The Demon King is unfathomable

Chapter 175 People are the greatest wealth
[Dear Demon King, this morning when I was patrolling my territory, I found a beetle with a special pattern. Its pattern is like a four-leaf clover, very beautiful, and it shines like a moving gem in the moonlight. I want to give it to you, hoping that it will bring you good luck for the whole day.

In addition, the wine you gave me is delicious, but I still prefer human red wine to the fruit wine brewed by Pointed Ears.

A long time ago I heard from an elder that the pointy-eared ones would trample the berries with their feet when making fruit wine. Please forgive my presumption, I don't mean to spoil your appetite, but it really sounds like footbath, especially since they often walk around barefoot in the forest.

If you like the flavor of fruit wine, Nightmare Land can also serve you. We usually fly and rarely walk.

This is purely for your health.

Of course, I like any gift from you. :)

——Queen of Nightmare Land, your most loyal minion, Sissi】

[I have received your kindness, but next time please don't put living beetles in the letter. I have been a little allergic to living insects recently.

I mean, what about trying to specimen it in amber? That way it would last longer and I could make it into a necklace.

Of course, I like your gift very much. I wish you all the best. Many lucky things happened today.

In addition, based on my understanding of Thunder County’s brewing process, they should also use traditional methods to brew.

The so-called blood of Saint Sis is just a gimmick.

——Luo Yan】

……

Luo Yan discovered a long time ago that population is the greatest wealth.

Although many miracles in this world are the will of gods, they are ultimately the manifestation of human will.

Even the gods themselves were created by humans.

The people here are not just humans, but intelligent creatures in a broad sense of the planet, including dwarves, elves, orcs, demons, monsters, and even goblins and ratmen.

Even "Little Gray", who has no specific form but has awakened his self-awareness, is included.

It’s just that different individuals have different self-wills and the weight of their souls is also different, so different races receive unequal favors from the gods.

In this sense, the human beings in this world are indeed lucky.

Both the Demon God and the Saint Sith paid a lot of attention to them.

Even Luo Yan, a newbie who had just embarked on the "road to ascension", after tasting the sweetness, began to show a certain degree of preference for humans on the surface, and even "stepped over his authority" to respond to the prayers of those suffering people on behalf of Saint Sith.

As time went by, the name of the cemetery gradually spread among the refugee group, and even formed a "word-of-mouth effect" through word of mouth.

Especially for those refugees gathered outside Thunder City.

Without any lords to drive them away, they gathered together all day long, either waiting for job opportunities or ships to the colonies at the docks, or waiting for relief from the citizens in camps at the city gates or in the slums near the underground streets.

This kind of place is most likely to breed rumors.

Especially in the underground streets, there are brotherhood "godfathers" like Jack who secretly believe in the devil.

With the help of some people, rumors soon spread.

Legend has it that in the southwest corner of the Wanren Mountains, there was a benevolent magician who used forbidden necromancy to save the displaced people.

He used the spirits he summoned to help the refugees build houses to protect them from the wind and snow, and used the bones of the dead to build walls for those in need. He used the gold and silver he robbed from the rich to exchange for food to give to the poor, and he used the magic potions he prepared to heal the wounded...

There were even wandering poets who composed catchy songs about what the legendary magician had or had not done.

Although some locals have refuted the rumor, saying that the person occupying the North Peak Mine is not a benevolent magician at all, but the Demon King of Thunder County who is famous for his evil, most of these refutation voices cannot reach the ears of the refugees. They are often just a noise in the taverns where adventurers gather, as a topic of conversation to mock the stupidity and hopelessness of those wanderers.

However, the refugees could not enter these places at all, so it was naturally impossible for them to hear what those well-dressed people were saying.

Even if they heard it, the ridicule, which was obviously sarcastic, would only sound harsh and noisy to them.

Compared to those harsh ridicules, it is obvious that those beautiful legends are more heartwarming.

They are pitiful enough living in the cold winter, and they don't want to, nor are they obliged to, endure the lessons of those who shut them out.

They didn't turn into robbers because of Saint Sis. And because their prayers had not been answered for too long, now even the remaining morality and faith in their hearts were facing the test of humanity, and they didn't care what was true and what was false.

Besides, what if that benevolent magician is the devil?

There is no maze in Dusk Province, and the residents there are not as afraid of the Demon King as the residents of Campbell Principality, let alone the citizens of Thunder City. In their eyes, the so-called Demon King is just a bigger demon, and in comparison, the Ogres in the Dimensional Desert are more terrifying to them.

Recently, they heard from other beggars that their relatives may have arrived in the northern part of Silverpine Forest and were protected by that adult...

More and more people began to think about going there to try their luck.

It was also under the influence of this trend of thought that a second migration trajectory gradually formed on the vast land covered with snow.

The last time was from Dusk Province to Thunder County.

This time, it was from Thunder City to Silver Pine Forest...

……

The suburbs of Thunder City.

Five richly decorated carriages, surrounded by a team of cavalry, moved towards the north gate of Thunder City.

Whether from the decoration of the carriage or the armor of the mounted guards, it is not difficult to tell that this group of people are either rich or noble.

And that's exactly what happened.

The gold-plated badge printed on the five carriages is the emblem of the Campbell family that has been passed down for thousands of years!
The distinguished person sitting in one of the carriages was none other than the Princess of the Duchy of Campbell, the one chosen by the Light of Legend—Eileen Campbell!

In fact, she should have come here with the light of legend a month ago when the crisis of chaos just broke out.

That was the most dangerous time in Leiming County, and it was also the time when the people of Leiming City needed her the most.

Unfortunately, however, it coincided with the change of power in Campbell Castle, and many things happened in the court.

Some nobles were dissatisfied with her eldest brother's close relationship with the new nobles of Thunder City, so they challenged her eldest brother on the issue of inheritance. Instigated by some nobles, her second brother also began to make moves, plotting to take the title that did not belong to him.

In fact, these things had nothing to do with Irene. She had lived under the protection of her father since she was a child. Apart from practicing swordsmanship and court etiquette, she had hardly participated in the upper-class politics of the Principality of Campbell.

Faced with the jealousy of her eldest brother and the olive branch thrown by her second brother, she was forced to be involved in this power struggle and could only deal with it tirelessly, mediating between the two forces, trying to persuade her two brothers to remain calm and not be used by people with ulterior motives... So her trip to Leiming County was delayed.

At the recent New Year's banquet, the tension between her two brothers finally eased, and she was finally able to relax and head to Thunder County to fulfill her duties as God's Chosen One.

However, when she was halfway there, she heard from a nearby lord that the Chaos Gate that appeared in the maze seemed to have been closed by the new Demon King.

The journey that had once seemed to have a clear purpose suddenly lost its urgency.

However, considering that a new demon king had appeared in Thunder County, she chose to continue her journey instead of turning back.

If the new demon king causes trouble, she must stand up at the first moment to protect the people of the Campbell family.

Of course, she admitted that part of the reason was that the atmosphere in the castle made her feel suffocated.

Although she also hoped to mediate the conflict between her brothers, she also wanted to escape from this vortex.

There is no contradiction between the two.

Looking at the snow-covered and silver-covered pine forest through the glass window, Irene yawned sleepily.

The carpet with heating inscriptions sewn on it made the carriage as warm as spring, and the dry, warm air made her, who was fully dressed, drowsy.

She somewhat regretted wearing the fleece lining.

Faced with the persuasion of the maid who helped her change clothes, perhaps she should be more assertive.

"How long until we get there?"

Hearing Princess Irene's voice, the female guard sitting on the opposite chair said respectfully.

"We are almost there. In front of us is the gate of Thunder City. The governor and the mayor will greet us there."

Her name was Theresa Peg, the second daughter of the "knight family" Peg family, two years older than Irene.

Because Theresa's father had a life-and-death friendship with the previous Grand Duke Campbell, the two were playmates when they were young and have always been close.

Later, when Irene was old enough to wield a sword, Theresa became her swordsmanship instructor, and after her strength broke through the silver level, she became a knight loyal to her.

Irene, who has always stayed away from politics, has no direct descendants of her own in the court.

But if she had to find someone she could trust unconditionally among all the people she knew, she would choose the person sitting opposite her without hesitation, rather than her two brothers.

Looking at Theresa who was sitting seriously, Irene couldn't help but say something in a teasing tone.

"I feel like I've heard you say something similar since just now."

Theresa was slightly stunned.

"……Have it?"

"Yes, but you don't remember it."

"sorry, I……"

Looking at Theresa who subconsciously lowered her head to admit her mistake, Irene showed a teasing smile on her face.

"Don't apologize. I'm the one who should apologize... I'm sorry, I admit that I remembered it wrong. You didn't say that just now. But I saw that you were too serious, so I couldn't help but tease you."

Theresa had a confused expression on her face.

"your Highness……"

Erin blinked.

"Can you forgive me?"

"I dare not. I mean... of course you can," Theresa changed her words temporarily after looking at the pitiful face, and then continued, "I will forgive you no matter what you do, but I still hope you can be more vigilant. After all, this is not Fort Campbell——"

"But this is the territory of the Duchy of Campbell, and the heartland of the Duchy of Campbell. No bandit would dare to attack the Campbell family's convoy, right?" Princess Irene said calmly with a confident smile on her face.

Her confidence is not without reason.

The Kingdom of Ryan is the home of knights, not to mention the Duchy of Campbell, which is able to hold its autonomy tightly in its hands. Without people with strong martial virtues, it would be impossible to snatch a corner of the northeast coast of the Whirlpool Sea from the hands of the Lizardmen.

Bandits and robbers simply could not survive on the land of the Principality of Campbell, let alone be a match for her personal guards.

Looking at Irene who looked confident, Theresa showed a helpless smile on her face.

She wanted to say that this was not necessarily the case.

Not all thieves are real thieves, some are assassins disguised as thieves.

Before setting out on this journey, her father specifically warned her to be careful of the dangers lurking in the dark.

Although assassinating Princess Irene would not bring obvious benefits to the two forces in the struggle, sometimes muddying the waters itself is a benefit even if there are no visible interests involved.

The covetous eyes may not only come from the palace, but may also come from outside the palace.

For example, the demons who are afraid of the Light of Legend.

But looking at that innocent face, she finally did not disturb her fun.

In fact, Princess Irene is right.

Relaxing a little is not necessarily a bad thing. Being too tense may lead to poor performance at critical moments.

Just as she was trying to relax the expression on her face, the convoy finally approached the northern suburbs of Thunder City, and the towering city walls and gates also came into the sight of the two people sitting in the carriage.

The towering city wall is said to be a legacy of the Isaac dynasty and is still in use today, even though most people have forgotten how it was built.

Looking at the towering city wall, Irene's gaze suddenly moved down a few inches and was attracted by the low shacks on both sides of the road.

The shacks reminded her of the goose sheds near the pond at Fort Campbell.

However, the people living in these sheds were not livestock such as chickens, ducks, and geese, but ragged people.

Some of them were wrapped in tattered linen and clothes, some huddled in mattresses made of reeds or straw, or a dozen people guarded a small flame... and this was already considered wealthy.

Many more people were just lying or sitting motionless, their unkempt faces and exposed skin covered with frostbite, their eyes staring blankly in a certain direction, making it impossible to tell whether they were dead or alive. It was not like she had never seen poor people before, but this was the first time she had seen so many of them.

I guess even hell couldn't be more miserable than this.

"...What's over there?" Irene's voice trembled a little and she couldn't help but hold her breath.

Theresa said in a low voice.

"Those people should be refugees from the Dusk Province... I heard that the situation there has been turbulent recently. The Ogre tribe that fell into Chaos sent a small group of troops to bypass the Brass Pass to plunder, causing some lords to abandon their territories and many villages to be forced to migrate..."

The provinces were directly under the jurisdiction of the kingdom, and most of the land was in the hands of the king himself. Local lords had neither the motivation nor the ability to defend the land.

This crisis can be said to have swept across the entire Kingdom of Ryan. As a vassal of the kingdom, the Principality of Campbell was naturally not immune.

Although she sympathized with the refugees' plight, Theresa did not agree with Irene paying too much attention to them.

Although kindness is a virtue, excessive kindness may burn oneself before saving others.

Besides, she didn't have the ability to help these people.

She also lacks the "Light of Legend" in her hand.

And those who are truly capable of solving these problems are now facing more important problems...

“Stop the car.”

Theresa didn't know what Irene wanted to do, but she stopped the convoy as she asked.

Surrounded by cavalry, the Campbell family's convoy slowly stopped on the side of the road.

Irene opened the car door, declined Theresa's help, and jumped onto the snow alone.

She was not the kind of spoiled young lady, and she had practiced swordsmanship in the days of howling wind and snow.

However, the moment her leather boots stepped on the snow, the coldness that came through the leather made her shiver uncontrollably. She had to rely on the extraordinary power in her body to dispel the coldness that had invaded her skin.

This winter seems different from previous ones.

After being away from the castle for so long, she never really felt this until now.

She couldn't imagine how these people without extraordinary powers could survive in this cold wind.

"Your Highness, your boots are not suitable for walking in the snow..."

Theresa took a step forward and wanted to ask Irene to get back in the car, but the latter interrupted her and gave an order in a tone that did not allow for any further discussion.

"Let the convoy follow."

Looking at the expression on Irene's face, Theresa was stunned for a few seconds, but finally nodded respectfully.

"Yes."

The convoy was back on the road.

The only difference from before was that this time the cavalrymen no longer gathered around the carriage, but followed closely behind Princess Irene.

Theresa followed beside Irene, her right hand on the sword at her waist at all times, and her vigilant eyes scanned the surroundings, not missing any place that might hide danger.

As for Irene, her eyes were always focused on those dilapidated and shabby shacks.

Most of the tents in this camp are built with tattered linen and wooden sticks. They are completely unable to block the cold wind, and even a slightly heavier snowfall can crush them.

In fact, such things must have happened many times. The remains of shacks could be seen in the snow piles not far away, and there were even corpses that had no one to collect them, just abandoned on the snow, left to be buried by the wind and snow.

No one will deal with them until they become undead.

Looking at this scene that was like hell on earth, she couldn't help but have a hint of sadness in her eyes.

The only thing that comforted her was that as she continued to move forward, the scene that came into her sight was no longer just misery and despair, but there was still a hint of warm light.

It was a wooden shed with a large pot inside. Bubbling was bubbling in the pot and the soup was as thin as water.

But even so, the outside of the wooden shed was still crowded with ragged people.

Those hungry faces were filled with desire.

Irene was pleased, but a hint of curiosity appeared in her eyes.

She stopped and asked Theresa to find a random passerby nearby.

"What is that place?"

Not daring to look directly at the two nobles in front of him, the ragged man buried his head and spoke timidly.

"That's King Yan's porridge shop...a ​​place where you can drink porridge for free."

Before Irene could speak, Theresa, who was standing beside her, frowned slightly.

"Flame King?"

She didn't remember there being such a lord in Leiming County, and even for an ordinary lord, calling himself a king seemed a bit presumptuous.

However, these civilians obviously don't think so.

Even some rural nobles would be confused by the complicated court etiquette and the corresponding titles of different titles, let alone these guys who could not read a single word.

"Yes, this is the one he drove."

The ragged man nodded repeatedly, a rare blush appeared on his face, and his voice couldn't help but contain a bit of admiration.

"That gentleman is a well-known person in the area, even more famous than the wizard master of Beifeng Mountain... The legends about him could not be told in two days and two nights!"

Teresa's intuition told her that these self-boasting guys were generally not good people.

However, the princess next to him did not think so. Instead, she continued to ask curiously.

"Is he here?"

"Well, of course he's not here, he's busy making amulets for us poor people..."

Irene continued to ask.

"Have any of you seen him?"

The ragged man said with a little embarrassment.

"No……"

"It seems like he's a mysterious guy." Theresa glanced at the porridge shop not far away.

The ragged man hesitated for a moment and then continued.

"Although I have never seen him, I heard that he appeared in Silver Pine Town before and helped the people there drive away the dragon."

"Dragon?!" Theresa's face changed slightly, her eyes full of disbelief.

How could such a legendary creature appear in Leiming County? !

What’s even more incredible is that this was the first time she heard of it!
Irene also showed a surprised expression on her face, but it was not entirely because of the legend about the dragon.

Silver Pine Town...

She had some impression of the name.

It seemed to be one of the entrances to the maze, and the nearby barony was also one of her targets!

Without waiting for Her Royal Highness the Princess to speak, Theresa immediately asked.

"Do you know the name of the Flame King?"

The ragged man said, shaking his head.

"I don't know... maybe his name is Flame King?"

Theresa was silent for a long time and said with emotion.

"I didn't expect that there are people in this world who do good things without leaving their names... It's really rare."

Irene nodded, with a hint of emotion in her voice as well.

"It speaks volumes about how little we know about what's going on outside of Fort Campbell."

Then she inquired about some rumors about the Flame King. She ordered the servants who accompanied her to reward the ragged man with an Austrian silver coin, and then sent him away after thanking her profusely.

Then she looked at the porridge shop in front of her, thought for a long time, looked at Theresa and said.

"Now that we have reached our destination, let's leave the team's supplies here."

"Yes." Theresa responded and quickly passed on what Her Royal Highness the Princess had ordered.

Dozens of cavalrymen dismounted from their horses, unloaded the dry food in sacks from the army's covered wagons, and left them in the porridge shop that was providing relief to the refugees.

This action won the admiration of the surrounding refugees.

Although they no longer had the strength to cheer, the gratitude written in their eyes was genuine.

In fact, it is never difficult to win people's hearts, especially in such difficult days.

It’s just that the vast majority of nobles are unwilling to do so, and even dislike those who do so.

Princess Irene's good deeds unknowingly earned the Campbell family a good reputation in the refugee camp, but at the same time it also aroused the vigilance of some upstarts in Thunder City.

Not far away under the city gate.

Upon learning that Princess Irene had gotten off the carriage near the refugee camp, Governor Wilson could no longer stand there and hurried over with the welcoming team.

The same goes for Mayor Mil Lucius, who represents the citizens of Thunder City.

Only one person did not move, and that was Jan Andes, who was standing on the city wall and looking down.

As the head of the Andes family, he is a guest of honor of the new Grand Duke Edward Campbell. He is also the richest man in Thunder City and the actual power holder who truly controls the lifeblood of this city.

He looked past everyone and stared at the sword at Princess Irene's waist. His thumb rubbed the ring on his index finger. His face was expressionless, as if he was thinking about something.

At the same time, the satisfied Irene had returned to the carriage and continued to move forward surrounded by the cavalry.

Recalling the legend about the Fire King she had just heard, she looked at Theresa and said with a smile.

"It would be nice if I had the chance to meet that gentleman."

It sounds like that person is a hermit with great magical powers, and he also has the blessing of Saint Sith.

Today, the situation on the northeast coast of the Whirlpool Sea is turbulent, and the threat of chaos is approaching.

If he could be persuaded to come out and serve the Duchy of Campbell, it would be a blessing for the subjects of the Duchy of Campbell.

However, after hearing what Irene said, Theresa's face showed a trace of worry.

"I'm afraid this strange person may not be a good person..."

It is impossible for a true God-chosen one to be born in obscurity, let alone to be stranded in the wilderness.

Those who claim to be God's Chosen Ones almost all have ulterior motives.

All they rely on is the ignorance of the general public.

But Irene sees it differently.

God can only decide whether a person's soul is noble, but cannot decide whether a person's soul is pure.

At least so far, everything she's seen has been positive.

"I will confirm this with my own eyes."

(End of this chapter)