you’re after his body?”
Her sharp words made the two dragon women ashamed, wanting to hide. After all, the more they had belittled Shien before, the more embarrassed they felt now.
“Hmph!” Yulin, however, looked smug. These two seniors, with their greater experience and seniority, had tried to persuade her to “see the light” with their “wise words,” which annoyed her. Although her master was indeed stupid, only she could look down on him, not others!
Therefore, Yulin warned them,
“Don’t blame me for not warning you. Don’t you dare have any funny ideas. Otherwise, I’ll make you pay, even without Sister Airi’s help.”
Her childish voice and threatening words, although not scary and even somewhat cute, conveyed her protectiveness.
She was worried that after Shien’s ability was revealed, these dragons might have some malicious intentions, like kidnapping him and using him as a “magic power juicer” until he was drained dry. Although, with Shien’s current strength and Airi’s protection, the Dragon Race couldn’t possibly harm him, but that lecherous master of hers was always getting into trouble with women, whether disappearing into rooms with princesses for noisy, bed-breaking activities, or engaging in strenuous, underwater exercises with that masked woman or the little elf girl. Yulin couldn’t help but worry that her stupid master might be seduced by these dragon women, who at least looked decent.
So, a warning was necessary.
After all, she was a dragon.
A very, very fierce dragon!
Rawr!
Time passed quietly.
Soon, dusk arrived.
Shien still hadn’t returned to the Supreme Castle. He knew Graty and Beauty were there, waiting for him, so he wandered around Central City.
Graty and Beauty, after waiting for a long time, finally gave up and returned, disappointed.
The Demon Lords’ meeting, however, continued, much to Hartley’s surprise.
“It’s been so long?” In Hartley’s memory, this was only the second time the Demon Lords had a meeting this long.
The first time was a thousand years ago, when the Demon King was defeated and the Demon Race lost the war. At that time, the Demon Lords also discussed from morning till night, finally deciding to surrender to the God Race and the Human Race, establish peace, and relocate the entire Demon Race to the newly formed Demon Realm.
“Could it be that the matter they’re discussing this time is as important as that?” Hartley wondered, surprised.
Not just Hartley, but the other Demon Lord executives as well.
Perhaps because of the long wait, all the executives had gathered here, including Graty and Beauty, who couldn’t find Shien. Naturally, Liel, Hart, and Gray were also present.
“Haven’t the Demon Lords finished yet, Hartley?” Liel was the first to ask, her hostile tone making it seem like she had a grudge against Hartley.
She had been acting like this since arriving in Central City and meeting Hartley, clearly disliking her.
(Still the same as always.) Hartley knew the reason, but her expression remained unchanged. “The Demon Lords haven’t finished their discussion yet. You can wait here, but don’t go in,” she said coldly. Her words made many uneasy, especially Gray, who felt a chill despite having only met Hartley once before. (As expected of one of the only three Limit Level experts in the Demon Race, even her aura is threatening. If we fought, I would be no match for her, right?) Gray felt both wary and apprehensive.
He had never felt so outmatched before.
Although he had met those stronger than Hartley, like Shafney, the difference in power was so great that he knew he couldn’t possibly be their enemy, feeling more awe and reverence than fear. However, as a member of the Mitra royal family, possessing the Hero’s bloodline and rising to become a prince despite being from a collateral branch, Gray still had his pride, not believing he would lose to anyone below Transcendent Level.
Even Limit Level was just one level above him. Although their raw power might be greater, with his Unique Skill, he was confident he could fight them. This wasn’t blind confidence, but the reality of this world. With a powerful Unique Skill, one could challenge those stronger than them, defying the limitations of levels and skills. Otherwise, how could a Unique Skill be called an ability that transcended logic? It was a true expert’s trump card, able to ignore the difference in levels if powerful enough.
Even Transcendent Level beings could be troubled by some unique Unique Skills. In short, levels and skills were just the foundation of one’s strength, a powerful Unique Skill was the deciding factor.
Why were Heroes so revered?
Because they generally awakened powerful Unique Skills and wielded Holy Swords, equally powerful and unique to them.
With these two trump cards, Heroes naturally had a great advantage.
Gray, only one step away from Limit Level and possessing a powerful Unique Skill, naturally believed he was no weaker than anyone below Transcendent Level.
But he forgot that those who reached Limit Level, the pinnacle of life, were the most talented and had the greatest potential. Otherwise, they would have reached their limits long before reaching Limit Level, unable to improve further. Like Graty and Beauty, who were already at level ninety-nine, top-tier Legendary experts, thousands of years ago, yet still couldn’t take that last step, because their potential was exhausted.
All beings in this world, although they could improve their strength and levels through battles and training, once their potential was exhausted, their growth would stop. And those with the potential to reach Limit Level, how could they not awaken powerful Unique Skills?
Powerful Unique Skills weren’t exclusive to Gray.
Hartley, as a powerful demon, capable of reaching Limit Level, her Unique Skill was definitely no weaker than Gray’s, perhaps even stronger. Only now did Gray realize his own arrogance.
Liel, on the same level as Gray, ignored the apprehension caused by Hartley’s presence, glaring at her as if wanting to fight.
Hartley ignored Liel, simply standing there, blocking the path to the conference room, making the other executives hesitate, not daring to act. Before Shien, she was polite and courteous, but they didn’t know how terrifying she was in the eyes of other demons. At least, those present, besides Gray and Liel, looked at Hartley with some fear, the same as those executives in the Imperial Capital.
Fortunately, this tense atmosphere was soon broken.
“Weng!” With a fluctuation in the air, the barrier around the conference room dissipated. The doors opened, and the Demon Lords emerged, their terrifying auras filling the air.
Led by Sara, the Demon Lords appeared.
“We greet Your Highnesses,” Hartley immediately turned and bowed.
“We greet Your Highnesses!”
“We greet Your Highnesses!” The others also reacted, kneeling one after another and bowing respectfully to the Demon Lords.
Seeing them, they breathed a sigh of relief. Although the meeting was long, at least the Demon Lords seemed fine.
However…
“Your Highnesses?” Hartley called out hesitantly on behalf of the executives.
The Demon Lords’ expressions were unusually solemn and complex. Especially Airi, who seemed worried and kept sighing, her behavior completely unlike her usual carefree self.