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

"Your Excellency! Please allow me to help!" Seeing that Raslaufer and the two demons were locked in a stalemate, a middle-aged man in the crowd, who was probably a teacher, loudly chanted a spell. Unlike Daisy's Slow spell, as this spell was applied to Raslaufer, the claw that he had originally intended to withstand fell into empty space as he moved. And the two demons, who had clearly shaken off the effect of the Slow spell, actually became sluggish again in his eyes.

"Beautiful! What's your name?" As Shouzhi's long poem danced like the wind, he struck one of the demons' thighs before it could react, and Leslaufer's maniacal laughter rang out. Although it might be proper to thank the demon, it sounded more like he was about to deliver a fatal blow.

“Le...Le Corneille, Your Excellency!” As he spoke, Brandon uttered a healing incantation, alleviating several of Reslaufer’s rather gruesome injuries. “I am Brandon Frye. I can cast one more divine spell. What do you need?”

Compared to the teacher's hasty response, Brandon's words were much clearer and more concise. Such questioning might have previously disrupted Doppler's thinking, but now it was entirely helpful.

"The one that controlled Annie before!" Leslaufer dodged a slashing claw to the side, then reversed the hilt of his sword and smashed another demon aside.

Brandon immediately understood. The next second, his eyes lit up like two candles, and within those faint flames burned the phantom of the demon that hadn't been smashed open: "Spigor's Command Demon: Freeze!"

“Sir, this spell cannot last…” As Brandon spoke, threads that were eight or nine parts similar to the Command spell immediately spread out and bound the demon. The demon tried to break free, but found that the threads actually bound it even tighter!

This is a spell that Heinrich specifically researched to combat evil spirits. It is a variant of the command spell. Although it is useless to ordinary people or even cultists, if the target is a devil, evil spirit, or any kind of demon, they will have to pay double the price to escape from this command.

Although, like the Command spell, this spell only lasts for a moment, that moment was more than enough for Raslaufer. Before the demon's body even hit the ground, its grotesque head had already flown off on its own after the flash of sword light!

Another demon tried to launch a sneak attack, but Leslaufer flipped and soared into the air, abandoning the Long Poem of Guardian Will, and grabbed one of its wings. Before the demon could resist, the dagger in its left hand rained down into its eye sockets. The demon's howl echoed throughout the banquet hall and did not stop until its physical body in the material world dissipated.

Having lost his target, Raslaufer rose from the filth. He looked at the unblemished dagger in his hand, then turned to the crowd and sneered, causing the surging cheers to abruptly cease as if someone had choked them.

No one dared to provoke Raslaufer at this time. He had just killed three demons that had almost wiped them all out, which almost meant that he himself could kill everyone here!

They couldn't do anything to those demons even with their magic, and now they don't have a single powerful spell left. If Raslaufer wants anything... then give it to him.

Ursula walked slowly out of the crowd with her head down. Anyone who wasn't blind could see that Annie and this mercenary were related, not to mention that Annie herself said that this man was her uncle.

Regardless of why an Imperial citizen would have an Eastern Inathas uncle, let's consider this a given fact. If he doesn't admit his mistake and accept punishment now, is he supposed to wait for the uncle to come to him?

However, none of the accusations Ursula had anticipated materialized. The blood-soaked Raslaufer walked straight past her and instead... headed straight for her bodyguard.

Thunderclap? What's wrong with her now? Ursula felt a little dizzy. She hadn't noticed any conflict between Raslaufer and Thunderclap—weren't they just attacking together?

Ursula felt like her head was about to explode with questions.

However, Raslaufer's thoughts were not as complicated as she imagined. Doble, holding a dagger, looked at the empty space beside him, where the man who both respected and feared him, asked in a hoarse voice, "Where is he?"

Others may not know, but Hong Lei does.

“He…he got away, sir,” the “First Gladiator of Eastern Inasas” raised his hands in surrender. “I swear to the God of War, Orcchiva, this has nothing to do with me. I was even trying to stop him…”

Please take one day off.

Headache (literal meaning)

Chapter 440 Right and wrong, black and white, will be judged by history.

Leslaufer wanted to chase after them, but before he could part the crowd, the two deans had already helped another person descend from the sky and landed steadily on the ground.

Both deans were injured, while the one being helped in the middle looked as if he had been pulled out of a pool of blood, his own blood mixed with that of demons, emitting a foul odor.

Doples carefully examined the man. Although there was a significant difference between him and the man in Bohr's illusion, he could still confirm that it was the same person.

Heinrich Spegol.

"The aura of evil is so strong, it clings to everyone..." The demon scholar—or perhaps exorcist would be a more appropriate name—coughed twice, weakly raised his head, and looked around. "I'm sorry, everyone, although I don't want to say it, I believe that the harm of deceiving the masses is far greater than informing them of the danger."

"We have failed. The evil lurking in Ironforge is more powerful and cunning than we imagined. The Soul Eater, though wounded, has not been driven away. It has fled into the darkness and has an urgent need to drink souls. It will strike again soon."

Heinrich's gaze fell on Reislaufer: "We do need warriors as brave as you. What you need to do most now is to recover from your injuries and prepare for the next battle. Don't waste your energy on a cowardly coward."

He had glimpsed from above how Raslaufer dealt with the three beasts, so although his intuitive spirituality told Heinrich that the man before him was somewhat strange, he temporarily dismissed it as a hallucination caused by his injuries.

After all, this warrior had just engaged in close combat with three demons, so it was perfectly normal for him to be tainted with some demonic aura. As for why this aura came from the Nine Hells rather than the Abyss... perhaps those demons had just retreated from the battlefield between demons and devils?

In short, it is not advisable to delve into this now.

But while Heinrich wanted to postpone the meeting, Reislaufer had no intention of giving up. His eyes lit up and he immediately had an idea: "You must be Lord Spegor, right? I've heard so much about you, but there's one thing you're probably wrong about."

"That runaway was no coward, but an accomplice of the demons. We have reason to suspect that he is one of the demons' moles planted in Ironforge. If you don't believe me, you can ask others whether he was celebrating when I killed one of the demons, or if there was something else going on?"

"I, I heard it!" Thunderclap chimed in quickly, "That guy is extremely resentful!"

"Yeah, he's not even lifting a finger, so what right does he have to point fingers?" "Something's not right, something's definitely not right!" Someone took the lead, and others in the crowd immediately echoed. Because the lord of Ironfortress had been moving between various families for many years, the many nobles could not be described as being divided into factions, but rather as a disorganized mess. No one would easily let go of such an opportunity to kick other families when they were down.

In particular, that young officer has been very active in recent years, winning over many minor nobles and wealthy citizens to his "regular army." What is he planning to do?

If the officer were here, and had survived Raslaufer's attack, he would surely cry out in protest: he wanted to go forward, but Raslaufer took his weapon, leaving him no choice but to fight the devil bare-handed. While this explanation is hardly convincing, it's at least a little better than the current situation.

At this moment, who he really is is no longer his concern.

After the chorus of agreement subsided, the two deans and Heinrich roughly understood what had happened, but their expressions revealed that they didn't entirely believe it. In response, Raislaufer decided to add fuel to the fire.

Today they have to believe it whether they want to or not.

“Besides that, I also noticed something,” Doppler said, a magical aura emanating from him as Daisy healed him. “That fellow came with Mr. Frye. Although he claimed to have been invited, I think Mr. Frye, as your disciple, must have his own reasons.”

Leslaufer turned to look at Brandon, whose expression was a mixture of embarrassment and confusion—he had indeed invited the man to be his bodyguard, but the purpose… was to deal with these outsiders and prevent them from taking risks.

He certainly couldn't bring himself to say that reason now, but even so, he was certain the other party wasn't a cultist. However, seeing how confidently the others spoke, Brandon couldn't help but begin to doubt his own abilities.

Is he really not?

"...Is that so?" As the one who instigated Brandon's actions, how could Heinrich not know what Brandon had done? His turn to his disciple was a clear indication of his intentions.

He could make mistakes, but his students couldn't; they had to be perfect, at least until he died. But Heinrich discovered that his foolish student didn't seem to grasp this point.

Actually, I—

“Actually, you noticed something a long time ago, but lacking evidence, you had no choice but to keep him under control,” this time it wasn’t Leslaufer who spoke, but Angelita. Although she didn’t know what grudge Leslaufer had against that officer, she was willing to cooperate as long as it was what Uncle Leslaufer wanted to do. “No wonder, I’ve heard about you before. I was wondering why you were so different from the rumors, so… frivolous—it was all to lull the cultists into a false sense of security?”

This explanation seems a bit forced, since there isn't much connection between the two, but it does solve the problem and makes everyone's brows relax.

Among them, Ursula is undoubtedly the most "relaxed".

She knew it; Brandon was always right!

Praise began to emerge, causing Brandon's face to flush. He raised his hand to deny it, but Leslaufer stepped forward, put his arm around the young priest's shoulder, and whispered in his ear:

"When it comes to making mistakes, there's only the difference between zero times and countless times. If you make a mistake once, it means you'll make mistakes again later, and you've already missed an opportunity."

"Do you intend to bring shame upon your teachers, your college, the gods, your relatives and friends because of this?"

It has to be said that this kind of threat was more readily available to Leslaufer. Brandon immediately fell silent. After a moment, he raised his head and looked at everyone with shame: "I'm sorry, I... I couldn't do anything."

He was immediately overwhelmed with words of comfort and excuses. Reislaufer released the young man and slowly retreated to Heinrich's side. The two deans, who had already seen through everything, naturally made way for him.

“Well done,” the demon scholar whispered, covering his mouth with his hand. “You were brought by Paul, weren’t you? I had some doubts about you before, thinking you were spies planted by the demons.”

"And now?"

“I’m even more suspicious now,” Heinrich laughed. “Come see me again in a few days when I’m a little better. In any case, I owe you a favor.”

Chapter 441 Delivered to Your Door

Heinrich didn't linger, hastily departing with Brandon. This time, the demon had revealed its true form, and the most important task now was to race against time. Not only did they need to recover faster than the demon, but they also needed to find its hiding place before it recovered. Only in this way could Ironforge be completely rid of the demon's shadow.

As for whether there are other equally or even more powerful demons lurking in the shadows, everyone thought the possibility was extremely slim. A single Soul-Eating Demon was already so difficult to deal with; if another one came, the entire Ironforge would be handed over without a second thought.

In the other places attacked by demons, no beings similar to the Soul Eater were found; it seemed the demons were specifically targeting Heinrich.

Attacked by demons, the banquet, though only just begun, could no longer continue. The invited guests all departed, leaving only the academy's faculty and students to clean up the mess. Raslaufer and his companions, after exchanging a few pleasantries with the others, were also about to leave when they bumped into another group of people.

"Halt! Don't let a single one escape!"

Daisy had just reached the door when she was forced back by a row of spears gleaming coldly in the lamplight. Startled, the bard quickly hid behind Leslaufer, peeking out only his head to steal glances at the uninvited guests outside.

There were about twenty-three or twenty-five people who arrived, all fully armed and equipped with excellent gear. Two of them were probably the captains of two separate squads, and they were now imperiously ordering their soldiers to surround the entire banquet hall.

"What's going on here? What are you trying to do? Who gave you permission to act so presumptuously here!" Such behavior naturally aroused the host's dissatisfaction, and the two deans came over at the sound of the noise, glaring angrily at the two people opposite them.

Although this is an arcane academy, it is still a property of the Church of Serak. Although the two of them are nominally deans, they are actually bishops of Serak! A group of soldiers surrounded them. What are they doing?

"It has nothing to do with you two, and we wouldn't dare to be presumptuous; we're just carrying out official duties." The two captains naturally recognized each other, but although they said this, there was a hint of a forced smile in their expressions. However, before the deans could react, one of them pulled out an official document.

“The Arcane Academy has been invaded by demons, and there must be treacherous accomplices among them. We have been ordered to come here to screen out these scum.” As they spoke, the two men’s eyes glanced at Raslaufer.

The two deans took the document and examined it carefully. Regardless of the other party's motives, the document was at least genuine.

“But you’re probably too late,” the dean of the seminary said in a deep voice. “Our seminary will investigate internally. With Master Heinrich here, you don’t need to worry about it. As for the other distinguished guests, they have already left.”

“Of course they’ll visit them one by one, but now,” a captain sneered, looking Raslaw up and down, “aren’t there still some who haven’t left?”

"I heard this banquet is to welcome these outsiders? Tsk tsk, I say, Your Excellencies, you're probably inviting wolves into the house. As for you few, you'd better come with us."

"This is utter nonsense!" The teacher named Lecorney, who had previously helped Leslaufer in the fight against the demons, immediately protested loudly. "Everyone here can testify that this gentleman personally killed three demons! And I provided him with negligible assistance. If you want to investigate, just take me away as a witness as well!"

“Me too!” “Me too—” “Just take us all with you, in the name of Serak, as His followers, every word we say in court is true!”

"Stop! Stop! All of you, shut up!"

The sharp spears struck the door frame, making a series of noises. The two captains looked murderous, and the soldiers behind them all raised their weapons. The uniform sound of their armor scraping together forced the teachers and students, who couldn't muster a single spell, to shut up.

“Threatening clergy, very well. I will protest to your superiors tomorrow,” the dean of the Mathematical Olympiad Academy stared coldly at the other party for a moment, then grabbed his colleague’s arm and turned to walk inside. “Then you can leave this to us. We can’t handle this matter!”

“Dean, this is unacceptable—” “Shut up, Le Corne, you’ve said enough today.”

As the two deans held absolute authority as leaders of both the academy and the church, no one else responded after he spoke, and they all crowded to the other side of the hall, leaving most of the banquet hall empty.

Paul hadn't planned to retreat with them, and Angelita was still standing behind Raslaufer, but the dean of the seminary pulled him back, forcing the old man to follow.

“Very good, thank you for your cooperation,” the two squad leaders looked at the acquiescing crowd with satisfaction and pride, feeling quite triumphant. One of them picked up a spear shaft and lashed it at Leslaufer. “What are you waiting for? Let’s go! We’ll settle our differences at the barracks—hmm?”

The man's last word should have been accompanied by the sound of the spear striking flesh, but unfortunately, with Raslaufer raising his hand, he couldn't utter that word no matter what. Dopler's hand gripped the other end of the spear shaft like an iron clamp, and no matter how much the man's forehead veins throbbed, he couldn't move it an inch, and even pulling it back became an impossible task.

"You want to resist arrest?!" Seeing that things were not going well, the other captain immediately turned his attention to Leslaufer and thrust his weapon straight at his heart. But almost instantly, two snapping sounds were heard at the entrance of the banquet hall, and two objects, one light and one heavy, fell to the ground.

The lighter one was the half of the spear shaft still attached to the spearhead; the heavier one was the captain who had made the move—his neck was bent back 180 degrees, as if he had seen a demon behind him in terror.

The next moment, Raslaufer raised both hands simultaneously, crossing them in front of the other surviving squad leader. The deadly snapping sound rang out once more, and the remaining half of the spear and its owner fell to the ground, lifeless.

“Very well. I was thinking that three demons might not be enough,” Reslaufer said, looking at the bewildered soldiers opposite him. He spread his arms, picked up two gradually cooling corpses from the ground, and shouted sharply, “Demons have incited the soldiers of Ironforge to mutini and besiege the Church of the Righteous! Heretics—”

"Execute them all!" Daisy shouted, and the music turned hoarse, shrouding the entire area in an eerie silence, so that the soldiers inside could no longer utter a sound.

The last phrase that those outside could hear was a correction from Leslaufer: "—Just kill!"

Chapter 442 Arriving at the Demon's Side

Scheinhailig didn't dare to crawl out of the hidden door of his office until night fell again.

Everywhere you look, there is a mess. The exquisite scabbards on the wall have been torn off, the defense map on the table has been ripped to shreds, and the beautiful leather boots worth hundreds of Essen (a gold coin unit in Ironforge) have been hacked down with a sword, leaving only half of the upper.

On the ground, he could also see some broken banner fragments with words like "demon" and "blood debt must be repaid" written in blood-red ink.

With trembling hands pierced by the knife, Scheinhailig picked up a few pieces of the food. He knew he was finished—completely finished.

Ever since Master Heinrich rose to fame in Ironforge, being associated with evil spirits has become the most dangerous charge. He originally intended to use his soldiers to pin this label on that damned Duple, but now he has reaped the consequences himself.

And those soldiers, those soldiers chosen from other minor noble and wealthy commoner families, all of them are dead, and the cause of death is "mutiny instigated by the devil, attacking the Church of Serac." Their relatives will never let it go; they will pin all the blame on him—otherwise, they will take turns defending the dead in court, and if they cannot prove that the dead were not bewitched, they themselves will be executed as colluders.

Because the enemy was as cunning and brutal as a manticore, nearly thirty soldiers were left without a single intact corpse or tongue. The spells used by the dead to communicate were meaningless, forcing the living to "argue against the indefensible." They couldn't even doubt whether the enemy acted intentionally, because half of the victimized Mathematical Olympiad Academy served as witnesses—it was the same method that Dopler used against his enemies, and the same way the three-headed demon was killed.

This testimony did not need to be falsified, nor could it be falsified, because among the witnesses were two bishops of Serac and Master Heinrich, who happened to be one of the jurors in this case.

There is only one way to make everyone go their own way—he, Scheinhailig, the former rising star, the future reformer of the military system of Eastern Inassus and even the entire world, is and must be a believer in the devil, a despicable spy, a contemptible traitor. In fact, if it weren't for a secret door left in this room by his ancestors, he would already be a charred corpse on the stake.

But on what grounds?!

These short-sighted, ungrateful bastards! Won't they fulfill all their promises in the future?! It's just a couple of deaths, what's the big deal?! Every person who has left their mark on history has stood on countless corpses!

He can't die here. He has to leave this place of sorrow, go south, go to the central region, the west, even the empire. What that little girl could do, he can do too! As long as he goes somewhere else, he's sure he can achieve great things!

Scharnheig, enduring the excruciating pain of his still-healing wounds, clutched the shards of fabric that had so smeared his plans to his heart. He abruptly turned, ready to leave this heartbreaking place that had so distorted his grand ambitions. But the next moment, his eyes widened in shock; he had never dreamed he would face such a situation.

A long, thin, grotesque figure with a mouth full of sharp teeth, scales, and enormous, folding bat wings... it was the demon that had appeared at the top of the banquet hall earlier!

The officer tried to scream, but the demon merely raised a finger, rendering him completely speechless. Then, he heard a foul and evil whisper.

"Why bother shouting? Think about it, since they all believe you're a follower of the devil, then... why not?"

“You have a bright future ahead of you, and endless achievements await you. I can help you achieve them,” the demon coaxed. “You should have noticed last night that I could fight those three spellcasters at the same time without being at a disadvantage. With my help, all obstacles will disappear.”

"You don't need to flee anymore. If you want, the entire Iron Fortress can be yours!"

Scheinhailig stared blankly at the demon before him, drool almost dripping from the corner of his mouth. A moment of struggle seemed to flicker in the depths of his eyes, but ultimately, he numbly nodded.

"it is good……"

“Very well,” the devil laughed. “Then come closer, even closer… Scheinhailig, I know your name, I know your wish. Look, what a beautiful scene! Come here, come to my side, and you can melt into my arms. Keep walking forward, don’t look to either side, understand? Come on!”