Chapter 430: The Underworld (VI)

[———✵ Status Panel ✵———]

Name: Gray Vireux D’Aurélion

Titles: Vessel of Beauty & Destruction, Exiled Noble, Incubus In Human Form, High-level Demon Hunter, Abyss’s Chosen

Race: Human (???)

Class: ✯ Villain ✯

Rank: Peak of the Saint Realm [99%]

Divine Abilities: ✵Law of Seduction✵

Unique Skill: [✧Swap✧]

Unique Talent: Nullification [17145/19109]

Innate Blessing: [♛ — ✧Crown of the Abyss✧ — ♛]

Active Skills: Soul Chasing Extremities [Perfected], Nine Illusionary Dream Steps [Transm???], Spirit Eyes [Peak Saint (99%)], Nine Heavens Thunder Claw [Great GrandMaster (Perfected)], Gravity Magic [Early Master (0%)]

Passive Skills: High Mana Recovery, Parallel Mana Processing, Heightened Senses, Sinful Mind [Class], Villain’s Presence [Class], Cruel Instinct [Class], Shadow of Sin [Class]

Equipment: Demon Converging Gourd (Godly), Phantom Loop Earrings (Godly), Unnamed Rapier (High Emperor), Ring of Gluttony (Early Saint), Transcendent Robe (Intermediate King), 2x Enchanted Demon Hunting Daggers (Early King)

Dimensional Storage: 4x Bottles of Bloodvein Poison, 9x Smoke Bombs, 1x Golden-Plated Needlebox, 490 Demon Cash, 1.090x Platinum Coins, 194x Gold Coins, 98x Silver Coins, 340x Copper Coins... (Click to expand)

Sword Spirit: Atrinae (Nine-Colored Attributeless Snake • Early Emperor Realm [25%])

Bonded Spirit: Seria (Crimson Lightning Dragon • Above The Monarch Realm)

Personal Artifact: Demon-Hunting Book [Early Saint Realm • 40% Boost]

Gray stared at the status panel floating in front of him.

His eyes moved slowly from one line to another.

Peak Saint Realm, ninety-nine percent...

"Strange..."

His eyes followed down, and suddenly he looked at the strange entry beside his Nine Illusionary Dream Steps.

"Transm???"

"It’s still like this...? Was it because I tried to put all nine steps into a single form, and so the skill got corrupted?" Gray frowned.

"I still have the natural speed boost from it... I guess I still need to test it out."

Gray dismissed the status panel.

The blue light vanished.

He stretched his arms before getting out of bed.

CRACK... CRACK...

His body felt completely refreshed after sleeping through the night.

The exhaustion from the three days of cultivation was gone, and his mind felt sharper than before.

Gray changed his clothes, adjusted his disguise, and checked his appearance in the mirror.

Everything looked exactly like an ordinary Incubus.

To anyone looking at him, he was nothing more than a young mid-level demon.

Gray smiled at his reflection.

’Perfect.’

He left the inn.

The streets were already busy.

Merchants opened their shops, demons moved through the streets, carts carried goods toward the market, and guards began their morning patrols.

Gray did not stop.

He walked straight toward the outer gates.

According to the information he had gathered the other day, the Crimson Moon Princess should arrive sometime this morning.

The eastern road was the main route into the city.

If her group was coming from the royal territories and heading toward the Demon Academy, they would have to pass through the city gate.

Gray arrived at the outer wall and leaned against the side of a stone building.

He looked down the long road stretching into the distance.

’Now comes the difficult part.’ Gray scratched his cheek.

’How exactly am I supposed to ask a princess for a duel?’

He thought about it.

’Hey, you’re the Crimson Moon Princess, right? Fight me.’

Gray immediately rejected the idea.

’No.’

He thought about another possibility.

He could provoke her, perhaps insult her or simply challenge her pride by saying something about her strength.

’Also no.’ Gray shook his head.

A princess from one of the strongest royal families would have guards around her. If he irritated her badly enough, she did not even need to fight him herself.

She could simply point at him and say...

"Kill him."

Gray sighed.

’That would be an extremely stupid way to test my strength.’

He folded his arms as he thought about more options.

He could ask her directly or explain that he wanted to test himself against a Monarch Realm cultivator.

But then came another problem.

Why would she agree?

A Monarch Realm princess had no reason to accept a random challenge from an unknown Incubus.

Gray thought for a while.

’Maybe I can offer something.’

He had plenty of rare resources, but giving away something valuable simply for a duel was unnecessary.

’Perhaps I should wait until I see her.’

He looked toward the eastern road.

’I’ll figure something out.’

For now, there was nothing else to do except wait.

And so... he waited, and after two whole hours...

A distant sound reached Gray’s ears.

Clop... Clop... Clop...

His Spirit Eyes immediately focused on the horizon.

A group was approaching.

Several large black horses appeared first, their bodies covered in dark scales and their eyes glowing red.

Behind them came a long carriage made from dark crimson wood, surrounded by armored demons.

The guards were clearly not ordinary soldiers.

Every single one carried a heavy aura.

Gray narrowed his eyes.

’...Above the Monarch Realm.’

One, two... three.

His expression became slightly serious.

’There are three Above the Monarch Realm guards.’

And that was only the group surrounding the carriage.

There were several other powerful demons among the escort as well.

The carriage slowly approached the city.

The demons standing near the gate immediately began moving aside.

The guards straightened their backs.

Several merchants stopped talking.

People along the road began whispering.

"The Crimson Moon Royal Family..."

"They’re here."

"Is the princess inside?"

"She should be."

Gray remained where he was.

The carriage finally stopped several dozen meters away.

The guards moved first.

THUD.

One after another, they dismounted.

The surrounding demons immediately became quiet.

Then the carriage door opened.

A woman stepped outside, and Gray’s eyes instantly focused on her.

The Crimson Moon Princess.

She had a calm confidence of someone who had been surrounded by powerful people since birth, yet there was nothing childish in her expression.

She had long crimson hair that fell down her back like flowing silk, with several strands resting naturally around her face.

Her eyes were a deep ruby-red, bright enough to stand out even beneath the dim crimson light of the Underworld’s sky.

Her eyebrows were thin and naturally curved, giving her a calm but fierce appearance, while her cheekbones were softly defined and gave structure to her otherwise delicate features.

Her nose was straight.

Her lips were naturally red, resting in a neutral expression as she looked toward the city.

Her figure was tall and graceful, with balanced proportions shaped more by years of cultivation and disciplined training than natural beauty.

Her waist was slender, her posture perfectly straight, and her long legs were covered by the lower portion of her formal traveling clothes.

She wore a dark crimson dress beneath a fitted black outer coat decorated with subtle patterns resembling crescent moons.

The edges of her clothes were embroidered with thin silver threads.

A small crimson jewel rested near her collar.

It carried a faint aura.

Gray immediately recognized it as a defensive artifact with a grade he couldn’t quite read. Her arms were covered by dark sleeves, while black boots reached just below her knees.

Nothing about her appearance was overly decorated.

The royal insignia embroidered on her clothing was enough to tell everyone exactly who she was.

The Crimson Moon Princess looked toward the city, with her crimson eyes moving across the streets until they suddenly stopped...

On Gray.

Gray’s eyes met hers.

For a brief moment, neither moved.

Gray’s expression remained relaxed.

Inside, however...

’So this is the princess.’

Her aura was restrained, but his [Spirit Eyes] still picked up the terrifying amount of energy hidden inside her body.

’Early Monarch Realm.’

And unlike the rumors he had heard yesterday, this was not an ordinary Monarch.

Her foundation was exceptionally strong, and the aura coming from her bloodline... was simply unnatural.

There was a faint pressure around her, which made even the surrounding air feel heavier.

Gray smiled slightly.

’Interesting.’

The princess continued looking at him for another second before turning away.

One of her guards leaned toward her and whispered something.

She nodded.

The group began moving toward the city.

Gray watched them approach.

His original problem returned to his mind.

’Now... how exactly do I ask a princess for a duel without getting myself killed?’

[Seduce her.]

Jasmine suddenly spoke, causing him to frown.

’...What?’

[Seduce her.]

Jasmine repeated herself with complete confidence.

[You are an Incubus, remember?]

Gray’s expression became strange.

’I’m not an Incubus.’

[Your body is human, yes, but you possess the title Incubus In Human Form, and your appearance has already been altered to fit the disguise. More importantly, you possess the Blessing of Beauty and the Law of Seduction.]

Jasmine paused for a moment before continuing.

[You have more than enough tools to make an attempt.]

Gray slowly narrowed his eyes.

’You want me to seduce a princess.’

[Yes.]

’So I can ask her for a duel.’

[Exactly.]

Gray stared at the distant road where the Crimson Moon Princess had disappeared with her guards.

’...’

The idea sounded ridiculous.

Then again, the more he thought about it, the more reasonable it became.

The problem was not defeating her.

The problem was getting close enough to challenge her without having three guards cut him into pieces before he could finish saying the word "duel."

If he walked up to the princess and directly challenged her, there was a good chance her guards would treat him as an arrogant fool.

But if he approached her with a completely different intention...

’It could work...’ he nodded thoughtfully.

He had already seduced someone with a god complex, surely... this princess couldn’t be so hard to seduce...

...Right?