Your Majesty's money, why don't you engrave my name on it?

"Insignificant mortal!" As the devil spoke, a stench of decay and sulfur erupted, "Never knowing the horrors of hell—"

“Osses, is that so?” Leslaufer interrupted him, revealing the devil’s true name without any attempt at concealment, which both shocked and enraged the bone demon.

How could you—

A cruel smile crept across Reslaufer's lips: "You've finally arrived!"

Chapter 390 One Tiger Kills Two Sheep

As night fell, the snowstorm outside the castle intensified.

Inside the castle's reception room, the pale demon seemed to be the embodiment of a blizzard—cold, cruel, and merciless.

Unfortunately, he is now facing an even harsher winter than he had ever faced.

"Boom!" The thick scorpion tail fell into empty space again, smashing a section of the floor. Leslaufer's figure appeared from the side in an instant, aiming straight for the devil's head.

"We've been tricked!" The Bone Demon was overjoyed and immediately slashed down with his hook scythe. As he felt the solidity of the greatsword at the end, Osses skillfully flipped, hooked, and pulled, wedging the two branches of the greatsword onto the blade. At the same time, the scorpion tail that had just missed nimbly circled around Reslaufer's back and stabbed fiercely towards his back!

"You deserve to die, mortal!" Osses roared. This was a common technique used by the bone demons, who used their numerous weapons to control their opponent's weapon with hooks and scythes before delivering a fatal blow.

Normally, whether it's a demon, a devil, or a mortal, they would be caught off guard and terrified in this situation. However, this time, the Bone Demon did not see any similar expressions or emotions that would excite him.

On this ordinary man's face, he could only detect a strong sense of mockery.

"You deserve to die!"

The moment the scorpion's tail struck, Raslaufer immediately released his weapon, but almost simultaneously raised his sword. In a flash of dark red light, accompanied by the bone demon's painful scream, a cut appeared in the middle of his scorpion tail, almost severing it!

"Hellfire!" Oses shouted, how could he not recognize the material of the battle sword in Reslaufer's hand? "Who are you?!"

"The one who will send you back to hell."

Although the Bone Demon wasn't idle while questioning, after sending Raslauver's greatsword flying, his hooked scythe immediately came crashing down on Raslauver's head. However, this had no effect on Raslauver. Instead, he dodged the fiercest slash and deliberately grazed the severed edge of the jagged scorpion tail.

Even the parts severed by the battle blade had sharp, blade-like ridges around them. Reslaufer's clothes were immediately torn, and blood flowed out. However, in the next instant, this blood ignited into a raging green flame, engulfing the unsuspecting bone demon!

"You think the flames of purgatory can harm a demon? Ridiculous!" The Bone Demon roared with mockery and anger, transferring his weapon to his left hand and reaching for Raslaufer with his right claw.

"Let me see what secrets you, a mere mortal, hold!"

The battle blade clashed with the pair of sharp claws, producing a metallic clang. The previous overwhelming force of the battle blade seemed to have vanished like a bubble. At the same time, Erich attacked from the side, and the man and the devil were about to tear Raslaufer apart in the next moment.

At that moment, Raslaufer's figure suddenly blurred. In that instant, both Erich and Osses felt the threat of impending death. The source of the threat leaped up from the inescapable trap and unleashed three slashes at Osses's grotesque skull in an instant!

The first cut only left a slight dent, but the second cut drew blood. As Dopler's third cut fell, a large half of the head shot into the air, and putrid pus splattered onto Erich's body!

"No!" The wounded demon howled in terror. His powerful life force kept him alive, but he had lost all will to fight. He turned around and desperately tried to crawl back into the portal that had summoned him, but at that moment, Raslaufer had already taken back his greatsword and forcefully ripped open the flesh on his back, causing two insect wings on one side to fall off.

However, at this moment, half of Osses' body also squeezed in with the momentum. Smelling the familiar infernal scent, he almost thought he was about to escape. But the next second, a huge force came from the base of his tail and dragged him back to the other side!

"You can't kill a demon in the material world! Let me go, and I'll give you anything you want!" This time, Osses truly felt terror! Perhaps other demons were unafraid to die outside the Nine Hells, but for this mission, he couldn't die outside!

Once he returns to the Nine Hells, he can find a way to bring back the mortal who signed the contract. By forcibly transforming him, he can exploit the loophole, thus saving the mortal's life and removing him from the king and the throne without harming him. The contract will then become invalid.

This was a solemn promise he made before Grand Duchess Fernana. Perhaps he had been disrespectful to her in the past, but that was all in the past; he had completely repented! He—

However, no matter what motives or reasons the Bone Demon had, he could not escape the clutches of Raslaufer. As his head reappeared in the castle of the material world, a dark red blade pierced through the air, and the next moment, the demon's body transformed into a cloud of sulfurous smoke and disappeared.

Perhaps he will be reborn somewhere in the Nine Hells, reconstructing a new body, but that will have nothing to do with Raslaufer.

Dubler's gaze, filled with mocking malice, turned to the old king who had collapsed to the ground.

"Are you coming here, or should I go to the other side?" The tip of the sword struck the ground with a sound like a death knell.

"I...I will not yield! There are only fallen kings here!" Erich trembled all over, but a thunderous roar suddenly erupted around him, unleashing a tremendous explosion, "Thunderclap!"

The tremendous vibration caused a buzzing in Reslaufer's ears, but it was far less than Daisy's mattie and couldn't hurt him much more—a fact that both Reslaufer and Ehrlich were fully aware of.

However, the latter continued to tirelessly cast various spells, hindering Raslaufer's advance. Even now, a sliver of hope lingered in his heart: perhaps, just perhaps, his son would have a change of heart? Perhaps he would rush in at any moment and stop the assassin he had hired from killing his father?

Perhaps at least he will come in, and I'll see him one last time?

Although his fantasies grew increasingly humble as Raslaufer drew closer, they ultimately failed to materialize. He didn't even have time to linger, to reflect on his seventy years of life.

Because the binding force of the devil's contract was still in effect, Raslaufer could only choose between leaving him unharmed or killing him on the spot. Therefore, with a powerful slash of his sword, the old king's head, along with half of his upper body, slid to the ground. His head was separated from his body, and even his heart was shattered into pieces, making him one of the few under Dopler's command to die almost painlessly.

“Oh, well done, my cruel yet merciful master!” Barbasabalon’s figure appeared in the air. “The Grand Duchess has received your sincerity. Since she is not bound by a contract, she does not intend to continue playing word games—you only need to kill one more person.”

"But before that, there's someone you might want to meet."

Leaning on his greatsword, Raslaufer's gaze followed the little devil's tail. It was unclear which blow in the battle had caused the reception room door to be torn to shreds, but outside the door, there was neither a heavily fortified encirclement that he would have to fight his way through, nor a deserted, silent corridor.

A young man, a young man who had gained the greatest benefit, stood there, bowing smugly and gracefully to the mercenary.

Chapter 391 Beneficiaries

"Lord Raslaufer, how does it feel to kill your own king?"

Henning Wenzel's face lit up with a bright smile for a moment, but it quickly turned into exaggerated sadness: "Alas, my father lived to be seventy, but he did not die a peaceful death. The thought of this is truly heartbreaking."

A kingdom cannot be without a king. His Highness, whose succession to the throne was already a foregone conclusion, sighed repeatedly: "Perhaps I should let the guards rush in and capture the assassin who murdered my father? Or could I let you go and then issue a warrant and a bounty to hunt you down to the ends of the earth? Which do you think is better?"

He looked at Dubler, but the latter only returned his gaze expressionlessly.

"What are you thinking, Your Excellency?"

“I’m thinking, after killing the king, should I also take down a prince?” To Henning, Raslaufer’s movements were like a passing gust of wind, appearing before him in the blink of an eye. “I should ask you, Your Highness: what are you thinking about?”

Don't even mention that he hasn't put on that crown yet; even if he did, so what? He just killed a king, so killing another one wouldn't be a burden for him.

"Perhaps I should kill you now, or perhaps I should let you die wearing the crown you so desperately desire?"

The smile didn't disappear; it merely shifted from the prince's face, leaving him only with the terror of impending death.

"No...don't kill me, please, I was just joking, I was wrong!" Henning's surrender came much faster than Reslaufer had expected. In a single glance, the king knelt before the mercenaries. "That was just...that was just a drill! You see, I'll soon have to explain these things to them—only I can explain them! I need to come up with a suitable reason..."

“Count Nedoule murdered the king, it’s that simple,” Raslaufer pointed to the bloody room behind him, “but he was killed by King Erich himself and eventually bled to death.”

Who's that next to him?

“Yes… Baron Scott, who also oversees the spies serving the King.” Henning answered tremblingly, bowing his head. He didn’t need to identify the body; he knew perfectly well who Erich had met that day.

“Very well, the Earl colluding with… the Minister of Intelligence, whatever you call it, it sounds quite plausible,” Leslaufer chuckled. “What do you think, Your Highness?”

Henning's shoulder suddenly felt heavy. As the broad blade pressed down on him, the blood-stained edge, radiating a gradually cooling warmth, drew closer to his neck.

“...Yes, very reasonable,” he said, forcing his head up, his smile more like a grimace. “But the Earl of Nedoule’s family has been in power for seven generations and is very influential in the kingdom. They probably won’t accept this explanation.”

“It doesn’t matter. Soon, there won’t be any more inner or outer douches.” Raslaufer said casually, but Henning quickly realized what was about to happen.

You mean...?

"Prepare a few decrees, Your Majesty. You are surely eager to avenge your father, and as your most loyal vassal, Countess Skadi of Doule will certainly be more than willing to be your sword. Oh, or perhaps it should be, Duchess Doule?"

Henning shrank back, realizing that the Duple in front of him was not the roughneck he appeared to be—he might just prefer to solve problems with his head rather than his brain.

“Your Excellency, the laws of Inassus do not recognize the title of ‘Duke’.”

“Never mind then,” Raslaufer waved his hand dismissively. He sheathed his greatsword, turned and walked back into the house, picking up the crown from the pool of blood. “I’m just a mercenary, Your Majesty. I’m not very familiar with these things, please don’t take offense.”

"So, there shouldn't be any hired assassins now?"

"……certainly."

"There won't be any arrest warrants or bounties?"

“That’s right, absolutely not.” To Henning, the earlier “Don’t be offended” sounded more like a warning.

“Very good.” Raslaufer nodded in satisfaction. He noticed that the other man’s gaze was turning to the crown in his hand, like a begging cat or dog, but Dopler was in no hurry. “Well then, I have a few more questions. Would you be interested in answering them?”

“You seem to know I was coming in advance. Why? Where did you get that information?” Leslaufer didn’t really intend to ask for the other person’s opinion.

“It was a… witch, from Corazond. She used a few chicken bones to divine my past and present—the present at that time,” Henning quickly replied. “I hid her in my dwelling. Not long ago, she told me that my father was about to die in an accident, and that I would eventually inherit the throne.”

"So I thought... well, I wanted to see what kind of accident could have killed my father. After all, as I know, and as you know, he was very strong and also possessed some magic."

"So you saw it." Raslaufer nodded slightly. Although the man hadn't told the whole truth, it was probably mostly accurate. Based on that, the prince could save his life.

The mercenary looked at the yellow crown with red flowers in his hand, and under Henning's expectant gaze, he raised it up, but then put it on his own head: "How does it look on me?"

Raslaufer didn't straighten it. The crown, half gold and half brass, was crookedly hooked on the mercenary's hair in the stunned gaze of its true owner. It didn't look like a king at all, nor even like a nobleman.

"Very...suitable?" Henning swallowed.

"How about I take it back as a keepsake?"

"If you take it away, all the previous arrangements will be useless..."

Reislauffer paused for a moment, then listlessly removed the crown and tossed it onto Henning's head.

"Forget it, this thing isn't very interesting anyway. You can keep it for yourself to play with." He shook his head, turned and walked towards the window. "Tell your people to stay away, if you don't want them to die."

"Remember what you said before, if you go back on your word..."

“I understand, I understand everything!” Henning remained kneeling there, head bowed, extremely submissive. However, Raslaufer did not notice the resentful glint in the eyes of the soon-to-be-crowned king. His thumbnail was deeply embedded in his flesh, blood seeping out and slowly flowing down the folds of his skin.

Raslaufer didn't notice, or perhaps he simply didn't care, but just minutes later, the kingdom's servants and ministers saw their prince stumble out of the castle and into the snowy night, hysterically announcing the old king's death, the conspiracy of Count Nedoule and his brother, and his own revenge.

On his head now stood a crooked, blood-stained crown.

Chapter 392 The Sound of Hell

Under the watchful eyes of countless eyes, a new king will soon be welcomed amidst a blizzard in a corner of the land of Eastern Inasas; and also under the watchful eyes of countless eyes, in the flames of Freghtus, a once-favored son of the Grand Duke is about to meet his end.

Obsidian and dark glass everywhere reflected the Bone Demon's intact body. Demons are almost never killed in the material plane, but some of them meet a fate no different from death, or even more tragic.

For example, the interests of a devilish grand duke were harmed, and the reason for this was his dereliction of duty.

Abrimok, a city of revelry that could operate like a carnival under the law, seemed so empty and cold to Osses. He stood under the portico of the city's largest theater, cautiously peering into the interior of this work of art, only to find it pitch black.

Large flames simmered at the entrance. The fires of Phrygtus were different from those elsewhere; they would try to ignite all living things and objects as if they were sentient, but they would not harm any of the demons, not even the most fire-fearing ones. Therefore, no matter how many demons came and went in the theater every day, none of them were burned.

The Bone Demon, who was naturally unafraid of flames, ascended the steps. However, just as he took the first step into the theater, a piercing burning sensation suddenly shot up from his feet and reached the top of his head!

"Ah! Ah!" The burns, unlike anything he'd experienced in centuries, caused Osset to scream instantly, right in front of the bustling theater, on the most vibrant street, in the heart of the city, the most likely place for demons to gather in this infernal realm. An overwhelming sense of shame washed over him, but the terrifying pain refused to let him bear it. He rolled around in front of the theater for a full five minutes before the intense burning suddenly subsided, as if it had never happened.

"Hey buddy, what's wrong with you? Need some help?" Several devils, who had been enjoying this ugly scene for a while, immediately started laughing when they saw Osses get up.

Osses recognized one of the Thorn Demons. After being demoted to a Bone Demon as an overseer, he had enemies almost everywhere. These demons were more than happy to see their once high and mighty superior, who used to whip them at will, reduced to a wretched state. Normally, Osses would have immediately reprimanded him while taking out his whip and casket, but now, he only wanted to escape.

If he can gain the Duke's forgiveness, he will always have the opportunity to retaliate, but if he loses the Duke's support, what is he? What will he have left?

Osses concealed himself, no longer daring to test the other doors of the theater, which would only make him look worse. After navigating a long and winding path through the complex city of purgatory, he stopped in front of a small side door.

This door is an entrance reserved for demons who work in the theater, but because Grand Duchess Philna herself frequents it and sometimes even works here, her staff, such as the Blood Armor Demon, also use it to avoid being seen by outsiders.

Ossis hesitated for a moment, looking at the almost invisible line of flame at the bottom edge of the door in front of him. In the end, he still did not have the courage to push the door open directly. He tried to stand as far away as possible, extended his intact scorpion tail, and knocked on the door.

One round, no one.

The second round, still no one.

When the Bone Demon knocked on the door for the third time, the trapdoor was opened, and a little devil peeked out for a while. After realizing it was a Bone Demon, it slammed the trapdoor shut, and silence returned to the door.

Osses knew it would report it, but he was in such a hurry that after a long pause, he started knocking again, once, twice.

This time, the door was finally opened. A female demon, with a gloomy face, stared at the bone demon outside the door with an unfriendly expression.

She looked no different from the Campiones, or even the Tifferins. Osses knew that she couldn't even be considered a true devil. She was only draped in an intricately patterned silk robe, large swaths of her fiery red skin exposed. A plucked string instrument was held in her arms, the instrument she had just been playing, and the one she was most skilled at.

If it weren't for this talent, she would never have been able to win Philna's favor based solely on her looks, figure, or voice. In fact, even that wouldn't have been enough; she had many more qualities that would make the Grand Duke value her.

“Zhengling,” Osses called out the other person’s name hurriedly, “Is the Grand Duke here? I have urgent business with her! I must see her!”

“Then you should go over there and go through the procedures. The secretaries will arrange the time for you.” Zheng Ling pointed to a conspicuous building outside, which was Philna’s theoretical office location.

“I’ve been there, but they told me the Grand Duke isn’t here!” Osses said urgently. “Please, besides that place, your place is the only other place the Grand Duke comes to most often. She must be inside now, right?”

Zhengling did not answer immediately, but simply stared at the Bone Demon. When that charming and melodious voice was no longer around him, Osses felt unprecedented pressure.

He realized he had misspoke: what the Grand Duke wanted to do, what he often did, was not something he could interfere with. Perhaps he could keep it in mind, but he couldn't say it aloud.

“Yes, the Grand Duchess is here right now,” Zheng Ling said without lying, for there was no need to, “but she is busy with official business, so she sent me to see you.”

"Ah..." Osses' heart sank. He awkwardly rubbed his hands together. "Well, okay, shall we go inside and talk?"

“Let’s do it here,” Zheng Ling said, showing no sign of backing down despite feeling as insignificant as an ant in front of the enormous and powerful Bone Demon. “I am just a lowly actor and have no right to decide who can come and go.”

“In fact, I am not an administrator, so although I have the authorization of the hostess, I am not, strictly speaking, able to represent her authority at all, let alone the law of Fregetus.”

"No means yes, and no means yes." After Zheng Ling began with this statement, Osses immediately bowed, as if the person in front of him was Grand Duchess Philna herself.