Blood Assimilation

Although Randy didn't want to talk to Gutz at first due to his overly touchy nature, when he thought about how they were helping him, he decided to say a few words in response to Gutz's questions.

After some time, they arrived at their destination. After Vairon stepped forward and paid the teleportation operation fees, which caused Randy's eyes to widen in shock, the five of them proceeded to stand on the magical formation.

Immediately after the conductor was done powering up the magic formation, the magic formation flashed with a blinding light before their figures disappeared. They had teleported to the Royal Capital's Imperial City.

…

Meanwhile, the Society Leader stood by the window on the top floor as this[he watched] Randy left with Vairon and the others.

"I was worried about the trouble he caused the other day and how to hide him from the clutches of that woman from the long-eared tribe in case she comes back for revenge. However, this development saved me some trouble. Furthermore, this would make up for my effort in pacifying that arrogant woman." The Society Leader was all smiles as he watched the silhouette of Randy disappearing into the horizon with the others. He couldn't wait to hear from the Royal Family from the Main Branch about his contribution.

Naturally, this was the main reason he advocated for Randy to join those Dungeon Hunters. Currently, the Royal Family was looking for strong men to join in on the war, but there were barely many who qualified for the position.

That was why when he saw Randy's potential, he took special care to test him and also attempted to get him to be noticed by the Church of Light in the capital if he managed to find their Knight Captain. Although he failed in his attempts, Randy himself managed to defeat two demons by himself and those demons were not mere foot soldiers but lieutenant-level powerhouses.

As a result, when the Royal Family heard about this prospect, they fervently wanted to recruit and nurture him as soon as possible. However, Society Leader broke the news to them about Randy's untamed character and they could only frown and find other methods to ensnare him.

While the Society Leader didn't like the idea of making him become indebted to the Royal Family, he thought that this was the only way to make someone like Randy willingly join the war without resistance.

They could force him to do so against his wishes, but what would be the point in that? Wouldn't they simply make an enemy rather than gain an ally?

With that in mind, he hoped that this voyage would change Randy's mind about many things. Perhaps, after witnessing the state of Imperial City, he would be moved and willing to fight to protect the peace of the people.

With that being said, it all depends on whether he was a compassionate person or a cold-hearted person. Even if he was a cold-hearted person, as long as he was not truly evil, it would still be good to have him as an ally. However, if he was compassionate underneath his unmoved bearing, that would be a blessing for the entire human race.

After all, a human that could defeat two lieutenant-level demons by himself couldn't possibly be weak. If he were to reach the limit of this world, he could increase their chances of winning the war against the demons drastically. This was a chance that they couldn't afford to pass up unless they were blind.

…

Two days ago.

Demon Continent, Demon King's Castle, Inside the Grand Hall of Meetings.

Inside a Grand Hall that spans a few kilometers in both length and width, and was a hundred meters tall, there was a gathering of a group of people who had a humanoid appearance, but they were clearly not human if one looked at their unique features, such as their skin and horns.

At the highest elevated platform of this Grand Hall, a massive figure whose appearance couldn't be discerned with the eyes and covered in this thick baleful darkness sat on a majestic yet grotesque-looking throne. This skeletal throne was made out of the skeletal bones of the strongest magical beasts in the world, making them very durable than some of the best weapons out there.

The massive figure that sat on this Skeletal Throne while naturally exuding a profound and regal aura was the Demon King— the ultimate being that rules over all the demons in this world. The Demon King was a being that held absolute power that could even rival or even transcend the combat power of the apostles of gods before they ascend to the gods' plane.

However, this Demon King was unique as they were even stronger than the previous Demon Kings. Just sitting there, they naturally carry this unfathomable aura around their body that would strike unprecedented fear into anyone with a slightly weaker mind.

Sitting there on the Skeletal Throne, the Demon King had a look of boredom and nonchalance as they watched the situation in front of them.

At this moment, the relevant members of the Demon King's Army were having a heated discussion regarding their next course of action in the war against the other races when a presence suddenly appeared at the entrance of the Grand Hall of Meetings.

Without saying any word of the announcement, the owner of the presence immediately bowed reverently behind the gate to the Grand Hall of Meetings and proceeded to wait there for acknowledgment.

The presence behind the gate was actually a dark-skinned, bulky man with a very tall figure, towering more than 3 meters in height. Although they look human presently, they were actually a demon. If Vairon and the others were to see this dark-skinned, bulky man right now, they would recognize him as the Demon General that they encountered, fought, and lost against near the Meistic Forest.

Indeed, this was Demon General Jarkoffin. After hurriedly running away from the battle with Eliana, he teleported a few times before finally arriving at the Demon Continent which was many miles away from the human continent. Without wasting any time upon his arrival, he came to make his report.

By now, all the other members within the Grand Hall had begun to notice the presence behind the gate. Furthermore, they recognized who the presence belonged to as they were all too familiar with them since they all served the same liege.

When almost everyone in the Grand Hall sensed the arrival of the dark-skinned Demon General, the Demon King's emotionless voice floated out of the Grand Hall, penetrating the thick gate into Demon General Jarkoffin's ears.

"Jarkoffin? Why are you back here? Have you completed your assigned mission?"

When Demon General Jarkoffin heard the Demon King's hoarse and indiscernible voice, his body jolted involuntarily and immediately replied with a respectful tone: "My King, please forgive this general, for I have yet to complete my mission due to an unexpected variable that stood in my way, preventing me from doing so."

'Did my subordinate not arrive yet? Or have the military advisor not informed the liege regarding that human?' Demon General Jarkoffin felt like it was strange that the Demon King was speaking to him as if they were unaware of his current predicament that involved that human they encountered during their mission.

"Then why did you show yourself in front of me? You do realize that this is pivotal to our success on the battlefield. You should've done whatever you could to complete that mission. Yet, you came back after you suffered a single loss? If so, then did you come here to receive your punishment for failing your mission perhaps?"

Demon General Jarkoffin quickly replied: "That is not my intention! I only want to seek an audience with my liege regarding a certain matter that I have uncovered during my mission! I believe it is of utmost importance to our grand plan!"

'It seems that my liege has indeed not received my report. Otherwise, I wouldn't be questioned by the liege. Maybe my subordinate hasn't arrived yet…?' Demon General Jarkoffin confirmed this to be the case, as even he had to spend three days to get back. It usually takes about 5 to 7 days to reach their continent even with teleportation.

After all, they don't have the mana points to use it consecutively without rest. Even if that was possible, they can only use it until they reach the border of their continent and then continue the remaining miles on foot.

"Is that so?" The Demon King appeared slightly surprised by his words and fell silent for a brief moment without urging him on.

Meanwhile, the other members in the room took this chance to discuss among themselves seeing as how their liege was not saying anything. However, one of them loudly voiced their opinion on the matter.

"Huh? Did he just say our grand plan? I hope my liege does not listen to his babble. I believe he is only making up an excuse for his ignominious failure." One of the members whose authority seemed quite considerable among the people in the hall suddenly scoffed and said before turning to face the gate of the Grand Hall: "Jarkoffin, how dare you mention the grand plan when you couldn't even complete such a simple mission?"