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

“I’m still a little curious about how you were expelled after you went back.” Raslaufer glanced to the side; Sabermont’s shoulder was slumped, and it was unclear when it would heal.

“Just another snake-woman story,” Sabelmon scoffed. “Pretending to obey, gaining merit, gaining trust, betraying trust. It’s just that the woman was very wary, and I failed to succeed, but she also failed to capture me.”

If he succeeds, he might be able to complete the transformation through a ritual, bringing himself closer to the perfect form envisioned by the serpent god, and then throw himself into the next act of loyalty and betrayal, while guarding against being overthrown by similar events.

But all of that is meaningless now. He failed, and he really angered the people he had previously "been loyal to," so much so that he can only huddle in this mine with a group of "defective products" who are far less capable than him but have also failed.

“Those demons lurk deeper within. They are incredibly cunning. To find them, one must first traverse the still-operating mine shafts, the intersection of several human factions, the barracks of one of those factions, and even a goblin lair,” Sabelmon changed the subject. “It wasn’t a big deal before when we occupied almost half of this mountain, but now it’s much more difficult. And those demons can easily attack us, determined to take away our last foothold.”

Before Raslaufer arrived, the snake people didn't understand why those sulfur-smelling creatures were so harsh on them, refusing to even give them a place to stay—even if they did have plans to take over the entire Dreamfall region, that was a long time from now.

But if those devils' spokespeople find their own spokespeople, then the whole thing becomes very easy to explain.

As the snake-men were driven away from the abandoned mine tunnels, miners and scattered squads who encountered these cold-blooded creatures fled at the mere sight of them. Sabelmon, however, cautiously led his team around the heavily guarded outposts to avoid unnecessary conflicts as much as possible.

Reslaufer wasn't there to help them seize territory.

“Over there, over there is Arkent’s territory,” Sabelmon said. The mine was so dark that it was hard to tell day from night. After wandering around and resting two or three times, Sabelmon finally raised his only intact arm and pointed to the darkness in the distance. “Look at that ridiculous flag. Ha, you know it better than I do.”

Leslaufer stared at him for a long time: "...You snake people also have darkvision, right?"

He could use the infernal fire as a light source, but that only illuminated a small area around him; the more distant areas remained an unknown mystery to him.

The snake-man warrior was somewhat helpless about this: "This is already the edge of their outpost. By the time you can see their light, they will be able to see us too—unless you plan to cause a ruckus in the barracks first to make sure the person you're after isn't there."

“That won’t be necessary,” Raslaufer waved his hand. “He knows me. If he really wanted to live, he wouldn’t think that a single unit here could protect him from death.”

Where are those cult members...and the devils hiding?

Doble was about to call them cultists, but looking at the snake people around him, who claimed that their gods would eventually devour the whole world... the devils seemed insignificant in comparison.

“This way, there’s a spiral passage leading downwards,” Sabelmon said, unaware of what Leslaufer was thinking, and even if he did, he wouldn’t have minded. “It’s a good thing you’re not wearing the armor we wore when we first met. Otherwise, you probably would have had to take it off to keep up.”

It's nearly impossible for the snake people to take shortcuts that cater to human feelings. Even without armor, Raslaufer could only crawl through the long spiral passage at the bottom of the cave, which was only a few dozen centimeters high. If attacked here, fighting back was almost impossible, so Raslaufer moved extremely slowly, maintaining a distance of at least five meters even from the nearest Sabermon, fearing that the tail that almost completely filled the passage might suddenly coil around him.

Fortunately, this didn't actually happen: Sabelmon knew that Raslaufer was not an easy opponent, and at this moment, whether preparing to fight the devil's followers or maintaining the management of the entire snake-man community, he needed to rely on the human behind him. Therefore, in response to Raslaufer's special wariness, he only made a series of hoarse hissing sounds in his throat, and then quickened his pace to swim forward.

The spiraling cave's final exit is inside another cave. Rocks block this interconnected cave system from the outside, so much so that even though the nearby devil worshippers have suffered several reprisals from the snake people, they have never been able to find out where these cold-blooded creatures "emerged" from.

In the culture of the snake people, there is only victory or defeat, and they never regard direct confrontation as an honor.

Perhaps the outer area was guarded by Arkent's unsuspecting soldiers, or perhaps the snake people's exit was close enough, but when Raslaufer emerged, he saw the brightly lit side of the camp, with voices constantly coming from the buildings made of logs and stones, completely unlike the tense atmosphere surrounding the battlefield above.

Without even needing to sneak around, Raslaufer and his men were already close to the shadows of the camp.

As Sabelmon made a few hand gestures, the snake people's forms immediately began to change. Except for those snake people who looked the most human and were at the bottom of the snake people's society, the other snake people transformed into snakes and pythons, sneaking into the camp through every possible passage.

They had attacked the enemy in this way several times before, but due to insufficient strength, the results were minimal, and each time they had to end it hastily. But this time, it was completely different.

Chapter 648 Another Kind of Leslaufer

The aroma of burning tobacco gradually spread, and as the unlit end was put into his mouth, the bandit leader casually flicked out the flame on his thumb.

Although this place was dark and inconvenient for everything, at least he had this little bit of solace. And besides that…

His gaze unconsciously drifted to his barracks, where, beneath the wooden planks, lay a chest full of gold and silver treasures.

Mammon is the ruler of greed, possessing countless riches. When He trades with mortals, even a single hair from His hair can be a fortune that a mortal could enjoy for a lifetime.

Compared to this, what is a mere soul?

The bandit leader, who had led all his men to join the devil, leaned back, resting most of his weight on the chair back. As one of the more respectable members here, although he was on duty guarding the area, he didn't need to exert himself like the others. Now he needed to conserve his energy; in a few days, the next attack on the snake-men would begin again.

The finance minister, who's fatter than a domestic pig, just appeared here not long ago. It's really a shame he has to run around like that with that kind of appearance...

As the leader pondered this, he hummed a local folk tune, his head swaying rhythmically and with increasing amplitude until, with a "thud," the back of his head struck something icy cold.

"No way, it fell down again?" He didn't seem surprised at all, reaching behind him as if to toss something onto it. "It was just fixed not long ago..."

His muttering abruptly ended there, because the moment his hand touched the thing hanging from the eaves, he realized that it was not the object he had imagined.

Cold, damp, slippery, covered in fresh mud and stone chips... and covered in scales.

Is it really his turn this time?

The man hurriedly tried to stand up and shout to warn the others, but two heavy nooses were already tied around his waist and neck, binding him to the chair. He looked up in horror and saw a human head at the end of the thick snake's body, with a pair of vertical pupils looking down expressionlessly at the bandit leader who had recently been recruited by a bald merchant.

"Uh, uh-uh—cluck—"

The snake-man's body suddenly tightened, and its prey and the chair it was sitting on broke off at the same moment, scattering on the ground. The cigarette, only one-fifth burned, fell from its weak fingertips and was easily extinguished by the scales.

But at that very moment, even though the snake-man did not trigger any alarms, the entire camp of the devil's followers was suddenly illuminated by a blinding red light, signaling danger and an attack!

“This is it,” Sabelmon said, looking at Leslaufer. “Our successes usually stop here—no matter how subtle the methods, as long as one of their members dies, the camp comes to life, as if the souls of all the living things inside are bound to it!”

Leslaufer, hooded and standing atop the wall, watched the devil cultists below rapidly assembling and preparing to attack with an ambiguous expression: "Devils, well, maybe they really are as you say—but it doesn't matter."

"Because I came."

Having said that, Dubul leaped up. Without the broken halberd, he now resembled a gray-white vulture swooping down from the clouds, extending his sharp claws toward the lambs waiting to be slaughtered below.

Most of the swarming snakes revealed themselves, brandishing scimitars and drawing longbows as they attacked the devil cultists. However, none of them could match the efficiency of Raslaufer. His sword, glowing with green fire, swept through the crowd, and in an instant, three or five devil cultists fell to the ground, unable to mount even a counterattack.

"Infernal Fire!" "It's Infernal Fire!" The intervention of Leslaufer shocked the believers who were originally full of confidence and ready to repel the snake-man attack, and they all shouted.

"You also believe in the Nine Hells, so why are you helping those snake people!" "They are connected to the Abyss; they are demons!"

Although they seemed to be verbally persuading Reslaufer, these people showed no mercy. With a series of booming sounds, more than a dozen black and red explosive energy rays shot out as they locked onto Dople, relentlessly bombarding Reslaufer. Several of these rays were thicker and more powerful than the others; when they struck Reslaufer, even he couldn't help but groan. He felt as if he had been struck by a tremendous force, and was blasted backward in one direction, barely managing to regain his footing several times in mid-air before finally landing.

The Hellfire Blade swept across, precisely slicing through the arms of the two followers who were trying to take advantage of the opening. This forced them to drop their weapons as soon as they released the spells they had attached to them. With a final slash, blood splattered out like rubies, reflecting an eerie green light under the illumination of the infernal flames.

“Well done…” Raslaufer spun the blade around his head and back, using his waist and hips as the axis to drive his shoulders and arms. The blade bloomed like a deadly steel flower in the crowd, blocking incoming weapons and some magic from the blade's edge. Any believer who got close was inevitably cut down as Dople spun around.

"But you need to try a little harder!"

Raslaufer spat, his cloak billowing, blinding the approaching men. Taking advantage of this moment, his battle blade suddenly shot out from beneath the cloak. Even though these believers were all covered in ice armor made of magical frost, they could not escape their fate of death!

The shattered frost became another force capable of causing real damage to Raslaufer, following the explosive energy. However, their master could not be saved. As blood soaked through his tattered cloak and cape, in this dark and damp underground, Doppler's blood actually ignited into a blazing flame on his body!

"Get out of the way if you know what's good for you!" Barbasabalon's arrogant scream rang out beside Leslaufer. This little devil had also joined the battle at this moment. However, although its power might be effective against ordinary mortals, it was difficult to be effective against these followers of the Nine Hells. It awkwardly moved around Leslaufer, but it was unwilling to give up and withdraw from the battlefield.

However, besides trying to flatter and express loyalty, this wicked little thing seems to have other motives.

“Master,” Barbasabalon whispered as he watched the life around Leslaufer gradually turn into fear and corpses, landing on Leslaufer’s shoulder, “This is a good opportunity to repay the debt you owe your mistress!”

"Behind these believers is a horned demon named Velogracs. This guy was supposed to be the mistress's achievement, but it was stolen by Grand Duke Mammon's representative, and Princess Gracia is protecting Grand Duke Mammon—now the opportunity has finally come."

"Find and destroy this treacherous bastard, and you will receive a great reward from the mistress!"

Chapter 649 Behind the Chancellor of the Exchequer

Raslaufer's blade paused its reaping of lives for a moment, but not because of Barbasabalon's words. Rather, it was because behind these cultists, deep within this camp, a massive mountain of flesh had once again appeared before Raslaufer.

“You should keep hiding, cowering like a little bastard,” Raslaufer suddenly swung his sword, a line of blood like scattered daggers landing on the surrounding rocks. “I’ll kill them all first, teach you a lesson, and show you that you shouldn’t run away from me.”

"—But you won't learn your lesson, so I'll kill you again."

“You’re a complete madman, Raslaufer!” Griffin roared. He wasn’t using a levitation device, but beside him was a whole chest of jewels and gold coins. The chest lid was opened, and as his fat hand scooped out a handful of wealth and hurled it at Raslaufer, different treasures instantly transformed into various spells, pouring down on Raslaufer!

"Even if I'm associating with these scaly reptiles, you still want to hunt me down? What grudge do we have against each other!"

Raslaufer cleaved a magic stone in two as it came toward him. As the spell dissipated, the gold coin, now devoid of any magic, fell to the ground and was trampled underfoot. "You don't need to worry about that. It's been there from the moment you brought me here—Sabelmon, have your men clear the way for me!"

Doble usually clears space on the battlefield for other soldiers, but that doesn’t mean Raslaufer would refuse help from others, especially when he doesn’t have the most suitable equipment. Hearing Raslaufer’s shout, the snake-man on the other side suddenly hissed sharply, and a strange light suddenly flashed in his vertical pupils. The cultist who was fighting back and forth with his one arm suddenly stopped, and the next moment his head was cut off by Sabermon.

Around them, the swarm of snakes responded to Sabelmon's call and gathered, surrounding Reslauver from the front and back, blocking and shielding him from most attacks and protecting him as he charged forward. Facing the scimitars, fangs, and snake tails, the devil's followers roared and unleashed their attacks. In the past, these snake-men were utterly powerless against their fierce counterattacks and would quickly retreat. But this time, they were determined to continue forward, crushing all flesh and blood that stood in their way beneath their scales!

Even on the ground behind them, where corpses had paved a path, nothing was different!

This is their first chance to defeat these demons, and they must move forward!

"Get away from me!" Seeing that Doppler was rushing towards him again, Griffin panicked. He overturned all the jewels in the entire chest, trying to stop Raslaufer from getting closer. However, he did not understand the principle of the magic attached to these treasures. The magic that was activated but had no guidance went berserk the moment it came into contact with the ground. The violent energy poured into the mountain, making the entire mine tremble slightly.

But it did nothing to affect Reslaufer's momentum.

"Goodbye!" A sinister smile appeared on Dobul's lips. He leaped into the air, and aquamarine ripples spread from his body, forming a protective ripple that intercepted all spells targeting him. Taking advantage of this opening, he ruthlessly slashed down with his battle blade, aiming straight for Griffin's head.

This time it was different from Mary's sword. Even if Griffin's fat and flesh were ten times thicker, he wouldn't be able to stop Raslaufer from taking Griffin's life!

However, just as Raslaufer swung his sword down, a golden, illusory hand appeared out of thin air without warning, grabbing the blade without any flourish, as if to snatch it from Dobler's grasp. Raslaufer, who had always been the one to disarm others, was naturally not going to let such a move disarm him. But because of this sudden attack, as the sword shattered the magical hand surrounding it, the blade also deflected slightly, only striking Griffin's shoulder instead.

The blade pierced the flesh without hesitation, instantly becoming scorching hot, burning away the surrounding skin and fat, allowing it to be pulled out without delay and returned to Reslaufer's hand. At the same time, Doppler's gaze fell on the balding, businessman-looking man who had appeared behind Griffin at some point.

"It actually managed to resist the power of the Hand of Greed?" Leslaufer was astonished by this person's attempt to forcibly seize his weapon. Little did he know that this genuine sorcerer also viewed Leslaufer with new respect. The power from the devil could forcibly take almost anything from another person, but it had no effect here. "You clearly didn't unleash the full power of this sword!"

He knew far better than Raslaufer that if this Hellfire Blade could be linked and bound to him, its power would be far greater than it was now, rather than Raslaufer simply relying on its material—for no other reason than that this weapon once belonged to a true demon!

"You're not just a Dupler, who exactly are you?"

“I am…” Leslaufer paused, turning to look at Barbasababaren beside him, “Is it him?”

“No, no, my dear master,” the little devil cried in a shrill voice, “he’s not even an agent, at best he’s just a guy who trades his soul for power and wealth.”

"Of course you know that as the richest of all the dukes in the Nine Hells, and even in all the planes, Duke Mammon only needs a tiny bit of wealth to attract tens of thousands of souls of this kind. Neither Duke Zariel nor Duke Philna can compare to the number of souls they can acquire."

However, Zariel typically attracts skilled warriors, while Philna's beggars are all smooth talkers, and the souls Mammon reaps... at least lack such distinct talents and styles. If his beggars were adept at accumulating wealth, they probably wouldn't want to dedicate themselves to Mammon.

“Alright,” Leslaufer nodded, “then, I am your Grim Reaper—come with me!”

Having said that, the merchant-looking cultist had just summoned a strangely shaped, heavy book into his palm when Raslaufer had already attacked him. Behind him, Barbasabalon raised his poisonous barbs, attempting to kill the sorcerer with a single blow!

But just as he was about to succeed, a dark red light, about the same size as Barbasabalon, burst out from the opponent's book. The identical tail spikes lashed out at Barbasabalon's tail like whips, knocking his attack aside!

Chapter 650 The Bewitching Power of the Demon

"You...you're a ghost!" The little devil's eyes widened as he stared at the creature that looked almost exactly like him—undoubtedly, it was also a little devil. "Get out of my way! You can't stand in the way of Lord Barbasabalon!"

"Ha, really?" Clearly, Barbasabalon's authority wasn't enough to subdue the other little devil, and the two small figures quickly became entangled in a fight. "You're the one who should get out of the way, because this mortal is—"

"Oh, shut your stinking mouth! I don't even want to know who you are. Even if you were to ascend from a lesser demon hundreds of times, you still couldn't match the legend of Lord Barbasabalon!"

At the same time, the merchant's third mirror image was also easily shattered by Raslaufer. As the blade flashed overhead, the cultist hurriedly touched his bald head, which was covered in blood and gore, as a piece of his scalp had been shaved off.

This person… he’s toying with him! For some reason, this thought arose in the merchant’s mind. Perhaps it was because the other man’s face was etched with a contemptuous smile, which, despite the injuries and bloodstains on his body, showed no sign of diminishing. Even the joy that Leslaufer had felt after destroying three of his mirror images to find his true form was completely overshadowed.

The cultists around him were still attacking desperately, and although they had almost completely suppressed the snake man, the cultist was certain that if they didn't move any faster, he would die even further ahead—if it weren't for Griffin being so important to his plans—even so, he was now beginning to regret it!

What plans are more important than my life?!

His gaze flickered to the other side, and he was astonished to find that his own magical pet, the little devil, was also being brutally beaten by the other's little devil. Barbasabalon had been by Reslaufer's side for a long time, not to mention that he had previously belonged to Afonas. His fighting skills were only difficult to use normally due to his size. Now, encountering an equally matched opponent, it only took a few moves for his opponent to curl up on the ground, receiving a barrage of punches from Barbasabalon.

"What, are you getting bored fighting me?" Raslaufer's voice startled the merchant. He instinctively tried to distance himself, but it was too late. A loud tearing sound rang out, and a gash appeared on his magnificent, expensive clothes, its shape exactly matching the new wound on his chest. Blood gushed out, turning into specks of ice that sprinkled onto Duple. His counterattack was effective, but Raslaufer completely ignored it, and it seemed that the next strike would turn this "brave" fellow into a spirit beside him before Griffin could even arrive.

But at that moment, another long-handled sword suddenly appeared and deflected Raslaufer's sword!

"No way, you're doing it again?!" Barbasabalun punched one of his own kind unconscious, then screamed dramatically, "You're... a Bearded Demon? What are you doing here?!"

In Raslaufer's view, the burly man who charged out had pointed ears, scales, a long tail, and sharp claws. His upper body was bare, revealing purple skin. He held a long-handled knife, and his scarlet eyes were fixed on Raslaufer. On his chin, countless snake-like limbs wriggled and twisted, and it was obvious without any explanation that that was the origin of his name, the Devourer.

"Master, you must be careful!" The little devil flew over quickly, warning, "This guy's whiskers are poisonous, and so is his long-handled sword. If you get hurt..."

“Incurable—Barbasabalon, you lowly worm!” the demon hissed, finishing the rest for the little devil. He then turned to Leslaufer and chuckled coldly, “Leslaufer, Dobler of Eastern Inassus, nemesis of demons! It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“I will collect your souls and take you to hell. Believe me, that's where you belong—you deserve it.”

Leslaufer looked him up and down, then finally scoffed, "How do you compare to Bone Demon?"

Xu Mo was taken aback by the question, but in the end he still answered honestly, "How about..."

This is no secret; even if he were lying, Barbasababaron would have told Raslaufer.

"Then how do you compare to Chain Demon?"

"Uh...not as good."

“Well then,” Barbasabalon, who was standing next to Leslaufer, had already started to laugh, but the little devil quickly stopped him, letting Leslaufer finish speaking, “then you’re not qualified—call your master to come and get me!”

A sudden sense of tension and fear instantly enveloped the demon. As a demon, he hadn't experienced such a life-or-death crisis in a long time, but as a combat specialist, he quickly raised his weapon to parry Raslaufer's sword and tried to use his length advantage to suppress Raslaufer. However, this was far too childish for a Dople. In fact, if it weren't for the poison on his tentacles and weapon forcing Raslaufer to dodge carefully, he might not have been as threatening as his sorcerer subordinates!

However, as a demon, this bearded demon also had other tricks up its sleeve.

With a flick of his wrist, Raslaufer's sword tip precisely sliced ​​into the vengeful spirit's wrist. The spirit cried out in pain, its long-handled sword clattering to the ground. But amidst this, the cry and the sound of the weapon falling seemed to possess a peculiar rhythm. An invisible, intangible force enveloped Raslaufer completely. Meanwhile, Dople, unfamiliar with magic, remained oblivious, only feeling a burning desire within him, a seductive voice echoing in his ears, as if reminding him…

He can become stronger.

The demon revealed a sly grin of triumph. He could deceive mortals, creating a powerful illusion that drove them to exhaust their strength, ultimately leading to their self-destruction. This trick never failed him, and it could even be used on allies, instilling in them a fearless, suicide-like attack. No one could resist the allure of boundless power—especially mercenaries like these.

This mortal, who is now being mentioned even in the Nine Hells, will soon be destroyed by him!

"No!" Just as the demon was feeling incredibly smug, he turned around at the shout and was as surprised as most of the snake people and cultists who had also been drawn by the sound: a white horse was galloping towards them through the mine tunnel they often used!

No, that wasn't a steed. As a demon, the Bearded Demon couldn't be mistaken; it was a unicorn. It seemed the mortal mercenary's companions had arrived, but so what?