Academic gathering with Lich colleagues

Lyle just wanted to get past quickly because the way that guy was looking at him was like he was a big fat sheep.

"candy?"

Ino's call made Lyle and William turn their heads. The young succubus seemed to be petrified and frozen in place, staring blankly at the thing on the inferior magic stone tablet.

"Are you alright, Candy?"

Ino's call finally caught Candy's attention. Candy lowered her head in embarrassment and apologized for her lapse in composure.

"Brother-in-law, that...that thing is the tooth of a lava worm." Candy pointed to a triangular object covered in black carbon ash placed on the far side of the stone slab.

"You really want that? Candy." William scratched his head. He'd never even heard of it before; maybe it was some kind of precious ingredient.

"That's rare, but not anything valuable. My mother gave one to my older sister when she was little, as a toy. I never expected to see another one here. Only adult lava worms grow teeth that big. But... but lava worms are almost extinct because of the demons."

These objects, which hold childhood memories, probably reminded Candy of her deceased mother.

"Boss, how much are these grayish teeth?" William had already walked up to the dwarf demon to ask about the price; he was determined to get his hands on them.

“Philby doesn’t take money here. Philby only likes pretty things. Philby barters.” The dwarf chuckled, his round eyes seeming to be plotting something wicked.

"Is this enough?" William took out a beautiful and exquisite gold coin from his pocket, which glittered even in the dark alley.

That was Dorgit's Lucky Coin, William's family's Magic Coin. Its most magical feature was that it would secretly slip back into the hands of anyone with Dorgit's bloodline. William intended to use this Magic Coin for a transaction.

Simply put, he wanted to get something for free.

“Enough! Enough!” The dwarf Philby laughed merrily, clearly also quite fond of the gold coin. “But Philby wants to play a game with you.”

Philby pulled out three identical demon horns from behind him, their interiors completely hollowed out. He took the lava worm fangs and completely covered them with the demon horns.

“You want to play a game with Philby. Philby moves, and you guess the position. If you guess right, the tooth is yours.” Philby covered his mouth and chuckled, looking at William provocatively. “But you guessed wrong. The pretty coin goes to Philby, and the tooth is still Philby’s.”

This wicked and unscrupulous merchant also wants to get something for free.

Chapter 382 The Spread of Darkness

On one side are intelligent human spellcasters.

On one side are the cunning and inferior demon race.

Now, their ideas are surprisingly aligned.

The secret of the gold coins lies hidden in the shadows, while the devil's game is laid bare in the open.

"Brother-in-law, maybe we should just forget about it. The dwarf demon is an extremely cunning and despicable demon. I was just curious; don't fall for his tricks." Candy sensed William's persistence and whispered her advice. Although his gaze remained fixed on the lava worm's fangs, Candy quietly retreated behind William to avoid letting him see her thoughts.

“Begin, Philby, start your trick.” William stared into the little imp’s eyes, vowing to win.

Philby let out a sharp, sarcastic laugh, like a spider eyeing its prey in its web.

"Then take a closer look, baby's location."

Essentially, this is a guessing game.

One of the devil horns has the tooth that the candy wants underneath, while the other two are empty. Philby will quickly change the position of the three devil horns, making it a game that tests your eyesight.

William's eyes were wide open, his face contorted with rage as he stared at the tooth.

At William's prompting, Philby pretended to clear his throat with his dusty fingers, "Well then, Philby shall begin, my guest."

Imps are extremely short hellish creatures. Their legs are like small sheep hooves, always bent, while their arms are like those of an ape, able to touch the ground even when standing. They are natural thieves, thanks to their nimble fingers.

However, Philby's fingers were more dexterous.

Soft, soft, soft, soft.

That's the sound of the devil's horns flying across the stone slab.

The three demon horns moved swiftly in Philby's hands, leaving afterimages in their wake.

William was stunned. Philby's moving arm even created a small vortex, and the cold wind blowing on his cheek carried the fishy smell of the dwarf demon, mocking the magician's powerlessness.

This short, grotesque demon's hand speed is practically cheating.

Lyle secretly pulled up his collar and spoke to Nia, who had extended an eyeball-like tendril.

"Nia, did you see it clearly? Which corner is it in?"

"Nia didn't see it, Nia's eyes hurt, Nia is going blind!" The adorable evil god refused this difficult task.

Philby stopped what he was doing. Three devil horns stood before them.

"Guess, guest."

William hesitated. Losing Dorgit gold coins wasn't a big deal, since they would return on their own, but he couldn't afford to lose them for nothing. In the current situation, he could only rely on luck, and the chance of getting a Lava Worm Tooth was only one in three.

My luck isn't that great. If Kevin, that lucky star, were here, that would be perfect.

"Guest, please make your choice quickly, don't waste Philby's time."

The cunning demon, having succeeded in his scheme, is closing in step by step.

Sweat began to bead on William's forehead.

“Mr. William.” Ino’s voice came to William’s ears like sweet dew, his eyes sparkling with confidence, his gentle smile unchanged.

“Actually, I have plenty of confidence in this game. May I ask if I can lend a hand? I won’t let you down.” Ino looked at the short Philby. “Mr. Philby, can we make a substitution for this game?”

Philby's filthy eyes sized Ino up and down, then he waved his hand dismissively, "Whatever you want, it's all the same whoever plays."

William agreed with Ino, "Then I'll leave it to you, Mr. Ino."

“Yes, Mr. William, please lend me your gold coins.”

The lucky gold coin, shimmering with magical light, came into Ino's fair palm.

Philby's gaze was fixed entirely on the flipping gold coin.

"Guess, sir."

“Wait a moment.” Ino interrupted Philby’s gesture. Under the puzzled gaze of the imp, Ino picked up a demon horn, which had no teeth underneath. “I want to check if there’s anything wrong with these three demon horns, and whether you’ve been playing any tricks?”

“Philby’s strength doesn’t require those little tricks.” The dwarf demon didn’t stop Ino’s actions. Ino unfolded his second demon horn, which still had no teeth.

"So, does the third one really contain the fangs of a lava worm?"

Philby bowed and gestured for him to proceed.

Ino picked up the third demon horn, the blood-red tooth stained with supplies, which lay beneath it.

“Very well, Mr. Philby, you are indeed very sincere.” Ino covered his teeth again with his devil horns. “Then, this lovely gold coin will officially serve as the chip in this game.”

With a slight effort, Ino flicked her thumb, sending the magic coin flying into the air.

The coin spun in the air, emitting a beautiful light as it slowly fell.

Philby stared intently as the gold coins drew closer and closer, and he stretched out his hands.

Then, above his head, Ino's damn pale arm caught the gold coin again.

“Never mind, I’ve changed my mind, Mr. Philby.”

"Huh?" The dwarf demon hadn't reacted yet.

Ino frowned, looking regretful.

"It's not worth exchanging such a beautiful gold coin for that ugly tooth. We refuse to play this game and wish you a prosperous business."

Ino didn't say much, stuffed the lucky coin into William's arms, and quickly left the alley with Candy in her hand.

By the time William and Lyle realized what was happening, Ino and Candy had already disappeared from sight.

Ignoring the shrewish demon trying to retain the customer, the two followed him away.

In the alley, all that could be heard was Philby and Baby's screams as they passed each other.

William and Lyle caught up with Candy and Ino; in fact, they were waiting on the main street just outside the alley.

"Ino, you startled us too."

"Playing games with the devil is irrational; we can't win. So, flipping the table is the best solution."

William sighed. "Of course I know, but Candy really wants that tooth, doesn't she?"

Ino tilted his head. "The tooth is here with me." He smiled and placed the dusty red tooth into Candy's palm.

"Ino, how did you get it? That thing was still in the devil's horn, wait, you..."

“Yeah, I stole it while that swindler was distracted by the spinning coins,” Ino said playfully, sticking out her tongue. “What an idiot, he can’t even keep an eye on his own stuff, what kind of devil is he?”

Lyle couldn't help but laugh.

Ino tricked the dwarf demon who was planning to trick someone.

That was a brilliant comeback.

Having achieved a satisfactory result, the four walked happily through the portal.

In the alley, Philby swept the trinkets from the stone table onto the ground. His expression was less one of anger and more one of pain and fear. Beads of sweat dripped from his wrinkled forehead. The imposter huddled in the shadows of the alley, his nimble arms tightly wrapped around himself, curled into a trembling ball.

Tears streamed down Philby's cloudy eyes as he sobbed, and he glanced uneasily at the shadows around him, keeping his head bowed low.

“Philby…Philby did what you…you did. Please, take them away from Philby, it hurts so much! Philby can’t take it anymore! Philby is going crazy! Please…”

The cold, gloomy alley, filled with darkness, coldly watched this lowly, pitiful creature.

Philby suddenly screamed and fell to the ground, unconscious.

The black robe that covered his body was finally removed.

On the short, thin back of the dwarf demon was a large, rock-like mass that tore through his skin, grew into his flesh, and sucked his blood.

That was a large group of barnacles.

Chapter 383 The Life of Music

Before the current recedes, ships cannot notice the reefs in the shadows, and sailors are captivated by the magnificent starlight in the sky, lost in tranquility.

Lyle and his three companions returned to the Blood Rose Bar. Beatrice, unusually, dispelled the dark clouds that had hung over the bar, allowing sunlight and colorful ribbons to illuminate this sleepless, carnival-like place.