Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

However, from the words of the mister assassin, it didn't seem like it was easy getting a beast inheritance after all it wasn't guaranteed that the beast would form a beast inheritance even if it had a core stone.

Not to mention a beast of calamity class was an existence he could come in contact with and hope of surviving after that. After the beast was dissected, the group laid their attention on the big thing inside the hall, the treasure chest that it was guarding.

Looking at how exquisite the treasure chest looked and from its size, one could tell that it was filled with treasures. They had heard many stories from the adventurers telling them about the many rare items that could be found inside a treasure chest of a hidden chamber.

This was their first time coming in contact with one, they couldn't help but get excited over it. What kind of rare treasures would they find? Just thinking about it made their heart beat faster.

Just as they stepped forward towards the treasure chest, they heard a clear clapping noise come from one side of the hall.

CLAP... CLAP… CLAP…

"That was amazing, you guys clearly have a good synergy and coordination with one another. Only a few groups of your level could defeat a savage war lion". The voice was deep and hoarse one, something that was impossible for a human to make.

When they instinctively turned towards the direction of that voice, they were stunned to see a black figure slowly walking towards them from the darkness. Immediately, all the hairs on their body stood on end and they hurriedly brought out their weapons.

With the appearance of the figure, the entire hall had descended into an eerie silence. A weird chill circulated in the air and an invisible pressure grasped everybody's heart. That pressure wasn't something that was realised by that figure but simply something caused by his mere presence.

As the figure of that person slowly came out of the darkness, a suppression that was born out of their level difference metastasised. It started from their heart and slowly spread through their whole body.

Burg and the other two warriors who were in front involuntarily took a step back.

"A-A-A… D-Demon Noble" Marba's legs trembled, and her voice stuttered as she shouted out the race of the being that had just shown itself.

The words that she uttered echoed across the hall. Even without her pointing it out, everyone present in the hall recognised the being in front of them.

A demon noble was hardly seen in the extreme north-western region of the central continent that was closest to the demon continent. However, more than half a year ago there was an incident where the capital of their kingdom was invaded by a demon noble who had completely turned the place upside down.

After that, they had disappeared but their tales and stories were still being told by those who had witnessed the scene that day. Burg and the others who had arrived at the capital after the occurrence, of course, heard stories of what had happened at the capital and the perpetrator that was responsible for the destruction, a demon noble.

Now that they were seeing a demon noble with their own eyes, they were frozen stiff from the sheer presence and the looks of the being in front of them.

GULP… Burg who was one of the front liners of this group, gulped audibly and asked "What should we do now?".

The demon had appeared so close to them without even them realising it. Given the pressure they were feeling just by standing in front of him, they could tell even without fighting that they were no match for him.

Forget about a battle, they would be immediately eradicated if they made a wrong move. In fact, Burg was not far from the truth, given the average level of their party which was around level 360, they were capable of dealing with even a peak elite class beast.

However, this level of suppression that the demon gave off was even stronger than some of those super class beasts that resided deep within the ghastly winding forest.

"Do not falter, the one we are searching for is right in front of us" While the group was paralysed with fear from the appearance of the demon, Alvara stepped forward and spoke out.

Her words caused a great storm to brew inside the minds of these young fellows, who looked like they had received the shock of their life. The person named 'Simon' they were looking for all along, turned out to be a demon noble that they heard stories and tales about.

Even if this demon wasn't the one that destroyed their capital, just the fact that the other party was a demon noble, bred fear and anxiety in their hearts.

TAP… TAP… Alvara with her alluring figure, stood in front of Simon and observed him with her dark black eyes. She hadn't seen him for a while, but the air around him seemed to have changed completely.

Of course given the fact that she was used to seeing his human transformation and had only seen him in his true form once during the battle of the finest tournament also affected her judgement.

Those devilish features, crimson eyes that seemed like two blood red pools that could devour one's soul, and that wicked smile that was hanging at the corner of his face. No matter how many times Alvara observed it, she couldn't relate it to that human appearance she had seen while travelling with him back then.

Two people stood opposite each other, Simon due to being a member of the demon noble race, was more than a head taller than Alvara who was quite tall herself.

As she observed Simon, he too observed her. Since the last time he had met her, the figure of this woman seemed to have become more fiery. Now along with that sharp sword aura, she was also exuded a faint mature aura.

It was not only her looks, even her level had risen by quite a bit. She was now around level 394, a level sufficient enough for her to kill the brigand master in a few exchanges which she had risked her life back then to defeat.

"It looks like you have been doing well these days…" Alvara spoke in a voice that was unafraid of the being in front of her. it was not too subtle yet not too overbearing. 𝐟𝘳𝑒𝗲𝘸e𝒃𝘯𝒐𝐯e𝚕.c𝒐𝒎

Simon who heard her words smiled and spoke in a tone that subtly pointed at something.

"Yeah, it's all thanks to you people, I'm getting by somehow".

How could Alvara who was a guard captain working at the royal palace, not get the cynicism hidden in those words?

Although she arched her brows slightly, she didn't say anything. She knew that the demon held quite a bit of prejudice against them after what had happened back at the capital and the ensuing pursuit and chaos that followed after.

"So why is the guard captain responsible for guarding the safety of the princess doing all the way here in the north-western borders and inside my dungeon shouting my name?" Simon swept his gaze over the people behind Alvara and spoke indifferently.

His character and temperament was nothing like the time when he was travelling with them, foolishly believing that a part of him was still a human. Now however, he had clearly drawn a line and accepted the being he was now.

Hearing the cold and detached tone in his voice, Alvara sighed. When the identity of the demon in front of her was revealed in front of thousands of people back then, she was also amongst the ones that was shocked and believed the claims that were made against him.

The third prince of their kingdom was attacked and a prince from a foreign kingdom was found dead in his mansion. Given that it was Sir Vouves who had personally done the investigation, there was little to say when it came to believing it or not.

However, after the capital was turned upside down in that calamitous battle, the royal palace did some investigation and found out that there were hints of a different demon being in their capital.

It was further proven true when Vouves declared the energy signatures of the two demons were completely different. The one that was found inside the manor where the prince of blackthorn was staying was different that the energy pattern of the demon who was present in the coliseum.

Some claimed that the two demons were working together, but the princess and Alvara who knew the whole picture knew that Simon was innocent. Nevertheless, they weren't influential enough to change the view of the masses.

Alvara sighed, even if the demon nobles were said to be their arch enemies it was all in the history. The demon noble in front of her helped them safely get through the capital, not to mention he had also saved her life. She couldn't bring herself to hate the demon no matter what.

While the two parties were talking amongst themselves, the people behind Alvara were freaking out from anxiety. Before coming here, they had crafted many theories about this mysterious person named 'Simon' that they were searching for.

Some thought that he was some adventurer, others thought that he was some countryside noble. Marba even went as far as thinking there was some illicit relationship between the man and the princess.

However, who would have expected that the man they had drawn so much expectation in their head, would turn out to be none of those options and a demon noble instead?